It’s amazing how quickly a pregnancy is gone when you look back over the almost ten months following delivery. During these months, time drags while waiting to meet your baby, but after the fact, you might feel more than a bit nostalgic for your large belly and mood swings.

It’s important to capture pregnancy in as many ways as possible as this is a stage of your life represents the most important transition you can achieve, yet the details are often forgotten over time. Preserving your pregnancy can be as simple as:

Journaling
Write a few sentences in a journal every day or every week of the pregnancy. Some baby books and pregnancy journals have a space designed exactly for this reason.

Taking Belly Pictures
Every few weeks or every month, take a new belly picture. Stand in the same position and be brave enough to lift your shirt above your belly. Some day you’ll miss those stretchmarks. Plus seeing evidence of how big you really got as your belly grew is almost overwhelming.

Using a Tape Measure
If you buy a new tape measure, you can use it to chart your pregnancy. Wrap the tape around your waist every week and mark the spot with a permanent marker. As your belly grows, your marks will get farther apart. Then, when your tummy is returned to normal someday, you can marvel at how large it once was.