Our First Birth - Isaiah

My pregnancy with Isaiah went very well up until the last trimester. I was dilating and contracting for four weeks. My midwife really pushed protien, water, and epsom salt baths. She also had me on a bunch of herbs. It worked! On Feb 1st (my brother's birthday), 2004, at 5:00am, I went into labor. My sister was there with her two little boys, and my mom was there. My midwife got there around 10:00am. I was already in transition. She checked me and I was fully dilated. I began pushing with my contractions because my midwife said I could if I wanted to. Looking back, I don't think I should have done that. I was wanting to get him out asap instead of waiting and listening to my body.  I didn't realize that at the time.  First birth, you know!  ;o)  I was pushing for 4 hours, and he was crowning for the last hour. My midwife kept a close eye on his skin color and heartrate. He was doing fine.  Matt was in the pool with me, and he played with Isaiah's hair in the water while he was crowning. It was very peaceful. My sister was in front of me, right outside the pool, nursing her baby.  I talked to him between pushes. It was kinda funny. Isaiah's head was half out, and I'm baby talking with my nephew! When his whole head came out, Matt says, "I think he has your lips!" haha (btw, he doesn't. He looks like a carbon copy of Matt) Well, I will never forget how amazing that felt when his body finally came out into Matt's hands. Matt passed him to me, and I brought him up out of the water. He was so big! 9lbs 8oz. His placenta was born soon after that. When I got out of the pool, I started losing big clots. I walked over to the rocking chair, but passed out as I sat down. My midwife slapped me in the face, and gave me a shot of pitocyn in my leg. That and my mom's roast beef and potatoes took care of it. I had been working so hard, and my body was just wore out! If I had Isaiah's birth to do over again, I wouldn't have forced the pushing. I should've just relaxed and waited until I felt like pushing. Because he was crowning so long, the plates in his skull overlapped so severely that it also affected the roof of his mouth. He had some trouble nursing the first few days. We massaged the roof of his mouth and the top of his head, and it worked out in just a few days. That was the beginning of Isaiah Matthew Reeves!