James M. Birth Story
Raleigh-Durham Birth Photographer and Videographer
The Birth of Baby James and
the first time motherhood journey of Amanda
A peaceful and patient birth center birth at Baby Co. in Cary, NC
The woman’s body knows how,
The body has intuition and power beyond what society tries to limit,
The body is made to carry, nourish and birth life,
There should never be a moment when we doubt the body of a woman.
It was a peaceful rainy morning when i got the call/text from Amanda that this little one was on the way. We had chatted throughout the night about early contractions and some waters breaking but when I finally got the call that they were heading into the birth center I was so ecstatic. I got myself ready and headed to Baby Co. in Cary. When I arrived Amanda was about 6 cm and handling each contraction like a champ. Evan, her husband, was a constant source of love and support. He waited and held her and gave her words of love and encouragement. Amanda had such a profound focus through each wave and you could only hear in the room the primal and beautiful moans of motherhood and the sweet whispers from Evan, constantly repeating, “you can do this, just keep doing that, i love you”
Soon afterI arrived those moans grew into a powerful vocalization which let all of us know that this baby was coming down and that we were close. The midwives of Baby co were so attentive and amazing. They kept her moving and changing positions to help that little one move as seamlessly and swiftly down. Amanda moved from tub, to bed, back to tub , birthing stool and finally delivered right there on the bed being held by her love to welcome their precious little boy, who they named James Zion.
In the moments when Amanda was not sure she could do much more, her body took up the slack and intuitionally pulled them both through. And in the moments when her body was ready to give into the exhaustion, Amanda’s incredible focus and readiness to meet her baby boy overcame everything else. It was a powerful sentiment to the intuition and focus of the woman’s body. For a first time mom to move through her contraction and labor with so much ease and persistence was so inspiring to see. Her peace and comfort in the space and those around her were so evident too.
And that moment when she saw baby James for the first time was an emotion filled moment I will never forget. So much pure joy and waves of accomplishment flooded Amanda and Evan. Their connection with James was so immediate. You could feel their tender love for one another and this little gift just pouring out in buckets. The moment they introduced him to her mom and dad waiting in the other room was completely unadulterated pride and happiness. To be able to share their little gift with family and feel that sense of “i did this, we did this, look at who we made.” was such a beautiful sight and brought me to tears!
I am constantly blown away and honored to have the permission to capture such life changing moments for families. Especially those first time moms. The walk through those first 9 months of pregnancy is one of so much unknown and powerful emotion that all comes to this mountainous release when they meet their little one. Those moments are palpable and powerful and I love that documenting these types of moments are my life’s passion.