Giving Birth Naturally

WONDERFUL site I found.

Packed with ACCURATE information,
lots of citations and documented empirical research.
And TONS of useful info for pregnancy and birth choices.
GIVING BIRTH NATURALLY

Our Midwives

Thought I'd post some photos of our midwives since my friend Lisa took a few recent ones of them with her lil baby Emily.

Jeni Rector - Midwife

Jenny Derugen - Midwife

Robin Weisbrod - Midwife, E.R. nurse, currently "runs" Blessed Birth Services

Vanessa Boardraye - Doula, Midwife Assistant (Midwife in Training)

*I need a photo of Terri Svendsen-Hewitt - Doula, R.N. and Midwife Asst

Week 42: My friend - due 3 weeks after me - had her baby... and we're still waitin :)

It's rather funny, actually. My friend Christie was due 3 weeks after me with her baby #2... I should have known what was coming because (1) 2nd babies usually come earlier and (2) she had her first born a few days early as well. She made a baby-date guess on Mark Baade's baby poll that I would give birth at 3:10 on Sunday, July 20th. Guess what... SHE gave birth at 3:10 on Sunday, July 20th!!!! Pure Craziness. She must have had some type of mothering birthing intuition about that time/day...it just wasn't for me and my baby. :)

I am very happy for her and her new little girl. Sounds like all went well. She was able to labor in water for a little while and she pushed out baby #2 without letting them give her pitocin or an epidural. I can't wait to meet her new family addition.

So here on the homefront we are trying to be patient. Sandie Baade says that her kids were all born right around their guess-date... My mom had all hers around Week 33-34. So maybe we can average the two and be somewhere in the middle... like Week 42?!?! :)

Another homebirthin' Mom just had her baby yesterday. Jeni - one of our midwives - reminded me that Mag was due WAY before me...and her baby boy came out a super healthy, happy 8lbs, 4oz baby last night. She told me again to go relax, take a warm bath, and enjoy these last days of feeling my baby move inside me. Good advice.... I'm too tired for a bath right now. :)

i just thought this was funny... :)

I was way pumped this week to find a Doctoral student/midwife/doula in Canada who is studying birth and she had a copy of a book that I have been trying to find for the past month that she was able to send me in a pdf file. I am SooooO thankful to her because the only place I could find this book (Come Gently, Sweet Lucina) was for $330-$400 online. It has not been in print since 1957 which is the reason it is so hard to come by. But MAN it's a good book!! I am about 1/2 way thru... A lot of it is hilarious craziness of the 40s/50s -- things like "calcium is bad for you because it makes your pelvic bones too hard" or "the best thing pregnant women can do is fast and smoke to not gain too much weight"... the author also talks about how x-rays are not safe in the first 2 trimesters, but ok to use at the end... which of course took us 30 years to find out was completely untrue -- they do damage no matter when they are administered. I wonder what we will know in 30 years about ultrasonic waves on developing fetal tissues...

Anyway, the main reason I wanted to read this book is because the author, Carter, had 9 children. Her first 2 were born in hospitals and she had terrible, awful, painful labors and horrible birth experiences. For baby #3 she decided she was staying home and doing it herself. The rest of her 7 children were born gently at home, with no tension, no fear, no pain. They were beautiful, empowering births. She studied Dick-Read's work (Childbirth Without Fear) and her book is partially a response and expansion on his theories and observations. (Dick-Read is one of the all-time masters of gentle childbirth and was a world-renowned obstetrician who rocked the medical world in the U.S. and U.K. by stating that obstetricians could learn the most from birthing women and midwives themselves).

Another homebirthing Mom who I have become friends with via our online correspondence recommended I read Carter's book. There is a LOT in it that is extremely empowering, encouraging, and eye-opening. She is also a hilarious writer with an exceptionally witty (and sometimes cynical) sense of humor. Needless to say, I love the book. And I am SO glad to have gotten a copy without having to chuck out $330 (which no, i would not ever have done). And now I have the file to share with anyone else out there who is interested in reading her work.


This past week Nick and I took a LOOOONG walk around the Botanical Gardens here in VA Beach. It is a beautiful area and I love walking there (and feeding the ducks/geese). We walked and walked and walked all afternoon/evening...and I had 2 "good" contractions. But then things resumed as normal and baby must have decided s/he was not yet ready to come.

I also had my first "belly injury" at the Botanical Gardens -- a century old Agave plant that is blooming for its one and only time (before it dies) stabbed me in the belly! (To be honest I have a tendency these days to run into things with my burgeoning belly...) Nick asked me a few minutes later, "What is that?!" and I looked down to see blood oozing from a little stab wound on my tummy seeping thru my white shirt... haha. So my only injury this pregnancy was the result of a 100-year-old Agave plant!

On another note, I do have a feeling baby will be arriving sometime soon... so I recorded my measurements (as I have each month from the beginning) because I wanted to know and keep a little record of how 42+ weeks of pregnancy has changed my body.
The results?
I guess nothing too shocking.
From the beginning of pregnancy till now...

