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Hailee and I love our two boys more than just about anything else in the world. That said, we’ve never kept baby books with either of them. Sometimes we feel like bad parents when people ask if we’re going to save something for their baby book or whether we’re going to have photos printed or something.

The fact is, that’s just not us. We don’t really scrapbook or think about printing or hanging photos. Stopping to take photos of an experience often makes us feel like we’re no longer part of the experience. That’s not meant to be an indictment of that practice or anything, but it’s just how we feel.

I recently stumbled upon something that I think will bridge that gap well for us.

It’s called a 5 Year Journal.

How it works

It’s a fascinating journal layout and a great concept. The idea is this: you journal just a sentence or two a day. That’s it. But the trick is in the journal design. Each page is broken into 5 sections, with a 20__ beginning each section (so you can fill in the year that you’re currently in. The pages are usually labelled with a date, October 25th, for example.

So, you write just a couple of things about that day. It can be something you did, something that happened to you, something you felt, or a goal you thought about that day. That’s it. Just a few minutes a day. Turn off Facebook a little early and jot something down.

Speaking of Facebook, this journal functions a lot like an old-school, analogue memories feed. That’s the power of this journal—next year on October 25th, you can see exactly where you were the year prior. And as the years tick by, you can see each and every dream, goal, achievement, and milestone as they happen.

For my personal one, I also try and write a quick note about what I learned in my quiet time that day. As I review in later years, it’ll be really neat to see the highlight reel of my spiritual journey.

The journals come in plenty of shapes and sizes, from the $10 or so pocket-sized editions up to the premium Leuchtturm1917 editions that have multiple color options.

For the kids

And now for what it means for the kiddos. Hailee and I going to get one for each of them and use them as a kind of baby book.

So our goal is simple: each day, we’ll write a little bit about the boys, how they’re doing, what they did that day, what milestones they achieved, or something funny that happened. It’ll be really fun in a few years to be able to instantly see all those memories and breadcrumbs of their life unfold.

We’re a little late to the game, and I really wish I’d heard about these 5 Year Journals a couple of years ago. It would have been awesome to start from Lincoln’s birth, but better late than never!

Hailee and I aren’t sentimental people, but this new habit may turn us into that. We’ll see.

So what do you think? Are you interested in trying the 5 Year Journal for yourself or for your kids? What kinds of things do you do to keep track of precious memories?