Ryder Shane Bulkley

On Monday February 21 I woke up feeling completely normal. Shane had the day off so we ran around getting some last minute things for the baby. We met my dad and Bri for lunch and during lunch I had mentioned that I started feeling a little different. That night we had family night at our house and we had a BBQ with my family. By that time I had started having contractions and my mom and my sister started timing them. Some were close some were far. I just couldn't believe that this could be the real thing still being about two weeks from my due date. I was supposed to go to work that next day as this would be my last week of work. That next morning at about 2 a.m. I woke up with some really strong contractions, I woke up Shane. We were both going crazy, was this the real thing or not?! We tried to get sleep that night but failed because we were too excited. We were timing them but they were still close and then they would get further apart. I decided not to go into work that day because in the morning they were still pretty strong. I had to twist Shane's arm to go to school. I told him to keep his phone on and I would call him if they got any closer but I really didn't think I was going to have the baby that day. My friend Jamie came over and helped me do some last minute laundry, packing my bag and just helped me pass the time. I was getting frustrated because it felt like my contractions were getting further and further apart. I kept thinking to myself that this must not be the real deal! Bri happened to get off work early that day and I asked if she would come pick up Ty so Shane and I could go on an intense walk to see if that would get anything started. We decided to walk to Walmart because I wanted to get some travel size things for my bag. Soap, shampoo, etc. There is a pretty steep hill that you have to go up in order to get there and I was fine on the way there but was more sore coming down the hill on the way back. We stopped at the grocery store to pick up something for dinner and headed home. Bri came home with Ty shortly after and we were all sitting at the bar while Shane made my favorite dinner. We were just talking and joking about how we wished my water would just break! Within 5 minutes I started screaming because my water did indeed break! My water didn't break withTylie so it was a feeling I definitely will never forget! We were all screaming and laughing and running around crazy. My parents came over and Jeff came to stay with Tylie for the night. I took a shower, ate a quick bit and we were off!

It was after hours so we had to check in through the E.R.

Here is our support crew...

and the camera lady.

When I arrived and they checked me for the first time I was to a 4, not in a ton of pain yet. My nurse (who I love and adore) asked me what my birth plan was, to which I responded epidural, to which she responded, good! She asked when I wanted it. I thought you had to be to a 6 before receiving it but to my surprise you sure didn't. She ordered it right away...heaven!

Ryder Shane Bulkley graced us with his presence at 5:26 a.m. weighing in at 7 lbs & 19.5 inches in length. Here are a few pictures from his first seconds of life...

Our hospital now does the "Golden Hour" which is also different from when I had Tylie.

So in Love!

After the Golden Hour he got all cleaned up.

Okay, okay I LOVED my nurse! I. Love. Her. She was amazing! Her name is Megan and she was the best! I always say that during labor, your nurse can make or break your whole experience. Seriously they do EVERYTHING! Call me rude, but in my opinion they should get paid more than the doc! Can you tell I was not impressed with the doctor that was on call?! Well, I wasn't! Megan, I will never forget you and how you kick a*@ at what you do! I still need to send you some goodies with a nice long thank you card!

My brother brought Ty first thing in the morning. She was pretty tired because they partied like rock stars all night long and then he had to wake her up in the morning.

She honestly loved him so much from the very beginning and just wanted to be around him and not leave his side. It was pretty cute!

When my water broke, Ryder left these snazzy Jammie's for Tylie, and she wore them to the hospital to meet her little bro in person.

After we had stayed two days and nights in our private suite that Megan hooked us up with, we were ready to take our little man home!

Yep, I am indeed as tired as I look!

So teeny tiny in that gigantic car seat.

Tylie and uncle Jeff made sure Ryder had a warm welcome, and he did!

Giving birth never fails to amaze me! It is the most intense and special experience I have ever been through in my entire life. I am so grateful I got to go through this experience with my sweet husband, mom and sister. So grateful for their love and support! We are so grateful for little Ryder. We are so blessed to have him in our home. I think it's so cool how these tiny little babes truly do come with little personalities. I think the thing that stands out most to me about Ryder is he is a sweetheart, he has the sweetest little spirit and you can feel it by just being around him! I hope he will always stay that way. Isn't it amazing how instantly you feel that abundance of love for these babies, it's the best feeling in the world!