Dad Delivers His Own Baby at Boca Regional Hospital: A Birth Photographer’s Dream Moment You Won’t Believe!

The only thing better than working with a Birth Photography client here in South Florida, where I get to capture my client and her husband going through the process of labor, preparing to meet their newborn baby for the very first time and become parents to that little one is having the opportunity to work with that same family more than once!

Hands-down, one of my very favorite things about being a South Florida Birth Photographer besides capturing my client meeting her baby and completely falling in love with her little bundle of joy is when I get that text or phone call letting me know that my client is pregnant again and that she wants to hire me again!

Repeat Birth Photography client, is a client who wants Birth Photography and loved working with me for a previous birth and decide to hire me again the next time they are pregnant.

About a third of all of my Birth Photography clients here in Boca Raton are repeat clients who are hiring me for the second, third, and even forth time (I’ve had 6 families hire me for four births in the last ten years!)

What is super exciting and especially a treasure about working with my repeat Birth Photography clients is that we’ve gotten to know each other over the course of a previous pregnancy especially since a majority of my clients hire me for their baby’s birth when they are in their first trimester, so we have plenty of time during the second and third trimester to get to know each other, and often times a majority of my Birth Photography clients will also hire me to do their pregnancy announcement photo session and a maternity photoshoot.

If this baby that my Birth Photography client hired me for is not their very first baby and they are not first time parents, my clients will often hire me to come back to the hospital the day after they give birth while they’re in the postpartum unit of the hospital and capture their toddler or older children arriving to the hospital to meet the baby in what I call a Fresh 48 Photo Session.

Although, the majority of my Fresh 48 Photo Sessions here in Boca Raton have been with my couples who are having their very first baby, hiring me for a 48 photo session with just their husband and their newborn baby girl or baby boy in the postpartum wing of the hospital. I think this is so special because it’s an entirely different photography style from Birth, its the day after your birth, you’ve showered, gotten dressed, gotten out of bed, touched up hair and some light makeup, and now are able to entirely focus on your baby, and not the birthing process.

Each photo session type, whether Birth Photography or a Fresh 48 Photo Session, carry with it a uniqueness and beautiful story telling.

I especially love doing photo sessions at Baptist Health Boca Raton Regional Hospital in East Boca as well as West Boca Medical Center (The Birthcare Pavillion at West Boca Medical Center) because I’m so familiar with the natural lighting from the windows in these hospitals as well as what the postpartum rooms look like.

Many families in lieu of a Fresh 48 Photo Session in the hospital will do an on-call coming home photo session which can be done either impromptu, as the couple comes home from the hospital with their new baby for the first time and their older children or the grandparents are there waiting for their arrival home from the hospital so they can meet the baby for the first time.

I always try to include my Birth Photography client’s furbabies so whether they have a dog or a kitty at home, we make sure they get to meet the new baby too. I recommend for my Boca Raton Birth Photography clients to bring home a blanket from the hospital (with hubby or grandparents) the day before the baby is discharged from the hospital so that the dog or cat at home can get use to the baby’s new smell before the official arrival at home.

My On-Call Coming Home Photo Sessions are a relaxing session because while yes, it does happen as you arrive home from the hospital so you’re probably not feeling the same as when you schedule a Family Centered Newborn Photo Session in your home for once your baby is a couple of weeks old, and you’ve had a chance to heal a little bit from the labor and delivery as well as find a new routine with the new baby in your life.

But On-Call Coming Home Sessions can be really special to capture fleeting, very first reactions from older kids, especially.

What really always gets me in the heart is when grandparents are included either Fresh 48 Photo Session iin the hospital or the On-Call Coming Home Photo Sessions at home because there is nothing quite as remarkable as capturing the expressions on the faces of grandparents meeting the newborn baby for the first time.

The only other thing that top this is the reaction of parents meeting their baby for the very first time during the delivery that I love capturing here in Boca Raton with my Birth Photography services.

