Beacon - A Home Birth Story

Posted on July 27, 2015 by Alanna Farmer

This was a special birth for me. Home births always hold a special place in my heart since I had a home birth with my second daughter. But it wasn’t only the home birth that made it special, I was also able to work alongside Michelle and Kaydee from Birth Matters, who were my midwives a year and a half ago.

For this post, I asked the mom for her birth story. Below is her personal story:
(You may want some tissues close by)

“Beacon’s birth was unlike my first two. With my first I had a few surges, then my water broke and 5 hours later she was born in the birthing tub. My second, I woke at 6:15am with a surge and my son was born 1.5 hours later. We did not have time to fill the tub, I didn’t even have time to prepare my bed, so I delivered him standing at my bathroom sink. His birth was so quick he was stunned and wasn’t breathing, he was resuscitated and we were transferred to the hospital where we had to stay in the NICU for 3 days. It wasn’t the birth experience we planned for and we were pretty traumatized by it.
Beacon’s birth was something else entirely.
I already had a couple false alarms with labor starting and stopping before his due date arrived. The morning of his due date, the 4th of July, I woke at 6am with surges. I was used to fast labors so I was ready to call my midwife but since I had already called her out once in the middle of the night, I wanted to wait and make sure this was real labor. By 10:45am my surges were 20-15 minutes apart and quite intense so my midwife came out to see me. Of course in the 45 minutes she was with me I had no surges. She checked me and I was at 4cm. She said to go about my day and call her when surges were closer to 5 minutes apart. She also said she would be at the movies from 1-3:30 but to not hesitate to page her. By 2pm surges were 5 minutes apart but I felt so bad for calling her to come over twice already that I told Joe to wait until 3:30pm to call her. He paged her at 3:30pm while I lay on my side in bed moaning through surges and listening to my hypnobirthing track ,”Rainbow Relaxation“, on repeat. Joe filled the tub and our birthing team and Alanna were in our room 20 minutes later. Midwife Kaydee was the first one to greet me. She very gently touched my hip and side to let me know she was there to support me and I felt so comforted. “That feels good” I told her. I got in the tub around 3:50pm. As soon as I got in I felt a lot of relief “This feels so much better” I said. A surge washed over me and at 3:58 when I felt the next surge coming I asked “Can I push now?” and Midwife Michelle told me I could if I felt ready. So I did and my water broke. Baby’s head came with the next push and baby was delivered with the third push at 4:04pm.
I caught my baby and pulled him out of the water and to my chest as I leaned back against the birth tub. “I’m so glad that is over” I said with a smile as I looked at Joe. Then I held up my baby to inspect the sex “it’s a boy” and I began to cry and so did my baby; big, loud, hearty cries that told me he was healthy and strong.
Joe and I wept tears of joy and relief that he was finally here, and everything went perfectly, and he was healthy, and he was such a wonderful surprise because I was SURE I was having a girl. It was a perfect moment. A little while later my two older kids came up to meet their new baby brother. Then they went downstairs and made a birthday cake with their aunt while baby and I were checked. A little later they brought the cake up and our little family and our whole birthing team sang Beacon his first “Happy Birthday” song. It was so special. And the best part was everyone was still able to make it back to their BBQ’s in time for their 4th of July fireworks!
We were so thankful to have such a positive birthing experience and feel beyond blessed to have had Alanna there to document it for us. Her photos are ones we will treasure for the rest of our lives and I can’t wait to share them with Beacon someday. ”

-Jessica

If you live in Southern California and would like me to document your birth you can contact me here to start.

Alanna Farmer Photography
Maternity, Birth, Newborn, and Family Photographer
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Make Your Labor a Dream!

Posted on February 20, 2015 by Alanna Farmer

Women dream of being pregnant. They dream of feeling their baby move, they dream of seeing their baby for the first time, they dream of being a mom. Labor usually isn’t something that women dream about or something that they get excited over. They are nervous about it, scared of the pain and usually just want to skip it all together. Labor doesn’t have to be that way! Not every woman is the same, not every labor is the same, so how you labor shouldn’t be the same as everyone else either. By having a few things that will make you excited for your labor and help you relax during it, you can actually dream about the labor you want.

