Hi my name is Caylee, I’m in my seventeenth week of pregnancy, and have zero fully complete weeks in my pregnancy album. That’s right. Zero. (and PS that was my own sneaky pregnancy album I previously shared, not a friend’s). So, this was annoying me for two reasons: 1. I am the type of person who is a perfectionist always up to date, and 2. this was the album I was most excited about, so surely it’s just pure fun to finish, right? What’s the hold up?

The truth is that the hold up is my own body. I have hyperemesis and am still puking quite into my second trimester. It’s fun. But I still have that creative urge, and the deep desire to document this “magical” time. And so, over time I’ve become a bit more okay with having a completely incomplete album. I’ve learned a bit about how to be okay about it – to stay “on track” when you only have a few minutes a week. Whether you are experiencing troubles preventing you from finishing your pregnancy album too, if you’re too busy looking after a toddler to get to his baby book, or if you’re just living instead of Project Life-ing, I hope these tips help you.

Do as much prep as you can when you have the time and health

I shared my prep tips last month, but thank goodness for the printing and cutting I did while feeling up to it or I’d be even more behind.

Some things to do ahead of time:

1. Place your pocket pages into the album – I have 40 minus four 8.5×11″s, one for each week of pregnancy, plus extra 6×12″ ones to celebrate new months and trimesters. If you’re doing weekly, then put in 52, or for monthly put in about 12… you get the idea.
2. Make use of week numbers – these are my favourite journal cards, and Liz absolutely rocks the designs. There are so many to choose from. Printing them and putting them into the album
3. Print and cut digital paper – get it all ready so that all you need to do is slip it in

Use digital templates to keep track of current memories

Typing is just so much easier than handwriting when you’re short on time or health. I moved all of my weekly updates into one big Photoshop file to print 9 at a time (I’m using the ATC pocket pages). In an hour that I was feeling better than usual I put in all the dates and the baby’s sizes. Then on one day during the week all I need to do is quickly fill in how I’m feeling.

Add ephemera when you get it

Don’t worry about decorating, just worry about getting those paper memories into the album. Leave them in a pocket until you’re able to sort it out.

Don’t be scared of getting fancy

Just because you’re not up to speed, doesn’t mean you can’t use big ass embellishments and papers to make a “statement” and change things up a bit. I really wanted to keep my pregnancy test box, but it was not very pretty, so I used vellum to print this word belly onto.

Use templates

These are memory keeping game changes! Not only do they make things take infinitely less time, but they also help keep cohesion to your album. Bonus tip: use the same typefaces throughout your album to cut down decision making time and keep the cohesion.

Keep it simple

You can always go back and add, but you can’t take it away. Using templates and full pocket photos really makes things simple.

Have fun

If you’re tired of doing the functional stuff, there’s no reason not to get fancy, concentrate on one spread, and spruce it up. I love pairing “real” elements with digital paper like I did with the heart.

And with full disclosure… here’s what the rest of the album looks like. It’s prepared, but it’s bare. I can’t wait for the next 30 minutes nausea-free to keep adding to it. It’s certainly become a labour of love.

♥ Caylee

You can see previous Paislee Press projects, or find more bits of me on Instagram, and my blog.