So with my Birth Photography clients in my Boca Raton Birth Photography Blog photos, I had the opportunity to get to know them during their very first pregnancy with their baby girl. We touched base frequently during her pregnancy while she was under the care of her Midwives, Tyler, Rachel, Adrienne and Laurie at Women’s Health Partners in Boca Raton, and I really enjoyed all of our prenatal check-ins during her entire first pregnancy. I treasured being able to also be present for her in a emotionally supportive way and I value whenever I have strong bond with my Birth Photography clients such as this when my client is absolutely open to receiving guidance or advice that has worked for previous clients or even for me in previous pregnancies. It is truly a treasure to be trusted in that way.

When I came into my Birth Photography clients birth at Baptist Health Boca Raton Regional Hospital for her second baby, a baby boy this time around, I had to right away take a picture of her husband‘s visitor sticker on his T-shirt because it literally had my birthday listed on it which was so special to me that my client was having her son on the day of my birthday!

Midwife Tyler from Women’s Health Partners came in and she is always such a radiant presence that brings so much calm and joy and warmth into a birthplace.

I was really lucky that one of the labor and delivery nurses that was part of my Boca Raton Birth Photography client’s team is a good friend of mine, you can really feel that in the energy of the birthplace when the team has worked together so many times that everyone feels super comfortable around each other. It almost brings another layer of comfort to the birthing mom.

I love the expressions on my Birth Photography client’s husband’s face because he is so excited for his powerful wife and can really see that expressed in all of the photos.

What’s so cool is his active participation in delivering his own newborn baby boy.

This is one of the coolest experiences in the entire universe to see a dad not only meet his son for the first time during the delivery, but also, actually get to catch him himself.

While I always recommend your Certified Nurse Midwife (such as Tyler from Women’s Health Partners in this specific birth) or OB/GYN to assist in the delivery to make sure that if there are any complications or difficulties, your provider is right there with a seamless transition from womb to world, but it is the most exciting thing to witness a dad catching his own child.

And of course, all the Midwives At Women’s Health Partners are so supportive of parents who are wanting to bring their baby into the world in this way, which is so awesome to know that you got these phenomenal medical care providers in your corner during one of the most incredible experiences of your life!

I have had my Birth Photography clients over the last ten years delivered by all four of the Midwives At Women’s Health Partners, as well as all of the OB/GYNs that support the Midwifery team at Womens Health Partners and I really love working with such a diverse team because you’ve got the best of both worlds Obstetrician and Midwifery care depending on what the patient expectation and needs are.

I really love my Birth Photography client’s emotional reactions in all of these photos.

It really goes to show that even when it’s not your very first baby, you have a powerful reaction to each new baby that you meet because the love is unprecedented regardless of which baby it is!

Of course my Birth Photography’s client husband cut the cord just as he did with his first baby girl and then they finally got to take a good look of baby boys face who was so super cute and so much hair!

I wonder if the old wives tail about heartburn is true for every single person whose baby has a lot of hair at birth! Was it true?

I wouldn’t be able to say because I had heartburn, but my two babies did not have any hair.

I really appreciate when you’re working with Midwifery care that they take the time to show you your placenta, while some people might think that it’s icky, what’s really amazing is that this powerful organ that you’ve never had in your body is grown only exclusively for your babies birth!

And I appreciate when the midwives take the time to show their patient and their patient’s husband, the placenta and what it looks like and where it was attached and which side the baby was against during the entire pregnancy because it really shows how passionate they are during pregnancy which I think is so incredibly important that people who are going into the birthplace go into it with as much information and education as possible so that they can make truly informed decisions and not just not their head yes or no without knowing what they are agreeing to. I really love that.

My client and her husband hired me for both of their births which they had at Baptist Health Boca Raton Regional Hospital and it is always really cool to compare the experiences from one birth to the next, especially when they occur in the same facility and I will say that it was wonderful seeing them have a super supported experience with both of their babies, despite their birth teams being a little bit different each time because they are very first baby was delivered by their Midwife Adrienne second baby was delivered by Midwife Tyler from the same practice.

