Day in the life detail moments with a toddler

If you have a toddler you know it’s definitely not easy but it is rewarding. They transition from babies into this little young child with their own personality and desire to do what they want when they want. Is this sounding right?

I wanted to do something a little different on today’s blog post. I typically share images from family sessions but this time around I wanted to share something a little more personal to me. Time is precious. Yes, cliche, but precious nonetheless. I make a goal of taking out my camera once a month to photograph our daughter with whatever milestone/day/event/holiday that comes to mind for that month. These photos are from a trip we took in the fall and looking back on them brought me all the feels.

I’m a lifestyle family and newborn photographer and I love moments like this.

Here are some images of detail moments of daily life with my toddler that I don’t want to forget:

snacktime & independence

man oh man are we in the “I do it!!!” phase. I love her little hands with some of her favorite go to snacks- pouches and fruit cups!

showing emotions

she’s been furrowing her brows since she was a baby and I hope she never stops. Not only this emotion, but a toddler shows a wiiiiide range of emotions, sometimes several within a few minutes.

onesies, stained pajamas

We are finally at a point where we aren’t having to buy clothing so often and she can wear the same pajama set for several months. Along with that comes dirt and stains. But I’m such a sucker for my toddler in footed pajamas. It makes me feel like she’s still a little baby!!

playing & hide and seek

She’s not *really allowed to play in this tv stand but I felt like it would be appropriate to entertain the hide and seek for a quick little game. She’s so into it right now and we have fun!

loveys

Loveys! She likes to take a different one to school each day. At night she sleeps with at least 5-7 of them. I absolutely love this. My mom told me that when my brother and I were little we weren’t attached to any lovey’s or blankets and for a while our daughter wasn’t either. Now, she will tell us which one she wants and she has an attachment to the idea of the lovey and taking it with her to school and sleep.

following their lead

Toddlers truly have a mind of their own. I like to follow her lead for what she wants to do (within reason). After all, she’s 2 years old! It’s so much fun seeing her brain, language, and social skills develop and I think it’s important that I’m not always the one with the agenda. Sometimes she just needs to be able to run around outside looking at flowers or playing chase, other times I guess she needs to play in the blinds with her friend?

Thanks so much for being here and I hope this blog post makes you feel more comfortable and relatable to me! I love getting to know the families I photograph. I love when they trust me to capture their family and more importantly when they come back year after year and tell their friends about me. Happy February!

atlanta family photographer | {zembillas family}

I love meeting new families and photographing them for lifestyle family sessions! Typically families reach out to me to welcome a new baby, celebrate a birthday, or because they want some updated blog/business portraits but I think summer is the perfect reason (and season) to have family photos taken! That's right, you don't have to wait until a holiday to take family photos!

I hadn't met Dad until today but I had taken Mommy and Me photos of Cole and his Mama and you can tell they have so much fun together. I love taking photos of families doing what they love to do. In this case, this little guy is so into rocks and throwing them into the pool (sorry Mom and Dad) so I wanted to incorporate that into our lifestyle family session. Of course during these lifestyle family sessions, there's always room for snuggles, hugs and kisses too. This little guy also loves chalk so I definitely wanted to capture the little artist at work.

I hope you enjoy these photos as much as I do! Interested in booking a family session? Head on over to my contact page and send me a message. I also have a FAQ page to let you know what to expect. Interested to see what else I offer? Head on over to the blog! 

{abby lynn} | playground fun at piedmont park | atlanta lifestyle photographer

There's so much joy in hanging out with a toddler. We had this session at the park just for fun and I was happy to click during some cute moments of AL playing on the monkey bars (those are words I don't hear as often anymore!), playing with wood chips, and just running around. Last time I got to see her, I got to take some daddy daughter photos at the park. 

I love how free spirited children are at this age and it wouldn't hurt to learn a thing or two from them. They are bright eyed, happy, hyper, and just excited for all of the things. 

Looking at these images just makes me want to go to a park and have fun. I can remember the feeling of the grass and just hanging out playing with sticks! 

What I love about lifestyle sessions is the ability to allow the child to take the lead and enjoy all of the small moments. If you're interested in booking a session, head over to some of my favorite images or drop me a message on my contact page! 

{jenna & cole} | mommy and me session | atlanta lifestyle photography

This was my second time photographing this Mommy and toddler and we decided to do a Mommy and Me session! Click here if you want to see Cole's one year cupcake smash! Cole is such a fun toddler and we went with the flow during this in-home lifestyle session. What I love about this age is that it ends up being more fun and relaxed when you go with the toddler's lead and what he or she wants to do.

