Am I crazy for wanting MORE people at my birth?

TL;DR I want my next birth to include several family members in a celebration of new life and my husband wants it to be an intimate family moment. Is there any way we can have both??

24 weeks, planning my 2nd unmedicated birth. I'm a very social person, I love to have people around me in general and even chatting between contractions during my last labor. I had my midwife, doula, husband, and mom at my 1st labor. 

My husband expressed before the 1st birth that he wanted it to be a more familial and intimate moment with just the two of us and our son when he was born. My husband did the majority of emotional/physical support and my doula and mom were great to have for keeping me nourished, having coping mechanisms, and keep me moving during labor. When my husband went to the bathroom or to eat, my mom would step in during contractions once I hit active labor. I loved having my mom there for her to witness my transition into motherhood, she did an amazing job of seeing me and I felt her pride in me. I felt love all around and I wouldn't change anything about my 1st birth.

My husband remembers my mom being more of a sous chef. She likes to manage things. He mentioned when discussing plans for the 2nd birth that he felt like my mom was watching for his reaction during labor and birth which made him feel like he had to "perform" emotionally. My mom took more control of things once my son was born instead of letting my husband take charge. I think I didn't give her a "job" after birth and so she was mama bear/too helpful when we just needed to let the midwife/doula do the majority of helping. I like to think that if I set boundaries around my birth she would easily step back. 

Honestly, if I had my way and my husband was down for anything, I'd actually want all the same people PLUS my teenage sister and 2.5 yo son. Heck, even having my SIL there would be cool. Not just family members on my side. I learned how to be unafraid of birth because I got to see my mom give birth to my youngest siblings. I want to celebrate my power as a woman with my teenage sister and celebrate with my mother who gave me life. I can't help but feel like this is such a feminine and womanly moment. Why would I not want the women around me that I love (especially because I'm comfortable with them)?

I understand where my husband is coming from, this is also a very vulnerable moment for bonding with the new baby just the two of us. And he likes to stand up and be the solution (which he is good at doing) when things get hard during labor. He wants it to be a special moment for our small family unit. We live 10 minutes from my parents house, so I frequently rely on my family and spend time with them while he's working. To the point where he feels like we aren't doing a good job at creating our small family unit. I am Christian, so the phrase "leave and cleave" keeps coming to mind. Even though we've been married for 7 years, we've done a poor job at creating our own traditions so I know we need to start there. 

Posted Feb 7, 2026, 11:00 PM UTC

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