Erin Hull Photography

The Birth of Aneela {Cincinnati Birth Photographer}

I met with Deana and Manny fairly last minute and I was super excited to learn that this was their first baby and they were planning a natural birth at the birth center in Dayton. They knew they might want a little extra labor support, which I am always happy to provide.

I received a call about noon that said that Deana’s contractions had been five minutes apart for an hour and they were heading up to the birth center. Deana had been about 3cm at her last doctor’s appointment, and after several hours of walking and trying to get contractions going, she was only 4cm. I feared that she was getting discouraged, but from what I could tell by Manny’s texts, she was doing great. The day passed, and I still didn’t feel it was time for me to go. I checked in with them one last time about 11:00pm to see how things were going. As far as they knew Deana had not dilated any further, so I decided to get a bit of sleep if I could. I woke to a text at about 1:00 am saying that Deana was at 7cm. YAY! I got my equipment together to head up to Dayton. She was feeling a little pushy while I was on the road, so I was just hoping that the little sweetie would hold on juuuust a bit longer.

I arrived to Deana laboring in the tub, with Manny at her side. She was doing beautifully. I didn’t know for sure how close she was to pushing, but I knew she was close. She decided that the tub just wasn’t working, so she got out and tried a few different positions on the bed. That didn’t seem to be working too great, and she just couldn’t seem to find a good position there either. Her lovely nurse Jan suggested that she stand for a bit with Manny supporting, and settle into a squat during a contraction. That really seemed to move the baby right down!

Very shortly thereafter, Baby Aneela was delivered into her mama’s arms at 6 pounds 3.4 ounces, and absolutely gorgeous. They didn’t find out her gender beforehand so it was fun to see the surprise.

One of my favorite parts of this birth was when Deana’s ecstatic mom and dad came in to meet Aneela, and Deana’s dad prayed over the new little family. Beautiful.

Congratulations guys! I am so happy for you and I know you are going to be wonderful, loving parents.

Enjoy your slideshow and don’t forget to click the little “HD” in the upper right-hand corner to watch in HD!

The Birth of Andrew Thomas {Cincinnati Birth Photographer}

Holly was not due until March 25th, so I was pretty surprised to wake up on the morning of February 28th to a text that she was in labor and headed to the hospital! Since Holly’s mother had very fast labors and this was Holly’s first baby, I thought it would be best to call in the reinforcements and get my stuff together to head up to the hospital.

When I arrived, Holly had just gotten her epidural and was pretty relaxed and comfortable. She was found to be about 5 cm dilated and things were progressing steadily. Holly, her husband Peter, their lovely doula Lisa, and Holly’s parents were sitting around chatting while we waited for their little guy.

As Holly’s labor progressed, she was able to feel a lot more of her contractions. Things got intense for her there for a little while, but after a few more visits from the anesthesiologist, she was kept fairly comfortable through the second stage of labor. Holly informed me ahead of time that her husband Peter was a tad bit uneasy about the birth process, and at times, had even felt woozy at the sight of a needle. But I have to say, he did great! I suppose everything is different when it’s your own child.

Once Holly was complete, Baby Andrew was born within a handful of pushes to his happy parents and grandparents. Even though he was born almost 3 weeks before his due date, he was a healthy 6 lbs., 15 oz! You can see how loved he is already.

Congratulations, Holly, Peter and family!

Enjoy your slideshow and don’t forget to click the little “HD” in the upper right-hand corner to watch in HD!

The Birth of Eleanor {Cincinnati Birth Photographer}

It is a great privilege to be a small part of every birth that I photograph, but this birth was special to me for a couple of reasons. Chris and Elizabeth are dear friends of mine and they had their baby at home. It is always a beautiful thing to witness a couple work together to bring life into the world in their own environment. Elizabeth’s first birth at home was rather difficult for her since she labored for over 30 hours with very slow progress. Things turned out very well in the end although she was close to needing to transfer to the hospital. I was hoping and praying that things would go smoother this time, but either way, I couldn’t wait to document their birth for them!

Elizabeth’s water broke late Friday night, but contractions didn’t start right away. She told me she was going to get some sleep and I remained on stand-by that night. Baby Eleanor was very kind and let us all get some sleep that night! Elizabeth’s contractions started early the next morning and by 8:00am they were getting pretty regular. I had another session Saturday morning and decided I would head up to their house in Dayton afterward.

When I arrived about 2:00pm, Elizabeth was well into active labor and in “the zone”. Chris and her lovely birth team were supporting her while Elizabeth listened to her body and prepared to birth her baby. She showed such calm and strength throughout, even though I know that’s not how she felt inside! When the time came Elizabeth found it very hard to believe that it was actually time to push her baby out! But lo and behold, their little girl arrived at 4:51pm to cries of joy and relief. Chris and Elizabeth (especially Elizabeth) were so happy that this birth was not a repeat of last time. I don’t think Elizabeth could believe it until she was able to reach down and actually touch her baby!

