March 2006; Peter Elijah's Birth Story

PETER ELIJAH

Your story starts a couple months before you were conceived. I had a miscarriage in March that caught us off-guard. I didn’t even know I was pregnant until it happened. Three months later, you were conceived and we were very excited! We didn’t tell a whole lot of people at first, but amongst those we did tell was Eric and Kris McIntyre – Eric being the worship leader at the church we were attending at the time, and a very good friend of Abba’s.

We returned to church one Sunday after about a 2 month absence. No one knew we were going to be there, and we almost didn’t even go that morning. Before the service started your brother, Samuel, walks up to me with a bouquet of roses – a dozen. He said that Kris McIntyre had told him to give them to me and not said anything else. Stuck to the outside of the roses was a label that said “Victory” on it. After the service we asked Eric what it was all about and he had NO idea!

A couple days later we received an email from Kris that that morning the Lord impressed on her to get 5 roses – one to recognize each child because he wanted to celebrate our children with us. She decided to just get a dozen so she did and had no idea about the label that said “Victory” on it. She didn’t even know it was there. For me, I took it to mean that we were going to have victory over the enemy and no miscarriage would happen this time. Little did I know that that would be a word to hold onto throughout my pregnancy!

While you were still being knit together inside of me, our whole family moved from Minnesota to Mississippi upon the Lord’s direction. I had been seeing the midwife in Minnesota, Jeanne, for the whole pregnancy and when we moved I was a little over 30 weeks along. We had no midwife in Mississippi to attend your birth. Your Abba and I were going to have to welcome you into this world by ourselves, on faith that God would be with us. Abba was very scared toward the end – he kept thinking of what happened to your sister Constance when she was born. She did not want to cry or fuss or breathe when she was born and actually stopped breathing at one point. Abba did not want a repeat and was scared of knowing what to look for when you would be born.

Two days before I went into full labor with you I reminded your Abba about the word the Father gave us through Kris – “Victory.” He was ecstatic and repentant after a little bit of discussion about it. He held onto the promise of the Lord – “Victory” – and he knew everything would be okay. He was finally at peace! The Lord knew where we would be and what would be going on when you would finally be born. He loves us so much that he knew that we would need one small word to remind us from months before. There were voices of doubt and insecurity all around us echoing in our heads as we prepared for an unassisted birth, and the promise from above silenced them all.

My labor finally started for me on the morning of March 7, 2006 around 3:30AM. I had had a dream about 3 weeks prior that my labor would start with a little bloody show but it would take awhile to get going. Well, it started with a little bloody show and I ignored the dream, thinking it was just a silly dream. (When is your Eema going to learn her lesson?) I called Heidi – Abba’s distant cousin that moved down here in May of this year. Heidi was going to come watch your brother and sisters while Abba and I worked at your labor. She came over to wait for your siblings to wake up and tend to their needs thereafter.

Well – I started feeling really silly. The contractions when I called her were about 3-5 mins apart. But they petered out to 10-15 mins apart. I had thought that, given the last two labors, because I had bloody show it would be fast, and so I had called her. I was dead wrong. Just like the Lord had forewarned me in the dream – it would take a while. Heidi went home around 10:30AM and we would call her when things picked up.

All of us went over to the base camp and had lunch with the relief workers over there. We left your siblings with your Aunt and Uncle and cousins so mommy could go home and rest. The contractions were now about 30 mins apart but still good and strong. I knew it was a matter of time. Around 4:30 I had Abba go pick up your brother and sisters. About 5:30-6pm things picked up and I told Abba I had to call Heidi. Heidi came over (it’s about a 45 min drive from Covington, LA where she lives) and as soon as she got here things picked up. She got here around 7pm with dinner for the kids.

Now, during the labor I had music streaming off the internet from nightwatch.com and I had asked the Lord that music be played that would be relevant to the birth as it progresses. As the Labor started to pick up, I didn’t really want to be touched or want any help from Abba. I just wanted to be on my own. He sat and read the Bible out loud and prayed. The music that was coming over the internet fit with whatever was going on at that moment in the labor. It was very awesome and the Lord’s presence was definitely in the room!

