Little ones are just fascinated with each other, often much more so than they are with adults. Perhaps they find someone their own size easier to relate too. This weekend my son, Aiden, met his cousin, Rhys, for the first time and he was ecstatic. Aiden, at ten months, is seven months older and twice as big, but as soon as the boys got a glimpse of each other they both began to excitedly communicate with each other.
I found myself bouncing back and forth from crouching to tip toes just trying to catch photos of their wordless exchange. Aiden wanted nothing more than to get his hands on the smaller child, I’m sure in a loving way, but his strength and dexterity are at that point in his development that nothing in his hands is safe. He settled for getting a hold of the stroller and emphatically sharing all he has learned of the world so far.
Rhys, in turn, gave him hints of smiles and those wonderfully exaggerated baby stares that said “I hear you; if you spring me from this stroller I will join you in happy mayhem.” It has only been a few months, but it seems like ages ago when Aiden was that small and immobile. Now when my two year old niece, Madie, begs to hold the baby I have watch closely to make sure that it doesn’t turn into wrestling as Aiden tries to climb her. It is hard to imagine that it was just a few months ago that I was watching so close because she might squeeze him too hard as she tried to hold him on her little lap.
I love to get photos of children’s interactions because their expressions say so much, especially when they only have a handful of words under their belts to work with. You can almost hear what they are trying to say as you look at the pictures. My Nana’s entire refrigerator door is dedicated to her great-grandchildren’s expressions. She loves the pictures where the kids are rolling their eyes, pouting in boredom, or exploding with tickled laughter.
Those photos are my favorites as well, the ones that are so vivid that picture seems alive. If you are looking for some truly outstanding pictures of your little one, images that really capture what childhood is all about, then add another child into the equation. Visit a cousin or organize a play date and keep that shutter clicking because adding a child increases the photo worthy moments exponentially.
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