Right now my daughter is 22 months old and if I want to instill this loving ministry to her I have to start early. None of this waiting until she’s 10 thing! Right now she has the great desire to be like me and do what I am doing and if I wait too long she might grow out of that and I will have missed the opportunity.

Here I will show you one of the ways I am teaching my little girl to make her house into a home.

One of her favorite things to help me with is making rolls.

I put the yeast, flour and grains in a large mixing bowl and give her a whisk so she can stir it all together.

Meanwhile, I’m at the stove heating up the liquids.

When the liquids are at the appropriate temperature I’ll pour it in the bowl with the flour mixture.

While I stir it all together she adds the rest of the flour a little bit at a time. Just remember that things will get messy and that’s okay, flour is easy enough to sweep up

Now it’s time to grease the baking sheet. I let her do the smearing!

Her last task to help me with is putting the rolls on the pan. I roll them into nice little balls and give them to her to stick on the sheet. She uses this opportunity to smoosh and squish the dough balls. And usually just ends up making a big pile with them.

Now her part is all done! After her hands are washed I go back and rearrange the rolls so they bake evenly. And they come out looking like this!

I hope you find the opportunity to bake with your little kiddos this week!

Here is the recipe if you want to try it with your little one.

4-5 cups of flour
1 cup 10 grain cereal
1 package yeast
1 cup milk
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup oil
3 Tbsp honey
1 tsp salt

Mix yeast, 10 grain cereal, and about 2 cups of flour.
Heat other ingredients on stove until honey and salt are dissolved. (95-110 degrees) pour into flour/yeast mixture.
Add more flour until a soft dough forms. Knead it.
Let it rest for 10 minutes.
Form balls with the dough and place onto a greased baking sheet.
Let rise 30 minutes.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes.

*feel free to omit the 10 grain cereal and use which ever flour you like (whole wheat, white or a combination of the two). Also this recipe can be used to make cinnamon rolls, and hamburger buns as well.

We planned the rest of the day. I would eat some protein-laden food, and take a nap that afternoon. “Labor often intensifies in the evening,” Kerry said before leaving.

Norman and I went out to eat with some friends at a Thai restaurant, and I made sure to eat tofu for protein. (I was still having contractions.) After that, Norman and I discussed whether to get a hospital tour since we hadn’t earlier, but decided against it. I decided a nap was more important.

We both napped. Or more accurately, I dozed between contractions. Around 6 p.m., I ate a carton of strawberry Silk soy yogurt, crackers, and red raspberry leaf tea to see if that might encourage the contractions a bit. That was all I could eat. My contractions intensified.

Around 8 p.m., the family decided to have worship. My dad opened the Bible and started reading the commentary on the book of Ezekiel. I became impatient. Couldn’t he just read a few verses? The contractions were getting stronger, and I was spending time on hands and knees. In my mind, this is when the hard, active labor started.

Norman called his brother after worship to tell him that I might be in labor. I snapped at him, “Take the conversation elsewhere!” I wanted peace and quiet, and asked that the lights be dimmed. Norman knew that things must be getting serious!

I decided it might help to take a hot shower. Because standing in the shower was too painful, I opted to labor on all fours on the floor of the shower until the water got cold.

Then I got out of the shower and resumed laboring on my knees, leaning over the exercise ball. At some point, I threw up my supper. I recalled reading in Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth how vomiting seems to help with dilation, and encouraged myself with the positive thought that perhaps that was helping me to dilate! (At my only internal exam at 36 weeks, the midwife said I was not dilated. I was 38.5 weeks at this point.)

By this time, I was vocalizing during contractions. Thor, the family dog who lived outside, began barking concernedly.

At some point, we decided to call Kerry, the doula. We also called the midwife to ask when we should go to the hospital. My contractions weren’t any closer than 3-5 minutes apart, but some of them were getting longer and double-peaking. Unfortunately, the hospital answering service didn’t relay our phone number to the midwife.

When Kerry arrived, she helped me find another position to labor in — straddling the back of a chair. She helped with putting counter pressure on my lower back by squeezing my hips together. It gave me so much relief!

At this point, Norman called the answering service again, and this time they took the phone number down. The midwife called right away.  When she heard me vocalizing during a contraction, she said it was time to go to the hospital.

My mom loaded the car with the hospital bag. Kerry suggested that since I felt the most comfort leaning on the exercise ball, that I should labor that way in the back seat of the car on the way to the hospital. Norman sat in the back with me.

I began feeling pressure about this time, and I prayed that my water would not break all over Norman en route to the hospital. My mom, the driver, sped to the hospital (normally 20 minutes away) with Kerry following.

Somebody came with a wheelchair to the emergency entrance for me, and wheeled me directly to labor and delivery. All the paperwork had been filled out in advance. My nurse, Torey, had the suite with the birth tub all ready for me.

After changing into the hospital gown, I lay on my side on the bed for the required 20 minutes of fetal monitoring. The baby was doing well. Then Torey checked me and I was 8 cm dilated and hanging on by a rim!

