Riley's Birth Story
My third pregnancy was my hardest pregnancy, by far. Physically, everything hurt sooner and more intensely. I was more swollen, had more back pain & was a lot bigger than I had been with Max or Micah. I'm sure some of it was because my last two pregnancies were closer together and I was taking care of a 3 and 1 year old! Either way, by September I was so ready to not be pregnant anymore and still had quite some time to go! I obviously didn't want to have my baby before I reached term and before she was ready, but there were days when I didn't know how I was going to waddle everywhere much longer! The last couple months were definitely a challenge, but they obviously had a lot of wonderful moments too!
Conflicting with my desire to not be pregnant anymore was the fact that my family lives across the country and I needed/wanted my sister and mom here in California to help while I was in labor. With Max, nobody was here in time because he came much earlier than expected. With Micah, my parents were here, but my sister wasn't. So, while I couldn't wait to have my baby, I didn't want to actually go into labor until everyone arrived. It made for a lot of crazy emotions & stress for a 37-39 week pregnant mama. Since no one but God knows when and how you will actually go into labor, I kept watching for signs and talking to my sister about every little thing my body was doing starting around 37 weeks. We were trying to judge whether or not she should come to California early. (Her plan was to come sometime between November 16th-19th.)
To add some more drama to my mix of emotions, at 38 weeks, I found out I tested positive for GBS. (Approximately one third of pregnant women are GBS+.) This caused quite a lot of tears because my water broke first with Max AND Micah. If my water broke again, I would need to be on an IV of antibiotics intermittently throughout my labor. If you know me at all, you know that is more terrifying than pushing a baby out of me and I was extremely upset. I began praying hard that my water would NOT break until I was pushing and I began researching my options, the risks, etc. My midwives had told me that the third baby tends to be a bit of a wild card and the labor does not always progress similarly to the first two. I was now really hoping and praying that would be the case for me. So, now let's get to the birth.
On November 14th, we decided to go to Disneyland to see all the Christmas fun before Baby Mouse arrived. After 7 hours at the Happiest Place on Earth, we were heading back to our car and I was experiencing quite a lot of Braxton Hicks contractions. I joked with Kyle that I was way too tired to have this baby that night, so I was really hoping she wouldn't come on our way home. I let my sister know what was happening, but really felt like everything would stop once I got home, slept and rested. When I woke up in the morning, I had a text from Steph that she and her family were going to try to catch the 5pm flight from Newark to San Diego. I was excited knowing that she was going to be on her way and I wouldn't have to worry about her missing this birth. Or, so I thought...
We spent the day cleaning the apartment in preparation for the Atteberry family to arrive. Winter storm Avery had other plans. None of us thought that snow would be an issue BEFORE Thanksgiving, but my sister, her husband and 5 kids spent 12 hours in their van trying to get to the airport in the snow, only to arrive and find all the flights were cancelled. They spent the night in a hotel and tried the first flight on Friday morning, but it was totally oversold. I still wasn't having any obvious or significant signs of labor, so they went home with plans to try again Saturday. On Friday morning, I went to BodyPump at 8:30 am, for what would be my last pre-baby workout. (Side note: I had given myself the goal of working out until the day I gave birth and am so proud of myself that I reached my goal! Obviously, I didn't know it at that time, but I was hopeful that I wouldn't be back on Monday. My instructor and gym buddies all made comments about potentially not seeing me for a while!) After Pump, I was pretty tired, so we came home, had lunch and I put Micah down and laid down to nap with Max. I was having a few BH contractions, but still didn't think anything real was going on.
At 2:07 pm, I texted my sister that my contractions were "small and not intense but more." My mom, thankfully, had decided to come straight from her trip and was on a flight to San Diego, landing around 8 pm. Steph texted, "Don't have that baby yet!" and I replied, "I'll do what I can." As we all know, I had no control and couldn't do anything to stop this baby from coming when she wanted, ha!
At 3:08 pm, I texted my sister that I was being very observant, but there was the tiniest bit of blood after I used the restroom. At that point, she called me so we could talk about what was happening. I still wasn't convinced this was definitely happening, but we were getting a little sad at the possibility that she would miss this birth as well. With Micah, I had two days between this sign and labor actually starting, but again- nobody knows what's going to happen. Kyle and I decided to get everything ready in case things really began. We finished packing up our birth bag, packed up the car (with almost everything we needed.. More on that later), showered, etc. I continued to have contractions throughout this time and a few of them seemed harder and I was starting to wonder if this was it.
