The birth

So, this is how it went down. On Monday evening Dwayne was putting Daisy to bed and I was putting Clara to bed, sitting on the floor next to her. She took a good half hour to go to sleep, but after a dozen rounds of ”Round and round the garden” she finally drifted off at about 8.30pm. I had time to think ”Yay, Netflix time!” before I felt a strong braxton hicks contraction, a POP, and a gush of water. Huh.  Bugger. No Netflix time.

I went in to get Dwayne, and luckily Daisy had also fallen asleep just minutes before. We got organised, Lisa from next door came over to watch over the kids until Anna could get here from Narara to stay the night. I had a quick shower and change (by the time I got to the bathroom ALL the water was out and I was standing in a puddle). I called the midwife and explained that even though I didn’t have any contractions to speak of I’d rather come straight in, because of how quickly Clara came and how quickly things could escalate.

As we drove in to Gosford hospital, regular mild contractions 3 minutes apart started in the car. We arrived around 9.30pm, waited half an hour or so at the brand new birthing suites for a room to be ready for us, and then got to meet the midwife on shift. Contractions were regular at 2-3 minutes but short, only about 40 seconds each.

Long story short, between 10pm and midnight we hung out in the room, I rested for half an hour or so on the bed, Dwayne had a sandwich (which the midwife got for him, he was too scared to leave the room this time!) and a power nap, contractions got a little more intense and regular at 2 minutes apart but still short.

I paced the room and commented on the rubbish timing. I am SO not a night owl, I prefer to sleep in the night and work in the day. I just wanted to go to bed and get back on it in the morning really.

Around 12.30am the midwife asked if we were happy for her to go on a break and have a rest. Everything was going steady and contractions were not too intense, so I said of course, no problem. She went to get me a heat pack and a bottle of water first.

While she was out of the room I asked Dwayne to come stand with me so I could take contractions with my arms around his neck for support, not so much because I needed it yet but because I wanted the closeness and it’s nicer than hanging onto furniture in any case. We took two or so contractions like that together before I felt a weird sudden movement in my pelvis, very similar to what I felt when Clara suddenly decided to be born. The midwife came back in the middle of the next contraction to find me hanging around Dwaynes neck, humming my way through a contraction which had intensified by the double and added some downward pressure. Once it was over, I advised her she probably shouldn’t take that break after all. 

I said I really need to be on my knees RIGHT NOW, I got my trousers off  and got on my knees on the bed hanging over the risen headbord. And that was it, my body instantly started pushing the baby out and half an hour later at 01.11am he was here! And I saw him underneath me right away and realised he was a boy. A boy!

Henry Hjalmar Cassidy.