Our Beautiful Mundane Life: Before 8 a.m. on Saturday {Sarah}

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I have always been so captivated by people. I LOVE to watch them and see what they are all about. Their mannerisms and behavior is something that can be very fascinating. It’s interesting to be able to see what makes us all different but also see the things that we can relate to.  So when I heard that we would be doing a blogging series of lifestyle shoots, capturing what we mothers do with our families on Saturday mornings I was so intrigued! I knew I’d love reading about my fellow blogger friends and seeing pictures of what they do early in the morning once everyone rises for the day.

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When I connected with the photographer, Meg Koning, about my upcoming shoot, I was only days away from giving birth to my fourth child. Meg had the amazing idea of capturing what our mornings looked like before baby and then coming back after the baby was born to capture those moments as well. Surprisingly, they were quite similar. I’m pretty sure once you have more than two kids, adding more on doesn’t change life too much. So with that, here is what goes on in our house in the early hours of a Saturday morning, all in beautiful pictures.

The first time Meg came to visit us, it was around 6 p.m. We had just finished dinner and the kids were getting back into play mode. With three boys, that means playing with everything possible and also a few injuries before bed.

We make our way into our playroom and start getting the things I foolishly cleaned up, out again to play with. This includes legos, balls and bats. On this evening, being very pregnant, I found my way to the comfy chair to watch them play and joined them on the piano at times too. Playtime was interrupted often to give my belly a kiss. My oldest LOVES legos, but likes to do it solo at the kitchen table without his brothers getting in the way. My husband and I are a team in everything and so he helps a lot with cleaning up dinner. My boys are so active that they make their rounds in almost every room, leaving a dust storm behind them. We all loved going into baby Zola’s room, on a daily basis, to dream of what it would be like when she finally made her debut.

Before 6 p.m. Before Baby’s Arrival

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Meg was gracious enough to come back soon after this visit and snap some photos of what our morning looks like, but this time with a precious addition to the family. We had only been home from the hospital one full day and the boys were so overjoyed to have their baby sister home. The mornings for us are pretty chill, with Kevin being home, it’s always so fun for the boys to be able to have him around for some rough housing and cuddles too. Most of the boys wake up around the same time and Kevin and I make our rounds getting them up and dressed. Almost every Saturday, Kevin makes us some cinnamon rolls! This is something we have made quite a tradition out of. After breakfast we love it when we don’t have plans and we can just play and relax! Here are some photos before 8 a.m. with our family of six!

Before 8 a.m. After Baby’s Arrival

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I am sure that as our kids get older, the way our mornings go will look much different. But I do hope that as our family changes, we still find the time to enjoy each other, hang on to fun traditions, pray and eat together, find enjoyment in the little things and cherish the time we have.