At 3:56, I texted my friend Jen, "My mom lands at 8:45. I'm having contractions. Super short, but just wanted to let you know. I shouldn't need you but you've got about 5 hours on alert." She told me to let her know what I needed and I replied, "Thanks. It could very well stop but these contractions are definitely more significant than they've been. We'll call if we need back up!" Obviously, I had NO idea how quickly things would progress. At this point I really believed we would be fine waiting until my mom arrived.
Around 4:30 pm, I started timing the contractions and got in the bath, so I could try to relax and figure out if this was the real deal. The contractions were short, but more frequent than I would expect so soon! They ranged from 30-50 seconds and were coming an average of 2 to 4 minutes apart. Around 5:00 I noticed more proof that things were happening and my sister called me. We both cried because we realized this was definitely happening and she was definitely going to miss it again. We decided to put her on FaceTime on my computer, so she could be our virtual doula once again. I labored on my side in bed with Kyle coaching and Steph assisting. Kyle was so encouraging and supportive and Steph was so helpful in reminding us to drink water, use the restroom and try various positions. I mostly just wanted my hand held again, and honestly couldn't believe it was all happening so quickly. At some point, I used the restroom and had a few contractions on the toilet. Max came in and asked, "Mommy, are you going to poop the baby out?!" Ah, from the mouths of babes. He is hilarious.
At 5:40, I called Jen to let her know what was happening. Things were progressing so quickly and intensely that we now weren't even sure my mom would make it in time! We asked her if she could pick up dinner that we ordered for the kids and come over and help us with them. I have no idea what we would have done without her because I really needed Kyle's help and attention. He was sort of in and out of the room, tending to me and the kids. I would shout to him when I needed him and he'd rush back to my side. The kids were in and out a bit too and I honestly loved having them nearby.
At 6:00, I used the restroom again and changed positions. I sat on the exercise ball, leaning over the bed. It was harder to be in this position and I said, "It hurts, it hurts, I can't!" and got back into the side lying position on the bed by 6:30. I started shaking and my breath was shaky as well. I don't remember this happening with Max or Micah. Kyle asked if I was cold and I said, "I don't think so!"
At 6:40, Kyle called the birth center to let them know we would be in tonight. Joanna, the midwife, asked a few questions about how I was doing and asked if I was still feeling the baby kick. I honestly hadn't paid any attention to her movements, sorry girl, so I was slightly worried and made sure to pay attention moving forward. Jen arrived at 6:45 and helped feed the kids dinner. At 6:48, I felt a definite kick from Baby Mouse and was so glad! I also got the hiccups. I got up to change positions and use the restroom again and had a very painful contraction on the toilet. Different positions really changed the intensity of my contractions.
At 7:11, I was back in bed and asked Steph if she could text the family to pray for me and read me some of their prayers. I know some people don't want anyone to know they're in labor so they aren't bothered, but my labor was so intense, I wanted and needed the extra love and encouragement. Maybe it's because they're all across the country, but it really helped. Steph read me some prayers from my siblings and parents through FaceTime while Kyle held my hand and loved me and supported me. Thank you Jesus for technology!
Around 7:30, I tried switching to the exercise ball again. The contractions were so intense and I remember getting one while I was moving. I literally felt like I couldn't hold my own body up, so I called out to Kyle for help. He sort of just held me under my armpits, but my arms were awkwardly in the air and I just said, "No no no no no" because I hated it. Afterwards, I apologized to Kyle because I couldn't properly express myself and he was trying so hard and being so amazing, but that specific position simply felt terrible! There were a few other times that I had to tell Kyle to stop something he was doing. One time he put too much pressure on the bed next to me and it made me move and it hurt. A couple other times he touched my belly and I HATED it. It's so funny and interesting to me how certain things feel good and others feel terrible. Kyle has been lucky during my three labors because I don't want that much massaging or intense rubbing. I basically just want him to hold my hand. Any contraction I had without him holding my hand was harder.
