Expanding your horizons

Kids...to me, one of the ultimate challenges in photo taking.  They're short, they're noisy, they're quick and move way too fast for this ole gal and they often times have sticky fingers that are magnetized to a clean shirt. I knew I had to break out of my rut of taking photos of inanimate objects or at least objects that didn't move in unpredictable patterns!  I enlisted the help of my good friend Jen who not only has a two children of her own, she was babysitting for her baby niece on Friday.  Jen is such a good sport and I knew I would be comfortable in her home with her kids taking pictures so I decided to take the plunge and see what I could get.

Chloe is your typical two year old, full of "me do myself" and can clearly enunciate the word "no".  She has quite a vocabulary for a two year old and like most two year olds knows exactly when to use some of those words to the chagrin of her parents.  About two seconds after taking this picture, she tripped over something and caught the edge of the baseboard.  The girl has strong lungs and quite a flair for the dramatic.  After kisses and retrieval of her bankey all was well and she was back to rippin' it up!

She's climber too...seems to find Mom's back very comfy!  She is smart enough to recognize me, but she's also smart enough to know that I'm not frequent of a visitor and I think kids know when you don't have kids and they either try to run wild over you or clamp on to Mommy's leg.  I think if I had stayed longer she would have been on my back!

Amazing Grace...

She was a willing and for the most part pleasant subject.  This was her first overnighter without Mom and Dad and she was in Aunt Jen's very capable hands.  Little does she know all the wild and wonderful things that Aunt Jen will be able to teach her in the years to come!  I took this shot standing over her as she was fighting sleep and the original shot was much larger.  I think by cropping it down to this size gives it the feel I was looking for...she reminds me of the Gerber Baby Food baby!

As sweet as her face is, I was still in awe of all those little parts that make up a baby...little button nose, little rosebud mouth, little tiny ears, little yummy fingers and fat, soft baby toes.   I got some nice shots of the hands and the feet, but I was clearly invading her space when I tried to get the ears, nose and mouth.  Perhaps when she is older.  It was quite comical to watch her as I unpacked my camera.  Jen had her laying on a blanket on the floor and she rolled over and saw me on the sofa getting out my camera and I swear she started mugging right away!  I forgot she is quite the popular gal with her own FB page!

It is always a wonder to me how someone so tiny and seemingly helpless has the power to wrap your heart around that little finger!