I met Samantha during one of my normal consultations. She was anxious to start with a provider as she was almost out of her first trimester and wanted this piece to be done so she could relax the rest of her pregnancy. It was a blast getting to know Sam and her husband Spencer over the course of her pregnancy. They were fascinating people and it was fun hearing about their restaurant business and their kitties. Sam had a GREAT pregnancy and did so well as she prepared for the birth of her baby. I distinctly remember a point in Sam’s third trimester when she came into my office a little hesitant. I asked her how things were going and she mentioned that some of their guests had found out she was having a home birth and proceeded to share all of their horror stories of how bad their labors were and how if they had not gone to the hospital they may have died and it made my blood boil!! For everyone reading this story, DON’T DO THIS!!! Every woman’s labor is different! I know some people are just trying to be helpful but seriously, this is BAD news! I always tell my moms not to listen to the bad stories because just about every other woman has one but it is not a reflection of how they will labor or how they will deliver. It makes me sad to think that people seem jealous of moms who chose this path and instead of building one another up, they tear each other down smashing hopes and dreams. The history behind this is extensive and too much in depth to delve in here! Fortunately, after a good, long talk, Sam was right back to where she needed to be and more committed than ever to her home birth!
I always fear what will happen if a baby comes during a massive blizzard or snow storm. I have an SUV and I would leave to a labor no matter what, but it is truly a concern of mine! On Monday morning February 1st, there was a blizzard predicted for the area and fortunate enough for me, I only had one client due, but anything can happen when big storms roll in! I ended up continuing my office day Monday but by 12:30pm the snow was coming down hard! I moved all my appointments but one to Wednesday. Sam was supposed to get to me for her 1pm appointment but when they hadn’t arrived by 1:20pm I began to worry. I texted asking how things were going and was shocked to find out they were only at North Gate on I-25, it would likely be another 45 minutes before they arrived and the snow was just getting worse! I decided they should turn around, I didn’t want them to put their lives in danger. I rescheduled to see them Wednesday. At 11:30pm on Tuesday night, I received a text from Sam’s husband that she was contracting more consistently and that she might be in early labor. I didn’t hear anything for the rest of the night and they were still planning on coming to their appointment Wednesday morning when I got up. I saw Sam at 11am and I was very impressed with what I saw. She brought her partially deflated exercise ball (which she called “the raisin” lol) and bounced around on it for the entire visit. She was still having fairly consistent contractions which she rated as a 4 or 5 on the pain scale, this was looking good. I encouraged everyone to get some sleep as they had been up most of the night and reminded them when to call me in and sent them home. I received a text around 3pm later that afternoon that Sam had lost her mucous plug and had some bloody show! She was getting excited that this could be the real thing! I didn’t hear from them again until a phone call came in at 9:10pm letting me know that Sam’s water had broke and she was “in a lot of pain.” I quickly got dressed and was out the door by 9:30pm knowing it would take me 30 minutes to get there. At 10pm, I pulled into their driveway and walked in to find Sam on all fours with her faced stuffed into a pillow and moaning through a contraction, this looked good indeed. I asked for permission to listen to baby and she sounded great. As I listened through the next contraction I noticed Sam growling through it and asked Spencer if she had been pushing. I immediately checked her bottom and saw the very top of baby’s head moving down!! I jumped up, grabbed my birth bag and threw on some gloves. Sam made it through the next contraction but this time she vocalized how badly she needed to push! I asked her if she wanted to get in the pool and she got right in by 10:15pm. Things were moving smoothly and quickly and baby was doing SO well! Sam slowly and beautifully moved baby down and as baby’s head began to crown, Sam told me how much it burned. It’s easy for a mom to “loose her cool” at this stage but with quiet coaching and support, she eased baby’s head out and baby’s body quickly followed! I untangled baby from her cord as she began to cry and for the first time got to witness the “calm recovery” that will often follow birth. I don’t get to see it very often because my moms are in positions that make it easy to hand baby over but Sam was leaning over the edge of the pool and baby birthed behind her. I watched as Sam recovered from her hard labor and slowly came to what had happened. I was finally able to encourage her to turn over and place her sweet baby in her arms!! What a beautiful moment to watch. Zahava was born at 10:30pm on Wednesday, February 3rd, only 30 minutes after her midwife arrived and she waited until after the big storm! Weighing in at 6#7oz, thank you sweet baby for allowing me to be present for such a special day!
