tidbits of magic: there’s a last time for everything

one of the ways i am most excited to celebrate this milestone month in my business is by sharing fifteen of the most valuable lessons i’ve learned in my fifteen years as a photographer. fifteen tidbits of magic, if you will.

this one is coming from the motherhood perspective as well as the photographer one, because 4500+ days deep into this parenthood thing, there’s one thing that hasn’t changed:

there’s a last time for everything.

depending on where you’re at in your parenthood journey, this might come as welcome news. (believe me, while there have definitely been many phases i’ve wanted to last forever, there were others i couldn’t wait to end.)

and yet, when those frustrating stages have passed, somehow we end up missing them too.

one day the slippery baby sink baths evolve into splashy toddler bubble baths, and the next thing you know, your child is in the shower with the door locked tight behind them.

and the thing about last times is often you don’t even know you’re at the end until it’s over. and even then you might not notice for a while.

there will be a day they learn to buckle their own car seat. a last time they need you to catch them as they jump into the lake. and at some point you’ll realize they haven’t fallen asleep on your chest in a really long time.

a last kick from the inside. a last onesie snap. a last wiggly tooth. a last piggyback ride.

there’s the very last bottle. the last set of spiky pigtails. the last time you blow on their hands to warm them up. and the last time they grab hold of yours to walk beside you down the stairs.

i’m not going to tell you to savour every moment, because let’s be real, not every moment feels worthy of celebrating while you’re in the thick of it.

but i AM going to tell you that one day you’ll miss almost all of it. even the hard times. and the photos you have of those moments will mean more than you could ever imagine.

and that is why i take all of the photos i do. not only the pretty portraits, but also the tiny snippets of real life that will one day happen for the very last time, and will exist only in memories and photographs ✨