birth :: quintin lawrence

She had a good week and a half of prodromal labor -- the start and stop contractions that come and go in the days (or weeks) leading up to the final event that culminates in birth. There were probably 5 times that Quincy texted to say she was pretty sure labor had begun... only to have it peter out. Which is so frustrating. But she kept on living life and patiently waiting, knowing that no contraction is a wasted one!

Then, one evening I got another text. And this time the contractions were close together and the midwife, Kim, was on her way over to check things out. I had a feeling it was the real deal and wanted to jump in my car immediately. But thoughtful, considerate Quincy said to wait until the midwife gave more news because "I really don't want to waste your time." I was antsy as I sat waiting, knowing I had a 20 minute drive ahead of me. Then, another text, "why don't you know come now. Kim isn't here yet, but I think it's time. I really hope I'm not wasting your time." (I would never even feel that way, for the record! this is my JOB!). I left immediately. 

I arrived to find Quincy at the foot of their bed, deeply focused and already pushing. Probably only 15 minutes later, Quintin was born! All that prodromal labor meant that she had a VERY short actual labor! Shaking from all the adrenalin coursing through her body, but strong and in command of her small but mighty self, she stood up and strode across the room with him in her arms. She had a shower and put on fresh clothes, then got tucked into bed with her family. 

And her family! How special was that? Her almost-14-year-old step daughter was with her every step of the way, aiding in whatever ways were needed, and watching intently as her baby brother made his way into the world. Quintin's daddy, Mike, caught him alongside Kim, and handed him up to his mama with a look of pride on his face over both his wife and his son. And moments later, Mike's teenage son and their little daughter were summoned into the room to lay their eyes on their newest family member. Watching them all together, and the ways that they so attentively cared for and expressed affection toward one another was incredibly touching. There's plenty of love in this family, and Quintin is blessed to be dropped down into the midst of it. 

Oh! Another fun detail: Mike is a chiropractor, and at the end of this series of photos you'll see him checking Quintin out for range of motion and subluxations. Had he needed it, Q would have received his first adjustment right there on the bed, too. :) Three cheers for chiropractic!

birth :: william andrew

You can cross every t and dot every i, and birth is still an unpredictable and wild adventure. It smashes expectations and demands surrender. In this way, the best and deepest parts of a woman's heart are called upon to see her through, and in that process a mother is born. 

Sarah -- an intuitive and insanely informed birth doula -- and her husband AJ planned with wisdom and intentionality every last detail of their beautiful home birth. The space they created was equipped with every necessary practicality, and their hearts and minds were in the game. Sarah labored long and gently at home for a full day or so before she called me in with the camera. Along with their doula, Megan of Over The Moon and their midwife Yolanda of Birthsong Midwifery, they had an incredible team. Though her labor was slow-going, all was going smoothly. 

Until it wasn't. Suddenly, Sarah lost her vision and became disoriented. Under Yolanda's calm command, we all hustled into action and got her to the hospital -- where an advance call had them expecting her -- within 15 minutes. Then frightening words were being used, like "pre-eclampsia" and "seizure" and "hypertension," as a compassionate and skilled set of health professionals set to work bringing her body and mind back to equilibrium. It was in many ways their worst nightmare, yet the love and support with which Sarah and AJ were surrounded in the process was unwavering. She was in good hands. 

It took about half a day before Sarah would be out of the woods, and she labored mightily, with a perseverance and determination i've rarely seen, for another day and a half after her health scare. She labored with monitors and medications and many other elements she never planned on. But each one was chosen deliberately and with full informed consent. Through all these things, she didn't lose her power. 

But a uterus, being a muscle, can get exhausted and refuse to march on, just like the legs of any distance runner that's been pushed to the max. Sarah's lack of sleep over the previous days, the baby's stubborn asynclitic position (and resulting lack of progression), that weary uterus, and finally the baby's increase in heart decelerations eventually lead to the need for a hard decision to be made. Sarah and AJ huddled together while their birth team gave them space, and in the space of loving trust between them, they decided to elect for a surgical birth. 

Things moved very quickly then. It wasn't long at all before Sarah was whisked away to the OR, AJ following in his scrubs and holding my pre-programmed camera. And very shortly after that, their beautiful son was brought up and out of Sarah's body and almost immediately to her chest. 

And what a boy! Hunky and healthy, he stole their hearts immediately, the joy of him overshadowing the travail of getting to him. 

Here, in photos, is the story of William's birth. Please note, I came and went several times, so there are four phases of photos here.

