Around the farm March 30, 2008

I thought I would fill you in on life here at placid farm. 

It isn’t the most exciting, but it sure is relaxing and beautiful.

The kids just love to spend time with the grandparents. 

 

 

We are trying to keep our garden small this year.  We have only planted a few things.  Last year we over did it and ended up having our garden demolished by squash bugs. 

We also have so much going on at the church that it is very hard to keep up with the daily work in the garden and our hectic schedule.

 

 

 

We do have a new batch of chicks in.  We lost our last hens to some local wildlife while they were out free ranging it. 

The boys are so excited to see them growing.

We are really looking forward to fresh eggs in the fall.  We will definitely be sharing the love with people come September.

We had a visitor on Saturday.  He sure looked harmless, but not harmless enough.

I took this picture from a distance.

Robin found another one in our barn last week.  Hopefully they will make their homes somewhere beside our back porch.

That’s it for now.  We are just enjoying this lovely weather and spending lots of time outside!

It’s a boy – Part 2 February 20, 2008

 

 

Well, since I am on a roll these days, I thought I would go ahead and post the story of our third child.

We really wanted to have another child so that Jude would have a little brother or sister to play with.

Afterall, as wonderful and sweet and happy as Kennady is, she isn’t much of a playmate.

We wanted Jude to have a friend to run around with and grow up with.

We took a pregnancy test and found out we were pregnant with baby #3.

First came the shock that we were actually going to have three kids and then joy settled in very shortly afterward.

Shortly after that, the morning sickness hit; actually the appropriate term would be all day sickness.

Fortunately for me it was not severe and I never lost my food.  The only time I threw up was when I had taken my lovely prenatal vitamins, which I learned to take after a big meal and chase it with my last bite to eat to prevent those kind of problems.

My wonderful husband decided that, as with our last pregnancy, we should not tell anyone until I was farther along.

Well, much to my dismay we did that.  It was horrible.  I suffered in silence while waiting to tell people about our wonderful news.

I didn’t get any sympathy during a time when I needed it most.  OOOHHHH the pain OOOOHHHH the agony!

Now, on to the rest of the story and leaving my pity party.

This time around we considered looking to use a different midwife because of the distance to see my midwife, but we went back to June in the end.  We loved June so much and had such a wonderful relationship with her that we just couldn’t see using someone else. 

We had our first and only ultrasound when I was about 21 weeks along and decided not to find out what sex it was. 

It was really hard not to find out, but I kind of think it was harder on everyone else who thought they “just had to know”.

I had a gut feeling it was a boy, but we would just have to wait and see.

The ultrasound showed a healthy baby with no complications.

We were very happy and ready to see this new little one.

I was very and I mean very emotional with this pregnancy.  I am not quite sure how Robin survived it.

I would be fine one minute and a complete mess the next.  I could be happy one minute and sad the next.

My other pregnancies were nothing like this.

I was happy and floating on cloud nine with Kennady and with Jude I was a little more emotional, but this one tipped the emotional bucket.

My pregnancy sailed by and I felt like I hardly had time to realize I was pregnant.  It was such a different world taking care of two other children and trying to think about the one in your belly.

I had a couple of pre-labor contractions and called my midwife once, but it turned out to be a week or so early of when our baby was going to arrive.

The morning of June 2nd I woke up about 6.

I definitely felt like this was it and was very early in labor.

The contractions had changed and became more patterned.

We had plans that day to go to a bug show at the library in San Marcos.

I got Kennady and Jude up and ready and we headed out.

Robin left for work and I told him I would call him when things picked up.

We also called June and our birth team to let them know the status of things.

We had a great time at the bug show and the contractions kept getting closer together.

As soon as it was over we left and picked up a couple of black bean tacos at Taco Cabana.

I knew that this was the real thing and that I needed a good high protein low fat meal to give me strength for the birth.

It was so yummy and fast.

I called Robin and told him to come on home and I would meet him there.

We took the kids to my in-laws house right up the hill from us.

My mom got there right away and the midwives followed.

Within an hour of being home things progressed pretty quickly.

By 2:30 I was in very active labor.

After about an hour and a half I felt like I needed to go to the bathroom.

I had to really insist that I go to the bathroom because they were trying to keep me in the pool.

I think June was afraid that I was going to push the baby out while I was on the toilet.

