And then there were FOUR....
After a somewhat difficult pregnancy and extremely frustrating and tiring last few weeks my little angel decided to make her big debut on October 23rd at 9:01 Pm at the Kauai Home Birthing Center in Wailua, HI.
I had gone into labor a week before her actual arrival but after a long night in the hospital everything pretty much came to a stop at 4cm. I was exhausted and of course devastated when I got sent home the next morning with no baby, but at 36 weeks she needed a little more time to bake :)
The morning of her arrival I woke up contracting pretty regularly, but didn't think too much of it considering this had been going on for weeks at that point. After about an hour or so and with contractions getting slightly stronger and closer together I called my midwife and had her come over to see what was going on. She informed me that not much had changed since my last check and did a membrane sweep to see if she could work with my contractions to help me get things going a bit (this is painful and definitely no fun but seemed to be just what I needed at that point because almost immediately she noticed a little change). I decided to go for a walk around the neighborhood and told my midwife I would call her or head to the birthing center if things got worse. After a few hours I decided to head over. Although I was praying there was at least some change I was still pretty doubtful at this point considering I had had several false alarms with this little one.
When I arrived at the birthing center I was informed I was 6cm dialated! Finally, I knew my little princess was on her way. I have to start this next part of my story off by saying having a home birth was the most amazing and rewarding experience ever! It only took me four pregnancies to finally get the courage to do it and I am SO glad I did ;) The moment I first walked on to the property I knew I had to have my baby there. I instantly fell in love with the setting, the vibe and of course my two AMAZING midwives.
I spent the next few hours with my hubby and one of my closest friends walking the gorgeous property, sitting in the shower and putting that birthing ball to good use. It was so peaceful, so relaxed and laid back I almost didn't even feel like I was in labor. I was able to eat and drink through out the process (we had a whole chicken and veggies in the crock pot and nothing has ever tasted so good lol) and I was free to labor any way I felt comfortable. My contractions were definitely painful at this point coming on every few minutes, but being that this wasn't my first spin around the block I knew things were going to get much more intense and I was ready to get the show on the road.
At 7:00 PM my midwives came in to check on me and informed me I was 7cm. I pretty much begged them to break my water at this point because due to my previous experiences I knew that once my water breaks it's only a matter of an hour or two before the baby is in my arms. I kept saying it hurts but not enough lets get things going! So with a little hesitation my midwife broke my water and instantly they knew things were progressing fast. My contractions went from painful and manageable to intense, intense intense within a matter of minutes. I sat in the shower on the birthing ball for a few minutes but with my contractions getting stronger and harder to handle we felt it was time to move to the tub.
I headed outside to the hot tub where I instantly felt some relief from the painful contractions as I was able to relax a little in the warm water. I must say, if you are thinking about having a natural childbirth it is MUCH easier to labor outside of a traditional hospital setting. The warm water of the tub really did make a huge difference in being able to tolerate the pain and I was able to relax between contractions. In between each contraction I was still able to talk and laugh with my girlfriends, midwives and hubby. It was an absolutely gorgeous night and truly magical to be able to labor in a hot tub under the stars on a silent and still Kauai night.
After about 20 minutes or so in the hot tub I decided to give pushing a try. I still didn't have a strong urge to push at that point but pushing during the contractions definitely helped relieve some pain and move the baby down. After about 30 minutes or so of trying to push in the water I decided I wanted to move somewhere else. The contractions were VERY intense at this point and I just didn't feel grounded enough. I was pretty much ready to get the next part over with and meet my baby girl.
So In between contractions I ran from the outdoor hot tub back in to the birthing suite. The next contraction came before I could make it back to the bed and I remember kneeling on the cool tile floor hoping I could get the strength to get back up. I did, and made it to the bed where I pushed maybe once or twice but felt pretty dizzy and weak like I might pass out so I knew I had to get this baby out quick.
For some reason I felt like I had to pee and deleriously decided to get out of bed and give it a go.... afraid I wouldn't make it to the bathroom my midwife brought over a "Birthing Stool" for me to sit on at the foot of the bed. For those of you who are not familiar with this, because I certainly was not, Its almost like a c shaped wooden toilet seat with the front portion open that women use to labor and give birth on. Well it worked for me because the EXACT moment I sat down on that stool Kinley was making her way. I honestly don't remember anything in that moment other than it was a complete and total out of body experience. I couldn't tell you who was around, or what was going on around me. The only sound I heard was the two or three blood curdling screams that I couldn't even believe were coming out of me as I had absolutely no control. It was hands down the most intense moment of my life and the only thing that existed to me at that point and time was me and my daughter making her way into this world.(They are NOT kidding when they call it the ring of fire by the way, holy hell, that's a feeling you will never forget). But the next thing I knew my precious angel was in my arms and I felt the most incredible rush as I held her for the first time and saw her sweet little eyes starring up at me like she knew immediately, I was her momma.
My rock through contractions...
The birthing ball was my best friend :)
Laboring in the outdoor hot tub
My support system
My midwife,Sharon monitoring Kinley's heart rate
The Birthing Stool where Kinley was born
And then there were four
My everything <3
I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to have my daughter here and cannot thank my midwives enough for such an unforgettable experience. We are truly blessed <3
