A Walk in the Park

Monday's sunshine was so magnificent, especially in contrast to all the rain we've had lately. I decided cleaning could wait a day and that I would take Joshua for a walk to the park. 

Disclaimer: This picture is deceiving- by seeing only this sweet, angelic face

no one would ever guess the mischief and havoc Joshua is capable of creating.

-

Joshua absolutely loved the swing, but he was not about to surrender

his Teddy for a moment.

"Come quickly, Spring!"

Happy First Birthday Joshua!

My wonderful son Joshua turned one year last Monday, on December 31st. What a wonderful first year it's been and how quickly the time has gone! He has already developed such a personality. He brings me joy at each of his new discoveries. He makes me laugh at all his antics. He keeps me busy chasing after him (what a fast little walker!). And often he frustrates me with all the disasters he causes; but even in spite of this I can't help loving him so much!

In honor of my first child's first birthday I wanted to do something extra special. I wanted to preserve my memories and Joshua wanted to eat cake so... my friend Naomi came over last week and helped me photograph my "cake smash" session with Joshua. I know it's a lot of photos, but this was the best I could do to narrow-down my selection of the best shots. There were just too many great pictures. I hope you enjoy them at least half as mush as I do ;)

Leaf Tasting

Yesterday I took advantage of a break in the rain to let Joshua do some outdoor exploring. He loves grubbing about in leaves, moss, sticks, dirt and any other substance he can find in the great outdoors. Of course this entailed a complete wardrobe change afterward but I want to let Joshua be very boyish.

"This thing tastes very strange."

So adorable!

This one makes me laugh. What a hilarious face!

So proud of his accomplishment: "I found a stick in the leaf pile!"

More adorableness.

More leaf tasting.

Fall Photos of my little Forager

One of our nicknames for Joshua is "The Forager". The literal meaning of foraging is when livestock search for provisions. Joshua is constantly looking for provisions; anything that can go in the mouth will go in the mouth. For Joshua, an outdoor fall photo shoot means an opportunity to eat sticks, leaves, and grass to his heart's content.

Yesterday I tried following Joe's advice of not "posing" the shot (which by the way is nearly impossible with Joshua anyway) and capturing Joshua in his natural habitat.

Here's a couple of my favorite shots. Afterward, I played around with some recently downloaded, free Photoshop actions to achieve a vintage film look. 

---------

No after-effects here. Just a close-up of my little explorer!

A 'Purr'fect Pose

When I put Joshua to bed each night I leave the door to his room open, just in case he starts crying I want to be sure I can hear him. I also go check on him again before I finally go to bed to make sure he's alright and to admire how cute and peaceful he looks all cuddled up.

The other night when I went to check on him this is what I saw:

No kidding! These shots are not staged. Teddy, Joshy, and Sammy (our kitty) in a row; three bugs in a rug. I guess Sammy, being a connoisseur of comfort, considered the open door an invitation to join Joshua in all his coziness. Ridiculous!

"Son"dance Film Festival

Joshua loves watching his Baby Einstein videos (Baby Bach, Baby Mozart, Baby Beethoven, etc...)! It's hilarious to watch him watching them. It also works well for me as it allows me to get some work done around the house while he happily keeps his attention firmly fastened on the TV - he even laughs at certain parts. See for yourself...

If you're still not convinced, check out this video clip: