When my daughter first came along I probably took fifty pictures a day. Every smile or silly face she made and every little milestone needed to be captured.
The other day I was with a couple other moms watching our three girls play. They were being adorable and one of the moms after a few minutes said, "Oh! I should take a picture!" The other mom and I agreed and grabbed our phones out as well.
I noticed I haven't been taking as many pictures of her lately, maybe ten or twelve a week. It isn't that she is any less adorable or doing less amazing things but somewhere along the way I started just being in the moment with her. I started enjoying the moment and taking heart pictures as well; moments of pure love that I will hold in my heart forever.
I wanted to be "in the picture", not of the camera but of life. I didn't want to always be the body sticking out from behind the camera. I wanted to be interacting and LIVING that moment. Rather than being sad at moments I wasn't able to capture digitally, I cherished the moments I was IN.
Don't get me wrong, I still love taking pictures of her. And moments like the other day when I am just an observer as she plays with her friends are a great time to take pictures so I'm grateful for the reminder.
The heart pictures I capture will not get a thousand likes on Facebook or be blown up at her graduation. I can't share them. And yet perhaps that is one more reason they are so special. It is a priceless moment with my little girl who is growing up too fast.
I'm grateful for heart pictures. I'm grateful for the thousands of photos I have as witness to how fast my daughter is growing. I'm grateful for the silly faces I have caught with my camera and even more so for the pictures I have caught with my heart. I'm grateful to be living "in the picture" and spending the moments with my daughter. I'm grateful to be so blessed.
What do you like to capture in heart pictures? What are your favorite moments that were not caught on film?
May today remind us that the only time that matters is the present moment. May we cherish each moment we have with the ones we love. Have a beautiful day!