Sunday, August 04, 2013

31/52

"A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2013."

Che: Every week of his life we have visited our neighbours in their teeny-tiny little cottage. After ringing the doorbell he always goes straight to the spare bedroom, reaches under the bed and pulls out a vintage suitcase full of old cars, trucks and planes. Whilst the adults chat and drink tea, Che plays and eats a biscuit (you can see the crumbs on the rug).
Poet: She is thinking: "If I close my eyes, Mama can't see me."

I've been so inspired since I started thinking about capturing the children in spaces and places that hold memories. I have, quite literally, watched Che grow up on that rug - he's played there since he was old enough to sit by himself - and now I have it captured; so he can look back on it, too. 

Whenever Poet and I take a walk she always climbs this fence (this portrait was shot there too) and hence I have spent a lot of time admiring the garden. Next week the blossoms will bloom and shortly after, the freesias will be popping up through the grass. I'll have to shoot a spring portrait here.

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In honour of World Breastfeeding Week - this shot of Allison and Eloise captures a precious moment, one that I fondly remember with my own babies / I love the variety of perspectives in this post - the first shot is very bug-like and I adore it! / If you look into Mason's beautiful, big, newborn eyes, you can see his parents' silhouettes / play on a wild New Zealand beach...I feel like I'm there / and children on an adventure, beautiful scenic portraits. 








32 COMMENTS

  1. I love the inclusion of that rug-- I often take pictures of my littles on the very rug I grew up playing on. It is so wonderful to remember...

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  2. Not only do I love your photos, Jodi, I love your words. Thank you for sharing with us. A beautiful weekend to you and your lovely family.

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  3. Loving the splashes of yellow in the first photo. And Poet? Just perfect. As always.

    www.mamacase.com

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    1. I hadn't noticed the splashes of yellow until you mentioned it. Thank you! x

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  4. It is nice if you can not only capture a portrait but a memory also. It is easy to get lazy I think, but thinking of capturing something more than just his face makes me work a little harder. In a good way!

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  5. beautiful! I agree with Kacie, the splashes of yellow are pure perfection! xo

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  6. ha oh Poet, Wilf plays this game also. Adorable x

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  7. Oh that lighting on the photo of Che is slendid.

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  8. i love the photo and story about che! what sweet memories those will be. :)

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  9. Lovely memories captured in your beautiful photos.

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  10. So sweet! They will so love looking back on these - precious reminders of their childhood.

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  11. oh how sweet that Che has his little routine at your neighbours home...I remember doing that very thing as a little girl when my mum would take be visiting too! And little poet...oh how I wish sometimes if we closed our eyes we could be invisible to the world! Wishing you a wonderful Sunday! xx

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  12. What a beautiful ritual to have each week one I'm sure will be remembered with fondness in years to come. Oh how I love that stage of little ones closing their eyes thinking you can't see them, so very cute. x

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  13. So lovely. We have wonderful neighbors who we spend lots of time with drinking tea and coffee, good neighbors are a true blessing. I wonder if that is what Elíe is doing when he is always squinting with a silly smirk... :)

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  14. Che's socks and shoes are so bright and happy, they made me smile. I love the idea of capturing not just the child but the memories. Wishing you a wonderful week.

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  15. Such beautiful shots. I love that mat, and those memories (and even the crumbs). I love the two year old scrunching up her eyes. My four year old thinks that if his face is hiding, noone can see him either! x

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  16. I love the first photos! such great memories :)

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  17. Thanks for the pick! I love Poet scrunching up her face, Eloise does that every first bite of food she takes as if she needs a brief moment to pause and decide how she feels about the taste.

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  18. Oh that little possum is too lovely! And Che will look back on these images in many years and remember individual cars as his favourite. The pattern of that rug will take him zooming right pack through the years. So lovely to be capturing their world in this way. WIshing you a beautiful week :) xx

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  19. It sounds like your neighbours have the same system as my parents! Whenever people with kids visit (unfortunately we haven't been able to supply them with grandkids, but there are neighbours and extended family with kids, so they don't totally miss out!) there's a big yellow crate with some of our old toys in it that gets dragged out to the lounge room. The whole contents get dumped on the floor and the kids play while the grownups drink coffee and tea. Then when the visit is done, mum or dad (or both - and me, if I'm visiting too!) pack everything back in the crate for the next time the house gets some little visitors. I used to hate packing up my own toys, but I don't mind doing it every now and again when the little people come to hang out. (Probably, if I did have my own kids, it would wear off pretty quick-smart!)

    I love the shot of Poet closing her eyes! Very cute :)

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  20. Love your first photo Jodi. And wee Poet just has the sweetest little face. xo

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  21. Oh Poet, what a clever girl you are! I do love toddler thinking ;) It really is the sweetest photo and I love that it also captures a place that is special to you and your family. The story behind Che's photo is very special too. You are so good at capturing the essence of your children without even featuring their faces.

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  22. Toddler logic at it's very sweetest. :)

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  23. Looking at your photos is almost like reading a story, they say so much! My folks have a bag of matchbox cars that my girls and nephews love to play with! Timeless toys. Poet is such a sweetie. My little girl always covers her face when I open the car door and I always play along pretending she's not there. Bless their innocence! :)

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  24. The picture of Che is utter perfection Jodi. I adore it.

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  25. I love that these 52 portraits will tell a story of my baby girls 2nd year. They may not be the best pictures, but they will remind us in years to come what happened this year. Thanks for a great project.

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  26. Strange isn't it - I've been on holiday for the past couple of weeks and not been able to join in and I pop back to see your photos this week and Poet looks to have grown lots! x

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  27. Does Che always cross his legs at his ankles when he sits? Jarvis does it as well, and I was wondering if it is a common thing?

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  28. I am sorry I'm so late this week!! Been off to a festival.
    xxx

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  29. I love the perspective of the first shot. It tells such perfect story of childhood.

    And since I'm don't regularly link up, I thought I had to this week because I just love the shot of my little girl. Such childhood innocence.

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  30. Thanks Jodi for the shout out on your blog. As always, your pictures and readers are very inspirational.

    XO

    Elena

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