Congratulations and many blessings to you all, Chris and Elizabeth! Thank you so much for letting me take part in this beautiful day. As always, the images tell the story much better than I can.

Enjoy your slideshow and don’t forget to click the little “HD” in the upper-right hand corner of the slideshow to watch in HD.

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The Birth of Grey Allen {Cincinnati Birth Photographer}

Rachel and I met for the first time less then two weeks before her birth. When she initially contacted me and told me that her due date was December 28th, we decided to book the birth and cross both fingers that she didn’t have a Christmas baby! At a routine appointment a couple of days before Christmas, her doctors thought she might need to be induced or have a repeat c-section due to low fluid, but they decided that baby was doing okay and she could stay pregnant until she went into labor on her own. Great news, as we all wanted to see her get the VBAC she was hoping for.

Christmas came and went with no appearance from the little guy. Then Friday evening at about 7:30 I got a text that said that Rachel had been having regular contractions for several hours and her water had broken. They would be heading to the hospital soon! I had a cup of coffee and headed up to the hospital as well. When I arrived Rachel was at about 5 cm and laboring really well on her own. She was going to try and go without the epidural if she could. Since I had asked her ahead of time if extra labor support from me would be something she thought she could benefit from, I offered a little extra help with encouragement and massage while Daddy was out getting something to eat. Since I have a lot of birth and doula experience, I love it when I get the opportunity to support moms in labor AND document the process. Sometimes I think I’m actually a doula disguised as a photographer. When Daddy got back from getting something to eat, he jumped right in and did an awesome job at being a great support to Rachel.

A couple of hours later Rachel had only dilated one more centimeter and she was getting very tired and discouraged. Her doctor suspected that baby could be facing the wrong way. She was a rock star in labor, but didn’t know how much longer she wanted to go without some relief and rest. She decided to try changing positions to try and get the baby to turn and take it from there. A little while later, she decided she would go ahead and get an epidural and rest. Once the epidural was in place and she started to get relief, she was 10 cm in no time at all and it was time to push!

Soon her doctor arrived and after about 30 minutes of pushing, little Grey was born healthy and beautiful at 8 pounds, 11.2 ounces, exactly on his due date! I was so happy that Rachel achieved her VBAC! As you can see, Grey is quite the little cutie. Congratulations you guys!

**Be sure to click the little “HD” in the upper right-hand corner of the slideshow to watch in HD! Enjoy!

The Birth of Toby Jase {Cincinnati Birth Photographer}

I met Lindsey at our homeschool co-op last year. The minute we started talking about birth, we immediately had a ton in common! A little later when she became pregnant with her fourth child, I was THRILLED when she asked if I would come and photograph their home birth!

I received a text from Lindsey about 11:00pm on Sunday night saying that she had been having contractions since about 6:00pm. I fully expected to get maybe a couple hours of sleep and then head on over to their house, but to my surprise, I didn’t hear a peep until morning. I figured the contractions just fizzled out, so I started getting ready for co-op that morning. Then I got a text at about 7:30am that said that her contractions were five minutes apart and the midwife was heading over. YES!! I was super excited for this birth already, and a daytime birth was just the cherry on top!

I arrived at Lindsey’s house about 9:00am to find her husband Jonathan helping her labor and the birth tub filled and ready for her to get in. The midwife had arrived and their three older kids were playing quietly upstairs. Lindsey and Jonathan seemed to be in a pretty good rhythm and Lindsey was doing great at moving around and listening to her body. After a few hours of getting in and out of the tub and changing positions no less than one million times, she knew it was finally time to push. Their youngest decided she needed to be near mama in order to take her nap right about that time, so she came downstairs, and fell asleep under a blanket on the couch right next to her fiercely pushing mama! Lindsey had to work pretty hard at this stage, as baby presented face-sideways. Their beautiful baby was born at 12:40pm with a little bit of bruising but a very peaceful spirit. They didn’t find out the sex of the baby beforehand, so they called their two oldest children downstairs so they could all look together. A BOY!! Big brother’s reaction to his very first brother was priceless and SO FUN to watch. Lots of jumping up and down and a few tears of joy were involved. He was a healthy 7 pounds and 5 ounces, their biggest baby so far!

What a privilege to be present for this birth. To see a family with everyone close and involved in welcoming a new family member is so beautiful, and a huge part of what home birth is all about. That was one of my favorite things about my own home birth!

A huge congratulations to this wonderful family and I hope you enjoy your slideshow!