In my career as a Librarian, I’ve often had to decide whether or not to preserve and store ephemera “paper items (as posters, broadsides, and tickets) that were originally meant to be discarded after use but have since become collectibles.” At work, I can be ruthless. It’s not quite so easy at home!

Kate and I had this discussion once on Twitter: how does a mother choose which priceless childhood artifacts to save? Throughout their lives, your children will produce an endless stream of pictures, notes, cards, ornaments and handmade gifts. These bits and pieces provide a visual history of life, growth, and development. But they do tend to pile up.

When my children got married, I gave them each some mementos from their elementary school days. Other items are saved in fabric boxes labeled with their names and neatly stored under one of my bookshelves. As I sort through drawers and closets, I add to these repositories.

When I have the time, I’ve been scanning photos and paper items into flickr. Adding more detail to the descriptions will have to wait, though I do try to date everything as I go.

It’s a nostalgic, frequently emotional, way to spend a few hours. But I believe that my children appreciate having access to these pieces of their past.

And I know that I’m grateful to my father for saving a bit of my own personal history. The bill pictured here was found in his desk after Dad passed away. It was the receipt for my mother’s 9-day stay in the maternity hospital where I was born. I believe he always felt he got a good bargain.

How do YOU decide what to save and where to keep it?