Maddox Fernando Carreira 7-19-13 9:37 a.m.

10lbs 22in

I would like to start quickly with the reasoning behind our choice to have a homebirth My good friend in Vegas had a homebirth after having a cesarean section. She told me of her plans when she was pregnant and I distinctly remember saying to her, youre flipping CRAZY! She introduced me to a movie called The Business of Being Born. Joe and I watched it and it was like a light bulb switched on for us. I then began doing my own research and we decided that having our baby at home was the right choice for us. After we got pregnant, we were ecstatic to share our news and our birth plan only to find it received (for the most part) negatively. We didnt let that sway us in the least bit. We continued researching with an even stronger determination and met our beautiful Mid-wives who would guide us through the remaining 7 months of my pregnancy to little Kermits arrival. I honestly was never scared throughout my pregnancy or labor & delivery. I tried to surround myself with positive people and vibes. I hiked a lot and enjoyed LOTS of time with Joe enjoying our last months as a family of 3 (with Cooper) and dreaming about our future. I am so thankful that we were able to share this experience with each other. My due date was 7-11-13. I had to stop working on June 28th, standing on my feet all day in the summer heat was brutal on my back and amazing cankles, and I needed my head to be in the right place for our homebirth experience to succeed. In those two weeks I crammed in some last minute CEs for my Pharmacy Tech license, spent lots of time with Cooper, our Boxer, re-read Ina Mays Guide to Childbirth & Natural Birth the Bradley Way (Susan McCutcheon), tried to walk outside but it was too darn hot, so I did laps in our house (Cooper thought I was nuts). I swam in my Dads pool, ate Chinese, spicy foods, and eggplant parmesan. The 11th came and went. I had two rounds of acupuncture. I went to the chiropractor. Sang and danced with my band. Clearly, Kermit just wasnt ready. So, I took my head out of it and started to pretend that I wasnt pregnant anymore. I went for a long walk with my best friend, Jeanine, baby Mila, and her Mom. I went to a car show. I visited with friends. And had a few glasses of wine (not all at once;) Thursday, the 18th came. I had an appointment with my back-up midwives at Holyoke Hospital to check BPP including a non-stress test and ultrasound at 4:00. I did NOT want to go to this appointment. That morning I started having contractions that were very different than the Braxton Hicks ones throughout the latter half of my pregnancy. I called my midwife at about 1:00 to let her know what was going on. She advised me to drink a glass of wine and go back to bed, but to plan to go to my appointment just to be on the safe side. I did just that. It was REALLY tough to try to rest, more because of the excitement than the contractions. Joe got home around 1:30. I woke up at about 3:00 and I was for sure in labor. I called my midwife, Jharna, back to let her know and she said to cancel the appointment and she would send Pauline over. I contacted Whitney (my cousin) to let her know it could be time! Joe was setting up the dining room as I was pacing around texting my close girlfriends. I started putting a playlist together it was a nice distraction from the contractions. Pauline and Whitney were in the kitchen gabbing away. I felt SO incredibly comfortable, like we were preparing for a party. Joe and I

would take walks in the backyard with Cooper. I drank lots of water and took a labor enhancer tincture every 15 minutes. We ate fruit and tortellini salad. I bounced on the exercise ball. Around 8:30 our 2nd midwife Kristen showed up. My contractions started getting closer together and slightly more painful. Joe would push on my back as I breathed through them. Between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. I moved from the kitchen, to the bathroom, to our front porch swing that Joe had made, to our bedroom where I had borrowed an amazing piece of artwork entitled, The Rolling Tide (a beautiful rendition of an ocean at sunset in rainbow colors). I remember looking at that painting and embedding the image in my brain. I think it was around 3a.m. when I was on my hands and knees on our bed and my water broke. Good God was that a rush of relief! It took SO much pressure off! By then the tub was full, so I walked into our living room and got in. It felt SO GOOD to be floating in warm water. I was in the tub for a total of 4 hours or so. This is where my transition hit. The first hour or so in the tub was great. I breathed through contractions and let my belly float in the water. The ones that I listened to Joe and Kristen talk me through were definitely manageable. I breathed and let my muscles go limp. Pauline used her magic hands and pushed on my back (where almost all of my pain was). Then they started coming faster and stronger and I would get like 2 or 3 on top of each other. I remember thinking aloud, I thought I get a break in between these! I also threw up about 5 times. I remember looking over the tub at Whitney and saying, You gonna have kids someday? It made for a good laugh, but holy cow, the pain was unreal. I also remember Joe saying something like, You can do this. Remember watching all those Moms on youtube? Youve got this. I told him to shut up. Kristen said that was a good sign. I can remember asking Kristen if she had any drugs. She just shook her head. I was like a total different being. I can remember it all SO clearly, and it makes me chuckle, even get embarrassed at how I was acting but it got me through. My biggest thing was keeping my jaw loose. I would flap my lips as I exhaled (kinda like a horse). It was extremely ridiculous and I sounded like a jackass, but it helped me get over that transition period. Jharna (our 3rd midwife) came in just after the sun rose. She took one look at me in the tub and said I had hit a wall and was in a bad space. We needed to change up rooms. I had wanted to birth in the tub, but I could not have agreed with her more. Getting out of the tub was challenging while contractions were still happening. I got into my bathrobe and went into bed with Joe. Jharna held my hand and told me to relax and sleep in between the contractions. I nodded off in between 1 or 2, then they left Joe and I to be alone. He would push on my back through contractions and I would rest in between. It sounds as though it is not possible- but honestly I did snooze. After about a half hour, I started to get that urge to push. I read about this so called urge and I thought it was bullshit. For some reason I couldnt wrap my brain around this all-of-a-sudden urge. I was dead wrong. I couldnt stop it even if I tried. All 3 midwives came in and I was at 10 cm! Joe called Whitney back from walking Cooper so she could experience the birth. Pushing was my favorite part of my labor. It sounds silly, I know, but it truly was. I felt like I had complete control and the pain had subsided greatly. I made outstanding progress and remembered to breathe at the appropriate times. If I didnt have an urge at the time I was supposed to push, I didnt, and waited for the next one. After 40 minutes, Maddox arrived! He was GIGANTIC! It was so emotional and perfect. He laid on my chest as Joe and I were smiling and crying and completely ecstatic! I remember rubbing his back and feeling his

smooth skin. We asked Whitney to cut the cord she was BEAMING with honor! Whitney had made a red velvet birthday cake. We all sang Happy Birthday to Maddox It was incredible! We were able to just sit together as a family of 3 and talk about the event and shower little Maddox with love and kisses. Our shades were open looking into our backyard. There were cardinals coming back and forth to the bird feeder, singing their distinct chirps. My Mom had been with me, guiding me through the most intense and rewarding experience of my life. I would not have been able to have this experience if it wasnt for my amazing team, Kristen, Jharna, Pauline, Whitney, and Joe. I am so thankful for everything they did for me that day to help welcome Maddox into our world. I have zero regrets and would do it again in a heartbeat! Hopefully someday we will be lucky enough to give Maddox a brother or sister. Maddox means Fortunate Joe and I could not be more fortunate to live this life together. XOXO

I would also like to acknowledge a few of my best Gals Jeanine, Madeline, Adrienne, Lindsay, Mt. Laurel, & Michelle, who kept me sane and stood by me during my pregnancy answering any questions I had via txt, fb messaging, email, late night phone calls It was hard to go through this amazing chunk of my life without my Mom, yet I felt a sense of empowerment and was as strong as ever emotionally. And a shout out to all of the other 2013 babes! Dempsey, Claire, Walker, Mila, & Henry. XOXO