This is my body you eat…

Now, I don’t think it’s a mystery to anyone that I do a lot of breastfeeding portraits. Heck, you can download my 2010 Breastfeeding Week Poster if you are so inclined. But generally in those pictures I aim, when I shoot, to bag the serene and lovely part of breastfeeding. You know that part, as you gaze lovingly down into your baby’s eyes, rapt with his perfection, not a care in the world.

Then your kid gets older and you have the baby in a sling, nursing, while you play Candy Land with another child and have the phone on your ear trying to schedule the washing machine repair man to come.

Or is it only my life that’s that chaotic in reality?

Breastfeeding is still awesome, of course. But it’s not quite as tranquil. I’m working on a personal series trying to capture the breastfeeding mother in her natural environment, as it were. My friend Heidi, who is a bundle of awesomeness, volunteered. We got in 2 shots before the turtle incident. This was one of them.

(No turtles or children were harmed in the turtle incident. The child did not actually fall into the pond in his turtle quest. However, it was deemed wise to get up and go check on him.)