My BABY is TWO years old today. I really can't believe how fast the time has gone. Wow! Two years ago I had been in labor for just a hair over 35 hours and I was starting to push. 11 minutes from now Gideon was born at our house, in our bedroom, and it was magical. Very often homebirth babies don't scream at birth. Gideon didn't. They laid him on my belly and he was just so peaceful. It was awesome. The best part (other than my beautiful brand new baby) was watching his brothers meet him for the first time. They ADORED him and it was beautiful to watch. I am putting my birth story here. Some of you have already read it (2 years ago) but I thought others of you might enjoy it. After the story I will post some pics of then and now (the now ones were taken this morning) . (Ignore the annoying way the birth pics are cropped.) Enjoy! Have a wonderful day!!
ADVENTURES IN LABOR- DECEMBER 15-DECEMBER 17 2005
ADVENTURES IN LABOR- DECEMBER 15-DECEMBER 17 2005
On Thursday, December 15, I woke up to no power. I wasn’t sure what time it was or when and why the power had gone out. One quick glance outside and I figured out the why. We were having an ice storm. The trees had about ¼ inch of ice on their limbs. It was about 7:15am. Thank goodness for watches, cell phones, and battery operated clocks. Michael’s mom was staying with us so that she could watch the kids during the birth. She was sitting in the darkened den. I asked her what time the power had gone off. She replied that it had been about 7:00 am. I knew we didn’t have any flashlights in the house so I went out to the shop to see if Michael had one we could use until the power came back on. I was assuming that it would just be a few hours…little did I know…
I couldn’t find any flashlights and I could hear limbs cracking and breaking so I went inside quickly. We lit the one oil lamp we had and a candle. It gave us enough light to get breakfast. Of course we didn’t have any heat and we couldn’t cook but we figured that everything would be back on in a few hours.
It was while I was outside looking for a flashlight that I realized I needed to go to the bathroom. I was surprised to find that I was loosing my mucus plug. Now, that doesn’t always mean that labor is imminent. You can loose it even a couple of weeks before labor really begins but with Judah I lost it the day I went into labor and with Thomas it was during labor. Within a few hours I was having good Braxton Hicks Contractions. They were very irregular but strong and I was also crampy and my back hurt. All of these symptoms don’t necessarily mean labor either but I just had a feeling that I would be in labor by that night or within the next few days. I did call my midwife to let her know what was going on. She said to keep her posted.
Meanwhile we are stuck in a house with no power, no heat, no phone, no cell reception, and with 2 small boys. That was an adventure in itself. Thankfully my wonderful mother in law was there to help entertain the boys.
I was still cramping and having stronger Braxton Hicks late morning and that is when I started thinking in my mind. What am I going to do if the power doesn’t come back on?? The ice storm was bigger than we thought. None of our city had power, Atlanta (about 1 ½ hours away) had about 100,000 people without power. There were limbs, trees, and power lines down in a lot of places. Michael came home early from his route because there were so many trees and limbs down he couldn’t get through.
I called my midwife again and asked her if a home birth was possible in these conditions. She said that as long as our fireplace could produce enough heat for that room and we had enough lights we could do it. Thankfully hot water wasn’t an issue because we have a gas water heater.
Michael, the boys, and mom went to hunt down some wood in the afternoon. I had a feeling I should take a nap in case things happened that night. So I napped while they looked around to see what they could find. They came back with a little bit. We were hoping it would last through the birth. We went out to dinner because another cold meal in a house that was 58 degrees wasn’t anything we all wanted to do. Right before we left for dinner I had some bloody show and knew that things were going to progress. It was pretty funny considering I’m trying to explain the color to my midwife and I couldn’t even do that very adequately because I was in a dark room with a little flashlight.