She checked me soon after getting into the bathroom and told me that I was dilated to a 9.

YYYYAAAYYY.

I could hardly believe it.

They say that all your births after your 1st vaginal birth go faster most of the time, so here it was.

I finally agreed to get back into the pool.

I got in the pool and about 45 minutes later was pushing.

I pushed for about 15 – 20 minutes this time which was a far cry from the 2 hours I pushed last time.

Robin was in the pool with me when Avery was born.

He caught him and helped the midwife place him on my chest.

Avery came out with the amniotic sac still intact.

The midwife had to pull the amniotic sac off of his head when he came up out of the water.

It was amazing.

IT WAS A BOY!

I was right.

I just knew it all along.

Avery Harrison was born!  8 pounds 5 ounces, 21.5 inches long @ 4:35 p.m.

I had a wonderful support team. My husband, my midwives, my mother, my sister in law, Tabith Krauss and Janice Eppler.

I had some complications from tearing after the birth and had to make a trip to the hospital.

My midwife was concerned I may have had a hematoma in my birth canal so we went to have it checked out.

A few stiches later and a good report from the doctor no hematoma was spotted.

We went home and got a good nights rest with our new baby.

It was a beautiful birth and I couldn’t have been happier.

And…true to my wonderful husbands nature….he served me breakfast with a smile.

It’s a boy!! Part 1 February 18, 2008

 

When our daughter was just over two years old, we were really feeling the need to have another child added to our family.

After Kennady was diagnosed with HPE we had lots of questions as to whether her condition was genetic or not.

We had genetic testing done and they assured us that it was not something that was in our genes.

When we found out we were pregnant with baby #2 we were very excited and praying for a miracle with this baby.

Our first ultrasound early on told us that we had a very healthy baby from all they could see. The relief was overwhelming and left me crying yet again. Except this time it was out of joy and not heartache.

We had a couple of other ultrasounds as the pregnancy progressed.

We were seeing our midwife, June Lamphier, that was with us during our pregnancy with Kennady.

We were also seeing our obstetrician just to make sure that we knew the baby was completely healthy.

We decided when I was about 20 weeks along to let the Dr. know that we were thinking of using a midwife and having a homebirth.

{Note to others and self: Do not think that because you have researched everything and educated yourself and are confident in your decisions that your Dr. will not think you are crazy}

When I told our soft spoken sweet Dr. our plans for a “possible” homebirth, she came unglued.

She could not believe that I would even consider it.

She could not believe that any “responsible” midwife would do a birth at home after a previous cesarean (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean – VBAC).

She was mortified and went on and on about the possibility of uterine rupture and the possible dangers.

I was really shocked.

I don’t know why I was so naive.

That was our last appointment with our obstetrician.

We had prayed about it and felt that we were making the right decision using our midwife and having the baby at home.

It is an incredible thing to have the peace of God in your life and being led by the spirit.

You just know that God has a divine plan for all things and that he will give you wisdom to make the right and best decisions if you just listen.

As our due date got closer we got more excited to see our new baby boy.

I woke up at 5 a.m., March 6th, 2004 to some very early contractions.

I was having contractions every 10 minutes or so until about 8:30 when my water broke.

It was like a rubber band snapping and soooo unexpected.

I jumped up from lying down on the couch and had Robin call June (our midwife) while I went and changed.

Before long the contractions started picking up.

My husband was wonderful.

He tried his best to help me in every way he could.

He brushed my hair and rubbed my back.

Little did he know I was still very early on.

When June got there, I think she realized that I was still very early in labor.

So…off to walking we went.

That didn’t last very long, I think I made it half way down our dirt road before coming back.

Then I hopped into the inflatable pool in our bathroom.

I spent the next 3 or so ours in the pool.

It just felt so good to be floating in the pool.

Meanwhile everyone else was milling about the house cooking meals and talking.

About 3:30 p.m they got me out of the pool and into the bed.

I labored there for a very short time before they realized I was completely dilated.

I got down on the floor onto a birthing stool for the pushing stage.

Everyone was so wonderful.

I felt so loved and supported.

I pushed for about two hours.

Jude was born healthy and happy at 5:30 that evening.

It was so wonderful.

Everything went perfectly.

I remember sitting there just in disbelief at the perfectness of our little boy.

