As I sit here and type this, Vivian is already more than 17 hours old…and I have been awake for 38 hours. My birth high is wearing off and I will likely sleep like a rock for the next 8 hours. BUT before I head to bed, I needed to get this post uploaded. I don’t shoot births very often. The unpredictability is too much for my anxiety to handle more than a few times a year. And yet every time I have the privilege of attending one I walk away wanting to photograph a hundred more.

Kelsey was “due” back on February 24th. This baby was her fifth, with a set of beautiful twin girls in the mix. Kelsey text me about 12:30am letting me know labor had finally started. I’m about 40 minutes away so when she told me contractions were 2 minutes apart and very painful at 1:30am, I was dressed and on the way within minutes. I arrived to find Kelsey breathing through her contractions like a total pro (because she IS!). Josh, her hubby, was so attentive and made sure to keep her as comfortable as possible through each contraction.

Back labor is no joke – if you know, you KNOW – so Josh and her incredible midwife, Rachel, made sure to apply pressure to her lower back with every contraction. One of the many many reasons I love Rachel is because she literally reads her Mama’s minds! She knows exactly what her laboring mothers need even without them asking for it. I have said for years if we ever ended up pregnant again, I wouldn’t birth without her there!

Peep that smile on dads face! At this point they still didn’t know if baby was a boy or a girl.

Just look at that proud grandma and all the LOVE pouring out in this photo!

Welcome to the world Vivian Mae! I’m so happy to finally meet you!