William Has Arrived

William Has Arrived

William was born August 15th at 12:12 in the morning! He weighed 7 lbs 5.6 oz and was 19 1/4 inches long. 

We went to the hospital Friday night with contractions that were very, very mild and 8-10 minutes apart. My midwife was going to be out of town the next day, so she offered to help speed along labor. We arrived at about 8:45 pm, they broke my water at 10:19pm, and he was born at 12:12am. That's right, people. A less than two hour labor. It was crazy. 

What was even crazier was that the anesthesiologist still wasn't in our room 55 minutes after we asked for an epidermal (we were promised he would be there in 30 minutes), and that's when William decided to make an entrance into this world. Thank the Lord that it was quick, because I never went in with the intention of having a natural, non-medicated birth. Still, it was kind of amazing to know that despite my belief that I would never be able to do a natural birth, William came all the same and it all worked out okay. 

We had him at the Frankfort hospital. We were able to stay in the labor room for about two hours before they switched us over to a smaller recovery room. The recovery room was actually pretty cozy. And for those who are curious, I ditched my mask pretty straight away and didn't wear it again until we left. Sam tried to be good the first night and wear it when nurses and doctors were in the room, but after the baby was born he was too tired to mess with it. 

They didn't have the Holy Family Hour at this hospital that they had when Rylee was born at St. Mary's in Athens, Georgia, so there were a few more people tinkering around right after his birth than I would have liked, but they eventually finished everything up and left us to bond in peace. 

They did still implement the delayed bathing, which I really liked. So we waited until Sunday to dress him in his own clothes. 

They released us from the hospital Sunday afternoon, so we were able to introduce Rylee to William that afternoon as well. You can watch Rylee meet her brother for the first time, below.

She loved him and kept trying to hold him and hug him simultaneously. 

The rest of the pictures are snapshots of what paternity leave week has been like at MinIsland Farm. We were all really, really sad when Daddy went back to work on Monday. 

Daddy and William snuggling (don't worry, I didn't let them sleep like this. I just had to get a picture because it was too cute. Poor, sleepy Daddy). 

Trying on Momma's glasses.

His hair decided to part on this side of his head instead the way we had it parted in the hospital. 

Big eyes before bed. 

Rylee "helping" me with dishes by climbing into the sink and sitting down in the soapy water--diaper, pants and all. 

Chillin' with Daddy!

This was actually a couple days before William was born, but it was too cute not to include. Rylee is going to be such a great big sister! She tries to shove William's paci in his mouth pretty much all the time--whether he wants it or not. 

Daddy learning to multi-task while doing some contracted work for the company IMI he used to work for in Georgia. 

Told you she wanted to hold him! Look how sweet!

Here's a video of Rylee eating corn on the cob for the first time. The sound of the kernels popping gets me every time! 

GrandPoppi and Sam worked on fixing the tractor (which Sam says is a never ending process). 

Rylee loves swinging with her Nonni!

Rylee has auburn in her hair in the sunshine just like her Momma!

Several people requested a picture of Rylee feeding the chickens in the morning, so here you go!

Right before William was born, I posted to the farm facebook page a picture of these magical biscuits. I will now bless you with the recipe. Your lives will be changed forever. You're welcome. 

BUTTER SWIM BISCUITS

Adapted from: 12tomatoes.com

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups flour

2 cups buttermilk

1 stick of butter

4 tsp baking powder

2 tsp salt

Instructions:

1. We recommend baking in a 9 x 9 square cast iron but if you don't own one, an 8 x 8 glass casserole dish will work as well. Either way, put the stick of butter in the dish, place the dish in the oven, and set the oven to 450*F. 

2. While the oven is preheating, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt, and buttermilk. 

3. Pull the baking dish out of the oven and pour the dough mixture into the dish. 

4. Using a spoon, spread the dough mixture out until it covers the entire dish and is flat. Try to make sure the butter on top of the dough is spread evenly and not pooling up. 

5. Using a butter knife, separate the dough into 6 or 9 pieces, depending on how large you want your biscuits to be. 

6. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden on top. 

Suggestions: 

-An 8x8 makes really tall biscuits that can be hard to fit in your mouth when you are stuffing (eg. breakfast sandwiches). Either use a slightly larger dish or cut down the amount of dough you pour into the dish. 

Pax Domini cum spirito tuo temper sit,

Torey, Sam, Rylee & William

Do you or someone you know live near Harrodsburg, Kentucky? 
Do you want to eat farm-fresh eggs from happy, healthy hens? ($3.50/dozen)

Check out our shop!

You can also follow us on Facebook, and YouTube.