Our Birth Story

Every mom has one. It's one of the most important days of her life as everything changes in just a moment
when her newborn baby is placed in her arms for the very first time.

There are just no words to describe the absolute joy
this little person has brought to our lives.

When I found out we were pregnant and figured out the due date, I resolved in my mind that baby would come whenever he decided he was ready. I didn't want to get stuck in a mental box of impatience at week 39 or 40 about the fact that he was taking too long, so I kept telling myself that he would come a week AFTER his projected due date. The first due date we figured was March 30, the second one (based on the ultrasound) was April 3, therefore I told myself that I wasn't going to hold my sweet baby until April 10.

I wanted everything to be as natural as possible. I wanted to labor at home, then go to the hospital during active labor so the baby could be delivered as soon as possible when we arrived. I didn't want to succumb to the temptation of pain relief via epidural.

Meet Braxton Hicks

It was spring break and I finally was getting the rest my hugely pregnant body craved, well sorta.. I had 2 weeks until the due date and spring break was when I had to finalize substitute teacher plans, finish report cards (my teacher friends can sympathize), and clear the classroom of my belongings. My 1st day on leave would be April 1.  One day as I was embroidering coasters (I was still in the denial phase of procrastination), I felt my belly tighten up like I had never felt before. Weird, I thought.. 30 minutes later it happened again! Whoa! I waited, and sure enough it continued to happen every half hour through the next day. The next day, it went down to 10 minute intervals and I started to get excited. What if???  I kept thinking, even though this was technically 3 weeks before my self-given due date. I texted my doula to let her know, but strangely, I wasn't feeling any pain. Through the rest of Spring Break this continued, and my resolve to remain patient definitely wavered. The last night of Spring Break, I told Jonathan, "I want this baby out, I'm so done," after I had given him a hair cut while maneuvering around my protruding belly. Most people feel super tired and worn out at this point, but honestly I felt good, too good I worried. Maybe baby was just so comfortable in there he would never want to come out! The main side effect I was having was major heart burn, and my bones ached from the relaxin my body was producing to prepare for baby's birth., but I could (mostly) keep up with my kindergartners and stomp all over campus with no problem.

I had one more week of teaching left when I got back from Spring Break. I did NOT want to be there...Mentally, I was ready to be holding my baby. But I still had those report cards to finish, oh, and my principal was going to observe me for evaluations while I was 39 weeks preggo. BRING IT ON! Braxton Hicks continued, but I decided to mentally block it out and continue on, because THE SHOW MUST GO ON!

That week, I started feeling some twinges when I would wake up at night. I just figured it was because I was running out of room inside to house a baby and my organs. Would I even know a contraction when it came?

Week 40

The weekend of March 29 FINALLY arrived, but I had once again made peace with the April 10th date. Saturday morning I walked 2 miles to the beach so I could clear my head, pray, and journal. We did some grocery shopping that night, ate dinner, and went to bed.

I woke up around 3:45am (as per usual), and spent a little extra time in the bathroom (not so usual), and in the span of 15 minutes, had 3 tightening sensations accompanied with some pain. Wonder if this is it... I decided not to wake Jonathan because every one told me I would know when I was in labor, and at this point I didn't know anything.. But then when I had lain down for a few minutes, I felt it again, then again. I finally decided to say something, but then told him to go back to sleep because it might not be anything. About 30 minutes later OUCH! I had to get on my hands and knees. Ok, I'll tell Jonathan now...  And then I got sick into trash can.

Laboring

My mom helping me thru another contraction.

Jonathan was amazing. What an amazing comfort he was to me, giving me the space or counter pressure I needed. He had definitely been paying attention in our birth class :)  He called our doula, Amy, at 5:30, and by 6 she arrived. I believe labor is all about your body position and mental state. I wanted to be able to move freely and do whatever felt comfortable, because I knew these would be the most uncomfortable moments of my life thus far. My favorite position was on the couch on my knees with my arms over the back. Jonathan was on duty to apply counter pressure to my hips by pressing with his hands both sides of my hips in together during each contraction. Mentally, I would think of palm trees and count the fronds as I would breathe deeply and sometimes moan to get my focus off the pain and onto something else. My contractions remained between 4,5, and 6 minutes apart. Suddenly, I remembered I still had one more teaching day left before my long term sub was planning on being there. SHOOT! I needed a substitute teacher to cover for me! So there I was, in between 2 or 3 very intense contractions,  signing in online to put in a request for a sub the next day. Then back to the couch for more laboring. Amy figured that we may be heading to the hospital around 11ish based on the timing of my contractions. Around 830, I felt the urge to push... After it happened again, I told Amy and she was a bit surprised. She said, "Judging by your demeanor and the timing of your contractions, I'd still put you in "early active labor," but if you feel that, maybe we should think about leaving soon." I decided to wait and see if it came again before moving, but Jonathan started grabbing everything and loading up the car. Sure enough, in 2 contractions, I felt it again. So we moved out at 9:30 and it looked like our baby was coming on the original due date, March 30.

Literally seconds after Micah was delivered.
What an emotional picture!

The glorious afterglow of birth.

I still laugh at the image of myself climbing the stairs in full blown labor to leave our apartment. Boy, that was an uncomfortable cruise to the hospital. We arrived around 10, and I was trying to sign my name on waivers and papers while moaning breathing deeply in the wheelchair when the triage nurse told Jonathan to get me upstairs to the Labor and Delivery Unit. They gave me my room and gown and I assumed the kneeling position again. A nurse came into check me, assuming since I was a first time mom I'd have plenty of time, but I was 9 centimeters dilated with my bag of waters bulging since it hadn't broken yet. Amy leaned over and said, "This is it! Baby can come now!" and I knew I could finally push!

An hour later at 11:03 my baby boy was born. I fully opened my eyes for the first time in hours when the nurse plopped him in my arms as I gasped with joy, exhaustion, and pure love for the most beautiful little person I had ever seen in my life. Micah stayed completely alert for 2 hours as I got to hold him, nurse him for the first time, and tell him over and over how beautiful he is. It was pure bliss.

Amy, my wonderful doula

 I am so thankful that Amy was able to be there acting as doula. Just having her there for moral support knowing that she's helped so many women through their deliveries gave me such confidence to be able to have my baby the way I wanted. I'm not sure that we would have known when to leave for the hospital if she wasn't there and that would have been a blow to my confidence, weakening my mental resolve to stay calm. She was there to remind me to breath, relax, and remember that all these feelings were perfectly normal.

Altogether, I had a picture perfect delivery of Micah. I realize that I am so blessed to be able to say this. I got to experience the way God created women's bodies to make and deliver babies in the most beautiful way. For me it was all about just going with the flow, riding each wave of contractions until it was over, and breathing deeply through that process.

Jonathan bathing his baby boy

Getting weighed and measured holding grandpa's hand

Look at that proud daddy!