Levi's Birth Story: Part 2

Levi Joshua’s Birth Story, Part 2: Labor & Delivery of a Special Christmas Surprise

(Find Levi's Birth Story Part 1 here)

After years of infertility, adoption, and a completely unexpected pregnancy, we spent months preparing to welcome a baby girl into our family. What happened next was something none of us saw coming.

Waiting on God's Timing

It was Sunday, December 21st and I was 40 weeks and 2 days pregnant. I was ready for my baby girl to come any moment! I woke up that morning and really wanted to make it to church, even as I waited with heightened emotions and a strong desire to see movement with labor. Every day felt harder physically, and I was constantly balancing my eagerness to “get this baby out” for the physical relief  — while trying to remain in the present and enjoy each moment of Christmas break with the rest of my family and try not to feel rushed or impatient for baby’s arrival. 

It was important to me to protect my heart and mind and headspace each day, putting my full trust in God’s timing and receive His daily grace and peace to make it through - knowing that He had an appointed time for labor to begin.

That Sunday morning (12/21), as we got ready for church I told Steven that I wanted to put the finishing touches on the kids overnight bags and discreetly put them in the van with us in case I were to go into labor while we were at church for a few hours – anything could happen! Once you surpass your due date, each moment can feel like borrowed time a bit. I wanted to have their bags ready in case we needed to hand the kids off to helpers. I had everything for my hospital bag packed up and left it at home knowing that the place I had planned to labor first and for as long as possible was home. Looking back, I am so glad that I was prompted to get the bags ready for all of us that morning! 

So we went to church that morning, and I fully embraced worship and put my whole heart into it! It felt so good to move and dance. It was a sweet time and so good for my heart, and I’m really grateful that I had that beautiful morning of corporate worship to set the tone for the rest of the day and the events that would follow. 

We decided to grab some Mexican food for lunch and it was delicious! Once we got home, I wanted to lay down for a nap. Oh, how glad I am that I got even those couple of hours to rest that afternoon! When I woke up, I asked if we could go on a family walk. It was laborious - as the last few walks had become for me! But again, I’m so glad that I did it and that we were able to do that before labor began. On the family walk, Steven and I were discussing dinner and he offered to make me a steak that he had thawed out. Oh, how grateful I am that he offered to make me that steak! It ended up being a hearty meal that saw me through labor later that night… 

Labor Begins

After we got the kids in bed, we both felt the urge to go to bed early, I’m grateful for the couple of hours that I got before labor began.

My body woke me up at 11:30 PM with a very strong full uterus contraction! This was the first real contraction that I had ever felt! I followed along with the contractions and eventually asked Steven to start timing them when they seemed to get closer together. They were consistently a minute long from the get-go! By 1 or 1:30 AM, I had established a good rhythm with the contractions by using a birthing ball and I got into a solid rhythm and started doing the same thing each time to help me mentally cope. Some time after 2am Steven called  our friends that we had asked to be on call to come be at the house with our other children if labor happened in the night. Well, here we were! It was happening! He asked the Kayes to come over by 3am if my contractions continued to stay this strong and steady, and sure enough they did, so our friends showed up just before 3 AM. I threw the last couple of things into the kids’ bags while Steven loaded up the hospital bag plus last drinks and snacks. It was really happening! We were about to jump in the car and head to the hospital because I was finally in labor!

We made it to the hospital, and the laboring in the car and into the hospital was challenging. I lost my environment that had become my comfort and rhythm and I was trying to figure out how to power through as our environment kept changing and I was between spaces. They took a while to get us back to a check-in room and the whole process was really cumbersome. There were so many delays and check-ins and I just really wanted to get settled into my labor room to be able to tune everyone and everything out! I was having to have conversations and make decisions between serious contractions, and just make everyone wait as I focused, breathed, and went through each one. They needed to do blood work and were monitoring baby’s heart rate and contractions and were tracking my blood pressure here and there. It felt like the kept me in that check-in stage forever!! We got there at 3:30am and I don’t think I got moved to my room until well after 5am! We were greeted by a very sleepy and sick sounding midwife. As she chatted with me, she was NOT as convinced that I was very far along in labor. Apparently I was too calm in my contractions and able to hold conversations in between them — they are looking at “all the signs” of the laboring mother and she didn’t feel like I was presenting as ready to be admitted necessarily. But I knew all the signs, and I had prepared so much for this, so I felt confident that we came at the right time in my labor and I was sure that I was progressing wonderfully.

My water had not broken yet, so I consented to my first cervical check because they said that it would help be a determining factor as to whether they should admit me. She was in talks of sending me home!! Though they were in doubt, I knew that I was indeed supposed to be there, and after the check I was 6cm and 100% effaced. I was so grateful for that report! The midwife with her sleepy grin said, “Yes, that’s an excellent exam.” It was everything we needed to get admitted and sent to my room to really settle in and get into my labor pattern again. 

