Michaela Hope was born Monday the 20th at 7:18 am after a very intense but wonderful labor. We had an excellent midwife and nurse at a private birth center about an hour from our house. Giving birth was the most intense and all consuming task I have ever experienced. Feeling her slip free from my body was beyond amazing. She is wonderful. I can't believe she is finally here. She was supposedly 10 days late but doesn't look like it at all according to the midwife. She came at just the right time no inducement either natural or medical needed and I am so glad for that as the labor was fast enough and intense enough by itself.
http://x30.xanga.com/703f200a1663721...m169538613.jpg
Right before we left the birth center.
http://x00.xanga.com/8c6f370244c3421...m169535677.jpg
Laboring right after the water broke about 2.5 hours before she came out.
http://x13.xanga.com/cb3f21e52953721...s169708446.jpg
Day old snuggling. I can't put her down.
I am really sore but my hubby is home for our week long babymoon and he is taking care of me and making me rest (sooo important!!). I don't think I realized how much I would need to lay low to recover. It is amazing how much our bodies go through. They need to repair and rest.
Encouragement for everyone over due---your baby will come! I thought mine would never come but she did! It was worth the wait!
____________________
EDIT::
Here's the birth story:
First of this labor hit me like a ton of bricks out of no where I didn't recognize labor contractions until I was pretty far into the dilation contractions. I totally thought the baby wouldn't come till I was nearing 42 weeks. Labor started 10 days after my "due date" but when Michaela arrived the midwife said that she wasn't a day overdue. So much for "due dates"!
Labor was intense-intense-intense! I went into early labor without even knowing it while in church. I road home very very uncomfortable in the car (an hour long drive)from the contractions. At that point I didn't think they were contractions and had chalked them up to the baby being a stretching somewhat violently within me. Well, it must have been that the "real thing" contractions just felt somewhat different than the pre-labor I had felt before. I just kept thinking that the baby wasn't balling up in my uterus. I kept complaining to Andrew my belly hurts and saying that the baby was really stretching! I was starting to think that the rest of this week was going to be SO uncomfortable being pregnant. I was like "so this is what the last week of pregnancy feels like!" Thankfully no--that was what the last few hours of pregnancy feels like! By the time I got home Andrew realized I wasn't acting like my self. He took a long nap (good thing) I tried to lay down but was woken up by contractions I went into our living room and looked up the Contraction Master and started timing them. I reccomend it by the way it is helpful! At this point I realized that were regular every 2-3 minutes and lasting 50 sec. on average here is my log for a while:
Start: Finish: Duration: Time between contractions:
05:10:59 pm 05:12:23 pm 1 mins, 23 secs 3 mins, 59 secs
05:07:00 pm 05:07:44 pm 44 secs 2 mins, 29 secs
05:04:30 pm 05:05:34 pm 1 mins, 4 secs 2 mins, 56 secs
05:01:34 pm 05:02:15 pm 40 secs 4 mins, 18 secs
04:57:15 pm 04:59:27 pm 2 mins, 12 secs 3 mins, 14 secs
04:54:01 pm 04:54:52 pm 51 secs 3 mins, 26 secs
04:50:35 pm 04:51:18 pm 43 secs 2 mins, 25 secs
04:48:09 pm 04:48:57 pm 47 secs 2 mins, 14 secs
04:45:55 pm 04:46:43 pm 48 secs 2 mins, 43 secs
04:43:12 pm 04:43:59 pm 48 secs 3 mins, 53 secs
04:39:18 pm 04:40:10 pm 52 secs 2 mins, 32 secs
04:36:46 pm 04:37:29 pm 43 secs 3 mins, 35 secs
04:33:11 pm 04:34:20 pm 1 mins, 9 secs 3 mins, 28 secs
04:29:42 pm 04:30:35 pm 52 secs 2 mins, 26 secs
04:27:16 pm 04:28:45 pm 1 mins, 29 secs 2 mins, 26 secs
04:24:49 pm 04:25:52 pm 1 mins, 2 secs 3 mins, 30 secs
04:21:19 pm 04:22:07 pm 47 secs 2 mins, 56 secs
04:18:22 pm 04:19:26 pm 1 mins, 3 secs
I wasn't quite sure what to think. I was stunned to find out how frequent and regular they are. I had never had this many this frequent and this regular. I wasn't in pain or anything I was just perplexed. I started googling "contractions every 2 to 3 minutes, regular" I didn't get much. Eventually I figured that when Andrew woke up I would try to convince him to let me call the midwife and get her take. Well, I didn't have to convince Andrew as he agreed with me and we gave her a call. One of four total calls that evening.
