Exhausted Parents Adorably Fall Asleep During Baby’s Photoshoot

It’s no secret that most new parents are seriously sleep-deprived. In those first few weeks (or months), uninterrupted sleep becomes a far away dream and most parents are lucky if they can rest for a couple of hours. That was the case with first-time parents Cindhi and Ross Davis when they took their newborn son, Theodore, to his photoshoot—and, now, the couple is going viral for the most relatable reason.

The couple, from Columbus, Georgia, had arranged a shoot with Simply Joyful Moments Photography and were excited to work with photographer Sarah Jankowski. “It was the first time I’d been out of the house since the hospital. I was so excited I got to wash my hair and put on normal clothes,” Cindhi told TODAY Parents during an interview.

During the shoot, Ross took a seat on the couch in Jankowski’s studio, saying he wanted to sit and rest for a few minutes. The exhausted mom and dad were out within minutes. “I remember leaning into my husband and thinking, ‘I’m just going to sit here and watch the shoot.’ That was my last thought,” Cindhi told the outlet. “Next thing I know, Sarah is like, ‘It’s done!’ And I was like, ‘What? What do you mean it’s done?’ I had passed out cold. It was the first bit of uninterrupted sleep we’d had since Theo was born.”

While the parents slept, Jankowski put the newborn into poses and conducted the shoot. Her assistant, Amanda Walker, decided to capture the scene, and the photo quickly went viral on Facebook.

“This makes my heart smile. Being a new Mommy and Daddy is hard exhausting work!” one person commented on the photo, while another wrote, “That is the truest newborn family photo session I have ever seen.”

According to Jankowski, many parents often fall asleep in the studio. “When parents come in, it’s usually when the baby is one or two weeks old. I’ve got a white noise (machine) going and I keep the room nice and warm. You put all those factors together and it’s a recipe for a nice comfy nap,” she told the outlet. “[Ross and Cindhi] just looked so adorably snuggled up and completely out. When they woke up 45 minutes later, they were like, ‘We needed that so much.’”