We were all praising the Lord that we had arrived at the hospital when we did. About then, Leslie, the midwife arrived and I got into the birth tub. She said I could begin pushing any time.

The warm water felt wonderful! I started pushing, and my water broke (at the perfect time and place). The contractions slowed down to about 10 minutes apart, and Leslie advised me about pushing. I pushed with the knees-up chin-tuck position. Norman sat on the edge of the tub at the other end, and I put my feet on his shins to brace myself. I also looked at him while I pushed. He was smiling at me, so I gritted my teeth through the pain and pressure and smiled back! Kerry put cool wash cloths to my head, and offered me sips of water and juice in between contractions. She was such an encouragement! She had been a doula at hundreds of births, and she knew how I was progressing. Whenever she said “That’s the way, Joelle!” or “You are doing so well!” or even better yet, “You’re getting so close!” it gave me tremendous encouragement.

Eventually, the pressure in pushing was so strong I just decided to keep on pushing and the contraction kept on going, and all of a sudden, “Oh, her head is out! Here come the shoulders!” and Leslie and Norman lifted the little baby out of the water. Leslie put her right on my chest. She started crying immediately, and pinked up beautifully.

“Oh, sweetheart! Good morning, honey!” I said. It was 2:50 on January 19. Her cute little eyes looked up at me, and she seemed to recognize my voice and stopped crying. Saralyn was just taking in all the sights and sounds of her new world. Norman announced Saralyn’s name to everyone.

“Oh look, Joelle, she has curly hair!” My mom exclaimed. She had been so helpful and took some amazing pictures and videos for us.

Norman clamped the cord, and carried Saralyn over to the table to be measured, weighed, and bathed. Leslie and Kerry helped me back to the bed to deliver the placenta, which was also delivered naturally. Truthfully, the placenta delivery was the worst part of childbirth for me. I know it isn’t that way for most people, but because it was a low-lying anterior placenta, it gave me more trouble and pain.

After the placenta was delivered and I received a stitch or two, I got to breastfeed little Saralyn for the first time. She was wide awake and alert and rooting for food while she was being weighed and cleaned up. She latched right on, and although it took some adjustment to get her latched correctly, she did so well!

I was very thankful I could give birth naturally. I’ll never forget that experience. I compare it with climbing a mountain or some other major physical exercise challenge. Like climbing a mountain, it was a lot of work, but once I got to the top, the view was definitely worth it! I’ll never forget holding my precious baby girl for the first time and feeling the adrenaline rush after my birth experience.

We brainstormed about the type of birth and birth team that we wanted. My husband
and I watched The Business of Being Born, which shows the cascade of interventions
that frequently occur in the US healthcare system, and how so many cesarean sections
might not be necessary if women were allowed to give birth more naturally. We were
convinced that I should take a natural approach to labor.

I researched options for places to deliver around where my parents’ home was. We
would stay at my parents’ around the time of the birth of the baby. I googled birth
centers. The closest free-standing birth center was about 50 minutes away, but that was
too far, in my opinion.

I googled OBGYN practices in the area where I would be. I noticed that one of the
practices had certified nurse midwives (CNMs) and OBGYNs, and I suspected that
might be a good lead, but I wasn’t sure. I mentioned this on the CFPN forum, and one
member suggested I check out a natural family message board based in the same state
where I would deliver.

On the message board, nobody knew about the particular practice that I was interested
in, but one person gave me a lead to a doula service about an hour away. I was already
interested in hiring a doula, a non-medical professional offering physical and emotional
support and resources for birth education to the new parents. Studies have shown that
women with a doula present are less likely to need pain medication or a cesarean birth.
Women also are reported to need fewer interventions.

I e-mailed the doula group, and the head doula e-mailed me back. Because they
were located further north, they did not cover the area where I would deliver. But she
recommended another doula in my area.

Then, I e-mailed the referenced doula and told her my situation. I was planning to be
in town in October for a wedding and asked if I could meet with her then to see if we
might be a good fit for her to be my doula. I also asked whether she had worked with
the midwives in the practice that I was thinking of going with for the delivery.

She e-mailed back and we arranged to meet in October when I was in town. She also
said that she had attended births with one of the midwives and she was quite pleased.

Next, I made an appointment for October to meet with one of the midwives. She rotated
call with the other midwife (whom I ended up delivering with) but I was pleased with

both of them.

I prepared a list of topics and questions to learn how the midwives’ birth philosophy
meshed with mine. Topics included:
• how far in advance of the birth I should arrive in the States
• their c-section rate
• movement and positions during labor
• policy on using IV and hep locks
• tearing vs. episiotomies
• use of herbs to prepare for labor
• methods for induction, should one be needed
• how call was shared
• what would be considered high risk, and under what circumstance(s) would I be
shifted to an OB in the practice?
• policy issues, such as meconium, “on the clock”, common labor complications,
shoulder dysplasia, etc.
• due date — would they make me go with the due date based on my last menstrual
period or my ovulation date?
• water birth
• how mom and baby time was protected
• use of Pitocin shot during the placenta delivery
• fetal monitoring

We meshed quite well in our birth philosophies, and I was at peace about our plan for
how to proceed about our hospital birth with a CNM, and a doula to help us, in January!