Dinner was very nice and I was HUNGRY! I ate more than I thought I should (I can get nauseated during labor) but figured that I should have one last big meal. I knew that I was definitely in pre-labor and as we were sitting in the restaurant I noticed a change in the contractions and realized that this was it. Unless I stopped these were strong enough to be “officially” in labor. Michael noticed my face and we went home to get the house warm enough to give birth in. We did laugh about it as we went about preparing because this is what an old fashioned home birth must have been like.
During this whole day and while we were rushing around trying to get ready I just tried to let things go that I couldn’t control. I have struggled with control most of my life. My whole focus for the last few weeks as I prepared for labor was to just let control issues go and allow my body to do what it needed to do. The other two labors I was discouraged and frustrated that my body went so slow and I had a hard time relaxing during contractions and surrendering myself to the pain. I also cared too much about performing during the other labors. I had been praying a lot this time to really surrender to what my body needed to do. God knew exactly what He was doing when He created our bodies to labor. Some women labor fast and some labor slowly. I wanted to stop competing in my mind with my friends and family who had short labors. I wanted to trust GOD to show me what I needed to do when. I wanted to focus on His peace during labor. Apparently God wanted me to put “my money where my mouth was”. Those things were challenging enough for me without the added stress of no power, heat, having to birth in a different room than planned, hoping the roads would be passable for both midwives and my photographer to make it to my house, etc. I kept praying and letting things go. I was getting a little anxious as the preparations for the fire were going slowly and the contractions were cranking up. I took Thomas to Walmart with me to buy more flashlights. (With both boys running around it was hard to get things going.)
We came home to a fire and much chaos. I very very much wanted to find a quiet place and focus but there wasn’t one to be found. I was a little irritated and tried to be patient until things could be quiet. The kids went to bed and I decided to see if I could sleep through the contractions. I figured that when I couldn’t sleep through them any more that I would call my midwife then. I didn’t want her to have to be there for hours and hours in case I went slowly again. I slept for a couple of hours and then decided that I’d rather get up. I called Doreen (one of the two midwives) at about 1 am but told her that we realized that we were running out of firewood and didn’t know how much longer we could stay at home. I asked her if we could buy some from them (they have a wood burning stove) and she said she would bring some.
At about 2 am the contractions were coming about every 3-5 minutes and were getting a little stronger. At 3 am she wanted to check me and see if the cord was near the head because we were getting some lower heart tones. (nothing dangerous. We just wanted to be sure it wasn’t the cord) She didn’t feel the cord so that was good news. I was 5 centimeters dilated so that was also good news. The other news however was that the baby hadn’t dropped and his head wasn’t on my cervix. It’s not terribly uncommon for a subsequent baby not to drop right away but Gideon was riding high AND was posterior.
Back labor is a whole ‘nother world. I had been having it since that evening. The contractions had been hard for me to time because my back would hurt and it was hard to tell when the contractions started and stopped; or, I would have a regular contraction and then, right away, another one in my back. I was trying to be thankful that I didn’t feel it in my hips like I had with the other two boys.
Well, we now had enough wood and I was in labor. Around 3am the power had come back on. PRAISE GOD!!! That was an answer to prayer. We were still planning on giving birth in the room with the fire though because the house had to heat back up from 57 degrees to at least 71 degrees. The contractions continued on till daybreak. They were irregular at times and the intensity didn’t go up much in the hours between 3 and 7am.
At about 7 Doreen checked me again and I was still 5 cent. I was a little more effaced but because the head wasn’t down and he still hadn’t turned dilation was slow. If the dilation would have sped up, the harder contractions would have turned the baby or if the baby’s head would have turned and come down on the cervix the dilation would have sped up. Catch 22. Doreen said that sometimes a mother’s body shuts down labor during the day. It looked like I was just going to have to be patient until the baby turned or until labor got “worse”. Doreen went home to rest and be with her family. I turned my attention to going as normally throughout my day as possible and trying not to be discouraged. Up until then I had, for the first time, been working with the contractions and not fighting them. That was a true answer to prayer. I knew God was with me and giving me strength. I wanted to choose patience and not give in to discouragement. I was refusing to think that my body had “failed”. God knew in advance that he would need to turn and He could supply what I needed. Instead of feeling like a failure I needed to focus on giving myself to labor and letting my baby use my body as an entrance to life.
