Twin and sibling portraits with one-year-old Max and Oscar

Chelsea called her partner, John, to let him know she was expecting twins.

John was at work at the time, and Chelsea had her phone on loudspeaker during the call, with the midwife listening in nearby.

“I was in complete shock,” John told me, “and there may have been a few swear words!”

The couple already had George, now 5, and Harrison, now 3, when they found out that there were twins on the way. The initial shock quickly turned into excitement and anticipation, as the family started to prepare for the new arrivals.

“They won’t steal my toys, will they?” George asked his parents when they told him two siblings were on the way.

“No,” Chelsea told him, “not yet…”

She knows George will have a little time to get used to having them around before they start eyeing up his play things!

Going from two to four children has practical repercussions: you need a bigger car and more bedrooms in the house, and even though you’ve got hand-me-downs from the older boys, now you need two of everything: car seats, baby grows and cots.

Happily, help is on hand. Chelsea and John’s boys are the family’s first grandchildren on Chelsea’s side, so her two big sisters and parents are particularly keen to sign up for regular baby-sitting duties.

The family’s weekends are mainly taken up with keeping their tribe entertained: LOTS of trips to the local playground, adventures looking for sticks in the wood and tiring the tribe out at soft play centres.

But it’s the little moments that really delight their parents. Chelsea told me that when the twins were in the bath recently, they just turned towards each other and started smiling and laughing.

I saw the twins’ connection for myself during their first birthday shoot with me, and it really is something special to see. The older brothers love making them smile, and you can already see how much the twins look up to them. As soon as they are able to crawl, they’ll be following George and Harrison around like little ducklings 🙂

It goes to show that sometimes the things you didn’t plan for turn out to be the best thing that could happen.

“We weren’t expecting twins at all,” John told me, “but now we wouldn’t change our family for the world.”

After our shoot, Chelsea said:

“We couldn’t have wished for more beautiful pictures of our boys. We absolutely love all of the photos Sarah has taken. We would definitely recommend Sarah, an amazing experience from start to finish.”

Chelsea, First birthday photoshoot client from Bicester, Oxfordshire

If you’d like to book your child’s first birthday photoshoot, or if you have any questions about family photography with me, please get in contact.

Sarah Plater LMPA is an award-winning, qualified, professional family portrait photographer based in Bicester, Oxfordshire. She is the Master Photographers Association Newborn Photographer of the Year 2019 for the Central Region (covering Oxfordshire, Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire).