Dads, ‘Do Her A Favor And Take More Pictures’
Mom encourages dads to take more photos of their partners with the kids
Any mom going through photos on her phone could probably tell the same tale — a whole bunch of kid pics, dad and kid pics, a few selfies, and maybe some Instagram-worthy lunches. One thing missing? Photos of herself and the kids.
That’s why a mom is speaking out with a heartfelt plea to dads to take more pictures of their partners with the kids. Because one day, those photos could mean a lot more than we think.
Blogger Cyndy Gatewood took to Facebook to write about why photos that include a mom and her children are so important. She writes, “Dear Dads, I know you’re holding your phone right now. You probably always have your phone in your hand or at least in your pocket — we all do. Do her a favor and take more pictures.”
Gatewood clarifies that she doesn’t mean pictures of just anything. “I’m talking about pictures of her. The mother of your children. The love of your life. The one who works so hard with you to hold it all together for your precious family.”
“Take more pictures of her.”
The mom accepts blame for the fact that her phone hardly includes any photos of her and the kids saying that she’s either the photographer or telling her husband not to take candids because she doesn’t look her best. “I always feel like I have to have on makeup or have a good angle because I have a social media mentality. I always assume it will be posted and everyone will see it.”
Nailed it. How many of us think that way? I know I definitely do.
Gatewood expresses her gratitude for the photos she already has of her kids and husband, but still wants to make sure she’s in the picture too.
So here’s her advice.
“Dads, if you have a wife like me, one night when she’s lying in bed reading a story to your daughter, whip out your phone and take a picture. Without warning. Without posing. Just take the picture.”
So often, it seems we only break out the camera or phone during specific occasions, but Gatewood encourages capturing candid moments, above all. “When she’s in the kitchen talking to your son about his day, take the picture. If she’s rolling around on the floor with the kids or helping one with their homework, take the picture.”
She writes, “One day she’ll be gone and all the kids have left of her are memories.” Gatewood makes a solid case for the fact that photos are so much more than a way to merely remember how someone looked. “Take the pictures to show them the love she had for them. Take the pictures so they can always remember how silly she was. Take the pictures so they can see how beautiful she was. It doesn’t matter if she’s in her pajamas and on day 4 of dry shampoo, please, take the picture.”
It’s those day-to-day moments that truly mean the most. The simple things that seem like no big deal as they’re happening are what our kids will one day look back on and cherish. Which brings Gatewood to her ultimate point.
“My mom passed away when I was 20 years old. All I have are pictures. I stare at the pictures of her holding me in her lap laughing at something cute I must have said. I zoom in on pictures of her hands to see if I have the same ones as I’ve gotten older.”
It’s a dagger to the heart of any mother to try to imagine her kids living life without her, but the reality is that it will happen to most of our children if we’re lucky enough to outlive them. Having pictures of life with their mother will mean the world once we’re gone. It’s so sad to contemplate, but Gatewood is absolutely right.
She closes with a final plea to husbands. “I know you don’t always think about it, but when you do, don’t worry about anything else and just take the picture. Your kids (and your wife) will be so grateful in the end.”
