I was expecting baby #2's birth to be a lot like Violets since that's the only birth experience I ever had, and plus the pregnancy was very similar. The only thing different (that is significant enough to me to observe) is my food cravings were different (with baby #2 I craved more sweets) and that I am a lot heavier (week 39 at 152lbs). Because of the heavier weight, I was nervous about delivering a big baby, which could complicate the delivery or it could just be a lot more pain. Either way, my wonderful midwife Charlotte suggested breaking my water bag to help induce the labor, which we weren't 100% certain if it would be the right thing to do, but that was what I would like to do to get this party started!
We prayed and made plans on inducing Friday morning. Caleb and I lined up work accordingly, we told family about our plans and Charlotte was scheduled to come by 7am. On Wednesday morning Charlotte swiped my membranes and popped some blisters in my cervix but nothing happened on Wednesday or Thursday. The only thing that happened up til this time was my mucus plug broke 1-2weeks prior (the Friday before Caleb was scheduled to fly to SF to spend the weekend with his brothers). Thursday night (7/10/14) came and I was so nervous about the birth - afraid of the pain, concern about the delivery, uncertain about re-visiting this experience of discomfort. God completely changed my heart! Friday morning came along and I was filled with JOY and EXCITEMENT to meet my new baby! To be able to hold baby, nurse baby, and hold baby close in my arms!
Charlotte didnt show up til 7:45am and I was helping Violet eat some breakfast (as I tried to shove some down myself). They were waiting for me downstairs so I decided to cut breakfast short and go empty my bladder before getting my water bag popped. Caleb said a quick prayer and as I stood up, my water bag broke on its own at 7:58am! Talk about miracles! All the uncertainties and nervousness of the induction went away as this was His plan all along and He was so amazing to let us know his plans!
8:45am - potential first contraction, very mild
Nothing happened for awhile so we ate lunch and took a nap. Violet also napped so we all had a good rest before labor. Midwife called and suggested taking castor oil to help contractions. But instead, we watched Princess Bride as I laid and did nipple stimulation and that's when contractions started.
12:35pm -second contraction for a minute
12:43pm - contractions continued about 7-8min apart consistently for 2hrs at 1min duration. Temperature increased to 100.2degF. Midwife return to our home at 2ish to assist since I was I'm active labor
This was a difficult labor. I had to work hard pushing. Similar to violets birth, baby was rocking in and out from the pelvic bone, unable to come through. Baby kept pushing from one side to the next, and eventually stuck on my right side, pushing into my right hip and completely numbing my right leg so it was most painful pushing through that. We did all kinds of positions: squatting. Standing, Birth stools, toilet, sideways on the bed, and back on the bed. They were all uncomfortable and tiring, and my leg kept cramping. I suppose that with a shorter labor it would then imply that your body uses up the fuel faster meaning my supply on magnesium and potassium was depleted thus causing the cramps. Just like violets birth, I didn't tear until baby was out too his shoulders. It didn't help that baby has a huge head to push out as well. Per the midwife, the biggest baby head she's ever delivered measures at 15inches and my baby is one of them,
At 7:44pm on July 11,2014, Caden Zion Martin was born at 9lbs 3oz. God is so good. 7+hr labor is better than 20+!!
I really appreciate having Diane here to watch Violet through the whole ordeal, because being able to hear her talking and laughing helped me feel at ease and focus on the labor, rather than worrying about her well being.
Recovery is slow and hard. Since I'm mostly bed ridden, I am completely dependent. I can barely move any part of my body, especially the lower half of my body. The biggest pain is on my hips and leg, specifically my right leg (must be from the pinched nerve during labor). Caleb helps me stand up so I can pee into my adult diapers (so practical yet humiliating) since my body is not programmed to pee laying down! Since it's summer it is pretty warm, so it is nice not to worry about over dressing the little guy. Unlike violet, he is mostly sleeping. He pooped out meconium during labor, and continue pooping meconium twice after that. Good thing we applied some olive oil to help remove this tar-poop! Caleb was so nervous to wipe around Caden's privates because he understands how sensitive it is.