We had so much fun today reading books, playing with puzzles, eating a snack, playing with toys, playing airplane with mommy, and really just seeing what Cole had in mind to do. I love capturing the way she and he look and adore each other. Mom is a local photographer so it's always fun to give her some fresh images of her and her little snugglebug!

That's what lifestyle is all about. Capturing real life. If you are interested in booking a family session, get in touch with me by filling out this contact form and we can get something on the calendar! Can't wait to meet you! 

{yowler family} | two weeks new | atlanta newborn photography

I love meeting new families and learning about what makes their family special. Mom is a photographer and I am always excited to photograph another photographer because they get to actually be in the photos with their family! This was an in home lifestyle newborn session so the focus was capturing the newborn in her natural environment. The home makes the perfect backdrop for lifestyle newborn photos! 

I loved how natural the family was and baby girl got all the love! How cute is her older brother being so loving and giving her all of the kisses! 

I always like to spend time with not only the family for photos of the newborn and the family, but also the little things like the sibling playing with blocks in his room. Mom and I chatted for a while and just let him do his thing. If you're interested in a lifestyle family session, head on over to say hello and we can chat about booking a session!

{carrion family} | christmas fun | dallas family photography

Although we aren't technically family, I enjoy every bit of the time I get to spend with my best friend's family. They take me in as their own, and I get to play with the two silliest, smartest, cutest little girls (okay I might be a little biased) a couple times a year. I have watched these girls grow over the years and I enjoy the time I get to see them. I bring along my camera to document the activities and silly games because it's always a treat to look back on them even just a few months later to see how much they've grown!

We began our day outside as the girls showed me their new Christmas gifts. They were so excited to show off their new clothes and their new bikes. Don't they just look so cute? We spent a little time inside to take a break to color, and then ended up going back outside in the backyard. They live in a small town north of Atlanta and they have so much land on their property. Living in the city you wouldn't get as much land as they would, so we definitely take advantage between having the bonfire going, the 4-wheeler rides, and letting the dogs run free. The backyard was such a wooded dream! The family stayed warm between having the bonfire going and staying warm with snuggles.

What I love about lifestyle sessions is the ability for the family to carry on the way they would as if I wasn't there. I just happen to be at the right place with my camera, ready to click! With two fast-moving little girls they definitely keep me on my feet and I love the way the photos tell the story. They are used to getting their photos taken but I still sometimes try to be sneaky so I can capture the genuine expression and emotions when they are playing. 

Check out the blog for other recent sessions such as this Newborn Session and this lifestyle session at Ponce City Market in Atlanta! 

{trumbull family} | family fun | lilburn family photographer

I had a coworker reach out to me about a lifestyle in-home session of her family and I was so excited. This was actually the second time I got to photograph them and knew it would be fun to get some holiday images for them to send out! She's the only lady in the family but I will say the boys in her family have so much personality!

We spent some time outside capturing some day to day activities. The little one loved playing with the basketball and the older one loved showing me riding his bicycle. There is so much personality in these images, and I was so excited to get the gallery to this family. Our outdoor activities included playing around and of course getting tickles and snuggles from Mom and Dad. I was excited to see how the family decorated their Christmas tree, and everyone was so excited to show me all of their ornaments. It was special to photograph their family traditions. 

I love when families reach out to me about lifestyle holiday family photos because you can allow things to naturally unfold. Check out this little guy's outfit for these holiday photos!

{brian & abby lynn} | daddy daughter playtime | atlanta lifestyle photographer

Sometimes as photographers we don't spend much time in front of the camera. I had been talking to Brian about scheduling a time to get some photos of him and his daughter so I was so excited when the family session finally happened! He's an Atlanta photographer as well, but today he was a Daddy that got to go play at the park!

I got to spend a couple of hours them today and one of the things they enjoy doing together is going outside to play. The visit at the park began with them play fighting with sticks, which I thought was absolutely adorable. We then took a walk to the trail that was in the back area, where they played peek a boo behind a tree. I don't know many toddlers that don't enjoy peek a boo! The two of them enjoyed talking about what they saw on the trail and the trail walk ended with an adorable piggy back ride. We got back to the grassy area of the park and the little girl giggled her way into Daddy's lap.

I loved the lifestyle feel of this because most of the moments were candid and natural. Interested in a play session at the park? Fill in your information on my contact page so we can schedule a family session!