I went into early labor around 7:00 on Friday night. The contractions felt different than the ones that I'd been having for the past week or so-not so much stronger at first, but there was a different quality to them. We kept an eye on them for a while, and at about 8:45, once we were pretty sure that we were going into labor, we gave Ann Tive, our midwife, a call. We then called Jessica and Ann Russell, our doula and her partner. At this point I got ravenously hungry, even though I was fairly nauseated. We had a light meal and then timed a few contractions. They were around 5 ½ minutes apart, and lasting for about 45 seconds. We talked to Ann at this point, and she felt that she should come out. Things progressed so rapidly during our last labor, we didn't want to take any chances this time around! We gave Jessica and Ann an update, and they started to head out as well.
Ann arrived at about 10:10. Jessica and Ann arrived shortly thereafter. We did a cervical exam, and I was dilated to 5 cm. We all chatted for a bit, then decided to put on the Cirque du Soliel's Quidam, which is one of our favorite things to watch. It's very much a celebration of the body, and it has some beautiful music, so it was very fitting for early labor. Around 11:30 the pressure in my back was getting stronger, and I was focusing more with each contraction. Jessica began doing some counter pressure, which felt wonderful. We put on some Joni Mitchell, and that was just right for my mood at the time. Ann had called her assistant Sharon, and she showed up about this time. Throughout all of this, Jaden was playing hard with Ann Russell (the non-midwife Ann!), which was such a blessing for us and a joy for Jaden. We were so grateful to have her there.
At 1:30 everyone was getting kind of drowsy. We put on some Secret Garden, which is very calm relaxing music. Jaden was still up! With all the excitement, he hadn't been able to get to sleep. He and Dan went to lay down in the bedroom, and Jaden finally went to sleep for the night. Dan also took a short nap. I took a nice bath, then went out onto the decks. It was so nice and cool outside. There was a gentle rain, very much a spring night rain, and it felt so wonderful.
After I came inside, Jessica and I decided to go for a short walk to get things moving. I was still having contractions, and they were getting stronger, but they were also getting further apart instead of closer together. Before we left for our walk Ann mentioned the possibility of manually rupturing the membranes, since that hadn't already happened on its own. Jess and I discussed this on our walk, and when we returned, I woke up Dan and he and I asked Ann to talk to us about the advantages and disadvantages of rupturing the membranes. We decided to go ahead and do it, and so that happened at 3:10.
At about 3:45 the contractions changed character significantly. Jessica and I went outside again, and it was raining a bit harder. It felt wonderful. We started doing some more counter pressure, and it really helped. I was leaning against the railing of the deck with each contraction, and that was a really good position. We went back inside and used the partial wall in the living room to lean against with each contraction. It worked beautifully!
At 4:30 labor got really intense. At some point we moved from the partial wall to the futon, and I was on my hands and knees, with my elbows on the futon. Jessica had a cold pack for my back and Dan had a cold cloth for my face. The cold felt wonderful in contrast to the heat of labor, and it gave me something to focus on. Many of the contractions were really difficult at this point, but I dealt with them really well. During several of them I was able to relax really well and during those especially I could feel River gently sliding down the birth canal. He was coming!
After a while I could tell that being on the futon had outlasted it's effectiveness, but I couldn't quite bring myself to move. I was beginning to feel the urge to push, and I just didn't trust my legs at that point! After a few good pushes, it was clear that I'd be best off moving onto the birthing stool, so with lots of help I made the move. We only needed to push two or three more times after being on the birthing stool and he was out!
One tricky thing that did happen is that one of his shoulders got caught on the way out. River actually turned 180° trying to free himself, and Ann helped dislodge the shoulder. Once it was free, Ann asked me to push one last time to get him out, and that was hard, because I wasn't feeling the urge to push at that time. But I did it anyway and he was out. That was at 5:22 a.m. on Saturday morning.
Holding him in my arms that first time was so incredible. It's amazing that you can be so exhausted and consumed by the physical exertion of labor one moment, and the next be suffused with the power of the new little life in your arms. The moment was overwhelmingly beautiful.
River did need to be suctioned out a little bit, and after a while he let out a little squall to let us know that he was with us. But after that one little peep he lapsed into a calm that was verging on preternatural! Jaden was extremely calm and quiet after his birth as well, but River was even more so. It was almost disconcerting, except that it felt so right and lovely. We knew nothing was wrong. He actually didn't cry at all until he was around 7 hours old. He did make some adorable little baby noises, though.
Ann had forgotten her scale, so Sharon went to Ann's house to get it. We finished with the rest of his exam, but we had to wait until Sharon got back to weigh him. We knew that he was a big boy! It's no wonder his shoulders got stuck-they're huge! They're very broad and already so chunky. I've never seen shoulders on a baby like this. We were all very curious what he actually weighed. We knew it was at least 8 ½ lbs. I was still a bit surprised when we found out that he was 9 lbs., 3 oz. I have to admit, I was pretty impressed with my body for being able to deliver a babe that size!
At about 7:00 we were ready to go to bed. Ann and Sharon left, then Jessica and Ann crashed on the futon while Dan, River and I joined Jaden in the bedroom. We had let Jaden sleep through the birth, so he still hadn't met River. Their first meeting was when Jaden woke up at around 9:45. At first Jaden wasn't so sure what this new little creature in our bed was. He was extremely interested when I started breastfeeding River, though. He thought it was the funniest and most fascinating thing he'd seen in a long time. I think that really helped him to realize what was going on.
At this point River is three days old, and still a very calm baby. Jaden is really starting to like being a big brother. He's becoming more careful around River, which is quite the feat for a two year old. He often spontaneously (and somewhat shyly) kisses River, and this morning he discovered that River will hold his finger. He'll stand very still next to me and let River hold his finger for minutes on end. He also loves to gently stroke River's head.
For those of you who thought that Jaden looked like Dan-watch out! River is so his daddy's boy! He has Dan's nose like you wouldn't believe! Dan has what I lovingly refer to as draconic nostrils, and they are so present in River. River also has really dark, straight hair, and quite a bit of it compared to our bald baby Jaden. I've had a feeling since he was in the womb that he would be a brown eyed baby, and while it's still to early to tell, I'm guessing that that will be the case.
We are all resting well this week and getting to know River. Already he seems to fit in with our family very well. Even as a newborn there's a distinct energy that he gives off that is very different from the rest of us, but fits in beautifully, like harmony. We are all in love.