Our community has suffered some tragic losses these past few weeks. A mother of three young boys, a teenager not even halfway through high school and a young adult all gone from their loved ones lives much too soon. In a small town like ours, these losses hit hard. You see and feel the pain of their family members, friends, co-workers and neighbours and it all hits so close to home. You see their parents, their children and their spouses trying to put back together a life that will never be the same.

I saw a blog post from another photographer this week and she stressed the importance of being in photos with your family and kids. I had a photo session done this summer with my daughter that I had been putting off for years. I thought I would wait until I was happy with how I looked or I found the perfect outfit, perfect idea, or any excuse really! Then my daughter turned ten this summer and I suddenly felt this pressure of time. How did she get to be ten? While I do get my husband to take a few of us every now and again the last time we actually had photos done was just after her second birthday. Included with the session was a small photo book that I received in the mail a couple of days ago and I have looked at it at least twenty times. Am I happy with how I look in every photo? No - the photos are gorgeous but of course I find things to criticize. Why did I wear that dress, why was I sitting like that. But I am thrilled to have them and I know when my daughter looks at this book, today or ten or twenty years from now she is not going to think about how much I weighed or what I wore but I think she will remember how much time we have spent down at that river together and maybe she will even remember how we were dancing and laughing during that session and had so much fun.

So today all I ask is to be thankful for who have near you. Enjoy the moments big and especially small. Be present - in photos, in life, for your kids, for your family and for you. 

Photos courtesy of the incredible Dana Lauder