Letters To Our Sons - February

Each month I participate in a circle of talented women as we share posts to our sons.  Please follow the link through at the end of this post and visit Miranda as she shares her letter.

Dear Son,

My how the years have flown by.  It seems like only yesterday that I was anxiously awaiting your arrival and now here you are well into your teen years.  I still remember the day you arrived, an unseasonably warm late October day.  I was in early labor and we had walked and walked, but you still weren't quite ready to arrive.  I decided to take a nap and your father who was itching to go  Home Depots Grand Opening left me in the capable hands of the midwife while he ran to get a quick glimpse at the new store and pick us up Chick fil A for lunch.  That is exactly when you decided it was time.  No sooner was he out of the driveway than my contractions picked up and I found myself wanting him there to help me through...this was before we both carried a cell phone with text messaging and all the modern ways of keeping in touch.  Thankfully his trip wasn't to long and he made it back before your grand entrance.

What joy you brought to our family as we became four.  You were such a pleasant infant, always laughing and smiling and wiggling.  I remember long before you could crawl, you would scoot around on your back, like an inch worm inching towards whatever object had caught your eye.  You were busy but so pleasant.  You fondly became our Tigger as you bounced around giggling and climbing, something you still do today.

 

Maybe it's having an older brother to compete with or just your unique abilities but I have always admired your confidence.  Whatever it is you go forward with the mindset that you can and you do.  You excel in most everything you try.  Currently that's computers, parkor, and a new interest in medieval reenacting.

 At fourteen, you boast confidence, yet immaturity.  One minute I feel as if I'm dealing with a man and the next a boy.  You have great big dreams and the confidence to see them through, but at times your pride prevents you from listening to the wisdom of your parents and you have to learn the hard way.  It always breaks my heart for my children to not heed wisdom and have to experience the reality of foolishness, but I know that each lesson develops responsibility and wisdom in you and molds you into the man you will soon become. 

A man that in many way already resembles so much of your father..his drive, diligence, confidence, attention to detail, desire for order and cleanliness, ability to direct others and lead...yet you are unique in your interests and abilities, specially created for a specific purpose and your father and I have the opportunity and blessing of training you up and helping to prepare you for that purpose.  Whatever the future holds in store for you I have no doubt that you will excel and be great, because your spirit is blessed with greatness and excellence.  

I love you son, for who you have always been, since the moment I knew I was expecting you, who you are now and who you will someday be.  

Love,
Mom

To read more letters to our sons click on over to Miranda's page and read her sweet letter.

Little Things Thursday - Bedtime

One of our nightly bedtime routines is story time.  After I tuck my 2 youngest daughters in bed, I snuggle in with a favorite story.  Their current favorite is "Make Way For The Ducklings", a delightful story about Mr. and Mrs. Mallard settling in Boston, building their nest, and raising their ducklings.  Imagine our delight when early one foggy morning we discovered Mr. Mallard living in a neighborhood pond.

Linking up today with my dear friend Kim at :

Letters To Our Daughters - February

Each month I am participating in a circle of wonderful ladies as we write letters to our daughters. Make sure to click through the link at the end and read Kelly's post to her daughter.

Little Bear,

It is such a joy to be your mother! I still remember the thrill of finding out I was having a second daughter. Your older sister went with me to the sonogram. She really wanted a sister and had been praying for you for years and she was ecstatic to call home and tell her daddy that we were having another girl! I love watching you girls play and grow in your relationships.  It warms my heart to think of all the years ahead you'll have together.

You are such a sweet, affectionate child.  You've always been our snuggle bug.  You were the first child that I wore.  For the first year you were on me constantly throughout the day.  Oh, the things we did, you and I, we went everywhere together and I loved every minute of it...the shopping, helping friends move, cooking and cleaning...it was you and I.   Then there were your siblings who would carry your around whenever I put you down for a brief moment.  You used to cling to them like a little chimpanzee, wrapping your arms and legs around them.  Such sweet memories!  I'm sure you don't remember but your bedroom was my closet.  The other bedrooms were so far away, and I just couldn't bear to put you on the other side of the house, so I put you in my closet and there you slept for the first couple of years.   That closeness is something you've not outgrown.  You still love to snuggle and many a morning I awake to you nestled next to me.  At times I worry about you being a middle child.  I wonder if you'll get lost in all the chaos, but as if you could read my mind you come and press in right in the middle of all I'm doing, making sure that I never forget you.  Really, how could I forget you my precious child.

Your smile melts my heart and illuminates a room. I love the beauty of your heart and your compassion that draws others to you.  That inner beauty radiates through to your outer beauty, a beauty that I find striking and has always captivated me.  I have always enjoyed photographing you because you make even the most mundane photos look lovely.  You were the child that really drew me into photography because despite my lack of skills the photos of you were always lovely, filled with your warmth and beauty.  I know that sounds a bit vain, but taking beautiful pictures of you gave me the desire to learn more and grow in photography.  I don't know that I would have had the confidence to try had I not gotten a glimpse of what was possible with you. 

