Baby Rylan's journey into the world!

The midwife called me around noon and gave me the heads up that our client was in early labor! I had been waiting and waiting for the call, so this was wonderful news!!
I began my journey down to Lake Elsinore (2 hours away), where this baby girl was to be born.
By the time I had gotten there, the midwife had already taken vitals and did an IE (internal exam) on her and she was only 3cm. She was barefoot, dressed in a little sundress was she was all belly!

They were a young couple, newlyweds! They had been married for 2 years and were madly in love. The most amazing thing about this birth was that both mothers, the mother of the laboring woman and the mother of the father, were both present, waiting with such helpful, loving hearts, and wanting nothing more then to help in any way, big or small, usher in the life of their new little grandbaby. At first I thought this might hinder her labor because sometimes without even realizing it, a woman’s labor can slow down or even stop when too many are present and they feel that they have no privacy. But not this time. There was such peace that it was hard for me not to cry watching these two servants of the Lord, run around, selfless, wiping the sweat beads off their daughters forehead during contractions. What family. What love.

Because she was only 3cm, we left to grab some lunch and relax before things really started to pick up.
We got a call around 3:30pm that her husband had been timing the contractions and that they were now 3 mins apart and that she was in the birthpool now. PERFECT!
We jumped in the car and set off back to the house. When we arrived, we checked her again and she had progressed to 8cm!
She labored beautifully and at about 9cm she started to go through that wonderful transition to being fully dilated. This for some women is the hardest part of labor. She began to cry and say, “Please, I can’t do this! It hurts too bad! Please God make it stop! You guys, Im sorry but I can’t do this…”
Before I could even attempt to make an effort to comfort her to tell her that she could do it, (ya…me….the one who screams for a vicodin for my period cramps..) …her mother jumped in, laid her hands on her bare back and began to pray aloud … “Oh Jesus, we lift her up to you Lord. Please Jesus give her the strength to push this baby out and bring your daughter into this world! Jesus give my daughter strength!” By this time, we are all in tears as we stand there, watching this mother, impart peace and ask the Holy Spirit to come help her daughter help push out her daughter. Three generations before the King of Kings. Three generations brought to life out of love and love multiplying itself.
Her husband also jumped in the conversation and wrapped his arms around his vulnerable wife and held her, whispering in her ear words of love and encouragement. His mother said, “lean on him, Julianne, your husband is here for you, lean on him when you don’t have the strength!” And she let out a huge SIGH and leaned back on him. He caught her and loved her.

Of course by this time, I have tears shooting out of my eyes and all I wanted to do was grab a video camera, sit back with some tissues, maybe some popcorn, and get this amazing, timeless moment on camera, but I know that that moment will forever be remembered. Such love.

After she was, what seemed to be, fully dilated, she wanted to hop out of the birth pool and onto the bed. So we let her
lead the way. As soon as she hit the bed, she looked at us and said, “I’m ready to push.” “Ok.” We said back.

She pushed and pushed and seemed to be making little to no progress bringing that baby girl down. The midwife did an exam to see if she could find out what was going on. What we found was a cervical lip from 1-4 (clock point of view). The baby could not come all the way down out of the cervix because some of the cervix was not being pulled back over the baby’s head. So during pushes, the midwife and I would take turns holding back that little part of cervix so that baby Rylan could come down fully.
After doing this with 3-4 more pushes, baby Rylan finally got past the cervical lip and was now crowning!!

My preceptor and I switched places and I was in the line of fire to catch this little girl.
Earlier, we had a feeling that this was going to be a posterior birth, (baby will come out face up), due to the nature of her labor. Her contractions were a little irregular. From 3 min apart to 5 min, to 4 min to 5 min to 6 min to 3 min then 3 min and so on…but yet nice and STRONG! So we prepared for that. Its not a dangerous position to birth your baby in, but can be a little more painful for the mom.

Finally, baby Rylan’s head emerged….I held it back gently so she would not tear. Then her little body came sliding into me arms! What sweet bliss! A new wet, slippery little baby! Her APGAR scores where 9/10 and 10/10. Beautiful. She had a full head of jet-black hair, fair skin and blue eyes. She was simply gorgeous. 7lbs and all baby. Thank you Jesus!

The Bob Marley, almost water birth.

In the Bob Marley Den…Little Baby Pheonix entered the world.



FIRST BIRTH BACK IN THE STATES!!!

