I specialize in creative storytelling & custom photo album design. Get your photos off the screen and into your life!

Boogers, Homemade Haircuts, and Why I Don’t Want To Take Pictures of Your Trendy Family

Thursday, May 19, 2016

The truth is, I don’t want to take pictures of you and your trendy family in a field somewhere. Not that there’s anything wrong with fashion and fields but it doesn’t say anything about who you are. If anything, your hip, hair blowing in the wind, gracefully gliding through tall grasses family does nothing but separate us. It’s our messiness, our mismatched shoes, our boogers, our temper tantrums and homemade haircuts that unite us. I want to see you, not as you wish you could be, but as you really are. I want to step into your life, your days, your home. I want dribbles and scribbles and messy mouths, unmade beds and unkempt children.

I know tons of photographers who spend hours and money staging photoshoots with supermodel families wearing hipster clothes in breathtaking places. The goal is to attract their ideal client- rich, beautiful, exotic people (or people who wish they were rich, beautiful and exotic and will go into debt to appear that way). It’s actually a very smart business plan and it works because all it needs is a little lust and the desire to be beautiful to grow. I’m not saying that wanting to be beautiful is wrong, but it’s not the whole story. It’s actually not even the interesting part.

In twenty years, when my kids are all grown up, what will I remember? Will it be the heartfelt times I wore flowing maxi dresses next to my accessorized manequins in grassy fields at sunset, bribing them with lollipops (yes, Josh too), to hold still and look at the camera? I seriously doubt it.

Most likely I’ll remember bare feet on ceramic tile, cotton blue drawstring shorts covered in paint stains in the kitchen making dinner. I’ll remember trampolines, water gun wars, shirtless boys running and screaming over the buzzing sound of Josh mowing the lawn. Ironically, I will probably remember the irritating moments I thought I couldn’t wait to forget the most- whiny babes lifting up tired arms, sticky hands needing “hanitizer” and wipes, baby dolls and nerf guns littering the halls, tripping me as I stumble into bed.

The simple, shabby little moments of my life will actually be the ones I hang up in my heart forever.

I don’t want to waste my memories on pretty pictures, on the glamorous family I wish we could be. I want to tell the whole story- the good, the bad and the boring. I want today- this morning, wrinkled sheets, messy hair, and night lights strung overhead.

Don’t let me forget…

moments_waking_up_morning_time_kids_family_life_is_beautiful_liveroygbiv_katie_swift_-9

moments_waking_up_morning_time_kids_family_life_is_beautiful_liveroygbiv_katie_swift_-1 This post was inspired by my friend Marie at Fearless and Framed and her double dog dare...

Luke and Lindsey, At Home, Bellbrook, Ohio

Monday, May 16, 2016

Luke and Lindsey met in Lindsey’s apartment last May. Luke thought Lindsey was pretty and Lindsey thought Luke was laid back and handsome. Six months later they were engaged. When I asked them one word to describe their relationship they said, complimentary. After our time together, I would agree and would also add the words laughter and contagious. Here’s their story…

Before Lindsey, I was in relationships where the girls would try to change me or the way I think.

After meeting Lindsey and her family it was like I’d met a whole other family I’d been separated from.

God has truly blessed me with Lindsey. She’s perfect.

Luke is simply the man I’ve always dreamed of having.

I can be myself around him. No matter the circumstance he’s going to be there for me ready to listen with open arms.

He loves and cares for me unconditionally, he’s my best friend.

Lindsey keeps me straight and gives me the kick I need early in the morning to stay awake and to work hard.

We are so much alike… most of the time we are thinking the same thing.

I admire the fact that Luke willingly puts his life at risk everyday to help his community and provide a wonderful life for us. I will forever be honored to not only be Mrs. Luke Terry but a police officer’s wife as well.

Lindsey helps me to look forward to life goals and be excited for the things we will do over the course of our lives together.

Being with her feels like home.

See more love stories

Hoarding Dreams in My Windowsill | Heart Mercantile | Oregon District, Dayton, Ohio

Thursday, May 12, 2016

“Don’t worry, none of us really know what we’re doing,” says Carly.

Carly’s my photography friend who tells me to trust my gut and screw the man. In the photography business, “the man” is the all the hype; all the stuff I should be doing to be truly successful. Pinterest boards full of articles like 5 MUST Do Marketing Tools to Grow your Business. Workshops and Photo Field Trips led by hipster photographers from California who lure me into their elite circles by dangling promises to change my life and business for only $9999.99. Free E-books and Pricing Guides filled with secret code that can only be accessed by giving up my email and my soul. Carly says what I’m thinking, what I’m suspecting,

“Don’t believe what you hear, half of us are bullshitting our way through this.”

