Sydney's Easter Shoot:
and a few extras:
with love,
kristen, ryan, sydney & brigsby
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Friday, April 22, 2011
one week :)
Our first week as a family of four (can not forget Brigsby!) has flown by so fast! I understand why people tell you to cherish every moment - which we have been doing. Every diaper change and late night feeding. Sydney has been the biggest blessing in our lives and I cant imagine life without her in it.
We had her newborn photos taken today - I cant wait to see the rest. Our photographer gave us a sneak peek at a photo and it is so lovely.
I have been working on my photography as well - Sydney is going to grow up with a camera around her I have a feeling! Maybe she will find a passion in photos like I do!
Here is one of the photos I had taken of her:
I have two gift cards to purchase canvases with - I think I may use one with this photo! It is a bit exciting to have taken something that I feel is worthy enough to put on a canvas! But enough about me - I melt every time I look at her, or see a photo of her. I think Dad does too (i know he does!). I am happy that Ryan is home for another week - it has given us time to mold into our new family and figure things out together!
with love,
Kristen, Ryan, Sydney & Brigsby
Monday, April 18, 2011
04.15.11
We welcomed Sydney Elizabeth Lynn into the world at 5:07pm on the 15th of April - just one day shy of her due date!
It was intense and amazing - and something I would do all over again in a heartbeat despite how hard it was at times - she is perfect in every way and I cant imagine life without her now.
And Brigsby has been great with her - a little curious (well a lot!) but he loves to lay near her or right next to us when we are holding her. I think they will get a long just great :)
here is the birth story:
I figured, while I lay here unable to sleep at 7:29am (we got a full nights rest last night, as did Sydney!) I would write out the events of Thursday-Friday.
Thursday I started feeling cramping right from waking up in the morning. It continued to worsen, so I called my OBs office and had my Drs appointment moved up to 11 from 2pm and left work after only 1 hour of being there. I was not seen until after 12 due to multiple births going on at the hospital next door. Anyways, saw my OB, and I was 0 station and about 3cm dilated. I was told to go home and relax and time any contractions as I was either in early labor, or it was false labor. So, I went home, got some rest and cramping and contractions stopped all together for a few hours. I was pretty bummed. They did start up again and around 11:45pm I got up to use the bathroom and my water broke (I will be honest and say I wasnt sure at first if that is what it was). So I hopped onto the computer to waste some time. Cramping came on stronger, and contractions. I went back downstairs to tell Ryan what I thought happened (he was sleeping as he was planning on going to work in the morning) and my water again started gushing out. So we got up, called the hospital and waited for them to return our call. I showered and we got everything together to go.
We checked into Unity just after 2am and got settled into our room. We walked onto the L&D floor laughing about my pants being a little wet - I think we were both a little nervous but I was glad we were still able to laugh about things!
Contractions were becoming more frequent and for a few hours I was tolerating them fine. I did choose to have an IV narcotic to help take the edge off - it was a low dose that is re-administered every hour as it wore off. I wanted the option of going back to nothing.
Things changed after a few hours and contractions felt like they were in my back, instead of in the front. The OB on call (who was supposed to be my primary but then was changed (I was sad for a bit)) checked me and determined that Sydney was now "sunny side up" and I was indeed having back labor. That scared me as I knew that it was just that much more painful. I opted for an epidural almost instantly after that, as the pain became almost unbearable. (I will take a moment here to give Ryan all the credit in the world for making sure that I had what I needed and was as comfortable as I could have been through out the entire thing - a lot of times just doing thing w/o me asking!). Once the epidural kicked in - the world was good again.
I had one more surprise coming to me - after my epidural was done I was told my primary OB was working at the office next door and offered to come over to deliver Sydney for us! I was so excited, I really like my OB and it was the same man who delivered me 27 years ago!
Because I was so relaxed I dilated pretty quickly to 10 and at 1:35pm I was pushing. Everything was going as expected but I kept a close eye on the clock. A few times Ryan tried blocking it from me :) The OB prior had talked about trying to turn Sydney, I dont think that ever happened. Once we got close, my primary OB came over and stayed with us until the end. Sydney gave me a good run and finally made her entrance at 5:07pm! Over 3.5 hours of hard continuous pushing - sometimes with no breaks between contractions, with less than 3 hours of sleep - was rough. But worth it. Totally worth it. Even though she left me a little beat up - which I will spare the details of.