You are also my deep thinker, the child who misses nothing and sees everything and asks me a zillion questions a day. Deep questions that cause me to stop and ponder how to answer. Questions that drive your siblings crazy, because you interrupt our read alouds to ask what's on your mind.  Questions that keep me in your room past bedtime.  I treasure them for it's these moments that show me the depth of your soul and possibilities before you.  For I know God has great plans for you and I am honored to be a part of the plan of raising you up into who He has created you to be. 

I love you my Little Bear. I love every moment we have together...the bed time stories and songs...the endless questions...the smiles...the snuggles...playing dress up...tea time...baking together...watching you play with your sisters...teaching you to read...and whatever each day brings.  I love you.                                                                                                                                             -Momma


Now head on over and visit Kelly Smith of Real Life Photography of Tampa and check out her wonderful post and beautiful work.

Close Up Portraiture

Each month I will be participating a blog circle with several other wonderful photographers.  You will find the link at the end of the post to continue on through our circle.  This month we are focusing on up close portraiture.  Up close portraiture gets up up close and personal with your subject and is a great way to capture the little details that we often miss from a distance.

Being a mother of 7, with the oldest being 16 I realize how quickly they grow.  I wish I could freeze time and keep them all little, but alas freezing the moment with my camera is the best I can do.  This month I focused on my baby and the moments that fill his days.

Little Man,

Every moment with you is such a joy my busy, inquisitive little man.  I love how happy you are.

You are constantly teasing me, running, giggling, and hiding behind the curtains, chair or under the table.

You favorite things to play with are your matchbox planes and helicopter.  It's no wonder you love to take flight, being that your daddy is a pilot and you have been around planes since you were born.

Did I mention how you like to eat?  You would be happy to eat every single, minute.  There is many a time I've come upon you in the kitchen, stool pulled up, butter knife in hand, with the bread, peanut butter and jelly on the counter as you attempted to make your own lunch.  Apples never last with you around, you love to eat half and then toss them aside.

I affectionately refer to you as my little mess maker, because you leave a trail in your wake.  Whether it be the pb&j or cast away apples, the crayon marks all over the walls, the water puddles on the floor, the smudges on the windows or the caked mud across the kitchen, they are all wonderful reminders of how you fill my life with joy and blessings.

Then there are the quiet, peaceful moments when you curl up in my lap or on my bed and sleep like an angel.  I could snuggle you all day long and drink in your baby sweetness that is so fleeting.

Suffice it to say that every day with you is an amazing blessing full of joy, adventure, affection and messes.  So glad you are my baby.

Love,
      Mama

Click on over and see what the wonderful Katie has to share.

Letters To Our Sons - January

One of my goals for the year is to be a more intentional parent, photographer and blogger. This year i have the honor to participate in a couple of groups monthly, where we write and share letters to our sons and daughters. You can view the letter to my daughter here. Below you will find the first letter to my son. Please be sure to follow the link at the end to read the letter the wonderful Bonnie has written to her son and then follow through the circle to read all the other letters these wonderful ladies have written to their sons.

  Dear Man Child,

It is hard for me to write this letter to you, my first born.  I love you fiercely, yet it sometimes seems the battles we face are fierce.  You have rocked my world since the moment I found out I was expecting you.   Suddenly, I was no longer living just for myself.  You've been everything I'm not.  You love schedule and routine;  I love flexibility and spontaneity.  You love quiet and staying home;  I love noise and being gone.  You are decisive;  I am indecisive.  We couldn't be more opposite, yet the same.  I see you give up before you try for fear of failure, driven by that same perfectionist instinct that freezes me.  While you yearn for schedule, you struggle with discipline and prefer to take the easy way out, but you press on and do what you know is good and right.  

It seems that just yesterday you were that tiny baby, demanding my time and attention, yet I long to turn back the time and spend my days holding you and playing with you.  I was so concerned with doing everything right as a first time mother, that I didn't enjoy you and drink in every moment like I have with the other children.  I know now how quickly you grow up and I savour every moment we have now, even the moments of heated discussion.  I appreciate your kind, generous and forgiving heart.  You are always so quick to forgive when I make the many mistakes I make in parenting you.  It's been a journey for us both and I'm sure you've suffered from my lack of skills but your love has never faltered.

