My husband had just stepped out of the house. I needed him to pick up his mum-quickly-so she could watch over our two children while we rushed to the hospital.
Earlier, while reading bedtime stories to the kids, I felt a sharp pain in my stomach. I ignored it and continued to tuck them in.
After all, the intervals of the cramps weren't consistent, so I didn't think anything more of it.
I was into my 37th week of pregnancy - and, yes, Baby no. 3 was due anytime. But I'm an experienced mum, so I knew what labour pains were like.
I carried on with housework and even went in the computer. But the contractions got worse and more frequent, even after I rested in bed.
Then I felt a strong urge to pass motion. But when I sat on the toilet, I realised that something wasn't right. The continued urge to push despite the lack of results triggered warning bells.
I had two normal deliveries without epidural and could clearly remember the feeling of having to push a baby out. I suspected that it was going to happen soon, and that prompted me to squat to reach below. True enough, I felt something hairy and knew at once that it was the baby's head.
I screamed for my husband - but he had already left.
Baby's out
The urge to push was already quite intense, and I instinctively got on all fours.
It felt like only a few seconds had passed from the time I felt his head… and baby was out.
In fact, he slipped out and landed on the floor. I didn't manage to catch him because things were developing so quickly.
Thankfully, he wasn't hurt, probably because the water bag was protecting him.
There was blood all around the toilet but my attention was on the Baby. He looked purplish and lay on the cold floor quietly.
I panicked. Why wasn't he crying? Then I realised the umbilical cord was coiled around his neck - twice. I quickly untangled him.
Right away, he wailed and became pinkish. I felt such a wave of calm and relief.
Holding him close, with the umbilical cord and placenta still on me, I hobbled over to the bedroom to call my husband. He was in shock.
Surprisingly, I remained composed throughout. I guess I had no time to panic because there was so much going on at once.
I quickly grabbed a towel to swaddle my little one and kept him warm While waiting for my hubby and the ambulance to arrive, I tried to breastfeed Baby.
He suckled, although he didn't latch on well. All the time, the other two children were sound asleep in their room. It felt like there was just him and me. It was such a peaceful, surreal moment.
I didn't feel tired, maybe because the whole process was so short. Neither did I feel as much pain as in the previous two deliveries.
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