Joanna's Motherhood mini session
I have the joy of spending time with Joanna and her two adorable kiddos almost every week, and it made me simply giddy to get to capture their laughter and love for each other during my mini sessions! This was the first time I had hosted a weekend of Mother's Day Minis, and I so enjoyed it. Even though fifteen minutes may sound like not nearly enough time to capture photos with little ones, it was actually perfect! We had a bit of time to play and move around, as well as some time to sit and snuggle, and right around the time the kids felt ready to move onto something new, we were wrapping up their session!
I wanted to host these Motherhood Mini sessions because so often moms are the ones behind the camera. We capture thousands of pictures and videos on our phones of our kids, and maayybe we squeeze into a quick selfie or two, but there are rarely photos that feel like a true keepsake in the middle of all the camera roll mess. With that in mind, I wanted the mamas at my mini sessions to take fifteen minutes to just be with their kiddos and let their love and connection shine through in photos they can treasure forever.
Joanna said it this way after our session, "I want my children to be able to look back and KNOW, without a doubt, that I enjoyed every stage of their growing up years. I want them to remember me as a happy mom. I want them to see the joy that they brought me. And Jessica Hurley captured that so well with her camera!"
I wanted to move in close for these little details, because the tiny - yet pudgy - hands and those smoochable cheeks are some of the things that I miss dearly about this stage, now that my boys have gotten out of their toddler years and grown into full-blown kids.
Both from talking to Joanna and watching Camden constantly snuggle into her, it's clear that he's a big fan of being held by mama. (And not usually the being put down, haha!) To the mamas out there also experiencing sleep interruptions and clingy stages, just speaking from my own experience - I know that those sleepless nights can be difficult and arms can grow tired. But after time has passed and you begin to watch them grow more independent, you can treasure knowing that as their mom, you were (and still are) their safe harbor. It evolves over time, from wiping tears from smooth baby cheeks in the middle of the night to the deeper questions and longer conversations, and all the stages are exhausting and beautiful in their own way. Whichever stage you find yourself in, I pray that you'll find a new joy and peace in it, even on the hard days. You're doing great, mama.
Shadows
I saw a young mother
with eyes full of laughter and two little shadows
came following after.
Wherever she moved,
they were always right there
holding onto her skirts, hanging onto her chair.
Before her, behind her -
an adhesive pair.
“Don’t you ever get weary
as, day after day,
your two little tagalongs
get in your way?”
She smiled as she shook her pretty young head.
And I’ll always remember the words that she said.
“It’s good to have shadows that run when you run,
that laugh when you’re happy
and hum when you hum -
For you only have shadows
When your life’s filled with sun.”
-Unknown
