Birth Stories - Nathan

Nathan was my first delivery with a midwife. I've always been a proponent of natural birth, and after 3 births with OBs, I decided it was time to go with someone who held more of the same mindset as me regarding birth - more natural, less medical.

Throughout my pregnancy with Nathan, I had what they called an "irritable uterus" - meaning, it was contracting ALL the time. There wasn't much concern for preterm labor, but it was very uncomfortable and made me worry a little about if I'd be able to tell when real labor began. Thankfully, the Lord made it obvious for me!

The night before labor began, I had the same signs that I did during the beginning of Joel's and Isaac's births, so I was encouraged that things were about to start happening.

Around 3:30 am I woke up with a contraction, which wasn't unusual - I had been having contractions for weeks and weeks, but these actually kept me awake, and did not die down - I stayed in bed until 5 am and they were still consistent. I whispered to Michael we were probably having a baby today! So he woke up but stayed in bed a little while longer as I puttered around making sure all the bags and things were ready to go. The whole time, the contractions were consistent, but hard to time - I'd have a big, long on every 8-10 minutes, but then some smaller, less intense, and shorter ones sometimes every 3-6 minutes, so I really didn't know what to think.

I showered, and we got the boys up at 7 or so, and told them the baby was coming today! Ezra said to Michael "How do YOU know?! Only GOD knows when the baby is going to come!" So we told him God had a way of making sure mamas know when their baby is coming! ;-)

We got them dressed and loaded up and headed over to my sister-in-law's, where our family was waiting and excited, prayed for us and wished us well, and we were on our way to the hospital! I got checked in around 9 am and the put me in a triage room to see how far along I was, and I was at 7 cm! They asked if I wanted to walk down the hall to my room or if I would like to be pushed on the bed. I wasn’t feeling any sort of transition-type contractions yet, so I said I’d walk. I had one contraction on the way down the hall. We got to the room and settled in and I told my nurse I was feeling a teeny bit of pressure – no urge to push, but pressure. She called my midwife who came and checked me, and I was at 10 cm!

So she broke my water and said I could push if I felt like it, or not, just to listen to my body. I could feel a lot of pressure, but it wasn’t that “I have to PUSH!” feeling, so I wanted to wait for the baby to drop a bit more. She let me go to the bathroom, and walk around, and she rubbed my back during a few contractions as I stood up and leaned over the bed. I still didn’t have a huge urge to push, but the pressure was really bothering me, so I told her I’d like to give pushing a try.

She suggested I get on my hands and knees on the bed and try pushing that way. As I pushed, Michael put counterpressure on my lower back, which was SO nice. Pushing was hard, I hate pushing!! But the all-fours position really helped me feel the sensations of pushing a lot better than the times I’ve done it on my back, it was amazing how much easier it was to do it that way. All I heard from the midwife was lots of encouragement. I pushed for 10 minutes, and Nathan was born! Since I was on my hands and knees, I couldn’t see him right away, but Michael put his face next to mine and had tears in his eyes and said “It’s a boy!” and I cried from joy and exhaustion, lol!

When he was born, he had the cord wrapped around his neck, which scared Michael, but he said the midwife handled it perfectly. Then we discovered that his cord also had a complete, true knot in it, which the midwife said is really rare. I wish we had gotten a picture of it, it was amazing to see. She said the only reason it didn’t cause any complications was because his cord happened to be longer than normal, too, so it never cinched the knot tight enough to cause problems. I knew the Lord was protecting Nathan.

I was amazed at what a difference having a midwife made, she was really everything I had hoped for. It was actually a little weird at first to not have someone instructing me the whole time! At first I didn't really know HOW to listen to my body, and was a little self conscious, but it was so freeing to know there weren't any expectations at all. It was a wonderful birth.

I can't wait to post my next birth story soon!!