She arrived with a head of beautiful hair with random curls and big blue eyes. Ryan says she has my eyes, nose and chin. She is very alert and loves staring. She hates having her hands restrained in a swaddle and always seems to have one hand by her face. I was told she came out with a hand near her face as well! She has a great grip and grabs onto anything.
I think that about says it all. We are so blessed and SO in love with her. Its something you cant put into words.
Sydney was 6lbs 12 oz. 20.50 inches long
Born 04/15/11
and her first monthly photo:
Thursday I started feeling cramping right from waking up in the morning. It continued to worsen, so I called my OBs office and had my Drs appointment moved up to 11 from 2pm and left work after only 1 hour of being there. I was not seen until after 12 due to multiple births going on at the hospital next door. Anyways, saw my OB, and I was 0 station and about 3cm dilated. I was told to go home and relax and time any contractions as I was either in early labor, or it was false labor. So, I went home, got some rest and cramping and contractions stopped all together for a few hours. I was pretty bummed. They did start up again and around 11:45pm I got up to use the bathroom and my water broke (I will be honest and say I wasnt sure at first if that is what it was). So I hopped onto the computer to waste some time. Cramping came on stronger, and contractions. I went back downstairs to tell Ryan what I thought happened (he was sleeping as he was planning on going to work in the morning) and my water again started gushing out. So we got up, called the hospital and waited for them to return our call. I showered and we got everything together to go.
We checked into Unity just after 2am and got settled into our room. We walked onto the L&D floor laughing about my pants being a little wet - I think we were both a little nervous but I was glad we were still able to laugh about things!
Contractions were becoming more frequent and for a few hours I was tolerating them fine. I did choose to have an IV narcotic to help take the edge off - it was a low dose that is re-administered every hour as it wore off. I wanted the option of going back to nothing.
Things changed after a few hours and contractions felt like they were in my back, instead of in the front. The OB on call (who was supposed to be my primary but then was changed (I was sad for a bit)) checked me and determined that Sydney was now "sunny side up" and I was indeed having back labor. That scared me as I knew that it was just that much more painful. I opted for an epidural almost instantly after that, as the pain became almost unbearable. (I will take a moment here to give Ryan all the credit in the world for making sure that I had what I needed and was as comfortable as I could have been through out the entire thing - a lot of times just doing thing w/o me asking!). Once the epidural kicked in - the world was good again.
I had one more surprise coming to me - after my epidural was done I was told my primary OB was working at the office next door and offered to come over to deliver Sydney for us! I was so excited, I really like my OB and it was the same man who delivered me 27 years ago!
Because I was so relaxed I dilated pretty quickly to 10 and at 1:35pm I was pushing. Everything was going as expected but I kept a close eye on the clock. A few times Ryan tried blocking it from me :) The OB prior had talked about trying to turn Sydney, I dont think that ever happened. Once we got close, my primary OB came over and stayed with us until the end. Sydney gave me a good run and finally made her entrance at 5:07pm! Over 3.5 hours of hard continuous pushing - sometimes with no breaks between contractions, with less than 3 hours of sleep - was rough. But worth it. Totally worth it. Even though she left me a little beat up - which I will spare the details of.
She arrived with a head of beautiful hair with random curls and big blue eyes. Ryan says she has my eyes, nose and chin. She is very alert and loves staring. She hates having her hands restrained in a swaddle and always seems to have one hand by her face. I was told she came out with a hand near her face as well! She has a great grip and grabs onto anything.
I think that about says it all. We are so blessed and SO in love with her. Its something you cant put into words.