That I had given birth to our baby in our own home!

I was elated.

Jude was 8lb. 4 oz. and 21.5 inches long.

My husband was the best and took better care of us after Jude was born than anyone else could have.

He brought me breakfast in bed the next morning.

He waited on us hand and foot for the next two weeks before going back to work.

I was so grateful for such a wonderful support system at that birth.

My mother was there and she was invaluable; also Laurie Fremgen the back up midwife; Laura Taylor – my aunt who is a second mother to me, and my mother in law and sister in law.

It was such a great experience.

Kennady was happy to see her new baby brother.

The relationship I had with my midwife was one of the most wonderful parts of the care during the pregnancy.

There is no comparison between a Dr.s care and a midwife.

This doesn’t take away from the fact that I am extremely grateful for my Dr., if I had not had that resource when I needed it neither Kennady or I would be here now.

________________

God is faithful to give us the desires of our hearts.

Our Baby Girl January 27, 2008

My husband and I had been married just over two years and were thrilled to be expecting our first child (or at least I was until his shock wore off).

 We knew right away that we wanted to use a midwife. 

We did our research and interviews and settled on June Lamphier, CPM. 

We got our regular prenatal care and heard the heartbeat at 10 weeks. 

Everything was progressing beautifully.

I had the perfect pregnancy, I never had any nausea or complications.

I sailed through the first trimester.

When I was around 21 weeks we had scheduled an ultrasound at Austin Community College since they had a free ultrasound program that you could sign up for.

Well, the day of our appointment for the ultrasound ACC called us and said that their pipes had burst and flooded the basement where the ultrasounds were done.

They asked if we could reschedule and that they were doing late term ultrasounds around 30 weeks.

I really didn’t feel the need to have an ultrasound since everything had gone so well up until this point and we didn’t intend on finding out the sex of the baby.

My husband however really felt like we should at least have one ultrasound to check out the baby and make sure all the “fingers and toes” were there.

 So I scheduled the appointment for thirty weeks (the average pregnancy is 41 weeks).

We went in and they began the ultrasound.

I laid there for about 45 minutes with no one talking to me or saying very much.

I got more angry with every minute.  I kept thinking, “don’t you know it isn’t good for me to be laying on my back for this long”. 

I could not believe the poor bedside manner that they had. (now hindsight is 20/20 and I realize that they were probably in shock; however I still think they could have done better)

After 45 minutes, they let us know that they were not seeing something that they thought they should and that they would like us to go see our doctor.

We told them that we had a midwife and that they would need to contact her.

June called us right away and said that she would meet us at Dr. David Berry’s (perinatologist).

We had to wait for a few hours for our appointment, but I didn’t feel any urgency. 

In my mind I really thought that the people at ACC just didn’t know what they were doing and that when we went to see the perinatologist that he would send us on our way.

I could not have imagined how wrong I was.

We went in and signed in.

While we were waiting June arrived and waited with us.

We all went in to the room to have the ultrasound done.

 Within 30 seconds the technician told us that yes the clinic at ACC was correct and that our baby did have a problem.

I just began sobbing.

I could not believe that our perfect little baby had a problem.

We then wanted to know what sex the baby was.  When they told us she was a girl I was so happy.

After the ultrasound, they escorted us to the doctors office to discuss the situation.

He informed us that she had a very severe form of Hydrocephalus.

He told us that she would very likely not live at all and that if she did she would most likely not be able to see, hear, talk or walk.

He listed all of our options; Out of State Abortion, since they don’t do abortions that late in pregnancy in Texas; Cephalocentesis: Using a hollow needle to puncture the skull to allow drainage during delivery (this would be because her head was so large that a vaginal delivery would not have been possible otherwise); scheduled cesarean. 

We were devastated and felt like we were in some kind of dream.

Over the next 7 weeks we had an ultrasound and sometimes more every week.

During those weeks they were measuring her head growth and the amount of fluid in her head.

When we would have the ultrasounds, all you could see was a giant black hole where her brain should have been and a very small paper thin line of brain tissue around the front of her head.

When we reached 37 weeks, they decided that it was time to schedule a ceserean because of her head size.

We went in the weekend after Thanksgiving on November 24, 2001.

Everything went just as planned.  We were referred to another obstetrician, Dr. Diane Brinkman, because Dr. Berry was not going to be able to do the cesarean. 

