The Formal and the Not-So Formal

Guess what? It's tomorrow.

And it's time to blog for sweet, patient "B."

"B"s family just moved here from The South - yes, I just capitalized that as if it were it's own state. The South. ahhhhh. I can almost feel the warmth and humidity as I say it out loud.

And then I open my eyes and realize I'm freezing. Can barely feel my fingers. In May. This, my friends, is not The South.

Not that KC isn't a fab place - it absolutely IS - it just would be a lot more fab if it were warmer right now. And if I could find a legit tex-mex place...but that's a topic for a different day.

Where I'm going with this is that The South is fascinating to me. Mostly because there are so many formal traditions - which are followed up closely with very non-formal things. Like wearing an amazing Easter dress - complete with hat and all - and then meeting at Grandma's after Church to eat fried chicken. muuwahhhh to the people who invented that tradition.

So "B"s session started out with an attempt to match a few formal shots she has of her older two children for the 1 yr old.

awww - isn't that sweet and linen-y and southern and kinda formal?

mmmhmmmm - this is reality...

kinda like the full on mini-suit that little boys wear to church - only to walk out the chapel doors and roll in the grass and mud.

There are more "formal" shots...but I wanted to show what happened after the formal shots. 'Cause that, my friends, is magic.

I was being attacked by lightsabers : )

the look of trouble

Tomorrow [life of a photographer]

There are so many things to chat about. And I will. Starting tomorrow.

Gee - there's the story of my life. {tomorrow}

See, I promised "B" that I would have her sneak peek up by today. Oh I had the best intentions. But today was one of those days. You know the ones - everything takes 5x longer than it should, everything you touch falls apart and requires immediate attention...including the baby...

So I don't have a sneak peek ready.

nope nope.

And it's 1:14am. And I'm tired. Really. Tired. And I just realized that baby's last day of preschool is tomorrow and I don't have a teacher's gift...so I get to get up earlier than usual to take care of that. Yay. (aren't you glad you're not my child's teacher?!)

So - dear dear lovely "B"...TOMORROW. Tomorrow is the day.

but wait.

I can't resist.

Night all. See you...

tomorrow

What Happens at a First Birthday Session? [Kansas City Baby Photographer]

First we start with warming up. Let's face it - most kids at this age are scared of me. 'Cause I'm not Mom.

By the way..."warm up" time is part of why my sessions last so long. Rare is the child who steps out of the car ready for me to shoot a picture.

They rank up there with the children who actually eat their broccoli in its original form, un-bribed.

So we play a little with Mom close by.

Eventually most kiddos warm up and we are singing, clapping and laughing at my weird faces. Keep in mind that this magic typically happens after the first 45 minutes. Or more. Uh huh...don't be in a hurry if you're gonna shoot a 1 year old with me.

But after we get enough shots to give Grandma a hard time choosing one (or four) for her Grandbaby wall and give Mom a few sleepless nights while she debates if she wants the big two-tooth smile or the contemplative eyes in 30x40 format on the family living room wall ...

we move on to the most important aspect of a First Birthday Session...

Sugar.

and Flour.

and Dye.

All things that are ohhhh so bad for you.

But ohhhhh so good

But Bad.

But it's ok ... 'cause they're only 1 once!

And 'cause I have a studio bathtub.

So all that sugar and flour and dye are long-gone by the time you strap your very sleepy baby into their carseat and head off into the sunset.

HELLO Old Friend!

oh how you've been missed. please stay. please.

You Absolutely WILL Smile - Promise

No, really.  There's no way {none} to look through these shots and not smile. I mean, there's happy...aannnnd then there's baby "A"

ohhhp...gotta sneak a baby toes shot in there (you know me and my positively weird obsession with baby toes).  Did you know I almost named the studio "Tiny Toes?"  It's true.  

Hmmm...maybe I should revisit that thought.... wait...what? huh? oh yes....moving on...

more happiness-

and if the previous shots didn't make you smile this one will for sure.

More Eyelashes!

You know him - yes you do - how many times have I mentioned his amazing eyelashes? Many of you refer to him as "the eyelash boy." His poor parents must be tired of me taking pictures of his eyelashes ... but I just can't get over them!

Well, guess what? He has a new baby brother!

And, you guessed it, baby "T" has the eyelashes too!

"B" is a little smitten with baby "T" and who could blame him?

"B" and I played a little while baby was eating ...

and then it was baby's turn

welcome to the world baby "T!"