That head space lasted for a few hours…then tiredness and discouragement set in a little bit. I took a nap but it lasted only a couple hours. I don’t like the feeling of waking up to a contraction. They had spaced out to about 15 minutes apart but they didn’t ever really stop and they were still 5 centimeter intensity.
By afternoon I was really exhausted and very discouraged. I kept trying to stay in the moment but I was really thinking about how I was going to be able to handle hours or days more. He still hadn’t turned. I was doing hands and knees every once in a while to try to turn him. At one point I was crying and crying and asking God for strength. I needed to focus on Him instead of the circumstances or the pain. The exhaustion factor was causing a problem because I was starting to fight the pain instead of relax. I called a few friends and had them pray for me. Michael came home from work and started helping mom with the boys. My midwife suggested I go for a walk or a drive to clear my head. I didn’t want to do either. I hate to be on “display” when I’m in pain. After they ate dinner though I was feeling restless and asked Michael to take a walk with me. It was pretty cold out and he walked with me for about .6 of a mile and then had to go inside. The short time I was with him though really helped. It was nice to hold hands, walk, and talk. I had felt alone while laboring during the day so the companionship was nice. I realized that I could walk through the contractions if I put my mind to it so I went another .4 mile and then went back in the house. I took a shower and everyone else went to bed. The contractions seemed to be intensifying. However, they were still not regular and he still hadn’t turned so I figured that I would wait to call Doreen back. I baked Gideon’s birthday cake, did some laundry, set out the birth snacks (M & Ms, coffee, cake, Rice Krispy treats)- I had a feeling that labor was turning a corner. I tried to lie down while watching a movie. I fell asleep and the contractions slowed down but the intensity level was definitely up. I couldn’t sleep for long. Finally I had to stay up. I was “dead on my feet” and now moaning through each contraction. Michael woke up and tried to labor with me but he was falling asleep within an hour or so. We had all been sick with several viruses for the past 6 weeks or so and his body was just shot out. As much as he wanted to be with me he couldn’t stay awake. Bless his heart, he tried but it wasn’t working. I decided to call Doreen then because I knew I couldn’t physically go on much longer. Emotionally I was having a rough time staying on top of the contractions. She was very nice when I called her at 2:30 am, but did remind me that since the contractions were spaced out when I was resting that I might not officially still be in labor. I told her I really wanted to see and then go from there on what we needed to do. She said that she would get herself together and come on over. She got there around 4am and the contractions were much more intense by then and closer together. She checked me and said, “No wonder you’re hurting. You’re a very stretchy 7 maybe an 8. These contractions are working for you.” I was so happy and relieved to hear that. I was able to give myself back over to labor, stop fighting the pain, and start letting the pain work for me. Now what we had to do was try to turn that baby.
She suggested some lunging so we did that for a while. She called Cheri (the other midwife) and Cheryl (my photographer) and asked them if they wanted to come and join the party. We started preparing my room for a birth. That was exciting. Even though I had to stop every few minutes and have a contraction I felt like we were back on track.
This time transition was the weirdest thing for me. Both other times it’s just gotten more intense the closer I got to 10 cent. This time the contractions were very intense ( along with shaking and vomiting) and I was still having back labor but they were spaced out and I was able to rest in between. I was very physically tired so I alternated between resting and walking around my room. We chatted and laughed in between contractions. I heard the boys get up about 6 am. Judah came to the door and I told him to find grandma that Gideon would be out soon. He went without a fuss which was really nice. Michael had gone back to bed shortly after Doreen came. He was still sleeping in the boys’ room.
We took a poll to see our guesses for the baby’s weight. Doreen said 7 ½. Cheri said 7 ¾ and I said 8lbs even. I felt the baby turn after a contraction. It was like he just “popped” into place. We were all happy about that. Finally I felt a little pushy. We woke Michael up and then she checked me and said that there was only a little bit of a lip left. I asked Doreen to break my water so we could end this and I could push. She did and it was only about 10 minutes after that that I started pushing.
