Catch the little moments before they're gone

We are fortunate when we catch our children in unguarded moments; when they don't know we are privy to their interactions.One such time happened when my older son was 4 or 5, and my younger son was 2 or 3. I was working at the dining room table, on my laptop. My ear caught the start of a conversation between them."One day," Son 1 said with authority, "Mommy had a headache."I imagined Son 2 looking at him, wide-eyed, ready to absorb the wisdom of his older brother.Son 1 corrected himself."Wait, no. Mommy had a stomachache.""Ohh," Son 2 replied."Then she went to the hospital and pooped you out," Son 1 finished, triumphantly. "That's how you were born."I tried hard not to laugh. It was a spectacular story, albeit completely inaccurate. Should I interject, and ruin this brotherly moment? Or just let it stand and make sure they understood how all that worked at some later time?Spoiler alert: I couldn't help myself, and explained to them that no one poops anyone out, that wasn't how it worked.It's a story the boys ask me repeatedly to tell them. They love the stories of their infancy and toddlerhood. That Son 1's first act on this planet was to pee on his father. That time Son 2 snatched a toy out of his older brother's hands and took off down the hallway toward the kitchen, moving his diapered fanny as fast as his toddler legs would carry him.Sometimes I tire of telling them these stories over and over. But then I realize that if I don't, these moments will be lost; no one will remember them.Family histories used to be oral. They still are.Image by StockUnlimited