11 days overdue and ready to pop, William and I decided that it was time for something to happen. Our midwife came over that afternoon (September 27th). She checked me and I was 3 cm going on 4 cm. We decided to allow her to strip my membranes and I immediately went to 5 cm. She told us that she would continue with her other clients, but we could call her at any time when I thought I was ready for her. Since we were planning to have a waterbirth at home, we wanted to wait on calling her too soon.
We walked to Good Foods Co-Op to shop for some last minute items, because I was determined to have my baby that evening. Amy Weinfurtner told me that I better hurry up, because she was due pretty soon (little did she know she would be three weeks overdue!).
Around 6 pm, my contractions were strong and regular. 5 days leading up to this point, my contractions were strong and irregular, and I was becoming tired fast. William was clearly more nervous than I; cleaning (which is a rare thing) and trying to pamper me. 8 o'clock came quick and my contractions were about 1-2 minutes long and 3 minutes apart. I was on a rollercoaster and I knew this was only the beginning of a long night. We called Candace at this point and told her to take her time, but we would like her company soon.
Our friends Josh and Lauren came by to see our progress and left. They would be back to film the pushing part of labor.
When Candace arrived, I honestly couldn't stop smiling and kept telling her how happy I was to be in labor. She checked me and I was 6 cm and the baby was fine. She left William and me alone for almost the entire birth which was to be expected. I went from standing in the hallway, to sitting on the bed, to squatting on the toilet--which became my favorite position for active labor.
Around transition, I believe I was around 8 1/2 cm when I finally vomited all over the bed and it felt so good! At this point I met Karen, the midwife's assistant, and was happy to have her company. My friend Jessica was taking pictures of William and I together during my contractions. I thought he and I made a great team. After vomitting everywhere, I took a small shower to rinse and cool off. I remember thinking how cool this was to experience naturally, but I was ready to "get 'er done."
Around 3 am, Candace checked me and told me I was ready to get in the water. We had a little kiddie pool set up in our living room with Christmas lights to light the room. As soon as my body was submerged in the water, it felt so refreshing. It took 49 minutes to push, with only 3 pushes to get her out. There wasn't a "circle of fire," only Candace saying "I see a head, oh the head is out!" Then the body. William got to catch her.
We named her Katherine Madelle. She was 8 pounds 2 ounces and 21 inches long. The labor itself was 8 hours and I smiled. She was born 28 September, 2005.
