How many events, birthdays, play dates, daily adventures have you gone to with your children and been the one holding the camera? Undoubtedly, you’ve taken countless pictures of them running around, having a grand time, exploring their world. Most likely, you’ve managed to be in at most two of those pictures thanks to a nice passerby or the reverse button on your iPhone. Even when dad is around or other family members, moms seem to be the ones frantically documenting those memories, freezing those moments in time. The sad part about it is while you are so involved in every minute, you’re rarely there in the pictures to prove it.

Recently, I was looking through old photos and tagged in a few. The ones that I am awestruck by are the ones that hold my mom and other family members. The photos that hold me in the frame with them are extra special. There’s just something about being in pictures with your mom. Looking back on those pictures is an amazing experience allowing you to not only remember the moments, but also to know what your family members looked like when you were so young. You forget that. You have them in your mind’s eye, but you forget that they were so young once, too.  You suddenly realize that they were where you are now, enjoying the very moments you cherish daily with your little ones. You’re hit with a whole new level of respect and love for your parents and your mothers in particular.

This stage of life is a very hectic one at times. Many mothers I know (and myself included) go days without showering (gross, I know), we muddle through some days in a fog of exhaustion, but we do it all with love and honor and a sense of pride. This job of ours is the most important thing. Growing little people is not for the faint of heart. These Mommy & Me sessions give you a chance to be pampered, get prettied up, and have some incredible moments with the ones you work so very hard to care for and to teach. I guarantee that this sweet mama will hold on to these moments, but even more so, Cade will be looking at these images when he has his own children and truly see how beautiful his mother is, inside and out.

Thank you for allowing me to capture these moments. With each session I do, my heart grows a little bigger. Seeing these bonds is refreshing and overwhelming each and every time.

~Melissa