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Alyssa Eakin

@alyssaeakin

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🪩 Wife to J • Mama of 3 • Worshipper • Designer 🪩 Runnin’ on Diet Coke + Jesus
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💻 @alyssaeakinstudio

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one of my favorite traditions as a mama. 🥹🌼

Every year, on each of my kiddos’ birthdays, I take them out for a little birthday photoshoot. Just the two of us, my camera, and some time to celebrate exactly who they are in that season of life.

And y’all, it’s genuinely one of my favorite things we do.

No pressure for perfect smiles or poses. Just letting them be little, have fun, and capturing all the things that make them THEM.

This year, our Hazel Bug turned SIX! 😭

And if you know Hazel, you know this girl LIVES in princess dresses. LOL. She wore this dress all day long, and there was absolutely no better way to capture our girl in her truest form than twirling around in a princess dress surrounded by flowers.

Looking through these photos, I just kept thinking about how grateful I am to have them. Not because they’re perfect pictures, but because they’re HER. Her joy, her personality, and all the little things I never want to forget about this version of my girl.

And that’s exactly why I love getting to do this for other families, too.

Because I know what these photos mean to me as a mama. How quickly the seasons change, how much our babies grow, and how much we wish we could hold onto little pieces of who they are right now.

I want that for you, too. Photos that feel like YOUR family. Your people. Your joy. The moments that might seem ordinary today but will mean everything years from now.

And speaking of photos, I still have a couple of openings for fall sessions! 🍂 Whether it’s your whole family, your kiddos, or simply a season you want to remember, I’d love to capture it for you!

Send me a message and let’s get you on the calendar! 🫶🏼 taken in Texas, USA by @alyssaeakin

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a day ago

i think somewhere along the way, we’ve gotten really good at producing and forgotten how to simply create.

and there’s a difference.

i think sometimes we can get so caught up in doing, achieving, showing up, and producing because somewhere deep down, we’ve started believing that what we do determines how we’re valued. or how others perceive us. or even how we perceive ourselves.

and if we’re not careful, something that was once a gift becomes something we strive to prove ourselves through.

but here’s what i keep coming back to.

we were created by a creative God. and the gifts He’s placed inside of us were never meant to become the source of our identity.

they’re meant to be stewarded, absolutely. to serve others, to build things, to bring Him glory. but they’re also allowed to bring JOY.

and i think the posture of our hearts matters just as much as what we’re producing with our hands.

i want my kids to know this.

i want them to know they can pick up a crayon and create something without worrying about whether it’s good enough. that they can try something new without needing to be the best at it. that not everything they do has to be impressive, productive, or even make sense to somebody else.

i want them to know that their gifts are beautiful, but their gifts are not WHO they are.

and goodness, i want to remember that for myself, too.

because i love what i do. i love building, dreaming, designing, and getting to use the gifts God has given me. but i never want to become so consumed with what i do that i forget who i am and WHOSE i am.

there is a difference between faithfully stewarding what God has given you and striving to prove you’re worthy of having it.

and i think that’s worth sitting with.

so here’s your reminder (and mine):

create because you were created to.
steward what He’s given you.
let it bring you joy.
let it minister to the Lord.

but don’t ever confuse what you produce with what you’re worth.

you were already valuable before you ever made a thing. 🫶🏼

#creativebusiness #faith #mompreneur #entrepreneur #branddesigner taken in Texas, USA by @alyssaeakin

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4 days ago

Liam woke up and chose to embody Picasso. 🤪🎨

We all know Liam loves to wake up before the sun and color, but his creativity took a TURN this morning and his hyper-independence reached a new level. 🙃😂

In his words, he woke up “before 6 o’clock” and decided he needed to make things for his teachers. So naturally, he got out the acrylic paints and got to work. 🙃

Unfortunately, as a creative myself, I understand that you simply cannot control when inspiration strikes.

But I do think the paint may need to mysteriously “disappear” for a little while. 🤪

And underneath the absolute chaos, the fact that he woke up thinking about making something for his teachers is just the sweetest. 🥹 I love his little heart so much.

PS: Our kids have always had access to art supplies because we WANT them to create and use their imaginations. We just apparently failed to specify that those privileges begin AFTER THE SUN COMES UP. 🤣

And yes, all the actually harmful stuff is safely put away. The acrylic paint, however, has officially been identified as a threat. taken in Texas by @alyssaeakin

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13 days ago

Sometimes I come to Him wanting answers.

Today, He reminded me that what I need most is Him. 🥹

Apart from You, I have no good thing.
The Lord is my Shepherd. I have what I need.

