I was hired to write a blog about my family called Citizen Mom’s Family Journal. My editor, Celeste and her team built the website in New York City as I wrote from my home in Colorado. She needed just one more thing – a picture of me and the kids for the website – and booked us with a photographer in Denver.
Soon afterwards, my daughter and I contracted a savage case of pink eye. I looked like hell and Lucie appeared like she had gone 10 rounds with Ali, one eye swollen shut and the other puffy and red. The blog’s launch would have to wait until we recovered.
Our doctors prescribed eye drops, and Lucie quickly healed. Yet, I was still a mess. The skin around my eyes was peeling and one eye looked 10 years older than the other. I was so light sensitive that I wrote with the blinds shut, my workspace illuminated only by the glow of the computer screen. I had deadlines to meet and soldiered on throughout my illness.
A visit to the ophthalmologist, a new prescription, and one pot of ridiculously expensive eye cream later, I was finally ready for my close up. Celeste rebooked the shoot, and I prayed that we would all stay healthy.
The Photography Studio
I took Nathan out of kindergarten for the morning, and drove to Katie’s studio. She had a reputation for being brilliant with children. Unfortunately, my kids hadn’t heard this and were not cooperating. As Katie starting shooting, Lucie refused to get her picture taken and pouted in a corner. Nathan was so busy hamming it up that he was not listening to Katie’s instructions and ruined shot after shot.
Katie’s patience was wearing thin. I grew frustrated and nearly called Celeste to convince her to use stock photography instead of a picture of us. Then Katie asked, "What do you guys do when you hang out at home?"
I replied, "Oh, my children use me as a playground." I proceeded to let Nathan and Lucie climb and jump all over me. So much for my America’s Next Top Model moment, I prayed that Katie would get one good shot so we could leave. She quickly wrapped things up.
A Reshoot?
A few days after reviewing the proofs, Celeste called. "Could you go back for a reshoot?" she asked. "We don’t have any pictures of all of you looking good at once."
"No, please don’t make me go through that again," I begged. Sensing the panic in my voice, Celeste thought one of the pictures would do. Yes, Nathan looked funny in it, but then again that’s how he always looks. I thanked Celeste for her understanding and got back to my writing.
Looking back, I realize how the motherhood gig is so much harder than any writing assignment I could have. Yet, that hellish morning my children put me through was well worth it. The column won two awards, and I had another story to tell.
(Originally written for a Writer's Digest contest about motherhood and writing.)
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