Our baby arrives!
December 29th, 2007,
Our second child, a son, was born early on Christmas Day, not long after the last post! We are thrilled to welcome him into the world! The last few days have been busy ones as we’ve been caring for him and my wife.
The photo above was taken several hours after birth. It’s amazing to think of that little person leaving his mother’s body and entering the world. The photo isn’t in very good focus, but you can see something of his red newborn’s skin.
The home birth went well, and our midwife, Melissa (Mel) Cathcart, got here in plenty of time for it. My wife began experiencing contractions at about 7:30 pm on the 24th. By 8:30 we had called Mel, and she was here about an hour after that.
Mel and I helped my wife as she went through early labor. But as we found out shortly before the baby was born, my wife’s labor progressed more rapidly than we realized. Mel said that my wife did not give the typical warning signs that the final push was near, perhaps because she has a high tolerance for that particular type of pain.
The result was that Mel was surprised when my wife went into the final stages of labor at around 1:30 am. A scant twelve minutes later and the baby had emerged, “in the caul,” as Mel said, or still in the membrane that covers the fetus in the womb. The birth took place in the cramped space of our basement bathroom, with Mel unwrapping the umbilical cord as the baby emerged, then catching the baby and removing the caul, if I remember rightly.
It’s a cliche to call birth a miracle, but that is how it seems. How wonderful to witness it in this season of miracles.
January 1st, 2008 at 4:46 pm
Congratulations to you and your family. While I shy away from birth-as-miracle, it is, at the very least, an absolutely amazing, thoroughly stunning event to witness. I remember so well the emotional and physical giddiness, an internal buzzing, that I experienced with my children’s births. I hope everyone stays healthy in your family.
January 3rd, 2008 at 5:56 am
Congratulations to you and Urmilla. He looks exceptionally intelligent — no surprise there!
January 3rd, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Congratulations! I hope everything is going well for all of you.
January 7th, 2008 at 10:48 pm
Congratulations on your happy arrival. So glad all went well. I did some research on midwifery way back in my senior year of high school (in Northern California) and have always been glad that it’s an available option. After all, it’s how most babies have come into the world throughout human history. Much joy to you all.