Birth Stories of 2025 | Home and Hospital

2025 brought me four precious births, including both home birth and hospital birth, each of them very special and unique in their own way, the stories of which I want to briefly share with you today as we come quickly to the close of the year.

For the first birth of the year, I had the great honor of supporting a single mom, which if you know me, is something very near and dear to my heart, and something I look forward to doing a lot more of. (Learn more about our free resources and ministry to single moms through Wiebe Evangelism, and if you know anyone local who needs these services please don't hesitate to send them my way!) It was a planned home birth that turned into a hospital birth due to some concerns about blood pressure and amniotic fluid. However, it was one of only two hospital births I've attended that was actually properly supported rather than fear mongered. For anyone local who's curious, it was at Sky Ridge Hospital in Lone Tree, CO, with in-hospital midwife Bri Jacobs. It's obviously a good drive from Woodland Park, but so, so worth the better quality of care and considerate treatment that truly informs and centers around the laboring woman. If you need or want to give birth in a hospital, I'd definitely recommend this one over anywhere in Colorado Springs if possible.

We saw God's hand all throughout the two-day induction (a slower, more gentle induction) process, including when concerns arose over possible signs of a partial placental abruption with the possibility of an emergency c-section. Whatever it was we may never know, but nothing came of it, and she continued to labor on her own even after pitocin was turned off, giving birth vaginally without complication. Throughout this labor, I kept seeing in my heart the pure joy that would soon be all over this mama's face when she would hold her baby for the first time, and that's exactly what happened. It's almost hard to describe that kind of joy that absolutely radiates from a person. Oh, how good God is!

Well, I had two mamas with the same guess date, so it's always fun to see who goes first and how everything goes down! Next up was my dear sister-in-law. This was baby number 6, and considering one of her other babies is the only one I've missed due to coming so fast, we definitely were on our toes knowing anything could happen, haha. She ended up going past 40 weeks for the first time which somewhat surprised us, but once it was time, active labor was only 1 hour and 45 minutes! This is the first time I've had a flat tire while making my way to a birth 🥴, but thankfully I wasn't out in the boonies, and my husband was able to help me out fairly quickly...good thing I know how to drive a stick because I hopped into his truck while he fixed the tire. No way I would have made it otherwise as I had only been there 42 minutes when I caught my baby brother's 6th baby and 4th son! 😍 Mama was a pro as usual!

Birth number 3 was also so very special, as miracle baby from 2021 became a big brother. What a fully redemptive birth experience for this precious family. Labor was quick, complication free, and this time, mom and baby got to snuggle, bond, breastfeed, and truly rest in the comfort of their own home and bed instead of a baby being airlifted and mama climbing into a truck headed to the NICU mere hours after birth, not having had the chance to even once hold her newborn before lifesaving measures were taken. Some of dad's first words after the birth were, "So this is what it's supposed to be like??" Yes, indeed. It was also super special because it was the first time that my oldest daughter, who now often babysits miracle big brother, was present in the birth room with me. What a glorious first birth to witness! We are so incredibly grateful for God's faithfulness to this now family of four with 2 beautiful boys.

Last and certainly not least, I served first-time parents who welcomed their baby boy safely at home. It's always interesting where the connections come from--in early pregnancy she was actually working for the same rancher that my husband has been doing some projects for this year. Somewhere in conversation, she discovered I had written a book on birth, which she immediately ordered, and after reading it they knew they wanted to hire me for their birth.

When it's been a full day and night.

This birth was the longest I've ever gone without sleep, about 35 hours. 🫣 That's what can happen when you leave in the evening after you've already had a full day and have an all-nighter that goes into the next afternoon. I did lie down on the couch twice for about 15 minutes each. That's just enough to not actually, really sleep, but you close your eyes long enough to become disoriented and not know what day it is, who you are, or what you're doing with your life. 😂 When the work is so exhausting like this, I'm always thinking to myself, "But what about her? She's the one doing the real work!" It also always amazes me that women really can do it, even with such a long labor where they have to work so hard to meet their baby and it's hard to fathom how they keep finding new strength to keep going. There is undoubtedly a grace and strength for birth that is beyond just natural strength or ability. It is a true wonder to behold and it leaves you in awe. And she did it! They welcomed a healthy baby boy at 1:17 pm the next day.

3 boys and 1 girl.

Ranging from 7 lbs. 7 oz. to 8 lbs even.

1st time parents, 6th time parents, a brave single mom, and a gloriously redemptive birth.

So much gratitude that each of these families would trust me in such a moment.

If you or someone you know is looking for a doula, I still have a fair amount of availability in the coming year, so please don't hesitate to reach out.

Also, if you know any expecting or new moms who would appreciate positive encouragement and support, I'd love for you to share this blog with them or send them to my website to sign up for emails.

I'd love to hear from you. Let me know in the comments if there's any particular areas of pregnancy, birth or postpartum that you would love for me to address in the future.