Paxton Joseph (Birth Story)

Friday, May 27th I woke up with a headache and mild contractions.I was 36 weeks and 6 days. I went about my morning, taking care of Parley, sending Cameron off to work. I kept monitoring how I was feeling for the next couple of hours. Around 10:30 things were getting more painful, and I needed to really sit down and count my contractions properly. Cameron came home from work and took Parley and I sat on the couch timing contractions from 11:30-12:30. Most were 6 minutes apart, with random contractions 4 minutes apart thrown in there. I had one at 12:05 that was the most painful and I knew right then it was officially the day! We had arranged with my brothers to take care of Parley, hospital bag was packed, and we called my mom and headed off!

I had to sit in patient administration for awhile as they updated all my information. I kept getting hot flashes and tried to sit as calm as possible, breathing through my contractions. They finally took me back to triage to change and get hooked up to monitors. I thought I would just die sitting in triage. I knew my body was changing quickly and knew there was no way they'd be sending me home. They checked my cervix and i was dilated to a 5. After that cervix check the pain kicked in, and I mean kicked in HARD. They decided to check me again and I jumped to a 7! I immediately started to panic inside. I wanted my epidural, and I wanted it NOW.

The hospital was waiting for my doctor to call them back and allow me to be admitted. I remember thinking how ridiculous that sounded...I was in full blown labor I don't need permission to be here!! He finally called and everything after that was such a blur. They immediately rolled me into a delivery room, and I remember things were just spinning. I felt like I had no control over my body or what I was saying. The anesthesiologist was amazing and was already in my room, set up and ready to go. They helped position me on the bed and my epidural was delivered. HALLELUJAH. This time around it was more painful than with Parley, but oh was I grateful to have it.

Then things started slowing down. I felt like myself again. Throughout my labor the nurse had me rotating on a peanut ball to help things move along. This labor was so incredible, I never got to that super super numb point that I did with Parley. I was able to move my own legs the whole time, which I loved so much. I'm so grateful for modern medicine. I was so happy I was able to be calm and more relaxed and at peace for this process.Cameron gave me a blessing for a healthy and safe delivery and that Paxton would be fully developed and healthy. Dr. Layton came in at 5 pm to check me again and break my water. When he was doing my cervix check my water broke! Such a weird feeling, same as with Parley. A big loud POP and gush of warm water. I was dilated to an 8 and he said he wouldn't be surprised if baby came in an hour! Then I started to feel a ton of pressure. I looked over at the monitor and sure enough, contraction. I told the nurse I felt like I needed to push and things moved quickly again! It was time! And amazingly enough I could feel each time I needed to push! I pushed hard through 2 contractions and our boy was here! Such a beautiful moment getting to see his sweet face for the first time. I couldn't believe we did it.

I tore the same little scar tissue from my delivery with Parley, so I was given one stitch to help that heal back. We did lots of skin to skin and it was wonderful. He latched on right away like a total champ and we had our first breastfeeding experience together. That moment was incredible. Paxton weighed in at 7 pounds 15 ounces! 20 and 3/4 inches long!

This past week with him has been bliss. He has brought such a sweet spirit with him, and you can just feel heaven is so near with him around. I truly have never felt more happiness than I have this last week. I have felt such a sense of fulfillment adding him to our family. He has the sweetest personality and I feel like I've known him forever. It's such a strange thing how that can happen so quickly. Just meeting your child for the first time and you can't remember what it was like without them. He completes me in so many ways and has filled so many voids and holes I have felt for a long time. Heavenly Father truly gave me what I needed, and I couldn't be more grateful.


Birth Video

Paxton Boy

So many thoughts, feelings, emotions to document this pregnancy, but I've done a horrible job of it! Chasing around a toddler, pregnant, and with all the changing going on in our lives it's definitely been a struggle, but I don't want to forget this precious time.

We found out we were pregnant October 31! I had been sensing some symptoms for a couple weeks but thought NOTHING of it. I had just had a checkup that week with my thyroid doctor and things were all over the place. He told me I was borderline PCOS and my thyroid levels had never been worse. We decided to switch up my medication and I went gluten/sugar free, and we had a game plan to get myself healthy! I was so emotional that appointment, with my biggest concern being fertility. I desperately wanted more babies and didn't know what all this meant for our future.

4 days before I tested positive Cameron got in a horrible car accident, one that absolutely should've left him majorly injured, if not dead. I count my blessings everyday that he survived because I couldn't imagine adding a new addition to our family without him. It brings tears to my eyes every time I think about it.

