We found this beautiful birth story and happy to share it with you. Birth is the most wonderful experience for mom even though it is painful and scary. Read the story from Tayler Golden and get inspired!

@taylergolden

Sunny’s birth story ☀︎ It all started on Friday, August 30th. Remy was at school that day and I took Sage to the splash pad in the morning. By the afternoon I was having consistent Braxton-Hicks that I thought may turn into something more. My mind wanted to clean and prepare the house but my body was telling me to rest and eat. I called Nate and asked him to come home from work. He came home and clean the house, made us salmon for dinner and prepped some last-minute things just in case. I ate probably twice as much as I normally would. I was starving and I’m realizing now that my body knew it was fueling up for labor. I’m glad I listened as she would be in our arms by the next morning!

After dinner, I was still having a lot of Braxton-Hicks at this point. We stayed home for the evening and sat on the porch as the boys played in the yard. We got them ready for bed and told them the baby might be coming that night. I gave them both big hugs and sent them off to bed. We decided to get in bed early to relax and I fell asleep quickly.
1:10 am I woke up to a real contraction. I laid in bed for a while and got a few more. I decided to start timing them. They were coming about every 2-5 minutes. I decided to wake up Nate around 2 am. After my experience with Sage, I really wanted to be at the hospital early this time. I had wanted time to settle in. We called Whitney(SIL) to come down to stay with the boys so we could head to La Jolla. As we headed to the hospital I only had 3 mild contractions. I started to doubt progress and thought I wasn’t very far a long. I was worried that we were likely going to be sent home. We got to triage and I could tell that the nurse and midwife didn’t think I was very far along either. They checked me and to everyone’s surprise I was a six! Yay! They moved me over to our room at the birth center and I was able to hop in the tub right away. Nate created an amazing atmosphere for me. Salt lamp, dim lighting, and music. It was around 4 am and I was feeling so good! It was pure bliss that my baby was coming. ( Continued in comments )
Photos: @shaylalilian

Part 1: I was feeling so excited to meet her and I even started to cry a bit. Lexi and Shayla arrived at around 5:30 am. Lexi was there to film and Shayla was there to take photos. When they arrived labor was still mild and I was able to chat and laugh between contractions. I was really focused but also enjoying time in between each.
Shortly after things started to pick up and the pressure of each contraction became stronger and stronger. Labor was taking all of my focus. I would take a big deep breath at the beginning of each contraction and let it out slowly. Then I would take another deep breath during the peak of the contraction and let it out slowly. Then another one to finishing it out. I found if I broke it up into three distinct breaths it really helped me focus and stay relaxed. I could do anything for three breaths. Nate was amazing. He was rubbing my shoulders, giving me kisses, constantly reminding me to relax and taking care of all my needs. This time was different than with Remy and Sage, it really was just him and I. We felt monitored and watched over, but we were really allowed to go through the entire labor just us.

Part 2: Around 7am the midwife came in again to check on us. She asked if I wanted to be checked and I said yes. I was an 8 which sounded good but I also knew the baby was still super high. I carried her very high my whole pregnancy and I felt I still had a long way to go. For a brief moment, doubt began to consume my thoughts. I was now laboring longer than my last baby and felt tired, over it and just exhausted. I had two more contractions. I felt refocused and relaxed. Nate talked to me about my progression so far and let me know that this was clearly transition and was a sign that we were going to see our baby soon!

Part 3: The sun was up and it began to light up our beautiful room. Labor was at another level of intensity. I was now at the point of being very vocal during contractions. I was really focusing on relaxing my pelvic floor during each contraction. I could feel myself opening up and it was amazing to feel Sunny moving in my belly. I know she was working hard at getting into place. I had a few really challenging big contractions. I had Nate putting pressure on my hips. The pain in my lower back was intense. I felt like I needed to use the bathroom. So I got out of the tub to sit on the toilet. Then I felt like I needed to push. I gave one tiny tiny push and I put my hand down and the bag of water was hanging there like a water balloon. The feeling was so crazy when my water popped as I reached down. Then BOOM. Her head was right there. I was crowning. Shayla ran out to tell the midwife. It was right during a shift change so we got two midwives and two nurses. I didn’t want to have my baby on the toilet so we walked over to the bed. Walking with a head right there wasn’t the best feeling in the world. I was on my hands and knees and my head on Nate’s shoulder. She was just coming out and my body was doing all the work. I was trying to make it go slower. The midwife was coaching me to not push but to breath. It is called the ring of fire for a reason. The amount of pressure right there is so intense. She came out so fast. I laid onto my side and they put her onto my chest. It took her a little bit to perk up and start crying. I guess that happens when they come out so fast like that. She started crying and then looked up at us. I was in love with her instantly. All I felt was pure bliss and love for her, Nate, and our family. A moment of heaven on earth that I’ll never forget.

Thank you @taylergolden for a fantastic story!