Evelyn was born en caul early in the morning, unexpectedly fast to everyone present.
Her midwives were just as shocked as her mama and daddy when her head started to be born. Evelyn was ready to meet her family!
Evelyn’s mom, Jamie recounts the events leading up to her birth.
“Cody (Jamie’s husband) and I had walked around after he got home from work since earlier I decided to deep clean and reorganize the pantry. I figured walking would help ease then soreness and discomfort I was having. We ate Costa Vida and went to Kroger before I said I was too tired to keep going.
Once we got home I went to bed and napped a good bit, drank lots of water, and the pressure didn’t let up. We decided I should try bouncing and rolling on the yoga ball to help settle Evelyn down while Cody put Bethany (their toddler) to bed.
I made an orange dream smoothie with castor oil (couldn’t even taste it but I don’t recommend it), sat down on the ball and started coloring.
I still wasn’t sure that I was going to labor
and going to have the baby, because Bethany ruined any hope of having a baby just because of “back labor” and I didn’t have any other signs that hadn’t happened before. I kept drinking water and my orange smoothie, coloring, bouncing and messaging Ashley while listening to some music.
Honestly, I felt I was pretty relaxed but there was an air of excitement too because I knew I might end up laboring!
Dishes were cleaned and the kitchen picked up. The bathroom was all ready for birthing but we didn’t have snacks or anything. I wasn’t hungry anyway, but I did try to make sure that everything was ready for the midwives in case I did happen to have Evelyn that night.
Around 8:10 pm or so I messaged my midwife and asked her if my pinching, pain, and pressure would fizzle out like it normally did.
About this time I had talked with my midwives 2 or 3 times on the phone, I knew they wanted to hear me have a contraction so they could discern whether it was baby time or not. Let’s just say there were some long silences on the phone.
The “pain” was not bad at all, it was the pressure that I felt I was losing an uphill battle to.
I had planned and prepped and worked on my pain tolerance so that I wouldn’t have as difficult a birth as Bethany’s. Even though I was still in denial about it being true labor, I agreed with my midwives that it wouldn’t hurt to come check on the baby and I just to see what was going on.
Sometime in the next 30 minutes we managed to text our moms and let them know we were in labor.
My midwives came to the house
Mercy arriving before Ashley and just in time to see another contraction while I opened the door. Mercy sat with me timing a few contractions while we sat in the dark. I kept coloring and writing birth affirmations, rolling on my yoga ball.
I had lit some candles because I didn’t want lights on in case Bethany woke up. Ashley arrived shortly after Mercy. She asked me to lay on the couch so she could check the baby.
I had just been to my appointment on Wednesday, so not quite 36 hours had passed but Evelyn was in prime birthing position. They asked if I would be more comfortable on the bed, so to my room we went.
That’s when Ashley told me she would like to check the baby during a contraction. Previous birth trauma made me very anxious and stressed about that, but we managed to get it done.
“I didn’t know what I needed”
I went into the bathroom where Cody was filling the tub up and I sat down, claiming I needed to go to the bathroom. Really the pressure was so intense, I didn’t know what I needed. Ashley and Mercy were talking in the room and Cody just held my hand.
Finally Ashley walked in and asked if I wanted to know how far along I was. I told her no, because I’m sure it’s going to be a long night. It couldn’t be true labor. I wasn’t ready to have Evelyn. This wasn’t happening. But I changed my mind and said, ok tell me.
Apparently 8 cm is close to delivering (sarcasm) and I didn’t even know I was that far dilated.
It was agreed that this was actual labor, especially since 36 hours earlier I was only 2 cm with sparse contractions that stopped with water and rest.
Around midnight the bath tub was ready and I got in. Everything had been pretty quiet so far. Bethany sleeping, Cody was sitting next to the tub, Ashley and Mercy were in the bedroom I think, but I’m not sure.
I just know I was tired because of how late it was so I “snuggled” down in the warm water till it almost covered my chin. I only sat up more for contractions. They were harder, full of pressure, longer and definitely productive.
I sat in the tub trying to focus on resting and breathing through the contractions while I transitioned.
Cody stayed awake with me, sitting close by on his phone while Ashley came in periodically to check on us. I could tell things were getting close, but I still wasn’t ready to push. That might have been the part that scared me the most. It was terrible with Bethany, not painful, it just took so long!
“The pressure ebbed, but just long enough for me to relax, say a prayer, and tell myself I could do this”
A little after 1:30 AM, I took a deep breathe as a really strong contractions hit me and I went down into the water as far as I could. The pressure ebbed, but just long enough for me to relax, say a prayer, and tell myself I could do this.
Another contraction hit, harder, fuller and definitely the one I was waiting on. I leaned forward, eyes wide, focusing on taking deep breathes, trying to get Cody’s attention.
He happened to look up and seeing how I looked and asked if we needed Ashley. I could barely nod yes, I was groaning into the contraction while reaching down to help Evelyn’s head as Ashley and Mercy came in with Cody.
The one giant push I gave resulted in all of Evelyn coming out at 1:38 AM en caul.
That surprised me, but there she was! All 8 pounds 3 ounces, 18 inches, with the finest layer of fuzz and vernix all over once she burst from her sac, which she quickly did.
Her massive little head and tiny feet were the cutest things we’d seen since Bethany’s birth.”
As told by Jamie Jones, Evelyn’s mother.
If you are interested in having a peaceful water birth at home contact Fort Worth Midwifery today and set up your free consultation. You may find that home birth is the birth you desire.