SO. Back to finding out! That morning (Saturday) was spent doing normal Saturday chores/grocery shopping, etc. I finally decided to take a pregnancy test and ran to the store to grab some, and then to a family's house in our ward who were moving and needed help cleaning their house. I spent some time there helping and then went home, in no rush to take the test. As soon as I tested it read pregnant INSTANTLY. Clear as day no question!

Fast forward to finding out the gender:) It's no secret to friends and family I've been dying for a boy. My first pregnancy (and basically my whole life) I have ached for a girl first. Something about wanting to do all those girly things with her that I never experienced in my sister-less family growing up! But ohhh after having her and enjoying all the lovely things that come with having a precious girl, I found myself absolutely in love with all things boy. My OB offered 14 week gender ultrasounds and you bet your bottom dollar I was all over that! Plus being 14 weeks the week of Christmas just made everything feel so magical-like it was meant to be! So we scheduled the appointment and I was a giddy mess. Now everything this pregnancy has been polar opposites to my pregnancy with Parley. I wasn't sick a single day with her and always felt so great! This time around I've had some nausea, and thrown up several times. I definitely still feel so blessed to feel as good as I have. So, the gender ultrasound! Baby's legs were closed THE WHOLE TIME. Nothing I did helped, so the tech had us schedule back, which wasn't for two more weeks because I was leaving town for a week. She did mention that she was 90% sure it was a girl, but that she wouldn't be confident until she was 100%. So we went two weeks thinking we were adding another precious girl! Definitely not what I thought, but I found myself excited and giddy!

So 16 weeks came and we went to our appointment and sure enough....BOY! The tears were instant. On the drive home we agreed his name would be Paxton and not a day goes by where I don't feel an insane amount of love and gratitude for this amazing gift. There's truly something about a mother's love for her son, and I have only experienced a smidge of what that means. Cameron is over the moon about having a son it is just so fun and fulfilling to be able to house this little guy.

I am currently 23 weeks and feeling like the end is so far away! If he's anything like his sister, I could deliver in May, but it still feels ages away! I am so giddy about labor and delivery, those moments with Parley were so special I can't wait to experience it again. Buying him little clothes has been such a dream, whoever said boys weren't as fun as girls were so wrong because this is just as fun! I have a good game plan set to make post partum a (hopefully) smoother experience this go around. Parley is so smitten with her brother, it's the best part of it all. She gives the ultrasound pictures and my belly kisses. She truly has no idea what's in store, but she definitely understands something, I see it in her eyes every time we talk about him.

It's safe to say we love you times a million, little Paxton.

Happy Birthday 'Deer' Parley!

Wowowowow time is flying. This weekend we celebrated Parley turning one! Her birthday is on Tuesday October 6 and I'm in shock/denial she's almost one. People warn you how fast it flies by but you never fully grasp it until that precious baby stage is gone and now she's a full blown toddler. I'll do an update post after her 12 month appointment this week since I haven't posted in awhile!! So for now here are a few party pictures! 

The whole set up turned out exactly how I envisioned it! 

My best friend Hannah came over to help me make her cake and I am so so happy with how it turned out! 

Parley went for the raspberries first, then dug in with her fingers. By the end of it she just went for it and just started biting the whole cake! 

So many of our amazing family and friends came and showered her with the best gifts. She is one lucky girl! 

Catch Up.

So clearly I'm not so good at this blog thing anymore. But I am on a mini roadtrip and my baby is fast asleep and I'm actually bored (what?!) so it's time for an update! Our Parley girl is 9 months now and time is just slipping away from me. We took some family pictures at a studio the other day and I love love love how they turned out! I'm still waiting for some more to come to me but I'll post a few of these for now! 

Her 9 month appointment was last week and she's 17 pounds and 27.5 inches! Can't believe she's gained 10 pounds since she was born. Ohh I miss my tiny newborn so much. But she is now the spunkiest thing and I can't get enough. 

She learned to crawl (finally) a few weeks ago. She never really cared to learn and would prefer standing, walking along the couch, or walking holding our hand, but now that she knows she can get places faster on her hands and knees, she's a cruiser. 

She cut her top teeth! It's so stinkin cute she loves to bite off pieces of food instead of gnawing on them. Even food she doesn't need to bite up, she still makes sure those little teeth chomp on them first! 

She loves food, loves baths, the car instantly puts her to sleep, which puts a damper on her actual nap time, I feel like I can't go anywhere! 

She is a mommies girl through and through, she's so clingy and I love it. But when her daddy comes home she has the biggest smile on her face! They're the best pals. She says "dada" all the time, and only "mama" when she's crying. She loooooves to wave at everyone she sees!

I'm thinking of starting up a YouTube account to post all the videos I take of her so that family and friends can see! It takes forever sending them to everyone and I don't want my Facebook and Instagram to be flooded with her videos!  

