How I stay motivated when I work from home?

Hello beautiful people out there!

You know it too if you work from home. How to find a motivation to even do something, when all you want to do is to stay in bed with a book and hot tea or coffee or just wedge out and watch some movie.

Here are my 3 tips to motivate yourself to work:

Tip #1
Dress up and do your make up. If you don't wear a make up, just wash your face and dress up in some nice comfortable, yet very nice clothes. When you'll dress up, you will trick your mind into thinking, that you are going somewhere. Which means, that you will feel more ready and anticipated. It will be much easier to do something when you have actual clothes on instead of PJ.

Tip #2
Write down your semi schedule for a week and what would you like to accomplish every single day. Even if it's one thing that you'll accomplish, you will feel wonderful at the end of the day, when you check out the one task you finished. (True story.. as a stay at home mom and entrepreneur, sometimes I'm happy, if I can finish all the laundry, make myself and my hubby food for a day and take care of my baby...).

Tip #3
Keep yourself accountable by asking 2 to 4 people, who know you, or you want to get to know (another entrepreneurs probably will be the best) to check in with each other every week or two and set some goals - task, that you want to accomplish. It will make a great difference, when you are having that day, when you feel like you don't wanna do anything. Text one of this person and let them know you are struggling to work that day. I'm sure, they will boost up your confidence and motivation with some nice encouraging words.

I hope those little tips will help you.

Have a wonderful day!

For more tips, please check this post from Time Doctor at https://biz30.timedoctor.com/how-to-stay-motivated-when-youre-working-remotely/

New mom, how to be more efficient!

I became a new mom 6 months ago. It's a turbulence of new experience after new experience. Who became mother knows that..
And I would like to share something important with you prego moms and those who just had their babies... Something, that I've learned along the way.
I've learned, that I don't have to be perfect. I don't have to do it all by myself. It's very humbling experience. To be able to ask for help. To be able to open up and be vulnerable.

Believe me, when I tell you, that I'm one of those people, that never want to ask for help, because I want to keep an image about being strong and invincible. I guess, even in my own head. Isn't that a little crazy? I know it, yet.. it's not that easy to change it.

So.. again and again.. Especially nowdays.. It's important to learn, how to ask for help and not feel guilty about it. It's normal and natural to have help. Only this society isn't it allowing so much..

Ask for help! Ask for help! Ask for help! :-)

Have a beautiful day and stay tuned for more posts!

Warmly,

Barbora

Mia, Grace and Nayan's photoshoot

I've met this sweet couple at a birthing class. We became friends and because we live very close by, Grace with Mia started to go for walks with me and Eli quite regurarly. It's always fun to hang out with them. What a blessing to have found such a wonderful friends, who's daughter is only week older than our baby.
They are going through the same learning  curves at the similar time as us, which is refreshing to be able to talk about it.
When they decided, that it will be good time for the pictures of their little family, I was sooo excited. It's great to work with nice people. And to work with friends is a blessing.
When we were creating the photographs together, I asked them few questions, to get to know them better and have a deeper understanding of what it meas for them to have Mia in their lives now.

Grace told me, that she feels complete - like herself, since she became mom to Mia. She feels much stronger and that she can manage more and be more efficient. (They had been blessed with wonderful midwives and another support during their very long labor at home).

Mia is very sweet, lovable and kind. She also knows how to get her voice to be heard, when she needs something or wants something.
Nayen feel very complete and he values his time more - knows better now, whats important to him - to spend quality time with Grace and Mia.

Since they are renting the place, where Mia was born, the pictures are even more meaningful to be captured at their home now, so Mia can see later on, what the place looked like. What a treasure.
And that's one of the reason, why I love to capture pictures. It captures history.

Hope you had a great time reading the little story of this beautiful family and stay tuned for another blog post.

Have a lovely day!

Barbora

Before the birth of our baby

So.. as some of you might know, I was planning all along a home birth for the baby growing in my womb.
My husband Nick and I hired wonderful midwives in San Diego. Nicol and Marli (our midwives) were doing all the prenatal check ups with us. First it was every month, after certain time, it became every 2weeks, and closer to the birth - every week.
We have decided to take Nicol's class - Birthing from within, which was wonderful as well. I would recommend it to anyone, who sees the birthing process as a transformation for the whole family involved.
When I was about 34weeks, my midwife discovered, that my baby is breech - which means heads up. Usually it's not such a huge concern until 31-32weeks of pregnancy. But the closer it gets to the actual birthing week, the less likely it is, that the baby would turn on its own and be ready for vaginal birth head down (which is the most favorable position).
Because my midwife Nicol's passion is spinning babies and is very interested in breech birth, she tried to turn the baby at 34weeks. It wasn't successful. The baby hardly moved anywhere.. well, it seemed like pretty stubborn baby.
We've decided, that I will do all the spinning babies exercises and also acupuncture and special chiropractor's technique that is called webster, to open up the space for baby and we would try to turn the baby again in a week.
The second attempt wasn't as painful as the first one, but we were unsuccessful again. Well, we've decided to give it a try one more time in couple days. That was the most painful and I was done.. The baby didn't turn and I realized, that the baby either has some reason, why is it staying (and wants to stay in this position), or it will turn on its own, but I won't force it anymore. It didn't feel right.

