Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Introducing...

Kezia Trianna Hamilton!
For those wondering about the name...
Kezia is a bible name - one of the 3 daughters Job was blessed with after he went through his trials. The bible says "And in all the land were no women found so fair as the daughters of Job." (Job 42:15). (as a sidenote, we were undecided between Eden and Kezia. We took a family vote - Jason's side was more for Kezia. Heidi's was more for Eden. Then we flipped a penny, and Kezia it is!) We'll call her Kezi for short.
Trianna - a combination of our mother's names - PaTRIcia and DeeANN. McKinley & Ireland are also both named after grandmothers. It is also a street (and town) in the Canary Islands, where Jason served his mission.

Here are the short stats:

-Born October 26th at 9:34pm
-8 lbs 4 oz
-20.5 inches long (just like her sisters!)
-Born at home

Now, for those of you wanting the nitty-gritty details - and for her journal, here is the rest of the story (as I remember it):
Her due date was Thursday, Oct 22, and even though I know I always go late, I was pretty miserable, so my midwife, Sherri, came on Oct 21 & did the primrose oil and stripped my membranes. I went for a good hour walk & the contractions were coming pretty good. I got my hopes up, but was disappointed when the contractions fizzled that night & were gone the next day. My mom was cute & took me out to breakfast at Kneaders the next day & my sweet neighbor, Kristina, took me some fresh-baked bread as a sympathy offering. It was hard to wait, but wait we did.
Monday, October 26th, Sherri got to our home at around 1pm. She again did the primrose oil & stripped my membranes. We were both surprised & glad that I was dialated to a 4 by that time (I was a 2 the Wednesday before) Then she had me do some lunges & squats & off we went in her tiny neon green Volkswagen Bug to Walmart. The contractions were coming, but I had had so many in the past, I was kind of in a "I'll believe it when I see it" mode. However, my shopping experience at Walmart was not an especially pleasant one. I was really having to start to stop and focus and they were getting painful. After checking out, we had planned to go to Dave's Health & Nutrition, but I really wasn't sure that was a good idea because they were really coming stronger. So we headed back to the house & she checked me. This was about 4:30pm. I was a 6! Hooray! That really meant that I was progressing & we could have a baby that night!
Sherri starting calling her attendants and I started calling my sisters & mom (for the record, my sister Cindy was the only one that answered even though I called the others multiple times). I also called my dad & he came to get the girls and take them to his house (thanks dad!). Sherri had Jason running around getting things ready and I was just trying to focus. At about 5pm, I got in my jetted tub and that seemed to really help ease the pain.


workin' it in the tub

Cindy got here at around 5:15 or so. Mom & Trisha got here around 6pm - and the other attendants did as well - Molly and Denise. She checked me again around that time & I was about a 7. By that time, I decided to get out & try the ball & see if that would get things moving faster. I went in the baby's room and everyone was really great to help push on my legs and my back & help get me through the contractions. Sherri had me do the stairs and lunges and I was walking around and they were getting pretty painful. I was getting kind of cold, so I got back in the tub, but when they checked the baby's heartbeat, it seemed really really fast. Sherri came & checked and was worried as well. Jason gave me a blessing and we waited & they tried a different Doppler fetal monitor. It seemed to have slowed down. We were so thankful because we would have ended up going to the hospital if her heart rate would have stayed elevated. Sherri checked again around 8 and I was "almost an 8."

We decided that we should probably break my water soon to get the baby to come since that was what it took to get Ireland here. They set up the birth stool in the baby's room and I got situated with everyone around to support me - physically and emotionally. Not too long after getting situated on the birthing stool, the contractions changed. I could tell they were the REAL DEAL. Funny how you forget all the pain from a previous birth, but it all just comes back it all reality and I was going oh YEAH - this HURTS! I was glad the girls weren't there. I was "vocalizing" quite a bit by the end :)
After I was about a 9, Sherri "teased" the bag and I got some good pushes in, our sweet baby girl was there about 10 minutes later - 9:34pm. I was soooooo thankful she was here! I could not contain my tears! She had finally made her way into the world & I was able to hold my sweet girl in my arms. They put her on my chest and I just chrerished the moment of this fresh-from-heaven treasure.
I wish I could say that was the end of the story. I won't go into too much detail here, but the postpartum story involved an irregular placenta, hemorrhaging (with blood clots), a blessing, a "manual D&C", throwing up, an IV bag, and barely a wink of sleep the night after she was born. Needless to say, I am still pretty weak and tired while my body builds back all the blood I lost. I am SO blessed, though. There were at least 3 instances throughout this time that I was close to going to the hospital, but I truly feel that we were watched over and protected. I cannot say enough how thankful I am to my AMAZING husband. His priesthood blessings were critical and his support was unwavering. He was truly inspired the entire time. I am so thankful for Sherri. Watching her work is amazing. She has so much knowledge and experience which she incorporates, but I'm most comforted by her ability to work by the spirit and by inspiration. I am also SO, SO thankful for my sisters and mom for being there for me - supporting me every step of the way and being such a blessing to me. I am thankful to the attendants - Molly & Denise. So awesome. I felt SO loved and taken care of the entire time. I could NOT have asked for a better support team in bringing this sweet, amazing, beautiful girl into this world and into our home.

