KBR's talented contributor Belinda Butler joins us with a sensational bookish idea - making your very own picture book for baby. We love this idea. Get busy with it!It's no secret that babies love books and the only thing better than a shop-bought baby book is a home-made one.
Sure, one that comes from a store has interesting pictures of the world around, but the advantage of making your own at home means that it can be filled with pictures of baby's favourite things (or people), from her own environment.
You will need:
- a camera
- a printer or access to photo-printing
- a soft, small flip-album - these are available from most photo stores for around $1 - $2 dollars. Look for ones with soft, easy-to-turn, covers and pages
- a felt pen and some cardboard
- or a computer and a printer
What to Do
Take some interesting photos of baby doing or using her favourite things. You might like to make a couple of books and theme them. Some ideas could be:
- a book about body parts with photos of baby's eyes, nose, mouth, chin, hands, feet and tummy
- a family photo book with a photo of your baby with every family member (don't forget the pets, too!)
- a photo of each of baby's favourite toys
- some of her favourite foods
Once you've taken all your photos, get them printed and play around with the order you'd like them to be in. It's a good idea to start with very familiar people or items first to get her attention and then move onto trickier things as the book progresses, with perhaps a surprise favourite object at the end.
When you've decided what will work well, place a photo in each plastic slip. Cut a strip of cardboard and label the photo as simply as you can. You can print the labels out if you prefer.
It's helpful to keep the language simple and words to a minimum and it's also great to use your baby's name.
A child's name is usually the first written word she is able to recognise and the names of family members or favourite toys are usually a close second. This Baby Book should see your child well into his preschool years and may even be the first book she 'reads'.
Have fun!
