Seattle Family photography client Melissa - Mother of the Month - January

I love photographing toddlers and children because they give you moments and photographs -- if they want to. Professional photographers will know what I am talking about. If you can capture their energy, you can  make some magical images. When single mama, Melissa hired me to photograph her family, I knew we were going to have something special.

1. Tell me a little bit about yourself. Why you decided to have Luca? What are your hobbies, what you do in your free time, etc.

I always had my heart set on being a mom, and after many years of waiting for motherhood to happen in the traditional way, I decided to stop waiting for man to enter my life and started trying to get pregnant on my own. It was a long and difficult journey, but the end result was the light of my life: my son Luca. At the moment, I don’t have a lot of free time for hobbies etc. As a single mom and business owner, I’m pouring everything I’ve got into my two loves: my son and my company. 

2. Tell me about why wanted family photographs, and why you trusted me to take these special photos.

I’ve been astounded by how quickly the time has passed since Luca was born. It’s all been so fleeting, and I wanted photographs to help capture my son especially as he’s on the precipice of leaving behind his “baby-ness” in favor of boyhood. I especially wanted some pictures of he and I together. I’m always the one taking the photos and have very few shots of us together. I was really attracted to your style with the emphasis on the child’s spirit. 

3. Please feel free to include anything else that is interesting about you or your parenting philosophy. AKA books you read, or like whatever. I am particularly interested in how you keep your sanity as a single mama and what gives you energy and power to be so rockin’!!

I keep my sanity by staying in touch with the overwhelming gratitude I felt for finally becoming a mom. One of the perks of having a baby older, and fighting hard to get to this moment, is you feel the awe. Even when I had morning sickness I was delighted because it meant I was still pregnant. I feel the same way now that he’s here. It’s hard work and it’s such a privilege. I have a great support network too, and I compartmentalize a lot. I used to let work consume me more. Now I’ve got strict work hours when I’ve got child care and I pack in all of my work and errands then. My Luca time feeds me and keeps me in the present moment. I think Luca and I make a great team. He cracks me up every single day. Being his mama is even better than I even dreamed it could be.