One Big Family

Gamma and Gampa (Ian's parents) had previously made plans to be here during Talia's birth (well, that was when we thought she was going to be born on schedule). So, when she decided to arrive 2 weeks earlier than the planned c-section, Gamma and Gampa still came to visit and help with the boys.

It was a huge help to have them both here. Gampa is a super handy-man and was busy helping with any and every household chore I couldn't do myself and Gamma kept the boys entertained picking out things to give to the kids for Samaritan's Purse and all sorts of activities. They took the boys to school each day and cleaned and cooked for our household while Ian and I focused on Talia and just getting caught up on some much needed sleep!

We were so grateful for their visit and Talia was spoiled with new outfits galore and all the hugs and kisses anyone could ask for. I don't think she was put down for more than a few minutes at a time. Someone always wanted to hold her! :)

During their visit, I attempted to get some family pictures taken in the back yard. Here are a few of the pictures from the session with the grandkiddos.

The boys did a good job with Gamma and Gampa.

It was a fun tradition to have story time right before bed each night and when Gamma and Gampa were in town they were requested to be the guest readers every night! 

Ian and I even got a date night! It was such a wonderful blessing to be able to get out and just have fun together. We putzed around at Buffalo Exchange downtown and headed out for dinner and a movie at the Alamo Drafthouse. It was great to be together just the two of us and remember how much we just love being together.

Welcome Home!

On Wed, the30th, we received the okay to head home from the hospital. I had been trying to keep myself up and moving because I remembered from the previous cesarians that it felt better to keep moving and not get stiff than if I sat in bed all day. So, after my doctor and the pediatrician said I seemed great and Talia was great we were headed home.

Ian and I missed the boys and were so excited to introduce them to their new baby sister! When we arrived home around 3pm the boys were all dressed in their Big Brother shirts Aunt Katie bought them and had the house all decorated for a Welcome Home Party.

MiMi and the boys had been preparing for our arrival home and there were pink flowers all over the house as well as pink balloons and presents to boot!

Elijah and Joaquin were so excited and they helped to open Talia's gifts.

The boys also each got a present from their baby sister to each of them. They got new books and special Halloween toys! 

It was a perfect way to share the excitement of a new baby and make the boys feel special as well.

That night MiMi got to hold her first granddaughter,

and so did each of the boys. We took a bath and got all clean and then the boys each got to hold their baby sister for the first time.

They were so happy and it was such a sweet moment for both of them.

Talia Sage Kirkland

On October 28th, our precious little girl made her appearance into the world. We were not expecting her until November 11th, but she apparently had other plans. I started to experience consistent labor contractions on Friday, October 25th and Ian and I arranged to have MiMi come stay with the boys so we could head to the hospital. 

However, after the nurses monitored my contractions for a few hours I was sent home with instructions to stay in bed (which is virtually impossible for a mother of a four and five year old) and to drink lots of water. Thinking that delivery of this little girl was still a long way off, Ian and I and the boys went back to our regular daily lives. 

It wasn't until I called my doctor on Monday to inform her about what happened on Friday (she was off on Friday and the doctor on call was the one that put me on bed rest and sent me home). My doctor was concerned about my constant contractions (still blasting me about every 4 minutes for the past 4 days straight) and told me to come to see her. 

Upon my arrival at the doctor, she told me these were definately labor contractions and my body had been preparing for the delivery of this little girl. I was now at 4 centimeters and she directed me over to the hospital at once. 

Of course I had told my mother I was fine the day before and sent her home, assuming we still had a couple weeks till this baby would be born, but boy was I wrong. Ian moved into 'taking care of business mode' and picked up the boys from school and while my mother drove the hour back over to our house to watch Elijah and Joaquin so Ian could meet me at the hospital. 

During my few hours waiting for Ian to arrive at the hospital and the doctor to get everything lined up for the c-section I got checked into my hospital room. Ironically it was the same room Ian and I were in on the previous Friday night.

The nurses remembered me and helped get my belly hooked up to monitor my continued and increasing contractions and my IV was quickly put in place so I would be able to be ready as soon as my doctor, Dr. Michel, was ready.  I was holding out on any pain medications, so I was anxious for Ian to get to the hospital and be by my side.

The nurses came in every hour to monitor my progress and by the time I dialated to 6 cm they called in Dr. Michel and said we needed to get this C-section on the road if we were going to get it done before this baby made her own apperance. (We knew we were going to have a scheduled C-section because this was my fourth cesarian.) 

The timing was perfect as Ian showed up, got suited up in his operating room garb and Dr. Michel came in for a final check up before heading into the OR. Dr. Michel has been with Ian and I for all our children's deliveries, so we were grateful to have her again and figured that was the reason Talia didn't arrive on the previous Friday when the doctor on call was not our actual doctor.

Here Ian is about to head into the operating room, just waiting for the okay that they had the spinal block in and I was ready for him to come in.

Once the spinal block was cleared and I was draped, they let Ian come in and he began capturing all the moments with the camera. I'm grateful for the tarp. Even though I had been through it three times before, I don't think I could handle seeing all that they do during the surgery.

This is a picture of Dr. Michel at work.

Talia grasped for the light as she was pulled out.

One of the sweet nurses caught this picture of Ian and I while they were washing Talia off and getting her ready to hand back over to us.

Daddy's first time holding his little girl's hand.

Such a precious moment.

A daddy's joy

Footprints

All the measurements taken. She weighed in at 6 pounds, 8.2 ounces, 18.5 inches long and was perfectly healthy in every way, even though they thought she was only 36 weeks. We never exactly knew her exact due date and how big she was because she kept changing things up. :)

This was the first time I got to hold Talia, my precious baby girl.