Settling Into the Work of Labor

I got moved into my room, and whew. It was so challenging to find a new rhythm in that environment and to figure out how to cope. It started off badly and never really got much better. I never felt settled like I had my place or spot or coping mechanism. The birthing ball they provided was entirely too big and completely unusable for me. I tried so many different things and just couldn’t get “comfortable.” All of the nurses that I had were wonderful and helpful and I eventually settled into a position with a peanut ball that I could live with.

Labor was such a strange inward experience. Everything around you seems like it is spinning and swirling while you become serious, focused, and tune everything else out. I had requested several things in my Birth Plan, and the team was so gracious and respectful to honor it. I was able to have a dark room with as few personnel as possible. I was able to keep it a calm environment and breathe through every contraction in the first stage as quietly and peacefully as I could manage. Two things I aimed to do in every contraction: breathe down to the baby and stay on top of the contraction. I remembered some advice about releasing tension in my jaw and hands, as well, and this helped with trying to keep my whole body relaxed - a very challenging task, but was my aim for every wave. 

I had no strength or energy beyond getting through each contraction and asking for water and cool washcloths. I had nothing left in me. No conversations, barely able to respond, just focusing on surviving this intense and extremely demanding experience. I had to get through it. It’s like this train that you get on that you have no choice but to hang on and get through and there’s no stopping it. You know that you just have to see it through. You know what’s waiting on the other side is worth all the hard work. You also know that the end is in sight sometime… and thinking that it could be over soon helps you hang in there. But wow did it get mentally draining once the pushing contractions started - because I had no idea that they could last as long as they did for me. I had to keep trusting the Lord with this birth story.

The Longest Stretch

I was in the pushing stage for an endless amount of time, feeling miserable and drained and for the first time I began to face doubt. I voiced my frustration and asked out loud, "Is all of this pushing productive? Is she moving further down?” The midwives had shift changed and I now had Jamie. I was glad to see her and felt like it was a pretty neat detail that she would be the one to deliver my baby after I had just spent my last two in-office visits with her! I even had the opportunity to go over my Birth Plan with her for both of those visits.

I also remember my alarm going off on my phone in the 7 AM hour – this was the alarm that I had set for what was supposed to be an in-office visit that morning! I was rejoicing that I did not have to go to that appointment and that I was instead in labor!

I was praying as tears filled my eyes, trying to keep my faith engaged no matter how unfruitful things felt. I needed the strength to get through what felt like the weakest my body has ever felt and the most demanding work it’s ever required. 

At some point in the haze and blur of it all, I don’t know how or when, but eventually they did say that baby girl was crowning!!! And it was the most emotional moment in the whole labor for me - this sweet relief that there was actually progress and an end in sight!! They exclaimed, “She has your hair!” And I imagined dark, thick hair and I felt so close to meeting her!! My baby girl was near! I knew that because she was crowning that her body must be close behind. I began laughing hysterically in relief at some point after crowning began and the midwife said, “Are you gonna laugh this baby out?” I thought I might! However, crowning lasted for another prolonged duration and I was so discouraged. I felt desperate, confused, and then it turned to concern. 

When the Room Changed

The atmosphere in the room shifted. More nurses arrived, conversations became more urgent, and for the first time all night I sensed concern from the medical team. I was exhausted beyond words, but I kept praying and reminding myself that God had carried us this far and would carry us through the final moments too.

The team flipped me on my back, and though that wasn't how I had hoped to labor, by that point I was simply focused on doing whatever was needed to bring my baby safely into the world.

Our daughter’s heart rate was dropping and my contractions were slowing down. 

Those final minutes were the scariest, but I was reaching deep down and trying my absolute hardest to stay calm and protect my mind from any fear. This is where I felt the presence of God most profoundly. He truly protected my mind from fear, worry, or anxiety. I had the hard work of concentrating, breathing, and pushing in the way they instructed me to as contractions came and went. I had to wait for strong enough contractions to come so that I could work with them to push baby girl out! And one of the most distressing things was having a nurse right on top of me monitoring the baby’s heartbeat and hearing it for myself. Jamie, the midwife said, “Kristin, we’ve gotta get this baby out.” The stress of baby girl’s heart rate dropping was not how I imagined this ending. I was drained beyond belief and it was making me feel so lifeless — and yet my determination to push through and bring my daughter safely into this world produced the most focused work I have ever done in my life. I just had to give it everything I had in those final pushes, while protecting my mind from fear, no matter what I heard on that monitor or from the team. At some point Jamie mentioned that we might need to do an episiotomy because the baby had been crowning for over an hour and the heart rate was dropping. For me, this was extra motivation to get this baby out!! I needed her to be safe, I didn’t want them cutting me, and I knew my body was made for this - so c’mon! Lord, help me and let’s partner to get this girl out into the world! I had to ignore the team and continue putting my energy, focus, and strength in what little I had left in me. I began to say aloud -  God, you created my body to do this. I know you will get my baby out safely. 

