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Nursery Decor ✨

My husband and I spent this weekend packing for our upcoming move, but before we put these handmade letters in a box, I had to take a picture!

My mother-in-law and I made these floral letters to go above Harlie’s crib 🌺 We got the letters and flowers on clearance from @michaelsstores! In total we spend about $15 on this project and it only took about an  hour to assemble from start to finish 🙌 I love how it turned out, so much so that I plan to do it for Kinley’s room too! ☺️

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Harlie is now 7 months old! I seriously can’t believe it, I feel like she was just born, but here we are starting solid foods! Harlie started eating solids about three weeks ago and she LOVES IT. I seem to breed chunky babies who just love to eattt— ☺️. I typically wait until 6+ months for my babies to start solid foods, skipping rice cereal and oatmeal, and going straight for the fruits and veggies.

I use my @thebabybullet everyday to puree up something simple for Harlie. The foods I always start with are: blueberries, applesauce, bananas, sweet potatoes, and avocado. I throw these foods into the Baby Bullet for a few seconds and it’s done! So easy! Any leftovers I have I typically just store in the refrigerator for the next day.

If I am on the go, I also have a @infantinobaby “Fresh Squeezed Feeding Station” that I pour my pureed foods into to take with me. They are just like the squeeze pouches you buy at the store but are homemade! If I don’t have time to make my own, I also buy organic purees at the store. I typically look for ones that have no added sugar and no preservatives.

Starting solids doesn’t have to be stressful, it can actually be a fun new chapter for you and your baby! I love seeing the excitement on Harlie’s face as she tries something new ✨🤩

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I mean is there anything better than a good book collection? Considering we have to read each book at least 150 times, having options is nice ☺️

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Hi! Meet my 30 minute napper, Harlie 👋 Legit her naps are 30 minutes so that means she spends a lot of time in my baby carriers 💞 Carriers are my absolute favorite. My two favorites are my @ergobaby carrier and my @wildbird carrier (pictured here). 

What are your favorites? ✨

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My Pregnancy Green Smoothie ✨ 

Two words: third trimester.

Three things generally hit me the hardest in the third trimester: 1. anemia 2. exhaustion 3. the aches and pains of my growing body and baby. This smoothie recipe below helps with all three areas. It is jammed packed with the nutrients you need to fuel your body and baby. The spinach in this smoothie helps with problem one and two. It contains high levels of iron to help combat the anemia and exhaustion, therefore giving you a bit more energy. The second key ingredient in the smoothie is the tumeric. Tumeric is a natural anti-inflammatory and very powerful antioxidant. These properties will help with the aches and pains of pregnancy along with a host of other health benefits!

Recipe: 

• Water 

• Spinach (fresh or frozen)

• 1 teaspoon of ground tumeric 

• A dash of pepper to activate the tumeric 

• Frozen organic fruit (I use frozen blueberries, strawberries, bananas, etc.) 

• Cooked beets (I buy the pre-cooked and packages kind) 

• Cucumber 

• Avocado

You can really do any combo of fruits and veggies you like, but the main two ingredients are spinach and turmeric 🌱

Enjoy! ✨

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Overwhelmed but Loved

These two girls are my world, but I’ll be honest— being a Mom is overwhelming at times. Sometimes there is just not enough time in the day to get it all done: cook dinner, do laundry, wash the dishes, clean up toys, buy groceries, wipe two butts, workout, maintain friendships, shower, put on makeup, be emotionally available for my husband, etc. I can sometimes beat myself up at the end of the day if I haven’t gotten all these things done, but more recently I’ve had to tell myself— it’s okay! It’s okay if the laundry sits in the laundry basket and dishes are left in the sink. It’s okay that I haven’t gotten around to working out in a couple days and that dinner isn’t made. This week I’ve had to re-set my expectations and have a little more grace with myself. I decided that on the days when momming is hard, I’ll stick to the basics: love them and keep them alive. As long as they are fed and they know their parents love them— the day has been a success.

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Weeks 1-6 Postpartum Self Care

During pregnancy we spend a lot time thinking about our growing baby inside of us and almost no time learning how to care for our body’s postpartum. Our bodies take a beating during pregnancy and delivery, so it’s important to learn how to take care of yourself postpartum.

Breastfeeding

Your nipples take a beating the first couple weeks of breastfeeding, but here are a couple of things that will make it easier for you. 

Correct baby’s latch - If your baby is latched correctly, breastfeeding shouldn’t hurt (that) much. I didn’t find out until after I had my second baby that my first baby’s latch was all wrong— hence the very painful, cracked, and bleeding nipples. If this is you, see a lactation consultant, ask a trusted mommy friend, or even YouTube “correct breastfeeding latch” to ensure your baby has the correct latch. 

Medela Nipple Shield - this was truly a LIFESAVER for me with my first baby. I recommend all breastfeeding Moms have this. This Medela nipple shield is a very thin, silicon layer that goes over your nipple to protect you when you first begin breastfeeding. If your nipples are too cracked and sore to nurse, this is for you. Using this shield will help your nipples heal while giving them time to adjust. Use this as much as you need the first couple weeks and then slowly wean yourself, and your baby, off of it. Note: this shield will also help when your baby cluster feeds (wants to eat every 30-60 mins). They typically do this in the mornings or evenings during the first couple months. 

Nipple Cream - think “healing ointment.” I used Earth Mama Organic Nipple Butter. 

Medela Hand Pump - if you feel like you need to give your nipples a break for a feeding or two, you can pump some milk and feed your baby with a bottle. This is a great time for Dad’s to get a chance to feed baby and for mom to rest. I recommend pumping anyway because your breasts are going to be engorged, meaning they are overly full, and your baby isn’t eating enough to drain them entirely. This is a great time to pump and store some milk. Don’t pump too much though, I only recommend pumping once a day and only about 2 ounces from each breast. Having milk stored in the freezer will enable you to go on dates in the future with your hubby <3 

Sitz Bath 

One of the best things I did postpartum was take a sitz bath twice a day. 

