A Homestead Daughter

• Thursday, December 18, 2008 - My little sister's birth story...

The first birth I've ever witnessed I also assisted at as the oldest young lady in the room, and the best part—she was my sister! With Mom's birth history, we knew that it would have been nearly impossible for a midwife to make it in time, so we had a (midwife) friend come and show us girls how to do everything, in case. She gave us several lessons, all the stuff and some books and things to do more research with (which we definitely made use of). I had tried so many times to imagine what the birth would be like, but the final thing was nothing like I could have imagined on my own. (Receiving a kiss) It started at 11:40pm Mon. night, when Dad woke us with the news that Mom's water broke. In previous deliveries for her, that meant baby would be arriving within the hour. The strange part was that it broke suddenly with no contractions. We hastily prepared everything, prayed and tried to calm ourselves down. I think it was a mixture of excitement and adrenaline that was coursing through our veins. We were puzzled then, when several hours passed with no contractions or activity. Around 3am I went back to bed and caught a few hours and the girls nodded off on the couch, coming to bed early in the morning. It wasn't until around 10am Tue. morning that contractions started up again. To our surprise, a little (adorable!!) foot presented! A breech footling, huh? Well, if that's the way you want to come out, Donna Marie... We were prepared to do breech, it just wasn't Mom's top choice, as it made for a long (though nearly pain free!) start and stop labor. We waited, prayed, and played with the little toesies until the contractions came back a little over an hour later, and the other foot presented, followed quickly by: little Donna Marie. Mom had said repeatedly that she wanted to see the expression on my face when I caught my sibling. Here it is: Annie and Theresa looked similar. The boys just grinned. When Andrew held his little godchild for the first time, he lovingly told her that she was squishy. Sigh... The rest of us just roll our eyes at him and wave him outside to 'go build something.' Stephen said that girl babies are cuter than boy babies, though they're cuter still when their hair comes in. Michael has had a happy grin on his face since her arrival, and is constantly going into Mom's room to give her hugs and tell her he loves her. Lizzy couldn't understand why all of us girls still had tears in our eyes when they came in to see Donna. Theresa said she would know if she had witnessed what we had. Johnny was slightly alarmed when he first came in and saw her, a little too fresh I think. He ran first out of the room when the kids turned to go. Later, I brought her out (nice and clean) and introduced Donnie to Johnny again and I think that introduction went much better. It was just a little alarming for his small mind. Here she is really fresh: (This is a picture for the girls to go: "Aww!" and the guys to go: "Yuck!") Donna is a really good nurser. Mom was so relieved when she latched on and nursed strong for 45min. on her first go. Mom has struggled with a stubborn child as an infant who didn't like her breast. I think we're all relieved to see that Donna doesn't have that trait. It was such an experience! I don't think I will ever forget that moment when she landed in my arms and looked up at me with dark seeing eyes. Having it be just our family there was also really wonderful. Having Dad there to lovingly reassure and encourage Mom, having Annie there to tell Mom the umbilical cord is cute, having Theresa there to stand in the background and cry/laugh/smile through the whole ordeal, having the boys there praying rosaries in the living room and cracking nervous jokes about gross things like the placenta. It was just wonderful! The menfolk may not share that opinion, but I know Mom does. She greatly prefers the comforting surrounding of her family and home to the hospital (though we do have one close by for emergencies). She was so grateful for her fresh warm cows' milk and farm fresh eggs for breakfast, as well as home raised chicken, gravy, mashed potatoes and veggies for lunch. She said she would never have been fed so well in a hospital. Donna Marie wouldn't be having the familiar sound of our voices tickling her ears with lullabies and coo'ings in a hospital surrounding, either. We're all just very grateful to be here, safe and well, with a new sibling to share in our happy lives. We're all still in shock. Just like that our family has new life in it! It's very different. Just hearing that little gentle whimper of hers in the house takes some getting used to. Our family will never be the same, and we're all so grateful! Donna, you've saved our family from going stagnant and awakened a tender love within each of us. We're all head over heels in love with you. Here's Stephen's video. Hope it works for you all, (let me know if it doesn't and we'll try it again in a different format). Donna says hello to you all!

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