Motherhood - Chapter 12 - Mental Snapshots

I am not a photographer. I stand in awe of those talented people who are able to look through a lens and know how to use their camera to make the image they snap look even better than the real thing. My sister and sister in law both have this gift. When they take photos of my kids or family I often think the photos of us look better than the real things (even without tons of photoshopping.)

But I have neither the knowledge nor the artistic gifts necessary to take really great photos like that. My photos never seem to capture life even remotely as cute as it is in real life. I see something really cute my kids are doing and go to take a photo and the picture I capture is always only a shadow of the cuteness I was seeing.

And so I have been taking mental snapshots my whole mothering career. And I am taking thousands of them now. I only hope that in heaven I will be able to recall these mental snapshots with the clarity of mind I had in the moment I took them. For the sad truth is that most of my mental snapshots fade in minutes from my too human memory.

I would invest in learning more about photography and trying to improve my picture taking skills, except that I don't really like taking pictures. I like the pictures. But I don't like being behind a camera trying to capture a moment. So I have to live with my mental snapshots as I am sure most mothers around the world do.

My girls, on the other hand, love being behind the camera. I suppose most kids do, right? Well Annie took some photos of Harrison the other day before his baby shower and somehow she managed to catch some really good ones. I was tickled to see a few of my mental snapshots come to life through her camera lens. Maybe I should invest in my girls learning more about photography ... someday. Check out Annie's mad untrained photo taking skills!

All photos taken of Harrison at 2 weeks old.