Endless Rhetoric and Such....: the birth of Stella Claire 7 lbs. 9 ounces

*****UPDATE******
You can watch the professional slideshow of this birth, made by my cousin Dawn by clicking HERE.
Below I tell the story and give a few pictures as well, but none like hers!!!

Ohhhh.....this was just the sweetest birth!

I met Megan several years ago through my cousin Dawn. One of the first things she said to me was, "You are that crazy girl who births at home, aren't you?!"
Guilty as charged.
I liked Megan from that first moment! She speaks her mind, is so in touch with herself and her honesty is SO refreshing. I naturally invited her to see "Business of Being Born" a few years back when it was released, and she actually agreed to go (even knowing I was trying to indoctrinate her! Brave chick!) That movie began to change the way she viewed birth.

Fast forward a few years.....she is expecting a third daughter! We talked throughout the pregnancy and she was toying with the idea of homebirth, but still not sure it was right for her. Around 33 weeks of pregnancy she and Rick decided to take the plunge into the world of homebirth, waterbirth and midwives! Scary....and yet exciting.
She asked me to be her doula and I felt so honored to be a part of this birth.

"Due date".....September 27th. It came and it went.

A week past.

Two weeks past.

Two and a half weeks past.

Megan was beginning to question it all. WHY was this happening? Through her soul searching she found the strength to trust her body and her baby and allow it to happen when/how it was supposed to happen. Each day she found new courage to continue on this path. She was amazing.

At 17 days "post dates" I got the call.....she was hesitant to say it, but she thought things were beginning to happen! I arrived around 9 pm on Wednesday, October 14th to a laboring Megan. Now, she was not so sure it was labor; I think she was in such denial because she was "going to be pregnant forever"!!! We walked around and chatted as her contractions came and went. She dealt with them so well it was hard to tell when they started and stopped!
Laura, the midwife arrived. She was an instant blessing to the house with her wit, knowledge and encouragement.
Megan's labor picked up in intensity with every contraction. We could see that she was well on her way to birth...but she was still not quite so sure. Denial can be a great thing in labor!

Meg would have a very strong contraction and immediately "fall to the floor" in her words. Wherever she happened to be standing when the contraction began she would go to the floor. She commented that it was nice being in your own home and able to do this. A hospital floor would never be so comforting...nor would the idea even cross her mind to lay down there! Rick was there for her every step of the way; encouraging her, loving her and doing some great head/feet massages!

Laura and I also noticed that Megan would have a very strong contraction (even in transition) and then end it with a little "giggle". WHAT? We asked why she would goggle like this being in "pain"......she said, "Because I just cannot believe it is happening and I am doing it"!!! So great!

Megan moved to the pool around transition and remained there until Stella was born. Meg was able to catch her own baby with her own hands and bring her to her chest. Powerful! This is one amazing family that I was privileged to work with!

The baby exam revealed that Stella was NOT 18 days "past due" at all.
On the contrary.
They said the latest gestational age she could be was 39 weeks and 1 day. So what would have happened if Megan had been induced by her OB two and a half weeks ago? Would her body have "worked" or would she have "had" to have a c-section? (if a moms body is not ready, it will not give birth).
Would Stella have had trouble breathing since she would have been 36 1/2 weeks along instead of full term? Would an NICU stay have occurred?
Thankfully the midwives were patient and carefully watched Megan and her baby (through several ultrasounds) and noted that everything looked perfectly normal. They waited until Stella was ready; not just when they were ready.

The midwife has just arrived and is listening to the baby. Megan is in denial that labor has really begun...little did she know that less than 3 hours later she would be holding her daughter!