one way to welcome

I mentioned in a recent post that our neighbors are adopting a baby soon. I want to do something to honor this special occasion, and the other day I got an idea. Not long ago they put some new landscaping in at the front of the house. I can't tell you the terror that struck my heart when I saw the old stuff get pulled out--I can't abide a bare foundation--but the new stuff was in place the next day and it looks great. They've got some knockout roses planted, and when the sun splashes on those petals it looks very pretty. I thought I should take a picture. So I did.

Here's my idea, spawned by the above photo action. I'd like to take pictures of baby Charley's new world as it is when she arrives here. The house, the street, the town square (hopefully all the evidence of flooding is gone--I haven't been down there lately), their church, and so on. I want this to be a surprise, though to include some things that may not be possible. What are some things that I shouldn't overlook?

When my Mom turned 40 my Dad and some friends conspired to throw her a surprise party. One of those friends--who was never without her camera--put together a flip book of pictures "this is how _____ looked when Kiki turned 40." I caught her taking pictures of the front of the house and almost ruined the whole endeavor by pointing this out to my mother: "Mom, what's Ellen P doing taking pictures of the house?" Way to go, Anne! Ellen was fast on her feet and covered her tracks.

Anyway, that book was a fun memento of that special birthday party. I thought a book along those lines for Charley would be a nice keepsake. Any thoughts? Ideas? I'm more or less starting from scratch here. Input welcome!

The picture is unrelated. I just like it.