Forty weeks and six days is how long our little baby lived in my belly.

Forty weeks and six days ago, I instagrammed the photo on the left and said:
Belly update! 40 weeks in, sitting crossed legged (on my bolster), not a stretch mark in sight and playing the waiting game.

To be honest, I got Tim to take this photo as a bit of a decoy. I’d been counting down the days until we met our little baby and as the weeks got closer stopped counting (on Instagram). This photo was to give us time and ward of suspicion that things were happening.

Because this photo was taken when I was in labour and in between contractions. This is how I was the whole day, I used my labour toolkit and focused on each breath, contraction and down time.

I’m smiling in this photo because that’s how I felt. I was excited, I was happy and I was me. I knew the baby was coming so a last minute belly update was a must. I love this photo because it sums up how I loved being pregnant, being in labour and giving birth.

Forty weeks and six days later I thought I’d recreate the image (after being inspired by a friend’s Instagram). I have a series of shots of our little baby on/near the bolster, another with the both of us and the one on the right. I’m wearing the same dress, seated on the same position and beaming.

These photos make me proud, smile, giggle and feel in awe of just how much these past 80 weeks have meant to me.