One of the original objectives of this blog was "a journey toward a SIMPLER... lifestyle." A discussion about simplicity can go so many different directions. What renewed my spirit about simplicity, though, was a chapter from Richard Foster's classic Christian book, "Celebration of Discipline," entitled "The Discipline of Simplicity. This chapter discusses both the inner and outer attitudes toward simplicity as it relates to God's Kingdom and spiritual growth.
Side note: Foster identifies himself as a Quaker. I think I could get along very well with the Quakers. :) I've been calling Steve "Friend" for many years (and yes he answers to that as if it's his name). Plus I love oats. ;) Seriously, though, I can respect many of the ideals of the Quaker denomination.
I tend to teeter between having a materialistic mindset and having what Foster calls an "ascetic" mindset. Ascetics renounce possessions and generally feel the need to deny themselves any level of joy from what they would consider the "trappings" of this world. Example: I once deliberated for a ridiculous amount of time over a $25 pillow from Target that perfectly matched my bedroom and I thought was beautiful. I even brought the decision up in small group. When there are people starving in this town, why do I need such an overpriced luxury item? Ultimately I bought the pillow to teach myself a lesson. :)
Probably the best lesson I learned from the chapter was keeping the Kingdom of God the central purpose for simplicity. "When the kingdom of God is genuinely placed first, ecological concerns, the poor, the equitable distribution of wealth and many other things will be given their proper attention." Wow. If I'm pursuing prairie as an act of gratefulness to God and not so much as a hobby, then He will guide me in what decisions to make. Yes recycling, reducing, and reusing have many worldly benefits, but the point of doing any of those is supposed in worship of The Lord. He desires for us to enjoy His creation, the milk, and the honey. I am free to live and free to give.
So now that I'm focusing on the inner purpose of simplicity, how can I apply that to everyday life? In the next part of this series, I'll cover Foster's first 5 of 10 "outward expressions of simplicity" and discuss what they mean for me.
~Carla
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Sunday, October 13, 2013
Karis' Birth Story - Unabridged :)
To begin the journey of Karis' birth story is to take a step back 3.5 years to March 31, 2010. That's when our lives were forever changed with the arrival of our precious Katie. Katie was delivered via cesarean section due to breech presentation. Circumstances surrounding her delivery, our subsequent hospital stay, and the first weeks at home prompted me to start doing extensive research into the realm of vaginal birth after c-section (VBAC for the birth nerd world).
In December of 2012, we found out we were expecting our 2nd miracle. I began purchasing classic natural birth books like Ina May Gaskin's Guide to Childbirth and Dr. Robert Bradley's Husband-Coached Childbirth. Ina May's book was especially inspiring that my body was designed, capable, and extremely competent to deliver vaginally. Other ways I prepared for VBAC included switching care providers to an amazing midwife, focusing on optimal fetal positioning to avoid another breech baby, and monitoring my diet which involved daily protein boosts of pb and chocolate. ;)
On Saturday, August 10th, at nearly 38 weeks, I was feeling joyous for being full term. I harnessed what little energy I had to scrub the house from top to bottom, corner to corner. That afternoon, I spent about 5 hours in prodromal "false" labor. I was excited, but exhausted by the irregular back contractions. This was a sign that my body was gearing up for the main event!
After a good night's rest, we went to church the next morning and I felt fairly normal. Around 1:30 Sunday afternoon, on our way out the door to my aunt's retirement party, I decided to make one last bathroom break. I was surprised to find signs that labor was on the horizon - granted that horizon could have been 2 days to a week away. I felt a little uncomfortable the rest of the day and into the night so Steve decided to at least take Monday morning off school.
Monday around lunch time, Steve headed off to school. I was very grateful when Michelle volunteered to pick up Katie and take her back to her house to play so I could rest alone. She brought over chocolate and some magazines and warned me that things may start to get a little exciting now that I could rest and focus on what my body was telling me. Boy was she right! Not long after she left, I started having timeable, regular, slightly uncomfortable contractions. I was finally convinced that this was the main event!
