September 2015 - Letters to Our Children

I am really excited to be joining some ladies in a blog circle where we all write a letter to our children each month!! I have tried to write letters to save for my kids a few times in the past, but I really want them to have something more consistent that they can look back on in the future...sort of like a mini scrapbook each month! My plan is to write to one boy each month, so it's Mason's turn first. :)

--After you read my letter, click the link to see Terri's letter to her children. If you keep clicking from there, eventually you'll be right back here!--

My Sweet Mason,

You are becoming quite the busy little 3 year old. In fact you tell me a lot of times, "I have a lot of work to do!!" (Thanks, Thomas the Train). In the past month, we have spent most of our time trying to get all unpacked in our new house, or as you call it, "our snake house." I thought you might be scared having a new room upstairs that's pretty far away from Mommy and Daddy; unlike our old house where we shared a wall and a door. :) But you have done really well in there. The "re-monitor" that basically works like a walkie talkie has been pretty fantastic in helping you to feel safe, since you can talk to us anytime you want. The Thomas the Train table that Aunt Michele and Uncle Wesley gave you for your room helps a lot too. Mommy and Daddy are happy that you always want to cuddle with us at bedtime. We even TRY to be happy about it when you ask us to cuddle at 3 am. ;) We also always enjoy the request to "send __(Mommy or Daddy)___ a message to cuddle" when one of us leaves your room.

You are starting to be very sweet to Rylan, but he is also starting to frustrate you a lot more when he tries to grab your toys. I love to watch you share with him on your own, though. Rylan is your biggest fan, and he smiles at you so much, even when you grab him too tightly.

Here are some other things that happened during the past month or so: We went to PA for a visit two weekends in a row (once for Daddy and Poppy to run the Mad Anthony Half Marathon, and once just to visit Grandma, Pappy, and the rest of the family). Awana started up again, and you started your first year in Cubbies. Daddy passed his training for the feeder job in UPS. You asked to hear many, many stories about "ONE day, when the shiny, red hotshot rookie racecar, named Lightnight McQueen got stuck in the woods...." You also did LOTS of work on your Gator, towed lots of things, honked lots of horns, and ate lots of cherry tomatoes!

Here are a couple recent quotes from you:

"This is a terrible mess; I can't even handle this."

"It's thirty o'clock on my Gator! And that means it's almost past the baby's time to go back to sleep!!"

After getting caught spraying Rylan with a hose, I asked why you kept spraying him when he was crying. You looked at me and said, "I just didn't know how lucky I was!!"

Thanks for making me smile every day!

Love, Mommy

(Click here to read Terri's letter!)

3 Reasons to Skip Your Portrait Photographer This Year

NO, of course I don't hate portrait photographers! But I want you to think outside the box with me for a few minutes. Imagine a world, where after hiring a photographer to take pictures of your family, all of the typical family picture stress is dismissed. Why?? Because this year, you decided to hire a photographer to tell your family's story, instead of only showcasing your beauty. While all pictures of your family are wonderful and should be treasured, the interactions that can be captured through documentary photography are priceless.

Here's my disclaimer: There is so much value in portrait photography, and I think it's beautiful. I love a nice picture of my family all smiling in a pretty field in pretty clothes with clean faces—In fact, I have some pictures like that hanging on my walls! But, I don't think that it's possible to tell a family's whole story that way. And that's where documentary/storytelling photography comes in.

So what are 3 reasons to forgo the stress of the dreaded family pictures this year and take a chance on something different??

#1) You don't have to go shopping, borrow from a friend, or spend hours scouring Pinterest to find matching outfits for your family.

When I come to photograph your family, I want to show what your everyday life looks like; and I'm going to guess that in your everyday life, you don't strive to coordinate your clothes with both your toddler *and* your husband. But then again, I may be wrong. :) Instead of wearing fancy matching clothes, I want you to be comfortable. I want to tell the story of *your* family, not the "Super-Fancy-We-Never-Really-Look-Like-This-Family." And if your husband is anything like mine, this reason alone may be enough to persuade him!

#2) Sometimes it's better to remember the real, rather than the pretty.

When your kids are grown, you are going to reminisce about the past and what your life was like when the kids were younger. Pictures are the perfect catalyst for that. Looking at nice portraits can make you smile; but they likely will not evoke memories about the details of your family when those pictures were taken. Imagine, years from now, being able to look through a printed album that tells the story of a day in the life of your family from 10 years before. No fanciness; just reality. "Honey, do you remember that Frozen sticker that you stuck right on the corner of your bed?? We never got it all the way off!" or "You always sucked on those two fingers every time you were scared," or "I forgot that we used to sit in that chair and read. For two weeks straight you wanted us to read that same story!" Life doesn't always look pretty, at least in my house, and as nice as it is to dress up together and smile, it's also fun to look back and remember what life was really like.

#3) No one has to look at the camera, smile, OR say "cheese!!"

What happens when a photographer points a camera at a family and tries to get that perfect portrait? Usually some people become grumpy; some people start worrying about their hair or about their child (or about their husband) smiling the "right way;" and some become stiff and produce a robotic grimace. Of course, there are always quite a few talented moms who can smile beautifully while either bribing or threatening their family through their teeth. :) Why don't you try skipping that stress this year? Instead I will let you do your thing in your house or somewhere special to your family, and I'll capture how you interact naturally with each other. Again, being natural and comfortable are the best ways to tell your true story. And as much as it might kill you, just fight the urge to look at the camera and whisper "EVERYONE SMILE!" to your family. ;)

Yes, I think there are more than 3 reasons to choose this fun, new way to showcase your family; but hopefully these ideas will help you to see a few of the upsides to choosing hanging out with your family over stressing them out when it comes to family pictures.

Moving Day!!

For the past month or two, our family has been going through the time-consuming process of buying and now moving into a new house. As the day approached for us to close on our new house, I was excited; I knew that I wanted to document our day. I knew it could be the perfect opportunity to do a day-in-the-life session with my own family! Plus there were so many little details about our current house that I didn't want to forget after we moved. I was scared to commit to shooting all day, since I knew we'd be so busy with painting, shampooing carpets, moving, etc. *But* I decided to try my best and go for it anyway. So, although this isn't the most well-documented day ever, I'm excited that I was able to capture the memory of this day for my family.

If you've ever moved or even spruced up a house, I hope you can relate to this post. I hope these pictures bring back some of those memories of your own life. :)