If you face the situation of a major move and switching care providers during your
pregnancy, I suggest these leads to find like-minded midwives, doctors, and/or doulas:
• Google what you are looking for (birth center, midwives, doulas, etc.)
• Ask for leads on online parenting communities — especially if they have forums for
locals.
• Ask a Webster technique trained chiropractor for their recommendations of natural
birth professionals.
• See if your area has natural birth classes, such as Bradley Method classes, and ask
the instructors for recommendations.
• Ask the ladies at your local La Leche League for suggestions

Best wishes on finding the right professionals to help you experience your best birth!

The new family and midwife in the scrubs and doula in white

Please keep in mind that the following review reflects our experiences with this diaper. Your experiences may be different. Now, on with the review!DIAPER

Type: cotton fleece fitted

Fastening: snaps with a lifetime guarantee

Inserts: none included but doublers are available for purchase

Shell: a cover (PUL or wool) must be purchased separately

Absorbency and Containment

Urine: great absorbency since the entire diaper is absorbent rather than just an insert in the middle; the doublers help add more absorbency for naps, errand running

Solids: excellent job containing messes; we had a huge blowout and no leaks; breastmilk/formula poo rinses off easily; ploppable waste is also easily removed

FitLegs: elastic legs are snug and comfortable

Waist & Rise: size M/L have fold-down rise for a customized fit; size 0 has an umbilical cord snap-down; front rise sits just below natural waist while back sits higher; size M/L have adjustable wing snaps for customized fit

Trimness: diaper is trim and fits much like a disposable; bulks up a bit once the cover is on

Convenience

Changing Inserts: n/a

Speed and ease: very quick and easy since there’s no folding involved

Space/Storage: take up some space in diaper bags and changing table due to bulk

Care

Washing: hot wash

Drying: dry time comparable to regular laundry loads

Value

Length of Use: size 0 fits newborn to 15 pounds; M/L fits 15-40 pounds

Price: size 0 $13.95-$14.95 depending on color choice; size M/L $14.95-$15.95

MARVEL COVERType: One Size

Fastening: snaps with a lifetime guarantee

Material: wipe-able PUL

Trimness: cover can be bulky between the legs and around the waist depending on the baby’s build – that’s the nature of the beast with OS covers though – all of the unused portion has to go somewhere

Speed and ease: the cover has double snaps on each wing and if both aren’t snapped, the underside of the wing is unattached and will cause leaks

Washing: warm wash; covers are thin enough to be hand-washed if necessary

Drying: hang to dry is preferred but a few minutes in the dryer on low heat is fine; cover drips dry quickly

Price: $16.95 per cover

Other Comments

Kissaluvs has a Bundle of Joy starter pack available for purchase.  The pack included 6 fitted diapers, 1 Marvel cover, 12 terry wipes, 3 booster doublers, and 4 oz Lotion Potion spray for $99.00

We’ve had no leaks or blowouts due to the fantastic absorbency and great fit around the legs on the cover.  The cover takes some getting used to snapping on a smaller baby though. There are double snaps which must be done to prevent leaks and the unused snaps for growth can get in the way.  I found it more difficult to do during the middle of the night changes when I was already tired.  Also at smaller weights, the cover is a bit bulky because of all the gathering in the front from all the unused material. With weight gain, the fit of the cover will smooth out.Kissaluvs makes several other products including AIOs, trainers, wool covers and pail liners.  To see their full listing of products, visit their website http://www.kissaluvs.com/

I was 19 years old when I found out I had endometriosis (“endo”). At the time I had never
heard about the condition before, but I soon learnt that it was a disease of the reproductive
organs that was the second leading cause of infertility in women. The lining of the uterus is
called the endometrium, and endo is a condition that causes this lining to grow in other places within the abdominal cavity.

In some areas, the diagnosis provided clarity; in others, it muddied the waters.

When I was 14 years old, I had been diagnosed with an ovarian cyst, and placed on the
contraceptive pill as a way to deal with that. So, my diagnosis helped to explain the cyst.

But it left me with so many questions. And despite the doctor’s assurance that “endometriosis is not a sentence of infertility”, from that point onwards, my life became overshadowed by the prospect.

The doctors told me I should go back on the pill – taking it for 3 continuous months, then a
one week withdrawal bleed, at a time – in order to suppress the growth of the endo. They said I should only come off the pill when I was ready to start trying to conceive.

Right from the beginning, I assumed that fertility would be a problem for me. I grieved
a little bit about what that might mean. But I wasn’t really close to experiencing fertility
problems firsthand at that point, so I always thought of it in a vague, future sense. I gave my concerns over to God and, for the most part, I didn’t think about it.

