In the weeks before a birth I am always filled with such butterflies of anticipation, such an exciting time wondering how labor will start, when baby will come, a boy or girl, we just love it! On the morning of 8/12, http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0413.jpgI was 37 and 2 days, my dh was off work and I woke late to start school with my children. I had a headache and had had one mostly on for two or three days. I started school in my jammies, finished with the little ones at 10am and went back to bed. I was tired having not slept very well the night before. As I drifted off I had this feeling that I was worried about the headaches and floaters I had been experiencing. I was taking dandelion and cal/mag, but maybe they were not helping any more. I thought as I looked back at my eating the last few days I had not been consuming enough protein. I thought as I drifted off I would send dh to the grocery for a roast chicken, watermelon and a pineapple. I had this feeling that the baby should come very soon. I formulated a plan, pineapple and a afternoon with dh "napping".
After I got up dh went to the store and bought what I requested. I ate so much chicken and watermelon. Planned on the pineapple after dinner. After dinner I bathed with my little ones http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0419.jpgand then sent them off, dh never came back and I just rested in the tub for over an hour. Something came over me that I should ask the baby to come, for a half hour I talked, in my head to the baby telling him it was ok to come, it was time, I needed him to come.
Dh put all the kids to bed, I nursed Eiley after I got out. I told dh how I asked baby to come and maybe tonight was the night. Dh went to bed at 8pm, he gets up at 3am to go to work. I pittered around on the internet and went to bed around 10pm, read a bit and off to sleep.
At 1:30am I woke to hear our dog barking like crazy. She only barks if someone is in our driveway, she is usually in one of my girl's room, but I heard her from the living room. I told dh and he immediately jumped out of bed to check. As I lay there I thought what if someone is in our house and hurting my dh, I grabbed the phone and got to our bedroom door when some fluid leaked down my leg and my heart jumped. It dripped onto the carpet in a wee spot. Dh was in the hall saying all was fine and I whispered quietly to come here, maybe my water broke, but I didn't want my kids to hear yet. When he came in our room and shut the door I checked on the potty, but nothing came out. I took out the garlic clove for GBS that I started that night. I couldn't figure it out. It was gummy on my leg, not like amniotic fluid, smelled of garlic. I had also been doing EPO since 36 weeks, but didn't think that much could drip out to be that either. I figure it most likely was not my waters leaking. We went back to bed, I was on hyper alert.
If something was happening I felt at the time I needed to figure it out by the time dh needed to leave for work at 3am. He works an hour and a half away and could easily miss a birth, something that almost happened with Innish’s arrival. In hindsight this is all so silly as we should have just decided then that he would stay home. Soon after getting in bed I started having contractions, not painful at all, just like the ones that I had been having for weeks. But something made me stay awake and time them, even though they did not feel “real”. They were 7 minutes apart or there abouts. After I bit I got up and stood in the dark of my bathroom looking out the window at the sky and they would not come. I would then return to bed and the contraxs would resume.
At 3am dh woke to his alarm. I kept saying I don’t know if he should stay home, many times. Dh said he was just staying home. I told him to go back to sleep. I intended to as well. I figured this most likely was not it and would drift off as well, but those painless contractions kept coming and at that same interval, 7 minutes. I just couldn’t figure it out and now was worried about being so sleepy. I am not good at losing sleep.
Around 4:30ish I noticed that the tightening started having some discomfort with them. I woke dh just before 5am, telling things had changed a bit. I still felt like maybe this was not it. We read Heart and Hands in bed and talked a bit, although I do not recall about what. At some point I went pee and checked my cervix. I could feel more dilation than previous day and knew maybe this was it. Around 5:45am I decided to get up, set things up. I went into the hallway to plug in our water pump. As I walked down the hall I saw Taegan standing in her doorway. I told her she could come out. It had begun, they knew, LOL. I had brought the scissors to boil. As I got the pot ready I had to pause somewhat to maintain focus. I asked Taegan to pick up the living room and kitchen. As I went back to my room I hear Balen and Kellen up. I asked them to be quiet, not to wake Innish, but realized they couldn’t so I asked them to come in the living room and watch tv. As I shut their door I heard Innish, he was awake already so I got him up and plopped him on the couch.
