Birth #6

I took a good break, but I'm determined to write about my last two deliveries before baby #8 requires one of his/her own.

After my traumatic return to hospital birthing, following the two home births, I threw up my hands once more and returned home for the birth of my sixth.  Once again, I figured it couldn't be worse than the hospital, and I knew for a fact certain negatives would be ruled out.  One huge negative that I did not mention in the post about baby #5 was that after he was safely delivered, they took him from me (as is usual) to place under the warming lights and put plastic i.d. tags on and give shots to [Vitamin K and the eye goop for protection from STD's] (though I declined them).  The nurses left my screaming and naked baby under the lights as they chatted nurse-gossip.  I was too shy to demand my baby be brought to me.  It is common sense that a baby, snuggled into his mother and nursing, will be right warm and toasty...and not naked, screaming and alone during his most precious first moments from the womb.

Anyone who has experienced the peaceful calm of a baby delivered into a dark bathroom, in a warm bath of water will be as horrified as I was.

At 2 am I awoke with contractions.  It is important to note that until this sixth baby, I had never allowed myself to go into labor naturally.  It was a long path of trust, mine.

By 6:30 am my Mom came to pick up my waking (and very excited) children and whisk them off to early Mass and a day of spoiling.  My midwife had arrived moments earlier.  I rested in my bed until about 8:30, at which point I was at 9cm!  My water had not broken, and my labor was very very slow.  I had contractions ten minutes apart! I was able to rest, walk to the bathtub, return to bed, and even eat a yogurt.  But that little baby didn't seem to want to come!

It was a stormy night, and the day was dark and rainy. It was so warm and peaceful in the glow of my bedroom and bath.

I got impatient, and less comfortable.  At 12:30 I got in and out of the bath one last time, lay down in my bed...and my water broke.  My plump and dark haired daughter was born two contractions later.

After soaking in her beauty and praising God for her, I watched my midwife swaddle her in new clothes, diaper, and blanket right on my bed. I nursed her for a good long time as my midwife checked me out and whisked away plastic bedding.  When she fell asleep, I handed her to my husband and took a shower and put on new pajamas.  The midwife reminded us to eat.

We made the exciting phone calls and that evening, after a dinner alone, the children returned to meet their new sister.  One by one they came in, sighed, ahhed, and held their little baby.

I felt that I was finally given the gift of a labor (not induced) and delivery that was pretty much exactly how I wanted it.  [For the sake of full disclosure, I will not hold back the moment in which I said "I can't do this"...as the baby came out.  Right before then the midwife had told my husband to hold my leg in place. I looked at my beloved and said "do not touch my leg!"...poor man looked haplessly at my midwife.  She told me I would have to keep it back (or whatever she said).  Anyway, the baby was moments from arrival, so I don't count that as too big of a detraction from the above story.  I just would feel guilty if I didn't admit that not every single moment of labor was fun and games.:)]

Yea! 6 down, 1 to go! (would it be too much to ask you to "bear" with me?! haha! Rapier wit, I tell you. Rapier.)