Here’s how:

There are a ton of ways to do a sitz bath, but I filled the bath about waist deep with warm water. Then I added 1 cup of pure, non-iodized, sea salt (check the ingredients and make sure there is nothing else added). I then soaked for 15-20 minutes and repeated twice a day.

Why it helps: 

Soothes any pain you may have from stitches or hemorrhoids. 

Promotes faster healing.

Enables you to somewhat “clean” yourself since you can’t use any soap down there for 6 weeks.

Give you 15-20 mins of “Momma Time” 🙌

Tummy care

Belly Bandit

I also highly recommend wearing a Belly Bandit for the first two weeks (at least) after having your baby. Your core is super weak after delivery, especially if you have diastasis recti. A Belly Bandit will provide you a little extra support for your back and weak stomach muscles, as well as help slim your mid-section. 

After I gave birth to Harlie I literally had to hold my belly up to walk to the bathroom. I was hunched over, sore, and was walking like I was 80 years old. Luckily I already had a Belly Band and knew I needed to put it on ASAP. As soon as I did, I had immediate relief from my back pain and my weak stomach muscles felt supported! I wore the Belly Bandit morning to evening for 2-3 weeks straight post partum.

Stretch Mark Cream

During my first pregnancy, I got really bad stretch marks— the red, tiger striped, painful kind. But during my second pregnancy, I used Palmers Skin Therapy Oil on my tummy everyday and my stretch marks FADED during pregnancy. I swear by this stuff! It’s around $10 and sold at Walmart/Target, it’s worth every penny! 

Abdominal Breathing 

Your core is going to be very weak in the weeks and months following delivery. Traditional abdominal exercises are a no, no! They can actually make your already weak core, worse! 

To repair your abdominal muscles correctly, follow @ourfitfamilylife ’s instagram for tips and sign up for her 6-week “Better Body After Baby” program! You will see amazing results! I swear by it!

Hormones

It should be no surprise that your hormones are all over the place after your baby is born. It will take weeks and even months for them to level out. Expect to be particularly weepy and extra sensitive.

A lot of women get “the baby blues” in the days flowing delivery, typically revealing itself 4-5 days after delivery. This looks different for everyone, but for me it looked like unexplainably weepy, feeling absolutely overwhelmed, completely exhausted, and feeling like I was on the verge of an anxiety attack. Yeah, not fun.  It’s normal, and I’m SO glad my mom was there the first few days after delivery to immediately identify what it was and tell me that I wasn’t crazy. This goes away within a few weeks and the biggest component to it is sleep deprivation. If you get some good rest, most of your symptoms will go away. Also, a little positive self-talk doesn’t hurt either. You need to remind yourself that you don’t have to have everything figured out IMMEDIATELY, because although you literally did become a Mom overnight, it doesn’t mean you know anything at all about being a mom — and that’s okay! Learning how to be a Mom takes time, so give yourself some time and grace. 

Side note: In our home, my husband knows that we can’t watch anything overly sensitive for the first 6-8 weeks after the baby is born. No action-packed movies with killing, drugs, sex, and alcohol (not that we really watch those kind of movies anyway). If its not a happy, feel-good movie - it’s a no, no! That basically leaves us to Disney movies, but that’s okay! It’s not forever! It’s not worth the potential emotional breakdown ✋

REST. 

This is last on the list, but it’s the most important.

Make rest and SLEEP a priority the first two weeks (or more) of the baby’s life. You might be wondering, how do I do that with a newborn!?

Here’s a few tips:

Although most newborns like to be up alll nighttt, most newborns will be very sleepy in the mornings. If it’s your first baby and you don’t have a toddler to chase around, take that opportunity to nap. Always try to nap when your baby is napping the first couple weeks to catch up on rest ❤️ Do not worry about how the house looks or that dinner isn’t made — REST. 

If you do have a toddler, wait until their nap time to sleep—but still make it a priority to sleep. If your newborn is still awake at that time, lay down in your bed to nurse them. Chances are they will fall asleep on your boob within a few minutes and you both can take a little snooze. 

If you are breastfeeding and you haven’t had a solid stretch of sleep during the night, pump a 2-3 oz bottle for your husband (or sister, friend, grandmother or mother-in-law) to feed the baby while you sleep. It takes a village the first week or two.

Lastly, don’t be afraid to ask for help. My husband always takes the first two weeks off of work AND my Mom and mother-in-law come to help too. Typically, my mom stays week one and Chris’s Mom stays week two. We need them, and we aren’t afraid to say it. Plus, they are dying to be there so everyone wins! Just make sure you are very clear with your expectations for “helpers” so that everyone is on the same page. This time around we told both Mom’s, “the main thing we need help with is Kinley and dinner! Is that okay with you?” Also be clear with your husband too. The men want to help but sometimes they need a little direction too 💞

I hope you enjoyed the read!

Sincerely,

Christi

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At 41 weeks + 3 days and 4 membrane sweeps later…

I woke up Saturday morning, August 11th with mild contractions that were 20 minutes apart. They weren’t painful but I was pretty sure they were contractions because they were 20 mins on the dot for a few hours. So that morning Chris made breakfast for Kinley & I and then we headed to the grocery store to get a couple things we needed.

Towards the end of my pregnancy my midwife said we should have sex two times a day until the baby came to continue to ripen my cervix, so at 11:00 AM we put Kinley down for a nap and decided to “do it” (sorry if you’re reading this Mom & Dad! Lol!). We knew that if this was the real thing, it would kick start/speed up labor. Plus we figured, “doctor’s orders!” Haha

That immediately threw me into labor. Right off the bat, contractions were 3 mins apart. I was in shock. Could this really (and finally) be the real thing?! After an hour of contractions 3 mins apart, I called my midwife to talk it over with her. She had said sometimes sex can bring on contractions like that and then slow down a few hours later. She said I could come in if I wanted to, or stay home to labor as long as I felt comfortable doing so. Even though they were 3 minutes apart, I still felt like I had time on my side and felt comfortable staying home. The contractions eventually slowed to 5-6 mins apart, but they were definitely getting more intense. This was definitely the real thing!