So when she tells me about Heart Mercantile, the little boutique she and her friend Brittany opened on a whim in October, I’m greedy for a backstory. I too have dreamed of owning my own little store, along with a food truck, a flower stand, a coffee shop…my someday dreams go on and on but my follow through never seems to catch up. I’m curious to know how Carly and Brittany actually made the leap from someday dreaming to their very own doorstep in downtown Dayton.

With stars in my eyes and envy in my heart I go to them like one searching for clues…

Tell me how you both went from being best friends and photographers to small business owners?

Brittany: Years and years ago, once upon a time we were always vintage hunting and we were like, someday we’re going to have a little shop in the District or somewhere and we’re gonna like, sling our shit. At one point a space opened up and we considered it but we were like no way, what if no-one shows up? Then a few years later when my son Mason was 10 months old and scheduled for open heart surgery I had a dream that we owned a store. The logo on the door was an anatomical heart and it was down here in the District. I was excited and I called Carly but we forgot about it pretty quickly.

Because of the baby?

Yeah because we had too much shit to do. Mason had his surgery like a week later and Carly was busy with her photography and so we were like yeah, someday.

Six or seven months ago I’m walking down to Press to get a coffee and I see a for rent sign and I’m like, oh shit. I call my husband and we see the place later that night and no one had pulled the trigger on it yet. I was like whatever, we’ll figure it out, we’ll work backwards. We had the money. It was all done on a handshake.

I called Carly and told her I had rented a space in The Oregon District and she was like, what in the hell are you talking about?

Carly: I about had a panic attack!

Brittany: Yeah she was in shock. She was like what are you gonna do? What are you gonna put in the store? How is this actually gonna happen?

Carly: I knew in my head that even if I said no that I would still be doing this with Brittany because that’s just the way things happen. So I had a freakout and then I got over it and got really excited and bought a bunch of shit to sell.

Brittany: A month later we opened. In the course of that month, we painted, we got online and just did a bunch of googling. Like how do we buy things wholesale? How do we get permits? We had no idea what we were doing. Neither of us have any retail experience. We were a nervous wreck. We didn’t get any sleep, we cried so much. The week before we opened Carly and I had a drag-out fight all dramatic style that I still wish would’ve been recorded. (laughing)

Carly: Me too.

Brittany: We just had so much going on. I had mom guilt because I hadn’t been home in a month. Carly’s trying to balance her photography schedule because that’s still going on and it’s October- the busiest time of year for weddings- and we were scared that nobody was going to show up. It was kind of a shitshow.

Did anyone show up?

Brittany: It’s actually been pretty freaking amazing. We weren’t sure what the turnout was going to be like, but since we’ve been open we’ve had regulars, we’ve had community support, it’s been mind-blowing. People come in here and they’re like, I love the feel in here, I love the way it smells, I love that these are local products.

Carly: They’re like, I love your energy.

Brittany: Yeah they love that we know the people who make the products. That we can provide like a whole story for them. People are excited and we’re excited. I never get sick of girls coming in and squealing at something they love. I’m like, yes please.

What would you tell those of us who have someday dreams?

Carly: You gotta dive in because otherwise you will always be waiting for the perfect time.

Brittany: And there’s never a perfect time…for anything.

Carly: And you know what? If you fail, who cares? You tried to do your dream and you will never regret that.

Heart Mercantile started as a dream in a twenty something’s sleep. Now it’s a brick and mortar store with a sign and a doorstep. Carly and Brittany are as down to earth, unpretentious and hilarious as the merchandise they sell. They remind me that the secret to success is not found in a pinterest board, a workshop or an e-book. It’s not even a secret really, it’s a challenge. And they challenge me by offering to help.

I share one of my own someday dreams with the girls: to sell propagated houseplants in vintage pots. They love the idea and tell me to bring some in and they will sell them in the shop. I go thrifting right away for colorful pots and cut tiny jade stems off my mother plants. I water the babies and stick them in my kitchen window. Months later, they are still there- I just can’t seem to part with them. As much as I want to share the plants, to sell, market and mass produce them, I think I enjoy them much more when they are mine.

Maybe I am a dream hoarder and all of my big ideas are really just decorations, filling the edge of my view with tiny buds of what-ifs and who knows and anything possibles. I like to keep them close just in case I might need them…someday.