Because the shoulders had been a bit of a challenge with both my other boys I decided to try squatting this time to stay as open as possible and to give as much room as possible. I really thought that this would solve the problem and I wasn’t even worried about the shoulders. This time it hurt quite a bit to push. I was pushing with everything I had. It wasn’t that it took long. It was just very intense. I started to scream and feel out of control Cheri knelt beside me, reminded me that Jesus was with me and told me to cry out to Him. It was the exact right thing to say. It helped me remain focused.
The head came out beautifully. I waited for him to rotate and concentrated on staying open. Imagine my surprise when the shoulders wouldn’t come out. We tried through a couple of contractions and then we had to get him out. They had me flip over onto my back which I found surprisingly easy considering the head had already been born. I still was pushing with all that I had. Doreen helped the shoulders out and it was finally over. They laid him on my belly but the cord was short so I couldn’t hold him in my arms. That was ok. I just kept stroking his head and talking to him. He wasn’t crying. He was just lying peacefully on my belly. They got him to fuss for a second to make sure he was breathing ok. His apgars were 9 and 10. When they laid him on my belly Cheri said, “Well, I think we misjudged the weight. This is definitely an 8 pounder.”
I delivered the placenta and then got into bed. The boys came in shortly later to meet their new brother. It was funny. Right after they laid him on my stomach I wondered aloud if I had traumatized the boys with my scream. I asked mom if they had been freaked out. She said that they heard me and said, “That’s mommy.” She was going to tell them that everything was ok when they started to laugh. They apparently thought it was funny. Then they heard Gideon and said, “That’s Gideon”. She said they were very matter of fact about the whole thing and went on eating breakfast. LOL
Seeing the boys faces light up as they welcomed their new brother into the world was a sight I won’t forget. It was very special.
The next morning I was lying in bed next to my newest boy and thinking, “it wasn’t that hard, it really wasn’t that long.” We really do forget when we look at their precious faces. This was definitely my hardest labor but also my best. God really gave me strength and perseverance to keep going; and in the midst of pain- I found peace.
Start of labor December 15- at 8:00pm
Pushing- 14 minutes
End of labor- December 17 at 7:14am
Welcome: Gideon James Lorraine
Born on his due date
9lbs
22 ½ inches long
Thanks for reading my story. God bless.
I couldn’t find any flashlights and I could hear limbs cracking and breaking so I went inside quickly. We lit the one oil lamp we had and a candle. It gave us enough light to get breakfast. Of course we didn’t have any heat and we couldn’t cook but we figured that everything would be back on in a few hours.
It was while I was outside looking for a flashlight that I realized I needed to go to the bathroom. I was surprised to find that I was loosing my mucus plug. Now, that doesn’t always mean that labor is imminent. You can loose it even a couple of weeks before labor really begins but with Judah I lost it the day I went into labor and with Thomas it was during labor. Within a few hours I was having good Braxton Hicks Contractions. They were very irregular but strong and I was also crampy and my back hurt. All of these symptoms don’t necessarily mean labor either but I just had a feeling that I would be in labor by that night or within the next few days. I did call my midwife to let her know what was going on. She said to keep her posted.
Meanwhile we are stuck in a house with no power, no heat, no phone, no cell reception, and with 2 small boys. That was an adventure in itself. Thankfully my wonderful mother in law was there to help entertain the boys.
I was still cramping and having stronger Braxton Hicks late morning and that is when I started thinking in my mind. What am I going to do if the power doesn’t come back on?? The ice storm was bigger than we thought. None of our city had power, Atlanta (about 1 ½ hours away) had about 100,000 people without power. There were limbs, trees, and power lines down in a lot of places. Michael came home early from his route because there were so many trees and limbs down he couldn’t get through.
