After a lot of thought and talking with a Midwife group in the area we decided to plan for a home birth! I was so excited that Sto was on board. After Pippa's short labor (only 4 hours) I was pretty worried that I might not make it to the hospital in time and there was NO WAY I was having a baby in the car. Or the parking lot. Or the lobby. And since I'd already had one smooth, natural/unmedicated birth, I was confident this was a good decision for us. After all, the likely hood of a problem was extremely low and midwives are extremely capable of handing emergencies. And the thought of sleeping in my own bed and using my own shower was too good to pass up!My due date, or should I say estimated due date, was July 2nd. Originally it was June 26th, however, and since Pippa was only 1 day early I was 100% sure I would go into labor at least a few days early. That's what always happens with subsequent births, right? Wrong. Oh so very wrong. I ended up being 5 days late. That doesn't sound like all that much, and it's not in hind sight, but let me set the stage for you. My mother in-law was going to be out of town for a week surrounding my due date. This meant I needed to have someone handy to help out with Pippa when I went into labor. So my mom (God bless her!) came to stay with us at that time, roughly a week before I was due. My father and brother were also planning on coming over the holiday weekend to meet the baby. At the same time, Sto had a major case he had scheduled but ended up postponing it because we were sure I'd go into labor in the middle of it and he'd miss the birth. (He ended up rescheduling it 3 times!) On top of that, he only had someone to cover him at work through the weekend and then Sto would have to do the covering of not only himself, but this other Dr. and the ER! Needless to say, with every passing day I felt like time was running out. And if one more person asked me if I was in labor yet or how was I feeling (you know, feeling. Wink, wink. As if that was a different question and therefore OK to ask) my head was going to explode!
I was trying all sorts of natural ways to induce labor. Spicy food, acupressure points, sex, and I even ate an entire pineapple after someone told me that could work. And I walked so much my feet hurt. In fact, one night I woke up with some contractions (or was is gas? Still not sure.) so I got out of bed and walked around the block for 45 minutes in my night gown at 3 in the morning. It didn't work. But I did sleep really well after that!
Finally, I was so late that it was time for my scheduled weekly appointment with my midwife. You know, the appointment I never intended to keep. I waddled into the office and we did an non-stress test to make sure the baby was doing well (which he was) and she checked me. I was 3-4 cms and 90% effaced! Thank God! I was worried she was going to say I wasn't dilated at all! So I went home hoping the irregular and painless contractions I had been having all day would actually progress into labor....
At almost exactly 5pm I had my first real contraction. It made me pause from doing the dishes and take notice. It was starting just like Pippa's labor so I knew this was the real thing. I called Sto to make sure he was on his way home, which he was, and then I paged the midwife. When we spoke I described my contractions: 4 minutes apart but less than a minute. I could still talk through them but they were already getting stronger. She said she would finish up at the office an come on over. I said, 'Ok, but take your time.' (Ha!) My mom took over caring for Pippa and I headed upstairs to my bedroom. By the time Sto got home (maybe 10 minutes later) was having serious contractions. I had to get down on my hands and knees and could barely talk through them. He set up the room for the birth and I climbed onto the bed, piled up some pillows to lean over and continued to labor on my hands and knees. It was the only position that was remotely comfortable to me. I was definitely having some back labor this time. Contractions were coming very fast and even more intensely. It was all moving so fast and was so intense (way more intense than my first labor!) that I remember thinking, 'Where are my endorphins, god dammit!' You see, normally contractions start slowly and build gradually and the body reacts by releasing endorphins that act as pain killers. The stronger the contractions get, the more endorphins are released. This is part of the key to handling a natural childbirth. But when a labor is really fast, there isn't time for the endorphins to get released and start working their magic, leaving me to cope all by myself! But cope, I did. I just kept reminding myself to let the contraction do it's job and bring my baby closer to birth. Moaning really helps too, though this labor also included some crying and some cursing in my head! By this time Sto called the midwife again to make sure she was on her way, which she was. But very soon I was feeling the need to push! I said, 'He's coming!' and Sto checked me and could feel his head! He said he thought he might have to deliver the baby himself, which would have been fine, but he wasn't familiar with the position I was in and asked if I could roll over. Um, NO!!! I CAN'T!!! Always calm under pressure, he was just going handle it. But luckily the midwife and her assistant came, literally running, up the stairs into the bedroom. It was about 6:10 at this point and 7 minutes later Lincoln Fredrick was in my arms! Total labor time 1 hour and 17 minutes! I was shocked! It sure seemed like longer to me!There was some meconium but because of my birthing position he cleared his airway really well and they were able to suction him immediately. The other great thing about that position is that I did not tear at all! Lincoln did great and is the cutest little boy I've ever seen. 6 lbs 9 oz. and 20 inches long. He has big hands and feet (like a puppy) so we think he's going to be a tall drink of water. We started nursing right away and while it's taken a little work to make sure he's getting a good latch, he's nursing like a champ and I am so relieved.
Pippa is doing great with him too. She is so gentle and loves to hug and kiss him. While I'm nursing she usually comes over and lays her hand on his hand or foot, sucks her thumb and snuggles with us. Priceless. If I had a 3rd hand I'd snap a picture. She's going to be a great big sister!
So now the real fun begins!