Even when my clients choose to work with an OB/GYN for their birth, their birth story can be super beautiful and even when my clients choose to Schedule an induction or a C-section or whether those are not scheduled and they happen unexpectedly birth experience can still be incredibly fulfilling and beautiful to see you later in the birth photos although I do want to say that it was really cool that my clients husband wanted to put on gloves and inspect his babies placenta himself that was definitely a first that I have ever seen at any Birth whether in the hospital or at home here in Boca Raton South Florida!

At the end of every Birth, if everyone is willing and available, I always try to take a group birth photo of my client and her baby with her birth team.

I think this is so important to commemorate the amazing people who dedicated themselves to my client and her baby throughout the entire labor and delivery process as well as the care of the baby and postpartum!

I always try to make sure as well that I photograph as much of the newborn exam as I can because the goal is to keep the baby away from the mom for too long to skin and the baby’s heart rate and the newborn temperature as well as the mom’s milk to come in are all very sensitive things during the newborn phase at birth, so the newborn exam always goes by very quickly and so I have to be on my toes and capture it as quickly as possible.

I try to get a picture of the baby as well both pounds and grams because some families especially from outside of the United States understand babies birthweights better than in pounds

I always try to get a picture of the baby and it’s really cool when the nurses use an ink pad so that I can photograph the ink on the bottom of the babies feet but lately the nurses at Baptist Health Boca Raton Regional Hospital and East Boca have been using this type of invisible Inc. that doesn’t leave any staining on the feed which I to this day.

I’m still trying to figure out how it exactly works.

In this case, the nurse kindly not only did the black ink which made for cute birth photos also agreed to put the baby’s in feet on the dad’s arm

The dad was super excited about and ran to Mom to show her

PAULINA SPLECHTA BOCA RATON AND SOUTH FLORIDA BIRTH PHOTOGRAPHER

Boca Raton Birth Photography: An Empowering Journey of Strength & Resilience

In late 2023, I was contacted by a first-time mom named "L," eager to document the birth of her baby boy. As a leading birth photographer in South Florida, I was thrilled to be part of her journey. Though based in Boca Raton, I was more than happy to travel to Memorial Regional Hospital in Pembroke Pines, where she planned to deliver with her OB/GYN team.

Navigating Unexpected Changes: Finding the Right Care Provider

During her pregnancy, "L" faced an unexpected challenge: her chosen OBGYN wouldn't be available for her delivery. This news, especially for a first-time mom, was understandably unsettling. We discussed the difference between midwifery and OB/GYN care, and she decided to explore the personalized support a midwife could provide.

Empowerment Through Choice: Boca Midwifery

I recommended several midwifery practices, and "L" connected with Certified Nurse Midwife Nikki from Boca Midwifery. The rapport they built during prenatal visits reaffirmed that Nikki was the right fit for her birth journey. Together, they discussed various possibilities, from spontaneous labor to potential medical interventions, ensuring "L" felt informed and empowered every step of the way.

A Mother's Strength: Navigating a Medical Induction

Towards the end of her pregnancy, "L" faced complications requiring a medical induction. Midwife Nikki presented all options, empowering "L" to make the best decision for herself and her baby. At Boca Raton Regional Hospital, I joined "L" and her husband during labor, providing support and documenting her unwavering strength.

The Beauty of Birth, No Matter the Path:

"L's" story is a testament to the resilience of mothers and the power of informed choice. Birth, whether through natural labor or medical intervention, is an incredible feat. Her journey reminds us that strength and beauty can be found in every birth experience.

Boca Raton Birth Photography: Capturing the Essence of Your Story

As a sought-after birth photographer in South Florida, I specialize in documenting the transformative power of childbirth. From the peaceful moments to the intense surges of labor, I create timeless images that honor your unique journey.

Serving Expecting Families in 2024 and Beyond

If you're due in 2024 or early 2025 and seeking a birth photographer in Boca Raton, Delray Beach, or surrounding areas, I'd be honored to capture your story. Contact me today to learn more about my services and secure your session.

