A portrait of 4.

I don't take my kids to chain photography studios, but I still like to have 'official' age portraits for them. This is the one I got of Liam on his actual birthday. He's not very cooperative when it comes to taking pictures, but I definitely lucked out with this one. There are two things about it that make it totally authentic Liam to me. I love that he dressed himself that day (and chose something that I probably wouldn't have chosen for him to wear). And, I love that I took this photo when he was snuggled up next to Captain on Captain's favourite chair, enjoying a cartoon while I cleaned up the kitchen. The chair makes a great background for what he's wearing, and you can just make out a bit of Captain in the lower corner.

We put up a photo wall in the dining room a few months ago, and I filled most of the frames with photos, but there are a couple that still need to be done. This one will be going large (11x15) in the middle of the wall. It's just what I was waiting for.

Now... I just need to repeat the exercise with Mallory. As you may recall, she was a bit of a brute on her actual birthday, and the portrait never got taken. Saturday is supposed to be a gorgeous day... if she's not super cranky after the birthday party, I may have to take her outside and see what we can get.