The last installment. The last {Daily Cup of Jo} monthly recap. I am so…… relieved. Ha! Being honest. I’m so glad I’m no longer obligated to pick up the camera on days when I don’t want to. At least for a couple of weeks, I think I’ll be taking a hiatus. Glad I did it. Glad it’s over. 🙂
When I shot Adela’s {Daily Dose of ‘Dela} in 2012, I missed only 2 or 3 days all year. This year, I found the daily thing significantly harder… just the *remembering* to take a picture every day. I missed more than a couple of days. But I also found it significantly easier to shoot when I did remember. In 2012 I was a lot more intent on taking clever, unique photos. In 2015 I’ve let go of most of that. In many ways this 365 is more “real” than my first one. I shot it more for me. And more desperately. Ha! More last minute. Less prepared. Less edited. I spent less time figuring out what to shoot and just shot whatever was happening whenever I remembered. A lot of the photos from this year, likely most of them, were taken inside, many of them under nasty tungsten lighting because it happened to be all that was available when I remembered. And I love it. It’s all memories. And it’s all our real life. Precious and fleeting.
Another difference between my first 365 project and this one comes from the fact that second kids are just different than first kids. With Adela, I was always looking forward, anticipating the next new thing she would do, the next “first time.” I was always expectant. As a new parent, every single thing is new. It’s wonderful. And it still is. She is still breaking barriers for me, still surprising me and breaking me in, every step of the way. But second kids, they’re different, aren’t they? They are just as special, but they are different. Instead of constantly looking forward, I often find myself looking back and thinking, “how did that happen already?” Time goes even faster than it used to. The downside is that I sometimes feel like I’ve missed giving milestones their proper attention. The upside is that I stress less because I feel, even though he is completely different than his big sister, that we’ve tackled some of these parenting challenges already, and we’ve survived. We have been at least partially seasoned when it comes to some things about raising kids. Every single thing isn’t a surprise. I’ve discovered that, like most other parents, our instincts have been right a lot of the time. It’s a relief. So while nothing is quite like the child that makes you a parent and shows you the ropes, there is also nothing quite like the kid that comes after and lets you revel in everything you already know and getting to relax and enjoy it.
So here it is. The last installment of my more laissez-faire 365, in honor of our second child, our very special, very loud, very smiley, very sociable, very unpredictable, very energetic, very sweet son whom I love with my whole heart. Our Josiah.
(And go here for a look back at the rest of the year.)