Boca Raton Birth Photography: A Journey of Empowerment and Peace

My journey with Josefina began unexpectedly. Our initial connection through Boca View Optical, my trusted opticians in Boca Raton, blossomed into something far deeper when she reached out to me about documenting her first birth. Despite my primary focus on birth photography, Josefina's desire for doula-like support resonated with me, and I was honored to be part of her team.

Building Trust and Connection

Throughout her pregnancy, we fostered a close relationship. Josefina kept me updated on her prenatal visits, allowing me to feel like an integral part of her journey. We collaborated on her birth plan, ensuring her preferences were heard and respected. As her due date approached, we openly discussed her evolving concerns and questions, ensuring she felt informed and prepared for the big day.

Empowerment through Informed Choices

I believe in empowering my clients to make informed decisions about their birth experience. Whether you're working with an OB/GYN or a midwife, it's vital to feel heard and supported. If that trust isn't there, exploring alternative providers is perfectly okay.

A Serene Birth at Boca Raton Regional Hospital

Josefina's labor and delivery at Boca Raton Regional Hospital was a testament to the power of a supportive birth team. Midwife Laurie Gibbons provided exceptional care, respecting Josefina's wishes and creating a calm and empowering environment. The hospital staff also played a crucial role in ensuring a positive experience.

Capturing the Essence of Motherhood

As a Boca Raton birth photographer, I'm passionate about documenting the raw beauty and emotions of childbirth. From the first contractions to the tender embrace of a newborn, these images capture the transformative journey into motherhood.

Luxury Birth Photography in South Florida

Whether you're a first-time mom like Josefina or welcoming another addition to your family, I'm here to tell your unique birth story. My services extend beyond Boca Raton to Delray Beach and other South Florida locations. I'm also available for maternity and newborn photography, creating a beautiful visual narrative of your journey into parenthood.

Contact Me Today: Document Your Precious Moments

Let's capture the love, strength, and joy of your birth experience. Reach out today to book your session.

Boca Raton Newborn Photography: Excited First-Time Parents Welcome Baby Boy (Hospital Birth Story)

“I was following along with important updates on progress with labor, knowing that most of the time, when it comes to first time moms and first deliveries, things tend to move a little slower. ”

This birth took place at the beautiful Boca Raton Regional Hospital, known for its family-centered approach to maternity care, support of local doulas, midwives, vbacs and unmedicated deliveries. If you're curious about other birth environments, I also photographed a serene water birth at a local birthing center Natural BirthWorks Birth Center Water Birth. Each experience is unique and special in its own way.

It is possible that if you’re in the last few weeks of your pregnancy, nearing full term (37 weeks and more) to find and hire your Birth Photographer Photographer last minute for your birth, although it is so incredibly tricky!

Let me explain:

I usually work with a maximum of two Birth Photography clients in each month (and mainly in Boca Raton).

Yes, I can absolutely take more clients, but rarely do.

If my clients births overlap, I need to call in my backup photographer. And while my backup has been vetted by myself, it isn’t me. And then my Birth Photography client would need to add a stranger (stranger to them) to their birth team at the last minute.

Most of my Birth Photography clients hire me during their first trimester (between 6 weeks to 12 weeks of pregnancy) or second trimester (13 weeks to 28 weeks of pregnancy) because it matters to them who is part of their birth team during their baby’s delivery.

While there’s many pregnancy and newborn photographers in south Florida, there’s only one of me, and often, that’s enough reason for my clients to want to invest in On-Call time with me and appreciate that I limit my monthly Birth clients to two, which reduces the risk of overlapping births.

And that’s why I absolutely enjoy working with two Birth Photography clients each month, I get to know my Birth clients well, and the closer I am to a Birth Photography client and her family, the more part of her birth team I feel, and in turn, the better her Birth Photos are.

Birth Photography is an art form, and just like all artists, I am driven by emotions and emotional connections with people. I love what I do!

