This Moment- A Friday ritual. A single photo- no words- capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor, and remember. If you’re inspired to do the same, leave a link to your ‘moment’ in the comments for all to find and see.
We were out to dinner at the amazing Indigo restaurant in downtown Waikiki when our phones began to blow up with text messages and alerts. There had been a 9.0 earthquake off the coast of Japan and a tsunami wave was headed towards the Hawaiian islands. At this point Oahu was just in a tsunami “watch” and we continued on with our dinner. As we were leaving the restaurant we got a glimpse of the news and saw the devastation that had occurred throughout Japan. Our hearts sank as the reality of a 9.0 quake began to come into focus.
As the night progressed Oahu’s tsunami watch officially turned into a warning. The sirens began to blast, preparations jumped into order and the beginning of a long night full of uncertainty unfolded.
Hubby and I rushed down to our boat on the way home from dinner to check out the scene down at the harbor. Usually when a tsunami warning is triggered the best bet for saving your boat is to actually sail it out to see and get it out of the tsunami’s path. We’ve taken this approach before and although it’s scary thinking about being in the water during a tsunami we quickly realized it really is one of the safer places to be. Heading out about a mile (because of the way our reefs are set up) is far enough out that you don’t even feel a change in the waves.
Unfortunately a quick sail out to safety was not going to happen for us. When hubby went to start the engine nothing happened. We’ve struggled with engine problems a lot during the course of our boat ownership but since a complete overhaul it hasn’t failed us at least in the starting department once. Not wanting to give up on saving the boat hubby started the impossible task of trying to troubleshoot and fix the problem in the midst of sirens and a fast approaching deadline.
In the meantime I headed home with Harper to pack up a survival bag for daddy and necessities for baby and I. It was decided that since the boat wasn’t in ideal shape Harper and I would be heading to grandma’s house to ride out the wave and papa would go at the sail alone, if of course he could manage to get the engine up and running.
At home I ran around wildly packing every single canned food item I could find. Poor hubby was stuck with 15 cans of tuna, peaches, black beans, some sweet corn and a whole lot of peanut butter, honey and tortillas. Of course the house and fridge were near empty since I had been planning to do my grocery shopping the next morning. We had absolutely no bottled water or any other life saving liquid on hand as well. And of course to top it all off my car was just beginning to approach the “E” on gas.
Packing up what little supplies we had on hand I headed back down to the harbor in hopes that hubby would say he was giving up on the boat idea and headed to grandma’s with us. If you guys have learned anything about this hubby of mine through this blog you would know just as I did that this was not going to happen. This man is a fixer. He was determined to get this boat up and running seemingly at any cost.
I’m not going to pretend that I know anything about engines but I do know that completely taking apart and cleaning every single spark plug, fuel line and ultimately the entire carburetor is no easy task. It was 12:45am a mere 2 hours and 15 minutes before the tsunami was expected to hit land and I put my foot down. I told hubby that if the engine wasn’t started at 1am he was coming with us with no arguments. Of course at 12:59am the engine turned over.
Damnit. He was headed out to sea.
I had lost the battle and Harper and I were headed to grandma’s house to meet up with the rest of our family and fleeing friends. The drive over was eery to say the least. Harper was sleeping soundly in the back seat and I drove as quickly as I could down an empty highway towards safety. The biggest concern I had at this point (other than the obvious holy shit my husband is out sailing alone in the middle of the night during a tsunami) was that a)my car would run out of gas and b)the roads would get shut down and I would be stuck somewhere in the middle of home and safety.
Of course neither of these things happened and I arrived at grandma’s house safely. A whole crew of friends and family were gathered sleepily around the t.v. and out on the deck watching what little we could see of the ocean. Thinking I could settle in and finally get some sleep I found out that grandma’s house was also being evacuated. We were told that no later than 2am we had to head further up the hill and wait out the wave until at least 4am.
Once again I packed up what I could bring and thought we would need if worst case happened and we couldn’t get back to the house. We headed up the hill and Harper and I settled into the trunk of grandma’s car for a quick little nap.
The wave did hit Oahu but not nearly as bad as predicted. The worst part about this whole ordeal was knowing that while our families were packing up and preparing for the worst many families throughout Japan and all the other locations around the world affected by the aftermath were in the midst of the worst. While we were worrying about if our husbands and parents and island brothers and sisters would be ok many families were out searching and ultimately realizing that they would never meet up with their loved ones again. It’s heartbreaking knowing that although we came off unscathed there are so many that weren’t as lucky.
My heart goes out to those affected by this disaster, those that are still living in uncertainty, fear and sadness.
I’ll leave you with a few youtube videos (I didn’t get any video) of the craziness around these parts:
What’s up guys! I was just sent an invite to the awesome site www.zulily.com and would love to share the deals with all of you. If you’re interested in signing up shoot me an e-mail and I’ll send you an invite. Today they are offering sweet deals on infant/boys clothing for surf brands like O’neil.
Check out these sweet board shorts I just got for $16.00 bucks instead of the usual $32.00!
Sorry for the delayed update but we are all doing great. The tsunami did not hit our part of the island as bad as they were predicting but there is still some area that were really damaged. We all pulled through and papa had a very very long night out on the boat (failing engine, broken parts and 11 hours straight of solo sailing). Harper and I hung out with the fam and other than some major sleep deprivation we are perfectly fine. Our thoughts and prayers are with all who were not as lucky as us. Will update with pictures as soon as we get back to our house.