Here are ten ideas that you can use to make your labor dream worthy:

Candles- Labor can be everything but relaxing. So anything that helps relax you is definitely helpful. By bring a few (flameless) candles to the hospital or lighting a few in your home, it can give your area a spa-like feel.

Extra Soft Socks- Wherever you give birth, make sure you think of your feet! Soft socks will not only keep your feet warm, they’ll feel like little pillow wrapped around your feet. Just make sure your socks have grips on the bottom, you don’t want to slip! And bring a few pairs in case you need to change them.

Hospital Gown- Get a beautiful hospital gown that you can look forward to wearing. Wearing your own gown, can make you feel comfortable and beautiful throughout your labor.

Birth Photographer- There are so many precious moments that happen throughout labor, the father comforting the mother, family and friends waiting anxiously out in the lobby, the mother taking a break between contractions. During labor, many women go into an alternative state. Mothers are 100 percent focused into bringing their baby into the world, and so they don’t always realize what is going on around them. With a birth photographer present, the mother can relive those precious moments and see how beautiful her labor was.

Doula- Also known as a birth companion, a doula provides physical and emotional support to not only the mother but to the father as well. Doulas bring a calm presence to the birth and are with you from beginning to end, and even throughout postpartum .

Baby Name Banner- Bring style to your baby’s hospital bassinet. It’s such a cute way to personalize your space and the nurses won’t spell your baby’s name wrong!

Relaxing Soundtrack- For me the sound of waves instantly relaxes me. Just by closing my eyes, I’m instantly transported to a tropical beach without a care in the world. If waves aren’t your thing, play a CD or stream something that relaxes you.

Aromatherapy- Aromatherapy can help relax you and helps relieve pain. It also helps that it smells amazing! Just know that when you are in labor your sense of smell may be heightened.

Body Oil/Lotion- During and after labor, one of the best feelings is being massaged. Make sure you have your favorite body oil or lotion close by so the people who are with you at your labor can help any time throughout the labor.

Water- At my home birth, I had chocolate coconut water, it was ready to go in my fridge and I was actually excited for my labor just so I could drink it! Even if it’s a simple change to coconut water, flavored water, or sparkling water it can make a huge difference!

Was there a must have that you needed at your birth? Or that you’re bringing to your birth? Let me know and it might get added to the list!

12-13-14 Baby Born at Scripps Encinitas

Posted on January 1, 2015 by Alanna Farmer

Back in October, Angela and her family did a maternity shoot and less than two months later, Luciana is here!

It was Saturday at 7:39 A.M,. that I got the text from Angela saying “…today might be the day.” After that, she dropped of her kids and went to coffee with a friend. At 11:13 A.M. I received another text saying that she and her husband, Jeff, were on their way to Scripps Memorial Hospital. With this being their fourth baby and knowing it would be a faster labor I grabbed my camera and left.
When I walked into their room there was such a calmness about them. They were smiling, laughing, and truly enjoying their time together.

Jeff always knew what to say to keep things calm and lighthearted.

Even between pushes Jeff found a way to make Angela relax and laugh!

At 1:42 P.M. Luciana was born. She was 7 lbs 4.8 oz. and 20 inches.

Arabella’s Birth Story at Babies in Bloom Birth Center

Posted on October 30, 2014 by Alanna Farmer

It still seems like a dream that I was able to photograph Arabella’s birth. For me, everything about this birth happened so quickly. Kayla, the mother, contacted me Wednesday evening asking if I could photograph her daughter’s birth. Then Friday morning, I got the text saying she was in labor! After a few hours, I got the call from her doula, Chirstine, saying they were on their way to the birth center at Babies in Bloom and that the labor had quickly picked up. When I arrived at the birth center, I was so surprised to find out that I actually beat them, only to find out later that Kayla almost gave birth on the way over! Minutes after I got there, Kayla arrived and gave birth steps inside her room. She did an amazing job! Arabella was born at 11:19 AM October 24^th. Kayla finally got to relax with her baby girl and enjoy her beautiful room.