Lifestyle portraits: 5-month-old baby session in the tubby

Silly me. I thought I'd have more time for writing and photography this fall with the older girls in preschool and kindergarten. But, surprise! I barely get a chance to crack open my computer.

My schedule looks like this: Drive girl to school (or feed baby while husband drives this leg). Feed baby. Drive girl to school. Feed baby. Pick girl up from school. Feed baby. Pick girl up from school (which involves an hour-long carpool situation). Feed baby. Bathe children. Feed children. Put older girls to bed. Feed baby. Attempt to put baby to bed. Feed baby. Pass out for a few hours. Feed baby. Repeat.

Sound familiar? I know I'm not alone in the driving-and-feeding-are-my-life-right-now scenario. But I've been at this parenting thing for six years; I know from experience that some phases of family life will be consumed almost entirely by the logistics of keeping everyone alive and where they need to be, and other phases will allow for more flexibility, productivity and creativity.

That knowledge makes me less frustrated this time around when I'm treading in a logistics-heavy phase. I'm trying to calm my type-A self and roll with it. So what if I have 76 unanswered emails in my inbox? (Cringe. That is the actual figure, folks.) So what if I've only had time to take on a few photography clients since Piper arrived? I don't want to waste time feeling behind on everything, even if that's the case. I just want to use the little moments between must-do items to love the heck out of this chubby baby and her sisters.

All that leads me to these photos. Piper is almost 7 months, but these images from when she was 5 months. If you want to capture baby rolls in their full glory, I recommend doing so around 4-5 months. After that time, babies are on the go, burning calories and beginning to stretch. I'm sad to say that while I wouldn't call Piper anywhere close to svelte, I don't think her rolls are quite as voluptuous as they were just a couple months ago.

What was she doing at 5 months? I have no clue. I promised myself I would remember her babyhood and enjoy every minute of it. Well, of course, it's all a blur. But I can honestly say I have enjoyed every minute of her existence. Photographic evidence tells me she was sitting and scooting around at 5 months. She was super smiley and scrumptious, giving sloppy kisses and engaging with her sisters. We are all in awe of her and wonder aloud on a daily basis: "How did we get so lucky to be her family?"

I'm planning a black-and-white gallery wall for our upstairs hallway. You can be sure some of these photos will be prominently displayed. They'll go nicely with an image from one of my favorite (and most-pinned) of Nora's sessions: splashing in the sink at 7 months.

More of Piper's portraits: arrival, formal birth announcement, 1 month, 2 months, 3 months and 4 months.