This whole experience of Max’s arrival has been so sweet! Very relaxing, easy, and peaceful. Thank you, Heather, for documenting this special day for us!

*Birth story details at the bottom for those interested*

The Details…(and lots of them)

The day before Max’s birth, I went in for my 40-wk check-up with my midwife group, and I was at 4 cm and 70% effaced (it must have been all the contractions I’d been having on and off for the 3 weeks before my due date!). The midwife stripped my membranes to help get things going, and I immediately began feeling contractions about every hour through the rest of the day and on into the night. I spent the next morning timing my contractions while trying to entertain/run after Sydney. By 10am the contractions were coming every 10 minutes and much more intense. But between contractions, I felt great. My water hadn’t broken, and when I called the midwife, she said to keep waiting to see if it was the real thing. So while I waited between contractions, I kept busy ordering newborn photo props that I felt I just HAD to get before the baby came. :) By noon, I called my parents to come help with Sydney, as I was having to really breathe through each contraction in silence. I was keeping Tommy in the loop while he was at work, but I didn’t want him to have to come back until I knew it was the real thing. As soon as my parents showed up, I immediately got in the warm tub, which really helped ease the pain. At 1:30pm, Tommy peeked his head in the bathroom, and I was so relieved to see him, since the pain was suddenly coming much stronger and every 3 minutes. He called the midwife right away to tell her we were coming into the hospital. I got out of the tub and tried to primp before leaving, especially since I knew I’d have a photographer there! Tommy and my mom told me to stop being so silly and to just hurry and leave (which was good, since I wasn’t making any progress at my primping, since I had to get on my hands and knees every few minutes to breathe through each contraction). So I left with dripping wet hair in a bun with Tommy and my mom in tow, and my dad at home watching Sydney.

We got to the hospital (which is just down the street from us) at 2pm, and they took me first into the Triage room, where they checked and monitored me for about 45 minutes. I was at a 7cm and 90% effaced. This was the hardest part of my labor, since my contractions were so close together and getting really intense, and the room they put me in was tiny with lots of machines, and they made me lay on a bed hooked to monitors (who can labor like that??). The nurses asked me all sorts of questions (”Are you allergic to any medications?”, “When was your last menstrual period?”, etc.), which was hard to answer with the constant interruptions of my contractions. They also kept asking if I was planning on getting an epidural. I was hoping to go as long as I could naturally. Between contractions and pain, I’d say I wanted to keep going natural (since I had come so far), but whenever a contraction would hit, I’d say, “Maybe I do want an epidural!”. Tommy was on one side, reminding me that it will get more painful and that I’ll want an epidural, and my mom was on my other side telling me I was doing so well and to keep going. I felt confused and frustrated and extremely indecisive!

They finally took me out of the Triage and into my delivery room, which was really nice and big, with a huge window. I continued to labor for another 15 minutes while the intensity and frequency increased. My midwife finally came in to see me, and she checked me and found that I was still only at a 7 1/2! It had been over an hour of intense pain, and I hadn’t made any progress! As soon as she told me this, I said I wanted an epidural! No way could I handle an 8, 9, and 10 going at this rate! It was also difficult to labor in the delivery room with so many machines and nurses coming in and out, and just a tiny tub (Sydney’s labor was more doable in the private birthing center with dim lights, a huge tub, and the privacy and quietness of just me, Tommy, my mom, and midwife).

As soon as I asked for the epidural at 3:15, the anesthesiologist came right in and quickly went to work, and within minutes my contractions were becoming less and less painful. The sensation wasn’t as weird as I was worried about, and I still could move my legs a bit, and felt the tightening of contractions. I was suddenly all smiles, and the room immediately became peaceful and quiet. They checked me every half hour, but I continued to stay at a 7 1/2, even after breaking my water. By 5:45 my contractions had slowed and I still hadn’t made any progress, so they put me on pitocin. I kept asking the nurses and midwife if there was something that I could be doing to help things move along. I felt so strange just laying there, painlessly, not doing anything. But when they checked me at around 6:15, I was already at a 9cm!

Both my midwife and my mom left to get some dinner at this point. At about 7pm I started to feel this strange feeling down there (like a mild pressure sensation), so when I asked the nurses to check me, they said I was ready to have the baby! We immediately tried calling my mom, but kept getting her voicemail! The nurses told me my midwife was still gone, and that the OB on call would deliver my baby. This all made me become a bit emotional…I wanted my mom there, and I didn’t want a stranger I’d never met deliver my baby! But both my mom and midwife came back just in time to push, and all was right with the world again! :) Even though I couldn’t feel pain, I did feel the pressure they talked about, and I was able to feel how to push. I was so happy to have this moment here (and without pain!), I was all smiles. Everyone kept saying I made this look easy, and I’d tell them “This IS easy!” After only about 4 contractions, they saw his head crown and they said he had lots of hair, and after another push or two, he was out!

They immediately put him on my chest. He was covered in vernix and looked so big to me. He had cute big, puffy, wide-set eyes, chubby cheeks and dark hair. I felt so overwhelmed with gratitude, like I’d been handed this amazing gift that I was so undeserving of. I just held him close and stared at him in amazement and couldn’t stop crying. He was so big and so REAL. I think since I wasn’t in any pain, I could focus more on him. It was all so sweet and peaceful. After about an hour, my dad brought Sydney in to meet her new little brother. I’ve never seen her more excited and giddy. She didn’t want to leave his side. It was so neat to watch her, my little baby suddenly a big sister! The entire day was just perfect – I couldn’t have asked for a better experience. And now, 10 days later, I’m still in awe at this little miracle in my arms!