San Antonio Family, Newborn, and Maternity Photography l [throo] the lens photography l

{For the Love} …of little moments…

I am excited to start a new adventure with some other great mom’s/photographers entitled For the Love. Every month, we will be defining and sharing what For the Love means to us. At the bottom of each post will be a link to the next photographer’s blog…be sure and follow the circle all the way around…some really sweet, amazing, and gifted ladies are participating with me and you don’t want to miss out.

For me, this months “For the Love” is all about little moments…more often than not, these are things we (I) take for granted the most in life. As mother’s we have so much on our plate to accomplish…or at least things that we think we need to accomplish every day. Laundry that seems to multiply exponentially, never ending housework, errands, meals (these kids think they should eat every day – geesh!), work outside the home, and the list goes on and on.

For me, the realization that my children are growing up so fast has been tugging at my heart for a while now. Sometimes I am way too distracted by things that have no real value. It pains me to say that, but it is true. Things that took time away from reading with Joshua, coloring with Maddy, or just hanging out with Zach. Things that I can’t even remember now but were somehow important in that moment. Things that, to them, may have seemed more important than they were.

Over the last few months, I have been trying to find ways to simplify MY life in an effort to be more present in my children’s lives. Not just in the room…not just giving the obligatory head nod/smile…I want to make sure I am really present in their lives. I don’t want to miss something because I am folding towels, cleaning a bathroom, or reading on Facebook about what someone ate for dinner.  It’s a work in progress….but what I am finding is that it takes focus and effort to see the little things because sometimes you have to be still and quiet or you will miss them completely. Being still and quiet in a world that is loud is not easy. TV, social media, 24/7 internet, 24/7 everything for that matter, media that is constantly bombarding us with messages to “buy more stuff” or “go-go-go” or “to be more because we aren’t enough”….L-O-U-D.

I can’t remember where I stumbled onto the website for Awesomely Awake, but I found this cool mama (Shawn Ledington Fink) a few weeks ago and have loved reading her thoughts on being what she calls an Abundant Mama. Today I started one of her online courses called Cherish the Wow. It is all about discovering the Wow moments in every.single.day…moments that make you do one of those head slaps, or moments that make you cry, or moments that cause you to laugh so hard you get an ab workout…seeing those moments every day and appreciating them and the beauty of your life and your story. I am excited to go on this adventure with Shawn and see my own story with fresh eyes….to learn to see what is truly valuable in life.

For me, this is what I strive for in my personal and professional photography…recording my own story…and showing clients the beauty of their story recorded in images. Today, For the Love is all about little moments…the images below are all little moments of my daughter Maddy…

Follow the circle to Nina Podlesnyak of Story in Colors…♥