The Fast and the Furious-Zachariahs Birth Story

On this the evening of my firstborn's 4th birthday, I am again reliving the wild ride that was his birth. When he woke up beside me this moring, we snuggled with his new baby sister and I told him his story once again. And again, I found I could laugh at even more of it now, instead of the feelings of shock and denial. So here is my short/long story :)
At 10am on my due date, I went for my second accupuncture appointment in the hopes of reducing the duration of this my first labour. An hour later, while having tea with a friend in Bolton, I began having very strong but short cramps, which I chose to ignore, because I had LOTS of time I knew. My husband called me and I told him I was having mild contractions but it was nothing to worry about, things probably wouldnt pick up until that evening or into the night, if it even continued at all. Looking back now I can safely say those were strong contractions for my body's way of labouring. When I could no longer focus well on our conversation over tea, I decided I better drop in and see my sister/doula. We were planning a home birth at my sister's home in Bolton with the York Region Midwives (because at the time there were no practises that would deliver in our area) She and I walked my little niece to the school bus at noon for her half day of school and she was so excited that when she got home she might be able to see her cousin being born. While standing at the bus stop I was swaying back and forth with the cramps but still calm on the outside because of course, I had LOTS of time. I told my sister that I would drive (45 minutes) home to pick up our bags and come right back, since I probably had many hours still to go, and I still had to stop and pick up some homeopathics for labour. What I didnt tell her was that contractions were coming about every 7-10 minutes, and getting quite uncomfortable. So many details after this...On the drive home I called my dad at work to let him know his grandson would be making an appearance soon. He suggested I go to their house and get Gabe to meet me there instead so I wasnt driving further than I had to. Their house was conveniently located across the road from Headwaters Hospital. I declined and told him it was ok, I still had a long way to go for a first time labour I was sure. I stopped in orangeville to eat lunch at subway and when I realized I was audibly breathing through contractions while trying to eat, I figured I should head home. But not before I ran into Harmony Market to pick up a remedy I might need later, you know, in case labout didnt progress :) While in the store, I found myslef squatting with every contraction, carefully studying everything on the bottom shelves, until a sales person asked me if I was ok. I quickly made it out of there and into the car. Down the road was my parents house and across the street from them was the hospital. But I had LOTS of time. So I headed to Shelburne.
By the time I reached the lights 5 minutes from home, contractions were coming every 2 minutes, lasting at least a minute, and I was lifting my bottom off the seat to relieve the pressure in my bottom, while pressing the gas pedal. Once home I almost crawled into the house. Again, so many funny, small details...I took the time to heat up my rice pack to put on my lower back because with each contraction it felt like my spine was being ripped in two. I crawled up the stairs to my bed, got on all fours, and called my sister to tell her that if early labour was this painful I would surely need an epidural. She laughed and said Oh No! She suggested I try the hot shower for my back so I crawled my way there. Into the shower to try and stop the crazy back pain, my husband was driving home from a meeting in toronto, and checking in with me I assured him I was fine but that he might want to go faster since this seemed to be going a bit quicker than I had expected. I still hadnt called my midwives. Or 911. I had LOTS of time. Another call from my sister while I was in the shower crying because of the contraction pain, as soon as the cramo would release I could talk like everything was hunky-dorey and seemed fine to people on the phone. Until a contraction hit while I was talking on the phone with her and spontaneous pushing began. With two words, "I'm pushing!!" I hung up on her and paged my midwife. Then with another overwhelming contraction, my water broke with an audible gush and a rainbow of color. Then I panicked. I thought my baby was not going to be ok. Reality hit like a truck load of fear. I was praying at the top of my lungs, please let him be ok, please let him make it through this. My midwife called within 2 minutes, and the only words I could get into the phone were "I'm pushing and there's mec (meconium in the fluid) and I cant stop this!" I ended in a whimper and I remember hearing an Oh Sh*t come from the phone. She called 911 for me from another line, and at the same time started giving me instructions. Get out of the tub, on the floor, bum in the air, head to the ground. She asked me if I could check and feel where baby's head was if in the birth canal. I checked. I didnt have to go far. He was crowning. She calmly told me she would walk me through how to deliver my own baby. I told her I was about to throw up.
Within 5 minutes, 6 of our towm's finest paramedics were standing in my hallway introducing themselves to my very naked self, while on my hands and knees holding my sons head from crowning. "Nice to meet you, I'm Holly, and I'm sorry we have to meet this way" is what I managed to say in between trying not to push. Now, my hubby's last conversation with me was before pushing started. My sister, unable to get me back on the phone, called him and told him I was pushing and at home alone. Needless to say there was some panic happening, poor guy. He then called our 80+ year old neighbor Bessie to ask her if she could look outside and see if there was an ambulance in the driveway. She said there were two ambulances. She then came over to see if she could be of any help, bless her soul. So there I was, still naked, now on the living room floor, in front of my neighbor and 6 strngers who were helpful enough to keep telling me to NOT PUSH. Right. Since they couldnt imagine me finishing this birth at home or without and episiotomy, I was loaded into the ambulance as my hubby pulled into the driveway and saw our baby crowning. Hi hunny, how was your day?...Down the street, around the corner, and POP! I swear thats what I heard when my son came flying out on his own, making an entrance that to this day has his personality all over it. The ambulance pulled over on Main St. to check on baby, and Gabe took the stop as an opportunity to run over to a police car nearby and ask permission to speed. Lol. He didnt know why we stopped. In the 7 minutes it took us to get to Orangeville I noted the time, 3:10pm, and had a nice chat with the two men in the back with me. they had a good laugh when they discovered I was a doula and childbirth educator. One even said, "You must have thought you had LOTS of time..." So when we arrived at the hospital and they opened the ambulance doors, there was my sweet, anxious husband waiting for me, and I introduced him to our happy, healthy first born. They wheeled us directly into labour and delivery to save us from going through the ER, naked momy and baby swaddled in ambulance blankets. 4th degree tearing, many stitches later, and a good case of post tramautic shock, we went home a family of three the next day. In my bare feet I might add, in the snow, because I arived there without shoes and no one remembered to bring me any with my bags. It made for great coming home pictures :)