The difference between Heart and me is as small as a windowsill.

Each week I water the plants and make sure they get enough sunshine. I dust off the waxy green leaves and breathe in the fresh air, grateful for the effortless exchange. Who knows? When the time is right, I might take them of the windowsill and put a price tag on them, but for now, the fun is in keeping them alive. And if for some reason the baby plants don’t make it, I know where I can go to get some more…

In Memory of Charlie.

2011-2016

Update

Carly and Brittany must’ve thought my plant store dream was a good one because shortly after our interview, they opened another shop called Luna Gifts and Botanicals. Can you guess what they specialize in? If only I could get paid for ideas…

Tell your Story

Sarah and Jared, (a blended) Family Session, 2016

Tuesday, April 12, 2016

I’m not gonna lie, when a photographer asks me to take their pictures, I feel pretty awesome.

Like maybe somebody smells what I’m cooking.

Somebody’s snacking what I’m packing.

Like maybe they’re itching what I’m scratching…you get the point.

Sarah and I found each other in a photographer group on Facebook.

She was looking for someone to document her family in a way that felt as authentic as they are.

She and her fiancé, Jared, each have three kids from previous marriages, making them a blended family of eight.

Sarah didn’t ask for that one picture of everyone smiling, requesting:

(NO FORCED smiles) If they are making faces so be it. If their finger is in their nose so be it.

I am looking for photo-journalistic, candid, genuine family moments.

So we met at the bowling alley on a Friday after school.

Nobody wore matching clothes or coordinated color schemes.

There were no pinterest inspired props or burlap banners.

The kids were crazy and hungry and whole lot of fun.

The parents were good sports, tying and untying shoelaces, slipping quarters into the vending machine,

raising their voices when things got out of hand.

I just sort of followed them all around, took pictures and laughed, giddy with excitement.

Thank you, Sarah and Jared for choosing me to be your photographer,

inviting me into your beautiful chaos, and trusting me to “see you.”

Truly, you are rocking what I’m rolling…

Jared and I want the best for the kids.

Not the best cars, careers, lifestyles, or houses. We want the kids to be happy.

Let me give you an example…

Our biggest obstacle as a family is a few levels of blending. We have slightly different parenting styles.

Balancing discipline between the children is hard. We both try really hard to keep it completely fair.

The most important thing we’ve learned as parents is that kids are individuals with their own personalities.

We admire each other’s enthusiastic love of life, fun, laughter and eccentricities.

We operate in unconventional ways.

We have water gun fights inside. We roll around on the ground because it’s fun.

We’ll watch movies upside down on the couch.

We don’t want the kids to settle for mediocrity,

but we don’t want them to judge themselves based on our extravagant hopes for their life.

If Brooklynn becomes a starving artist, is happy and proud she is a success.

When Thelma becomes a coach or teacher enjoying her life she will be successful.

Caliber may be a great athlete or he may run his own automotive garage.

If he’s able to provide for himself or family he is successful.

Audrey wants to be a mommy when she grows up.

When she’s able to stay at home and teach her children sign language or advanced math skills,

we will consider that a success.

If Edyn lives in an efficiency apartment with her cat and works two jobs to pay her rent,

but travels and enjoys the nightlife we will be proud.

When Maria reaches whatever goal she may have for her life but is happy we will be proud.

We give our children the resources they need to continue to better themselves.

We will always encourage them to continue to grow and advance in their careers, education, and experiences.

Ian’s Senior Story, Oregon district and Hills and Dales Metropark, Centerville Class of 2016

Thursday, April 7, 2016

Ian is Jeff and Reggie’s son. He’s an only child in a family full of pastors and pugs. Ian is graduating high school soon and will be going away to college in the fall. Jeff and Reggie, like most parents, want to slow time, even for just a moment. They gave me the honor and their trust to document Ian at this significant time in his life. (They even gave me a hand with equipment and lights). We choose to explore Hills and Dales MetroPark and downtown Dayton for a little nature urban combo. It’s with great gratitude and excitement that I share Ian’s senior story:

Towards the end of high school, I know a lot about myself.

I like video games, listening to music and messing around with miscellaneous technology stuff. The last one has to do with computers and how to build them.

I like a large mix of music. I’m kinda on an 80’s thing right now. Rebel Yell, Take on Me and Man-eater. You know the good 80’s stuff. But I guess as far as genre’s go I am more of an EDM type guy.

I like my personality. In a word, I’m charismatic.

