I think I speak for everyone when I say this is a strange time to be alive. As of a few weeks ago, many states across the country have been given strict stay at home orders, including here in Virginia.

Not only is this a strange time, but it is a very historic time. One that feels important to document and capture. So I was delighted when I started seeing photos on instagram tagged #TheFrontStepsProject. What a unique and appropriate way to shed light and cheer on a dark and difficult time.

Like many photographers across the country, our photographer, Samantha Venezia posted on Instagram that she was getting involved in this movement and we immediately got on her books. After a few weeks of being home and not having a solid reason to wear anything but pajamas and workout clothes, it was nice to wake up and actually get ready for the day.

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Samantha was extra careful not to get too close and even though it looks like she was closer, she was actually the standard 6 feet away in all of these photos. She stood mostly on the walkway in front of our house and gave us a few suggestions, but with her it’s always natural and easy to be photographed. Miles however needed a constant flow of cheerios to stay content, so I was sure to have those on hand.

If you go through the photos on Instagram, tagged with #TheFrontStepsProject, you will see tons of smiling faces. You will see generations of families in one photo, first responders, children laughing, and people posing with their pets. Some with big country porches, some with little balconies in the city, all walks of life coming forward and showing their faces during this strange and historic time when we aren’t allowed to actually get together.

I understand that for for some this is a hard and dark time. Some of you are not used to being home everyday, being the primary caretaker for their children.  Some are used to ordering out and have been forced to cook your meals everyday. Some have lost your jobs and aren’t sure how you’re going to make ends meet right now. Some are experiencing anxiety and depression. No matter who you are and what your lifestyle is, this time has affected you in some way.

For us, not much has changed in the normal day to day routine. My husband works in a hospital, so he goes to work everyday just like usual. And I am a stay at home mom, so I stay home everyday just like usual. For that, I feel very lucky. But we do miss getting together with our friends. We miss going to breweries and meeting up with other families. We miss our own family. We miss going out to eat. We miss things like Babygarten at the library and swim lessons at the local dive center. And I personally miss being able to run to Target for one silly thing just to pass the time between Miles’ second nap and bedtime when he’s normally pretty restless. We understand this is temporary, but it doesn't make missing things like this any easier.

One thing I can suggest to all of you who are home with your family and are dealing with this sudden change in routine or huge amount of time on your hands is try to enjoy it. Maybe you normally don’t have time to work out and now you do. Maybe you don’t get to spend a lot of time with your children and now get to really soak them up. Maybe you’ve been meaning to go through the entire list of top 100 movies on IMDB and watch them all. Now is the time to slow down, look around and enjoy the small moments. Work on yourself, work on your home, or do nothing. Learn a new skill, read a book you’ve been meaning to, listen to an album in its entirety from start to finish.

We all wish we could spend more time at home with our loved ones and now the world is asking you to do just that. This is a special time in which we all can collectively just take a big deep breath.

I’ve been pleased to see how many people in our area are working hard to support local and small businesses during this tough economic time. We especially love a few restaurants in our area and have made it a point to order take out from one of them every Friday night. And my husband stops in at our friend’s coffee shop downtown on his way into work to pick up a slice of pie and a coffee as often as he can.

While everyone seems to be thinking of restaurants, we cannot forget about our photographers during this time. That is our purpose for getting these photos taken. Some will do it because It is “trending” on Instagram. And some will do it for a better reason. I saw that some photographers were charging for their services and then donating the money to their local food bank or some other charity to support those who may have fallen on hard times during this pandemic. We do it to support our friend and photographer, Samantha.

I just love how these photos turned out. It takes what can feel like an isolating and scary time and turns it into one of family, peace, and reflection. I hope to always look back on these photos and remember all of the days we spent inside just us as a family. No where to be, no agenda, just us as we are.

We even got a few pictures of Sam and I while Miles was enjoying his cheerios on the porch behind us, out of sight.

No matter how you’re spending your time right now, whether you are taking it day by day or hour by hour, know that it won’t be too long and this time will have passed. You are not alone as we are all in this together. And the more we stay home, the sooner we can all get together again.

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