I miss having my mom here since I am uncertain about my own personal health. Seems like western ways are not geared towards rejuvenating the body post labor. Either way, I am thankful that Holly hooked me up with a chiropractor that does home visits and is covered in our insurance :)
Let's hope baby #3 is easier! All glory to God.
Saturday, July 12, 2014
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Am I going into labor? Yes, I am.
1:30am - woke up to pee, couldn't fall back asleep. This is normal, but it doesn't always happen.
2:30am - decided to get out of bed for midnight snack; accompanied by spider solitaire
3:30am - mummy woke up and said hi. She went back to bed and I followed suit
4:30am - lying in bed, still couldn't sleep, but I know I need to get my rest
5:30am - Caleb's alarm rang and it's time to get up, but now I'm sleepy
8:00am - woke up from my sleep, but was feeling tired from restless night so I stayed on bed
10:00am - finally started work (thank god for remote work and flexibility!) but I couldn't sit still for over 30minute at a time because I either experienced some back pressure or groin pressure. Sitting on the yoga ball didn't help much either
12:00pm - decided that I must not be in labor, so we bought tickets to the king tut exhibit
3:00pm - left home for our fun evening out (king tut, followed by some shopping for mummy at hard rock cafe, and ended the evening with dinner by the bay at red robins)
8:30pm - showered and got ready or bed. Right as I was about to partake of my evening primrose oil, I experienced what felt like my water breaking (constant trickle, not a big gush)
9:00pm - water still trickling, so we left a voicemail with the midwife, Charlotte. Told mummy about the incident and wore adult diapers so I can try to sleep
9:29pm - I think this feels like a contraction (?)
9:36pm - this also feels like a contraction (but let's have Caleb sleep because if it is 1st stage labor, everyone needs to rest
9:44pm - I wonder if this potential contraction is creating a trend?
9:51pm - I think this is a contraction.. Seems like there is a pattern in the frequency.. Should I wake Caleb up or wait till it gets more intense?
9:58pm - Caleb can't sleep, but he's trying to get some rest. Told the family and Joanna called
10:05pm - the trickling doesn't stop.. The Bradley class says I need to replenish the water loss by drinking water, but I think I should try to sleep..
10:11pm - man, I can't believe I'm timing this early on.. If I am in labor for 20hrs, this is not very fun
10:16pm - is it picking up speed? Caleb is awake and starting to time my contractions
10:24pm - midwife said to take temperature n drink water, contractions lasting 40seconds, 36.5 Celsius
10:30pm - 1min contraction
10:35pm - 30seconds, I think we should try to go to bed and stop timing the contractions for a whole.. This is going to be a long night...
10:46pm - I didn't time the last contraction, instead I went to the bathroom n saw blood in my diaper. So I decided to give up the sleeping idea n watch Survivor. For some reason I feel very cold
11:47pm - contractions have been consistent, but it does help to be distracted by watching tv. I hope mummy n Caleb r getting enough rest to help me through 2nd stage later. Getting slight headache n still somewhat sleepy but can't really do anything but go with the flow (37celsius)
Oct 19
12:23am - temperature creeping up (37.6celsius)
12:57am - apparently the temperature I am in is normal, but it seems like my contractions are not as regular? I don't know, because I haven't been timing. Was able to update STD benefits and work in regards to time off and handing off project
I stopped timing after that last post as I decided that it is time to get some rest (I guess I am going into labor) but it wasn't very comfortable nor easy to nap. I didn't eat much but I kept stayin hydrated. Caleb called the midwife several times and updated them on our status, but we didn't head over to the birth center until 2:30pm. The contractions wasn't necessarily stronger, but I was just feelin very miserable and uncomfortable to move or stay still. I wanted to be in the bath tub as the warm water would've soothed me, but the midwife said it could slow down my contractions.
