A Beautiful Hospital Birth Story
Finally, in their arms is the emotional journey from loss to a celebration of birth years in the making.
Many of the clients who find me have walked long journeys to expecting their baby, whether it be struggles with IVF or the heartbreaking experience of loss. Of course, all clients who hire me do so because they see the value in documenting these momentous life events, but there is something extra special about arriving in these moments after such emotional roads.
This family found me after experiencing loss in their journey to a third baby. When Ashley first reached out, she had just passed her first trimester of this pregnancy. She was so joy-filled to be there, finally feeling like she could take a breath, enjoy this pregnancy, and begin planning.
Their older two children are school-aged, which meant all that anticipation was even greater. To make it extra exciting, they didn’t find out the gender, instead wanting it to be a surprise, and were just happy to be expecting!
Ashley’s biggest fear in hiring me was that I would miss their birth as her labor with their daughter was crazy fast! The concern was she would go fast again, and I wouldn’t make it in time to capture all the moments that were so important to them. We talked through those concerns and decided I would start call at 37 weeks, and we would communicate often. The other concern was that I had a trip planned right around her due date, but she had gone early with her other two, so we had a backup plan but hoped we wouldn’t have to utilize it.
As Ashley’s due date approached an induction date was scheduled because of her history. It was the day before I was set to leave for my trip. As can happen with induction dates, the unit was busy and had to bump her induction time back putting it the night before my trip. Because she had gone fast with her previous labor we hoped it would still time out perfect and talked often throughout the night.
As luck would have it, it took awhile for her contractions to get going and just was things were starting to ramp up, it was time for me to head to the airport. We were all so bummed but my backup photographer Krystal (who is incredibly amazing, so please check her out) totally saved the day, and rocked this whole birth. Their story is a prime example of why a backup photographer is so vital to a birth photography business. She treated this sweet family just like she would one of her clients and captured their story so beautifully!
Be sure to watch their birth film at the end of this post to enjoy the pure joy of them finding out gender!
This is right when I was getting on the plane and less than an hour after Krystal arrived.
Once contractions became regular, things changed quickly. Luckily, Krystal was packed and ready to go and got there quickly, even coming from the other side of town.
Their OB was called and got there quickly, and before you knew it, she was holding their new baby in her arms. She had dreamt of this and waited for it with such anticipation.
In Their Arms
Their OB had dad glove up and help ‘catch’ their baby, and it was a…….GIRL!
Ashley and Isaiah really hoped everything would time out where we could capture big brother and sister meeting their new baby. I’m so grateful Krystal was willing to stay and capture these precious moments for this family. I mean, look at their faces!
And, of course, I have to include this picture of Krystal she captured at this birth. I adore her!
If you’re wondering how births are managed with a backup photographer, here it is! The backup typically shoots the birth and then delivers the files to the primary photographer to edit and deliver. I would only ever use a backup with skills comparable to mine. Although Krystal had backed me up many times while I was tied up at sessions, this was the first time she actually had to attend a birth for me and the first and only time I’ve had to have a backup shoot a birth for me. Although I was so sad and disappointed to not have been there, I was 100% confident she would shoot it beautifully, and boy, did she!
Tuesday, October 29th, 2024
A Las Vegas Birth Story
There are so many fears and doubts that can hold people back from documenting their birth. I understand so many of those fears and doubts.
Birth is one of life’s most intimate and life-changing moments we experience. You are vulnerable and at your rawest. I would argue that this is why you should document your birth story.
Birth is made up of moments that change us at our very core, moments that cannot be relived or redone. It is also one of the most emotional times in our lives. It can become hazy and fade quickly amidst the loss of sleep, physical changes, and fleeting memories.
Emily found me after seeing a birth story shared on social media and was immediately interested! She says that she hadn’t really considered documenting her birth until she saw this post, and then saw my name mentioned in the thread as a local birth photographer and videographer. She reached out to me, and I am so glad that she did!
One of Emily’s main drives in wanting to document her birth was the fact that her family lives out of the country. Emily and Daniel met while he was serving in the Air Force in Europe. Her family is all still overseas, and wanting to have a way to share their birth with her family was important to her. (Be sure to see their beautiful birth film at the end of the post!)
There was much anticipation and excitement in the months and weeks approaching their birth, and they were so happy to have a way to share that with family and friends who could not be by their sides.
As Daniel is still on active duty, their birth would take place at Mike O’Callaghan Hospital at Nellis Air Force Base here in Las Vegas. Because it is a military hospital, it was necessary for them to arrange clearance for me onto the base. This was the perfect opportunity for us to meet in person and have a nice coffee date (I meet all my birth clients before their birth either in person or via FaceTime). We talked about what was most important to her and Daniel, the types of images and footage they were most interested in, what her biggest fears and concerns were, and I got to see exactly where I needed to go when the big day came.
As Emily passed her due date, an induction of labor was set up.
One of Emily’s wishes was to tell the whole story of their birth experience to share with her family and friends. So, we decided that I would come as she was being admitted to the unit and capture some of the early details of checking in and getting settled, and then would head home and wait for active labor before returning. That way, they could get the rest they needed, all the while adding additional details to their birth story.
This was my first experience at our military hospital, and I was so impressed by their staff and the beautiful experience they gave Emily and Daniel. As a retired labor nurse of 19 years at another local hospital, I am always curious about how different care might be in other facilities. I do have to say each hospital has its own vibe and subtle differences. I think Nellis often gets a bad rap because it is a military hospital, but I have to say I walked away from this experience in awe of the care they provided this family.
After they were all settled in and the plan of care discussed and initiated, I stepped out and went home to get some rest and await their call for my return. In the early morning hours, Emily let me know that she had progressed and had an epidural placed for pain relief. It was the perfect time for me to head back, be close by, and be ready to document more of their story.
It had been almost 12 hours since their induction began, and Emily hadn’t really gotten much sleep but had received pain relief with her epidural placement, so she was able to finally squeeze in a small nap and some games with Daniel. It was a fun way to pass the time.
I love when clients bring personal items to keep at their bedside. It adds such a personal element and something beautiful to focus on. Emily kept a picture of her mother, who is no longer with her, at her bedside.
As the morning wore on, Emily became more and more uncomfortable and the staff did their best to keep her comfortable between position changes and adjustments to her epidural.
Even with the return of discomfort and the hours passed with no cervical change, Emily and Daniel remained positive and patient, trusting the process. I was really in awe of how strong Emily was. She kept such a beautiful attitude through it all.
As Emily labored through another shift change with still not much cervical change, her night shift nurse came in and advocated for Emily, trying everything she could to help her baby rotate. Her advocacy and interventions were just what Emily needed at this stage, and she quickly progressed to complete dilation and was soon ready to push.
Emily was a rock star who worked hard to deliver baby Daniel. Thank goodness this last stage was relatively quick after all those hours of laboring. There was some distress upon delivery, so baby Daniel was quickly taken to the radiant warmer for assessment and stabilization.
Daniel and Emily’s birth team were so coordinated and capable and worked seamlessly to assess and stabilize Daniel so that he could quickly return to his mama’s chest for skin-to-skin.
Finally, Emily had in her arms the baby she had worked so hard for, waited so patiently for, and anticipated for so long.
There was so much story, emotion, and intimate details throughout Emily and Daniel’s birth story, it is one of my favorites to date. So grateful to have been trusted in capturing it.
Nothing captures the emotions and beauty in birth better than video, and I love how beautiful their birth story is in film.
Sunday, June 7th, 2020
