Smile, Alisha

Have I mentioned that Zachary loves his sister? Yes, he is sometimes annoyed by his parents' inability to attend to him as previously, or oblivious to the possibility that I can't hear him due to her screaming, and even has observed that she doesn't "do" very much. However, when she's awake and he's allowed to touch her, it is pure - if sometimes overzealous - love. 

That being said, these pictures employ 2 tips shared by Sharona (of Sharona Jacobs Photography):

1) Manage the weird/harsh midday lighting of my living room with reflectors made from whatever  light-colored household objects are close at hand. She had used the bottom of a playmat; I opted for a fuzzy blanket. 

2) Bribery. Zach hates to sit still or otherwise interact nicely in general when the camera is out, however, I offered to let him wash Alisha's hair if he would cooperate for a few minutes. It worked!

And, just in case you couldn't tell from the first 2 images, the sweater is on backwards (but he did it himself, dammit), and the hair was spiked (we were, um, experimenting earlier), and when we left the house, he opted for green rain boots (sneakers apparently require too much effort when the parents make you put your own shoes on).