Apologies for my absence, here the reason why....(Birth Story)

Sorry for my absence and lack of posts. The past few months have been rather busy for our little family as we welcomed our second child, Miss Willa Cameron. Born 14th March at 7:34am she was 9 days early which was a fantastic delight. Weighing a healthy 7lbs 13oz i was elated to have delivered her naturally after a c-section for our first child. 

Cohen looking very proud when he came to the hospital to meet his little sister.

WARNING; Birth Story to Follow....

It was a reasonably trouble free labour, with my contractions starting at 2am Tuesday morning at about 45mins apart. When i got up for the day at 6am they were 30mins apart however i wasn't sure they were in fact contractions or just more braxton hicks, something i had been having for the past couple of months. So Cohen and I went about our normal Tuesday and off to Tiny Tots we went at our local PCYC. Among all the jumping, rolling and a bit of singing i had to stop and pause a little as each contraction came and went. We met Chad for lunch and by the end of our meal they were about 10mins apart and gaining in strength. By this time i still wasn't getting my hopes up too much that this was actually the start of it all as i didn't want to jinx it and have the contractions stop completely. So Chad went back to work and Cohen and i went home for his nap. This is when i went into crazy house-wife mode, doing 4 loads of washing, vacuuming the entire house and even finishing off the ikea wardrobe i had started on the weekend. At about 3pm i called Chad and let him know that they contractions we about 6 mins apart and that he might want to come home in the next hour or so. He arrived home about 4pm and i called the hospital to advise them that i might be coming in later this evening...but wanted to stay at home for as long as possible. At first they were a little hesitant and reminded me 'only stay at home until you are no longer comfortable, you don't want to leave it too late'. With contractions at about 5-6mins apart i didn't think this baby was coming anytime soon. After Chad arrived home we called his mum to come up so she could look after Cohen while I was in hospital. She arrived at about 7pm and from then on a paced the house pausing to lean up against a wall the easy the pressure in my lower back. By 9pm and with contractions still at about 5mins apart i figured i would try and get some sleep if i could as this could be a long night.....so i went to bed. This proved rather painful and the contractions got stronger and stronger, i lasted till about 10 when i needed to go to the toilet and...gush! This i later found out was only my fore waters, however at the time i thought my water had broken and we were off to the hospital. On arrival i was strapped up to the ECG, and there i lay, Chad and i watching as each contraction came and went, Chad willing each one to score a higher number than the last. After about 1/2 an hour i was examined which revealed that my water had not in fact broken and i was only 2cm dialated. This WAS going to be a late night...now about 12:30 we headed off to the maternity ward to begin the long night. Once in our room Chad settled onto the couch for a nap while i waddled from the bed to the bathroom trying to stay mobile and 'breath' through the contractions. I was going ok solo until about 2:30 when they started coming a little bit stronger and about 3mins apart. It was then that a young midwife (coincidently named Jessie) came in and said that maybe a shower might bring me some relief. This turned out to be some of the best advice not only did it make everything a lot more comfortable, the jet of hot water hitting my back, but the contractions seamed to ramp up and were quite consistent, leading the midwife to call down to birth suite and find us a room. At about 5am we made our way down to birth suite, making a few stops along the way as i leant against a wall or rail as the pressure built then disapeared. On our arrival into the room i was examined and it was found that i was 5cm and still no broken waters. I begun to try and find a comfortable place to let the contractions do their thing...rolling on an exercise ball, kneeling on the floor and completely draping myself over chad as the waves of tightening took over. We were advised that it usually takes about an hour per centimetre to dilate, so i was expecting this baby to arrive sometime about 10am-11am. Chad decided at about 6:30am to call the mum's and give them an update, as well as call into work and let them know he wasn't going to make his 8:30am meeting. This is when things started to get interesting. With only one midwife and myself in the room (the change over from night to day midwifes happened at 7am so there was just one midwife in the room finalising some paperwork before she clocked off), i had 3 huge contractions and must of let out a painful cry, as she came over to me and asked "have you thought about any pain relief options?". I decided i would try the gas, however wasn't really very good as the technic the midwife explained. Instead of breathing in and out of the tube. I just wanted to take a huge breath and one long exhale without the tube in my mouth. Kind of like the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland haha. Just before 7am all of a sudden i felt my body completely take over and i found myself with an uncontrollable urge to PUSH! With the midwife's back to me i yelled across the room..."I'M PUSHING!" She swung around in shock and said "Oh my god where's your husband, he's going to miss the birth!" She called the front desk to try and find him and even tried his mobile (she was quite impressed i was able to correctly remember his number between contractions) which had completely taken over all control of my body... I just curled on my side on the bed and 'let go'. Chad entered the room at about 7 with two more midwifes and it was discovered that i was 8cm and they 'could feel head!'. It was now i decided an epidural was a great idea, to which my request was meet with the comment "it's too late for that, the baby is coming!" I was not impressed and Chad was about to hear about it. I grab his shirt and wrenched it closer to me (se he could see how serious i was haha) "give me the Epidural NOW!". He was quite calm in his response and assured me i was going to be ok, and i could do this! With a whole lot of screaming (yes i'm not ashamed to say it was not a quiet process) our baby girl was born at 7:34am. My waters never broke and the membrane was popped just before Willa was born, so she arrived in her little sack which i am told is a little rare. None the less she was set up onto my chest and i was able to hold the cord until it stops pulsating. I then was lucky enough to be able to cut the cord myself (a very last minute decision).

Getting to cut the cord myself, a definite highlight!

We had a minor complication when the placenta did not come out and so i was sent off to the OR and Chad was left to have cuddles and get to know his girl.

All wrapped up, only a couple of hours old.

It was the most amazing experience i have ever had. I feel so blessed to have been able to have a natural birth after the dramas we had with the first. I would definitely choose a natural delivery over a C-Section any day. Its true that you soon forget all the pain when you are left with an amazing little bundle of love in your arms.

Needless to say stay tuned for more photos as Willa and her brother grow!

jx