Kaitlyn Jane Sumpter

She's here!

And we couldn't be happier! The past few days have been a whirlwind- with some moments standing still while other moments rushed by. But through it all Phillip and I have had only one emotion- sheer happiness. My love for this little girl is beyond what I thought possible (and believe me, after waiting for her for so long, I thought I knew how much I would love her). Phillip and I, though tired and sore (well... I'm sore...) are the happiest we have ever been!

I was induced last Tuesday, September 27th. They broke my water and started me on petocin at 8:00am. Since I started out only being dilated to a 1, the doctor said to plan on at least 12-18 hours of labor so we hunkered down for the long day. (by the way, yes I got an epidural, yes it was amazing, and yes I will do it again.) To our surprise, by 1:20pm I was fully dilated and after two contractions and 5 minutes of pushing, during which the doctor told me I could just laugh this baby out and not push so hard, Kaitlyn Jane was born at 1:31pm. She was 7 pounds, 5 ounces and 19 1/2 inches long. Yes I know this birth story seems too good to be true, but it really was a fast and smooth delivery.

Through it all, it was once again manifested to me just what a special little girl I have. I know I have said this before, but Kaitlyn's spirit is without a doubt in tune with my spirit. I felt her hurrying herself to get to me so that I wouldn't be afraid and nervous. The entire day had an extra special meaning to me as it was exactly 2 1/2 years after our son Benjamin was born. His delivery on March 27th 2009 was so similar to Kaitlyn's, and yet so different. Both births were preceded with a priesthood blessing from my sweet husband, whose special and sacred words of comfort directed and guided me through both of my children's deliveries. Then, both birthdays began with an early morning trip to the hospital to be induced. Both inductions began at 8:00 in the morning, and both ended in the early afternoon (Benjamin took longer to arrive, being born at 2:30 instead of 1:30). Through all these similarities, however, the biggest one was the overwhelming spirit and closeness to the veil. There is no other time on this earth when you feel heaven so close. I am convinced that Kaitlyn was very aware of my thoughts and feelings, knowing I was nervous, scared, and anxious to see a healthy baby at the end of this delivery. She came quickly and with no delay. She didn't even cry and instantly snuggled close to me on my chest, reassuring me that she was healthy, ok, and happy. I couldn't even cry because I was so stunned. It was assuredly the most surreal and special moment of my life.

Since her birth, she has been nothing but a blessing in our lives. We keep thinking that this is all a dream- way too good to be true. She eats like a champ and is a great snuggler. We are proud to be her parents to the point of obsession. . We just can't seem to get enough of her :-)

Thanks for your prayers. We felt them every step of the way. We are grateful, we are blessed, and did I mention that we are HAPPY!?

Here are some pictures of our journey so far:

Me on my 25th birthday- the night before Kaitlyn was born

Then came the big day
















Love this girl!

Final Countdown

I am finally getting around to updating my blog one final time before baby comes. Life has been crazy around our home and while a lot of it has to do with preparing for our little girl, I still can't believe she is coming so soon! I am scheduled to be induced next Tuesday, September 27th (the day after my birthday- so fun!!) The doctors are anxious to get baby girl here safely and since my body is ready to go they are wanting to induce 1 week earlier than my due date- and I'm definitely not complaining! I can't wait to finally meet my little girl! I am definitely feeling some shock at the idea that I am finally going to be able to take home a baby to raise. Getting a child has been such a long road for us and I can't believe I get to meet our new angel in less than a week! I am emotional, anxious, excited, nervous, and about 100 other emotions that I can't even describe.

As far as my life goes lately, I have been filling my time making things for family, friends, and of course our little girl. Some of the things I made ended up just how I imagined, and others are eh... ok I guess. Here is a little snippet of some things I have been making:

Cross-stitch Salt Lake Temple for some friends in Delaware (they let us live in their house for the summer)

Birthday table runner and bow ties for sister-in-law Maryn and nephew Seth's birthdays

Scarves for Becky and Mom for their birthdays

Baby quilt for our little girl

Car seat cover and nursing cover

Bow holder for all of Girly's little bows and baby bumper for crib

Here is what her nursery currently looks like. I still need to add some more things on the walls so it isn't quite finished but you get a general idea (and yes... we have definitely embraced pink in our house)

View of other wall with changing table (and cute new coat rack in hallway for her little coats)


Here are some other random pictures depicting what has been happening over the last little while:

Trip to Gettysburg

Trip to Boston

Fun at the Delaware beach

Wedding of beautiful friend Jessica

Risenmay Reunion (Dad's side of family)

Fagergren Reunion (Mom's side of family)

Me at 36 and 38 weeks


Also, our amazingly talented friend Kristal took some maternity pictures of us the other day. I will always love looking back on this pregnancy and remembering all of the miracles along the way that have brought this little girl into our family.