We knew we were getting close to leaving for the birth center, so Steph suggested I hop in the shower one more time to make sure I was ready. I remember thinking that maybe Steph wasn't sure if we should be leaving yet, but I felt ready to go. I think I said something about how I knew I wasn't totally out of it (as if I was in transition), but I didn't want to wait too long and have the car ride be torture. Later we talked about that and Steph said as a doula she has a checklist of things to do, ie- shower, use the restroom & change positions to make sure nothing slows down, but she believed it was time for us to go too! She said she could tell by the way my sounds had changed during contractions and she knew I was far along. I got in the shower quickly and demanded that Kyle join me. I could not fathom being alone. We were probably in there for 5 minutes or so and between that and sitting on the toilet, I had three more contractions. I sat back on the birth ball and prayed "Dear Jesus, help me!" while Jen took the kids to the car.
At 7:49, Kyle and I left for the birth center. We had to walk down our hallway to the elevator, where I had to stop and breathe through another contraction. On the elevator, I was hugging Kyle and heard it stop and people get on behind me. I asked him how many people just got on and said hello. Kyle told them that we were going to have a baby and someone said, "Like right now?!" They couldn't believe it and congratulated us. We almost never see other people on the elevator, so I thought it was so funny that some random neighbors joined us while I was in labor. Then, we walked to our van, where Jen and the kids were waiting. We drove Jen to her parked car, so she could follow us to the birth center, and I told her she might need to hold my hand! The car ride was AWFUL. I tried my best to relax, but it was incredibly hard because of my position. When we drove up the ramp from the basement, I hated the feeling. We also had to drive over a few speed bumps and it was literally torture. I kept shouting for Kyle to stop, but obviously he had to keep going or we would never get to the birth center! I definitely didn't keep my cool throughout the ride, but can you blame me?!
I'm so thankful the birth center is only 15-20 minutes away because I hated every second of that car ride. When we walked in the birth center it was a different midwife from the one we spoke to on the phone earlier. It was Shari, who had delivered Micah, and I was so excited. I told her that I wasn't expecting to see her! I had no idea they switched at 8pm, so we were right on time. Nancy, who was also with us when Micah was born, came shortly after as the birth assistant. I was so glad it was the same women, not that I have anything against the other midwives. I simply felt like these ladies knew me better since we already experienced one birth together! There was also a student midwife, Jessica, who did all my exams and helped catch. When I first got there, Shari had me pee in a cup to check my hydration levels. She told me I needed to eat and drink more. Then she asked me which room I wanted and I said, "the best one you've got" and we went in and got settled. I laid down on the bed to be checked. I had to make Jessica wait because I was having a hard contraction. I remember trying to prepare myself to hear that I wasn't as far along as I would want to be, but hoping for the best. With Max, I showed up at 8cm dilated and had him within 4 hours. With Micah, I showed up at 5 cm dilated and had her within 2 1/2 hours. Being checked is one of the worst feelings, so I tried my best to breathe and relax through it... yeah, right. HA! I heard the midwives say I was complete and I was so relieved and excited. This labor was so intense, but thankfully, it was progressing quickly.
At 8:43, the tub was ready and I got in. When I was in labor with Micah, I had a very significant and overwhelming urge to push. With Riley, I knew I was fully dilated, but didn't totally feel like I needed to push. Around 9pm, I said that maybe I felt ready and sometimes I would push through a contraction and sometimes I would just try my best to relax and breathe through it. Throughout this time, Max and Micah had been in and out of the room and Max came in and shouted, "I love you Mommy!" It was so awesome to hear. I had been trying to prep them both for labor over the past few weeks, explaining that I might talk about how much it hurts, or even cry, or shout. I told them to tell me I was doing a good job and tell me that they loved me, so Max was doing his job wonderfully! At some point I noticed my friend Jen was standing in the hall and the kids were in the room, I said something about how she was welcome to come in, meaning I wasn't worried about her seeing anything and Kyle said, "Don't worry Jen, you can stay right there!" because he was worried that SHE didn't want to see anything, haha. At that point, I had no modesty and didn't care at all.
