If you haven't guessed by now, the reason why I haven't written anything in two weeks is because I had my baby. That and the lack of access to a computer without one of my kids needing me.
That Saturday was pretty uneventful. Needing to get out of the house, we went to the mall and did some window shopping and walking. Later we ordered pizza and wings and then watched a movie before calling it a night. Around 11pm, I woke up to a strange pressure/pop feeling. I stayed still wide eyed, trying to figure out what just happened. "Did my water just break or was that my hip?" Since there wasn't a gush, I closed my eyes assuming it was my hip. Later I rolled over and then there was the gush. I bolted out of bed into the bathroom, expecting the all out waterfall I had had with my son. This was a trickle, maybe a cup of water and then nothing. I got stood up thinking that moving would get more to come out. Nope. Standing did get the contractions going though. The first and second came one on the other before they got into a pattern. After they were over, I went back to the bedroom to tell my husband that I was in labor. He almost didn't believe me. I then called one of the midwives to tell her my water had broken. She asked me to time the contractions and call back in 20mins. We timed them, they were between 3-5 mins, I called back and she said they were on their way.
So far they weren't very strong, I could talk through them, walking made them more intense, but not enough to make walking impossible. The midwives arrived around 11:45pm and we sat and talked for a bit. I sat sipping Red Raspberry tea and womens blend while my poor husband struggled to get the hose to work with the faucet, no luck. He couldn't get it to stay tight enough to create enough pressure to send water through the hose. He started bucketing water into the pool. Once we ran out of hot water, we all decided that rest was a good idea. Not knowing how fast or slow my labor was going to be. The midwives dozed in our sons toy room, which has two guest beds. I was on the sofa, my husband on the love seat.
Around 3am, I got up not able to sleep or even rest during them. I had gotten up several times to use the bathroom, mostly just ending up sitting there through the contractions. I found myself in the kitchen when transition hit. I had been thinking about food, if I was hungry enough to eat and then what to eat. Cereal, yogurt? After having two that I had to vocalize through, I headed back to the bathroom. I became stranded there with them coming closer and closer and much more intense. I had to add to what vocalizing I was doing. My husband came in and started rubbing my back, I asked him to get one of the midwives. I had just hit a place I'd never been before and was worried if I would be having the baby soon or have four more hours of this. She came in and listened to me for a min, then she listened to the baby's heartbeat. She asked if it was ok to check me. I said sure and pryed myself off the toilet, slowly making it back to the living room. My husband had started his bucket filling of the pool again, this time enlisting the help of our giant pots. I lay down on the sofa so she could check me. Surprise filled her face as she said "OH! Hi baby." She smiled and told me I was fully dilated. When I sat up the next contraction doubled me over into a hunch as I felt the sudden urge to push. (They weren't kidding when they coined that sentance!) I moaned out " I need to push....!" The second midwife jumped into action. They assesed the pool situation and despite my husbands best attempts, it wasn't half yet. So, they set up shop right there on the floor. Chucks pads galore. With the contractions almost one after the other, I draped myself over one our footstools in a supported squat. It felt soooo good to push. I pushed to where I couldn't stand the burn and then panted it out, letting myself stretch to let baby out. As soon as it was beyond intense it was over. They caught her and placed her between my legs. I picked her up and sat down in complete awe. I had done it! I had my baby at home, she was healthy pink and let out a nice sqwak. She nursed while we waited for the placenta, then they cut the cord.
My mother-in-law (who had been there the whole time) heard the whole thing through the grate in the living room ceiling that led to the upstairs guest room. After realising that she had heard it all, we asked if she wanted to come down and meet her granddaughter. She rushed down and we all celebrated, quiet as possible because my son was still asleep in bed. After the celebrating, one midwife asked if we wanted to see the placenta. She showed us the maternal side (that was connected to me) and the infant side. The amneotic sack was still intact and she showed us the hole from which the baby had come out of. (I wish we had thought to take pictures.) We donated the cord and they took the placenta to encapsulate it for me. My husband called my parents who were wide awake at 4am for whatever reason.
The midwives hung around after I was tucked into bed in case something happened. I drank two cups of Red Raspberry Leaf tea before I fell asleep. When my son woke up, my husband brought him into our room to meet his new sister. Still high from the experience, we were visited by friends and family while the phone rang off the hook.
A most happy experience that I would love to repeat.
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