This past weekend, I met up with an adorable family to shoot photos with them and their newest edition: 6-week-old Zayden.

Shooting newborn photos can always be a bit of a challenge, as they have a mind of their own (don’t we know it), and Mom and Dad are usually sleep-deprived and anxious. But Zayden’s parents, Vanessa and Marcquel, were as kind and calm as can be, as was his big sis, Akaylah. Plus, Grandma was on the sidelines, ready with a bottle and a bounce whenever we needed her!

I’m so happy to have worked with this little fam, and being around sweet Zayden has deepened my own baby fever. Here are some photos from our time together.

All the babies!

LOOK AT THAT FACE!

I really, really love this shot.

Hi, Dad!

Listen, Zayden: you’re family is ridiculously good-looking. So, you’ve gotta work on your camera face. Okay, buddy? 😉

I’ve been photographing Emmy since she was only a 1 year old–back when she was still an only child! So, it was fun to shoot photos with this family whom I’ve been working with for over 10 years.

This year, we decided to do something a little different, and we opted for a glam session in Chicago’s Fulton Market neighborhood, which was quite the departure from our usual suburban garden shoots.

I love how these photos turned out–and I love this family! Here are some sneak peeks from our shoot:

Megan contacted me a couple of months ago, saying she wanted to shoot some family photos before bay #4 arrived. We planned on shooting in the spring, but then spring never really came. (Thanks, Chicago.)

This past weekend, we finally scheduled our session, pushing back as far as we could before we risked the baby coming before we had a chance to take any photos! Then, of course, the day we planned to shoot ended up being 50 degrees and rainy. Still, we decided to forge ahead, knowing that rescheduling would likely mean that this family of 5 would become a family of 6.

Still, despite the rain, the cold, and three kids under 6, we managed to have a great shoot! Photographing a gaggle of little kids isn’t always easy, but these three were in such good spirits the entire time. So, we couldn’t really blame them for their wiggles; we just chased them around!

Here are some photos from my time with this soon-to-be-growing family:

Jack’s face cracks me up, here. He’s clearly thinking, “Why are you making me get so close to my sisters?!”

Cuddles!

Of course, we had to get some shots of the bump, too!

Kiddos 1, 2…

3, and 4!