Note: because i know this will come up, it is still my firm conviction that home birth is a safe and wonderful choice and that home birth midwives are (more often than not) skilled, wise, and responsible practitioners. this birth story doesn't alter that conviction (or the research that backs that conviction up) in the slightest. yet the truth is that women also need hospitals and OBs, complete with all the tools that they have in their arsenal when birth moves from being a normal physiological event to being a medical emergency. gratefully, that is relatively rare, but when medical help is needed, it is invaluable to have a hospital that is willing to step in and compassionately resolve a birth-related crisis. what we need is not 100% home births in the world nor 100% hospital births; what we need is to have OBs and Midwives who see and value the contributions that the other brings to the table, who can then respectfully collaborate to meet the varying and diverse needs of women in labor and delivery, without shaming or competing.  during Sarah's birth, this happened! and when it works, it is really beautiful to witness. i was so proud of both her midwife and the doctors and nurses at Spectrum for their respectful collaboration that centered on the needs of Sarah. 

birth :: lois joy

be warned. the story that follows is long. but it's a really, really good story.

lois' mama and daddy, charis and jordan, are our people. we do our everyday life with them. jordan is the only other staff at the stockbridge boiler room with my husband tim, and the nature of our church family and ministry is such that we are together multiple times a week, all up in each other's business, praying and dreaming together, sharing our things, and even pushing each other's buttons from time to time. ;) they actually live in our first house, the house where my own first two babies were born. 

tim and i lived in that little house the summer that jordan and charis told us, during a visit from KC, where they were living at the time, that they were about 12 weeks pregnant. but only days later, charis started to bleed. and so it was at this little house that they hunkered down to endure that sad delivery while me and my family vacated the premises to give them space.

later, they moved back to Grand Rapids and started living in this same little house. but it was well over a year before they would have another positive pregnancy test. as they waited -- with such honest wrestling and also incredible grace -- through more negative pregnancy tests than anyone should have to endure -- they faithfully kept their hands in the work God had given them, loved our children with gusto, and geared up to begin foster parenting (a call they'd felt on their lives for a long time). 

one day in May 2015, i went over to photograph them in the room they had made up for the two little boys they had just accepted a foster care placement for. sitting in that beautiful little room, they told me that they were pregnant again. shrieking, i threw myself on charis and happy cried with them. the timing was hilariously stereotypical: say yes to foster care or adoption, and immediately fall pregnant. why does that seem to happen so often?! but at this point, no one cared about being a cliche, because this was the best cliche ever. 

as charis' belly grew, she and jordan grew in their parenting grace as they invested themselves wholeheartedly in their foster sons. we watched them be transformed by their yes to parenting, however it would come for them. their foster sons were reunited with their blood family just a couple of months before charis' estimated due date. she turned the boys' bedroom into a nursery for their baby girl, did some house projects, finished up her jobs... and together they waited.

the morning of the day that their baby would be born, charis and jordan came to our house for breakfast, as they do nearly every friday. she confided that her water had broken that morning and there were a few promising signs that labor was imminent. we had breakfast, then parted ways. charis and jordan had an active day -- playing Just Dance 2016 (charis), babysitting a friend's child, sitting in meetings with my husband, and going for a run (jordan) -- but by late afternoon the contractions were getting more distracting. however, having it in their head that this process would take a long while, they hunkered down, anticipating a long night with the baby coming sometime the following day. 

at about 8 pm they called the midwife, sara (who is also my beloved midwife) to come check in because things felt very intense and though short, the contractions were very close together. they alerted me at this point, too. a few minutes after sara and her student becky arrived, i got a text that said, "sara says you should come quick!" luckily, i live two blocks away, so this was no problem. :)

it was harder to watch my friend in pain than i had anticipated. but she worked so hard and she was so fierce and strong. jordan was tender, fully present, and constantly flashing her the most loving and pleased smiles. then suddenly - just after 9 pm - THE moment was upon us. jordan was summoned by sara to "the other end" to catch his emerging daughter, who flew out in rather a hurry from her watery home and into her daddy's waiting hands. after clearing her mouth and patting her off with a towel, sara passed baby through charis' legs so that she could gather her up off the bed and up to her chest and kiss her little face. and then we were all just a tearful mess (and guys, i actually don't usually cry at births)!

this little girl is the culmination of prayers and longing and the fruit of ton of love. she's the luckiest to be born into a family with these parents. lois joy, we are so very glad to welcome you into our world and our lives. 

i have some openings left for 2016 births and fresh48 sessions. if you're at all interested, start the conversation ASAP.

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birth :: noah graham

sometimes babies are made sooner than planned. that doesn't make it less of a gift, once the shock wears off (hehe). i photographed amy and darren's first birth in April 2014, so when she contacted me in April 2015 about photographing the birth of baby #2 in December, it was a (joyful) surprise! they would be my first "repeat client" for birth story photography. and what an amazing family to do this with a second time! i was in awe of them as they brought ellison into the world, and i knew i was in for a real treat in witnessing the birth of their next little one. 

we planned for me to meet them at their house when amy was in mid-labor, so as to get some photos of them laboring at home, which they wanted to do as long as possible before heading out to the hospital. but then i got a text from them that said simply, "go to hospital." "now?," i replied. "yes," they typed. knowing that her last birth progressed very quickly once she arrived at the hospital, i set out immediately, meeting them and their doula, brenda, at admitting, and parking their car for them while darren helped amy into a wheelchair and through the doors to the hospital. 

