Amy Harnish Photographer » Indianapolis Photographer Children, Newborns, High School Seniors, Families, Weddings

How odd it is to not have an image to go along with a blog post.  I hope you will take the time to read through to the end.  You will not be disappointed.

We were extremely pleased with the response for our entries for our new gallery wall.  We wanted to be completely unbiased, so we took the entries to my Grandma on Mother’s Day and let her pick the winner.  When she started crying in the other room, we knew we had a winner.  With the winner’s permission, we wanted to post her entry, so we waited a couple of days to post this.  We have removed the children’s names as we never post the names of our client’s children.  Hope everyone had a very special Mother’s Day!

My family is a crazy little unit that was formed in some of the most unexpected ways. We have collectively travelled the Atlantic Ocean five times in order to be under the same roof together. We began as complete strangers and now know each other’s souls inside and out. We are silly, we can be too serious, we love to laugh out loud together, we have cried many tears together, we have known the fear of never being together, and we revel in the joy of watching our children’s personalities unfold into exactly who they were created to be.

Our family was born of adoption. My husband and I never imagined the joy and the tears that could come from the formation of a family that is nothing short of miraculous. I love that our children’s personalities are sometimes so incredibly different from our own that all we can do is sit back and figure God is having a really good laugh watching us try to muddle through daily parenting. We will never know where some of their quirks and traits come from but we will always laugh at watching their quirks clash with our own. When [DAUGHTER], our daughter, is walking through random public areas and shouting to the world that she had her foot “surgeried”, her introverted father and I both cringe while we simultaneously chuckle at how she pulls everyone into her world and embraces them with open arms. When [SON], our son, is tripping over the air beneath him and thunking his massive little feet across the pavement we, his “we would be happy if no one knew we were even here” parents, wonder what his contemplative little mind is brewing up that has distracted him from any attempt to walk upright or quietly.

We have days when we just can’t seem to pull it all together. [SON] might be angry over the sun shining in the wrong direction and spend most of a trip to Target screaming at the world around him. And [DAUGHTER] might be so frustrated that she tears apart every sticker or preschool project that was her Mama’s pride that day. But then there are these perfect moments when everything falls into place.  [DAUGHTER] might be full of silliness and laughter and even a pause where she appears so calm and content. And sometimes [SON] can just relax into acceptance of his surroundings and turn into an amazing bundle of discovery and creativity. I love that we can hit both of these extremes in the same day. I love that it means that some of the original experiences forming the first year of my children’s life are starting to melt into a sacred knowledge that they will forever be safe and secure and adored.

I love my family for being my center. When I am not exactly sure what lies ahead of me or I am filled with questions or doubts about circumstances surrounding us, I can remain solidly rooted in three other souls who are indelibly etched into my life forever and there is nothing to question or doubt in that. We are a team. We lift each other up when one is hurting and we rejoice when one is celebrating. Even on a difficult day when I just want a little escape from the chaos, I still know this is exactly where I want to be.

How honored we are to be to display this family on our gallery wall.