I don’t like my work habit. I’m a very big procrastinator, I will put stuff off to no end. Thankfully I have people around me like my mom and girlfriend to make me do my work.

School was an interesting place for me. I made a lot of friends and lost a lot of friends too.

As much as I enjoy talking to people and being the most important thing in the room, I also have a distaste for it.

Sometimes I need to withdraw and recharge away from others.

In the fall, I am going to a church college in Alabama. I’m going to study media arts. I really like computers and my mind is always drifting into ideas for movies, paintings, drawings and shows. I feel pursuing media arts could really help me make all of these artistic thoughts a reality.

In ten years I see myself back at the church working, maybe speaking.

See more Senior Stories

Eric & Alycia | A Story of Hope | Bellbrook, Ohio

Thursday, March 24, 2016

Very soon, my friends and I will load up our minivans with suitcases, sleeping bags and kids. We’ll drive up mountains and down the coastline to a place where moss hangs on trees like jewelry- adorning the old oaks with its spongy southern bling. March trailing behind us exhausted in the wind, we’ll drive out of our boring little lives.

Just for a moment, a chance to be a part of something greater than ourselves. Just for love and marriage, the celebration of two stories becoming one and lets get real, the chance to go to the beach! Thank you Eric and Alycia, for choosing Charleston, not Dayton, to get married. (Can I get an Amen?)

As a token of my appreciation for your amazing taste, I’d like to share your story (in your own words)…

The first time I met Alycia I was passing out candy at my Aunt and Uncle’s house. One of the trick or treaters was a very energetic power ranger, with his big sister…Alycia. As we grew to know each other I saw Alycia as a very positive, cheerful person, with an amazing sense of humor. She was always encouraging someone, or making jokes and a real pleasure to be around. -Eric

We first met in high school. It’s hard to remember because really we just kept running into each other through mutual friends. Finally someone invited him to come to my house for a game night and we decided we were fated to be friends. (I don’t remember halloween). He was shy but had a friendly smile- easy to make laugh and nice to everyone around him. Also, he had awesome fashion sense- think Hawaiian shirts. -Alycia

Alycia and Eric became great friends and even dated for a time.

But Alycia went off to Australia as a foreign exchange student and Eric went off to college. They wrestled with their priorities. God, Australia, college and young love.

When I was an exchange student my junior year of high school they told us we should be unattached. Well that was very hard so we went back and forth a lot that year, but my senior year we broke up for good. I felt myself wanting to please him more than I wanted to please God so we both moved on fairly quickly and didn’t look back. -Alycia

Alycia went to college in Arkansas and hair school in Texas. They hiked down different trails, following God like a color on a map, as he led them to places they’d never been before.

We did break up when she came back from Australia, when I was in college. It was obvious we had grown apart, but the feeling was brutal to let go of someone so close to me. We both went our separate ways for some time, during which I got married, had kids, and got divorced. When we were apart I did feel very lost. -Eric

He wasn’t the only one. Alycia had one serious boyfriend after Eric.

When it ended I felt damaged by my decisions in love. I doubted my judgment and became suspicious of my worth. -Alycia

They didn’t even know what they were missing.

I believe I was trying to find something to fit in the space that was left in my heart. I was looking for what fit there, but I kept looking in the wrong places. I have two beautiful kids from that time, which I am so blessed to have, but I still felt like there was something missing. -Eric

After school, Alycia ended up in Virginia Beach living with her best friend, Sarah. Eric was still living in Dayton.

“My family decided to take a vacation together, the first one since we were kids. My mom and sister chose Virginia Beach, where I remembered where Sarah was living. -Eric

He thought maybe Sarah could suggest some good restaurants and beaches. She suggested Alycia.

He reached out to my roommate about things to do (they had stayed in touch since high school) and she fairy god-mothered us into seeing each other again. -Alycia

Ten years of being apart, ten years of college and kids and trying to make the pieces fit, Eric and Alycia met at the ocean. As they walked the shoreline, the time sank in and around them like the sand beneath their feet.

The minute I saw him my soul knew it was meeting its mate. -Alycia

I found out that our time apart affected us both similarly and felt very at ease talking with her. -Eric

Their paths merged and they were no longer walking alone.

I didn’t realize how lonely I had been feeling… Not only did I have someone who loved and cared for me, but someone who actually enjoyed spending time with me. Eric helped me trust my heart again. -Alycia

Alycia filled the empty spaces.

