lelalove: Miss Cora Lee

As I have previously mentioned many many times, my friend Stephanie has been on an incredible journey to Motherhood. Through the pain of infertility, prayers, answered prayers, gender reveals and baby showers I have been lucky to be here through it all. You can imagine my excitement when Stephanie invited me to be in the room for the grand finale. The birth of her sweet baby girl. I told her I was honored and that I would be there for her in any way she needed. I offered to do birth photography and was able to get some wonderful shots. I even captured live video of Parker and Stephanie's faces in those final moments of pushing where Miss Cora Lee Smith entered the world (although I was bawling my eyes out so who knows how steady my hands were). The very best part was helping Parker coach her through hours of pushing. We called ourselves "Team Stephanie." I gave Parker a little crash course in counting and such and after a few pushes he took the lead and coached her through it all. We all encouraged her and cheered her on through intense moments of pain and struggle. It was one of the best days of my life.

I wont tell you her whole birth story or share her pictures, you'll have to wait patiently for that by checking The Bloom Diary. (That's just mean, right?!?!) I will tell you some thoughts and impressions that I want to remember about the whole experience. I love child birth. I truly believe that when a baby is born, the veil between heaven and earth is the very thinnest. Women are amazing (just listen--he'll tell you- start at 3:15 or watch the whole clip if you have time) and there is definitely a close bond that occurs when you watch a baby take their first breath. I love that sweet baby girl as if she was one of my own and love their whole family even more. If that's even possible.

Here are a few sneak peaks from my iPhone.