Week 21: My Maternity Shoot

This week, I finally managed to calm down a bit. Little L went to nursery again, which gave me some time to relax, to do some Christmas preparations and to write 🙂 On Saturday, I had my first pregnancy shoot ever! Well, it was more of a family shoot than a pregnancy shoot actually cause we really wanted some nice pics with Luca as well. I’m very excited to share this experience with you in this post 😉

The symptoms I am supposed to have in week 21 (and how I am really feeling)

• Tiredness: I’ve read that exercising on a regular basis could help you feel more energized. I’m talking about the right kind of exercises of course; those that are suitable for pregnant women. Hmm, I will be very honest with you. Since I have found out that I was pregnant again I haven’t done any kind of sport. Like nothing at all. I have to admit that it comes as the last point on my to-do-list. No, worse… It’s not even on it. But I’d like to think that running after a super active toddler and doing some nice walks with the stroller is enough?! The second recommendation for pregnant women you usually find in books and on websites is “have a rest”. I actually managed to lay down once or twice this week while Luca was napping. Will try to keep that up. Definitely easier to realize than exercising haha 😉
• Time for maternity stockings or tights: Apparently, it is oh so good to wear maternity stockings or tights when you’re in the second trimester… They help prevent vein-related problems (varicose veins or spider veins) as well as aching feet / legs and water retention. I don’t doubt that. Really. But: we live in Dubai… And even though it is getting a bit windy and slightly colder, we still have around 25 degrees! So, definitely no maternity stockings for me! I prefer to eat plenty of citrus fruits, kiwis, berries, tomatoes and spinach to prevent the appearance of varicose veins 😉 (as suggested by pregnancy coach Andrea Balazs)
• Sensitive gums: Gums can become swollen and tender and bleed when you brush your teeth during pregnancy. This is due to the higher progesterone levels that can cause a reaction to the bacteria in plaque. Apparently, now is a good time to make an appointment with my dentist. Having said that, I have not been to the dentist once in my first pregnancy and I am not sure if I need to go this time… No sensitive gums so far. No problem with my teeth neither. Thankfully 😉

Little Miss M
This week, we went (a little bit late) for the 20-week scan. A quite important one as it looks in detail at Miss M’s organs to see if they are developing normally. The placenta and volume of the amniotic fluid are also checked. We were super happy to hear that everything was normal and that our little Miss was doing fine.

Now that Miss M is a bit bigger (approx. the length of a big carrot and about 370gr), it is really easy to detect her movements. I’ve read that it was possible to discover some kind of pattern in the baby’s activity by now. Oh my… I think I do, yes…. She is very active super late in the evening and super early in the morning. I hope that this is no preview of how it will be when she will be born! Cause Luca was very quiet at night when he was still in my belly and has been a quite good sleeper ever since. Let’s wait and see.

This week’s topic

Some nice memories for later
I’ve always wanted to do a pregnancy shoot. But when I was pregnant with little L I kind of forgot about it. First, I was too busy at work and then I was… well, super big haha. I didn’t feel comfortable having someone taking pics of me and my belly at 30+ weeks. I know that many women prefer to do it at the end when the belly really shows (and photographers actually advise you not to do the shoot too early as, otherwise, you might just look big and not pregnant on the photos), but it depends on your body. I had a quite impressive baby bump at the end of my first pregnancy and I am already having a quite big belly now. So, I decided to plan early this time.

There are so many beautiful pictures of maternity shoots on the Internet. I really love the ones that focus on a woman’s silhouette as well as the underwater shoots.

Souce: Pinterest

Source: Pinterest

Maybe I will still be able to do one of these a bit later in my pregnancy but, for now, we wanted to get some nice pictures of us three and a half as a family. Some pictures that would also remind us of the fact that we were living in Dubai when I was pregnant with Miss M. But nothing too touristy. Some pictures that would show us as a family. The way we really are. Not too styled. No matching outfits. No special poses. Just us.

That’s when I came across Yuliya Boroday’s work. The first thing I realized was that her pictures never looked posed or unnatural. Quite the opposite. She is an artist that knows how to capture the magic of a very special moment in just one click. Her pictures tell stories. And this is exactly what I was looking for.

Photo taken by Yuliya Boroday

I sent her a short email and we decided to meet and discuss the shoot over a cup of coffee (well, a lemon-ginger lemonade for me as I barely couldn’t smell coffee at that time 😉 ). After one hour of chatting about our kids, playing “peek-a-boo” with little L and discussing our lives in Dubai, I simply knew that I wanted to work with Yuliya. We decided to wait a little bit until my bump would show a bit more (the beginning of the 5th month seemed perfect in my case) and to meet mid-December in Al Bastakiya with little L and my lovely (photo shoot hating) husband.

It has always been pretty obvious to me that we should do the photo shoot in Al Bastakiya, Dubai’s oldest neighborhood. I absolutely love its historical buildings, its art galleries and hidden courtyards. Plus, it rarely gets too crowded and you can always find a bit of shade here. Al Bastakiya shows another side of Dubai. A calmer one. I really appreciate this side of Dubai as well. By the way, when you go there, make a stop at XVA Café, which is part of an arty boutique hotel, (Instagram: xvagallery) and enjoy one of their delicious cheesecakes – definitely one of the best I’ve ever tasted! Or try one of their other vegetarian dishes that are just as yummy.

