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Saturday, September 17, 2011

Heaven on Earth: Part I


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I love this picture. Is it flattering, aesthetics-wise? Nope. But it is REAL. The real, raw beauty of bringing a child into the world. When I look at it I see pure joy and I wouldn't want it to look any different. I have come a long way in loving and accepting my body for the miracle it truly is, AS IS. This one picture is truly worth a thousand words, to me.

The world and our family received a 7 lbs 1 oz, 20.5 inch piece of Heaven on Monday, September 12 at 10:02 pm with the birth of our sweet baby GIRL!!! 


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(If you’d like to know what we chose for her name then send me a message on Facebook…I think her blog name will be one Miss Priss has been calling her: Cupcake. It may change…)


Jonathan discovered the gender first since I pushed her out on my knees…so I was facing backwards from the whole “scene” and I am so happy he saw her first.

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The moment he announced “It’s a GIRL!!” was one that only Heaven has words wonderful enough for…‘Cause I don’t have them.

Keeping her gender a surprise was one of the best decisions we made for this pregnancy. I don’t regret finding out with our other children at all. But this time…it was totally, completely worth the wait. SO fun. I recommend it. :-)

And now on to what everyone is REALLY reading this post for: THE BIRTH STORY.

Am I right?!! I LOVE a good birth story and I’m pretty sure others do too…so here ya go…and it’s gonna be long and laborious (pun intended :)…so BUCKLE UP:

So I was scheduled to be induced (due this THIS fiasco) on Tuesday. I had worked out a very nice “compromise” with my midwife and the maternal fetal medicine doctor I saw during my pregnancy for the induction that I was comfortable with. I did a TON of research on natural induction methods, in the hopes that I could avoid Pitocin.

Why no Pitocin? The semi-short answer is that I hoped to avoid the risks associated with using Pitocin (for example uterine rupture) and also the other interventions that come “standard” with using Pitocin at the hospital I chose to give birth at, namely continuous fetal monitoring and IV fluids.

And now you may be asking “Why not?” for those interventions: Because they would really restrict my ability to move freely into the positions that I would instinctively want to get into to be more comfortable as I went through the birth. (TUCK THAT LAST SENTENCE AWAY FOR LATER ON, OKAY?)

By the way, I prepared for this birth using the Hypnobabies “method” of hypnosis for childbirth. I used Hypnobabies with MUCH success and satisfaction for Mr. SweetSweet’s birth and was SO excited to use again for this birth!! I felt very empowered in the decisions I made for this birth because of the excellent birthing education I received through Hypnobabies.

Short story: I LOVE HYPNOBABIES. THE END. :-)


So back to my natural labor induction methods research. I was directed to a wonderful midwife in Arizona who had an AWESOME, detailed plan of how to use a handful of natural inductions methods to induce labor. It included castor oil, blue cohosh, nipple stimulation, walking, hot showers and I added hypnosis and essential oils to the list. One thing I would have loved to use, due to the great research I found on it, was acupuncture. BUT, with me being on an anti-coagulant AND being pregnant…it wasn’t going to happen.

…and this concludes Part I of the “Heaven on Earth” post. I have WAY too much to write to get it finished in “one fell swoop” so forgive me for doing it in segments! I also need to feed a hungry baby who I need to grow this weekend to get her back to birth weight. :-)

Until next time…

7 comments:

Heather said...

You reeled me in and then.... Ha! Can't wait to hear the rest of the story. Congratulations again! Get some rest sweet Mama.

Brian and Janette said...

Congrats! So happy for you guys. Can't wait to hear the rest of it. And you know about me and FB...so can you send me an email with the name details? Thanks!

Kimberly said...

Can't wait for the rest!!! :)

Linda said...

I love the first picture too Candace! It's amazing. You look so full of joy and relief :) So happy for you that you went into labor on your own...I'm sure that was an answer to prayers. Love you Candace. Congrats on #4!! I love her name. I still can't believe you passed me up...you have four little ones!! Can't wait to hear the rest of the labor story :) :)

Natalie said...

I love that picture of you! You are beautiful Candace, and always have been! What an exciting and exhausting time. I admire you so much for the dedication and perserverance of researching so much to find what would work best for yoU! I'm sure it was no easy task to find the method that was safest and perfect for your situation. So happy it all went smoothly and can't wait for part 2!

Breeana said...

Awww, congratulations, Candace! So, so sweet!!!! I'm excited to hear your birth story - and how fun to have another girl!

Martha said...

AHH! I'm dying to hear the rest!! I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the pictures you posted to hold us over. Pictures of the kiddos meeting a new sibling are so precious. Your new daughter is beautiful and you look great yourself! Glad went all how you wanted it with the Hypnobirthing and all. I'm happy to hear she's healthy & strong and all is well. We love you all!