Words of advice from Roxy Ekhaese (RoxyFit)
I think many mama’s can relate that our little ones grow and change so quickly.
For both my boys I had this beautiful idea of having a Newborn photo shoot. To celebrate our family growing & our new little arrival. I have always loved how pictures capture small moments and that you can always have them to look back on as a family.
Unfortunately due to both my boys being in the NICU after birth this never happened for us. And instead of trying to find that moment again I always shut out the idea of it because It felt too upsetting and like I had lost the moment. We also still have a complicated situation with Keyaro’s health, which makes it difficult even now to find the time to do a photo shoot.
I have now learned that even if things in life are not exactly as you envisioned they can still be special in their own way. This is our journey as a family and there is no script.
I wanted to share a few tips for families in a similar situation to still get your special family photo shoot.
1. Make sure your photographer knows and understands your situation.
Communicate before the shoot so everyone is on the same page. This way they can guide & help everyone feel comfortable from start to finish.
2. Focus on the now & how you can make this shoot special.
Let go of comparing to other families. Like I said this is your journey as a family and it will be an inspiring story to tell your kids & show them the pictures when they are older.
3. Have the photo shoot in an environment that you all feel most relaxed in.
This way you can all be calm and get very natural photos. A tip for making the shoot more fun for our little ones- create games through out. For example tell them ‘ If you take this photo with mummy & daddy, you get to be spun in the air’. This works great for an action shot too.
4. Don’t put too much pressure on the shoot.
The more pressure you put on it the harder it will become. Kids can feel stress. Be flexible & know that when you are shooting with kids not everything will go as you want. Just know when you work with the right photographer even if it feels chaotic they will still be able to get some fabulous pictures.
5. Let your kids have a good run around before the shoot so they can get some of their crazy energy out.
And always make sure they have a nice full belly because the worst thing is to have ‘hangry’ little ones when you are trying to get them follow orders.
I am so grateful that I finally booked in a photo shoot with boy my little ones. It felt even more special to have captured these moments after all this time. Even with two crazy boys who don’t usually like having their picture taken we still got these amazing shots. We now have these gorgeous moments forever to enjoy.
—Roxy
Bio
Roxanne Ekhaese (known as Roxy Fit) is a former professional tennis player and now highly qualified personal trainer. Over the last 10 years she has built an expertise in pre and post-natal & C-Section recovery training and has a very successful online training program for new mama’s to follow & feel body and mind beautiful inside & out again. Roxy knows firsthand how challenging postpartum can be. She has had 2 C-Sections herself and is now on a mission to help mama’s recover positively in the most effective way just like she did.
Whether you are a new mama, C-Section mama, someone who needs direction & motivation after having your baby or you are wanting to start your fitness journey, already well on the road to your fitness goals or wanting to return to it, she can help you become the best you can be.
Get in touch: Check out her website and follow @roxyfitblog and @thehealingsection
