We’ve had the pleasure of doing quite a few professional pregnancy photos for Brambleton, VA clients. We love chatting with these expectant moms. It’s always interesting to compare notes on how quickly parenting changes including the effect of technology (we certainly didn’t have video monitors!), furniture styles, and even maternity styles!

We recently came across an interesting article on healthychildren.org we’d love to share with our expectant clients out there! Below we include their tips on how to choose a safe crib. Thanks to HealthyChildren for publishing this informative article!

As a newborn photographer in Northern VA, it’s interesting for us to see updated codes and smarter, safer options for our most precious infants. We always recommend you speak to your pediatrician about what is best for your child.

How to Choose a Safe Crib

• Bars should be spaced no more than 2 3/8 inches apart.

• The mattress should be very firm and should not sag under your baby’s weight. It should fit in the crib snugly, with no space between it and the crib walls.

• The top of the crib rail should be at least 26 inches from the top of the mattress. Periodically lower the mattress as your child gets taller.

• The headboards and footboards should be solid, with no decorative cutouts. Corner posts that could cause injury or snag clothing should be removed.

• Do not use cribs with drop rails. These are not safe.

• Crib bumpers (or bumper pads) may seem as though they can help protect babies from drafts and bumps, but they should not be used in cribs. There is no evidence that bumper pads can prevent serious injuries, and they pose a risk of suffocation, strangulation, or entrapment. In addition, older babies can use them for climbing out of the crib.

• Keep large toys and stuffed animals out of the crib, as your baby may use them to get a leg up and over the rail. Pillows, bulky comforters, and heavy blankets do not belong in a crib; a baby can smother under them.

• Place the crib away from windows, where direct sunlight and drafts can make your baby uncomfortable. A crib can become uncomfortably hot if placed too near a radiator. Also, make sure that there are no strings from blinds or curtains close by that can wrap around the baby’s neck.

• Once your child is about 3 feet tall, he should start sleeping in a bed. If you are worried about him falling out of bed, you may want to start with the mattress on the floor.

• Your baby should never sleep on a water bed, sheepskin, pillow, sofa, armchair, or other soft surface.

• Babies do not need extra support, such as from rolled blankets or commercial devices, to keep them on their backs. Cumbersome materials like these clutter up the crib and may be hazardous for a baby.

As a leading Brambleton, VA area photographer specializing in family and professional pregnancy photos, we hope that you enjoy our blog as much as we enjoy sharing it with you. It keeps us connected to our clients and others. If you have any ideas for topics you’d like us to cover, please contact us! Send us an email with your idea. We will try to cover it in one of our future posts.
 

Baby Photography, Baby Photographer

Ever After Baby Portraits is comprised of Mindy Belcher and Joriana Belcher Anderson, a mother-daughter baby photography team located in Sterling, VA in Northern Virginia. We specialize in timeless and emotive fine art family portraits, including newborn and baby portraits. Family means everything and capturing those precious moments to preserve forever will mean family heirlooms for you to share for years to come.

Best,
Mindy & Joriana – Contact Us!

View Our Portfolio | Ever After Baby Portraits

We love working with expectant moms! Moms-to-be are beautiful! It’s one of the most fun aspects of our business. Professional pregnancy photos in the Brambleton, VA area bring us into regular contact with excited moms-to-be. These women are perfectly glowing, but most of all, they’re excited about their baby’s arrival! Throughout our portrait sessions, we usually talk about a variety of exciting and often diverse topics. One of these conversations led to the idea of a creating a memento display box of very special items from a baby’s first year. We love this idea and want to share it with you as well.

There are so many variations you can do with this idea, so just let your creativity take over! We’ve put together some tips below. Before you read them, however, try clicking on this nifty Google search to view a plethora of creative memento or shadow boxes others have created for their babies! We love so many of them it is hard to pick favorites.

Before you get all Martha Stewart and start creating a memento box for your baby, here are few things to consider first:

* What would you like put into your box?
* Do you want any pre-birth items included in the box such as an ultrasound picture, a picture of you and your partner or a picture from your maternity photography session?
* Would you prefer to include tokens representing your baby’s first days in this world such as the birth announcement, newborn booties and outfit they wore upon leaving the hospital, their baby bracelet from the hospital or hospital swaddling blanket? The possibilities are many.
* You could wait and collect special mementos throughout your baby’s first year. You can use those items to build a box in honor of their first year of life. If you choose a first-year memento box, it’s important to be especially selective due to limited space — unless you opt to purchase an extra-large shadow box. One recommendation is to create a list of items as you think of them or as they present themselves. You can then use that list to help you cull down to a final selection of mementos.
* Lastly, but very importantly, you should select items of significant emotional value. Consider that an object with significance today might not be as important in the future. Choose items with emotional value you’ll remember and be able to share in the future.

