From the moment I stepped out of bed that morning,
I knew you would be born! I went to bed the night before with
contractions. That was nothing new. I had been having contractions almost every
evening until I went to bed for about a week. I had several days where I had contractions
continuously for over 7-10 hours.
But this day was different.The moment I stepped out of bed at 7AMI had a contraction.
And it was stronger than the others I had been
having the previous days and weeks.
Every 10 minutes that morning, I had contractions. I got Brady and Rachael up and ready for
preschool. I drove them to school, and as I was getting them
into the building had a couple of contractions. They were strong enough that I had to pause
during them. In between them, I felt fine, just a little sore
and tired.
I went to the store, and would lean against the
cart during contractions.I remember calling
Melissaand telling her about the contractions I was having.
My mind would not allow labor to officially
set in yet though.I still had things to do before you were born
I picked up Rachael and Brady from school, got us
lunch, and still had contractions every 10 minutes, lasting about 30-40
seconds.
Somewhere around 3 or 4
PM,
my mucous plug came out, with a bloody show. I called the midwife, Terri, to let her
know things were actually progressing now!
It wasn’t until Rachael went to spend the night
with Nana, and Brady was taken care of by Daddy, that your labor really
began. It was around 5PM.
Melissa
and Laura came over, and we walked around the circle of our
neighborhood. The first time around was easy. The second time around, I had to stop and
work through contractions. By the time we reached the house, I had to
lean over and focus on relaxing during contractions. I went up to take a shower, and instantly
my contractions picked up. At this point, I told Daddy he should stay
home tonight. I remember being in the kitchen, talking with
Melissa, Laura and Daddy. I have no idea what conversations we had.
I just remember leaning on the counter
every 5 minutes or so, and being irritated that I couldn’t follow the
conversations.
I then moved onto the birth ball. Leaning over it felt SO good.
And as contractions were more and more
intense, I got lower and lower on the ball, until finally I was almost
in a yoga pose… my head resting on the ball, and my belly on the floor.
I decided to go lie down.
I slowly made my way upstairs. I think it
was maybe 9:00PM. I was so happy that I didn’t have to get in
the car and drive anywhere, that I could just stay home and go to my
comfortable bed! And it felt SO good to lie down.
My lower back was hurting, and Melissa and Laura
were behind me, Jason at my head holding my hand. Contractions were much more intense, coming
pretty close. I remember Jason trying to get in touch with Terri
since she wasn’t there yet – I think he was worried she wouldn’t make it
When I got to the transition point, I pointed out
the signs! Very funny that I was so alert – oh, I’m shaking, burping, I
must be in transition. Melissa was rubbing my lower back and at
one point it felt so good, and the next contraction, it didn’t feel good
at ALL.
Terri got there, and told me the baby was coming, and would be here
soon. It was really refreshing to have her there. She told me exactly what I needed to hear
at that moment, as labor was so intense and contractions were double
peaking – I was just really tired and ready for it to be over.
She suggested I make a trip to the
bathroom, so I slllloooowwwwly made my way there, thinking to myself on
the way that “This is why people get medication! Not that I wanted any for myself though.
I sat backwards on the toilet, my head was
resting on a pack of toilet paper. It was so uncomfortable, but I
couldn’t think to say it was. Jason asked if I wanted a pillow.
“No, I’m fine”. But the plastic was sticking to my face and
my cheek and forehead were all sweaty from it! It was really uncomfortable on the toilet,
so I tried through 2 contractions and then had enough. I wanted to go
back to bed.
I got up and walked about 5 steps when a contraction hit and pulled me
onto the floor. I was on my hands and knees and could not get up. I could FEEL that I was overcome with
hormones, and I felt like I was almost out of my body. It was such a strange feeling.
The next contraction I heard the loudest
pop, which echoed from the high ceiling in the bathroom. By some miracle, I had managed to land
myself right on the shower curtain that had been laid out by Terri. I felt like I was peeing and just couldn’t
stop it! The next contraction totally pulled me down –
everything wanted me to push out, so I did. I felt like I would push the baby out with
that one contraction it was so powerful. I remember yelling, “Can someone help
me??!!” Terri came over, and I think you were actually
about to crown. I was still on my hands and knees, and instead of
pushing with contractions, I was blowing through them so you would come
more slowly. Your head came out, along with that intense
pressure, and with the next contraction came the rest of your body,
slipping out into Jason’s hands.
We were sure that you were a girl, so I was quite
surprised to hear Jason say “It’s a Boy!!” Terri passed you under to me,
like a football almost, and I got up and held you. You were instantly smiling (there is a
picture to prove it!) I don’t remember if you ever cried that night.
I think the peacefulness of your entrance
into your own home certainly made you an instantly happy baby!
After lying in the bathroom area where we had you
for a little while, waiting for the placenta to come, I walked with you
to the bed. You nursed and nuzzled, we hung out for a while.
Our favorite movie The Firm was on the TV
for some reason! A couple of hours later I took a quick
shower, changed into my PJ’s, and crawled into bed with you for the
night, and stayed there for the next 2 days, nursing and cuddling with
this sweet little baby!
I loved being at home, and I love being able to
show people the exact spot where Will was born! Although my hospital experiences were both
great, being in your own surroundings with people you know and trust is
a whole different experience I can’t begin to explain. Once labor really started, it was about 5
hours. It never slowed or paused, and I am fairly certain
that having no fears and no questions about when to leave, what to do,
and other things that come into play when you have to leave your nest,
played a big role in that. It was so simple, so normal, it was just
like another day hanging out with friends… with a big surprise at the
end.