June 30th, 2011. . .my due date. It was one of the few days they weren’t doing construction on the house across the street. I’d spent a lot of time praying that when I actually went into labor, there wouldn’t be construction to throw me off my game
After about 6 false labors (two of which Kathleen came over to monitor for awhile), I was a little dubious about the “signs” of labor that would tell us for sure that we were, in fact, having a baby that day. So I declared that I wouldn’t believe that I was ACTUALLY in labor until my water broke, or I saw a head come out. That’s funny now, because those two things happened nearly simultaneously.
On Wednesday (the 29th) by the time we went to bed, I was having uncomfortable/painful contractions again. I checked the timing, and they were at least 10 minutes apart, but inconsistent. I was tired and decided we weren’t having a baby that night, and I was going to sleep…if he wanted to come out he could do it in the morning. That’s actually what I was thinking before I went to bed. After all, we’d been through this before.
I continued having contractions that were bad enough to wake me up throughout the night, but they were anywhere from 9-15 minutes apart, so I didn’t consider it to ACTUALLY be labor, and I went back to sleep.
About 6:30am I was woken up by a really bad contraction, and had to go to the bathroom. As I stood up and started walking to the bathroom, I felt a gush of what I knew was blood. When I got to the toilet, more came out. The mucous plug had been gone for weeks, so it was just blood.
At 6:39am I texted Kathleen (my midwife) and said “Either I just started my period, or we’re having a baby today.” She texted back and said that she would call when she got up. I texted Amanda (my birth photographer) at 7:13 to let her know (yet again) that we might be having a baby that day. Then I texted Kathleen again to let her know that the contractions were 3-6 minutes apart, and the intensity was getting worse. She called, and I told her that I didn’t need her right then, but we’d keep her posted. I still wasn’t 100% convinced that we were ACTUALLY having a baby that day, considering that everyone was positive I was having a baby on several other rounds of “labor.” She said to go ahead and blow up the birth tub so it would be ready.
Kadence came downstairs, and we told her we had to cancel plans to go shopping, because we were probably having a baby. At first she was upset, because she was tired of being stuck in the house. Her response was "No, I don't want to have a baby today, I want to go somewhere!" She settled down fairly quickly, and started to get excited. I went upstairs to get her clothes, and got her dressed for the day.
After she was dressed, I went into the kitchen and ate my last piece of chocolate cream pie for breakfast. Yeah, power food. I’d made two of them Tuesday evening because I was craving one. . .and I was also hoping that it would be my last pregnancy craving. I ate an entire pie throughout the whole day Wednesday. I figured that had just as much a chance of making this happen as anything else, and I justified that it was healthy, since it was organic. :) I had one piece left Thursday morning, and I figured it might help. We’d tried every trick in the book to naturally induce labor. Chocolate cream pie is what finally did it. That’s the story I’m sticking with. :D
Around 7:40 I went ahead and texted friends and family that wanted to stay posted to let them know that it appeared that we were having a baby that day. Marcia (my next door neighbor) texted back that I still sounded skeptical, and asked if she could do anything. I said that until Kathleen got there and said that there was actually progression this time, I was going to remain skeptical, and that I might need to send Kadence over because she had too much energy. Charlie (Marcia’s 4 year old…and Kadence’s “boyfriend”) had a swimming lesson at 11:15, so we decided Kadence would go hang out with them until then. I told Marcia “Maybe we’ll be ready to push by then. . .haha.” I actually was joking.
After Kadence went next door, I told Patrick we needed to do my weekly belly pic since it was exactly 40 weeks. I picked the one I liked, edited it, and put it on Facebook. I was trying to distract myself so I wouldn’t concentrate on the contractions. It didn’t work. I went and sat out on the front porch for awhile and ate watermelon and played Words with Friends, but I was too uncomfortable to stay out there through contractions.
By 9 I was convinced that this was the real deal. I texted Kathleen “I’m pretty sure this is gonna happen this time. . .it’s hurting much worse now.” She called and decided it was time for her to head over.
My back was KILLING me with each contraction by this point, so Mom or Patrick had to apply pressure with each contraction. I had a really bad one while we were standing in the kitchen, so I was holding onto Patrick while Mom pushed on my back. Patrick’s arm was around my front next to my head. I was staring at it during the contraction, and finally told him that I REALLY wanted to bite him. He’s such a good husband that he let me. It took my focus off the contraction just a tad, but it didn’t really help. I thanked him, and told him that biting him through contractions wouldn’t be necessary. I did point out that I was nice enough to ask before I bit him, unlike when I punched him in the face while I was in labor with Kadence.
