Birth Story

Checking in at hospital at 5:30 p.m.

Anxious to meet our boy!

Jerry playing Dr. HA!

Meeting Caiden for the first time.

I cried when I saw him. I was just so happy to see him.


Jerry and Caiden in the nursery

Isabella seeing Daddy and Caiden for the first time.

BIG BOY!

More nursery time. Waiting for mom to feed Caiden.

Isabella exploring the halls.

Jerry and Dr. Dinsmore

Mom and Dad. Caiden eating with no issues! So proud!

Sarah, our Doula! She was great! Our family of four!!

I realized this week, that no matter how extreme your birth plan is, you can't control the unexpected. Our plan was to have a home birth with our second baby. It was a big deal for me as I was trying to avoid another Cesearean. Although that wasn't the case, I now hold a baby proudly, knowing that I did everything possible to do a natural birth and so did my midwives. So without delaying it any further, here is my story.

41 weeks and 2 days into pregnancy, I had my OB consult. It was February 8th. The midwives usually have their moms meet with the OB to make sure all things look good to procede with a birth center birth or home birth. I was glad for the consult since I knew once it was done, I would know a little more of where we stood with Caiden being born. I knew he was coming this week. He really didn't have a choice ;) I would have him at home with the midwives or I'd have him in the Hospital with Dr. Dinsmore.

My OB appointment was scheduled at 12:30 p.m. At around 10 a.m., I lost my mucus plug and had been leaking for a bit. I wasn't too worried as I figured my body was getting ready for the big event. I was a bit sore and really just ready to get the appointment over with so that I could focus on relaxing some more at home.

When I arrived at the Dr.'s office, they had me do several tests. They checked for Caiden's heart beat and movements. It was comforting hearing that he looked great! I felt relieved thinking, "one test down, just a few more." They then did an estimated weight check. Since 3 weeks had passed from the last ultrasound, Caiden seemed to have grown a bit. They were estimating his weight to be 9 lbs. 4 oz. Finally, they checked to see how much amniotic fluid was in me. This is when the Dr. got a bit concerned. There was hardly any fluid. I know that amniotic fluid replenishes, so I wasn't really that concerned. I did tell the Dr. that I had been leaking. She got really excited. Dr. Dinsmore is very open to VBAC's so it's not like she was trying to keep me from having one. She said, "Maybe your water broke! That would be great! Let's do this VBAC!"

After running some tests, she concluded that my membranes had not ruptured. She was concerned at this point. She said the baby was fine but she didn't feel comfortable waiting several days and thought it would be risky to wait a few more days for labor to kick on its with the baby being big and having low amniotic fluid. Her suggestion was to schedule a C-section that evening. This was a lot to take in. I was not expecting this when I came in for my consult. She told me it was my decision. I told her I needed to talk to my husband. I needed to soak it all in...it was a lot. She was very gracious and understood this was a BIG decision. She told me to call back in 2 hours to make a decision.

I left and sat in my car for a good 10 minutes...in silence...and really just confused. I'm not going to lie, I did cry. After getting a hold of myself, I proceded to make my calls. I called my midwives to ask their opinions. They suggested I should find out what my biophysical profile grade was on the baby. Usually, Dr. Dinsmore will let mom's go back to the center if the score is 5 and up. My midwife also suggested I try to negotiate with Dr. Dinsmore. Amniotic fluid does replenish. So we thought maybe waiting a day or 2 would be fine if my grade level was high enough. I didn't call Jerry right away because I wanted to make sure I had all the facts before breaking the news to him.

I called Dr. Dinsmore again to ask for the information my midwife had requested. My Bio-physical profile was 4/8...just one point off! Dr. Dinsmore was not comfortable waiting a day or two to do tests again. This is when it hit me, I'm not having this baby at home. I felt fine at this point as my midwife had reassured me that we had tried everything possible to get labor started (5-W, Primrose Oil, Castor Oil...EVERYTHING!). It was also comforting knowing that Labor of Love worked along side Dr. Dinsmore. They respected her opinion. My midwife also said, without the support of Dr. Dinsmore they could not procede with the birth. The thought of doing a home birth and not having the backing of the Dr's support was a bit scary too. I didn't want to go into labor and show up at the hospital not knowing my Dr. either.

So February 8th, my cesarean was scheduled at 7:00 p.m. We had the option of going to two hospitals. We chose Hellen Ellis. On our way to the hospital, Jerry and I felt a relief. It was nice knowing that we would finally be meeting our baby. I still called our Doula so that she would be there for us. She did an amazing job keeping away the bottle nazi's away...LOL. Suprisingly, the hospital was very nursing friendly. It was great having her there.

Since this wasn't a pregnancy induced fail and surprise C, it was not as nerve wrecking as our first C. Everything went smoothly and both Jerry and I were filled with a peace that obviously came from the Lord. Dr. Dinsmore explained everything and as I was waiting in the OR room, I wasn't scared or nervous (like I was with my first). Jerry sat next to me and we waited.

By 8:29 p.m., I heard the cry of my baby. I looked to where the nurses were and I was filled with so much joy...I cried. Jerry stood next to Caiden and I could see him smiling from ear to ear. Caiden was 9 lbs and 7 oz. and 21 and 1/2 long. He was a BIG boy! We were so proud!

So we didn't get our home birth but we did get our precious baby. Will I try to have a Vbac again if we have another child? ABSOLUTELY! I was glad I got my prenatal care with Labor of Love. It was an amazing experience. I am also glad for Dr. Dinsmore. Giving birth is a huge sacrifice regardless of the outcome.

*I would like to thank Labor of Love for my prenatal care! I LOVED that I was able to experience such great personal appointments. Loved my midwives - Charlynn & Nora.