Liquids: Day 1

Embracing Juice

Welcome to day one of my new photography project.  I will take one photo each day for 30 days, all of which will somehow tie to the theme "Liquid".  The purpose of this project is to get me finding ways to make the ordinary interesting and find new ways to communicate my views/experiences through images.

When Lydia, now four, was six-months-old, I started making her baby food.  I would spend hours reading books, pureeing anything and everything and swearing off artificial flavors, colors, sweeteners, etc.  I became obsessed.  The girl didn't have a sip of juice (out of fear that she would shun milk and her teeth would fall out) or touch an artificial color until well after her second birthday.  There was a day that involved a lot of blue frosting.  The kind of blue that stained your fingers for days and hung out in the high chair straps for months.  The next time I changed her diaper, I swore that she had swallowed an industrial sized tub of green, Crayola paint.  I immediately called my grandmother asking if any of her kids had ever pooped art supplies.  

When Mallory, now two, came into the mix, I quickly discovered that I could no longer maintain that type of control over my (our) daily life.  Mal was, um, "needy".  She sucked up every last bit of time and patience that I had to offer in a 24-hour period and I found myself letting go of some control here and there.  Much to my surprise, it felt pretty good letting that go.  And so I traded in flax seed, tofu smoothies and almond milk for Tegu Blocks, washable markers and Leapfrog.com.  And sometimes spending more time playing with them results in reaching for a convenience item here and there. I still cringe at the thought of that bright orange powder that comes in a box of mac n' cheese and Trix yogurt gives me nightmares, but I don't sweat it if Lydia reaches for a Capri Sun in lieu of the Vita Juice or if she takes the pink-frosted cookie with sprinkles from the sample tray at Kroger.  

This is a time of change in our house.  Each day brings a new challenge and a list of new questions to answer.  It takes a lot of deep breathes and several sips of pinot to keep it together at times.  But, when I look at my kids wearing crazy hats and showing off drawings they spent all morning creating, I can't help but be at peace with colored frosting, Capri Sun and sprinkles.  

All this to say....sometimes, you just have to pick the juice...because it tastes better than the water.