Dr. Brinkman was wonderful and treated us as if she had known us forever.

She took into consideration that I would like to try for a vaginal birth if we decided to have other children later in life and did the c-section the best way she could to make that possible. (she did an abdominal incision vertically and a uterine incision horizontally, which gave her the most room to delivery our little girl).

Kennady was born and gave a big yell as soon as she came out.

I was overwhelmed just to hear her cry.  It was more than music to my ears, it was a sign of HoPE.

We didn’t know if she would be able to do anything.

Robin went with her to the NICU and met a flock of family peering in the window.

We spent the next 48 hours recovering and scheduling Kennady’s surgery for her V.P. Shunt.

After her surgery the Neurosurgeon, Dr. Ron Wilson, came to discuss the MRI with us.

The prognosis was worse than we had thought.

The hydrocephalus that they thought she had was only a symptom of what was going on .

Kennady had Alobar Holoprosencephaly and the hydrocephalus was a symptom of her brain being severely malformed.

Most children with this condition live around 6 months.

The primary cause of death for these children are pneumonia and seizures.

We spent the next six weeks in the NICU before going home with our beautiful little girl.

Kennady has lots of special needs, but she is the sweetest most innocent little angel you will ever meet.

Kennady has Diabetes Insipdus, V.P. Shunt, G-Button and is in a wheelchair.  She will never (barring a miracle from God, which we are totally open to) be able to walk. 

She is beginning to communicate with a communication switch in school.

She is now, as of November 24, 2007, 6 years old and doing wonderfully.

Artwork by me January 13, 2008

My mom found this the other day while going through some of her old things. 

She called me and told me about it and I couldn’t believe it.

She thinks that I made this when I was in Kindergarten or First Grade.

It just amazes me.  I really thought the first time I thought about being in the birth world was when I was in high school.

I guess God really does have a plan for us from the time we are born.  And to top that, He lets little kids in on His plans.

I could be way more spiritual on this, but I think the joy it brings just seeing this picture, for me, is enough for now.

Time in Birthland December 17, 2007

Before we ever moved to New Mexico Robin had secured a job with the ski school teaching 6 – 12 year olds.  I really would like to point out that my husband had ulterior motives in moving.

Anyway,

I got to NM and began working as a student at the birth center.  It was such an incredible experience.

I attended many prenatal, postpartum and home visits.  I also attended 5 births while I was there. 

I got so much hands on experience.  At one of the births I attended, I helped hold things in place for suturing, which was really a very cool experience.

During the time I worked there, they had 4 midwives, 2 doctors, one nurse, 4 students and 2 office staff.  Everyone was so wonderful.  They all went out of their way to make me feel a part of the team.

One of the doctors (Heidi Rheinhardt) taught me how to draw blood ON HER.  I couldn’t believe she would bear her own veins and let me take a stick, but she did.  I didn’t even bruise her arm.  I have to say that I was pretty proud of that.

I also watched a woman get her Norplant removed.  I think I almost fainted on that one.  Rudy (the other Dr. and husband to Heidi) told me that I needed to be doing something to help so that I wouldn’t faint.  I made a mental note of that.

I learned so much in the short time I was there. 

I learned how to do pelvic exams, full physicals, take notes in a chart, support women in labor, draw blood, read test results, etc…

 We also spent our first Thanksgiving away from home with the students from the birth center.

That was an experience in itself. 

We got to the house were the feast would be at and there was a tee-pee in the front yard and dogs charging our car.

Well, if you have ever been to Northern New Mexico, you would have realized very quickly that it is full of hippies.  It is just a beautiful place to live close to nature, so I guess that is why there is an abundance of hippies there.

I have always thought that in my heart I was just a Jesus freak hippie.

So, we make it past the frothing at the mouth dogs and the tee-pee and go inside.

Everyone was super sweet and welcomed us.

Before we ate they asked us to all get in a circle and “Ohm”.  Now I would like you to keep in mind that Robin and I are straight up Christians and don’t do any “Ohming” except for meditating with God.

So, Robin and I bow our heads and pray.

After we “Ohmed”, we were offered Tofurkey, cranberry dressing and sage stuffing; which was all very good.  While we were hanging out, someone came over and asked Robin if he wanted to go out for a “smoke”.