Even now I worry as I watch you becoming a man.  It scares me to know that in just a few short years you will leave the nest and launch out into the life God has called you to.  I see you struggling trying to determine what that is. I struggle as well as I attempt to over direct you in that path and help you along too much. I don't want you to fail, but I must let you try even if that means bumps, bruises and perhaps even failure. If I pad your way too much the reality of life will be even harder on you. I also recognize the battle in your soul as you want so much to be a man one moment and a child the next. At times you feel like you can conquer the world and then there are the moments you escape into that childhood world of make believe where you really do rule and conquer. No matter how much your grow or how far you roam, you will always be my son, my firstborn, the one who taught me so much about love and sacrifice. My heart fills with pride as I see the man you are becoming and know that you know the One who created you. I can rest in knowing that you are seeking Him and He has much greater plans for you than I could ever dream. Although, I love you more than you could even imagine, He loves you more than I and you are under His careful watch and care. I love you and are so proud of the boy you are the man you are becoming.

Next up is the lovelyBonnie, click on over to visit her and read her wonderful letter to her son and then be sure to continue on through the circle.

Letters To Our Daughters - January

As a mother, blogger and photographer I have enjoyed reading through the Letters to Our Daughters circle posts that several CM Pro's participate in each month.  I am beyond excited that they welcomed other bloggers to start their own circles and join in blogging to our daughters.  This year I am joining with an amazing group of ladies, as I share with you the letters I write to my precious daughters.  At the end of this post you will find a link to the fabulous Kelly and her letter, from there you can continue through our group.  To see more of the original letters to our daughters project you can start here by reading the lovely Sara Tegman's post. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoy this journey with us.


"My Princess, for as long as I can remember I wanted a daughter.  We were so thrilled when we found out that the precious life I was carrying within was you, a little princess. Sugar and spice and everything nice, not to mention pink and bows were such a welcome addition after all the snips and snails and puppy dog tails your older brothers filled our days with.   Now as I sit here, writing you and reminiscing over all the years of tea parties and frilly dresses, I can hardly believe how quickly the time has passed by.  Here you are blooming into a young woman right before my eyes.  How did that happen in the blink of an eye?  I have loved every moment and every stage and along our journey I've learned to savor it all, for children grow up so quickly, too quickly sometimes.  

At this moment I love how you flit between being a little girl and a young women.  You still play dolls with your sisters, tea parties with your friends, but you are also beginning to love clothes and make up and contemplate what the future holds.  You are strong and spunky, you have to be when you are sandwiched between boys.  Your heart is so beautiful, full of compassion and the innate desire and ability to nurture.  I love your confidence and joy.  You give of yourself so freely and passionately, yet you also feel pain intensely, because of how sensitive you are.  It is those sensitivities that draw you to those that so many would consider unlovely.   You don't notice their unloveliness, instead you see their heart and you extend your warm smile and offer them some of your joy.   Your life is full of friends because no one can really resist your warm smile and gracious personality.   Most of all I love that you love God and have a strong desire to follow Him, even to the furtherts continent and darkest corner.  I see the special touch He has given you and know without a doubt that He has a special purpose and plan for you.  I see how even now He uses you to share His love and joy with all who cross your path.  As a mother that brings me such joy and hope.  

While there is no need to remind you of  your imperfections, for you are hard enough on yourself.  I do thank you for the grace and forgiveness you offer me on the days when we just don't see eye to eye and I forget that you are just a little girl, trying to grow up.  I thank you for the grace you have for my imperfections as a mother.  As your mother, no matter how imperfect either of us may be, One thing remains true and that is my love for you.  A love that grows with each passing day and looks back with fondness on what has been and peers into a future filled with hope and expectation as you my precious Princess, grow into the one you were created to be.  
 

To continue in our circle click over and read the letter the wonderful  Kelly Smith | Real Life Photography of Tampa | Tampa Portrait Photographer wrote to her beautiful daughter.

Time keeps on passing...

We are back to reality around here after a couple of weeks off from the daily routine. I loved the time we had as a family over the holidays! I took many, many shots with my iphone, some of which I've shared on instagram. I'm mamasparrowphotog if you want to follow me there. I am also trying to get my camera out every day and take photos of the daily. Some days seem mundane and messy, other days are a bit more photogenic. Today I'm sharing a capture from last week. I found my daughter in my bathroom applying blush to here entire face with a cotton ball. I remarked that she looked like to clown, to which she giggled and said, "I want to be a clown, Paul likes clowns, him won't laugh at me." Paul is a friend at church. They have a love/hate relationship. When I told her that Paul would laugh because well, um clowns are funny she snickered and said, "Oh, yeah!" Seriously, she is only 4 and already trying to impress the boys. NO!!!!! I've got some work cut out for me in the years ahead. Really, why do they want to grow up so fast? My 12 year old is begging to wear make up and the 7 and 4 year olds always want to follow in her foot steps. I just want time to slow down, but is only seems to race on.

I'm looking forward to all this year has to offer and will be involved in several blog circles this year. Be sure to check back often to see what we are up too.