I found someone who fills my life with color, creativity and laughter. My heart, my God and one incredibly mature, beautiful and good-hearted woman. -Eric

Alycia and Eric have found love.

I love him completely, I trust him completely, I respect him completely. I really knew he was the one when I realized I didn’t want to change him. When I am feeling weak he reminds me we can face anything hand in hand. -Alycia

They are about to find marriage.

I seek out her hand, just as she seeks out mine. We face the good, the bad and mundane together. She is my partner. And I am hers. -Eric

But most of all, they’ve found hope.

Our story is one of hope. In our lives we’ve both lost hope and the hope for love only to be blessed with more than our hearts could know. -Eric

And like fire and light, hope is for all of us.

I pray that we give hope to people who have given up on love. That they are able to see the healing power of love and the strength it gives when you humble yourself and let it shape you. -Alycia

See more love stories

YOU. CAN. WRITE. (A failing essay) by Katie Swift

Monday, March 14, 2016

Recently, I entered a writing contest and didn’t win.

I didn’t even place actually.

Last week when I opened the thanks for entering… email my first feeling was surprise.

(I really thought I had a chance) and then, shame.

I thought of all the people I had to tell and I started to feel sick.

I began to wish I had never entered the contest at all.

Searching my mind’s pockets for hope scribbled out and folded up

I heard the woman at my meeting tell me,

When I go through something that I don’t like or understand, I ask God,

what do you want me to learn here?

I heard Charlie from church say, Never waste a crisis.

And I heard myself reading Abraham Lincoln’s biography out loud to David in the dim light.

He lost eight elections, twice failed in business and had a nervous breakdown…

Maybe God wants me to learn how to fail.

Because failure, not success, is what truly connects us.

It humbles, and aches and fills us with need.

Failure is just pain covered in proof that we are taking risks.

Proof that we are growing.

And proof that we’ve got a long way to go.

Here’s my failing essay, it’s a true story and I hope you like it better than the judges did…

You. Can. Write.

By: Katie Swift

A few weeks ago I’m lying in bed.

Thoughts are circling above me, looking for someplace to land.

Looking for pen and paper but it’s late and it’s dark and I don’t want to wake the husband.

So I pull the covers up to my chin and write run on sentences in my mind.

Words march along to a clumsy rhythm, starting, stopping, bumping into each other

as they go and I follow them there into the meandering pulse, the dance of dreamers.

The next morning I wake up and resolve to write.

But first I think I need to learn how.

I check the library to see if they have a writing group and stumble on an Erma Bombeck contest instead.

I think, if anyone can teach me to write, it’s Erma.

I found Erma a few years ago, when the kids were still in diapers.

When I was all guilt and disillusionment for not loving every minute of

my peanut butter and jelly smudged days.

When motherhood was a job I couldn’t quit.

I felt trapped and Erma’s words were my escape.

She encouraged me, “If you can’t make it better, you can laugh at it.”

She warned me, “Never have more children than you have car windows.”

She inspired me, “Housework, if you do it right, it will kill you.”

God gave me Erma like a friend gives me a call.

With Erma, I was not alone.

So when I see the contest I feel like it’s a God thing

(or maybe an Erma thing).

Like maybe they are telling me I should enter.

I watch a video of Erma sharing about the English professor who told her three words that changed her life.

You. Can. Write.

So I go to work and write a story about my father

but it’s not funny. It’s not Erma.

I begin to doubt.

I’m not a writer. I’m just a bored house-wife without a job.

I’m an artist wannabe and nobody cares about my life.

The next morning I start searching for a career.

I map out a plan: finish my degree, get some heels, a real profession with a boss and a salary.

The mail comes.

I open a Christmas card from old friends with a personal note inside:

“Thanks for sharing your wonderful photo and family story.

Katie- you have a talent for writing,

if you pursue it you could be the modern day Erma Bombeck.”

Thoughts are circling above me, looking for someplace to land.

You. Can. Write.

Its all Erma needed.

Maybe it’s all I need too.

Such Small Details…Remembering Ed

Tuesday, March 8, 2016

Today I am thinking about Ed, maybe because it’s Tuesday.

It was a Tuesday when I opened that door a few years ago.

There was a knock and dogs barking and the police officer who hung his head.

My father inlaw was 56 years old when he had a heart attack walking to his car.

He was on a business trip.

Today while walking the dogs I see him.

He’s smiling at me with squinty eyes and shining teeth and I remember something insignificant.

Ed had braces on his teeth when he died.

Such a small detail that makes me laugh and cry a little.

