what do you think you would wanted to have had saved?

[elephantmeg]

I'm sorting through the pile of artwork the kids have made in preschool/daycare since March. I sort through it every week and only keep a little and now I think I'm paring it down to about 5 pieces each. But even those will add up over time! I have nothing from my childhood (we were evacuated and lost everything when I was 11) and I'm not sure what mom kept of high school and if she will ever find anything if she did keep it! It just makes me wonder what I would have wanted kept and what my kids will want to see/store when they have homes, lol. For now all I've kept for them is up to date photo albums and a small rubermaid tote with some favorite outfits (coming home, christening etc). DS has a pretty extensive scrapbook from his first 2 years I think and those include shower cards and birth memorabilia. DD has the birth stuff but not much more.

So what do you keep and how do you think your kids will feel about it?

[egoldber]

My mom kept mountains of papers and certificates and awards and I finally told her when I was 30 that I really didn't want it and to just throw it away. Really, what would I do with my preschool art work? OTOH, I think it gave me *mom* pleasure to look at this stuff occasionally, but really I don't want any of that stuff.

I have a box for each kid that I throw in the occasional thing that strikes me they would want to save. For example, older DD flew by herself this year and I threw in her ticket and her "United Airlines Unaccompanied Minor" button as a kind of souvenir. But I keep almost no artwork anymore.

The one thing I wish I did have from my child was more family pix. So I do try to take a lot of pix of events. But I am terrible at putting things into albums!!!! :o

[KrisM]

My mom didn't keep much. She made it into an album about 10 years ago. I have dance recital programs, school pictures, some keepsakes of artwork and my report cards.

I'm not saving much, but a lot more than that so far. I have plans to stick into binders, but haven't had the chance to start that yet, so it's all in a bin now.

I keep one artwork per kid for each season or holiday and rehang them. I enjoy pulling out a tree DS1 made when he was 3.

[mezzona]

My mom didn't keep much and when I was in high school I started to keep my own things. Sometime in the middle of college and after college I did a massive purge and got rid if everything. I regret it sometimes. I wish I kept a couple things. My DH in the other hand saved EVERYTHING. We went through a massive purge 6 months ago and found his writings from middle and high school. Very impressive, the things he thought about at that age. And I'm glad he kept them because I got to read them and get a glimpse of him when he was younger. It was wonderful. I want to keep some of my DD's stuff but may prove difficult as we are minimalists in a sense but I want them to be able to look back if they want when they're older, and if they decide to chuck it, then they can.

[egoldber]

PP a good point about the writing. The one thing I am saving for older DD is her writing samples. Each year from school she has come home with a little folder/binder with her written stories from that year. I am planning to put all those into a book for her. I do wish I had something like that from my school years. :)

[MoJo]

My mom saved photos, one outfit, and one piece of artwork that won an award in 1st grade. I myself saved a few pieces of artwork from middle school and some photography from high school, along with programs from concerts etc. She still has the award-winning artwork, as well as the pieces that were designated as gifts to her for Christmas/Mother's Day. She has the original photos, but I've scanned them so everyone has a digital copy. And I now have the outfit, and have pictures of each of my girls wearing it.

I'm happy with what was saved. I only wish there were more photographs. . . but back then, Polaroid photography was expensive, and when the camera broke it didn't get replaced for several years until I was old enough for my own camera. Today, with digital photography, I already have more pictures of my 2.5 year old (and maybe as many of my 7 month old) than exist of my whole life. I might have taken as many pictures on Christmas day 2010 as exist of me and my siblings during my whole childhood.

So my advice based on my experience would be to take pictures of them with their artwork, or pictures of them making their artwork, and then don't worry about it. Save it if it makes you happy, but don't expect they will want it, unless it's a really special piece.

And keep a copy of your photos somewhere other than your house. . . could be online, could be with family; I choose all of the above. Because then if there is ever a "we lost everything" situation, we wouldn't lose the photos.