Weight: +28lbs (if I would have had this baby on our official guess-day i think we could have stayed at 20lbs...little bugger!)

Belly: +8 1/4 inches

Chest/Breasts: +4 1/4 inches

Upper Arm: -1 1/2 inches (how on earth did I gain inches all over and loose an inch-and-half on each arm??? It must have shifted South...)

Butt/Hips: +2 inches

Thigh: +2 inches (this also happens to be the only area of my body where I have stretch marks. what the heck?? My legs love being thick and strong. ;-)

Ankle: no change (i guess this means I have not experienced the common pregnancy swelling of the ankles... or it means I had big cankles to begin with... haha)

So that's the physical rundown.

Emotionally, mentally, spiritually Nick and I are doin' pretty good I think. We are ready. But patient. And it is a good thing that I married a loving, caring, patient man who is exceptionally good at calming me EVERY time we go out someplace and people exclaim "WHEN ARE YOU DUE?!?!" with wide gaping eyes at my huge baby belly...

Lately the question has been, "So are 'they' going to induce you?" (I love how "they" is somehow this big vast expanse of supposedly all-knowing-all-powerful medical personnel who must control and save me from my own body birth baby with drugs and machines)... So I calmly say "No, we are having a homebirth and letting the baby come when s/he is ready." And sometimes people respond with, "OH I wish I had done that!!" and sometimes they say, "Wow, you are brave!" to which I think...No, it takes a heck of a lot more guts to birth in the hospital these days than it does to do so calmly at home. But I keep quiet and don't say much because I'm not in a position to educate the world at this point.

I'm simply too tired. :)

Nick and Danelle ~ 41 Weeks+5 Days Patient

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Quote of the Week

One of our midwives sends out quotes of the week. This week's is especially fitting for me at this point...

If I had my life to live over, instead of wishing away 43 weeks of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.
~Irma Bombeck

Week 41: The Belly Was Touched (by a stranger)

So I thought we were going to successfully complete the entire pregnancy without any strangers reaching out to touch my belly. I had heard this commonly happens...and I never understood why a stranger would touch someone else's belly (especially without asking permission). But today a woman at Bed, Bath & Beyond reached across a small counter/table that was in between us and laid her hand on top of my big belly. It actually didn't bother me. I could tell she was happy for me (as much as a stranger can be) and she was just rambling away at her guesses on how much this little one weighs...she thinks 10 pounds. :) haha... Thanks.

Her friend who came up beside her (but didn't touch my belly) said, "Oh, this must be your first baby!" and I confirmed that yes, it is. "That is why you are going beyond 40 weeks" she said..."I think your baby is about 9 and something" she said.

Well, that's 2 big baby guesses for the day. But 9 pounds is typical for homebirthed babies (actually, for all babies that are healthy and hearty and go till their full un-induced - i.e. no cervical exams, cervical sweeps, drugs or membranes irritated - due date).

Stopping at another store before heading home, there was a young man dressed in camis up at the checkout near me. "You must be like my sister" he said and told me that his sister went to Week 41 & 1/2 and then they attempted to induce her. It didn't work, and her baby chose to stay put for another week before arriving in its own time. "My niece was 9 & 1/2 pounds when she was born" he told me "I bet yours is the same". "We'll find out" I smiled. "Its hard to take big deep breaths at this point, isn't it?" he asked. I smiled again - yup!

Big baby bellies get a lot of attention wherever you go.

Sometimes it is kind of nice -- strangers will do odd things just to help you out. I have had women at the grocery store tear off produce bags and hand them to me so that I don't have to walk over and get them for my apples... I've been pulled out of customer service lines to go up to the front in order to make my return rather than waiting... I've had men pull things down off shelves for me and put them in my cart without me ever saying a word... I've had just about every door opened for me that I have walked thru over the past 3 weeks.

The nicest compliment came last week when I was lugging my huge stash of books to ship at the Post Office. July must be the month that everyone really digs into their summer reading, because book sales skyrocketed this month. This is good because we have a $2,500.00 bill to pay for the little one's birth. I had an especially heavy load of boxes to mail that day, but I am also pretty accustomed to hauling my shipments (and handling/lifting an 80 pound Basset Hound at the same time) so it isn't too different from what I've been doing the whole pregnancy.

On this particular day, I was waiting in line and there was a shorter man standing behind me with his 1 package to mail. I stepped from the line for a moment because I needed to pick up an extra Priority Box from the wall shelf. When I returned to the line this cute little man was smiling at me as big as the SUNSHINE. What on earth could he be thinking?! I wondered...

"YOU ARE A REALLY TOUGH LADY!" he said to me. Hahahaha. "From behind I never even knew!! And then you turned around to walk back, and here you have a big baby and all these boxes!" It was cute. "Yup, I sure do" I smiled. What a sweetie. He asked about when the baby was expected to arrive...and the usual questions people ask. And he just kept staring at my belly. Haha. I could tell he also wanted to take the stack of boxes from me, but it really wasn't a problem, and I set some of them down on the counter while we waited in line. It was a nice compliment -- (1) to be told that I don't look pregnant from the back - that's nice to hear!! and (2) to be reaffirmed in my toughness and strength as a 41 week pregnant woman. It's empowering - especially coming from this cute lil man at the P.O.