I called my midwife again and asked her if a home birth was possible in these conditions. She said that as long as our fireplace could produce enough heat for that room and we had enough lights we could do it. Thankfully hot water wasn’t an issue because we have a gas water heater.
Michael, the boys, and mom went to hunt down some wood in the afternoon. I had a feeling I should take a nap in case things happened that night. So I napped while they looked around to see what they could find. They came back with a little bit. We were hoping it would last through the birth. We went out to dinner because another cold meal in a house that was 58 degrees wasn’t anything we all wanted to do. Right before we left for dinner I had some bloody show and knew that things were going to progress. It was pretty funny considering I’m trying to explain the color to my midwife and I couldn’t even do that very adequately because I was in a dark room with a little flashlight.
Dinner was very nice and I was HUNGRY! I ate more than I thought I should (I can get nauseated during labor) but figured that I should have one last big meal. I knew that I was definitely in pre-labor and as we were sitting in the restaurant I noticed a change in the contractions and realized that this was it. Unless I stopped these were strong enough to be “officially” in labor. Michael noticed my face and we went home to get the house warm enough to give birth in. We did laugh about it as we went about preparing because this is what an old fashioned home birth must have been like.
During this whole day and while we were rushing around trying to get ready I just tried to let things go that I couldn’t control. I have struggled with control most of my life. My whole focus for the last few weeks as I prepared for labor was to just let control issues go and allow my body to do what it needed to do. The other two labors I was discouraged and frustrated that my body went so slow and I had a hard time relaxing during contractions and surrendering myself to the pain. I also cared too much about performing during the other labors. I had been praying a lot this time to really surrender to what my body needed to do. God knew exactly what He was doing when He created our bodies to labor. Some women labor fast and some labor slowly. I wanted to stop competing in my mind with my friends and family who had short labors. I wanted to trust GOD to show me what I needed to do when. I wanted to focus on His peace during labor. Apparently God wanted me to put “my money where my mouth was”. Those things were challenging enough for me without the added stress of no power, heat, having to birth in a different room than planned, hoping the roads would be passable for both midwives and my photographer to make it to my house, etc. I kept praying and letting things go. I was getting a little anxious as the preparations for the fire were going slowly and the contractions were cranking up. I took Thomas to Walmart with me to buy more flashlights. (With both boys running around it was hard to get things going.)
We came home to a fire and much chaos. I very very much wanted to find a quiet place and focus but there wasn’t one to be found. I was a little irritated and tried to be patient until things could be quiet. The kids went to bed and I decided to see if I could sleep through the contractions. I figured that when I couldn’t sleep through them any more that I would call my midwife then. I didn’t want her to have to be there for hours and hours in case I went slowly again. I slept for a couple of hours and then decided that I’d rather get up. I called Doreen (one of the two midwives) at about 1 am but told her that we realized that we were running out of firewood and didn’t know how much longer we could stay at home. I asked her if we could buy some from them (they have a wood burning stove) and she said she would bring some.
At about 2 am the contractions were coming about every 3-5 minutes and were getting a little stronger. At 3 am she wanted to check me and see if the cord was near the head because we were getting some lower heart tones. (nothing dangerous. We just wanted to be sure it wasn’t the cord) She didn’t feel the cord so that was good news. I was 5 centimeters dilated so that was also good news. The other news however was that the baby hadn’t dropped and his head wasn’t on my cervix. It’s not terribly uncommon for a subsequent baby not to drop right away but Gideon was riding high AND was posterior.
Back labor is a whole ‘nother world. I had been having it since that evening. The contractions had been hard for me to time because my back would hurt and it was hard to tell when the contractions started and stopped; or, I would have a regular contraction and then, right away, another one in my back. I was trying to be thankful that I didn’t feel it in my hips like I had with the other two boys.
Well, we now had enough wood and I was in labor. Around 3am the power had come back on. PRAISE GOD!!! That was an answer to prayer. We were still planning on giving birth in the room with the fire though because the house had to heat back up from 57 degrees to at least 71 degrees. The contractions continued on till daybreak. They were irregular at times and the intensity didn’t go up much in the hours between 3 and 7am.
