Take the Damn Picture

I continually get crap from my mom and mother-in-law for taking their pictures. Mainly because I will snag a photo when it is early in the morning or my mom will say, “I don’t have my lipstick on!” I see a moment that I love that they are sharing with their grandson though and I want to keep it and have it for him as well when he is older.

Here is the thing, I LOVE photos and I love freezing a moment. I wrote a post on freezing moments already but this one is about who is in them and creating those lasting memories.

I stared at several photos yesterday at my parent’s house that were of some of my most treasured people in my life. They have passed and all we have left are the memories and photos. It got me feeling all the feelings of missing them. However, we have those amazing memories that we can relive through a photo.

Take the damn picture.

Life changes and things happen we cannot plan for. I can keep memories forever though through photos.

Whether the two moms in my life continue to yell at me for taking their photo when they are in their “going out” attire or not, the moments we freeze are more valuable to me and I can chuckle knowing they were snapping at me for that.

I love having the photos of them right before bedtime where my son is hanging on to his grandma or the one where he is finishing his breakfast snuggling his nan. They are moments that are so sweet and I wish I had more of with my own grandparents who are not here any longer.

As I have tears in my eyes now thinking of my memories and wish for one more hug from my grandparents, even the extra ones I had, I know that the moments we freeze for our kids will be cherished later on.

Take the damn picture.

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Here are some of my favorites of me as a little one with my grandparents and of them and who they truly were.

That rocking chair in the first two photos below is the same rocking chair my mom is now rocking my son in, in the picture above.

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Watchful Eyes

I sit my son on the counter when I cook.  His head is just short enough yet to open the cabinets for spices.

He is very interested in what I am doing and being right at mom’s side. We are in the phase of “mommy is where he needs to be.” It is much easier to have him on the counter watching me than at my legs pulling on my pants crying. Plus, this is a learning opportunity where he sees mom cooking.

I need to invest in the toddler stepladder so he can be a part of things and since he is getting taller every day!

Little eyes do what we do. He is 13 months old but these little eyes are constantly watching and replicating what we do.

The other day when he was “helping” me he had the glass salt grinder in his little hands and it fell. It hit the floor and shattered. Yes, I trust him more than some would. It’s how I roll and how I know he will learn as well.

As this happened, my husband was actually taking this photo a moment before. (I LOVE that he snaps a photo now and again so I can be in a few)

I remember distinctly how I reacted. Calmly reminding him it was okay. He also stayed calm. Guess who else did? My husband. All three of us reacted the same. It was quite nice to be honest.

My husband and I both carried the same vibe and quickly cleaned up the mess together while our son looked on from the counter top. Accidents do happen and this was mom’s fault allowing him to have it in the first place so I could only be mad at myself. But in the end, that set maybe cost us $15 so we can replace it which I already did with a quick trip to Marshall’s for $4.99. 😊

My mom taught me that. How to react when something breaks. I have to credit her for most of my calmness with my son, for most moments, because I am much more like my dad in other aspects and he is not the calm one, at all. Love him of course! But a glass of spilled milk to my dad is a complete disaster.

When we would break something at home growing up my mom would calmly say, “There goes another! Now we have to break another to make the set even.” This was said all while she laughed. It has become more of a joke to her and I now because we understand that things can and will break. If you don’t want it broke, don’t use it. It’s as simple as that.

Now, what I did not like that my son saw me do and then replicated. Our dog loves to be right by his side when he eats because of obvious reasons that he either feeds her or drops things that she can then get. The one day she was too close to him I gave her a little tap on the head to get her attention and said, “GO” to get her to leave his personal space and ideally the room. Well, my son saw this as a hit on her and he pulled his little hand high and swung at her.

We have been working diligently with him since he was able to recognize our pets to pet them nicely and not grab their fur so this was an embarrassing moment for me and I was mad at myself for it too. I had to quickly correct him and truly realize EVERY SINGLE ACTION I do, he sees.

As noted, he “drops” his food and both pets join his side

I knew this, but when they replicate you in the moment, it hits you hard. He is 13 months old too. That is young to realize that these small brains are sponges and quite literally soak in every single thing they see and hear.

I like to believe that my husband and I display a pretty solid example for him, minus our sailor mouths. That’s just the truth on that. Sorry not sorry there.

We will obviously be more mindful of any moment like the one with our dog, but having him sit with me while I cook or my husband is cutting grass or handy man work are all items he can be involved with as well. When he watches us he will replicate as well.

I love watching his little mind learn and grow and hope !