Welcoming Jakob Asher: Here Comes The Son!

 

Yesterday got off to a fabulous start with a 3:45 a.m. call from my friend Jen telling me her water had broken and she’d just experienced her first labor contraction. Knowing it could be two hours or ten, I fell back to sleep until her husband Josh called me again at a little after five o’clock to suggest it was time to join the fun! I scrambled out of bed, got dressed, grabbed my gear and headed out. As I walked out the door I was awe struck  by the constellation Orion blazing vividly above and I immediately knew it was going to be a great day : )

Ten minutes later I arrived at Jen & Josh’s place to find their daughters Grace and Samantha sound asleep and Jen and her birth team shrouded in candle light with  Jen peacefully breathing through contractions coming a few minutes apart. By the time I arrived at 5:30, Jen had been in labor for two hours, but because checking the cervix after the water has broken can introduce infection into the birth canal, we weren’t sure how much dilation had occurred and so had no idea how long we might be waiting for the big arrival!

Eventually Jen decided she was ready to move to the waiting pool of warm water and once she was settled the effect was apparent as contractions started occurring one upon another. Jen (a birth doula by profession) handled every single one of them with absolute grace. Unlike the other births I have attended, I arrived at this one before transition to the third stage of  labor occurred so I was there to witness the change in the level of intensity, which was really incredible to watch. I was pretty stunned by Jen’s ability to focus so deeply with every building contraction and found myself wondering where she was going in her head. I learned later that she was repeating the mantra “I can do anything for one minute… I can do anything for one minute.” Yes you can, Jen!

     

By about 7:15, Jen decided she needed to know how far she’d progressed and asked her midwife, Eloisa to check her dilation. Because of Jen’s position in the pool it was hard for Eloisa to tell and she suggested that she might be at 5 centimeters. I remember thinking … “oh boy, this is going to take a lot longer than I thought!” Jen seemed to know better, however, and after a few more contractions,  the next thing I knew she was saying “ELOISA! HEAD!” Eloisa checked again and sure enough, the baby was preparing to crown!  With an unbelievable burst of power, Jen pushed Jakob Asher Quesada into the world just after sunrise at 7:22 a.m., weighing 9 pounds, 6 ounces and measuring a whopping 23 inches!

Our first glimpse of little Jak!

               

Within minutes, sleepy-eyed girls Grace and Samantha joined us in the living room for the celebration of little Jak’s  arrival. Within an hour, the family’s home was filled with elated loved ones sipping mimosas and the smell of bacon and Eggs Benedict… you definitely don’t see this at a hospital birth!  What a wonderful environment for a little person to begin his life  in…. and what a fortunate girl I am that I got to be part of it : )

You can see more photos from  Jak’s first day of life in an album on my Facebook page!

Dear Jen, Josh, Grace, Samantha & Jak… Thank you, endlessly, for inviting me to be part of such a memorable day for your family. I’m elated that you think my “presence” helped make everything perfect as you welcomed your newest addition and I love knowing that these pictures we created together will always hold within them a flood of beautiful memories  : )

Jeninne & Tony

I met up with Jeninne & Tony a couple of weeks ago to get acquainted and talk about their plans for their upcoming wedding. I’ve found it’s good practice to spend a little “camera time” with a bride & groom before the wedding because I almost always learn something that helps me be a better photographer on their big day. This time was no different! While Jeninne smiles beautifully for the camera at the drop of a hat, I learned pretty quickly that  Tony is a tough cookie to crack when it comes to getting him to do the same and that I’m going to need to either a) sharpen my wit substantially before I see him again, or b) enlist every one of his friends to share a hilarious Tony story that I can toss out just before I close the shutter : ) Actually I’m pretty sure  I won’t really have to worry much about it on the wedding day with such a cute new wife on his arm!

 

I deleted most of the “non-smiling Tony” shots but kept a few for comparison… smiling Tony looks so happy & cute, while non-smiling Tony looks a little pissed : )

Oops! So sorry… it didn’t feel wet when I checked it!

See you two October 3rd!

(And if any of Tony’s friends see this, please feel free to share a hilarious Tony story via the email address above!)

An Impromptu Shoot

 

Not long after we experienced the birth of Baby Everly together last spring, Jen Quesada of  Natural Blessings Doula Services contacted me about documenting the September home birth of her third child. Well, September is finally here and last week I stopped by to visit with Jen, her husband Josh and their two girls Grace & Samantha.  As it turned out, Jen’s midwife and good friend Eloisa Cary of Gentle Hands Midwifery  just happened to stop by for a visit while I was there! I had brought along my camera with the intention of snapping a few belly shots, but when little Sam grabbed the fetoscope and asked to listen to the baby, the whole family got in on the fun and a full-on photo shoot ensued! What a great time we all had trying to find the baby's heart beat while Eloisa gently encouraged him to turn into the birth position for Mama Jen.  I can’t wait to share the birth photos… hopefully very, very soon!

After Eloisa left, we spent a few minutes documenting the family in their final days as a family of four – which inevitably turned into a huge tickle-fest : )

And finally… a few solo shots of Jen and her belly. 

Such a pretty, healthy mama she is!