I don’t know what times it happened at as time was a blur to me. But I reached a point that I was crying out that I couldn’t do it anymore. Yes, the tell-tale sign of transition. But I was so tired. All I could do was cry out that I was too tired. All I wanted was to go to sleep. I couldn’t take the pain anymore. As a contraction came and I felt like your body was moving down and I could push with it, I cried out to the Lord to bring you down. I cried out “Jesus Help me!” many times. You would descend but then you would move back up.

I kept trying to get you to flip. You were posterior. I laid on my knees/chest position many times, and I don’t know if that ever got you to flip.

It was at one of the final points that I was so tired and just wanted to sleep that I went back to the toilet. Sitting on the toilet is good for a posterior baby like you were – it helps you to spin around. And I didn’t feel as much pain when I was sitting on the toilet. The contractions were a lot more bearable. But I was still so tired. I told Abba to call Jeanne back in Minnesota. I just knew there was another position to try to get you to come down but couldn’t figure it out. I was tired and exhausted.

He called Jeanne and I told her I was too tired and she encouraged me that I had to and that I COULD do it. It was a breath of fresh air to talk to her. I missed her and she was present at the last two births. It felt like something was missing without her there. She talked me the next two contractions and told Abba there was a different position for me to get into. I had been kneeling on both knees at the end of the bed while pushing. I had been in the pushing stage for a little over an hour, and you had been descending during the two contractions that she was talking me through. She could hear it in my voice – and boy could I feel it.

So I moved from the toilet back to the bedroom to kneel on one knee with my other foot flat on the floor. She said that this would open my pelvis up a little more. The next contraction came and I could feel you come down – way down. Abba could see the bag of waters bulging. I told him I believed it was going to burst with the next contraction –and with previous births that means that baby was right behind. Sure enough – the next contraction came. I pushed and the water burst. It was clear! Praise God – one obstacle overcome!

I braced myself for what was about to come – fully expecting a ring of fire. The next contraction came and your head descended, but did not emerge. However, it felt as if something was coming out the ‘other’ hole. I yelled out “what …is…. That!?!” Even later, Abba commented that it looked like you were going to come out of there as all the veins bulged under the pressure.

The next contraction came and your head was birthed! Abba proceeded to suction out your nose and mouth. No cord around the neck! Praise God! Another contraction came and you did not descend any. That did NOT feel good at all. Jeanne was on the phone the whole time and was telling me not to push – I wasn’t but my body was pushing you out a little. Not enough to say that you descended much.

Between contractions all I wanted was for your body to fully emerge. I sat there with you part-way inside and out for what seemed like an eternity but must have been just a minute or two. Abba said that it seemed like forever for him also. The next contraction came and Jeanne said over the speakerphone to push you out. I said I couldn’t that you were stuck! She said that no you weren’t and for me to just push. Abba said that he was fine the whole birth until I said that. Then he got worried.

I pushed, and the contraction was over but I needed you out. So I pushed without that contraction. It helped a little. I silently prayed for another contraction and cried out loud to the Lord that I needed help. Another contraction came and I birthed the rest of your body.

At first you wouldn’t cry. Abba cried out to Jeanne that would weren’t doing anything. He held you face down and rubbed your back firmly. You were limp. I kept thinking “Victory” to myself and reminding the Father of it. She said to keep rubbing your back. After about a min. you started crying. And you didn’t stop! Abba had been praying for a baby that would cry at birth and he got it! As we cleaned things up and started making phone calls – we hadn’t weighed you yet – we told people we guessed you were at least 8 lbs. After a while we finally weighed you and had to re-weigh you about 4 times! You were 10.5 lbs! Nothing close to the 7lb babies we were used to – with the exception of Constance who was 8lbs 14 oz. Then we measured you – 22.5 inches! No WONDER I couldn’t sit in a recliner or in the van without being uncomfortable toward the end of my pregnancy with you! And no wonder you were having a hard time descending – you were a big boy!

We are so happy to have you with us Peter Elijah. You are a wonderful gift and reminder of God’s spoken word to us! I can’t wait to see what your personality and gifts will be like as you grow. You look like Abba and your brother …only a bigger version of Samuel was at this age though.

So, I don’t know if I can call your birth unassisted as we had Jeanne on the phone with us. But present in the room was just myself, your Abba here on earth and your Abba in Heaven. His presence was definitely felt throughout the birth, and I pray that you will feel his presence with you the rest of your days Peter.

I love you.

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