A Horse...

Where in the world did this whacky name come from?  A Horse In the Wind by the Sea... You can be sure, it is packed with deep meaning!       

My first birth experience was like that of many first time moms.  My view of birth was that it was a "natural" process, after all my mom had delivered four of my siblings at home... but in the hustle and bustle of life, I did not take time to adequately prepare for the birth of our first baby girl.  I felt bullied by a fair amount of fear and cultural norms. When it was all said and done, whether or not I had prepared may or may not have impacted the outcome.  Violet Dawn was born at 38 weeks via c-section. (Read more about that birth here)  She was breech and would not turn.  We did try to version proceedure.  It I had to do it over again, I would not have done the version and I would not have delievered at 38 weeks.  Alas... it cannot be redone and our Violet turned out just fine!
  
   As a side note, my c-section experience was just fine.  Nothing weird or out of the ordinary happened.  I did see my guts in the reflection of the big bright lights... that was weird.  I did feel afraid to hold my baby lying flat out on the table and totally numb. The recovery was fine for me.  I didn't really experience any post partum depression stuff.  We did have a hard time nursing, but eventually got it figured out!  

Violet Dawn Roth born January 30, 2009!

  15 months later, when I found out I was pregnant with baby #2, I was determined to do things differently.  Luckily, my bud and mom friend was a birth doula!  Jackie Priest showed me the well worn path of choosing a supportive provider, being part of the birth education community, and partnering with a doula!  

One fairly common tool for natural childbirth or really anything physically hard is visualization.  One of the most powerful parts of my preparation for my second birth was my visualization of a race horse.  See, I lived only blocks from ChurchHill Downs, and I had been a handful of times to watch the horses run.  Oh... they are so beautiful.  I get emotional just thinking about how magnificent those horses are running... every muscle exploding, shiny coats, and you just knew that they were made for this... They were free, they were powerful, so strong.  And that... was precisely what I wanted to experience.  And, I did! It was a total thrill!  I loved it!  And, I love the privilege of being a part of the birth stories of other amazingly strong and beautiful women!

Support, Support, Support!!!

A woman in childbirth needs to feel safe.  Obviously, physically safe. Which is why she should choose a birth location that makes her feel safe.  There are so many options!  We chose to deliver at Clark Memorial with Certified Nurse Midwives.  The environment there is accommodating for a natural delivery, so I was in a place that I felt comfortable and also offered medical care should it become necessary.  This what we felt most safe with.  Pictured below is the midwife who delievered Miss Laurel, Alison Reid.

 Choosing folks to be with you and around you who feel safe to you relationally and emotionally is also important.

This delivery, we chose to have one of our most precious friends with us, Joan Coleman.  She is so clearly a friend who God gifted us with for so many different reasons.  She has been our family away from family.  Home away from home.  She's like a sister, a friend, a mom.  She loves my children and has supported us through the ups and downs of life as we have been busy growing our little family.  We were so blessed to have her at this birth.  Her nuturing, maternal presence was just what we needed.

We also invited our friend Lacie Eubank to be with us! Though I can't put my finger on why, something that was very important to me this go round was that I wanted to record this pregnancy and birth journey through photographs.  So, one of my closest and sweetest friends, Lacie, generously took maternity pictures with me early in my third trimester and then she came to the birth as well!  It went so fast, she made it just in time to catch all the action! We have been so extremely blessed having the photos documenting Laurel's delivery and having Lacie at the birth was a special part too! You wont' see a picture of her, because she's the one behind the camera!

Last and certainly, CERTAINLY not least!!!!  My doula!  Jackie Priest!  Clif and I always say that we would never deliver a baby without a doula.  Jackie was my inspiration into the birth world, she's one of my dearests friends, and having her at my birth is... well... I just couldn't do it without her.  She knows where I'm at, what I'll be needing next, when she speaks I can get a hold of myself, when she touches me I calm down.



When you are planning your birth think about what and who makes you feel relaxed and safe!  And consider having them be a part of your special day!

A Horse in the Wind by the... WHAT IS THIS!

THIS, is my new blog to write all things birthy!  In my work as a doula there is so much opportunity to share knowledge and encouragement about the journey of pregnancy and birth and motherhood!  So... that is what this blog is about!

As for the crazy name!  I will get to that later!  It will, hands down, require it's own post.  Coming soon!

Today I'd like to share the posts recording the birth journey that brought Miss Laurel Lynn Grace to us. And I'm sharing this to HIGHLIGHT the importance of having a support team around you for your birth.  Clif and I have been privileged to have Andrew Coverdale, a dear brother and friend, present at all our births.  This year he was joined by his amazing bride to be and our close friend, Milli Jane! He has kept our friends and family up to date through our blog!  And now, we have the beautiful words and script to look back and remember the special time!

You can start with this link and follow Andrew's post to the birth of the babe!
http://sallyroth.blogspot.com/2013/01/a-new-baby-and-faithful-god.html