On Monday the mom called me to let me know that she had her membranes swept. Great, was my initial thought and then, OH NO!, because Tuesday and Wednesday were my last two days of class for the semester and I had finals both days. With a positive intention that everything would work out, the mom made it to Thursday, when her labor started at work sometime around noon. Around 6 pm I called her to see how she was doing. She had been able to take a nap and was at home relaxing. I ate dinner and headed to her house around 8 pm. We were on our way to the birth center around 8:30 pm with strong contractions.
Only at the birth center for five hours, and having only been in active labor for about six, the baby was born gently, in the water, at 2:25am on August 12, 2011. What an amazing family, midwife and birth assistant! They worked so beautifully together throughout the labor and the birth- it was such a powerful experience for everyone involved. I feel so lucky to have been a part of it!
Baby boy Bastian, 7.5 lbs, 21.5 inches
Side note: On August 4th, Kim Turner, a photographer, had emailed me that she read my blog and wanted to branch out into birth photography. She wanted to know if any of my clients would be interested in birth photography and I immediately thought of my doula clients. They had awesome pregnancy photo's taken and I thought they would be excited about birth photography, and I was right.
I have seen birth photography online before but had never been to a birth that had a photographer present. Kim did an amazing job at being "a fly on the wall" and more of a documentarian rather than an active participant in the birth. Her photographs are breathtaking. I cannot say enough positive things about having a photographer, who is solely there as a photographer, at your birth. I eagerly look forward to working with Kim in the future and cannot recommend her more highly. Below is a sample of her photographs, I cannot wait to see the rest!
