Every now and then, you are granted a gift.  Sometimes, when the stars align, the wind blows from the West or the cat didn’t wake you by licking your ear, you are granted several gifts all in the same day. Yesterday was one of those days in my business and I’ve decided to share it as a 3-part blog!

Gift #1… Lil’ Miss Harper

I met Harper when she was affectionately referred to as H3 by her parents, Heather and Duane.

Still in the womb at the time, H3 was nicknamed after a chemical compound, as her father works in Bio-chemistry at Cornell and her initials break down to 3 H’s:  Harper Helen Hoch. At the very end of our portrait session at the Cornell Plantations, Duane scribbled H3 on Heather’s belly with a marker I had in my bag.

Very sweet moment between the parents for me to capture and I drove away with warmth all around me.

The next time I truly met Harper, she was a few days old and I had experienced a crazy morning with my GPS trying to find Harper’s home. Without missing a beat, Heather invited me in and I quickly tried to make up for lost time. If you’re a baby photographer, you have to be very conscious of your energy and this day I was wound up… Guess, who didn’t sleep? Miss Harper!

While Momma worked her magic, I had the most interesting conversation with Cindy, Harper’s grandmom, who happened to be more than a seasoned veteran in the field of mammography. Fascinating. Who knew that only a month later, I would call Cindy in New Jersey on my own behalf for valuable information concerning an alarming mammogram.

At 6 months, Harper visited me in my studio for a Crawling Like Crazy session. At this point, I had gotten close enough to the family that they brought their dogs to visit in the car and we spent a good amount of time visiting amidst catching Miss Busy Body on film.  It was now the “norm” to hug upon parting ways.

Harper turns 1 this week and agreed to humor me with a Birthday Bash Session (thanks Heather & Duane!) including balloons, a boa, and the infamous extra icing Birthday Cake.

Happy Birthday Harper!

So far, I was gifted a warm fuzzy, the wisdom of an experienced Grandmom, and friendship. NOT too shabby for simply showing up to work! But it’s the smile that I can’t wipe off my face, even as I work into the wee hours of the night with tiny slits for eyes, that I consider the gift that fills me for days. It’s the gift you’re granted when a family gives you the chance to document their lives over the course of time, as things change and as they grow. Come good times or bad, crazy sessions, balloons popping – whatever it might be – it’s the emotions they share with me as they interact amongst themselves that keep me shooting year after year!

Happy birthday Miss Harper, and congrats Heather and Duane!