All those visits to the orthodontist, metal grating gums, rubber bands stretching and pulling and aching.

All that time and money and inconvenience, for what?

Sure, he was awfully cute with those braces, but I doubt he would’ve worn them had he known.

It makes me wonder, what are all the things I’m spending time and money and inconvenience on?

The things I might never get straightened out?

My house, my wardrobe, my body?

Maybe they are not just things but ideals.

My parenting, my faith, my politics, my success stories?

Such small details that make me laugh and cry a little.

Ed never did get his teeth straightened out.

But it doesn’t matter, it never really did.

Brittany’s Story

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

I met Brittany when we lived on Whipp Road.

Brittany and her husband Micah, lived on the same street, in the same style house, but we didn’t even know it.

One day Josh was taking Ollie for a run when he saw Micah mowing the lawn.

They recognized each other.

It turned out that Josh worked with Micah and Brittany.

It felt like we should be friends.

So they brought over Troni’s New York Style pizza and Brittany taught us all how to eat it:

folded in half with grease dripping down hands onto plates for dipping.

Sometime after pizza night, Brittany and Micah started trying to have kids and eventually got pregnant.

We were thrilled.

Dade was born last July and has been blowing up my Facebook feed with eyelashes and smiles ever since.

This January when Dade turned 6 months old, Brittany asked me to photograph their family.

She also asked if I could share her story.

So Brittany talked and I took notes.

She spilled words onto paper at 3am and emailed them to me.

We messaged each other back and forth on Facebook.

For years Brittany had fought against infertility and now she was fighting another battle against postpartum depression.

She told me why she was compelled to share her story.

Most of the moms she had talked to struggled with some form of postpartum depression.

These moms were not strangers or even acquaintances, but lifelong friends and close family members.

She never knew they had postpartum depression until after she was dealing with it herself.

Brittany wanted to give them a voice.

Before the session we tried to visualize images that would show what postpartum feels like.

I googled postpartum depression and found pictures of moms holding babies looking out windows.

It felt forced, melodramatic, fake.

That’s when we realized we didn’t have to visualize anything.

We would do the session like any other family getting their pictures taken.

Maybe the best way to show the loneliness and shame,

the stigma of postpartum depression, was to pretend that it didn’t exist.

Here’s Brittany’s story, in her own words:

look closely…

This wasn’t supposed to happen.

This is a baby I pined for.

Longed for, cried for, begged for.

How he looked at me, with pure love and wonder…it made me sad.

I felt nothing. Empty, still, distant.

His sounds made me shiver with fear.

The shaking started. Eating stopped. And I fell into a deep silence.

Suddenly I had no clue how to care for a baby.

Micah who had never changed a diaper, did it all.

In those moments where I needed him most, it was so clear. He loved me.

I needed help.

I spent weeks feverishly reaching out to every mother I knew,

every support group I could find and any doctor that would see me.

I asked them all the same 4 words.

Will I get better?

I did everything.

Vitamins, essential oils, working out, acupuncture, therapy, medicine and eventually I was hospitalized.

I had postpartum depression.

I thought for sure I was done for, I was crazy.

Turns out I was the opposite.

Hospitalization was an amazing experience.

It didn’t heal me, but it got me on the road to becoming better.

I met so many normal people who were just struggling…I was too.

I’m not sure why mothers don’t share their stories.

I felt like this sickness was a hidden truth.

Why didn’t they tell me?

I knew I’d be overwhelmed. Tired, dirty but happy. I was not.

I thought you either felt happy or wanted to hurt your child.

No clue there was a huge spectrum in between.

I am mostly better, and the parts that aren’t might just be the new me.

A new Brittany, a mother.

Don’t stay silent!

Comment and share your stories below…

Interview with Caylee Jo

Tuesday, February 2, 2016

My niece, Caylee Jo, spent the night a few weeks ago and I thought it would be fun to ask her a few questions.

(I was inspired by a friend on Facebook):

What’s your name?

How old are you?

five

What’s your favorite color?

pink

What’s your favorite food?

chicken nuggets

What’s your favorite candy?

chocolate

Smart Girl. What do you think heaven’s like?

um…i never saw that

What age do you think a person is an adult?

i think fourteen

Why do you think fourteen makes them an adult?

i just think

Ok, if you could change one rule about your family what would you change?

i would change the rule no fighting

You want to fight more?

What makes your family special Caylee?

um cause i love them with all my heart

What makes a person good?

cause they are good

What makes a person bad?

cause they’re bad

Are you a good friend?

yes

Why?

cause i love my friends and all my moms and all my grandmas

If you could be invisible for a day what would you do?

hide from the bad guys

What is the best gift you’ve ever been given?

get your pets to the vet

Why is that the best?

i like it cause you can help them get better

That’s nice. What is the hardest thing about being a kid?

cause they always want to play and do bad and jump on the furniture and jump on beds

Where’s your favorite place in the world?

chuck-e-cheese!

If you could give a gift to every child in the world what would it be?

hmmm…a wolf… a pretend wolf… it would go ooowwwwlll!

If you could make one rule that everyone would have to follow, what would it be?

no jumping on the furniture

Get a Wall…

Thursday, January 21, 2016

After New Year’s, we dragged up boxes from the basement.

Boxes cramped and overflowing with all the kid’s papers and projects.

Sunday school scribbles, glittered ABC’s, macaroni necklaces, wallet sized photos we forgot to hand out.

Math quizzes, birthday cards, drawings I labeled and dated before the kids could do it themselves.

I’d thrown nothing away since David was born.

It was time.

So I grabbed some trash bags and gave each kid an empty box to fill.

It wasn’t hard to figure out what to throw away (anything glitter),

but choosing what to keep for their boxes took some thought.

I asked the kids some questions to help them decide:

Does it show your personality?

Is there a special memory or time in your life attached to it that you want to remember?

Does it contain your original writing or thoughts?

Does it involve glitter?

Five trash bags later the kids sat proudly in front of their boxes.

Savannah loved her box so much that she tried to fit it under her bed.

When that didn’t work, she began filling her walls with as many masterpieces as she could fit.

I had an idea.

From each box, I helped the kids pick out their favorite pieces of artwork.

(I’m lying. They weren’t picking the best ones so I took over. Don’t judge. I’m in recovery.)

I had the kids stand in the middle of a wall while I taped up their artwork all around them.

Jonah’s wall was bright colors, jungle animals and goofy faces.

Savannah’s wall was hearts, rainbows and I love you mom’s.

David’s wall was signs, stories and invitations to come play.

It got me thinking, what if everyone had a wall?

A place to display the parts of ourselves that are worth more than boxes.

Our jungle brights, our rainbow hearts, our invitations to come play that are too important to throw away.

A place to sit and stare at who we once were and who we are becoming.

What if everyone had a wall?

What would we see?

Year of the Purple Dinosaur, New Years Eve 2015

Thursday, December 31, 2015

As the new year approaches I am reflecting on 2015 via Instagram and Facebook timelines.

And I am lol’ing at this e-card my sister in-law shared:

And of course I’d like to think this isn’t true.

I’d like to think that all my goals and prayers and al-anon meetings have done some kind of dent.

But really, who cares?

I’d rather laugh right now than cry.

So this year I’m resolving to take myself less seriously.

To stop climbing stairs, stop reaching for the stars and start having a little more fun.

I hope you are ready because I’m going to share my adventures with you.

Even if they are messy and ugly and straight up stupid!

Because none of us are as perfect as we’d like to appear on the internet.

Our lives don’t come wrapped in kraft paper and twine with sprigs of holly.

We can paint everything white and get rid of all our stuff but we can’t get our lives clean.

We were not made to be spotless.

We were made to laugh.

And it’s never too late to grow young.

Here’s to a new year of selfie sticks, sarcastic e-cards and riding the purple dinosaur…

Wilson Family at Home, Belmont, OH

Friday, December 18, 2015

The Wilson’s are blessed.

With talent and beauty, babies and dogs.

Jessica is an Adoption Case worker and Jason is an Arts director at Lifepointe Church.

Indie Marie is 4 years old and wants to be a princess doctor.

Ivy Harper is 3 months and wants to be held.

The Wilsons dream of Disney, a Masters degree and a bigger house in Kettering.

As parents Jess and Jason have learned to put God first in their lives.

More than anything, they hope their children will too…

Palmers Family, Fall 2015, Dayton Ohio

Monday, December 14, 2015

Gary and Brenda Palmer come from small beginnings.

Together they are writing a new story.

Brenda is a dentist and Gary is a physician. They both run their own practices.

Brenda reads when she gets a chance and Gary enjoys cycling and noodling on the guitar.

Renee is their oldest and loves painting, soccer, pets and school.

Nick and Aj are twins and love sports, video games and jumping on the trampoline.

(Did I mention they have one in their living room?)

