What I believe about photography (and why it matters to you)

When someone tells me she's a mom, I already know a few things about her.

I know that she doesn't get enough sleep, even if her kids are teenagers. I know she feels like there aren't enough hours in the day, no matter where she works or how many other jobs she has (besides being a mom). I know she worries about making sure that each one of her children feels seen and valued and that it's a constant juggling act to make that happen. And I know she imagines that day, not so far into the future, when they’re grown and moved out…and she’s a little sad…but she knows that the photographs she has around the house will help her remember how amazing it was when they were little.

My journey as a mom is a little different than most of the people I know. Before I got pregnant, my husband and I decided on two children and when we got pregnant with twins, I knew that I wouldn't get to experience any part of the motherhood journey with another child.

This made every phase they went through both the first time and the last time that I would get to experience it, which was bittersweet in a way but it also taught me to pay attention to what was happening in the moment because I knew I wouldn't have another child later on that would go through the same stage.

I didn't realize it at the time but I was working to document our family's story... the way one of my daughters always laughed with her mouth wide open. The way my blonde would stay as clean as humanly possible while her twin body-painted with chocolate ice cream. We did the usual family photos at special events and holidays (and those are important too) but I truly loved capturing the things that made our girls unique. And I especially loved photographing their relationship and how they never wanted to be very far apart from each other.

I believe that photography allows us to revisit our very favorite moments in time and relive them again (and again). Because every picture we take, we take for a reason, right? Having those images to look back on helps us remember our stories and the "chapters" in them. It helps us tell future generations our stories as well (because honestly, our kids would never have believed us about 80’s fashion if there wasn’t photographic proof).

I can look at almost every image I have taken of my girls and remember what that time in our lives was like. And that, to me, is such a gift…one that everyone can have!

So take pictures of your family…not just on the “special event” days but on the days in between, too. Photograph the things that make this time in your lives unique, whether it be missing teeth or thumb sucking. Take pictures of the day you all decided to stay in your pjs all day and watch movies on the couch together. Because one day, those thumb-sucking, toothless people of yours will be all grown up and will spend most of their time at marching band practice or theater or with their friends.

And if you want a little help photographing a chapter in your story, I would love to to help! Contact me so we can get started…