New mom Laura Izumikawa is absolutely exhausted. The reason: Instead of sleeping when her baby daughter sleeps, she stages elaborate pop culture-inspired photo shoots and shares them on Instagram.
In Joey’s four months, she has appeared as everyone from Sia (complete with her trademark wig!) to Game of Thrones’ Jon Snow and Disney’s Cinderella. But the most popular pic: Joey as waffle-loving Eleven from Netflix’s sci-fi hit Stranger Things.
“Joey’s woken up a few times but is never pissed or upset,” Izumikawa tells Us Weekly. “She usually flashes me a smile and either goes back to sleep or is ready to play. I’m always thinking about how best to make her feel comfortable and not bother her with any of this, but so far she’s been great and happy.”
Izumikawa tells Us she has a special system for getting the perfect shot. “I dress Joey in the main outfit first while she’s still awake,” says the L.A.-based photographer. Then once the infant is in dreamland, she adds the props. “I lift one of her arms and drop it to see if she flinches,” explains Izumikawa. “If she doesn’t, which is usually the case at the first attempt, then I continue.”
It helps that Joey is a “chill” baby. “The other day I took her to a girls’ movie night and she sat on my lap and watched an 18th-century romance flick with all of us like a grown woman,” raves the proud mama.
Next up, Izumikawa wants to try Princess Leia and Ellen DeGeneres.