The Palmer’s someday dreams include traveling the world and houseboat vacations.

The kids want to be science teachers, professional athletes, firefighters and engineers.

College isn’t too far off and retirement is nearing the bend, but mostly the Palmers are dreaming for today.

To enjoy the time they have together.

To make memories by eating fondue, sitting around a fire and watching movies on the couch.

To build unbreakable bonds while throwing the ball and walking the dogs.

Like most parents, Gary and Brenda want want their kids to be happy.

But more than happy, they want their children to be themselves.

Because Gary and Brenda believe happiness is not found in what they do,

or in how much they acquire.

It’s found in who they are and how they live.

Humble. Hard-working. Grateful.

Jen & Roy | Top of the Park | Cincinnati, Ohio

Thursday, November 12, 2015

“Roy is a man of his word. He always does what he says he will do, no matter what.” -Jen

“My first impression of Roy was a straight up, no bull crap kind of guy with a rough exterior that I could see right past.” -Jen

At first impression,”She seemed very withdrawn and quiet.

I soon found out that wasn’t the case.” -Roy

“She is a stubborn little thing that will fight to the death and never give up if she believes in something. “

-Roy

“Other people thought he was hard to understand and get to know, but it was very easy for me.” -Jen

“I have always felt his presence and love for me, even when we are a world apart.” -Jen

“We want to travel together, take lots of rides on the Harley, just be together wherever we end up.

We have had many dream dates already and I can’t wait to have a lifetime more of them.” -Jen

One word to describe our relationship:

“Interesting.” -Roy

“Complete.” -Jen

Ceremony and Reception: Top of the Park

See more wedding stories

10 Year Anniversary, The Swifts, Geneva at The Lake, Ohio

Thursday, October 8, 2015

This year makes ten.

Ten years of I do’s and I don’ts and I probably should anyways.

The longer we are married the more a mystery it becomes.

Love.

Romance. Destiny. Soulmates.

Were we really created for each other?

Is there some sort of magic between us that promises a happy ending?

Maybe, but its been ten years.

We’ve watched marriages begin and end and groan in between.

We’ve struggled ourselves with addiction, depression, death and doubt.

We’ve felt a numbness creeping in between us at times.

We’ve asked ourselves honestly, how much are we are capable of?

Could I ever have an affair? Could he?

Could our doubts overtake our commitment?

Could we ever leave each other?

Love.

The longer we are married the more a mystery it becomes.

It’s been 10 years and it’s not been a formula-ten steps to marital success- that’s gotten us this far.

I have no good reason why we have made it and others haven’t;

no secret to share or conference to recommend.

My friend Derek believes that love is not a choice, but a response.

That we don’t choose love, it chooses us.

I agree with him but would still argue that we always have a choice.

Even if it’s simply a response to what we have been given.

I’ve been given love.

Ten years ago I responded. I vowed the rest of my life to learn how to love back.

I am thankful for this marriage, this mystery, this man with whom I share life.

We are just stones being smoothed babe…

(After ten years, we’ve also learned not to take ourselves too seriously)

Zack’s Senior Story, Kettering Rec Pool, Dayton Masonic Center & Greek Church, Kettering Fairmont Class of 2016

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Zack is a senior graduating from high school this spring. For his session we chose to mix it up with some swimming pics at the Kettering Rec Center, suit and tie pics at the stately Dayton Masonic Center and some casual mom pics in front of Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church. Zack is on the swim team. He competes in freestyle, breast stroke, and back stroke. His favorite is the back stroke. In his free time he likes to play video games, listen to swing music and draw up plans for buildings. Zack is planning on studying architecture in college and dreams of one day visiting the UK. He feels like he’s a pretty good listener but wishes he had more patience.

When I asked him one word to describe himself, he answered, “nice.” I agree with Zack and would add the words smart, respectful, ambitious and humble…

See more Senior Stories

Welcome Baby Claire, Newborn Photography, Kettering, Ohio

Thursday, August 20, 2015

The Donohoos are big hearts growing. Parents filling up with love like balloons and expanding in ways they never knew capable- their children breathing new life effortlessly. Josh is a Regional Sales Manager and Jimalee teaches preschool. Carter wants to be a ninja worker someday and Baby Claire wants to be a singer (Carter insists). They love sports and competition (Mom and the kids are Bengals and Dad is a Brown). Their favorite restaurant is Jimmy’s Italian Kitchen and like most Ohioans they dream of vacations on the beach and one day living in a bigger house in the same city…