One final contraction came and as it built up, I knew that I could work with it! I knew it could be strong enough to get her body out, and I breathed like they told me to: deep breath in, hold it like I’m going under water, and then push down to my rear! AND OUT FLEW THAT SLIPPERY WARM BABY BODY!! Oh the relief!! Oh the intense joy and relief of that rewarding moment!!! It was all so warm and wet and I felt a surge of adrenaline and a high that I was DONE!! I knew what came next - my baby girl would be placed on my chest. Oh, the joy! The anticipation! The reward of all the hard work. But what happened in those next moments will forever be etched in my memory. Jamie’s voice went funny and she hesitated. 

“Uhhhmm, you were told this was a GIRL?” My spinning mind had little time to contrive what words might come out of her mouth next.

The Christmas Surprise

“Uhhh, you have a BOY!” 

And before I knew it, a tiny male was plopped on my chest, and my eyes flew down to his parts to try and confirm the strange and unexpected words that had come out of her mouth. All I could say over and over again, head shaking, tears flowing, looking over at Steven, 

“What? What? What in the world? Who are you? What? Who are you?” The shock and surprise was unlike anything I have ever experienced before. 

In some ways, I was right back to the result of my pregnancy test: SHOCK. WONDER. DISBELIEF. EXCITEMENT. JOY. OVERWHELMED.

My mind was spinning and my heart was racing uncontrollably! All I could think about was:

Who was this boy? 

What will his name be? 

We only have girl things. 

What are we going to tell everyone? 

We have a son!

I was right about him the whole time!

This was the absolute wildest ending to my first pregnancy and labor and delivery!!! I mean, the emotions and sweet relief of getting that baby out was enough of a high as it is; but to add to that moment with a major plot twist?!? This was all so very crazy.

The placenta was delivered rather quickly and I felt no pain, just another warm wet sensation as it flew out next. Steven had cut the cord somewhere in there; I’m holding WHOEVER he was, and then we are all just laughing at this crazy news. She asked me who did our ultrasound and I told her I can’t remember the name! But that sonographer was certainly one of the first people I thought of and hoped to see again… and I did get to. (See Blog Post Part 1)

I was so grateful to make it through the entire labor with so many of my prayers answered, as well as hopes, preferences, and values for a natural birth honored. But wow, what a wild and unexpected ending to the story. 

I truly believe the Lord has fun with this one.

A Son Is Given

HE was here! The baby was born and lying on my chest. I loved him immensely immediately! I stayed in a complete state of shock and joy. Eventually someone got us a tray of food - and wow. That was everything I needed to help refuel my body after that unbelievably demanding experience.

They eventually rolled us out and over to our room in the Mother & Baby ward. I remember the proudest feeling I felt as we rolled out and I was holding this prized possession of mine. Oh it felt so special and rewarding! I wanted to show everyone my baby!! I couldn’t wait to tell the world about him!!

And how exactly were we going to go about that…? 

Decisions had to be made - a name! Circumcision! Communicating with family! Sharing with friends! Telling the world that we had a major plot twist in this story! God gave us a Christmas surprise! 

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a SON is given.” It quickly became the perfect Christmas tagline to this birth story.

I was on cloud 9 and knew he was a special gift from God. Our little boy. Oh, my mama’s heart was thrilled with another baby guy to love and raise. I already knew from my relationship with Aaro that a baby boy would be so very sweet. I also knew what I wanted to name him from the moment I was told I had a son; but Steven and I didn’t talk about names until the next morning after some of the initial shock settled.

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Six months later, the wonder of that moment has never quite worn off. We went into labor expecting to meet one child and came home knowing another. Yet from the very first moment he was placed on my chest, Levi felt perfectly and wonderfully ours. Looking back now, I can see God's fingerprints all over his story. He will always be our Christmas surprise—a gift we never saw coming and wouldn't change for the world.

What Helped Me Prepare for Childbirth

Favorite Resources

Books: 

Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way by Susan McCutcheon

Holy Labor by Aubry G. Smith

Labor with Hope by Gloria Furman

Moms on Call: Basic Baby Care by Laura Hunter and Jennifer Walker  

Spotify or Youtube Playlist: Childbirth in the Glory with Janet Angela Mills

Videos: Positive Natural Birth Stories / Supernatural Birth Stories 

Podcast: "Faithful Labor" with Audrey Stinson

Birth Classes: at Piedmont and reBlossom (Athens area)

Earthley Birth Prep Guide: https://www.earthley.com/products/birth-prep-guide