a year

My what a difference a year makes. You can expect to see many, many more photos from our latest shoot with Gui in the coming days. Consider this the preview.

maternity photography: Ellen

This is only my second maternity shoot being on the other side of the camera, and I loved it. Ellen was right at the end of her pregnancy and it was a delight to shoot her and her belly. She was in such a good place, calm and happy and, of course, looking forward to meeting her baby boy. Exactly 2 days after these photos were taken, Ellen and Regan welcomed their second son into the world… Finn Manaia Arthur. Belinda was there to capture the birth, so hopefully she'll share some of those shots on her blog soon.

Congratulations again Ellen, Regan and Noah!

my blessingway

 

Before I post about Clementine's birth and first week, I have to rewind a bit to the week before she was born. During my pregnancy I knew I wanted to do something to mark my passage into motherhood and celebrate the journey of pregnancy and birth, but I just couldn't see myself having a baby shower. I can't remember how or where I first heard about blessingways, but when I did I knew instantly that was what I wanted. I ordered myself Mother Rising: The Most Complete Guide to Blessingways and got thinking about the day - who to invite, what we should do, the gift debate etc.

In the end, I chose two friends to help organise the day: one friend helped with all of the planning (making invites, taking RSVP's, buying flowers, cleaning my house and more) while the other would guide the blessingway. I gave each of them a copy of the book so they could plan it without me; the actual elements of the ritual should be a surprise to the mum to be on the day. I was also lucky enough to have the wonderful Belinda snap a few photos on the day. They were truly the perfect friends for the job.

On a Sunday afternoon, at 38 weeks pregnant, we gathered in my home. Friends from yoga, university, blogging, husband's school friends and even my doula came along. My friend Katie guided us through a beautiful ritual that I will always remember. Afterword, we ate some of my favourite foods and sat on the floor and talked about life, babies, pregnancy, and friends. It sounds lame, but my heart felt so full and I felt so supported by my Sydney community. One week later I went into labour and text messages were sent - everyone who had come went home with a candle that they were to light when they heard I was in labour. It made me smile to think of everyones' candles burning away while I worked so hard to have our baby.

All photos by Belinda from Billy & August
p.s. a great article that Jodi wrote on blessingways

bump: 37 weeks

On the weekend, my husband and I got to spend some time with Gui and Michaela of Gui Jorge Photography. We strolled through Parsley Bay while Michaela and Gui snapped photos all the while chatting about expat life, travel, family, weddings and babies. I even got to pick both of their brains for photography advice. They are a seriously awesome (and crazy good looking) couple. Not only did they take these photos for us, they gave us the sweetest baby gifts, perfect for bringing bub home in. Last night Gui emailed me the photos and I kind of wanted to cry. These are so special to me for so many reasons.

 

In so beautifully capturing this special time in our lives they remind me how blessed we are. We're on the threshold of such a big change that it can be hard to stay present and grounded. It's hard for us to imagine what it will be like to meet our baby for the first time, to see its face and hear its coos. And of course there are worries too... Will we be good parents? Will the birth go ok? How will we know what to do? The truth is that we don't know, but we'll be fine.

I also feel so grateful that Michaela and Gui snapped some sneaky photos of my husband and I. Other than our wedding photos, we have hardly any pictures of the two of us as one of us is usually behind the camera. My friend was looking through them today and she pointed one out as her favourite. I asked her why and she said it was because of the look of adoration on my husband's face, a look that cannot be faked.

 

The other thing I love about these photos is my dress. Like I said before, these photos are special for so many reasons! One of my favourite yoga students happens to be a talented designer with a label called Wonders Cease. She came to class one day with this beautiful dress wrapped in white tissue paper; a gift for me, just because.

 

These are some of my favourites (ok, lots of my favourites) but in case you want to see even more photos of my belly, you can check out Gui's blog. Michaela and Gui - I seriously cannot thank you enough. We can't wait to hang out again soon.

makeup by Liv Lundelius
dress by Wonders Cease
photography by Gui Jorge

bump: 36 weeks

 

 

This weekend we headed to the blue mountains hoping for cooler weather and a quiet day. But even at altitude, our indian summer continues and the mountains were not only hot, they were bustling with people. We had a wonderful time though (I'll blog the rest of our day later this week) and found a great spot to take this week's bump photos.

36 weeks. When I look at these shots I'm amazed at my bump - it's huge! It's hard to believe that the baby and the belly will be growing more, but I'm sure they will. On our drive home last night we were talking about how the baby seems like a real person now, with a personality. Bub reacts to loud noises, pushes back when you press its feet, has certain times of day when s/he wakes up and treats us to some acrobatics, and doesn't like to let me sleep on my right side. The closer we get to meeting the little one, the more excited we become. Next month, next month we'll be parents...

bump: 34 weeks

A late beach bump today. I'm actually 35 weeks now, but let's just rewind a bit shall we... The lovely Belinda and I took advantage of the glorious Easter weather to snap these at Dee Why last week. Now our days are finally cooling down, but I'm sure I'll still have a few opportunities to bare my white belly to the sun in these last few weeks.

So yes, we're in single digits now people. I could give birth in 2 weeks, or in 7. Let's hope it's somewhere in between the two because we are definitely not ready to bring a baby home in a fortnight, but another 7 weeks of gestating may actually break my back. These days by 4 pm I'm full on waddling. It's pretty hot.

The little one seems to grow stronger by the day. We can watch its little feet kicking from my belly button to my ribs, over and over again. Another favourite trick is to press both feet hard into my ribs and push its bottom up as high as possible. Though its sometimes just plain uncomfortable, its mostly endearing. A beautiful affirmation that baby is healthy and strong.

p.s. thanks again Belinda, I love them!

bump: 32 weeks

We took these photos last night, when the husband was tired from work and I was tired from the constant jack hammering going on in the construction pit next door. We were both a bit grumpy, which is why I'm extra glad that I have some lovely ladies who have offered to shoot my bump over the coming weeks. Husband can have a well-deserved break from being my photographer.

To be honest, it's not quite 9am and I'm feeling grumpy again thanks to those aforementioned jack hammers waking me up nice and early this morning after a terrible night's sleep. I think I'll make myself some tea and read through my Calmbirth book. Despite my whinging, we did have a lovely weekend. The two of us drove to Bowral on Friday night to attend Calmbirth with Peter Jackson. We stayed at the sweetest B&B, where we relished having a king sized bed, a body pillow, and the kind of quiet you only get in the country.

Saturday and Sunday were spent with a group of other couples, preparing for our upcoming births. Peter's wisdom and gentle encouragement was exactly what we needed. Husband came away with a greater sense of what to expect on b-day (as Peter calls it) and the tools to be a wonderful support person. I came away feeling excited to birth our baby. Eight more weeks...

p.s. Check out Jodi's blog today to see some photos that Luisa snapped of our lunch date in Surry Hills...