In-home sessions in West Michigan are some of my absolute favorite sessions. My goal for any baby or toddler session is to capture that sweet little personality in this season, but when I’m invited into your home it creates space for a deeper level of connection. These babes are just different in their own environment.

I get it if the thought of having a photographer in your home feels a little intimidating. Many parents imagine messy rooms, short attention spans, and toddler meltdowns… because, well, that’s real life with little ones. I’ve spent many years both photographing and living this season myself. I come with loads of patience, absolutely zero judgment… and a handful of my own wild stories to help put you at ease 😉

If you learn one thing about working with me, let it be this: in-home baby or toddler sessions aren’t about perfection or performance. They’re about letting your child be exactly who they are… in the place where they feel most comfortable and most themselves.

Your home does not need to look like a Pinterest board

Please don’t worry about your décor (or lack of it), or whether there are mounds of laundry waiting to be put away. The years with little ones are full — and I’m not here to assess how “together” you’ve got it 😉 I’m here to document the beauty within this wild season, so one day you can look back and see just how lovely the moments were that lived inside the chaos.

When I arrive, I’ll take a few minutes to look around your home and map out the session based on available light. If something needs a quick tidy or a small shift, we can do that together in a matter of minutes.

I do adjust things as we go… clearing a surface, rearranging a table top. Not to create perfection, but to help tell a beautiful, cohesive story within the images. This is something I do regardless of how your home looks when I arrive.

The simple takeaway? A lived-in home tells the story of this season far better than a perfectly styled one ever could.

The light doesn’t have to be perfect either

Natural light changes constantly throughout the day… that’s part of what makes in-home sessions so beautiful.

Some homes are filled with big, bright windows. Others have minimal, softer light. I work with what’s there to help shape the story we’re telling.

If there’s lots of light, your images may feel brighter and more airy. If the light is lower, the images may feel a bit moodier and more intimate. Neither is better than the other… just different.

What is the session pace like in-home?

In-home sessions with babies or young children are intentionally slow and flexible… but I do give subtle guidance. I come in with a loose plan for flow but leave room for your child to be exactly who they are.

There’s space for breaks when they’re needed. And honestly, when those moments happen, I don’t like to stop the session entirely. A quick snack, cuddle, or a pause to reset… these moments are sometimes necessary but also become sweet, very real, images to remenice over later.

At the same time, I’ll gently move things forward when it feels right. If your child is settled and engaged, we keep going. If they need a moment, we take it.

Rather than working against your child’s natural rhythm, I guide the session around it. This balance of structure and flexibility allows us to create images that feel organic and unforced, while still making thoughtful use of our time together.

Choosing an activity for the session.

Activities during an in-home session are not random. Before your session, we’ll talk through what your child loves right now and what moments are really special to you in this season. From there, I’ll help you choose activities that translate beautifully into photographs… without adding stress or overcomplicating the day.

Typically, we’ll plan for one main activity and a few smaller moments woven in between. This keeps the session focused, enjoyable, and well-paced for little ones.

Larger activities are always structured with ease in mind. For example, if baking is something your family loves, I won’t ask you to bake from start to finish during the session. Instead, I’ll have you prepare things ahead of time so we can skip the long waits and focus on the fun parts — little hands playing with ingredients, curious tastes, shared laughter — followed by images of enjoying the finished treat together.

This approach allows us to:

• Create beautiful, connected images
• Keep the session moving without rushing
• Avoid the frustration that comes with long, complicated tasks

Alongside the main activity, we may include smaller moments like reading a favorite book, brushing teeth before bed, building a quick block tower, or snuggling together. These simple routines often hold the most meaning — and they fit naturally into the flow of the session.

The goal is always the same: to create space for genuine interaction while keeping things relaxed, intentional, and stress-free.

Activities during an in-home session are meant to be deeply personal — here are some ideas to get your mind thinking.

If you’re unsure where to start, here are a few examples of moments I’ve photographed for families. These are meant to spark ideas, not set expectations:

• A pancake breakfast at the kitchen table
• Baking bread or cookies together (focusing on the playful moments rather than the full process)
• Bath time in the kitchen sink or tub
• A quick run through the sprinkler or hose on a warm day
• Popsicles or ice cream
• Helping with farm chores or outdoor routines that are part of daily life
• Bedtime routines like brushing teeth, reading a favorite book, or snuggling before lights out

Every session is laid out intentionally for efficiency

You don’t need to stress about choosing an activity that takes time, creates a mess, or leads to frustration when it’s time to stop. I plan the flow of the session so those moments work for us, not against us.

For example, if running through the sprinkler is part of your session, we’ll plan to end with that. That way, we can wrap things up naturally and your child can keep playing without the stress of stopping mid-fun. The same goes for messier or more immersive activities… they’re always placed intentionally within the session so everything feels smooth and unrushed.

The small moments matter the most

Some of the most meaningful and beautiful images from an in-home session come from moments that feel almost too ordinary to mention.

The way your child stretches up on their tippy toes just to reach the sink.
The book they ask for every. single. night.
The butterfly kiss they need five times before they’ll even consider climbing into bed.

These routines are easy to overlook in the thick of everyday life, but they’re the details that carry the most weight as time passes. They tell the story of who your child was in this season…. how they moved and connected.

While we’ll talk through a main activity for your session, what we choose ultimately isn’t the most important part. Discovering and capturing these ordinary, beautiful details is my job and where the real magic happens.

If there’s something simple you love right now… a routine, a habit, a way your child shows up in your home… jot it down. Nothing is too small or too ordinary to matter.

Why This Type of Session Is So Meaningful Long After It’s Over

In-home sessions while your little ones are still young often become more meaningful with time.

At first, these images may feel simple — everyday moments, familiar spaces, ordinary routines. But as the years pass and rhythms change, those details begin to carry more weight. The way your home looked during this season. The flow of your days. Time is sneaky. Everything changes, sometimes without you even realizing it until you look back.

These photographs don’t just remind you of what your child looked like — they bring you back to the beauty woven into a season that may have felt chaotic in the moment.

Because these images are rooted in real life, they tend to become the ones that feel deeply personal and irreplaceable.

Long after the toys have been put away and routines have shifted, these photographs remain — holding space for the season that once filled your home so completely.

You don’t need to wait for things to feel calmer or more put together. These are the days worth remembering — exactly as they are.

If an in-home session feels like the right fit for your family in this season, I’m always happy to talk through what that could look like. Let’s Connect!