This is the story of two beautiful people and the love that brought a perfect little girl into the world.

And I almost turned them down to photograph their birth!

You see, when Megan reached out to me, her due date was just 3 short weeks before I was due with my second baby! I had (painfully!) turned down so many inquiries around my due date and in the two months after, but when she contacted me with her end of July due date, I just had to try. I tentatively emailed her, telling her that I would be 37 weeks pregnant on her due date (and more if her baby went past 40 weeks!) and that I would be willing to try, but that one of my backup photographers might have to step in for me.

Her response?

“Congratulations on your pregnancy! How special! I have to tell you, your website and your work brought a peace to me and overwhelmed me with excitement and comfort. I can’t wait to meet you!”

What?? Dream client!

So our pregnancies carried on through a hot Jacksonville summer. As it turned out, Megan and her care providers at UF Health North decided that an induction was the best course of action. At 37 weeks along myself, I still felt great and I was beyond excited that I was going to be able to document this life changing day for them!

This is their birth story, told by Megan in her own words. Enjoy!

-Dallas

“Early morning of July 24th: I woke up at 4:30am , and had what looked like a period. Yay bloody show! Perfect timing since INDUCTION DAY! I had a big bowl of cereal, showered, put some light makeup on and did my hair (because that’s what’s really important, right?!) All the bags were packed and ready in the car. Joel slept while I excitedly got ready for the big day. I remember looking at Roo (our dog) as we closed the door thinking ‘It’ll never be the same with us again! Next time we come home we will have the baby.’ We left the apartment at 5:35am and arrived at UF Health North at 5:59am.

Joel dropped me off at the front and met me upstairs in L&D. I checked in with the clerk at the front and she told me that we had to wait for registration to complete some paperwork. About 30 minutes later a sweet nurse named Elyse came and retrieved us, and showed us to our room. The nerves really began to set in once we got to the room (2103). She handed me a gown to change in to, we went over some paperwork and what to expect. She started an IV in my hand and got me hooked up to fluids and pitocin. I felt great.

At shift change, my new nurse Sabrina came in. She was absolutely lovely! She checked my cervix and I was just a little past 2cm dilated. She upped my pitocin every half an hour.

After 8 am, my midwife, Kate came in with the biggest smile and in the most enthusiastic voice said ‘You ready to have a baby Megan?!’ She told me about a manual cervical dilation, where they place a foley in the cervix and vagina to dilate. She said that we would stick with pitocin first and then resort to that if things didn’t progress.

Around 11 am, my parents joined us. I was so excited! It started to feel really real to me. My mom was just so excited and it made my heart so happy. My dad and Joel went to lunch and did some shopping (are you kidding me lol)

In the meantime, I opted in to the manual cervical dilation. I was still at a 2, after some hours on pitocin, and felt that it was the best choice to really get things moving. My mom was with me while they placed the foley. It was extremely uncomfortable and I remember feeling a little nauseated and anxious. I asked for something to calm my nerves, and they told me that they would give me a concoction to take a nap. I rested my eyes for about 30 mins, when the contractions really began to pick up.

The boys got back to the room, and I decided it was time to get on to a birthing ball. Something happened, I truly thought my Dad jokingly knocked it with his foot, but it deflated with my pregnant butt still one it, sending me reaching for the bed to hold on to! That was only the beginning of the joking for the day!

Shortly after the birthing ball debacle, I opted for an epidural. In retrospect the actual procedure of getting the epidural is so insignificant to me. When I was pregnant I was so worried about it. Funny how that all works out.

The foley bulb was removed and I was at 6 cm!

The hours went by, we watched Jeopardy, The Bachelor and a YouTube video of a child getting rammed by a wild animal in Yellow Stone! My dad was the entertainment of the room as he joked and chatted the whole time.

Joel and my dad ordered chicken wings while I was instructed not to eat, and had themselves a little soiree as my labor really began to pick up.