My mom came over after work to play with Katie so Steve and I could get our act together. Trina also came over after work to provide support. I needed the spirit of my sister by choice present and to draw on her natural birth mojo. :) Around 7 pm, I suddenly had this urge to go to the hospital. Up to this point, I had been coping through some strong contractions, but was definitely still in the early stages of active labor. My brain questioned whether it made sense to go to the hospital, but my gut said go! Cristin, the master doula, was just finishing up teaching childbirth class and met us at the hospital.
Once we arrived, I still hesitated to check in. My worst fear was to check in at 2 cm and be subjected to all kinds of interventions. Our labor troupe wandered around the new hospital killing time until I was ready to move on. Finally around 8:15, my midwife requested that I go ahead and check in. I was relieved to find that I was 4 cm dilated. Everyone estimated a 3-4 am birth. We spent the next hour and a half settling into the delivery room and getting registered. I changed into my birthing outfit of a nursing sports bra and skirt. I wanted to be able to move freely and have easy access to the fetal monitoring belts.
I was very happy to be able to get back on my feet and move labor along. I felt that I needed to make up for lost time. The mood was still light. For some reason we go on the topic of pop tarts. We also started watching an episode of Golden Girls on Trina's iPad. Random, I know, but I remembered that Ina May said one of the most effective ways to open up your sphincters is with laughter. Pretty much nothing else makes me laugh as hard as good ole' GG.
Cristin suggested swinging my hips like a hula hoop and in the figure 8. At 11:15 pm I felt a familiar and strange pop (my water broke with Katie as well). Suddenly I was thrown into transition!! It was all I could do to hop back into bed and land on my right side grasping the bed. I couldn't believe the words, "I can't do this" were leaving my mouth. I couldn't imagine feeling that level of intense discomfort for the next 4 hours. Everyone replied, "yes you can" but basically realizing "you have no choice!"
The next 45 minutes were a blur of lights, sounds, pain, hormonal rollercoasters. One minute I was yelling "damn ya'll, damn ya'll", the next "I love all of you guys." Before I knew it, I felt the urge to push. My birth plan stated that I wanted to push with my own urges and not be told when to do so. Everyone was very patient with this process. My sweet midwife sat on the edge of the bed encouraging me along the way. Steve was by my side, letting me squeeze the heck out of his hand. Trina was documenting the process with pictures that I will treasure forever, but will spare anyone reading this from viewing. Cristin, bless her heart, was holding my left leg up in the air. Pushing was quick and actually not very painful at all! The worst pain I felt was from my backside. In hindsight, I would have requested compression if I could've gotten the words out.
At 12:05 am on August 13th, beautiful Karis Lynn left her warm cocoon and joined us earth side. She was placed on my chest and I immediately felt a bond - something I was cheated out of with Katie's birth. A few short minutes later, we were nursing and snuggling. Daddy cut the cord after delayed cord clamping.
People have asked in the days and weeks since if I would have natural birth again or if I would change anything about our experience. My answer is a wholehearted NO! I encourage every woman to educate themselves on natural birth and to believe in God's divine design. Everything about my pregnancy and her birth was a redemptive experience by the Grace of God!
~Carla
In December of 2012, we found out we were expecting our 2nd miracle. I began purchasing classic natural birth books like Ina May Gaskin's Guide to Childbirth and Dr. Robert Bradley's Husband-Coached Childbirth. Ina May's book was especially inspiring that my body was designed, capable, and extremely competent to deliver vaginally. Other ways I prepared for VBAC included switching care providers to an amazing midwife, focusing on optimal fetal positioning to avoid another breech baby, and monitoring my diet which involved daily protein boosts of pb and chocolate. ;)
On Saturday, August 10th, at nearly 38 weeks, I was feeling joyous for being full term. I harnessed what little energy I had to scrub the house from top to bottom, corner to corner. That afternoon, I spent about 5 hours in prodromal "false" labor. I was excited, but exhausted by the irregular back contractions. This was a sign that my body was gearing up for the main event!
After a good night's rest, we went to church the next morning and I felt fairly normal. Around 1:30 Sunday afternoon, on our way out the door to my aunt's retirement party, I decided to make one last bathroom break. I was surprised to find signs that labor was on the horizon - granted that horizon could have been 2 days to a week away. I felt a little uncomfortable the rest of the day and into the night so Steve decided to at least take Monday morning off school.