We started recording on the camera, so I was able to watch the labor back. I was relatively calm, telling Kyle when another contraction was coming. He kept encouraging me and telling me I was doing a great job. During one contraction, Micah was asking to kiss me and I had no idea because I had my eyes closed and was focused on the task at hand. She asked for an apple sauce after a bit and Jen asked Kyle and I to which I replied, "I don't care!" ha, Micah could eat whatever she wanted at that point. The kids left the room to play for a bit and Shari checked the baby's heartbeat and said she sounded great. I mentioned how badly it hurt (Captain Obvious) and my sister asked if it was rectal or pelvic pain. I said rectal and Shari told me not to hold in any farts because we could just blame Kyle. HAHA! Labor & childbirth is truly a beautiful and magical thing.
Nancy asked me if I wanted to put my feet up on the handles in the bath so I could have more support, so I switched sides in the tub. Everyone was rearranging and moving the laptop with virtual doula, Stephanie, so when a contraction came, I worriedly called out for someone. I truly felt lost if somebody wasn’t holding my hand during a contraction. I kept saying “it hurts” and my midwives encouraged me to try pushing with a contraction because sometimes that feels better and I said, “it feels like she’s so far away.” So, they told me to reach down and see if I could feel her. I tried and just shrugged because I had no idea what I was feeling. HA. After a few contractions, I asked if I should move to make things go faster. I was ready to be done with this! During another contraction, Jessica got a flashlight to see what was happening down there and I asked if you could see a baby or anything. Nancy calmly said she could see I was opening a little which meant she was on her way, but no baby sighting yet.
After a few minutes, Shari suggested I try a few contractions on my side and Max and Micah came to check in and ask if the baby was here yet. They made me smile whenever they were near me and Max said, “I’m so glad there’s a baby coming!” The contraction was super hard on my side, so I asked Shari if it would help and she explained that sometimes they space them out and make them harder and allow the baby to turn properly. It was really helpful to me to hear why I was trying this new position. When another contraction came, I instinctively grabbed my leg and pushed, and also shouted quite loudly, “No! This is hard!” Again, Captain Obvious. I sat up in a squat position and cried a little, asking Kyle if I was doing okay. I leaned over the side of the tub into Kyle’s arms. I complained of back pain and Steph reassured me that was the baby. Nancy came around to put pressure on my back and Max popped in and said, “You’re doing a great job!” I really did have such an amazing team of support.
Watching the video back, it really sticks out to me how oblivious I was to everyone around me at times. They were all joking about certain things and conversing and I was not partaking in any of those conversations. It didn’t bother me at all; it was as though I had no idea it was happening while I was in my own little bubble. I had a decent break between contractions and leaned back into a more traditional position, and they listened to the baby’s heartbeat again and I fixed my hair which I vaguely remember was driving me nuts because it was falling out of the bun. (I need a haircut.) I asked again if I was doing okay and Kyle grabbed my hands and encouraged me. Shari told me “You look beautiful and that’s what’s important.” haha I told her it was my “mom bun” and gave a small-half-out-of-it smile. Another contraction came and I definitely let a curse word slip out of my lips. It wasn’t THE worst one, but the second worse one… Sorry Kaila! (She had joined Stephanie at some point on FaceTime to see her cousin be born!) I quickly moved up into a squat and the midwives put a mirror under the tub to see if anything was happening. I stated that it burned a little.
At 9:25, Steph informed me that my Mom had arrived. I don't remember if I heard her at the time because I was definitely making a bit more noise than before. Shari asked me to feel for her head and I kept saying I couldn't tell. I was getting sad because I just wanted her out and I wasn't sure if I was doing a great job. Through all my sadness and confusion, Kyle kept encouraging me and loving me so well. I started talking to my girl, asking her to come out because I was so tired. At this point, I was realllly feeling it and kept saying, "Help me, help me." I'm not sure what exactly I wanted everyone to do because I know they can't experience any of my pain for me, but a girl can dream. At this point, it felt significantly harder than my labor with Micah. Steph suggested I try going on my hands and knees, but I just felt like everything sucked and I didn't know which position was right. Between pushing with contractions, I let out a few loud screams. Shari told me there was a little bit of blood, which worried me a bit. She said Jessica needed to check to see if the cervix was completely out of the way. This isn’t exactly the greatest thing to hear when you were told an hour ago that you were fully dilated. After another painful contraction, I worriedly asked if everything was okay and was reassured. Micah also came and gave me a kiss, which I loved.