The car ride wasn't as bad as I had thought, all thanks to my wonderful husband who planned it ahead so we had a full tank of gas and traveled during light traffic time. When we arrived, I was still just as miserable but this time, I can't pee. The full bladder was in competition with my uterus, and since baby is moving down the birth canal, the urethra squished shut. We tried multiple natural ways to help me pee (hand in warm water, warm shower, manually squeeze bladder) but ended up needing to catheterize me, twice. I had several wasted 'push' prior to emptying the bladder, since the full bladder only acted as a cushion to bounce the baby back in. On top of getting catheterized, I got an IV drip with antibiotics at 20hr after water break because there's odor in my discharge.
There was no clock in the room, which bugged me but now I am thankful for that since it would've only made more paranoid about the time. It seemed like I had the urge to push later that evening, and those were painful. In fact, it made me forget what my normal contractions felt like in comparison to second stage contractions + pushing. They said you would get adrenaline to keep you going thru the labor, but I'm guessing my lack of food intake impacted that adrenaline factor because I was super exhausted. I tried to rest/nap in between my contractions, which was only successful half the time since nothing I did enabled comfort. The only thing I was able to eat was yogurt and a few bites of chicken herbal soup.
I moved into multiple positions to help the birth process, all of which were not comfortable either. I was stuck in between a rock and a hard place: If I don't finish what was started aka push baby out, I may just stay pregnant forever... Tough choice! Laying on my back hurts my butt, sitting on the birth stool cuts off circulation to my legs, kneeling on hands and knees takes too much energy but I kept alternating through the different positions as they helped position the baby into the right angle when she passes thru different parts of the birth canal (this is when education helps big time! I understand what is happening and can imagine what my body is doing, so I can logically talk myself into assisting the process despite the pain) the position I was in most was laying on my side because it enabled me to rest between contractions/pushes.
It is a HUGE blessing to have my wonderful birth coach aka my one and only spouse, my loving and ever ready mom, and a team of supportive, experienced midwives to help me through this challenging time. I can't imagine how anyone could've done this with lesser assistance. One person is fanning me, while wiping sweat off my brow, another person intermittently checking my vitals (blood pressure, heart rate, temperature), another person feeding me and verbally comforting me, and two others helped me stretch open my legs as I push. Such a big job to deliver a baby!!
Caleb nor I can identify when was the transition period; it seems like I went straight from 1st to 2nd stage without passing transition, unless we did go through it and it wasnt that bad? I had no idea what my progress was like the entire time. Since my water broke, doing too many vaginal inspections could increase the risk of infection so by the time we checked my dilation for the first time, I was already at 9cm. This was close to midnight (the silly thing was that I had a slight twinge of excitement from knowing that the baby will be born on October 20th!) so that was when the hardest part began - pushing! All in all I had about 5hours of hard labor.
It really does feel like you are passing a big hard stool, because you are to focus the pushing on the butt. I knew it felt odd but they kept telling me I'm doing a good job after each push, so I must be doing it right. I would rest for a minute or two, and then when I feel a contraction coming, I warn the team, and they get my legs into position - spread eagle. I was frustrated when I know the baby was rocking back and forth under the pelvic bone (which is normal to go thru the 2step forward 1 step back motion) but there's no other way out. I did think of asking for medication, but I knew it was pointless because they had none. Which was why it was great that I didn't choose to birth in a hospital where drugs were a lot more accessible. The tiring part of pushing was feeling the baby passing through the birth canal, putting pressure at different parts of my body. At times my butt really hurts, then there's times my rib cage really hurts, but none of those pain amounts to the pressure on the groin when she is getting closer.
