A New Arrival

Hayden Parker Kirby was due February 12, 2011.  He came to us a whole 2 weeks early!  He was such a surprise.  


Here's the story:


I went in for my weekly appointment with my doctor at 37 weeks, 6 days.  It was another normal appointment for me.  I hadn't really been feeling any contractions (which was weird because I had been getting them for months).  The doctor checked me and was a little startled.  He asked, "Have you been having any contractions today?"  When I replied, "No," he hooked me up to a monitor and told me at was dilated to 4.5 centimeters and 75% effaced!  That kind of put me in a surreal state-of-mind.  I was supposed to have 2 weeks still!


I was monitored for about 30 minutes.  Sure enough, I was having contractions and the baby was handling them really well, however I couldn't feel the contractions one bit!  As I left the office, the doctor told me to stay nearby, as he would probably see me again soon.  YIKES!  


I called Paul right away and told him what was happening.  He asked, "What does 4.5 centimeters mean?"  I explained that, at 10, you're ready to push.  That put things into perspective for him.  I got off the phone and ran a few errands in town (while I still had time) and went home to wait.


Paul was working in Twin Falls that day which is about 3 hours away from Rexburg.  We were both so nervous that I would go into labor that day and he would miss the whole thing.  When I got home from running errands, I started getting contractions and thought that this was it---the baby is coming!  I called Paul and told him he needed to come home. He started the long drive but didn't get home until about 5:30.  That whole day waiting for him was just horrible.  I was so nervous and anxious!  The second he walked through the door though, I calmed down and the contractions stopped.  


On Sunday morning, I went into labor.  The contractions came all of a sudden and were so painful that I knew this was it!  We raced to the hospital and, after what seemed like FOREVER, were admitted at about noon.  The next couple of hours were painful.  I had asked for an epidural as soon as possible, but due to an anesthetic emergency in the E.R., I would have to wait a few hours.  My doctor gave me an I.V. drug to take the edge off of my contractions.  I could still feel them (especially in my back), but they were manageable.  Paul thought I was HILARIOUS on the drug.  He said that I kept giggling and talking really softly.  At one point, I said to him, "Am I talking really loud?  I feel like I'm talking really loud!"  Apparently, I was pretty much whispering.  He just laughed at me!


Finally at 5pm (that's right, I had to wait for FIVE hours), the anesthesiologist came in.  I was SOOO grateful when he walked into the room.  My new best friend, Jared!  Ha ha.  Paul sat with me on my hospital bed as Jared administered the drug.  Soon I felt sooo much better. 


At about 8pm I was at 7 cm and the doctor started pushing Pitocin.  Some time later that night, the doctor broke my water and about 30 minutes later, I was at about 9.5 cm.  We were so close!  At this point, the nurse started teaching me how to push and was shocked by how fast I learned.  After 9 pushes, she called the doctor to come in and deliver the baby.


One problem...the doctor had been called to an emergency in the E.R.  Have I ever mentioned that I now HATE the E.R.?  He could not come and deliver me.  The nurse had me "labor down" which means lie in bed and let the contractions come, but don't push.  yeah...DON'T PUSH!  Even though I had an epidural, the pain was excruciating!  Hayden wanted to come and there was so much pressure that, after 45 minutes, I couldn't take it.  I started crying because I was so frustrated!  I didn't care who delivered Hayden...but I wanted him out!  The nurse was so angry with my doctor.  She called him and had him in my room within 2 minutes.  The second I saw him walk in the door, I started pushing.  He was still putting on a new gown.  He rushed over and, within 1 minute of him coming to my room, Hayden was born.  So crazy!  


The nurse put Hayden on my chest and I just didn't understand that he was now mine!  It was so strange to have a new baby.  I kind of patted his head and looked at him and then let the nurse take him to clean him off.  Awkward first meeting!  Paul got to cut Hayden's umbilical cord (which he thought was awesome and weird).  Hayden ended up weighing 8lbs 5oz, and measuring 21in long.  How crazy is that?!?  I'm so glad that he came early!




I think we were both in shock that I had actually given birth and that we now have a son.  The whole experience was hard, amazing, shocking....the best word I can come up with is that it was traumatizing.  Good trauma and bad!  Once the dust settled a little bit, we realized that having Hayden in our lives makes everything complete.  We just can't wait for him to start growing a personality and turning into the man that he will someday be.


A few hospital pictures:

Me holding Hayden in the Mother and Baby Unit at the Hospital.

My cute lil boy!  The nurse had taken him for his first PKU test and apparently he got upset and spit up on his hat.  So the nurse gave him this one---it was BRIGHT yellow (as you can see), and so big that it wouldn't stay on his head.  

