Congratulations to our friends Emily and Ryan on the birth of their son!
Connor Micheal Howe,
just chillin'
Connor Micheal Howe, just chillin'
And I was lucky enough to be invited to the birth! Emily and Ryan had decided to have a midwife and to have a homebirth. Wonderful! More and more people are doing it these days and it really is a wonderful experience. They also decided to share the event with friends and family. So here's how it went:
On Wednesday, June 29, I got a text at 8:30am that Emily's water had broken around 3am and that labor was on! So I packed up Rowan and headed over. Emily's Mom and sister were there and another friend, Cary, came a little after I did. We sat and chatted in the living room, encouraging Emily through contractions that were quite intense, close together and all in her back! Ah, the dreaded back labor. I remember it well...
Cary was on top of "Baby Watch" on Facebook to keep everyone who couldn't be there up to speed. She also stayed on top of the various cell phones that were ringing and answered the door to the real estate agent who, with fabulous timing, came by just as Emily was having a very intense contraction. Good timing buddy!
Around noon, the midwife came and Emily was 4cm, so we filled the birthing tub - which helped to relieve some of the back pain for her. We all took turns helping to get hot water for the tub, rub her back, get cool cloths for her forehead. Later in the afternoon, another friend and a sister-in-law came over, so there was even more support. We also made sure that Ryan got some food and bathroom breaks, since it's so easy to forget to eat when your wife is in labor. We also ran out to get food as the power went out for half an hour or so in the late afternoon! Even better timing, city!
After about 3 hours, she was already 10cm, but had no urge to push. Baby was facing sideways (I remember that one too!) so the marathon position changing began. On the couch, the floor, up the stairs, down the stairs, they tried everything! Then, after almost twenty hours of labor, at 11:05, Connor decided he was ready and out he came! He was 7lbs, 3oz and about 19in. There was laughing, crying and cheering! It was a wonderful experience. So great to be surrounded by friends and family. I'm even more sold on having a home birth for our second!
Rowan did really well through the whole time. She was a little cheerleader for Emily, who got quite loud during some of her contractions. I was worried that it might upset Rowan, thinking that there might be something wrong with Emily, but she was great. She didn't nap much, but had lots of people paying attention to her, so she did pretty good. When we realized that Connor wouldn't be born for a while, I got James to come and pick up Rowan to get dinner and bed at a decent time.
Thanks to Ryan and Emily for letting me blog about this and even more for letting me be there. It was absolutely amazing! It's something that maybe isn't for everyone, but I think more people should know the option is there and just how wonderful of a birth you can have at home.
On Wednesday, June 29, I got a text at 8:30am that Emily's water had broken around 3am and that labor was on! So I packed up Rowan and headed over. Emily's Mom and sister were there and another friend, Cary, came a little after I did. We sat and chatted in the living room, encouraging Emily through contractions that were quite intense, close together and all in her back! Ah, the dreaded back labor. I remember it well...
Cary was on top of "Baby Watch" on Facebook to keep everyone who couldn't be there up to speed. She also stayed on top of the various cell phones that were ringing and answered the door to the real estate agent who, with fabulous timing, came by just as Emily was having a very intense contraction. Good timing buddy!
Around noon, the midwife came and Emily was 4cm, so we filled the birthing tub - which helped to relieve some of the back pain for her. We all took turns helping to get hot water for the tub, rub her back, get cool cloths for her forehead. Later in the afternoon, another friend and a sister-in-law came over, so there was even more support. We also made sure that Ryan got some food and bathroom breaks, since it's so easy to forget to eat when your wife is in labor. We also ran out to get food as the power went out for half an hour or so in the late afternoon! Even better timing, city!
After about 3 hours, she was already 10cm, but had no urge to push. Baby was facing sideways (I remember that one too!) so the marathon position changing began. On the couch, the floor, up the stairs, down the stairs, they tried everything! Then, after almost twenty hours of labor, at 11:05, Connor decided he was ready and out he came! He was 7lbs, 3oz and about 19in. There was laughing, crying and cheering! It was a wonderful experience. So great to be surrounded by friends and family. I'm even more sold on having a home birth for our second!
Rowan did really well through the whole time. She was a little cheerleader for Emily, who got quite loud during some of her contractions. I was worried that it might upset Rowan, thinking that there might be something wrong with Emily, but she was great. She didn't nap much, but had lots of people paying attention to her, so she did pretty good. When we realized that Connor wouldn't be born for a while, I got James to come and pick up Rowan to get dinner and bed at a decent time.
Thanks to Ryan and Emily for letting me blog about this and even more for letting me be there. It was absolutely amazing! It's something that maybe isn't for everyone, but I think more people should know the option is there and just how wonderful of a birth you can have at home.
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