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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]One of my favorite subjects!

OP, my friends who think I am crazy for staying home to have babies always cite the "48 hours of food delivered to your room" as a perk they could not possibly pass up.  I always reply that those 48/24/however many hours I was forced to stay in the hospital were one of the reasons I chose to stay home!  Here are some reasons why you will be so happy to be home:

After the birth, you will luxuriate in your cozy bed, in your cozy room, in your cozy house.  You will have your fridge stocked with all of your favorite treats, because as your last stage of nesting, you will have filled your home with everything your heart desires.  You will feel like you can do anything.  You will find yourself being steered back to your bed, because you will have tons of energy and see no reason to take it easy.  (But listen to your midwife and take it easy anyway!)  You will be able to parade around half-naked and shower as long as you like and there will be no strangers to sap your energy.
H
Send your husband out to pick up your favorite take out, and have him bring the toddler with him so you have some quiet time.  Have a wrapped present for your toddler stashed in your room, and say that it is a birthday party for their new sibling, and they need to open the present, since the baby is still too little.  Have the present be something engaging (Wedgits or Magformers or something), so it will keep your toddler occupied.  Don't feel guilty if you lean on PBSKids or a favorite movie the first couple of days.  You'll be astonished by how much your toddler will love the new baby.

Honestly, you will not need much at all.  You will be captivated by the baby, and reliving the beautiful experience in your mind, maybe writing it down.  You will appreciate the cocoon of your room and the haven of your house.  You will cherish the little visits of your toddler, and marvel over your husband sleeping next to you with your baby in between.

Your midwife (and doula, if you have one) should do several home visits those first few days automatically, and more if you need them.  If everything goes well, the visits will just be for reassurance, anyway.

For me, I have my sister close by, and older children, so for the very first day, my sister stayed and helped my (utterly exhausted but blissful) husband hold down the fort.  I had stocked the house with everything I could possibly crave (chocolate and red meat are my usual desires...and my sister brought chocolate chip cookies, yum!), and some frozen meals for the family, though we got pizza for the first dinner.  I was up and about immediately, and had to constantly be reminded to rest.  I savored every single second of those first few days...unlike in the hospital, when my kids were harassed for visiting and strangers were barging in at the worst times and I was constantly being lectured about everything, I had all the comfort and rest and peace in the world.

I am about to be there for my sister, who is having her third baby, and I can't wait to pamper her.  If you do not have family, do you have friends close by?  If so, can you request help in advance?  Ask a dear friend if you can send her an alert as soon as the baby is born, and then she can arrange for meals and playdates for your son that first week or two?  She can let your circle of friends know to just quietly drop off the food or whisk your toddler away--if you are awake and feeling up to a visit at the time, though, you may invite them in to coo at the baby.  And perhaps some of your friends are close enough to you to spend a morning scrubbing bathrooms and doing laundry and tidying up while you rest?  In my community, all the moms do these things for one another, and they are so essential.  They make the mom rest, of course, but they also make her feel cherished and safe and supported during that delicate time.

If you have neither family nor close friends, you can always hire someone to do some things.  Lean on take out for a few days.  Do you have an occasional babysitter who can come and keep your toddler occupied for a bit?  What about using a Groupon for a one-time cleaning service to super-clean your house?

I am, frankly, so envious that you still get to anticipate this blessed occasion.  My youngest is only three months, but it seems like so long ago that I last had a baby.  Enjoy![/quote]

So I'm going to be the bizarro DCUM poster and actually applaud a PP that did something completely different from me. I just had my second c/s (first was emergency and second was a choice based on my experience with the first). I thought my experience was great. I'm not going to ruin this home birth thread with all the positive things about my experiences. But I have to say PP, your experience seems really wonderful and it really worked for you. That is all. [/quote]

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