Ever since I had a baby, Mother’s Day became one of my favorite holidays. It’s that one day when all our hard work and sacrifices as moms are appreciated and recognized, so I’ve been really looking forward to it!
Last year’s Mother’s Day was extra special for me simply because it was my first! At that time, Andi was only 4 months old, and I was still fairly new at this whole motherhood thing. I had just given birth, and I was still in that stage where I was figuring things out, second guessing myself, afraid of making mistakes, and struggling with different issues that come with being a new mom (e.g. breastfeeding woes, sleepless nights, baby’s non-stop crying and fussing, etc.).
It was also that time when Baby Dove approached me, as well as 70 other new moms, to say that they would like to give us a lovely gift for Mother’s Day: a photo shoot to capture our ‘real mom’ moments with our babies. Through this shoot, their aim is to remind us moms that we don’t need to compare ourselves to other moms, that we should always trust our way when it comes to caring for and raising our babies, and that we don’t have to succumb to the pressure of being the perfect parent because THERE ARE NO PERFECT MOMS, JUST REAL ONES.
Baby Dove collaborated with Little Heartbeat Photography, who took our beautiful photos. Jayjay and Feliz Lucas, the husband-and-wife team behind Little Heartbeat, were such a joy to work with. They weren’t just taking photos. They were even conversing with me, asking me questions such as “What do you love about your husband?” and “What’s a typical day like for you?” They were also very patient with Andi, who was a bit cranky at that time. (I think she was sleepy!) They even waited patiently when Andi had to stop a few times to feed.
Staying true to their goal of portraying motherhood as it really is, Baby Dove and Little Heartbeat captured us in our most natural and real state. Even my clothes, my hair style, and my very light and barely there make-up which was wonderfully done by Jasmine Mendiola, were all very simple and natural. Baby Dove and Little Heartbeat wanted our true selves to come out in the photos. In my case, since I am both a working mom (I am a freelance event host) and a hands-on stay-at-home mom, they took shots of me working on my laptop while looking after Andi.
When I’m not in front of my laptop answering hosting inquiries or writing a blog post, I just spend my days taking care of Andi. We stay in bed and horse around, we play, we cuddle, we kiss, we nap together, or sometimes, I just stare at her and find myself being in awe of her. Those simple but happy and sweet moments were also caught on camera.
Since Andi was a newborn and even until now, most of my hours and days are probably spent breastfeeding this little girl with a big appetite! Like I mentioned earlier, we had to pause a few times during the shoot because Andi was hungry. And because breastfeeding is such a huge part of my motherhood journey, Little Heartbeat took photos of me feeding Andi too. I usually make her latch directly, but for the shoot, I chose to feed her my expressed breast milk with her Pigeon bottle because my jumpsuit wasn’t breastfeeding-friendly! It’s okay, she didn’t mind one bit.
My beautiful mum-in-law came with us to the shoot to be Andi’s personal assistant and we even got a photo together, all three of us!
I used to get ready for work by putting on makeup with one hand and holding Andi with the other hand (usually while feeding her). Moms are master multi-taskers, for sure! The next few photos show just that. Look at how Andi is just observing me while I do my face! So cute!
Andi doesn’t have a room of her own, so I was thrilled that we got to shoot in a dreamy nursery adorned with lovely pieces of furniture and accessories by Incy Rooms and some pretty toys by Finn & Emma. It was so beautiful! I wish Andi had a nursery like this! Her favorite things in the room were the wooden play gym with hanging toys, as well as the comfy blue couch that looked like a knitted bean bag.
This is how ‘real’ this shoot was: Andi pooped and it was also caught on camera (but don’t worry, it still came out beautifully and was not at all disgusting. Haha!) Aside from breastfeeding, changing nappies is one of the things I do ALL THE TIME so yes, it just had to be part of the shoot. Of course we used Baby Dove wipes to clean the mess. I love these wipes so much! They smell so good but at the same time, they’re really gentle on baby’s skin.
We even had some bath time shots! I absolutely love these shots of me and Andi! They’re so simple and fuss-free but they look so beautiful and clean, and from these photos, it’s easy to see how close Andi and I are and how much I adore her. She’s extra cute in these photos too! Wahhh! I miss her being this tiny!!!
This photo shoot is such a wonderful gift and I will treasure these photos forever. A big thanks to Baby Dove for making my first Mother’s Day a memorable one, and of course, for reminding us moms that we are all doing a fantastic job with our children, and that we are the best moms for them.
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