Preserve Pancake Kisses by Journaling

This post is for moms, especially the newbies, encouraging them to preserve pancake kisses and other sweet memories by journaling.

Have you already received a pancake kiss? Remember what your little one’s face looked like, the smell of pancake syrup, and how your child’s little sticky lips felt pressed to your face? Maybe that kiss was special, or maybe it was a mess! It probably happened in the blink of a toddler’s eye.

Did you write about it?

I understand how it is with little ones. Some days you have no time to shower, let alone write in a journal!

But we need to jot down notes after special moments. Because even a sticky pancake kiss can slip from our memories.

However, if you take the time to record the moment, years down the road, the sweet aroma of your child’s kiss will waft right off the page of your journal back into your heart, almost as fresh as the day you received it. 

It’s a precious gift you give back to yourself. Your children will cherish it, too.

I want to share a few things with you about journaling. Plus, I’ll let you peek into the journals I kept for my three kids.

The Message in Our Journals

I’m very sporadic in my journal writing. Every January, I buy a new journal, determined to write something every day. After two weeks, the journal entries grow farther apart. A month goes by, sometimes two.

Nonetheless, I write.

I believe what we write is more important than how often we write.

Our journals are messages we leave for someone else.

Unless they’re tossed in the trash or destroyed by the dog, our words will outlive us.

That doesn’t mean we have to write something PROFOUND or MAGNIFICENT. If we wait for that kind of inspiration, we may not have time to write anything!

Just share what’s going on in the mama’s heart. Be kind, but be real. That’s what the next generation will want to know.

Just remember, words have power.

When I write, I do not want to sugarcoat everything. But I also don’t want to use my words to tear others down. I want my words to be honest, to convey what our lives are like. But I also desire to use my words positively.

When my children and grandchildren read my journals, I want them to find humor, encouragement, and hopefully a little wisdom. I hope my words remind them of God’s great love and mine.

Choose your words wisely.

The Milestones, the Mundane, and the Humorous

There are a ton of things to write about–the milestones, the mundane, and the humorous!

When recording milestones in your kids’ lives, try not to duplicate what you’re putting in a baby book or on those cute chalkboards. Think of other things.

What are their struggles, and what are they learning? What are you struggling with and learning as a parent?

I loved interviewing my children, asking them what they wanted to be when they grew up, and to tell me their favorite and least favorite things.

Include quotes in your journal. I find my children’s recorded words to be extraordinarily dear to me now. I honestly don’t remember half of what they said, so I’m glad I wrote it down!

Jot down the seemingly mundane moments–your little boy pretending to snore like Daddy; the way the baby carries the dog leash around the house every day; that plain brown pancake and the stickiest, smuushiest kiss you ever got. If you have the time, be descriptive and use all of your senses.

If you don’t have the time, I know you’re snapping a photo with your phone! Go back later and write details in the journal. Include descriptions of favorite toys, blankets, bedroom and play areas, classroom, the backyard, a favorite hiding place, a special collection, a special friend, neighbor, pet.

Make quick notes about the humorous things your kids do or say. These moments will bring smiles for years to come.

Journaling One Year is Better Than Journaling None

Some moms are so diligent to keep scrapbooks and journals for every year of their kids’ school years. Bless those sweet mamas.

I began a journal for each of my children when I became pregnant with them, even the one that ended in a miscarriage.

With our son, his journal began two years prior to his birth, because our adoption journey took that long.

Those kids who have special books made for all eighteen of their school years—they don’t know how fortunate they are.

Each of my children has a total of one journal and one scrapbook. Bless ‘em!

That sounds like they didn’t have many special moments, doesn’t it?

Well, they did! I had the best of intentions. I took tons of photos! Life seemed too busy to stop and write things down.

That’s why I am encouraging you to journal. Even if you only have time to compile one book for their first eighteen years of life–they’ll appreciate it.

And I know you will cherish it as well.

Because every so often, I’ll pull out one of those little books, and I am reminded of a sweet memory that has slipped my mind yet again.

It only takes a minute.

Tuck in notes you write to your children, a special ticket stub, or a picture they drew. A few of your handwritten notes are special. Of course, you can’t put in everything—unless you’re one of those super-creative scrapbooking mamas!

Tell the Next Generation What God Has Done

One precious area to write about is the spiritual growth you witness in your children.

This was an area my children enjoyed reading as they grew older because they often forgot some of the questions they asked in their younger years.

Even though the journals focused mainly on the children, I occasionally included what was happening in our family, our community, and our world.

When the attacks happened in America on 9-11, I recorded the questions my children had, their concerns, and prayers.

Each year as my son has matured, I include more of our conversations about his adoption in my journaling.

Through the years, family health issues, job changes, births, and deaths of friends, family members, and pets are mentioned.

I have written my praise and thankfulness to God for my children and my prayers for them.

Those journals are as dear to me as my children’s baby photos, maybe more.

Consider Giving Someone a Journal

Consider giving someone a journal. Do you know a Mom-to-be? Encourage her to preserve the sticky pancake kisses and other special moments by journaling!

Perhaps give a journal to someone whose heart you’d love to read one day, like your mother, grandmother, or another godly woman you know.

Maybe you’re a grandmother! Consider starting a journal providing your thoughts and prayers for that little grandbaby.

One last note. If technology is the only way to record your words, then go for it. Sometimes, it is the fastest and most convenient way.

However, the next generation, even as tech-savvy as they are, will appreciate items with the personal touch of your handwriting.

Motivated by the power of story, history, and His Story, Sally Matheny’s passion is telling the next generation wondrous things.

Her nonfiction writing appears in worldwide, national, and regional publications. SchoolhouseTeachers.com features two of her WWII history units. In2025, End Game Press will release Sally’s first nonfiction picture book, T is for Together: An Introduction to the American Spirit of WWII.

Learn more at SallyMatheny.com., where you’ll find encouraging blog posts, book reviews, and free resources.