Simply TiAnna: Evelyn's Birth Story

This is the story of Evelyn's arrival, of how I became a mommy.

My belly shot two days before Evelyn's birthday

At 36.5 weeks, my Braxton Hicks contractions started to feel pretty real. Some were fairly uncomfortable, they were timeable, and they came in a wave or "peaked". After going in twice for a false alarm, I was pretty discouraged. (And exhausted since I was too thrilled to go to sleep and miss any of it- ha!) When that happens so early, you start to feel over due when you still have weeks to go. I am so thankful Evelyn came early!

Side story: When we first found out we were pregnant, I told Joseph I really wanted to be early but not too early. "November 5th would be a good day, right?" And to that he joked "Remember, remember the 5th of November?" So we laughed about the Guy Fox Day reference and I still thought it would be a good day.

On November 4th, I got a lot done. Not a frenzied "nesting" but just a productive and restful day. I had freezer meals put away, I did a Costco run, got my hair trimmed, cleaned the house, etc. So when I woke up at 1:30 am on the 5th with really period-like cramps that were just very different from my false starts, I just chuckled. Even if I had a pretty long labor, chances were high I really would meet this little lady on November 5th. From the get go the contractions were 3 minutes apart lasting 45-60 seconds. I tried to go back to sleep, but they were just intense enough that that wasn't going to be an option. So I got up, kept eating little meals and drinking water, watched some shows on Netflix, showered and did my hair while waiting for Joseph to wake up for work. I figured that since it was way too soon to do anything about it, I should just let everyone sleep.

At 5 am, Joseph came into the living room looking confused about why I was awake.
"It's baby day!"
"Are you sure?"
"Sure am" :)
And I was glad he was up because at this point the contractions were getting hard enough that I needed someone. Joseph held my hand through them over the next couple hours while bouncing back and forth between packing our last few things and getting ready himself.

Walking. My hesitation is obvious ;)

Around 7 we went on a walk to help get labor really going. Well, we made it maybe 10 min with practically a contraction at every driveway. This is when I really started to feel my body taking over. I didn't want to be in public, to be seen, especially by the cars driving by who didn't understand. I wanted to be somewhere quiet, protected, and inside. Honestly, this was a hard psychological moment. I was panicked- I couldn't do this. I was making a mistake. I needed to go to the hospital and get that epidural. This is where Joseph's soft words of encouragement pulled me through and set me at ease.

I drew myself a bath and that was one of my favorite parts of the whole labor. I sat in my tub, feeling these contractions come, peak, and fade. I was doing this. I could do this. With every contraction, my mind went to all the hikes Joseph and I had done the summer before- how the last half mile of climbing was the absolute worst. My mind would get complain-ey and question whether or not I could actually get there. And then we would crest, the cool air would hit my face, the mountain herbs would fill my nose, and the alpine lake would shine and glisten to welcome me to the top. I have never been more thankful for Joseph's love of hiking. It was the perfect reminder that even when I doubted myself, the end was just in sight.

During this time, Britney, my amazing friend and doula, and my mom came. We would chat between contractions and laugh and I kept eating little bites and drinking my water and enjoying having my shoulders or feet rubbed. It was so exciting and joyful knowing by the end of this, she was going to be here. My brain really couldn't wrap around that! I was going to meet my daughter today.

The last pictures of this beautifully big belly

After awhile longer, about 11 am, it was time to go in to the Birth Center. I wasn't too excited about the drive or really being seen by people. This just felt so private and I didn't want to be watched by people who didn't know what was happening. The drive. Yes, the drive was terrible. Let's just say it like this: For hours now I had been getting through contractions by closing my eyes and focusing. Curvy roads and traffic were pleasant enough with the contractions, but the car sickness from the eye-closing added a special funness to it all!

We walked into the birth center to be greeted with hugs from my midwives. (Now, this is where my memories start to get really fragmented. You see, I just kept my eyes closed as I was dealing with contractions so most of my memories are almost purely audio.) I asked right away to get into the tub- I longed for that warm water. Since it's best not to get into a relaxing tub too early in labor, they wanted to check my progress first.