Once you have made your decision as to what type of memento box you would like to create, then you can begin putting together your collection of items! Now you can be as creative as you want!

If you haven’t scheduled a professional pregnancy photo session (also know as maternity portrait session), and you live near the Sterling, VA or Brambleton, VA areas, call us to schedule your session. We’re sure you’ll enjoy working with us and we know we’ll love to meet you!

Baby Photography, Baby Photographer, Professional Pregnancy Photos

Ever After Baby Portraits is comprised of Mindy Belcher and Joriana Belcher Anderson, a mother-daughter baby photography team located near Brambleton, VA in Northern Virginia. We specialize in timeless and emotive fine art family portraits, including newborn and baby portraits. Family means everything and capturing those precious moments to preserve forever will mean family heirlooms for you to share for years to come.

Best,
Mindy & Joriana – Contact Us!

View Our Portfolio | Ever After Baby Portraits

As a specialist in newborn photos, Ever After spends a lot of time talking about babies with our clients. As moms, it’s a topic near and dear to our hearts because we’ve raised our children not too far from our studios near Broad Run Farms, VA.

One thing is certain, things have changed since Joriana was a baby and since we became newborn photographers! Today everyone is more aware of what is and isn’t healthy, and this includes cribs. Babies spend half or slightly more than half of their day sleeping or napping in their cribs, so safety should be paramount!

Are Cribs & Mattresses Toxic?

In 2014, the University of Texas released findings from a first-of-its-kind study which found that “infants are exposed to high levels of chemical emissions from crib mattresses while they sleep.” Their findings were published in the February 2014 issue of Environmental Science and Technology.

The researchers found:

• New crib mattresses release about four times as many VOCs as old crib mattresses.
• Body heat increases emissions.
• Chemical emissions are strongest in the sleeping infant’s immediate breathing zone.

It’s important to note that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says that there isn’t much information about the long-term health effects from the levels of VOCs found in homes. In the case of this U.T. study, the researchers found the VOCs being emitted were far higher in the infants’ immediate breathing vicinity (in the crib) than elsewhere in the room. Mattresses were seen as the biggest emitters of VOCs.

Several scientists quoted in the U.T. article weren’t particularly alarmed by the study’s results but admitted that further research on infants’ “complex sleep microenvironment” could lead to better understanding of harmful toxins.

Based on the study’s results, the researchers offered the following suggestions for parents:

• Reusing an older crib or an extended airing-out period may help reduce infant VOC exposures.
• Older crib mattresses might contain toxic substances, such as flame retardants, that have been banned.

So what should you do?

As a parent, it’s important to do your research before you stock your home or nursery with furniture and other materials. Most scientists seem to agree that there simply isn’t sufficient consistent data on mattresses and VOCs. However, that’s not to say you can’t be selective and careful!

There are literally hundreds of websites related to VOCs and their potential risks or even harm. An educated consumer and parent will always be a better consumer and parent. Here are a few links to get you started:

• Check the Environmental Protection Agency’s website for more information on your home and VOCs.
• Nursery safety tips.
• Interior paints and VOCs
• Mattresses and VOCs

Ever After is a leading studio for newborn photos in the Broad Run Farms, VA and surrounding area. If you’d like to discuss newborn or children’s photography, please contact our office. We’d love to discuss our services and work with you.

Baby Photography, Baby Photographer, Newborn Photos

Ever After Baby Portraits is Mindy and Joriana, a mother-daughter newborn and baby photography team located in Northern Virginia, near Broad Run Farms, VA. We specialize in timeless and emotive fine art family portraits, including newborn and baby portraits. Family means everything and capturing those precious moments to preserve forever will mean family heirlooms for you to share for years to come.

Best,
Mindy & Joriana – Contact Us!

View Our Portfolio | Ever After Baby Portraits

As women and mothers, we enjoy doing maternity photos with mommies-to-be throughout Northern Virginia, including Leesburg, VA and Sterling, VA. We know what they’re experiencing and we can relate. We often end up chatting about their pregnancies, and it brings back a lot of special memories.

The nine months of pregnancy are a miracle to be enjoyed even when you’re not enjoying it so much! Remember, you’re growing a baby inside of you! Focus on your child and what you can do to keep this a healthy and happy pregnancy. As a Northern Virginia newborn photographer, we see the results of many pregnancies – the adorable and precious newborns we photograph after those nine months!

