we are kicking off indie’s big birthday weekend with her CAKE SMASH studio session by little nest portraits of westfield!!!! click through to see all of our favorites and to read about why this fun photoshoot was so special to us.
as most of you know, when indie was born we were thrown a serious curveball by learning shortly after her birth that she had a birth defect called esophageal atresia. long story short – her esophagus wasn’t connected to her stomach and required emergency surgery and transport to another hospital. fast forward one year later, and despite a future surgery scheduled for april and some minor challenges when it comes to eating – SHE IS EATING…. and that is HUGE. many children with this condition couldn’t do a cake smash for the first first birthday. or maybe even their second or third. we consider ourselves (oddly) blessed at how fantastic she’s progressing into toddlerhood. as i sat in the NICU for hours on end, i wasn’t sure she’d even be eating solid foods at this point… let alone sticking a whole cake in front of her!
we had to be extra careful and we made sure that the cake was made extra moist, with lots of thin layers to promote easier swallowing… and most importantly – plenty of icing! kelly dubé from i smell icing was a godsend. she listened closely to the instructions we received from indie’s feeding therapist and she made a truly perfect and delicious little cake! (i would know because i spent 10 minutes after our shoot licking the icing off my arms!!!)
at little nest they always made us feel welcome, at ease and excited. especially for this shoot, which they knew i was a little bit nervous about. we only give indie small tiny pieces of food… so i was watching on high alert as she messed around with the cake. she actually wound up playing more than doing any actual eating… which i hear is common at a cake smash! our minimalist, bohemian setup worked out exactly as i had envisioned. i bought the cake topper and balloon garland from etsy shops, and all three of the faux-cacti from target! the cacti now live on our dining room table and the balloon garland rests on our mantle. i purposely picked out accessories/props that i knew i’d actually use in my home. they look beautiful! indie’s hair clip was also an etsy find, and her amazing romper was a total steal on amazon!!!
collaborating with little nest over the past year has truly been one of the best experiences. their heirloom membership has allowed us to ENJOY family photography without having to think or stress about it. these photos of our girl EATING CAKE mean SO much to us on so many levels and out of all the birthday shenanigans that are about to ensue, i’ll cherish this moment in my mind and heart forever.
the cake has been smashed…. next up….. the BIRTHDAY BASH!!!! only two more days before i have a one year old! keep up with us on instagram for party deets!
