Mom photos are not really high on my list. I love taking pictures of my children. They are cute and change in the blink of an eye. I am generally behind the camera in my happy place/comfort zone.
My kids try, but I am still faster than they are at dodging a camera pointed at me. I mean, if anyone gets it, I do. My body is not what it used to be. I am 20 pounds heavier with wrinkles and gray hairs. Daily showers have become a luxury. My braces came off pretty recently but I’m still stylin’ with a retainer. I spend most of my time in clothing that probably isn’t fit to be seen in public. (Though honestly I do go out frequently in said clothes.) With all of this going on, who want’s to be photographed? Why get in the picture when I am a hot mess?
Here are 3 reasons why we need mom photos:
1. Your kids want to see you in the picture!
My daughter illustrated this beautifully for me one day when we were out to lunch. She’s only 2 and I took a quick shot of her across the table from me as a memento of our girls’ day out. When I showed it to her she was smiling until she saw it. Her words were, “Where’s mommy?” It took me by surprise. I wasn’t looking great that day but I wasn’t looking awful either. After flipping the camera around on my phone, I squeezed in beside her for a selfie. I got a great big smile from that one, so mom photo for the win!
2. No one else notices your flaws.
You may not believe me on this one, but really, they don’t. We are all more critical of ourselves than others. I cannot tell you how many times that I’ve seen a photo of myself and gone, “Ugh. Why do I take such awful pictures?” Only to have someone compliment the same photo and tell me how photogenic I am. They don’t notice those extra pounds, lines, grays or braces at all. Now the real beauty will be when I can do the same. Listen, I am not perfect here, just aware of my flaws both physical and mental!
3. One day photos will be all that your children have left.
Alright, I don’t mean to be morbid here, but it’s true. We live. We die. These are facts. Our children will cherish every photo of us like it is gold when we are gone. I realized one day in looking at photos from my family and childhood, most of the photos of my mom are at the kitchen sink. How perfect is that? I know that I spend half of my time there too so they are certainly real! I don’t notice much about her appearance other than that. She just looks like my mom and I am grateful for every stinking one of those mom photos, especially the last one taken of us together.
Mom photos are still not at the top of my list, but I do try to make an effort to slip out from behind the camera more often these days. I really have no excuse with the technology available to me, e.g. cell phones, digital cameras, tripods and selfie sticks. If you’re still hiding out behind the camera, check out this post for some posing positions. Get in the picture. Your kids will thank you. Come on over and post your mom pic in the Mommy Later community. We’d love to see you there!
