There are several photographers out there that I admire. And every so often, one of them comes up with an awe-inspiring post, both funny and educational. And I think to myself, I should mention this on my blog, spread the word, share the love.

Except I never seem to get around to it.

I (try to) follow FlyLady (the only way I can keep my house in some semblance of an order with an infant and a toddler) and today is anti-procrastination day. So I am going to stop procrastinating on sharing these links! (even if it means I’m going to do them all at once).

Happy Reading!

Bigger Really *IS* Better Photographer Amy Ro from Providence shares this great read on portrait sizing. Check it out– can you correctly guess what size portrait is on the mantle?

Make Sure You Are In The Pictures A gem from my friend Stacie Turner, from CT. I touched on this in an earlier post, but she states it with more eloquence.

Are All Photographers The Same? Words of wisdom from the extremely talented Andrea Joki, from Finland. Why photographers are different, and why you might not want to let price dictate who to choose.

How to Pick a Good Photographer Another nugget of wisdom from Amy Ro.

Thoughts on the Recession Priorities in spending, by my friend Kristy Lynn in CA.

Ok, that’s all I can think of for now. I am sure I am forgetting some….. but they will have to wait until the NEXT anti-procrastination day.

jen snyder photography

These two kids are so vibrant! Full of laughter, full of energy, full of life. I had such a great time trying to keep up with them. We jumped like crazy, had stick swordfights, rolled in the grass, and talked about who got in trouble more (the jury is still out o that one).

Here are a few of my favorites for the day (it was so hard to pick just a few!)

More can be found on facebook.

© jen snyder photography

When we last left off, I shared the 1 and 2 months photos, and promised to finish catching up this week. I forgot how many I did for month 3, so I will do just that, and use month 4 next week, and then I’ll be all caught up!

She is SUCH a good big sister. She loves her brother, and he adores her in return.

We started off well….

I promised Kaylee a tea party. I had a vision of a billowing canopy, beautiful backlight….. except there was a wedding going on in the spot I wanted to use. Oops. Time to improvise.

And this is to show you how it really went, a little behind the scenes action….. throwing a tantrum while having a tea party. (I believe she was mad because I wanted her to use invisible pretend tea in the teapot and she wanted water. She was having a fit, crying, “There’s no tea! No tea!” while trying to pour it in her cup. Ahh, the glory of 2 year olds.

In other news, tomorrow I will be at the 16th Annual Baltimore Regional Toddler Fair hosted by The Montessori School in Lutherville, MD. It’s open to the public, and runs from 10-2. There will be food and entertainment for the kids (including a real fire truck, balloon sculpture, gymnastics demonstrations, interactive music programs and puppet shows) Did I mention it’s free? The school is located at the intersection of Greenspring Valley and Falls Road in Lutherville. Come out out, stop by my booth and say hi! Mention this blog post for a little surprise! I’m also doing a drawing for a $100 print credit.

© jen snyder photography

This sweet little angel was such a cooperative model for me! I just love working with little babies, newborns especially, and this guy was no exception. He even spared my blankets for me, how thoughtful. (it is completely normal and, in fact, expected that a baby will poo and pee all over my blankets and baskets. Occasionally, however, they are spared.) It was a warm day, so we even ventured outside, which is a favorite of mine for newborn sessions.

As always, check out my facebook page for more!

© jen snyder photography

I so rarely share photos of my own children anymore. For awhile, it was because I wasn’t taking any….. anyone with a 2 year old knows how “fun” it can be to get them to cooperate. But ever since Nathan joined our family, I’ve been more focused. How sad is it that I have photos of so many others but nothing to remember my own family? So my new mission is to photograph them more often. Once a month I take them out with the aim of getting something decent of them, individually and together. (I plan on making an album at the end of the year), but in addition to that I want to remember to document the every day… not just the combed hair and props in actual sessions. So along with that I’d like to bring back Family Friday, to hold me accountable. I might not make a post every Friday, but it will at least be once a month, and will hopefully be more often than that.

So for this week, I want to catch up. Here I have Nathan’s month 1 and month 2 photoshoots. I’ll share months 3 and 4 next week. I already shared his newborn session here.

Taken on my bed before bathtime. He actually looks a little bit like me here. It’s amazing how much he’s changed since then. And she loooooooves her baby brother. It’s so sweet to watch her interact with him– she’s so careful and gentle, always wanting to give him hugs and kisses and pacifiers and burp cloths.

And because Nathan just had his shoot 2 weeks prior, I got a shot of my beautiful girl.

Then he turned two months. This was a tough session for the dreaded group shot! I didn’t want to mimic what I had done last month, and the toddler was all over the place, so I improvised. Not the best, but it’s something!

Yeah, she’s supposed to be hugging him, not holding him down. But she’s 2, she doesn’t take a ton of direction. I was mostly concerned with her not crushing him. Note to self…. there is a reason most shots of kids this age are the pose from last month!

My beautiful girl, posing herself. This was right after she got her very first big girl hair cut, with bangs. (she had just gotten trims to tame the infamous toddler mullet previously)

My boy, with his new found talent of smiling. He was squirming all over the place!

Month 3 I went a bit overboard and took a ton of photos and learned a lot. Month 4 Nathan discovered grass! I will share those next week.

Thanks for indulging me this moment. I know all parents think their kids are cute…. I promise I won’t subject you to this more often than once a week, max!

© jen snyder photography