Catch up on Part I and Part II.
So, we had been at the hospital for two and a half hours. I was having a contraction while standing up and Daniel was holding me up so I could try to relax through it. I looked up at him and (he tells me) my eyes got wide. “SHE’S COMING,” I said. “NOW. RIGHT NOW.” All of the sudden I could feel her head and she was coming out. Pronto. All I could think of at that moment was that I needed to get back to the bed or else she was going to be born on the floor. However, during back-to-back contractions, it’s not easy to move quickly and agilely.
With Daniel’s help I sat back on the bed and felt a gush of fluid. My water had broken and I could feel that Lucy was almost crowning. I laid on my side because I seem to remember that position can slow down the pushing phase and ideally, I wanted my midwife back in the room before my child was born. It was at this point that Daniel looked around and realized that the only three people in the room were me, him, and my mom. “GET ERIN!” I told my mom. “What do you want me to do?” Daniel asked. “Hold my leg up because she’s coming right now!” As soon as I lifted my leg he could see that Lucy was crowning and he prepared to catch her. Although I was not voluntarily pushing at all, my body had taken over and in a matter of seconds I felt her head and shoulders sliding out. Erin had run back into the room and was there in just enough time to catch her as I pushed out the rest of her little body. It was seriously less than one minute! I heard Daniel shout, “She’s here! You did it! She’s here!” and after a second of realizing that the pain was over, Erin placed my precious little girl on my chest.
She was squalling (not shrieking like her big brother did) and was pink and beautiful with a full head of black hair and grey-blue eyes. Erin started cleaning her off and I brought her to my breast to nurse. She didn’t latch immediately but we snuggled and then Daniel got to cut the cord. Then she really latched and nursed for a good 30 minutes. Her APGARs were 9 & 9 and she was 6lbs and 14oz, 19.9 in long.
Since birth she has been calm, precious, and beyond sweet. Having a little boy is amazing but I can tell that having a girl is a whole new world of wonderful. We are so in love with our beautiful daughter, Lucy Elanor. Our hearts are filled with more love now that we have two children to love. And introducing Benjamin to his baby sister was so special. He is so proud of her and sweet with her, although he is having a little trouble adjusting to no longer being an only child, but that’s to be expected. We thank God for a safe delivery and for our healthy girl! She is joy itself! Thank you for your prayers for her health and safety during the past few weeks. I love being her mother and she is loved beyond measure. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost: as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end! Amen, Amen!
Next time, I plan to arrive soon enough to actually perform my Doulah Office! “A word to the wise is sufficient!”
Okay, for real this time. Just read all three parts of her birth story. Now I am ACTUALLY getting back to my motherly duties. Seriously!
I’m pregnant with our first baby and we want to name her Lucy if she’s a girl. I read your blog regularly and was going to try to contact you to ask what your Lucy’s middle name is – I really like Eleanor but have been looking for other ideas. Imagine my suprise when I find this post and realize you already have a Lucy Elanor! It’s a beautiful name and we just might steal it (with a spelling alteration) if we have a little girl 🙂
I’m not going to lie, I also love the name Gwen, but my husbands not as thrilled about it. I’m starting to wonder how many of my ideas are my own and how many are due to reading too much Carrots 😉