Saturday, January 21, 2012

diy photoshoot

like any other pregnant mommy, i'd want a professional to capture images of me and my tummy. but, i thought to myself, why not make my own photoshoot? 

so i did. :D and you can do it yourself, too!

here's a list of what you need:

a good camera
tripod
room with wide windows
time (between 9am-11am)
cloth (big enough to use as costume)
cloth (bigger enough to use as background)
masking tape
and last but not the least, an assistant a.k.a. your photographer (in my case, my niece - who was also my hair stylist)

i fixed my room a bit and turned it into a makeshift studio. prepped everything then worked on me - took a quick bath, put on make-up (while my niece was braiding my hair), wore my bandeau and cycling shorts, then figured out how to wear the cloth.

one quick tip before you do this: check out some pegs. i didn't get to see any inspiration before we started so it was pretty much an anything-goes shoot. but it turned out great! i just need to install photoshop and edit the pix.

check out the unedited photos from my diy shoot!






and here i am with my niece ayel, who was really helpful and game!



the pix just need editing and they're good to go! whatcha think? :D 

total cost: php20 for the white cloth (the bigger cloth is a blanket, hihi).

Friday, January 6, 2012

keep walking

no, my post is not about drinking and getting drunk (although it is the tagline of one popular alcoholic drink). i literally just want to remind all pregnant women out there to keep walking!

walk! yes, walk! it's the simplest and can be the best form of exercise for pregnant women.

i am on my 32nd week and i weigh 117 lbs! i've only gained around 20 lbs but guess what? my baby's weight is in the average range. ;-) everything is a-ok!

one thing i track whenever i walk is my sweat. weird? well, it's just that i make sure i walk a lot but not to the point i'll sweat or tire myself out. i'm pretty much following what the doctor ordered: walk as tolerated. 

although i feel hot a lot, i just find it easier to walk even with a big belly. my balance is not off unlike my 1st pregnancy where i had to walk like a duck. haha! plus, i don't easily get tired.

since i missed being "tall", i wore wedges today at work (and i just wanted to show off my legs, hihi). a lot of my colleagues were protesting but i assured them i'd be ok.




 i don't know what i was doing here, but i'm posting it anyway. hahaha!





super adore my new shoes! 3 and a half inches, i think - and i never wobbled! balance. balance. balance! thanks to minutes of walking. wanna see a close-up of my shoes? :D




so again let me say to you, keep walking! 

but please, don't walk to lose weight, that's a big no-no during pregnancy. unless of course your ob-gyne gave you the go signal. in any form of activity, always get your doctor's green light. :)

Thursday, January 5, 2012

wear it proud

when i was pregnant with uno, i bought several pieces of clothing from different maternity stores. BIG mistake! looking back at how i dressed up then, i feel like i missed out on a lot. i should have showed-off my tummy more and let others see that pregnant women are sexy!

i also realized that the items i bought were actually expensive and they were really unflattering! that is why with my current pregnancy, i only have 1 piece of maternity wear - the 1 pair of jeans i bought during my first. yep, recycled. but i don't think i'd even wear it again. i remember the garter to be really annoying and itchy. so it's probably just going to hang in my closet, hehe.

one thing that my friends noticed about the way i dress now is that i almost always cinch my outfit with a belt. like i said, i want my tummy to be the focal point of my get-up. so belts play a big role in emphasizing my tummy. ;-)








most of my "maternity" clothes were bought from regular women's stores... some even from the teens' department. haha, oh yeah! the top i'm wearing today can actually double as a dress, without the preggy belly of course. that means after i give birth, i can still definitely use this top. 

all i do is just get 1 or 2 sizes higher. i'm a size small, so i just get either a medium (if from a lady's store) or large size (if from a retail store for teens). but you'd be surprised! there are times i can still get away with a small sized item. like the dress i was wearing in this post or the dress i wore to our year-end party:




 i was 28 weeks at the time of the party and that's a size small. nice, right? rockin' mommy, rockin' body! woot! lol

so you see, you don't really need to spend on maternity clothes. buy regular clothes that you think will grow with you and your tummy. make sure to get ones with stretchy and cool fabric. i say, a pair of maternity jeans is not really necessary. leggings are more comfortable for me and less-straining.

and don't forget that comfort is always the key. if you're not comfortable with an item or let's say it's tight, don't bother. you might end up not wearing them...until probably after you give birth. or even a few months after you give birth. ;-)

i'm back with a bump

happy new year!

wow. it's been how many months since i last posted something. but i am now back and yes, pregnant again!

i've been quiet about my pregnancy but when i finally announced it, here's what i posted on my facebook account:





i am actually already towards the last stretch of my 31st week. whew! time flies by so fast and i only have a few more weeks to go before the big day!

can't wait to post a lot of things about my 2nd pregnancy. although, i feel bad about not being able to post about uno's milestones. :( i'll squeeze in as much info as i can.

all i can say is, things are a lot different compared to when i was pregnant with uno. and one of them is my new motto: say no to frumpy clothing! haha! i mean, seriously. i was heavier with uno and my clothes were totally unflattering. so this time around, i want that sexy-preggy look. in fact, i actually feel sexier with my tummy and all. so why not flaunt it, right?

most of the time, i make sure my tummy is the focal point of the outfit. that equates to tight clothing - but not too tight that my tummy (and baby) can't breathe.


 


ain't it more beautiful when you're just loud and proud of your tummy? :) my friends refer to it as my "traffic power." hahaha! it's 'coz i find it easier to cross roads with my preggy belly protruding and all.

oh, let's not forget the other elements of the outfit: accessories. i just feel naked without them!




sorry about that doorknob. hihi...

well, what do you think? (also, would that be my official pregnant pose? "turn to the side and put one hand on your waist, the other supporting the belly." hahaha! too early to tell, maybe. we'll see...)

dressing up for two doesn't mean having to wear frumpy clothes. i say, wear it loud and bring on the bling! ;-)

that's all for now. i hope i get to blog daily. i've got a lot of things to share about this 2nd pregnancy, so watch out for that!
 
but before i finally go, here's a glimpse of my little water dragon:
 
 



nice nose, right? =D and yes, his chinese zodiac sign is the water dragon, which is said to be very lucky! uno's a tiger and my 2nd baby's going to be a dragon. my own version of: crouching tiger, hidden dragon. haha!

more of my tummy, being a mommy, and my babies in my next posts. please stay tuned!