18 Comments

  1. Carolyn,

    Congratulations on your gorgeous baby boy! I’ve been following your blog for about a year and a half, and I have just started blogging myself – so I thought I’d say hello (I’ve never commented)! I think we have some things in common as converts and art school grads…

    God bless,

    Rachel

  2. Your births sound like mine..like going to war!!! This was beautifully and vividly written, although I have to admit I find it terrifying. Like I would do it all again…but I wish and hope it will be a bit easier. Straight for the epidural next time for me! Your son is beautiful. Congrats!!

  3. I clicked over here from Ana’s and ohhh man. Love a good birth story. And I TOTALLY get you on the “worst car ride ever”. I had that with my first and it will NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN. Congratulations, he is darling!

  4. Wow. Somehow you conveyed the intensity of what you went through in a way I’ll never be able to. And maybe, having just given birth myself just 4 weeks ago today, the memories are still fresh. It was my hardest natural birth. The contractions were so bad, so intense, I wanted to die during each one. When I was told I could push, I thought in a split second that I was done. No more, I would not live through another contraction. And I didn’t-I pushed that baby out in one very determined push accompanied by a lot of very unladylike noises. I simply can’t imagine how ugly things would’ve gotten if I hadn’t succeeded! Reading your story, I was imagining what I would have felt if she was stuck…man. That must have been so hard. I’m glad he and you made it through! Thanks for sharing your story in its raw reality. You did an amazing job on both the birth and the baby-he couldn’t be more perfect.

  5. Beautiful story, BEAUTIFUL baby. Makes me excited for what’s to come, car ride and all. (Except I’ll be screaming the E-word much sooner, haha)

  6. Man, you really know how to describe some labour. I’m feeling contractions just reading this. And I understand the frustrating length of pushing, and the cervical stuff…and yeah…it’s all so incredibly painful. You are amazing and he is beautiful!

  7. Wow. Just wow. I have to confess that unlike most mamas, I am not a birth story addict – but this was the most dramatic and beautiful and well-written one I have ever read. Thank you for sharing this with us…truly I don’t think I breathed till I got to the end. Thank God he is here and healthy!!

  8. Jeez girl, a month later im forgetting the pain and starting to think “I could have another one” but this totally reminds me that nope, I am not ready at all to do that again! We do all that planning for a peaceful birth and then end it screaming at hubands “get my oils! Dont leave! I want my oils! Give me your hand! I need them! Your hand!!!!!” Haha. Praise God he made our precious little ones tougher than we are! Congratulations!

  9. Having just given birth to my #7 12 days ago, a labor which included two false alarm trips to the hospital because my contractions would literally just STOP when I got there, and walking around 5cm dilated for two weeks. I, too, got stuck at 9cm with that dang cervical lip, and my midwife stretched me over it. I then proceeded to somehow push out a 10 pound baby in three pushes – a posterior baby that “corkscrewed his way out”- literally bruising my pubic bone in the process. What is it with these babies – can’t they make it at least a little easier on us?? Oh, and I was begging for the epidural at the end too, which was answered with a “it won’t help. It’s not pain but pressure you are trying to get thru”. Wow. So glad your Jude is healthy. I love that name.

  10. I can agree… Cervical stretching while having a contraction, worse than contractions. Worse than pushing. I pray I never have to experience that again. I was BEGGING for pain relief when my doctor had to do that. They told me I was complete, I wasn’t. Baby’s heart rate was too high & Dr wanted the baby OUT. Stretching my cervix was the solution.
    You have a beautiful baby boy though. It’s always always worth it in the end

  11. Thank you so much for posting this!! I’ve been looking forward to hearing how things went, as I approach my delivery after 2 really terrifying labor and delivery experiences. I had breathtaking contractions from 27 weeks with Lucy (probably went to the ER about 6 times to get checked for pre-term labor), so when the real thing came, we made it to the hospital 1 hour exactly before she was born, because I just didn’t believe it was labor until it was too late. I can understand 100% regarding the out-of-body pain pushing experience. Nurses stabbing me with needles, shoving paperwork in my face between contractions, and me just ignoring them and going into a shock-like state of ignoring them, storing up energy for the next contraction. Phew! Gonna do it again in 10 weeks and the contractions have already started….YAY! Had my first pre-term labor hospital check two days ago.

    You are such an inspiration and an awesome writer! I look forward to every new post!!! And all your fashion recs ;)

    Now, back to my squats!!!

  12. That is an awesome story- LOVE the pictures your husband took in the car. Made me laugh really out loud!
    He is such a beautiful boy. Congrats mama!

  13. Carolyn! I am supposed to be hustling out the door to this conference and double checked my message one last time… and there was your birth story in my feed. I can NOT pass up a good birth story. No I can not. And now I am crying and crying and so glad I had waited to put on mascara. THIS is where we lay it down for our children from the very beginning. This glimpse into what it really means to serve and to bring forth life. This is where we hit the bottom and just hang on for dear life and God shows us that there is life and death and suffering… and then life again. Congratulations, mama. You done good. And look at that boy! So beautiful. Such a gift.

    These things like conferences and sinks full of dirty dishes… ack… I’m just sitting here in awe of BIGness and not at all stressed about the littleness anymore. Thank you for blessing my day and blessing the world with the gift of your son and your motherhood. Thanks Be to God!!!

  14. DYING laughing at the fact that he took those car selfies with you in the back! And now bawling from the rest of the hard, beautiful story. My favorite part was your reaction to Craig saying his name as Jude. So perfect.

    I had a stuck anterior cervical lip with Conor – NO FUN.

    Wonderful birth story, Mama, Craig, Jude and boys!

  15. Oh. My. Gosh. His cord?!?!?!?!?!?!?! Oh my gosh thank God he is okay. What you described so well is making my body hurt along with yours. Wow. Insane. So hard. !!!

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