Around 1:00 PM I called my bestie to come over to help us with Kinley while I continued to labor at home. I walked, and walked, and walked around my house ALL DAY. It was a hot summer day so instead of going on a walk outside we opted to stay in in the air conditioning. I wanted to stay as active as possible to keep things moving and also bring the baby down with gravity. When my legs got tired I sat on my birth ball and bounced and rolled my hips. The contractions were completely manageable all afternoon.

Around 7:00 PM (8 hours into labor) I knew it was time to head to the birth center. I started to get the “shaky labor legs” and the contractions were intensifying so I knew it was time to go. We still had a 45 minute drive ahead of us so I figured we needed to hit the road before things got too much more intense. When we arrived, my midwife checked me. I was 4 cm dilated, fully effaced, with a bulging bag of water. I was happy I was at least that far along.

For the next hour and a half I walked around the room continuously as I breathed through contractions. When I needed a break from walking, I would sit on the birth ball to bounce and roll around as much as I could. I would usually walk for 5 minutes and then sit on the ball for 5 minutes. I knew staying active would help move things along and I had prayed specifically for a fast labor. At 10 PM my contractions were 2 minutes apart and my midwife checked me again. I was only 4.5 cms dilated. She asked if I wanted her to break my water and I immediately said, “YES!” After she broke my water I got into the birthing tub to continue laboring.

Things picked up QUICK! Within about 30-45 minutes of laboring in the tub I asked my husband & midwife to grab the trashcan because I needed to throw up. I knew I was entering into transition which was 7 cm. Feeling nauseous and throwing up is usually a sign that you’re entering into transition. 

I couldn’t believe that I was already 7 cms in such a short amount of time, but I could also feel the contractions intensifying. Up until that point the pain was totally manageable. I had told my husband right after I threw up, “Wow, I’m surprised because the contractions only really hurt for about 15-20 seconds (at its peak) and the rest of the contraction is totally manageable.” But it seemed like it was only 1 minute later that I was grueling in pain for 2 minutes straight through each contraction. I knew I had passed 7 cm and was now somewhere between 8-10 cms. 

Each contraction hit me like a massive wave and I was doing my best to stay relaxed and breathe through them. Staying relaxed is one of the most important things you can do in labor. If you are tense, your cervix can also tense up and it can stall or even stop labor, so I was trying my best to hold on and stay calm. 

Before I knew it, I heard myself REALLY vocalizing through each contraction. I had to because it was the only way to keep from screaming although eventually there was some screaming— and that was okay! I knew not to resist the sounds my body was making because as I screeched trough the pain I knew my body was doing everything it needed to do.

I finally reached the point where I felt like I couldn’t take the pain. Panic set in for a moment as I wondered how much longer I had to hold on. But in that moment I remembered reading several birth stories where other women got to this same point and the very next moment the baby was born. This gave me hope she was about to be born.

My midwife began reassuring me that I was SO CLOSE. I wanted to believe her, but I was wondering if she was just telling me that to comfort me or if she was serious. The date was August 11th and my sister’s birthday is August 12th. My sister was praying hard that Harlie would be born on her birthday. I remember glancing at the clock at 11:30 PM as my midwife said, “Your baby girl doesn’t want to share birthdays with your sister, she’s going to be born before before midnight.” “Really?! I thought. Was she being serious?! I pray to Jesus she is being serious!” 

Immediately after I remember thinking, “the pain of these contractions are so intense, I can’t IMAGINE pushing during a contraction to get her out!”  

But then suddenly, I pooped.

You might be wondering why I included this, but it’s actually a fascinating part of the story! When your baby is about to be born, the baby descends deep into your pelvis and your colon literally gets flattened, therefore you poop! No need to feel embarrassed, it’s 100% normal and something that just happens in childbirth.  The cool thing was, my husband said the moment after I pooped, he saw my big, huge belly all of a sudden drop and almost flatten. The baby dropped deep into the birth canal and she was ready to make her debut. 

The next moment I screamed, “HERE SHE COMES!!!” 

I knew it was time to push, no one had to tell me. I very much wanted and prayed for this feeling. I told my midwife prior to birth that I did not want to be managed in the pushing phase and that I wanted a physiological birth, meaning I would follow my body’s lead on what to do because it knows exactly what to do on its own.

I began pushing and it was completely instinctual. I never told my midwife I was going to push and she didn’t say a word other than “GREAT JOB! GREAT PUSH!!” After 4 minutes of pushing, she was born! I was in complete shock!

Within 1 hour and 45 minutes of my midwife breaking my water, I progressed from 4.5 cm dilated to my sweet baby girl being born! 

She weighed 9 lbs 6 oz and was 22” long! 

Prior to birth, I prayed specifically for a few things: no tearing, no hemorrhoids, and a fast labor. Low and behold with a 9 lb 6 oz baby, I didn’t tear, I had no hemorrhoids, and my birth could not have been any faster. My mind was blown, and still is, how God answered each and every one of my prayers specifically and intentionally!

Delivering the Placenta

Did you know that after you deliver your baby, you have to deliver your placenta too?

After Harlie’s birth, I had to then deliver the placenta about 20 minutes later. After a few pushes it was out. After I delivered it, my midwife brought it over to show me how fascinating it was. 

Previously I thought placentas were gross, but she really opened my eyes and showed me how amazing they are! (Seriously google how amazing placentas are, its fascinating!!) 

As she was explaining how amazing placentas are to me, she told me she was particularly amazed by mine for several reasons. She took it over to the scale to weighed it and said that it was two times the size of a normal placenta. The average placenta size is around 1 lb and mine was over 2 lbs! She also could not get over the “health” of my placenta and said, “this does not look like a 41 week placenta! This looks like a 37-38 week, thriving placenta!” She said typically a 41-42 week placenta tends to not be as healthy because its losing its ability to nourish, but that was not the case for mine! She then went on to say that the health of my placenta is why my gestational age is past 41 weeks, and I should expect to go that long every pregnancy! I thought that was a really awesome fact and is a good reminder to eat healthy during pregnancy because you are nourishing your baby and your own body!

