Remember when we used to take a million pictures of ourselves with our friends? Now we mostly just take adorable pictures of our kids. But what about us? I want to remember all parts of my life, not just my kids!
I love photography and take a lot of pictures. Photos are incredibly important to me. It is one of the main ways that I document and remember my life. In high school and college, I studied photography and consider it to be one of my passions and creative outlets. As a photographer, I enjoy taking family photos, portraits, and lifestyle sessions. (You can see some of my work here and here.)
You get the idea, I love photography! BUT, as I was sifting through my photos I noticed something…I wasn’t in very many of them, and neither were my friends. It wasn’t intentional, but over time I had gotten out of the habit of taking pictures with my friends.
These precious moments of early motherhood are so much fun. Having adorable pictures of my kids during these early years are priceless. But it’s not all about my kids! I want to remember my life as well as their lives. I want to look back on pictures of my friends and I too. There will be plenty of albums and files of my kids, but I want my life in there, too.
Someday I want to look back at this time and say, “Look how young I was!” I want conversations over coffee with my friends where we laugh at our hair and outfit choices and all the silly things we did together.
I also want my kids to have a history of me with them in their lives. Photos aren’t only to document their lives. They are going to want to remember me, too. Think about it, how many pictures do you have with your parents? How about your grandparents? Thankfully I have quite a few pictures with my parents but not many with my grandparents. In addition to plenty of photos of their childhood, I want to give that gift to my children: a visual history of their family and friends.
In high school and college, I always had a camera with me. There was never a hesitation to take a picture with my friends or while I was doing something fun. Maybe it was the process of becoming a mother that did it: the overall move of myself to the back burner while my new babies took over my priorities and life.
It has been a gradual progression to make myself a priority. As I’ve come out of the fog of new motherhood, I’ve been finding myself again. There have been lots of changes over these years but the one thing I am definitely taking from my former self is the habit of being in the photos.
So friends, get ready, because I’ll be turning that camera on us, too. I’ll still be taking plenty of pictures of my kids, but while the camera is out, I’ll be snapping some of my life too. I want to remember the whole picture, not just what my kids were doing!
On a side note, oftentimes, I haven’t wanted to take a picture because my hair was a mess, or I had no makeup, or I didn’t like my outfit. Here’s what I’ve discovered. When I look back after a year or two, it is less about what I look like and more about how I was feeling in the picture. That’s what I remember the most when I see a picture of myself.
If I don’t love the way I look, there is no obligation for me to share it! But I’m always thankful I have it for myself. The other bonus, no matter what, I will always look younger in the photo, because you will never be as young as you are right now! So even when you don’t feel your best, take that picture anyway, and remind yourself that in five years you’ll be looking back thinking two things:
Look how happy I was
Look how young I look!