I also started having some show and had this strange feeling that my cervix was opening up. It was really strange. I hadn't attempted to check myself or anything it was just a feeling I had. Our midwife, Norla, said to watch things and take a bath to see what happens (if they pick up or not). Well we decided to go on with our evening as usual and made dinner and laid on the couch. I was pretty distracted by the contractions although I could still talk and walk through them. By 8 clock though I got up from the couch and felt a very intense contraction. After that whammy--No fail intense ones I couldn't walk or talk through every 2 to 3 minutes lasting for about a minute. I went to the bathroom and had more bloody show for a moment I thought my water had broken. I called Andrew and although we figured out I hadn't all the sudden I/we were sure this was it and I started packing and scurrying around only to find out that 2 to 3 minutes isn't long enough to do much. I was moaning through contractions constantly on hands and knees asking Andrew to rub my back and talk me through them. I made Andrew call Norla and I put my foot down and said "we have to go NOW." I couldn't imagine being at home any longer although I figured I was only prob. 3 cm dilated or so. Uh not so much. Andrew called the midwife back and said we would be soon on our way around 10 or so. We scurried around and I finally got into the dreaded car only to find that listening to Hyponbabies (helped so much!) on mp3 player and being on my hands and knees in the back seat wasn't as bad as I expected. I totally blocked everything out and concentrated and moaned through contractions. We live an hour and fifteen minutes from the birth center in Topeka and so it was a drive but amazingly it didn't feel like long at all. We got to the birth center at 11 and when Norla checked me she had this shocked look on her face as I was 7 centimeters. Andrew and I were shocked too but I was in laborland so I mainly had other things on my mind. Looking back although that is considered the traditional start of "transition" I don't think I was going through transition at that point. The dilation contractions I was able to manage pretty well through. It was getting to complete and pushing that really tested me more. Things were really intense. I was in complete labor land the entire time and didn't even know what time of day it was when she was born (7:15 Monday am.) My transition was during the pushing stage when I started moaning "I need help!" Yeah, not sure what I meant but everyone was so supportive and encouraging it was amazing. Andrew was crying at that point because he felt like he couldn't help. Little did he know just how much he was helping me!
I sure did yell and growl esp. during the pushing stage. Andrew did tell me that I was quieter than he expected and I was shocked to hear that. But all in all I really wasn't aware of a lot through the entire experience except focusing. Labor land is a real place! Just as real as Kansas in my opinion! As I have mentioned before being vocal is how I deal with intense things and pain. It really helped me to focus when would get to the peak of a contraction to let out a low maoning during pushing. During the dilation contractions I did more of a "hah hah hah' and "heh heh heh" type breath sounds that helped a lot. I actually would form a smile during those and that helped a lot strangely. I think it was just a relaxed facial position that helped relax me. Most of all breathing through and keeping the sounds low and deep. During pushing I was silent some but also made long low noises and at the peak of those contractions during transition made mention of how HOT I felt and would rise up out of the water and was clearly agitated. After the peakI would sink back down and the water felt amazing.
Again I was shocked when Norla told me I was 9.5 cm with a tiny lip. I was thinking like "woah are you serious?!" It just took a while for me to get the urge and feel of what pushing was like. She finally did come out after just over 2 hours of pushing. We started pushing at 5am. I was in the labor tub for 75% of the birth and it was amazing. Andrew caught the baby and I was absolutely floored when she was born. I couldn't believe it had happened. It was such a surreal night. I was so out of it. It all happened so fast.
I just can't get over how fast everything went/felt like it went! I didn't even expect to go into labor for a while and was already in pre-labor all Sunday morning/afternoon. No wonder I was emotional and touchy Saturday and Sunday. I also nested some Friday and Saturday. It all makes sense now. Our midwife had had a marathon weekend delivering 4 babies since Friday. I was the fourth birth and she was pretty tired. She did an awesome job though. The nurses and the midwife did awesome job. I clicked with everyone and it was amazing. It was the most intense thing I have ever gone through. Pushing was really hard. But it was doable. God gave me the strength in His grace. I am so thankful for His mercy and goodness to us. Andrew was awesome support. There are pictures of him holding the bucket for me to throw up in over 4 times. Yes, I am a puker in labor. I think it is a sign things are going fast, at least for me and that my body can't focus on anything else but labor. I think that is a good thing. My body had stored up energy for the birth and I had plenty. The weeks before I labored I had been eating more than usual and craving certain specific things like peanut butter, pasta, spinach and sweet potato's and I think they were truly what my body needed to store away energy reserves and nutrients for the marathon of labor. It really is a marathon. It taxes you to your limits but you can truly do it and as a friend of mine put it: "when you think you can't do any more that is when you get a burst of extra energy and the baby comes!"
