People often assume that I have books and boxes and hard drives filled with photos of my own children, but I can promise that if you read this blog you have seen pretty much the only ones I have ever taken of them! I definitely have a clear distinction between my life as a mom and my life as a documentarian of other people's families, and sometimes I enjoy just living my life and not having to be inside it and outside it at the same time.

But Sunday was Lila Mae's third birthday, and I needed to shoot with something better than my iPhone camera. I was incredibly humbled by our neighbors, who hosted a party for her in our across-the-street park. I had just come back from a beach wedding weekend (that post coming soon), so we had planned to do something for Lila next month when things quiet down a bit in our lives. Instead, she was treated to balloons, cupcakes, a bubble machine and presents -- a perfect birthday! Special thanks to Olga and Pat (Bad A** Baby Anya's parents), and all of our Highland Park friends for reminding us what community is all about.

If you are in a browsing mood, you can see what her birthday was like last year, and if you are just tuning in to this blog, here are some more entries about our family. Happy birthday, sweet Lila Mae!

Her big brother takes such good care of her! (As long as she is not messing with his Thomas the Tank Engine set or generally annoying him in some way...)