It was around 11am and I was at work (cutting away at skin cancer and making slides) when my preceptor midwife called me and said that our client, a young, client, G-1, P-0, (first pregnancy) was in active labor and I needed to head over to her apartment as soon as possible. The midwife and I had talked about the fact that because I can’t leave work early, for any reason because I am helping in assisting surgeries, that there was a chance that if she could not find another birth assistant at that time, then she would be attending this birth alone. This can be a little scary for a midwife because after birth, you now have TWO clients and lives in your hands with only one pair of hands to attend the both of them. So, almost never do midwives attends births by themselves unless there is no other way….

The midwife said she had told the Lord, “Lord, please send someone, I don’t want to do this alone.” And just then a friend midwife of hers called her and said, “Don’t worry, if the Lord wants someone there, someone will be there.”
Just then I called her and told her that I had gotten my next work shift covered (which is normally not easy) and that I was on my way!! She cried with joy and amazement at God’s faithfulness.
I arrived to the apartment excited and nervous as this was going to be my very first birth in California since I had arrived home from the Philippines (months ago) and my first time attending a homebirth! Even though I was only assisting with this birth, my heart was racing with anticipation for what was about to unfold.
I felt a little rusty even though I had attended many births before and caught a few babies just a few months ago in the clinic in Davao and with an OB/GYN here in the States.
This was NEW; in the complete privacy of a young couples home that I had never met before. And here I was, parked outside of their place, frantically changing out of my work scrubs into some more casual jeans and top that I had put in my car just in case, and praying that no one would walk outside!
I walked up to the door and could hear from the window our mama in labor, moaning away, sounding very active. I walked into the tiny, one bedroom apartment and the smell of incense was overwhelming. The sounds of Bob Marley softly played in the background, filling the place. The place was dimly lit only by candlelight and I noticed chuck pads laid out on the floor in the TV room, covered in birth supplies…gauze, sterile gloves, bulb syringe, umbilical cord clamp, you name it. This wave of a familiar, peaceful feeling came over me…”Thank You Jesus.”

The midwife came out of the dark bedroom where our mom was laboring and we talked a little before I went in to go meet this new family.
After discussing where the oxygen, pitocin, and other emergency supplies where kept, she led me into the bedroom where the birth was to take place.
There she was. A young, beautiful, very pregnant woman, lying in the birthing pool, eyes closed, breathing heavily during her contractions. She had a few tattoos and a nose ring that would every once in a while, in the right angle, would reflect the light of the candle that sat on a small table beside the pool. Her boyfriend sat beside her, next to the edge of the pool, breathing with her with every contraction.
It was so dark I could hardly see where I was going. I was terrified that I was going to trip over a cord or bottle of massage oil and fall into the warm pool of water, landing head first next to this woman.
I introduced myself to her and shortly after she started pushing! She pushed hard and good and after about 5 pushes with little progress in the pool, we got her out and had her try different positions to see if we could get the baby to come down more. After moving around, she somehow ended up on her back on the floor and wanted to stay there, with her boyfriend at her head, talking to her and pushing with her. Shortly after, head was 3cm visible with pushing!! Heart tones stayed beautiful and strong. With a few more pushes, some perineal pressure, and one strong mom…..tiny baby Pheonix’s head was out! Then one more push and his whole, 8lb body came tumbling out! Oh the joy of new life!! He took his first breath of air and cried. Welcome baby boy. He pinked up right away, while his mama cried, “look! Look! Our baby! Our baby! Look! Ohhhh my baby boy!” We all cried with joy at this new little life!

…….And there is was again, the same familiar feeling of unbelievable joy and peace when a baby is born into the world. When the presence of the living God fills the entire house and wonder and love somehow takes on an entirely new meaning. Praise You Lord for the life that you have breathed into us.
For so long, since I had come home from the Philippines, I thought my dream had died. I thought that the Lord would just have to find something else for me to do, that it was just not possible to start all over again and live still completely in the will of the Father and what I knew He had called me to do. And yet, it wasn’t true! Our God is still the same God here at home as He is all over the world! Even on the mission field. He is still the same! What joy that even when we are convinced that something is impossible, He says, “Nope. Not impossible. Never impossible” ……and there is was, watching this woman, nurse her newborn baby, staring at him in awe and wonder, and his father, watching, learning, like a child himself, and now falling in love with his very own son…….I never thought I would really be in this place again. At least not for a long, long time. And yet, there I was, and there it was, the evidence that God is still alive, still cares, still knows us, still loves us, still keeps His promises, still is the Great I AM. The fact that He never gives up on us, whether or not we know what He is asking of us, what He is saying, even in our disobedience and doubts…He is BIGGER. He is a GOOD GOD. I don’t know how I even got back into midwifery, well, no, I do…HIM. And the fact that He is FAITHFUL. His ways are not our ways, His thoughts are not our thoughts…and Thank God for that!! …….It was about this time, when I realized that God wants you to have it ALL. The joys on earth, the joys of your heart!! Its all YOURS!!! And its all FROM HIM!! You can be in love, follow God, and follow your calling!!! What Joy!!!