I got on the floor and used my big blue exercise ball to help work through the contractions and try to get the baby to change his position so my back would stop hurting. That didn’t really work, and it was rather boring. The contractions were requiring quite a bit of concentration by this point. I called Felicia (a friend who is a massage therapist working on her doula certification) to tell her to come.
Kathleen got here around 10 and checked me. I was dilated to a 6, but went to an 8 during contractions. Kathleen called Debbie, her assistant, and told her to come over. I texted Amanda to tell her to head over as well. Since we really were having the baby, I posted on Facebook. "I was gonna get a manicure today. . .but I guess I'll have a baby instead. :)"
The contractions were requiring quite a bit of concentration by this point, and the painful intensity in my back was becoming overwhelming. Everything else felt fine though. Unless I was actively contracting, things were pretty normal.
Kathleen positioned me on the bed to try to get the baby to move while they filled up the birth tub. I was on the bed for about 45 minutes. That didn’t work. I had a cold bottle of Vitamin Water Zero close by at all times. By this point, when I wasn’t drinking it, Mom put it behind my neck to help cool me down. (BTW, I feel the same way about Vitamin Water Zero as I do about chocolate cream pie. . .in case you were wondering. :D)
I got into the birth tub around 11. The warm water felt good, but my back was still killing me. Kathleen had me get on my knees and lean against the edge of the tub to continue trying to change the baby’s position. Debbie arrived around 11. I hadn’t met her before, so when she was introduced I jokingly apologized, and told her that normally I didn’t meet people without my pants on.
Marcia brought Kadence back over, and Felicia got here not too long after that. Patrick and Mom had been taking turns applying pressure and rubbing my lower back during contractions. After Patrick had been doing it for awhile I asked him and Felicia to both do it so there would be one of them on each side of my back. (I don’t think I’ve mentioned this yet, but back labor SUCKS! Lol) Kadence wanted to help, and asked Kathleen for a glove. She then “helped” by scooping water up and pouring it over my arm while Patrick and Felicia rubbed my back.
Amanda arrived around 11:30, and I asked what time it was. I had previously said that I was shooting for a 6 hour labor, so at this point it had been 5 hours since I had woken up and things started happening. I was pretty happy, because I was far enough advanced that it wasn’t going to take much longer, so we were pretty sure he would be born by my 6 hour mark.
My knees were starting to hurt, so I changed positions and sat with my back against the pool. Not too long after I changed positions I started involuntarily pushing with the contractions. Kathleen checked me. I was at 9 cm, but I had a little bit of a cervical lip (not too surprising that my cervix was giving her lip. It’s in keeping with my personality. . . :D), so she asked if I could hold out on pushing for a few contractions. Turns out, I couldn’t. Kadence kept circling the pool like a little shark, calling her baby brother out. We gave her a final opportunity to give her baby brother a name to use until we decided on one. She decided to go with her original name for him, Jack Black.
After a few more contractions, Kathleen asked if I could go use the bathroom again, since it had been awhile since I’d last gone. Good idea since I needed to empty my bladder. Bad idea because I’d already started pushing. On the way back from the bathroom I got body slammed by another contraction. If Patrick hadn’t been holding onto me, I’m pretty sure I would have ended up on the floor. Kathleen was kneeling down in front of me, so while Patrick supported me from behind, I leaned against Kathleen and pushed through the contraction. When it was over I got back in the tub, and suddenly felt hot and extremely nauseous. We had a bowl nearby just in case that happened, and Mom put an ice pack on the back of my neck to cool me down. I dry heaved through the next contraction while I pushed, and thankfully the nausea calmed down after that.
By this point, Patrick started getting really emotional. He hates seeing me in pain, and by then it was getting REALLY intense. However, we didn’t have much further to go.
Kathleen checked me, and could feel the baby’s head. She tried to break my water, but couldn’t. It broke on its own with the next contraction when he fully crowned, and the stretching/burning sensation got much worse. (There’s a term used to describe that sensation. . .it’s called “the ring of fire”. . .Johnny Cash wrote a song about it. . .) The contraction after that, it felt like he wanted to come out, but there was just an incredible pressure on my tailbone and he wouldn’t move. I told Kathleen, and she said we needed to change positions. They moved me backwards into a reclining position, and his head came right out. The cord was around his neck holding him back, so once it was removed the rest of his body came out and he went straight into my arms at 12:15pm.
