The Unplanned Magic: Why This Video Means So Much

Okay, so I have to tell you guys about this video. Tanner didn't even know he was doing it, but he captured the most precious, unscripted moment that I will seriously cherish forever. Like, for real, it's my favorite video on my camera roll right now, and I just knew I had to share a little more about why it hits me so hard. It's just one of those things that makes you stop and remember what truly matters, and it's definitely something I'll be looking back on for years and years.

You know how sometimes you try so hard to get the perfect shot or the perfect video, and it just feels… forced? This was the complete opposite. It was just life happening, and Tanner, being the absolute best, just happened to be recording. And honestly, those are always the best memories, aren't they? The ones you didn't even try to make, they just… happened. I feel like that's where the real magic is, in those little, everyday moments that you might not even notice at the time, but then you look back and you're like, 'Whoa, that was everything.'

Tanner, My Unofficial Family Documentarian

My husband, Tanner. Gosh, what would I do without him? He's seriously my rock, my hype man, and apparently, my unofficial family documentarian hahah. He has this way of just capturing things when I'm not even thinking about it. I'm usually the one with the camera, trying to get all the cute moments of the girls, but sometimes it's so nice to be on the other side of the lens, just living in the moment, and then finding out later that someone else caught it all. It's like a little gift, you know? Like, 'Hey, I saw this beautiful thing happening, and I wanted you to have it forever.' :,)

He's always so good about seeing the beauty in the chaos, especially with three little girls running around. Stella, Ozzy, and baby Cherry, they keep us on our toes, that's for sure! And sometimes, in the thick of it, it's hard to just slow down and appreciate the tiny details. But Tanner, he sees it. He sees the way Stella looks at her sisters, the way Ozzy makes us all laugh, the way Cherry just lights up a room. And he captures it, without even being asked. That's true love, if you ask me. He just gets it. He gets me. And he gets us.

The Simple Joy of Unscripted Moments

So, what exactly was in this video that made it my favorite? Well, I can't give away all the details, bc some things are just for us, but I can tell you it was just… us. It was real. It wasn't staged, it wasn't for content, it was just a raw, beautiful moment that happened organically. And those are the moments I live for. Those are the ones that actually fill my cup and make me feel like, 'Okay, this is what it's all about.'

I think sometimes we get so caught up in trying to create these perfect, Instagram-worthy lives, that we forget to just live. We forget to just be present. And this video was a huge reminder for me to just lean into the unscripted, the imperfect, the messy, beautiful reality of our lives. Because that's where the real joy is. That's where the real memories are made. And that's what I want to look back on when I'm older – not the perfectly curated feeds, but the perfectly imperfect moments that made up our life.

Why I Love Looking Back at Old Videos and Photos

Oh my gosh, you guys know I'm a sucker for looking back at old photos and videos. I could spend hours just scrolling through my camera roll, watching the girls grow up. It's like time travel, but better! One minute Stella is a tiny baby, and the next she's telling me all about her day at school. Ozzy was just learning to walk, and now she's running circles around me. And Cherry, my sweet baby girl, she's growing so fast I can barely keep up! :,)

It's such a bittersweet feeling, seeing them grow. You want them to stay little forever, but you also love watching them discover the world and become their own little people. And having these videos, these little snippets of their lives, it's just priceless. It's like a little time capsule of all the love and laughter and even the craziness that makes up our family. I'm so grateful that we have so many memories captured, bc one day, these will be all we have. And I want to remember every single little thing.

Permission to Be Imperfect: My Takeaway

This video, this one little moment, it really just reinforced something I've been trying to embrace more and more: it's okay to be imperfect. It's okay for things not to be picture-perfect all the time. In fact, sometimes the imperfect moments are the most perfect ones of all. I used to be so hard on myself, always wanting everything to look a certain way, to be a certain way. But with three kids, you quickly learn that life is just… not like that hahah. And that's okay! More than okay, it's beautiful.

So, if you're out there trying to capture every perfect moment, maybe take a step back. Maybe let someone else capture a moment for you. Or maybe just put the phone down and just be in it. Because sometimes, the best memories are the ones you don't even realize are happening until you look back. And having a partner like Tanner, who just instinctively knows when to hit record, even when I'm not looking, that's just a blessing. I'm so grateful for him, for our girls, and for all the unplanned, beautiful moments that make up our life. I love this so much, you guys. :,)