There are many reasons why I love this post.  First up, this little guy belongs to someone pretty special.  His Momma is someone who came into my life 7 years ago when I was searching for someone to care for my daughter so that I could go back to work.  At the time, she was a stranger, but little did I know, she would become someone I call a good friend all these years later even though she's no longer missy's babysitter. 

When Heather contacted me about doing her little man's 1 year shoot, I was beyond excited when she told me she wanted a "smash the cake" session.  But not only a smash the cake, little Ellis is having a sock monkey birthday party and she wanted wanted pictures to match for his invitations as well as to document his first year! 

The day of our session, Ellis was the perfect subject.  He has the most beautiful baby blue eyes, creamy cotton skin and an auburn carrot top little head.  Before we got to his favorite part, Heather wanted some pictures of him in his birthday outfit while they were still clean. ha!  Anyway, here is Ellis who's turning ONE!  Happy early birthday sweet boy, glad you enjoyed your cake!

Ellis smash cake 007e Ellis smash cake 044e I love this next shot as he leaned over to hug the horsy his Grandma use to play on when she was a little girl herself!  Such a sweet candid moment of both past and present.  Ellis smash cake 135e His momma made him this sock monkey...She's got skills y'all!Ellis smash cake 067e See what I mean about baby blues?Ellis smash cake 181e Ellis smash cake 209e He wasn't too fond of his birthday hat but it sure made for a sweet picture!Ellis smash cake 202e Yummy, he's got cake!Ellis smash cake 273e Ellis smash cake 232e Ellis smash cake 244e Ellis smash cake 293e Piggies and birthday cake = a great combination! Ellis smash cake 288e Ellis smash cake 330e Yeah, I think he liked it!  ;)Ellis smash cake 345e Ellis smash cake 379e And this last image was baby Ellis all cleaned up!  Ellis smash cake 442e

Happy first birthday, buddy!  Hope you enjoy your day! (And thanks so much Heather, for asking me to do these for you!)