Travis & Harris were born on May 11, 2010 at home at 41 weeks and 3 days. It had been a wonderful pregnancy, but it was seriously time for birth. I had been having mild contractions off and on for about the last week, feeling my body right on the edge and knowing our boys were about ready to be born. Every morning, waking up pregnant again was starting to wear on me physically and emotionally– especially since all our friends and family were waiting so excitedly, and of course multiples so often come early or are induced. We had been thrilled to be past 36 weeks, which meant we were clear to go ahead with our plans to have the babies at home with our midwife. I always knew I was going to carry the boys full-term, but was surprised to see their due date come…and go.
We were feeling pressure to try induction to get things moving, especially after a nerve-wrecking appointment with our perinatologist. He had been telling me from the get-go that there was no way my uterus could handle much more than 10 pounds of baby and I would likely end up in the hospital with preemies, and that birthing my baby B vaginally in his breech position would be impossible without a manual breech extraction.
At that appointment the day before they were born, he ran through a host of frightening ‘risks’ and recommended we get to a hospital and get the babies out by whatever means necessary. I was grateful for the information about my sons that his practice provided through their ultrasound services, but I fully understood that his medical point of view was just that. As he had never attended a mother in natural labor and never witnessed a normal, unmanaged and unhindered birth. I had done thorough research throughout my pregnancy on every potential risk and method of response, looked to God and into my own heart. I only became more confident in the truth and in the practice of midwifery.
At 41 weeks and 2 days though……with him giving my husband intimidating ‘are you crazy???’ looks, it began to get stressful and brought my husband and I to a hard place. I wanted to wait at least until 42 weeks to the day, but agreed with my husband and midwife to go ahead and tentatively plan for induction at home by way of membrane sweeping, castor oil and herbal tinctures for 2 days out.
While I was more comfortable with that as opposed to going to the hospital for a bag of pitocin, it still felt so incredibly wrong to me. I knew that the best way to have my boys born safely, whole and healthy was to rely on my own body and mind and allow for a spontaneous natural labor to begin. Especially with twins and especially with my second baby breech, the risk of starting a false labor that could lead to a non-progressive labor that could put my second son’s life in danger was my biggest worry. These boys NEEDED to be born!
Our whole family turned to prayer, I interceded every way I knew how while my husband took a four-wheeler ride up to the top of our property and wrestled with his own emotions and worries, giving them up to God. He put the kids to bed that night and told me of the way our four-year-old daughter prayed for the boys to be born, asking Jesus to keep them and her mommy safe.
And the next day.at 4am I began to feel stronger and more regular contractions than I had been feeling for the past week, which had been erratic and mixed with sensationless Braxton Hicks. I waited a few hours until 6am when I was sure they were intensifying and getting closer together to call my midwife and my mom to excitedly tell them ‘I’m in labor!!’.
My mom started sending mass emails to everyone she had praying for us, and my in-laws did the same when my husband let them know things had started for sure. We got in the shower and hugged and kissed through the contractions – we were both SO excited and feeling so grateful that this day was finally here and we were about to meet our sons! He dressed in jeans and his ‘birth shirt’, the same white button-front he had worn at the births of our daughter and son, and his Opa’s old Rolex that he had timed their contractions by. I was feeling the same orange cotton bra I had worn the day before, and nothing else.
My midwife and her apprentice arrived at about 7:30, and the other midwives came shortly afterwards, making a team of five. The three Certified Nurse Midwives (Julia, GB, Kristie) and two apprentices (Nina & Kate) were busy setting out all their supplies and readying the room, while I worked through the labor that was getting really intense very quickly. Our nanny arrived around 8 to take care of our older children; we kissed them and said ‘your brothers will be born soon, better start working on their birthday cake!’ So Angie kept them busy baking and playing for the morning. Though I heard that MaryJane refused to leave the house to go outside, wanting to hear as much as she could, worried about some of the odd noises I was making. Her Daddy promised her I was fine, told her not to worry and she’d be meeting her first new brother soon.