Sydney was 6lbs 12 oz. 20.50 inches long
Born 04/15/11
and her first monthly photo:
with love,
Kristen, Ryan, Sydney & Brigsby
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Dear Sydney
Dear Sydney,
Today I am 39 weeks and 3 days pregnant with you. This journey has been an amazing one. In the beginning, I was only struck with nausea. No throwing up for this momma. I thank you for that one if you had anything to do with it. Sure, not being able to go into the fridge for 17 weeks was semi-annoying (to both me and your father) but it was worth it.
I have not been at all anxious or ready for you to be here - up until now. Do not get me wrong, I have always looked forward to do the day I would meet you as an "outside baby", but I have always been content waiting for that day to come. Now with only 4 days until your expected due date - well, my patience has pretty much expired. Please do not get too comfortable in there - because with every passing day I am becoming that much more uncomfortable. But it is not anything I would not deal with for you.
I have not been at all anxious or ready for you to be here - up until now. Do not get me wrong, I have always looked forward to do the day I would meet you as an "outside baby", but I have always been content waiting for that day to come. Now with only 4 days until your expected due date - well, my patience has pretty much expired. Please do not get too comfortable in there - because with every passing day I am becoming that much more uncomfortable. But it is not anything I would not deal with for you.
We have your room all ready for you - even though you will not be sleeping in there right away. We also have your temporary sleeping arrangements set up in our room, along with the glider made by your great-great grandpa. It is all ready in anticipation for you. Dad also got his affairs in order and packed his hospital bag - I think he is starting to get nervous. It is really cute.
On Friday had anyone asked, I would have told them I thought this past weekend you would have made your appearance. But, you decided to hold back and wait it out. I am okay with that. It must be pretty comfortable if you want to continue allowing me to lightly jog the neighborhood with Brigsby, and run up and down our stairs multiple times in a row. If it isn't comfortable - sorry about that. I was just thinking you might need a small dose of motivation to come into the world.
A few of my hopes for you (and these are pretty basic, and just a few). I hope you have your dad's temper. I can get pretty spicy - but I think over the past few years I have settled that down a touch - your dad says so at least. But he could be just telling me that to fill my head. Your dad is pretty level-headed - and he keeps me that way most days, while still allowing me to dream. It's a perfect balance.
I hope you have my nose and feet - because they are cute. Yeah, I am sort of vain that way - but really they are. Eyes - take your pick. You cant go wrong with either of our eyes. I hope you have a mix of our senses of humor - I like to think we are pretty funny people. I hope you can sit back and listen to others but I hope you never sacrifice yourself when you need someone to listen to your fears and dreams. I will always be here for you when you need someone to listen and no one else will.
I hope you find a sport you love. Tennis, softball, dance, gymnastics - something you love to do. I bet your dad will be first in line to coach your first t-ball team (with me 2nd in line). If you dance - I cant wait to buy you your first leotard and ballet slippers and watch your dad as he sits through your first dance recital as you spin the wrong way and maybe even cry on stage because the lights are so bright and you can not see us in the audience. But trust me - we will always be there watching and cheering you on - no matter what you choose to do.
I wonder if you will be left or right handed. I am left-handed, your dad is right handed. If I had to guess, with how much you loved hanging out on my right side this entire time, that might be your thing - but who really knows!
I think it is time for me to get going with preparing dinner, but I wanted to write a few of these things down.
We cant wait to meet you and we hope it is soon!
We cant wait to meet you and we hope it is soon!
With love,
Kristen, Ryan & Brigsby
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Sydney's Nursery
Is complete. And I am in love with it. I hope she loves it just as much someday. It took a lot of work and collaboration on things - but every detail was hand picked to be where it is and I do not believe there is anything I would change!
(the wall is actually bright orange, not a red, just had a difficult time with processing the photos)
(the wall is actually bright orange, not a red, just had a difficult time with processing the photos)
 |
| view from the door |
 |
| mirror - i painted the frame |
 |
| crib. you can see my old wicker toy chest in the back. her grandma made her the stuffed owl and mobile. her great-grandma made the crib skirt! |
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| her awesome closet |
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| mobile her grandma made for her |
a final before/after (almost from the same angle):
Again, I can not express how in LOVE with this room I am, and I think Ryan loves it too - because it is not all pink!!
with love,
Kristen, Ryan, Sydney & Brigsby
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