So, my mama died when I was 18. Mother’s Day has been a tough one for me ever since. For years I’d spend the day feeling sorry for myself, being jealous of all the mom/daughter pairs around me, and overall just being really, really bitter.
Then something changed.
I had my own baby. Mother’s Day was, and probably always will be, difficult- but it also became something a little more. A time to celebrate my own motherhood journey, a time to embrace the little ways I now see my mother in myself, a time to revel at the fact that those small bits of her DO live on through me, and will continue to do so through my children. It’s still a bittersweet day, for sure. But the sweetness part became so much easier to find while staring into those two little gray eyes of the beautiful child who now calls me mama. I can only imagine Mother’s Day will be even sweeter this year, when I will have two sets of those lovely gray eyes to stare into… you know, until my heart feels so full that it could just explode? Yeah, I’ve come a long way since I was that bitter 18 year old girl.
So what does this have to do with photography?
Not much.
But also a whole lot. Of course now that she’s gone, pictures of my mama and I are extremely precious to me. And quite frankly, there just aren’t enough of them. So, since I realize the importance of having pictures with your children, and because I’m kind of into this photography thing and all….. of course I have ZILLIONS of these sorts of pictures of myself, right??!!??
Nope. Fail.
If I’m going to be completely honest here—I had my husband snap some pictures of me with Miles (the newbie) when he was two weeks old. And I don’t have a single picture of us together since then. He is now four months old.
And my two year old Ethan? Umm yeah, pretty sure not since I was still pregnant. Maybe this doesn’t seem like a ridiculously long amount of time, but if I hadn’t been having a new baby… those few snaps probably wouldn’t have even happened.
So why not? Too tired. Too fat. Hair a mess. Wearing yoga pants and a slobber & milk stained tank top instead of real clothes. Too embarrassed to ask someone to take my picture. The list goes on. Stuff I’m sure my kids will never care about. And it’s sad. Because out of the 99 million photos I have of my kids guess which ones are my favorite? Yep. The ones of us together.
So since I do recognize how bad I am at getting in these pictures, I’ve made it a point to have my husband take some snaps of me with the little guy each year on Mother’s Day. Whether I feel like it or not. It’s a start, right? Soooo guess what I want for Mother’s Day this year. (listen closely, Mr. Anna George….)
Yep, you guessed it! Pictures of me with my babies!!!!
No more excuses. And these will not sit on my hard drive like the countless other pictures that are hiding on there and will never see the light of day in print. We are taking pictures AND having them printed. The end.
So mamas, please do get in pictures with your kids. I know it’s been said before—and much more eloquently than I have said it—but I wanted to share my personal story with y’all anyway. Whether it be professional portraits, cell phone pictures… doesn’t matter. Just take them. And get them PRINTED too so they don’t get lost and forgotten in the dusty corners of your hard drive.
If you need some help in this department… I am going to be offering mini sessions for mama’s and their kids (adult kids count too!) over the next few months to celebrate Mother’s Day this year. And you WILL get a printed photo with that! Details coming soon.