Birth Stories - Joel

Joel's birth is also the one I refer to as "At which point I determine never to use an OB again" ;-) My pregnancy with Joel went great. I don't remember his due date, but he arrived a few days beforehand. The day before labor began, I was hit with some serious nesting. It was a warm January day, and I decided that the Suburban needed washing. Not just the typical hose down, but a good, solid scrubbing, including the roof - which entailed me, 9 months pregnant, climbing onto a ladder with a hose, washing mitt and lots of suds - and yes, when Michael saw what I was attempting, he immediately thwarted my desires! Not to be too discouraged, I then took up raking the yard, and did that for about an hour. That evening, I had some tell-tale "signs" as I mentioned I also had before Isaac's birth, so I knew things were on a roll!

I woke up that next morning with slight cramping, but nothing too major. Again, Michael went off to work, and I ran some errands and got the boys' hair cut. At the hair cutting place, the contractions started to get more serious. We went back home and ate lunch and the boys took a nap. During nap time I called Michael and my mother-in-law - she came and stayed with the boys while Michael and I headed off to the hospital. We had to head in earlier than I would have liked because I had tested positive for Group B Strep and their policy was to administer 2 doses of antibiotic before birth. So when I got to the hospital, I was only at 4 cm, but that gave them the time they wanted to start up the first dose. After the first dose, I was free to wander the halls and have visitors, so we did.

However, before they could start the second dose (I forget how far apart the doses are supposed to be), things started to pick up a notch. I asked if I could get in the shower, and so they checked me, and I was 7 cm. The OB decided to break my water (to which I definitely agreed!) and said I could take a shower after she did, and that she would be back. I never got that shower. She broke my water and left the room, and things started happening FAST - really fast.

I was lying on my side and after about 2 contractions, knew the baby was coming. The nurse called the OB back in, and the OB asked me to roll onto my back. I asked if I could stay on my side, knowing full well that babies can certainly be delivered that way, and the OB got very forceful. She began yelling at me to roll over, which really startled Michael - to hear the OB yelling, and to hear me yelling because of the worst labor pains I had ever felt. So in his fear, he began speaking very sternly to me, telling me to ROLL OVER! I knew if I rolled over the pain would only be much, much worse, so I continued to refuse. Finally, Michael and the nurse rolled me over themselves, and in one push, Joel was born. And it was excrutiating!

I went from 7 cm dilated to having Joel in my arms in 19 minutes flat! It was SO painful, and I hemmoraged a little afterwards, which was even more painful as the OB dealt with that. I was so sore and exhausted, and felt a little beat up emotionally! Joel was also my biggest baby yet, 8 pounds, 3 ounces, although I don't know how much that had to do with it!

All in all, I was thankful to have a healthy, beautiful baby... but I have always wished his birth had been a bit more peaceful. It was nothing traumatic, to be sure, but it sure was stressful with all the yelling that went on!

Joel didn't seem to be too badly affected by it, though, as he was a very peaceful and happy baby. Michael chose his name, and it means "Jehova is Lord". Michael chose it so that anytime anyone uses it, they are in actuality praising the Lord! I've always loved that.

Birth Stories - Ezra

I will be the first to say that everything about Ezra's start in life surprised us! Just finding out we were expecting him was a HUGE surprise - Isaac was only 10.5 months old, and we not yet at that point convicted about allowing the Lord to take His rightful place in our marriage regarding fertility, so in other words, we were actually trying to avoid becoming pregnant! But the Lord's timing is perfect, and so Ezra entered the world (and boy, are we ever thankful!).

Ezra's due date was August 17, 2002. It had been a fun pregnancy, as my sister-in-law was also pregnant with her second and due the same month (our first borns are 6 months apart). We've very much enjoyed the times we've been pregnant together. On August 4, our family had a joint baby shower for us, and I remember standing in the kitchen with my brother-in-law, saying "I bet this one will be late, I don't feel like I'll ever give birth!" I had no warning signs or notions that birth was much sooner than I expected...

Around 1 am the next morning, I was tossing and turning with lower back pain. I would find a position that would seem comfortable, but after a few minutes, the discomfort would return. So I'd find a new position, get comfortable... and after a few minutes, be in pain again. This went on for an hour before the thought occurred to me that the pattern of pain didn't seem so much connected to what position I was trying to sleep in - it seemed alot more... regular, almost like contractions! So I got out of bed and puttered around the house for a bit and the on and off again pain didn't change, and my suspicions began to grow. Looking back, I can see why I was a little slow on the idea - first, because it was 12 days early, but also because I expected it to be very predictable, like Isaac's had been. I've since learned that each labor and is totally different!

