I’m so excited about this month’s blog circle on “What Summer Looks Like” because we have this beautiful group of teachers that are ALL OVER THE COUNTRY!  We thought, ‘why not share a post to show our wonderful readers what summer is like from Seattle to Southern California to Virginia to Las Vegas’s crazy triple digit heat to Wisconsin to Portland and honestly, the list of states and posts for today keeps going and going!  So enjoy!!!

For our family, the kids are having the summer of their life.  Spending most days at the pool and doing swim meets every week.  (Blaze ready and focused for the backstroke!)

I’m working like crazy to meet a book deadline by July 31st, so all my creative energy has been pouring into writing.  But Pascaline, holy smokes!  She’s been playing this summer a lot with her SONY NEX6 and the SmartRemote app!  Look at these self portraits she’s been shooting!!  I LOVE this selfie of her and her cat!  Lighting and composition…OHHHH, JUST YUMMY!!!  I’M SO PROUD OF MY GIRL!!!

Then she changed outfits and did more selfies on the swings.

Can we all just agree that she is growing up WAY TO FAST?!

These photos are shot by her with nobody’s help!  I keep trying to grasp that she is fast becoming my teenager with her own creative voice, her powerful confidence, and personal flare.

Seems like only yesterday that I was shooting moments like this from summer afternoons of running through the sprinklers with her best bud.  I know this post isn’t about Pascaline growing up, but honestly…I think this mental process and shift has been a huge part of my summer.  Any moms feel me?

When the kids were little, summers were so much busier with finding things for them to do.  Whether it was helping them turn on the sprinklers, making snacks, arranging play dates, taking them to the park, etc.  But this summer, the home feels a bit quiet.  I hear their giggles in the backyard, but now they make their own snacks, turn on the sprinklers themselves, and so much more.  It’s liberating and scary and sad all at the same time.  You know what I mean?…

This is my third summer of working to finish a book.  (Phew!)  We try our best to be home during the summer months, and it’s a wonderful time for me to write.  But when I’m not writing, I’m in my garden digging for inspiration to go back and write more.  🙂  My garden is a HUGE part of the summer.

But one of my FAVORITE things of all is when we set up the cafe lights in our backyard and have outdoor movie nights for the kids in the neighborhood.  They bring their sleeping bags; we pop the popcorn!  Magical nights like this are what summer is made of–for sure!

When the kids were younger, I knew that photography was such a gift for capturing their stories.  But honestly, I think I know it even more now.  When I come across older photos like this, from a simple summer afternoon at the beach–looking under rocks–

my spirit swells with deep thanks.  I’m so thankful I found confidence with my camera when they were just babies.  All the photos, all the memories, all the changes I’ve been able to document–and to now document it alongside my daughter as she begins to chronicle her own stories…with utter confidence in herself…is there a more powerful tool than the camera for moms?

The blog circle keeps going today.  Laura Swift, one of our CONFIDENCE Teacher in Virginia, who just ROCKED ANOTHER WORKSHOP (check out that post!!) is next in line.  See what summer looks like for this awe-mazing, awe-inspiring grandma who has reinvented herself and inspires me ALL THE TIME!

xo,

m