Been Busy...

Wow, so it's been a very very long time since I've posted anything. And I miss it dearly! There's no way that I can write the full stories for all the births I attended in the last year, as there were 36 in all. Including my homebirth apprenticeship, my friends and my sister's birth, I've attended 63 births. Of the last 33 I am going to try and write down at least something memorable about it, for myself.

1/21/09 - super sweet young couple were expecting a little boy, never confirmed by ultrasound, and after a challenging delivery they met their daughter. Because they were set on using the name Floyd, they decided on Magnolia Floyd. =) She is the sweetest little baby and we have had them all over for dinner a couple times =) I need to call her soon.

1/29/09 - super sweet waterbirth of a little girl =)

2/3/09 - Tall, beautiful, strong momma having her second baby. She birthed and caught her daughter in the water.

2/11/09 - I attended this birth as an assistant and didn't know the mother very well. But she did have a lovely waterbirth.

2/16/09 - Good friends of mine decided to transfer from their OB to the birth center. Sadly we did end up back at the hospital with the need for a c/s. This was a very hard labor for mom and dad, with a challenging postpartum recovery. Momma was so beautiful in labor, I will never forget the connection we had breathing together with locked eyes. and then seeing those same eyes in her beautiful son hours later.

2/26/09 - Super sweet couple, I came to help near the end of their birth. Much strength and love was used to birth this sweet little girl =)

2/2/09 - This momma cracked me up! She was so spunky and light hearted. I can only dream that everyone has a labor like hers. In between pushing she was casually making requests for songs on her ipod. Smiling and laughing. Lovely waterbirth.

03/14/09 - Another birth that I helped out with where I didn't know the mother very well. lovely waterbirth.

5/8/09 - This was my marathon birth. This beautiful single momma had a history of epilepsy so we knew going in that she would have to birth at the hospital. She was also attempting a vbac (vaginal birth after cesarean) her water broke early and then her labor needed augmenting. Her best friend and I stayed with her for all 57 hours of her labor. Encouraging, supporting... in the end the little man did exactly what his sister had done 4 years before and got stuck in an awkward position. So she did have another c/s but this time it wasn't as traumatic, if anything it was healing for her because it convinced her that something about her pelvis and the way babies lower into it meant her first c/s was necessary. I had met this mom only twice before her labor, but we connected in a way that was incredible. I need to give her a call sometime soon too =)

5/23/09 - Super sweet single momma was so amazing at becoming independent and improving her life for her son before he arrived.

6/12/09 - Strong momma birthed her son at the birth center on the birthing stool.

6/22/09 - This momma discovered she was carrying twins halfway through her pregnancy. With a lot of support she attempted a vaginal delivery, but the little ones positions just didn't workout, so she had a c/s. Brother and sister were born just minutes apart and are adorable =)

6/24/09 - Competitive ballroom dancing parents, momma labored beautifully even after needing to transfer and pitocin. She didn't opt for an epidural and went on to birth vaginally =) way to go momma!

6/29/09 - Super strong momma who also needed to transfer but went on to have a natural delivery.

8/2/09 - An amazing second time mom who went past her dates and needed induction. She beautifully birthed her second son, but then had a hard 3rd stage. This was the first placenta accreta I have seen. It was incredibly hard and traumatizing. I love this momma.

8/8/09 - Sweet couple who had a lovely birth center birth.

8/15/09 - This second time mom went very fast! she arrived at the birth center, had one contraction, got undressed, had another contraction, climbed into the tub, had her third contraction and her baby was born!

8/23/09 - I'll never forget this mommas birth. Second baby had a very bulgy bag of waters. Judy and I were sitting on the floor infront of her ready to catch and the bag burst showering Judy and getting me a bit too. This was also the first time I helped with catching, supporting the baby on its way out. She was a slippery little girl =)

8/24/09 - A momma I didn't know very well, but just assisted with.

8/25/09 - Super sweet couple who labored hard and beautifully to birth their son =)

8/30/09 - I had worked with this couple since very early in their pregnancy. We became good friends and I was very emotionally invested in this birth. Momma ended up needing to transfer and was such a good sport. She pushed so hard, but just couldn't bring the little man down all the way. She had a forceps delivery which looking back would have been a c/s if the doctor knew how big he was. She had such a hard recovery but took everything in stride. I really admire this amazing momma.

9/8/09 - Second baby for this momma, she did beautifully and had a lovely water birth.

9/14/09 - Another second baby and this momma repeated what she did at her first birth center birth, which was spinning in circles in the tub. It was quite the whirlpool =)

9/18/09 - Didn't know this momma very well, but they were a very sweet couple and worked very hard.

10/7/09 - This sweet momma had a very very long labor, and just didn't progress very well. She ended up with a c/s which was really shitty, but she took it in stride and instantly fell in love with her daughter.

10/10/09 - Second baby for this momma, very sweet family =)

10/18/09 - This momma pushed out her OP daughter with the strength of a lioness.

10/27/09 - This momma had a party at her birth with lots of friends and family while we had a power outage. Luckily it was during the daytime, but we still had to use flashlights. Quite the exciting waterbirth.

11/4/09 - This momma was a beautiful redhead who had a challenging time transitioning to motherhood, but had a lovely waterbirth.

12/24/09 - This momma was so sweet. She had a lovely waterbirth and we keep in touch =)

1/3/09 - This momma didn't expect the intensity of her labor and opted to transfer for some relief. She delivered her daughter vaginally.

1/18/09 - This second time momma was supposed to be my first catch, but as the birth continued she needed the expertise of Judy to help her son be born. It was a little nerve wracking, but had a very happy ending =)

1/25/09 - This momma needed to transfer after having a very long prodromal labor. After some relief and rest from an epidural she went on to birth her son vaginally.

The next 3 births I will write about in the next post. As they are very special to me =)