"My Brand New Baby Girl, She's A Miracle, I Saw God Today"

 This is the birth story of our daughter, Karis, who was born at home on April 6, 2011 at 10:03 AM, and measured in at 8lb5oz and 20.5 inches. What a blessing from God that the whole pregnancy and birth were absolutely perfect and I am so thankful that I was able to give birth in the comfort of my own home(where I feel a lot babies *could* be born :) ).


It all started on April 5, her due date! I woke up that morning to go to work and decided that between the horrible thunderstorm we were having and how crappy I felt that I was just going to call in to work and stay home for the day (Kevin suggested I stay home, too, as he really didn't want me driving in the nasty weather, he's so sweet :) ) . The previous day was just awful sitting at work all day with  constant back pain, extreme exhaustion, and my feet, legs, hands, etc swelling up from just sitting at a desk! So when I woke up that day feeling nauseous and still being swollen (even my face was swollen!), I knew my body couldn't take another day of sitting at work and decided what my body needed most was a day of rest (I think it's so important to listen to our bodies). I did feel really guilty for calling in to work though. I slept in, took a relaxing bath, spent a few  minutes to clean floors and dishes, then just napped and rested on the couch the rest of the day! It was so nice and I felt much better at the end of the day. Later that night, Kevin came home for dinner then decided to head back to the shop to try to get ahead on some work projects knowing our baby could be arriving any day. After he left I got some stuff ready for work the next morning and headed to bed. About 15 minutes later, when I had just fallen asleep, my water broke at 10:27 pm!! The warm fluid trickling out  instantly woke me up. I laid there stunned for a few seconds thinking about the possibility that my water broke-I was definitely in disbelief (maybe I just peed on myself? )- then decided to head to the bathroom to check things out ( and as soon as I stood up my amniotic fluid started gushing out, like a waterfall,  all over the floor, the bathroom and....the poor dog!).

After I got over my shock of what was really happening, I called Kevin and said "So... how do you feel about having a baby tomorrow?". He says "I don't know, why?" lol.  I told him that I *thought* my water had just broken (yes, I was still not believing it). He was about as shocked as I was that it was really happening! I told him to stay at the shop to finish up what he was doing since I wasn't having any contractions or other signs of labor yet. My next call was to one of my midwives, Jessica. After I informed her of the news, and she asked me a few questions about the fluid, how I was feeling etc,  she told me to try to go to bed to get as much sleep as I could since I wasn't having contractions yet, and to call her in the morning to let her know my status. I was really concerned that my contractions wouldn't start on their own and I would end up at the hospital for an induction (one of my biggest fears). Since my bed was obviously pretty soaked and not in sleepable condition, I needed to put fresh, dry sheets on first before trying to get any rest.  Well, as soon as I laid down to go to sleep I started having contractions! I tried to stay there for few minutes but my adrenaline was way too high to just lay there. I headed out to the couch to watch some TV in an attempt to occupy my mind so I wouldn't focus too much on labor (and what else is there to do that late at night?). By 11:45 pm my contractions were already 7 minutes apart and starting to get a little uncomfortable, so I began timing them. Kevin came home about 12:15 am at which point my contractions were at 5 minutes apart already! I timed them for an hour and they had stayed 5 minutes apart which is when I was supposed to call the MWs(midwives) to let them know, but I felt bad since it was about 1:15 in the morning at this point! So I waited another 30 minutes just to be sure they weren't going to stop...I didn't want to wake Jessica up for no reason! At about 1:50 am I called Jessica to tell her what was going on, she suggested waiting until they were consistently 4 minutes apart just to be sure (since they had come on so quick!) and to try taking a shower to relax and get some relief from the contractions. So in the shower I go while Kevin goes to bed to try to get a little sleep. Shortly after I got in the shower they had started coming every 3-5 minutes! Again I waited a while to make sure they were going to stay like that, then I called Jessica back (3:15 am) to let her know and woke Kevin up (who got up then fell asleep again on the couch while waiting for Jess to arrive, LOL!). Jessica got there about 4 AM and started setting up all the supplies and the birthing tub. I continued to labor all around the house(every few contractions I would start getting uncomfortable and needed a change of position-my body telling me the baby needed me in to move around to help her get in optimal position) until the tub was ready and then hopped in for some relief once it was filled. Things continued to progress pretty fast and a little after 5 am we called the 2nd midwife, Lynne(she was substituting for my other MW, Donna, who was out of town, but ended up being just as awesome as Jess & Donna!). Lynne got there at 6 AM when things were starting to get pretty intense for me. At 7 I believe I entered into the transition phase of labor...oh my was that rough! Contractions were soooo intense and sooo close together and I felt like I wouldn't make it through them. I had been doing a great job with focusing and praying during my contractions thus far, which really helped with relief, but at this point I had (unfortunately) completely stopped doing that and started losing faith in my body (eek! But completely normal at this stage in labor)! I disappointed myself because I really wanted to give up at this point and kept saying "I can't do it anymore" or "Just make it stop" while on the verge of tears, followed by "I'm sorry I'm such a wuss". The intensity of these contractions is inexplicable and I was not prepared for how challenging it was; the pain I could handle, the intensity I felt like I couldn't. Luckily I had the best support system to get me through...Kevin, Jessica and Lynne were so amazing and so encouraging! They reminded me each contraction that I was strong enough to handle it, that the end was near and I would be holding my sweet little girl soon! Jessica checked my dilation at this point (the first cervical check of labor) and I was about 8.5-9 cm and starting to feel the urge to push. I was still in the tub and at about 8 AM I was ready to push, but the tub just wasn't working for me. I couldn't find a comfortable position. I moved to the toilet (sounds weird, I know, but the position just felt comfortable!) to continue the pushing. The pushing stage was not easy but definitely better than transition, although for some reason it took me a while to get the hang of how to push in a way that actually made progress. It also wasn't a relief like I had been told so many times-pushing still hurt (***I later find out why!). After quite some time on the toilet I was getting really close to delivery so they encouraged me to move to the bed since it seemed like a nicer place to have a baby than a toilet ;)  The bed positioning really helped me relax more, propped up on my husband,  and I made a lot of progress...it was really encouraging and motivating when they were able to tell me they were starting to see her head (and she had hair!). I gave it all I had left in me the last 30 minutes and finally after 11.5 hours total labor including 2 hours of pushing, at 10:03 AM I gave birth to Karis Joanna in the comfort of our home in our own bed. Kevin had been right behind me the whole time offering support, comfort and a hand to squeeze(err, or maybe break? ;)). (Samson was there too, was confused when a baby suddenly appeared and started barking like a little puppy).

