rock out with your bottle out...

I was desperately trying to figure out what rhymes with "rock" other then the naughty "c" word that actually belongs in that title, but there is absolutely nothing baby related that rhymes. I was thinking "block", but she's not playing with them yet. Oh well...apparently creativity is lacking this morning.

Jamie and I have similar taste in music, though my preference leans toward hard/heavy rock, while Jamie's tends to be more of the ska/punk variety. We both dabble in each other's music and do throw the occasional 80's, classic rock, or even pop song in there.

Then came baby. Both of us agreed - there was no reason to change what we deemed as our musical pleasure. Music is critical in my morning and evening commute. I hang on to my $12.95/month XM (oh wait, XM Sirius...no, Sirius XM...gosh darn mergers and acquisitions) solely because I need to be entertained by a huge range of selections in my car. And since my commute now includes the little one, she gets to enjoy it as well.

I'd like to think that because I still listen to what I did while she was in my belly, she should enjoy whatever is on. But I wonder whether some of the things are inappropriate. Hatebreed's "I will be heard", for example, doesn't have any singing in it...the lead singer isn't really a singer as much as a deep voiced screamer. Slipknot's "Psychosocial" is probably is a bit heavy as well (as it should be if every member in the band wears freaky looking masks). But those are extremes. In most cases it's not quite that mind-numbing. Jamie has a song that's an ode to the "F" word...now that one is crossing the line, whether she can talk or not.

I've never believed that music and video games are what causes violence in children. Just because the "trench coat mafia" listened to Ozzy and Marilyn Manson does not mean that they were suddenly swayed to murder tons of people. Jamie and I listen(ed) to Manson as well - unless one of us has some serious skeletons in our closet, it didn't effect us. I think that it's all about the way you were raised and whether you have a good head on your shoulders (though in some cases, kids simply just have a screw loose, regardless of their upbringing).

So we will continue to play what we love (with the occasional filter here and there in extreme cases) and will not, at this point, succumb to playing nursery rhymes. If at some point, playing something like that will keep her content on a long drive somewhere, we'll probably break down. But until then, I hope she enjoys what she's hearing and all I can hope for is that, as a result, she'll have a great appreciation for all types of music.

There's a reason "Time of My Life" from Dirty Dancing is from the "Prom Scene" from my soundtrack. Music can be the soundtrack of your life, and while we're still on the first track of her CD, there'll be tons of songs that will touch her heart and fit the moods and situations she'll be faced with as the grows. Happy listening.