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.

It was a toss up and really, can you blame me?

I can’t get enough of the baby butt. As I plugged my camera in this week and downloaded all 129 images I’ve captured throughout the week, I’m embarrassed to admit that majority of them included some bare butt.

Just look at this thing and tell me you don’t want to pinch those cheeks?

They say practice makes perfect and this week I’ve decided that I’m going to perfect the art of taking a self portrait. As these pictures show…I have my work cut out for me!

My assistant and I are working on it!

Chomp! Chomp! Chomp! Who knew pearly whites were so tough to come by? Harper has been “teething” for quite some time now but there are still no actual teeth to show for all his discomfort and protest. There has been however some pretty entertaining moments as we sit back in amazement as he manages to shove his entire fist or the closest object as far into his mouth as possible. There is a lot of grunting, snorting, drooling and even some chin/nose gnawing if he can get you close enough.

  

I’ve mentioned before that one of my favorite blogs and daily reads is Soule Mama . I love the simplicity of this blog and how some beautifully strung words creates a picture and time capsule of a busy family and mama.

Now that I’m a mama myself I realize the importance of writing down those special moments for fear that they might become hazy in between the go go go nature of motherhood and the minimal hours of sleep we’ve been getting around these parts. Not only is it important to write these things down for memories sake but I’ve found that taking the time to sit and reflect helps add that balance I’ve been longing for, it’s another way to pause and drink in the beauty of my family and to focus my thoughts, my energy and my heart on the positives throughout the day. I’m finding that when you focus on the positives you begin to see them creep in even during the most hectic and trying times.

I also admire Soule Mama for her dedication to her writing. As I’ve admitted last week, blogging has taken a back seat lately amidst all the activity our days have been filled with. As much as I’ve needed this break I also need that deep sigh of satisfaction I get when I’ve finished an entry, posted some pictures and put words to how I’m feeling.

One of the ways Soule Mama keeps up with all that is going on in her busy life (mother to 5!) is through her Monday “Right Now” posts. I’ve decided to give this method a trial run on Mama Surfs and am so excited to share a little snap shot of our “right nows” with you!

Right Now, I am …

Enjoying the soft acoustic guitar that is floating from the lanai overhead and filling my bedroom with sweet lullabies

Stuffing myself with undercooked brownies whose centers melt in my mouth and leave a guilty sticky smudge across my lips

Giggling as my babe plays with language and experiments through squeaks, squeals and long chains of nonsense

Aching from a competitive race in the kayaks amongst visiting friends (we won!)

Amazed at the coordination and emerging dexterity this little guy has developed

In disbelief that I have been calling this handsome snoring man to my right “husband” for 5 years as of this Friday

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 love parties, I love themes and I love surprises. Add all three of these together and this is what you get:

See that ridiculous smile across my face? It was permanently fixed there as we helped celebrate my aunties special birthday this past weekend. The theme was 60′s and included some fantastic decorations, costumes, food, music and dancing.

It also included one incredibly handsome and silly looking baby:

My parents live in California, a long 3,000 something miles away and now that I’m a mama myself this distance just seems cruel. Parents and children are supposed to be together, not separated by miles and miles of ocean! How do my parents stand it?

Funny how becoming a mama myself has put so many things into perspective. Just thinking about being away from Harper for an hour leaves a sick feeling in my stomach and imagining him so far away, no matter how old or “grown up” he might be just makes me feel so empty and sad.

As much as I miss my mama and daddy for myself I now miss them for Harper too. It’s tough looking back at my own childhood and remembering how close I was to my grandparents. I want this for my son and despite the fact that we won’t be able to see my mom and dad nearly as often I’ve been making it a point to include them in our daily lives.

Each morning Harper and I wake up and sing songs. We go through the list of family and friends that we love and miss and I sing to him, “Mama loves you, daddy loves you, Your GG loves you and so does aunty and uncle and on and on and on.” Silly I know and it’s quite a long song but I hope that just mentioning these names over and over will help him realize how many people love him and how much he means to so many.

Another way we include our long distance relatives and friends is by looking at pictures and telling stories. It’s fun for me to take a trip down memory lane, looking through old photographs and recounting the time(s) that Auntie Jaime and I skipped school and would sit for hours sipping on hot chocolate and giggling, or how Uncle Davie and mama would “run away” and pack ziplock bags full of chocolate chips and post up in our neighbors drive way feeling so badass and defiant.

My mama must have been thinking along these lines when she sent Harper this little llama. With him was a card that said, “when you love on this llama I want you to think of your g-ma and g-pa that miss and love you so much”. This is exactly what Harper needed and so did I. I have to admit that I’ve snuck a few cuddles with this guy thinking and missing my mom and dad and I love love love this idea.

Do you live away from family? How do you stay connected and if you have kids what tips can you share to help them feel close to relatives that are far away?