This first time mom and dad did not get the opportunity to hire me earlier in their pregnancy, but we were so glad that the stars aligned and I was able to attend the birth of their first baby, a sweet newborn baby boy.

This little one was born just four days after my 2023 January Birth Photography client gave birth to her twins and one week before my 2023 February Birth Photography client gave birth to her daughter.

That kind of star alignment happens for an Aquarius baby, I’m telling you! :)

If you love Birth Stories, Thanks for hanging out!

Scroll Down to get started and read more of Baby Boy Layton’s Birth Story at Baptist Boca Raton Regional Hospital with his parents, grandmother and Midwives from Boca Midwifery below!

My client and I had been texting and emailing and even did a quick-prenatal visit on the phone during the last few weeks of her pregnancy with her first baby.

Ever since she and her husband decided they wanted to have me as a part of their Birth team for their first birth, along with her mom, Midwives and Labor and Delivery Nurses. She was planning to give birth to her first baby at Baptist Boca Raton Regional Hospital (the East Boca Hospital near Glades Road, east of I-95 *please note the two Boca Raton Hospitals are not in anyway connected, it’s two completely different companies — One Hospital is owned by Baptist, (while the other hospital out west on 441 is Tenet owned).

Even though everything was super last minute with this family, when it works out so well and the stars align, it was clearly meant to be.

I was super excited for my client and her husband having their very first baby, and at one of my favorite hospitals in south Florida and with one of my favorite Midwifery teams.

The morning that my client went into labor with her first baby (January 20th around 430am), we were texting back and forth the way I do with all my laboring clients.

I was following along with important updates on progress with labor, knowing that most of the time, when it comes to first time moms and first deliveries, things tend to move a little slower.

My client saw her Certified Nurse Midwife at Boca Midwifery later that morning while contractions were 30-40 seconds in length, occurring every 4-6 minutes. Typically, to be in the ‘active’ stage of labor, your contractions should ideally be around 60 seconds in length, every 3-5 minutes.

If you love my client’s green labor and delivery gown, you can find it here https://amzn.to/3Zmzmne my affiliate link and a percent goes to me :)

My Birth client let me know she was about 2-3cm and that her Midwife did a membrane sweep to help kick things into gear.

Contractions definitely got more intense as labor moved on for my client and she headed into the hospital around 3pm. She was still about 2-3cm but hopeful.

530pm they let me know her water broke.

Once my client got an epidural around 7pm, I waited to hear if there were any updates. I expected to get called into join them in person sometime in the next few hours and was ready with my uniform and gear for the better part of the day waiting on that notification.

At 849pm I was informed that my client was feeling pressure.

I right away asked if they had any updates. Sometimes women who are even not yet in active labor can sometimes feel pressure as contractions are putting pressure on baby.

I really wanted to join them, but I also knew that going in too soon (since the last update she was 2-3cm only a couple of hours ago) could mean I may be there for way too many hours. So I continued to wait patiently to hear from the parents and when they would like me to join them.

But then suddenly they texted 20 minutes later to say she was 10cm! Out of nowhere!

I asked them right away if they would like me to head in (I was already on my way out the door) and at first they worried if I would make it, but after talking to their nurse, she reassured them that even if you are 10cm, baby still needs to work its way down, so more confidently they said yes.

They were worried I wouldn’t make it.

I walked into Baptist Boca Raton Regional Hospital at 945pm

Baby wasn’t here yet!

My client was all smiles. Her husband and mom sat calmly as they were all super excited to meet baby boy very soon.

Her Midwife Courtney McMillian from Boca Midwifery came in and sat at the edge of her bed.

I am glad for all the years of attending births, that even though this first time mom was already 10cm dilated, it didn’t mean baby was coming. I often explain to my Birth Photography clients, once you get to 10cm, you also have to bring your baby down a bit into the birth canal.

Babies usually start out being high, with a station of -3 and they aren’t crowning until +3 station when the head is beginning to crown.

