Over the summer I put together these sentimental boxes for our family to preserve special memories and milestones. I have been collecting things for many years and it was time to pare it all down so that the collections where easier to store and less overwhelming.
I originally started with a large plastic file box to collect art work our kids have made. You have probably seen these on social media where they are made for each kid. This was my original plan but then as we got a few years into school I realized this was too much stuff to save for each kid.
Then I also had a box of sentimental baby items that needed to go through and get organized.
I really feel like some of this stuff is hard to work through when it is fresh. Now that our oldest is eight years old, I have a better idea of how much has been accumulated. So I decided each kid would get one smaller file box to hold all their special art work, school work, and memorabilia. Then they would each get a small birth box that would include baby items and a card they receive from me every birthday.
Here are their birth boxes:
I use a standard size photo box for each kid. This is just big enough to hold on to a few baby things and cards. But there is no room for anything else! It keeps these boxes really simple and special. I used my label maker for the names.
Each box includes:
+ extra ultrasound photos that didn't make it into their baby book
+ hospital blanket and hat
+ a few special outfits
+ state rattle (our kids have been born in three different states so this was special for me)
+ a couple of cards from baby showers or when they were born
+ a yearly birthday card from me
+ a few favorite photos from when they were a baby
It all packs away neatly and then I place their birthday card on top every year. For their birthday cards I write a sweet sentiment but also include special things they did that year and things they like. It serves as a bit of a memory keeper for what they were like at that age.
My oldest daughter's box also included her flower headband she wore on her first birthday and some covid masks she wore. I hope these little items will help tell the history of their time.
The same for my oldest son - he has his covid mask and a bow tie he wore on his first birthday.
Here are the three oldest kids' boxes that I completed. It was hard to pick and choose what would make it into these boxes. But now that they are done, they feel so special and just the right amount of stuff. I try to remember that just because it was sentimental to me doesn't mean it will be sentimental to them. We have so many photos to remember special outfits and memories. Hopefully these boxes will be just enough.
My two oldest were toddler/preschool age during the pandemic so we had a lot of artwork we made together. I quickly realized we could not save it all and had to be ruthless with what we kept. Getting it down to a smaller file box really helped me see how much I could save. I am finding with my school age children, I am having to go through the previous years again to cut back to make room for the current year's stuff. But it is helpful to have a place to put it all away now and in a year, to reassess. It is less fresh and easier to purge after some time has past.
Expandable File Pocket Folder (can also be found at Target)
Here is how the school work/art box is organized:
Each section holds one file folder. Each file folder is labeled by school year. The first section also is reserved for special photos and documents.
This includes:
+ special photos and documents: sentimental birth certificate from the hospital, yearly school pictures, and a few special photos I have made with the kids (things like putting their face on an elf picture for Christmas!)
+ toddler: from their first artwork until they start preschool (for us that is about age 1-4)
+ preschool: our kids do one year of pre-k
+ kindergarten through twelfth grade
Here are our three file folders compared to the original one large file box that I had planned for each kid. It felt good to cut back our collection substantially.
While I was working on all these boxes, it was helpful to have a holding place before I decided what I was going to do. We went with this one file box for a couple of years, holding everyone's sentimental paperwork. I was even putting my own special artwork or cards that I received in here.
Next were sentimental boxes for me and Brent. This was harder to do because this was our lifetime of special memories as well as all the pictures and cards our kids have made us up until now. But like with all these boxes, deciding how much space I was willing to give up in our home to store these things was the first step. From there I could decide what was worthy of keeping. If it didn't fit, I needed to reassess.
Foldable Storage Bins With Lids
I also wanted the boxes to feel beautiful and special. It helps hold me accountable to their size and encourages me to treat them carefully. These are not getting stuffed in the back of a closet or in our shed. They are special and should be treated that way. If they are just extra storage, I start loosing track of their purpose.
Specifically for my husband, I wanted to organize his a little better. He had special items from school and his career. So I used plastic file envelopes to keep them separate and easy to get to. A little gift bag holds stickers and pins he has received for different aerospace programs he has worked on.
Another folder holds some growing up type things - school items, old photos, and little keepsakes from his grandfather's time as a test pilot.
And then I put all his cards in another folder. These are mostly from family and close friends. I am a little more ruthless about the things I keep so I wanted to honor his decision to hold on to things. Having them organized in separate folders made the box of items feel less overwhelming for me.
While my sentimental box already holds plenty of things from my kids, I wanted a smaller box of really sweet, beautiful treasures from them. If I want to sit and have a moment, this motherhood box is the place.
I used the box my Powersheets comes in so it is a smaller size box - the size of a large journal. It fits on a shelf in our bedroom stacked under books.
My motherhood box includes:
+ one special picture of me with each of my kids
+ my most treasured pictures, crafts, and cards they have made me (or I made with them)
+ a quote on motherhood I treasure
+ a small notebook journal that includes special memories of my kids I want to look back and remember
During the pandemic, I kept this journal of everyday things we did together and included photos. I now keep a less elaborate version of this. I find it so helpful for my mental health to practice gratitude for these days I spend caring for children. It keeps me focused and grateful. Plus I am sure I will love looking back at some of these memories in the years to come.
My final box is a marriage box. I used the same small sized box from my Powersheets. Fifteen years since we married and I had to not hold on to so many cards! I went through and picked the most special and thoughtful cards we received along with some special mementos.
Cards and letters we have written to each other are all stored in our sentimental boxes.
Our marriage box includes:
+ a few special cards we received at showers and our wedding
+ keepsakes from our wedding - garter and handkerchief
+ mementos from anniversaries - buttons from Disneyland, postcards from places we went to and I wrote a few memories on
+ a couple of favorite photos from our engagement session and wedding
And that is a wrap! It took me all summer to work on these so that is a lot for one post! But I am so proud and happy of these special boxes I put together. It really helped me put value on our sentimental things by keeping what was most important and not treasuring everything. I keep trying to tell myself - what will we really want to look back and go through many years from now? I am learning that I am allowed to be nostalgic but also strive to be more minimalistic. I am getting to a happy medium and it feels good!
