I first noticed contractions when putting Alexander to bed before 8pm, but wasn't sure if it were labour. It was painful reading to him while lying on my back, but I put it down to the position more than anything else. When I went through to have my supper, I continued to have contractions, which were sufficient to stop me eating for the duration, but they were still fairly mild, and very short, although about 5 minutes apart. From then on we acted as if I could be in labour, me getting my lemon barley from the ice cube trays into a bag, and Jonathan starting on the path to the pool, but I didn't feel convinced enough to actually phone the midwife, Sharon. Jonathan brought me the phone but I just just ignored it, not wanting to phone and sound silly if I weren't in labour. We were both half hoping it wasn't true, because not only was my mom not arriving till the next day, but Alexander's nanny had gone to town and we weren't sure if she was coming home for the night or staying with her daughter overnight. She had said I should phone if I went into labour, but we worried that there would be no taxis running in the late evening to get her back here. Eventually I did phone Sharon around 9pm, and did feel somewhat silly when she suggested I take a bath to confirm if I was in labour. She had been asleep, so I felt bad I'd woken her to get advice I should have remembered myself, but she was very nice about it.
The bath firstly seemed to slow and stop labour, with no contractions for over 10 minutes, so I was feeling at once relieved and kind of foolish, when I got a contraction that not only was more substantial than the previous ones, but my waters broke with it. I reported to Sharon, who gave me the next set of instructions, to check for signs of a prolapsed cord, and to have some honey and "make contact" with my daughter. I started getting a little worried when I made no contact for ages, but I was also distracted by contractions every 5 minutes, and feeling stuck in the bath whenever Jonathan went off somewhere before he'd constructed the path from the bathroom to the bedroom. Because of my waters breaking in early labour, this labour felt very different from the previous one. The previous time I'd gone into very active labour almost instantly; this time the contractions were sore, but very short. Last time I didn't care at all about mess; this time I was messy because of my waters having broken, but trying to be considerate of Jonathan's experience of this birth, so I didn't want to mess all over the place.
At 10pm, Jonathan came in with twin pleasing items of news: both Alexander's nanny and Sharon were there! Sharon had come over when I hadn't phoned back, but had hung around outside our gate waiting for me to call her. Jackie was outside waiting for her daughter to come home from youth group and Sharon's parked car made her suspicious, so she asked who she was, and then let her in the gate, without Sharon having to ring the doorbell, which was nice. Sharon didn't seem to think I was very far along, as she did all kinds of setting up types of things, before asking if I wanted my dilation measured. Previously she had just come in and measured it, but then I was 9cm then. This time I was "2-3cm but a nice full 4cm when I stirred", which sounded encouraging though not that far. I was not expecting a long labour so I wasn't disappointed. However, I was a little surprised when she suggested I bake a cake, something she likes to get her ladies to do, to take their minds off things and keep them upright. I thought that was more for people with a long way to go, not with contractions every 5 mins. But since I know my cake recipe very well and I'd promised Xander a birthday cake for Sophie, I decided to rise to the challenge. While I baked, my contractions got a lot harder to handle, but the atmosphere in the kitchen was still almost festive, with Jonathan and Sharon heating urns and things, and me baking in between contractions. Unlike last time where I really needed Jonathan there to survive a contraction, I wanted Sharon for these ones, and even managed quite a lot with nobody.
At 11:10pm, I put the cake in the oven, and Sharon said we should probably get to the bedroom "or this baby will be born on the kitchen floor". In retrospect, she meant just that, but we thought it was more a silly turn of phrase at the time, and wandered through. I asked if I would be allowed to get into the birth pool, hoping I'd be 6cm dilated by then, and expecting Sharon to look at my dilation before allowing me, but she just said casually "I guess that's up to Jonathan: he knows if the pool is full enough and the right temperature". It wasn't quite full enough, but he wasn't sure how full to fill it without me in, so I got in. I found it a little disorienting having a contraction in the somewhat shallow water, but I realise now I was probably close to transition at the time.
Shortly afterwards, we heard Alexander cry "Mummy, Mummy" and Jonathan went to him. He wasn't pleased with getting fobbed with Daddy, so Jonathan brought him through to the bedroom to show why Mummy couldn't come. He looked rather surprised, and was still disgruntled, but this was more because he wanted his skateboard/rollerskates. We thought he meant ones he'd made from lego, but he then said they were black, so it's possible he dreamed it. I felt quite sorry for Jonathan as he rushed around fixing water temperature, tried to help me through contractions, all holding a little moaning boy. I had a contraction that I tried to escape from by pushing myself nearly out of the pool, to the horror of Sharon and Jonathan. I got a huge urge to push. Sharon told me to stop pushing, and feel Sophie's head to see why: it was very nearly out! Even that wasn't really enough to stop me. I panted a bit, but then started pushing again, because I of the sight of my wide-eyed little son, and his poor Daddy balancing him on one knee while squatting by the birth pool to hold my hand and look into my eyes. I felt I couldn't actually make them survive one more contraction with me scared and scary. Jonathan said afterwards there was no need; Alexander was not worried about me, only his skateboard, but I was so determined to push, and so careless of tearing that I felt myself still pushing after there was nothing to push against, and everyone was cheering and saying "you have a little sister, Xander!" and I realised that she was already out. It was only 11:56pm, so she had made it that day and not waited to the next one. As it turned out, I didn't tear at all.
Sharon said she was worried about a couple of things, so got me out of the pool quickly to birth the placenta. I put Sophie to my breast, and it was out in a few minutes, and Jonathan cut the cord, which Sharon said was a lovely one.
Sophie really is tiny: 2.4kg and 48cm, with a head circumference of 34cm, the smallest baby that Sharon has ever delivered at home, but perfect and full term, despite coming out at 38 weeks 2 days. My placenta had a tiny bit of calcification and she had some vernix on her. Two days later my milk is already in and she is breastfeeding beautifully. Her big brother adores her: the jealousy is all for Sophie's attention rather than for the attention Sophie gets from others! He demands to hold her (lying on his back on the bed) often, holds her hand and brings her toys to play with "when she is bigger".
Sophie's webspage