A few days ago I had the honor of witnessing the strength of this beautiful woman, Kelsey.
When Kelsey reached out, she knew I had never been present for a birth as I specialize mainly in weddings and elopements, but asked if I would photograph her home water birth anyway. I was so excited to capture the raw, beautiful emotions that come with childbirth.
I was on call for two weeks, waiting for Kelsey’s direction. That call finally came April 10th at 4:16am. I expected to see what movies and tv had perceived birth to be: loud, yelling from pain and everyone running around chaotically. When I stepped foot into Kelsey and Cam’s house it was beautifully silent. Kelsey was laying on the couch, in tune with her body and what it needed. We waited for a little over an hour before she got into the birthing tub.
40 minutes or so after she got into the tub, she said she could feel the baby’s head. She reached down immediately and pulled him out. Just like that. It was powerful. I teared up as it was the most magical thing I’ve ever seen. It was nothing I had imagined it to be but somehow even better. It was so quick and she made it seem SO easy. Even her midwife was shocked.
Women are so incredible. Kelsey is one of the strongest women I’ve ever met and it sounds odd but I felt honored to be a woman just by watching her bring her own baby into this world. Baby Reuben is so beautiful, and so lucky to have been born into one of the most loving families.
