DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | WEEK 35

September 5, 2018

Week 35 of this DFW baby photographers Project 365 is complete. The last time I attempted a Project 365 I quit the first week of October. I had a pretty darn good reason at the time (I was super, super sick with hyperemesis gravidarum), but I will say that I am happy to be continuing this project at a fairly steady pace. Fingers crossed, but I feel pretty confident I am going to make it to the finish line this time.

Anyway, this past week my son went back to school. It was mostly just the baby and I hanging around the house. I got back into my regular routine, and there was some comfort in that. Baby J was really cranky from teething. Plus, I can tell he missed his brother dearly. We had the whole, LONG Labor Day weekend to reunite though. I solo parented it the majority of the last 8 days, so I was a little worn out by the end of the holiday weekend. I will say it always stings a little when other people talk about the holidays and their plans with enthusiasm. It is a very good bet that on any given holiday weekend my husband will be working, which means I am solo parenting it. I try to keep things lively and fun for myself and the crew back at home, but sometimes it just sucks. #aviationlife

We did squeeze in some fun, including watching the season opener of LSU against Miami. It happened to be in our neck of the woods over at AT&T Stadium, but unfortunately tickets were like $300/apiece for nosebleeds, so I enjoyed the game at home with a large amount of pizza, a drink in my hand and the good company of my sister, brother in law and my oldest son.

Okay, enough blabbering:

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | WEEK 35

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Lunchtime. Those squishy toddler hands though. So cute! Also, we are totally fine with eating on Christmas themed plates in August. Don’t judge.

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Oh, this face. Baby J has been a cranky mess all week. He is into everything and at some point you just have to big in. So, yes, he is trying to eat the sunscreen here. No, I did not care to stop him. #pickyourbattles

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Hit up the splash pad before it closed for the season on Labor Day. I love that this place can entertain both kids for an hour.

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The first Saturday of college football is a special event in our household. It’s also a great excuse to binge on our favorite snacks. For Judd, that meant a turkey and sweet potato pouch for one.

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Labor Day was a washout. It rained all day and my children were driving me crazy cooped up inside. I ended up taking them to an indoor playspace that we had never been to before and it was a huge hit! I was surprised that my 6 year old was into it, because it was definitely geared toward toddlers playing pretend. Honestly, he may have been even more into it than the baby. Winning!

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Birthday cake time.

H Parker Photography is a DFW Baby Photographer with a residential studio in Roanoke,TX.
She specializes in classic, timeless studio baby photographs.

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | FIRST BIRTHDAY SESSION | BABY A

August 14, 2018

This DFW baby photographer had the pleasure of photographing baby A’s first birthday earlier in the week. I just loved this little girl’s rolls, she reminded me of my own babies!

Miss A’s mama warned me that she was a wild one, and this little girl did not disappoint!! She had a lot of spirit, and definitely let it be known that she wanted nothing to do with having her photos taken. Honestly, that kind of reminded me of my youngest son too–he has a lot of opinions on things and he lets you know about it!

Despite a few tears, we managed to snag some adorable photos to commemorate this little girl’s first birthday milestone. I can’t wait to show her mommy, because I know at the end of our photo session she was probably ready for a nap herself!

H Parker Photography is a DFW Baby Photographer with a residential studio in Roanoke,TX.
She specializes in classic, timeless studio baby photographs.

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | PROJECT 365 | JULY 2018

August 1, 2018

july 2018 project 365 monthly collage

H Parker Photography is a DFW Baby Photographer with a residential studio in Roanoke,TX.
She specializes in classic, timeless studio baby photographs.

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | WEEK 28

July 16, 2018

Week 27 was a bit of a stinker, and while week 28 was certainly an improvement for this DFW baby photographer, it still contained more than its fair share of chaos. Fingers crossed that week 29 can just sail on easy like. I’m thinking that July is just my dumpster fire month. Every year, I feel like there is that one month where a bunch of things hit the fan all at once. Last year, it was August. The year before it was October. I mean, truly, I have an incredible life filled with many blessings and I am grateful beyond measure for that which I do not deserve. All I’m getting at is that we all live through the roller coaster of life, and and the moment I’m on the part of the coaster where you want to barf. It happens.

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | WEEK 28

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If you keep up with my project, you know that we had to put our dog Bailey to sleep during week 27. This is Rufus, our other fur baby. Rufus is about to celebrate his 12th birthday, so he’s in his golden years as well. He is doing okay without his sister, but we are definitely going out of our way to give him extra loving, and I’m not sure how he feels about that. Rufus is an aloof dog, he reminds me of a cat. He gets pets from you when he wants pets from you. He has always been full of energy, jumping on all our visitors (to my dismay), but he is slowing down too these last few months. Trying to remember to take a bunch of photos and videos of this old guy.