But at that point, what options we were looking at.. If the baby turns, we can still have our home birth... and if the baby doesn't turn, most likely it will be a c-section birth. Something, that I wanted to avoid.. Because for some reason, it didn't feel very wholesome birth to me. Boy how wrong was I... The baby was measuring pretty big already (they told me at 36weeks, that the baby measures around 8pounds), so they wouldn't recommend to even try natural vaginal breech birth at that point...

The closer to my due date, the more peaceful I felt about the reality, that most likely, the birth that I was dreaming about is not the one for me and my baby, but it will be a c-section birth. I started to do a research about Gentle Cesarean birth. I just wanted to make sure, that we will have the most peaceful, loving and sacred experience to welcome our baby into this world.
It took me and my husband a while to process it and digest it.. It's not easy, to let go of your ideas and your beliefs and trust the process of life and open yourself to completely new possibilities and new experiences.

Breech baby...

Update on my pregnancy... Well, I kind of thought, that everything is pretty easy and goes well. Until my midwife discovered, when I was at the end of my 35weeks of pregnancy, that my baby is breech. Which means head up.
After having an ultrasound, the doctor confirmed, that the baby is breech and that they potentially do ECV http://www.webmd.com/baby/external-cephalic-version-version-for-breech-position, which is basically turning the baby.
I've tried with my midwife 3times. First time, the baby didn't move at all. I was doing some spinning babies exercises, also acupuncture, chiropractic webster technique, relaxation and talking to baby. Second time, we moved the baby a little, but not really. And third time, it was very painful and didn't work either.
After the third time, I've decided, that I don't wanna try it again. Thinking to myself, that if the baby doesn't want to be forced to turn, I understand that. It will either move on it's own for the birth, or it won't. Which here in California pretty much means most of the time c-section birth.
I'm trying to feel out, what is best for me and baby and also the safest. I would love to be able to have homebirth, that I dreamed about, but at the same time, I'm not sure, that I would feel comfortable to do breech homebirth, I would also need some doctor to supervise the birth, because midwives aren't allowed in California to do homebirth when the baby is presented breech.
Sooo many questions, so much inner work and stuff to look at. Ultimately, I really want healthy baby and am willing to do c-section, if it's the safest and baby's choice.

I'm just thinking, that everyone (also the baby) has always reasons for certain decisions and ideas. So does my baby. And I want to trust the process of life and be grateful, that nowdays, we have many different possibilities and options, that are safe.

My baby is in the frank breech position, which would be preferred for the vaginal breech birth, but since I'm first time mom and haven't had any birth before, I'm not sure, if I have the trust that I need for successful vaginal breech birth. Still trying to feel it out...

PS: guess what is in the ultrasound picture and type it in the comments.. who will be first right, will get some little present :-)

Camping trip at Joshua Tree NP

It seems, that so far, Nick and I had been to Joshua Tree National Park every year, since we've been together.
Last year, Nick and I went there to celebrate our second wedding anniversary in June.
This year, our friend Victor and Claire invited us to come along with them, to do some rock climbing, camping, hiking and also check out their wedding venue near by.
It all sounded wonderful, so even though we weren't planning many days ahead, we just jump at the chance and went on board.

Coming to Joshua Tree much later than Victor and Claire, I was afraid, that they will be worried, when Nick and I got lost, since they left at 5am on Saturday morning, to get a camping spot and Nick and I were suppose to prepare the dinner.
There isn't signal in the National Park, so we couldn't even let them know, what time we will arrive.
Luckily, we've made it just in time, before they went to look for us (they were actually just in the car, going to get a signal and try to look for us).
We made a quick delicious dinner (veggie burgers), chat for a bit and went to sleep. We were all pretty tired plus it was getting quite cold. Victor and Claire were so generous to let us sleep in their van, just because I'm pregnant. How cool is that...

The next day was very nice and sunny. All of the three were climbing (in the campground) right after the breakfast and since I cannot climb right now, I was just journaling, hanging out and taking pictures of them. What a fun day.
Super challenging and tiring for them and relaxing for me. In the afternoon, we went for a hike and look for a different spot to climb.
The desert is in bloom and we were lucky to see some blooming cactus. What a treat.
At the end of the day, everyone was very tired and since it was very windy, we went to sleep pretty early.
On Easter Monday, we just packed everything up (Victor had some problem with his back, so we had to help more, poor guy) and went to the wedding venue. What a beautiful place. I'm so excited, that V.&C. hired me as their wedding photographer. It's so exciting to be there as a guest and also a photographer. They asked Nick to officiate their wedding, so it was very special for both of us to see the place and be part of the wedding planning.

Since they were still meeting up with some company that will help with planning and I was super hungry, Nick and I left earlier and hit the road.
We couldn't find a decent restaurant until some bigger city (many places were closed), but since we were trying to avoid traffic, we ended up at Dannies. Not the best place to eat, but decent enough...

Over all, it was a wonderful trip and I'm super excited for the upcoming wedding.
PS: It was pretty cold and windy that morning...