#molly actually fell down the ramp because I told her to back up and she forgot it’s slippery lol

[elfcreations]

The Birth Story of Scarlett Mae

We knew we wanted more than two kids even before we got married. We discussed age differences and decided our first two we wanted close together. After our Second baby, Penelope, was born we decided that we wanted to focus on the current kids being potty trained and more self sufficient before adding a third child. Another thing we wanted to wait on was knowing we needed more space to add more kids since our first home was starting to feel cramped with the four of us. In 2019 we were able to sell our first home and purchase our dream home in the spring of 2020. It was cutting it very close in our timeline because we had discussed wanting our third to come in the spring of 2021. Nearing the end of July 2020 we discovered we were expecting our third child due in April 2021.

This pregnancy was so very different in many ways. I had some horrible digestive issues in the first trimester which made it difficult to do much more than stay home. My stomach starting popping out very quickly as well. The biggest change of all was being pregnant during an pandemic. I had limited visits to the birth center and tele-medicine visits as well as having to be alone for all appointments. Just like with our first two we decided we did not want to know the gender of the baby until they arrived. Morning sickness stuck with me throughout the entire pregnancy just like our daughters pregnancy so I was convinced I was expecting another girl. I failed my one hour glucose test and had to return for a three hour test which I thankfully passed (never failed one with my previous pregnancies). At our anatomy scan they measured my placenta being low so I had to go back in 10 weeks to ensure it had moved so I would not have to have a csection. Thankfully my placenta moved out of the way and that risk was removed.

I was told by all the midwifes that third babies are unpredictable and can always throw in a surprise for you. Since I went past 41 weeks with my second and almost hit 41 weeks with my first it was expected that I was go over 40 weeks again. At 39 weeks and 4 days gestation I started having consistent 5 minutes in between lasting one minute long contractions at 11:30am. They continued without easing up all day and around 10:30pm I decided to call the birth center. At that time I was timing them at 3 minutes in between and one minute and thirty seconds long. They told me to come on in and we drove over. When we got there I was checked and I was only 2 cm dilated but thought my water may have broken. They decided for me to rest for a few hours there and they would recheck me. They sent me home at 4am when it was determined my water definitely had not broken and I was still only 2cm dilated. I took some Tylenol pm on the way home and fell asleep. When I woke up at the house my contractions had completely stopped. That day I slept for most of it after such a long day of contractions and no sleep. I was so discouraged and disappointed that it wasn’t time yet. The next two weeks I walked, bounced on my yoga ball, drank red raspberry leaf tea, took primrose oil and stayed busy. Then it was time for my 41 week appointment.

I was 41 weeks and 1 day when I headed into my 41 week appointment at 2:45pm. I was scheduled to have a non stress test and then go to have an ultrasound to check the fluid levels for the baby. I went into the birth center and they checked my weight and then my blood pressure as they always did. The blood pressure monitor beeped and they said it was elevated. I was so shocked because I’ve always had a low blood pressure. The midwife Emily took me down to the birthing suites for my NST. She took me into the peach room which was actually the room I had on my birth plan as my room to birth in. I laid down for the test and we discussed if and when to schedule my induction if I reached 42 weeks. I decided as long as the baby was doing well we would plan for an induction in one week at 42 weeks and 1 day. Emily left the room and Kaitlyn (so sorry if I spelled the name wrong) came in to look over the NST and retake my blood pressure after the test was finished. My NST results looked great and showed I was having consistent contractions. She took my blood pressure and it was still elevated. She decided to wait a little bit longer and retest it with me sitting up in the chair. She took my blood pressure again and it was still elevated so she told me that Emily would have to come back and talk about what had to happen next. I was so shocked that this checkup was changing so quickly. They told me that the concern was that I could have hypertension. In order to confirm I had hypertension I had to have elevated blood pressure after they rechecked me in four hours. If I had hypertension I would not be able to give birth at the birth center and would have to go to the hospital to be induced which they knew I did not want. I was told I had two options, To go to the hospital and get induced or to try a midwife induction at the birth center to get my labor to kick in before the four hours were up to retest my blood pressure. At around 3:40pm I was told to get Stephen in the room so we could discuss it. My head was reeling that this was actually happening. I started that day thinking it was probably going to be a few more days of waiting. I had ensured all of birth bags were placed in the van before we left for my appointment (however I forgot my snack bag and drinks). Stephen and I decided we would get the midwife induction going in hopes we could bypass the hospital. Stephen went to the grocery store to grab some snacks and drinks for me and Emily did a cervical check and a membrane sweep. She told me I 3 cm dilated and she got me to 4 cm dilated. I called my mom around 4:20 pm to tell her what was happening and to go ahead and head to my house to watch the kids.

