Wise words from the mother of two grown sons: Document even the most ordinary moments
When we entered the world of parenthood in the ’90s, we invested in one of those clunky VHS recorders. About 10 years later, we switched to a slightly smaller camera that required mini tapes. Both machines were a pain to carry around, but we were pretty good about documenting sweet events, vacations and ordinary days. No regrets there.
A problem creeped in thanks to a combination of planned obsolescence and progress. We dropped the correct gear to view and dub the recordings, but we kept taping until cell phones took over. Technology changes didn’t bother us much because there were phases in parent life the kept us too busy to reminisce. Also, for me anyway, it would have hurt to look back at first steps and toothless grins while doing college tours.
Archived shoeboxes and shoeboxes of “old school” tapes have haunted us, though. Images of our babies, our toddlers, our grade-schoolers, our tweens, our teens were trapped in size 10.5 Adidas and Nike cardboard tombs.
It took us until recently to have the towers of old technology converted to a manageable stack of DVDs and one miraculous little thumb drive. I know we will have to put all of that on a “cloud,” but one step at a time. At least now we can easily go back through the decades without worrying about shredding a fragile tape.
We have just started peeking at our “videos” with an old portable DVD player. That in itself is a throwback device, but what a handy portal for now. We are not looking at the one precious thumb drive with everything on it until the “kids” come over. They’ll show us the best way to back up this tiny key to our pasts.
Our glimpses so far have covered a few nonconsecutive dips into a few years. Again, it’s crazy how I can handle seeing the good old days now, but emotionally I couldn’t not too long ago. My theory about that is my sons are established adults and I’m excited about witnessing their futures.
These videos remind me how it was delightful chaos having two boys 16 months apart, and I’m now patting myself on the back for surviving it all. Small sidebar: I was glad I had the wherewithal to grab a big ol’ camera when, as preschoolers, my boys partially filled a bathtub and climbed in fully clothed. They wouldn’t exactly explain why, but they had a blast. I have yet to stumble on the tape of them turning the lower dishwasher rack into an indoor go-kart.
It’s easier to capture any sweet moment or milestone now with cellphones in our pockets, but it still takes consistency to document one’s life. Even though I have just reviewed a fraction of our efforts, here are some things I learned that may or may not be useful to others:
▪ Unless your kid is an obvious freak of nature athlete, more than 30 seconds of a preschool soccer game is brutal to watch. Consider a similar time limit for grade-school band concerts. Honk, honk.
▪ When a 6-month-old cracks up in hysterics while you fake sneeze, grab your device immediately.
▪ Quickly state the date and year on audio if there’s no way to see a time stamp.
▪ Drive around your town and grab footage of what’s there today. Well, have someone else drive while you narrate. We did that three decades ago. Fields of grazing cows are now shopping centers and movie theaters. (I preferred cows. Pout.) But! Formerly small trees are now becoming majestic.
▪ Take nice shots of your elders. Capture their voices and personalities.
▪ Tape friends and family members who never document anything. They will appreciate the memories in the future.
▪ Record a typical day in snippets. Grab moments of kids waking up, eating breakfast, going to school, coming home, eating dinner, the works. The ordinary becomes extraordinary as time passes.
I cannot stress that last point enough: The ordinary becomes extraordinary as time passes.
Reach Denise Snodell at stripmalltree@gmail.com
This story was originally published March 12, 2025 at 5:00 AM.