The birth of our second son all started with a little castor oil. With the suggestion of her midwife and with a burning desire to see our second son as soon as possible, Sarah mixed some castor oil into some chocolate milk and hoped for the best.
It was a desperate moment to kickstart her contractions. Facebook pleas from women who had tried this method before her cried out, “Oh no! NO! Don’t do it!”
But it worked. The contractions started out subtlety. But just a few hours later and we were rapidly running out the door, with Sarah having strong contractions only a couple minutes apart. We were in such a rush I even forgot my coat. After swerving Chicago’s pothole filled roads to the hospital we made it to our destination at about 12:30 AM. The midwife arrived soon after us and told us that we would be having this baby very soon.
After rushing to set up the tools and equipment needed for the delivery, Sarah’s water was broken. Ten minutes, a handful of contractions, three pushes, and a few moans later Ezra Yuuto Seaman entered healthily into this world. (For those who don’t know, my wife is one strong woman. And I’m a proud husband.)
The birth process is amazing. For those who haven’t experienced or witnessed it, it might sound gross or super intense. And it kind of is those things. But, it also is truly awesome – it is a miracle.
I will spare you the “family only” pictures from the birth, but here are some of my favorite pictures from the delivery and the hours following:
Stepping Back 
So happy for you, Sarah and Micah, so sad for Kathy, Jill and Aaron. This month has been hard to process.