I had planned on laboring in the tub and birthing the first baby in water, but we wanted to collect their cord blood to bank and with the second baby breech there was just a lot going on and my midwife felt more comfortable having more access to me, so she recommended setting up a birthing stool off the edge of our bed. I had never seen one before, but as soon as I laid eyes on it I wanted to sit on it and let this baby come! He had been descending quickly and I was ready with my husband to my right and Kristie to my left for support. It wasn’t long before my baby’s head appeared; I reached down to feel him and loved feeling his thick dark hair. Another contraction and Travis’ head was fully born, after that his whole 8 pound 8 ounce body shot out like a rocket at 8:41!
He was perfect, we were overjoyed and it felt so good to take him right into my arms. Things slowed down and relaxed as we kissed, talked, laughed and held him. I was so excited and happy to see that sweet face I had felt nuzzling the inside of my lower right belly for so long. It turned out that his face had actually been quite smashed against me and had flattened his nose, left ear and left eye but in my blissed-out state I only saw complete perfection in him.
We wanted to be patient to allow my body and second baby adjust to the new room inside, the midwives held me and massaged my belly a little to help. I watched Julia and Nina take Travis to wipe him down and swaddle him, while I felt the urge to lay down on the bed to rest. My husband laid with me, and it wasn’t long before I had Travis back in my arms and put him to my breast. He was a fabulous eater right away, and had quite a persuasive way with my uterus, which began to contract again, moving his brother down. We called in MaryJane and Van in to meet Travis, MJ especially was so excited and declared him ‘the cutest little baby ever’. It was really grounding to see them and see their sweet reaction to their new brother. MaryJane had picked out two rubber duckies as gifts for the boys, brought in the one for Travis and set it on my chest so he could see it as he nursed – so sweet! We told them that Harrison was on his way and we’d call them in again to meet him soon. Over the next two hours we continued to nurse off and on, and tried a few different positions as things ramped up again.
I had been so curious through my pregnancy as to what it would be like waiting for my second baby……how much time would pass between their births? I really hoped to have some good time with Travis, to nurse him and get to know him. Julia had talked about how useful he could be in getting labor going again so while it was part of the plan, experiencing it was a wonderful surprise. I was so proud of him to be playing such an important part in his little brother’s birth and the process of the three of us working together was confirmation of what I knew to be the truth about birth. That a mother’s body and her baby’s body are designed to work in perfect harmony, and yes even with multiples! Her body wants to birth and her babies want to be born. Un-medicated and unforced, as long as a mother is willing, intuitive and calm, her babies will be born well. Being birth-educated and supported by the right people (even if that is only your husband or yourself!) can only help.
I was so incredibly grateful to be attended by the group of intuitive women around me. The mood was so joyful and expectant. I was so happy and smiling at each of them so much, receiving their kind smiles back and getting enthusiastic encouragement of how well my babies and I were doing was exactly what I needed. They were so in tune all three of us, knowing just what I was feeling by how I was behaving, gently offering me sips of water, massage, and pillows for support before I even knew I needed them. It’s a great thing to see people who love their work. I appreciated how skillfully they worked around us, monitoring the baby still in my belly, the baby in my arms and myself while communicating with each other in soft whispers, allowing me peace to get totally into my primal state. Which I was – completely letting myself go and getting in it…in it to win it! During my last birth with my now two-year-old son I had breathed quite silently and deeply all through it and this time while birthing Travis I had learned that quick shallow panting sort of like a thirsty dog felt really good during the stage where the baby was moving down. His birth was a perfect warm-up for birthing Harrison, as it was all so fresh in my mind. Too bad I was panting straight into my handsome husband’s face and was told later I had forgotten to brush my teeth…oh well.
So things started getting really heavy, Kate took Travis so I could really concentrate on the pushing I was about to do. I was in sort of a standing position, with my butt on the edge of the bed, leaning back on my husband behind me with my feet propped up on the birthing stool. I have never forgotten a birth video my doula had shown me years ago when I was preparing for my first birth with my daughter. It showed a Brazilian woman who was birthing twin sons, and her second baby was breech. She stood there like a queen…supported only by her own two feet and silently brought her baby into the world feet-first with a smile on her face. At the time seeing one little baby leg slip out and hang down between her Amazonian legs completely bent my mind. I thought it was the most insane thing I’d ever seen. And now five years later that scene seemed completely normal, she had become my muse of the last few months and the moment was here…my time to shine and become her as best as I possibly could.
I relaxed and waited for a contraction, worked with it and was rewarded with excited gasps from everyone as one little foot emerged. Cameras flashed and Harrison thought twice and drew that foot back inside, which made everyone laugh again. Then he showed us both of his fat little feet.
