Watch Birth Stories

Elena left Russia nine years ago with her two sons. Her boys are now sixteen and eighteen. She and husband Eric married two years ago and are expecting their first child together, a girl they will name Katarina and call Kitty in honor of Eric's grandmother. Tea and Pablo's baby will have a multicultural lineage. Tea is Persian and Pablo is Mexican. A family celebration before the birth of the baby brings everyone together. Sports enthusiast Mary's water broke at her friend's house, and to avo

Tea and Pablo met in a club. Two months after their first date, the couple married. Now they are expecting their first child. When Tea first found out she was pregnant she had conflicting emotions. Her first ultrasound put everything in perspective and now she and Pablo are overjoyed. Mary and Rob are living in a hotel until their dream home is finished. Construction is behind schedule and they are trying not to stress out about it. Mary teaches high school at the school she attended as a t

Mary is eight months pregnant and as active as ever. A high school teacher and a natural athlete, Mary doesn't let her growing belly slow her down. When she was thirteen weeks pregnant she ran the Boston marathon. She's put the running on hold for now and hikes, uses the treadmill and lifts weights when she can. Husband Rob is also active and the couple enjoy a round of golf together. Doris was a single mom to daughter Olivia when she met Douglas. Douglas took to fatherhood immediately and

It was love at first sight for Douglas when he spotted former Beauty Queen Doris on the dance floor at a club. Now they are married and expecting their second child. Doris now concentrates on motherhood, their 14-month old son suffers from a serious digestive disorder. Doris also has a daughter from a previous relationship. Douglas brought spirituality to the couple's life. The family regularly attends an African-Canadian Christian church. Deanne enjoys girls-night-out and the friends share the

Deanne and Jaimie are expecting their second child. Deanne's first labor and delivery was long and difficult. This time, they are going to use hypnotherapy to get through it. Jaimie is slightly skeptical but he's supportive of Deanne's decision. This is Suzanne's first baby, she's in her mid-thirties and everything about pregnancy feels unfamiliar to her. After a difficult night, they go to the hospital to check the baby's heart rate. Suzanne is worried, the baby hasn't been moving much. T

Suzanne and JC met on-line. They are now married and expecting their first child. Things have changed a lot in the two years they've been together. For one thing, JC no longer visits chat rooms. Pregnancy is hard on Suzanne's body image, she's not enjoying the changes. Carly and Mike's third baby is going to be born at home. The baby is going to be big but Carly is determined to stay at home. She does explore the idea of inducing her baby with her mid-wives. They dismiss it, as it's not

Carly is expecting her third child and is treating herself to a spa day. She and husband Mike almost didn't have children. Before having children, the couple sought counseling to ensure their relationship was solid and ready to sustain the arrival of a family. Nikki and David's baby had a scary first trimester, during a routine ultrasound doctors found a potential genetic problem. More testing was ordered and in the end the baby was fine. But Nikki is still worried and won't be satisfied unt

David and Nikki are crazy about each other. Nikki has a 12 year old daughter, and didn't want any more children until she met David. David really wanted a child and now they are expecting a baby boy. Originally from California, Nikki moved to Toronto ten years ago when her daughter Hayley was a baby. She's proud of her accomplishments but slightly concerned about financial stability these days since her business just went bankrupt. Before running the lodge, Janice was a successful artist. S

Janice and Kevin met on-line. The thirteen year age difference and the fact that Janice has two adolescent boys, didn't matter. After the dog ate Janice's oral contraceptive pills, she wound up pregnant. Janice manages a beautiful lakeside lodge where Kevin works as the handyman. They all live in two rooms in the back of the lodge. Paul bought Jenny a home Doppler machine to listen to the baby's heartbeat. Plagued by serious anxiety over losing the baby, Jenny can't believe something so won

Lynette and Chris moved from Newfoundland to downtown Toronto. They love the downtown scene and feel at home in the urban jungle. But a baby is on the way and so is a move to the suburbs. The couple is miles away from home and misses their family. Lynette has gestational diabetes and is having a big baby, so her doctors recommend a c-section. Jenny and Paul are getting married. Jenny had a hard time finding a wedding dress that conformed to her pregnant figure. The morning of her wedding, s

Jenny runs a gourmet catering business from her home. This is her first pregnancy and it's been a challenge. She experienced a lot of nausea at the beginning and some of the cooking smells really got to her. Jenny plans to be back at her stove a couple of days after her baby's birth. Meanwhile, she's grappling with serious anxiety regarding her baby's health. Jenny refuses to unpack the baby clothes she bought, for fear she might jinx her pregnancy. Husband Paul, isn't allowed to prepare t

Kim and Wesley are expecting their second child; it's the third for Kim who has a son from a previous relationship. Kim has decided to have her baby at home. She had to convince Wesley but he's now come around. Kim invites her mother to be present at the birth but her mom refuses. She doesn't want to see her daughter in pain, it's too difficult for her. Katie is worried, a recent ultrasound detected a slight problem with one of the baby's kidneys. Her doctor reassures her that the kidney p

Katie and Bruno are expecting their fifth child. Their third baby died immediately following birth from kidney failure. The impact of losing a child has had a profound effect on the family. During a routine ultrasound, the doctor reassures the couple that baby #5 is healthy and its kidneys are functioning properly. To make ends meet, Katie operates a second hand children's clothing store and works part-time as a fitness instructor. Lyall feels that the mid-wives are using scare tactics to ge

Mariam and Joe are tickled pink about becoming parents. It wasn't supposed to happen, Joe has a problem with his sperm. As a young medical student, Mariam is busy. But Joe takes good care of her, he even gives Mariam the injections she needs to control her gestational diabetes. Their baby is big and Mariam is being induced on her due date. Her obstetrician also happens to be one of her medical professors. Lisa and Lyall visit the local hardware store to pick up supplies for the home birth of

Lyall and Lisa are expecting their second child together. Lyall also has six other children from previous relationships, but the first time he plans to participate in an actual birth. Lyall loves children and he loves rock and roll. He's been a drummer in a band for twenty-five years. Lyall and Lisa have their hearts set on a home birth. But the challenge is that Lisa is 40 years old, and her last child, seven years ago, was an emergency c-section. That makes a vaginal birth at home this tim

Kim and John have three children under the age of four and are foster parents to three teenage boys. Their oldest child suffered from heart trouble following his birth and then had emergency brain surgery four months later. The child suffered some neurological damage but on the whole is a happy well-adjusted child who loves spending time with his siblings. The couple started fostering children after their son's second operation. Another baby is expected in a month to join this busy household.

Stephaney and Frank are expecting triplets - no explanation, no history of multiple births in the family. But three little ones are on the way _ two boys and a girl. That's a lot of babies for this 22 year old, first time mom. Stephaney is scheduled for a c-section, but four weeks before the date she goes into labor and the procedure is moved up. Three healthy but premature babies are born and whisked to the neo-natal unit before Stephaney and Frank can hold their children. Isabelle and Zach