Well, to be fair we must start a week before Mayda was born. On that Thursday night I downed a whole bottle of castor oil and got nothing, not even one good contraction. I wasn't due until Monday, but I just couldn't wait. On Monday and Tuesday nights I had contractions for an hour or two, but nothing to be excited about. But Wednesday morning was different...

When Ben woke me at 6am to say he was leaving for work I told him that I was going to have the baby that day. He asked if I was having contractions, and I wasn't, but I just had a feeling about it. I'd tried a laxative the night before and didn't get any results (other than the ones mentioned on the box), so that morning I tried 15 minutes of nipple stimulation. That started some contractions, not strong ones, but fairly regular, about every 3 minutes. When I got out of bed they slowed to every 5-7 minutes but got a little stronger. I was still able to get around, eat a little food and make a few phone calls. I let Ben know he might want to come home at lunch, and called my doula, Nicki who came over right away. There was no need to call my midwife, because my midwife is also my mother! She came out from Pennsylvania for this birth as she had done for my two older children.

By 9am I was having good contractions every 4 minutes. By 10 am we did a check and found out I was dilated to 3cm. Then my grandparents came by with lunch and Ben came home. I think my labor cooled down while I was preoccupied with everyone. I paced in the hallway with Nicki and had her put counter pressure on my back when the contractions came. That really helped with the lower back pain. So by 1pm I was tired of all the people and my kids making noise and went and took a bath. I'd gotten some lavender vanilla foaming bath from Bath and Body Works and that was really soothing.

Around that same time my grandparents took the kids to town with them and the house got nice and quiet. The contractions were getting stronger but not so painful in the tub. Nicki continued to apply counter-pressure on my back while I sat cross-legged in the tub. This was a really effective way of taking away the pain and just letting me relax and let the baby pressure down on my cervix. About 2pm I got out and and tried out the birth ball Nicki had brought. It felt SO good to sit on it and rock away the contractions. They were getting so strong I was exhausted after each one. I felt like I could nearly fall asleep between them. In the back of my mind I remembered hearing somewhere that that could be a sign of transition.

Mom suggested if I was so tired maybe I should go lie in bed a while. I went to bed at 2:35 and just got comfy when a big contraction hit. So much for comfy! Mom checked and I was nearly complete. I labored out a few contractions squatting/hands and knees on my bed and by 2:45 I was needing to push. I remember mom suggesting I pant through one but it just didn't work (really I tried!). The water broke just as I began to push.

Mayda was born at 2:50pm. Ben was able to be right there and do the honor of catching her with a little help and coaching from Mom. Mom's first words were "You were wrong!" (I'd been so sure it was a boy!) And there I saw her... right up and laid on to my tummy was my little girl! We just cuddled like that for what felt like and hour, and then Ben cut the cord at 2:56... Time had just frozen for a moment. Ben held her and named her. Then the placenta came. After that I just held my little girl and snuggled with her skin to skin. After about an hour mom checked her over, measured and weighed her, which made her awake and mad enough to finally try to nurse. Wow, did that make me cramp up.

All in all I lost very little blood. Within an hour and a half after her birth I was all cleaned up and tucked in my own warm bed with my sweet little one. God has so blessed us! All I could do is look at her and say: God is SO amazing!!! I remember Ben looking at her in those first few moments and saying something like (I'm slightly fuzzy at that time), "How could anyone see something like that and think God had nothing to do with it."