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When Scott and Nikkie found out that they were having a fifth child, they knew that they would have another homebirth assisted by midwives, and immediately planned according.
By now, pregnancy and childbirth was something Nikkie knew a lot about. Scott would often laugh when he would see her reading one of her pregnancy books and say, "Don't you have that memorized by now?" and Nikkie would say, "Just about. Just trying to refresh my memory though."
Nikkie knew all that needed to be prepared around the home, and what supplements were needed for her body. And she knew from her previous experiences to be ready for three things: a past due baby, a lot of Braxton-Hicks contractions, and to labor alone for as long as possible (due to her working better alone) before calling the midwives.
And that was how it happened. Towards the end of pregnancy, those Braxton-Hicks contractions came often, but Nikkie knew they were not the real thing. And as she approached her due date, and everyone spent time asking her why the baby had not come yet, Nikkie constantly told them, "I will be late. I always am. And that is fine." But, as she approached two weeks overdue, just as she did with Jeremiah, she began talking seriously with Scott about natural induction, and planning when to start the process.
So, the day came that they had planned. Scott was taking the day off work, and they would spend the day following the plan including things like a long walk, having her membranes stripped by her midwife, and more. And they began first thing that morning with the process, with hopes that sometime that night, labor would take off.
It was a Wednesday, so it was church night. But prior to time for church, contractions were beginning, and starting to get strong. Nikkie told Scott to go on to church since she knew it could still be nothing, and even if it was going to turn into labor, she knew it would still be a while. However, she and the kids were going to stay home and continue to prepare for Chloe's birth.
Scott headed to church. The kids headed to their rooms with some new movies that Nikkie had bought specifically for them to have on delivery day, and Nikkie stayed in the living room going between sitting on a birthing ball and walking around the room, trying to keep contractions going.
After Scott arrived home, the kids were sent to bed for the night, and Scott and Nikkie planned to go to bed, knowing that if this was it, the contractions would eventually wake Nikkie up and labor would take off. Well, after getting in the bed, Nikkie realized that she couldn't go to sleep because the contractions were already too uncomfortable. So, instead, she opted for a bath, hoping to relax.
But the contractions continued, and just kept growing stronger. Nikkie felt good that this would be it, but was being cautious about when to call the midwives. She remembered all too well how Elijah's birth had gone with her calling the midwives, them leaving, calling them again, them leaving again, and calling again, with him finally arriving. She didn't want to go through all that again, and wasn't sure what to do. She didn't want to do that, but she also didn't want to deliver the baby herself either. So, she kept hesitating about calling.
Finally, she told Scott to go ahead and call them, but he, too, remembered their birth experience with Elijah, and asked her if she was sure. But at this point, while still sitting in the tub, Nikkie was starting to feel so uncomfortable that she couldn't stand the thought of continuing much longer. She told Scott that she didn't care, and wanted him to get them there no matter what. He conceded, and called them. Of course, they also had remembered the previous experiences, and decided that one would just come out and check before the other would come, too.
Upon the arrival of the one midwife, Nikkie was still in the tub, and didn't really want to move at that point. She was just very uncomfortable, and just wanted to be left alone. But slowly, she made her way out of the tub, and decided to make a stop by the toilet before heading to the bed. At that point, she was feeling so much pressure, and wasn't sure she was going to be able to walk to the bedroom after all. Unbeknownst to her, her midwife was beginning to make preparations to deliver the baby in the bathroom because she realized Nikkie was ready to push, and may not make it out of there. But after a contraction, Nikkie slowly made her way to the bed. And just as the other midwife sped into the driveway, Nikkie began pushing.
After a few hard pushes, Chloe was born, and was swept up into Nikkie's arms. There, Nikkie saw that her baby girl was plump and healthy, and had a head slam full of curly hair. She was also coated in vernix that was so thick and creamy. This was interesting because vernix usually starts to disappear as a baby is overdue, and even though it was 2 weeks past her due date, Chloe was still coated with it. Medical science may have classified Chloe as "late," but the huge presence of vernix showed otherwise.
Nikkie fed Chloe, and then the midwives cleaned and dressed her. They also helped Nikkie get cleaned up, and changed the bed. By now, it was after midnight. No one had any idea that Chloe had been born except for Scott, Nikkie, and the midwives. But since it was the middle of the night, Scott and Nikkie would be able to go on to bed with their new little one, and get a decent night of sleep before morning. Their midwife would continue to stay at the house for a while longer in order to make sure both mother and baby were doing good and not having any problems, but she told them that she would leave quietly and not bother them if they wanted to go on to sleep. So, they did just that.
The next morning, Scott and Nikkie woke up with their new little one, and were so excited and looking forward to telling the other kids that their sister had come. But they agreed to just wait until the kids came down to see, before saying anything to anyone. Before long, Gabrielle showed up in their bedroom and the first words she said were, "I know. She's not here yet." Nikkie began to laugh, and said, "Gabrielle, look!" Gabrielle looked in the bed between Scott and Nikkie and was so excited when she realized that a baby was there between them.
Nikkie told her to go get the others. Gabrielle did just that, although some of the others didn't believe her and thought she was just trying to trick them. But they began heading down to the bedroom, and were all so excited to see that it was indeed true. Chloe Lynette Corbin was really there! They immediately began taking turns holding her, and loving on her. Then, they began the process of calling family, and letting everyone know that their bundle of joy had arrived.