Hello friends,

Welcome to the birth story of Poet Lake Palmer, our little dreamboat! She was born on April 12th 2019 after 4 hours of labour. She weighed 7lb 8oz and was 50cm long.

To all of you who have sent us beautiful well wishes, thank you! We read all of them. We feel all of your love and we are so grateful to you all, thank you for sharing in our joy.

I also want to take this opportunity to thank my absolutely incredible birth team;

First and foremost, Julie Schiller. You are the most incredible midwife. Your unwavering belief in me and your encouragement helped me birth my daughter. You said all the right things at the right time with the most calming and loving voice. You held me through this experience and guided me seamlessly through the waves with your tenderness, warmth and knowledge. I will forever be grateful to you. Thank you.

To Gemma, my sensational birth photographer and friend. We made it! It was touch and go and you almost missed the birth again! Luckily, Poet had other plans and she chose you to photograph her birth day. The images you captured are the most raw and real pictures ever taken of me. In the throes of labour, you managed to document some really special and intimate moments that I wouldn’t have known existed without seeing them through your lens. Thank you.

To Cassandra, Claire and Kat, my best friends and birth support team.

Cass, thank you for keeping our little boys happy, entertained, and feeling safe and supported throughout the labour. In your arms, they knew everything would be okay. You encouraged and celebrated Bodhi’s want & need to participate in my labour experience, and I knew they would be okay because you were there to be with them. It meant I was liberated to focus on bringing Poet earth side. Forever thankful to you.

Kat, this is the second of my births that you have been my doula for. We have been best friends since we were 7, and now our little ones are best friends too. That alone is just so special. To have someone there who knew me so well was so comforting. You knew how to keep encouraging me, and with all of your experience in the medical field, I always felt held by you and knew that you had my back no matter what. It made me feel so safe knowing you were there. We parent the same way, we like to birth the same way, and knowing that I had my comrade there by my side wanting the best birthing experience for me, was absolutely invaluable.

Claire, my sweet, loving, supportive Claire. Your voice just calms me, it’s so reassuring and your gentle nature and way of being just feels so nurturing and motherly. I really craved that energy around me. I’m so grateful that you were generous enough to spend those moments with me. I can still hear your voice praising me and showering me with love. What a powerful tool and you were just being you.

Mum, I’m so proud of you! You never showed me if you were worried or stressed by my labouring experience and I know that must’ve been hard for you to stay calm. You were such a beautiful presence and you mainly kept in the background but I could feel you there, quietly and lovingly reassuring me. Your laugh and sweet happiness squeal when Poet came out is one of my favourite memories of her birth. I’m so glad you were there with me. You are my home and I was so comforted by your presence.

Bodhi Palmer, my darling beautiful son. I can’t write this without crying. YOU were my favourite part of this experience. The way you so beautifully stroked my hair and whispered to me that I was doing a good job, the way you brought me water and found a straw for me to drink from it, bringing it to my mouth and touching my face. You would feed me ice chips from the spoon, touch your hand on my hand and you held the torch so patiently waiting for your sister. The light touch massage you did on my arms felt so calming too, thank you my darling boy. I’m just so proud of how brave you were to want to be close to me, despite how big some of the moments must’ve felt for you. I’m so in awe of you Bodhi and your spirit, my incredibly soulful, empathetic and deeply loving child. I’m so blessed to be your Mummy. You are my everything.

Sweet Forest, thank you for sleeping for most of the labour! But also for being such a big brave boy when sissy came out. You just so happened to wake up right before she made her entrance and you quietly snuggled into Cass’s arms watching on in silence. I love you my darling boy with the biggest heart, thank you for loving Poet and for being such a beautiful and kind boy this past week, so gentle with her, and also being okay sharing your beloved mummy with her, that’s a brave thing to do. I love you so much.

To Mark. You were the perfect combination of strong and unwavering, vulnerable and connected, peaceful and calm. You just know me so well, you really knew what I needed and how to be there for me. It’s all the unspoken moments, the eye contact, the touch, the physicality of you holding me up in the most intense parts. I love you for all of it but mainly for loving our children as fiercely as you do. You are the best father and husband and nothing gives me greater joy than having children with you.

🙏🙏

The following images from our birth were shot by Gemma Peanut. Please ask for permission before reposting them, thank you for your understanding. It’s a vulnerable thing sharing these with the world, but I also know how much strength and courage I got seeing other women on their birthing days.

The Birth of Poet Lake by Teresa Palmer