We are currently in Utah visiting my dad and have had so much fun! We go home tomorrow so when we are all settled I will post pictures of everything we've done! Stay tuned! 

•6 months•

No idea where the last six months have gone! Last conference weekend I went into labor with our sweet pea and this conference weekend I was soaking up the talks while playing with my girl! 

Parley had her 6 month appt on Friday and is 15.4 pounds, 25.5 inches long, and her head is 17 inches. 

So far Parley loves butternut squash, green beans, pumpkin, Apple, banana and kiwi! Cameron and I love to make her food-it has been so much fun! 

Parley sleeps through the night unswaddled, but wakes up a couple of times for her pacifier, I think she traded the comfort of the swaddle to the comfort of her paci because she used to sleep great without it! 

She is finally fitting in size 2 diapers! Yay! We are doing 0-3 and 3-6 month clothing. 3-6 fits her length perfectly but is usually too loose but I couldn't wait any longer to put her in those cute clothes!

We are going strong with a healthy little baby still! Not a sick day in her life and we are oh so grateful

Her eyes are a light grayish blue, and her hair is pretty much every color at this point! Brown, blonde fuzz, and red! She totally has ginger eyebrows and I think it's the cutest thing ever. 

She is so curious about everything. She loves the bath, tummy time, any toy (or wrapper) you give her. Around 4 months she started to cry whenever someone held her besides me or Cam but I'm thinking that stage is over! She hates hates hates when I leave the room-I pretty much always have to be in line of sight! 

At 5 months she started to spit up a couple times a day which is so weird because that is totally new for us! She is a little drool monster with those teeth coming in! She looooves when people clap, she will make a concerned look at your hands and talk to them! Same with snapping, it cracks us up! 

Look at her pose!! I mean really?! 

Since she started to find her voice she just likes to yell yell yell. Cam thinks it's so cute, when we're in public I get so embarrassed. Seriously she totally sounds like she's yelling and grunting at you. 

This stage is so much fun! 

Blessing day 12.7.14

It's taken me quite awhile to document this day but wow what a beautiful day it was! Our ward meets at 9 AM and our family and friends all drove over to be here with us. Cameron did a beautiful job! In the circle was Cameron, his dad Robert, Grandpa Gibson, my brother Kasey, his Uncles Evan and Darryl, cousin Kyle, and his best friends Parker Heywood and Scott Williams.Afterwards we got together at our house for cinnamon rolls, biscuits and gravy, and juice. Kinda stressful having a bunch of people over but it was such a hit! The food was great and Parley was oohed and ahhed over by everyone! Parley wore the dress I was blessed in and looked beautiful in it! She was also wrapped in a blanket that used to be mine too! She's so petite she didn't quite fill out the dress like I did, but I loved the sentimental part of it. Mushy gushy, I know I know. 

2 months!

Parley is 2 months and I am loving every second with this fun girl! 

We had so much fun celebrating her very first Thanksgiving and are now head over heels in love with having a baby around Christmas time! Everything is so much more magical with her here.

She is changing so much!! She likes to sit like a big girl in her Bumbo seat. She is so alert and observant. She follows people with her eyes and loves to stare at anyone who is close by! 

She sleeps pretty good, only wakes up once through the night! Lately she has been getting super fussy around 6 pm and it lasts a couple hours. Dr says she's just going through a phase! 

She is still a tiny little thing! Her appointment she weighed 10 lbs 4 oz. exactly one pound heavier than her 1 month checkup! And she is 22 inches long. She's a long skinny girl! She is too big for newborn diapers but too small for size 1's so we are just dealing with the size 1's and everyday I pray for no blowouts!;) I had to pack away a couple of newborn sleepers because she is too long for them. Otherwise she is still in newborn and I dress her in 0-3 anyways because she just looks too cute in them! 

She is such a good baby! Today showed the perfect example of seriously how good she is. I fed her, burped her, and massaged her little legs where she got her shots. I could tell she was still tender and started to fuss so I gave her some infant Tylenol that the doc recommended. It was time for a bath and I wanted to bathe with her so I undressed us both and I'm standing in the tub holding her about to turn the water on and she threw up all over me!! I laughed because unlike all the other times she spits up, this made for easy cleanup. She waited for the perfect time! 

We picked our first tree after her appointment and decorated the whole house last night! This weekend is her blessing day and we have family coming into town, 2 family photoshoots, and lots of family and friends coming over after her blessing so I needed to get this house in order! 

Parley loves to stretch-my mom is always saying she's never seen a baby stretch so much and I think it's adorable. She's so funny and flexes all her toes and it cracks me up. 

Ohh I love those feet. 

Okay I could go on and on so I'll save the rest for another time:) 

We adore you sweet girl!