From Pregnancy Reveal, to Maternity Photos, Homebirth Plans, a Hospital Detour, and Newborn Photos: This Colorado Springs Family’s Story Will Move You

Birth, Family

May 8, 2025

A surprise pregnancy reveal at Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs

Some stories unfold like chapters in a novel you never want to end.

This one began at Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, where the red rocks tower like ancient witnesses to the most beautiful surprises. She had planned it quietly, carefully. He thought we were just out there for some updated family photos with their toddler…wondering why it had to be at the crack of dawn’s first light. I knew that what started as a sleep deprived and slightly annoyed dad would be thrilled and expectant father by the end of our session.

silhouette of family in front of the beaming rays of the sunrise at Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs

In the golden morning light, I carefully set up a camera to record video, placed my couple strategically facing away from their toddler, took of his jacket to reveal a “big brother” t-shirt underneath. Slowly they turned around to face their toddler as he stumbled towards them.

colorado spring's family story photos in garden of the gods in colorado springs

toddler sitting on red rock in garden of the gods garden in colorado springs

Do plans ever go perfectly? Rarely. Their toddler tripped over some rocks and dad swooped in to take care of him, consoling him for a while as mom and I stood by, awaiting dad’s reaction. He did not react. So finally mom asked him if he saw their son’s shirt. Dad said he did, but he thought it was future planning (she’s a planner), so he thought she wanted this photos for a future date when they would be pregnant and would be able to announce it with these photos. No, she said, they are pregnant right now! And baby is expected to arrive on HIS birthday!

surprise pregnancy reveal with big brother t-shirt on the red rocks at garden of the gods gardens in colorado springs

surprise pregnancy announcement in front of the red rocks at garden of the gods park in colorado springs with pikes peak in background

She had called me right when she found out she was pregnant and it was so hard keeping it from her spouse for those last few weeks!

Finally, the joy cracked across his face like sunlight breaking over the mountain ridge.

toddler hugging dad from behind and both of them beaming with smiles as they sit on a red rock with garden of the gods in the background

toddler plays with mother's hair as she sits on a rock in garden of the gods park at sunrise

They were having another baby.
And I got to photograph the very moment he found out.

Maternity photos in Downtown Colorado Springs at the Pioneer Museum with the spring blossoms

Spring came quickly after that. The trees in downtown Colorado Springs began to blossom like her belly. We met again at the Pioneer Museum, the old courthouse turned into a beautiful historical site. There’s something poetic about standing where so many stories have passed through, cradling the new life inside of you and the unknown story that that life holds.

pregnant mother holding hands with toddler in front of the pioneer museum in downtown colorado springs and blossoming trees

pregnant mother holds toddler in her arms with the sun beaming behind her through the blossoming trees at the downtown colorado springs old courthouse

maternity pictures of pregnant woman and her husband holding hands in the street surrounded by blossoming trees in downtown colorado springs

Her toddler ran in and out of the frame, all giggles and wild boy energy. And she glowed. Not just in the way pregnant women glow, but with the deep kind of light that comes from knowing you’re part of something bigger than yourself.

pregnancy photos in downtown colorado springs with blossoming pink trees

pregnant family photos with white blossoming trees as toddler runs around mother and father

pregnant couple stands under a lamp post at dusk just after sunset in downtown colorado springs with pikes peak and mountains in the background and blossoming trees in the foreground

A planned homebirth that turned into an emergency c-section at the hospital

The plan was a homebirth with Jessica Nipp as her midwife and Sarah Norris as her birth doula. Everything was lined up: the birth team, the playlist, the soft lighting. But birth has a way of reminding us that we’re not the ones in control.

When things shifted and they ended up in the hospital for an unplanned C-section, she grieved the birth she had imagined. That grief is real. And runs deep.

c-section at hospital in colorado springs and baby is just born from the tummy and is held up for mother to see through the clear curtain

mother cries as she sees her baby for the first time after an emergency c-section at colorado springs hospital

But so is the strength it takes to pivot with grace, to make a difficult decision in the moment for the health and safety of your baby, to love your baby through the unexpected, to meet motherhood with both tears, power, and strength.

family cuddles together on hospital bed just after birth

newborn baby on mother's lap in hospital room just after birth in colorado springs

She did all of that. And more.

Read her full birth story here.

A newborn photoshoot in their home in Colorado Springs

Remember when I said that the baby’s guess date was also his daddy’s birthday? He decided to come a little early, because of course he did. Instead, we scheduled the newborn session for that original guess date.

mother looks lovingly at newborn baby in her home with big windows and plants surrounding her for first family photos in colorado springs

So there we were, on the baby’s due date and his father’s birthday, documenting their life at home:
Mama and baby nursing easily and all cuddled up.
Big brother sweetly loving on his new little brother.
Dad with his arms full of both boys.
A tiny baby, wrapped up in love.

mother kisses baby in the nursery for her documentary family photos in their home in colorado springs

mother and father snuggle baby and look lovingly at him while he is wide-eyed at the camera for their first family photos at home with their documentary photo shoot

newborn is snuggled up in a cozy knit outfit for his first family documentary photos at home in colorado springs

It’s one of the greatest honors of my life to witness a family grow—not just in numbers, but in love, in resilience, in their own unique story. From their pregnancy reveal at Garden of the Gods, to their blossoming pregnancy photos in downtown Colorado Springs, to their unexpected hospital birth and then welcoming their baby home, this beautiful story is uniquely theirs, and documented in stunning photos throughout the entire journey.

documentary family photos with the whole family on the bed and toddler in the front grinning and mother, father and baby in the background

To photograph the moment it all began with a surprise in the mountains…
To watch them walk through the tenderness and twists of birth…
And to return to their home, on a day that holds double the meaning, and capture what matters most.

This is why I do what I do.
Because life doesn’t happen in one perfect photo—it happens in chapters.
And your story?
It deserves to be remembered too.

Reach out if you’d like me to document your own life’s story.