birth story

A lot of people have asked about the birth story, so I'll tell ya how it went down. Friday I'd been having contractions on and off all day, Saturday early morning they started getting consistently close together so I kept track of them for about an hour. I contemplated getting out of bed and watering the lawn or something but decided to get all the rest I could. When I finally did get up, things slowed down and I was bummed. We decided to get our mind off things and try to enjoy our day with the kids so we took them to the whale pool in Lovell and cleaned house a bit. By 6ish they were 3-5 minutes apart but not that intense. I called my doula and she eventually came over at about 9. Things actually slowed down after she arrived, so at about 10 we considered calling it a night until things picked up. Just as she was about to leave, we decided for her to stay so we could try different positions so that we knew what worked by the time we arrived at the hospital. In the next couple of hours things really picked up. By midnight she said we'd better go to the hospital, so we got into the car, and I was in the backseat so I could be on my hands and knees for relief. The contracions were every 3 minutes about and they were in full force. I can't really describe it, but I was trying my best to focus my attention and do the things Melanie had showed me. My water broke between Byron and Powell and not long after (about when we got into Powell) I was having the urge to push and got really scared (thats an understatement) that we were going to have this baby in the car. Michael kept his cool really well and called Melanie to tell her what happened and she said to pant through the contractions so I did that and we eventually pulled into the ER after going about 40 through Powell. Without even putting my shoes on we (Melanie and I) raced into the hospital and I was looking forward to getting this baby out but other plans were in store when we realized the doc wasn't even there yet. The ER had been contacted but she dropped the ball and the OB never got the message that I was coming. I leaned over the bed and panted through contractions, thinking through every contraction that it would be the last one, when I eventually pushed her out at like the 4the one (before the doc arrived). A nurse delivered the baby and did a great job. Melanie was crucial in keeping me as calm as possible and I was glad she was there. I wish she would have been with me in the van on the way. So people have asked if I would do natural again, and I'd say probably. I haven't exactly digested all of this yet but this I know--my recovery was 10 times better this time around and my post partum depression has been way less. I feel proud of myself and think I'd feel even better about things had the doc been there and I didn't have to pant through all those contractions when my body was ready to push. After Janelle was born (always a beautiful moment) we had 2 hrs of skin to skin, the cord wasn't clamped 'til all the blood pumped and she nursed right away. This has helped with breastfeeding I think. I think the ability to give birth is a divine, God given right thats meant to be incredibly challening --I don't think there's any easy way around it, but it sure is worth it. I can't even begin to describe how much we love Janelle. SO much that it hurts sometimes--having your heart walking around outside your body sort of things. We had a hard time picking the name but we're both in love with it now since its hers and she's ours. We didn't get any pics if right after she was born but Melanie did and hopefully I can post those.




The pic of Michael is priceless to me. I took this right after she was born because I wanted to capture the "proud dad" moment. Noone loves babies like Michael and I am certainly glad he's the dad of mine.