In all the births I have done, I have learned that every birth is different! Rarely can we know what to expect. This client, however, was able to accurately predict her birth, and let me tell you why.
This family liked to be an exception to all the rules. Or as I like to call them, the “watch me” family.
The first birth I photographed for them was their second baby. They were working with a very sweet midwife team that I met for the first time at their birth (since then we have become good friends). They were doing a home birth and their home was about an hour away from where I was living at the time. So, I made sure they informed me of their labor early on so I had ample time to get there.
Boy, am I glad they did! When I arrived, mom seemed super at peace and comfortable, not yet in what we call “active labor”. After a couple of hours in this same stage, mom suddenly got up and walked into the her on-suite bathroom. We could tell that she had transitioned into active labor.
The midwives prepared themselves and started to fill her bathtub. Mom got into the tub as soon as possible and within just ten minutes of going into the bathroom, baby had arrived!
And not just ANY baby. This sweet bundle was over ten pounds at birth!
“No one can deliver a baby safely that fast”……. “watch me!”
“No one can deliver a baby that large without a cesearean”……. “watch me!”
But that’s not the end of her story.
I would get a call not even two years later that they were expecting their third child. This time, after knowing how fast mom had transitioned during her last birth, mom was prepared.
“No one can predict what will happen in birth”……. “watch me!”
Mom informed me that she would be drinking a special concoction involving fruit juices and some secret (but still healthy) ingredients known to jump start labor. Midwives all affectionately call this the “midwives brew”. This had been what started her labor for baby number two, so it was sure to work again.
“Come at noon, we’re ordering tacos”
The whole birth team arrived and were ready when she drank the brew. She remained comfortable for a couple hours. Then she got up and went into the bathroom….
Sure enough. Just seven minutes later baby had arrived! Again, close to ten pounds!
So, mama to be, while we cannot usually predict what will happen in labor, sometimes you can!
hope that your birth goes as smoothly and joyfully as it did for this family. And if you want a photographer there to capture it all along the way, be sure to check out my birth photography page and set up your consultation! It would be an honor to document the happy occasion for you.