Lauren Jolly, a birth photographer from Winston-Salem, NC [1], recently had the opportunity to capture a look of pure surprise on a mother's face right after giving birth, and the backstory is beyond sweet. It all started when Nancy Ray, now a mom of three, was getting ready to welcome her third daughter into the world [2]. After finding out the sex of the child, Nancy prepared to have her little girl at a local birth center [3].

"Nancy was expecting her third baby girl last December and hired me to document her labor and birth," Lauren told POPSUGAR. "She and her husband, Will, had chosen to wait until birth to find out the sex of their first two babies — both girls. This time, Will wanted some heads up if they were going to be welcoming another girl, so they decided to find out. After a long week of sickness, Nancy went into labor. I got the call and arrived at the birth center just in time to photograph baby's speedy arrival. She delivered her baby in the tub and then carried 'her' over to the bed."

But Nancy and Will were in for a big surprise. "About 10 minutes later, they prepared to cut baby's cord, and Nancy exclaimed: 'What is THAT? Is this a boy baby?!' Will immediately double checked and fell to his knees," explained Lauren. "We were all in shock and couldn't stop laughing. I'm so glad I was there to capture this moment. That's the magic of birth photography!"