Juliet's Birth

Juliet arrived right on time, on her due date! I was up all night with labor pains and went to the hospital at 5 am on Saturday expecting a quick and easy delivery like Lily was. However, this baby was in the posterior position, face up instead of down, and this makes labor longer and more painful. When I was fully dilated the baby still hadn't turned and it took almost an hour and a half of pushing to get her out. I delivered her face up and the umbilical cord was wrapped around her, but the midwife quickly got it off and Juliet was fine.

I found out later that posterior babies often end up being born by c-section, so I feel really fortunate to have avoided that. We couldn't believe how big this baby was, considering that I measured small throughout the pregnancy and had a tiny first baby. Juliet nursed right away after she was born and was incredibly alert during the first hours of her life. She is a great eater and, of course, sleeps a lot. She had her first doctor's appointment yesterday and is back up to her birth weight and doing well.

We are so happy to be home with our new baby girl! Here are some pictures from our time at the hospital with newborn Juliet.