We started this because we were living the years we were already forgetting.

You blink, and suddenly your babies are walking, talking, repeating everything you say. Somewhere in between the exhaustion and blur, meaningful moments slip away, and we forget the stories that shape who they're becoming — week to week, month to month.

We know we won't remember it all. And the kids will recall even less, as long-term, permanent memory doesn't fully stabilize until years later. So we started writing.

But baby journals were impossible to keep up with, and tracking vital stats and milestones felt incomplete. We needed something that captured the actual texture of these years –– the moments, memories, and lessons that mattered. Less stats, more stories.

We also wanted something we could gift our children later that they would appreciate. Handwritten letters seemed perfect. To help them understand themselves later, through our eyes now. The letters are now heirlooms they'll carry forward.

In a life increasingly filled with screens, apps, algorithms, and AI — writing by hand felt grounding, like a quiet act of preservation. So we created While You Are Little to help other busy parents do the same. A simple, manageable practice to thoroughly capture the years that go by fastest.

To the parents also in the thick of it right now that are too tired to keep elaborate journals, but not willing to let these years disappear — we hope this gives you a way to write the stories that will help your child understand who they were, and how much you loved them.

Much love,

Kari & Patrick