*if you’re more of a hater then this blog post might not be for you… just saying… I’m not normally one to be embarrassed by my own actions but I must admit I did find myself cringing into my glass of vino when I overheard hubby on the phone to his mother, rather proudly I might add, asking her if she's seen the photos of my placenta on Facebook… Yes, that’s right, my PLACENTA! At this point you’re undoubtedly thinking I followed in the steps of Kim Kardashian and ate it but no, I popped it in the freezer alongside the fish fingers and frozen peas and, 6 sleep deprived months later, I finally defrosted it and got to work creating some beautiful placenta prints before planting it in a large terracotta pot with a beautiful olive tree that was gifted to me by my lovely mum and dad. Although I had toyed with the idea of placenta encapsulation early on in my pregnancy with Phoebe I decided against it after my 12 week scan showed there were two foetuses in my womb… but only one had a heartbeat. As our lost twin remained visible at the 20 week scan I was advised by my midwife that it would eventually be reabsorbed and flattened from the pressure of the surviving twin to ultimately form part of my placenta (fetus compressus). I struggled with feelings of loss throughout my pregnancy and often felt quite freaked out by the idea of the deceased foetus still being inside me alongside my healthy baby girl. I found it hard to announce my pregnancy as my joy was always tinged with sadness and, in hindsight, I think I worried more about my surviving baby knowing that one baby had not made it. Phoebe was born at home on 12 June 2017 (Zodiac sign Gemini - symbolised the Twins...). A calm, powerful, intense, natural birth. I opted for a physiological third stage and delivered my placenta naturally. The midwives routinely checked the placenta and confirmed that they could see evidence of the lost twin. In the knowledge that my placenta had not only given life to my beautiful newborn daughter but also held the tiny remains of Phoebe's twin, it felt incredibly precious. I wasn't ready or able to part with it so, after doing a bit of research, made the decision to bury it (I chose to use a large terracotta pot so it can come with me if we ever move house) and plant an olive tree over it. When the time came to get the sacred icecream tub out of the freezer and plant my precious placenta I couldn't help but create some prints, having taken inspiration from some beautiful images on Pinterest. The process of making the placenta prints was trickier than I had first anticipated and it took several attempts before I got a print that I was completely happy with. That said, I am still planning to work with the other placenta prints taken, tracing over the fine lines and texture with pen and ink to create more artistic images, drawing on the 'Tree of Life' concept. So, there we have it. Placenta art... you either love it or hate it but nobody can deny the powerful, life-giving role of the placenta and how significant it can be for many mothers. My placenta was not only a temporary little part of me but encompassed all that was left of Phoebe's twin.
I treasure my placenta print that now takes pride of place in my home and would be honoured to create placenta prints and keepsakes for others. If you're thinking of making your own placenta prints and would like some advice on how to do it and get the best results please just get in touch. Alternatively, if you are local to Bournemouth, I would be happy to work with you to create your own unique piece of placenta art. You couldn't make it up right? After months and months of deliberating I have finally gone and done it. When I got the routine call from my boss checking in to discuss my return to work plans, without thinking, amidst the chaos of my life with three happy little hooligans, I made a BIG decision and responded by telling her that I would not be coming back to work at the end of my maternity leave. Yep, I quit my job with NCT to follow my dreams, look after my family and build my business. Thanks to the very lovely (especially when he's sporting a hot pink mohican...) Jared Leto for validating my rather rash decision making on that fateful day.
