I was
hired by Spring and Jason in early June of this year. They were expecting their
second baby and were planning a home birth. I liked them instantly (their
insanely adorable little girl, Juno really helped seal the deal to be
honest). Spring and I got together a few times leading up to her due date
and each time we met, I liked her more and more.
The week
before the birth, Spring and I started to text daily, she would report how she
was feeling (mostly she was feeling being done with being pregnant) and as the
weekend approached I had a sense that we were going to have a turkey day baby.
Spring was having a couple of contractions here and there, just enough to get
us excited and then they would stop. I think by Saturday evening, Spring was
starting to think she was going to be pregnant forever.
Sunday
morning at around 3:30am, I got a text from Spring letting me know that she was
feeling crampy and by 5:15 am she was sure that her labour was starting. By
7:20am she was ready for me to come over and I arrived at their home just
before 8am. When I arrived, Spring was sitting on the ball with the TENS
machine on her belly, gently bouncing away and looking cool and calm as can be.
I thought she looked a little too calm and comfy and for a few minutes wondered
if this was going to be a long day. She was chatty, smiling, still had her
sense of humour (generally women in labour have ZERO sense of humour in active
labour). Every few minutes she would get quiet while she had a contraction.
Shortly
after 8:30 am, midwife Heather arrived to assess things and make sure all was
well. Amazingly Spring was already 6 cms dilated and baby was doing great. We
suggested a shower for Spring while Heather got herself all set up.
Slowly but surely the contractions got stronger and closer together and in
between contractions we just chatted, laughed and moved around the condo.
Around
10:30am the second midwife Heather (yep the two Heathers) arrived, and Heather #1 checked Spring again, she was
now 8-9 cm dilated and the decision was made to break her water. Breaking the
bag of waters can often help speed up the process but it also tends to make
things much more intense for mom. This time was no different and Spring's party
was officially over. Very quickly things became intense and soon it was time
for her start pushing. We got Spring up onto her bed and helped her get into
the rhythm of pushing. Jason was right there with her for each contraction,
giving her hands to hold and squeeze. Things were incredibly intense for Spring
as her baby moved down and at one point as she was bearing down we thought she
was crying but then realized it was laughter. I asked her "Are you
laughing??", her response was "Yes, because this is just so
ridiculous!!!" First time I have ever had a pushing mom
laugh!!
Spring's
baby was moving down fast, and the intensity of that sensation can be quite
overwhelming. She will tell you that she was out of control but as someone who
has attended many births over the years, she was not out of control. She was
amazing, strong and primal. At one point just as her baby started to
crown, his heart rate was a little low and the midwives told Spring that it was
time to push her baby out. Spring heard us, and on the next contraction his
head was out. At 11:56 am with one last push and with the fall sunlight filling
the room, he was born into his mother's arms.
His
parents named him Sylvan, after Sylvanus, the Roman God of the woods and this
kid is living up to his name sake. At 9 lbs 13 oz, he is a solid boy and his
mom is my latest hero for rocking him out at home!!
Welcome
to the world sweet boy, it was a true pleasure to be apart of your story.
Sylvan
Ellison
October
13, 2019 at 11:56 am
9lbs 13
oz
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