Happy Birthday to Me!

OK, not me specifically -- this site.  That's right, in 2004, eight years ago today, I put my cyberstake down in the ground and said I was going to start writing about kids music.

And then I promptly went silent for another couple months.

But then I started posting all the reviews I'd written over the past 2-3 years, and eventually artists started e-mailing me out of the blue offering copies for possible review, then NPR called, yadda yadda yadda, and now kids music is a big deal (again).

I've had fun writing this site.  If I had to guess (now that the site is spread out over a number of different categories, it's more work to total), I'd guess that I've written maybe 2,800 posts and published more than a million words on kids music.  That's a lot of time to spend writing about anything; add to that the time spent listening to family music, and, well, there's a reason I'm not really up on the latest TV.

Anyway, writers and creators always say they write and create for themselves, and that's true, but most of them -- including me -- like to know that they have an audience reading or listening in.  So thanks for the time you've spent reading, and thanks, too, to the musicians and others who've spent time creating and asking me to give their art a try.

And it wouldn't be a birthday party without a small goody bag, so I'm running an instant contest -- enter your name below by 9 PM West Coast time tonight, August 27, 2012, and I'll randomly select one person to win a free CD (I have a wide array of good, new disks for your enjoyment).  If you want to say how you found this site, that'd be great, but not necessary.  Thanks for reading and playing!