Weekend Recap

Participate in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure: check

Buy Luke some new shoes: check

Assist in the delivery of a friend's baby at her unplanned home birth: check

I can tell you that I didn't do any "racing" at the race, rather I walked in a group of thousands of thousands of thousands of people in support for finding a cure for breast cancer.


It took us nearly an hour and half to walk 3 miles just due to the sheer number of participants. But to show support for our friend and wonderful bishop's wife, recently diagnosed, it was a worthwhile morning.

And Luke's shoes. That was good. First store we walked into, first pair we picked up, try them on, they fit, bam! Done!

But obviously the most exciting part of the weekend came as I received a call at 11:51pm on Saturday night. It was my friend, J, with whom I had previously arranged to take care of her two year old when she went into labor. That call was only a warning really, as her contractions had barely started. A few minutes later, her husband called asking me to come on over so I could sleep there while they went to the birthing center. So I did.

I'm not sure what time that was, probably about 12:15 am, because I was groggy and had a slight headache but figured as long as I could just get there and hit the sack again, I would sleep it off. I drove there on autopilot. I didn't see J when I arrived but her husband, S, showed me where I could sleep and promised to bring me some pillows as there were none on the bed. But he never returned. I figured they had much more important things to worry about and went ahead and laid down and started to doze off. Sleep was not coming easily however and soon I was hearing J's pain all the way across the house.

I said a few prayers for her then, as I knew she had been nervous about the delivery. And I kept thinking, "Why are they still here?" Soon the cries were louder, closer together. I've had a few kids myself now, one without medication, and those sounds were quite familiar to me. And they were not the sounds of early labor. They were the sounds of transition.

I laid in the bed wondering how or if I should let them know that they had "waited it out" at home long enough. From the sounds of it, I knew they'd never make it to the birthing center 30 minutes away, but if they hurried they might make it to the hospital here in town.

Just as those thoughts crossed my mind, I heard my name screamed from across the house. I tore out of bed and down the hall. As I entered the bedroom I could hear S say, "She's crowning". He was on speaker phone with 911.

I rounded the corner into the bathroom as a million and one thoughts filled my head. But it was also at the moment that my brain ceased to function in it's usual way and adrenaline took over.

The baby was clearly on it's way. S told me, "You take J and I'll get the baby!" So I did. I took J under her arms and laid her down there on the floor and held her and tried to talk her through it. I have no idea what I said. The rest of the birth was surreal and crazy and unbelievable.

There were a few moments there, when my heart truly stopped. It was so scary. It was so amazing. It was so crazy. Little Baby Boy was born at 1:38 am. We tied off the umbilical cord with a shoe lace as instructed by the 911 operator.

I'd say it was approximately 6-7 minutes after the birth that the paramedics showed up. And that felt like the longest minutes of my life. And show up, they did! 3 fire trucks and no less than 12 firefighter/EMT guys. They filled up the house. I talked with the midwife over the phone and let her know they were opting not to be taken to the hospital.

J's first labor took nearly 20 hours, so the fact that from start to finish, this one was just over an hour and half, surprised everyone involved.

I spent the next few hours at J's side. She didn't want me to go too far because I think she needed a little estrogen in that room full of men. They didn't want to leave her until the midwife arrived, and since she had to drive from her own home (far away) to the birthing center (far away in one direction) to retrieve "the kit" and then to J's house (other direction), we had a lot of time there together. They finally sent one truck back to the station, about 6 fireman remained in the living room and two waited in the room with S, J, the baby, and me.

It was kind of funny, because not long ago I took Max on a tour of the fire station, and then as we sat on the floor of the bathroom under these crazy circumstances, after things calmed down a little, I looked around and realized I've seen these guys before.

I looked at the one guy, and I said, "Hey! I have a picture of you with my son on the fire truck!"



It took about 2 hours for the midwife to arrive and I left shortly after and got home about 3:45am. I shook Dan awake and tried to tell him everything, but I knew he wasn't getting it. I think it took me nearly an hour to fall asleep, despite my exhaustion.

J did so well. It still feels so surreal to me, so I can't imagine how it feels to her. I do know that I have replayed the events of that night in my mind over and over. And those same words still come to mind, crazy, scary, wonderful.

There are a bazillion "what if's" and I'm not sure I would like to do that again, but I am glad I was there. I got to witness a miracle first hand. And I feel a love for my friend and her little family in a way and to a degree that I wouldn't have otherwise.

It definitely wasn't in the plans but I must say it was the best/craziest/most surreal/awesomest/scariest part of the weekend.