Welcome Eilidh Grace

Born March 18th, 6:04pm
8 pounds, 6.5oz; 20 inches long



My 29th birthday (and due date) began about 5:30am with regular contractions about 10 minutes apart (just long enough for me to almost fall asleep in between and then be reawakened). I got up and things started moving quicker. The day before I had gone in for some acupuncture that is supposed to encourage labor as well as taking black and blue cohash--herbal supplements for labor. Even though it was my birthday, I was more than ready to have a baby!

Ryan and I headed to the Birth Center around 8am and it was clear that I was starting labor, but still only 4-5cm so I decided to head to the acupuncturist again (conveniently located upstairs). Anytime I sat or laid down, the contractions would slow, so I was able to relax during the 30 minute treatment. By noon I was continuing to dilate, but slowly because the baby was posterior (turned face-forward instead of face-backward) which not only makes it all go slower, it makes for awful back labor. Bridger was this way as well and I remembered the feeling. It was also frustrating because I needed to keep walking to keep things moving, which was making me very tired.

By 4pm I had been stuck at 7 for several hours so I let the midwife break my water. I had been resisting this because I knew from past experience that the pain gets much worse once the insulation's gone. Sure enough, things got moving and very painful. Thankfully there was a nice whirlpool tub that took the edge off a bit. I even tried to have her in the tub, but I couldn't seem to get in a good position, so she ended up being born a land baby at 6:04pm. The delivery was very difficult due to her 95 percentile head (just a shade smaller than Asher's) and her 8 pound, 6.5oz body. It also didn't help that I was so tired! Unfortunately, as her shoulders were delivered we heard a little pop and thought she might have broken something. She was amazingly content, though, and nursed right away. We were all home by 10pm.

We had Eilidh to the pediatrician yesterday and she had to have x-rays during her first day of life. Sure enough, her left arm was broken during the delivery. The doctor just taped it down to her chest a bit and said it would heal within a week. She's such a sweetie that she hasn't fussed about it at all. She seems to have a very calm and happy temperament, which is such a blessing! You'll hear her lungs a bit in the video as the boys had been holding her awhile. Bridger's very gentle, but Asher's so excited about her that he's a bit of a bull in a china shop around her. She'll be tough and protected!