Husbands, do this for your wife… even if she protests!

This morning, something strange happened. As I’m enjoying a long snuggle from my soon to be one-year-old daughter in our bed (a rare occurrence as she’s not much of a snuggler,) my husband, getting ready for work in our adjacent bathroom, grabs his phone and starts snapping pictures of us.

Okay, before you jump into some sweet and tender comment about this, let me paint you a little picture… and it ain’t pretty folks. Here it is, totally unedited. 

I had just finished an intense treadmill and weight lifting workout and was more than just “glistening.” Let’s be honest… some women glisten and glow like a tall drink of ice cold water post workout… I don’t.

My unbrushed hair had just been released like a wild horse from it’s pony tail and decided to live by it’s own rules.

I was still wearing the smudgy black and gray remnants of makeup from the day before; the outcome of just barely making it to my side of the bed before passing out! Sadly, this happens more than I care to admit.

So of course, after realizing that he is indeed holding a phone over disgusting me and beautiful baby girl, I begin to loudly object and then demand to see his phone.

As suspected, I’m a mess! And not even a hot mess… just a mess.

I whine for a few moments, still snuggling our angel in my arms, but he just laughs and says “It’s sweet. You look good.”

Then, a feeling I don’t expect creeps up on me. It’s warm and sort of fuzzy, like a brand new baby bunny! I feel GRATEFUL and even FLATTERED that he had taken the picture…  also a rarity.

Let’s be honest, I’m usually the one behind the lens of my phone and GoPro, snapping pictures and recording video like I’m the Paparazzi and my kids are walking the Kardashian’s, and I love it! These moments are precious to me and so fleeting. With each child I’ve realized how quickly childhood goes. I’ve also realized how much I’m going to miss it! These pictures are my life line to the past, so I fill up the space on my phone as quickly as I can! Don’t regret it either.

However, looking back over the thousands of shots I’ve snapped, there are very few of me with them!

On more than one occasion I’ve wondered, “Will my babies be sad if there aren’t many photos of me with them to look back on?” I know I’d feel that way about my own mother.

Then, there are the times I’m doing things I think are really cool like training my horses to do something new like ride without a bridle or saddle, or when I perform a new song I’ve written and I’d love for my family to look back and see it. Heck, I’d love to see it too!

For these reasons, I’m grateful my husband took my picture this morning.

Also, he said I looked “good.” For real? I mean… was he even looking at me?

Then again, I was doing what I love to do… loving my child. To me, I look a mess in the photo, but perhaps my vision of myself is skewed. Maybe these moments are the most beautiful to him… when I’m real and human and loving our babies with everything I’ve got.

I’m not the first to say that Social media has our perceptions so messed up. It shows everyone’s highlight real, but rarely highlights the bloopers. Yet, the bloopers are my favorite moments to reminisce again and again.

They’ve got us fooled to thinking that beauty is found in flawless and youthful skin, ripped abs, a certain body type, trendy clothes and shiny Lucious hair. However, the biggest and usually better part of my day is when my hair is anything but magazine worthy and my makeup is smeared down my face.

Slowly I’m realizing that true beauty really is found inside… in how I love others and how I love myself. It’s found in my daily actions, even if those actions often seem monotonous and repetitive.

True beauty is found in the most honest parts of our heart! Today, my husband captured a picture of my heart.

So I figure thanks is due. To thank him and express how grateful I am, I’ve written this letter, which I will send via E-mail!

Dear Husband, 

I’m sorry I complained this morning when you took my picture. Even though the shot was post workout, my hair was misbehaving and I was still wearing yesterdays makeup, It honestly means the world to me that you pulled out your phone and captured that precious moment… a long snuggle from our baby girl… a rarity! 

It means the world to me for so many reasons. Usually, I’m the one behind the lens, capturing the simple, albeit, magical little moments of our life. I love those shots and am grateful I get to look back on them, even if I’m not always in them. 

But today you took the time to capture a very real, raw, and tender moment between me and my baby who is less a baby every day, and for that I am so grateful. 

Also, it means that to you, the moment was worth remembering! Even though I was still sweaty, had charcoal smudges under my eyes because I was just too exhausted to remove my makeup the night before, and the lighting was anything but portrait worthy, you still wanted to have this moment to look back on. 

I can’t even begin to explain how that touched my heart. 

I’m sorry I objected, tried to hide behind a curtain of tangled hair and demanded to see your phone. Please don’t stop taking pictures of me, even if I protest. Sometimes, I don’t know what I’m talking about, But don’t tell anyone that… Especially the kids. I think they are on to me anyway. Wink! 

Thank you and I love you  – your grateful, sometimes sweaty, smudged eye-liner wearing, crazy haired Wifey

You can now think those sweet comments I stopped you from thinking earlier. Go ahead… think them. Lol. 

Husbands, take pictures of your wife… even if they protest. Wives, take pictures of your husband, even if they complain. Capture the moments. Even though my focus is on moving forward, I cherish past moments and am grateful I live in a time when it’s so easy to capture them.

They are what make US after all! And, when life get’s hard, what better way to remember what we love about our lives and love about each other than to be able to look back and see how it grew.

Here’s to your sweet life and capturing the honest beauty in every day! And Here’s to seeing the honest, raw, true beauty in life!

Thank you Husband.