Maternity Photos

In the spirit of #tbt (“Throwback Thursday”) and the reflecting that comes along with Jameson’s approaching first birthday, I started going through photos taken at this time last year, and more specifically, photos from a maternity shoot we pulled together just a few weeks before Jameson was born.

There are a thousand ways to capture the lead up to a baby’s arrival. And I honestly debated whether we should spend the time and money to have photos taken, mainly because I wanted to avoid ending up with something I’d deem as cheesy or overdone. But I kept coming back to thinking about a photo hanging in my mom’s house. A photo of her standing sideways in a tent-like, brown plaid maternity shirt typical of the late-70’s/early-80’s, beaming with joy, big, beautiful curls on fleek, as she carried her first–and only–child.
I loved looking at that photo growing up, as it seemed to remind me that I was cherished before I ever entered the world. If nothing else, I wanted Jameson to have an image he can look at and feel the same thing.

So once we decided we were going to take maternity photos, my philosophy was “less is more.” Simple, mostly black and white silhouettes. Thankfully, a good friend and member of our church community, Joe, is a talented photographer who had access to the perfect studio to pull this off.

Blame it on the craze and anticipation of those last few weeks before Jameson arrived, it occurred to me that I never really shared these maternity photos as I had intended. And I love them so!

It’s hard to believe that the little guy who moves around this apartment, looking to tear things apart, was at one point packed into that stomach of mine.I look at these photos, and I’m equally touched by the love and excitement Jordan and I shared and how little we knew about how becoming parents would change things. In some hard ways, but mostly in lots of very good ways. I’m grateful to God for the significance of these moments and that we made the investment to capture them. And hopefully, one day, Jameson will cherish them as much as I do.