GET IN THE PICTURE!!!

Yesterday Mom, the kids and I all went to 
visit Auntie Jessica downtown.  Mom hadn't 
got to see Jessica's new digs yet & we took
the opportunity to have lunch together. 

Before we left the house I asked Mom to 
take our picture, together.
As you know I have MILLIONS of photos of 
my kids.  But generally speaking, I live 
BEHIND the camera, not in front of it. 

I read this article recently:

I really think you should read it too, 
but if you don't have time to click on 
the link here is a little part of it:

Someday, I want them to see me, documented, sitting right there beside them: me, the woman who gave birth to them, whom they can thank for their ample thighs and their pretty hair; me, the woman who nursed them all for the first years of their lives, enduring porn star-sized boobs and leaking through her shirts for months on end; me, who ran around gathering snacks to be the week's parent reader or planning the class Valentine's Day party; me, who cried when I dropped them off at preschool, breathed in the smell of their post-bath hair when I read them bedtime stories, and defied speeding laws when I had to rush them to the pediatric ER in the middle of the night for fill-in-the-blank (ear infections, croup, rotavirus).
I'm everywhere in their young lives, and yet I have very few pictures of me with them. Someday I won't be here -- and I don't know if that someday is tomorrow or thirty or forty or fifty years from now -- but I want them to have pictures of me. I want them to see the way I looked at them, see how much I loved them. I am not perfect to look at and I am not perfect to love, but I am perfectly their mother. 

This article really speaks to me. 

I don't always love myself in photos so 
avoiding being in them is much easier 
then putting forth the effort to actually
GET IN THEM.

But I want my kids to see me.  Me for me,
years from now, I want them to look back
and see that I was with them, every day.

I don't have to look perfect, (which works
out great) but just real & there, with them.
I want them to see that we are laughing 
and smiling TOGETHER.

I know they won't remember all of this. 
They are too young.  But if I work harder
on making sure they have documentation 
of my love for them, my constant presence,
then I can live on with them forever.  

 I'm glad I do a good job of documenting
the other people they love too : )
 I love the way Jessica is looking at Norie 
in this picture, she loves her so much.
 The girls had a great time entertaining all of 
Jessica's coworkers.  I think a little comic
relief is just what they all needed, "real" jobs
 can be stressful.  : )
 We followed the visit with a nice lunch,
Norah was so hungry she tried to eat fake
sugar, yuck.  She enjoyed the Thai food 
much more.  : )
We love going downtown, I'm so glad
Jessica works down there.  It's the perfect
excuse to go visit.  Love her.

Lets wrap this up with one more picture of 
my beautiful girls, standing with their mom,
who loves them more then anything!!
 Now go take some pictures with your loved ones!!

Have a great weekend!
: )

Comments

guzzi guy said…
Love these! You really *do* need to get in the picture more.
Megan said…
I agree - it's so important to be in the picture too! Plus, you look gorgeous, so you're gonna want to have that documented!

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