when using a remote checkout method such as PayPal Payments Standard, the order information cannot be stored in the database when the user clicks the checkout button on the confirm because that checkout button must send the order information to the payment gateway.
When using PayPal Payments standard, you should have an order status column in your database that will be set to pending when the order is first inserted.
If you are using PayPal Standard, you can configure your paypal account to make an IPN (Instant Payment notification) post, this IPN post can be used to update the order status once the transaction is processed.
I really don't recommend using PayPal Standard because of the complexity of setting it up properly. another free alternative is to use PayPal Express Checkout.
With Express Checkout, the order information wont be stored in the database until the user clicks the Confirm order button on the confirm page.
