Get Real Baby: The Not-So-Pretty Pictures

I was blown away by the amount of emails I received after my 'Baby Essley: The First Month' post, mostly from other new moms thanking me for sharing pieces of the not-so-pretty side of having a newborn.  I was actually a little nervous to publish that post, because I truly am grateful for every second I have with my little girl, and I didn't want it to come off as whiny or complaining when I opened up about the difficult parts of this new chapter in my life.  Once I read your emails and comments on the post though, I was really glad I went ahead with it. 

In the spirit of sharing the not-so-pretty side of new motherhood, I decided to post some 'outtakes' of my dear little Essley.  Some of these are just quick phone shots I've snapped when she's been in less-than-stellar moods.  Some are the unsuccessful result of us trying to capture a cute, happy baby on camera, like for the weekly shots we take of her to share with family and friends.  I can guarantee that for every good shot we get, there are a dozen more where she is kicking, crying, burping, pooping, or making especially odd facial expressions.  We all see so many pretty, smiley, perfectly edited pictures of babies and kids on blogs and our social media feeds, but in reality, there are probably a lot more slightly less adorable pictures hiding on those mom's and dad's camera rolls.  And here, my friends, are some of mine.  I hope you enjoy this visual glimpse into my real life with a newborn.

Do any of you who are parents have a camera roll full of crying, burping, pooping babies/kids?  Or maybe similarly not-so-pretty pictures of your pets/fur babies (I certainly had my fair share of those with Bubby dog!)?  Post links if you've shared any of them online.  I'd love to see.