What to write in a baby journal: 30 ideas for ages 1 to 3
Baby books ask for the big milestones: first tooth, first steps, first word. Those matter, but they’re not what you will miss most. What you’ll miss is the small, specific stuff that changes every few weeks: the word only your family understands, the thing that always makes them laugh, where they “hide.” Here are 30 prompts for that, with example notes to show how little you need to write.
One line is enough. Write it on the day, add their age, and move on.
Ages 1 to 2: 15 prompts
- Is there a sound or word they use for just about everything?
e.g. trucks, buses, the vacuum. all “brrm” - Do they have a word nobody else uses?
e.g. “bubu” means water. no one knows why - What makes them laugh the hardest right now?
e.g. my sneezes. taps my nose for another one - What are they copying from the grown-ups lately?
e.g. (Dad on a work call) holds a block to the ear: “yeah… yeah… okay” - When you play hide-and-seek, where do they “hide”?
e.g. the curtain. both feet showing - What household thing do they like more than toys?
e.g. two pot lids. bangs them like cymbals - What has to be in bed with them at sleep time?
e.g. the bunny. ear to nose, sniff sniff, asleep - What do they do first with a present?
e.g. the wrapping paper, not the present - Is there a page in a picture book they won’t let you turn?
e.g. the bear in the bath. presses the page flat - What’s the first thing they do when you get back home?
e.g. shoes still on, face buried in my chest - Have they made you laugh when you were running on empty?
e.g. (3 a.m., refusing to sleep) grabbed my face and pressed my nose, “beep” - Is there something that makes them stop everything and stare?
e.g. (bus outside) only the green bus counts - How did the first haircut go?
e.g. saw the hair falling and said “snow!” - What do they do when you say “I love you”?
e.g. opens wide and plants a wet one on my cheek - What shoe size are they in now?
e.g. a size up again. only the ones that light up
Example note1 year 3 months
Where do they “hide”?
the curtain. both feet showing
Ages 2 to 3: 15 prompts
- Is there a question they ask all day long?
e.g. “what’s this?” about the same thing, again - Do they have a special name for a food or a thing?
e.g. spinach soup is “leaf soup”. broccoli is “trees” - Have they said anything lately that sounded like a grown-up?
e.g. (blocks fell down) “oh, what a day.” - What do they say to get out of a nap?
e.g. rubs both eyes and says “not tired!” - What do they say when sulking?
e.g. face in the sofa cushion: “go away!” - When you say no, what tricks do they try?
e.g. “two, pleeease.” told no: “three then?” - How do they say “I love you”?
e.g. “I wuv you.” arms wide for the long version - Have they looked after you lately?
e.g. I said “I’m hungry” to no one. “eat something yummy” - What do they do with an empty delivery box?
e.g. climbs in, sits down, “go!” - What song do they hum to no one in particular?
e.g. “twinkle twinkle” and the rest is “mm mm mm” - Who or what do they always say hello to near home?
e.g. the lady at the bakery, the shop cat, the big tree - What are they hooked on right now?
e.g. the tape measure. “long!” - What do they do straight out of the bath?
e.g. towel cape, one lap of the living room - Did they say something lately you had to pass on right away?
e.g. (a puddle drying up) “the puddle went home.” texted Dad straight away - What do they do when a visitor leaves?
e.g. followed auntie down the hall, barefoot and crying
Example note2 years 3 months
At bath time: “My toes got old.”
How to keep it going
- Lower the bar. A fragment is fine: “pot lids. cymbals.” The age and date do the rest.
- Skip the guilt. Missed a month? Start with today. You can add older things later with the day they happened.
- Use their words. Once they talk, put their exact words in quotes. Don’t correct them.
- Let your partner write too. They see different moments.
- Come back to the same prompt. “What makes them laugh hardest?” has a new answer every few months.
More on the habit in how to keep a kid quote journal.
A baby journal that asks for one line
Daysake adds the date and your child’s age to every line, and sends one prompt a week picked for their age, like the ones above.