From what I’ve heard, most babies born in water come out quiet and peaceful. Not my son. He was PISSED! Not that I blame him. :) He was screaming, and Kadence kept saying “Baby! Baby Brother!”
I was SOOOO tired I felt like just going to sleep, but I had this screaming baby in my arms. . .IN MY ARMS! I mustered up the energy to REALLY look at him. . .and he looked like Kadence. . .ergo, he looked like Patrick. I was sitting there looking at him thinking I was 0 for 2 in getting a kid that looked like me, but I didn’t really care. He was so cute pouting while he cried. . .and he actually cried "Waaaaaah!"
We just sat there looking at him waiting to cut the cord when it was time. . .and listening to Kadence talk. . .and answering her questions. My favorite: “Can he fit in your va-jay-jay?” She told him “Baby brother, we got a bed for you!” and then started insisted that he needed a diaper, because he was naked.
Once the cord was white and flaccid, Kathleen clamped it, and Patrick cut it. I then gave the baby to Mom and Debbie helped me out of the tub and into bed. When the placenta detached, it was so big it wouldn’t come out on its own, so Kathleen had to pull it out. The bigger the placenta, the better. I’m quite proud of it. . .so proud in fact, that I had Amanda take pictures of it. . .which you will only see if you want to.
Once I was situated in bed, they handed the baby back wrapped in a dry towel. Kadence had been waiting a very long time for this baby to get “mommy milk,” so she was very excited to climb up on the bed with us and watch him nurse. He had some trouble latching, but once he was latched he nursed fairly well. (A few days later when my milk came in, I realized that he had tongue and lip ties, which is why he was having trouble. Those were taken care of when he was 8 days old.) After he nursed, when he was about an hour old, Kathleen did the newborn exam. He was 8 lbs, and 20 inches long. He didn’t need the drops in his eyes, or a vitamin K shot. . .so we opted not to do them. It’s nice to have choices.
We posted a picture on FB that Patrick took with the baby’s name still undetermined. Then we went to my bathroom to take an herbal bath, which promotes healing for mommy, and is calming for baby. While the bath was running, I got in, and my mom washed the baby's head. When the water temperature was right, Patrick unwrapped the baby from his blanket, handed him to me, and we eased him into the water. He immediately stopped whimpering, and calmed down. We just stared at each other, and I asked him what his name was.
We were fairly certain what his first name was going to be. It’s the one Patrick, and I preferred. There was one day Kadence came up to my stomach, and started randomly saying that name over and over while she was talking to the baby, and he started jumping around. But, I needed to see him first before I was sure. . .and Korvin fit him. The middle name took me a little longer. Patrick wanted Ash, and Kadence wanted Ryder. There were others under consideration, but those were the highest on the list. After talking to Korvin for a bit, I told Kadence to go tell Daddy that he won, and the baby’s name was Korvin Ash.
Kadence spent a good amount of time we were in the bath talking to the baby, touching him, and looking him over. She was sooo thrilled that he was finally here, and that she got to be there when he made his entrance. She loved him before he was born, but she’s been IN love with him ever since she first saw him. I’ve never seen an older sibling put their baby sibling’s needs ahead of their own on a consistent basis, but Kadence is all about making sure Korvin is ALWAYS taken care of and happy. He’s her baby.
After the bath I got in the shower, and my mom diapered, clothed, and wrapped Korvin up. Then Kadence finally got to hold the baby she waited 9 months to hold and sing to in person.
(This is before she went to bed that night.)
I was told to have Depends to use for the first night, but I didn’t need them. The red raspberry leaf and alfalfa I took throughout the pregnancy did their job, and my bleeding was minimal. I also found it interesting that the 6 lb 3 oz kid did more damage coming out than the 8 lb kid did. I attribute it to the water, and the positioning.
On a final note, there aren’t words to describe what it meant for me to have Kadence there when Korvin was born. There aren’t words to describe the way I felt watching her with him. I’m not sure their bond would be so strong if she hadn’t been there EVERY step of the way with the pregnancy, and been there for his birth.
His birthday was perfect. I couldn’t have asked for it to be any better. Here's a 7.5 minute video slideshow of some of the pictures Amanda took. . .if you haven't already spent too much time on this post, and would like to see just how perfect his birthday was. . .nothing icky or embarrassing, I promise. :)
Notes:
