I was going through the camera roll on my phone the other day to delete pictures and make room for more when I discovered a number of photos BB has taken. They’re photos that I wouldn’t dream of posting on Instagram or Facebook, photos that haven’t been posed for or styled or had a nice flattering filter applied (Instagram can hide a multitude of sins).
My first instinct was to delete them, but as my finger hovered over the delete button I realised these are the photos I should be posting, the ones straight from the front line of parenting that show what’s REALLY going on. The living room that looks like a bomb’s hit it, messy beds, me looking like a bomb has hit me.
So for your entertainment, in no particular order, here are are 5 photos I will never post on social media (but probably should):
Asleep on duty while breast feeding Little B with Misery Guts looking gormless in the background. Nice.
Drunk Tipsy on duty (in my defence it was my sister’s 30th). Misery Guts says I’m so drunk tipsy I don’t even look like me.
Another breast feeding shot. There are rather a lot of these.
Not sure what was going on here, but it wasn’t long after Little B had been born and my milk had just come in. I think I may actually have Facebooked this one, and received friend requests from some rather odd people – which is another reason for not posting such pictures on social media.
So there we have it – a snapshot of what really goes on behind my Instagram feed.
Are you guilty of cherry picking your social media pictures? Or do you show it how it is?
Linking up with…
Funny pics, your little one has done an excellent job of capturing family life! I have to admit I normally try to keep the mess out of the frame if I think I might share a photo, but it’s always there… lurking, haha.
I do my best not to capture the mess too and frame my lunch on Instagram nicely but that’s really not what life is like!
Ha ha too funny – prompted me to look back through my phone and not sure I would be so brave as you – ha ha but love the reality of your post – keeping it real so thank you! #bestandworst Happy Wednesday xx
There were some worst ones I didn’t dare post owing to nudity content – not a pretty sight!!
Haha this is funny. I have some total random pictures which we should share really…it isn’t all framed and placed perfectly like us bloggers try and make out #bestandworst
You should share them!
I’d bet that last one would get you a fair amount of IG followers also. people are creepy
You’re probably right!!
I definitely pick our nicer photos to share on IG but FB is fair game…..besides anyone who knows me knows my house is chaos!
That’s so funny that you differentiate between IG and Facebook!
I have décolletage (yes I googled the spelling) envy. So yes thats one picture you shouldn’t post on social media, haha. I have so many horrendous pictures of myself with Little Monkey, but I don’t want to delete them as they are lovely memories. I’m hoping when I look back old and ‘more’ haggard, I think I look fabulous post C section.
Renee @peonieandme #bestandworst
Exactly – one day we will look back and think these pictures look great!
If that’s your bombsite, you really need to work on mess-making. Sorry sweets, but that is what my house looks like tidy 😉 And you look really nice in all of them 🙂
Most of the photos on my phone are of the kids moving so fast they are a blur!
x Alice
#bestandworst
You’re very kind!x
Shameless cherry picking. You don’t know who’s got access to your social media feed or where things will end up. i don’t post anything I wouldn’t share with a friend or face to face.
That’s very true – I do worry about all this for when BB and Little B grow upx
Haha love it this is the REAL DEAL of parenting! I have a LOT of these too. Thanks so much for linking to #coolmumclub lovely x
Yep – straight from the front line!!
Ha ha! I think we are all guilty of chetry picking our pics it is nice to see real life sometimes instead of airbrushed perfection. I must saw though your first pic which you describe as bombsite looks OK to me. You should see 1/4 of my dining room otherwise known as toy/craft/crap area. #coolmumclub lifeinthemumslane
You’re not the only one to say that! On a scale of one to 10 that’s probably about four on the messiness rating!
Of course I cherry pick! We all do! Anyone that says they don’t is telling porkies #coolmumclub
Very true!x
Ahhh this is great!! I love seeing parenting how it really is…. Pretty much what my house looks like! Thanks for linking up #bestandworst
I’m glad I’m not the only one then!
I do a mix. Some social media pics are very closely chosen, sometimes my aim is to “keep it real”. Had to whizz past that last picture though. It made me blush. #thelist
Apologies!! I think we should all be keeping it real more often!
I love this! I posted a picture this week on Instagram of my youngest who had taken a photo that I didn’t know about, but it was a rather cute one of her trying to do a selfie! Nothing like these….brilliant!! My youngest does the same goes round emptying boxes and I just ignore it, as it gives me at least 15 mins to get stuff done! x
Little B takes selfies too – they’re so funny and it always looks like a has three chins!!
love these. The first one really made me smile as it is my life! Thanks for linking up to #FridayFrolics
It’s so hard juggling everything!
