I love writing my kids letters but often life gets busy and I just forget. A friend told me that instead of scrapbooking she opened email accounts for each of her children, even as babies, and sends them letters. Isn’t that the greatest idea ever? I know my oldest son told me that he read the letters Jeff and I wrote him every day to get through high school. It means more than we think. I think birthday letters are the best, but I want to do it more.
I mentioned this before, but a friend’s grandfather I met and loved recently passed away and one of the special things he was known for was his notes to his children and grandchildren. It was such a gift to get one of these notes, and it made them all feel loved and incredibly special. My own mother is great at sending a little card or note.
If you have any neat traditions or ways to remember to do this, could you leave them in the comments?
I keep a journal (just a text document on Google drive) for each of my kids. I set a reminder to go off each week and when I get that reminder I just type a few sentences about what I'm enjoying about them that week, or things I'm hoping or praying. I also love to try to do lunchbox notes once a week.
When I was in high school my dad would leave me small notes in my bathroom on the counter or taped to the mirror. When I came home late and everyone was already asleep , I would turn on the light in the bathroom and see, “Great game tonight! 21 points!” Or a simple, “Goodnight Rachel, we love you!” They weren’t fancy or on cute paper, but it made me feel so loved and remembered!
My mom saved a lot of the notes we used to leave her when we were growing up. Just notes about everyday things like where we were going to play (had a lot of freedom to roam the neighborhood in those days and we didn't have cell phones or texting). We would leave a note on the kitchen counter, "I'm going to ride bikes with Beth, and then play at her house" or "We're out of milk, I love you mom!" She used a lot of the notes for bookmarks in her cookbooks. After she passed, it was a treasure to go through some of those books — the pages of our family favorites stained and well worn — and find our notes tucked inside.
We do lunch box notes, and I have a journal with my oldest. We aren't regular about it, but we write notes to each other in the journal and leave it on each other's pillows when there is a new entry.
We do momma and me journals. I write them a short note, ask a few questions (simple ones when they were little: what are you most looking forward to: Halloween or Christmas, and bigger ones as they've gotten older: is there anything that scares you about jr. high, etc). We used to be much more consistent when I only had 3 kiddos, but it's still a lot of fun to know when they kiss me goodnight that they have a surprise under their bed!
We do something similar! I write in it and leave it under her pillow (only one of my kids is old enough yet), and then she writes in it and leaves it under my pillow. It's so lovely.
Sarah- I used to put a short into my son's lunchbox every few days. When he stopped taking lunch to school, I was cleaning out my cupboard and found his old lunch bag. I found all of the note I had sent him in the side pocket of the bag. He kept them all!
That is so sweet! Makes me wish that I haven't been throwing them all away the next morning so that he can have them to look at one day.
You mentioned birthday letters and that is something I have done every year for my boys since they were born. Last year my oldest son turned 18 and I presented him with a cool wooden box and inside were all 18 of the birthday letters (I call them love letters too) with a ribbon tying them into a bundle. He had never read a single one because I kept them secret. In every letter I wrote about how much I loved him what funny, interesting things he was up to, his accomplishments that year, his interests, his favorite things/foods etc and what his personality was like. He is a quiet and private guy, but I could tell he really loved the gift. My youngest son is 14 and I'm already looking forward to the day I can do the same for him. 🙂
I saved every card and letter my youngest sister who is 16 years younger than me, sent to me from the time she was little and finally gave to her a few years ago. It spanned 30 some years. It was like a diary of her life. We had more fun going through that box. It was nice when people actually sent letters and wrote in cards.
I keep a notebook for each child and write to them in this notebook. Sometimes about a funny thing they say or something they accomplished, or maybe something really naughty and how I handled it. Sometimes I write apologies in there. Sometimes I write how much I love them and all my hopes and dreams for them. I am not sure when I will let them have the notebooks, when they are teenagers? When they leave home? I think I will just wait until I feel the time is right.
I put a note every single morning in my sons lunchbox. Sometimes its just a have a good day, or I love you, but others its a bible verse and inspirational thought. And for my oldest, I text him little notes. Not on a daily but whenever I think he needs it or if something reminds me of him or I think he needs to hear it.
I buy the cheap hello cards in the Target dollar bins (I seriously have an addiction and they are so cute!). I just write little notes to my daughter in them, she's 14 and her love language is words of affirmation and gifts so the notes kinda count as both. I will leave them on her desk when she's not home and she loves finding the cards as little surprises.
We've always written daily notes to our 3 girls to be opened when they have been away at camp/mission trips. Sometimes we'd include $ as a surprise to spend on something to remember their trip by. Our oldest daughter is on the other side of Canada in 4th year university. Once in a while I'll send her a note and copies of old photos from when she was a baby or toddler that remind her of family memories.
I do a journal entry each Sunday for my 4 kids. Sometimes it recaps their week. Sometimes it talks about problems they may be facing. It always contain an expression of love from me for them.
Also, I hope that you are doing well with the cancer….I've not pulled up your blog in a while so I am making my way through your entries. Continued prayers for your well being.
I realize I'm late to the party here but I had to share this idea I recently had. Im not a scrapbooker or journaler (is that a word?)so i went a different route. I was organizing recipes and had the thought to start my daughter her own family recipe book . I hand write them all and include a little note about the recipe with them, whose favorite it was (or wasnt!), which holiday it was made for etc. I started it with her first birthday cake and will continue to add to it until she gets married:)