Shortly after I arrived, it was time to start pushing

My Birth Photography client’s husband and her mom both joined at the bedside to help with pushing, everyone was so excited that it was finally time & that everyone was here!

The Labor and Delivery Nurse wheels in the delivery table, covered in a blue drape to protect all the sterile tools beneath it that aid my client’s midwife in the delivery as well as postpartum.

My client holds her pregnant belly for the last time, connecting with her baby boy, before she gets to see and meet him! If you LOVE her green labor and delivery gown, it is super affordable from amazon, and works well with epidurals, belly monitors and even buttons down for breastfeeding. They have so many colors so you pick what you love, here is my affiliate link if you want to send some love my way: GREEN LABOR & DELIVERY GOWN

Mom was a very determined pusher and even asked for a mirror, which while some moms won’t ask for, she knew it would give her the guidance to push more effectively - smart move mama!

Mirror for use in Labor and Delivery for pushing

I know it can be scary & vulnerable and even intimidating to use a mirror when pushing. You’re scared of what you’ll see, you feel vulnerable being even more exposed. But trust me and give yourself permission to surrender and use this super effective tool to help you meet your baby sooner!

Super focused pushing. Amazing work on the part of this first time mom!

She pushed so well it was time to catch a baby!

My client’s other midwife Nikki was able to join just in time for my client to give birth to her baby so my client had both her midwives from Boca Midwifery at her delivery, Courtney and Nikki!

And with one last push….

He was here! Welcome Baby Boy Layton!

Love this moment of dad cutting the cord, you can see how happy mom is and Midwife’s eyes smiling behind her mask.

Excited Midwives!

This moment, right after birth, is so fleeting.

That's why I'm passionate about capturing these precious memories for families. (link to your About Me page)

If you're interested in learning more about my birth photography services, you can find all the details here:

https://www.paulinasplechta.com/contact

Stunning VBAC Birth in Boca Raton: Midwife Delivers Baby After Two C-Sections

Words from the mama: 

“I am still in shock and awe at what God can do. My pregnancies have been very difficult, from Aaden's loss to complications with Brooklyn's birth (both ending in c-sections). I always dreamed of having a VBAC, a birth without complications, where I could just enjoy my baby. This was it. Having the support of Boca Midwifery made all the difference."

“Everyone was patient with me and my concerns and considered my history. I couldn't ask for more. I had the best support and birth team I could ask for. Everyone was patient with me and my concerns and considered my history. They truly listened to my fears and desires for this birth. Having a midwife and doula who understood my previous c-sections and supported my VBAC journey was so important. I couldn't ask for more. Thank you to Lisa Raynor, my doula, Courtney McMillian, my midwife at Boca Midwifery, Paulina Splechta, my birth photographer and filmmaker, and of course my husband, David. I literally could not have labored nor survived this pregnancy without you."   - Jocelyn

When I first met Jocelyn, I felt an instant connection. Hearing about her previous c-sections really resonated with me and learning of the heartbreaking loss of her baby, Aaden, forged a deep connection between us.

I understood her journey on a personal level, having experienced two unplanned cesareans myself with my babies and neither of my births went as planned.

But Jocelyn had something I didn't: an incredible birth team that included a midwife, doula, and her birth photographer. Seeing the support she had from Boca Midwifery, I was excited to see how her labor would unfold. But I was also a little nervous for her, admittedly, and felt like we all needed to pray together that this mama would be able to experience a healing VBAC after her loss.

I was so excited for her to experience a VBAC and to meet and hold her baby immediately, and I knew it in my heart that this could only happen with Boca Midwifery. They understood her medical history and they cared for her the entire pregnancy, but it was a delicate journey Jocelyn had been on, from experiencing the loss of one of her children and complications with her daughter Brooklyn's birth, and I was anxious to witness the birth of baby Riley. I didn't know if we would witness her having a vaginal delivery or if we would have to go into the operating room. I feel the entire labor and delivery staff was rooting her on at Toppel Family Place (The labor and delivery unit of Boca Raton Regional Hospital in East Boca [off of Glades Road, just east of I-95]). 