That is until I started experiencing abnormal spotting about 6 months into my marriage. At first I thought I might have been pregnant – I knew of a woman at church who had conceived while on the pill. And the thought of a surprise pregnancy was exciting and relieving, in a way – it would mean that we wouldn’t have fertility problems.

We ruled out pregnancy, and after another 5 months of abnormal spotting throughout my
cycle, I began to look at other options. After all, my doctor said there was actually no
evidence that the Pill minimises or suppresses the growth of endo, it is just widely thought to be the case.

During that time, I felt a lot of anxiety about having endo and what it was doing to my
reproductive organs. The spotting seemed to be a symptom that the endo was getting worse and I felt like I was just sitting there doing nothing. I prayed to God about it, but I didn’t feel comfortable with outright praying for pregnancy and it didn’t even occur to me to pray for healing. So I prayed that God’s will be done, and that we would have children in His timing.

It was around that time that I came across the Fertility Awareness Method of birth control, and I joined the CFPN. I wasn’t sure about whether going off the pill would allow the endo to grow more while we were still trying to avoid a pregnancy, but I really liked the idea of going off hormones. And it was amazing how much better I felt after all those drugs left my system!

I really enjoyed charting as a way to avoid pregnancy, but to be honest, it didn’t last long. We ended up taking it easy with a “come what may” attitude. Again, I think I preferred the idea of getting pregnant without trying rather than having to face infertility.

Slowly our attitude morphed from “not really avoiding” into “kind of trying to conceive”. It
was a little bit scary for me. For the first time, I had to place my desires squarely into God’s hands. I had to admit that I wanted to be pregnant, that we were actively trying to conceive.

Previously, I had been able to shrug off our lack of conception with “well, we aren’t really
trying anyway.” No more. We were definitely trying, and every cycle we didn’t achieve
pregnancy was a reminder that something was wrong.

My struggle with endo so far has taught me some important things.

For example, that every pregnancy is a miracle created by God. Getting pregnant is not
simply a matter of flesh and blood (and eggs and sperm). Each little baby ever to be
conceived has been carefully planned and brought into being by God.

And that God doesn’t always give us what we want and ask for. I think knowing this was the scariest thing about actually praying for pregnancy. I knew all along that God had made no promises to actually do it for us.

After about 8 months of well-timed love making, I stumbled across my laparoscopy report
from 2008, when the doctors had discovered my endo. I read about the locations they had
found the endo back then – around my right ovary and in the Pouch of Douglas.

While I knew that the endo could have grown and spread since 2008, I reflected on the fact
that in 8 months of being off the pill, I had only ever felt ovulation pain on my right side. I
wondered if the endo had caused problems on my right side – distorting the fallopian tube so that it was not able to receive any eggs.

And I felt God leading me to pray specifically for ovulation on the left side. I told my
husband and my pastor’s wife my thoughts and asked them to also pray that I would ovulate on my left side (even I felt quite strange putting it into words!).

As my body geared up for ovulation, I spent much time in prayer on this issue. I knew that
God didn’t have to do it; I knew that even ovulating on my left side wouldn’t guarantee
conception, but I felt compelled by the Spirit to pray. So I did.

The day came when I felt those familiar short-lived ovulation pains – but this time they were on the left! I couldn’t believe it and I could hardly contain my excitement!

I spent the luteal phase praying some more and telling myself that even this didn’t guarantee anything. But I felt like it was the first good chance I had ever had.

That was the cycle we conceived.

Looking back, I can see now that God lead us to pray that very specific way so that he would be all the more glorified by our pregnancy.

Knowing that endo puts us at a higher risk of miscarriage is quite nerve-wracking. But we are leaning more into God’s arms every day, trusting that he will do what is best.

Here we are, 6 months later, after using FAM to avoid for 5 cycles and to conceive in just
1 cycle, and we’re pregnant. All the same dreams, hopes and fears. Prayer is the only
thing we have right now and we’ll hold on to it tightly, because we sure do want to meet
this little one.

…That was 6 weeks ago. Since then our world was flipped upside down and inside out
a second time. All my symptoms were looking good, I felt faint if I didn’t eat often,
my breasts were growing rapidly and very tender, and I had NO spotting. We were so
excited at 8 weeks, 3 days to finally see our little one. We had a video camera ready to
record the heartbeat. I had a handmade picture frame saying “Grandpa’s lil’ monkey”
ready to put to sonogram in and send to my dad to tell him. We were all packed up for a
trip with friends, just one quick stop by the OB for our first visit and then on to announce
and celebrate.

This is what I had to send out after that visit:

Bad news: baby is only measuring 6 weeks and they couldn’t find a heartbeat. With
a BFP [big fat positive] over a month ago, it’s pretty much a matter of time. They are
running a bunch of lab work and we have an appointment next Friday to see if we have
a miracle or talk about the next step since this is two in a row. I’m obviously not taking
it very well. Dan and I are about to get on the road, so I’ve got 7 hours in the car to
process and cry.