Another contraction and he was born to the waist, another and his body was born and his little arms slipped out. He did so beautifully through his whole birth, his heart rate stayed steady as his body dangled from me, supported gently by Julia as his head remained inside.
So this was the one, the clock was now ticking and they were telling me I needed to work with this next contraction like I have never worked before and push my baby out. The semi-reclining standing position had worked well as my midwife had theorized to help his head ease under my pubic bone, but now that his head was there it wasn’t feeling right anymore and I wanted to be more upright and leaning a bit forward. They helped me into that position and I waited for that contraction and wasn’t feeling it. I could feel the tension in the room building, but I had read many birth stories and commentary from obstetricians and midwives in the UK where they do many successful ‘hands off’ breech births and knew they had a standard of up to 10 minutes to allow for cord compression. It had only been a few minutes for us and his heart tones were still steady so I was not fearful, and filled only with faith and expectation.
That contraction came and I dug as deep as I could, closed my eyes and envisioned graphically what was happening. I saw my body easily opening wide to expose a little chin then chubby cheeks and round sweet eyes like my daughters. And then my final prize…the very top of his perfect hairy head. That little head I had patted and massaged and watched poke up at me from the top of my belly for months. I imagined planting a big sweet kiss right on top and with that…he was born! All 8 pounds and 15 fat ounces of him at 10:50am.
Julia laid him on the floor and told me to get down on all fours on the floor too. While his heart was still beating and his cord still pulsing, he was not breathing on his own yet. Resuscitation is a skill midwives are used to using, more often for breech babies so it was something we were all expecting might be needed. Julia was giving him mouth to mouth and massaging his body roughly. I was calm and silent, watching quite stupidly until they began encouraging me to talk to my baby. I began calling him by his name, stroking him and telling him what a good strong boy he was and how proud I was of him. William was panicking a bit, saying ‘Breathe boy breathe!’ and I told him ‘Don’t worry babe, he’s fine, he’ll breathe!’ It seemed less than a minute before he was breathing gurgling breaths and was placed safely in my arms. Ecstatic joy from everyone and a few tears from my husband followed. We had both of our sons, live, healthy and perfect – the weight of the world was off his shoulders, and off my belly. The relief and gratitude we felt was overwhelming.
Two more births still lay ahead of me…which ended up being only one as the boys placentas were fused together and both came out with one contraction, which was nice. My midwife cleaned me up and began to check me over; I was thrilled to hear her say I needed no stitches! Minimizing the risk of injury during birth was really the reason I had initially become interested in active natural birth and I was so pleased to be walking away intact, with two perfectly intact and unharmed infants.
Harrison was having a harder time nursing due to his tougher arrival, so I continued to nurse Travis while the midwives helped Harrison get his reflexes going. By this time we were fairly cleaned up and our older kids were back with us, checking out their new brothers. I had gifts for them from the boys, Van seemed really happy about the twins but was REALLY excited about his new trains. MJ got a little doll that she loved but she was way more interested in the two real live dolls in front of her, fascinated by watching GB work her finger in Harrison’s mouth, finding his ‘sweet spot’.
Looking around at our family of six felt so dreamlike, experiencing the birth of our latest members all together in such a normal setting made it an extra precious event that I will be forever grateful for.
SO grateful for our beautiful new sons!
SO grateful I sought out and considered differing opinions, did my own research, made my own decisions, took responsibility and birthed in the way and place I knew was safest for us.
SO grateful I chose reason and faith over irrational worry and fear.
SO grateful I allowed our boys to grow so big and healthy, and be born when they and my body were truly ready.
SO grateful for those last frustrating days of waiting for them, each day something happened within our family to prepare us for the boys in ways we didn’t even know we needed.
SO grateful to the friends and family who encouraged and truly supported us.
You know who you are!
SO grateful for the strong decisive man I married……
who decided to trust and stand by his wife!
SO grateful to live in the blessed state of Texas, where midwife attended homebirth is legal for multiples and breech babies. YEE-HAW!!!
This pregnancy and birth was a spiritual lesson and experience for me, so most of all I am grateful to the Divine Intelligence of the Creator who made this body of mine so full of energy, elasticity, and strength to love. God is SO good, I am beyond grateful for His promises, protection and to walk in His grace.