Lesley came to the hospital to visit us.  She stayed for a couple of hours while Paul ran errands in town.  He also drove down to Pocatello (about an hour drive) to pick up our new couches and ottoman!  (I swear, babies prompt such expensive spending!  We bought a second car, house, washer and dryer, and couches and an ottoman to prepare for Hayden coming!)

Paul was sooo excited to hold Hayden.  He called his family right away to tell them the good news!

Grandma Sutton (Paul's Grandma) came to visit Hayden.

Can you just see Paul's excitement?!?

Apparently Hayden was really comfortable in that position!

This is my FAVORITE picture of Hayden in the hospital.  He HATED to be undressed or have his diaper changed, but my sister Deena called and wanted to hear him cry.  I undressed Hayden and Lesley snapped this picture!

Catching Up: The only Souvenir we Brought Back from our Honeymoon...

I know it's crazy, but we didn't bring a single thing back from Mexico when we went on our honeymoon.  It made getting through customs a breeze, although I think the customs agent was a little shocked.  Oh well!  

Well, there was one little thing that we brought back with us.....

Hayden's sonogram.

We found out that I was pregnant when I was about 5 weeks along.  We were so shocked!  It took Paul and I a while to come around to the idea, but soon enough we were both sooo excited.  We even got to shock our dad's---for father's day we sent our dads cards.  On the inside, there was a baby footprint that announced their present was another grandchild to be arriving in February of 2011.  

We got a few excited phone calls the day they got their cards!!

Not too long after discovering I was pregnant, Paul and I decided on a name for our baby.  I was surprised by how easy it came to us.  Paul suggested "Hayden" and I fell in love with it!  For some reason, it just fit.  Then I suggested his middle name be "Parker".  Paul didn't really get it at first, but I told him I picked it because he grew up in Parker, Colorado.  After that, it was set:  Our baby's name (if a boy) would be Hayden Parker Kirby.

...At 20 weeks, we found out the baby was a boy!!!!  

Catching Up: Memorial Day!

For Memorial Day, Paul, Lesley, and I made the drive from Rexburg to Boise....about 4.5 hours.  Paul got off late that night so we didn't get into Boise until 1:30am!  We were so tired by the time we got to bed.  

Sweet Paul fast asleep (notice my pink princess blanket?!?)

The next day, we went to Raging Waters water park, and a military museum with my parents and Calvin.  We had a lot of fun, but made some not-so-great choices.  It wasn't too hot or sunny, so Paul and I didn't wear sunscreen.  This is what happened:

Lobster!

Yeah, the sunburns we both got didn't feel to good, and ended up not too pretty in the next couple of days.  We were both peeling and itchy.  

Calvin and Lesley.  This photo cracks me up---the lens on Calvin's camera is still on!

The boys had a ton of fun at the military museum.  Apparently my dad had always wanted to go, but with 6 girls protesting the trip, this was his first time going.  He had Paul and Calvin on his side, and decided that a "tie" in the voting system was good enough.  So we went.  Actually, it ended up being really fun for us all and I'm glad we made time to go.

Paul on top of a tank!

A really big bullet.

Me without makeup....

Paul was so excited to get to play with this big gun!

Don't tell Mandy, but I told Calvin to aim his gun at me and act like he was shooting me!  Oops.  I don't know what happened to it, though...

Overall, and fun vacation with the fam!

Catching Up: A Few Reception Photos

rexburg reception:
Ok, I promise the wedding part of Paul and my life is almost over!  Ha ha...sorry, I know it's probably getting old by now.  These first photos area time lapse of Paul and I "gently" feeding each other cake.

All is good...

and then I feel Paul is going to be naughty, so I leaned my head back to minimize the damage.

Sure enough....he went in for the kill (so I did too!)

We survived our first fight as a married couple!  Yay!!!  

Paul got cake alllllll over my face and dress, so he helped clean me off.  At least he learned SOMETHING from his mom!  (Just kidding Bonnie!)

And of course this was the top of our beautiful cake.  It was SOOO good.  

I love this lil boy!  My nephew Ammon is just...in his own world.

And of course, the get-away truck.   

After getting in the truck, it was time to start our married life!  Ok....the honeymoon...but It has been one amazing journey!


honeymoon:
We got married and made our escape to the Hilton in Idaho Falls.  It's right by the Idaho Falls Temple and the area is gorgeous!  We opened up all of our cards that night and reveled in all of the fun gift cards and cash we got.  Fun night!  


The next day we left for the Salt Lake Airport, destination:  Florida.  We went on a cruise (courtesy of Paul's parents!) to the Florida keys, and Cozumel, Mexico.  Here are some pictures for you!

