A matching set

Well, they WOULD match, except that Mallory broke that mobile five months ago when she tried to do chin-ups with it.

What I have done with one child (Liam) I also like to do with the other (Mallory)... to the extent that it's possible. In some respects, you can't go home again. Mallory and I were going to baby day at the OEYC regularly for a while there, but for the past month or two, our attendance has dropped off. It's just not as much fun as it was with Liam. I have less in common with the other moms (would you believe I am the *only* regular with more than one kid? - the woman with twins aside). I took Liam faithfully because I made good friends there and I felt the need to expose him to other kids. I haven't bonded with anyone as much this time around, and Mallory already gets plenty of exposure to other kids - Liam, the kids at Cindy's, and the kids ages 0-6 from the OEYC general drop-in that we attend every Friday. So finally, I gave myself permission not to go when I don't feel like going. And I'm finding that I enjoy the time spent alone at home with just Mallory more than I ever did taking her out. It's a rare treat for us.

Anyway, I digress. The original point of my story is that I am trying to keep things the same for both kids. Which means recreating some staged photos, like these. And also making a shadow box for each of them of their newborn paraphernalia (did I never post Mallory's finished version? - can't find a link to it right now.) And I have a handful of my favourite baby outfits saved for each of them, because I'd like to make memory quilts with them (something I keep meaning to get on). And... and... and.

I even kept the little orange Old Navy hoodie that Liam used to wear all the time, and was thinking I should keep the white and turquoise one that Mal wears now that I love so much... and then I had an a-ha! moment and thought, I should frame them both and hang them up together.

Except that I worry that it might be too much. If, everywhere you look in our house, there is a matching set of kiddie memorabilia... well, it might be overkill.

Then again, we'll have a lot more wall space in our new house than we have here, and we have to fill it with something, so... why not these things that make me happy? At the very least, I will keep them tucked in the back of a drawer somewhere. Even if all this stuff is not out on display for the world to see... I can't bear to part with it.