At about 7 Doreen checked me again and I was still 5 cent. I was a little more effaced but because the head wasn’t down and he still hadn’t turned dilation was slow. If the dilation would have sped up, the harder contractions would have turned the baby or if the baby’s head would have turned and come down on the cervix the dilation would have sped up. Catch 22. Doreen said that sometimes a mother’s body shuts down labor during the day. It looked like I was just going to have to be patient until the baby turned or until labor got “worse”. Doreen went home to rest and be with her family. I turned my attention to going as normally throughout my day as possible and trying not to be discouraged. Up until then I had, for the first time, been working with the contractions and not fighting them. That was a true answer to prayer. I knew God was with me and giving me strength. I wanted to choose patience and not give in to discouragement. I was refusing to think that my body had “failed”. God knew in advance that he would need to turn and He could supply what I needed. Instead of feeling like a failure I needed to focus on giving myself to labor and letting my baby use my body as an entrance to life.
That head space lasted for a few hours…then tiredness and discouragement set in a little bit. I took a nap but it lasted only a couple hours. I don’t like the feeling of waking up to a contraction. They had spaced out to about 15 minutes apart but they didn’t ever really stop and they were still 5 centimeter intensity.
By afternoon I was really exhausted and very discouraged. I kept trying to stay in the moment but I was really thinking about how I was going to be able to handle hours or days more. He still hadn’t turned. I was doing hands and knees every once in a while to try to turn him. At one point I was crying and crying and asking God for strength. I needed to focus on Him instead of the circumstances or the pain. The exhaustion factor was causing a problem because I was starting to fight the pain instead of relax. I called a few friends and had them pray for me. Michael came home from work and started helping mom with the boys. My midwife suggested I go for a walk or a drive to clear my head. I didn’t want to do either. I hate to be on “display” when I’m in pain. After they ate dinner though I was feeling restless and asked Michael to take a walk with me. It was pretty cold out and he walked with me for about .6 of a mile and then had to go inside. The short time I was with him though really helped. It was nice to hold hands, walk, and talk. I had felt alone while laboring during the day so the companionship was nice. I realized that I could walk through the contractions if I put my mind to it so I went another .4 mile and then went back in the house. I took a shower and everyone else went to bed. The contractions seemed to be intensifying. However, they were still not regular and he still hadn’t turned so I figured that I would wait to call Doreen back. I baked Gideon’s birthday cake, did some laundry, set out the birth snacks (M & Ms, coffee, cake, Rice Krispy treats)- I had a feeling that labor was turning a corner. I tried to lie down while watching a movie. I fell asleep and the contractions slowed down but the intensity level was definitely up. I couldn’t sleep for long. Finally I had to stay up. I was “dead on my feet” and now moaning through each contraction. Michael woke up and tried to labor with me but he was falling asleep within an hour or so. We had all been sick with several viruses for the past 6 weeks or so and his body was just shot out. As much as he wanted to be with me he couldn’t stay awake. Bless his heart, he tried but it wasn’t working. I decided to call Doreen then because I knew I couldn’t physically go on much longer. Emotionally I was having a rough time staying on top of the contractions. She was very nice when I called her at 2:30 am, but did remind me that since the contractions were spaced out when I was resting that I might not officially still be in labor. I told her I really wanted to see and then go from there on what we needed to do. She said that she would get herself together and come on over. She got there around 4am and the contractions were much more intense by then and closer together. She checked me and said, “No wonder you’re hurting. You’re a very stretchy 7 maybe an 8. These contractions are working for you.” I was so happy and relieved to hear that. I was able to give myself back over to labor, stop fighting the pain, and start letting the pain work for me. Now what we had to do was try to turn that baby.