The next step was to start taking some oil blends that encourage contractions to be strong and productive. After four hours I was having consistent contractions and they had to recheck my blood pressure. It was not elevated so I wasn’t being booted to the hospital but they had to recheck in four more hours. Around 9pm Kaitlyn had to leave (she was so amazing while we had her there!) and Kelly and Jaci (also rockstars) were taking over for the night. They stopped the blends to see if my contractions stayed strong and consistent at that time. At around 10:30pm they checked my cervix and I was 5 cm dilated so they went ahead and broke my water. Jaci told me there was a little bit of late meconium in the water so I would not be able to labor in the tub like I had hoped to (because of my scoliosis in my lower spine I have intense back labor and any heat I can get on my back helps). I’ve never seen so much fluid from my water breaking. This baby had a nice big watery home. Over the next few hours my contractions continued to stay consistent and strong. Around midnight my blood pressure was rechecked and it was slightly elevated again. They told me they would have to recheck again around 4am and if it was still elevated they would have to draw my blood to test for hypertension. After that my contractions really ramped up. They were long and super close together. I barely got a break in between. I was hopeful that this meant some real progress was happening. After over an hour of these intense contractions they did a cervical check. I was 8 1/2 cm so those intense contractions dilated me from a 5 to an 8 1/2. I was discouraged however because I was hoping the baby was about to arrive but I knew it would be soon. I decided to relax on the bed and not return to the birthing ball for a little bit after that time because I was very tired and needed a rest for my back. Kelly went and got a tens unit and placed it on my back to help with my back labor.

After being on the bed for a little bit Kelly said she wanted me to try sitting on the birthing stool and have Stephen sit behind me and help me through the contractions. She placed a mirror on the floor and told me to look down and see how ready my body was getting for the birth of this little one and I was amazed that this baby was definitely close to coming for sure. I labored there for a couple of hours and then they did a cervical check again. I was still 8 1/2 cm dilated and my cervix was no longer low and forward. The baby had moved it high and back. They told me we would need to do something to encourage the baby to push down and stay down to keep things progressing. It was discussed to get the peanut ball out and I would labor for the next hour with that. They let me lay in the bed for a little while before checking back. I fell asleep between the intense contractions because I was so worn out at this point. I had been awake since 6:30 am the morning before and it was nearing 5am. Kelly rechecked my blood pressure and it was back down again. She told me she just wanted me to focus on resting and she wasn’t going to start me on the peanut ball. When Kelly came back I saw the sun beginning to come out and she told me she could tell I was in a lot of pain so she wanted to see if I wanted to get in the tub. I wanted to scream YES! I was so ready to get in and hopefully relieve some of my back pain.

