First, thank you all who came back after we went dark yesterday to protest SOPA and PIPA. It was a last minute decision so I apologize for not posting a warning, but I felt it was important to support something Mike and I believe in. Though I didn’t see any other house blogs go dark, if these laws passed we would without a doubt be affected, if we could even exist. So thanks for your understanding 🙂

On to the fun! I always knew that when I got pregnant I would want to chronicle the growth of my belly. Some people cringe at this thought and believe me, my self-esteem is not at its highest right now. But I felt that some day I would look back at these pictures and be thankful that I documented this time. I chose to take a photo every 5 weeks so that it would be frequent enough to capture growth, but not so frequent as to be difficult to maintain. Plus 5 weeks is easier to measure than months, which vary depending on how you count them.

I decided to wear something as simple and classic as possible– and to wear the same outfit in each photo. I felt that this way, the picture would be timeless and it would be easier to see how much my belly has grown. I also decided to stand against a white wall and make all of the pictures black and white, to adjust for any differences in lighting, skin color, etc. I started by buying a one size larger black tee from Old Navy and paired it with my boyfriend fit jeans from American Eagle.

And all together now!

Things I did not anticipate:

1. Getting the WORLD’S WORST HAIRCUT during week 10.

My hairstylist is out on maternity leave and I took whoever was available. I asked her to take an inch off of the ‘do in week 5 (which was longer by week 10). She did that funny mom cut to my head, which I tried to hide with a flowered headband. And that’s a flattering picture of it. It was missing chunks all over and I was forced to pin back layers to hide it through week 20. I’ve been told it’s going to take a total of nearly 6 months just to straighten out the mess she made. Getting a haircut while pregnant was not a smart idea, bad enough my clothes are not fitting, now my head looks funny too!

2. Not liking my outfit.

Black shirt and jeans? Perfect, right? The truth was even in my 5 week photo when I wasn’t showing, this wasn’t an outfit I’d leave the house in. I usually always wear layers and would probably never just throw on jeans and a black tshirt without some kind of tank top showing or accessories. I also I bought the shirt a size larger and it was awkwardly baggy. I probably should have worn something fitted so that it was more obvious when my stomach grew and it hugged me in the right places. Plus I worked at Chili’s when I was in college and guess what the uniform was? Black shirt and dark jeans…I swear I haven’t worn the same combo since. I don’t think I would necessarily change the uniform concept I had though, just maybe spend more time finding something I liked more.

3. Needing maternity jeans after week 20

I thought those American Eagle jeans were in it for the long haul. RIP guys 🙁 Not that big of a deal though, I don’t think the denim swap will be noticable in future pictures.

4. Painting my photo wall

I was taking pictures in the new office every week, until we painted it dark blue. We had to squeeze into a white wall in the sitting room of our master and it actually worked out. The lighting seemed to be much better from the new angle.

I waited to share this idea until I started showing. I am actually 24 weeks now and I will need to add another photo the to the collection next week. I’m debating whether or not to change it up for the second half of my pregnancy… Maybe I’ll do a picture in my current favorite maternity outfit? Or start to accessorize the black shirt and jeans combo? I doubt that I’ll abandon the outfit all together, if for nothing other than to document for myself. Maybe I’ll do more than 1 picture every 5 weeks. Maybe strike a new pose or something. We shall see 🙂