She suggested some lunging so we did that for a while. She called Cheri (the other midwife) and Cheryl (my photographer) and asked them if they wanted to come and join the party. We started preparing my room for a birth. That was exciting. Even though I had to stop every few minutes and have a contraction I felt like we were back on track.
This time transition was the weirdest thing for me. Both other times it’s just gotten more intense the closer I got to 10 cent. This time the contractions were very intense ( along with shaking and vomiting) and I was still having back labor but they were spaced out and I was able to rest in between. I was very physically tired so I alternated between resting and walking around my room. We chatted and laughed in between contractions. I heard the boys get up about 6 am. Judah came to the door and I told him to find grandma that Gideon would be out soon. He went without a fuss which was really nice. Michael had gone back to bed shortly after Doreen came. He was still sleeping in the boys’ room.
We took a poll to see our guesses for the baby’s weight. Doreen said 7 ½. Cheri said 7 ¾ and I said 8lbs even. I felt the baby turn after a contraction. It was like he just “popped” into place. We were all happy about that. Finally I felt a little pushy. We woke Michael up and then she checked me and said that there was only a little bit of a lip left. I asked Doreen to break my water so we could end this and I could push. She did and it was only about 10 minutes after that that I started pushing.
Because the shoulders had been a bit of a challenge with both my other boys I decided to try squatting this time to stay as open as possible and to give as much room as possible. I really thought that this would solve the problem and I wasn’t even worried about the shoulders. This time it hurt quite a bit to push. I was pushing with everything I had. It wasn’t that it took long. It was just very intense. I started to scream and feel out of control Cheri knelt beside me, reminded me that Jesus was with me and told me to cry out to Him. It was the exact right thing to say. It helped me remain focused.
The head came out beautifully. I waited for him to rotate and concentrated on staying open. Imagine my surprise when the shoulders wouldn’t come out. We tried through a couple of contractions and then we had to get him out. They had me flip over onto my back which I found surprisingly easy considering the head had already been born. I still was pushing with all that I had. Doreen helped the shoulders out and it was finally over. They laid him on my belly but the cord was short so I couldn’t hold him in my arms. That was ok. I just kept stroking his head and talking to him. He wasn’t crying. He was just lying peacefully on my belly. They got him to fuss for a second to make sure he was breathing ok. His apgars were 9 and 10. When they laid him on my belly Cheri said, “Well, I think we misjudged the weight. This is definitely an 8 pounder.”
I delivered the placenta and then got into bed. The boys came in shortly later to meet their new brother. It was funny. Right after they laid him on my stomach I wondered aloud if I had traumatized the boys with my scream. I asked mom if they had been freaked out. She said that they heard me and said, “That’s mommy.” She was going to tell them that everything was ok when they started to laugh. They apparently thought it was funny. Then they heard Gideon and said, “That’s Gideon”. She said they were very matter of fact about the whole thing and went on eating breakfast. LOL
Seeing the boys faces light up as they welcomed their new brother into the world was a sight I won’t forget. It was very special.
The next morning I was lying in bed next to my newest boy and thinking, “it wasn’t that hard, it really wasn’t that long.” We really do forget when we look at their precious faces. This was definitely my hardest labor but also my best. God really gave me strength and perseverance to keep going; and in the midst of pain- I found peace.
Start of labor December 15- at 8:00pm
Pushing- 14 minutes
End of labor- December 17 at 7:14am
Welcome: Gideon James Lorraine
Born on his due date
9lbs
22 ½ inches long
Thanks for reading my story. God bless.
3 comments:
He is there for us in all storms... we just have to choose to see His face. You have shared a great life lesson. Yes, your's was during labor, but we have all been in learning situations that we chose to try and control. if only we would give up our control issues and trust that He will carry us through.
Thank you for sharing your testimony.
Happy Birthday Gideon!
Hey Angela,
Don't think I've ever read/heard that story before - very nice. Thanks for sharing.
What a fine looking boy you've grown into. Glad I was there to share some of your first moments with you.Happy 2nd. birthday Gideon.
Card Grandma
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