Welcome to Mom Photographer 2.0

Coming out of 10 years of hiatus

Can you believe it’s been ten years already? I mean, it feels just like yesterday… if yesterday lasted a decade! They say time flies when you’re having fun, but I’m not sure if the past ten years were exactly hilarious for this Mom Photographer 🤨. Anyway, a lot has changed since then, and it seems like this blog has become a great place to make friends and share my thoughts, once again. 

I started this blog back in 2009 with a brand-new baby and a brand-new identity as a Polish immigrant living in California. As much as some aspects of my life were quite not alright I was full blast enjoying the whole mom thing and documenting it, and posting it here. With a big diaper bag on one shoulder and a camera bag on another, the 3 of us were scouting locations for my slowly growing photography business.

Back then baking was my love language, photography was my escape, and this blog was my digital hideout. When life got hectic and work took off, I had to take a break. And let’s be real, I tried to make a comeback a few times, but I was uninspired and tired from battling life’s challenges. Every time I wrote a post, it was just sad, depressing, or angry. So, I just walked away from it, and poof… Ten years went by just like that.

Welcome to Mom Photographer 2.0

Today I am back with backup (times 2) – Mom Photographer 2.0.

As you probably guessed, this backup is: my two kids. Not as the subject of my pictures but as meaningful contributors to this blog’s life. Meet my duo:

So, what is this Mom Photographer 2.0 (aka &CO) all about these days?

Well, long story short, in this chapter of my life, we are learning to embrace simplicity, flexibility, resilience, and transformation.

Let me give you a short overview of the last 10 years and what is in the books for the next few.

We have moved a few times and today we live in the rural countryside

In the last 10 years, we’ve moved around the Bay Area, with our last move in 2022 (outside of the Bay Area). Now we live in a rural countryside in Gold Country. The quiet, simple, and peaceful life is therapeutic. I love it and I cherish it, however, it also brings its challenges. Especially when it comes to homeschooling.

Oh yeah, the homeschooling… Let me tell you a little about that.

Homeschooling as a Lifestyle

Homeschooling has been on my mind for a very long time. The move to the countryside helped me to make the big decision, to pull my kids out of public school.
Homeschooling has become more than just an educational choice for us; it’s a lifestyle. During the Covid lockdowns and my kids having online schools, I noticed quite a lot of behaviors and habits I did not want to foster anymore. Of course, I blamed myself for a lot of them.

That’s why I also felt like it was on me to change it, ASAP. It was not easy, for sure. Old habits die hard. 

In just one year I have noticed recognizable changes in both of my daughters. They are becoming creative, confident, and empowered women.  The homeschooling journey became my Family Revolution and this blog is my way of sharing this journey.

Building a community

In the last several years I was busy building my business but also trying to become a valuable member of the community we lived in.

Before I started our homeschooling journey I was waist-deep into building a community around the Children’s Business Fair, entrepreneurship, and micro-schools in the Bay Area where we lived for the last 13 years. I loved running small workshops for kids: photography, business, mindfulness & yoga.

When we moved to the countryside I found myself struggling with the social aspect of homeschooling. It’s easy to find a curriculum. It’s easy to get outdoors and enjoy the freedom, especially when you are not tied to a rigid schedule of the school year. Yet, I’ve had a hard time finding meaningful friendships for my girls (well, and myself). So, once again, I set on the journey to create yet another community, and this blog is a big part of that. 

Empowering the next generation

I put too much trust in public education. I was too preoccupied with fighting my own demons. I got too busy working. I let life just happen to my kids. Covid only reinforced the feeling I already had that time is running out to have any influence on the generation that is growing up under my roof. 

Our Family Revolution journey is not just about education. It is a holistic approach to life. 

It’s about empowering the next generation with the skills and mindset they need to thrive and be able to shape the world we and they live in. 

Having full control, plus a lot of flexibility, on what and how I want to teach the kids, our homeschooling lifestyle allowed me to add to their schedule yoga, mindfulness, martial arts, culinary adventures, tractor driving, firearm handling, event organizing, real-life finances (actual investing!), and even motorcycle maintenance. There will be many posts about all that, that’s for sure!

Motherhood

I went through some deep murky waters to prove that I did my best in this field, and the journey is not even halfway through – it feels like. I have evolved tremendously as a woman but mostly as a mother. This role is always transforming and I am learning to embrace it. I can’t hide the fact that homeschooling has had a tremendous influence on my own personal development and parenting. As I said before, it really became our lifestyle, and I am very excited to share some of the things I have learned (and still learning) along the way.

#Mompreneur

Here on this website the “mom” is the part where I talk about parenting, motherhood, baking, cooking, and transforming as a woman. The “photographer” is not only about being an artist but also about being an entrepreneur. Lots of stories can be shared here and that’s what I hope to do in this blog. From struggling, to building, to transforming, to expanding, and everything in between. Through my lens and written stories, I want to capture and share the essence of this evolving journey.

One of the goals of this blog is to take all the skills and passions I have and use them to build a thriving community around alternative education (it’s not all exclusively about homeschooling).

I can’t say I am a social butterfly. Far from it. However, life has taught me that you can’t be an island and I took that lesson deep into my heart. From being a member of a business women community to hosting MH Children’s Business Fair, I realized changing the world with a tribe by your side (no matter how small), is always better. 

I’m beyond excited to reconnect and share these experiences with you. Here’s to embracing simplicity, cultivating independence, and evolving together. Let’s embark on this adventure!