Celebrating Little Brother’s First Birthday | Pasadena, Maryland

Watching babies grow has to be one of the most joy-filled parts of my job, and when Nicole contacted me to do sweet Nicholas’s cake smash photos, I was so thrilled to document this milestone. I had the privilege of capturing Nicholas’s newborn photos, at their home in Pasadena, Maryland, exactly one year before we did his in home cake smash photo session. It was so fun to see how much he had grown and how very much he is loved.

We started our family photos with the boys, and it was fun to see how much big brother, Will, had grown as well, and to talk with him about how much he likes school (his favorite subject is math) and what it’s like being a big brother. He talked about how fast Nicholas crawls, and how much he enjoys letting him crawl and climb all over him. Dad and Will snuggled up on the birthday boy, and Nicholas seemed to thrive amid all the love and attention.

Mom joined in, and Nicholas’s eyes were immediately on her. The whole family had such big smiles when talking to the birthday boy and he just enjoyed whatever he was doing, whether it was rocking as fast as he could in his little rocking chair or being in mama’s arms.

After capturing several family photos, we wandered up to Nick’s room to document some time in there. It’s fun to see how much he has grown and what his favorite things are. He flipped through his “That’s Not My Fox” book and showed me his favorite doll (which had a heartbeat and was so sweet that I totally wish I’d had one when my boys were babies!).

He snuggled with mama and big brother, and showed off some dance moves in his crib.

Finally, we made our way back downstairs to smash some cake! Nicholas had a beautiful setup done by mom (mama Nicole is seriously talented at so many things!) and he stood back and admired his cake for a few moments before making his way to it and digging in.

There is nothing more fun than icing covered baby fingers and toes. Nicholas took his time tasting, feeling the texture of the icing, and smearing a little on his balloon arch.

Once he started to tire of the cake, we prepped for bath time and nap and we captured a few of those cleanup moments too!

Nicole and Ryan, thank you again for the honor of documenting this time in Nicholas’s life. I truly love watching him grow and his personality shine through. You are wonderful parents, and Will is an amazing big brother and I feel honored that I get to witness and document your family’s love.