Here are a few things to keep in mind during your pregnancy:

• What you eat matters tremendously as your body changes. Yes, you will gain weight, but you need to increase it by consuming healthy foods. Do your reading, and consult your OB/GYN about foods and vitamin supplements while pregnant.
• There are at least eleven foods and beverages that experts recommend avoiding during pregnancy. It’s vital to avoid these foods or significantly decrease their consumption. This video lists those foods, some of which might surprise you.
• Start taking a prenatal vitamin-mineral supplement including folic acid. Ask your doctor what she/he feels you need. Ask about choline, as researchers now believe that it is an essential nutrient while pregnant.
• Your doctor will keep an eye on your iron, calcium, and vitamin D as your pregnancy progresses.
• Learn more about nutrients by clicking on this link.
• Pregnancy is not the time to go on a diet. It could be potentially hazardous to you and your baby. Learn more here about appropriate weight during pregnancy. It’s important to discuss your weight gain and proper nutrition with your doctor.
• Eat smaller but more frequent meals especially as your pregnancy progresses. You’ll feel more comfortable, avoid heartburn and indigestion. However, listen to your body and eat nutritional snacks if you’re hungry between meals. For those with a sweet tooth, it is possible to find some great recipes that will allow you to satisfy a sweet craving while still eating healthy.

Toward the end of your pregnancy, we recommend you have maternity photos taken. Capture that baby bump not too long before the baby arrives. One day, that baby will enjoy seeing him or her self “inside” Mommy’s belly! If you live within the Washington Metropolitan area, including Northern VA, and Leesburg, VA or Sterling, VA, we would love to reserve a portrait session date for you!

Baby Photography, Baby Photographer, Maternity Photos

Ever After Baby Portraits is comprised of Mindy Belcher and Joriana Belcher Anderson, a mother-daughter baby photography team located in Sterling, VA, near Leesburg, VA in Northern Virginia. We specialize in timeless and emotive fine art family portraits, including newborn and baby portraits. Family means everything and capturing those precious moments to preserve forever will mean family heirlooms for you to share for years to come.

Best,
Mindy & Joriana – Contact Us!

View Our Portfolio | Ever After Baby Portraits

Given that we do maternity photos across Northern Virginia, including the Leesburg, VA area, we know that sometimes during pregnancy, a woman might not feel beautiful or even comfortable. Maternity photos whether you live in Leesburg, VA or Washington, D.C. might not be of much interest right now, but trust us, they are important. But to help you feel better, we thought you might enjoy this article that caught our attention.

So, we love reading on topics related to our work and our clients. And this is one we loved for its practical tips. Here are some of the tips from the article:

1. Hydrate
Hydrating during your pregnancy is more important than ever. It’s important for numerous reasons, including keeping your amniotic fluid healthy, that you drink plenty of water. Speak to your doctor about how much you should be drinking daily.

2. Right Food
Consult your doctor about the types of food to avoid during pregnancy and which ones to be sure to consume. It’s vital to eat healthy, not just to look good but for the health of your baby.

3. Sleep
Listen to your body during your pregnancy because as a newborn photographer (and as mothers), we can tell you that sleepless nights lie ahead when the baby arrives! Fatigue is common while you’re pregnant, and it’s important to get your rest when your body is telling you it’s tired.

4. Weight
Listen to your doctor on what healthy weight you should strive to maintain. Gaining weight is natural during pregnancy, but those calories should come from healthy foods, not junk food.

5. Exercise
Are you exercising? Exercise is a good thing for pregnancy. Talk to your doctor before you launch into a rigorous program if you’ve previously been somewhat inactive.

6. Stretch Marks
There are several stretch mark creams on the market today. It’s recommended you begin using it daily during your pregnancy.

7. Flaunt it
When you feel beautiful, you look beautiful. Your body is changing. Enjoy it. Flaunt it. Highlight it! Enjoy the range of maternity clothes available to women today.

8. Make-Up
If you’re not feeling well, you might not want to bother with make-up. However, every woman can feel more beautiful with a little bit of make-up. It doesn’t take much. Take a few extra minutes and try a makeup consultation at a local make-up counter. Again, you might want to stick to plant-based products without harsh chemicals.

9. Relax!
Pregnancy is a great time to practice relaxation. If you don’t know a method, it’s not a bad time to learn! Perhaps, try a maternity yoga or Pilates class or water aerobics class.

Most of all, enjoy your pregnancy! It’s a very special time in your life as you get ready to bring new life into your world. Take the time to schedule maternity photos. In a few years, you’ll be grateful you took the time to capture these special days with a fine art portrait celebrating this amazing time in your life. We work with clients throughout the Northern Virginia area, including Leesburg, VA.

Baby Photography, Baby Photographer, Maternity Photos

Ever After Baby Portraits is comprised of Mindy Belcher and Joriana Belcher Anderson, a mother-daughter baby photography team located near Leesburg, VA in Northern Virginia. We specialize in timeless and emotive fine art family portraits, including newborn and baby portraits. Family means everything and capturing those precious moments to preserve forever will mean family heirlooms for you to share for years to come.

Best,
Mindy & Joriana – Contact Us!

View Our Portfolio | Ever After Baby Portraits