Birth Announcements

Welcome little Linnaea Pixel Hope McNulty and Joshua Douglas Hamm
Read on to enjoy their special stories!

Linnaea Pixel Hope McNulty
Born January 22, 2009 at 6:37 pm
to Thomas and Aimee McNulty
8 lbs 8 oz 20 inches

By Aimee McNulty, Linnaea's Mommy

Linnaea, our precious first child, was born at St Francis Medical Center after a completely natural labor with the excellent support of her father, Thomas and our wonderful doula, Rachel Thompson and her sweet assistant, Kate McKinney, and our skillful midwife, Leslie Fehan.

I was in active labor at home starting at 1 am, making use of deep breathing and the birth ball. My labor slowed after several hours and gave us a chance to rest on the bed and even catch a little sleep. At our doula's urging, we went in to the midwife's office at 8:30 am. Leslie, our midwife, found that I was completely effaced and 5 cm dilated so she recommended that we check in to the hospital downstairs.

We did that, and I made use of the hospital's tub as my labor progressed. The warm water and the massaging hands of my husband and labor assistants were very soothing. Our daughter was born after 2 hours of pushing on the birthing stool and in various upright positions.

When I was hanging from the squatting bar at the end of the bed with my husband supporting me from behind, I got the opportunity to feel our baby's head as she was emerging!

Labor, especially pushing, was exhausting work, but my husband and I kept telling our baby how much we wanted to meet her until finally she was laying on my stomach. At 8 lbs 8 oz she was much bigger than we expected her to be! We felt on top of the world for accomplishing a natural birth and finally having our baby girl.

Everyone was healthy, and it was a very blessed day.

Smiling newborn Linnaea and grateful Aimee McNulty

Aimee and Rachel Thompson count blessings after a wonderful birth!
Baby Linnaea nuzzles peacefully.

Thomas, Aimee and  Linnaea McNulty
 

Joshua Douglas Hamm
Born February 20,  2009 at 12: 56 am
to  Doug and Shannon Hamm
5 lbs, 12 oz, 19 3/4 inches

Our Birth Story

by Joshua's Daddy, Doug Hamm

1 March 2009

Several months before Joshua’s due date of 5 March 2009, I had been offered a better job opportunity in Southern Maryland, about two hours north of where we were living in Richmond, Virginia. One month before the due date, I completed the move while Shannon stayed with friends to finish her last two weeks of work and also to await Joshua’s birthday. We were very comfortable with the prenatal care we had been receiving at St. Francis Medical Center, in Richmond, VA, and wanted to stay with the current practice and our Nurse Midwife, Nicole,  for the birth of our son.

Everything was coming along as planned until Shannon was on her way home from work on the evening of 19 February, 2 weeks before Joshua’s anticipated birth date. She contacted me in Southern Maryland and told me she was having contractions. This really concerned me since she had a 1-hour drive ahead of her. After talking to our doula, Rachel, by cell phone, we decided that she would go to our friend’s home, soak in a bath, and wait out what was possibly ‘false labor’ contractions. I settled back down on the couch but my mind wandered anxiously as I anticipated making a 2-hour drive to Richmond. At about 9:00 PM, Shannon called again and was pretty anxious. She had talked to Rachel again and it was determined that she needed to go to the hospital because her contractions were getting stronger.

After this exciting news, I walked around our living room about three times, thinking about the logistics of what I needed to bring with me and how I was going to take care of our dog Wallace. Since everything was happening earlier than expected, we had not worked out all of the fine details! Everything was moving a lot faster than we expected.

Our friends, Frank and Debbie, were so supportive of Shannon. They let her have privacy in their bathroom while we waited for Rachel to arrive. They contacted me to update me on when Shannon and Rachel had left for the hospital, and they prayed diligently for the Lord’s intervention in this birth.

My 2-hour drive to Richmond was filled with prayer, expectation, cell phone conversations with family, a longing to be with my wife and to see the face of my son. I prayed for their health during the ongoing labor that I knew must be intensifying. I prayed that I would be able to love and support them both, during this time and during the days, weeks, and years ahead.

I arrived at the hospital at midnight, wrapped Wallace in a thermal sleeping bag in the backseat of our Nissan Altima, and walked briskly into the hospital. Oops, the doors were locked! I recalled that I was supposed to go through the emergency room doors after hours. Those were fortunately very close by. As I entered the 2nd floor delivery wing, two nurses commented that it was great that I had arrived and that they knew how happy Shannon would be to see me.

Walking into the delivery room, I saw the relieved faces of Rachel and our nurse midwife, Nicole. They welcomed me in around 12:10 A.M. and said “We are so glad you are here! Shannon is doing great, we’re getting ready to have a baby!” Surprised at how close we were to the birth, I walked into the room to be with my wife. I was encouraged to support her from behind, as I sat on the bed and she used the birthing stool. I was amazed at her strength as she worked through the contractions of the final stages of labor. It seemed to me that her moaning breaths were full of resolve and desire to see her son born. We had never practiced this way and it was amazing to see her natural focus, coached on by Rachel and Nicole, who continued to tell her how good she was doing, and how close our son was to being born. I hesitated to speak too much, as I did not want to interrupt her focus or concentration. I whispered “I love you” into her ear, and at one time “Coram Deo”, a Latin phrase for “In the Presence of God”, which we inscribed on our wedding rings. I curled my arms underneath each of her shoulders to support her, and during some of the final pushes this seemed to really help, as she pressed down upon my knees with her hands to deliver our son. At one point, as Joshua began “crowning”, Nicole told Shannon to reach down and feel her baby. Shannon did and exclaimed through tears and giggles “I can feel his head – and he has hair!” Nicole had felt earlier and had informed us that he was ‘bald’, so we all relaxed and laughed at Shannon’s wonderful discovery.

As Shannon approached the final stages of pushing and the “ring of fire”, Rachel offered even more encouragement and Shannon cried “Out, oh Out!”. Within seconds, our son was born. Leaning over my wife’s shoulder as she held Joshua, we both watched as his mouth opened and the first, glorious sound of breath coursed his lips with a single, hearty newborn cry, that first breath of Heaven that I was so blessed to witness, at 12:56 A.M. on 20 February 2009.

The next several minutes were a blur to me, but I remember holding my son as Shannon was cared for by Nicole and the assisting nurses. Looking him in the eyes, I whispered him a promise that the Lord made to his people in the Old Testament: “Joshua, I will never leave you, nor forsake you. I love you, son.”

Hello little Joshua Douglas Hamm

Shannon Hamm and doula Rachel Thompson
Baby Joshua is in his favorite place!

Shannon adds:

The most amazing experience was the final push, when Joshua came out and Nicole handed him into my arms. He was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.  Looking back, even just a few days later, I think I would describe that 6 ½ hour experience as one of the most intense and rewarding in my life. The journey to even get to the point of giving birth to Joshua had been a long journey. Looking back on the past months and years, God’s presence and His provision were so very evident throughout.

Because we recently moved at the time of Joshua’s birth, and had no family in the Richmond area, having Rachel as our Doula was like a gift from Heaven. Her spiritual maturity, encouragement, and physical presence were like a balm in the middle of what could have been a very scary and trying time.

Even though the child birth experience is over for Joshua, I feel like it was an amazing beginning of our lifelong journey together.   I am thankful for the way that this journey began.