I got into the tub and it felt so wonderful. I of course still had pain but that warm water felt so good against my sore body. Kelly came into the room shortly after and told me she was headed home and that Molly and Carrie were taking over. She left the room and the intense urge to push came over me and I looked at Stephen and he knew what was happening even though I wasn’t able to verbalize it. He went out and told Kelly and she came back in along with Molly and Carrie. I pushed for a while on my back in the tub but felt I needed more leverage. They told me to move to my side but that was very uncomfortable for me so I went back to my back. I pushed a few more times and Kelly told me I should try to move to my hands and knees like I birthed my second child. I pushed there and made some more progress but this baby was still so hard to push out. Carrie said she wanted me to get out of the tub and get on the birthing stool. I got out of the tub which was very difficult and sat down on the stool. They had set a mirror under me on the stool and I could see the babies head. The next push I finally felt the babies head coming through but the contraction ended and the head stayed halfway out. I couldn’t believe the head was just staying there and didn’t go back in so I knew I needed to push with everything I had during the next contraction. I pushed with all my strength and I felt the head break free. I was so relieved. But then I kept pushing to get the rest of the baby out but nothing was happening. The mood quickly shifted in the room and I realized that the babies shoulders were stuck. I didn’t have much time to panic but I did just think what is going to happen if they cannot get the baby out. They quickly had me get on the bed on all fours and Carrie did some midwife ninja magic while I pushed. She then had me get on my back and in less than a minute (it felt like an eternity) at 8:53am after 43 minutes of pushing she had the baby out and laying on me. I was overwhelmed with relief and happiness to meet my baby. I asked Stephen if it was a girl or a boy and he told me a girl. Our little Girl was here!

I gave the baby to Stephen and they checked me out and said I had no tears which I was so relieved to hear. When I got her in my arms she latched on immediately and started nursing like a champ. When they weighed her she was 10lbs and 22in long! I could not believe I birthed a 10lb baby and had no tearing. My first baby was 8lbs 13oz and my second was 8lbs 2oz so I was not at all expecting just a big baby to arrive. Of course my blood pressure was still going up and down during recovery so they took my blood to test for preeclampsia before they released us to go home. Molly came back in and told me I was clear and good to go home whenever we wanted. We left the day she was born to head home around 2pm and I was so happy to get in my bed and see my other kiddos. This birth was a rollercoaster ride for me but the ladies at the birth center were incredible. I’m still in awe of the amazing talent that I witnessed that day from every nurse and midwife. My husband described it best to me of women all empowering each other. He said it was like they were all connected to me giving me strength. I’m so happy to have my baby girl in my arms! Also a huge thanks to our friend and incredibly talented photographer Darby for capturing this day for us. I’m so grateful that she took time out of her life and stayed up with us all night to capture the magic of that day. I will cherish the images forever.

[skycancats]

Chapter Two

As the evening came around, Sky felt it wise to check out the other caves up the side of the gorge before going on to any other clan-building activities.

She had scoped them out a few times before, but her main concern had been the one she used to sleep in. The other ones, she came to find, were similar. They varied in size from far too small to be comfortable (in one of them, Sky nearly fell off the ledge because there’d been no room to turn inside and she had had to back out) or big enough to house a few cats at one time. Overall, she would hazard a guess that there was plenty of room up the rock face to house enough cats for a clan (though she was still unsure exactly how big a clan should be).

She scraped out some debris from one of the caves, pawing dead flora onto the floor of the gorge. Making dens here shouldn’t even be that hard, come to think of it. She did pretty well with it, and it didn’t take a lot to make them comfortable.

Feeling pretty accomplished with that much, she made her way to the top of the gorge, starting to think of cats she knew that might show some investment in the idea. Her first thought was a house cat that she considered herself very close friends with. At the least, if he wasn’t completely on board, he would have some level of pragmatism to give to the idea. She could hope for support from him, and she hoped that she could get somewhere with this endeavour.

Padding over to the human town, she hopped up on his fence, swaying for a moment on the flimsy structure before hopping down into the yard. She didn’t understand why the humans seemed so intent on keeping their grass neat and cropped short – her paw pads were thick, but it still felt more uncomfortable than the stone of the gorge. She padded over it to the patio, where she saw Filbert underneath one of the chairs, sitting with his paws tucked underneath him.

He blinked slowly at her, and she didn’t even bother to join him in sitting, finding her excitement had ramped up again. She was sure she wouldn’t be able to stay sitting down if she tried. “I have an idea,” she prompted.

“Do you,” he asked, though his tone didn’t much convey a question. Sky was, unfortunately, well known for having out-of-the-way ideas, and Filbert was the first cat she tended to pitch them too. He had heard hundreds of ideas over the moons she’d known him, if she had to guess. She didn’t feel a bit sorry for it, because at least he kept her away from the very poor ones.

“Have you heard of clans?” she asked.

Filbert actually looked mildly interested at this, and cocked his head to the side a little bit. “I haven’t,” he said, his tone suggesting that she go on.

Sky wasted no time in filling him in on the idea of clans, and how she wanted to build one of her own in the gorge. She couldn’t stand still, and ended up pacing in front of him. While he paid rapt attention to her, she pretended not to notice the doubt worming its way into his body language.

When she felt she was done (and she had probably talked a tad too long), she watched him expectantly, and he seemed to take several moments to mull over how he should respond to her, which wasn’t the most promising sight.

Finally, he sighed. “Sky, I’ll admit it’s a real interesting idea, but I just don’t know if you’re going to be able to get other cats in on it.”

Sky looked crestfallen.

Filbert continued. “I’m not discouraging you from trying, you know. I just don’t know if a lot of cats will be in for the idea.”

She flicked her tail, and asked, “Do you want to join?”

“Not really,” the housecat replied, frowning faintly. “But talk to other cats, I suppose. It’s not that bad of an idea, but cats here have been living alone for an awful long time.”

“I’ll see what I can find,” Sky replied brusquely, slightly tense that Filbert reacted so pessimistically. That was fine, of course, but she’d been hoping for a little more support. Filbert looked dubious, but Sky turned, waving her tail in a dismissive sort of goodbye before she returned to jump back over the fence. She heard a mutter from his general direction that she guessed was his own goodbye, but ignored it for now.

Her next idea was a little more promising. Another acquaintance of hers was a nursing queen, and Sky would guess she hadn’t seen her for about a half moon. It took a little while to find her, but she doubted Mottle would move far with her kits, and eventually found the molly sheltered in between a bush and a disused human shed.

Sky had brought her a mouse as a peace offering, and Mottle looked quite thankful for it. Sky’s gaze wandered to see the two kittens settled at the queen’s belly. Mottle looked well-off, but Sky would guess that she’d chosen to stick next to an abandoned shed for a reason. Sky could practically taste mice in the air, and worried a little about Mottle agreeing to come with.

“I’ve a proposition,” she said, as Mottle finished up the mouse.

“Oh?” Mottle asked, already sounding far more interested than Filbert had, which only served to fuel Sky even more.

“Do you want help with your kittens?”

Mottle narrowed her eyes. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“What do you think about joining up with some other cats? You know, working together to keep ourselves and kittens fed?” She was presenting it a little more awkwardly than she liked, but despite the poor wording, Mottle looked a little more interested at that.

“I’m not doing a bad job on my own, but it sounds… promising. What made you think of that?” she asked, moving to gently nudge one of her kittens with her back paw. It had started towards Sky a little, and Mottle seemed a little more intent on keeping them close.

Sky watched for a moment, before she launched into an explanation of her meeting with the other lone cat. Unlike Filbert, as she continued, Mottle seemed to grow a little more interested, and Sky felt triumphant. She didn’t see why cats wouldn’t want to take advantage of something like that. It benefitted everyone. Maybe it just didn’t appeal to a housecat since they got everything they needed from their humans. Sky was glad someone saw sense in this idea.

“It sounds good,” Mottle said, shifting so she could draw her tongue across the back of one of her kittens. Sky noted with amusement that it looked just like her. “I could move to your gorge soon, if you’re willing to help.”

Sky nodded. Tonight wasn’t the best time, she figured she would give it a bit, find a good cave and make it comfortable. She would have to be careful, she didn’t want any chance of the kittens leaving and accidentally falling to the gorge floor, but too close to the ground might be unsafe. She’d have to do some digging. “Soon,” she replied. “Let me clear out a den for you.”

Mottle agreed, and Sky told her she would come back when she was ready for her. She felt pretty accomplished, she had to say, having convinced at least one cat about this new lifestyle. She even seemed excited about the prospect, which was more than Sky had even expected.

After a brief, continued conversation, Sky decided to dismiss herself, seeing that the young queen seemed tired, and the moon had made its own way decently far across the sky. The gorge cat felt like it would be a pretty good time to mosey her way home, feeling accomplished and rather self-satisfied.

#warrior cats #skyclan #skycan #sc #arc one #chapter #chapter one