En caul births are very rare, occurring in only about one in every 80,000 births. Seeing this sort of birth is amazing—but when you add the energy surrounding a home birth, the fact that this particular moment involved twins being born inside their amniotic sac, and a truly excellent birth photographer, you get a result that's nothing short of spectacular.
Robin Baker of Birth Blessings Photography is the award-winning photographer responsible for the images, now circulating the internet. The birth took place at home, which was the family's plan all along—they actually welcomed their first child via home birth as well.
When a baby is born with a portion of his body inside the amniotic sac, it's called a "caul birth." En caul births happen when the baby is born with her body entirely within the amniotic sac, which is where the fetus develops during pregnancy.
"We didn't know the baby would deliver completely en caul until he was crowning," Baker told Buzzfeed. "Most twins are born in the operating room via C-section, so needless to say, this natural, planned, unassisted home birth was very special!"
Both parents took active roles in the birth. According to Buzzfeed, the mother punctured and peeled back the amniotic sac and the father caught the twins in his hands. The first baby, a girl, had thirty minutes of bonding time with her parents before the second baby, a boy, was born.
