Little Things Like Family Photos & Mice

 The first week of February we got the chance to take some family photos with our wedding photographer. We love that we’ve been able to include her in all of our ups and downs. She’s been there through it all. 

Last weekend we got to view our images and select the ones we wanted. It was such an odd feeling picking which photo captured us the best in this season of our lives.

 

I think this one nails it on the head. We’re getting past the grief. We’re happy. But we carry the weight of Lylah everywhere we go, every single day. We were racking our brains trying to figure out how to go on from this point. How do we include our baby that isn't here yet, is such a huge part of our lives? Do we include her crystal angel ornament in every Christmas card now? I guess whatever feels right at the time is what we'll do.

When we went to take these pictures it was snowing. Y'all know what the snow means for us.. so that was a pretty clear sign that she made her presence known in these family photos. That and that I wanted her ornament hanging from a tree branch like she dropped down from the sky just to say hello. 

I seriously can't help but smile when I look at this picture!

 

I couldn’t be more grateful for Nicole, our photographer and her beautiful talent. She’s been there for our engagement, our wedding, the loss of our daughter, and us now. It’s amazing how something that seems so trivial now; like picking a wedding photographer, ended up impacting us so much more than we ever thought it could have. Our photographer found out she was pregnant with twins several months before our wedding day. We were thrilled for her but also were worried she’d go into labor before our wedding and not be able to shoot it for us. We all prayed because she was an important part of our day. She ended up going into labor much earlier than expected, 24 weeks. Which I’ve mentioned before the survival rate is 10% and with twins that already makes for a not so great situation. She and both boys ended up very healthy and happy. It was a long road in the NICU but I can promise it has made her that much more of a better mother and person. So, these pictures for us mean so much more than I could ever describe. This woman has been there through it all, and has left a much bigger impact than I could have ever anticipated.

And I guess it also makes you stop and realize it’s the little things when your pup comes running up to the back door barking to be let back in… with a dead carcass mouse hanging from her mouth.

Luckily, this isn’t my first rodeo. We have a field that pretty much lines up with our back yard so we get the occasional mouse in the yard here and there. Just not usually in the 9’ weather with snow on the ground… GROSS Jessie Mae, just gross!