There are times when a woman wants to have a home birth but it's out of the question because of the home. Maybe because it's an apartment that doesn't quite feel like "home" — I can relate to that. Or maybe you are in the middle of a move and don't want to give birth amongst walls of boxes. Packing and unpacking is certainly stressful enough as it is. The boxes surrounding you as you labor wouldn't be conducive to a stress-free birth.
Such is the case for Kristen and Pippen Kingsbury, who decided to give birth in a luxury hotel in Portland, Oregon. They also documented the magical day on video.
What you are about to see is the birth of the Kingsbury's son, Leopold. And while this did take place about two years ago, they only released the video this year. The hotel, The Nines, had no idea a planned hotel birth had taken place until now. The room was $299 a night in case you're wondering.
Embedded content: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaKEOoPdbyI
Beautiful! And that's exactly what Kristen said when she saw the room. She told KOIN News, "We walked in and I am telling you, I was like, 'I am having this baby here.' It was gorgeous."
Their video "Our Luxury Hotel Birth" captures the birth of Leopold. Mom labored for about two hours. And I absolutely love and support this idea. We do lots of things in hotels — they are supposed to be our home away from home, right? There is something very carefree about staying in a hotel. It's not our home. All of our crap isn't there. There is no pile of bills on the desk. The dirty dishes aren't in the sink. The laundry basket isn't right there filled with towels we need to put away. All the reminders of our everyday life and stresses are absent at a hotel. And that could be just the thing a mama needs to labor with ease. Clearly Kristen did just that — two hours is a great time. The stand-up shower looked lovely. The view. The gorgeous bed. No stress!
Every woman deserves a birth like this. Hospitals should offer more luxury because there's comfort in that — there is comfort in a beautiful setting — it allows us that ability to truly relax and let our bodies do what they are made to do … to give birth.
Some will think it's inappropriate to give birth at a hotel, and even the hotel that didn't know about it until recently said if they had known, they wouldn't have allowed it. But what were they going to do? Kick them out during labor? They paid for the room. Of course the Kingsburys didn't leave a mess. They had a midwife. They were responsible with what they needed to clean up. Why is giving birth in a hotel not allowed when so many other things are "acceptable" in a hotel. Let's be real — how many parents sneak away from their parent responsibilities, get a sitter, and get it on at a hotel for the night in order to reconnect? How many people do this? Heck, people go to hotels when they are unfaithful to their spouses. Birth? That's a good thing. Beautiful karma in that room.
What do you think of a hotel home birth? Do you think this is okay to do?
Image via YouTube
