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The newborn days go by in a blink.

It’s cliche to say, but oh so true on the other side of the newborn haze.  I have been there, twice now, and I can honestly say it’s a blur of milk, tears (my own and the babies), dreamy snuggles, and thoughts of “How can I do this!?”.

You’ve waited so long to have this little bundle in your arms, and now that they are, you want to snuggle them forever.  But babies grow.  They change right before your eyes.  You swear they changed while you were sleeping.  And all your heart wants to do is hold onto them this small.  When you were their entire world.  When you’re just trying to figure out this whole motherhood gig, your heart just wants to soak up all the details.

The heart and mind don’t always work together though.  You see, you’ll start to forget.  You’ll forget the way they’re entire face would wrinkle when they snuggled against you.  You’ll forget how soft their hair was and how perfectly round their head was (or insanely coned!).

You will forget.

But there is a way to hold onto that newborn forever.  Photos.  Photos of not only what they looked like, but what it felt like to be a postpartum mom.  What life looked like as you brought that beautiful baby home.
Instead of photographing the posed baby, I say let’s photograph things like:

• Carrying them in a sling or whatever baby carrier you have.  The feeling of them snuggled close to your heart and smelling their newborn scent will instantly take you back. 
• All the details of their perfect little bodies.  The feet and wrinkly forehead.  Their hair or lack there of.  And their hands, how the grip onto a finger with life dependency. 
• Meeting the other members of the family, the moment Grandma first lays eyes on her grandchild.  Or your fur baby getting a good sniff. 

Those are the photos that will bring you back to those early days.  They will seal in your heart your newborn and how you felt to become a mom to that little one.  Those are the photos that will tell a story to your child about the time they were born.  Those are the photos that you’ll cherish for a lifetime.

Want to know all 7 must have photos?  Download it now. 

What’s in the 7 Must Have Newborn Photos Printable?

• Find out exactly what photos you need to have of your new addition

• Hear what photos veteran moms wish they had

• Learn to photograph your life in an unposed real life way.

Print it off and put it up on the fridge so you don’t forget to take these treasured photos.  Or hire me to take them for you and relax knowing this crazy chapter of your life is sealed in your memory forever.

xoxo – Rachael

Enter your name and email to have it in your inbox right now!

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What seems simple at the time can often become overwhelming and simply never get done.  Or maybe you want to hang photos, but just can’t decide on a gallery pattern or sizes or frame colors or the multitude of other choices to make when putting things on your walls.  Let’s face it, we can barely decided what to make for dinner, let alone a discussion as major as a wall display.

Can we just hire JoAnna from Fixer Upper to make over our space?

I’m the same way.  We had a huge 36×42 frame sitting empty in our living room for over a year.  A year! Just a frame with nothing in it.  I keep ordering prints, yet have no idea what I’m actually going to do with them.  I keep thinking I’ll scrap book, but really that will NEVER happen.  So yeah, I totally get the display paralysis!

I’ve come to realize I don’t like printing large prints because I want to change them out to often.  It seems silly to do large prints, because what do I do with it after I’ve moved on in a year?  Same reason I don’t have large canvas in my house either, and I think it’s probably the reason you don’t buy them too.

So I’ve rounded up some really unique ways to display your documentary photos easily, cheaply, and interchangeable as much as you want!

1. Metal Photo Clip String I love this idea because you can easily add your kids art too and change everything out as often as you like!

2. Square Prints in the corner.  I WISH I had a corner to do this in!

3. Use Washi tap. I did this around my desk with just one type of tap and it’s so fun and easy! No frames required.

4. Found materials & Clips.  Love this idea for old scraps of wood or even a ruler.

5. Branch and string.  So many things can be done with things found in nature.

6. Wire Mesh Grid.  This pretty much makes me want to run to Home Depot right now.  I need more wall space!

7. Frameless Photo Grid. This would be perfect in a niche or wall that juts out a little.  You know that weird wall you have no idea what to do with.

8. Wood Calendars.  We LOVE ours from Artifact Uprising.

9. For the crafty peps. Make your own Fridge Magnets.

10. And my personal favorite, A geometric pattern with twine.

Tell me which is your favorite and which one you want to use in your own home?