A few minutes following, her placenta plopped out and we were happy. She recovered very well and immediately after we got her tucked away with her baby in bed, she asked for some In-n-Out Burger, so that’s exactly what she got! We left the house that evening two very tired midwives. Two very JOY FILLED, tired midwives. Welcome baby Pheonix, child and servant of the living God who loves you beyond measure.

ENGAGEMENT DAY!!!

My love and I.

KAYLA (Doobie KK) Came down from Davao, Philippines to visit!!

My Soul sister. I love her so much and Colby and I miss her like crazy!! Can't wait for her to make her way back down to California again to be in our wedding this March!! Love you my beautiful sister!

I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine.

Colby and I at Tiff and Bri's wedding.



Colby and I at Unlce Fred's Cabin last 4th or July, our first together!

RECAP!

I realize that there are many birth stories that I have not shared on my blog yet!

To be honest, this last season that God has just now been showing Colby and I the end of, has been wild. He has taken us through a valley, covered in a blanket of jungle, and surrounded by snow covered mountains. Make sense right? Ya. That’s how it’s been. Its been a season of sadness and joy, extreme highs like getting engaged to my soul mate, and extreme lows… feeling that the next time I would ever even get to be in the presence of birth, would be a long, long time. I cried…feeling this calling, what I thought…slip away from my hands and die. I thought that because Colby had placed a ring on my finger, a ring that symbolized our promise of love to each other, a promise to grow old together, have our own babies, live, love and learn together, serve Jesus together, to give our lives completely to each other, that I had to choose one or the other. Little did I know…and little do I still know.

Oh the sweet feeling I get when I look down at my finger and see our promise of love! I would never have it any other way. And I will forever cherish this season that I have gotten to meet Colby, fall in love with him and realize that we could not live without each other. And if the Lord did ask me to choose between one or the other, my love for Colby FAR outweighs the other, no question. Colby prayed with me and supported me through this process of how and when and what God wanted to make out of this. I leaned on him like crazy. Sometimes I feel like I put him through hell, and yet to me he was heaven on earth. With all the questions and doubts and reaching out I tried to do, but never really got anywhere, yet still he was there. And there he stayed…a solid rock, comforting and reassuring me always, that God is in control…wait on Him. Colby has been Jesus to me in countless ways. And I know not just to me, but a lot of others too. I can’t even put down in writing how freakishly blessed I am to have him as my soon-to-be husband. Sometimes I look at him now and all I can think is, ‘seriously Lord? This is him? I get to keep him? Oooohhh myyyy…’
However my heart longed. Longed for Jesus to use my hands again. To feel tears run down my cheeks again, from watching a man and woman see their daughter or son for the first time. I know that this is something that I have seen a lot of young men and woman struggle with….they feel as if they have their “calling”, then fall in love and everything changes. They don’t know how to balance the two…what if my partner doesn’t feel called to this? How do the both of us stay in the Lord’s will when we feel called to different things? I know I still feel that God is asking me to open up clinics around the world, what if this isn’t something Colby feels called to? How do I submit and respect my husband but still live in nothing but complete obedience to the Lord and what He is had called me to do?
Even though Colby is completely surrendered to the Lord and would go anywhere and do anything for Him and for me…I still wondered… ‘Would it be fair for Colby to feel that he is just following me around the world? I do not want this, Lord.’ I cried out day and night. Lord, How can I do both??? Show me.

Well, lets just say, He wrapped the answer in a box, put a huge red bow on it and threw in on my doorstep…

Addressed:
“To: You (you know who you are)”
“Love: Your Papa God who loves you.”

That’s when I met the two midwives who would take me under their wings, full of wisdom, patience and love. And who would teach me everything they know. That’s when the births started coming…one right after another….