The past week has been.....heavy.
I won't put a trigger warning on this. I don't believe in putting such on someone else's loss.
But I will say this - this gallery contains images of the most beautiful little vessel, of which that once held the most precious of souls, whom is no longer here on this human earth.
I woke up to the call one early morning before the sun had fully risen to the text: “Are you awake? This is a heads up text before I call you.” Shortly after came the call. It was her due date, and she was excited that it might finally be the day. I drove the hour and a half from my house to hers, watching the sun rise higher and higher as I drove. As the sun crept up, so did this ecstatic, yet calming feeling that I always get on my way to a birth.
Read MoreI met this sweet mama through our mutual interest in photography and the birthing world. I first met her in person at a mutual client's birth in 2018. She was their doula, and I was their photographer! It was great to finally see her in action and to put a name to face. When I heard she was expecting a sweet little babe midsummer, I was excited and reached out to see if she was looking for someone. We chatted for a while before she decided to have me as her birth photographer. I was so excited when she told me her decision! I knew her birthing day would be so beautiful, just as birthing a baby is, and I was itching to attend a birth in light of the recent pandemic and lockdowns.
Read MoreToday I’m sharing with you all such a powerful gift. It is such loving and selfless act to carry another’s baby within yourself. To nourish and feel it grow. I have always been drawn to the act of surrogacy, and have even considered becoming a surrogate myself. In that journey, I have met so many wonderful people who have done just that. When I met Brianna and the Intended Parents (this is the term for the parents of the baby who will be carried by the surrogate), I could instantly sense the connection between them in how comfortable and trusting they were of Brianna and her ability to carry and birth their baby boy!
Read MoreColleen found me after through images of a mutual friend’s birth that I photographed a few years back. I love how through sharing birth images, other people can find the beauty in their own future births, and desire to have theirs documented too!
Read MoreToday I share a birth album with you all that is very dear to my heart. I first met Megan and her family about three years ago, to photograph their son's home birth just 8 short weeks after giving birth to my own son. I loved bonding with them and getting to know the sweet love that flowed through their country home on the west-side of Indy. When I found out that Megan was pregnant with a baby girl due late summer 2018, I was thrilled! I couldn't wait to be a part of their birth team again, in their sacred space, in that space filled with joy and love. It was awe-striking to see similarities, too, between both births. Nearly identical, in the way of birthing, sounds, sights and faces.
Read MoreAlyce and I instantly connected over our time during a warm outdoor summer maternity session late last year. She was expecting her baby girl around Thanksgiving. (Little did we know, she’d be born on that day!)
Alyce was happy to have a photographer document this time for her, though her husband couldn’t attend, it was nice to have these beautiful images in the sunset to be able to look back upon that wonderful time in her life.
We had a great time talking all-things-birth and baby!
I love getting to know my clients over motherhood sessions, it allows for an easier greeting in the birth room when in labor!
Read MoreI love being able to fill in for other photographers every now and then. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside that they trust me to photograph their clients’ most intimate moments.
This was one of those moments.
I had the honor of meeting this family just a day after they birthed their baby boy, Julien. It was a beautifully lit postpartum room at IU West, and I immediately fell in love with his swirly hair, Mama’s crunchy curls and Dad’s loving and helping touch.
See below their beautiful First 48 session!
Read MoreI was so excited when Megan announced that she and her husband Brandon were expecting their baby girl last summer. Having photographed the birth of their youngest son Finley in 2016, it was great to get to see them again and to see how they have grown as a family. Finley was all of two, and their other children had shot up like weeds. I enjoyed roaming their property with them, soaking up the nature and the excitement of their impending home birth. It would be any day now.
Read MoreI first met Nadia and her family a few years ago when their middle baby was still growing inside. They had hired me for her birth, and it was such an honor to witness. Nadia was ferocious in her birthing her second daughter, standing up beside the hospital bed with her husband right there comforting her through it all. They were so in sync. I know the birth of Neva was just as beautiful. I was able to join them on the last day of their hospital stay for a quick Postpartum session to capture all of the details of their new family, now with 3 girls. It was nothing short of sweet.
Read MoreIt was the day of Summer Solstice when Kasi contacted me to let me know that her labor was further progressing. She had originally planned a home birth, but needed to be transferred to IU Methodist Hospital to be induced at 38 weeks instead. Her home birth midwife was still very much there for her, arriving when Kasi was in active labor, and staying through the birth and thereafter. It was wonderful to see her midwife and the hospital midwives working together to care for Kasi and her baby. Soon, Kasi felt the urge to push. She stood beside a tall chair and led her baby earthside with the help of one of the midwives, and up to her chest in triumphant relief. Postpartum care for Kasi and her baby afterwards was magical to watch, the dual care by each midwife was seamless. You can see for yourself just how amazing this birth story is:
Read MoreApril is International Cesarean Month, and I was honored to have been invited into the OR for this special family and baby's birth. This is their story: The birth of Walt. It includes infant loss, and raw and sometimes graphic images of a c-section.
Read MoreWhen I walked into Carly and Matt’s labor and delivery suite at Indiana University Methodist, I was a bit nervous because I had never met them before. I was filling in for another photographer who was sick, and hadn’t had the opportunity of meeting them before Carly was induced to deliver their 2nd baby boy. I was not there for long before I felt “officially” a part of their birth team.
Read MoreI went back to the hospital later that day to capture all of Merrick’s little baby details. She was nursing and cuddling with her mama. Once see seemed a little satisfied from her mama’s milk, Ashley swaddled her and put a big beautiful bow on her head! It was great getting to see her new baby and watch her unfold yet again into this fresh motherhood journey.
Read MoreLast year, I met a wonderfully sweet soul inquiring about birth photography, who was pregnant with her first child. She confided in me that it may be she and her husband’s only biological child, as they wanted so badly to adopt any more future children. Documenting their baby’s birth became very important to them, because of this. She was concerned, however, that she would not be able to find someone willing to take a due date so closely to our American holiday - Thanksgiving. Her due date was the Saturday after that beloved holiday, after all.
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