Apart from the usual baby books, I have also been writing a blog for each of them addressed to their older selves.

A picture can tell a story, but it doesn't always capture everything. So I write a paragraph describing an amusing incident, an emotional conversation or how we dealt with a childhood difficulty - like a trip to the ER, while it is fresh in my mind. Not too long and not too often, but just something that I want to remember and be able to pass on to them.

Mother of 4- What a great idea. Have you shared the blog with your kids or other relatives yet or are you waiting to share the final product with them at a certain age?

I agree, written down memories are something to treasure.

If objects were just things, then their loss would be easy to dismiss.

That's simply not the case.

Human history is full of instances where the original item is of value, whether it be a building, a piece of art/clothing/whatever. in many cases, the item is so valuable that even if destroyed, the people will try to rebuild it.

Ten billion photocopies of the US Constitution will not replace the sentimental value of the actual piece.

High resolution photographs and X-ray scans of the Mona Lisa won't replace the actual painting. Heck, there's a reason why people travel ten thousand miles to see the actual painting. Sure, you can get a good idea what the Sistine Chapel looks like in photos or even a 3D walkthrough on your computer, but it's not the same thing.

As a writer, you will need to accept this someday. Books are a cheap way to describe what the world is like, but they don't replace being there. That's why people travel.

Jay Park - Thanks for commenting.

I agree, objects can be quite valuable. And that is why this mother is clearly heartbroken.

You bring up a good point about originals and replicas. It is great when you have the opportunity to travel and experience these treasures rather than only read about them or see photographs.

However, to me, I think about spending time with our children and creating these memories as the "original" and the keepsakes as the "replicas." It is great to have these keepsakes (the photos, footprints and other items in a baby book) but what's most important are one's children and the experiences you have with them.

It's not just about an "original" and a "replica", it's also about an experience versus a record.

Who are your scrapbooks for? Yourself or your children (who may not remember what's going on at this age)? Others who may not have been there?

Is your own memory persistent enough to remember everything? What if you outlive your children?

Yes, the original experience is the most important, but it is limited to the people who were there, at least those who can remember it. That's why there are contracts, written documents, paintings, photographs, videotapes, DVDs, whatever.

One can spend an entire life without scrapbooking or archiving anything, but when you are gone, much of that will also vanish. It doesn't mean that what happened didn't happen, it just means that there is no record.

Jay Park - Personally, I scrapbook and create keepsakes because I enjoy it. It's always nice when these mementos become sentimentally valuable to someone else - one's kids, grandparents, spouse, friends, etc. but that doesn't always happen.

I share most of these keepsakes with our children now. That means they might get spit-up on them, break or have sticky fingerprints. But I created them to be enjoyed and don't want all of them to just be stored on a shelf somewhere until they may or may not be enjoyed in the future.