I was in total denial. Every day that passed and my boobs were still sore and there was
no spotting, I just wanted to believe that it had to be wrong. Our appointment the next
Friday was 2 days before our ONE YEAR anniversary. I told Dan it was either going to
be the BEST or the cruelest first anniversary ever. He said no, because either way we
have each other. I just wanted to crawl in a hole until then.

We really appreciated the prayers we had going up from friends and family. We knew
that even though God always answers prayers, sometimes He says no. But we were
standing on faith that this little stinker was just taking its time, and would have a growth
spurt and surprise us on that Friday.

We had a group pray over us at church that Sunday morning. They said they had had lots
of miracles when it comes to babies. They spoke some really great stuff over us. One of
the older ladies just grabbed my hand and said “I just want you to know that God just
grabbed my heart and told me THIS is a miracle baby, so I want you to just start thanking
Him. Thank Him whenever you this of this baby.” So we asked for friends and family to
stand with us praying life and strength for this baby. I dealt with the consequences of that
line of thought later.

Friday came, no heartbeat. Baby was still measuring 6 weeks and I took the rest of the
day off.

A friend shared this sentiment with me: You know what makes me saddest/ most upset
whenever I think about your sweet family? That the lady at church clearly didn’t hear

from God, she just *wanted* everything to be ok so bad that she thought her emotions
were God’s voice. And that would make it 100x worse for me, remembering that
message.

This helped more than I think she’ll know.

Monday came and I just couldn’t handle myself. I was barely in the office 10 minutes
and I got a call from a client, “Well, first off, Congratulations! Are you having any
morning sickness?” I didn’t have the heart, I just said thanks. Answered her questions as
best I could, got off the phone shut my door. And sat in my office bawling and snotting
all over myself with no tissues.

My least favorite things to hear as we went through all this were: anything to do with
God’s will or God’s timing. A) YOU (the general you) don’t know God’s will or timing
any better than I do and B) is knowing that it was His will for my baby to die supposed to
be comforting? Its not! B) What’s the deal with God’s timing? If he didn’t want us to have
a baby yet, then why did He let us get pregnant? TWICE

It was not that I was doubting or mad at God, but I just didn’t see how anyone could think
these sentiments were helpful. Also, “Keep your head up!” My husband’s favorite saying
and he now knows I HATE it. I know I need to stay positive, but I’d just like to be sad
for a moment, thanks.

I hid my husband’s cousin and a dozen other random pregnant friends from my news feed on Facebook. Told Dan we needed to spend Thanksgiving with my family this year.
We would normally spend it with his, but that’s when we were due and his cousin will be
there with a brand new little one. He said he totally understood.

After a week of waiting for my body to get the message that the baby wasn’t going to
meet us, we decided to schedule a D&C for the following Thursday, 10 weeks 3 days.
The procedure would require anesthesia, but otherwise should be quick and have a
speedy recovery process.

Frustrating. I think I bled and passed more clots post D&C than I ever did with our
first natural miscarriage. At first I was upset that I didn’t really feel like anything had
happened (Thurs-Sat night: no cramps or really any bleeding, just a few dots of light
pink). I felt like I missed out on part of the grieving process. But by the next Thursday,
I was just ready for it to be over. I had to get up like 3 times a night to change my pad
and usually pass something. I called about the clots, because I wasn’t expecting them to
be THAT big. Apparently a clot the size of a large prune is not a concern, but plum sized
clot would be. Everything that was happening was within the “normal” range.

We met with OB that Friday. She was concerned that the bleeding and clotting didn’t
begin until 3-4 days post op and had expected the bleeding to have subsided by then. We
were given another week of “pelvic rest” and told to call if I was still needing to wear
a pad or panty liner by the next Friday, that’s two days from now. We were reminded
that two miscarriage were unfortunately normal and there was no reason to believe we
wouldn’t carry a baby to term next go ’round.

So here we are again, baby number one would have been born any day and I would have
just entered my second trimester with baby number two, but alas no babies growing on
the inside or in our arms, but this verse has given me great comfort as I look forward to
baby 3:

11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and
not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ” Jeremiah 29:11

I was sitting on the bed eating lunch on Sunday when the nurse came in and told me the doctor was concerned about my resting heart rate. It had been rising since I got there. When I came in on Monday it was in the 70s but by then it was in the low 100s. Apparently the rising heart rate could be indicative of an infection setting in. So they drew some blood to check my white blood cell count. It came back slightly elevated. The doctor told us that it might not be so bad at the moment but infections can flare up quickly and an infection could be really bad for my little preemie. She suggested we start an induction soon. Cody and I talked about it and decided to go ahead with the induction.

Just before I was started on Cytotec.

That night the doctor checked me (1.5” dilated and 80% effaced) and gave me my first dose of Cytotec to help ripen my cervix. I got a dose every four hours until morning. It was February 14th and the nurse started the Pitocin at 7:38am. Cody was there still sleeping on the chair next to my bed.

I ate breakfast and watched TV until Cody woke up. The contractions weren’t very strong, so I was able to relax and enjoy my last moments as a pregnant lady. The nurse would come in every half hour or so to turn up the Pitocin until it got to a point where I had to start breathing through the contractions. In the mean time Cody and I cuddled on my bed and watched one of the movies from the Love Comes Softly series. I was also able to get a little nap in.

