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LOS ANGELES — A California mom uses her baby daughter’s naptime to create characters, scenes and costumes that are straight out of a dreamland.
At just 4 months old, little Joey Marie Choi has hundreds of thousands of adoring fans on social media. That’s because her mom, photographer Laura Izumikawa, has taken advantage of her peaceful slumber to dress her girl in a parade of colorful, creative and often hilarious costumes — totally unbeknownst to the star of her little show.
“Because Joey slept so deeply, I thought it would be fun adding a little props on her just to send some hilarious pictures to our parents,” Izumikawa told Huffington Post. “It was a way to memorialize her growth and little milestones.”
Izumikawa waits until little Joey falls asleep for her afternoon nap, and then the magic happens. The process requires intense creativity, planning and execution.
Little Joey has transformed into Pikachu, Cinderella, Run DMC, Beyonce, Princess Leia and Bjork. She’s also taken on several day jobs, such as an In-N-Out server, an Olympic swimmer, a lumberjack, a sushi chef and an aerobics instructor.
Izumikawa posts daily captures of her creations on her Instagram account. Now, nearly 290,000 fans tune in to see what little Joey will become next.
“Initially when I started getting a ton of online attention, there was a bit of a mother-bear type of panic, and I thought about stopping,” she told Huffington Post. “But then I started receiving messages from countless people who said that the photos and videos were the highlight of their day and for some, a thing they enjoy to watch with their kids.”
To add to the enjoyment factor, Izumikawa often posts behind-the-scenes videos — showing how she’s able to transform her sleeping infant into an Apple store employee without waking her.
“I hope that these photos and videos will make people smile and also remind parents to have fun with their kids and not get too caught up in the seriousness of parenting,” she told HuffPost.
