Mama Mandy. I saw that title on her blog a while back and thought it sounded catchy. I got to see exactly what Mama Mandy was about this past weekend. Mama Mandy meant so much to me in my younger days. Of course back then she was just Mandy, or Manda. I'm not sure exactly how long of a blog post you can write before the blog authorities tell you that's enough, but I'm pretty sure I'd be cut off before I finished writing about all of the times that we have shared together. We even reminisced about some of those times during our day together Saturday. "Why in the world did we think we looked good in high-waisted pants and chunky sandals?" "Do you remember when we would go to the Rio and dance until our feet were numb?" "Remember when we would quote Hope Floats from across the hallway when we were trying to go to sleep?" Of course this list could go on and on....
Becoming a mother "does" something to you. I'd like to think that since I have become a mother I've lost youthful selfishness. I KNOW that becoming a mother has caused my heart to move from it's normal home inside by chest to the much more vulnerable position outside of my body. I physically hurt when my children hurt. Their pain instantly becomes my pain. It's such a bitter-sweet feeling because it doesn't feel good to feel that way, yet at the same time it's the greatest feeling in the world. Mama's have been around forever and their impact can be seen for generations. I always wondered what kind of "mama" I would be when my time came. I knew that there were things that I wanted to teach my children and values and morals that I wanted to instill in them. Sometimes I think that we can get so wrapped up looking at the future and imagining what our children will become as a result of our rearing that we forget to live in the moment and look to the small little things that we do that can shape our children. This is what I got to witness in action on Saturday at Mama Mandy's house.
A month before, Mandy had given birth to her third baby girl. When I went to Ruston to take pictures of her family on Saturday, I instantly loved the fact that there were no strict expectations. We just let the girls play. This is my favorite type of photography. The last thing that most kids want to do is obey picture posing commands, and it usually just ends with them being upset or angry and that is usually the last look that you want to capture. I loved seeing how Mama Mandy interacts with her girls. The patience and respect and love that she has for them was so apparent. It was such a pleasure to be able to take some pictures for them that hopefully capture some of that connection. She is everything that a "mama" should be.
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