Tonight I read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom to Daniel, and memories of early motherhood came flooding back.

Joshua and Claire are very close in age, so I was forced to put Joshua in a big boy bed at a very young age, in an effort to free up the crib for the new baby. Now, as a more seasoned mother, I can see that I was trying to move him along waaaaay to early. I started moving him over at about 18 months of age, long before he was ready, and as a result, I had to lay down with him every night for months. I laid there with him for a long time every night, and we read book after book as part of my lame effort to get him to sleep.

At this point in life, I did not have the hundreds of childrens books I have now. Thanks to grandparents, I did have some selection, but Joshua's favorite book actually came out of a Cheerios box. It was a flimsy paperback by the name of Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. He loved Chicka Chica Boom Boom. He adored Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. He roared with laughter over Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. I read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom to him hundreds of times.

One night, when pregnancy exhaustion got the best of me, I fell asleep before Joshua, and in a fit of boredom he ripped up Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. I dutifully taped it back together, only to have a sippy cup dump on it and completely soak it a few weeks later. Still, we dried out Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and loved it more.

Not much later, I was at a library used book sale when I found a hardback, full size copy of Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. I was delighted! The bigger Chicka Chicka Boom Boom became a staple at our house, and all of my children loved it.

Many years ago, my sister and her children came to visit. Her oldest daughter Kate was still a toddler, and Kate ripped several pages of our "new" Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. Of course I taped it back together, but Joshua reminded me for about two years after that he didn't do it, Kate did.

Tonight as I read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom to Daniel I noticed that the tape in the book is turning yellow and brittle, and I started to panic. Is time really going so fast that my repair is already showing age? Are my children growing so quickly that in another blink of an eye Daniel will be almost nine, and I will have no one with whom to enjoy Chicka Chicka Boom Boom?

Then I realized something - Joshua was leaning over the top bunk and laughing hysterically as I read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom to Daniel. Eight years has not dimmed his personality - he is still the same Joshua, although in a bigger package. I shouldn't panic over the inevitability of my children growing up. I need to remember to cherish each moment, embrace the change, and enjoy them for who they are. And, of course, remember the important things, like reading Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.