November Birth Story

My waters were suctioned off (very similar noise to Noo-Noo, the Hoover from Teletubbies). There was a fair amount of tugging and the surgeon asked for forceps. Apparently the baby's head was tightly wedged into my pelvis and he wasn't keen on making an appearance. All of a sudden I felt quite a big tug and immediately heard a cry. Paul shouted, 'It's a boy', the team added, 'And quite a big one'.

He was wrapped up and Paul got to hold him straight away. He looked perfect with lots of black hair, big eyes, button nose, no bruises or swollen features (unlike the girls) and he was still covered with white vernix (the creamy wax that protects a baby's skin). We both burst into tears with relief.

Then there was a bit of a worrying moment for me when the surgeon announced she was having problems with the placenta. Like baby, it was refusing to budge, but thankfully after some more tugging it too decided to arrive. While baby Owen was taken to be checked by the paediatrician, I was stitched up and taken to recovery.

Owen weighed in at 8lbs 12ozs - not bad as he was 10 days early. His initial Apgar was nine and he measured 57cms with a head circumference of 38cm.

He is absolutely gorgeous, feeding at the breast fine and already proving to be quite a character. I recovered far more quickly from this delivery than from my last two vaginal deliveries and was up and walking the next day.