At some point dh had turned up the water heater and had started filling the pool. I remembered the scissors and brought the jar and alcohol. In the kitchen I scooped them out and placed them in the jar with the alcohol. I realized I needed to start pausing more as a wave came. I was feeling a bit stressed by my lack of sleep. I brought the scissors in our room.
I looked over my labor list and saw I needed to take the calcium lactate and do the hibiclense wash, both of which I did. I checked cervix again and felt no change. I again felt concerned over “no progress” and so little sleep, how would I manage? I asked dh to check, he thought I was about 4-5cm, which is close to what I had been for weeks. I told dh we should lay down to rest some and turn out the light. It is interesting that I had thought dh and I would share some intimacy in labor, something we could not do with Eiley’s birth because my water had broken, but had wanted too. But in this labor I had no desire at all, in fact I didn’t really want dh touching me, which is common for me when I am hurting. I continued to get contraxs. I asked dh to go away for a while so I could rest, I felt like I was being watched.
After dh left I drifted in to a semiconscious state. I felt worry over being tired. Each time I fell asleep I would be awoken by a contraction. They started to get a wee bit more intense. I finally gave up trying to sleep and called dh back. I went into the bathroom and peed again and checked my cervix on the potty . I had definitely progressed, baby was much lower and I was further dilated. I asked dh to check and he too noticed the changed. I felt encouraged now.
Soon after I decided I should get in the pool, dh had been filling it more. I felt the water, but it was too hot so I added some cold, had to pause to get the task accomplished. I then stripped and sunk in. What a feeling of relief! I lay on my belly with my arms hung over the sides. Dh brought me water and I drank some. During a contractions he tried talking and I had to remind him I could not have talking during a contraction, they were requiring more focus to get through. All in all they were still quite mild.
At this point I started to loose track of who was coming and going. I recall talking between contractions. I know dh called Arden to capture pictures, I recall smiling at her, http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...C_0430-1-1.jpgher saying she had butterflies. I know dh videotaped a bit and then Taegan was as well. I remember just needing to ride the waves and submit to what was to come. Dh gave me easy transition tincture twice.http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...DSC_0429-1.jpg He said sweet things, none I which I recall either, LOL I checked baby’s position again and could feel the bag of waters bulging, I told dh. I had never felt that before, it was amazing! Dh then called Anniston and asked her to bring my Floradix, I am not sure why he thought it was important at this time, but he did. I told dh baby would be here very soon. Right after I started feeling pushy. I pushed a wee bit and dh noticed. He asked me not to push, something he always tells me. It has become this ridiculous joke now, since he can have no idea that when I feel desire I have to push. I could feel baby moving down, so very intense. Soon after dh said he could see the head and I felt incredibly overwhelmed. I put my hand down again to feel baby as he emerged, such a glorious feeling, a huge culmination of all the months of expectation. I recall inhaling deeply as I pushed, telling dh how it burned. I pushed again and his head was halfway out as I cradled his head in my right hand. Then pop and his head was out. I felt for a cord and felt none, but a tiny, soft ear. I gave another push and out came one shoulder then the other, the rest of him just slipped out. I reached down to pick him up into my arms. http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0443.jpgAnniston came in with the Floradix at that point seeing him being born, not what she desired, LOL. She stood there dumbfounded and I told her I was not taking it, just toss it. All the kids came in and saw him. Dh said there was a penis and I thought to look and of course as I said all along it was a boy, our Finnian, this hard fought for and long awaited little boy!http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0460.jpg
We sat in the pool for a few minutes, dh said he saw no tearing . I had never torn and did not expect to this time, but still a relief to hear. I decided I wanted out of the pool and Arden asked how we would do that. I handed dh the baby and stood up and climbed out. We made our way to the bed a few feet away. I sat on a chux. Soon we felt the cord and it had stopped pulsating. So we clamped and cut it. http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0467.jpg http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0484.jpgI handed the baby off to dh, asked the kids to leave. I squatted over the bowl the kids had brought from the kitchen , reached in and felt the placenta right there. I pushed and out it came easily with a small amount of blood. We then went back to enjoy of our newest wee one and take pictures.
