One of the things I looked forward to most as a mom-to-be was seeing my little one’s footprints on his birth certificate. As you’re very rarely asked to ink and stamp your foot any time in the rest of your life, it’s a real newborn thing.
My firstborn son’s footprints turned out great, but when my second son got his done, one of his little toes didn’t make it on the page. The nurse had to write a little note declaring that all five of his digits were, in fact, present.
But as excited as I was to get my kids’ official footprints inked, it somehow never occurred to me to make a more careful keepsake to show just how tiny their feet were as infants. So naturally, I squeed a little bit upon seeing these pictures taken by birth photographer Leilani Rogers.
In a Facebook post she wrote: “Hallelujah forrainbow babies (and fun stamp pads for their birth certificates).”
Isn’t that an adorable, vibrant way to celebrate the arrival of a little one for a family that’s been through loss?
One of Leilani’s followers had to know more, and commented: “Awww! That’s so precious! I didn’t know they do this! One just has to request it?”
But while you can expect a hospital to make the official black ink footprints, these rainbow ones you’ll need to prepare to do yourself.
Leilani explained her “clients buy the stamp pad and bring it with them to the birth.” Many are now sharing this idea with others who have little miracles on the way, so they can plan ahead and create this keepsake as well.
My husband went on to have one footprint from each of our boys tattooed onto his shoulders. I love seeing those tiny feet as a reminder of how much they’ve grown, and I imagine colorful feet tattoos would look amazing as well!
What mementos did you create from your baby’s early days?
