Mom Celebrates One Year of Breastfeeding With Breast Milk-Themed Smash Cake
Georgia-based photographer Tara Ruby is no stranger to creating stunning work that goes viral. You might know her for her active duty soldier moms breastfeeding and moms breastfeeding in uniform series or the gorgeous shot of a mom who posed with exactly 65 roses to raise awareness around cystic fibrosis. Now, Ruby has done it again, shooting a unique cake smash. The theme: breastfeeding!
Ruby took to <a href="
> to share the images, writing, "Connor is one year old. Twelve months of breastfeeding, 12 months of his mom being active duty, and months and months of pumping. So, how do we celebrate this? A breastfeeding, breastmilk cake smash and milk bath!" She explained that each bottle featured in the shots contained his mom's "liquid gold" breast milk—as did the bath. The cake was fittingly shaped as breasts.
"I've worked with this family since Connor was two months old," Ruby says. "Mom actually did a military inspired breastfeeding image with me." She explains that when it came time to shoot Connor's first birthday cake smash, his mom came up with the breastfeeding theme to celebrate nursing him up to the one-year mark. Ruby then came up with the idea to "go a bit country and focus on the dairy aspect."
Tara Ruby Photography
She says the shoot was a particularly fun one, for which she enjoyed pulling the props and backgrounds together. The floor and backdrop, made by Intuition Background by Becky, were "really helped us create the farm/milk feeling," Ruby notes.
The American Academy of Pediatrics' official breastfeeding guidelines recommend exclusive breastfeeding for about the first six months of a baby's life, followed by breastfeeding in combination with the introduction of complementary foods until at least 12 months of age, and continuation of breastfeeding for as long as mutually desired by mother and baby.
While every mom's feeding journey will look a little different, and ultimately, fed is best, props to Connor's mom for making it to the one-year mark. This cake smash was certainly an eye-catching way to celebrate!
