I have to be honest, I actually didn't think of it myself, it was actually Jude's preschool teacher who told me about the idea. It is something she said a friend did for her child(ren). I had emailed Jude's teacher to let her know that Jude had been setting his stuffed animals up and pretending to be a teacher and to thank her for being so great. I included a picture of all the stuffed animals all lined up in a row. She responded and said I should write this stuff down and told me that her friend set up an email account for her kids so that she can send quick emails to them.
Can we say GENIUS?
I loved this idea since it's absolutely perfect for the modern day, working mom on the go who has technology at her fingertips through her phone, iPad, and computer. I have tried several things in the past but have always found that I didn't have time to drop what I was doing, find what I did with the journal I bought each kid and write them a handwritten note. I always tried to include a photo in the journal if possible which meant, taking the photo, sending it to Walgreen's or CVS for printing, picking it up, taping it in the journal, etc. The genius in the email idea is that I can take the photo I had already taken with my phone and attach it to the email message I send.
I love it and write to them often. I find time in my every day ventures to take the time to do it. I do it while waiting in the doctors office, in the grocery store line, in my car when I arrive a few moments early for work, in the drive thru waiting for my large unsweetened iced tea with light ice from McDonald's for my daily must have beverage and while I am lying in bed trying to will my eyes to shut.
Someday, I will disclose to them what their email address is and the password I set for them so that they can read them and have those memories. I thought that for a graduation gift, I would access it and print them all out and make it into a book.
I write just about every other day. My favorite messages have to be the ones where I express the joy they bring to my life and the love I have for them. As an example, here are today's entries:
To Jude:
You have a little mailbox that Grandma Horsey gave you. I have been leaving you little notes on the kitchen counter for you to come home to. You asked me to start putting the notes in your mailbox and showed me where you'd leave it, which was on your desk. Today, I placed a note in your mailbox and you asked me to read it to you. It made you so happy which in turn made me happy. Your smile sure can light up a room.
____________________________________________________
To Gwenyth:
I hope that you feel my love each and everyday because it is so real. The love a mother has for their child is not comparable to any other kind of love. It is immeasurable and unstoppable.
This weekend you stayed overnight with Jude at Aunt Amanda's to spend time with your cousins and so mommy and daddy could go on a much needed date. When you arrived home, you were so excited to see me and it made my heart swell. You looked at me, threw your hands above your head and ran to me yelling "mommy! mommy!" We hugged and kissed as if we hadn't seen each other in ages when in fact it had been less than a day! We didn't let one another go with hugs, kisses and laughter for about thirty minutes!
I will always cherish those moments. They are etched in my mind.
I love you my sweet angel baby. You are a joy!
Love,
Mommy
I am so grateful to Jude's teacher for this idea because it is finally something that truly "works" for me in my busy life as an over-achieving working mommy and wife who finds a gazillon ways to keep herself busy. If there are any other mommy's out there who have tried other memory keeping ideas that have failed, you may want to give this a whirl. For me, I find it to be such a special connection that I have for myself with my kids. I hope that someday they will hold these memories near and dear to their heart as well.
No comments:
Post a Comment