Welcome to my "Monday Morning" series with lifestyle photographer Raquel Bianca. We are documenting five mothers in the NY area (chosen at random from Mommy Shorts commenters), to prove there is beauty in every mother's morning, even if we need an outsider to see it.
First there was Annie from New Jersey, then Ilona from Queens, and now Teresa from Manhattan's Upper West Side. (Prepare for a wee bit of apartment envy— a condition that afflicts most New York City residents on a regular basis).
Teresa was 8 months pregnant at the time of the shoot and lives with her husband David, their 15 month-old daughter Harper and their two dogs, Lola and Rocco. Understandably, Teresa had mixed feelings about letting a photographer into her home on a weekday at 6am.
"To be honest, I was hatching a plan to excuse myself from this whole exercise in the weeks leading up to the shoot. I never really intended to be selected. When I got the email, I had a moment of joy at having 'won' something, followed immediately by sheer panic."
Teresa's husband had no mixed feelings whatsoever. His response was…
"This is not a prize, it's a terrible punishment."
Begrudgingly, they participated in the shoot and (thank god!) ended up loving the photos. "Although my husband would never admit it, I think he forgives me for the whole experience!"
Teresa and David's day starts with their regular wake-up call— Harper, who demands a bottle at 6am. Then she comes into their bed for 15-20 minutes of snuggle time, which is their favorite part of the morning. "She's extra cuddly and chatty during that time and it's such a nice way to start the day."
David usually gets out of bed first to walk the dogs and make the coffee.
Then Teresa has the tough task of feeding Harper.
"Unlike her parents, Harper is extremely picky and often refuses meals by dumping them directly onto the floor. We regularly battle with her to take as much as a bite or two."
Teresa employs her good friend "the television" to watch Harper while she packs her lunch and gets dressed. "I have no idea how 'our-children-don't-watch-tv' people survive without those fifteen uninterrupted minutes."
I asked Teresa for three adjectives to describe her mornings before the photo shoot and she said "mundane, predictable and efficient".
When I asked her again after the shoot, she said "Lovely, warm and intimate."
Teresa thinks living in New York City helps them take things slower in the morning because they have short commutes to work. "And the fact that I never have to get behind the wheel makes the world a much safer place."
Teresa leaves for work at about 8:15am. David takes Harper to daycare at 8:30am before he heads to the office.
When I asked Teresa for her and David's response to the photos, she said…
"David doesn't really understand what a blog is, so the entire idea of the post confused him terribly and I had to do a lot of explaining and damage control. I'm not kidding when I say he was legitimately upset with me about this. But, I'm so glad we went through with it. Raquel caught so many moments I didn't realize ever happened. I was so surprised to see myself laughing in the photo where I was brushing Harper's teeth. In my memory, I did it quickly, abruptly and without as much as a smile. That single photo made me think, 'Maybe I am a better, warmer mom than I give myself credit for…' "
Thank you, Teresa for giving us a small window into your beautiful morning.
And thank you David for not snarling at the camera!
Lastly— Teresa gave birth to baby Owen on November 19th. Below is Harper welcoming her little brother home.
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If you want to be part of my next project (whatever that might be), follow Mommy Shorts on facebook.
This post is part of a series called "Monday Mornings", documenting five different mothers throughout the NY area, in order to help us see the beauty in our mornings through an outsider's eye. It is done in collaboration with the amazing photographer, Raquel Bianca.
By the way, a shoot with Raquel (morning or otherwise) would make an excellent holiday gift. She is giving Mommy Shorts readers 10% off through December 20th. Just tell her I sent you!
I know that the New York City area is different, but does nobody get to work at 7:30 like so many of us do in the Midwest? I would love to have more than 2 hours to get ready in the morning.
The only people I know that get to work that early are teachers and people on Wall Street. In advertising (my industry), the creatives roll in around 10am. Of course there is the understanding that if you need to, you will work late and on the weekends. Before I had kids I worked until at least 8pm almost every night. Some nights, you had to be there until after midnight. Plus, shoots would take you away for a few weeks at a time. Trust me. New Yorkers work A LOT.
Wow – that apartment looks amazing and huge! If I lived in NYC I’m sure I’d have apartment envy.
I remember when my kids were younger, around Harper’s age. The mornings were much easier than they are now that my kids need to dress themselves, brush their teeth and hair, make sure their backpacks are ready. I miss the morning cuddles in bed while the baby has a bottle.
i love this one for the simple fact that Teresa wasn’t dressed (and what appears as no make up yet either) when the photographer was there at first! real pictures and not a display. beautiful! my favorite so far in the series.
I’ve been wondering the same thing! I’m in Texas. I have to be at work at 8am and my husband leaves for his train at 5:45am to be in his office by 6:30am, leaving me with morning toddler duty and drop off. Oh, what I would give for nice leisurely mornings where neither of us had anywhere to be before 9 or 10 (and the ability to do the morning stuff together!).
