If you are a Mom then I'm sure you are like me and have 1 billion pictures of just your little love. You probably also have 1 million pictures of your little love with their Daddy, their friends, their cousins, their grandparents, etc. And you probably only have a handful of pictures of you and your little love together. Why is that??
I read this article a while back and decided that I wanted to "get in the picture", too. I'm pretty proud of myself. I actually have more pictures of Asher and Me then I originally thought. And I'm not going to stop.
Allison Tate, the author of the article mentioned above said so many things that hit home with me. There are so many things that I want Asher to know and remember about me.
I love when she said..
"But we really need to make an effort to get in the picture. Our sons need to see how young and beautiful and human their mamas were. Our daughters need to see us vulnerable and open and just being ourselves -- women, mamas, people living lives. Avoiding the camera because we don't like to see our own pictures? How can that be okay?
I want him to know that from the first moment I saw him, I was madly in love with every inch of him. My heart grew leaps and bounds in that very moment. Holding him when he was just a few minutes old is a moment that will forever hold a peace of my heart.
I want him to remember all the things we did together. How we played together mainly just the two of us every single day. I don't want him to ever forget that kissing his chubby cheeks is one of my favorite hobbies.
I want him to know that he (and his Daddy) are the only people that can always make me smile.
I want him to remember me being 100% me with him. Always being myself with him. Never afraid to be goofy and crazy. Knowing that if I'm stinky and have no make-up on, he will still love me and need me.
I want him to know that I will always encourage him to try new things. New things might be little things today but they will get bigger and better every day.
I want him to remember laying in our bed and playing together. Being silly and rolling around in the covers. Making forts out of the sheets. Early morning snuggles when he was little and all I wanted to do was hold on to him forever and breath in his sweet baby scent.
I never want him to forget the smell of the outdoors.. He loves being outside. Boys are suppose to be dirty and stinky. Please remember that we played outside every day and laid in the grass. Remember eating leaves and snacking on grass while Mommy cringed and sometimes laughed.
Know that Mommy loved taking you new places and watching you take it all in. I want to show you so many different things and take you lots of places!
Remember the love Mommy felt on my first Mother's Day. My heart was full that day because of you.
I want him to remember how much fun we have together. How we are always making each other laugh and smile. Being silly together is one of our favorite things.
I want him to see pictures of me and see our similar features. To look at me and say, "I have Mommy's nose" or "You know, our eyes are kinda the same".
To remember that Mommy always kissed and loved all over him even when he was sick. Please know that your love, hugs and kisses were always worth a little snot on my face!
I never want him to forget us celebrating his 1st birthday. It was a day I could hardly wait for. I wanted it to be perfect, not for me (well a little) but for him. He's my absolute favorite little guy in the entire universe and I wanted him to know that.
Asher, my little wild, crazy, perfect little man. Please know that your Mommy loves you an insane amount. I want you to remember me as the woman who carried you inside my belly for 39 long weeks. Who sometimes misses having you like that all to myself! Remember me as someone who wasn't afraid to be real with you, to be silly and goofy with you, to tell you no when no needs to be heard, to kiss your cheeks 1,000 times a day, someone who celebrated all the little things with you. I hope that by me "getting in the picture" you can always remember how much I love you. I hope the pictures help you to know the woman I was the day you came into my life. And to know the woman you helped me become.