Caleb reminded me to take deep breaths, I think that really helped to get oxygen to the baby and maintained her heart rate, he told me to also relax other parts of my body during the push so I am concentrating all efforts on the part that counts, and he kept me hydrated so I can keep my strength up. The last wave came and I knew it was all about to come to an end when they showed me her head in the mirror..A few more pushes and I am done!! My legs were so tired from the spread, my butt was so sore from the pressure, and I was ready to be done! When she started crowning, I really felt the ring of fire people mentioned! The stupid thing was that I'm too tired to give any more pushes, so she had to stay crowned in between my contractions. I rested for a minute to two, then I pushed 3 times at about 10seconds stretch each. I tried to do low grunts but most of the time I just shut my eyes, squeezed my face and held my breath as I pushed. When her head finally passed through I gave a sigh of relief but the midwife quickly told me to keep pushing (even though I had already given my usual 3 pushes) baby was stuck by the shoulders/waist!!! So I just pushed with whatever might I had left in me just to get her out. I felt success as the baby finally slid out of me like a big blob of warm goo. Without hesitation they placed her on my bare chest (well, they placed baby on my tummy since the umbilical cord was abnormally short and can't reach any further) Caleb and I both teared up as we watch our beautiful baby girl being rubbed down on my tummy and she gave a few adorable coos which almost instantly makes you forget what you went through..all 27hour worth of laboring!
Violet Kaili (凯丽) Martin
October 20,2012
2:04am, 8.1lbs
2:30am - decided to get out of bed for midnight snack; accompanied by spider solitaire
3:30am - mummy woke up and said hi. She went back to bed and I followed suit
4:30am - lying in bed, still couldn't sleep, but I know I need to get my rest
5:30am - Caleb's alarm rang and it's time to get up, but now I'm sleepy
8:00am - woke up from my sleep, but was feeling tired from restless night so I stayed on bed
10:00am - finally started work (thank god for remote work and flexibility!) but I couldn't sit still for over 30minute at a time because I either experienced some back pressure or groin pressure. Sitting on the yoga ball didn't help much either
12:00pm - decided that I must not be in labor, so we bought tickets to the king tut exhibit
3:00pm - left home for our fun evening out (king tut, followed by some shopping for mummy at hard rock cafe, and ended the evening with dinner by the bay at red robins)
8:30pm - showered and got ready or bed. Right as I was about to partake of my evening primrose oil, I experienced what felt like my water breaking (constant trickle, not a big gush)
9:00pm - water still trickling, so we left a voicemail with the midwife, Charlotte. Told mummy about the incident and wore adult diapers so I can try to sleep
9:29pm - I think this feels like a contraction (?)
9:36pm - this also feels like a contraction (but let's have Caleb sleep because if it is 1st stage labor, everyone needs to rest
9:44pm - I wonder if this potential contraction is creating a trend?
9:51pm - I think this is a contraction.. Seems like there is a pattern in the frequency.. Should I wake Caleb up or wait till it gets more intense?
9:58pm - Caleb can't sleep, but he's trying to get some rest. Told the family and Joanna called
10:05pm - the trickling doesn't stop.. The Bradley class says I need to replenish the water loss by drinking water, but I think I should try to sleep..
10:11pm - man, I can't believe I'm timing this early on.. If I am in labor for 20hrs, this is not very fun
10:16pm - is it picking up speed? Caleb is awake and starting to time my contractions
10:24pm - midwife said to take temperature n drink water, contractions lasting 40seconds, 36.5 Celsius
10:30pm - 1min contraction
10:35pm - 30seconds, I think we should try to go to bed and stop timing the contractions for a whole.. This is going to be a long night...
10:46pm - I didn't time the last contraction, instead I went to the bathroom n saw blood in my diaper. So I decided to give up the sleeping idea n watch Survivor. For some reason I feel very cold
11:47pm - contractions have been consistent, but it does help to be distracted by watching tv. I hope mummy n Caleb r getting enough rest to help me through 2nd stage later. Getting slight headache n still somewhat sleepy but can't really do anything but go with the flow (37celsius)
Oct 19
12:23am - temperature creeping up (37.6celsius)
12:57am - apparently the temperature I am in is normal, but it seems like my contractions are not as regular? I don't know, because I haven't been timing. Was able to update STD benefits and work in regards to time off and handing off project
I stopped timing after that last post as I decided that it is time to get some rest (I guess I am going into labor) but it wasn't very comfortable nor easy to nap. I didn't eat much but I kept stayin hydrated. Caleb called the midwife several times and updated them on our status, but we didn't head over to the birth center until 2:30pm. The contractions wasn't necessarily stronger, but I was just feelin very miserable and uncomfortable to move or stay still. I wanted to be in the bath tub as the warm water would've soothed me, but the midwife said it could slow down my contractions.
