My husband takes horrible pictures of me….. It’s true. Honestly, it used to drive me crazy. It was so incredibly frustrating to be doing something fun with the kids or alone and yell for him to, “Take a picture!” only to have it be what I thought was a horrible picture.
See, here’s the thing: when I take a picture, I make sure it’s flattering. I tuck away the double chin and arm fat, suck in my stomach, and make sure my eyes and teeth are twinkling just right in perfect lighting on my good side. THEN, I sometimes take the picture 3-4 times more to get it just right….. maybe that sounds familiar or maybe y’all just think I’m a shallow, self-obsessed freak now. Are you ready for the truth bomb?…..
My husband doesn’t realize I have a “good side”
ALL of my sides are good to him. He loves the body I’m in; every curve and roll and stretch mark is the woman he loves.
He doesn’t take a picture of me filtered and well-lit because, to him, I am beautiful exactly as is.
Wow, right? When that hit, I started seeing things a bit differently.
The “face” I show social media is generally the most flattering one. The “face” I live in has aging skin and dark circles…. Pimples and chin hairs. I’m not perfect. I have stretch marks and cellulite and fat from babies (and pizza.) This is the woman he lives with and loves every single day.
When he captures a moment on his phone camera, there isn’t usually an opportunity to take the picture multiple times until it’s “perfect”. Life doesn’t work like that. Moments in motherhood, and life in general, are fleeting. We all know the kids are only cute for a second before they go back to destroying the house or embarrassing us in public. I should be grateful for the memories captured.
So, here it is: thank you, husband, for the pictures of the kids opening Christmas presents in my lap. Thank you for the Easter egg hunt pictures. Thank you for the pictures of me sleeping with a baby on me. I’m sorry I complained that I looked fat or awkward or sloppy. Thank you for capturing memories on camera of big and little moments that were so special with our family. Most of all, thank you for loving ALL of my sides unfiltered and real.
Loved this! I always appreciate when people are authentic and real. I don’t like how people live “perfect” lives on facebook. It so exhausting trying to keep that up. Thank you!