This birth was a bit of a whirlwind. I arrived with only TEN minutes to spare before baby arrived. But let me back it up and tell you what the days and weeks leading up to Archer’s birthday looked like.

Leslie and I have gotten to know each other at events over the years because she owns a local cloth diaper cleaning company. It’s been so nice seeing her face at lots of pregnancy and parenting events so when she told me she was expecting her third baby and wanted me to photograph her birth, I was so honored and excited!

Fast forward a few months to a conversation Leslie and I had about her growing babe. She told me she *knew* it was a boy and she felt like he’d be born on Thanksgiving Day. She also warned me that her birth photographer had missed her last birth because she was in denial about being in labor.

Fast forward again to Thanksgiving Day. Vaughan, the boys, and I were hanging around the house because I knew that Leslie was *maybe* in labor. She let me know that things were possibly starting so I didn’t dare travel to see family that day. It honestly was a really nice day just the 3 of us.

When I got the call that Leslie wanted me to head to her house, I got out the door as quickly as I could to start the hour drive to her home. I was about 5 minutes from home when I realized I had forgotten the pumpkin pie I’d promised to bring! I ran back home and quickly got on the road.

When I arrived at their house, the sun was setting and I wanted to get a quick outdoor shot to set the scene for their birth story. Before I could get my camera out, Leslie’s sister ran out of the house to tell me to come inside quickly – baby was close! Once inside, I realized just how close she was and I’m so glad I made it in time!

Leslie only really pushed for a few minutes (those third babies know what to do) and her baby was in her arms! She looked down to find that she, indeed had a son and on Thanksgiving Day!

Archer was born at 5:15pm and everyone was so excited to meet him! To top it all off, Zach made a Thanksgiving meal for all of us to enjoy! It was so special to sit down with everyone after the excitement of Archer’s birthday and have a delicious meal. I’ll never forget this beautiful birth.

I love getting to capture those magical moments after baby arrives. Big brother and sister getting to know their new best friend, mom and dad learning their new baby – it’s just the best!

Bowman family, I’m just SO happy that your sweet boy is here! He is the cutest little bug and I love how he completes your family.

If you’d like to see more birth stories, click HERE. To get in touch about having me document your birth, click HERE.