Sausage Legs and Bare Feet

Maybe it was the way her chubby thighs were stuffed into black and white striped leggings like sausages.

It also could have been her perfect post-nap hair and bare feet.

Or maybe it was the way she bent down, saying "wow," over and over when she discovered her first ant pile.

Whatever the reason, this week I've wanted to freeze time and have an almost-23-month-old Harper forever. Her life is like the snowball effect right now and I feel like I need someone to slow this roll.

She is curious and soft and willing. Everyday she is learning something new; soaking up every ounce of life. She loves and feels deeply, without fear or restraint. Her laugh comes easily and her tears slow quickly in the comfort of her mother's arms. I don't want her to lose that.

And I don't want to miss it. We won't always have these days together and I hope I won't waste a minute of them. But there are times when I get so wrapped up in documenting our life that I forget to enjoy it. I would hate to miss the wonder of an ant pile for fear that I'll miss a photo. I'd rather have the moment and the memory. And I'd rather Harper see me enjoying her than my face obscured by a white rectangle, of which I'm too often guilty.  

This does not mean I will stop taking pictures or trying to get a video of "I'm a little teapot." (Don't worry, Mom and Dad, I just cleared space on my phone for more of those ;) But it is my pledge to be more like Harper. Free and living in every moment that comes my way.

Because, just maybe, it's the only way to slow that roll.