As I was thinking about writing my story, I kept thinking there was nothing extra special or exciting to write about because everything was so “normal” with my labor and delivery. But the truth is EVERY birth is an absolute miracle and beautiful in it’s own way, so here’s my story….
Yes! My labor started a few days before my due date. I was so glad this baby was coming a little early! I was tired of feeling big and uncomfortable and so ready to hold my baby in my arms.–Oh wait! Never mind, I guess that was just false labor. As the day went on nothing changed. The next day went by and the next, until I was a week over do. Was this baby ever going to come?
Finally at midnight on December 5th a contraction woke me up. I laid awake for about half an hour timing contractions. They were ranging from every 7-10 min. I woke up my husband, Tim, and told him I thought we should start getting around to head for the birth center. I sent a text to the on call midwife and we called Grandma to come stay with the two older children. It was snowing, but thankfully the roads were still ok. We left the house and made the 1hr 20 min drive to Brookhaven. We have 4 mountains to cross and I do NOT enjoy the drive when I’m in labor. Anyway, we arrived soon after 3AM and suddenly my contractions slowed down. I thought “Oh great, I got all these people up for nothing”. Emily, Danika, Cassandra, and Kai were there(they came straight from another birth). We all tried to get some sleep the rest of the night.
In the morning we decided to go out, get some breakfast, and walk. Well, all it took was a walk to the vehicle and a short drive. I never got out of the car. Tim grabbed a breakfast sandwich and we headed straight back to the birth center. By then, I was having pretty strong contractions, lost my appetite, and just wanted to be in the birthing tub. I pretty much like to labor alone, but Tim held my hands when I needed something to squeeze (I didn’t break any bones) 🙂 . Cassandra and Kai checked in on us every once in a while until I was sure baby was almost here. I remember joking around some, but my brain has managed to forget what exactly we were laughing about. I do remember that everyone seemed to be having a good time and everyone (except me) 😉 was relaxed and comfortable. I kept waiting for my water to break, but baby’s shoulders were almost out till it did.
At 10:41AM our sweet baby girl, Layna Jade, was born. She latched on right away and began to nurse. We just sat there and relaxed for about an hour. Layna nursed and I snacked on peanuts. I just LOVE being on this side of labor!
We are so very thankful to God for giving us another little miracle and so blessed to have had such a helpful, caring birth team!
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