Let me start by saying I love my job

I love kids

and I love dogs, and all pets really!

This past weekend I held model calls for pets and people with children to come in and let me take a few photos of them for upcoming Valentines Day and Easter Mini Sessions that I would like to do. I wanted to use the images to show people what my set ups would look like with actual kids and pets in them so they could easily imagine their own family members there.

What I didn't expect were the number of people apologizing for how their children or pets, most who had never seen me before, some who had only met me a couple times, behaved. "Kids will be kids" is a famous saying for a reason! The same goes for pets!

I cannot in good conscious, as someone who has cared for dozens of kids who aren't mine, and had numerous pets, expect to take either into a new environment with people they don't know staring at them, clicking a camera at them,  and being silly like so many adults aren't these days, and expect them to behave and give me their best smiles!

I know that kids need time to settle in, to trust their environment, and the people in it. I understand that some kids are naturally able to make friends quickly, and some are not. Some pets are likely to still mind their owners even when tempted with new sounds and scents, and some are not.

The moral of this story is two fold:

1. Don't feel the need to apologize for your children and family members when you come to me for photos, I understand that sometimes they are just going to act like themselves, or like little demons who have never minded in their lives!

2. Know that I am a mom and pet owner too, I know that you are probably mortified with how your children are acting! In all honesty I would rather schedule you to come back another day and time, or better yet take the photos that they are giving us! None of the kids or pets I showcase above, being their authentic selves, took longer to achieve great photos of than the kids who did it right the first time!