Sticky handprints.

During a branding photo session with the amazing @darlingrosephotos, I asked if she could snap a quick pic of Bruce’s messy toddler handprints running up our stairway.

Something that would have made pre-mama Steph cringe. Something that doesn’t quite seem to go with the boho farmhouse look we have going. But something that brings a smile to my face each time I walk up and down the stairs these days.

I Want to Remember My Willingness to Surrender + Lightness

There’s something about this stage of motherhood that requires so much surrender... so much lightness. Parenting a toddler. The endless belly giggles. The constant rollercoaster of emotions. The compromise & the holding boundaries. The attempts at maintaining order & the release that comes with joining in the fun... experiencing the kind of bliss that only comes from living in the present moment the way a two year old can. The greatest peaks of rage, frustration, & hopelessness that seem like they’ll require you to keep climbing forever, until all of the sudden, the clouds break & you see the sun stream through the clouds, revealing the greatest beauty you’ve ever seen. The feelings of defeat and utter joy that ping pong through you on an hourly basis.

I Want to Remember the Strength I Found Inside of Me

I want to remember all of this. The strength I found in myself through the hours & days that felt impossible. The ease I felt in sitting on the floor surrounded by books, with a stinky, naked toddler butt settled into my lap. The surrendering to the messy, the chaotic, the ups and downs... and the peace & resolution I found through that surrendering. The knowing, the absolute KNOWING that I was alive. Even in the moments I felt so tired, so misunderstood, so alone... I want to remember how I felt present. Even in the moments I felt vacant.... sticky handprints reminded me I was in the middle of something special. Present in the here and now. Needed. Loved. Appreciated. Held.

I Want to Remember These Sticky Handprints

Oh, those sticky handprints on the wall. A badge of honor. A prize to be cherished. A reminder of the strength there is in surrendering.

📸 @darlingrosephotos