Ok, so I know this has been a long time coming. I have had several emails and questions about when I was going to share Collier's birth story, but I just wasn't ready yet. He was 12 weeks old on Friday, so I thought I better do this before I forget everything! To be honest, I have sat down to type this several times. The story would have been different each time. I have gone through emotions of never wanting to give birth to another baby, feeling that God has it planned for us to have another one at some point, and everywhere in between! Collier's birth was VERY different from Landry's, but the perspecitve that I am typing this from today is....it was one rough day to get my sweet boy here that has brought my life so much joy already! I know we are blessed. We had a FABULOUS pregnancy, a birth (period), and a healthy baby boy and mama as a result. Our God is good! There are some details, so only read if you want to know those!
I think I should begin the story after Landry was born. We had a wonderful midwife, Nancy, who has become part of our family. Without a doubt, she will be part of our lives forever. Our pregnancy was easy, our labor was long (55 hours), but everything was smooth and calm. After Landry was born, I didn't even feel like I had a baby. I was up and walking around within a day, and I felt great! After the birth, I remember talking with Micah about how great Nancy had been and saying, "We couldn't have done this without her!" I was immediately convicted, and I know God was saying, "What about me? Who were you trusting?"
Fast forward to when we found out we were pregnant with Collier. Of course, Nancy was one of the first people we told. Landry and I were out helping at her pregnancy center the morning that I took the test. We couldn't wait to get there to tell her! She was, of course, excited for us, but she knew a secret she wasn't ready to tell us yet. It took her a few months, but she finally told us that she had a HUGE family vacation scheduled the 2 weeks around our due date to Ireland. She was sad about the possibility of not being here for Collier's birth, and she was afraid that I would get really upset....she was waiting for time when Micah was with me to break the news. Surprisingly, she told me, and I was so excited for her about the vacation that I didn't even think about her missing the birth. God gave me SUCH a peace knowing that the timing was all in his hands. At that point, I felt like God was saying..."I'm going to prove it to you. All you have to do is trust in me. I am the one you need there." We started talking about backup midwives and a plan for who would assist us during the birth if Nancy wasn't here. About 2 weeks before our due date, we settled on a sweet lady, Teresa, that we had taken birthing classes with during Landry's pregnancy. We knew her, we were pretty comfortable with her, and we slipped right back into a quick relationship when we met with her a few times over those few weeks. Nancy left the country, we had our backup plan all lined out, and it was the week of Collier's due date. We had an appointment scheduled with Teresa for the Wednesday before our due date (we were due on Thursday). Teresa texted and asked if we could reschedule for Friday because she was pregnant and in the beginning stages of having a miscarriage. She wasn't feeling well, but was confident that we would hold off until at least Friday and she would be back up and running by then. My heart was broken for her! I knew how much she loved and wanted this baby, and I wanted her to rest and do whatever she could to feel better. It took me a few minutes to realize that we were due the next day and had NO MIDWIFE!
We were able to get the name and number of another midwife that we knew Nancy had worked with in the past, Beth. We called her Wednesday night right before our due date, and begged her to be our new midwife if we went into labor before Nancy got back in the country on Monday. She agreed and said she worked until 9 pm on Thursday night, but as long as we went into labor after that, she was available until Monday afternoon (and Nancy would be back then!). No pressure...that was only 24ish more hours. I was confident that we wouldn't go into labor before that. I mean, really, only like 20% of people go into labor ON their due date.
Well, I woke up around 6:30 the next morning to contractions. They seemed pretty regular, so I started timing them. 10 minutes apart! Contractions and labor on my due date?! Micah went on to work, and I called my mom to tell her. While we were on the phone, I passed my "plug." Maybe TMI, but that never happened with Landry. I was terrified that I was about to have the baby and no one was here! My mom wasn't working that day, so she came up and spent the day. We timed my contractions all day long, did all of our last minute to-do's, and just hoped that we would make it to 9:00. By 5:00 that evening, the contractions were getting stronger, and they were within 5 minutes of each other. We called Beth to give her a heads up, and she said she would come the minute she got off work. She got here about 9:10. We had Landry in bed for the night, and 3 of us were outside walking on the driveway. It was a gorgeous night, and we were trying to get this baby to come soon since we had tried holding him off all day long. :) Poor Collier, he was probably so confused by this point! We introduced ourselves to Beth, shook hands, and helped her carry in the 6 loads of "stuff" from her car for the birth. At this point, we were all looking at each other wondering WHY she had all these things. Nancy came with one bag, and that was it. Beth had an oxygen tank, scales, a bag, a bag, and a few more bags. She was prepared and super thorough. She asked a lot of questions to get to know our pregnancy a little better, and then she checked my dialation. We were only at a 4 after a day full of contractions! She said the "checking" would probably make things progress, and for us all to rest a little bit...by this time, it was already after 11:00.
Micah and I got in bed, Beth made a place on the couch, and my mom went to the guest room to sleep a little bit. It didn't take long, and the contractions started getting strong. By 1:00, we were all in the bedroom together and working through the labor. I forgot to mention that Teresa had a "helper" that she was going to bring with her to the birth. While we were outside walking, Micah got a call asking if she could still come and assist Beth instead. She seemed to be a sweet girl, and we were told that she was training to be a doula or a midwife. When Beth got here, we asked, and she said that would be great. She had actually worked with "Jill" before. So, Beth called Jill and told her to come on over around the 1:00 time. When she got here, it was Jill Duggar. :) Ha! What a surprise! She was honestly the sweetest, most hard-working, calm person. It was great having her here! We never watch the show, so it was funny that Micah and I were asking her questions about her family while we were in labor. They are so down-to-earth and normal! Anyway, sorry this story is all over the place...that is how it seemed that night too! :)
So, here we are...well into labor, exhausted already, and getting to know two strangers that are in our home for the first time. The contractions were strong, and I was having back labor...again! My lower back felt like someone was beating me. It was unreal. We had warm cloths in the crock-pot, and they kept holding those on my back during the contractions. That seemed to ease the pain a bit. It was still tough. I threw up a few times because of the pain. That didn't happen with Landry. Things were different, and it wasn't "easier" like everyone said my second baby would be!
