Meet Kinley Marie
"Expectation is the root of all heartache."
-Shakespeare
Whenever a mother is separated from her child, she has the expectation that the reunion will be warm and heartfelt -- we tend to picture a scene out of the movies, with us running to our little one through a field of daisies. They smile and jump into our arms as we swing them around in a giant bear hug that ends with a loving embrace. Unfortunately, when you're the mother of a TODDLER, this can set you up for one heck of a letdown. I've learned this the hard way, by going on travels of my own. On my way home, I was drunk with visions of a fairytale reunion only to be met by a child who placed his hands on both hips and began screaming.
I walked in to a similar phenomena the day I met Miss Kinley.
Laura was looking a bit confused and let down when I walked into the room -- I then learned that big brother had just arrived and the reception was not the one she had hoped for. After being in the hospital for so long, she was expecting an eager little man to climb up and give her lots of hugs while excitedly asking to see his little sister! Turns out, Mister "Cheeks" (big brother's nickname) just wasn't sure about the whole thing. Mommy was in a bed with tubes in her arms and he seemed a little more scared than excited. So I put down my bags and just hung out for a minute. I started talking to my little pal about his big bro status. He had some snacks and it wasn't long before he had warmed up and would sit on daddy's lap with the baby, checking out those little fingers and toes!
After a little while, we had big brother go for a walk so I could spend some time his baby sister. After getting a good look, I realized this was one time that Shakespeare was wrong. She defied all expectations and was cuter than I had expected (which is crazy considering I call her brother my "Gerber baby" and was expecting an equal level of cuteness!)
Kinley has a perfectly round little head (thank you c-sections!) and her coloring that day was just impeccable. She had pink little lips and rosy little cheeks, with tiny blonde eyelashes that you could barely see. And the hair -- oh, the HAIR!! She had quite the headful, which explained away all of mommy's heartburn! She was wide awake for most of our time together and seemed to gaze into my eyes and study my face while I worked. This is one little family that I've grown quite close to since we've started shooting together and I can't wait to watch this little one grow up too! Every time I shoot with them, I walk away with such a warm heart.
With client's like this, it's no wonder why I love my job!
