Birth

Not a hospital bag post. But how I prepped for two amazing births.

As I see the wildflowers in full bloom on our ridge—native irises, poppies—and watch the mama grey whales migrating from Baja up to Alaska with their new babies past our Northern California ranch (finally spotted a spout), and as our two little Sebastopol goslings have just been born that we’ll be brooding for the next six to eight weeks—and with three friends due with little Geminis—ripeness and birth have been top of mind and on the tip of my tongue. So I thought I’d dig into what really helped me prepare for two beautiful births.

I don’t tread lightly on this topic, as I know it’s a tender one that varies greatly from person to person. So many, myself included, have experienced tremendous loss (four miscarriages for me), infertility (five years for me before IVF), and deeply traumatic births, which weave threads of grief through the folds of our lives. They make each moment feel more present, more cherished, and remind us how thin the veil truly is.

With Teddy, I labored until 8 cm, then transferred to the hospital and had an epidural birth. With Gus, I heard a whisper one month before giving birth: “home,” and I had him at home. Below, I share only the tools that I feel most supported me in preparing for birth and during birth.

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