Wrinkles.

I was going to write this as just a quick status on my photography Facebook page {click here}. But realized I had too much to say about it... so I'm going to say it here instead.

Just a quick thought for many of you out there... especially the moms and grandmas out there. I've heard so many women ask me, "Can you edit out these wrinkles?" And many times I divert the subject. Not because I'm unable to edit them... but because in most cases I choose not to. Its not a decision I make because of the time it takes to edit wrinkle.

I choose not to because, to me, wrinkles are beautiful.

Not only that, at Jennifer Christi Photography, we are about telling stories. What kind of story would we be telling if we completely changed the look of main characters?

My favorite wrinkles are the "crow's feet" and the "smile wrinkles" around the mouth.

Why? Every time you've smiled in your life, your face has left a small reminder of that joy. Every time you laughed, an imprint was made. Even if you don't remember every single smile, your face does.

I understand the point of taking care of your face, of moisturizing and of exfoliating. I'm not saying don't do that. What I'm saying is please don't be the cruelest person you'll ever meet. Don't judge yourself because you haven't kept a perfectly emotionless face your entire life. Who in the WORLD wants that?!

I've had this opinion for a long time, and I've thought to myself, "Will my opinion change when I'm older? Will I hate my wrinkles? Will I try everything I can to get rid of them? Will I edit them out of pictures of myself?" I, obviously, cannot answer this at this moment. But what I can say about it; I have some wrinkles around my mouth and eyes already. I am very proud of them. At the age of 25 I have smiled and laughed enough in my life that my face is already making a permanent imprint. I pray my smile and laugh wrinkles will only grow deeper and deeper.

Some of my favorite people in the world, who I find to be the most beautiful, have the most wonderful wrinkles around their mouths and at the corners of their eyes. The craziest thing about this is that I almost never see their wrinkles.

Why?

Because I look past them and see beyond them?

No. I don't believe you should have to look past them.

Its because they are almost always smiling.

Its only when you stop smiling that the wrinkles are noticeable. And they're there to remind you of when you were smiling.

Love,
Jenny

P.S. I realize there are many other types of wrinkles... these are just my favorites.

Realizations in Being Pregnant, Owning a Business & Learning I Can't Do This On My Own

Galatians 2:20 in the Message bible says: "I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that."

I've been going back and forth on writing this blog post... but I've just decided to buck up and write it. Then, when I decided to do that, I went back and forth on whether I should post this on my business blog - www.jenniferchristi.com - or here on my personal blog. I've decided personal will be best. I will be posting it to my business Facebook though, as I feel many of my clients/followers might have a better idea of whats going on after reading this.

For those of you who don't know... on August 11th we found this out:

Joel and I are SO EXCITED for this next chapter of our lives.

But this news has come with some unexpected changes and realizations.

Realization #1: I am not superwoman

Baby makes me slow down. Baby makes me rest BEFORE exhaustion. Baby makes me take breaks. In the past I've been able to do marathon editing, where I literally sit at my computer all day and edit and post blogs and email. I cannot do this now, which has slowed me down.

Realization #2: I need to ask for help

The business I have has multiple employees... and I need to ask them to help me. I am not able to shoot, edit and manage EVERYTHING anymore. This has been good for me to realize now, BEFORE this bundle of joy makes his/her appearance in 7ish months. I need to know that when I have a little one. I have to slow down. I have to know I can depend on everyone that works for me. That is why I hired them.

Realization #3: I love my clients

This is something I already knew. But I love them/you more than ever. So many of you have been so supportive and understanding as I transition into this new stage of life. Realizing I'm not superwoman has made me fall behind a bit as for the first few weeks I spent time trying to figure out what my body needed in order to not be sick. I hardly completed anything for at least two weeks straight and felt TERRIBLE about it... on TOP of physically feeling terrible. But as I'm adjusting my schedule and seeing new ways to get a lot done in a short amount of time, I'm getting caught back up. Thank you guys. Thank you a million times over.

Realization #4: I need to find my strength in God

I am learning that I need to come to Him daily for strength and peace in all of this. I am so excited for this blessing, and when I allow Him to direct my every path, I not only get through each day... I excel through each day. He knows me, my body & my innermost self. I am choosing daily to allow Him to help me through all of this.

I am looking forward to all of the new adventures/changes/realizations this baby is going to bring us. And I will try to keep you all updated on how things are going :)

Thank so you much!

Love, Jenny