Love this post – so funny and real! I think it’s natural to want to post ‘nice’ pictures on social media, but it’s important to remember what’s happening behind the scenes. As you’re perfectly demonstrating here 🙂 #TheList
Helen x
https://treasureeverymoment01.blogspot.co.uk/
Pleased you enjoyed it!x
I have a whole camera roll of photos I wouldn’t share on social media! Mainly ones where my house is an absolute bomb site!! Often I find myself moving discarded pieces of toast or piles of dirty clothes from around the kids just so I can take a photo that I know I will be able to share!! #fridayfrolics
I tend to kick stuff out of shot before snapping away!
i think I do select what i post. I think people know that life isn’t all rose but i guess I should show it more! #thelist
If you look at my Instagram feed and compare it to these pictures they’re poles apart…
Haha love this! Might take this as a challenge at some point … and post some pictures that I wouldn’t normally 😉 thank you for letting us see them, I love seeing ‘real life’ pictures amongst all the beautiful Instagram accounts I follow! x
Yes you should do it! I’d love to see!
Love this idea! Although the last time I checked the unauthorised photos on my phone had been taken by my 4 year old of me getting dressed. Not sure I’d have the courage to post them! #TheList
There were plenty of nude shots on my phone too but I wasn’t going to mention those!!
These are exactly the kind of snaps my OH takes and then holds over me with the threat of posting them… He doesn’t understand the importance of angling the shot to hide the fact the house looks like a bomb has hit it, lol.. #firdayfrolics
I don’t let Misery Guts near the camera!!
Haha great pictures and as ever another great post hun :). Can totally relate to the getting home from school run one lol. .. if there’s something I’ve become majorly skilled at, it’s cropping out mess in photos lol xx
Yes – ‘cropping’ is the word!!
Haha those are great. I’m always finding random photos on my phone that my five year old – or sometimes even the toddler – has managed to take. #thelist
Great photos and post enjoyable read bestandworst
Thank you!
Some great photos! I’m really choosy when it comes to photos to share on FB but I love seeing other people’s real life pics – I’m such a hypocrite! #justanotherlinky
Glad you enjoyed them!!
I prefer photos like these, the ones that document real life and are un-posed. They tell a truer story. I can see why the last one might attract the wrong type on Facebook though lol 🙂 #TheList
Debbie
I might try and post more ‘real’ ones in future!
Sometimes the best pics are those we aren’t prepared for. Real reality! Found you over at #justanotherlinky.
Yes that’s very true..!
I think we should all post more ‘real’ pictures. Social media can paint a really inaccurate picture of what motherhood is like – not that we need to share every unflattering image or picture of our child crying, but it helps to know that not everyone is picture perfect all the time! #justanotherlinky
Quite!x
Brilliant idea. To be fair I don’t really post any pics on social media, but I agree that these are the real pics that we should be sharing!
Dawn x
#justanotherlinky
Just hope I don’t live to regret it!!
I can’t lie, totes cherry pic! However Mini R isn’t old enough to understand how to take a picture! #KCACOLS
Just you wait then!x
I love seeing photos that show how being a parent actually is. It so refreshing to see photos that have not gone to plan, children in mid tantrum, children making lots of mess. But I am also guilty of cherry picking photos…the ones containing dummies, bottles, bad food. I think I am afraid people will judge. I shouldn’t because I am just being a parent! I don’t think I will be cherry picking photos from now on. Thank you for sharing your photos…you look fab tipsy! Lol #KCACOLS
I don’t think people will judge you – I’m definitely guilty of ‘setting the scene’ with my IG photos!
Haha I love this, toys on the floor and working in the laptop. .that’s my life too. This post has made me sad I don’t have a single photo me breastfeeding my son. I definitely only put the happy l, shiny pictures on social media. .with a filter. I want to start posting more like yours though, so people can see what family life is really like xx #kcacols
We don’t have enough pictures of all of us together – that’s something I keep meaning to rectify… x
Brilliant! Love the honesty. And those boobs wowzers! That day when your milk comes in is likes having an instant boob-job eh?! #KCACOLS
Sadly they don’t look anything like that now!!
Love this post! These are the best photos and I agree shouldn’t be deleted. I also have some horrible ones of me breastfeeding especially in the early days. Claire X #KCACOLS
There are some HIDEOUS ones of me breast feeding too!!
These are great! I think we should post more honest pictures! I’m guilty of cherry picking pictures!
Laura xx
#KCACOLS
I definitely will in future x
Wow! I honestly I love these pics… so realistic of how we mums look like at home. No. 1 to me just looks so familiar lol Lovely post! #KCACOLS
Glad you like them!x
I post pictures of my daughters messy room on Instagram but nothing else! Number 1 just made me feel a bit better about not cleaning up before I went to bed last night! #KCACOLS
Don’t worry about the mess – totally normal!
