13th birthday gift

A 13th birthday gift for their first year as a teenager

Thirteen, and everything they’ve been so far

Becoming a teenager is a good moment to tell someone who they’ve been so far. Grandparents remember the toddler; friends know who they are now; a teacher or coach may have seen something nobody at home has. A 13th birthday book of memories puts it in one place, each piece with the name of the person who wrote it.

What to ask people for

• The first time you met them
• A time they surprised you
• What their friends would say about them
• Something you hope they keep as they grow up

Thirteen years, in chapters

The book starts with chapters made for a thirteenth: The little years, School years, Friends, Family, Sport and hobbies, Holidays, and Now. Rename any of them, take out what doesn’t fit, and add the ones only your family would think of: the first phone, the school trips, the cousins.

How it works

You set the book up in a few minutes and share one link with your family. People write a memory, record one if they’d rather talk, and add photographs. Nobody needs an account. If a grandparent won’t go near a link, you can add their memory for them.

The book lays itself out as a first draft, chapter by chapter, with each person’s name beside their words. You move things, take things out and choose the cover, and nothing is printed until you approve it. The board is private unless you open it, so it can stay a surprise. More on how it works