The Birth- Part 2

I waddled back over to my room and sat on the bed for awhile waiting for the contractions to get stronger. This was a few minutes after 2:00 and it wasn't too long before they started to get painful. Melanie started drawing a bath for me and we all just kind of chilled for awhile. Linda would bring Clara in and out for a few minutes at a time. She was wired and there was no way she was going back to sleep. There was far too much excitement going on in the room next door.



Our last picture as a family of three.




It was such a vastly different experience from the hospital. The lights were dimmed and soft music was playing. It was just us and Melanie at this point. She checked my temperature and blood pressure on several occasions and checked the baby's heart rate periodically throughout labor with the doppler.

I got in the bath with the jets running and it felt soooo nice. I didn't realize how nice until I got out to pee in between contractions. They were coming really close together, but I thought I could get out and back in between them. I had a contraction while I was out of the tub and it was so much worse than in the tub. I think the jets not only felt good but were a wonderful distraction.

I hadn't bled at all up to this point. I told Melanie that I passed a little blood and she said it was time to call Sally, the birth assistant. I don't know what time this was, but it wasn't too long after she broke my water. I didn't know it, but when the assistant is called, that means birth isn't too far out.

I couldn't believe it was happening so fast. By the time Sally got there, I wasn't paying too much attention to anything because my contractions were very painful and right on top of each other. She moved around quietly and talked in a very soothing voice. She told me that if I needed a cold washcloth, she would warn me before putting on my face. She had ice water for me between contractions and was just generally there with anything she thought I might need. It was really nice.

Then it was transition time. I said I was going to throw up and immediately she handed Chris a bottle of peppermint oil to wave under my nose, instructing me to breath deep. She had a cold washcloth on my face and grabbed a pan just in case I did. It was all so effortless and thankfully I didn't throw up in the bath water I was sitting in. I was beginning to think twice about the whole no pain meds thing when they said that the nausea and pressure meant we were close.

When he heard that, Chris went and turned on the video camera we had set up on a tripod earlier, so I think we ended up with the last 15-20 minutes on video. Sally and Melanie had been walking around the room and would talk in whispers so as not to disturb me. Chris knelt by the tub the whole time. And then I felt the terrible pressure and told them I felt like I was going to have a bowel movement. Melanie said I was complete and I could push.

There was no one counting to ten or telling me when to push or anything. My body just naturally did what it was supposed to do. Crazy, huh? I'm tall enough that my feet touched the end of the tub. I was able to just push with my feet and never had to pull my knees up or anything. I was essentially floating as I gave birth. Chris was able to see the head and said it was pointy and looked really messed up. Melanie told Chris to feel the head, but he's a bit squeamish about that kind of stuff, so he declined. (He thinks it's gross to hold a pregnancy test because it has human waste on it.) Looking at the video, she eventually grabs his hand and puts it on the baby's head. She wasn't going to let him get away with not feeling it. Ha! I was able to feel it too.

When he was about to crown, Melanie did tell me to stop pushing and just blow as she helped out hoping to prevent tearing. I got the head out and when the shoulders passed, she told me to reach down and pull him out. I still had a washcloth covering my eyes and I don't think I had opened them at all while pushing, but I reached down, not knowing what part I was grabbing and placed him on my chest.

He was so cheesy! I know it's not the best picture, but look at that! She said he looked to be a 39-weeker.





I hadn't even thought to find out what he was at this point. It was just such an awesome relief to have that thing out of me! I wasn't really thinking straight. Chris immediately went and got Linda and Clara, so once they came in, I took a look and he was all boy.