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Baby J had my husband and I cracking up because he crawled underneath this side table and apparently couldn’t get himself out. He was stuck for more than 5 minutes. It was the most quiet, calm 5 minutes we’ve experienced in awhile.

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I also mentioned that during week 27 my grandma broke her leg. I finally had a chance to visit her in the hospital. Picture in parking lot, because there is no way my grandma is going to let me take her photo in a hospital bed and post in on the internet.

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I’m a big “eat what’s on sale” person, so we have been having a lot of asparagus lately. Trying to find ways to jazz it up a bit.

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Finding ways to get in trouble, taking all the stuff off my shelves.

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Brothers playing at the water table. We have gotten our money’s worth out of that thing!

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Of course Baby J had a fever of 104 just after the doctor closed on Friday evening. After a trip to urgent care, we discovered he had hand, foot and mouth disease. It is as horrible as it sounds.

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Baby J still mega sick. Day 3 of fever, and it was still at 103. He even fell asleep in my husband’s arms. That basically NEVER happens, so it deserved photo documentation.

H Parker Photography is a DFW Baby Photographer with a residential studio in Roanoke,TX.
She specializes in classic, timeless studio baby photographs.

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | WEEK 25

June 25, 2018

This DFW baby photographer has spent another week in the summer trenches. We are still plugging along, doing a lot of swimming. The days are SO LONG though, particularly when my husband travels most of the time and it’s too hot to do anything outdoors that isn’t water related. We have been doing a lot though, a little outing each day. Often, it’s just to the grocery store, library, gym or maybe an indoor playground. My baby is still transitioning between 1 and 2 naps a day, so he’s on like a 1.5 naps/day schedule and it’s kind of killing our ability to get anything done during the daytime. I’m looking forward to that transition being over with!! Anyone have words of wisdom for making the switch to one nap, hit me up.

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | WEEK 25

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What should we do on a 101 degree day? Make banana muffins and heat up the oven to 400 degrees. Yes, that sound like a perfect idea. #facepalm #ohwell

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And, the push along CAT truck makes yet another appearance in my Project 365. I worried about the 5.5 year age gap being too big for them to play together, but so far it’s not an issue. Judd loves pushing his brother around on this toy, and Holden loves getting a free ride from his brother. Win win.

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One of our daily outings. Library time. Two seconds later Judd started ripping all the books off the shelf.

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The 12 month doctor appointment. Shots and blood work involved. We brought the whole team to assist.

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As a boy mom who grew up in an all-girl household, I end up doing a lot of things that I never imagined. For example, archery, rock climbing, golf, camping etc. Just a lot of things I wasn’t exposed to and now have the opportunity to explore through my sons. H had a Boy Scout event over the weekend that involved indoor rock climbing. We both tried it, and it was so fun. I would love to go back with just my husband and make it a date night. Dinner and a movie has its place, but I love doing active things too. Maybe God knew what he was doing when he made me a boy mom?

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Baby J’s first taste of a DQ blizzard. This needs to go in his baby book, obviously. #Texan

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Swimmy swimmy. Used my little Olympus for some underwater shots. It’s harder than it looks, and I’m not a great underwater photo editor, so salvaging one photo out of like 100 is pretty darn good for me.

H Parker Photography is a DFW Baby Photographer with a residential studio in Roanoke,TX.
She specializes in classic, timeless studio baby photographs.

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | FIRST BIRTHDAY SESSION | JUDD

June 14, 2018

It’s not often this DFW baby photographer gets out of the studio, but I made a special concession as it was my baby boy’s first birthday earlier this week!

I thought time passed quickly with my oldest child, but the first year of baby Judd’s life has been a whirlwind. Thankfully, I’ve taken many photos and video to remind me of this special blip of time.

As with any new baby, Judd brought with him a good measure of joy, laughter and (if we are honest) some frustration. Babies are a great way to remind you that the greatest challenges often result in the greatest rewards.

It is bittersweet to recognize that Judd is leaving the ‘baby’ stage and entering toddlerhood. He is most certainly our final baby, so every time he moves out of one stage and into the next, there is a rush of excitement for his development, and a tinge of sadness at what is left behind forever.

Mostly, though, our family feels great joy in celebrating this milestone moment. Baby J has morphed from a squishy little lump into a speedy explorer of the world. Judd is feisty, curious, and makes no qualms about letting you know when he is displeased.

