Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Psalm 127:3
My husband and I have been married for almost 9 years and for majority of those years I have been pregnant. We knew before we were married that we wanted to have children. Our goal was not to recite a number of how many children we need to have but to have our hands ready to receive as many blessings that the Lord wants to bestow upon us. Since we know that children are a heritage from the Lord, we knew that this responsibility is not taken lightly rather our standards have been heightened as we parent one of God’s beloved children.
Our children range from 7 years old to now a 4-day old baby. We now have 2 girls and 3 boys. As the girls have been outnumbered, we were glad to find out we were having another boy that will grow up to love, serve and protect the ladies in the family. Before having my fifth child, I would say that most of my other pregnancies looked similar. They were all born during the 38th week, I gained about the same weight and I still had much energy up until I gave birth. My fifth pregnancy was a little different. Although we were excited about having another baby, it seemed as if my body was a little tired. I wasn’t being as active, as I failed to workout as much as I did with my other children and I had more responsibilities as I have three children I am homeschooling and keeping up with activities outside the home wasn’t an easy task. I was also carrying a lot of amniotic fluid towards the end of my pregnancy, also known as polyhydramnios. This made me feel heavier and more tired than I have ever felt during other pregnancies. I am not sure the reason why I had polyhydramnios but after researching I became aware that this can happen after multiple pregnancies.
After being diagnosed with polyhydramnios I became a little more anxious about preterm labor because that is one of the side effects of having it. In my second trimester I prayed that God would help me make it to April since it would work out well with my husbands work schedule and having time off but then I changed my prayer to, “Lord let me just make it to at least 37 weeks so that I can have a home birth.” With the track record of having all of my children during the 38th week, I assumed that I would come during that week or earlier since I’ve never made it further than that point. But God is so faithful to remember the first prayer that I prayed. My due date was April 6th and I was shocked when I not only made it to my due date but gave birth three days after. At this point I felt like I couldn’t be pregnant any longer. I was waking up with little energy to do anything, but I realized that’s the place God needed me to be in to recognize His strength when I feel weak.
On April 9th at 1:00 am, I woke up to a contraction. I was a little skeptical so I stayed up to see if anything would progress and it did. I was having consistent contractions, so I decided to call my midwife at 2:00 pm to let her know things are progressing. At this point contractions were about 10 minutes apart. My husband and children were sleeping so I decided to let them rest until I saw that contractions were getting closer. During this time, I was putting laundry in the washer, mopping the floor, cooking breakfast for my family so they can have something to eat when they wake up; I was just keeping myself busy. I started to feel tired around 3:30 am, so I went back to bed to lay down and fell asleep for about 30 to 45 minutes. Afterwards, I woke up to a strong contraction. I remember calling my husband’s name to wake up and start the birthing tub because I knew I wanted to get into the water as it helps relieve some of the pressure of the contractions. At this point, I was laying on the bed, and my contractions were about 6 minutes apart. My husband called my midwife to let her know that we would like for her to come now. As I got into the water, I was experiencing contractions back-to-back. It felt as if the contractions after my water broke didn’t give me a break. Although my husband did call my midwife right before my water broke, I knew once I got into the tub that I had to imagine giving birth as if she wasn’t able to come. Within 15 minutes of being into the birth tub my son was born. As I squeezed my husband’s hand, I shouted, ” I feel his head”, “his head is out!”, “Honey, the baby is coming”, “He’s out, get the towels!”
This experience was much different from my other births, but it was one that I wouldn’t change! From the time I had my first contraction to when my son was born it had only been 4 1/2 hours. This has been the fastest birth that I have ever had. As I take time to look back at how God planned this birth, I am confident in his ability to answer prayers. Although we never know how things are going to go with birth, we can be confident in God to be with us before, during and after the birth. So, if you are awaiting your little one/ones to come be sure that God hears your prayers and will help you in your time of need.
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18