So those are the stories for now...

I seriously feel every single day like "this could be the day"... other natural physiological birthin' moms tell me they too felt like they had the flu for about two weeks straight at the end...and then the cramps started up nonstop...and the deep pressure...and that is where I am right now. Pretty yucky feeling all the time.

So I guess we shall see.

Some encouraging songs that I just love right now:
"Never Let Go" by David Crowder Band
"Small Enough" by Nichole Nordeman and Fernando Ortega
"Psalm 23" sung by this woman birthing her 10 pound baby... I don't know whose compilation of this song it is...but my brother Adam put it into a music file format for me so I can listen to it on itunes. Thanks Adam!!!



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Video in Honor of My Hero

i cannot even put into words how blessed and thankful i am to have nick as my partner. i didn't realize how hard things would be past week 39...and especially now as we head into week 41...i don't know what i'd do if he weren't here. he really is my hero. this is a video i made in his honor while he was out to sea on Mission in the Gulf. watch it if you like to see glimpses of his life experience as a submariner.

Tales from the other side of the "Guess Date"...

(my first hibiscus bloom of the season)

Here we are. 40 and 3 :)
Other than feeling pretty physically (ok, COMPLETELY physically) drained pretty much all the time...having increased heartburn...hips that I think must be broken...and cramping that comes and goes ~ the mood around our house is a good one.

It is lov-E-ly having Nick home 24-7. We get to eat together, go on walks together, watch movies together. Talk about everything under the sun without email interception, screening and delays. It's fantastic. So I am just going to soak up this pre-baby time for us to be together.

The only downfall is I don't really ever feel like going anywhere. So we haven't been "out" at all more than to eat 1 time. We keep thinking we might go see a movie, or go to a baseball game...but so far the big belly, late pregnancy factors haven't provided us with a good opportunity to do so.

I am so glad that Nick was able to get home to experience these final days/weeks. We are thoroughly entertained by the baby kicking feet out of my side, moving a tiny baby butt up over my ribs, and morphing the baby home into all sorts of interesting shapes. Nick pushes or taps, and Baby pushes and taps back. It is quite cute! (Even if it does sometimes feel like it is squishing organs that don't like to be squished, or breaking off a rib).

We have a LIST of "things to get done before baby"... I started on this list early in June when I first gone back from Iowa. But there were a LOT of things to do... Needlesstosay we are down to the final 2-3 tasks!! Then we are REALLY ready.

Mom and I set up the birth tub a couple weeks ago when she was in town, and Nick and I filled it up yesterday so now it's really ready! The heater keeps the water nice and warm so we don't have to empty and refill in the meantime. Since it is only our own "germs" that are in the surrounding air of our bedroom, there is also no threat to the baby in this way. What the baby has developed within is what s/he will enter into upon arrival - from one warm watery world into another. Safe. Gentle. Beautiful.

(copper isn't sure what to think about it all)

(i told him he was going to get his shorts wet...)

(that clean tap water doesn't look so clear...maybe that's what we get for living 2 blocks off the ocean)

Today I woke from a little nap to hear Copper and Nick shuffling around in my bathroom (we each have our own bathroom so we don't "step" on each other too much). This has never occurred before so I wondered what was up. Then I see the plans for Copper's bath unfolding... Oh my... "I can do it Nick" I said knowing how hardmessywetfurry it is to give Copper his bath. And Copper is almost 9-years old (will be August 14) and he has NEVER had a bath from anyone other than myself. So I wasn't sure how he was going to be. Basset Hounds don't typically care much for water. Nick assured me he has washed dogs before and he wanted to take on this new Copper adventure...so I let them go about their business. Worked out great and Copper is now his new shiny clean self ready for his summer application of tick/flea/mosquito medicine.

Thanks Nick!!! My hero in so many ways...
Yesterday we had our 2nd Home Visit with the midwives. I LOVE these visits -- having our checkup in our own home, on my own bed. Them coming to us with their supplies instead of us going to them. We sit around and talk about anything on our minds for an hour or so and I feel so well taken care of. My own bathroom, my own food, my own germs. Copper getting in on the action of baby-checkups. I mean, how many people get to have their Basset Hound at their side during prenatals and birth?! :)

They felt the baby with their hands, and thought the little one is just the perfect size and probably won't be coming for another week or so. They pointed out the various baby parts (my guesses were right - foot, knee, butt, head...) And they marveled at this little cutie inside. :) Homebirth midwives are a special person because they are just so in love with pregnancy, birth and tiny babies. The joy and excitement and peace and calm all mix together in their presence for perfect moments together. We have 2 "sets" of midwives -- Jenny & Terri, and Jeni & Vanessa. No matter which set is on call on our birthing day, it will be wonderful. Nick and I love them all. As does Copper. Oh, and 3 of them are also dog-rescue parents themselves so they all have a similar heart for the underdog like Nick and I do. :)

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