I went back to bed, and just like with Isaac's birth, when Michael got up to go to work, I told him I thought I was in labor. We decided that he would just go into work and I would give him a call as the day progressed. He had barely gotten into the office before I called him to come home! We left the house sometime between 9 and 9:30, and while getting into the car, I threw up (which, for me, is a sign of moving into the transition phase of labor, so I knew things were really happening!). We drove to the hospital and checked in and I was between 7 and 8 cm. My OB was stuck in traffic, so again, the nurses did not want to break my water, even though I was had gotten to 9 cm. (A word about my water - it has never broken on its own. My mother's was the same way! It has always been very strong, which I am actually thankful for, considering the alternative) Thankfully I did not have to wait long this time - the OB showed up, broke my water, and Ezra was born 20 minutes later, a little before 11 am.

My first memory of him was that he was so small (6 pounds, 10 ounces - not too small, but smaller than Isaac's 7 pounds, 6 ounces) and so RED! And he cried soooooo much, he was extremely colicky (we had days of 16+ hours of crying sometimes). My mom jokes that he spent the first month of his life angry that he came out into the cold, bright world so soon. But he has certainly grown into a joyful, fun-loving boy! The thing that most amazes me is how different he and Isaac are to this day, even starting with their deliveries. I'm always amazed at the handiwork of God, making each child unique!

Birth Stories - Isaac

Since I've got birth on the mind, I've been reminiscing over the other boy's births. I love hearing other women's birth stories, so I thought I'd share mine! Here's Isaac's:

My due date with Isaac was Dec 25, 2000. On December 17 (a Sunday), Michael and I enjoyed a movie date together, and throughout the day, I was feeling very crampy. Later that evening, I noticed some "signs" (that, for those who have given birth, may clue into, but I don't want to be too detailed for the sake of any men or squeamish ladies who read!) that told me things might be happening.

I woke up around 1 am Monday morning with a definite contraction pattern, but after timing them for about an hour, they were still 12-18 minutes apart, so I went back to bed. A little after 5 am, Michael got up to get ready for work, and I told him that I thought I was in labor. The poor man panicked! lol! He spent the next hour straying no farther than 2 feet from me (even waiting outside the bathroom door!) and asking if we should call the Dr, if I needed anything, so on and so on. Looking back, its adorably sweet, but at the time I found it a tad bit frustrating! Contractions were still very irregular, and not too painful, so I really had doubts that it was urgent. So after a while, we agreed that he should just head into work and I would call if or when things progressed.

I spent the next few hours doing laundry, tidying up, and then lying on the couch as contractions grew in intensity. Even though they were becoming more painful, they were still irregular, some coming every 5 minutes, some every 15, so I wasn't sure what to do. Around 12:30 in the afternoon, Michael called to say he was going out to lunch with some coworkers, but because we didn't have cell phones back then, he wanted to double check on me before he left. I told him my status and we thought it would be fine for him to go. Within minutes of hanging up the phone with him, however, I threw up! I knew that meant something (although I didn't know exactly what - I do now! ;-) ) so I called him back and asked him to come home.

When he arrived home, I hopped in the shower while he called the OB. When he told them how often the contractions were, they agreed that it was probably a bit early to come in, but since I had been having them for over 12 hours, I could at least come in for a check. So off we went! I told him that if I was only at 3 cm I might actually break down and ask for pain relief (up until then, I had been determined to go naturally) - I was in a lot of pain. We got to the Dr, and he again voiced the suspicion that, since I was a first time laborer, and the contractions, while feeling painful, were most likely too irregular to be doing much and I could probably plan on going home for a little while longer. Imagine ALL of our surprise when he checked me and said "Well... I don't think you'll be going home - you're at 9 cm!" :-o LOL! So they plopped me in a wheel chair and took me straight to Labor and Delivery.