Fast forward again to around 6:00, we were dialated to a 9 1/2 and stuck there. Collier's head was stuck under/beside/between (I can't remember!) my pelvic bone. It didn't feel great, and I was not going to progress further until he was able to move. Having been a midwife for 35 years, Beth had seen it all. She said she knew how to get him to move, but that it would be very uncomfortable. She said as soon as it was done, he should come quickly. They stacked up pillows on the floor and had me lay flat on my back with 3 or 4 pillows propping up my lower half. I needed to stay there through a few contractions, and she said I would KNOW when he moved. Thankfully, it happened during the first contraction. Wow...she was right about knowing that it was happening, but my contractions had been so tough, I was just thankful to be moving forward! He was now in position, we were dialated to 10, and it was time to get ready to push.
It was around 6:45, and I told Micah to call our families and tell them it wouldn't be long. We were so excited about the timing because we thought we would have him before Landry woke up around 8. How perfect!? We didn't even have to worry about her having a place to go or someone stepping out to take care of her. About 7:30, we were still pushing, and Landry started screaming over the monitor! We knew it was probably going to be a little while longer, so we called my dad (who luckily lives down the street), unlocked the front door, and he came down and got Landry out of bed and took her to their house for a while. I figured she was going to be super confused, but she did really great!
During the pushing, my water finally broke. With Landry, that was the first thing that happend, and then she was born 55 hours later. It was the complete opposite with this labor! 26ish hours later, Micah "Collier" finally arrived at 9:00 AM on the floor in our bedroom. No ripping, no tearing...thank you Lord! He was 1 1/2 inches longer than Landry and almost a pound heavier. They immediately threw him in my arms, and he screamed and screamed. Micah called our parents, and they rushed over. We were still in the bedroom getting the baby cleaned up, and Beth and Jill were still working with me. The placenta didn't pass immediately (like it did with Landry). It was taking a while, and they seemed to start getting worried. Our families were waiting outside to see Collier, but I didn't want him taken out of the room until I actually got to hold him and see him first! The stress level was getting a little high at this point. I felt pressure to hurry, but I had no control over the situation. No one was trying to make me feel that way, I just hate making people wait. :) We tried moving around, sitting on the toilet (I had to pee so badly, but I couldn't with the way the placenta was sitting), getting in the shower, and numerous other positions. Finally, my mom went out and told the families that it was probably going to be a little while. She explained what was going on and told them that maybe they should leave the house for a little while and we would call them when everything was ready. They left, and within 5 minutes, it passed and I was able to pee! :) It was honestly so exciting...I finally realized that I had a sweet baby that was ready to be loved on! Thank goodness for Jill, in addition to taking care of me during this time, she was taking sweet care of Collier and getting him cleaned and dressed. She even took one of his first pictures for us on her phone! Beth and Micah helped me get cleaned up while my mom and Jill loved on Collier. I finally crawled back into bed and was able to hold/nurse/kiss/stare at my precious little boy! What a miracle and blessing he was!
We called our families back, and everyone got to see the new addition. We wanted Landry to be the first one in, and she loved, loved, loved the baby. We had been trying to prepare her by talking about him a lot before, but I don't think she really understood until she saw him.
I am a little foggy of exactly what happened after this. I know that my mom went home for a while and Micah's parents stayed and played with Landry. I was totally drained and took a nap for a few hours late that afternoon and Gigi took care of the baby for a little bit. Everyone went home, and we spent that first night as a little family of 4. It was such a new and exciting time for us!!
Over the next few days, I was sore. I kind of felt like I had been hit by a truck, honestly. My whole body ached. Again, totally different from the aftermath of Landry's delivery. I was weak, a little dizzy, and I just felt drained. The pushing was harder with Collier, he was bigger, things were just a little more difficult. Shorter, but more difficult. I would take the longer labor in a second!
Overall, the labor was fine. I know my nerves were on edge because I had a midwife I had never met before. I know I was a little nervous thinking about Landry during the process. I know the pain was worse, but the result was so sweet.
Would I do it again? I don't know. If I get pregnant again at some point, I would definitely choose this over a hospital birth if at all possible. This is an opinion that has changed over the past 12 weeks. At first I was saying things like, "No more kids!" or "If I do this again, I am going to be drugged heavily!" or "Micah is getting snipped! :)" However, our sweet Lord gives us the ability to forget some of the struggle, and I know I have already forgotten a lot of the pain and discomfort. Even with the pain though, I keep telling myself that it was just one rough day that brought this precious baby to us. He is so, so worth it...and more!
After the birth, we texted Nancy's son in Ireland to let him know. She called Micah that evening to get details, and she stopped by to see the babies on their way home from the airport on Monday. It was such a relief to see her and for her to be back to answer the million questions that I had.
So, there it is...the birth story...give or take a few details.
I know some of you care nothing about home births, but that others are really interested. If you have more questions or want more details, feel free to shoot me an email or comment on the post. It isn't for everyone, but has been a blessing for our family!
