Pushing 18 months

Yesterday afternoon was a boys golf outing... so I wrangled the girls into helping me do an 18-month shot for Mallory, a milestone coming up in just a few days. (I could have had Chad help, but there is something about having someone who is not the parent involved in the picture-taking process that just makes it run so much smoother. If Chad or I tried to give direction or elicit a smile it would never have worked, or at least the smile wouldn't have seemed natural, but when Aunty Jenn tries, see how great the results are?)

I wanted to do this shot with the cornfield across the street as my backdrop (though I hadn't counted on them shearing off the top 3' of the stalks this week - grr!) and do it late in the day to catch some backlights in her hair. And I had the perfect prop to use for it. A couple weeks ago, when I left after lunch for my business trip to Niagara Falls, I stopped in at a great antiques store that's right at the 401 on-ramp. I rarely get to go in anymore, since we're always passing by with kids in tow, So because it was a Wednesday afternoon, and she had her flag flying to indicate that she was open, I went in, thinking if I were lucky I might find a buffet and hutch for the dining room, or a console table for the family room, or some bits and pieces that you don't really know you need until you see them.

I didn't really find any of that, but I did find this shabby old kitchen chair, painted a sweet bubblegum pink and priced at $15. It didn't take long for me to decide to get it. One shot alone was worth the cost, but if I can get a string of shots taken on this chair, from age 1 to age 18? That'll be priceless.