At 9:32, Jessica checked me again. Stephanie told me that she felt it took her forever and she felt so badly for me. I was asking her to tell me what was going on and after a bit, she told me that I did have a little bit of cervix. Now it was time for the REAL swear word. I immediately apologized and my Dad, who my mom had on speaker/FaceTime asked if he just heard some bad language. Everyone started laughing, but a big contraction was coming on and I shushed everyone very loudly because I needed them to be quiet. I kept asking Jessica to tell me what was happening, and she was wonderful, but it sort of seemed like she wasn't totally sure what to tell me. She said I had a bit of anterior cervix still in the way. Shari told me to try to relax for a bit through contractions to get that last bit out of the way. Steph suggested I get into a more upright position which could help. Looking back, it makes sense because I didn't have the overwhelming urge to push like I had with Micah. I tried getting on my hands and knees, as my sister suggested, to try to get that last bit of cervix out of my way! I was in a lot of pain and felt very confused. I kept asking for help because I wasn't sure what to do. When we watched the video, I felt bad for myself because with Micah, I was much more calm and quiet while pushing. It also didn't help that this babe was two pounds bigger than Max and Micah. I'll just say that it made sense once they weighed her! Holy moly.
We turned the camera off for a few minutes, so I'm not totally sure about the exact timeline from this point on, but during one contraction I stated, "She's coming." I was back on the side of the tub where my feet didn't have a spot, and I lost a bit of control and felt like I was falling. Everyone was calm and reassuring even when I was not. It's like they're professionals or something. After the contraction, I think I said something about her going away and Nancy reassured me, "She's going to come back." Even though my labor wasn't that long, it had been so intense & I had no real sense of time, so I felt like it was going to last forever. They suggested I move to the other side of the tub again to be able to put my feet up, which was a good idea, but let me tell you, when an almost 10 pound baby is making her way out down there, moving even the smallest bit is the worst.
This stage of my labor was really different than my experience with Micah, so it’s hard to say exactly how long I “pushed for.” I kept changing positions because I couldn’t quite find the right one. My sister and I watched the video back and realized that a big part of my struggle was probably that my feet weren’t fully supported. With Max, Kyle & a nurse each held one of my legs. With Micah, Kyle was in the tub in front of me holding one leg, while the midwife held another. There were handles in the tub that I could put my feet on, but at various times they slipped off or I wasn’t able to have them there and it definitely made it harder. Her head was starting to crown at this point and they told me they were gonna have her “sit” right there for a bit to let everything stretch. I’ll just say this was NOT my favorite part. Imagine pausing at the absolute hardest part with the most intense pain. I asked for my babies, and was assured that Max and Micah were nearby. I have spoken to some women who didn’t want to have their other kids around while in labor, but I loved having them nearby. They never bothered me once and I was never worried about them. It felt natural to have them be a part of this and experience this as a family. If anything, I wish they would have been near me more often because they always made it better.