I was admitted a little after 3 pm. Then a slight dilemma began - my water had not yet broken, and I wasn't dilating any further without my water breaking... and the OB said not to break my water until he was done with office calls! Argh! So I stayed, contracting, at 9 cm for 2 more hours - ouch! By that point, though, I was learning how to deal with the pain pretty well, so I didn't ask for any pain relief. A little after 5, the OB arrived, broke my water, and I immediately made it to 10 cm. The pushing began, and a little less than an hour later... Isaac entered the world!

What an amazing moment that was. We all cried, lots of pictures were taken, and he was taken to the warmer for all of the checks and baths and whatnot they do. While he was being attended to, they brought me a sandwich, and I clearly remember sitting there, eating my sandwich, and thinking "WHAT did we do?! We actually had a BABY?! What were we thinking?!" lol! I was a little overwhelmed to say the least ;-)

But God is faithful, and with his blessings come His guidance, strength, and wisdom! And He certainly has provided all of those and more through our child raising adventures :-)

A Reminder of Grief

I see my sons, young brothers, working together, straining muscles to lift and carry a heavy basket, and an image flashes through my mind.

The too recent image of other young, but grown, brothers, and a young husband, working together, straining muscles - to lift and carry a casket - of their much too young sister and wife - with a burden in their hearts far heavier than the wooden box they carry in their arms.

A flash, an instant, and heartbreak overwhelms.

I thank you all so much for your continued prayers and love. I hope that no one minds if I occasionally voice the reality of our journey as we travel through grief, hand in hand with the Lord.

Wordless Wednesday - My Handsome Men

Getting Ready for Baby

Only about 2.5 weeks left until my due date! The last month is always a thrill... I am so impatient, so excited, and so curious to finally meet our new little one! My track record is to come early, so Michael is already asking me "are you in labor?" "are you having contractions?" "will it be tonight?"... just to pester me more than really wondering, I think ;-)

As far as getting ready, I think I'm pretty well set. I have the car seat ready to go, and clothes and diapers washed and put away. I still have to wash things like bouncy seat covers, the pack and play (which we'll use as a bedside bassinet for a few months), and my sling and pouch.

Speaking of my sling and my pouch... I just have to say that when anyone ever asks me what are some "must-haves" for a new mama... those are at the top of my list. I LOVE wearing my babies, and they seem pretty happy with it as well. Another must-have is a bouncy seat - I keep one in the bathroom and one in the main living area of the house for those necessary hands and body-free moments. All the rest of the "contraptions" out there can be very nice and convenient, but a good, comfy carrier and a bouncy seat (and diapers, of course) are the only things I consider absolute necessities! A couple of good websites for carriers are Lucky Baby, Slinglings, and Ergo. I love all of mine!!

Nesting may very well have set in.... last night I tossed and turned, and when I finally got tired of being awake and doing nothing... I got up at 5:30 and deep cleaned my bathroom! That's not exactly "normal" for me, lol! We're doing an "alternative" week for school so that I can get all of the little things done... that just means no traditional-type school work, but lots of "life work"... there's lots of little organizing things I want to get done that the boys will be helping with!

I am now taking Evening Primrose Oil to help prepare my cervix, as well as drinking Raspberry Leaf Tea to help tone my uterus. Those, along with my regular prenatals and fish oil, are about as far as I go with supplements. I've taken them with each pregnancy, and each delivery has been relatively "easy" (if you can say "easy" and "labor" in the same sentence, anyway) so I do believe they help.

I had posted some bare-belly pictures here, but Michael suggested maybe they hinted at immodesty a bit, so I have taken them down. So here's one that won't embarrass anyone! My apologies if the others did :-)

Wordless Wednesday - Snow in Georgia!

Another One!

Yes, another song I wanted to share. ;-) I have found praise music to be so healing to my spirit lately. We sang this in church yesterday, and I love how it is a song of victory and praise! What a wonderful gift God has given us through His son!

