Put Mom Back in the Picture – Part Two
by Sara Davenport
Not too long ago Muscogee Moms owner and creator, Charlotte, posted Put Mom Back in the Picture which referenced an article by Allison Tate about self-conscious moms who avoid having their picture taken. Just like Charlotte and thousands of other moms, I’m typically the one behind the camera clicking away to capture every new milestone and memory. I reread this article before my family and I left for our annual beach vacation. I have two girls, ages 3 and 18 months, so lazy beach vacations spent sipping margaritas and reading novels while lounging surf-side are a distant memory of the past. Our beach vacations have turned into wrestling crying toddlers to the ground to apply sunscreen and needing an hour to pack, gather and tote the necessary snacks, juice boxes, toys, chairs, floats, etc …. ugh!
©2013 by Sara Davenport. Not for resuse.
This was my first beach vacation in a while that I wasn’t pregnant and exhausted or constantly nursing an infant. With that in mind, I knew that I had to – gasp – get out there and play. My husband, Jason, has been the main beach play partner for the past couple of years as I was either a nauseous mess or confined to a condo with a baby attached to my chest. I’m no where near my fighting weight and the thought of everything jiggling and wiggling up and down the beach was enough to bring back that nauseous feeling from my past. And the thought of it also being photographed – oh my land, I feel faint! So I reread Charlotte’s post on Tate’s article and gave myself a good pep-talk. “Sara,” I said to myself, “Suck it up and get out there.” My children don’t care about back fat, or thighs that touch, or cellulite. What they want is for their parents to be present and not a self-conscious mess hiding under a cover-up and umbrella just because they’re unhappy with their bodies.
With that said, I spent a small fortune and ordered five bathing suits – sent back three and kept the two I disliked the least. I sat in the sand while making loads of sand castles, I chased seagulls, I walked up and down the beach for what seemed like miles hunting for the perfect seashell, and made countless trips to the water with no attempt to cover my ample behind. I even handed over my camera, without hesitation, to a very nice lady who offered to take a family photo of all of us in our swimsuits.
©2013 by Sara Davenport. Not for resuse.
Do you know what I learned? No one cares about my thighs and my cellulite – no one but me, that is. As I was sitting in the sand at the edge of the water one evening, my girls running circles around me, my three year old stopped and smiled a huge smile and told me how much she loves me and how much she loves the beach. That sweet moment will be chiseled into my memory for life. What if I had been sitting yards away on a lounge chair in my cover-up? I would have missed the moment.
Put yourself back in the moment; put yourself back in the picture.