Pushing any size baby out of your hoo-ha is serious business, but this “little” lady was, without a doubt, the most painful. Max took the longest to come out, but Riley was way more intense. I asked, “how much longer?!” and cried out, “Lord give me strength!” while holding my hand down there to feel her head. Steph called out that she could see her head! I was having a hard time being patient and waiting for contractions to push. Kyle and Shari asked if I was having one and I said, “No, I just want her out!” They told me to relax and my response was, “GUYS.” (AS IN- I CAN’T EVEN. haha) This is where I could see that I needed more pressure against my legs to push. Nancy did put her hand on one knee to help, but looking back, I wish I would have realized what I needed to ask for it. Hindsight is 20/20. After about 4 minutes from when I said, “She’s coming” her head was out. Jessica checked for her cord to see if everything was good and I gave Kyle a look like, “Do you see what I’m doing here?!” He was so reassuring and amazing. I felt a small sense of relief, but not much yet, there was still work to be done. Stephanie told me later that she had a slight moment of worry during this time because Jessica gave Shari a look and asked how long the head had been out. “45 seconds” Nancy said. I spoke to Riley again, “Come on out baby girl!” They want the body out within 4 minutes, so we were fine and thankfully I was oblivious to any concern at this time. With my next contraction, I pushed, screamed, & pushed again and about a minute and fifteen seconds after her head was out, she was born. I grabbed my daughter and my face literally lit up. I was so relieved, overjoyed, thankful and amazed that she was finally here. Micah called out, “Baby!” There was conflicting times on the clocks, but we just went with what the midwives wrote on our official papers saying 9:44pm. She didn’t cry immediately, so I kept asking if she was okay and was reassured that she was fine. About a minute after she was born, she let out the most miraculous and loud cry. Everyone commented on her amazing lungs. Her APGAR at 1 minute was an 8 and at 5 minutes was a 9, only losing points for color. I also asked to confirm that she was a girl, and Shari lifted her leg to check. I asked for a kiss from Kyle and Max and Micah both gave me one too and I asked my mom to take some pictures to try to capture the moment. They’re the darkest, blurriest photos ever, but at least we have them and I’ll always treasure them. Kyle, Max & Micah just sat next to the tub for a few minutes watching our new girl. Micah asked for a “mees” aka- kiss and it was the first of many. Max was asking when he could cut the cord and told everyone to “look at her tiny feet!” Again, I’m SO thankful they were there with me and a part of this experience. After 6 or 7 minutes, I tried to see if she wanted to nurse as we were waiting for my placenta to come. She didn’t latch yet, but the cord had stopped pulsing, so we were ready to cut it. They clamped it and Kyle and Max cut it together. Max and Micah were itching to jump into the water and get closer to the baby, but it was a bit dirty. I found out later that Riley had pooped when she was born, so we’ll just say the water was a little gross. HA.
About ten minutes after she was born, we gave the baby to Kyle for some skin to skin, so I could birth the placenta. Kyle laid on the bed with his new daughter and Max and Micah by his side. Max was asking what was all over the baby referring to the vernix and kept commenting on how tiny she was. Micah was having all sorts of emotions and alternated between kissing the baby and crying for some various reasons. I only know all this happened because I asked my mom to follow Kyle with the video camera and watched it back later. During this time, I birthed the placenta in the tub and then carefully & slowly transferred to the bed next to Kyle. I was checked and found that I had a very small tear, but didn’t require stitches. Thank you Jesus. I was bleeding more than they wanted, so I had to get a shot of pitocin. I was a bit freaked out by this, but had the same experience with Micah, so it wasn’t a shock. Later, Nancy told me that I was still bleeding more than they wanted and their typical course of action is a shot of methergine. She knew I didn’t want any drugs at all, so hearing that I was going to need something stronger was not ideal. She told me about a natural option that some of her fellow home birth midwives used, but that she had never done. If you’re squeamish, skip ahead to the next paragraph. If you’re curious & not weirded out by strange things, read on… She said I could take a small piece of the umbilical cord and put it in the side of my mouth on my gums. Now, I obviously have had three natural births and try to steer clear of any unnecessary interventions, but even I thought this was strange. I’m not full granola, but I was more than willing to try it to avoid another shot and another drug in my body. Kyle was VERY freaked out and thought I was insane. It really wasn’t that weird to be honest. It had no taste and just felt like I had a piece of gauze in my mouth at the dentist. The coolest part was it worked! Nancy was happy with my bleeding as she kept checking me and I didn’t need another shot!
Back to the not so weird stuff now. Riley latched around 10:15 and nursed off and on for the next hour or two. Micah was very interested in what was happening and asked to nurse, but was easily distracted by pudding. The birth center gives moms the golden two hours to bond, nurse and have skin to skin before taking the baby for measurements, etc. We still didn't actually have her name decided. A few months ago, I pretty much got stuck on Riley, but mentioned a few other names, including Ryan. (I have always liked boy names for girls.) Max became fixated on Ryan and kept saying no to Riley. He is quite a stubborn 3 year old. We finally decided to name her Riley Ryan Burns. I think it's sweet and funny that Max was so persistent, so I felt like Ryan needed to be a part of her name. We also enjoyed our celebratory orange juice! This is a Bradley Method of Childbirth thing and we've enjoyed our orange juice after each of our babies were born!
