Grandparents, they sure love photos of the babies

My parents with their 2 lovely grandchildren

It's so funny. Whenever I'm taking photos of children, their parents and I are gabbing away. Usually about the adorableness going on at that moment, but often meanders into the shared experiences of parenting the little ones. Sometimes the topic turns to grandparents. 

Ahh, I can't wait to be a grandparent! You get all the benefits of parenthood all over again - with kids that may even resemble your offspring - without the never-ending fear/anxiety/guilt/responsibility of parenthood. People joke about grandparents spoiling the grandkids, but I just see it as unadulterated joy of seeing these little people and being able to pass them back to their parents whenever you like. I kid though because my daughter lucked out with 4 awesome grandparents who are very involved with her. My mom even offered to change dirty diapers last weekend when the two above decided to synchonize. 

What my clients and I usually come back to is that grandparents simply can never get enough photos of their grandchildren. Often that's the reason they set up the shoot in the first place! So I try even harder to get photos of the babies and children doing their own thing. Because seeing what their little loves are really up to - at home, with their stuff, with their parents - is what grandparents really want. Why not give it to them? They gave you life, goshdarnit!

Or even better, next time they hint that they're sending you a flashing-light, siren-blaring, gigantic-eyesore toy, subtly suggest you may want a photo shoot instead. You don't really have the room for a 3rd play-kitchen anyway.