SURVIVING SELF-ISOLATION #2 - ENGELMANN FAMILY

I don't know about you, but when we first went into lockdown in Berlin and Brandenburg, my reaction was to prepare for home schooling (including turning our dining area into a school), come up with a daily plan, think up lots of activities to keep the kids busy, and take the opportunity to cook some nice food! We made banana bread, we made parachutes, we did kids yoga (or at least it was on and they watched it). I was full of energy and determined to make it a stress free, enjoyable experience for my family, and nail the home learning too! Go me!

That positivity lasted about three weeks, after which things went downhill rapidly. The eldest did not want to be home schooled, and it was a daily battle to get him through the mountain of work set by the school. In the meantime, while I sat beside him coaxing him through every line of work, the younger two ran round the house like banshees, fighting, arguing and generally destroying any area that I had managed to make somewhat inhabitable! Pants for the smallest became optional as we potty trained, and I gave up trying to get them to do some exercise at the start of the day, instead giving myself the benefit of at least 20 mins yoga before I knuckled down to the school work with Milo. The banana bread was still being made, but more as a way of me being able to escape to the kitchen for 10 mins peace. 

My saving grace became a photo diary of our exploits which gave me something positive to focus on, and allowed me to remember the good bits of the days when I sat down to edit in the evening. 

But I desperately needed to get out and have some time outside the family, before I well and truly lost the plot! So, I decided that I would set up of little offer of free family photography sessions to document other families in lockdown, and I have to say it felt amazing when I went to do them. Just to be driving out to do something I love, which didn't involved dashing for food essentials when my husband got home from work! 

So here is the second of those sessions, visiting the lovely Engelmann family, who I know from my days as an aerospace engineer. So it was a double bonus of catching up with an old colleague and seeing a little girl that I hadn't seen since she was a tiny baby wrapped up in her mama's sling. Such a gorgeous session, and I was so happy to be able to do this for and them and also for myself! I really love doing photography session reportage style, it brings me back to my roots, and these guys were just so relaxed and amazing during the session. I really feel like I got a little glimpse into their daily life, and it was an honour to be able to capture it! 

Lots of love,

Gemma xxx