Seriously, every photo shoot from this series has made my cry, I love seeing the glimpses into their lives, and it has really helped me slow down a bit and see some more beauty in the mundane tasks of my everyday, too.
Just love this. I love Teresa response to the photo’s of how she’s a “better” mom than she though. She always was, we all are, but sometimes we just need others to show it to us I guess. It brought tears to my eyes. I also love her husband’s reaction to the whole thing. My hubby would be the exact same (in fact, he was when I told him I won a free birth photographer). lol But at the end, he loved it! And congrats on baby Owen – we share a birthday together.
Awesome -love the whole idea behind this photo project. Just beautiful.
LOVE this. Just love it.
The photo of Teresa brushing her daughters teeth literally brought tears to my eyes. So beautiful.
I can only imagine what my husband would say if I told him this was going to happen…I can imagine he would lock himself in the bedroom until we all left. Party pooper.
This one is by far my favorite so far. So real: bath robe, no make up and BEAUTIFUL!! I think you have proved that there IS beauty in all of our mornings, we just need to take a moment to step back and embrace it!
I love that everyone’s had the same reaction to their photo shoots. This is such a brilliant idea. I love the toothbrushing photo but I super love the photo where she’s cuddling her toddler. So warm and intimate; you can literally feel the love.
I want more of this series! Take it country-wide! Come see the chaos, threats, and bribes at our house!
This whole series reminds me of this quote. I also have cried at every one:
“Ordinary day, let me be aware of the treasure you are. Let me learn from you, love you, bless you before you depart. Let me not pass you by in quest of some rare and perfect tomorrow. Let me hold you while I may, for it may not always be so. One day I shall dig my nails into the earth, or bury my face into the pillow, or stretch myself taut, or raise my hands to the sky and want, more than all the world, your return.”
Mary Jean Iron
I just love this project! Is this photographer for hire for a private session?? We need to do this.
THAT VIEW on that apartment is amazing! Beautiful pictures!
Beautiful!
there’s a shot of her barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen lol. love it lmao
I love this idea!. I love peeking into real life. This also made me miss the city. I miss tall buildings, traffic, noise.
I think I’m going to capture my own morning this week, thanks for the inspiration.
The teeth brushing shot got me too. I too often wonder how much smiling happens around here. Such a refreshing series. Thank you for sharing. I’d love to see my sister & her “Strange Family’s” NYC morning in your photo project. ❤
I live in the suburbs northwest Philadelphia in a house big enough for my family of 6 plus a dog and even I am jealous of her apartment!
Every family has had just gorgeous pictures! Maybe there’s hope for me – err us!
This is beautiful. So much warmth and love. love the windows and light. Thank you, Ilana, for making me stop to look for those moments in my own mornings. The snuggles in bed, the random hugs and kisses, the bribing and negotiating, the laughter. Ah the laughter. I may not have a gorgeous apartment or a breathtaking view, but my cluttered townhome in the armpit of a So Cali valley is also full of love and life.
love. love. love.
easy to photograph beauty if the object is a rich, good-looking white family with the father at home and helping. how about on a real challenge: single moms of multiples with 2 jobs and no money for a nice apartment.
I believe you work. I am just so used to everyone working earlier, my husband leaves home at 5:30. I couldn’t stand to work late (I’m done at 3:45). My kids have so many places to be (practices, appointments, etc.) even before 5, I don’t know what I would do if I had to work that late.
I love this. I have a Harper too, who is almost two. This morning looked warm and snuggly. No matter what these parents are doing, from brushing teeth to getting a little one dressed, it looks like they are all so very much in love. Beautiful!
What a beautiful apartment !
I feel badly that you don’t think there would be beauty in those photos as well or that it wouldn’t be just as easy to find. While it may not seem as ‘easy’ to you, the dedication that mother would have is its own amazing beauty and I think would also show in the pictures. Why be so cynical?
So beautiful. The shot of Teresa brushing Harper’s teeth is my favorite, and the fact that she said she had no idea she even smiled during the process makes it that much sweeter.
When I worked in the MidWest, we also had to be in at 8am, but that was in order to be in at the same time as our corporate office on the east coast who started at 9am. I think the Midwest kind of has to shift its entire day an hour early to stick with eastern time! Now, I’m on the West Coast and all bets are off. 🙂
I wondered the same thing! My parents (in NW Minnesota) begin work at 7:00 a.m. every day. Mom get off work at 4:30 (1 hr lunch), my Dad gets off work at 3:30 (1/2 hr lunch). They also have a 45 minute commute – each way! I live and work in North Dakota and no one, I mean no one, here begins work later than 8:00 a.m.
The differences are neat, but I think I need to move to NY.