Funny side story:

About an hour or two after the baby was born, the nurse walked me to the bathroom (attached to the birthing room) to go pee and take a shower. After I went pee, the nurse stood me up to help me get into the shower. All of a sudden I got really dizzy and my arms and legs began to shake so I told her I needed to sit back down on the toilet to rest for a minute. Next thing I knew the strong scent of ammonia was hovering under my nose and I woke up to my midwife saying, “Welcome back!!” with a huge smile on her face.

“What? Did I pass out!?” “Yep you did, so we are going to postpone that shower until later!” We all had a good chuckle as the nurse helped me back to the bed. They said that my body did such a tremendous amount of work that I was just very depleted of nutrients. They told me I needed protein, carbs, and water - so good thing my bestie packed me a bagel, protein bar, and smart water in my labor bag just before we left the house. Mama straight HOUSED that food as soon as I laid down on the bed :) 

Anyway! I hope you enjoyed the read! Harlie’s birth is sooo special to me and I pray I have another one just like it! Yes, labor is painful but it’s the best type of pain— the pain of bringing a child into the world! Birth doesn’t have to be a horror story, it can actually be a dream come true.

XO,

Christi 

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“Aww, is your husband upset you’re having another girl?”

“Are you going to try until you have a boy?”

“I bet your husband wishes he had a son.”

“Aww, just make sure it’s a boy next time.”

“Aww bummer, it’s a girl? Sorry dude.”

“Don’t worry Chris, two girls aren’t that bad.”

These are all REAL comments people said to us while I was pregnant with Harlie.

Having two girls in a boy-crazed world is not “popular,” and the list is endless of the hurtful things people say to girl Moms. Most people don’t even realize how hurtful their words are. 

When I first found out I was having another girl, I felt true peace and excitement in my soul. I didn’t know how much I wanted another girl until we found out we were having one. I felt the Lord impress on my spirit, “This is what I have for you and she is going to serve a big purpose.” I wasn’t surprised He told me that because her name actually means, “Chosen by God.”

Up until my third trimester I was able to easily brush off peoples’ rude comments and go about my day.

Interestingly enough though, while I was pregnant this time around, so was my sister and my sister-in-law. And guess what? Both of them found out they were having boys.

That’s when the enemy creeped in. For the first time in my pregnancy I felt like I was “missing out” by not having a boy. The hurtful words that people had spoken to me throughout my pregnancy started racing through my mind non-stop and I almost started to believe THE LIE— the lie that I truly was “missing out.”

BUT GOD.

But God reminded me what He had originally impressed on my spirit. “This is what I have for you and she is going to serve a big purpose.” He also reminded me that what the world says is good and pleasing is not what God says is good and pleasing. 

Our jobs on earth are to be good stewards of what God has given us. Who am I to say that what God has given me isn’t enough? Or that His gift doesn’t meet my standards? 

So as the enemy tried to creep in, I had to tell Satan NO! You are not speaking that over my child and over my life! My daughter is a blessing from God and I am SO thankful for her. I refuse to believe that LIE! I am abundantly blessed in Jesus Name!

As humans we always want what we don’t have. But as a Christian I chose to believe that Jesus is enough, and anything else given to me is a blessing.

I write all this for three reasons: 

1. To make people more aware of what they say to girl Moms.

2. To let you know how we feel on the matter, just in case you were wondering :)

3. To encourage you other girl Moms! Remember, you are raising daughters of   the KING! What an honor! 

And finally, for the record, my husband is NOT upset that we have two girls! He absolutely adores them and he wouldn’t have it any other way! Don’t feel sorry for him, rejoice with Him! :) 

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I get asked all the time what my “must-haves” are for mommyhood! Below is a list of my favorite things and what I believe are MUSTS to add to your baby registry ✨

1. Ergo Baby Carrier

2. Milk Snob Carseat & Nursing Cover

3. Chicco Lullago Portable Bassinet

4. Dok-a-tot Deluxe

5. HALO SleepSack

6. Big Red Rooster Portable Sound Machine

7. Fisher Price Space Saver High Chair

8. Boppy Newborn Elephant Lounger

Let me know if you have any questions about these items! I’d love to tell you more about them! Also, what are your favorite baby items?! I always love to see what’s working from other Moms! 💓

Also, how cute is Harlie in this pic!? 😍😍 She steals the show in this post!

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Diastasis Recti

Have you ever heard of diastasis recti? It’s also known as abdominal separation that happens during pregnancy. It’s typically why you see women have a “mommy pooch” after they’ve had babies. Most of us have probably thought the “mommy pooch” was just a little extra weight hanging around after pregnancy, but in reality it’s a woman’s organs pushing through the separation because it doesn’t have the strong, closed abdominal wall to keep them back anymore.

The interesting thing about diastasic recti is that it cannot be fixed by running, doing crunches, planking, or any typical ab exercise you would think to do. Those exercises can actually make the ab separation worse! The only way to fix diastasis recti is to go through a proper abdominal and pelvic floor re-strengthing program and only doing diastasis recti-safe movements.

After having my baby 5 months ago, I was able to loose all of my baby weight in 8 weeks. I noticed that even though I lost my baby weight, I still had a “mommy pooch.” Yes, some of it is extra skin from having two large babies, but I noticed that I still looked 3-4 months pregnant. I knew at once I had diastasic recti.

After I checked, I saw that I had a 3 finger-width gap between my abs 😱 Pretty scary. Once I learned I couldn’t do typical ab exercises to fix it, I had no idea how to fix it on my own. So, I signed up for @ourfitfamilylife ’s 6-week diastasis recti and pelvic floor re-strengthing program. So far in less than a week I’m already seeing dramatic results. I can’t wait to share all my progress with you in 6 weeks! If you think you may have diastsis recti, follow @outfitfamilylife and consider signing up for her 6 week program too! 🌟

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“Father, as I look forward to the delivery of my sweet baby, having enjoyed a blessed pregnancy of full duration, I thank you in advance for Your word, Your blessings, Your peace, Your presence and Your divine intervention. I pray and confess that my body and my baby will cooperate with no problems of any kind. I also believe and declare that my labor and delivery will be quick, short, easy and painless. I believe and declare that I’ll have time to get to the proper place with the proper help.