Did I mention Michaela is beautiful? We love her to pieces.
:
http://x30.xanga.com/703f200a1663721...m169538613.jpg
Right before we left the birth center.
http://x00.xanga.com/8c6f370244c3421...m169535677.jpg
Laboring right after the water broke about 2.5 hours before she came out.
http://x13.xanga.com/cb3f21e52953721...s169708446.jpg
Day old snuggling. I can't put her down.
I am really sore but my hubby is home for our week long babymoon and he is taking care of me and making me rest (sooo important!!). I don't think I realized how much I would need to lay low to recover. It is amazing how much our bodies go through. They need to repair and rest.
Encouragement for everyone over due---your baby will come! I thought mine would never come but she did! It was worth the wait!
____________________
EDIT::
Here's the birth story:
First of this labor hit me like a ton of bricks out of no where I didn't recognize labor contractions until I was pretty far into the dilation contractions. I totally thought the baby wouldn't come till I was nearing 42 weeks. Labor started 10 days after my "due date" but when Michaela arrived the midwife said that she wasn't a day overdue. So much for "due dates"!
Labor was intense-intense-intense! I went into early labor without even knowing it while in church. I road home very very uncomfortable in the car (an hour long drive)from the contractions. At that point I didn't think they were contractions and had chalked them up to the baby being a stretching somewhat violently within me. Well, it must have been that the "real thing" contractions just felt somewhat different than the pre-labor I had felt before. I just kept thinking that the baby wasn't balling up in my uterus. I kept complaining to Andrew my belly hurts and saying that the baby was really stretching! I was starting to think that the rest of this week was going to be SO uncomfortable being pregnant. I was like "so this is what the last week of pregnancy feels like!" Thankfully no--that was what the last few hours of pregnancy feels like! By the time I got home Andrew realized I wasn't acting like my self. He took a long nap (good thing) I tried to lay down but was woken up by contractions I went into our living room and looked up the Contraction Master and started timing them. I reccomend it by the way it is helpful! At this point I realized that were regular every 2-3 minutes and lasting 50 sec. on average here is my log for a while:
Start: Finish: Duration: Time between contractions:
05:10:59 pm 05:12:23 pm 1 mins, 23 secs 3 mins, 59 secs
05:07:00 pm 05:07:44 pm 44 secs 2 mins, 29 secs
05:04:30 pm 05:05:34 pm 1 mins, 4 secs 2 mins, 56 secs
05:01:34 pm 05:02:15 pm 40 secs 4 mins, 18 secs
04:57:15 pm 04:59:27 pm 2 mins, 12 secs 3 mins, 14 secs
04:54:01 pm 04:54:52 pm 51 secs 3 mins, 26 secs
04:50:35 pm 04:51:18 pm 43 secs 2 mins, 25 secs
04:48:09 pm 04:48:57 pm 47 secs 2 mins, 14 secs
04:45:55 pm 04:46:43 pm 48 secs 2 mins, 43 secs
04:43:12 pm 04:43:59 pm 48 secs 3 mins, 53 secs
04:39:18 pm 04:40:10 pm 52 secs 2 mins, 32 secs
04:36:46 pm 04:37:29 pm 43 secs 3 mins, 35 secs
04:33:11 pm 04:34:20 pm 1 mins, 9 secs 3 mins, 28 secs
04:29:42 pm 04:30:35 pm 52 secs 2 mins, 26 secs
04:27:16 pm 04:28:45 pm 1 mins, 29 secs 2 mins, 26 secs
04:24:49 pm 04:25:52 pm 1 mins, 2 secs 3 mins, 30 secs
04:21:19 pm 04:22:07 pm 47 secs 2 mins, 56 secs
04:18:22 pm 04:19:26 pm 1 mins, 3 secs
I wasn't quite sure what to think. I was stunned to find out how frequent and regular they are. I had never had this many this frequent and this regular. I wasn't in pain or anything I was just perplexed. I started googling "contractions every 2 to 3 minutes, regular" I didn't get much. Eventually I figured that when Andrew woke up I would try to convince him to let me call the midwife and get her take. Well, I didn't have to convince Andrew as he agreed with me and we gave her a call. One of four total calls that evening.
