Birth Story - Olivia Joy

I woke up Wed morning (Jan 2) at about 4:00 with really strong cramps, which wasn't totally unusual but there was something different about these. I got up, as I usually did, and walked around a bit, drank some water and then laid back down. I thought to myself "this could be it, but I'll try and go back to sleep." Sure enough, I slept until 11:30, when Roger finally came in to wake me up! I told him that I had been having cramps, but it obviously wasn't it because I was feeling fine.

I got up and went about my day as normal- Roger was on Christmas break from school, so we were just hanging out. I was working on the computer and at about 2:00 I felt like I was having really small cramps/contractions. I didn't think much of it because I had been having Braxton Hicks like crazy for about a week.

At about 5:00 I felt like they were getting stronger. I texted Lisa, my midwife, and told her I thought I was having slight contractions; she said okay but 'business as usual.; (meaning, don't get too excited yet!). So, I jumped in the shower to get ready to go grab some dinner and go grocery shopping (so we had good food in the house for the labor). As soon as I got out of the shower, my contractions hit full force. I believe I was vacuuming and Roger could tell every time I was having one because the vacuum would stop moving for a few seconds, and then start again! Needless to say, we never made it out of the house!

Roger went to work getting the birthing tub set up, cleaned and filled. I was making the bed ready, eating dinner (that my FIL went out to get for us!) and trying to keep a clear head. I called Lisa and told her she should probably come over now (about 30 minutes after she told me 'business as usual' :)). And I called my mom to let her know that it was time to come down!
Lisa arrived about 7:30 that evening, ready to deliver a baby! She checked me and I was already 6cm dilated and completely effaced. I thought "man, this is gonna go by quick!" Not so much!

My contractions got really strong about that time; I felt like I was in transition. So I got in the tub for a while, which felt really good. Roger sat in there with me and we would just chit-chat in between contractions. Things would get really strong/painful for a while, and then slow down. About this time is when my mom finally got there (I'm sure it was a very long 2 hr drive for her!!). 

I was using my mom and Roger for support and stabilizing myself. Everything after this point is kind of one big blur, I was just taking it one contraction at a time. I know I got in the pool again but had to get out because I couldn't get comfortable.

I started pushing at about 4:00am. My legs were cramping pretty badly so it was really difficult for me to get comfortable. Olivia did great, her heart rate would go up in certain positions and if I wasn't getting enough air, so I had to keep getting oxygen. The last 45-60 mins was me laying on the bed and then standing up on the frame to squat during contractions. The hardest part, still, was pushing through my leg cramps. After every big push I would ask "is it out yet?" (since we didn't know if it was a boy or girl). That would make everyone chuckle. I kept saying that I wanted to cuss, but I never did (well, out loud anyway). That was definitely the most intense 3 hours of my life! We had worship music on in the background and I only remember a few songs, but I know that helped me stay at peace and kept me praying for strength and perseverance.
 
She finally came out at 7:05am, with her hand on her face! That added a couple extra pushes for me :)  My first reaction when Lisa plopped her on my stomach, honestly, was "holy cow she is huge!!" Then I asked if it was a boy or girl and Lisa told me to look. Of course I laughed when I found out!! Everyone thought we were having a boy and I would usually say 'he' during my pregnancy.

I looked up at Roger (he was sitting behind me) and he was crying, my mom was crying and I was thinking "I can't believe that just happened! And I can't believe we have a girl!" I asked him "Olivia Joy?" and he said yes, it was perfect!

Olivia started crying right away. Roger got to cut the cord. She laid on me for a while as Lisa and Joana (other midwife) got me cleaned up. Roger spent some skin-on-skin time with her and went out to show his parents (Simona stayed up ALL night!). Everyone was so happy!

She latched on right away to feed, about an hour after she was born, and we haven't looked back! We slept a few hours that day and talked about how crazy and amazing everything was.

 
 I was born at home, so I think that fueled my desire to want to have a home birth, along with other reasons. We had a very successful home birth, thanks to our wonderful midwife(s) and chiropractor and birthing class instructor. We prepared the whole nine months for this moment and it was a total success. 

Would I do a home birth again? Absolutely, I wouldn't have it any other way.

I still find myself reminiscing about that day and thinking "man, I'm tough! I can't believe I did that!"