Saturday's Child

So... details!  And pictures!

As you all know, this was a *planned* homebirth. 

the Birth Team (rah! rah!) -- two midwives, the birth assistant, and wonderful labor coach (Mr. Pickles)

 Mr. Pickles and I both agreed that not having to pick up and move in the middle of labor removed so much stress from the experience.  I was especially grateful to be able to remain in my nest.  Labor was only about 4 1/2 hours long -- I'm sure that staying home had a lot to do with its brevity, since there was no readjustment period after transferring to the hospital.

Katie got to be the first to hold her brand new sibling!

So Saturday proceeded like any other Saturday -- mostly trying to get the kids to do their chores and saying no to screen time multiple times throughout the day.  I took a walk, cleaned several windows and sills upstairs, did some laundry, looked up some funny pregnancy memes online and planned which ones to post each day.  (This was going to be my first.)  Oh, the laundry room flooded when the drain hose from the washer fell out of the sink again, so I also mopped the laundry room, until the mop handle broke.  You know, typical Saturday stuff.

I had decided to try to make it to Confession that day, since it had been a few weeks and I wasn't sure when I'd be able to make it again.  Miriam came along with me, just to stay in the pew and pray that the baby would come soon.

As soon as we walked back in the door, I had a no-nonsense, lean-against-the-wall contraction.

Followed by another one, 10 minutes later.

And another one 10 minutes after that.

that is one big kid!

Miriam is now taking orders for prayer requests.

two hours old!  (and exhibiting a slight protrusion of the xiphoid process, which is just a really cool way of saying "prominent breast bone")

Mr. Pickles was getting dinner on the table when I gave him the update.  (Ha -- there is nothing like seeing the whites of your husband's eyes when you announce you're in labor!  Poor guys.)  Since eating was the LAST thing I wanted to do, I excused myself and went upstairs to call the birth assistant & midwife, and otherwise prepare the deluxe birthing suite in between contractions.  The midwife said to call back when the contractions were just a little closer together.  Immediately after I hung up, the contractions started coming exactly 5 minutes apart.

I had mentally prepared myself for back labor, which is a good thing, because that's what this turned out to be. I had been hopeful earlier in the week that Dominic was facing backwards -- which is what you want, ideally -- since all his big kicks were to the side.  But then all the movements shifted and I could feel little feet in the front, despite all my leaning forward and virtuously sitting on my exercise ball and all that.  During labor Mr. Pickles & I tried The Rebozo Technique, which is supposed to encourage posterior babies to rotate.  It basically involves almost standing on your head while someone rocks your belly in a sling.  When the midwife demonstrated it at an appointment, it felt AWESOME.  But during labor, all it did for me was stimulate a triple-peak contraction which sent Mr. Pickles running to the phone to ask the midwife to come NOW.

getting his footprints

Meanwhile, all the kids were downstairs watching a movie while I was pacing upstairs.  Earlier in the labor I had been concerned about the timing of baby's arrival vs. the boys' bedtime, but in the end it couldn't have been timed more perfectly.  The movie ended and Mr. Pickles bundled the boys to bed -- the midwives were already here then -- then came back to me, only having missed two contractions (his Magic Hands rubbing my lower back have always helped me get through back labor).  The girls stayed up for a while to see what would happen.

It was a beautiful evening -- mild and breezy, not like August at all.  I had all the windows open.

After a while I began to question the meaning of everything, particularly why the !@#$%^ we thought doing this again was such a bloody good idea -- by which sign I realized that The Blessed Event was getting reeeeally close.  The midwives asked me if I wanted to try the Rebozo again, to which I replied that I wasn't moving anywhere just then, thankyouverymuch.  Sure enough, the next couple contractions were REAL doozies which sent everyone into a flurry as they got the bed ready.

the family birth team!

Miriam was actually present for the birth!  She had a very important role -- holding the exercise ball steady while I leaned against it.  Maybe it's because it was a new laboring position for me, or maybe because he was so big, or maybe I'm just getting old, but pushing him out seemed to take forEVer.  Mr. Pickles says it was only about 20 minutes or so, but it sure felt a lot longer than that.  It was such a relief when he FINALLY came out and we got to see him!  As the midwife passed his slippery little body to me, I hoisted him up and thought, "That is one big kid!"  Of course, I was also filled with tremendous gratitude that he was finally here, and we could get to know our newest family member.

Miriam decorated his birthday cake

Before Dominic was born, I would find myself contemplating what a mystery each baby is before it is born -- what unique gifts each one brings into a family.  The mounting impatience I felt for his birth wasn't all due to physical discomforts -- a lot was just wanting to bring him into the heart of his family.

Joseph:  "Four boys!  All right!!"  Miriam:  "Four boys.  Peachy."

Another lovely bit about a home birth was the leisurely pace afterwards.  The placenta took a while to come out, but the midwives just planted themselves at my south end and waited patiently for my body to be ready to push again (I'm sure it was just plain tired!).  There was no rush to finish things up and move on to the next procedure.  Meanwhile I got to snuggle with my new baby and nurse as long as we wanted.  At this point Katie -- who had been skulking in the hallway, listening to her mommy make water buffalo noises -- came in the room to meet Dominic.  When she was able to hold him, she was pleased as punch to be the first sibling to do so.  She kept remarking how special it was to see him right away, rather than having to wait a few days to be with him at home.

The birth team gave us plenty of family time together -- after I checked out fine they even left the bedroom and closed the door, to give us some privacy.  It was just so... respectful.

Finally about 2 hours after the actual birth the birth assistant helped me into the shower while the others remade the bed and cleaned up the baby some more.  Then they gave him his first exam, where we finally found out just how big he really was.  (Mr. Pickles saw the gram measurement and, math whiz that he is, started making the calculations in his head, marveling as he realized how many pounds they converted into.)  Katie tried to stay up for the verdict, but just couldn't make it.  I sent her to bed, so she had to wait until the morning to find out.  Miriam, however, stayed up until everyone left at about 1 am, lest she miss any of the fun.

ahh, this is the life!

After all the excitement was over, it was so nice being in my own bed, with my own new baby snuggling in the crook of my very own husband's arm right next to me.  They both went right to sleep and slept for hours, but I was too jacked up on adrenaline at first to join them.   But it was just lovely being all together that first night -- usually I get so lonely in the hospital.

And in the morning, everyone was there!  The other children got to meet their new brother right away.  They could pop in for a quick kiss and run out any time they wanted (at least, when Mommy wasn't sleeping).  It was very relaxed.  Poor Mr. Pickles wasn't feeling great that whole weekend, but he valiantly protected my rest and served me all my meals in bed on our best china.  He really is the best.  I felt delightfully spoiled.

So all in all, our homebirth was an extremely positive, wonderful experience, and I wish I'd done it years sooner.  We're so happy it worked out and that there were no complications. 

how we made the announcement to the neighborhood

God is good.