Let the weak say, "I am strong"
Let the poor say, "I am rich"
Let the blind say, "I can see"
It's what the Lord has done in me

Hosanna, hosanna
To the Lamb that was slain
Hosanna, hosanna
Jesus died and rose again

To the river I will wade
There my sins are washed away
From the heavens' mercy streams
Of the Savior's love for me

I will rise from waters deep
Into the saving arms of God
I will sing salvation songs
Jesus Christ has set me free

Hosanna, hosanna
To the Lamb that was slain
Hosanna, hosanna
Jesus died and rose again

Let the weak say, "I am strong"
Let the poor say, "I am rich"
Let the blind say, "I can see"
It's what the Lord has done in me

February's Treasures

Enjoy the encouragement and thoughts that these blog posts will provide!

Refusing a Limited Vision of Womanhood at A Wise Woman Builds Her Home - this one gets a hardy AMEN! from me regarding the idea of being "quiverfull" and why.

Scandalous Love at Holy Experience - this quote really resonated within me:

"Who am I, chief among sinners, to be saved?
On a Sunday morning in February, the week when bouquets of roses will be tenderly offered and Valentines signed with passion, I swallow the gospel down, the good news: not that the good are rescued, (because what news would that be?), but the bad, the very bad, are loved, bought, redeemed."

I'm Every Woman at Large Family Mothering - praise God for His mercy and grace!

Proverbs 31:10-12 at Cherishing My Days - its like seeing the inner thoughts of my brain on someone else's blog, lol!

Blessings, But... at Pursing Titus 2 - I couldn't agree more! Which are they? Blessings, or not?

God Knows at Large Family Mothering - this seems to be a theme this month! These posts are encouraging to me, however, especially since #5 is so close to being in my arms, and while my excitement grows in anticipation, so, also, do the comments I've been getting from folks...

"Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind..." at Eyes of Wonder - this blog is so beautiful! And the posts come so infrequently that each one is such a treasure. I loved the discussion of the book of Habakkuk, as well as this quote regarding our time here on earth:

We really can't comprehend the impact that our lives will have/and are having, on those that we love. Even the smallest things that we do (though I guess it is the smallest things that add up to the bigger things that matter most. Right?) over time, lay a foundation and begin to build upon it. God takes our little, and is able to make much of it. Despite limitations (and I know there are some really, really heart wrenching, seemingly hopeless situations--but they're not. Not to Him. Not in Him. And I say this in much tenderness and love) and things being far less than our desired ideal. He (only He) is able to mulitiply our faithfulness in the things that can seem nearly insignificant at the time--and for years of repetition, on end.

Answering Your Questions: Why Natural Childbirth at in other words... - these might be considered slightly controversial (simply because she states her opinion matter-of-factly and we all know how offensive that can be ;-)), and even I can't say I agree completely with all of the points made, but I definitely think the points are worth considering!

• Part 1: Medical Reasons
• Part 2: Religious Reasons
• Part 3: Cultural Reasons

The Calling of Motherhood at At the Well...In Pursuit of Titus 2 - I really appreciated the emphasis on having a servant's heart in mothering, submission to the Lord, and a clear picture of our calling!

The Controlled Mother at A Wise Woman Builds Her Home - how convicting! I struggle in this area, for sure.

The New American Idle at SpunkyHomeSchool, also related article American Idle at American Thinker - I actually really enjoy politics, even if I don't discuss them much here... and these are both excellent commentaries on the latest happenings in the political realm, as well as the overall mindset of the majority of Americans, no matter which political side they fall on.

The Myth of the Perfect Family at Your Sacred Calling - what encouragement!

What Marxists Know about Education at Divine Calling - yep, yep, yep. Eerily familiar....

Mediocrity is a Disease at The Executive Housewife - very good points made. How close do we like to get to that line of worldliness, claiming it our "right" as "freedom in Christ"?

Expectations at Falling Like Rain - A good reminder about appreciating our husbands and allowing God to do His work in them!

Home-Making on Purpose at The Common Room - some really good resources recommended to help home-making become more second-nature - especially for those of us for whom it isn't!

Like a River Glorious at A Spacious Place - She shares my heart's inner prayer, as when I am face to face with my sin and lack as a mother.