Here again, hippies and smoking don’t always equal tobacco.  Since Robin and I don’t “smoke” we passed and just visited with the other people for a while.

The rest of my three months spent at the birth center were wonderful.  I learned a lot and gained a lot of wisdom on birth.

Unfortunately, we ran out of money to pay for my schooling and so I had to leave the program.  It was a very sad day. 

I did go back and help with receptionist duties from time to time.

Robin and I both ended up working in the same department at the ski valley.  I worked inside with the kids and he worked outside.

Our whole time in New Mexico was such a dream.  We both fulfilled our hearts desires (mostly) and got to just hang out together.

Now that we are a little older and a little wiser, we probably would have stayed longer and waited to have kids.  But….as they say, hind sight is 20/20.

My opening line December 15, 2007

Before we left Austin, I had visited the birth center in NM and had a wonderful time. 

I promptly wrote them the following letter:

Dear Elizabeth and everyone at the NNMWH&BC,  I would like to thank everyone at the Northern New Mexico Women’s Health and Birth Center for a wonderful experience.  Every moment I was there, I was learning something fascinating.  I believe I have found a wonderful place to begin my career.  It was such an awesome experience to work with each of you.  I feel that I have a passion to be a midwife and work closely with other women. 

Since my visit, my feelings toward this career choice have only become stronger.  I am willing to do what it takes to become a midwife, and I feel that your Birth Center would be the ideal place to get my education.  I realize the road I have chosen is not an easy road.  However, I would rather work hard for something I desire than to settle for something easier.  I am a quick learner and self motivated.  I believe that I would be a great asset to your birth center.  I can be of assistance to you in many ways, from scrubbing equipment to talking to the patients. I really enjoyed working with the patients; each one had their own questions and concerns that were unique to them.

 

Being at the Northern New Mexico Women’s Health and Birth Center, confirmed my belief that a midwife was supposed to be concerned, gentle, helpful, and patient.  I believed a midwife would be there to comfort the patient through every step of her pregnancy and delivery, and assure her of her risks or good health.  I knew that there was more to delivering a child and helping a mother through labor, than just coming in and catching the baby.

 I also wanted to say thank you to Marcy and Hope for letting me come to the home visits with them.  It was an incredible experience to see those beautiful babies and parents so content and secure with the care they were given.  Rose and Carmella were wonderful at making me feel at home while I was there; their friendly smile was so nice to come in and see every morning.   It was such an honor to work with all of you.  I hope that I will soon get the opportunity to learn more from you all. 

Wow!  When I look back on that, I can feel the years flying by.  I am no less passionate now, just a little wiser.I was so overwhelmingly excited when I got the letter of acceptance.

Robin and I had found a place to rent and moved as quickly as we could and with lots of help from his parents.

The Grand Voyage To Birth December 15, 2007

Well, about a year after Robin and I got married, I began seeking out midwifery schools. 
I finally came across one in New Mexico.  
The Northern New Mexico Midwifery Center.
They had an apprentice program for midwifery students (and still do) that was wonderful.

I talked to Robin and he asked where it was.
As soon as the words Taos, New Mexico came out of my mouth, I saw Robin’s eyes light up.
You see, there is a great ski valley there.
My wonderful husband is an avid skier and so, after much arm twisting….we were cooking, as they say.
It took about four months from the time we discussed it, to actually moving up there.

So..my wonderful selfless husband decided it would be a great idea to move to NM for me to get my education to become a midwife.

Hey…maybe he could get a job as a ski instructor or something.

The Beginning of Childbirth December 15, 2007

The first time I remember really noticing birth was in High School. 

I was in between classes and saw a girl that I had been in school with for several years walking to class with a very large belly. 

It suddenly dawned on me…. wow….there is really a baby in that belly. 

Not just a pregnant girl, but a girl and a baby too.

I was amazed and intrigued. 

I thought and thought about the amazing gift of birth and how it happens and knew then that I wanted to be and obstetrician (or so I thought).   I just knew it had to be something with birth in the equation.

After falling in love with birth and incredible inspiration from my High School Anatomy and Physiology teacher Ms. Dahlia Galvan, I knew birth was were I should be.

After graduating, I somehow stumbled upon midwifery and knew that this was how birth should be.

And soo…here I am pursuing my hearts desire.