What outdoor winter activities do you like to do? Since it is finally snowing here I think next time we will try sledding.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Skating
We decided to try and all go skating. I was not sure how it would go with the two little ones but it actually worked out well. Centenniel park has a very nice, free skating location. A large pond that the park clears complete with a little heated cabin at the side. It was nice to get out in the fresh air and sunshine. Isaac slept the whole time bundled in a lot of blankets. Josiah and Annah still need a lot of practice skating but they are slowly getting it. It was a fun time :) Here are some pics.
What outdoor winter activities do you like to do? Since it is finally snowing here I think next time we will try sledding.
What outdoor winter activities do you like to do? Since it is finally snowing here I think next time we will try sledding.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
The Free Birth of Isaac
Two weeks ago I gave birth to my precious, third son, Isaac Stephen. Here is his birth story for those who are interested.
I guess it all began nine months ago when God blessed us with the conception of a new life. Fast forward to January 2012. By now I felt huge and was ready to be done being pregnant. I had a very healthy pregnancy and a very active baby who kept me up late at night with all his kicks. With this pregnancy I had done all my own prenatel care (I did this with Samuel too), in which I focused on good nutrition and exercise. Tim and I also planned on a quiet homebirth with just our family and one close friend present. By January I had everything ready: all the baby diapers and clothes folded, my sling hanging up and a few basic birthing supplies stashed in a drawer.
On Friday evening I had some contractions come every 30 min and stay like that but then when I went to bed they petered out. The whole weekend was like this- off again and on again. I was tired of getting hopeful only to discover it was not the real thing so I made some plans for the next few days to distract me.
Then on Thursday morning (Jan 5) I woke up at 5am. At first I thought, "Here we go again with the 'false' labour." But 30 minutes later things were getting so intense I had to get up and walk around so then I knew it was the real deal. I called my friend, Emily, who was coming to the birth to give her a head's up since she lives 2 1/2 hours away and I have fast labours. The next little while was quite peaceful as the house was quiet and dark. I lit a candle and walked and swayed through the waves (this is what I called the contractions as it more aptly discribed how they felt like to me). It was a time I could tune into my body and baby as it went through the remarkable process of birth.
After awhile Samuel (1yrs old) woke up early since I was no longer in bed beside him. I then woke up my husband, Tim, to watch Sam so I could focus on the birth. Emily also showed up and sat quietly in the background. The waves continued to last about a minute and came every 7 to 8 minutes. When things would get a bit intense I would breathe and slowly walk around while focusing on being in the beautiful presence of Jesus. It would be just Him, me and the baby.
By 9am Josiah (5yrs) and Annah (4yrs) were awake and things got noisy and bright. I could tell the waves were not being effective as I focused more off the birth and more onto everything else going on. Labour kind of stalled (as I have seen it do many times in distracted mamas) so I knew I needed to get refocusd. Tim put Samuel down for a nap then took the two older ones to a freind's house. As soon as Tim pulled back into the driveway "Boom" things started happening fast.
I started having waves very strong, intense and close together. After several of those my water broke and I felt the baby move down. At this point I decided to get into the birth pool Tim had set up for me in the living room. The water did not seem to help a lot as I had a few more powerful waves. At the same time I could feel the baby making his way though the birth canel.
He made his way down very quickly. All at the same time I could feel the burning as his head stretched my perineaum but also the amazing feel as I cupped his emerging head in my hand. And then his head was out and I heard him make a little noise. At this point I was in the pool, kneeling down (like the classic kneeling proposal position). Tim sat quietly in front of my watching it all and Emily was off to the side filming it. But in the moment for me it was just an incredibly intimate time of just me and my baby as he emerged into the world. After a short pause I felt his shoulders rotate and then all of him slipped into the water. I sat back and lifted him up onto my chest. I was the first one to touch and hold him (I found out later it was only about 10 minutes from the time Tim got home till Isaac was born at 10am).
It was a magical moment, relief it was over but such a joy at holding my new baby in my arms. After a few indignant yells my new son immediatley started looking to nurse. Once he latched himself on and he stayed at my breast suckling for the next hour. He was perfect in every way and I had to thank God for him. I was surprised at how thick the vernix on him was, more then any of my other children had at birth.
We relaxed in the pool for awhile, getting to know each other. After about 25 minutes the placenta came out with minimal bleeding. At this point I decided to get out of the pool and get into bed. Tim took a few minutes to hold his new son. After we got settled in bed Isaac fell asleep (and he basically slept the next week away). Samuel woke up and was more interested in the still attached placenta then the baby (we cut the cord after three hours). Tim picked up the older two and they were very excited to meet Isaac. They all crowded in the bed to see him.
