Mommy Things

Tiny shoes for our son!

First of all, please, please pray that we will be assigned a court date before the courts close on August 6th.  If we are not assigned a court date before then, it will be after the courts reopen in early October, which would push everything in our process back a few months and our first trip would be November or later.  Now, God does indeed know what He is doing, but I think it would be better for all parties involved to travel in October.  Just sayin’.  :)  In the meantime, I’m checking my e-mail more frequently in hopes of a message from our agency!  

A few Mommy-moments:

1. So, “prego-brain” moment of the week: stamping the return address in the upper right corner of the letter.  ::fail!::  My sister-in-law commented that I’m not pregnant.  Well, I’m not, but I am expecting!!!  Therefore, I should be entitled to at least as many “prego-brain” moments as a regular pregnant mom.  Right?  

My second nephew being goofy!

2.  I was blessed earlier this week by a car-seat given to us by a friend.  It can be rear-facing, front-facing, or even the booster-seat thing!  Perfect!  It’s even brown!

3.  We found a great little consignment store in Boring (yes, there is a town named Boring) with a stack of clothes for $.50 each!  I also found some adorable stuff half-off at GoodWill.  The nice thing about kiddo clothes is that they are usually barely worn when you get them second-hand.  There were even a tiny pair of sport-sandals for our son that were only $2!  

Philip and the most beautiful niece ever!

4.  Today, my brother and sister-in-law and their kiddos came in from Costa Rica.  Their youngest is only a month older that our daughter, so needless to say, I eyed her constantly.  What kind of things do small people do?  How big are they?  How on earth do you get them out of their little plastic carrier-thingys?  I confess I got slightly choked up holding her.  Rrrr!

5.  I decided I love “Plan Toys” and “Wonderworld” brand toys.

6.  Last week I messaged my friend that does Origami Owl-- (personalized jewelry stuff), and ordered two more little charms corresponding to my kids’ birth months.  It feels kinda nice to have my family-necklace all complete!  Our kids were born in March and September.  I have two more charms for the children we said “yes!” to, and who subsequently changed our lives but are not a part of our family: the baby born last September in Pennsylvania, and the young man (born in October) in Brazil that we fell in love with and who started our whole adoption-quest.

My kiddos: one born in March, two in September, and one in October
and initial charms for Philip and I.

So...  that’s where things stand at the moment!  Thanks for taking the moment to check in and catch up on our little family! :)

Growing Too Fast

Many of you are asking how I'm doing, now that we've had "the news!" for a few weeks now!  :)  Actually, I'm doing pretty well!  I'm still fluxing between extreme excitement and sheer terror, with most emotions somewhere in the middle.

The day after we got "the call", I was on the phone with a girlfriend who kindly pointed out that I had not heard a word she just said.  ::oops::  So, I guess I go through phases of being completely distracted and preoccupied!  Maybe this is kinda what they call "prego-brain"?

Then, there was the freaking-out session and the pep-talk from another friend convincing me that having kids will not destroy my marriage. For real. Her encouragement was much appreciated!  The same friend is keeping her eyes our for garage-sale kiddo furniture, bless her!

Recently there was a shopping spree at the Fred Meyer clearance racks where I picked up some cold-weather clothes for the small people.  I began to inwardly panic, thinking ahead to the sizes my kids will need when they come home-- probably 9-12 months for her, and 12-18 months for him, at least to start out.  I began looking at the newborn clothes and the 3-6 month clothes, thinking how they will be too small for my small people!  My kiddos are growing up too fast!  I won't get to hold them when they are that small.  Ack!  It's rather hard to remember the truth of Psalm 68-- That our God is a Father to the fatherless, and my kids are perfectly safe in His arms, regardless of where they live.

We got a BOB double jogging stroller off of Craig's List, and a friend gave us a hi-chair.  Another couple donated several hundred dollars for our travel expenses, for which we are eternally grateful.  We have now completed over 60% of our adoption puzzle!

This past week, Philip and I were at a youth camp 5 hours away in the eastern part of the state, working with some hi-school kids.  The other counselors and staff have been so encouraging through this whole process, and have kept close tabs on our adoption progress.  Part way through the week at camp, one of the other counselors lured me into the dining hall under pretense of preparing a skit, and I found myself in the middle of a baby shower!  For me!!!  My very first baby shower!  I about cried! I can't express how blessed I felt-- so loved and my kids so spoiled!

Yeah, not a skit practice.

Oh goodness, this is really for ME!?

Feeling so loved!

I was blessed by everything from diapers to homemade booties to an amazing giraffe print diaper bag that I complimented one of my campers on earlier in the week, thinking it was part of her luggage!  :)

So, currently, we're doing well.  The next thing we should hear will be a court date, which will tell us when we need airline tickets to make our first trip!

Thank you all for your encouragement and prayers!

EXCITED!!!!!!

Well, after literally 22 months of waiting....
         WE 
              GOT 
                   THE 
                       CALL!!!!!!

We are pleased to announce that Philip and I have officially accepted the referrals of two children, a boy and a girl, aged 9 months and 3 months respectively.  Lord willing, we will travel to meet them in October for our court date (the courts are closed August and September), and bring them home in December or January. Because of legal reasons, I cannot post pictures, names, or locations online, but will continue to keep everyone updated as the process unfolds.  Thank you for your prayers and encouragement!  Please continue to pray for us as we prepare for these precious additions to our family!
  
We are still continuing to save money for travel expenses-- Our lion puzzle fundraiser has plenty of extra pieces left.  :)

Please feel free to message me with any questions, and I will answer to the best of my ability.