30 Minutes in the Life

I have been blessed by being chosen as the “Featured Artist” at Journey to Artist this month. As part of this honor, I have the opportunity to join with some amazing artists to share a “30 Minutes in the Life” blog post. Please visit the next artist in the circle, Angie Trujillo / Pensacola, Florida, and give her some love ❤

This is the follow-up to a previous post – took the kids for a stroll on the Cross Country Course adjacent to their school. Of course, the playground was calling, so we hopped over there for a little free time as the sun set. I had switched to my Lensbaby lens and enjoyed the challenge of manually focusing moving children <3. The results: art and joy and movement and childhood.

Please see more of my work and follow me on Facebook and Flickr. And now visit Angie Trujillo / Pensacola, Florida and continue on through the rest of the talented artists in the circle. ❤

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New life

Whew. It’s been a while. Looks like I stopped blogging almost exactly when I became pregnant with my fourth little bundle. I obviously lost steam in the blogging venture (energy has been on the low side ;). Almost 2 months after the birth of our son I’m ready to share, ready to explore creativity, ready to have some life breathed…

I took a “lifestyle” approach to photographing my newborn – no marathon “photo sessions” more just a day-to-day glimpse of his little life. Because I want to remember. I want to remember how the trauma of birth left a broken blood vessel in his left eye. That his left little ear was squished to a point. That he was attached to me, so intimately – and his little cord stump as a token of this bond. How he enjoyed swaddling and pacifiers (and was relatively easily calmed by both). Tiny lips fueling life.  First smiles – signs of contentment and joy. Countless diaper changes.  Wrinkly brow creating the “old man” look. Bright blue eyes… Photography provides these little remembrances when the mind and heart fail, these moments are etched in time…

“Thank you, Lord, for Mathias, a true gift from You, as you have called him by his name that means such. Thank you for light and life and art and photographs. You are GOOD.”

Pucker

Little lips

Sweet ear fold

Wrinkled brow

Arm wrinkles

Daddy diaper changes

Tiny grip

Bright eyes

Smiles!

Teeny toes

Changing table calm

Fan infatuation

Retro onesie. (Uncle John’s – one of your namesakes)

Sweetest belly button EVER!

Eyelashes. Pacifiers. Morning light.

Expect more. I have a sweet sibling set to share. And some of mommy and daddy too. I’ll get there. In the meantime, I’ll keep clicking the shutter and catching life in a moment.

This face

Oh, my dear Miriam. I’m sure every mother feels this way, but I just wish everyone could meet Miri. She’s silly and smiley. Demanding and particular. She’s sweet and cuddly. She’s independent and crazy.

The many faces of my sweet little one…

Remember

I want to remember…

• That Tobias constantly climbed and investigated windowsills (and countertops, and chairs and sofas, and tables)
• That when I was occupied with the big kids’ morning routine Miriam would take that opportunity to abscond with the iPad
• That the kids got sick. And how they needed me. And that they got better. And how thankful I was.
• That she would go to great lengths to “pick it, a gum”. And proceed to nibble and swallow it. How she had an obsession with her PJs and refused to put real clothes on after a diaper change.
• How excitable she is. How truly kind and thoughtful. How generous. How very very loud!
• How I “pinned” and saved a plethora of ideas from “mom blogs” and actually completed only a handful of them. That my, at times, impatience & frustrations with little ones are outweighed by God’s grace. That He redeems our failings and brings forth fruit (in this case, actual learning math!) from our meager efforts. 

And when I can’t remember I want to use photographs to recall the joys, the struggles, the moments and God’s faithfulness through it all.

Butterflies at the Park

Yes, the weather has finally warmed. With it my darling children have morphed into their alter-egos, “butterflies”. They are immersed in this fantasy world and insisted on making the jont to the neighborhood playground in costume. I mean, who doesn’t go run and swing and climb without their wings?

Plotting their scheme

Daddy’s just a big kid at heart 🙂

Mimsy’s version of accessorizing: a head lamp

Lydia took off first

Love how the whole family was captured in these next 2 images. 🙂 (well, except the lady behind the camera 😉

Daddy had to get in on the action

A Mimsy morning

I happen to have the blessing of spending most of my mornings with this sweet girl. Lately we’ve been “cooking cereal” and taking care of “babies.” (to divert her attention from her underlying longing to “watcha Pingu”).

As you can tell she is serious about her meal preparation. 😉

Silly girl – always with a baby by her side.

From the kitchen I heard a strange “snoring” type noise coming from the family room. I found Miri “sleeping” after taking care of 3 babies. Sure is hard work. Maybe she knows how her momma feels. 😉