“Baby, in Jesus’ name, you move and place yourself in perfect position for birth: head first, not breech and face down. You rotate properly as God intended you to. I command the umbilical cord to be in proper position as well. Body, you function perfectly during this time. I have perfect peace and am relaxed. All fear must go and stay gone for I have God, Who is perfect love and casts out fear. My body will not be tense but relaxed, at peace. I speak specifically to all the parts of my body to come in line with God’s Word and will.

“Father, I believe that at the proper time for delivery my water will break and my uterus will do its job and begin to contract and push my baby down the birth canal and out into our loving arms and lives. I command my cervix to dilate fully to 10 cm, to be elastic and stretch. To the uterus, vagina, perineum, vulva as well as my cervix, you relax, be elastic and stretch without causing pain or any complications. Accommodate the birth of my baby. Furthermore, I declare in Jesus’ name that I will not tear or need an episiotomy. Father, pain is of the curse of the Law, and Your Word says that Jesus bore our pain, so I rebuke all pain and will not tolerate pain. I will have a short, easy, pain free delivery in Jesus’ name; therefore, I won’t need any anesthetic of any kind. Thank You, Lord, in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Ex 1:10; 1 John 4:16; 1 John 4:18; Matt 8:17; Deut. 28

This prayer is from the book Supernatural Childbirth written by Jackie Mize. My husband and I prayed this over my delivery almost every night in my third trimester. He prayed this over me and we prayed it out loud together in agreement. Begin praying over your delivery now and invite Jesus into your birth! He will help you in supernatural ways and give you every ounce of strength you need!

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Do you have any girlfriends in their third trimester? They will LOVE YOU for this gift! It’s easy...DINNER! Cooking dinner for your family in the third trimester can seem like a monumental task a lot of days and eating out can get expensive...so a home cooked dinner, or even a gift card sent in the mail, will make their WEEK! It doesn't matter if your friend lives far away from you, look online for places that deliver or places you can get them gift cards! <3

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Kinley’s Birth Story

I can’t believe my baby girl just turned 2! Of course her birthday has me thinking about her birth which I have honestly never sat down to write until now! So here goes..

Originally, Kinley’s due date was December 5th, but that day came and went quickly.

The standard procedure at my previous doctors office was a mandatory induction at 41 weeks. I prayed SO hard I would go into labor naturally but I never did, so on December 11th at exactly 41 weeks, I was induced.

We checked into the hospital on Sunday night at 7:30 PM. I changed into the hospital gown, got my IV, fetal monitor strapped on, and laid down in my hospital bed. Then at around 10 PM a doctor (whom I’d never seen before) came in with a student to insert the foley bulb for my induction.

For those of you who don’t know, a foley bulb is an inflatable balloon they insert into your cervix. After it is inserted, it is then blown up to try to get your cervix to open manually. Typically you need to be at least 1 cm dilated to be a candidate for a foley bulb induction. Fortunately, I was already 1 cm dilated so I needed the foley bulb to get me to 3 cm, which is the goal of the foley bulb induction. The doctor inserted the foley bulb, while trying to teach the student, and then left. From then on it was a waiting game.

Around 6:30 AM the next morning a nurse came in to check the foley bulb to see if I was 3 cm dilated. The nurse tugged on the fully bulb and it came right out. She then checked my cervix and said, “Yep! You’re 3 cm dilated! Now we can start the pitocin!” I was so happy to hear that the induction was successful and that labor was finally beginning.

The nurses started the piton drip through my IV and instructed me to walk the halls, bounce on the birth ball, and to labor in whatever position I felt comfortable prior to my epidural. I walked, and walked, and walked- attached to a pole, with an IV in my arm, dressed in the hospital gown. Every 30 minutes they increased the pitocin. Eventually it was noon and the pitocin was as high as it could go. I still hadn’t received my epidural but I was still walking, talking, laughing, and carrying on with my husband and family members.

The nurses thought it was strange that I was still in no pain with the pitocin as high as it was. They decided they wanted to check me to see how far dilated I was. The OB on-call came into the room to check me and her face looked concerned. She looked at me and said, “I’m sorry honey, you are only 1 cm dilated.”

WHAT?! You can imagine the shock and HORROR on my face. She said, “Apparently the foley bulb wasn’t inserted correctly last night, so we need to re-do it.” Then she called in the nurse who had previously said I was 3 cm dilated and made her check me again. She wanted to show her that I wasn’t 3 cm dilated and made a teaching moment out of it. There’s nothing quite like having several women check your cervix dilation in a matter of minutes 😳

As you can imagine, at this point I started to get upset. I had been in the hospital for 17 hours with no sleep and NO FOOD— and literally nothing had happened yet. I explained my frustrations to them and said, “I REALLY need to eat. I’ve been here since 7:30 PM last night with no food. There’s no way I can make it another 12-24 hours with no food, considering I’m STILL 41 weeks pregnant and STARVING.” Fortunately they let me eat, and even drink some coffee 🙌

From there the OB on-call said she was going to manually stretch me to 2 cm, re-insert the foley bulb, and increase the pitocin. Yikes. I was starting to get desperate so I went along with it.

Fortunately, just 2 hours later the foley bulb fell out while I was going to the bathroom which meant I was 3 cm dilated. Finally labor was beginning! As the pitocin kept increasing and the contractions started, I laid down on my side in the hospital bed and let the contractions come one after the other. I didn’t sit up, walk around, bounce on the birth bath— nothing. In my defense, I was very tired after already being in the hospital for 24 hours, but I also didn’t know (at the time) how in-effective it was to labor laying down!

About an hour or two later, the OB on-call came in and asked me if I wanted her to break my water. She told me it would speed up the labor. Instantly I said yes!!

This was a pretty risky move considering labor had been progressing so slowly for me, but at the time I didn’t really understand what it meant. I didn’t fully grasp that I had 24 hours from the time they broke my water for the baby to be born, or I would have to have a c-section.