It’s 11:20PM and a tsunami is expected to hit Hawaii at 2:59AM. We are ok. Baby and I are leaving Waikiki and staying at grandma and grandpa’s house with a higher elevation while papa takes the boat out a few miles to sea. Will update as soon as we can. Please keep Hawaii and all other areas affected in your thoughts and prayers.
-Mama
I sit here staring at a blank screen, eating my bowl of Rice Krispies, listening to the soft suck of Harper nibbling away at his paci and for the life of me I can’t come up with a way to describe these past 8 weeks. I guess that is how it goes when you realize your heart is no longer your own but sits beating outside your chest within a chubby, goggly eyed little ball of perfection.
My life marches to the beat of this little guy’s drum and never has my dance been more full of life. He has taught me how to live in the moment. The buzz of the tea kettle sings more sweetly, the steam of a hot shower brings out the most gratifying and well deserved sigh of relaxation, the sound of twisting sheets and chorus of “mama i’m hungry grunts” at 2am bring a smile to my face (and thats a huge statement coming from a sleep lover!) because they remind me of just how forever changed my life is and will be as a mama.
More than anything I sit here amazed. I could sit for hours, silly grin plastered across my face just watching this little guy. His every movement makes my heart melt, his growing voice and range of communication has me walking around the house listening and rushing to his side every time I hear his sweet little coo for fear of missing whatever it is that has caught his attention and sparked such a flurry of expression. His tired little yawns and full body stretches, legs kicked out maxing out his sleeper and proving just how much he has grown makes me laugh EVERY single time for you can just see in his face how satisfying that big stretch really was. And more than anything I fall completely head over heels in love all over again when he nestles his little body into the perfect little nook between chest and chin, settles in, gives one last sigh and drifts off to sleep. He has started to hold on when he nurses, to lock eyes and every once in a while pull away to offer up a great big smile. He pushes up with all his might when playing on his tummy, turning his head from side to side to look at the world around. He loves his Bumbo chair and sits proudly watching as mommy and daddy dance around and make silly faces working hard for another one of those earth shattering dimply smiles. He is simply amazing and he is 8 weeks old today.
Complete. That’s exactly how I feel right now. I have the best hubby and friend a girl could ask for, a darling and healthy little boy, sunshine makes its way into my life at some point every single day and the ocean is my backyard and 24/7 playground. As our days become more settled and adjusted to our new family member I’m finding moments to sneak away and time to reflect on how lucky I am.
This past weekend I stole about an hour away and paddled throughout Maunalua Bay. My boys sat under the shade of a palm tree in the morning sun and smiled as I turned back to wave and let them know I was ok. This was a big step for me. I think that I am a pretty brave individual but paddling out solo in unfamiliar territory is a pretty big stretch for me. It was a leap but I was comforted and at peace with how perfect and dream like this scenario seemed to be.
I’ve always wanted to be a mama. I’ve always dreamed of having the kind of love that hubby and I share and over the past few years I’ve fallen deeper and deeper in love with the spell binding pull of the ocean. To combine all three of these into one quiet, glassy morning was nothing short of a dream come true.
This is exactly where I want to be. A mama. A wife. A surfer.
I don’t know what was harder, leaving Harper for an hour to surf or gaining the courage to paddle out in a bikini 6 weeks after delivering a baby…either way it was SO worth it! I had been waiting for this moment for weeks (well 6 to be exact) and after a quick check up with the doctor I was back out in the water.
It seems like such an understatement to describe the experience as amazing but really that is the only word I can think of to translate how incredible and liberating it felt to carry my board down to the water, strap on my leash and plunge into the ocean. To paddle ON my belly for the first time in 7 months was such a strange sensation and I had to really concentrate and work to keep my balance. My paddle is nothing short of lousy, my Hawaii tan has all but faded and my wave judgement is a little rusty but all that mattered to me was that I was out!
The experience was pretty humbling as I fumbled around splashing in the water. It doesn’t help that I’m suffering from major allergies and blowing snot rockets every two seconds either. If my presence in the water wasn’t known while 9 months pregnant it certainly was after this last session. I felt like I needed to apologize to everyone around me, to explain the huge grin on my face and include them all in my personal celebration. This was the moment I had dreamed of for so long, the moment that I held onto that reminded me to be patient with myself during my pregnancy and recovery and it was all so worth it!
Hubby caught my happy dance as I ran out the door taking advantage of a sleeping baby with a full belly:
Harper is absolutely in love with his daddy. It melts my heart when the two of them lock eyes and exchange silly faces. I always knew hubby would make a good papa but I didn’t realize how naturally he would step into this new role. From the day Harper was born he has had that parental instinct and more often than not he knows what Harper wants and needs before I realize it!
Over the past few days Harper has been exploring a whole new range of facial expressions. Our favorite is this little emerging smile:
This Moment- A Friday ritual. A single photo- no words- capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor, and remember. If you’re inspired to do the same, leave a link to your ‘moment’ in the comments for all to find and see.
I'm Heather Mohr, a mama to be and a chick who loves to surf. Here I jot down the adventures of an ocean loving, surf crazed, free spirit and the unfolding journey of mamahood... a collection of reflections on the life of diapers, messy spaghetti faces, finger paintings and a growing family by the sea.
Mama Surfs is all things beach, baby, surf, sun and sand. Come back often for entertainment, inspiration and your daily dose of life by the sea!