She was so perfect and content.

First time to open her eyes and look directly at her daddy.

After the tubal, we moved back into our room and MiMi was our first guest. Talia nursed like a champion and continued to amaze us.

Skin to skin time after she was born. I was elated, to say the least.

Talia's first bath.

I couldn't believe her little chubby cheeks and she has one dimple on her right side when she smiles!

My baby girl, Talia Sage.

Ian put a fade effect on this picture, but I love how she is holding my thumb while she sleeps. Those first few hours getting to meet her will forever be etched in my memory. We love you sweet girl and welcome you to this world. May you always be surrounded by Love!

Maternity Portraits #3

Our sweet family awaiting Talia Sage Kirkland, our last and final addition to the Kirkland Crew.

Mommy and her little girl

I kept the pink under-highlights in my hair just to pave the way for our little girly princess. 

Joaquin wanted to show off his belly too.

The boys are very excited to meet their little sister.

I'm blessed with such handsome little men. I can't wait to see what this little girl looks like!

The boys love kissing mommy's belly and talking to Talia and trying to get her to kick.

Joaquin calls it the "baby button"

I think the bun in the oven is done! :) We have 8 weeks left till her due date and I am already measuring 2 weeks ahead of schedule, so we will see when she decides to make her appearance.

And here is the color version of our little family picture. The household has been full of boys for so long, we are looking forward to a little balance. :) Daddy is super excited to have a little girl and I can't wait to hold her little hand! We love and cherish you already, Talia! Thank you for blessing us with your little spirit!

Monique and Josh's Visit

Every year since we have lived here in Texas, Monique Loy, a previous student of mine, has come to visit during her summer vacation. It is always a time that we all look forward to and we use it as a fun excuse to do all the fun Austin things that we don't always take advantage of when we live here.

This year, Monique and her fiancé, Josh, came to visit. One of our stops on a hot summer Saturday was Barton Springs natural aquifer pool. The boys love swimming in the shallow end and the 68 degree water that pools up from the underground cave is a refreshing blast against our 100 degree Texas summer heat.

The boys also enjoyed taking Monique and Josh to our local library. It has become a favorite of the boys throughout this summer to visit the library and each get to select 5 new books and 3 new DVD's from the shelves. This image is of Ian helping them with a cool "How to make Paper Airplanes" book that Elijah picked out.

Josh and Monique spent some extra afternoon time with Joaquin since he only goes to school till 1pm. Here they are reading one of the library books Joaquin selected.  The boys have really gotten to be little readers. 

Not only do we love to go to our local library for fun times reading, but our other local hot spot is the Austin book shop called The Book People. The boys love their story times because it is on risers and there is a secret tunnel the kids can crawl through underneath it. :) Plus there are all sorts of things to play dress up with, like Viking hats. 

One morning, we braved the line and took Monique and Josh to the "best barbecue in the nation" at Franklin's. And even though we had a crazy wait, I was happy to hear that they thought it was worth it in the end! :)

This was a picture I had to throw in there. Monique had a strange time being able to make it to the airport. The day she was scheduled to leave the plane had all sorts of mechanical issues and I was called back to pick her up from the airport to spend one more day with us. So, in the end, we all got an extra day with Monique. The boys were super excited but on Saturday after she left and all the excitement died down the boys crashed and burned and began to throw fits about 'Monique and Josh leaving before they got to do everything they wanted with them.' So, this was our Saturday family activity to keep them happy and occupied. :) The boys made patterns on their Dia De Los Muertos masks and we had fun playing "boo" around the house all day.  

We love you guys, Josh and Monique, and can't wait to be a part of your big wedding next year!

Joaquin starts back to Montessori

Since my last blog entry was about Elijah starting Kindergarten, I thought it only fair to follow up with an entry about Joaquin's school year.  Although he is a year younger than Elijah and won't be joining the 'full time academic crowd' till next year, he did, however, start at a new Montessori school this year.  

Ian and I decided to put him in Monday- Thursday half day classes at the Wee Wisdom Montessori School through our church, Unity Church of the Hills. He has been loving it! We were a little nervous at first because this is his first time being in a class without Elijah. The previous two years he was in Montessori with his brother and we weren't sure how he would take to being in a new school and not having his big brother by his side. 

We never should have worried. Joaquin is like a duck in water when it comes to social activities! By day three of class he already had a girlfriend and was hugging his teachers goodbye and telling them (and I quote) "thank you for loving on me", when we left each day.  Needless to say, he is having fun and very well adjusted.

Even though Joaquin loves school and always comes home saying he had "100 times fun" in his class, he is a stinker to get up in the morning. This is the best picture daddy got of him getting up for his first day of school! He will sulk and hide under the covers and pout and do just about everything he can to stay under those covers in the morning!

But, when he was finally up, he had a good attitude about going to meet all his new classmates and teacher. This picture was taken in our driveway before we headed to school on his first day.

And I just wanted to throw this picture in because it was a cute one. He is such a little ray of sunshine!  Ian and I were setting up the backdrop to take some maternity pictures when Joaquin ran in all dressed up in an outfit he picked out, complete with skull and crossbones tie and a fedora. I propped him up in front of the backdrop and asked him to pose for some lighting tests before we started to take the maternity portraits and this picture was just so adorable I had to include it.  :)

We love you, Joaquin! You are such an angel of blessing to us and we love watching you spread your wings in life!