How To Document Your Pregnancy Effortlessly

Whether you’re taking pregnancy progression photos for a pregnancy journal, or you simply want to remember your cravings, symptoms, and feelings, this article will teach you how to document your pregnancy effortlessly.

Documenting every little milestone in my first pregnancy was a breeze. Seriously y’all, I probably went a little overboard.

I wrote down every craving, symptom, and thought that popped into my head during that pregnancy. I know how much he was estimated to weigh at every appointment, along with his heart rate and any and all notes from the doctor.

I have more notes about that pregnancy than he’ll ever be interested in knowing. But I was happy with it! You never hear a mom complain about having too many memories and keepsakes from her pregnancy.

Unfortunately, the same can’t be said about my second pregnancy with Miss Madelyn.

Not only did I have horrible morning sickness this time around, I’m also working from home and chasing a crazy two-year-old boy around.

I’ve heard moms crack jokes about their unfinished baby books for baby number two, but I was determined to stay true to my crafty, OCD self! And while documenting this pregnancy has been different (and yes, a lot harder), I’ve found some ways to do it with limited time.

I may not be able to write down every little thought that pops into my head, but I’ve managed to keep up with the big stuff thanks to these tips.

How To Document Your Pregnancy With Ease

Download Tinybeans

I swear by the Tinybeans app. They aren’t sponsoring this article or anything. They’re just the best!

There’s a free version, but I pay for the monthly subscription. To me, it’s more than worth it! I can add a ton of photos at once, and I know everything is safe. It’s easy to open the app, add some bump pictures, and jot down notes about doctor’s appointments and symptoms.

Using Tinybeans is the key to easily documenting your pregnancy. It’s the best way to easily jot down notes and save pictures to specific days. Everything else just falls into place later, when you have the time.

What sets this app apart is that it’s set up like a calendar. That way you’ll remember the day each picture was taken!

I actually utilized Tinybeans for my first pregnancy as well. I wrote down all of my notes and collected my photos within the app, and used it as a guide to help me put together my son’s pregnancy scrapbook and baby book.

It’s not exclusively for storing bumpdate pictures and pregnancy notes. This app can last for years! I have a picture of my son every day for the first year of his life, all saved in order along with some notes on Tinybeans!

I can scroll back to early 2016 and see all of my notes and photos from the day I found out I was expecting, all the way to today, three years later and pregnant with my second baby. It’s a magical app that every busy mom should have.

Take Weekly Pictures

Sure, sometimes you’ll be late, but do it anyway, and just claim it was the week before! We’ve all done it, and you’ll be happy you did.

And with the Tinybeans app, you can easily upload them to specific days and erase them from your phone if you need the space. 

You can post a weekly update on Facebook, but I promise you’re annoying your friends and family. (I do this too. I’m mean. I don’t really care if I annoy people, haha!) Really, it’s less stress just to upload it to Tinybeans though.

By the way – ditch the chalkboard. There are apps like Baby Story that make the pictures look so much cuter than the chalkboard pics. Who has the time to perfectly write out the week every few days anyway? Not this mama!

Pay For Maternity Photos

They’re worth every penny. Trust me. You’ll back on those photos with tears in your eyes for the rest of your life! And while you can totally capture some cute shots on your own, it’s just not the same.

They typically cost anywhere from $200 to $350. It sound steep, but if you start saving early in the pregnancy, it’s not too bad. Or ask your friends and family to pitch in on a maternity session instead of a million newborn-sized onesies.

Keep All The Things

Keep everything you can! Ultrasounds, scraps of fabric from things you knit, you name it! For instance, I saved scraps of ribbon from the very first gift that my grandma gave me for my son while I was pregnant. It was put away in a box for almost a year, because, you know – life. But it made it’s way to my pregnancy journal eventually!

Keepsakes are nothing new. This isn’t groundbreaking advice, I know.

My point is, with the help of Tinybeans, you can quickly jot down a note about each keepsake on your phone, throw items in a plastic bin or box in your closet, and do something creative with them later.

That’s some real, hard advice right there. Mom to mom style. 

It’s unrealistic to think you’ll make adorable shadow boxes and handmade teddy bears out of your keepsakes. But at the very least, you’ll have the notes and thoughts behind them safely stored for that rare moment that nap time coincides with free time to get crafty.

One day it will happen. And this way, you’ll be ready!

Keep A Pregnancy Journal

Keeping a pregnancy journal is a fun, creative way to document your pregnancy. It takes less time than starting a scrapbook from scratch, and you still get to personalize everything.

Again, if you don’t have time to fill out a pregnancy journal every week or even month, don’t forget to utilize Tinybeans!

This is the pregnancy journal I use and love.

I hope these quick tips help you document your pregnancy with ease! I know how hard it is to soak in every moment and milestone, especially after the first kid.

Tracking everything in Tinybeans and being realistic about what I can accomplish on a weekly basis helped me stay on top of documenting my pregnancies. If you overload yourself, you’re much less likely to make the most of those nine precious months.

It’s okay to keep things simple! The point is to remember this glorious time of transformation and growth. Don’t overwhelm yourself by trying to recreate every single idea you find on Pinterest. Keep it simple, and give yourself time!

Do you have any tips for moms-to-be who want to document every moment? Were your pregnancies harder to document after the first baby? Let me know in the comments below!

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