So, here we are. My maternity leave comes to an end on 10th February 2017 and so does my time as a Parent Services Administrator with the national parenting charity, NCT. With Alabama now in school full time, Buddy in preschool and Phoebe growing up in a blink and you miss it kind of way, my time is way too precious to spend working at home for anyone other than myself! It's a risk but not one I can see myself regretting as I am choosing to do something I am passionate about, something creative and something special for all the lovely women who choose me to cast their precious baby bump. I'm busily working on setting myself some business goals for 2017 to help keep myself focused. I'm looking forward to training with the incredibly talented artist and lifecaster, CJ Munn in the Spring so I can expand my business to offer high definition bump casts as well as breast, torso and bottom casting and am excited to be spending time at the moment developing my plans to create luxury Rock the Bump belly bowls, beautifully recast in porcelain clay, fired and glazed. Anyone else taking a leap of faith in 2017? Make it happen. Follow your dreams. Take advice from rock stars. You don't have to have a bump cast to support Rock the Bump. A simple 💜, like, comment, share or follow on Social Media helps get my business name out there. Thanks for the continued support. You rock! Buddy Arthur Keeping was born at 9:05pm (or thereabouts…) on Tuesday 24 September 2013 weighing 8lbs 5oz… in our bathroom. When I first found out I was pregnant with Buddy I knew that I wanted to have a natural birth, with as little intervention as possible. The reason being that I wasn’t planning on having more children after Buddy and wanted to experience labour fully and know what it felt like to birth a baby. My daughter Alabama, was born on 2 October 2011, 16 days after her “due date”. I had hoped for a water birth in the local midwife led birth centre but, at 14 days over I was admitted to hospital to be induced. To cut a very long and tedious story short, I ended up on a Syntocin drip, with an epidural but managed to narrowly avoid an emergency caesarean section after my cervix reached the mystical 10cm just in time and I demanded to be allowed to push. 25 minutes of pushing later and Bam was born. I went home later that day with a happy and healthy baby but left with a sense that my body had failed me and a longing to know what would have happened had nature been left to take its course…
Back to Buddy! So in the knowledge that I wanted a natural a birth as possible I thought I should probably opt to birth at the midwife led unit in Bournemouth as opposed to going to Poole. Then the anxiety kicked in and I soon realised that my main worry was leaving my daughter. Bam was 14 months old when I found out I was pregnant with Buddy and I had never spent a night away from her. With no family living close by my concern was that if I opted for a hospital birth it would mean me going on my own and my husband, Ryan, staying at home to care for Bam. I starting toying with the idea of a home birth. My younger sister had her second child at home so there was a part of me that was thinking “if she can do it, I can!” but then it just came down to the practicalities. Whether I was at home or at the midwife led unit in Bournemouth I would end up being transferred to Poole if a) anything went wrong or b) I had a sudden change of heart about wanting to “experience labour fully” and started screaming for an epidural so, with the full support of my husband, the decision was made to plan for a home water birth. When the time came I was 6 days over my due date, I was happily bouncing up and down on my birthing ball whilst watching TV and started to notice a bit of a rhythm to the pains I had been experiencing. I didn’t say anything to Ryan as I wanted to be sure but yep, every 20 minutes. We went to bed and I was woken by a contraction at around 2 the next morning. I timed them for about an hour and I was contracting every 7 minutes. By about 4pm the contractions were coming thick and fast, I phoned the delivery suite and they suggested that they should get a midwife out to assess me. Soon after, three midwives (including a student) descended on us. I was examined and told that I was only 2cm dilated. I felt deflated and a little panicked that my body was failing me…again, and that my cervix just wasn’t going to dilate and I would end up having to be induced in hospital. The midwives offered to stay but made it pretty clear that they didn’t think I would be having my baby any time soon… So, the evening carried on like any other. After putting Bam to bed at 7:30pm I took two paracetamol and decided to have a bath. Ryan lit a candle and turned the lights off for me. I asked to be left alone and found myself laying in the warm water on my side, using the hand rail to slowly pull my body back and fro through the water. An hour or so later I suggested to Ryan that it might be time to start filling the birthing pool that was waiting for me in the living room and phone the delivery suite. I was fairly certain that I was about to have a baby… I instinctively found myself wanting to stand up, I started trying to pull myself up to standing position from the bath but my legs started to give way. I experienced three very strong contractions in quick succession, my waters broke and I felt an urgent need to go to the toilet. Ryan helped me to get out of the bath and as I stood I was overwhelmed with the urge to push. Ryan was still on the phone to the delivery suite at this point. The midwives were on their way but it seemed very unlikely that they were going to get to me in time so the midwife on the end of the phone called for an ambulance. If I remember rightly I think I started shouting “Help me!!!” as I got just a little worried that I was about to start pushing this baby out when maybe I shouldn’t… Funny as it sounds I found myself trying to cross my legs but gravity was definitely getting the better of me…Ryan was telling me to “breath” and trying to reassure me that the baby wasn’t coming yet. Two pushes later and baby’s head made an appearance, Ryan grabbed a towel and got ready to catch. One last push and Buddy was born. The midwives arrived soon after. Amazingly, Bam had slept through the whole event and only woke when Buddy stirred at around 2am for a feed, “My baby brother’s here!” she exclaimed before jumping in to bed with us for a cuddle and then falling back asleep. And there we were, four in a bed, just perfect. |
AuthorZoe Keeping - Artist/Owner of Rock the Bump pregnant belly casting, mum to three happy little hooligans, lucky to live with hubby and best friend Ryan in sunny, sunny Bournemouth. Love music, food, festivals, tattoos, real ale, camping, wildlife, flowers, birds, baking and art. CategoriesArchives
June 2020
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