All in all it was a pretty easy birth but a very empowering experience. I spent the next 5 days in bed focusing on bonding with my new baby. He is a great nurser, cuddler and sleeper. I recovered from birth very fast (I only had one tiny tear that healed quickly). The next day when we weighed him, Isaac was 8 1/2 lbs and 20 inches. AS I write this, Isaac is now two weeks old and snuggled up in my lap nursing. I am very blessed.
Here are a few pics. In the last two he is only a few minutes old.
I guess it all began nine months ago when God blessed us with the conception of a new life. Fast forward to January 2012. By now I felt huge and was ready to be done being pregnant. I had a very healthy pregnancy and a very active baby who kept me up late at night with all his kicks. With this pregnancy I had done all my own prenatel care (I did this with Samuel too), in which I focused on good nutrition and exercise. Tim and I also planned on a quiet homebirth with just our family and one close friend present. By January I had everything ready: all the baby diapers and clothes folded, my sling hanging up and a few basic birthing supplies stashed in a drawer.
On Friday evening I had some contractions come every 30 min and stay like that but then when I went to bed they petered out. The whole weekend was like this- off again and on again. I was tired of getting hopeful only to discover it was not the real thing so I made some plans for the next few days to distract me.
Then on Thursday morning (Jan 5) I woke up at 5am. At first I thought, "Here we go again with the 'false' labour." But 30 minutes later things were getting so intense I had to get up and walk around so then I knew it was the real deal. I called my friend, Emily, who was coming to the birth to give her a head's up since she lives 2 1/2 hours away and I have fast labours. The next little while was quite peaceful as the house was quiet and dark. I lit a candle and walked and swayed through the waves (this is what I called the contractions as it more aptly discribed how they felt like to me). It was a time I could tune into my body and baby as it went through the remarkable process of birth.
After awhile Samuel (1yrs old) woke up early since I was no longer in bed beside him. I then woke up my husband, Tim, to watch Sam so I could focus on the birth. Emily also showed up and sat quietly in the background. The waves continued to last about a minute and came every 7 to 8 minutes. When things would get a bit intense I would breathe and slowly walk around while focusing on being in the beautiful presence of Jesus. It would be just Him, me and the baby.
By 9am Josiah (5yrs) and Annah (4yrs) were awake and things got noisy and bright. I could tell the waves were not being effective as I focused more off the birth and more onto everything else going on. Labour kind of stalled (as I have seen it do many times in distracted mamas) so I knew I needed to get refocusd. Tim put Samuel down for a nap then took the two older ones to a freind's house. As soon as Tim pulled back into the driveway "Boom" things started happening fast.
I started having waves very strong, intense and close together. After several of those my water broke and I felt the baby move down. At this point I decided to get into the birth pool Tim had set up for me in the living room. The water did not seem to help a lot as I had a few more powerful waves. At the same time I could feel the baby making his way though the birth canel.
He made his way down very quickly. All at the same time I could feel the burning as his head stretched my perineaum but also the amazing feel as I cupped his emerging head in my hand. And then his head was out and I heard him make a little noise. At this point I was in the pool, kneeling down (like the classic kneeling proposal position). Tim sat quietly in front of my watching it all and Emily was off to the side filming it. But in the moment for me it was just an incredibly intimate time of just me and my baby as he emerged into the world. After a short pause I felt his shoulders rotate and then all of him slipped into the water. I sat back and lifted him up onto my chest. I was the first one to touch and hold him (I found out later it was only about 10 minutes from the time Tim got home till Isaac was born at 10am).
It was a magical moment, relief it was over but such a joy at holding my new baby in my arms. After a few indignant yells my new son immediatley started looking to nurse. Once he latched himself on and he stayed at my breast suckling for the next hour. He was perfect in every way and I had to thank God for him. I was surprised at how thick the vernix on him was, more then any of my other children had at birth.
We relaxed in the pool for awhile, getting to know each other. After about 25 minutes the placenta came out with minimal bleeding. At this point I decided to get out of the pool and get into bed. Tim took a few minutes to hold his new son. After we got settled in bed Isaac fell asleep (and he basically slept the next week away). Samuel woke up and was more interested in the still attached placenta then the baby (we cut the cord after three hours). Tim picked up the older two and they were very excited to meet Isaac. They all crowded in the bed to see him.
All in all it was a pretty easy birth but a very empowering experience. I spent the next 5 days in bed focusing on bonding with my new baby. He is a great nurser, cuddler and sleeper. I recovered from birth very fast (I only had one tiny tear that healed quickly). The next day when we weighed him, Isaac was 8 1/2 lbs and 20 inches. AS I write this, Isaac is now two weeks old and snuggled up in my lap nursing. I am very blessed.
Here are a few pics. In the last two he is only a few minutes old.
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