[jvs195]

I got this idea from Peter Walsh when he was on Oprah - I save most of the artwork/projects in a box for each DC throughout the year, then I choose my favorites and photograph them. I make a snapfish album for each year and we can all look at them and see the progress but I can toss the enormous pile of glitter leaking items. I have a box of artwork that my mom saved of mine but I am going to do the same to it.

[elephantmeg]

And keep a copy of your photos somewhere other than your house. . . could be online, could be with family; I choose all of the above. Because then if there is ever a "we lost everything" situation, we wouldn't lose the photos.

we back up all our pics on DVD's and keep them at the IL's and we have her pics backed up on ours. We also have copies on each of our computers!

I'm glad my philosophy seems to be on track-I just can't immagine handing DD or DS a tote when the graduate with a ton of preschool artwork, lol. I'm thinking I need to do better about sending it/taking it to their grandparents and great grandparents though! Then they can toss it when they're tired of it!

[maylips]

Now that I'm older and have SO.MUCH.STUFF I can tell you that really, the things that mean the most to me are things *I* remember as a kid - so preschool stuff wouldn't mean much because I don't remember actually doing that project, but something from 4th grade that I kept myself does mean something because I remember when I got it, why it meant so much to me, etc.

So, outside of photos, I'm not keeping a bunch of my kids' stuff until they're older and show affinity for that particular project.

I will say I keep a notebook and write down funny/silly/heartwarming things my kids say and do that I plan to give them when they get married. But who knows if they'll even be sentimental like me?

[larig]

I got this idea from Peter Walsh when he was on Oprah - I save most of the artwork/projects in a box for each DC throughout the year, then I choose my favorites and photograph them. I make a snapfish album for each year and we can all look at them and see the progress but I can toss the enormous pile of glitter leaking items. I have a box of artwork that my mom saved of mine but I am going to do the same to it.

I've done this too. Each year I make a BIG (120 pages) photobook for DS, and since he's been creating art, I've been including some pictures of him creating alongside the scans/photos of the artwork. Ultimately I will make a big "coffee table book" of his artwork.

I think having the images of most of the artwork would have been enough for me to be happy. I do have some original pieces that won awards and some from a few studio classes in college. I have only a small amount of space, so a book would have been ideal and easy to move around the country.

I have a problem deciding what to keep clothing-wise.

[lalasmama]

When my mom passed on, I got 3 Rubbermade totes. 2 were her memorabilia-- it was so cool to "meet" her as a young person through all these. She had love letters from my dad; an autograph book from middle school (complete with a cover with 2 kids jitterbugging and notes from my future classmates parents, LOL); TIME magazine from when Armstrong walked on the moon; and so many other random things.

In the other tote was my memorabilia. There's some progess reports, an adorable hand-print-plate from when I was 3, my first silver silverware, wrapping paper and cards from my adoption (fun to see, because how many younger sibs believe that the firstborn is more loved!), my first love-letter to a celebrity (I was always offended that Leroy Wolfgang of "The Jets" never wrote back, guess I know why! LOL), and some other random things from my growing up.

For DD, I'm saving the first outfit I bought her (when she was an infant I would visit at DHS), the outfit she came home in (at 3yo), and some other things like that. I also have binders that I am saving some schoolwork in. For her Kindy one, it has her writing journals, some adorable drawings that made me giggle, some school work (she wrote a paragraph on how to fall asleep!).... I plan to pare down each year, as I see what I still love looking back on, and what I don't care about any longer. Each school binder will have 2-3 school years in it.

[KrisM]

PP a good point about the writing. The one thing I am saving for older DD is her writing samples. Each year from school she has come home with a little folder/binder with her written stories from that year. I am planning to put all those into a book for her. I do wish I had something like that from my school years. :)

Me, too. Today, in DS1's folder, was a little booklet with directions written by him on how to write 99 in Chinese. Step-by-step directions and the number included. Love it! I bet he will too.