The tween years - that in-between stage where childhood meets adolescence - are a fascinating and transformative time. As a parent, I've been reflecting on this period a lot lately, as I have the pleasure of having a couple of tweens living under my roof (actually, one just entered her second year as a teen). The changes I've witnessed in them have made me realize what a precious (but fleeting) time this is and how important and special it is to capture it through photography. That feeling of time being fleeting always hits home this time of year when they go back to school.
From Babyhood to Tweendom:
In the early years of parenthood, we eagerly capture every milestone of our little ones - from their first breath to their first steps. Newborn portraits and first birthday photos become cherished keepsakes, symbolizing the rapid growth and development of our babies during that amazing first year. We'll likely get some great snapshots of them as toddlers and on their first days of school in elementary. Maybe we get in some family portraits before they lose their baby teeth. But what about the tween years? Hopefully this time is not a portrait desert before the arrival of senior pictures later on.
The Magic of Tween Transformation:
Just as babies change significantly in their first year, tweens undergo an equally remarkable transformation during their pre-teen and early teenage years. I vividly recall my older daughter's 6th-grade continuation ceremony, where I saw young girls who, until recently, looked like kids, suddenly appearing as young women. And as the middle school years continued, the boys, too, were experiencing growth spurts that made many of them tower over their parents in just a couple of years.
Capturing the Tween Journey:
This generation of parents is armed with a camera at all times (smart phones), and our kids’ lives have been marked by us constantly snapping pictures of them. During the tween and teen years, we try to continue this, but maybe we don’t get as many photos, because they are with friends, hiding out in their rooms, or are maybe not as keen to have their picture taken as they used to be.
I believe that the tween years are an incredible (and often overlooked) time to capture and record this fleeting stage of life. Scheduling a professional portrait session at the beginning or end of sixth grade and again before high school, allows us to freeze these transformative moments in time before our kids morph into young adults. Soon enough, it will be time to arrange senior portraits, and we'll marvel at how quickly time has flown.
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