But back to our photo shoot. We met Yuliya in Bur Dubai last Saturday, early in the morning (like really, really early for a Saturday morning haha). The start in the day was a bit hectic. We needed to wake little L up (obviously, he wanted to sleep longer that day 😉 ), had a super quick breakfast and rushed into the car. While Luca was an angel the day before (he played for over an hour at where we had a breakfast with the lovely girls from and even danced at the brunch we had afterwards with my husband’s work colleagues), he put on the grumpiest of his faces on the day of the photo shoot… Of course, the stress didn’t help. I tried to play peek-a-boo and every other imaginable toddler game on the way to Bur Dubai… but nothing helped.

When we arrived at Al Bastakiya he still didn’t give a hint of a smile. Luckily, Yuliya has two young kids herself and managed to stay cool. She also had some great ideas that only a photographer who is a mum herself can have: for example, she had some nursery rhythms on her phone. When she took pics of little L, she held her mobile with the music up – worked like a treat! I don’t even know why I hadn’t thought of it myself! She also advised us to bring Luca’s favorite toys and snacks (and plenty of water to drink of course).

I’m not saying that doing a photo shot with a grumpy 16-months old is a piece of cake (little L even managed to break a piece of his front tooth during the shoot…!) but a great photographer that stays relaxed, happy and playful with the kids makes the whole situation so much easier. After some time, Luca was getting happier and more and more playful – until it was nap time that is haha

Here’s some lessons I’ve learned during the shoot that might be interesting if you’re ever planning to do a maternity shoot (or any other family shoot 😉 ) with a toddler in tow:

• Meet your photographer in person before the shoot. Together with your toddler. See how he reacts and see if and how the photographer interacts with your kid. Little L was a big fan of Yuliya from the first moment he saw her. She really is great with kids and that’s so important.
• When you meet your photographer, take the time to explain what you want. What kind of pictures do you want? What kind of feeling do you want to convey? Why do you want to do this shoot? For whom? If possible, show some pictures of other (maternity) shoots that you like.
• Obviously, you would want to talk about the package as well. What’s included in the price? Can you change outfits during the shoot? Is the photographer super rigid with timings (not very practical when you have a toddler)? How many pics will you get? Etc. etc.
• If you’re doing an outside shoot, you might want to get the pictures taken at a time when the light is favorable and there are less people around. However, don’t forget to keep in mind your little one’s meal and naptimes as well. Doing a shoot with a tired and hungry toddler might not be the best solution 😉 Also: Is he usually happier in the morning or afternoon? Plan accordingly.
• Bring your little one’s favorite toys but think of something that also looks great on the pictures. Little L loved to play with my hat, for example. This was very useful and looked good on the pics as well 😉
• When nothing works, yummy snacks might do the trick. For us, it was raisins (Luca is literally addicted to them! No, seriously!), O’s (O-shaped cereals), blueberries and mango juice (I try to keep the latter to a minimum as it contains a lot of sugar). Raisins for example are so small that you can’t see them on the pictures – or not a lot – and they help you keep your little one focused. It’s a special occasion and special occasions require special treats, I would say.
• No matter if you’re planning to change outfits or not, take at least one other outfit for everyone involved. With a toddler, accidents happen. And you don’t want to find out that the only dress you’ve taken for the shoot has a huge blueberry stain on it.
• Especially if you do a shoot with kids, you should not only feel pretty but also comfortable in your clothes. Oh, and take comfortable shoes!! Even more important. Carrying a 16-months old for longer periods of time (until some nice pics are taken) while wearing high heels and a short dress – and a baby bump!! – is not something your back won’t forget any soon. 
• Stay cool. Stay relaxed. That’s easy to say when you’re already stressed because of the shoot and your toddler is having a tantrum just next to you… There might be people who are totally at ease in front of the camera but I don’t think my husband and I are part of these… But it’s really important to keep calm. If you stress out, your little one will be unsettled as well. He will feel your concern and not understand what’s going on. So, try to tell yourself that it’s better to do a little break, play a bit, talk a bit and calm down from time to time rather than absolutely wanting to get the shoot done.
• Try to forget about the photographer (at least from time to time). Concentrate on your little family. Concentrate on making your toddler happy and smiley. The pictures will follow. When you are all having a great time, the photographer will take care of the rest.

I’m really happy with the pictures Yuliya has taken. Such a nice memory of my pregnancy here in Dubai 😉

If you want to see more of Yuliya’s work and get in contact with her, check out her website and .

Must haves for Miss M:
“Shhhhh… Baby’s sleeping. Please don’t ring the doorbell but knock”. We’ve installed a sign that is similar to the one below (seen on www.etsy.com) next to our doorbell since little L has been woken up by the door bell of our apartment several times.

Source: Etsy.com

In Dubai, where you get deliveries every week or so, this is really super helpful. We’ve bought ours at the last year. So, nothing new I will get for Miss M – but something I wanted to share with you 😉

xxx

Tani