Step One: Put yourself in the baby's line of vision.
Step Two: Start waving a camera in its face.
My poor children will be doomed to an endless assault of shutter-clicks throughout their lives. But oh, the memories I will have documented!
It's official: Ruthie has her first case of the sniffles. We think that Daddy may have given them to her. She gets very fussy/clingy and is sleeping quite a lot. We've used booger-sucker to save her nose from itself, which is actually kind of fun, if a little gross.
With this first cold, it's just dawned on me that no matter what I do, my little precious child will get sick and hurt. She'll probably catch the chicken pox, step on a tack and need a tetanus shot, and fall and bonk her head innumerable times. It's not what I want at all, of course--it's just the way the world is. I had kind of forgotten about that until--all of a sudden--I realized that it's my job to make sure she stays okay.
One day at a time...
Ruthie is doing much better. It took a few days, a frantic call to the doctor, some saline drops and a lot of booger-suction, but she's herself again. It's a relief to see her smile again, and a joy to notice that, hey, she's smiling a lot more!
I've been having strange dreams and paranoias lately; things about cars exploding and strange characters approaching me deleriously. It's all probably a result of Ruthie's illness, and the realization that I'm so much more powerless to protect her than I knew.
Moments that make my heart leap include the times when she discovers how delicious her fists are. She holds them near her face like two tiny ice cream cones. I know she's found them when I hear delighted squeaks and cooing noises from wherever she's situated. I know that her hands have deftly evaded her when the delighted squeak turns into a frustrated squawk.
She's got such an intense look about her. I hope she'll be an astute observer of human nature. Like her parents, she'll probably have an opinion on everything once she figures out how to express it.
A few weeks ago, I was invited to attend to little baby Peter...
A preemie at birth, and newly adopted, Peter is adjusting well, and growing fast.
You can tell that he's tiny; he fits beautifully in his mother's hands.
I love his beautiful eyes, and his cute little underbite (that you can see in the first shot). His gruntings were the music to accompany the portrait session.
Little Zenaida got a baby brother recently. His name is Aiden.
She and mom are adjusting well to their new roles and new demands. Aiden is a beautiful pudgy boy, with his own very distinctive grunt, his hands in perpetual motion when awake. He downs a bottle eagerly.
When I visited them, Zenaida had just woken up from a nap, her hair tousled, but she was very eager to make friends.
Aiden is quite the darling; I'm sure that Zenaida will make a great older sister, and that he'll be a captive audience for her antics.
Little Zenaida got a baby brother recently. His name is Aiden.
She and mom are adjusting well to their new roles and new demands. Aiden is a beautiful pudgy boy, with his own very distinctive grunt, his hands in perpetual motion when awake. He downs a bottle eagerly.
When I visited them, Zenaida had just woken up from a nap, her hair tousled, but she was very eager to make friends.
Aiden is quite the darling; I'm sure that Zenaida will make a great older sister, and that he'll be a captive audience for her antics.
Sydney and Chip are now the proud parents of little baby Harrison, photographed at just six weeks old. It's so remarkable and wonderful to meet such fresh and new people; a reminder of how precious and delicate humanity is! Something about little toes and that cowlick are just so captivating; they don't stay that small or that helpless for very long.
In the middle of extra diaper changes, feedings, and managing a toddler, I managed to take a little time on Lucas' one-week-iversary to take a few portraits of him.
It's obligatory that I compare his baby photos with Ruth's; his hands are larger, his feet more gangly. His eyes are a tad smaller, but he has the same round face and mouth.
Of course, during the little photo session, big sister had to make her presence known.
Since our moving odyssey, Ruth has made herself quite comfortable with Grandma's house--the house where I grew up, actually. Ruth eagerly familiarizes herself with the yard, while Grandma is quite pleased to familiarize herself with Lucas.
Grandma has been an amazing help, since Lucas has had his days and nights mixed up for the past few weeks. We're hoping that with a little concerted effort, he'll be straightened out by the time he gets his driver's license.
It's hard to believe that we're a family of four now, but here we are, experiencing the thrills and miseries of a newborn, the discoveries of living in a new place, the love of family. So much is ahead, and so much behind. Here's to new beginnings!
I've met a few new friends with young children here at our new digs. It's been refreshing to take a few spare moments to whip out the camera and capture them growing and changing.
Little Roberto is about four months old. Sometimes he looks as though he's got a jet pack strapped to his back, and the only thing holding him back is his mom's steady hands.
A recent newborn session yielded some super-cute photos that I couldn't help but set to music.
Welcome to the world, little one!
I love the quiet calm that newborns seem to bring with them into the world.
Little Liam has made himself quite a home. He's much loved, as you can tell.
Miles makes his momma smile.
Hi there, Miles! from Jocelyn Mathewes on Vimeo.
What a little charmer. I love that newborn nose... and he had so much silky black hair.
A photographer friend of mine and I traded photo sessions recently. Marie photographed my little kiddos, and I in turn photographed her family soon after her son, Elliot, arrived!
Need I point out his awesomely crazy hair?
Or his charming grandpa?
Mommy's kiss is magic for Elliot.
Sleepytime!
