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"&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;It&amp;amp;#39;s amazing how fast &amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;https://www.verywell.com/baby-growth-and-development-0-to-3-months-284367&amp;quot; data-component=&amp;quot;link&amp;quot; data-source=&amp;quot;inlineLink&amp;quot; data-type=&amp;quot;internalLink&amp;quot; data-ordinal=&amp;quot;1&amp;quot;&amp;gt;babies grow during their first year&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;. Of course, all this growth comes with a long list of things they quickly outgrow. Lots of parents pass outgrown clothes, toys, and furniture on to expectant friends or family or consignment shops, but what about those special items you just can&amp;amp;#39;t bring yourself to part with, like baby&amp;amp;#39;s first pair of shoes or their blanky? Here are five creative ways to give your baby&amp;amp;#39;s special possessions a second life.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;h3&amp;gt;1. Preserve Baby&amp;amp;#39;s Cute Shoes&amp;lt;/h3&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Baby shoes are common crafting mediums, and it&amp;amp;#39;s no wonder why. There&amp;amp;#39;s nothing more adorable than a tiny pair of baby shoes. Turn a baby shoe into a custom photo holder. Use a hot glue gun to attach a few clothespins to a thin, wooden dowel. Insert the dowel into a sock or piece of pantyhose filled with dry beans or rice. Secure it with a rubber band and tuck it into the shoe. Clip on the &amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;https://www.verywell.com/baby-poses-for-baby-portraits-284182&amp;quot; data-component=&amp;quot;link&amp;quot; data-source=&amp;quot;inlineLink&amp;quot; data-type=&amp;quot;internalLink&amp;quot; data-ordinal=&amp;quot;2&amp;quot;&amp;gt;baby pictures&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; of your choice.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;A baby shoe makes a great paperweight or doorstop for their room. Fill the shoe with rocks to weigh it down. You could also add a tag with your baby&amp;amp;#39;s name and how old they were when they wore the shoe.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Another really popular method of preserving your baby&amp;amp;#39;s shoes is by having them &amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;https://www.verywell.com/are-bronze-baby-shoes-still-available-284516&amp;quot; data-component=&amp;quot;link&amp;quot; data-source=&amp;quot;inlineLink&amp;quot; data-type=&amp;quot;internalLink&amp;quot; data-ordinal=&amp;quot;3&amp;quot;&amp;gt;bronzed&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;. In fact, your parents might have done this with your first pair of shoes. Ship baby&amp;amp;#39;s shoes to a bronzing company like &amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;http://www.americanbronzing.com&amp;quot; data-component=&amp;quot;link&amp;quot; data-source=&amp;quot;inlineLink&amp;quot; data-type=&amp;quot;externalLink&amp;quot; data-ordinal=&amp;quot;4&amp;quot; rel=&amp;quot;nofollow&amp;quot;&amp;gt;American Bronzing&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;\u00A0and they&amp;amp;#39;ll take care of the process for you. Just about &amp;lt;em&amp;gt;anything&amp;lt;/em&amp;gt; that&amp;amp;#39;s solid can be bronzed and turned into a memento that will last forever.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;h3&amp;gt;2. Repurpose Baby Clothes&amp;lt;/h3&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;It can be difficult to part with baby&amp;amp;#39;s adorable clothes, so repurpose them. Sew your favorite baby dress or pair of your son&amp;amp;#39;s overalls shut on the bottom and hang it from a small clothes hanger. Use it to hold clothespins or store pesky grocery bags. Extra special baby clothes, like their christening gown, can be preserved in a beautiful shadow box display.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Recycle scraps of fabric from baby&amp;amp;#39;s special outfits to make a quilt or a stuffed animal. A teddy bear, stuffed bunny or rag doll made out of fabric from some of your baby&amp;amp;#39;s clothing is something they&amp;amp;#39;ll be able to use for years to come. Make the stuffed animal yourself with a free pattern from\u00A0&amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;http://www.allcrafts.net/sewing/stuffedanimalssewing.htm&amp;quot; data-component=&amp;quot;link&amp;quot; data-source=&amp;quot;inlineLink&amp;quot; data-type=&amp;quot;externalLink&amp;quot; data-ordinal=&amp;quot;5&amp;quot; rel=&amp;quot;nofollow&amp;quot;&amp;gt;All Crafts&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;h3&amp;gt;3. Baby Blanket &amp;amp;amp; Bedding Art&amp;lt;/h3&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Use embroidery hoops to frame crib sheets or patterned blankets. Make an inexpensive and eye-catching wall art grouping of hoops with fabrics in complementary patterns and colors. You could also use your baby&amp;amp;#39;s blankets and bedding to make photo mats for your favorite pictures.\u00A0&amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;http://www.marthastewart.com/good-things/fabric-mats&amp;quot; data-component=&amp;quot;link&amp;quot; data-source=&amp;quot;inlineLink&amp;quot; data-type=&amp;quot;externalLink&amp;quot; data-ordinal=&amp;quot;6&amp;quot;&amp;gt;Martha Stewart&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;\u00A0has a great tutorial for making a photo mat that&amp;amp;#39;s such a nice alternative to the typical solid color ones.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;h3&amp;gt;4. Turn Baby&amp;amp;#39;s Toys Into Keepsakes&amp;lt;/h3&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Turn your baby&amp;amp;#39;s toys into practical items you can use throughout the house. Make bookends out of old stuffed animals. Use a seam ripper to carefully open one of the seams on the bottom of the stuffed animal. Remove the stuffing and fill it with marbles. Sew the stuffed animal back up and display it on a bookshelf in baby&amp;amp;#39;s nursery.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Make scented air fresheners out of outgrown stuffed animals, too.\u00A0&amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;http://www.lonestarcandlesupply.com/candle-making/resources/how-to-make-wax-dipped-bears/&amp;quot; data-component=&amp;quot;link&amp;quot; data-source=&amp;quot;inlineLink&amp;quot; data-type=&amp;quot;externalLink&amp;quot; data-ordinal=&amp;quot;7&amp;quot; rel=&amp;quot;nofollow&amp;quot;&amp;gt;Lone Star Candle Supply&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;\u00A0has a great step-by-step guide to making a wax-dipped teddy bear. They&amp;amp;#39;re wick-less and not meant to burn; instead they release a subtle fragrance while sitting proudly \u200Bon top of a bookshelf.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;h3&amp;gt;5. Repurpose Baby&amp;amp;#39;s Crib&amp;lt;/h3&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;The best and perhaps most obvious way to repurpose your baby&amp;amp;#39;s crib is by buying a convertible crib your little one can use well into childhood. If you don&amp;amp;#39;t have a convertible crib, get more use out of it by incorporating it into your landscaping. Take the sides of the crib apart and use the pieces as fencing or a trellis alternative.\u00A0&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<https://www.verywell.com/turn-your-favorite-cute-baby-stuff-into-keepsakes-284510>