“Can it be that the Creator intended to draw mothers nearest to Himself at the moment of love’s fulfillment?” – Grantly Dick-Read
Recommended Reading
The Birth Story of Violet Marie – Part 2- One Woman’s Successful Frank Breech Vaginal Hospital Birth
Birth Of Elsie {Homebirth Story With Siblings}
The Birth of Sicily Rose {Postpartum Hemorrhage, Vanishing Twin Syndrome}- A Beautiful Family Home Birth/Baby Caught by Grandmother {Graphic Emergence Photos}
Vaginal Hospital Birth of TRIPLETS
A Healing Home Birth Story After a Traumatic Hospital Birth- When I Saw Her Face, I Started Crying: A Birth Center Birth
“I Pushed My Baby Girl Out In 9 Minutes!” – A Mother’s 4th Home Birth
Home Water Birth in Ireland
105 Comments
Lindsey
i have not read the other comments to see if anyone else mentioned this…and i hate to get off topic but…wow how thin and in shape you were!!! i just love pregnant bodies and couldn’t help but notice and share!
awesome birth story too! congrats! you and your team rock!
MissKatherineA
🙂 Thank you Lindsey! Fitness is a special passion of mine in pregnancy, postpartum and beyond. This pregnancy was my third and it is so crazy to me that with each one my body gained almost the exact same weight. With my first 8.6 pound daughter I gained 50 pounds (umm…lots of fast food and light exercise), with my 7 pound son I gained 50 pounds again even though I ate much healthier and exercised more and got more rest than my first pregnancy. With these over 8 pound twins I was amazed that once again I gained exactly 50 pounds, and this time I had definitely eaten healthier and exercised more than ever before. I really had such a great pregnancy with these boys, I was able to stay very active until the end….especially as we went past 40 weeks I was walking miles up and down steep hills trying to get labor going. I did lots of yoga throughout and really focused on my abdominal muscles as I was concerned about diastasis recti. Look up The Tupler Technique for some great information there. I also have a tendency to start to lose weight everywhere on my body besides my belly in the final weeks of pregnancy and I can see it in pictures, my arms and legs start to look smaller and my overall weight drops a little as my babies pack on the pounds at the very end.
Shauna
I am currently 8 days overdue with twins (my third pregnancy as well & I have a 4 year old daughter & 17 month old son. I just want you to know that your story has truly inspired me.
Emma
Wow! Beautiful story, amazing people. And look at those gorgeous chubby babies! Congratulations
cait
So, so beautiful!
Sarah
Unbelievable!
I don’t think I could ever do that. What a brave woman. Do you have any more detailed photographs?
MissKatherineA
🙂 MORE detailed than the footling breech? 🙂
Thank you so much everyone for your loving and kind comments, especially thanks to those who have shared their similar stories – I LOVE reading them!!! xoxo
Libby B
Haha! That is an awesome picture. I would have liked to have seen a pic of the fused placenta. How considerate of your boys to make that part easier on you 😉
Love your story, thank you for sharing.
Crystal - Prenatal Coach
This is the most inspiring twin birth story I’ve ever read! Thank you so much for sharing, going to pass it on to a twin mama that is 37 weeks!
Amanda
Beautiful!!! We also delivered an undiagnosed (though) breech baby at home with our amazing midwife Paula Matthews in Prescott, Arizona!!! I thank god for the beautiful easy sailing birth and a story to tell!
Stephanie
Amanda,
I live in Tucson and have family in Prescott. 🙂 Both my births were at a birth center and normal head downs, but each time I was so concerned about what I’d do if one was breech. Was your midwife able to attend you at home with a breech because it was undiagnosed? I heard that AZ midwives are lobbying to be able to deliver breech and multiples at home…I hope that happens!
Cece G
Yes, in Arizona if the midwife knows the baby is breech, they cannot legally deliver it. If it is a surprise, and they can’t transfer safely, it is ok. I had a homebirth in Flagstaff. My midwife had been catching babies for 30 years and only had one undiagnosed breech. She said it went well, and the baby was healthy, but that if I ended up carrying breech and they knew it, I would have to transfer to an OB. Thankfully that did not happen! But I did like knowing that she knew how to handle it!
