Baby Turns One - An At-Home Photo Session in Midlothian
The last time I saw her, she was six days old. Now, here we were, 9 days from her first birthday, and she was laughing, babbling, and - it blew me away but it shouldn’t have - walking. We were getting together for the first time since her newborn photo session at home in November 2022. Dad had to wake her up from a nap when I arrived. We were getting together mere hours after DST ended, and her nap schedule was more than a little confused. Much like the rest of us.
Some babies are afraid of the camera, but not this lady. After just a few minutes of waking up from her nap, she stared down my lens from the start of our session to the finish, throwing me big squishy smiles and sour strawberry lips while her parents read her a book, fed her a snack, and dressed her for some commemorative first birthday photos in the back yard.
Lots of parents struggle with what to do during an at-home session, but as a parent myself, I can usually find that an hour scoots by pretty quickly and easily at home without doing anything at all. Just reading one book, eating a snack, and slowly making our way to the next room to change clothes can take a full half hour in itself. That’s toddler time for you. (It’s also possibly why you’re late to everything. Toddler time.)
Add in some special-requested “fancy photos” and we weren’t scrambling to fill our time at all. We spent our hour celebrating this little girl’s first birthday, and documented their family in the comfort of home, to freeze this little moment in time.
Not to harp on it - because, yes, babies change a TON in the first year, we all know this - but I can’t believe how much she’s changed in a year! It probably also doesn’t help that it doesn’t feel like it has been a whole year, with time speeding up and all, but dang. I mean, look at this progression, from maternity photos last October, to newborn photos last November, to now a whole walking, eating, laughing, (almost talking) big toddler girl:
I guess I shouldn’t be surprised at all that she was so into the camera when I visited for her birthday. Even at just six days old, she was alert and wanting to be included, curious about the click-click-click of the camera and this stranger who neither smelled nor sounded like her mom.
And now, at full-blown toddler stage, she’s still just as curious, and excited just to be here.
Thanks for letting me come and help you document the next stage of life together! I hope your birthday was full of fun surprises, books, and strawberries (and boxes, lots of boxes).
Looking for a reason to do an in-home family photo session, but can’t seem to think of one? Here’s an invitation for a cozy holiday session, as you decorate and prepare for guests.
Oh, and speaking of holidays, if you’re currently pregnant and looking for maternity and newborn photographers for 2024, I’m running a special through December 15: add-on maternity sessions are half-priced when you book a newborn session for 2024!