Laying on the bed, all of those first time mom worries were going through my head- thinking I was getting close, talking myself down in case I was barely started, and the slight panic that comes when you think about just how long it could actually be before the end. I just kept asking "Tell me its more than a 2." So when Jen told me I was at a 5, I cried big fat tears of joy (which I think were originally taken as panic tears as they started to explain that was much further than half way).

This is a perfect picture of Joseph's sweet calm and optimism throughout the whole thing. I love that man!

The big bath was drawn for me, and I got in. Between adrenaline making me a touch shakey and hormones, I was still so cold. I remember a towel wet with warm water being put on my shoulders felt so good. During every contraction, Joseph was reaching over to put pressure on my lower back and I held onto somebody's hands, mostly my mom's.

Seriously, I was so thankful to have her there even though I know how hard it was for her to watch me in pain.

After a few different position changes in the tub (changing positions every 45 min-1 hr helps keep things really moving), it was time to come out to help keep the progress going. I sat on the toilet with my face on the cool tank on the back. The next contraction was a wild one: my water broke (on the toilet, go figure I would be hilariously tidy in labor) and my body started pushing. It was such a strange and strong feeling, like my body was vomiting down, and with the intensity I really wished I could have vomited up too. A few more contractions and I got to go back to the glorious tub.

Frankly, all those ladies who tell their birth story and talk about how the pushing was "fun" or at least better because there was an end goal, well, they lied. For me, that was not the case. And even in this intensity, it was so beautiful to see how present my brain was. I let my body do the work and added about zero effort because it didn't feel good at all. I just kept my focus on humming low and keeping my jaw relaxed. That was all the was in my power to do. I was leaning against Joseph's chest as he helped me keep that birth song low and calm.

Feeling like it was never going to end, I reached down to see if she was even getting close at all. Well, there she was- maybe an inch away from crowning! My inner competitor kicked in when I realized just how soon I could be done. Next contraction: I push with my body. She crowns and all I want to know is if she has hair. Mom's teary voice tells me she does. That helped give me something to focus on. The crowning really was a "ring of fire" and I couldn't run away. I told myself "I only have to birth her head once." During that next contraction, I waited until it peaked, then pushed with all my might.

Evelyn Collette Wright burst forth into the world in one woosh of head, shoulders, body. The midwives unwrapped her cord and put her on my tummy. I was still yelling and so was Evelyn. Her eyes were wide open looking at me and her forehead was all wrinkled up like a little turtle.

And that slippery little babe had the cutest head of dark hair. She was here. Our daughter was here. I kept looking at her, holding her, waiting for it to sink in as reality. It didn't. It took a couple weeks for it to feel real.

Everyone helped me out of the tub and onto the bed to get a few stitches for my tear and to dry off. It was so beautiful to look over at Joseph calming our little crier.

She weighed in at 6 pounds 10 oz and 19 inches long. Perfectly perfect.

I lost quite a bit of blood and that made for some extra excitement of passing out a few hours later on my way to what was supposed to be my first shower. A few IVs of fluid, some good food, and a long sleep in bed had me feeling so much better by the morning. It was just amazing to have little Evelyn sleeping on my chest the whole night. Her tiny little body breathing, her sweet little head fitting in my hand, my heart was bursting with love. Over the next couple days, we were pampered with great food, herbal baths, sweet visitors and breastfeeding help. It was so nice to have the extra help as I didn't have a super realistic expectation of just how depleted my body would feel.

Our peaceful room

It was like staying at a bed and breakfast with lots of room service and no agenda except resting and healing and holding our baby.

Sleep, post-bath snuggles with Daddy

It was sweet to bring home our tiny lady on Friday the 7th on a very cold and bright fall day. And I was definitely surprised to find our apartment perfectly deep cleaned and decorated and roses from my sweet husband.