My first exposures to midwifery were in small batches. I didn’t know that home birth midwives existed until I was a young adult. I thought - like many Americans - that you go to the hospital to have your baby. When I was 19 years old, I read a birth story from someone I didn't know very well. I was shocked that she would bare such intimate details on the internet for anyone to see! But I was also extremely intrigued. That was my first time realizing that birth could happen in a different way than I knew. She had a planned home birth, and it was completely safe. That was shocking to me.

 

Fast forward a few years, and I was living in southern California, newly married and training to become an EMT. I was dipping my feet into the medical field, not really sure what I wanted to do with my life. My husband and I met while in West Africa on missions trips. We hoped to serve overseas again in some capacity, and I wanted a medical skill to offer. In EMT training we had 1 night - only 1 - dedicated to births. I finished delivering a pretend baby from a pretend woman and had to laugh at myself for getting goose bumps at a fake delivery! That was the first time I remember thinking that midwifery was something I could see myself doing and enjoying.

 

About one year after that experience, I was sitting in a chapel service at a local mission organization in southern Charlotte, and heard a midwife speaking about her experiences in South America. My jaw hit the floor, and I knew in my heart that this was my calling. I will forever be grateful to that midwife for letting me pick her brain, and for her direction in pointing me towards becoming a CPM. Soon after that I started applying to midwifery schools… and got pregnant with my first son.

 

One of the projects I had in my first semester was to meet with a few midwives and interview them. I was well into my second trimester of pregnancy at this point and had been seeing a regular OB for my prenatal care, all while studying about home birth. I was living in North Carolina at the time and didn’t feel comfortable pursuing a home birth with an underground midwife, so I was going to push through and attempt to have a natural birth at the hospital. I met with Lori for my school assignment and fell even more in love with midwifery and felt so saddened that I couldn’t have a home birth! At the end of our conversation, my pregnancy plans came up and Lori assured me that a home birth could be arranged if I really wanted it… It would be in a borrowed home in South Carolina, but it could still happen! I hired her later that week.

 

My first birth was transformative. It was relatively short for a first labor. Straight forward. You could even say “textbook”. I held my husband’s and my mom’s hands through it all. It made me a mother.

 

My second birth was fast. I remember laughing while crawling around on my hands and knees, then coming to the end of myself right before my second son made his appearance. What a joy to be able to welcome him and introduce him to his big brother right away!

 

My third birth made me realize why some women choose to be in hospital with pain medication! I lost my mind, was angry at everything and just wanted to be DONE. Minutes later, I was able to help catch him in my bath tub. I will always remember the wonder of feeling my baby descending internally and feeling his little head crown with my own hand.

 

My fourth labor was my fastest. He was my biggest. It was my pregnancy with the most emotional turmoil. And yet, I felt most at peace during his labor. I cried when both midwives had arrived and reality sank in that my pregnancy was about to end. But then I was filled with so much peace. My big boy spread my bones apart - a feeling I can’t accurately describe - and was born peacefully on Christmas Eve.

 

In between having babies, I started and stopped midwifery school a few times, but was able to complete my education through Pure Birth Midwifery School. I apprenticed with Lori as my preceptor for about 6 years. I finished my apprenticeship and got certified and licensed in 2023 in my last trimester of pregnancy. I feel very blessed to have been able to apprentice with Lori, have all 4 of my babies at home with her as my midwife, and now be able to work alongside her as a colleague and friend! I’m so grateful for where my story has taken me, and I hope to be able to stand alongside other women as they navigate their way on this beautiful journey of becoming mothers and growing families.