The big girls
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0507.jpg
So hungry!
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0520.jpg
Adoration
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0529.jpg
Finnian
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...DSC_0540-1.jpg
I feel so fortunate to have had a healthy baby with the safe birth our 10th child. My 8th homebirth, 8th VBAC, and 7th unassisted birth. I thank God to be so blessed.
After I got up dh went to the store and bought what I requested. I ate so much chicken and watermelon. Planned on the pineapple after dinner. After dinner I bathed with my little ones http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0419.jpgand then sent them off, dh never came back and I just rested in the tub for over an hour. Something came over me that I should ask the baby to come, for a half hour I talked, in my head to the baby telling him it was ok to come, it was time, I needed him to come.
Dh put all the kids to bed, I nursed Eiley after I got out. I told dh how I asked baby to come and maybe tonight was the night. Dh went to bed at 8pm, he gets up at 3am to go to work. I pittered around on the internet and went to bed around 10pm, read a bit and off to sleep.
At 1:30am I woke to hear our dog barking like crazy. She only barks if someone is in our driveway, she is usually in one of my girl's room, but I heard her from the living room. I told dh and he immediately jumped out of bed to check. As I lay there I thought what if someone is in our house and hurting my dh, I grabbed the phone and got to our bedroom door when some fluid leaked down my leg and my heart jumped. It dripped onto the carpet in a wee spot. Dh was in the hall saying all was fine and I whispered quietly to come here, maybe my water broke, but I didn't want my kids to hear yet. When he came in our room and shut the door I checked on the potty, but nothing came out. I took out the garlic clove for GBS that I started that night. I couldn't figure it out. It was gummy on my leg, not like amniotic fluid, smelled of garlic. I had also been doing EPO since 36 weeks, but didn't think that much could drip out to be that either. I figure it most likely was not my waters leaking. We went back to bed, I was on hyper alert.
If something was happening I felt at the time I needed to figure it out by the time dh needed to leave for work at 3am. He works an hour and a half away and could easily miss a birth, something that almost happened with Innish’s arrival. In hindsight this is all so silly as we should have just decided then that he would stay home. Soon after getting in bed I started having contractions, not painful at all, just like the ones that I had been having for weeks. But something made me stay awake and time them, even though they did not feel “real”. They were 7 minutes apart or there abouts. After I bit I got up and stood in the dark of my bathroom looking out the window at the sky and they would not come. I would then return to bed and the contraxs would resume.
At 3am dh woke to his alarm. I kept saying I don’t know if he should stay home, many times. Dh said he was just staying home. I told him to go back to sleep. I intended to as well. I figured this most likely was not it and would drift off as well, but those painless contractions kept coming and at that same interval, 7 minutes. I just couldn’t figure it out and now was worried about being so sleepy. I am not good at losing sleep.
Around 4:30ish I noticed that the tightening started having some discomfort with them. I woke dh just before 5am, telling things had changed a bit. I still felt like maybe this was not it. We read Heart and Hands in bed and talked a bit, although I do not recall about what. At some point I went pee and checked my cervix. I could feel more dilation than previous day and knew maybe this was it. Around 5:45am I decided to get up, set things up. I went into the hallway to plug in our water pump. As I walked down the hall I saw Taegan standing in her doorway. I told her she could come out. It had begun, they knew, LOL. I had brought the scissors to boil. As I got the pot ready I had to pause somewhat to maintain focus. I asked Taegan to pick up the living room and kitchen. As I went back to my room I hear Balen and Kellen up. I asked them to be quiet, not to wake Innish, but realized they couldn’t so I asked them to come in the living room and watch tv. As I shut their door I heard Innish, he was awake already so I got him up and plopped him on the couch.
At some point dh had turned up the water heater and had started filling the pool. I remembered the scissors and brought the jar and alcohol. In the kitchen I scooped them out and placed them in the jar with the alcohol. I realized I needed to start pausing more as a wave came. I was feeling a bit stressed by my lack of sleep. I brought the scissors in our room.