Celeste
I live in Tucson as well. The midwife office i was going to wont even allow me to be their patient anymore because i’m currently expecting twins. As soon as i was diagnose with twins they transferred me out.Pretty messed up but the laws here have everything to do with it. I’ll be moving to Texas so I’m hoping to find a midwife there.
Lilly
You are simply amazing! And those pictures are breathtaking!
Kim G
Congratulations! That is such an amazing and beautiful birth story. It brought me to tears. It makes so much sense. What has happened to our world as far as birthing goes? I remember reading Birth and the Dialog of Love by Marilyn Moran and she said, “Birth is no different than respiration and digestion. It is only a problem if it is interfered with.”
I had all 3 of my boys at home and unassisted and wouldn’t have done it any other way.
I wish there were more women like you in this world… it would be a better place. Please share your story with as many people as possible. It needs to be heard! XOXO
Megan
Thank you for sharing you courageous story. God is so amazing! I was brought to tears reading of your faith and precious twin blessing!
Marla Davis
Amazing! How I wish this I had known enough for this to have been me eight years ago. So happy for you that you did! Congratulations! Beautiful story and handsome boys!
Alexis
What an AMAZING birth story, even more so being good sized twins! I love it!! How inspirational
Tifany
This was the most beautiful birth story I have ever read. It brought me to tears. Thank you do much for sharing. Those babies are beautiful! Congratulations!!
Jen Zimmerman
Thanks for sharing and congrats on your beautiful babies and wonderful birth. I am 24 weeks with identical girls and seeing this kind of story always brings me so much hope. I am nervous because I have been unable to find a midwife in my state, much less have a home birth with multiples, but I am pushing for an all natural vbac!
JenT
I love home birth stories and especially twin home births. I’ve had 6 of my 11 children at home (no twins though) and love the experience. You have a couple of beautiful babies!!
karen
Thank you so much for sharing. What a beautiful birth story! I too have had breech babies and plan to have the next at home so I too can have a wonderful experience as you did. Bless you!
Erica
So beautiful!!! I am in tears!
Sarah
I cried tears of joy reading this. I am so blessed that you shared your birth story. Thank you for sharing your truth, passion, & FAITH! It’s truly beautiful. God bless You & your precious family.
Jodie
Amazing, beautiful and inspiring!
Rachel
Beautiful story! But… how did you fit them in there?! lol. Well done Mama!
Tessie I.
I wish to have at least 8 kids one day, I don’t have any kids yet ( I’m still too young ) but oh my gosh you are so brave. I have an aunt in Perú she had 15 kids with midwifes at home, but twins wow!!! My poor mother was in pain for 3 days in the hospital to have me, I won’t make the same mistake Midwifes are very wise better than most doctors.
Miss B
You are amazing… I wish I had had the courage to go with my gut and have my baby at home… I had a natural birth in hospital no medical intervention, not even gas but tore from front to back so the midwives had better access 🙁
Christy
I read your story months ago and was in awe. Now, retreading while carrying twins, I am in tears! We are planning homebirth for our twins, but seeking dual care at a hospital during pregnancy in case complications arise. I am finding that I can’t share my plans to homebirth twins with many people, as they assume I have foolishly decided this. It has, instead, been a journey of trust and reliance on God as He leads us through all parenting decisions. Thank you for sharing your faith so vividly I’m your story…that is the cornerstone of the story being written for our fifth and sixth babies as well. Blessings!
Amanda
I am so in awe of you! Amazing physique and to carry twins for so long!!! Absolutely amazing! 🙂
Stacey
Wow! Love this birth story, makes me want to have another baby 🙂
Kristina
Amazing! I’m sitting here in tears and don’t even know what to say. With my third baby, at 41 weeks I was sooo over pregnancy and had to seriously talk myself out of walking to the hospital demanding an induction a few times; I was planning my first home birth and didn’t know what my limits were. luckily baby girl decided she was done cookin! She also needed a little resucitation and received some oxygen from the equipment the midwives brought. In the end she weighed 10lbs 2oz..I can’t imagine carrying over 16lbs pounds of babies and then some! Congrats momma!
Jaclyn
That picture of the cord and the foot being born is fantastic. Cool birth story, thanks for sharing! Congrats on a vaginal birth of twins!
jacelyn lamere
That was an amazing story to read. Brought tears to my eyes. Faith is amazing and so is the birth of a baby or two! I am the mother of twin boys and 3 girls. Know that you are blessed to have had that experience.