The car ride wasn't as bad as I had thought, all thanks to my wonderful husband who planned it ahead so we had a full tank of gas and traveled during light traffic time. When we arrived, I was still just as miserable but this time, I can't pee. The full bladder was in competition with my uterus, and since baby is moving down the birth canal, the urethra squished shut. We tried multiple natural ways to help me pee (hand in warm water, warm shower, manually squeeze bladder) but ended up needing to catheterize me, twice. I had several wasted 'push' prior to emptying the bladder, since the full bladder only acted as a cushion to bounce the baby back in. On top of getting catheterized, I got an IV drip with antibiotics at 20hr after water break because there's odor in my discharge.
There was no clock in the room, which bugged me but now I am thankful for that since it would've only made more paranoid about the time. It seemed like I had the urge to push later that evening, and those were painful. In fact, it made me forget what my normal contractions felt like in comparison to second stage contractions + pushing. They said you would get adrenaline to keep you going thru the labor, but I'm guessing my lack of food intake impacted that adrenaline factor because I was super exhausted. I tried to rest/nap in between my contractions, which was only successful half the time since nothing I did enabled comfort. The only thing I was able to eat was yogurt and a few bites of chicken herbal soup.
I moved into multiple positions to help the birth process, all of which were not comfortable either. I was stuck in between a rock and a hard place: If I don't finish what was started aka push baby out, I may just stay pregnant forever... Tough choice! Laying on my back hurts my butt, sitting on the birth stool cuts off circulation to my legs, kneeling on hands and knees takes too much energy but I kept alternating through the different positions as they helped position the baby into the right angle when she passes thru different parts of the birth canal (this is when education helps big time! I understand what is happening and can imagine what my body is doing, so I can logically talk myself into assisting the process despite the pain) the position I was in most was laying on my side because it enabled me to rest between contractions/pushes.
It is a HUGE blessing to have my wonderful birth coach aka my one and only spouse, my loving and ever ready mom, and a team of supportive, experienced midwives to help me through this challenging time. I can't imagine how anyone could've done this with lesser assistance. One person is fanning me, while wiping sweat off my brow, another person intermittently checking my vitals (blood pressure, heart rate, temperature), another person feeding me and verbally comforting me, and two others helped me stretch open my legs as I push. Such a big job to deliver a baby!!
Caleb nor I can identify when was the transition period; it seems like I went straight from 1st to 2nd stage without passing transition, unless we did go through it and it wasnt that bad? I had no idea what my progress was like the entire time. Since my water broke, doing too many vaginal inspections could increase the risk of infection so by the time we checked my dilation for the first time, I was already at 9cm. This was close to midnight (the silly thing was that I had a slight twinge of excitement from knowing that the baby will be born on October 20th!) so that was when the hardest part began - pushing! All in all I had about 5hours of hard labor.
It really does feel like you are passing a big hard stool, because you are to focus the pushing on the butt. I knew it felt odd but they kept telling me I'm doing a good job after each push, so I must be doing it right. I would rest for a minute or two, and then when I feel a contraction coming, I warn the team, and they get my legs into position - spread eagle. I was frustrated when I know the baby was rocking back and forth under the pelvic bone (which is normal to go thru the 2step forward 1 step back motion) but there's no other way out. I did think of asking for medication, but I knew it was pointless because they had none. Which was why it was great that I didn't choose to birth in a hospital where drugs were a lot more accessible. The tiring part of pushing was feeling the baby passing through the birth canal, putting pressure at different parts of my body. At times my butt really hurts, then there's times my rib cage really hurts, but none of those pain amounts to the pressure on the groin when she is getting closer.
