I thought this would take 5 minutes.

Monday, 8/10/26

I wanted a new photograph of me with my kids for my site. Just us, doing what we did most summer mornings before heading off to the pool.

I do this for a living. I know the setup. I told my kids, “Five minutes, tops.”

My kids were totally into it at first.

Then the bribes kicked in.

But they weren’t actually the reason it was taking so long.

I was.

I’d take a picture, walk back to the camera, and immediately find something I didn’t like about myself. My hair, my legs, my smile. There was always something.

Try again.

Nope.

Again.

At some point, the irony wasn’t lost on me.

I spend so much time telling families they don’t need to perform for me. That their kids don’t need to cooperate. That nothing needs to be perfect.

And there I was, having a really hard time giving myself the same permission.

I wish I could say I suddenly loved every picture of myself.

I didn’t.

But I stopped trying to fix them.

And now I have pictures of me with my kids.

That was the whole point.