Hunter's Studio Newborn Session | Columbus, GA

I have been getting so many happy and smiley little newborns lately and sweet baby boy Hunter did not disappoint! Throughout his entire lifestyle and posed newborn session he kept giving me the quickest little smiles and I'm so happy I was able to capture some of them! Especially, the sweet little smile he gave me while laying on top of his Dad's army uniform top! Hunter's mom Samantha, requested just one photo she wished to recreate from her daughter's newborn session and I'm so happy we were not only able to recreate it but that I caught that adorable sly smile as well!

About Hunter's Family

I first met Samantha back in 2021 when she brought Isabella in for Christmas photos, I had just started my photography business and she was so small, full of energy and had the cutest little baby pigtails! Isabella while she has grown and is now a big sister she still had all the fun and bubbly energy and adorable pigtails that she had in 2021! She was on the go from the moment she walked in! She loved blowing kisses and giving kisses and we were able to capture a few really sweet moments between her and baby brother Hunter! Hunter's dad, James is in the United States Army and Samantha while not only being the best mom to Isabella and Hunter but runs her own online boutique business from home called Golden Roses Boutique!

Hunter's Birth Story

Hunter surprised his parents by coming five weeks early! His early arrival on January, 15th 2023 was followed by a quick 11 hour stay in the NICU passing every test with flying colors he graduated from the NICU and was able to go home with mom, dad and meet his big sister Isabella! I asked Samantha if she would mind telling Hunter's birth story and since she didn't have time to pack a hospital bag what were a few items she was grateful her husband brought to her at the hospital!

"I woke up on January 14th having contractions every 2-3 minutes. I wasn’t sure if I was actually feeling contractions because I didn’t feel any when I had Isabella. I thought I was overreacting because I still had 5 weeks left. So I downloaded a contraction timing app. Once I confirmed that I was indeed having them every 2-3 minutes, I called the nurse line. They told me to come in to get checked out. Thankfully my husband's brother & wife [April] were visiting, so April drove me to the hospital. Once at the hospital they also confirmed that I was contracting every 2-3 minutes & was 4cm dilated. They got me situated in a room, started me on fluids and antibiotics and just monitored me. My contractions were very consistent at 2-3 minutes until the middle of the night where they jumped to 7-10 minutes. They talked of releasing me the next day (15th) until they jumped back to 2-3 minutes with some happening every 9-10 minutes. Finally the afternoon of the 15th they decided to unhook me from the monitors to continue to see if I could progress on my own by moving around the room and walking. I continued to progress, but slowly. So the doctor gave me the option to go home and continue to labor with the possibility that my water would break very soon and we would have to rush back, or wait until later that night and start pitocin. I chose to stay at the hospital because I was absolutely not having a baby on the side of the highway lol. Once they started my pitocin, I got the epidural and they broke my water around 6pm. I continued to labor and around 840 my fluids ran out so the machine started beeping. A nurse came in and replaced my fluids and asked if I was feeling pressure. I said no and she said she’d be back to check me in 5 minutes. 2 minutes after she walked out the door I felt a ton of pressure. She ran back in and said ‘I knew I should’ve checked you while I was in here!’ She checked me and I was more than ready to push. They called the doctor and she didn’t answer. They tried calling her for 10 minutes until she finally answered and was 8 minutes away. They prepped my room, called the NICU team because he was born at 34 weeks 6 days, and we waited for the doctor. The doctor rushed in, got dressed, and I pushed once and he was here. They were very shocked at how big he was already for a 34 weeker. He came out weighing 6 pounds 12 ounces. They took him to the NICU pretty quickly after he was born. He spent 11 hours in the NICU. If he would’ve been born on the 16th he would not have had to do any NICU time. He crushed every test they put him through and was eating very well so the doctor allowed him to go to our room.

I didn’t have time to pack a hospital bag, so I didn’t have anything.

One thing I am thankful for that my husband brought me, is my sleep mask & sound machine. So the lights & noises of the hospital didn’t disturb the little sleep I got."