Beautiful water.

I LOVE this picture of Paul!  He looks so sweet.  Ha ha, he was probably feeling sick.  After the long flights and then getting on the boat, he didn't feel the greatest.  Poor boy!  Doesn't he look cute in his robe though?  We had matching robes :)

Our ship---The Imagination---docked in Mexico.

And of course we had to stop in Mexico at the Three Amigos Cafe!  Awwwe.....look how skinny I was....

When we got back to Florida, we got on another plane and flew back to Vancouver to get ready for our 2nd reception.  I took Paul to Fort Vancouver and the Pearson Air Museum to show him some cool parts of my hometown.  I think he enjoyed it!

Ha ha, he found the canon at Fort Vancouver and HAD to take a picture by it.  

Me by the sign....apparently all historic sites were free that day, so we didn't even have to pay admission fees!  SWEET.

Ok, this would be Paul at the Pearson Air Museum.  My husband is 12.  

vancouver reception:
After our honeymoon we had another reception.  Crazy, right?  I know, but we have a lot of friends that wanted to come.  It ended up being nice to go to Vancouver again and see old friends....and of course my family again.  I know there are some pictures out there somewhere of this reception, but it's going to take me a little while to find them.  Sorry :(


We had our reception, which turned out really well, and then left the next day to make the drive back home to Idaho.  It had been such a long week---by the time we got home, we were dead tired!  Our apartment was an absolute disaster (because we hadn't really had any time to unpack before we had to leave for our flights). We didn't even have a shower curtain!  Showering the next morning was quite interesting.  My amazing husband somehow made it into work that day while I stayed home and tried to get things organized.  On top of that, school would start in the next couple of days, so I had to go buy my books, school supplies, and groceries before all of the new freshmen got to town and cleaned out the local Walmart.  WHEW!  It was such an amazing experience, but I'm glad it's been conquered!!

Catching Up: Wedding Day!

My parfait.

On April 10th we were married.  We got engaged in 7 weeks, but had a 6 month engagement.  It felt like it took forever to get to April!  That winter in Idaho felt especially cold and dreary---I was so glad to see it go.  April 10th was the last day of Winter Semester at school.  I had barely finished taking my finals the day before, and was busy trying to get my apartment clean so that I could check out of housing.  The next morning, my cousin Jamie came over to my apartment to do my hair while my sister ran to McDonald's to grab me a yogurt parfait and orange juice.


Like I said, Jamie came over and did my hair.  She did such an amazing job!  I was so happy she helped me out.  When I asked her to do my hair, I gave Jamie a few pictures of what I was looking for.  Here were my ideas:

Jamie kind of combined the two looks and my hair turned out like this:

Didn't she do an awesome job?!?  I think so.  I loved my hair.  Thanks Jamie!!

After the craziness of the morning, Paul picked me up and we headed for the temple.  I wore a black and white dress to the temple but forgot a slip!  Needless to say, I was a little uneasy that morning!  It was windy and....things could have turned out badly.  Thankfully, all went well.  

After being sealed in the Rexburg Temple to Paul, we came out for pictures with family!  It was a happy day.

Just exiting the temple after being sealed.

Outside of the temple.

This was kind of a candid shot---I found that candids usually ended up being my favorites!

This is my FAVORITE picture from our wedding day.  We walked across the street from the temple to the university gardens and took pictures.  I especially liked this picture because, on our first date, Paul and I sat on this swing and talked for almost an hour.  It was a great night and meant a lot to be able to take a wedding picture in this spot.

Catching Up: Engagement Photos

In February, Paul and I went and took pictures for our wedding announcements.  We went with Kim of Courthouse Basement Design.  She did a great job taking our pictures and designing our announcements.  She also gave us a really reasonable deal.  Not that I'm trying to advertise for her, but if you're looking for a good designer and good prices, check out her website :)


Ok, so here are a bunch of the photos that she took of us.  Enjoy :)

I have NO idea what I was looking at...

We asked Kim to put some of our pictures in sepia tones.  I think they looked really cool!

This picture was like near the very end of the photo shoot.  We were so stinking cold by then!

I think it was Paul's idea for him to dip me.  I was worried about this pose....but it turned out to be my favorite!

Kim had us do a kissing pose.  We were so embarrassed because we are not fans of PDA (Public Displays of  Affection), but again, the photo turned out to be one of my favorites,

Ha ha, Paul surprised me with a kiss at the end of the shoot!

All in all, we were really happy with the pictures.  Not long after we got our pictures back, we had Kim design our announcements and we were so happy with them!