It is January 12th, 2023, my 30th birthday! I wake up having a normal day, then I start feeling contractions! The excitement of possibly sharing my birthday with my baby girl was motivation to get labor moving. I walked, I did mile circuits, and I got on the birthing ball. I wasn’t sure if I was progressing or if any changes were happening, so my amazing doula came to my house and walked with me, hoping we could get my contractions closer together and more consistent. They were definitely picking up, but not as much as I had hoped.

I asked Morgann to come and check me to see if I was dilating at all, or if this was a false alarm. I was dilating and my body was definitely laboring. Morgann stayed for an hour to make sure I didn’t go into labor after being checked. She even sang happy birthday to me and shared some birthday cake with my family and I, then she went ahead and left home. I continued to labor all weekend, but wasn’t having contractions consistently. Morgann checked on me each day and continued to remind me that I needed REST.

FINALLY, Monday morning I was woken up at 3 a.m. with strong contractions, 5 minutes apart, and bloody show. I was so excited and I knew I would be welcoming my baby girl soon. I called my doula to let her know, and I text Morgann to give her a heads up. To my surprise, Morgann responded! By 6 a.m. my whole birth team and family were at our home. Morgann checked me and the baby. Everything was great and we knew this would be baby girls day!

I spent all day laboring. Walking, bouncing on my birthing ball, and trying all kinds of positions to get baby to come. Morgann and my doula were AMAZING! They helped me with all kinds of ways to sit, stand, squat, and move to get things moving. Morgann kept a close eye on the baby's heart rate to ensure the baby was not stressed while my body labored. She made sure to remind me to REST while I could. I asked Morgann to check me a few more times, to see if any progress was being made. I labor a little differently than most women, I don’t really feel agonizing pain, UNTIL my water ruptures. With that being said, we weren’t really sure if progress was being made, so being checked was one way to see if I was dilating and moving in the right direction.

Morgann got my bed made up, and started to fill the tub, so it would be ready when it was time. Once my water broke we all went to my bathroom and Morgann had me squatting and pushing through contractions. I wasn’t feeling the agonizing pain like we all expected, so I knew the baby either wasn’t ready, or something was wrong. Morgann wanted to check me one more time to make sure the baby was still good to go. Her face dropped and she shocked us ALL when she said there was a SECOND water sack! This was the first time I ever heard of this. I asked her to PLEASE rupture it, because I was beginning to get so exhausted and just wanted to have my baby already.

Once that second water sack was ruptured the pain flooded in! The strong agonizing contractions started. Morgann and my husband knew IT WAS TIME. We added more warm water to the tub and I got in. Morgann had asked my husband (previously) how involved he wanted to be during the birth and he wanted to do any and all the things. Morgann allowed him to do so, and she coached him through it all. There were times I felt I couldn’t do it anymore, times where I didn’t think I would make it through the next contraction, but Morgann reminded me how strong I was, how bad I wanted my home/water birth, and told me I could do this. She was so supportive to me and my husband.

Once my baby’s head was out I was beyond exhausted and I just needed a little rest. Morgann assured me it was okay to do so, and to “sit with that pressure.” When I was ready to push again and get the baby out she made sure to tell my husband where to place his hands and how to get our baby. Unfortunately, baby girl’s umbilical cord was around her neck, so Morgann did have to step in, but she did so very calmly and collected. She even let my husband help her get her and unwrap the cord. They laid my baby on my chest and we got to chill for a bit.

Once I was out of the tub and in my bed with my baby, husband, and other children, Morgann started cleaning up everything. She allowed my family and I to love on the newest baby girl without being bothered. It was the absolute best to be able to get that time, because that is NOT something you get with a hospital birth. Morgann then asked if we were ready to cut the cord, and we did that.

Morgann did all the measurements and weighed the baby, and she let my husband and 7 year old daughter help her. She even assisted my daughter with putting on the baby’s first diaper. Morgann is the absolute best! She always included my kids at appointments and during the whole laboring and birth. She was very sweet and loving to myself and my family. I will forever be grateful for Morgann. She holds a very special place in my heart.