Life Before 8AM {Lauren}

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Life Before 8am . . . “See and appreciate the significance in the mundane, in the everyday, in the fleeting. The big moments are important, but some of the best moments are in the in-between ones.” – Karen Jacot Photography

The strangest thing happened; this woman/photographer named Karen, actually volunteered to come to our house before the sun was up and take pictures of our morning before 8am. And I’m so glad she did.

I am 99-percent sure that I’m not going to remember life currently. I figure I’ll either forget due to sleep deprivation or black it out to help me cope with the crazy. We have a 4-year-old, an almost 2-year-old, and a 6-month old. My husband and I agree that we are in what is likely one of the harder times of our lives. We are “in the thick of it,” as the saying goes.

We are tired, so very tired. Especially before 8am.

Life is busy and full of chaos. But it’s our busy and it’s our chaos. And I love that I now have these incredible pictures to remind me of this specific time in our life.

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

This is my oldest, our third parent, and we totally get each other. Always have. One thing we don’t see eye-to-eye on is mornings. He likes them. I don’t. Luckily his daddy does.

Pretty much every weekday morning is the same around these parts. My oldest wakes up first. He goes downstairs and gets waffles made by his daddy. I begrudgingly roll out of bed and grab the baby. One of us grabs the screaming toddler. And we’re off.

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

 

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

 

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB
Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

We do waffles and eggs. Every day. It’s the oldest’s favorite meal of the day and when he eats the most. As many of you know, four-year-olds are secretly teenagers and must do everything themselves. EVERYTHING. Fortunately he cracks eggs better than I do.

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

Oh, and you guys, we have dogs. Two of them. And they need more medication than any other member of our family.

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

For some odd reason mornings have always been the easiest time of the day for me with the kids. Maybe it’s because they’re still waking up, or they’re eating, or because my middle is contained in his highchair – but something about mornings are peaceful. We ease into our day. I nurse, I hug crying kids, we say goodbye to daddy (and mommy asks him to please, please not go. Do you really have to go?).

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

 

lauren-before8am-118

 

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

And we just kinda hang around.

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

 

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB
Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

However there is a time when my morning takes a turn. I put baby-girl down for her morning siesta and that signals to the boys that it is time to get crazy and make mommy lose her mind.

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

They jump on beds.

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

They destroy the bed I just made and fight.

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

I separate them, get dressed, and eat breakfast as fast as I can.

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

 

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

And then, she’s up (she gets lots of kisses, can you tell?) and we make our way out the door. We always leave the house after morning nap for an activity, and today it is Vacation Bible School for the boys. On average, I give myself an extra 20-minutes to get somewhere on time. I’m never on time. Oh well, I try.

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

This time of our lives? It’s hard and it’s nonstop. But it’s also really, really sweet.

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

I get to watch two completely different boys who (when they don’t fight) are each others best friends.

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

And I’ve got one healthy girl who has no choice but to let me dress her twice a day and wear obnoxious bows, but, you guys, I can’t help myself!

Life Before 8am: Lauren | DMMB

At the end of each day I just hope I’ve given the best of myself to each little child of mine and hope that they feel loved. Even the two-year-old. Especially the two-year old.

Thanks for sharing our morning! Come visit me and say hello.

For more pictures and a peek into Karen’s perspective of this before 8am shoot, be sure to check out her post here. And don’t forget to check out the rest of the posts within this amazing before 8am series as well!

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Lauren is a proud Texan turned Denverite for life. She lived in Denver's Platt Park neighborhood for four fabulous and fun-filled years, and recently moved further south near Cherry Creek State Park and the Denver Tech Center. She is a stay-at-home-mom of two kids under three, and being a mom brings more joy and completeness than she ever imagined. She is happy, but tired, mostly tired. In her former life sans kiddos, she had the job of her dreams in the non-profit/event-planning world, which took her all over the country including Dallas, New York, Las Vegas and finally Denver. Somewhere in the middle she met a man who loved the mountains, married him in 2010, left Texas for good and had two sweet and handsome little boys. She was shocked when they let her take the first one home without an instruction manual. Alas, she is daily figuring out motherhood through trial and error, good community, and a whole lot of grace. Her favorite things are coffee and chardonnay, books and baths, and quiet time, which she happily looks forward to in 18-years. She writes over at Happy Haven Blog about all things home and family. You can follow her daily adventures at Happy Haven Blog's Facebook Page.

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