Maybe you needed that reminder today, too. 🤎

What is the Lord reminding you of in this season?

save this one for the days you need to remember who is leading you + send it to a friend who may need the reminder, too. 🫶🏼

Psalm 23

Jesus • Christian encouragement • Psalm 23 • Bible study • prayer • worship • trusting God • following Jesus • God’s Word • quiet time • devotional • Christian women • faith over fear • surrender • rest • Good Shepherd • spiritual growth • prayer life • time with God taken in Texas by @alyssaeakin

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16 days ago

A tender little ending. 🥹🤎

I just scheduled the last post I’ll create for @cityhopefamily social media, and goodness, I have a lot of feelings about it.

For the last three years, this has been so much more than creating posts for me. It has been ministry. It has been worship. It has been hours with Jesus, asking Him how He wanted to use whatever was in my hands to love His people well.

And what an absolute gift it has been.

I shared a little more of my heart in these slides because this chapter deserves to be remembered. 🤎

None of it was ever mine anyway.

By Him.
Through Him.
For Him.

What an honor. 🥹 taken in Texas by @alyssaeakin

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17 days ago

just because you can doesn’t mean you should.

WHEW. Something I’m learning and leaning into a whole lot lately.

One of my favorite scriptures to keep me in check says, “I have the right to do anything,” but not everything is beneficial. (1 Corinthians 10:23)

And when I read beneficial, I think fruitful.

Because the truth is, there are a LOT of good things we can say yes to. Good work. Good opportunities. Good people. Good ways to serve and show up.

But I’m learning to ask myself: is this actually mine to carry? Is this for right now? And maybe most importantly, what is motivating my yes?

Because sometimes my yes comes from obedience.

And sometimes, if I’m not careful, it comes from striving. From wanting to feel needed. From thinking an open space needs to be filled. From believing that if I can carry it, I should.

And those are two very different things.

I don’t want to just get really good at giving my best yes. I want to give my right yes.

Sometimes that IS doing the hard thing. Taking the opportunity. Showing up. Serving. Working hard.

And sometimes it’s no.
Not yet.
Not mine.
Let someone else carry this one.
Or simply... be still.

I’m learning that capacity isn’t the same thing as assignment.

You don’t have to fill every open space just because you can.

Your boundaries matter. Your rest matters. Sabbath matters. And your worth was never tied to how much you can produce, accomplish, carry or give.

So here’s your reminder (and very much mine too 😂):

Say yes to the right things.
Say no to the things that aren’t yours.
And don’t be afraid to leave a little room for God to meet you in the stillness. by @alyssaeakin

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20 days ago

What if you’re waiting on God…and He’s waiting on your yes?

Because I can tell you this: some of the most fruitful, beautiful things in my life started with me being scared as heck and choosing to move anyway.

Building our family.
Marriage. Because y’all, really good and really hard can live in the same place.
Choosing to be part of a local church again after experiencing spiritual abuse.
Starting my business with absolutely no guarantee of what would happen next.

There wasn’t a rule book.
I didn’t have it all figured out. (And still don’t 🤪)
I questioned myself. I got scared. I failed at things.

But I kept saying yes.

And sometimes that yes looked like starting.
Sometimes it looked like letting go.
Sometimes it meant leaving comfortable behind because comfortable was keeping me stuck.
Sometimes it was nothing more than a mustard seed of faith and, “Okay God. I don’t know how, but I trust You.”

CAN YOU IMAGINE what the Lord can do with all the faith in the room?

With your yes.
With that dream you cannot shake.
With the gifts He put inside of you.
With your willingness to actually MOVE in obedience.

Y’all. Fear does not get to run the show.

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but one of power, love, and sound judgment.” 2 Timothy 1:7

“Be strong and courageous… for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

So maybe this is your reminder today:

Dream bigger.
Take the step.
Say goodbye if He’s asking you to.
Start the thing.
TRY.

You don’t need fearless faith.

You just need enough faith for your next yes.

And never underestimate what God can do with that. 🫶🏼 taken in Texas, USA by @alyssaeakin

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24 days ago

This photo makes me laugh every time. 😂 An Old Navy bathroom. Three kids giving three VERY different energies. Me somewhere in the middle of it all.

And honestly, it feels a little like this season.

There’s been a lot of tension lately.

Overwhelm and peace.
So much blessing and still room to steward it better.
Watching time fly while some days feel 120 hours long.
Deep joy and things we’re still contending for.

I’ve spent more time in intercession this season than I think I ever have. I’ve always prayed, but lately I’ve felt the Lord asking me to go deeper. To stay in prayer over certain people, situations, our family, our future. To keep showing up even when I don’t see movement yet.

And for some reason, I thought deeper prayer would mean less tension.

But I’m learning the tension isn’t always bad.

