Long Days, Short Years

April 16, 2019

One of the things I hear most consistently from the moms I work with is how quickly their kids grow up. In fact, it’s the number one reason these moms commission me to paint a portrait of their child.

As one mom Kristen says, “The days seem long, but the years are short. Enjoy the fleeting moments while you can!”

These moms tell me how amazed they are to see their kids’ faces and bodies change in such a short period of time. As an artist, it’s fascinating for me to watch these kids grow up on social media, or when I re-visit a client to take pictures for their next child’s portrait.

It’s amazing how much their facial features have changed since I did their portrait.

Moms tell me it’s such a small window of time while their child still has that baby cuteness. You know what I mean; the soft skin, full cheeks, and that beautiful glow. Often times only a few years can dramatically change the appearance of a child!

Many tell me how relieved they are to have captured this special time in a portrait, and how they will always treasure it. It feels great knowing I can help these moms celebrate these fleeting years and help put their minds (and hearts!) at ease.

Moms, how have you noticed your children growing up? How have you seen their faces and bodies change?

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Charlie

May 16, 2016

I met Claire and Cheyne Harris through one of my collectors. They commissioned me to paint their 8-year-old son, Charlie.

This was a really meaningful commission for Claire, because she'd recently lost her father. Having Charlie painted now was a special way of honoring her dad's legacy.

I thought Charlie was so cute when I met him. I took his pictures on a weirdly warm day over Christmas, and he told me about what he was asking for. It was mostly sports-related:)

He struck me as just a really sweet, good-natured boy.

What was really cool about this commission was that I was on the news here in Waco, and I brought this portrait along. You can watch the segment here.

Charlie thought it was pretty cool he was on T.V.

Claire and Cheyne were fun and easy to work with, and I could tell how much they loved their son. It was as honor to

I asked Claire the greatest lesson that she's learned from motherhood, and she said, "Children are VERY smart and are always listening to you and watching you. You will know this when your 8 year old tells you that he "has had a lot on his mind lately" 😂

"Therefore, you should live your life like you want your child to live his or hers. If you give them lots of love, time, and teach them humility they will internalize that and pass that down to their own families."

Amen to that!

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Your kids will be who God means for them to be

March 21, 2016

I've painted portraits of all three of Lauren's girls – Molly, Jane and Nellie.

I've loved getting to know these girls, watching them change and grow over the years. They were just 3 1/2 when I painted them, and now Jane and Nellie are eight (wow!) and Molly is 4.

I'm sure Lauren could tell you how amazingly fast it all goes by.

She's says the most important lesson she's learned from motherhood is that "Your kids are going to be who God meant for them to be no matter what you want them to be; you cannot force them to be someone or something they're not."

The sooner you embrace that, she says, the happier you AND your kids will be!

I really love that, because the reason I do these portraits is to help kids feel loved and valued for who they truly are.

The truth is a lot of kids grow up trying to fit it, to be someone they're not. In my own life I've felt ashamed of who I was and where I came from, and I don't want any child to experience that.

So I create portraits that capture the personality of a child, in a special time in their lives, to show them how much they are loved and valued.

Now I know that it takes a lot more than a portrait to make a child feel loved, but I truly believe it's a unique expression of love that really makes them feel special.