Monday around lunch time, Steve headed off to school. I was very grateful when Michelle volunteered to pick up Katie and take her back to her house to play so I could rest alone. She brought over chocolate and some magazines and warned me that things may start to get a little exciting now that I could rest and focus on what my body was telling me. Boy was she right! Not long after she left, I started having timeable, regular, slightly uncomfortable contractions. I was finally convinced that this was the main event!
My mom came over after work to play with Katie so Steve and I could get our act together. Trina also came over after work to provide support. I needed the spirit of my sister by choice present and to draw on her natural birth mojo. :) Around 7 pm, I suddenly had this urge to go to the hospital. Up to this point, I had been coping through some strong contractions, but was definitely still in the early stages of active labor. My brain questioned whether it made sense to go to the hospital, but my gut said go! Cristin, the master doula, was just finishing up teaching childbirth class and met us at the hospital.
 |
| Katie, junior doula, applying counterpressure |
 |
| Daddy, Mommy, and Aunt NeeNee deciding whether to check in. Still all smiles! |
Once we arrived, I still hesitated to check in. My worst fear was to check in at 2 cm and be subjected to all kinds of interventions. Our labor troupe wandered around the new hospital killing time until I was ready to move on. Finally around 8:15, my midwife requested that I go ahead and check in. I was relieved to find that I was 4 cm dilated. Everyone estimated a 3-4 am birth. We spent the next hour and a half settling into the delivery room and getting registered. I changed into my birthing outfit of a nursing sports bra and skirt. I wanted to be able to move freely and have easy access to the fetal monitoring belts.
I was very happy to be able to get back on my feet and move labor along. I felt that I needed to make up for lost time. The mood was still light. For some reason we go on the topic of pop tarts. We also started watching an episode of Golden Girls on Trina's iPad. Random, I know, but I remembered that Ina May said one of the most effective ways to open up your sphincters is with laughter. Pretty much nothing else makes me laugh as hard as good ole' GG.
Cristin suggested swinging my hips like a hula hoop and in the figure 8. At 11:15 pm I felt a familiar and strange pop (my water broke with Katie as well). Suddenly I was thrown into transition!! It was all I could do to hop back into bed and land on my right side grasping the bed. I couldn't believe the words, "I can't do this" were leaving my mouth. I couldn't imagine feeling that level of intense discomfort for the next 4 hours. Everyone replied, "yes you can" but basically realizing "you have no choice!"
The next 45 minutes were a blur of lights, sounds, pain, hormonal rollercoasters. One minute I was yelling "damn ya'll, damn ya'll", the next "I love all of you guys." Before I knew it, I felt the urge to push. My birth plan stated that I wanted to push with my own urges and not be told when to do so. Everyone was very patient with this process. My sweet midwife sat on the edge of the bed encouraging me along the way. Steve was by my side, letting me squeeze the heck out of his hand. Trina was documenting the process with pictures that I will treasure forever, but will spare anyone reading this from viewing. Cristin, bless her heart, was holding my left leg up in the air. Pushing was quick and actually not very painful at all! The worst pain I felt was from my backside. In hindsight, I would have requested compression if I could've gotten the words out.
At 12:05 am on August 13th, beautiful Karis Lynn left her warm cocoon and joined us earth side. She was placed on my chest and I immediately felt a bond - something I was cheated out of with Katie's birth. A few short minutes later, we were nursing and snuggling. Daddy cut the cord after delayed cord clamping.
 |
| Skin to skin with Mommy |
 |
| Proud Daddy |
 |
| Cristin: doula, BFF, soul sista |
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| The most amazing midwife, Brende! |
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| "Big sister, little sister, best forever friends" |
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| Karis Lynn, Greek for grace |
People have asked in the days and weeks since if I would have natural birth again or if I would change anything about our experience. My answer is a wholehearted NO! I encourage every woman to educate themselves on natural birth and to believe in God's divine design. Everything about my pregnancy and her birth was a redemptive experience by the Grace of God!
~Carla
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