I have to say I’m rather picky about photos I share on social media. Not because I want them to be perfect but because I don’t share photos of my boys. Most of my photos are of my boys! There are some I share but they’re very limited.
I’m the other way round – all the pictures are of the kids – or food!!
These are funny. I cherry pick the majority of my photos I guess, but I have lots of bizarre photos that children have taken that I wouldn’t delete or share! #KCACOLS
I’m keeping the kids’ shots from now on!x
Ha brilliant. A lot of boob going on. Yes you are so right, we are all guilty of editing what we offer up. We are curating our lives online. But how funny would it be if there was a day where everyone released all their non-glossy shots?! Good for you x #KCACOLS
I will try and do this more often…
These are awesome pics! I don’t know if I’m weird or what, but I get so much more enjoyment out of seeing someone’s “real” life. When I see those perfectly staged pictures, I’m torn between wanting to believe in them but knowing that they’re fake. These are just great (have I said that already?). Your life as it is, and I wonder if you’d even have it any other way 🙂
So pleased you liked them even though I think they’re awful!!
Ha! Yes, my phone is choca with either terrible photos or ones that don’t really sell ‘the dream’. I save these for my personal Facebook page to give my friends a laugh but every now and then one appears on the blog 🙂 #KCACOLS
Good for you!x
Your house still looks about a million times better than mine, even with the children in the process of demolishing it! Great photos. #KCACOLS
It can look A LOT worse than this!!
Doesn’t everyone cherry pick their photos? I look awful in 90% of photos so I couldn’t post them up haha! #KCACOLS
I bet you don’t!
I love this! For me it varies – some days I’ll share EVERYTHING, even if I really shouldn’t. Other days I won’t share anything unless I’m totally happy with it! It’s such a delicate balance, isn’t it?
Thanks so much for linking up at #KCACOLS. Hope you come back again next Sunday!
Maybe it shouldn’t be such of a delicate balance though!
I love seeing photos like the first one, as it makes me feel normal. Trying to get things done whilst chaos is happening all around. As for your last picture? I think I would be tempted to share that if my boobs looked that good (please don’t take that in the wrong way, but my boobs have never looked as good as they did when I was breast feeding!).
xx
Sadly my boobs no longer look like that!!
Haha i think we all have pictures hidden on our phones for only our own eyes to see. Very brave of you to post yours – i am not brave enough to post mine! #KCACOLS
These are by no means the worst ones…
Hee hee I love these! You know number 3 does NOT look like you – you look like a very happy drunk though! 🙂 x x
That’s what Misery Guts says!!
I think we all cherry pick our photos to an extent and I am so guilty of clearing clutter away so its out of shot. Your messy room really isn’t messy at all though and you look great in all the photos – great work BB!! #KCACOLS
Thanks so much! x
Haha. Great idea for a post. Although you look much better in the photos you wouldn’t usually share than I do! #KCACOLS
Thanks so much!x
Oh yes guilty as charged I tell ya! Lol. Oh if I posted my unfiltered/real pictures I doubt I would have any followers left lmao. Well done hon on being so brave and posting these.xx #KCACOLS
Glad you enjoyed them!x
Ha ha! Of course I cherry pick, especially for my IG feed 🙂 These are so funny. I will never post nude/semi nude pics of Baby or of her on the potty type shots. Great post. Thanks for linking up to #TheList x
Love your Instagram feed!x
You’re so brave! I would have written a 5 photos I wouldn’t ever post on social media, with descriptions of photos 🙂
In saying that I do post messy house pics if Baby H is doing something adorable, I can’t miss the opportunity and would rather show off her cuteness. But, I do often shove stuff out the way… I love that you’ve shown ‘real parenthood’ , something we should all do more often. #kcacols
You should definitely show the photos too!
Haha this is brilliant and so refreshing in an online world where everyone’s lives are so staged! Love your choices – I definitely have a few of the tipsy photos which should never have gone onto social media!! #KCACOLS x
I ought to be ashamed of the tipsy ones!
Haha so funny. Kids take the most random photos. I do carefully select my photos if I’m honest, try and hide the mess the kids make! Thanks for linking up to #justanotherlinky xx
It easier said than done to hide the mess though!
I am getting more and more concerned that we are “air brushing” our truths and that will put pressure on other mums as if they don’t have enough on already and also give a fake history of how we lived our lives in time to come
You’re right about the ‘fake history’ idea – things like Instagram do make us all see things through rose tinted glasses x