List Worthy

Oh, you thought I wasn't going to do it every week, didn't you? Well, to be honest, I was a little sceptical myself. But here I am, so let's make a list.

Here are my favourite videotaped moments from a baby's first year.

Smiling (no explanation needed)
Rolling Over (usually results in a LOT of video of baby almost rolling over)
Eating "Solid" Food (is there anything better than runny rice cereal all over baby's face?)
Laughing (always results in video of parents making funny noises)
Older sibling or other child kissing baby (oh so sweet)
Baby making screeching noises (they are NOT fun at the time, but later on video...)
Crawling (usually results in a LOT of video of baby almost crawling)
Baby falling over (admit it, as long as they are not hurt, its a little bit funny)

There we go, I guess there are 8 this week. As usual, please add your own. I'm sure I've missed some good ones.

Growling Tiger!

Weekly List

I was going to call it the Top 10, but David Letterman already uses that. Also. I was a little afraid that one week I may only have 7 or 8 in my list. I would hate to have to throw in a couple of duds just to round out the 10.

This week, Top 10 songs for a baby video. Here they are in no particular order. Feel free to pick your favourite or add your own.

Ordinary Miracle by Sarah McLachlan
Mozart's Lullaby
I Hope You Dance by Lee Ann Womack
In My Daughter's Eyes by Martina McBride
Baby Baby by Amy Grant
Closer by Better Than Ezra
Here I Am by Bryan Adams
I Knew I Loved You Before I Met You by Savage Garden
Arms Wide Open by Creed
Baby Mine by Alison Krauss

I am always looking for new songs to add to my list, so please...

To Blog or Not to Blog, That is the Question

As I sit here at my computer on this Friday evening, (I am a Wild Party!) I try to focus on a topic worthy of blogging about. (By the way, I find it quite fun that "blogging" is now a verb.) Clearly, I'm a bit scattered tonight, but no one else on my blog list has updated recently, so here is a random collection of thoughts to get us all through the weekend.

My son's first birthday party went off without a hitch. If you don't count the fact that 10 people who attended the party ended up with a stomach virus in the days that followed. 10 people!!! There were only 14 people there! And I watch way too much TV, cuz I was waiting for the CSI team to show up to collect evidence and solve the mystery of who brought this nasty little bug into our son's celebration. You are all invited to our next party. Anyone?

Our 2 older boys went on a tour of a fire station the other night. How fun!!! They got to see all the trucks, turn on the flashing lights, see how they put their equipment on, there was even a hose demonstration. Come on, admit it. You want to see the hose demo.

I have a problem. A sickness really. If I have some business chore to do that is so easy it will take only minutes to complete, I will never do it. I keep putting it off, thinking "Oh, that will only take a few minutes. I can do that any time." What is wrong with me? JUST DO IT! (Thanks Nike.)

Having said that, I must put an end to these ramblings and transfer some songs to CD. Have a great weekend!

One on Friday

1. My baby boy turns 1 year old today!!! Will post video soon.

When Things Go Wrong...And They Sometimes Will

Something happened at my house today. I can't tell you what it was exactly...because I'm embarrassed and ashamed. Suffice it to say it involved a momentary lapse in mommy memory that jeopardized one of my children's safety. I am happy to report all of my children are safe and healthy as I write this.

This "happening" made me think about a few things. The Oprah episode. I don't know if you saw it, not everyone is tuning in to Oprah in the middle of the day. I don't usually do it, myself, but I saw a promo for this episode, and although I shouldn't have done it, I tuned in. It was the one where she interviewed a woman whose baby died after she left her in the car all day. I couldn't watch the whole show, I was crying so hard. I was crying because babies shouldn't die, but also because I knew that "there but for the grace of god..." As evidenced by my mistake today, it can happen so easily, the simplest, smallest oversight. Brought on by overwork, hectic lives, lack of sleep. Luckily for me and my family, my mistake did not lead to tragedy.

This "happening" also made me think about how I deal with my mistakes. As soon as I was sure everything was okay, I let it go and moved on to thinking about how I would keep it from happening again, and what I needed to do for my child now. This is yet another thing I have learned from having children. It is a necessary way of living when you have little people depending on you. There is no time for wallowing in self loathing or asking "what if". Our children need us to act quickly, forgive ourselves and move on.

So my son is okay, I have learned something, and we will all continue with our lives. I wonder, if my mistake had led to tragedy, could I ever forgive myself? There's that "what if".

Your Life and Mine

The best part of what I do is getting to know people. Sometimes I think its strange that I rarely get to meet the people I get to know. When I make a Video Scrapbook, the subject of the video is usually not my client. My client is their mother, father, daughter, son, aunt, uncle, cousin. You see what I mean.

Recently, I finished project which involved about one hundred and fifty photos of someone who has lived a long, long life. It never ceases to amaze me that I can watch video and look at photos of total strangers, and feel connected to them. You can learn so much about someone's personality and life from the photos they were in. Was he an artist, scientist or writer? Was she outgoing or shy? Did they have a big family, lots of friends, like to travel?

Not only do I get to know total strangers, I am inspired by them. From watching a toddler's enthusiasm for dance to seeing a grandmother's lifetime of adventures, I feel like I have been changed by each and every person whose life story has come to me for editing. Short or long, just beginning or coming to an end, these lives are now a part of mine.

Thank you for trusting me with their stories. Don't worry, I will hold them in my heart and treat them with all the care they deserve.