Photo Story Friday: Watch Them Grow

The idea was simple but powerful. Take a picture of the munchkins on the 19th of every month wearing pretty much the same clothes and sitting pretty much in the same place to document their growth. Done correctly, I imagined a set of still pictures that I'd be able to fan and capture - movie like - the growing of my children.

This picture was the first for the series. It was taken March 19, 2008 when they were exactly one month old. It was also the first picture of the three of them together because my munchkette, SKINNY, the smallest but feistiest at birth decided she didn't care for eating much and forced the hospital to keep her in the not-really-NICU until she was 19 days old. The boys had come home together at 9 days old and already had dozens of pictures of the two of them snuggled up together - brotherly love style.

I managed, despite unimaginable exhaustion and crying fits (theirs AND mine), to set up this shot for several months running. I even expanded the photo shoot - each child separately, then by twos, and over here on this other couch with a teddy bear, etc. It sometimes took hours but I figured years later I'd have something for myself and for them that would make it all worth the considerable hassle.

And then real life got in the way. Two days after their 10 month birthday photo shoot, I was on the road, alone with them, hightailing it away from a crazy relationship. The pictures I had taken over the past ten months were downloaded and stored on my partner's computer - a much better, higher memory capacity than my own old laptop. I thought nothing of it - we'd figure that out later.

Later would come, but not with the pictures, not with the first ten months worth of pictoral memories of my babies. She had destroyed them all.

A couple of dozen photos survived, courtesy of photobucket. This first picture among them. Whenever I look at it so many feelings and thoughts surface.

I can't believe how tiny they were, almost swallowed up by their pacifiers.

Oh, to be so brand new to life, every wondrous thing awaiting, all heartbreak and disappointment merely bumps in the road you might hop over, untouched.

I can't believe how differently we live now than the hopes and dreams I had for us when this shot was taken.

I really should get back to snapping photos on the 19th of the month but...it just won't be the same.

Whatever happened to that chair? I spent the last month of my pregnancy and the first ten months of their lives in that chair. Man was it comfortable.

Geez, I can't believe how tiny they were, so very brand new to life, every wondrous thing awaiting...

This blog entry is part of Photo Story Friday with Parenting by Dummies and My Chaos My Bliss. Go check them out and join the fun!