A lot of birth workers uncover a deep passion for their work due to their own emotional and personal history, and with me, it is completely true. Originally, I wanted to test the waters four years ago when I photographed my first birth. But once I captured that birth for my client, I knew this is where my heart belongs and its become so much more than photography over the last four years. 

In all this time, four years, I had never witnessed a vaginal delivery after TWO CESAREANS. I had attended many VBACs (vaginal delivery after cesarean) with Boca Midwifery, Women's Health Partners, Dr. Skeete down in Ft Lauderdale, and vbac home births with midwives Gelena Hinkley, Sandy Lo, Mary Harris. But I had in all this time never seen a mommy successful deliver a baby vaginally after having two previous c-sections. And the reason I haven't before seen a vbac after two c-sections is not entirely that the trial for a vbac after two csections failed with previous clients. It's not that at all.

Pros & Cons of VBAC

Many people question the safety of VBAC, but reading through legitimate, backed medical research (such as mayo clinic, cleveland clinic, and going just straight to the National Institute of Health and combing through the latest VBAC research studies, you will see that is merely a myth, and so it begs for us to discuss the pros and cons of VBAC. I do hear a lot of people saying why would you want to go through a vaginal birth if you could just schedule a smooth and calculated repeat c-section.

I will urge you to pause and view this interview I did with Dr. David Lubetkin, who partners with Midwives Courtney, Nikki and Ryan at Boca Midwifery, where I ask him about the pros and cons of VBAC. I think if you are a mom in south Florida and you’ve had a c-section before, and would like to know whether you qualify for a Vaginal Delivery with your next pregnancy after your previous C-section, it’s good to hear from the OBGYN who’s practice has the highest success rate of VBAC in Palm Beach County and Boca Raton:

It's that often times the mommys who have had two csections stay with their provider who automatically schedules a repeat third csection for them with their third delivery. These moms are simply not aware of the option to try for a vbac after two c-sections. No one has even told them that its physically possible to achieve. And what the benefits to having a vbac are instead of scheduling a repeat cesarean. Most of the vbacs I have documented in my four years as a birth photographer here in south Florida have been moms who had a c-section with a practice (sometimes traumatic, physically or on an emotional level) and change practices, hoping for a more positive, empowered and supported experience for their subsequent pregnancy to a practice heavily experienced in achieving safe and successful VBACs. Many of my VBAC birth clients with Boca Midwifery have exactly this story. 

As Jocelyn's entire birth team stood around her during her final pushes, I thought to myself, "this is happening, this mama is going to meet her baby right now"

I felt the tears begin to swell up in my eyes, I tried to hush them and focus on capturing this incredible moment. I stood near mom's shoulders, making sure that her midwife was blocking any angles that would prevent Jocelyn from being able to share photos from her birth story with her family and friends, I looked up at Jocelyn and her husband David, they were smiling at each other, at their doula and midwife, at me. Their doula, Lisa Raynor, was proudly beaming a smile back at them and at me. Baby nurse Donna was eagerly waiting to meet their sweet baby, also wearing a proud smile for mama. Her midwife, Courtney McMillian, was focused and positive and their nurse Peggy knew this moment was about to happen.

This moment would contribute to the shift in the change of the world's view of birth. A successful vbac after two cesareans for Boca Midwifery, for the labor and delivery staff at Boca Raton Regional Hospital, but most importantly, a footprint in the history of birthing women, showing them, that with the right support and birth team for your pregnancy, skilled vbac professionals who have a great deal of patience and success rates, a vbac after two csections is possible.

Knowing this fact, it put chills on my back. 

Knowing that maybe someday, I too could experience a vbac, after my two unjust csections with previous providers and birth teams who had failed to support and encourage me in the ways I needed.

You can watch the film of the birth of Riley below:

Uploaded by Paulina Splechta on 2018-07-05.

Jocelyn's two-time cesarean scar and baby Riley's teensy feet