Caleb reminded me to take deep breaths, I think that really helped to get oxygen to the baby and maintained her heart rate, he told me to also relax other parts of my body during the push so I am concentrating all efforts on the part that counts, and he kept me hydrated so I can keep my strength up. The last wave came and I knew it was all about to come to an end when they showed me her head in the mirror..A few more pushes and I am done!! My legs were so tired from the spread, my butt was so sore from the pressure, and I was ready to be done! When she started crowning, I really felt the ring of fire people mentioned! The stupid thing was that I'm too tired to give any more pushes, so she had to stay crowned in between my contractions. I rested for a minute to two, then I pushed 3 times at about 10seconds stretch each. I tried to do low grunts but most of the time I just shut my eyes, squeezed my face and held my breath as I pushed. When her head finally passed through I gave a sigh of relief but the midwife quickly told me to keep pushing (even though I had already given my usual 3 pushes) baby was stuck by the shoulders/waist!!! So I just pushed with whatever might I had left in me just to get her out. I felt success as the baby finally slid out of me like a big blob of warm goo. Without hesitation they placed her on my bare chest (well, they placed baby on my tummy since the umbilical cord was abnormally short and can't reach any further) Caleb and I both teared up as we watch our beautiful baby girl being rubbed down on my tummy and she gave a few adorable coos which almost instantly makes you forget what you went through..all 27hour worth of laboring!
Violet Kaili (凯丽) Martin
October 20,2012
2:04am, 8.1lbs
Monday, October 8, 2012
The World's Greatest!
I cannot imagine how single parents can get through pregnancy/parenting if they don't get support. I am typically strong but I much prefer being dependent on a wonderful spouse that is helpful. I want to dedicate this blog to my sweet hubby that is doing his best to assume his role as a new daddy and my coach birth. Last week, he put a log in the fireplace and gave me a a calming and relaxing evening with a full body massage. He wasn't only loving me with his acts of service, but also with his words by affirming me that his standard of beauty is how I am exactly right now. He said how he chose not to have an active personal life outside of work because he wants to be there for me as much as he can and spend the most time with me, because this is the last of "us two alone" that we will have. (Everyone knows family dynamics changes when children enters the picture). I am very grateful that God has provided me with a wonderful husband that is so loving, supportive, helpful (especially around the home!!) and strong.
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Not the typical pregnancy
From the beginning of this blog I have been mentioning that I have an easy pregnancy, yet when I share it to people, they always tell me "oh just you wait..it will come"...IT referring to all the discomforts of pregnancy. Yet now at Week 35, I am still standing strong on my blessing from God, being able to proclaim having an easy pregnancy...below is a list of common experiences that most mothers-to-be go through. The ones highlighted are the ones I had a taste of:
Heart burn
Gas
Bleeding Gums
Varicose veins
Leg Cramps
Hemorrhoids
Fatigue
Constipation
Backache
Weight Gain
Sore Breasts
Sleeping Problems
Vaginitis
Water Retention
Sharp Pain in Groin
Moodiness
Headaches
Braxton-hicks Contractions
Morning Sickness
That puts me at 4/19 = about 20% -praise God for a smooth pregnancy!
.jpg)
.jpg)
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Baby Shower
It is difficult to abandon my Chinese roots when it comes to adapting to a different culture. For example, ang pow is how people typically provide blessings to others (Chinese New Year, Birthdays, Weddings, etc) and having a new born in the family is no exception - money is accepted universally regardless what culture. The challenge then is to put aside this expectation when it comes to the Western culture since it is not the norm. Instead, typically, a baby shower is thrown by a close relative or a friend/co-worker to help the new mother-to-be with the overwhelming cost of baby items...I think most everyone know that anything for sale that has the word "baby" on it is already marked up 10times what it should really sell for. Example, a normal wash rag could cost you $0.50 each, but because its a baby wash rag suddenly its $10 for two. The problem with a shower is that most people tend to get you whatever they like (cute baby outfits, etc) as oppose to the unattractive practical items (diapers!) Regardless, I am thankful for Holly for going through the effort of throwing me a wonderful shower.
The wonderful hosts
The wonderful hosts
A lot of effort went into the "pretend" nursery (which we will be borrowing for a while!!)
