I’ve been photographing this little girl, Cora, for almost three years now. The story begins with her first birthday party.
Her parents took such care in prepping for the party and caring for their yard to host their baby girl’s big day.
She was surrounded by her closest friends and family, who doted on her the entire time. 
Cora was really into clapping. I got to capture this wonderful picture of her clapping in her father’s arms with her mother laughing along with her. Her grandfather was standing next to me, making them laugh!
I love capturing tough guys like Cora’s grandfather becoming mush around their granddaughters. This was one of those moments.
She had a beautiful high chair for her party, which she promptly decorated with strawberry shortcake. At first she needed a little guidance to know it was okay to put her fingers in her mouth. But soon, she got the hang of it and was clapping in excitement as her whole family sang her “Happy Birthday”.
The next time I saw baby Cora was one year later on a warm, sunny day. We were in a park, where I got this stunning shot of her playing behind a tree.
Before the playing began, I captured one shot of the whole family looking at the camera.
It’s always my goal to get at least one photo like this among all the candids.
When playtime began, Cora came out of her shell and couldn’t stop smiling. Her father showed her a tiny apple that fell from the tree and carried her on his shoulders. It was very sweet.
After a loving moment with her mother, Cora ended the summer session on a wooden bench, while showing her wonderment and silliness. I left the session eager for our next meeting.
The next time I saw her was six months later at a Christmas tree farm. She’s growing so fast; I couldn’t believe it.
She decorated trees with her parents and sang songs from the movie “Frozen” to us. It was a little chilly that day, so the songs were appropriate!
I love seeing the changes that come with each session and each season. I feel like we’re giving Cora such a wonderful gift in these portraits. She’ll be able to look back and see how absolutely adored she is.
I can’t wait till the next session. I’ll be adding to this post to continue to tell her story.