We decided to take a few laps up and down the labor and delivery hall. With IV in tow we took our walk stopping when I had a contraction. They still weren’t at all bad at this point just annoying and noticeable.

With my first baby I labored mostly in the shower but this time I wanted to give the ball a try. We set it up on the side of my bed and I just sat there and bounced waiting for the contractions to come. When they did come Cody would rub my back and do counter pressure. Oh my goodness the counter pressure helped so incredibly much! I honestly don’t know that I would have made it without him there helping me.

Around 12:00 lunch came. I was hungry and knew I would need the energy, so sitting on my ball, I ate in between contractions. A couple hours later when the contractions were really intense I was sure I was going to lose my lunch but I never did.

Cody was really good about watching the time and telling me when I was about to have one and when they peaked. This actually seemed to make the contractions more bearable since it sort of forced me to take it one contraction at a time.

I did end up trying the shower but it didn’t really help for two reasons. One, the water never got hot, it was barely warm enough for a regular shower but not nearly hot enough to help with the pain. And two, the handle wouldn’t come off; it was apparently stuck so it wasn’t even hitting my belly in the right spot. So we didn’t stay in there for very long.

Apparently the moaning sounds had changed when I was in there making the nurse believe that I was approaching the transition phase. She made me lie down on the bed to check and see how far I was dilated. I decided that these contractions really hurt so if I was only a 3 then I was likely going to get an epidural. I was relieved when she said I was at 6cm already. “Ok, I can do this”, I thought. Once I got to this point the nurse turned the pit down from 9mu to 3mu.

The time was 3:00 pm when I got checked. I spent the next 20 or so minutes sitting on the ball hoping it would be over soon. I got up to use the bathroom and when I got back they wanted to check me again. This time I was at 8 cm.

I was laying on my side so the nurse could adjust the monitors on my belly. I remember asking her why I felt like I had to pee again when I had just gone to the bathroom a few minutes ago. She said it was because of the pressure the baby was putting on my bladder. Immediately after those words left her mouth I yelled “I have to push!” I went from 8cm to ready to push in two contractions. I rolled over and they started taking the bed apart making it ready for the delivery and a line of about 8 people filed in. There were three student nurses in the front row, the nurse that had been with me all day and the nurse that was coming on duty, the midwife, and a couple other people I didn’t know off to the side. I didn’t really care at this point that they were there; I just wanted the baby out!

I was so tired. I kept telling Cody “I want a nap. I want a break.” With my last one I got a nice break, the contractions all but stopped and I was able to rest a bit before pushing her out. But this time I was on Pitocin and it wasn’t giving me a break. Cody told me later that when I kept saying I wanted a break that baby’s head was right there; everyone could see that he would be out in another push or two. The midwife started pouring warm oil on me and massaging my perineum. I never thought I’d say this but it actually felt pretty good having her do that; and I think that may be why the only tear I had was a minor surface tear.

Our little Valentine came out in less than five pushes. They laid him on me for a few minutes before they took him away to wipe him down and wrap him in a blanket. I was able to hold him for a few more minutes before he had to go to the NICU to get weighed, measured and hooked up to the monitors. It was another couple hours before I’d get to see him again.

I stayed back in the delivery room while Cody followed him in there. He stayed with him the whole time only leaving to come and get me after they had finished. Our little guy was 5 lbs 2 oz and 16.5 inches long. He had no breathing or respiratory issues what so ever.

We stayed back in the room and ate dinner before packing up the room and heading off to the maternity ward. I got the nice private room with my own shower. All the other rooms have two beds in them so you’d have to share when they’re busy. I was able to stay there for two days before getting discharged. The nurses in the ICN would call me every time he cried so I could come down there and nurse him. I was able to nurse him for the first time when they called me in early that next morning (around 3 or so). He nursed for 15 minutes on each side!

They had an IV in him giving him sugar water and an antibiotic. It was so sad seeing all those things attached to him, he was so small and helpless looking.

On the evening of the 17th, after much consideration, Cody and I finally settled on a name for our little guy. Cody said that since I did all the work I could pick the first name and he would pick the middle name. That night “Baby Boy L” became Arthur Cannon.

He was weaned off the sugar water on the 16th and we were finally able to leave the hospital that I had been at for the last 12 days and go home! Our house was freezing but it was so nice to settle in, all of us together with our new tiny little family member.

Cosette holding her little brother for the first time.

How My Breech Baby Turned

I settled down on the cold, hard table for my third trimester ultrasound. I was 28 or
29 weeks along. The tech began the ultrasound. I was completely surprised when he
announced that our baby girl was breech.

30 week breech baby

Breech?! How could she be breech? She was head down at our last appointment, three
weeks earlier.

I asked the tech, “Do you think she still has time to turn head-down?”

“Um, well, maybe,” he hemmed and hawed.