Around 11 pm, I randomly broke a fever and started to get really miserable mentally. I started getting really anxious and just wanted to meet my baby. I was feeling mentally and physically weak. Dallas reassured me that it was all okay, she was so comforting throughout all of this!

Joel’s mom began to rub my swollen feet and hands and rub my back. The contractions were really strong, I couldn’t get settled in to a good position and I was downright starving. I think the bowl of Cheerios that I had eaten at 4 am that morning were not sustaining my body anymore. I was begging everyone for snacks.

My nurse sent the anesthesiologist back in a couple of times to fix my epidural or give me some relief but it wasn’t working well at all. I felt everything and the frustration really started to pick up. Everyone was getting tired, and I couldn’t get comfy to rest.

The family took naps to rest up for what the rest of the night held. My dad headed back to our place to take care of the dog and get some sleep. Around 2:30 am, my sweet nurse, Elyse, checked me and I was at a 10! Thank you sweet baby Jesus! I had just asked her if I could have a C-section because I felt DONE!

At 3, we started to ‘push’ I was not getting it. I felt nauseous and anxious and wanted to freak out a little bit. My mom and Joel’s mom were in the room, and my dad sat behind the curtain playing Salt & Peppa ‘Push It’ on his phone. I distinctly remember my nurses looking at me with fear in their eyes for how I was going to react! I didn’t care at all, it was so typical of my father. It helped a little, lighten the mood.

Dallas was so comforting throughout this time; she had essential oils and put them on a washcloth for me to smell to help with the anxiety and nausea. She also walked me through my contractions and me feeling uncomfortable. She was truly so special and so wonderful, it makes me cry thinking of her and the tremendous role she played in my birth.

Since I had zero earthly idea of what pushing actually meant, a nurse named Kelly taught me. We played tug-of-war with a sheet to help me push down and breathe my baby down. It helped so much!

I pushed off and on for almost 3 hours. I had Joel on one side holding my leg and encouraging me and Dallas on the other, speaking life into me!

Around the 5 am hour, it got serious. I was ready, the baby was ready and I was determined to get the baby out. I remember Kelly looking at me and telling me that she would make the phone call to my midwife if I kept pushing.

All of these wonderful nurses flooded the room and everyone was so encouraging. When Kate walked in to the room she had the same smile as she did almost 24 hours earlier and said ‘Well, look who is having a baby!’

There really are no words to describe how I felt. It was like my mind and body were totally somewhere else. I had no control over my body. Joel said I was grunting and saying ‘Let’s go’ at the beginning of each contraction. He thought I was going to quote Shania Twain with her ‘Let’s go, girls!’

I had the urge to push and just keep pushing. It was euphoric. It was the most beautiful I’ve ever felt in my life. I was profusely sweating, but I was giving life! I remember hearing ‘Here comes her head!’ And then instantly hearing ‘Megan! Here’s your baby!’

She came so swiftly and truly in one big push! I remember looking at her and thinking ‘Oh my gosh! That’s the little person that has been living in me for the past 9 months!’ She was beautiful and had the most chunky cheeks of any baby I had ever seen before.

I looked over at Joel and he was crying and in awe of our baby. It was the best moment of my life.

I was so relieved that she was healthy and precious and that I was done with pregnancy. It was the most gratifying feeling ever. The only word I really have to describe it is euphoric.

I asked one of the nurses if my parents could please come back to meet her. We were doing skin-to-skin and I remember looking at my dad who was standing back just taking it all in.

Everyone was completely exhausted and so relieved that everyone was healthy and happy.

She is the most beautiful baby girl to me, and I am so thankful that I had my family and Dallas with me throughout my labor and delivery journey.

Delivering at UF North feels like such a gift. It was truly a magical experience from beginning to end. Nothing like some baby magic!”

Baby magic is absolutely right! Megan, you were so strong and sweet and it was truly so special to be able to witness your entrance into motherhood. Thank you for trusting me (and my hugely pregnant self!) to help you remember every detail of that incredible day! -Dallas

PREGNANT AND THINKING ABOUT BIRTH PHOTOGRAPHY? LET’S TALK!

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