After she had nursed for a while, we tried to take family photos. (After Micah was born, we were sitting on the bed peacefully in the morning light and captured some beautiful moments. See the difference below.) Let's just say this time wasn't so peaceful. The kids were doing great, but at this point they started showing proof that they were up WAY past their bedtimes. The photos are awful, but show real life. Then, it was Max's turn to hold Riley. He kept kissing her and didn't want to give her back. Micah took her turn and kept touching and kissing her. She definitely kept us on our toes, as we had to make sure she was gentle with Riley!
A little after midnight, it was time to measure her. I found out just why she felt so much harder to push out. She was a whopping 9 lbs. 7.5 oz! I could believe it because of the pain, but was shocked that she was 2 pounds bigger than Max! (He was 7 lbs. 7 oz, Micah was 7 lbs. 9.5 oz!) She was 21 inches long.
Kyle put on Riley’s first diaper and we set up a movie for Max in the hopes that he would settle down and fall asleep. Then, he passed out on the chair. Micah fell asleep in YiaYia’s arms. At our birth center, as long as everything is good, we can leave between 4-6 hours after the birth. That night, there were two other moms in labor, so they were going to let me leave even earlier so they could get the room ready for the next birth. We had to finalize some paperwork and I had to make sure I could pee. Kyle worked on the forms and I successfully used the restroom! Kyle and my mom started packing up our belongings and taking everything to the car around 12:45 am. Kyle came back into the room and said, “The car is all packed up, but I have some bad news.” I had no idea what he could be talking about. He continued, “The baby’s car seat is not in the car.” I laughed. Because the Atteberry family was supposed to come on Thursday, we got the car ready for the 7 of them which meant we had to move the baby’s car seat out to make room. When Kyle was packing up the car before we went to the birth center, neither of us remembered that we had taken the car seat out. It had been in there for the past couple weeks, so it just slipped our minds. We decided that Kyle would pack up the sleeping kids and take them and my mom home and come back to get me with Riley’s car seat. I was feeling pretty good, so I felt comfortable with Kyle leaving and we really didn’t have much of a choice. Again, I’m grateful that we don’t live far from the birth center! The midwives helped me move to the spare room so the next mom would be able to come into mine. (Only 2 out of the 3 rooms have permanent tubs, so I was moved into the room with a shower.) I just sat and held Riley, staring at her and just feeling so content, in love and a bit tired.
When Kyle got back, we packed up our girl and headed home. All I wanted was a milkshake and In-N-Out. We had ordered tacos earlier because In-N-Out sadly didn't deliver and I needed some protein. It was around 1:30/2:00 am, so In-N-Out was closed, and we decided to try McDonald's for a milkshake. I was extremely disappointed when we pulled into the drive-thru and found out the shake machine was turned off for the day! Didn't they know I had just given birth and NEEDED a milkshake!? We got chicken nuggets, fries and headed home. After finishing our food, we both took turns holding Riley while the other showered. Let me tell you something, that post birth shower is one of the most amazing feelings in the entire world. It was around 4am when I texted my family a picture of Riley, thanked them for their prayers and went to bed... at least for an hour or so!
Thank you God for another healthy pregnancy, birth & child. Thank you for answering our prayers that my water wouldn't break until pushing! Thank you to my husband who gave me so much strength, encouragement & love throughout one of the hardest experiences of my life. (He was amazing during the other two as well!) Thank you Max and Micah for kissing me, loving me and welcoming your new sister with me. Thank you Jen for coming in as my back-up when we needed you! Thank you Stephanie for being the best sister & virtual doula I could ask for. I'm so sorry you missed the birth again, but I still felt strongly that you were a part of our birth experience! Thank you Mom for hopping on a flight right after you landed from Japan to witness your 14th grandchild's entrance into the world. Thank you to the amazing midwives at Best Start for supporting me and helping me have another natural birth. I am so grateful for my experience and, honestly, so proud of myself for what I accomplished and that I was able to give my three babies the best start they could have in this world.
At 39 weeks & 4 days, after approximately 7 1/2 hours of labor, 5 of which were quite intense, an hour or so of kind of pushing and about 6 minutes of the real deal pushing, I fell completely head over heels in love with my newest daughter, Riley Ryan Burns.
