Hi everyone! I realize I’ve sort of fallen off the map, again, but… Yes. Life. And three babies. And a whole lotta… Life with three babies.
It’s been almost 4 months since the birth of my third child, and I suppose in typical fashion as you have more kids, it’s taken me the longest this time to sit down and write about it. Not that I really need to– but I would like to, and I am sure there are some out there who would like to read it.
Our son Albert Walter was born around 7am on March 10, 2023 at 41wks+1 day gestation. I woke up around 3:30am that day with a good strong contraction… And, long story short, he was born 3.5 hours later. So fast! In a way, I felt like he didn’t have much of a birth story since it was so quick! But… That’s really not true. I need to back up a bit so that you can understand the circumstances that came before he was born.
Getting Ready
First, I’ll just note that my first daughter was born at 38 weeks, and my second (a boy) was born at 39 weeks. So, I was told that I should expect to go into labour before 40 weeks again, since that was my pattern, and people often stick to a pattern. Makes sense, right?
Planning for a home birth, my main goal was to make it 37 weeks and be ready for baby to come by that time. (37 weeks is the earliest you can safely deliver at home, so that was my benchmark.) That day came, and I was ready for it! Meals made and frozen, baby things washed and ready, supplies purchased and on hand… yet, no baby.
It was ok though, since we were having some cold days in there, and our furnace had been broken all winter. We survived the winter with space heaters this year, and on some of the coldest days we literally had to leave our house to go be somewhere warm. That said, I was watching the weather very closely, hoping for some milder days to birth this baby, and then hoping for more mild days to follow for making his or her entry into the world a little less challenging. We also had been going through a season of intense stress with James’ skin condition being bad, and my family experiencing some very hard and stressful times.
Some Extra Challenges
At about 38 weeks, I was headed out the door with my kids to go to Bible study in the morning when I thought I smelled gas. James also smelled it, and I left for my study as he got on the phone to figure out what to do. Long story short on that, there had been a gas leak in the house, and when someone came to check it out they found several leaks and shut off the gas to the house until the leaks could be repaired. Over the next several days, with the repairs, they found that fixing a leak on the old pipes (this house is over 150 years old) would often cause a new leak to spring up, and so they concluded that all the piping had to be replaced completely before our gas could be turned back on.
My poor parents, struggling to pay for new furnaces for the house (it’s divided into 3 apartments, and each needed its own furnace), then had to shoulder the new pipes bill… So, more stress… and still, no gas. This meant no hot water in our already cold house, and no ability to cook or use the oven. For… about 2 weeks. While waiting for a new baby to arrive, at home.
Right around this time, I also had a round of false labour – All through the night till early morning.
More Complications
Every time it seemed like something was about to be fixed, another problem would spring up, delaying the process! Including another round of false labour, lasting about 11 hours.
Finally, at about 39 and a half weeks, we did manage to get the pipes fixed and praise the Lord– Hot water! And the next day… We got the worst stomach flu I’ve ever encountered in my life. It started with me, at nearly 40 wks pregnant, and then spread to my kids and husband. We were sick for about 6-7 days, at the end of which my midwife had gone on vacation. By the end of all that, I was so broken and so discouraged. I felt like this baby would never come, and there would never be a “Good” time for the baby to come. Imagining going into labour felt like I would be causing another stress, another inconvenience, to our lives– which was so backwards from what it really was and what we were hoping to have.
Trying to Bring on Labour
After a third round of false labour, and being into my 40th week, we decided to try to make something happen. Discussions with my midwives had begun for inducing labour, which I really didn’t want to have to do. I wanted nature to take its course. So, as soon as we were well, we started everything we could think of: long walks, spicy food, the Miles Circuit, Spinning Babies exercises, and chiropractic care. One day passed, and then another… with the weekend approaching, which is when I knew I’d begin to be monitored to see if an induction was needed.
At the End of Myself
Finally, at the end of myself, I contacted my Aunt (a doula and childbirth educator) to ask her what she would do in my shoes. She told me what I knew, but needed to hear from someone else: Give it all to God. My stresses at this point were many. She told me to give it to Him, listen to worship music, and try to let it all go… and then the baby would come. So… I got into the shower, and cried. Hard. I needed to at that point. I cried it all out, gave it to the Lord, listened to a worship song, and went to bed.
Labour At Last
That night, at 3:30am on March 10– I woke up with a strong contraction. The weather was mild, and the house felt pretty nice compared to what it had been temperature-wise. After about 45 minutes of timing contractions, I knew this was the real thing – and we called the midwives. I didn’t know who would come, my own midwife being on vacation- but I knew someone would come, and it would be ok.
About 20 minutes later, I was so thankful to see my own midwife arrive, taking time out of her vacation to come to this birth! And, as you know, by 7am, our baby was born. The only interesting part of the labour itself was that his shoulders got stuck briefly, and to be ready just in case, they called an ambulance while trying to get him out– but again, praise the Lord, he came out while they were on the phone so the ambulance wasn’t needed. He was healthy and beautiful, and I got to experience a short and very manageable birth.
Peace
That morning was one of bliss. New baby boy in my arms, recovering in my own bed, and huge snow flakes falling outside the window. Our baby’s name, Albert Walter, means “Noble Commander of the Army” and we hope that he will grow to be a man of character and a good, godly leader.
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After all of that, I will sign off. This has been extremely long – And I am tired. I do, after all, have a life with three children in it. 😉 They keep me busy, but I couldn’t be more thankful for each one. This life and its blessings are truly a gift.
–Naomi
