Liz and I met over a year and a half ago. She owned a fabulous cloth diapering business. When she contacted me to let me know she was pregnant and if I could photograph her birth I was ecstatic!
I'm always humbled by laboring mommas. The strength and power. I know it doesn't alway feel that way when you are in the middle of it but trust me it's one of the most amazing things to watch.
The time line below is from her wonderful doula Carrie Murphy. Carrie on Facebook carriemurphydoula.com
Timeline of Oliver's Birth, 10/1/14
7:34 am: Liz texted me letting me know she was having contractions that may or may not be labor. We texted back and forth for a while and I got all my doula stuff ready just in case.
8:21 am: Wyatt texted me asking if I could bring my birth ball over for Liz to use it—shortly after Liz texts me “It’s real!” (meaning real labor). Yay!!
9:30: I brought my ball over to Liz and Wyatt’s house and we chatted for a few minutes. Liz’s contractions were about tenish minutes apart, and painful. I left and promised to come back later when she needed me.
11:19 am: Wyatt calls me and says Liz’s contractions are getting a lot stronger and more painful, so I hope back in my car. I also call Sarah Perry, the birth photographer who is going to be there.
11:40 am: I arrive back at Liz and Wyatt’s house and Liz is in the tub. She is coping well with contractions ever 8ish minutes or so. We chat, Charly comes in and out, etc. After a while, it gets too hot and Liz decides to get out.
12:30ish?: Sarah arrives and starts to takes pictures. Liz is walking, leaning on bed with birth ball, I am doing some counter pressure. Sitting on toilet with help from Wyatt, leaning on Wyatt and swaying, etc. Liz is still laughing and joking in between contractions.
1:00 pmish: Charly gets picked up and Liz says she wants to get in the tub, so Wyatt begins to inflate and fill tub. Liz is still coping well but contractions are clearly harder to deal with.
1:10 pm: I call Jaymi, Liz’s midwife. I then call Rebekah, her other midwife. They say they are on their way.
1:25 pm: Liz gets in pool. She is moving around a lot, the water is not yet full but Wyatt is making it the right temperature for her. She gets out again.
1:45 pm: Back in tub with loud vocalizing.
1:50 pm: Rebekah arrives. Shortly after, Jaymi arrives. Liz says she is feeling slime coming out of her.
2:00pmish?: Jaymi checks Liz and she’s 6-7 centimeters. The midwives suggest Liz get on the toilet to bring the baby down a bit but it is really painful and uncomfortable for her. She does, but gets off, walks around, gets back. She continues to drink water, take cold cloths, etc.
2:25 pm: Liz gets back in pool and says she feels like she has to push. She says she is feeling “so much pressure.”
2:30 pm: Rebekah checks Liz and she is 9 cm!! Liz is clearly in transition, and struggling through contractions. The midwives say as soon as her water breaks she will have the baby. She gets out of the pool again, back to toilet and starts pushing a bit, so back into the pool. Her water breaks in the tub (she tells us this).
2:55ish?: Liz asks for Wyatt to get in the pool so she can lean on him. He does.
3:00 pm: After a few grunts and pushes, Liz says “he’s coming” and we can clearly see Oliver’s head emerge.
3:06 pm: On the next push, he is out!! Oliver is born!! He goes immediately to Liz’s chest. He starts crying loudly and strongly within just a few seconds of being born. and Liz and Wyatt look at their new baby for a few minutes.
3:10 pm: Jaymi doesn’t like the amount of blood in the pool, so she tells Liz to quickly get out and get on the bed so her placenta can come out. Quickly, she does, and the placenta is born at around 3:16 or so.
After that, the midwives clean up from the birth, Sarah takes pictures, and Liz cuddles in bed with Oliver. Liz cuts the cord herself. Oliver is reluctant to latch at first but then he latches wonderfully and feeds like a champ.
Charly and Noah come back and meet their new brother, which is so sweet to see. Liz’s stepmom Vicki and Steph come, too…Sarah is taking photos throughout. Liz is still bleeding a bit so she gets a shot of Pitocin in the thigh from Jaymi. Oliver is weighed and measured.