in admitting, amy was "only 5 cm" but we all knew that, given her history, that gave NO guarantees that it would be long before she was ready to give birth. we were brought up to labor and delivery after a wait that felt uncomfortably long for amy, though it was brief in the grand scheme of things. once in their room, brenda got to work creating ambiance with candles, essential oils, and positive affirmations posted around the space, while amy got into the tub as soon as the nurse felt comfortable letting her do so. she labored only a short while in the tub before her waters broke and she rose to her feet, announcing that the baby was coming. brenda rushed into the hall and shouted to the nurses that it was time. a scramble commenced, with the midwife (also named brenda) coming in to usher amy to the bedside just in the knick of time to help ease the baby's head out! 

my favorite moment was the one where the midwife passed the baby up to amy, who brought him up to her chest, then laid down on the bed, holding him close, with relief and love washed over her face. so much powerful emotion there (and now one of my favorite birth photos ever). 

the gender was a surprise, so there was also an amazing moment when they declared, "it's a boy!" very shortly after his birth, before he was even weighed and measured, amy's parents came, bringing along ellison. these moments of introduction between a baby and his sibling(s) and grandparents are absolutely awesome. 

and can we just say how amazing darren is?! he's a rock, and he also cannot keep his overwhelming love and joy from showing all over his face! 

after my job was done, i got back out to my car to find my car battery had died. but i didn't even care, as I was just on a high from witnessing this remarkable birth. :)

birth :: judah

it was the middle of the night. we knew that when he decided it was time to be born, he would waste no time doing so. so i drove like a speed demon down the dark highways up to the oakes' home north of the city, turning a normally 30+ minute drive into something closer to 20. when i came in the front door, kathy looked up from the work of her labor and said, "you must have flown!," then she got right back to work. 

kathy and ben's older children were all awake, snuggled sleepy and pajama clad on the L-shape sofa around the birth pool, silently watching. ben was right by kathy's side, offering gentle touch and cool drinks, and midwife leslie also hovered always at hand with her confident support.

within 15 minutes it was evident that birth was imminent, and i patted myself on the back for having arrived so quickly so as not to miss it. 

the midwife gently suggested a move to the birth stool because the water in the pool was a bit low and there wasn't time to replenish it. kathy obliged, but sat on it all of two minutes -- all the while pounding her palms onto her knees and saying "uh-uh, uh-uh, no, no" -- before she went right back into the soothing water, and there proceeded to give birth to her son completely on her own. she focused hard, reached down, and delivered him out of her body, through the water, and up to her chest. 

soon she was surrounded by the attentive help of her midwife and assistant and all the children who came closer to see their baby brother.

judah completes this beautiful family. and it was such an honor to be present for his arrival, particularly as i have such history with this couple! i've known kathy since kindergarten, and ben nearly as long, as we all grew up going to the same small private school! we never could have guessed then that we'd be sharing such a moment together in our 30s! :) 

birth :: campbell elyse joy

Crystal reached out to me toward the very end of her pregnancy, having found herself suddenly in need of a birth photographer. I agreed to it and we got all the papers signed and payments arranged, then we set up a date to have early morning tea together so that we wouldn't be strangers in the birthing room. However, our tea date (which was actually scheduled on her EDD because she was so sure she wouldn't give birth that day) was not to be, because she spontaneously went into labor the night before. Instead of having tea, she had a baby! 

Crystal and her husband Steve traveled a long road to get to this little girl. She is so valued and so loved. They named her after Joseph Campbell for his wisdom that has meant a lot to their own worldview, and she shares a middle name with her much older sister, which connects them in an enduring way. 

This thoughtfulness that is so evident in all of Crystal and Steve's choices extended to their preparation for birth. Crystal shared, "I had my dream birth. I credit that to an amazing team, tremendous preparation of mind-body techniques, and luck." A yoga and meditation practitioner, I have to say that I have never seen a woman so centered, present, and in command of herself during labor. Even at the most intense parts of labor she was checking in with her birth team to make sure we were all doing ok. It was astonishing to me, her doula, and her midwife. We were all in awe! 

Crystal birthed her girl with such power and peace, and it was awesome to see. 

Now you get to see a little glimpse of it, too. Crystal shares with me the hope that telling her story and letting others see this portrayal of a mindful, natural birth -- even in hospital -- will encourage women to know that this IS possible. As Crystal said, "I switched to Advanced (midwifery/OB group) at 35 weeks because my care just didn't feel right. I didn't feel empowered or acknowledged by my provider. I would promote for women to seek the care they know they deserve and listen to their intuition."

Also, as a total photography nerd side note: Crystal had a request to have her birth photography done all in color. As you may have noticed, I tend to do mostly black and white for birth photography for various reasons, which means that my editing techniques are down to a science for b/w, but not so much for color (it's quite challenging to get it right, particularly in nighttime births like hers). I'm really grateful to Crystal for "forcing" me to grow and develop a way of editing birth photos in color. This is a tool I now have in my tool kit with much for confidence than before, and I'm not sure it would have happened without Crystal's request! <3