BECKHAM’S MATERNITY PHOTOS + TULLE SKIRT

Beckham’s maternity photos are some of my all time favorites. With both Leo and Beckham, I waited until the very last minute to take these pictures. I almost considered not doing a maternity shoot this time (typical second child lol) but I am so glad I decided to do it. I was 38 weeks pregnant here. I’ll forever cherish these sweet moments with our growing family.

Funny story…

Jennifer Mathews is my friend and photographer who took these images. We were texting back and forth one day about the vibe I wanted for this shoot. I told her: “something casual… you know like lay a blanket out at the park and just capture whatever happens as we play as a family.”

I then thought, “oh gosh – what is going to fit me?! And, what can I find within in a few days?” I had the same dilemma with Leo and decided to order THIS dress off Amazon for his shoot. I jumped on Amazon again to look for a maternity dress. I ended up purchasing THIS tulle skirt with a satin ribbon. 

I texted Jenn… “Me: let’s do something casual at the park with a blanket. Also Me: buys tulle maxi skirt with a satin bow.” Vibe changed. We still went with the park and the contrast of the casual nature scene with the more formal skirt turned out so gorgeous.

I was really hesitant about ordering this tulle skirt off Amazon. The skirt comes in so many colors but I knew I wanted a soft blue. I decided to purchase a much larger than I thought I would need, thinking I could always take it in. For reference, I am normally a size 0 but purchased this skirt in a size 10. It has an elastic waist and fit perfectly above my bump. 

The quality was much better than I expected. It wasn’t at all sheer. I am 5’7″ and was worried about it being too short. It just touched the ground. If you are shorter… I think the extra length would actually look even better (kind of like a train on a wedding dress). I did steam it prior to the shoot to get out any wrinkles. For $40 and Amazon Prime, I was blown away. FYI – I found and bought this with my own money but loved it so much I wanted to share a lot about it.

Alrighty… onto the photos and after I shared a little recap of my pregnancy with Baby #2

photos by Jennifer Mathews Photography

HOW I FOUND OUT I WAS PREGNANT: just like with baby #1, baby #2 it was another midnight pregnancy test. I exclusively pumped with Leo until he was 1 year old. Sorry if this is TMI… my cycle returned but was not yet regular while I was still feeding so “being late” wasn’t any indication of pregnancy.
Anthony and I decided that when Leo was about 1 year old, we would start “being open” to the idea of  baby #2 aka no prevention. BUT, we decided we would stay low stress about it. When we tried to conceive with Leo, we got into all the ovulation days, the stick tests, the tracking, the apps (it becomes a lot and a negative pregnancy test can feel devastating). We wanted this to be different.
So, we decided to start tying earlier and not worry about all the ovulation stuff. Well, I guess that recommendation everyone gives you on “don’t stress, just enjoy” works because baby #2 was confirmed a week BEFORE Leo’s 1st birthday. Beckham was conceived on our first attempt while Leo took us several months.
One night before bed, Anthony said, “I think you should just take a pregnancy test.” I was actually blown away he was asking because the idea that our no stress, no tracking approach would even work so quickly was far from what I thought would happen. Well… I dug 2 tests out from the back of my bathroom drawer and they both read PREGNANT! We couldn’t believe it! It was actually very fun finding out and feeling surprised!

HOW WE SHARED THE NEWS: Leo’s 1st birthday was the week after we found out and my parents, Anthony’s parents and his brother would all be in town to celebrate. We thought it was the perfect time to share the news! We share on Leo’s actual birthday. We had a cake made that should have read “Happy Birthday Leo” but instead read “Baby #2 arriving February.” 
We enjoyed Leo’s birthday dinner at our home and Anthony went to go get the cake to bring to the table. When he put it down, everyone gasped. They were so surprised and happy! We cried happy tears and sang to Leo over a baby announcement cake. Anthony set up a camera to capture everyone’s reactions and it is very special to watch back.

1ST TRIMESTER
FAVORITE PART – my favorite part of the 1st trimester was actually celebrating Leo’s 1st birthday while pregnant. At this time, just our immediate family knew the news. I one who shares nearly everything so when I hold onto special things, it feels extra special to me. Watching my baby turn 1 while having a teeny tiny one just beginning his life within me brings me to tears even now.
MOST DIFFICULT PART – without a doubt, my 1st trimester was very difficult emotionally. I was in a funk. I was so unmotivated. I felt like I really lost my enthusiasm for life that normally oozes from me. It was hard mentally.

2ND TRIMESTER 
FAVORITE PART – 2nd trimester bliss is a real thing! My energy returned in the 2nd trimester and I felt like myself again. I worked out regularly. I was so into my work. I was back on my mom game. I felt like my happy, peppy self.
MOST DIFFICULT PART – there really wasn’t a most difficult part of the 2nd trimester because I just felt like me and I was so grateful to be out of that 1st trimester funk.

3RD TRIMESTER
FAVORITE PART – in the 3rd trimester, I started realizing more and more that our family of 3 would soon be a family of 4. Leo’s little world was going to change overnight. I wanted to spend as much time as possible with him, so we did a lot as a family. We turned down a lot of social things and instead focused on our little family unit. We created many amazing memories that last trimester! 
MOST DIFFICULT PART – all things physical. 2 under 2 is no joke. It was difficult to be pregnant and keep up with a toddler. Leo was 17-19 months old at this time. He wanted mama to hold him, go on walks with him, do this and that… he is a busy bee, which I love but it was difficult to keep up with. 

Pregnancy with Baby #2 was so different than my 1st pregnancy. Still, it’s the most precious experience I’ve ever had the privilege of having and I feel immensely blessed to be a mom of 2 sweet boys.

You can see my maternity photos with Leo + another Amazon maternity dress here