Josiah my love

I was never the babysitter in the family.

That was my sister's job.

Growing up there were plenty of jokes about how I would hold babies at arms length instead of cuddling them to my body.  I think I was scared more than anything.

It takes vulnerability to coo to an infant. 

And that's not always my 'thing'....ha ha.

But I have to say that having a brand new little nephew is quite heavenly.

I mean, you'd think that I'd be a bit immune to that baby smell, what with having our own brood of three, and our youngest about to turn 5!

But I can't think of anything better than our new little addition, Josiah Mason.

So needless to say, I jumped at the request to take his announcement pictures.

He was just 7 days old at the time.

And just a lil ball of squishy yum!

He has steely, grey eyes and magnificent curly hair.

And well, he's just so ....'pliable' for lack of a better word!

So my sister filled his tummy and lulled him to sleep.....and we had our way with him.

His daddy is a 49er fan....as is Papi....and of course our family...so we made sure to document his allegiances from the get-go.

See what I mean?

And well, some poses worked out better than others!

The cake platter was a no-go.

But he did let us strip him down for the nude shots.

I tried to remember everything I'd ever read about taking pictures of infants.

Keeping them warm and comfy is numero uno!

And he did great as long as I only snapped a few shots, and then I covered him back up for a minute.

But if it got too breezy.....well, he was NOT a happy camper:

All in all, it wasn't hard to capture the magic.  He sleeps like a rock.  

I even re-positioned his hands a few times.  

Cutie-patootie!

Towards the end my kids couldn't help themselves...they needed to jump in on the fun.

Josiah was oblivious!

What is it about baby feet that makes them so delectable?

Here I played ring toss with my prego ring.

I just wanted a size reference for those toes.

We all know they will NOT stay this small and clean! 

Ah yes, this has to be close to what it feels like to be a grandparent.  It almost hurts how much I love this little guy.  I can spoil him and take him places, and then send him home.

Awesome.

I'm just thrilled that my kids will grow up with a lil cousin.

They have cousins on Jarrod's side.  But since Trish is my only sister.....well, it was all up to her ;)

I wish I could show you some more great shots, but I have to wait until the announcements come out.  

I don't want to steal any thunder. 

We all love to get a little snailmail right? It reminds us that we're human not just machines ;)

So I leave you with one parting shot.

I'm sure I'm biased, but MAN I am talking perfection with those feet!

And I'll end with this quote:
Yesterday is but today's memory, and tomorrow is today's dream.
Khalil Gibran