Celeste
Such a beautiful story! I’m currently pregnant with di/di twins. This is my second pregnancy so i wanted to go threw the midwife route this time but as soon as they found out that i’m having twins they will no longer keep me as a patient and kicked me out so i have to go back to a OB. I was upset but the laws here In Tucson,AZ are insane.and have a lot to do with it. I knew it was coming but I wont give up. I will be moving to Texas soon and hope to find a midwife willing to take me and give me the time and day to help me threw this pregnancy and deliver vaginally. Everyone deserve a chance. We have such strong bodies that were made for this! Thanks for sharing your story. If you can recommend any midwifes or any info on twin pregnancy i will truly be thankful. Thanks again
Debbie
What an incredible story! Thank you so much for sharing and for trusting the way God designed your body! To God be the Glory for your healthy, safe delivery!
Kimberly bremer
This is truly beautiful. I have identical twin boys. And my second son was breech as well. I was young only 20 when i had them. I wish i could have done a home birth and known that this experience was possible. I didn’t have any medication with them but they did a breech extraction of my second son. Your story shows how strong women can be! Thank you so much for sharing!
Kimberly Bremer
This is truly a beautiful story! I have identical twin boys. They were born less than 2 months after I turned 20. And unfortunately I had plenty of issues while pregnant with them. I never knew that you could even attempt to have them at home. But I also didn’t know a lot about birthing when I was having them. I read tons of books on twins because I was more worried about how to care for them once they were here. I had mine at 34 weeks after gaining a whopping 90lbs all in my belly. My labor was completely natural though. I refused every kind of drug they were offering. And they kept pressuring me to have a C-section because I was in labor for 31 & 1/2 hours and my second son was also breech. They did a breech extraction with him.
Your story is an inspiration and i’m so very happy for you and your wonderful experience. Thank you so much for sharing!
katie
I am interested to know what city these midwives practice out of? I am also in Texas and would love to have their contact info. Such a beautiful and inspiring story!
Jacquelyn
Wow, what an awesome story!
Heather
Over 8 pounds each!?! God Bless you! I had a single birth that was 8 pounds 10 ounces and was tired of carrying him around. I can’t imagine being preggers with 17 pounds of baby. They are lucky to have a mama who allowed them to grow to their full, healthy size. Thank you for sharing your story!
Rachel
I am so thankful for stories like yours. Reminds me of when VBAC was a new thing and women were highly discouraged from trying it. And now many women have successfully VBACed Now you are paving the way for many twin birthers with a breech presentation to have a natural experience. It took courage, strength, and faith and I am so thankful for God in birth! Thank you for being willing to be a change agent for future twin births.
Michelle (Due Jan 2014- Twins)
Thank you for sharing this beautiful story of your sons’ birth. Simply amazing. I too am planning a homebirth and trusting my body and the great Lord above to provide me the strength and support I need. This is baby #3 & 4 for us, vaginally, but the first homebirth/unmedicated. Although I have asked my mother to be a part of this journey and care for our children during labor, she continues to mention a disaster waiting to happen. I am simply torn as to whether I have made the mistake of asking her to be in attendance. I hope she will come around after meeting with my midwife tommorow:) As of now Baby A is head down while Baby B is head up, through palpation, no ultrasounds. I have too seen several births of baby b being footling breech. This is obviously a huge confidence booster in seeing stories like your. Thanks again for sharing.
Debra Evans
I loved reading this story, the MOM is so brave! 27 years ago I had a home birth which was also a V-bac.. This is one thing that I have done in my life that I am very proud of!
