Memories of Places we've lived

I was lucky enough this summer, to be able to spend some time visiting my family in England and the house that I (mostly) grew up in. The garden at that house had grown a lot since I was last there, I have photos of my son playing in that garden when it was a little smaller (so was he!) and there are photos of my siblings and me playing in the same garden when we were children too.

I looked over some old photographs while I was there, of houses my parents had lived in before I was born and of places that I lived but barely remember as an adult. I began thinking about how my husband, son and I have lived in so many different places together and how important it can be to have memories of not just our fun outings but of our every day lives in the neighbourhoods, cities and countries that we've lived in.

Playing outside our Chicago apartment building

Even if you haven't moved a lot, or don't intend to leave the place you're currently living in, you can take photos of your surroundings and look back on how they develop as your children grow older. In your backyard, trees grow taller and in your home taste and styles change over time. In your neighbourhood people come and go, your surroundings and perspective on them grows season by season.

A street nearby to where we lived in Germany

These photos serve as a wonderful nostalgia to me, of the places we've lived and the fun we had together. Photos from Germany remind me of my son as a baby and the walks we'd take together through those winding streets. In time, photos I take of our neighbourhood in Chicago will remind me of other milestones and when my son is much older I'll be able to share all of these photos and memories with him, he in turn might be able to share them with his own children one day.

So when you're snapping photos of your kids at play, either inside your home or outside, don't forget to zoom out or step back and take a wider shot of their surroundings too.





 Written by Rebecca of Bumbles & Light