She went straight from birth canal to my arms on my chest for Kevin and me to bond with her. What an amazing, incredible, emotional and breathtaking experience that was. We were so relieved and so happy to finally be holding our beautiful and perfect baby girl! After the cord stopped pulsing (20-30 minutes maybe? This part was a little foggy!) it was time for Kevin to cut it! Then I delivered the placenta and was officially done with labor and delivery! Jess and Lynne then left the room for a bit so we could bond alone with Karis and start trying to breastfeed. After a little over an hour from birth it was time for her newborn exam, which was done right next to where I delivered in our own bed!! The animals all came out to meet her at this time also, lol. I ended up with a tear(due to her arm coming out by her head, which is why pushing took so long) so after the exam, Kevin got to cuddle with Karis while they stitched me up (can you believe I had just pushed an 8 lb 5 oz baby out of me and I was freaking out over getting the stitches?! lol). Karis was doing great and was completely healthy, and I seemed to be fine as well so Jess and Lynne started to clean up...they even did our laundry and brought me some food in bed!! After checking me out one more time they headed out and Kevin, Karis and me stayed in our bed and rested/slept for a few hours.


The whole homebirth experience was absolutely incredible and I am so thankful to God that He created our bodies so amazingly to be able to know what to do during the whole pregnancy and birth process. He kept me strong and healthy throughout the whole thing and all praises go to Him! I will definitely plan another homebirth for the next one as I don't see there is any other way for it to be done, as long as mom is healthy and no other hindrances stand in the way :)  Looking back I am confident that God knew what He was doing (doesn't He always?!) when I called in to work on the 5th...since I labored all night without sleep it would have been a lot harder of a labor had I worked all day instead of slept!

Kevin was such an amazing support through labor and did a superb job helping me through each and every challenge, encouraging me, motivating me, and letting me break his hand each contraction! I am so blessed to have such an amazing husband! Thanks, Kevin! I also could not have done it without my midwives Jessica, Donna and Lynne! They are so passionate at what they do and it shows with how patient, supportive and encouraging they are throughout the most miraculous experience ever!


Enjoy some pics of it all below. If you made it through that long post, thanks! (Hey, I wanted to document all the details so I could look back on it later :)  )


*** I later learned that Karis was born with her hand by her head, which is called nuchal arm or hand. That is why it was so difficult to push, she was not able to get into optimal positioning for birth. A lot of Drs don't believe a baby can be born like this and usually interfere with a forceps assisted delivery or C section. I am so glad I had knowledgeable MWs who believe in the power of the human body (yes, they do check baby's heartrate to make sure she is not in any distress)! It IS possible and I DID do it.

Kevin and the animals all resting while I was doing all the laboring :)

checking the heart rate

filling up the birth tub, Samson wanted to get in!

focusing through a contraction

getting some relief in the tub!

He loves to drink bath water

Karis Joanna is born at 10:03 AM on 4/6/11

So happy and so relieved!

Checking out our little miracle

Kevin cutting the cord

Samson joining in the fun, lol

Kevin's turn

Time to feed...and Stitch joining the party!

Newborn exam time

Roxy finally comes out to investigate

Samson making sure her length is being measured correctly

Kevin gets to weigh Karis! 

Getting footprints done for our home birth certificate

My midwife Jessica with Karis and me!

About her name: Karis is a Greek word from the New testament meaning "Grace" and Joanna is a combo of my grandma's first name (Josephine, but she goes by Jo) and my mom's middle name, Anne. 
(Title Quote courtesy of George Strait)