The first birthday is also a fun time to reflect on how much our family has grown in the last 12 months. In all those years between children, my husband and I dreamed about what our future family member would be like, how we wanted our family dynamic to be and who this little creature would become. Holden is 5.5 years older than his baby brother, so I also expected a major adjustment in adding a new family member. I envisioned jealousy from big brother, maybe some grieving on the part of my husband and I as we had to let go of our solo time with Holden to make room for a new person in the family.

Now, we have a whole year with this little dude under our belt, and our entire family feels that our unit is complete. We have found our stride, and our little Judd means the world to all of us. Big brother is so proud, so helpful and I can honestly say I have NEVER seen him act in jealousy toward his baby brother. He delights in every new stage of development right alongside my husband and me. (Seriously, if you’re on the fence about having kids 6 years apart, I’m going to tell you it’s one of the best decisions I ever made, but that’s a post for another time. #agegapkids)

Obviously, there is never a way to express how much a parent loves a child. There is no mega photo session or cake smash or first birthday party that would ever demonstrate the depth of affection we have for our little man. I hope our baby J feels loved every day of his life. I hope he knows he has a mommy, daddy and big brother rooting for him all the time, no matter where he goes or what he does.

Happy first birthday, baby boy!

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | JUDD |

FIRST BIRTHDAY | WEBB HOUSE

Baby outfits by: Sew Darn Cute

H Parker Photography is a DFW Baby Photographer with a residential studio in Roanoke,TX.
She specializes in classic, timeless studio baby photographs.

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | WEEK 23

June 11, 2018

This DFW baby photographer can now say I’ve got a full week of summer break under my belt. I’ve had both littles at home with me all day, every day. So far, summer is going well for the littles. They are having a blast doing all kinds of summery things—swimming, indoor park visits, hanging with friends, etc. I am feeling a little raggedy as I have been the solo cruise director for a while now, without much of a break in view. #aviationfamily

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | WEEK 23

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A visit to a local indoor playground. I thought my older son, who is six, would be bored rather quickly and that this outing was more about tiring out the baby. However, the big kid loved it just as much (if not more) than the baby. We were basically the only people there that day, so the kids had free run of the joint. Holden spent all his time in the soft-play baby section with his brother. He loved building towers out of soft blocks, and watching baby-zilla come attack them. It was really sweet to watch them interact, as most of the time at home they are playing NEAR each other, but not WITH each other (age gap kids).

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So, this CAT truck push toy is a repeat guest in my photos this week. This is baby J’s preferred push toy, and he loves whizzing around behind it. However, the problem is that if he bumps into anything…like a rug, or a transition between flooring them he is stuck. He also can’t steer. So he runs into something about every 3 seconds. When this happens, rather than trying to problem solve, he throws a giant cry baby tantrum. So, every time the CAT truck is around, someone either has to follow behind baby J and steer the front for him so he avoids obstacles, or we have to endure his crying jags. I would love to just hide this toy, but I know he needs to practice to get better and eventually walk. The CAT truck is here to stay, and for now we get to enjoy this lovely summer soundtrack.

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Holden begged me for months to take golf lessons. I found a perfect summer golf camp just minutes from our house. It was an hour a day for a week. I wasn’t sure if he would actually like golf, so I thought that was a perfect chance to try it out before pursuing additional lessons. Anyway, he LOVED camp. Every night he begged my husband and I to allow him to practice in the front yard. Since it’s so hot in Texas we had to wait until the sun was going down to be outside. Thus, the whole pajamas as golf attire (he was about to go to bed after this).

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Again, the CAT truck and those lil’ chunk baby legs on the move.

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Holden writing a story about golf camp. He loves to read, but writing is not as natural for him. We try to write one or two stories a week to keep fresh with writing skills so they don’t atrophy over the summer.

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Daddy has been gone A LOT recently, and we expect that to be the case for a while yet. Facetime is a marvelous thing for keeping in touch, but we honestly rarely use it because the baby just steals the ipad and licks it, knocks it over, etc. It’s a hassle and we don’t actually communicate as well. Thus, when it works out timing wise we sometimes have Facetime dinner dates. The baby is captive and we can actually chat!

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Summer reading for the whole family. We are regulars as the library year-round, so there is really nothing different about “summer” reading except that we get to do even more of it!

H Parker Photography is a DFW Baby Photographer with a residential studio in Roanoke,TX.
She specializes in classic, timeless studio baby photographs.

