I had my first baby, Madalynn, at 16. She was unplanned, and feeling a lot of pressure from my parents we married three weeks before she was born. It wasn't a loveless marriage. We got along fine and even had another baby when Madalynn was 18 months old. It was another girl we named Haleia. But we both knew we were not right for each other and separated three months after Haleia was born.

Not even a year after my separation I met and fell in love with a new magnificent man whom I truly did love, Max. He was my everything, and we married six months after meeting.

We were married for only two months when we found out I was pregnant. We were very excited. My first trimester was awful – morning sickness morning, noon and night. I was always tired, not at all what I expected.

We went to the doctor to make sure it was normal to be that sick all the time. The doctor assured us that it was very normal. Some women experience no symptoms; others experience a lot of symptoms. He put me on an anti-nausea medication so I would be able to go to work and get some sleep at night.

My second trimester brought us the surprise of our twins (and no more morning sickness). We knew for sure that one was a boy but the other one was being stubborn and had its legs crossed, shut and sitting on them. We guessed it was a girl, because I am a stubborn woman – like mother like daughter. We picked out names. We had to pick out three just in case twin B wasn't a girl.

My sister threw me a baby shower, a lot of blue, green and yellow – some pink, but we didn't want to get our hopes up!

My third trimester was the longest of all. I was anxious to get on with it and hold my babies. I was very tired, my ankles were swollen, my hands were swollen and I was in the bathroom every five minutes. My due date was July 27, but I knew that I would probably go in early, like most twins do.

We were going in every week, and the last time we went in I asked the doctor why I was feeling so much pressure on the bottom of my huge belly, and why the shape of my belly had changed so much. He felt around and it seemed that both twin A and B were down, which would explain why the kicking of my ribs had worsened. So that was good news; I would be able to deliver each of them vaginally, and naturally.

We had two weeks before I was due, and we figured it would be our last chance to take a vacation by ourselves. So Madalynn and Haleia went to visit their dad and Max and I traveled to our cabin, which was only 20 minutes away from a hospital if we needed one. We drove for what seemed like forever. We finally got there and my husband wanted to stop at the store. I told him let's just get to the cabin. I was tired, and I wanted to take a nap.

We got to the cabin, and I went and lay down. My husband brought the bags in and came in and told me that he was going to run into town and he'd be back in an hour.

I fell asleep almost immediately and awoke two hours later with horrible pains in my back. I walked downstairs looking for my husband; he wasn't there. I called his cell phone, and he had stopped at the bar because he ran into some of his old friends on the way out of the store. I was like, "The bar? You are at the bar!?" I didn't bother to tell him what was going on. I was too mad, which was a big mistake since he had the only vehicle.

I started pacing and the more I walked the stronger the back pain got. About an hour later, the contractions began to move around the front, and were getting worse. I tried calling my husband's cell again, but he turned it off! He turned it off! I was frantic by this time and didn't even consider calling 911. I found out later it wouldn't have done any good. The town we were in didn't have 911 services, and the hospital was a small clinic.

I ran myself a hot bath. I learned that that could help with the contractions. I climbed in and my water broke. By this time I knew that there was nothing I could do, so I just breathed through the contractions that were coming three minutes apart and lasting about one minute. I guess I was about to have the natural delivery that I always wanted. I was just hoping that it would be in the birth center.

I tried calling my husband again, but his phone was still off. The water was getting cold and my contractions were getting worse. I had been in labor for four hours now, and I was starting to get worried. Worried that I was doing this alone, worried that my husband was going to drive home after drinking and worried that he was going to miss the birth.

I started pacing again and squatted through each contraction. I began to throw up and started deep groaning. I knew I had to be in transition. I ran another bath and I climbed in. I began to feel the urge to push, but I wasn't ready so I breathed through them and groaned. Finally my body took over and with each contraction, I began to push.

Between pushes, I tried my husband one more time. Finally it was on. He answered and just as he answered another contraction started. I told him to hold on, and I pushed and pushed, and I let out a loud moan. I got back on the phone with him, and told him to get home. He said it would be a little bit. He had to stop and get gas. You could tell where his priorities were.

I was kneeling in the tub and holding on to the side of the tub. I got a contraction. I pushed and I pushed and I pushed. I felt down and felt the most amazing feeling in this world: the top of my baby's head. That's when I felt it, the "burning ring of fire." I began to scream and grunt. The baby's head came out and I stood up. I didn't know what to do. With instinct I felt down and felt for a cord. There wasn't one there. It was really bad timing but I realized I didn't have anything to cut the cord with.

I really tried to climb out of the tub with the baby's head hanging out of me, but my body wasn't having that. I got a contraction and I squatted back in the tub and began to scream. The baby wasn't moving, so I lay back in the tub and propped my legs back and began to push. I felt the baby move out, but my belly was so big I couldn't reach in that position. I couldn't tell how far out the baby was, but I moved the opposite way in the tub and as I moved the baby slipped out into the water with a big scream from me.

I looked at my baby in the water. His eyes were open, and he was just looking at me. I lifted him from the water and held him to my chest and I cried tears of joy. I looked at the clock. My little boy was born at 9:32 p.m. (five hours after I went into labor).

Ten minutes later my husband walked in and came running into the bathroom. I told him to quickly go boil some water and sterilize a knife and get something to clamp the cord off with. I started having mild contractions again and pushed out the placenta. (I thought both placentas would come out at the same time; apparently I was wrong.)

We cut the cord, and my husband was holding him when I started having really strong contractions again. I began involuntarily pushing. I felt the second baby come down hard into the birth canal and I started yelling. My husband kept reassuring me that I was doing great and to keep going. I didn't think I could do it anymore.

Between contractions, I rested and I pushed and pushed and pushed with each contraction. I was exhausted. My husband looked down and could see the head crowning, but he said it looked weird, very glossy. I told him my second water bag never broke.

The baby stopped descending, so I started squatting again. I pushed so hard I thought I was going to pass out, so I resumed my position with my legs pushing back on the side of the tub. The bag of water was bulging and I pushed. I felt the ring of fire again, and I started grunting and screaming. Finally her head emerged (still in the water bag). I started yelling, "Get it out, get it out." The rest of her body came out with ease, and a large sigh of relief from me.

I looked down at my baby, again in the water, and she looked like she was trying to swim. I brought her up to me, and I held her. I forgot to look at the clock. My husband looked. She was born at 10:04 p.m. My husband clamped and cut her cord and I delivered the placenta.

Natalie Miranda and Ethan John are happy and healthy 4-year-olds now – with two loving big sisters, and a little brother on the way.