Monday morning started out like any other morning. Jeff turned the water on in the shower at about 6am to get ready for work and I was lying in bed hoping to get a few more hours' sleep before the girls got up. When suddenly...a little pop just above my pubic bone. Now, my water had not broken in my previous pregnancies, but I had heard about this phenomenon before and so I got up to see if there was any water coming out. There was just a faint trickle...but enough to need to change my "drawers". So I told Jeff that he probably needed to reconsider going to work. He turned the shower off and we waited. I started feeling crampy about a half an hour later and I wasn't sure if this was it, but I knew *something* was happening.

Jeff made me some grapefruit juice and I took a shower as my contractions started coming on stronger and more frequently. I walked around the house and Jeff hung tarps up outside around the hot tub outside on the deck so that we would have privacy. I had planned on labor and delivery in the tub, but was not ready to get in yet because I didn't want to slow things down and I still wasn't sure this was "it".

The contractions were much different this time and harder to manage. They felt like extremely strong menstrual cramps and they radiated up and over my hips and around to my back. I was not prepared for how much different this labor was going to be and I felt my pride in my birthing abilities being stripped away bit by bit. I finally decided to get in the tub, but it was not much help. There were 5 or 6 little yellow finches in the trees above my head and they seemed to be singing to me and this cheered me up a lot. I thanked to Lord for His gift of song and I enjoyed about an hour in the tub.

While in the tub, it seemed to me that the baby had turned to the posterior position. There just seemed to be legs up front whereas before, they were always to the side. So I spent my time floating on my belly until my midwife, and her assistant arrived, trying to get the baby to turn. Because of my concern over positioning, I got out of the tub so she could check me, and the baby had turned back to the side and I breathed a sigh of relief. I was in my bedroom at this point and decided to labor some more there before getting back in the tub. My mom had arrived and she was playing happily with Anna and Gracie and so I could really put my mind to getting the baby out.

I told our midwife that I was really feeling very wimpy and she said that was a good sign...sounded like transition to her, but I didn't want to believe and told her to wait to check me. Things went on like this for some time...not sure how long. Seemed like a long time to me, but I finally asked her to check and I was stretchy to 10cm and she told me I could push whenever I wanted to. I had become very comfortable where I was and decided to stay in our room to deliver the baby. I now tried to push, but I didn't have the urge to and I was getting so frustrated and things were so intense that I felt like if it got any worse, I would lose it. I asked her to break my water and she did. Thank the Lord she did because there was quite a bit of meconium in the water and I knew that I needed to get to work and get the baby out! We were told later that our staying in the house instead of the tub was much better for the baby and could have been dangerous to proceed with a water birth with the meconium situation. I had also decided before not to have my water broken this time and it was good that we changed our minds at the last minute so that we were prepared for the quick suctioning. Just shows how the Lord is in control and His care over our every need!

I still had no urge to push, but because of the urgency of the matter, I began to push even when there were no contractions to see if I could get the baby to move down and trigger my body to do the pushing for me. As my water began to gush with each contraction, it continued to get greener and greener and our midwife began to pray, as did I, for the health of the baby and mercy for my travailing in childbirth. After what seemed to be another eternity, my body began to do some of the work and the baby began to descend.

Now things really began to heat up and Jeff, my rock, was there to keep me sane. The pain was less than bearable, but I knew that this was it and I kept my mind on the fact that the baby was going to be here soon. All throughout labor I envisioned the Lord's hands on my uterus and that it was He that was squeezing me, and this comforted me through the pain. Because of my quasi-hysterical state, Jeff told our midwife that he wanted to comfort me rather than catch the baby. (Can you believe how sweet? He had been telling friends and co-workers for months that he was going to be the quarterback and "Hut! Hut!", he was going to catch the baby.and now he was ready to give it up). When the baby's head crowned, I had instant relief and our midwife was quick to suction the nose and mouth to keep the meconium out. I had been on my knees leaning on the back part of our bed so that she could quickly take care of the suctioning. All this time, our midwife had stayed calm and reassured me that all would be well and I tried to believe her. Now that I had some control again, Jeff was free to catch the baby as the shoulders emerged and proudly announce to our great delight, "It's a boy!" I was so thrilled, but was still catching my breath. I could hear them saying how great he looked and that he was ok. I turned around and sat on the floor and looked at our son for the first time as he cried and let the world know that he was here!

Little Jeffrey Dale McCoy, Jr. was born after 5 hours of labor at home April 8, 2002 at 11:01am. 10lbs even, 21.5" long with a 14.75" head and 14.5" shoulders. He has the roundest head I've ever seen with hints of his Daddy's red hair. He is so sweet and content and nurses so well. We are all completely smitten and our girls kiss him every chance they get. He slept very well last night despite the fact that my milk has not come in yet...we are hoping sometime today we can fill his little belly!

I must now give thanks to the Lord for answering my prayer for a son! I had seen the most beautiful little boy at church and prayed as I watched him sleep that the Lord would give me a son one day. I had planned on trying to conceive another 6 months or so down the road. Our little Jeffrey was conceived that very night! I was not ready for another baby (or so I thought), but I prayed that the Lord would have His will revealed through the decision of my husband that night and now I know for sure that He answered my prayer! After our boy was born, I just kept saying to the Lord, "You answered my prayer! You answered my prayer!" To Him be all glory and may we raise our children to be pleasing in His sight. Amen!