I also started having some show and had this strange feeling that my cervix was opening up. It was really strange. I hadn't attempted to check myself or anything it was just a feeling I had. Our midwife, Norla, said to watch things and take a bath to see what happens (if they pick up or not). Well we decided to go on with our evening as usual and made dinner and laid on the couch. I was pretty distracted by the contractions although I could still talk and walk through them. By 8 clock though I got up from the couch and felt a very intense contraction. After that whammy--No fail intense ones I couldn't walk or talk through every 2 to 3 minutes lasting for about a minute. I went to the bathroom and had more bloody show for a moment I thought my water had broken. I called Andrew and although we figured out I hadn't all the sudden I/we were sure this was it and I started packing and scurrying around only to find out that 2 to 3 minutes isn't long enough to do much. I was moaning through contractions constantly on hands and knees asking Andrew to rub my back and talk me through them. I made Andrew call Norla and I put my foot down and said "we have to go NOW." I couldn't imagine being at home any longer although I figured I was only prob. 3 cm dilated or so. Uh not so much. Andrew called the midwife back and said we would be soon on our way around 10 or so. We scurried around and I finally got into the dreaded car only to find that listening to Hyponbabies (helped so much!) on mp3 player and being on my hands and knees in the back seat wasn't as bad as I expected. I totally blocked everything out and concentrated and moaned through contractions. We live an hour and fifteen minutes from the birth center in Topeka and so it was a drive but amazingly it didn't feel like long at all. We got to the birth center at 11 and when Norla checked me she had this shocked look on her face as I was 7 centimeters. Andrew and I were shocked too but I was in laborland so I mainly had other things on my mind. Looking back although that is considered the traditional start of "transition" I don't think I was going through transition at that point. The dilation contractions I was able to manage pretty well through. It was getting to complete and pushing that really tested me more. Things were really intense. I was in complete labor land the entire time and didn't even know what time of day it was when she was born (7:15 Monday am.) My transition was during the pushing stage when I started moaning "I need help!" Yeah, not sure what I meant but everyone was so supportive and encouraging it was amazing. Andrew was crying at that point because he felt like he couldn't help. Little did he know just how much he was helping me!
I sure did yell and growl esp. during the pushing stage. Andrew did tell me that I was quieter than he expected and I was shocked to hear that. But all in all I really wasn't aware of a lot through the entire experience except focusing. Labor land is a real place! Just as real as Kansas in my opinion! As I have mentioned before being vocal is how I deal with intense things and pain. It really helped me to focus when would get to the peak of a contraction to let out a low maoning during pushing. During the dilation contractions I did more of a "hah hah hah' and "heh heh heh" type breath sounds that helped a lot. I actually would form a smile during those and that helped a lot strangely. I think it was just a relaxed facial position that helped relax me. Most of all breathing through and keeping the sounds low and deep. During pushing I was silent some but also made long low noises and at the peak of those contractions during transition made mention of how HOT I felt and would rise up out of the water and was clearly agitated. After the peakI would sink back down and the water felt amazing.
Again I was shocked when Norla told me I was 9.5 cm with a tiny lip. I was thinking like "woah are you serious?!" It just took a while for me to get the urge and feel of what pushing was like. She finally did come out after just over 2 hours of pushing. We started pushing at 5am. I was in the labor tub for 75% of the birth and it was amazing. Andrew caught the baby and I was absolutely floored when she was born. I couldn't believe it had happened. It was such a surreal night. I was so out of it. It all happened so fast.
I just can't get over how fast everything went/felt like it went! I didn't even expect to go into labor for a while and was already in pre-labor all Sunday morning/afternoon. No wonder I was emotional and touchy Saturday and Sunday. I also nested some Friday and Saturday. It all makes sense now. Our midwife had had a marathon weekend delivering 4 babies since Friday. I was the fourth birth and she was pretty tired. She did an awesome job though. The nurses and the midwife did awesome job. I clicked with everyone and it was amazing. It was the most intense thing I have ever gone through. Pushing was really hard. But it was doable. God gave me the strength in His grace. I am so thankful for His mercy and goodness to us. Andrew was awesome support. There are pictures of him holding the bucket for me to throw up in over 4 times. Yes, I am a puker in labor. I think it is a sign things are going fast, at least for me and that my body can't focus on anything else but labor. I think that is a good thing. My body had stored up energy for the birth and I had plenty. The weeks before I labored I had been eating more than usual and craving certain specific things like peanut butter, pasta, spinach and sweet potato's and I think they were truly what my body needed to store away energy reserves and nutrients for the marathon of labor. It really is a marathon. It taxes you to your limits but you can truly do it and as a friend of mine put it: "when you think you can't do any more that is when you get a burst of extra energy and the baby comes!"
Did I mention Michaela is beautiful? We love her to pieces.
:
Congratulations Jessica, enjoy babymooning with your little lady!!