PS. Don’t stop here, check out these blog posts too

My Mamahood; My own personal story to my children

Fresh 48 Session; Kastberg Family

xoxo – Rachael

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The days are growing longer, and so is your to do list.  It seems the winter hibernation ended faster this year some how.  Or maybe that was just me?  It’s the end of March already and I feel a nagging feeling that I didn’t accomplish what I needed to already this year.  But my biggest guilt is starring me right in the face.

My to do’s have become more important then playing and connecting with my kids.

You know that feeling where the dishes feel more important then dancing in the kitchen. Or the idea of cleaning up after an activity like building a fort in the living room is to much to even utter a ‘maybe’.

Mother’s Day is just around the corner and I bet you’re thinking, ‘maybe the husband will take the kids so I can have a day to myself!’  I know I’ve been thinking that! What if, instead of running, we stop and just play?

Can we find 30 minutes to quiet our minds and connect and play with our kids?  Can we stop running long enough to notice the little things?

It can feel impossible some days to do that.  I know I struggle to focus on what’s important and instead busy myself with dishes, errands, and my never ending news feed on my phone.  But I also think with a little nudging and support we can slow everything down and just be.

Can you imagine 30 minutes of uninterrupted time to just play and connect with your kids?  What would you do?  Explore, dance, chase, lay on your backs just to stare up at the passing clouds?

Mark you calendar to connect & play
Saturday April 30th, 2016 for Mamahood Mini’s.

We will be throwing the do list in the trash and saying YES to fun, exploring, and relaxing during a 30 minute session especially focused on you and your kids.  I know how important your relationship is with your kids, so let’s dedicate time to celebrate it!
Sessions will be South Platte Park (S. Santa Fe & Mineral Ave) in the morning.  A slideshow and gallery will be available online a week after the session.

The Details:

The investment is $175 and there are only 6 session slots available.

The session fee includes the 30 minute session, slideshow, and online gallery.  Prints, digital files, and albums (starting at $50) are purchased after through the online gallery.  Discounts apply for purchases over $150.

Fill out the form below to set up a consult and reserve your time for a session that sold out in 3 days last year!

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This year would have been my grandma’s 100th birth year.

But 10 years ago, I was buried under 5th year thesis, graduation, planning a wedding, moving, and life of a 24 year old, when my maternal grandmother passed away.  She was 90 years old and just as saucy as ever.   She fought and held on to life, she never liked the idea of life coming to an end.  My mother, her primary care taker the last 5 years, was always there.

But it wasn’t until we were putting together photos of my grandma’s life, that my mom realized the two of them were rarely together in a photo.  The person she was with so much and shared such a close relationship with, yet they had just a handful of photos together.  ‘How is that possible?’

Because my mom was often the one behind the camera.

My mom knew how important photos were.  She took tons of photos of us kids and family events, but she always hesitated to be in front of the camera.  She’ll say, ‘I don’t have make up on today’.  Or ‘my hair is a mess.’  ‘Maybe when I loose those 10lbs.’ Or maybe because no one stepped up to say, ‘Cheryl get in the photo!’ Whatever the excuses were, it didn’t matter anymore.  You can’t turn back the clock.  You can’t go back and redo a lifetime.

You can only learn and move forward.

My mom and I vowed to always take a photo together every time we see each other, which is only a handful times a year.  We would not get to the end and feel the same pain again.  Photos together are about so much more then our insecurities.

This year I’m working even harder to get in the frame with my own kids.  And I’m not waiting on anyone to say ‘here let me take the camera’.  I’d be waiting a life time.  It’s my responsibility to make sure my children know how much I love them if I’m here for another 50 years or not.  I want them to see our life not just from my perspective behind the camera, but from an outsiders perspective.

Being in front of the camera brings out the my worst insecurities.  ‘Do I look frumpy?’ ‘Oh the bags under my eyes are the worst today!’ ‘I haven’t showered in…wait when did I last shower?’ ‘Do I still look pregnant?’

But the photos are not about our insecurities!  They’re about the relationship with our kids.

But hey, I’m learning.  So I keep taking selfies with my kids.  Capturing little every day moments that are filled with love.  Moments among chaos and dirty diapers.  Moments I don’t want to forget or take for granted.

That’s why I get in the frame as much as possible.  Now tell me, do you take photos with your kids?  If you were gone, would they see how much you loved them?  Will you remember what life felt like, what you felt like 20 years from now?  I’d love to hear in the comments below.

xoxo – Rachael

PS. Go take a selfie with your kids right now and share it in the FACEBOOK GROUP.

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