I am a crazy, crazy dancer. Now, in those first awkward elementary school dances, I was always the first person to flee to the wall. I remember an excruciatingly embarrassing moment when I was asked to do the Twist in front of my entire grade seven class. The horror. But when it comes to dancing with babies, I am the master. You see, the year my daughter was a baby, the local radio station had a contest for the best 100 tunes of all time. The contest must have gone on for several months. I was bound to nap times … Continue reading →

When my daughter was a baby, sometimes I despaired of reading to her. After all, there are only so many times you can go through the “what’s this?” and “what’s that” books with the pictures and the words. You know the ones. The plot is a little thin, though babies love the bright pictures of the apples and the zebras. Older babies love finding the objects in question. However, as a former English major, I yearned for plot, character, even a setting. Besides, she ate the books. Literally. We have one book about babies with delightfully cute pictures, and the … Continue reading →

I love children’s books, and I’ve collected them since I took a children’s literature course way, way back in university (yes, I feel that old!). Some of these books I know from my childhood, others I discovered when I became a parent. Here are some of my favorites: Good Night Moon by Margaret Wise Brown Ah, I remember this book from my childhood, and I am sure that many of you remember it from yours. This slightly oddball story with quiet pictures gets darker and darker as the book goes on and we say good night to all of the … Continue reading →

Once you have the perfect shot of your baby, there are a few more things you can do on your computer to make it extra special. You don’t need to have expensive software, such as Photoshop, though it is nice to have. You can use free applications such as Picasa to edit your photos. If you don’t want to download software to your desktop, you can use free editing tools on websites like Photobucket. (If you missed the first four parts of this series, scroll down to the bottom for links.) Color Playing with color can really make a difference … Continue reading →

This week I’m talking about baby portraits. Is there anything more precious than great photos of your baby? Since babies grow, develop and change so rapidly, a digital camera is almost as important as the diapers you burn through each day. I’ve given you advice about Timing, Lighting, and Props. Today I’m going to teach you how to get your baby to not only look at the camera, but smile, too! It’s all about distraction, and it’s definitely an art. Nobody does it better than mom, which is why I’m such a huge advocate for taking baby’s portraits yourself! Figure … Continue reading →

Props are not essential to a great photo of your baby, but they can add humor, put your tiny one’s size in perspective, or add a little nostalgia to the photo (for example, having your baby pose with your childhood teddy bear!) Here are a few guidelines for using props in your baby’s portrait. If you’ve just “dropped in,” check out the first two installments of this series: Timing and Lighting. Keep it Simple If you’re going to use a prop, such as a toy, limit it to one, possibly two objects. You don’t want to crowd the photo with … Continue reading →

Now that you know when to take your baby’s portrait, you need to decide where you’re going to get your best results in terms of lighting. I’m going to assume you don’t have studio lights or an external flash, since these things will give you a lot more control over the lighting of the photograph, but are not necessarily required. If you are just an amateur like I am, you’ll need to be a little more picky about where you place your baby. Typically, you’re not going to get terrific results from the flash of a point-and-shoot digital camera. If … Continue reading →

One of my proudest moments as a mom is when I capture my son in a photograph in just the right way: it’s focused, he’s smiling, and everything about the picture is adorable. I can’t get them on Facebook fast enough for all my friends and family to oohh-and-aahh over. A few of my friends have asked me how I get such good pictures of my son. Part of it is technique and part of it is the fact that he is just plain cute. Obviously I am a little biased because I’m his mom! I’m going to share with … Continue reading →

I love fall apples. They are crisp and new, a little tart, a little sweet. They are a delight in every way, and so different from the dull apples that you find on store shelves at the beginning of spring. There are so many ways to celebrate fall with your baby. How can you enjoy fall apples? Visit a farmer’s market or even a local apple farm. In our area, this means a drive, but if you have a little one who is up to the challenge, put him in the baby carrier and head out apple picking! It’s never … Continue reading →