At my appointment with the OB the following week, she was not happy that the baby
was breech. She took me over to the ultrasound and looked at the baby herself and
said she wasn’t sure that we would have luck getting the baby to turn. She questioned
whether there was enough amniotic fluid, and scheduled us for another ultrasound
with the tech the following week to measure the amniotic fluid volume, as well as an
appointment with herself, following the ultrasound.

I asked her if she had any advice for trying to get the baby to turn. “Well, in Great Britain
{where she did her residency} they have many old wives tales about how to get babies
to turn. You’re welcome to try them.”

I went home and read the section about breech babies in The Thinking Woman’s Guide
to Better Birth. I looked at exercises on www.SpinningBabies.com and began a daily
exercise regime to try to get the baby to turn. In addition, I prayed daily that the baby
would turn.

I desperately wanted to have a natural birth with the certified nurse midwives’ practice,
as I had already interviewed them and was planning that way. This breech baby
business was adding a serious monkey wrench into my plans! Most breech babies are
born by cesarean section these days, and I really wanted to avoid that if at all possible.

Some of the exercises that I did were the breech tilt (using pillows, not an ironing
board), inversions, psoas exercises, and lots of hands-and-knees time to give the baby
room to turn. If I had been in the States near a chiropractor trained in the Webster
Maneuver, I would have probably tried that as well, because that is reported to help
breech babies turn as well.

turning a breech baby

A week or two later, I returned for my ultrasound to measure amniotic fluid. The

levels came back normal, and the OB said she wanted to see me the following week
to determine if I would have to return to the States even earlier than I had originally
planned (at 34 weeks).

In the meantime, I had e-mailed my midwife back in the States. She had given me her
e-mail address in case I had any questions or problems while I was overseas. She
suggested placing a soft ice pack over where the baby’s head was located to encourage
the baby to turn. I tried it once or twice with a bag of frozen corn, but it didn’t seem to do
much.

That Friday evening, we had a Bible study at a friend’s home. After the study, one of the
locals gave us a delicacy that had been frozen in aluminum foil. I was holding the bag
and sitting in an easy chair while we were talking after the study, and I decided, Well,
why not give this a try since I’m waiting and I have to hold this frozen stuff anyway!

I placed the foil-wrapped frozen food on my belly where I knew the baby’s head was.
Around two minutes later, I felt a mighty BUMP in my belly. I kept the ice where it was
located. I felt another big bump a few minutes later, and I decided to do some hands
and knees exercises. After I got up and sat down again, the baby started hiccuping, and
I noticed that her hiccups were in a different position than before. I’m pretty sure that
this was when my baby turned.

I was very curious to know whether the baby had indeed turned, but I had to wait
another week until my appointment. I continued my exercises faithfully to encourage
proper fetal positioning.

When the OB started the ultrasound the following week (by this time I was 33 weeks
along), she began smiling. “Well, the baby turned!”

I was so happy that I almost started crying! My plans for a natural, vaginal birth could go
forward now. I thanked God that He had helped my baby to turn.

This birth story started when I was 32 weeks and 5 days into my pregnancy, also known as Super Bowl Sunday Feb 6th. After spending a good majority of the day eating and sitting around watching the football game we headed home to go to bed. I had just finished my bed time rituals and was walking to my bed when I leaked a teeny bit. I thought I somehow didn’t finish peeing a few minutes earlier so I tried going to the bathroom again and changed my undies. It happened again when I was climbing into bed so this time when I changed I put a pad on and went to bed. At some point in the middle of the night I rolled over and leaked some more, at that point it occurred to me that my water had possibly broken. I spent the rest of the night leaking every time I moved and expecting to start feeling some contractions. The contractions never did come and I was having trouble sleeping so around 6:30am I got up with my daughter Cosette. I did some dishes and Cosette grabbed some Cheerios for breakfast. I called my sister-in-law as soon as it was a respectable hour and asked her what the possibility was of my water breaking at 33 weeks (seven weeks before my due date). We talked for a while and decided that I just needed to call my doctor and go into the hospital to get checked.

My husband (Cody) and I dropped Cosette off with her grandparents and headed off to the hospital. On our way there I just kept saying, “We are so not prepared for this”, “we were supposed to have another month at least before I needed to start getting things ready”.

I was 90% sure my water had broken (due to the color, smell and how it leaked whenever I changed positions) the only doubt was because it was so early in my pregnancy. The staff must have all thought I was imagining things when I came in, but after the litmus test came out dark blue and looking at a sample of the fluid under a microscope they confirmed that my membranes had indeed ruptured. They told me I needed to start taking some antibiotics and was going to get an IV with fluids to make sure I was staying hydrated. After two failed attempts in my right arm they finally got it in my left hand. They also gave me the first of two steroid shots to help baby’s lungs develop.

This hospital wasn’t equipped to care for babies this early so I was transferred to another hospital about 45 minutes away. The nurse tried to get the helicopter for me but they said no so I got to go on my first ambulance ride.

When I got to the new hospital I was glad to find out that they are very supportive of laboring naturally even if they don’t see it too often. Since the hospital and staff were new to me I had no idea if I could relax and trust them or if I needed to be more assertive to make sure they didn’t intervene in ways with which we were uncomfortable.

I spent the next week hanging out in the labor and delivery room directly across from the nurse’s station. I got a new nurse every 8-12 hours so I went through quite a lot of them and only got one of them twice. They would come in and check on me every four hours or so, taking my temperature, blood pressure, giving me pills when needed and adjusting the monitors on my belly.

My husband was able to come visit me after everyday and even allowed to sleep in the room with me when he could. Even though I had a few visitors (my husband, parents-in-law, daughter) it was still such a lonely time for me. The first day or so wasn’t so bad but with each passing day it became harder to stay cheerful. I had my Bible with me and my lap top to listen to sermons on which really helped me during these days. God was gracious and gave me great encouragement through his word and notes from friends on Facebook and the Christian Family Planning Network. There were at least three different circles of people praying for us (FB, CFPN and our church) I don’t know how I would have faired without these people lifting us up!

This is pretty much how I spent my time.

I was on total bed rest, only allowed to get up to use the bathroom and sit up to eat, for the first two or three days. After I had gotten both of the steroid shots they eased up on the bed rest a little bit and by the end of the week I was allowed and even encouraged to walk around and do some light exercises.

Everyone thought I was going to go into labor at any moment so it was quite a surprise when I was still there a week later. I was preparing myself for the long haul, knowing that they were going to keep me in there until he was born which could be weeks. On Saturday I decided that, in order to keep my sanity, I needed to take it a few days at a time, making small goals, like “just make it to Tuesday then we’ll think about the next goal”. It helped, but as it turned out I didn’t need it.

To be continued (next week!)…

Continuing on with our AI2 systems reviews is the GroVia system.  This is my husband’s favorite system.  The covers are available in both snap and hook and loop; we have the hook and loop. Normally, I am not a fan of H&L covers due to the laundry chains they create and how quickly they seem to need maintenance to continue to function correctly.  GroVia uses a high quality soft H&L on the entire waist band rather than two small tabs sewn on to the front of the diaper.  This makes the waist soft, comfy and scratch-free.

Please keep in mind that the following review reflects our experiences with this diaper. Your experiences may be different. Now, on with the review!

Type: one size AI2/hybrid

Fastening: super soft hook and loop

Inserts: snap-in organic cotton soaker pads with waterproof backing

Shell: waterproof

Absorbency and Containment

Urine: great absorbency; the boosters make a good addition for naps

Solids: breastmilk poo usually runs off of the soaker pads and gets onto the inside of the shell requiring a full change; solid food poo stays on the insert very well and does not usually require a shell change

Baby Bee at app. 14 pounds

Fit

Legs: snug elastic leaves no gaps

Rise: 2 rows of snaps (1st row for newborn, 2nd row for infant, unsnapped for toddler)

Trimness: very trim fit; fit well under onsies

Convenience

Changing Inserts: soaker pads snap inside the shell; there is a definite front and back to the soaker  pad though so that’s an extra step

Speed and ease: very quick and easy

Space/Storage: take up minimum space in diaper bags and changing table

Care

Washing: hot wash for soaker pads; warm wash for shells

Drying: dry time for soaker pads comparable to regular laundry loads; shells hang dry within a few hours

Value

Length of Use: can be used from birth until potty training

Price: $24.95 shell and soaker set, $16.95 individual shell; $16.95 2-pack soakers, $8.50-$9.50 2-pack of boosters (stay dry or organic cotton choices)

Other Comments

I have found that I can generally rotate two shells for the day by always having one on Baby Bee and one loaded up and ready to use. When Baby Bee wets, I just switch the whole diaper completely and then hang up the first shell to air dry for the next diaper change. I did have to add another shell before Baby Bee was eating solids because breastmilk poo always ran over onto the mesh inside of the cover; it’s not wipe-able like the PUL covers in other systems.

One small inconvenience with this system involves the soaker. It’s sewn to itself at the ends and the middle is free so breastmilk poo would not only run off of the soaker, but underneath it between the layers as well.  Both the front and the middle needed to be rinsed off.  It’s not a big deal but a unique problem due to the design.

I LOVE the hook and loop on the GroVia system. It’s super soft and stays clean so it clings as it should. I have done very little maintenance to the H&L other than a quick touch-up on the waistband with the clothes shaver.  The shell tabs are stretchy and the H&L makes for a fast and easy diaper change.

The tuck under laundry tabs work really well but are a bit of a pain. The tabs are short and because of the thickness of the H&L, the tabs can be difficult to tuck under. I have found that I can fold the tabs lengthwise and that makes it a little easier to tuck in.

I occasionally use the biodegradable GroVia inserts for traveling or long days out and really like them because they have gussets to help contain messes.

GroVia makes several other products including AIOs (newborn and infant size), wipes, liners, and detergent.  To see their full listing of products, visit their website www.gro-via.com