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | WEEK 21

May 29, 2018

This DFW baby photographer had a great Memorial Day, complete with a husband who was home all weekend and visiting family and friends. Week 21 was significantly easier than the past week, when the baby was teething and causing me to lose my mind. Things are still quite busy as school comes to a close and there are 10,000 different events and activities to attend. Also, the baby is transitioning from two naps a day to one, so things are definitely chaotic. I am glad to say though that the teething situation has eased a bit, and that allows me to do all these things without going completely crazy. So, yayy!!

Okay, Project 365 | Week 21 featured below:

DFW BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | WEEK 21

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Putting the boy to work chopping asparagus for dinner. It’s so nice having a little helper.

children and father at park fisheye lens

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Every day after school we head over to the neighborhood park. The best part is that the park is just down the street from the elementary, so a bunch of H’s friends are usually also there. He loves running around with his buddies every day. The days are definitely getting HOT though, and school is ending after this week, so I know he is going to miss this tradition. Thought it would be a good idea to capture our little afternoon park routine, since by the time school starts again and we can resume this daily activity, it is likely that baby J will be a walker and I’ll be busy chasing him around!

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H climbed into J’s crib. It’s so funny to see them both in there, I was surprised he could even fit inside!

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Baby J is approaching his first birthday, which means he is about to be weaned from the bottle. I’m feeling a little sad about that, so I want to make sure and capture a few more photos of him enjoying his “baba” before he is cut-off.

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Field day!! So much has changed since I was a kid. They no longer have competitive games like relay races and tug o’ war. Now it’s all water games and bounce houses. H had a fantastic time though, so that’s what matters.

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Swimming/ acrobatics time.

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Mr. Four Eyes. H loves his Kiwi Crate, we spent some time working on this month’s projects after his baby brother was in bed.

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Memorial Day is often considered the kick-off to summer. H still has a week of school though, so we are kind of stuck in limbo land trying to convince ourselves it isn’t summer yet. We are letting little glimpses of summer in though, like swimming and of course enjoying fresh peaches.

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Holden’s best friend moved last week. He is pretty bummed about it, and asked if he could mail his buddy a note. “Dear Nick, Hope you are having a supreme fun time at Florida, like a burp machine!!!! Your friend Holden Gray Parker!!!!

H Parker Photography is a DFW Baby Photographer with a residential studio in Roanoke,TX.
She specializes in classic, timeless studio baby photographs.

FT WORTH NEWBORN BABY PHOTOGRAPHER | SITTER SESSION 411

April 11, 2018

SIX MONTH OLD BABY IN A BUCKET PHOTO SESSION

six month baby photo all white background

This Ft Worth newborn baby photographer is going to let you in on a little secret. The thing is, newborn sessions actually AREN’T my very favorite type of photography. In fact, the straight truth is that my all-time favorite thing to photograph is the six month milestone / sitter session stage of babyhood. Don’t get me wrong, I love me a squishy, adorable newborn, so by all means keep on bringing those babes to the studio. I’m just saying, if I had to pick only one genre to photograph for the rest of time it would be sitter stage babies.

If you have a baby in this stage of life, I strongly encourage you to schedule a portrait session.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

***

WHAT IS A SITTER SESSION?

A sitter session with H Parker Photography is typically done when a baby is around 7 months old. The age range can vary significantly though—anywhere from 6-10 months is the norm. The requirement is that baby be sitting unassisted, but not yet walking. Ideally, baby would be sitting and not yet crawling either.

This sitting stage is perfect because babies are old enough to show personality and emotion! Babies around six months are developing into unique people, and I love capturing the first expressions of their character.

WHAT DOES MY BABY WEAR AT A SITTER SESSION?

H Parker Photography is all about classic, timeless baby portraiture. I prefer clean, neutral colors and many of my clients choose me for that exact reason. I am happy to suggest wardrobe options and work with you to select clothing for your baby’s sitter session. Clients are also welcome to use any of the specialty items I have on-hand in sitter sizes. Honestly, some of my favorite images feature a baby in a plain white onesie. The focus of your portraits should be baby in all their chubby, precious glory—not a big bow on top of their head.

WHEN ARE SITTER SESSIONS SCHEDULED?

The great thing about having a residential studio is that I can schedule a sitter session to accommodate your little one’s naptime. I am a mom of two, and I totally understand the sacredness of naps. My motto is that baby is boss during a photo session, and I have learned that a well-rested baby is happy baby.

HOW LONG IS THE SESSION?

Sitter sessions are short and sweet. I don’t ever subscribe a specific time limit to my sessions, because my main goal is to capture everything I need to produce a fantastic final gallery for my clients. In general, a sitter milestone session would be about 20-30 minutes. Anything more than that and babies will generally start to tantrum and melt down—it’s a lot of stimulus for a little babe to take in!