When our first daughter was born, I remember being excited by the prospect of keeping a baby book to record all of her milestones. First word, first steps, first tooth… I did pretty well with the baby book until Lindsey was about 10 months. I’m not sure what happened. It could have been that milestones were starting to take longer and longer to appear. Or maybe I went back to work and life settled into a nice routine. Whatever the case, I was left with 3/4 of the book empty and for a long time, perhaps 8 years or so, I entertained the idea that “someday” I’d be able to sit down and capture those special achievements.
I attended a baby shower today which made me think about bringing our first little bundle of joy home. I guess if I had stuck with the book project I would have been able to pull it off a shelf this afternoon, relax with a cup of Earl Grey tea and simply reminisce about that first year of her life. But instead, not having the book prompted me reflect on the special moments–not necessarily scripted milestones–in her life. And, true to form, because I’m an “Even Steven” type of mom, if I can’t pull out a book about Lindsey’s life, you can certainly bet I don’t have one for Lauren, Will or Lilly either.
This is what made me smile today…
A 3 year old Lindsey resisting all efforts to bring shopping trips to a close by pleading, “Me No Go Home.”
A certain little monkey child hanging from every single stationary item possible.
Will graduating from pre-school twice and learning how to say, “sssssssnake.”
A sweet little hand resting over my heart so she knows someone’s nearby as she falls asleep.
While I’d love to have those finished books just to show the kiddos how much I really did pay attention to their formative years, the magical internet has made it possible to catalogue special moments as they happen. True, there aren’t any charming prompts to ensure I take notice of something significant, but every time I log on to the site, I’m reminded of how much fun we’ve had collectively over the years. And it doesn’t stop after the first year of life.
In fact, it goes on, and on and on.
A Moveable Feast 