At almost 5 cm dilated, I requested a epidural. It was my plan from the beginning that I was going to get an epidural, so once I started to feel those painful, pitocin-induced contractions I called for the anesthesiologist. I was planning on being completely numb during labor because that’s what an epidural was for, RIGHT?! Well..I had another thing coming.

When the anesthesiologist inserted the needle into my back, I felt the warm tingly sensation I was supposed to feel, but nothing went numb. The nurse told me it would take 20 minutes for the epidural to take its full effect, but 20 minutes went by and there was still no numbness in my legs. Nothing. So the nurse called the anesthesiologist back in and he gave me a second dose. They told me to wait another 20 minutes and it should definitely work this time. Well 20 minutes came and went and nothing went numb for me.

At that point they told me there was nothing else they could do. I realized at that moment that this labor was going to be a lot different than I thought it would. Like, A LOT different…

The pain was pretty manageable until around 6:00 AM the next morning. At this point I was starting to go into transition (7-10 cm dilation). Since I had the epidural, I wasn’t allowed to get out of bed, so all I could do was labor in the upright position. 

Around this time I told my husband to grab the trashcan because I needed to throw up! Another typical sign you are going into transition. I began throwing up pure water because I hadn’t eaten anything since noon the previous day, so eventually I was just dry-heaving. It was awful. I remember looking at my husband as he started to have a nervous look on his face like— wow things are getting real!

Since I planned on being numb, the pain blindsided me. Every contraction (still had the pitocin pumping) hit me like a massive wave and I did everything in my power to fight them, which I later learned was a counter-productive thing to do. I was trying to fight what needed to happen to get the baby out. I should have relaxed and embraced each contraction, but that’s a lot easier said than done, especially if you are uneducated about childbirth.

Eventually a nurse came to check me and her words were, “You’re 9.5 cm dilated but we will just go ahead and say you’re 10 cm.” At the time I was thankful for her fibbing how dilated I was because I just wanted to start pushing to get the baby out, but now I look back at this and it makes me cringe because my body was not ready.

The nurse then went to get the OB on-call and the other nurses and said it was time to push. I felt no urge, but they said it was time to push, so I did. From there I ineffectively pushed for 45 minutes making no progress. Eventually the OB said I needed to take a break to relax and we could try again later when my body was telling me it was time to push.

Quick side note: don’t ever push unless your body is SCREAMING at you to PUSH! Once you get to 10 cm dilated there is a “stillness” to where your contractions calm and you don’t have an urge to push. This can last up to 30 minutes, but for most women it’s only a matter of minutes. But just because you are 10 cm dilated, it doesn’t mean it’s time to push. Your body still needs to do a number of things before that baby is ready to come out. Your body ALONE will tell you when it’s time to push, and trust me— it will! 

Almost immediately after the nurses and OB left the room, labor got crazy intense. I finally did feel the urge to push but I didn’t immediately call the doctor and nurses back in because I was worried I’d make no progress again. So I just labored on my own in the bed and even pushed on my own every few contractions. Eventually I knew it was time for my husband to go get the doctor because baby girl was finally coming!

The doctor and the nurses got set up and this time when I pushed I made progress! I requested to have the mirror in front of me so I could see and be motivated by my pushing. My contractions were still very irregular, about 3-5 minutes apart, so it took me another 40 minutes of pushing to get her out. But FINALLY at 10:11 AM, she was BORN! She weighed 8 lbs 11 ounces, was 21 1/2” long, with a FULL head of hair! Praise God my sweet baby girl was FINALLY HERE!

After Delivery

After Kinley’s birth, I had a stage 2 tear and a broken blood vessel on the inside. I had to receive 4 stitches on the outside and 1 on the inside. I also got really painful hemorrhoids from all the ineffective pushing—and too be honest, this was the hardest part of my recovery.

After everything I went through to get her out, I am so thankful my sweet baby was born healthy and I was still able to have vaginal delivery. There were many opportunities where my labor could have gone wrong or I could have had a much different outcome. I love that this is my sweet Kinley’s birth story, but I disliked several things that happened along the way. I left the hospital telling my husband, “I never want to do that again…” I was traumatized. I felt my body was forced to do something it wasn’t ready to do and my cervix had to be pried open to get the baby out. It felt forced and unnatural. For this reason, I chose to to deliver my second baby at a birth center and had a completely unmedicated birth. I loved every single detail of her birth. Her birth story is coming soon..❤️

I hope you enjoyed the read!

Xo,

Christi

[brightlynested]

Preparing for Pregnancy with Your Spouse

There is no doubt that having a baby will rock your world. Life as you know it changes in almost every way. This new way of life can sometimes be hard on marriages, but the good thing is, it doesn’t have to be! After having two babies, here are some tips we learned along the way that significantly helped our marriage through pregnancy and postpartum. 

Prepare for Extreme Exhaustion

There’s exhaustion from day day-to-day life, there’s exhaustion from running a marathon, and then there is pregnancy exhaustion— which trumps all the other forms of exhaustion! No one can relate to pregnancy exhaustion until you’ve been pregnant. It’s the type of exhaustion that makes walking over to the sink to get a glass of water seem like an impossible chore. This type of exhaustion typically hits you in your first and third trimester, but you can have a couple days in your second trimester when you feel this way too. The best thing you can do is plan for it. Your body is on over-drive making a baby so allow yourself to rest and be sure to communicate with your spouse how you’re feeling.

Prepare for Hormones

Ahh, hormones. We love them and we hate them. If this is your first time being pregnant, you’ll quickly learn that PMS has nothing on pregnancy hormones. With that being said, we have to learn how to manage them. Most of us know when we are being hormonal, so the key is to recognize how you are feeling and call it out. “I’m being hormonal and extra sensitive, how can I respond differently in this situation?” Calling it out can give you a whole new perspective on the situation and offer you a new way to manage how you are feeling. 

