Late Spring Family Photos at Home

girl opens curtain in the morning

Whoosh! Annabel pulls back the cheery bedroom curtains, and a bucket of sunshine pours through the doodled window. School is nearly out, and summertime is on our minds. The spring was brutal. Cold temps and April snowfalls kept our expectations low for days like this; we weren't really sure it would arrive.  And yet here we are--grateful as ever.

girl is under bed net in morning light

Catherine lets in the fresh spring air, while Annabel and her silhouette get tangled the netting.

mother opens bedroom window on a spring Saturday

window open on spring Saturday morning, light on hits hanging plant

Girl ties a school project doll

Annabel and Clara read books in the sun-soaked playroom.

Two young girls sit on couch and read books on Saturday morning

Girl uses bar soap in the bathroom to wash her hands

Clara washes her hands with soap in preparation of making pancake batter with her mom and sister.

Girl turns off faucet after washing hands.

Many hands pouring flour into a big steel bowl

Hands crack an egg over steel bowl

girl reaches for almond milk in refrigerator

young girl reaches into silverware drawer for utensils

Mom and two daughters stand at kitchen counter making pancakes on a spring Saturday morning

Mom and two daughters make pancakes on a spring Saturday morning

Girl stands in window with marker shadows

mom lifts coffee cup carefully over child's head

I mean, they really love coconut oil!

Two girls reach into coconut oil container

mom waits as daughter reaches into coconut oil container

Girl uses maracas in the kitchen

mom pours pancake batter into pan

mom points as daughter reaches into refrigerator

Simon cuts Clara's pancakes and then Annabel's.  I talk a lot about hidden tasks we do as parents of young kiddos, and this one is no exception.  We will be preparing meals for them for a decade(+!) longer, and then will continue to do so on a less daily basis for multiple decades to come.  Yet, this part of making bite-sizes pieces after the meal is plated will be ending (um, relatively) soon.

Dad cuts pancakes in the dining room with two daughters

Black and white. Dad cuts daughter's pancakes at dining room table

mom watches daughter eat pancakes

Catherine pauses to give Susan the Greyhound some love while Simon makes the greatest smoothie of all time back in the kitchen.

woman holds dog's face while man pours a bottle in the background

girl pushes blender button and smiles while dad pours out rinsed almond milk

Back to the playroom for joy, smoothies out of the pitcher, and coffee. More coffee, please!

Girl rides on dad's leg while he drinks protein shake and smiles, mom sits on couch too

family of four sits in the living room on a sunny spring Saturday morning

Clara and Susan and spring shadows. Oh my.

Preschooler, sleeping dog, and box of crayons all on the floor

Mom and daughter read in on the window bench while dog sleeps in the sun

We were together. I forget the rest.

-Walt Whitman

Truth.

black and white. Girl reaches into swing pushing stuffed animals, smiling

Greyhound gets brushed in the sun

Man and Greyhound smile in the sun

Family of four play on swing set in backyard on a spring Saturday morning

Girl spins on swing ang gets hair tangled, Mom helps fix

Raise your hand if you've ever twisted your hair into the chainlink swing? Samesies! 🙋‍♀️ I hope your mother came to the rescue with expert hands and a glass of cold lemonade for you too.

Girl smiles on swing in her backyard

black and white. Girl is on swing set looks up, head in spring trees

Black and white. mom and daughter laugh in a chair together

Mom kisses daughter on top of the head, top down view

Black and white. mom and dad and two daughters sit on chairs and connect in the backyard on a spring Saturday morning

And sigh. How will you spend your Saturdays this year? What will you remember? What do you want to preserve? Let me help you remember so you have more clarity looking backward than Walt Whitman.

xo

-jen