Timothy, congratulations on your new addition. My daughter is a little over a year old now. In response to exactly the same concerns that you and your family had I have been developing http://digitalheirloom.org where I store photos, videos, pdfs, and audio files that I want to preserve for my daughter. The idea being that these documents are an heirloom to pass on to future generations.

This is a budding project, but I would be happy to have more beta testers. Beyond the ability to store/view files, I have also developed screensavers for windows and mac users to see photos from the website. That means that as I upload new photos, my mother's screensaver (which is a repurposed old laptop) automatically displays the new photos without her having to log into a website or check email.

This project was in response to several of your (and my concerns). I wanted a project developed with open standards so that it would not be a slave to a corporation or technology, and would be compatible with future devices/browsers. I wanted full access to all of my documents and how they are organized (e.g. through FTP). I wanted to consolidate photos that my wife had on her laptop, photos I had on my computers, and so on into a single authoritative place. I wanted RAID and offsite backup of all the documents (which the site provides). I wanted a space that could respond to the specific needs of families that want to archive and share documents. I wanted to know that the person managing the site cared as much about the content as I do. There are more features than I care to get into here, but I hope you get the idea.

My intention for the project is to file for non-profit status, and have users make one-time payments that would go into a trust to perpetuate the project. Please take a look at the site, my sense is that it would be a good fit for you and what you are looking for. Contact information is available on the site. I would be happy to discuss the project further.

Good luck and enjoy every minute you have with your family