There's a Reason Babies are So Cute…

I’ll preface this blog post by stating that I am not a mom so I have no first-hand experience with motherhood, just auntie-hood. But most of my friends and family are moms and I know how hard it can be. I’ve seen it first-hand watching my sisters become moms. And I’ve photographed a lot of babies at this stage. The newborn stage is especially tough on moms! The lack of sleep, the navigating of finding out who this little person is and what they need. It’s all a process. But I’m convinced that’s why babies are so cute! I mean, those every-two-hour-feedings in the middle of the night… you gotta have a cute baby to look at at 3 in the morning or one might go mad from never sleeping. I am certain I would! But then again, I need a looooot of sleep!

I always try to photograph mom & dad/family first at newborn sessions so that mom and dad can relax after while I photograph baby. I tell them they’re welcome to take a nap, or just rest in a comfy chair for a bit while I take their baby’s photos. I do this for two reasons. 1. I genuinely want them to rest while they can and 2. if baby can smell mom nearby, this might make it a bit more difficult for photos as they may want to eat & eat & eat! If this isn’t baby number one, then they usually end up chasing their other babies around ;)

Mr. J’s mom ended up having an emergency C-section so her recovery was much more difficult than anticipated. But you’d never know it in their adorable family photos. I have so much respect and awe for moms of all kinds. And while Mr. J was just under two weeks new for his debut photos, he wanted to be sure he didn’t miss a thing in his new world! No sleeping for this guy! Not until the last 15 minutes of his session. But he wasn’t fussy, either. Just alert, making sure he didn’t miss anything. I loved that so much, and I loved spending time with this tiny little human. So I can only imagine how his mama feels at those 2am feedings. I think we’re all going to be great friends!

Congrats, W family! I adore you all ❤️

Baby Close-Up Details - A Must!

Chicago Newborn Lifestyle Session [Roscoe Village, Chicago]

If you’re like me & are reeling in anxiety from the election counting process and you can’t go on anymore miles-long walks or stress-eat anymore, maybe some cute baby toes and big brother secret-telling will distract you?

Photographing newborns these days looks quite different than it did in the beginning of the year but I’m still safely photographing. Check out this sweet session with Mr. M, the smiliest baby I’ve had in a long time, and his proud big brother Jim. Although Marty was brand new, he was too excited to sleep and didn’t want to miss anything going on in the world so he partied like it was 1999 the whole time I was with him! That’s ok, though, because I love when babies open their eyes and I get a glimpse of who they are. And I really love big brothers that are up for the job of showing their siblings the ways of the world! Plus, these two have the coolest brother-name-pairing ever. Jim and Marty?! Come on! I never hear those names anymore. I was talking to their Mom during this session and we both agreed it sounds like a pair of two old guys getting coffee together. How adorable is that?!

I’ll keep the post short today and let the images do the talking because my head’s already back into anxious-land and I need to go check the NPR website and pour a glass of wine because I can’t concentrate anymore and am just producing run-on sentences… ;)

Hang in there, friends!

Pandemic Baby - AND Be Sure to Vote!

I was supposed to photograph this sweet girl's newborn photos in April. Then covid tore the world apart. We took some of her mom’s maternity photos the Friday before Chicago shut down in March. She was the oldest "newborn" I've ever photographed at two months, but she slept like a one-week old for the last half of her session.

Earlier this year, for over two months, I couldn’t photograph anyone. And it was heart-wrenching. Knowing new mamas weren’t getting those snuggly photos of those first few days or weeks with their littles made me so sad.

I’ll admit I was a bit nervous going into this session because two month old babies can be very unpredictable! I typically photograph babies between one week and a month new. The older they get, the less predictable they are in terms of sleepiness. Not that a baby needs to be asleep to get great photos, but it does make it a bit less challenging when they’re sleepy :) I mean, often times when a two month old is awake it’s because they’re h-u-n-g-r-y! Having said that, I do LOVE when a newborn opens their eyes during our sessions - I feel like I get a glimpse into who they are as a tiny little human! So with little Miss A’s session, I got the best of both worlds! Awake AND smiley and then some sleepy snuggly photos too. This was a nice “welcome back” session after a dark March/April/May.

PSA: Please go vote if you haven’t already! Our democracy, and the future of little girls like Miss A, is depending on all of us. Figure out your voting plan and do your civic duty. I did mail-in voting here in Chicago and dropped off my ballot last week. I received my confirmation of receipt the next day. Easy and safe, which is what we need in this pandemic. I obviously won’t tell you who to vote for, but for full transparency I voted Biden/Harris. I believe we need real leadership with compassionate people. And I believe America, but especially women, Black people, LGBTQ people, immigrants and the Earth all deserve better. I’m voting for basic human rights.