My Day as a Princess

What woman does not want to feel like a princess for a day? Especially when she hasn't been feeling particularly beautiful. As most women when they are reaching the end of their pregnancy, I have been feeling large and envying the figures of not just celebrities but women who can see their feet - not to mention the feelings that come over me as I eye my fall favorites hanging in my closet. So in general I'm feeling pretty ready to have this baby!

I had not planned on doing maternity photos, but a friend of mine from work had them done in July and they looked so beautiful and natural - not like some of the ones that I have seen that look super artsy and posed. The photographer was also a good friend of hers, so I decided to give it a try. I did want to capture how I looked pregnant because of course I have had good days when the maternal glow has made me feel pretty, and I also wanted to capture the relationship between Hunter and I which not to be too cheesy, but I feel like we've been growing closer and enjoying our time as a couple more.

So I booked a session with Lisa Sinclair (from Lisa Sinclair Photography in Leesburg).

I will admit that I went back and forth wondering if I had made a good decision. Was I going to be too big to be attractive? Would the third trimester hormones make me break out like a teenager? Would I see the pictures and think what the heck was I thinking? In the end, I just decided to go with the flow. It is what it is, right? It also didn't hurt that my husband was very encouraging and always telling me how good I look- he's pretty great!

The day of our photo shoot arrived and I was feeling great and not looking too bad either (thanks to a halfway decent night of sleep). I felt like a princess because during the shoot, I was the center of attention and I got to wear new clothes (and I LOVE that feeling the first time you wear something you are really excited about). The whole experience made me feel beautiful, despite the bags under my eyes and the stretched scar tissue near my belly button. Below are some of my favorites:


I will admit that this outfit above made me slightly nervous, but I really wanted to get some fitness shots that I could use on my blog. As your pregnancy progresses, I guess you just get used to how you look that you hardly give it a second thought until you put your belly out there for everyone to see!!

She captured Hunter and I beautifully. I will treasure these last photos of just the two of us (well 2.5!). That is one thing I love about photographs- you can look at them years later and they have this magical power to transport you back to that time and place.

We did the photo shoot at our house which I think helped us come across more relaxed. I did have to dust and find places to shove the books, magazines, papers, candles, and other junk that typically lives on our nightstands.

Lisa did an awesome job of making us feel relaxed. It was really like we were having a two-hour, casual "getting to know you" conversation, and she would snap pictures here and there. I hardly had an opportunity to feel self-conscious.

Receiving the DVD with all of our photos on it was like Christmas Day. I looked through the pictures numerous times trying to pick my favorites and determine which ones would look best in the frames I bought just for them! I think if our house was on fire and I could only grab one thing I would grab as many pictures as I could. My family has no idea all the photo shoots that they are in for :)

For all of my expectant readers or even those that are planning on being pregnant in the future, please take the plunge and have maternity photos taken! I cannot recommend it enough. It is a great way to capture one of life's most precious miracles.