photographing baby first yearIn that first year of your little schmupkin's life, you happily snap away with the digital camera (best purchase ever!), capturing every single moment, right? It's great, documenting the everyday awesomeness -- that's a word, isn't it? -- of being a parent. But, how can you tell a picture of a random Tuesday, although terrific, from one on a big milestone day, like Junior's 6-month birthday?

Thankfully, the Internet and even a few moms in our own CafeMom family have some cool ideas on how to photograph your baby's first year. Not crafty? Don't worry, you don't need a PhD from Martha Stewart University to do them.  

1. Wear it proud. One of CafeMom's sales peeps gave us this idea: take pictures of your kiddo wearing a t-shirt that changes each month. You can do this on the C&C as I like to call it -- the Cute & Cheap. Grab a plain white t-shirt or onesie and add the "7 Months" or just the number "7" in fabric paint from your local craft store. Easy. Snap away!

2. Write it and they will come. Again, an uber-easy way to document each month's celebration: write it on a piece of paper and take a picture of Junior next to it. Our own fabu parenting editor and uber-blogger Michele Zipp did this with her twins -- perfect for low-tech moms, moms with kids who may not sit still or pose for long ... really any mom can do this.

3. Spell it out for me. You have all of those cute little letters to work on Kiddo's ABCs and 123s, put them to good use and spell out "I Am 6 Months" or "Now 6 Months Old" or whatever you want. We found a few on the Internet doing this, including this one that used groovy felt letters and numbers on a white blanket. Classic, elegant, and super easy.

4. Measured by Teddy. You have a gazillion and one stuffed friends in her nursery. Select a cute one and, every new month, take a picture of her next to it -- with the bear holding a number for that month or a little sign saying, "3 Months" or whatever you want. Not only will you document the monthly milestone, you can track how she grows over the year.

How did you photograph your baby's first year?

 

Image via Michele Zipp