Meeting their new sister. They are SO, SO, SO excited to have her here!


Mommy & her precious Kezi



30 comments:

Ryan and Shannan Hoffman said...

Congrats you guys!! She is just beautiful! I am so thrilled for you!

{We Are The Wade's} said...

Oh my goodness Heidi!! I am so happy she is here; finally!! She is beautiful, and good job on the labor, I don't think I could have done it! Congratulations

sedonarreed said...

She is so cute love ya. Tell Mckinley that I love her , and tell Ireland that I love her to, and uncle jason tell him that I am getting better . What a cute name although I did like the name Eden

Candie said...

She is beautiful! I am so glad she is here and everything went well. I love her name. Congratulations!

Get Hooked said...

I've been checking your blog for a couple days now. Congrats, she is beautiful. I'm so glad that things were able to go how you wanted them. I can only imagine the anxiety you must have had when there were complications. Congrats again, I can't wait to meet her.

Molly Bice-Jackson said...

That story! And all the photos. I am crying. It is so beautiful. Of course you did it at home! You are awesome. I love it. Way to go! Both of you!

Britany said...

What a story! Congrats! She is beautiful!

Patricia Potts said...

Heidi,
Thank you so much for letting me be a part of this experience. Beautiful pictures. Beautiful baby and mom. I love being in your home and seeing so many spiritual reminders of our heavenly home. Thanks for your example. You and Jason are great examples of love and faith.

Lena Baron said...

Oh Heidi! WOW! I emailed you this morning (or was it yesterday) because two nights ago (which was the night you were delivering) I felt a very strong need to pray for you as I was trying to sleep in the late hours of the night. Now I know why. I am SOOOO grateful all turned out well. She is absolutely beautiful, as are YOU! I truly wish so much that we lived closer... Congratulations sister. Love you!!!

lindsay said...

Amazing! She is a beauty Heidi! Congrats to you and your sweet family!!

Tim said...

What a great and tramatic story! It's good for the books. It's crazy what pain we'll go through for those precious spirits. They truly are a present from heaven. Sweet angels. Kezi is very beautiful and I hope you are doing much better. Love, Heidi Saunders-

Tori said...

Hey Heidi! Clicked over from FB. Congratulations on the newest edition! She's a cutie. You are amazing to have your children they way you do! I had my third totally natural (not the plan) and I screamed the whole time. :) So much pain for something SO wonderful. Very well worth it though right!? Glad your doing well. My third is my monster - I'm just sayin' :) Love, Love, Love, Love my girls though. I guess I wouldn't know what to do with a boy.

Becka Thomas said...

Congratulations Heidi! I am so happy for you. She is so beautiful!

Our Family said...

Congratulations, now as parents you go from a man on man defense, to zone defense.

Lisa said...

congrats! child birth holds the most beautiful moments that we experience.

Jill P. said...

Congratulations Heidi and Jason! I loved the birth story and am so glad that you didn't have to go to the hospital. Kezi is beautiful and I know of someone else who recently gave their baby girl the same name. Get lots of rest and feel better soon!

Leah Krueger (Aunt) said...

Huge congratulations. She is perfection.
And you are a better woman than I. Natural delivery? WOW! Happy you are both healthy and safe. Love you guys!

Toni Polich said...

I am so happy for you all. Lots of love to your beautiful new daughter!

Tiff Meister said...

Oh Heidi, I wish I could have been there to help. I love the meaning behind her name. I can't wait to meet her at Christmas. I love you Heidi! Tiff

val said...

wow, what a story. glad she made it safe and sound and that you are recovering now after what sounds like a scary time after she got here. she's a doll. congrats to your family.

Unknown said...

Heidi, Jason and girls,
Congrats. I am happy to hear you are doing well (all things considered). All my best!
Jona

Kristen said...

I am speechless! I am all choked up. That is amazing that you delivered at home. You are the first person that I actually know personally to do it at home (on purpose). You are so awesome! Good Job! Your beautiful baby girl is worth every second of it! I think I'm choked up to see pics of your family all gathered around you supporting you as well. What a neat experience. May you continue to rest and heal. I'm so happy for you.

Brynn said...

She is beautiful. You are one tough mama. Good job.

Danny and Darcie said...

Congrats you guys!! Heidi you are a trooper.

Unknown said...

Many, many congratulations from all of us in Sweden. What a beutiful baby and family..:)

Love Lotta

Katie said...

Congratulations! She is so cute and I love the name.

Allison said...

Congratulations! I am so impressed with you! I must say even if I didn't have to have c-sections I would never have attempted such a brave thing. Good for you! And I am so glad that everything turned out okay. How scary!

Amy and Kris said...

Wow, what a great birth story! I got all teary-eyed reading your post! I'm glad everything went well & that she is here now! What a little cutie!

Shelf said...

Congratulations!! What an amazing women you truely are. Thank you for your example. Kezi is beautiful. I am so happy for you and your wonderful family.

Marianne said...

so beautiful! What a wonderful story!