Newborn and Family Pictures

 We were so lucky to be able to have updated family pictures made with our newest addition, Kinsley! I just adore this little family of ours and these pictures just give me all the feels! 

Strawberry Picking

 Each year it is our tradition to go strawberry picking. Back in the day, Blake and I would take Memommy with us. She is 94 years old and can't go with us anymore, so this year we took Joyner and Kinsley! We also took Memommy some of the strawberries for her to enjoy. Joyner also makes amazing strawberry jam that we share with our family. Even Blake likes the strawberry jam, which says a lot considering he is the pickiest eater. 

Everyone had a blast - the boys did a great job picking all of the strawberries. Kinsley and I soaked up the beautiful day and enjoyed sharing it as a family! I can't wait to see Kinsley at the strawberry patch when she can eat them :) I bet she eats them up just like Blake! 

Our Family is Complete

 And just like that ... we are a family of 4! We were able to come home and introduce Blake to Kinsley! He was SO excited and ready to jump in as a big brother. He loves holding her and he is so curious about the newborn life. So far things are so good having everyone at the house - I might just be sleep deprived, but this is just the best! 

Kinsley is here!!!!

 She is here... our Baby Kinsley is here. It was an amazing day, so let me start from the beginning...

I had a regularly scheduled appointment with my doctor - my 39 1/2 week check up. Everything was measuring ok and things were looking just fine, as usual. The doctor asked if I wanted my membranes swept - they say I was a great candidate for it since I was about 2-3 cm dilated and 80-90% effaced. We did the membrane sweep and the doctor said he felt very confident that we would have a baby by morning. That was magic to my ears! 

My appointment was around 11... so I went home afterwards and waited. I started to feel some minor contractions. They were about 10 minutes apart. We still had some waiting to do while I timed them - looking for a pattern. Joyner suggested that we go eat lunch at Shorty's while we waited and maybe go on a walk to keep the contractions going. I agreed in hopes that it would work. 

We made our way to Downtown Wake Forest and my contractions got closer together and more consistent. I didn't really feel like eating hot dogs while I was possibly going into labor, but I joined the boys. While they were eating my contractions got about 6-8 minutes apart. That is when I started to get a little nervous. I told the boys they needed to hurry up eating bc we might be going to the hospital!!! (Little did we know that yes, I was in active labor at Shorty's in Wake Forest. OMG!) 

Joyner still wanted to go on a walk after lunch and I had to draw the line there. I couldn't and I knew this was it. The second we left Shorty's I called the doctor and updated them about my contractions. They wanted me to come get checked before going to the hospital. My contractions were still very consistent and were getting more intense. I was sure I was going to the hospital so we called my dad to come and stay with Blake.

At the doctor they checked me and sure enough I was 4 cm and ready to go to the hospital. This was around 3-4pm. We got to the hospital (Wake Med) by 5. The doctor had called to let them know we were on the way, so we were admitted pretty quickly. I was so excited because my favorite doctor, Dr. Byrd, was on call and would be delivering Kinsley. 

We got admitted and they hooked me up to all the fluids and monitors. I was for sure ready to get the epidural going because the contractions were getting more intense. When they finally gave me the epidural it only took on one side. So, the nurses put this gigantic peanut pillow between my legs and rolled me on my side - in hopes that the medication would draw to the side that still needed to be numbed. For awhile I felt contractions only on one side, which was really weird. Finally it took and thank goodness because I did not want to experience labor only on one side! Ouch! 

Meanwhile - Joyner was there doing all the dad stuff... he was updating family, looking at the monitors, and playing on the wheely chair in the delivery room. Yes, he was having a blast. 

We waited for about 3 hours and the doctor finally came in to check me. I had progressed enough that I Was ready to push! Pretty quick, right?! I pushed for about 20-30 minutes and she came out! It was such an easy delivery and I loved having my all girl team to cheer me on all the way. Joyner stayed near my head and supported me from there. He did cut the cord. :) 

Kinsley arrived at 9:45pm! She was a beautiful 6 pounds and 8 ounces and was 20 1/2 inches long. She had a beautiful head of dark brown hair and she was so gorgeous. We were smitten from the start. 

Some of our favorite moments from the first 24 hours...

• There was a nurse there that did her little hat. She tied a bow on it and said "The bigger the bow, the closer to Jesus." We thought that was hilarious.
• Joyner wore his beach shirt that said "Suck Me, Shuck Me, Eat Me Raw". The nurses got a kick out of that.
• Dr. Byrd went to ECU. Joyner loved that.
• They put a little tag on all the babies so that an alarm will go off if they leave the floor. It is just a safety measure. When the moved us to our recovery room, Kinsley's tag got set off when they were rolling us in the hall. They had a police officer waiting in our room to check our tags and make sure we weren't stealing her. Haha. It was crazy and funny all at the same time.
• I had a hard time passing my placenta... it took longer for them to remove that than it did to have Kinsley. This wasn't a favorite moment but an interesting one. My tummy had a little trauma from that. I didn't know it then, but this would be part of what caused me major swelling later. 
• When getting her first check up - Kinsley held onto the stethoscope like she was doing it herself. So cute and the doctors said she might be a future nurse.  

We are so excited to have her home and as a part of our family. She completes us now! Lots of new and exciting adventures ahead with our sweet little girl as a part of our family. 

Last of the Bump....

 We have finally reached full term and I am more than ready to meet our baby girl! We have had some phases of contractions but they all seem to disappear after a few hours. There have been nights that I swore she was going to come and she didn't. She is a tease for sure. We can't wait for you to join us, Kinsley! Btw - my feet are crazy swollen and I can't get comfortable at all... so, sooner rather than later would be great. :) 

Easter Fun

 We had a great Easter today full of all of the fun Easter things! 

We dyed Easter Eggs....

We went on an Easter egg hunt...

The Easter Bunny came...

And we enjoyed time together as a family..

Happy Easter!