Some prayers are answered in a moment. Some unfold over seasons. Some things we contend for, fight for, and keep bringing before the Lord. And sometimes the answer doesn’t look like the one we would’ve chosen.

I’m learning not to run from that space.

I don’t want to be so comfortable that I stop depending on Him. I don’t want my own understanding to become louder than His voice. I don’t want rumination to become a rhythm when He’s inviting me into trust.

I want presence.
I want dependence.
I want to be aligned with Him.
I want to be where He wants me, and I want our family there too.

Because these three are watching.

We’ve talked a lot lately about fruit. About truth. Obedience. Making the right choice even when it’s uncomfortable or other people don’t understand.

And goodness, I’m realizing the Lord is teaching us the same things.

There has been a battle in this season. But there has been so much growth here too.

And I don’t want to wait for the tension to leave before I find joy.

I can laugh in an Old Navy bathroom. I can notice what is good right now. I can keep praying without seeing the breakthrough yet. I can rest without having every answer.

I can trust Him here, too.

Maybe especially here. taken in Texas by @alyssaeakin

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a month ago

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a month ago

a very much needed monday with my people 🥹🤎

last week was A LOT lol. work, soccer, worship, big feelings, some hard stuff, lots of really good stuff + just a whole lot of LIFE happening. so having an entire day where we didn’t really have anywhere to be or anything we HAD to do was soooo needed.

we ate good food, went to Target, drank Diet Coke (obviously), got snow cones, smelled approximately 500 candles 😂, played games + just hung out together.

nothing fancy or super exciting lol. just a day with my favorite people and honestly those are some of my favorite days. 🥹

life is wild and full and sometimes hard and also really, really good. and I’m just very grateful this is ours. God has been so kind to us. 🫶🏼

also I promise I’m going to get better at filming these more than once a month because I LOVE having them once they’re done 😂🤣 they just take me approximately 47 years to make.

love you bye!!! taken in Texas by @alyssaeakin

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a month ago

Okay, I have an idea!!

I LOVE taking photos for brands, websites, headshots, all of it. But something else I really, really love is capturing people in the places where their actual life happens.

Your home. Your porch. Your people. The normal, beautiful, slightly chaotic stuff you’ll probably miss someday. 🥹

SOOO I’ve been dreaming up some fall lifestyle sessions. 30-60 minutes, at your house, on your porch, in your backyard, wherever. Nothing overly posed. Just capturing your family in this season exactly as you are.

And if enough of you are into the porch idea, I may even pick a day or two and do some shorter porch sessions! 👀🍂

These photos are from my Pinterest inspo board because this is something I want to create MORE of, and I need some families who are down to play along. 😂

Does this speak to you?!

DM me “FALL” if you’re into it + tell me what you’re thinking. 🤎

And yes...I’m already thinking about doing this when the Christmas trees go up too. 😭🎄

**P.S. If you want a regular photo session too, that's always an option, just DM me :)** by @alyssaeakin

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a month ago

I haven’t been able to stop thinking about this today: What if your cup isn’t empty? What if it’s just full of things that were never supposed to stay there?

I was talking with someone I love this morning and this picture just came to mind.

We hear all the time, “You can’t pour from an empty cup.”

And I get it. But immediately I thought… okay, but you also shouldn’t pour from a cup filled with dirty water.

Because sometimes I don’t think we’re empty at all.

Sometimes we are FULL.

Full of something someone said to us.
Full of hurt.
Full of disappointment.
Full of offense.
Full of fear.
Full of conversations we have replayed 100 times.
Full of lies we didn’t even realize we started believing.

And then we wonder why we’re struggling to receive anything new from the Lord.

Maybe we don’t always need God to fill our cup.

Maybe sometimes we need to pour it out first.

And I think that’s part of the beauty of confession and repentance. Not just, “God, forgive me for what I did wrong today,” but also:

God, what have I believed that isn’t true?
What have I allowed to take root in me?
Whose words have I given way too much authority to?
What hurt have I rehearsed so many times that it has started shaping me?

Because I don’t want what someone else poured into me to become what I eventually pour out onto somebody else.

And I don’t want to be so afraid of being empty that I keep carrying things God never asked me to hold.

An empty cup is actually a pretty beautiful place to be when you know Who is filling it.

So pour it out.

Bring Him the hurt. Bring Him the anger. Bring Him the disappointment. Bring Him the words. Bring Him the lies you believed. Bring Him the parts you’re still trying to make sense of.

And then let Him fill you again.

Fresh mercy. Fresh truth. Fresh grace.

Your cup may not be empty.

It may just need to be poured out. 🤎

Swipe through this one. I put a few Scriptures at the end to sit with too. taken in Texas by @alyssaeakin

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a month ago