Winter helped with opening presents
Hand made gifts
Some cute outfits for Violet
Family came to support
Seems like a storm, rather than a shower!
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Birthing Coach in our New Apartment
Caleb and I are finally reunited! It feels good to be sleeping in the same bed again, having our daily meals together, and working towards unity in our baby goals. Due to limited time, we didn't waste much time as soon as we moved back in together that we started getting busy...put the home together (out of boxes) and attended our first birthing class; the Bradley Birth.
It was great to have family help us get settled in by moving all our junk, and then we took the next few weeks to slowly organize the home. Getting a 3bedroom apartment, even though costing more than a 2bedroom, was a great decision because I feel the freedom to roam in a spacious environment while I am working from home. Right now, the baby room is storing all our undealt-with-boxes but the rest of the home is functional (kitchen, living room, office and master bedroom) We bought me a computer desk from Craigslist so I have a workstation that is spacious and comfy. I am really liking the setup and enjoying the freedom of working from home. During work breaks, I can thaw/marinade meats for dinner-preparation, I can do some chores (laundry, dishes, etc) and personal care (facials!!) I wonder how my "schedule" will change when the baby comes. The best thing about working from home is the flexibility, yet currently I am working about 7am-4pm
We enrolled in a birthing class rather late in our pregnancy because it was hard to find weekend classes that would work for us while we were 5hours apart. Regardless, by God's grace, we landed with a very good birth class that is 12session long, supports natural birth, is physically located within 15min of our apartment, and we got a $200 discount!! (Classes typically range from $175-$300). We are learning lots and the best part is, the instructor is aware that we will have to miss the 2nd half of the lessons since Violet is due mid October, thus she is scheduling make-up private sessions...God is so good! The biggest thing I plan on getting out of the birthing class is preparing Caleb to be my birth coach (instead of hiring a doula, since the cost is not covered by insurance) Caleb has been wonderful - being supportive, very involved, catching up on reading (we bought the Husband-Coached Childbirth book) and encouraging me on my relaxation techniques, exercises and nutrition.
The living room (waiting the arrival for our tv mount)..Caleb did a splendid job arranging the picture frames!
The Dining Room and Kitchen (the bar stools is too low for the breakfast bar :-/ )
Pantry (spacey!!) and Kitchen
Cozy master bedroom
Master bathroom (not attached to the master bedroom)
Laundry room, with space for kitchen appliances
Office/Guest room
We enrolled in a birthing class rather late in our pregnancy because it was hard to find weekend classes that would work for us while we were 5hours apart. Regardless, by God's grace, we landed with a very good birth class that is 12session long, supports natural birth, is physically located within 15min of our apartment, and we got a $200 discount!! (Classes typically range from $175-$300). We are learning lots and the best part is, the instructor is aware that we will have to miss the 2nd half of the lessons since Violet is due mid October, thus she is scheduling make-up private sessions...God is so good! The biggest thing I plan on getting out of the birthing class is preparing Caleb to be my birth coach (instead of hiring a doula, since the cost is not covered by insurance) Caleb has been wonderful - being supportive, very involved, catching up on reading (we bought the Husband-Coached Childbirth book) and encouraging me on my relaxation techniques, exercises and nutrition.
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Maternity Photoshoot
I have seen some beautiful maternity pictures online and was inspired to get one done for our first pregnancy. I've been told that children are the best form of birth control - so in the event that this is my only child, I would've at least captured the memory in forms of still images. The initial challenge was to identify this photoshoot as a "need" or a "want"...do I "need" to have belly pictures, or do I "want" to have maternity pictures? The answer is very obvious, thus to justify the shoot, I needed to find a very good deal! I was hunting Groupon for a long time, however, most of the deals did not give me digital copyrights, so I switched over to Craigslist. I found a GREAT deal for under $30 (isn't it great to experience Gods' favor??) and we are rather pleased with the outcome. Of course, Caleb and I are not professional models by any means, but it sure is fun to experience being in a studio.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)