John has been talking about kids [actual kids, not the furry kind :)] for years. While he has been ready for the dad-life for quite some time, I have been a little slow to the game! Starting Michelle Elaine Weddings back in 2011, this has been my baby. The overwhelming amount of effort and money that has went into building this brand is immeasurable. I needed to feel more confident that both mentally and financially a child would be properly cared for – so many people told me that it comes naturally but I, of course, needed some kind of a plan … I also am no stranger to the never-ending responsibilities, having taken care of all four of my cousins for more than half of my life! I was also not going to have a baby just because ‘I’m in my 30s now’ … all the times my mom said “think about freezing your eggs Michelle, you’re not getting any younger” … thanks ma, ha-ha!
Last year, we took a trip to North Carolina to visit a close friend of mine who had recently made the move out of New York. John and I hadn’t had any photos done together since our wedding, almost 4 years ago. And while I will forever love & cherish our wedding photos, I wanted something fresh, and current to where our lives are now … so that when/if a baby were to come along we had this stage in our life, of just the three of us, to look back on.
So many people thought the photos were to announce a pregnancy – of course because that’s clearly the only reason to take photos! They were nothing but still memories that I am now so grateful to have. Life as we know it, from now going forward, is going to change forever. We cannot wait for this next chapter but having these memories before the baby are now even more special.
We are both huge animal lovers, so if you can relate perhaps you may also have the same thoughts. Chippy has been a very large part of our lives. From the day I brought him home, running around like the Tasmanian devil, chewing on everything, to the times he had gotten sick or kept us up many nights in a row and laying in the most uncomfortable positions just to not disturb his sleep. Having to find the right sitter for him, leaving him for the first time and having Justyna FaceTime with us so that we could check in (first time I did that my team asked “who are you FaceTiming, is that Chip?” – yep, ha-ha!), reading reviews and researching for days on end trying to find the best groomer, and being that helicopter mom at the dog park. He has been our world for almost 5 years.
As we now think about the baby coming, we think about all the fun Chippy and the baby will have together as they grow now side by side. We can’t wait for so many new memories that will be made to add to our journey in life together.
Just a few days before I took a pregnancy test Chippy laid on my lap and put his little head on my stomach. I told John to look and said “oh my gosh, this is so cute he never does this!” and John replied with “it’s because he knows there is a baby in there ;)” … and he probably did know!
A lot of people see a pet as ‘oh it’s just a dog’ but we see Chippy as our family. We adjusted so much in order to accommodate him coming into our lives, we have to constantly coordinate scheduling around our sitter to ensure he can be cared for if we decide to go away, or have a wedding/event to attend. Yes, he is a dog, I fully understand that a baby is very different but we both see this as just us growing our little family, Chippy always included … and of course next year we will need new family portraits!
Photographer | Jordan Maunder Photography
Hair & Makeup | The Makeup Culture