Mom and Daughter 1,300 Miles Apart Use Skype to Celebrate Mother’s Day Together

As part of our ongoing Mother’s Day series celebrating the unbreakable bond between moms and their children, Your Daily Dish is featuring amazing stories that highlight that special relationship.

When Christina Kirk watched her 18-year-old daughter move out of their Oklahoma home to go to California’s Occidental College in 2016, she had no idea how they would continue to celebrate Mother’s Day together.

“Since she is in Glee Club and will be singing at all graduation events, she will not be coming home this week,” Christina Kirk told Your Daily Dish. “That is why we will be apart for the very first time on Mother’s Day.”

Mother’s Days were always special for Christina and her daughter, Deja. Each year, Deja would cook her mom breakfast in bed. They would also watch television and spend the rest of the day together after church.

Last year for Mother’s Day, Deja saved up enough money to take Christina to a nice restaurant and she booked a day spa for her.

“Honestly, for me, just spending time with her is always the best present,” Christina told Your Daily Dish. “My mom is disabled and I never had to opportunity to develop these Mother’s Day rituals with her. It was essential for me to develop them with Deja.”

Christina does occasionally visit her daughter, but it is too expensive to travel frequently. To help bridge their geographic divide, Christina and Deja conduct weekly Skype chats on Sundays.

“It is hard to have your only child 1,331 miles away from home,” she told Your Daily Dish. “Hearing her voice over the phone is not enough. I need to look into her eyes and hear her say she is OK or not OK. As a mom, you can tell more from your child’s expressions than the mere words in a text or call.”

In 2017, Christina and Deja will use the digital messaging service to have a virtual Mother’s Day celebration.

“The plan is for us to Skype in the morning from bed so it is kinda like my breakfast in bed and watch one of my favorite old-timey television shows, Hart to Hart,” Christina told Your Daily Dish. “It will not be the same, but it will be very close thanks to products like Skype.”

Parents like Christina Kirk Use Skype.

A 2015 report in the U.K. found that up to 15,000 children use platforms like Skype to stay in contact with parents who live far away. There are also military parents deployed overseas who rely on Skype to chat with their children.

Christina offers some advice for parents who want to spend quality time together with their long-distance children.

“I recommend setting a consistent time to communicate with your child,” Christina Kirk told Your Daily Dish. “It gives both of you something to look forward to. Do not wait for the perfect moment. Share the everyday life moments. Those are the moments you would be sharing if they were there with you anyway. It makes them feel closer. Whether it is two minutes or two hours, let them talk. Listen. If you do, you will get a glimpse of their world.”

Special thanks to Help a Reporter Out.