Giving Birth...

So last week I posted a status on FB that got all sorts of comments:) I didn't mean for it to become so secretive, but we've been looking into different birthing options, and until we had more information and had talked to our families, I didn't want to say too much.

SO...the big consideration right now, is home birth! A couple of you guessed it right away (because you're home birthers yourselves, or pretty darn close;) The reason we're looking into it, primarily, is because I was really unhappy with the way my hospital birth with Kallie went (induction, immobility, rude medical personnel, etc.). A couple of weeks ago I watched some home birthing videos on You Tube and was in awe of how beautiful it was to see women labouring and giving birth in their most comfortable surroundings. Obviously birth is just as awe-inspiring in a hospital, it doesn't matter where a baby is born, but after I saw those videos, I felt a strong yearning for the same experience. I also have a few friends who have had home births, and they had amazing experiences.

Lyndon is much more wary of the whole idea, so I had a very in-depth discussion with one of my midwives on Tues. about it, and got some great information. For those of you who don't know much about home birth (like me before last week!) and think that the 'midwife shows up with a kitchen fork to deliver your baby' (thanks Natalie for that perspective;), I was quite surprised to find out how medically prepared a home birth is. And that statistically, the risks of a hospital birth vs. a home birth are the SAME in AMOUNT, but different in NATURE. I have done lots of research, and as far as risks go, with a normal, healthy pregnancy (which you're already screened as, as a midwife client) there isn't a lot to worry about. It would take too long to write down everything I've learned in the last week, but it is very fascinating:)

At this point, we don't know what we're going to do. One of the things I love most about having a midwife is the empowerment. Ultimately, the decision is ours, and there's no rush to set things in stone. We could decide on a home birth and then an hour into labour change our minds, and that's absolutely fine. What's most important to me is being able to labour at home, in a comfortable setting and comfortable clothing, for as long as possible. I think we might do that and then go to the hospital for the actual birth. The midwife suggested if that is our choice, to have everything set up at home for the possibility of birth, just in case things progress faster than we thought. We have support from our families and friends as far as doing what we think is best for our family, which is a huge blessing:)

I also realize that with a midwife this time, a hospital birth would be a completely different experience than last time. This is encouraging, I know that either way it will be a positive experience. Right now we're weighing our options, occasionally discussing it, and praying about it. Ultimately, I know we'll find the best fit for both of us, and will welcome our beautiful baby into this world in the setting we choose:)

I've gotten really great information and advice (thanks again, Natalie:) and would love to hear any other experiences or thoughts on the topic. And as a disclaimer...if we do birth at home, Kallie will not be in the house, and definitely NOT witnessing the birth of her sibling:) I have no desire to subject my toddler to something that traumatic!!!

So, there ya go, that's what we've been thinking about:) Secret's out!

What's Been Going On...

Well, the first thing is that our computer crashed, and we're in the process of *hopefully* recovering everything (pictures, videos, business paperwork, etc!) off of it! We have a new computer, a Mac, which Lyndon is thrilled about...and I'm slowly learning how to use:) So, I haven't been on the internet much, and we'll say that's one of the major reasons it's been so long since an update;) Also, I have no pictures on this computer yet (we just set it up last night), so hopefully soon I'll be able to post pics.

The MAJOR thing that has happened in our household lately is that Kallie Paige is COMPLETELY potty-trained! We started the first week of August, and w/in a week and a half, we were totally done! I've been talking to a lot of parents about it lately, and it seems that we had a somewhat rare p/t experience. Kallie had about 4 accidents in the first week of training, and since then, hasn't had one. About a week ago we started taking her out in just panties (no pull-up, she always kept it dry but we were paranoid) and she's still accident free. I don't ever have to ask her or check...no matter what she's doing, playing, eating, swimming, she'll come up to me and tell me she has to pee. Or at home, she just goes all by herself, half the time without us even knowing! She goes poop on the potty too, at first it was with a little hesitance, but now it's just as easy as her going pee! I'm very thankful it was this easy...I can tend to be a bit lazy when it comes to stuff like this, and so it was really great that we didn't have to work that hard at it:)

I know she might still regress, but for the time being it seems to be cemented, and she has a good 3 months before baby comes to make it even more permanent, so right now we're celebrating!!!:)

Other news with us:

Baby is doing GREAT:) So incredibly active, and I just love it! Anytime I rest, even if just for a couple of minutes, I'm completely entertained by wiggles, kicks and turns:) I just love having a baby in there!

I spent the weekend a couple of weeks ago in Kamloops B.C. with my mom's side of the family, celebrating my Grandpa. He passed away in early July, and we had a memorial for him in Kamloops. It was an amazing weekend filled with family and memories. I'll be doing a post about my Grandpa and the weekend later, but I want to add pictures, so I have to wait:)

Lyndon and I are celebrating 5 years of marriage this Friday:)! I can't believe how fast time flies by! My sister is also coming to visit this weekend, so we're seizing the opportunity and leaving Kallie with her auntie Dana Saturday night for us to go to dinner and a movie:) And then our big celebration is a trip to Milwaukee later this month with friends of ours, to see the 'Kings of Leon' concert! We're both SO excited! They're one of our favourite bands (which is very rare for us to agree on music;), and we're leaving Kallie with her Oma and Opa from Thursday to Sunday, for a child-free weekend before we're a family of four:) We'll be stopping in Minneapolis along the way, so I'm looking forward to some good shopping too:)

Lyndon has been working like crazy lately, so we haven't seen much of each other. It's that time of year for carpenters:) We're both really looking forward to having a date this weekend, and I'm so glad we're going away for those few days so he can have a real break!

Summer is over! I'm back to full-time daycare, which on day two is already proving to be a bit exhausting, but I think once we all get into the swing of things, it'll be a lot easier!

I think that's all, hope you've had a great summer!!!