You're having a WHAT!?

A HOME BIRTH!!!!!!!

After much praying, talking and researching Corey and I have decided to hire a mid wife so we are able to have a home birth. Lord willing we will be having Lyla Elizabeth in July at home. I know some of friends are reading this and saying "way to GO"! While, other of you are saying "WTH is she thinking"?!

So here is why we decided on a home birth and ohhh how I wish I did with Mia! Well as most of you know Kerhia was an early bird and I had a medicated birth. Well honestly when I was shipped to Charleston, I dropped all plans of having a birth any way my way. I was now looking at the doctors saying do what you have to do to keep my baby safe! This is when I was VERY grateful for all the technology and doctors.

Well now let's get to Mia's birth. I was having contractions on and off non-stop. I eventually was like okay baby these need to stop you're getting out of there! So on April 8th I went to mother earth foods, drank a whole lot of tea, went on a mad woman exercise and then walked around the block! Yes, Finally!!! They're consistent! Off to hospital we go with our bags! We had a wonderful group of nurses at Camden Clark when we arrived. Once they made me lay down, things slowed down. Imagine that! So the nurse said walk the halls and squat. If you change after doing that you can stay! I paced the halls up and down! It worked and they kept me, but laid me back down. By this time it was late at night and the anesthesiologist was leaving. They used the fear method, if you don't get your epidural now. You probably won't get one at all. Nervous and not as educated as I am today said "okay". It was terrible, he couldn't get it in my back and had to drug me to do so. So let's just say I felt good and went to sleep. I slept on and off through most my laboring except when they would come in and say I needed another shot of pain medicine or needed this checked out. At this point let me remind you I am feeling loopy, clueless and tired. So I slept. Nurses would come in and out. The doctor stopped by to visit and check me. All of sudden he broke my water, not a word asked or anything. I felt that he should have asked, wasn't it my water he was breaking?? Eventually I fell back to sleep and kept remembering Corey trying to keep me up cause Mia's heart rate was deceling and I was not changing. I was so caught up under all the medicine I had no clue! No clue at all that my baby was struggling. This made me feel terrible, as mother I shouldn't be laying here fighting off drugs to wake up to know if my baby was okay. The doctor and nurses finally came in this is after a few shift changes. They said let's get you up on all fours and rocking. She needs to come on her own or we will take to a C-section. Something I was terrified of, I have never ever had any type of surgery. I didn't want that, that's not how God planned women to give birth. Right when I got up all fours, I could feel her move down, I was awake and she ready about 10 minutes of rocking and 10 minutes of pushing we welcomed Mia into this world. This was after 18 hours of laboring.

Again, as most of you know what happens after delivery is they rush the baby off. She needs this and that and that. Well guess what, I had a terrible time trying to breastfeed her. The first attempt at it and not much luck the nurse comes in with supplement bottles cause that's the way it works. Well guess what give a baby a bottle, she gets lazy. She was a terrible feeder. So I eventually gave up. Few months later we were up at Children's Hospital trying to find out why she wasn't keeping formula down, gaining weight, etc. This was only the beginning of the last year of troubles with Mia's health issues.

After meeting the mid wife today we knew this was the right route. We brought the girls with us, they played while we visited and when she listened to the baby both were there to hear. After she listened to the baby's heart rate she let Kerhia take my place to listen to her baby's heart rate in her tummy. There is just a bond there that you can not get with an hour wait at the doctors office. It was wonderful, she cared, she listened and she let us know this is our baby, our plan, our birth and she is just there to help!! I now know that when I give birth to Lyla that both my girls will be involved and bonding with us all right after. No waiting two days to bring her home and have my two girls at home wondering where I am. They need me, I need them and their sister needs them!

This is just a quick blog to explain our choice in home birth. Corey and I feel it is safe and we believe that God will guide us through this every step of the way. Not only will this birth be life changing for me but will be for Corey as well. I hope that all our family and friends join us in prayer as we prepare to welcome another little girl to our household!

Be ready for many more posts to follow!!