Katie Reeves
Hi Michelle, this is my birth story and I thank you for your kind words! I hope your mother comes around to trusting more once she meets your midwife, and hopefully as she researches more and reads positive stories. Negativity can definitely influence things, but in the rest of your preparation I believe you can use this to your advantage. I actually searched out a ton of negative things about home birth when I was preparing ( I read lots of Dr. Amy – ouch!!!) but it forced me to ask really hard questions I may not have asked otherwise. I took all risks seriously and weighed my options, and in the end I had more peace because I had gone down that hard road. Researching breech birth was the scariest, I forced myself to read stories and details where babies didn’t make it 🙁 and really insisted my midwife get into detail about technique, looked at the circumstances that ended in tragedy and worked toward supporting the scenarios that ended in healthy live births. NOT pulling a breech baby out was key for me, I read so many awesome things and watched great videos of ‘hands off’ breech birth and my MW was on board with that. There was one OB near me that I found that would allow me to birth vaginally but would insist on a manual breech extraction but after reading about complications from that maneuver I just could not do it. I truly felt that would be much riskier than allowing him to birth spontaneously. One thing I would say, is to really talk to your MW about birthing positions for breech, I saw some really awesome videos of birthing breech on hands and knees where babies just slid right out and that was what I had really been drawn to. My MW however felt more comfortable with me in the standing position I described in my story and I can’t help but wonder if I had been in the position I had dreamed about and wanted, if my baby’s head would have delivered easier. Don’t stress too much about going unmedicated for the first time, your body has done this and knows what it’s doing, you can totally handle it! For me, I was honestly just so happy to be birthing at home and that it was FINALLY happening after 41+ weeks that my joy and thankfulness overshadowed any discomfort. When I watch my video I am smiling this blissful smile almost the whole time, it was so surreal. Your birth will surely be beautiful – congratulations on your babies! xoxo
Cheryl Dodge
What a wonderful story – it gave me goosebumps! Thank you for sharing.
Anna
Phillipians 4:13- I can do all things through CHRIST who gives me strength!
You have proved this! Being positive and having the faith that can move mountains can get you through anything. Nothing is too big or too small for GOD!
Thank you for your encouraging story. God made our bodies to handle this and work through it naturally (though it is painful), we can do it! Women have done it for years, without the ‘luxury’ and ‘glam’.
Thanks again-we are due soon, and your story has encouraged me!
God bless
Jen
Thank you for sharing this beautiful birth story! I am 39 weeks, measuring 2 weeks ahead & I’m so ready to have this baby. Pelvic pressure, Braxton hicks & general exhaustion. But reading your story has helped put things in perspective. I can wait until the baby is ready, no reason to rush things along. I have a planned home birth with a midwife I trust and a very supportive husband. Thanks again, reading this was much better for me than reading about natural ways to induce labor. I needed to be reminded of God’s perfect plan for this little babe.
Emily
Absolutely amazing!! I had a double breech homebirth of fraternal boys at 39w6d on Sept 14, 2009. 🙂
It was an amazing experience, though my baby B (double footling) was an emergency extraction. I firmly believe that was the place and situation they were meant to be born in and I’m grateful I followed the Spirit. 🙂
Amy Tyack
Thank you so much for sharing your story. It is very encouraging to me, as I am hoping to have a home birth of our twins. My entire family is against it, as well as my husband’s family, and my husband is still uncertain with many doubts. I am praying that God gives us both crystal clear guidance. I am 26 weeks along now, so there’s time… This will be our first birth, which adds to the pressure. Although I have read many twin home birth stories, I haven’t found any yet that were a first birth for a mom. It seems like the first one is often harder, from what I’ve heard. It’s a major decision, but is still what my heart is set on. Thank you for the information of what you did in preparation for your birth. In the coming weeks I will start doing the same.
Amy
Such a powerful and inspiring story!! I am currently 16 weeks with twins, planning a home birth as well. I’m already setting the stage mentally with lots of positivity and affirmations. Thank you for sharing your story, especially with a breech birth. Just amazing! Our bodies are truly incredible!
Leah
You don’t happen to live in TX do you? Where I live we have three well-known midwives by the names you mentioned, and I’m thinking GB isn’t a common name! However, I haven’t had luck finding a midwife to deliver twins here, so maybe you just had midwives with the same names? <3 Beautiful story, thank you for sharing!
mary may
Truly inspiring! We have 5 girls and are 15 weeks pregnant with twins. My last 3 babies were born at home with the midwives in a tub…the most amazing birth experiences ever. My husband and I hoped we would never have to go back to the hospital…but here we are..twins have to be born at hospitals here in Alberta Canada. I have alot of fear of having to deliver in the hospital but am trying to be as mentally prepared as possibly and this story is very helpful. Thank you for sharing what a twin birth can be like.
Catherine
Grateful to read this sitting here at 41 weeks.