Katie's Birth Story in Pictures

I just have to give this disclaimer: I know I have friends who will read this who have not had children yet. I want to make some things clear. 1) This is a long labor, but there was a specific reason for that- Katie needed to labor slowly because of the cord. 2) If you choose to have a natural birth, take a class. That is the best piece of advice I can give you. 3) Larry asked if I would do it (have a drug-free home birth) again. The answer is yes. It was worth every second. 

Also, for those of you who were not around when Grayson was born, you can click here for his home birth story in pictures. 

I had been having contractions all day. I debated on whether I should go to my appointment with the hospital midwife considering I was alone and it was in Alpharetta. I decided to go. I had an NST scheduled and I was getting blood drawn. M and I had decided that with my pitting edema as bad as it was and my sometimes fluctuating blood pressure, we needed to get some tests done to ensure that homebirth was a safe option for me. During the NST they could track my contractions. I was having them every 2-5 minutes. The nice thing was, we could also tell that Katie was doing fine through the contractions! I had the midwife check and I was at 3 cm. I was at 5 before I was in real labor with Grayson, so I told Larry to go to work as planned. Around 4pm at home I asked Larry to come home early. I was definitely in labor and the kids were driving.me.crazy. 3 year olds don't really understand that Mommy is having a contraction right now and cannot get you a cup of juice. Larry got home around 5. Meanwhile, I had gotten in the bathtub to try to slow down my labor. M had to go to Columbus to help another midwife and wanted to make sure she made it to my house on time. The tub did not slow me down and all I wanted was to be out of the tub. My body wanted to move. I wanted to walk and clean and do things! 

We started taking some pictures around 7 when the midwives came. Throughout the night I had some "go to" positions during contractions. My main goal this time was to use gravity as much as possible. I wanted to make sure I was up and mobile to allow the contractions to do the most work. Grayson's birth may have gone even quicker had I used gravity more during his labor, and I am all about having a fast labor. (Go ahead, it's ok to laugh.) The height of the table was perfect. 

  The assistant midwife, N, got the pool set up.

 M checking the baby's heartbeat. N pulled out the couch for us. It was wonderful to have her do all these things because we were planning on Larry doing the tub and the couch, but he was busy with the kids and me, so she just stepped right in and did it.

 It occurred to me that we needed to feed the fish. I thought it was funny that in the middle of labor I thought of that. It gave the boys something to do :)

 Larry took me outside to pray with me. It was such a touching moment that I had him get back in the same exact position we were in so the midwife could take a picture for us :)

  One of my favorites...

Larry folding diapers. Life goes on!

 The midwives

This was another favorite position. I just wanted to dangle my body. It was very weird. I let myself hang from the fireplace and tried squatting through the contractions.

 M checking the heart beat again. She did this often and there was never any concern.

 My sweet Jared

This was a memorable moment. I could feel a contraction coming and decided I needed to be on the floor. I dropped to hands and knees and rocked.

 The boys were so fascinated by the pool!

  Isaac told me, "I'm just relaxin' by the pool."

  It was a joke between Larry and I that I would have Katie during The Office. We tried watching it. Clearly, I was not really watching. My contractions had slowed down around this point.

 I remembered my picture moment that I had to get in this shirt.

 Sometime before The Office came on I could tell my contractions were changing. They weren't coming any closer together like they should. Things were getting harder, but not to the degree that they should have been. I went outside for a walk and Larry joined me. I tried to figure out what was going on. He went back inside and asked everyone to stay quiet for me. Through Grayson's labor I was able to talk between contractions and it wasn't a big deal. But for this labor, it was clear I would need to focus more. When I went back in it was so quiet and peaceful. I ate some of my Scalini's that Larry had brought me home for dinner.

 We decided that I should just relax and try to watch The Office from 9-10. Normally I would never post such a terrible picture of myself, but it really shows how I felt at this moment. Big, pregnant, miserable, confused, sad

N and Amanda were chatting, ie, staying away from me ;)

 Blood pressure check

Larry is getting some music turned on for me while M and I chat

 Contraction                                         M checking the heartbeat after the contraction

Another contraction

Getting water boiled at 11:23 pm to get the tub ready. At this point I was hoping she would come between 12 and 1. Women always say to get rid of the clock during labor, but for me, that would have driven me crazy. My sense of time was way off anyway. I would think it had been 2 hours when it had been 20 minutes and then there were times when it felt like 20 minutes and 2 hours had passed. But it gave me comfort to know that time was passing and Katie would come eventually. 

Resting

Changing to the next day....

I love these next set of pictures. Larry was always right there during a contraction to be however I needed him to be. He rubbed my back, he held me, he prayed, he did whatever I needed. Things started picking up again around this time. 

One of the signs that things were well, even though they were slow, was my ability to eat. I didn't really want to eat, but M asked me to in order to keep up my energy. 

