Home Birth

An Eventful, Calm and Perfect Homebirth

I knew I liked Nellie by her first email :)

She has the best sense of humor. Nellie and John are incredibly thoughtful as well. They even invited me sleep in their guest bedroom one early morning while I was on call for Rory's birth—so much nicer than sleeping in my van, lol! I loved watching Nellie with her boys, you could just see how much she loved them and they just adore her, it was so sweet. Nellie and John have *now* five children, which makes me so happy—I am one of 7!—which is just one reason I was so excited to photograph this birth. I LOVE big families. And Rory is their first girl, which is just the best. She was born at 4:57am, and the boys all woke up about an hour later to meet her for the first time. It was so special. I absolutely loved having the opportunity to document this birth. Congratulations, Nellie & John! I am so happy for you!

 

The Birth Film:

You reallllly don't want to miss this! Also, be sure to make it full screen and turn your volume up—it's so much better that way!

 

Rory's birth story from Nellie's Perspective:

Tell us a bit about yourself, and what number baby/birth you’re sharing with us. 
I’m Nellie, mom to four boys and wife of a sailor. In true “are we done yet?!” fashion, we decided to go for one more because having a handful of boys sounded great! We would name him Sullivan (after the Sullivan brothers of Naval history) and that was that. We found out our 5th child was actually a girl and it’s been a wild ride since! Her name is Rory.

The Baggett family cuddled up with their new baby sister.

What was your due date, and what was your baby’s birth date?
My due date was 11.29.16, our 13th wedding anniversary! She decided that her own date with some flare was in order so she came earth side on December 7th, 2016, the 75th Anniversary of Pearl Harbor. 

What was babies weight and length?
She was 8 pounds, 8 ounces and 21 inches long

What are three words you would choose to describe your birth?
Eventful, calm, perfect 

What did you do to prepare for your labor and birth? Did it help?
Preparing for this labor was new territory for me, even though past labors had been arduous. Prodromal labor played a role for about five weeks and it really messes with your emotions! I did prepare by reading Hypnobirthing and making affirmation cards. One card that particular card I had hanging on the wall was “This will not last forever.” It helped me during the intense parts of labor.

What did you like about your birth experience, if anything?
It was the birth I’ve always *almost* achieved but got to tired to finish calmly. I’ve always wanted to just let the fetal ejection reflex take place so it was a calm entry in to the world but I’ve always been so tired by the end I would just push to get baby out. 

What surprised you about your contractions/labor?
Nothing truly surprised me! I guess, maybe, that the labor didn’t take 20 hours -but If I were to add up all the prodromal labor I might be over the 20 hour mark! 

In reflection, would you do anything differently, either before the birth, during or after?
I would do nothing differently.

What do you remember the most about the birth?
Getting to deliver my baby! That was really neat. 

Nellie delivers Rory her baby...

...and holds her for the first time.

How was your birth experience different from what you imagined it to be?
For once, in five births, it was exactly as I imagined!

How has your perspective of your birth experience with your baby changed since the birth of your first child?
My perspective of birth since my first child in 2006 has changed immensely. I went from a fear based birth in a hospital with all the interventions (aside from a c-section) to an educated, evidence based, birthing experience for every subsequent baby.

What were your immediate emotions about yourself and or your birth experience after the birth?
I kept saying (at least in my head, I don’t know if I verbalized it): “I did it!"

How would you describe your recovery?
Recovery is going great I do have to say this, because its not talked about enough: for every birth, I have the displeasure of entertaining Post Partum Anxiety. So, while I look fine and recovered, PPA is always in the background! Its important to recognize it and seek help!

Did you learn anything about yourself through this experience?
I did learn that, while I stink at self hypnosis, I could absolutely achieve a calm birth. My midwife knew my wishes and helped me achieve my goal.

Would you recommend having a natural childbirth or medicated childbirth to others?
I whole-heartedly believe that a woman should have a birth that makes her feel empowered. A natural birth makes me feel empowered, but I have several friends that were more than happy to have their epidural, gas, etc. In the end, none of us get a medal but we all get a baby! 

WHY hire a birth photographer?
BECAUSE! Perspective. You’ll never have that perspective with the absolute artistic quality of a birth photographer. There is something to be said about quality and having Amber stealthily move around the room and capture life altering moments is just something special. 

 

The Photographs


The Midwives

I have so loved working with Jaymie and Dr. Lori! This was my first time working with Jaymie and she's so sweet and just has a wonderful presence. And Dr. Lori is simply amazing. And she's always smiling! I've had the pleasure of photographing 3 home births with her. If you are looking for a midwife on Oahu, definitely contact these lovely ladies!

Midwife: Jaymie Lewis from Hanau Pono. http://hanaupono.com
Assisting Midwife: Dr. Lori Kimata from Sacred Healing Arts. http://sacredhealingarts.info


Hi there! I'm Amber, and this is my photography business. I am a documentary and lifestyle photographer, specializing in birth photography. Want some more info? I want to hear from you! Click the contact button below and ask me any questions you want and I'll get back to you ASAP.


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