Communicate, Communicate, Communicate 

Communicating with your spouse is always important, but with the many ups and downs of pregnancy, it is more important than ever to communicate well.  Saying things like, “I’m sorry— I’m really, really tired and didn’t mean to respond like that.” Or, “My hormones are on overdrive today and it seems like every little thing is driving me crazy.” Or, “My hormones are SO intense today and I am being overly emotional. Can you sit down and talk this situation over with me to help me so I can think about it rationally?” These have been real statements in our household and I’m not embarrassed about it, I’m actually proud because it helped us SO much!

Pray Together 

Praying together is SO powerful! I recommend praying for:

Wisdom in this new chapter of life

Patience, understanding, and grace with each other

Oneness in this pregnancy

Pray that you feel great and stay positive until the end of your pregnancy

Pray for the transition into motherhood

Pray for your husband transition into fatherhood, which is different in many ways from a mother’s transition

Pray that your baby sleeps well and that Momma will be rested

Pray for your great labor and delivery & healthy baby

Pray for your quick healing postpartum

Everyday won’t be perfect, but prayer has the ability to drastically change things for the BETTER!

I’m excited for you in this new chapter of your life! I hope these tips & prayers empower you to have a great pregnancy and postpartum time with your husband!

XO,

Christi

[brightlynested]

This sweet baby girl was born at at birth center almost 4 months ago 💞 Initially when I told friends and family I was going to deliver my baby at a birth center, everyone was really confused. The most common questions I received were, “What is a birth center?” and “Is that safe?!” Less than 1% of babies are born at birth centers so their questions were totally valid! At one point I had asked those same questions myself. My hope is that this post will answer all your questions about what a birth center is, as well as share how amazing my birth center experience was! 

What is a birth center?

A birth center is a home-like setting for women to give birth. Most birth centers are a free standing building on the grounds of a hospital or only a few blocks away. Some birth centers can even be attached to a hospital. Women are typically seen by midwives as opposed to OBs.

Pregnancy and childbirth are normal life events and are treated as such. In birth centers, midwives and staff hold onto the “wellness” model of birth, which means they provide continuous, supportive care during childbirth and only intervene if medically necessary. (During my birth, once my water had broken, my midwife did not leave my side until hours after the baby was born. She coached me and encouraged me the whole time while I was laboring. This was a stark difference between my first child’s hospital birth when the doctor only showed up a few minutes before the baby was born and then left immediately afterwards. I had never met her and never saw her again after that). 

Additionally, birth centers are universally committed to family-centered care. In birth centers, it is the childbearing woman’s right to be the decision-maker about the circumstances of her birth. Women are encouraged to eat if they are hungry, move around and spend time in a tub if they wish, and push in whatever positions they find most comfortable. Birth centers recognize that the mother knows what her body needs to give birth (🙌).The midwives and staff attend to her needs, while diligently watching for signs that are outside the realm of wellness. If anything should should happen to where the mother or baby’s life may be at risk, the mother and baby are immediately transferred to the hospital.

In the U.S., 98.8% of births take place in hospital labor and delivery units, with physicians attending 86% of these births. In contrast, 0.3% of births take place in birth centers, where nurse-midwives and midwives provide most of the care. Among women who give birth in hospitals, approximately 85% are considered low-risk, while all women who are eligible for care at a birth center are healthy and low-risk.

Since hospitals specialize in treating acute illness and injury, they are an obvious choice for women who have complications that require medical or surgical intervention or who choose to have high-intervention births. However, when normal, healthy pregnant women give birth in hospitals, their care often gets swept up into this same medical way of doing things. The philosophy is often "What if something bad happens?" instead of "What is happening right now?" Standard protocols, meant to prepare for problems that may never arise, can disrupt normal labor for healthy pregnant women.

As a result, many women in hospitals receive interventions, whether or not they need them. Almost all women (87%) who labor in hospitals undergo continuous electronic fetal monitoring, 80% receive intravenous fluids, 47% have labor artificially accelerated with medications, and 43% of first-time moms have labor artificially induced. In addition, 60% of women giving birth in hospitals are not allowed to eat or drink, 76% are restricted to bed, and 92% give birth lying on their backs. There is strong evidence that routine use of these practices, when carried out without medical indications, has few benefits and many potential harms for healthy mothers and babies.”

*All information & statistics were taken from birthcenters.org

My Birth Center Experience

I loved absolutely everything about my birth center experience! Once I got pregnant with my second baby, I was still on the fence about going for a natural childbirth. It wasn’t until I was 16 weeks pregnant that I decided to switch from my OB’s office to my local birth center. Immediately they welcomed me with open arms. My first appointment was an hour long. During that appointment I got to know one of the midwives and shared my medical history with her. I also let her know all the details of my first labor and delivery. From then on, at each appointment I saw a different midwife on staff. There were only 5-6 midwives and only three of them are on-call for labor and delivery, so I knew to spend a little extra time with those particular midwives because I knew one of them was going to deliver my baby! 

Once my labor began I called the birth center to let them know. My (favorite) midwife called me back immediately and told me she was on-call that day! She seemed just as excited as I was and couldn’t wait for me to arrive at the birth center. I had just seen her the day before and she told me, “I want to catch your baby!” (typical midwife jargon meaning, “I want to deliver your baby!”)

Long (labor) story short, I labored at home for the first 8 hours I was in labor. Eventually I knew it was time to go to the birth center and when I arrived I was 4cm dilated, fully effaced, with a bulging bag of water. I labored for another hour until my midwife asked me if I wanted her to break my water, which I did! I knew once she broke my water labor was really going to pick up. Once she broke my water I immediately got into the water birth tub. From that point on my midwife never left my side. She also never checked to see how dilated I was after that, but she knew exactly how dilated I was from the sounds I was making. Eventually she even told me my baby was going to be born within 30 minutes (again, without even knowing how dilated I was) and she was exactly right. My sweet little girl was born 20 minutes later. Her confidence and calm disposition astounded me. It was so obvious how incredibly knowledgeable and skilled she was in delivering babies. 

