The night I first read Renny’s inquiry about whether I was available to document her daughter’s birth story I ran to my husband in disbelief that I had received such message. I quote, ” First of all, we will be giving birth at Celebration Hospital in Orlando, FL. Hopefully you could, but not sure if you are able to travel this way.” Four hour drive for a birth session. Was this even possible? What if she goes into labor and I’m half-way there? I’ll miss it! All my worries were equally shared by Renny and her family as she prepared to meet with me about this crazy idea we both indulged in. Little did I know that after searching for a local photographer, she stumbled upon my work and liked my story. This mom wanted “me” to be her birth photographer. My husband reminded me, “This is what you want to be shooting right?” And sure enough after our Facetime meet I was convinced that I would travel all the way to Orlando come rain or shine to document Renny’s story. Her excitement and willingness to work with me made me so happy. I couldn’t stop talking about it. I’d be going to Disney World to meet a baby! Ha, no that wasn’t it but quite honestly that’s honestly the only thing we ever travel to Orlando for.
A little about Renny’s story. The battle to get pregnant with this baby began three years ago when Renny and her husband decided to add another member to the family. This would be her second child but as Renny tells on, it’s like starting over because it had been eleven years since the birth of her son Xavier. After some time and even attempting IVF treatments they were just about ready to give up trying. Renny’s doctor suggested she’d try one last procedure to see if that would do the trick.. and it did. Fast forward nine months later there I was on my way to Orlando to Renny’s scheduled induction date. Baby Athena wasn’t quite ready to come out all on her own, or maybe she knew of our plans all along and made sure I was there from beginning to end. My loving mother accompanied me on the drive simply because she knew if need be I would pull an all-nighter to drive home if I felt the least bit tired in order to spend time with my boys. So I walked in the room and there she was with a smile ready to get this show on the road. She still hadn’t been given any medication to start the process so we had a bit of time to catch up and formally get to know each other. Not that our Facetime meet wasn’t a clear reflection of who we were, but having her there in front of me made all the pieces come together.
Once she was started on the medication everyone advised her to get some rest because it was night time and the best way to do this was in a calm and relaxed state until the contractions came along. I gave them all their space and went on to snooze in the waiting room. Every thirty minutes or so I would wake up wondering why I hadn’t received a message or a call. I kept walking past her room and making sure the lights were off and she was asleep. Come early morning I decide to “wake them up” in order to get progression shots and I come to find that Renny was already awake and had lots of trouble sleeping. Her husband and son on the other hand were peacefully asleep in the pull out sofa. We talked and within a couple of minutes a nurse walked in with her “last meal” and you can imagine just how happy she got when she saw that she could eat after being told all night that ice chips were all that was on the menu.
Labor progressed very slowly for Renny and at a certain point in the day she was ready to add on a bit of help. This made a world of difference to the way she felt and the way she progressed. All along she had only reached five centimeters in twenty one hours of labor. Within just a couple hours later after the epidural she was a full ten and ready to go! At almost an exact twenty four hours later, Athena made her debut. A perfect 7 lbs 10 oz and 20 inches baby girl.
Now I’d be lying to you all if I said this was a birth session like all my others. Renny had requested that even though she knew I wasn’t a videographer, she wanted me to “try” and get a video of when they first placed her on her chest. She wanted that video more than she wanted pictures, so anything I would be able to do for her she would be thankful. That seemed like something I could try to do and relying on the fact that I would still do both, I promised her to give it a shot. But to my surprise once at the hospital, we were all informed by the nurse that at the time of active labor, from pushing until the baby has been cleared by nursery, I was not to photograph or film anything that was going on. Our dreams were crushed. So much of what I love happens in those few minutes. That video she wanted so badly happens in those few minutes. So with my biggest smile and heart full of hope, I talked with Renny and promised her I would do the best I could. Not that I recommend this to anyone, but I broke the rules for Renny. I wasn’t able to do it exactly like I would of wanted to, but we definitely have something that other wise we would of only kept in our memories. I encourage you all to take a little bit of time and watch the following video. It’s my first attempt at film, and I know that you experts out there will think it’s such a novice attempt but I felt so happy editing bits and pieces of my day with this family that I can’t help but share. This may become a thing later on, but for now I thoroughly enjoyed adding video clips to the story. Without further ado, meet Athena. Goddess of warfare and ruler of her daddy’s heart. So much was riding on her birthday, and it’s because forever on, her and her daddy will get to celebrate it together every year. That’s Renny’s best shot at a birthday present ever.
