The following narrative was written by my husband Mike about our own home birth. He doesn't give himself credit, but he was an amazing support throughout my wonderful birth experience.

Here is a photo journal of my son's birth.

     There was nothing in the classes that we both took leading up to the birth that could have prepared us for the overwhelming experience of our home birth. It was truly amazing.

     First, I want to say thank you to our midwife Miriam Schwarzschild. Miriam, you truly are a hero. You were so perfect throughout the process. I couldn't imagine having the baby without you there. Michelle can't stop talking about how great you were, and I wholeheartedly agree.

     I also want to thank Natashia Fuksman-Decker for her support. You came to our aid and support without hesitation, and I am so thankful for that. Your words of encouragement and steady hand throughout the birth were a key factor in Michelle's success. Not to mention the video you took. Absolutely beautiful! You have many gifts, and your photographic eye is one of them.

     Last but not least, I want to say a word about the courage and strength of my wife, Michelle. She was incredible. I've never seen strength displayed in such a raw and powerful way as I saw Michelle display in this birth. Her efforts were a reflection of the kind of person she is. She was tenacious and determined. I was in awe of her for the entire five hours.

     In the classes we took leading up to the birth, they talked about pre-labor. This was supposed to be a time to take a walk, bake some cookies, quietly prepare the birth tub, and slow dance through the first hours of light contractions. At 2:20AM Michelle woke me up and she was in full active labor. There was no time for walks or dances and there certainly wasn't going to be any cookies. My plan of having time to gather myself and mentally prepare for the hard work ahead was out the door replaced with Michelle's pain and a frantic effort to try to time the contractions.

     We ran the bathroom tub so that Michelle could get into the water while I began to fill the birth tub in the living room with the hose. At this point Michelle's contractions were four minutes apart, already very intense and lasting 45 seconds to just over a minute. After about an hour, the living room birth tub was filled and Michelle settled in for the rest of the birth. Natashia and Miriam arrived around 3:30AM just as Michelle's contractions were increasing in intensity. Miriam was great in her ability to reassure Michelle about what was happening and how great Michelle was doing. She encouraged Michelle to feel her cervix so that she could touch her own progress as it was happening. This was effective for Michelle, as she felt empowered to continue making progress.

     At about 5:30 Miriam helped push the cervix up over Miles' head, and it was time for Michelle to start the process of using the contractions to push. The pushing was very difficult and painful, but Michelle was a real champ. She didn't shy away from the process and at 7:40 Miles Joseph was born. He slipped into the water and into our arms and we were immediately in love. The best part about having the home birth was the fact that we were able to immediately hold our baby and spend time with him. We lay in our bed together as a family only minutes after Miles was born. It was an incredible feeling.

     Thank you to each of you who held us up in prayer in the days and weeks leading up to the birth. We are truly grateful for your thoughts and prayers. We hope to introduce each of you to Miles in the near future. He is beautiful.

Miles Joseph Chiafulio
6 lbs 15 oz
Born December 16, 2004, 7:40 AM.

For more information, please contact
Michelle Lehmer-Chiafulio
718.672.7355
mnlehmer@yahoo.com