Three hundred and sixty five days is both a long and short time, all at once. Funny how when tasked with the challenge of doing something every day, it seems to last forever, but when you look back you can’t believe it has gone by so fast. So much has happened this year; my sweet girl recovered from a broken tibia, started and completed her first year of pre-k. My son grew from a toddler to a little boy and is about to start pre-k himself.

When I started this project I didn’t have a clear vision for it. I knew I needed a challenge, and getting one good shot a day seemed like a good place to start.

Obviously I love getting good photos of my kids, and I have never been one to pass up a great photo opportunity, but making something great every day is quite the challenge. Since I share my images on facebook regularly I felt pressure to create something new and interesting to my viewers. I wanted to push myself as an artist and create pieces of art with my everyday life.

It wasn’t always easy. Most days my kids go to bed before golden hour (my favorite time to shoot) so I had to really embrace shooting in full sun.

Some days we didn’t go outside at all. And though I love shooting indoors for many reasons, my house is tiny…like <800 square feet tiny. So creating beautiful “lifestyle” images was a huge challenge for me. I have four windows in my house, and a sliding glass door. You can be sure that I searched every corner of my house for new spots of light + new ways to use it. If nothing else, this  project has taught me you can truely create a beatutiful image anywhere. You just have to know where to look, and what to look for. Find the things that do work, and use them.

There were days it took everything for me to go out and take a photo. In the end, I was always glad I did it.

I am so grateful for the growth this project has given me. And to my friends and family for their always encouraging words and support. It has been a beautiful, eye opening experience, my 365 journey. I am so thankful to be able to look back at this year of photos with my family and remember a little bit about every single day. It is like a time capsule. A way to help me remember the beautiful journey that is parenting. It is so easy to get lost in the fast paced world of today. Having young kids is so hard. There is never enough time for everything. We blink away days, and sometimes it is hard to stop and appreciate the beauty that is childhood. Amidst all the mess, noise,…chaos, there is always beauty. Photography helps me to slow down and breathe in my children. And for that I am thankful.