It’s only taken me 8 months postpartum to make my way out of the ‘new mom fog’ but here I am, proud and present on the blog. As I mentioned in my New Year’s post four months ago, my focus for this year is to be more open to flow with wherever the waves of life may take me annnnnd your girl has been *flowing*.
That said, the flow finally led me pick up my SLR camera this past weekend for the first time since bringing Beau home last September. Despite being out of practice, it felt like a homecoming to have it back in my hands. Like a piece of the “Mother version of Setarra” puzzle being put back in its rightful place. I brought it along to take a few photos from Mother’s Day brunch on Sunday… And well, once I started snapping, a few photos turned into many. :)
The last time I celebrated Mother’s Day with my Mommy Ma in person was when we (Charles, his Mom and I) surprised her in Chicago seven years ago. With her living there and myself in Virginia, we’ve always saved our PTO to spend time with each other in the summer or winter holiday seasons. So to be able to celebrate my very first Mother’s Day with her felt extra special, especially given the circumstances of these past couple years; living a fairly isolated lifestyle.
My Ma officially retired last December and gifted me and Charles with her presence and support with Beau for a year a.k.a. she moved in with us = an extra set of hands and brainpower that I am so, so, so grateful for especially now that I’m back to working full-time. One unexpected benefit is I now have another avid photographer on hand to help take pics when I’m not able to set up a tripod.
Watching my Ma and Beau develop a connection has been such a joy to experience. He’s quick to snap his head around and search for her voice when he hears it and there is not a week that passes by that my Ma doesn’t surprise him with a cute new outfit or toy. He’s her first grandchild and who am I to deny her the rite of passage of spoiling him. Trust me, I’ve tried… It’s like trying to stop a train moving at full speed.
Mother’s Day weekend was a full 3-day event. Charles parents came into town on Friday and we spent Saturday at his brother’s to gather and celebrate with family. And then on Sunday, Charles, my Ma, Beau and I went out to grab breakfast at AKB Hotel’s Bar. It marked our first experience bringing Beau to any kind of dining establishment and he was pretty chill and curious of his surroundings the whole time.
The food at AKB was two thumbs up. No complaints whatsoever. We didn’t wait long after ordering for the food to arrive, everything was tasty and they had great ginger peach green tea that my Ma and I were oohing and ahhing over after each sip.
Unfortunately, while eating, Beau started grunting very loudly = a sign that he’s going #2. So I took him to the bathroom to change his diaper only to find (after searching all around) that the womens, mens and unisex bathrooms did not have *any* changing tables installed.
Sooooo I found myself changing Beau precariously on the little counterspace between the wall and sink and hoped he didn’t try to roll over into the sink. While changing, his hand accidentally activated the automatic soap dispenser next to him and I had to make the decision mid-wipe to grab his hand before he put it in his mouth. Of course, that made him even more curious and he kept waving his hand in front of the dispenser which had me going back and forth tryna clean his booty and keep him from eating soap the whole time.
In conclusion, while the food was great, I’m not sure if we’ll be returning because I’m a Mom now and ain’t nobody got time for that. Charles thinks I should send AKB an email to ‘give them a chance to fix the problem’ since we’ve stayed at their hotel before and enjoyed the food. Maybe I will or won’t… Just another nuanced experience that signifies how much my life and perspective on things have changed in the past 8 months.
Now lets switch from SLR to phone pics because like I said, I’m out of practice and had the hardest time figuring out the right light setting for taking these photos in the AKB’s lobby. Thank goodness for the Portrait setting on iPhone.
In all honesty, celebrating my first Mother’s Day felt like an out of body experience. My mind and body 100% accept and acknowledge that Beau is my son but, for some reason, it still hasn’t fully sank in that I’m his Mom. I swear not a day goes by that I don’t reflect in disbelief that I grew a whole baby in my womb with a whole penis and balls attached.
Like, wow. I really did that? Craziness.
Until next post.
xo, Setarra
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