J Cooper Photography

Ten reasons Sam can’t be President of the United States

Written and illustrated by my eldest

1. The VP would have to change his stinky diapers.
2. He would drown in the White House pool.
3. They would have to serve baby food at important dinners.
4. He pulls hair…bad for public relations.
5. He would fall asleep during important meetings.
6. They don’t make business suits (or power ties) that small.
7. He is always throwing up.
8. It is too hard to give speeches when you can’t talk.
9. There are too many stairs in the White House to be able to gate them all.
10. You can’t work in the oval office if you don’t know your shapes.

It’s been a busy week with 6 client sessions, lots of proofing and planning! But I managed to schedule in a little photo shoot with these adorable kids…probably the cutest kids I’ve seen in awhile (ok, ok…I’m probably a bit biased!) I was spoiled the day before with another family of three. They followed my directions, looked straight into the camera, smiled, laughed, and giggled without even a hint of prompting. The session with my own little people didn’t go quite that smoothly. We had a few tears, muddy clothes, and lots of spit up all over my new shaggy rug even with the bribery of a trip out for ice cream. And although the group shot isn’t “perfect”…it is definitely my kids…with their sweet little quirks and all!

I’ve ordered some custom cards from Nounces on Etsy…I can’t wait to see them!

I’m working on a photo gallery for a large open wall in my dining room. Hoping to pair these two sweet images of the girls in that collage along with some of my other favorites!




Last night I took S back outside to our backyard for a mini session. The weather was so beautiful and the lighting was just right for capturing that warm autumn glow.


This is one of my all time favorites….a classic S face. He has been making that funny “wrinkled old man” face since the day we brought him home from the hospital.

And who can resist those sweet belly laughs and big gummy smiles?

Of course I took quite a few more photos as well. Feel free to stop by my website and take a look around! Under the CLIENT section are two galleries that include my favorite shots from both sessions. When you are prompted for a password…just enter “Christmas” and “5 months” to view the galleries!!

I had these nifty camera straps on my wish list for Christmas this year…but winning one early wouldn’t be so bad! Check out Shey’s etsy shop to pick out your favorite. Then head over to Erin’s blog and leave a comment!

This little one today completely stole my heart. We took a walk…I shared my animal crackers…she blew me kisses. What a fun way to spend the afternoon!

A few sneak peaks for her mommy and daddy!







And one out take I couldn’t resist sharing

Thanks for sharing your sweet little flower with me!

Lots of sneak peaks for clients tonight. I have been trying to take advantage of this gorgeous fall weather and cram in as many sessions as possible. The colors are so pretty right now!

Starting off with some sweet neighbor kids…a one year old and his big sister and brother. They were such a blast! This was my second shot of the day…could he be any cuter?



I got some sweet smiles out of his big sister. She was so fun…suggesting cute poses. She didn’t want me to put my camera away…loving every minute of the attention!

Big brother was a sport too! He even offered to help me carry some of my gear Thinking I might have to offer him a job as my assistant!

And a maternity session. Loved their choice of colors together! And she even brought along her pregnant sister so we had to snap a few photos of those cute bellies together!






Lots more sessions in the works!

I’ll be honest that Halloween isn’t my favorite holiday. I do try to put on my game face for the kids…but every year I struggle to really get into the Halloween groove. I despise how every corner drug store decks its store front in gore and guts…and even an innocent trip to grab a few groceries can scare the begeebers out of my kids.

We try to focus on the fun of make believe…and the candy. I’m figuring the money lost to dentist bills is better than the cost of therapy later in life.

It is usually cold and raining (or snowing) and fairly miserable. We truck through the neighborhood bundled in coats that cover the $40.00 costumes for which my children begged. And in my head I’m thinking that I’d rather be home sewing, or chatting…or getting a root canal.

But this year was different. The weather was beautiful, my kids were in high spirits, even little S seemed to have been bit by the Happy Halloween bug. So after an impromptu pizza dinner with the neighbors we all headed out for a night of trick or treating. And I can honestly say I thoroughly enjoyed myself….even without the candy.

A quick snapshot before school this morning of all three kiddos actually looking at the camera!

J was a little harvest witch. I don’t normally condone costumes that promote the “darker side” but this particular witch was just so cute. J kept telling everyone she was a “spooky, stinky, smelly witch” but I think she was just plain sweet.

“now how did that spell go again??”

This just cracks me up…not sure who was more scared by this face!


A wanted to be Minnie this year. She was definitely one of the sweetest in her kindergarten costume parade at school. I love that she seems to have retained that sweet innocence. While her classmates were strutting their cheetah printed Hannah Montana costumes, my little mouse was sheepishly waving to me in the crowd…makes a mommy proud.



S was “Mommy’s little Monster”. He was actually fairly angelic the entire evening…flashing big gummy grins to everyone who passed by his stroller.

I think he really got a kick out of the entire Halloween experience.


I hope your Halloween was as HAPPY as ours. Here’s to warm October nights and other pleasant surprises.