Caleb has a music concert at school yesterday. As we sat on the cold, hard bleachers in the elementary gym watching him (along with all of his fellow kindergarteners and the first graders) I realized this is the ninth year we’ve been going to these concerts. Nine years?!? That’s a long time. And we still have five more years of cheesy wonderful concerts to go to.

When Keaton was in elementary school I was so thrilled for these concerts. Actually it went all the way back to daycare for him. His daycare had a Christmas program every year. Even when he was just four months old he participated. The teachers held the babies and sang the 12 Days of Christmas only they revised it to use the kids’ names. So it was like “On the fourth day of Christmas, Keaton gave to me a spit covered pacifier” or something like that.

I was giddy about these programs. I wanted to get there early so I could sit in the front row. I brought our video camera and my 35mm (because digital wasn’t the big thing yet). I was on the verge of a cat fight if somebody had the nerve to block my view of Keaton. It was war time people.

Now we get there right before the program starts. We end up sitting clear in back on the top of the bleachers. Caleb’s just a speck we sit back so far. Last night I actually remember my camera which is more than I can say for Skyler & Spencer’s music program back in December.

It’s funny how our enthusiasm for these things wains after so many years. It’s like the whole picture thing. The first kid has tons of pictures and their baby book is completely filled out. The last kid? Not so much. I had Caleb’s pictures taken professionally once. ONCE. And that I did at three months, at one of those one hour photo places, the day before he had his cleft lip surgery, because I was worried I wouldn’t have any professional photos of him should something bad happen during surgery. [I also had our church squeeze his baptism in to the service the Sunday before his surgery because what if something happened? I know. I'm morbid like that.]

So Caleb had his picture taken at three months and then again when the school did it in preschool. Skyler and Spencer had their photos taken at 3 months, 6 months, 9 months and a year. Then I gave up. Keaton had his pictures taken at 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 9 months, one year, eighteen months, two years, three years, four years and then in school. So you clearly see who I love more.

However, I do have to say that I’m keeping better track of Caleb’s milestones. I have a personal website (besides this here blog) and I have documented all of Caleb’s milestones since the day he was born. I’ve eased up quite a bit in the last couple years, but that’s mainly because he’s not doing new amazing things (like sitting up for the first time) like he did when he was a baby. So Caleb may not have much of a baby book. He may not have many professional pictures. And I may get bored at his music programs. But he has something none of the other kids have. An elecronic diary. He rocks.

This entry was posted on Friday, May 2nd, 2008 at 4:24 pm and is filed under A day in our life. Comments are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.