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Violet Faye Sex: girl Born: 06 April, 2009 Age: 2 years & 315 days Birthday in: 50 days Starsign: Aries Development: See the 32 months page. Biggest achievement so far: -

Birth details

Original due date: April 10, 2009
Type of delivery: Vaginal (without pain relief)
Duration of labor: 5 hours
Weight @ birth: 7 lb, 4 oz
Length @ birth: 21 inches

Violet-Faye`s birthstory

Basic timeline:

midnight: menstrual type cramping
1 am: light contractions every 7 minutes
3 am: intense contractions every 2-3 minutes
3:30 am: call midwife
4:00 am: midwife checks and I`m dilated 8 cm already - she calls the second midwife
4:55 am: water breaks
5:02 am: start pushing
5:10 am: second midwife arrives
5:13 am: Violet Faye is born!!!

Only 11 minutes of pushing and a total of 5 hours in labour. Sounds easy, but it was tougher than my 26 hour labour with Malone. It was an intense 5 hours. With Malone`s birth I had hours and hours of slow and steady build up. I had tons of endorphins running through my system. But these contractions were really hardcore. They started off just like period cramps, but went from 7 minutes apart to 3 minutes apart so quickly. I just kept breathing and and concentrating on relaxing my muscles.

This is the cheesy/embarrassing/granola part: I kept saying a mantra over and over during a contraction. I had read Spiritual Midwifery when I was pregnant with Malone. It`s a book of birth stories told by hippies who gave birth on a commune. They always talked about how contractions were just wonderful and they were the same as a beautiful flower opening up in bloom. I made fun of this for months, but I swear to God, when I had a contraction this time, I kept saying in my head, `I`m a flower, I`m a flower, I`m a flower`. It totally helped!

I gave birth in my bedroom and it was the best place. It was wonderful to be at home. When it was all done, I could roll over and sleep in my own bed. If I ever have another baby, I will definitely have another homebirth. My husband caught sweet Violet as she came out and handed her to me. The midwives were wonderful and supportive and caring.

Violet is amazing. She came out with her hand on her face and she just loves to suck on her thumb and fingers. She has already pooped twice, and she latches on so well. She has blonde hair and the same little mouth as Malone. She seems so tiny and when I look at Malone, I know this will go by so quickly.

I am the luckiest woman in the world.

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Malone Sex: girl Born: 02 April, 2008 Age: 3 years & 319 days Birthday in: 46 days Starsign: Aries Development: See the 32 months page. Biggest achievement so far: -

Birth details

Type of delivery: Vaginal (without pain relief)
Duration of labor: 26 hours
Weight @ birth: 7 lb, 9 oz
Length @ birth: 22.5 inches


It all started with sex. That's what put her in there, and that's what got her out! We had sex on Monday. I lost my mucous plug Tuesday at 5. I went to aquafit class, but was feeling kinda crampy. By 8:30, I had bloody show. By 10, labour kicked in.

It really came on with a vengeance. I had contractions lasting about 30 seconds 3 minutes apart. That lasted 5 hours until 3 in the morning. Then they finally slowed and came every 10 minutes. I tried to sleep between contractions, but that's pretty impossible. By 8 in the morning I had contractions every 5 minutes and they were getting more and more intense, sometimes lasting 3 minutes each.

At noon, the contractions changed. They felt more intense and I now know that was when early labour kicked into active labour. I saw my midwife at 3 and I was 4-5 cm dilated and ready to go. By the time I got to the hospital (about half an hour later) I was 6-7 cm.

I spent the next few hours in the birthing pool, moaning through the contractions. I started pushing around 9:30 and just over two hours later, Malone was born.

I pushed while laying down, I pushed while seated. I pushed leaning over the bed, I pushed on the toilet. I eventually delivered her while seated on a birthing stool. My husband caught her and once she was out, I realized I could accomplish anything. I feel so powerful and strong now.

I pushed out both her shoulders at the same time, so I had a second degree tear. I didn't even feel it happen. I just felt that my life was about to change. Honestly, the pain during labour seemed to be the biggest thing in the world. The second I held Malone, the pain was nothing and meant nothing. I have never gone through anything even remotely close to this. There were times when I was nervous or anxious or scared, but the times when I thought of my baby I zoned into a different space entirely.

So here's the basic outline:

labour at home - 17 hours
labour in hospital - 9 hours
time spent pushing - 2 hours

Things that helped during labour:

-sitting in water and having showers
-slow dancing with my husband to get baby to move down
-moaning in a really low voice
-thinking about my baby
-breathing with my husband and looking him in the eye
-having awesome midwives who were beyond encouraging and supportive
-at the toughest point, after two hours of pushing, hearing my husband say, "This is absolutely amazing. You are doing this."

It was intense, it was long, and it was worth every single second of it all. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

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