In that last hour of birth I cried out for strength and help from our Lord and she was right there with me saying, “You’re doing amazing!! You have all the strength you need! You got this girl!!” Even after my sweet little girl was born, she told me over and over how well I did. Her words really impacted me and made me feel so accomplished. After delivery, she took the time to show me my placenta and tell me everything about it. Previously, I had been a little grossed out by placentas honestly, but the information she was telling me was fascinating. Afterwards, she proceeded to tell me how much she loves her job and how delivering babies will never get old to her. After 12 years of delivering hundred and hundreds of babies, she still enjoyed every single birth. 

Again, this was a stark difference between my first birth in a hospital by an OB I had never met and never saw again. 

In the weeks following birth, I was counting down the days until my 6 week postpartum visit with my midwife again. I couldn’t wait to catch up with her and talk about the birth. Once my appointment finally came we laughed and chatted together for over an hour while she held my sweet baby. My appointment happened to be the last of the day and she told me I could hang out as long as I wanted! You don’t hear that very often at a doctors office! Ha! Needless to say, I can’t get over how personal my birth center experience was. It was a stark contrast to my previous doctors office where I was just another pregnant woman. I know I am biased, but I will always, always recommend a birth center birth if you have the option! You won’t be treated like just another pregnant woman, and you can expect individualized, personal care. 

Additional Birth Center Quick FAQ’s

Do birth centers take insurance?

Yes, they accept most forms of insurance. Once you switch over to your birth center, they can tell you how much your birth will cost according to the type of insurance you have. Birth center births are cheaper than hospital births so you may not need to pay much at all! 

At what point in your pregnancy should you start going to a birth center?

As soon as you find out you are pregnant. Your appointments follow the same schedule they would at a typical OB’s office.

Do birth centers give epidurals?

No. Birth centers specialize in unmedicated births, but there are some things they can give you to help ease the pain of labor if needed.

What happens in the event of an emergency during childbirth?

If the midwife feels the mother or infant’s life is in immediate risk, they are transferred to the hospital immediately.

Can I check out the birth center first before I commit?

Yes! Most birth centers will let you tour the place first and see what they are about before you commit. My husband and I did a tour and a class before we committed!

How do I find a birth center near me?

Find a birth center near you using the American Association of Birth Centers (AABC) website: https://www.birthcenters.org/search/custom.asp?id=2926

Do I go back to my original OBGYN after the baby is born?

No! :) Most birth centers provide full-scope gynecological care for women of all ages, from teen to post-menopausal. They provide annual exams with pap smears, mammograms, contraception/birth control, natural family planning, holistic management of menopause, preconception counseling, and much more!

In 2013 a nationwide study was done on birth centers called the National Birth Center Study II. The findings confirmed that women & newborns receive top notch care at birth centers. Read the whole article here https://www.birthcenters.org/page/NBCSII .

I hope you enjoyed the read! Are you considering a birth center birth? What other questions do you have? Do you have friends considering a birth center birth? Feel free to tag your pregnant friends to share this post with them! 

[brightlynested]

Pregnancy Reading List

When I first found out I was pregnant, I was thrilled to say the least! I was so excited I didn’t even know what to do with myself! After I settled down I thought, “What do I do now?! What do I do with myself for the next 9 months while I wait for this baby?!”

If you are anything like me, I immediately thought, “I need to start designing the nursery!” and “I should start working on the registry!!” 

Unfortunately, preparing for labor and delivery never crossed my mind. I figured birth was pretty straight-forward and if there was anything I needed to know about birth then my doctor would tell me. Wrong and wrong. This may come as a surprise but birth education is completely on your own. Your doctor doesn’t give you a reading guide and a syllabus at your first appointment and check to make sure you did your homework (although that would be a great idea). You are supposed to find out which books to read and then read them. 

When it came time for my first child to be to be born I was overdue and had a mandatory induction at 41 weeks. I was induced twice (because the foley bulb wasn’t inserted correctly the first time), had the pitocin up as high as it could go, had an epidural— the works. We checked into the hospital on a Sunday night and didn’t leave until Thursday afternoon. It was a long, exhausting week— to say the least.

Although our baby girl was born healthy through a vaginal delivery, I still left the hospital feeling defeated. I was traumatized by birth, unbelievably exhausted, and physically pretty banged up. I left feeling like my body was forced to do something it wasn’t ready to do. I remember telling my husband, “I never, ever want to do that again…” (More to come on birth story #1…)

Eventually I overcame the trauma of my birth experience and my husband and I began trying for baby #2. Once we found out we were pregnant, I was determined to not have another birth experience like that again. I truly believed there was a better way to give birth. Immediately I was on a mission to find out all I could about labor and delivery. The following three books were recommended to me and I read the first two (I ran out of time to read the third, although I still plan to read it!)

Supernatural Childbirth by Jackie Mize

Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth: Updated With New Material

Childbirth Without Fear: The Principles and Practice of Natural Childbirth

I cannot say this enough— the moment you get pregnant, begin your birth education! It is so important to learn about all the physical changes that will go on in your body during labor, how to labor effectively, how to do the least damage to your body, and what your options are in the hospital or birth center. A lot of women don’t know that you can say “no” to your OB and nurses in the hospital when they suggest options you aren’t comfortable with.

In addition to the books I read, I was also invited to a private Facebook group to watch Karen Welton’s teachings on childbirth. She is a Christian doula that has been in practice for years and is very, very knowledgeable (to say the least) on natural childbirth. She shared her teachings in 10+ videos and that completely transformed my understanding of childbirth, even after I had given birth with my first baby! It was mind blowing to me that even after I had given birth there was still so much I didn’t know!

After reading these books and watching Karen’s videos, I was literally EXCITED to give birth. I couldn’t wait to see, feel, and experience everything I had learned about since the beginning of my pregnancy. Then at 41 weeks + 3 days I finally went into labor and it was everything I had hoped and prayed for it to be :) Knowing what my body was doing during labor and made all the difference in my birth, and I was so thankful I had taken the time to study and learn! I’ll be sharing birth story #2 in a couple weeks, stay tuned ✨

What books did you read during pregnancy that helped you? What tips would you give a first time Mom for delivery?