The Meaning Behind Our Family Portrait

After my son was born, I had a strong passion to ensure that our family years were documented. It wasn’t until much later when I actually understood why. Having a little family of my own was always the ultimate dream, and fortunately, my dreams have come true. I have a supportive, best friend for a husband, a firstborn boy, and a baby girl. We live in a cozy home and each of our children has a space of their own. This is exactly how I imagined it. There are moments I take a look at my life and am amazed and so grateful for how our story is turning out. For many, our family might look pretty ordinary. Personally, it has been a lifelong goal.

Growing up, I have no recollection of my parents under one household. It was normal for me to go back and forth from my mom’s home to my dad’s. Honestly, I thought that’s how every family worked. When I was old enough to pay attention to the details of the inner workings of family dynamics, I started to dream up my future family. It wasn’t necessarily who the man would be standing by my side or the number of children we were surrounded by, but the simple notion that our family unit could be seen in a single frame.

I remember walking the halls of many family members’ and friends’ homes noticing the walls covered in family portraits taken throughout the years. Picture frames filled our home on the walls, piano, and entertainment center, but none captured all of the members of my immediate family.

Today, in a small portion of our main entryway, you will find four-simply framed portraits. Two of which are maternity pictures with each child. Another one is our first family portrait of us with our son. And the last frame is the most recent family portrait with all four of us.

On the same month of every year, we make it a point to take our family photo. And every year, there seems to be a level of stress that accompanies this task. When that moment arises, I have to take a step back and remember what we are trying to accomplish. Then it all comes back into perspective. We do put some thought into what color theme we want for the year, but other than that, it’s a pretty straightforward process.

We stick with the same photo studio every year and keep a lookout for any specials or coupons offered. This, after all, is going to be an annual event and must be sustainable. With today’s technology and social media, I can share the photos online and only need to order a few actual printouts. The purpose of these photo sessions was to capture our family throughout the years. A single printed photo is all we really need. The most important one, of course, replaces the most recent photo on our wall.

What family traditions do you hold, and what do they mean to your family? 

Jacqueline
Jacqueline is a wife and a loving mother to two lively kids. Alongside taking care of her family and working full-time in healthcare, she is a real estate investor and a personal finance writer for Parent Portfolio, aiming to help other parents build wealth. She manages the finances for her household and her small real estate business. She has been featured in Business Insider, USA Today, and Ladders.