Travis's birth story! updated with pics

rstarrlemaitre · July 2014

I woke up around 4.30 on 7/24 with what was less than a gush but more than a trickle of water (thank goodness I'd started sleeping on a towel 3 days prior "just in case"), and when I got up to go to the bathroom more dripped down my legs. I still was second guessing whether this was my water breaking or not, but told DH I thought it had and we'd call the midwives to update them, and climbed back in bed.

Thinking I might be looking at an afternoon of being induced, I was relieved when light menstrually contractions started all of 30 minutes later. I was so energized and ecstatic that the first thing I did was go up to the gym and do a light cardio workout (go figure), thinking that might help labor actually set in instead of being a false alarm.

Well, by the time I got back an hour later and took a shower, the contractions were about 4 minutes apart but only 30 seconds long and not strong. DH and I decided we better go to the grocery store and stock up on food, thinking we would be laboring in the birthing center all afternoon and overnight.

By the time we were back from the grocery store, my contractions were 2 minutes apart and 1 minute long and OUCH. The midwife, realizing things were going much quicker than normal for a first time mom, was still an hour commute away. She told DH to keep me calm and laboring at home for that hour and then we'd meet at the hospital. I realized I'd basically bypassed active labor and gone right to transition which was scary, but I just powered through that hour, trying every position I could think of to ease the pain.

As soon as that hour was up, I insisted on a taxi, and got the first urge to push about 10 blocks from the hospital. No way this baby was going to be born in a NYC taxi cab, so thank goodness I had read that you're supposed to pant if you feel the urge to push too soon, and I panted my heart out those last ten blocks.

The midwife was waiting curbside with a wheelchair and she was the most beautiful sight I'd ever seen. They didn't even check me in, just wheeled me right up to the birthing center. I was already 7 cm and 100% effaced, and the last 3 cm went in about 20 minutes. DH and the midwife were the most amazing pair ever coaching me through the hour of pushing that followed. 1 hour and 20 minutes after arriving at the hospital, at 1.38 pm, there was my slippery baby, snuggled against my chest, and DH in tears of joy beside me for one of the most profound moments of my life.

A quick peek between the legs revealed that Team Green had turned BLUE, so this was our baby boy Travis Stefan. We had our first latch thanks to the help of a nurse about 90 minutes later. The Birthing Center has a rooming-in, skin to skin policy, so after that DH, Travis and I were in bed for the day, with grandparents, auntys and uncles coming by, and learning to be a little family.

We were discharged from the hospital exactly 24 hours later. I'm a little sore but mostly feeling great, and so happy I got to have the med-free vaginal delivery I hoped for. Travis is eating like a champ here at 4 days old, and thank goodness because my milk has come in and engorgement is holy cow. My little AAs have gone up to at least a C. Thank you all for reading, and so excited to hear many more birth stories to come! I will edit this pots with pics soon!

Here is 3 days old:

And 4 days old after first sponge bath: