My little bundle of love was born Aug 14th at 4:24 am, 8 lbs 1 oz and 21 inches long. My due date was the 13th, had an appt w my midwife the 12th, I didn't have any signs of labor so we didn't check my cervix. We decided if by the following week there were no signs we would do an ultrasound to check fluid levels and discuss induction. My goal was to deliver all natural and I really didn't want pitocin or any kind of induction. So the next day with my midwives blessing I drank a ton of red raspberry loose leaf tea and my husband, dog and I took a long walk. About 7 pm that night, on my due date the contractions started! I had been having braxton hicks for months but I knew these were the real deal because they felt more like period cramps. We cut our walk short, went home and ate dinner and packed our bags. I breathed through the contractions and cuddled my dog, they really wernt that bad., just like bad cramps. I had my bloody show around midnight and my contractions were about 3 min apart for about 2 hours, I called the hospital to talk to the on call midwife and ask just how far I could push it laboring at home without having the baby at home :) She said I would know and that I could probably go to bed. My sweet husband got out the checklist from our birthing class and decided we should go to bed because it said to get rest. Um yeah right, sleeping with contractions is impossible! I snuck out of bed and used my birthing ball, music, a bath until the contractions were 2 min apart for over an hour and almost unbearable, so I showered quickly and woke my husband at about 3:30. We got to the hospital a little after 4 am, my husband tried to brace me for them to send us home because him and the hospital staff though I was way too calm, walking and carrying on conversations to be very dilated. They checked me and I was dilated to 9 cm! They said I could start pushing whenever I wanted a baby, I asked if I could pee first, I sat on the toilet and my water breaks, into the toilet and everywhere, it was a mess! I got on the bed and pushed for 14 min, out came my beautiful baby boy! Yahh, perfect! Except.... apparently I had a 4th degree tear, which means my vagina ripped all the way through my sphincter muscle and up my colon. Well they called in a special Dr who spent nearly 2 hrs stitching me up. We found out the next day our poor baby was very jaundice and he spent the next week in NICU. Things were a bit rough that week and I have since had problems with my repair and will probably need surgery. But now that we have had the chance to be home together and bond, I am absolutely in love and he was worth every bit of it! I am so grateful that he is healthy and doing great!