One Evening With Kate M. {A Photo Essay Series}

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“One Evening” is a photo essay series that provides a sneak peek into the everyday lives of the Fairfield County Moms Blog contributors. The evening routine is photographed by Anna-Liisa Nixon Photography and words are written by each mom to tell the story behind the images. It’s a rare and intimate look into each family’s life, one evening at a time.

When I first learned that a photographer would be snapping some shots of my family at home, I was excited to document our lives. Then it happened… reality set in! What on earth would we be doing on a random Tuesday night, compelling enough for the world to see? Most evenings in our home are pretty chaotic as we try to get our 3 year-old twins fed and in bed. Rarely do we have a tidy house and even more rarely do we have cooperative children. How on earth would these pictures turn out?!

To my pleasant surprise, it turns out there is something fairly magical in everyday life! The talented Anna-Liisa Nixon has the ability to find beauty in the ordinary, and the results are amazing! On this particular Tuesday night, I was finishing up working from home. My husband (a teacher) and our kids were already home for the day and itching to get outside. It was a beautiful night, so outside we went!

Evening Play Time

One thing that I love about this age is that my twins are becoming more independent. They are very imaginative and love pretend play. A play house is a castle, my daughter is a Princess and her brother is her Prince. Even Zoey Dog gets in on the fun! Whether it’s bubbles, chalk, or bikes, the same old toys can entertain in new ways each night.

After an hour of playtime, I decide to pour myself a drink as my daughter sips on a juice box. Mommy and Daughter happy hour!

Dinnertime Prep

Grilling and eating dinner outside is something that we look forward to all year! There are only so many weeks of nice weather in CT, so on this evening we decided to take advantage! We recently renovated our patio and purchased some new outdoor furniture to further enjoy our space. But to keep it 100%, the prep work involved in eating outdoors is A LOT! Hauling all of the supplies out, in addition to the little interruptions here and there, feels like being pulled in a million different directions. My husband is typically on the grill, which leaves me to cover the rest of the prep work. On this particular evening, I had to stop a million times to wipe a butt, dress a princess, you name it!

Meal Time

Anna-Liisa’s pictures are worth a thousand words. What can I say about mealtime!? Well, these pictures capture it perfectly! The dog is begging, the kids are messing around, and my husband and I are joking about the absurdity of it all! After five minutes of barely touching their food (that we spent an hour preparing) they are racing off to go play. Mealtime with toddlers is anything but relaxing, even in the most beautiful setting. At least the dog made out well (and we’ll have some yummy leftovers in the fridge!).

Family Portrait

Raise your hand if you are a photo obsessed mom like I am! I have so many photos of my kids on my iPhone that I’m running out of storage. None of the photos, however, ever include me in the shot! Having Anna-Liisa over to capture me with the kids was such a blessing and produced images I’ll hold onto forever. We even got some cute family shots!

 Oops, caught in the act bringing in the packages! Time to say goodnight and get the kids into the bathtub! Thanks for following along!

Images for this project are captured by Anna-Liisa Nixon Photography. Anna-Liisa specializes in documentary family photography and loves capturing the real, silly, weird, and tender moments of childhood. She captures that blur of motherhood — the laughter and tears, the real moments and connections, and the unique rhythm of a family. To learn more, visit her website and follow her on Facebook and Instagram.

To see all posts in the “One Evening” photo essay series view here.

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