Take a Moment to read the article linked above. Mind you, I don't normally read much, if anything, on Huffington because I have better things to do than get irritated with most of what they put up. But I love, LOVE, this article for so many reasons.
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I will say this, as the oldest child in my family there are no lack of pictures of me. Professional, personal, etc. Pictures with camels, in front of Pyramids, at Disneyland, etc. All of these places were neat, wonderful places to be. But the ones that I cherish the most are the ones with my parents and grandparents. I have a handful of pictures that I've seen with my Mom and Dad before my sisters came along. I think of that and then read this article from The Huffington Post and think, "I really need to make an effort to be in pictures with my daughter." Because, as a daughter, who's turning 33 this month, it goes by in a heartbeat, in the blinking of an eye.
With everything going on in the world, we need to remember to be in the picture with our kids. Even if it's been a few days since we showered, we have no makeup on, if we're in our sweats, or are in our PJs all day, etc. The things I remember the most about my childhood are the things that don't involve a lot of pomp and circumstance. Dancing in the living room with my Mom and eventually my sisters, playing hide and go seek in our apartment in Egypt, Mom teaching me how to paint, helping her cook, etc.
As a first time Mom, hopefully not a last time Mom, I want my daughter to have pictures of us doing silly things, of every day things because one day I'll be gone, or even worse, one day she'll be gone. It is a blessing if our children outlive us. Being named after an aunt who died at the age of 7, having been with some friends just before their little one passed away, and holding a baby who was stillborn... There is no gurantee that we will outlive our children, or that our children will see us into our elderly years.
Go take those pictures. Be there for your kids. Give them memories. Show them your priorities. Teach them everything you can. Teach them to be confident, show them in pictures that you were happy to be their Mom no matter what was going on. One day the picture above will be what my daughter sees in how happy she was to be going to the zoo for the first time, and it will remind me that she cried and cried when we left the elephants because she loved them so much. The small things in life were still important. In a flash boys will be a top priority and what others think of her. Those aren't her priorities at all right now. Capturing this moment will make me nostalgic, and to remind me that she will always be my baby no matter how old she gets and where she goes in life.
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This month at our Babynet KY meeting I'm setting up a photo booth. We're going to capture silly moments, goofy moments, and all I ask is you just bring yourself as you are. No special preparation. Bring your kids as they are, bring yourself as you are, as you always are. There will be silly hats, chalk boards with phrases, scarves, and everything else. Have fun with it. Be in there with your kids. Love WHERE you are with them. Where they are in their lives will only be this very moment.