Continuing to heat water on the stove....

This is one of my favorite pictures. I had finished a contraction and was so exhausted from it that I just stayed in that position, so M got on the floor under the table to check the heartbeat. This is one of those supreme examples of the difference between a midwife and a typical OB. It's all about YOUR needs during a labor and not at all about the convenience of the midwife. She serves you as the laboring mom. It's a beautiful thing to be a part of. 

At this point the shirt had to come off. I was wearing a sports bra to keep some modesty in the tub knowing I wanted pictures this time around. 

Done with that contraction! N checked the baby's heartbeat. 

I asked Larry to play the Birth Mix. However, as I went through the next couple of contractions I realized that the music only distracted me and I asked him to turn it off. I'm still very grateful for this mix as lines from meaningful songs played through my head during the labor. It helped me a lot in the days and weeks leading up to her birth as I listened to it often in the car. 

I tried sitting on the birth ball but it did not provide relief. 

M asked me if I wanted to try the Rebozo. YES! It provided a lot of counter pressure and gave the feeling of being held. I needed a lot of touch during my contractions. People who know me know that I love my personal space, but that certainly did not apply to this labor. If Larry wasn't touching me during a contraction I was telling him to TOUCH ME! I needed it to get through. 

I'm pretty sure he was falling asleep here. 

Around 3 AM I had M check me. I was at 7 cm. I could get in the water! 

As I prepared to get in the water M checked my bp. Larry washed my feet. I'm not sure that I can adequately express what this moment meant to me. It was 3am, Larry had been by my side moaning in my ear through contractions for 10 hours at this point. And yet he was willing to get a washcloth and wash my feet for me. It brings me to tears as I write this. This man loves me.

In the water! There is always a reprieve when you first get in the water. A few moments of relaxation before the hard times start again. I had thrown up just before I got in the water. I had been in the bathroom with the rebozo on during a series of hard contractions. When I threw up I knew transition was coming and it was close. 

Larry helped me through a contraction and I promptly asked him why he wasn't in the water with me. 

Rubbing my back...

 My Mother's Day gift was next to the pool

 Falling asleep. Once again, the contractions were intense, but did not seem to increase in frequency. I woke myself up while falling sideways into the water. 

 Resting...

 Larry was so amazing. I can't remember if he's praying with me here or just helping me. 

 I was in the pool for about an hour. I finally got out when I was tired of being in there and it was clear that she wasn't coming. By now it was after 4am and Amanda had left to get some rest. I laid on the bed downstairs and fell asleep while Larry slept on the small couch. M said I slept for about 2 hours- from 4-6 and she did not bother checking the heart beat during that time because she needed me to get rest. She said I had about 6 contractions during that time. I remember waking up from the contractions and all I could do was roll my body on the bed and grab at the sheets and moan. I was so tired of everything. I just wanted it all to end. When I woke up at 6 I felt better in terms of rest. I was still exhausted. I could hear the boys beginning to wake up upstairs and decided I would go upstairs once they came down. I thought being downstairs would be great because of the open space, but at that point I wanted to be in the small confines of my bedroom. I wanted to be in the place where I had birthed Grayson. So when the boys got up Larry and I went upstairs. I labored in there and held onto Larry's tall dresser, much like I did on the fireplace downstairs. N is a midwife who was stepping in as M's assistant, but she had her own Mama in labor and had to leave. Another midwife that M works with, T, came over and got to the house around 7:30. M came up to talk to me. I felt so defeated. I knew that it was possible that M would break my water and I could still continue to labor for 12 more hours with no baby. I had to try something though. I will never forget when she checked me and said I was at 8 cm. I was at 7cm at 3am. I had progressed 1 cm in 6 hours. Although the length of time did not hit me at the moment, it's surreal to look back. I had so much peace in that moment that breaking my water was the right thing to do. 24 minutes later Katie was born. 

I love this picture of her with her eye open and a slight smile immediately after birth. 

 I made sure we got a picture of her cord. The midwives talked about Grayson's cord and how big and beautiful it was. It seemed weird to me at the time that people would talk about cords that way, but it's their lifeline and there is something beautiful about it. Katie also had a thick, healthy, beautiful cord. 

It was long and exhausting, and I certainly didn't feel the way I expected to after her birth. A lot of things made sense to me. I finally understood why some moms send their baby to the nursery after their birth. I understood why some moms transfer from home to the hospital out of exhaustion and the need for pain relief. I understood why most moms do not want a natural birth. Her birth was humbling. In the end I followed my instincts/ the Holy Spirit. I know her birth went exactly as God planned, though not at all as I had planned. In those hours after her birth I worried about the possibility of PPD coming on. However, after a few good naps I have to say those worries are behind me. I am incredibly, joyously in love with this little girl and the completed family she has made us into. I am so incredibly grateful.