home birth supplies

i am going through my craft closet, in preparation for a new and improved, highly organized craft closet!  along the way, i came across the binder i kept while pregnant with the bird.  it is full of goodies that i will be posting soon under modern mama.  but, one item made me stop and think back to last year...a year ago this week to be exact.  a document labeled “client birth supply list”. now, if you haven’t had or experienced a home birth, you might be thinking one major deterrent would be the mess.  you aren’t alone, i was right there with you.  however, when all was said and done, there was truly nothing to show of the birth itself  - except for an exhausted mama and papa and a beautiful baby girl.  NO MESS.  our midwife and her assistant were swift about cleaning up, doing the laundry and making sure there wasn’t a single thing for us to worry about, besides tending to our new family.  what a relief!

i have to say though, i was pretty unsure this would be the case when i first read the list and headed to our local drug store to make our purchases.  i kind of felt like i was in an episode of dexter.  in care you aren’t familiar with the items, or what in the world they might be for in this instance, i will provide a quick summary... fyi - this may be more than some people are interested in knowing about so, if you don’t care to know some personal business, i suggest you stop reading here.

client birth supply list

1 crock pot + 1 small piece of ginger (ginger is boiled in water, in the crock pot, and used as a compress)

2 gallons recharge (i chose to drink coconut water instead.  i also snacked on greek yogurt due to its protein and because it wasn’t actually a solid food - making it easier to digest)

2 plastic shower curtain liners (not a lot of explanation needed here!)

1 digital thermometer

2 bags large chucks pads - approximately 30 (if you aren’t familiar - i wasn’t - chucks pads are like small blankets that are comparable to sanitary napkins.  they are laid down and sop up liquids.  again, not a lot of explanation on why these were needed either)

1 box sterile 4x4 gauze pads

2 packages of depends (ok ladies, even if you don’t have a home birth...i highly recommend the use of depends after you have your baby.  for me, big fat sanitary napkins are super uncomfortable and i was shocked at how much easier, quicker and more comfortable it was to just break down and wear depends for a few days. it isn’t sexy but at that point, really, who cares?)

box large plastic garbage bags

1 set of clean sheets (to protect our mattress, i layered a plastic shower liner between the mattress and fitted sheet.  that way, it was protected but, i could be more comfortable laying on a sheet instead of the plastic.)

1 box non-sterile gloves

4 large, old but clean towels

6 clean washcloths

1 bottle chlorophyll

1 box salt (added to the laundry to help prevent any stains - it worked! not a single stain)

1 bottle hydrogen peroxide

1 small bottle olive oil (this is used to massage the perineum and help prevent tearing- it worked!)

1 fish net (this is only if you are birthing in a pool and yes, it is used to remove any bowel movement that WILL occur.  yes, it WILL occur.  just get over it)

1 outfit for the baby to wear

newborn disposable diapers

so, there you have it.  a year ago, this week, we were on our search to fulfill our supply list in preparation for the bird.