We are feeling very blessed and ready for this new addition in our lives. Thanks for all your love and support through the journey!

The Offer

It happened. After a wonderful summer working for an amazing law firm out here in Delaware, Phillip was taken out to lunch by the hiring partners of Ashby & Geddes and offered a permanent position as a full-time associate at their law firm. We have been hoping and praying for this offer all summer (actually... we have been hoping and praying for an offer like this for years). The firm has been greatly impressed with Phillip all summer and though all signs pointed to him getting an offer for next year, the news still sent me into shock. All Phillip had to say was, "Robin, I'm going to be a corporate lawyer!" and I immediately started to cry. In all the time I have known Phillip he has always wanted to be a corporate attorney. I have watched him work so hard and so long for this goal. There were times when he wondered if it would happen and when. Yet here we finally are... reaching that goal! I can't believe it. I couldn't be more proud.

Mixed with those proud tears, however, are the tears of a frightened wife who will now be asked to leave the home that she loves so much in the west and move out to the east on a permanent basis. I'm not going to pretend like this is going to be easy on me. However, life's never perfect and it's not supposed to be. This job is amazing, the firm is amazing, there will be some family out here with us, and we are so, so, so, so blessed!!
(Phillip right after receiving his offer- his excitement is contagious!)

Summer Update

Most people are wondering about my pregnancy (and that's all I really think about these days anyway) so I will start with that. Baby girl is doing great! I couldn't ask for a smoother pregnancy. My little girl is so in tune with my spirit. She knows that I have many worries with this pregnancy and is always willing to give me an extra powerful kick when I start to feel any doubt or fear creep into my life. She is such a blessing to me! I have officially reached the point in my pregnancy when I lost Benjamin (he passed away at around 24 weeks and I delivered him at 26 weeks. I am currently 25 weeks along with this pregnancy). The doctor told me that as I reach this stage I might start having nightmares about this pregnancy going horribly wrong. However, how can I be worried and discouraged when I feel my baby girl move all the time. She makes me laugh out loud every day. I know she is in tune to what I need and I couldn't be more grateful for her little spirit that reaches out and calms my fears every day. I thank my Heavenly Father for her at least 20 times a day. She is such a blessing to me.

Me at 18 weeks:

Me at 25 weeks:


In other news, we are currently living in Delaware while Phillip works for the law firm Ashby & Geddes as a summer associate. He loves his job and loves the firm. They have been treating him very well so far (free meals, going to the shooting range, canoeing, Philly baseball games...) and it seems as though they are trying to win him over on how great it would be if he worked here in Delaware permanently. I told Phillip they have got it all backwards- the person they should be really trying to win over is ME!

Phillip celebrated his 1st pay check by buying a gun! (an AR15-22). It was like watching a little boy on Christmas. Though I'm not a huge gun person, how can you not smile when your husband looks so happy!


I have been enjoying my summer so far out on the east. I have been working on sewing projects and enjoying Phillip's family. The past 2 weeks I was able to spend in Salt Lake with my family while we attended the annual Suzuki String Institute. This is the 3rd year that I went as a violin teacher trainer (I have been going to the camp as a student every year since I was born) and we had a great time! It was fun to spend time with my mom, sister, and darling nieces and nephew. The week was exhausting and by Saturday I could barely stand up straight, but it was worth it for the fun time we had together!

On our way into institute (or is this us leaving institute to go shopping... hmmmm...)

T-shirt Day!:

While I was in Salt Lake I got to visit sweet Benjamin's grave. So lucky to be his mommy!!


So now I am back in Delaware until July 27th. I am excited to continue my fun summer here and watch my baby belly grow!

Hope you are enjoying your summer!

Guess What!?

It's time to introduce... Baby Girl Sumpter!! Shocked? Well... join the club. There have been many tears of joy, many tears of anxiety, but most of all... Tears of GRATITUDE!! How grateful I am to be the mother of my sweatheart son, and my new darling girl. How did I get to be so blessed!? Baby girl is wiggly, healthy, and well... perfect. Her due date is set for October 4th!