My third birth

My third was a wildcard. They say the third babies typically are. You’ve got two births under your belt, you might let a little pride get the best of you, ha!

It was another day like any other for a 37 week pregnant mother of two boys. I had some extra garlic I needed to process so I was blending up the ingredients for my own GOOT. As I was scraping out the blender, I suddenly felt water trickle down my leg. Surely not, right? Surely I just lost control of my bladder..? I quietly went to the bathroom and recognized the familiar smell and look of amniotic fluid. Already? I shakily called my husband who reassured me, as always, and reminded me that I had amniotic fluid testers with my birth stuff. I went and got a swab, and sure enough, it was amniotic fluid. I, again shakily, called my midwife to let her know. She was a calm, reassuring voice as well. She reminded me that it’s okay if I am in labor, but it could just be the outer amniotic sac, or it could have resealed, so just take it easy and go on about my day. I anxiously agreed, and tried to ignore the occasional gush of fluid as I cleaned the house and played with my boys. My mom was off work that day so she invited my sister and I out to lunch. I hesitantly went. I desperately wanted the distraction, but my previous births had moved so quickly that I really didn’t want to be far from home. We enjoyed our lunch, and my mom and sister came home with me to help me get things ready and let me nap. I had a few contractions here and there but nothing productive. I tried my best to “will” my body to start moving, but it was to no avail.

That night was a long night. I felt like I didn’t know my body, I didn’t know what to expect! Baby was still moving around like nothing had changed, so I did my best to lay down and rest. At about 2am, I woke up to some more consistent contractions. I labored quietly on my own until about 4am, when I let my husband and midwife know that things felt more serious. My midwife began to get everything ready and arrived around 5am. I was still struggling with consistent contractions, but I’ve never met the “4-1-1” criteria anyway. I had a lovely setup in my living room, with the fireplace running, a bed squished into the corner, my midwives quietly reading on the couch as I labored. I noticed that even though I wasn’t afraid, I labored best in my bathroom completely alone. So every once in a while, I’d sneak off to the bathroom and have strong contractions that I knew were moving baby down. Eventually, it got to the point that I no longer wanted to leave my bathroom, so my birth team crammed into it with me. Again, laboring on the toilet was extremely effective for me, and I didn’t feel comfortable in any other position. After the excruciating (yes, I say excruciating because it is my least favorite part, although it’s over in just a moment), pain of moving baby’s head down and out, baby slipped out quickly into my midwife’s hands. This baby was teeny tiny! I knew right away that he or she was much smaller than my other two, but with a head full of dark hair! I couldn’t wait to confirm my suspicion of her being a little girl, and I was right!!! My little girl, surprised me in more ways than one, but so perfect and lovely. It was 10am. Almost 24 hours after my water first broke! She made me work harder than I previously had to, but she was worth that and more!