Keepsakes ~ Session One

 Generally speaking I am not a super sentimental saver of items.  

And here is the reason why.

Years ago my husband and I were robbed.  Much of what was stolen was gold jewellery that had belonged to my grandmother.  The pieces were beautiful but as I was asked to describe them in detail for the insurance company, I had a hard time remembering exactly what they looked like.  

You see, they had been sitting in a box, never worn or enjoyed. 

So after that experience I decided that if it's worth keeping then it should either be

Worn

or

Visible

What is the point of having wonderful memories boxed up where you will never see them?

And so when it comes to keepsakes from your children, session one is about displaying items that are special to you.

Growing up, my mom had my bronzed baby shoe book ends out on our bookcase, and now, they are out on mine.  

When my children learned to walk, my dad bought them each their first pair of "good" shoes.

So now in our bedroom, up on the top of the window closest to our bed, I keep the kids' shoes displayed.  I love them and they bring me joy daily.  

I added some wall words, "Be still and know that I am God".

I also set this quote up there.  I cry every single time I read it.

So you see, I am sentimental...just not an excessive saver.

There are a few items of clothing and 2 toys that I could not bear to give away.  I keep them in a basket on my office shelf.  

That little turtle's name is "Racer" and he laughs when you squeeze him.  My little Jake laughed like that when he was a baby and it always reminds me of his smiley face!

I could never part with Cate's cutie boots and Sofi's wee hat!!!

This decanter of shells I collected in Florida reminds me of the amazing time I had with the kids searching for treasures on the beach.

On our recent trip to Victoria I fell in love with the star fish at a Discovery Centre we visited.  This guy returned home with me and reminds me of the fun time I had there with the kids.

The cat card is the best Mother's Day card ever.  It has a recording of all the kids talking and it plays "A Bushel and a Peck" which is a song I used to sing to Eli every night.  Inside each kid signed it so it is also a record of all their sweet signatures.  

Oops...I nearly forgot about this little guy.  One day my baby girl picked me a "bouquet" like she sees her big sister doing.  

(Apparently there was some confusion between flowers and twigs.)

I thought it was so cute I sprayed it white and now it sits on my desk.

So by all means, save your most treasured items from your children's lives.  But display them in fun and functional ways so that you can enjoy them daily.