I take hundreds of photos every month, and most of them don’t get shared with anyone, let alone online. And yet the moments in time that those photos capture are just as important a part of our story as the other images that I do choose to share.
I created this blog as a way of documenting our lives, a way of watching the girls grow into who they’re going to be and a way of remembering who they once were. It’s something I want them to be able to look back on as they get older, because memories fade but (digital) photographs don’t.
It’s easy (and tempting) to only focus on sharing the fun bits, the memorable parts, the highlights and the celebrations. But I’m learning more and more as I continue through this crazy journey of motherhood that it’s really important to me that I capture the ordinary, everyday times that we spend together as well. The bits of the jigsaw that fill in the gaps to complete the picture. The tantalising glimpses into who our girls are becoming.
The chaos, the calm and all the moments in between.
This monthly feature – The Moments In Between – is a space for me to share all of those magical bits that would otherwise just stay in a folder on my laptop, never to see the light of day.
SEPTEMBER
After a slow August, September felt like it was full speed ahead and to be honest I’m slightly stunned that we’re already at the end of it. All the busyness of going back to school; Ella starting a whole new phase of her education (and life, really) at high school which has meant a completely different morning and afternoon routine; homework; after school clubs; reading, spelling and times tables practice; high school visits for Mimi (who goes next year); plus various sporting events has been full on. Add into the mix my own work increasing after the six week break and it’s been a bit of a whirlwind!
It feels like we’ve settled in a bit now and are finding our rhythm with everything. We’ve not done much at weekends beyond a couple of walks in the glorious September sunshine at some of our favourite spots – everyone is too exhausted to try and venture any further afield. I’m hoping that will change throughout October as all the Autumn colours begin to show their faces. I’d like to explore somewhere new and give my brain a break from all the things I have to remember on a daily basis. Motherhood requires so very many different hats to wear (even more so as the girls have got older, I’ve found) and I focus so much on making sure I have the right one on at the right time that I think I’ve got a bit lost in the middle of it all.
This time last year I was in Colorado at Leap Retreat and in a couple of weeks time it will have been a whole year since our trip of a lifetime to Walt Disney World in Florida. Time flies. It’s interesting looking back at who we were then and who we are now – so much and so little can change in the space of a year.
All of these photos from the last month are special and as always, I love every single one of these images. So very much. Every single one has a meaning for me deeper than the surface level of what you see. Every single one brings back feelings and thoughts and moments I want to remember. Every single one speaks to me in so many ways. Every single one is a piece of our jigsaw.
Every single one tells part of our story.
This is us.