I looked over my labor list and saw I needed to take the calcium lactate and do the hibiclense wash, both of which I did. I checked cervix again and felt no change. I again felt concerned over “no progress” and so little sleep, how would I manage? I asked dh to check, he thought I was about 4-5cm, which is close to what I had been for weeks. I told dh we should lay down to rest some and turn out the light. It is interesting that I had thought dh and I would share some intimacy in labor, something we could not do with Eiley’s birth because my water had broken, but had wanted too. But in this labor I had no desire at all, in fact I didn’t really want dh touching me, which is common for me when I am hurting. I continued to get contraxs. I asked dh to go away for a while so I could rest, I felt like I was being watched.
After dh left I drifted in to a semiconscious state. I felt worry over being tired. Each time I fell asleep I would be awoken by a contraction. They started to get a wee bit more intense. I finally gave up trying to sleep and called dh back. I went into the bathroom and peed again and checked my cervix on the potty . I had definitely progressed, baby was much lower and I was further dilated. I asked dh to check and he too noticed the changed. I felt encouraged now.
Soon after I decided I should get in the pool, dh had been filling it more. I felt the water, but it was too hot so I added some cold, had to pause to get the task accomplished. I then stripped and sunk in. What a feeling of relief! I lay on my belly with my arms hung over the sides. Dh brought me water and I drank some. During a contractions he tried talking and I had to remind him I could not have talking during a contraction, they were requiring more focus to get through. All in all they were still quite mild.
At this point I started to loose track of who was coming and going. I recall talking between contractions. I know dh called Arden to capture pictures, I recall smiling at her, http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...C_0430-1-1.jpgher saying she had butterflies. I know dh videotaped a bit and then Taegan was as well. I remember just needing to ride the waves and submit to what was to come. Dh gave me easy transition tincture twice.http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...DSC_0429-1.jpg He said sweet things, none I which I recall either, LOL I checked baby’s position again and could feel the bag of waters bulging, I told dh. I had never felt that before, it was amazing! Dh then called Anniston and asked her to bring my Floradix, I am not sure why he thought it was important at this time, but he did. I told dh baby would be here very soon. Right after I started feeling pushy. I pushed a wee bit and dh noticed. He asked me not to push, something he always tells me. It has become this ridiculous joke now, since he can have no idea that when I feel desire I have to push. I could feel baby moving down, so very intense. Soon after dh said he could see the head and I felt incredibly overwhelmed. I put my hand down again to feel baby as he emerged, such a glorious feeling, a huge culmination of all the months of expectation. I recall inhaling deeply as I pushed, telling dh how it burned. I pushed again and his head was halfway out as I cradled his head in my right hand. Then pop and his head was out. I felt for a cord and felt none, but a tiny, soft ear. I gave another push and out came one shoulder then the other, the rest of him just slipped out. I reached down to pick him up into my arms. http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0443.jpgAnniston came in with the Floradix at that point seeing him being born, not what she desired, LOL. She stood there dumbfounded and I told her I was not taking it, just toss it. All the kids came in and saw him. Dh said there was a penis and I thought to look and of course as I said all along it was a boy, our Finnian, this hard fought for and long awaited little boy!http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0460.jpg
We sat in the pool for a few minutes, dh said he saw no tearing . I had never torn and did not expect to this time, but still a relief to hear. I decided I wanted out of the pool and Arden asked how we would do that. I handed dh the baby and stood up and climbed out. We made our way to the bed a few feet away. I sat on a chux. Soon we felt the cord and it had stopped pulsating. So we clamped and cut it. http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0467.jpg http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0484.jpgI handed the baby off to dh, asked the kids to leave. I squatted over the bowl the kids had brought from the kitchen , reached in and felt the placenta right there. I pushed and out it came easily with a small amount of blood. We then went back to enjoy of our newest wee one and take pictures.
The big girls
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0507.jpg
So hungry!
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0520.jpg
Adoration
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...h/DSC_0529.jpg
Finnian
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y24...DSC_0540-1.jpg
I feel so fortunate to have had a healthy baby with the safe birth our 10th child. My 8th homebirth, 8th VBAC, and 7th unassisted birth. I thank God to be so blessed.
:
