... and an ear infection. Breathing treatments every four hours and as much cuddling and snuggling as possible are on the agenda for our sick little girl. If she'll allow it... the snuggling and cuddling, that is. H doesn't let a virus slow her down- she's got places to go, people! And fussiness? That's for the birds- our little girl is all smiles. One would never know she is sick. I'm so thankful I trusted my gut and made the appointment for her to see the doctor today, even though she hadn't been running a fever or seemed bothered by (what seemed to be) the common cold she had. The doctor ran tests, discovered it was indeed RSV, and after a breathing treatment in the office raised her Oxygen back to 100%, she was on her way home, napping soundly.
We'll be laying low this weekend, praying that the treatments continue to work as well as they have and that she'll be fully recuperated soon!
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
A and H update
H is 9 months old! I can't believe it- I can remember when she was first placed in our home, looking at the loads of clothes we were blessed with and sorting them by size, thinking there's no way she would ever fit into the 9 month clothing. And now here she is! But part of my prediction was true- she doesn't fit into the 9 month clothing- we're still pretty comfortable in most 6 month clothing.
At 9 months old, H weighs in at 16.5 lbs, measures 25 inches long, and is in the 10th percentile and 3rd percentile respectively. She's still tiny! But she's crawling all over the place, pulling up on everything and crying when she can't figure out how to sit down from that position. Her two bottom teeth are in and she's working on her two top ones. And on that note, there's nothing cuter than her baby-drool-grin she gives us. She's trying more and more table food- she had her first taste of Cheerio's this past week and she approves. Sliced avocado and brown rice are on the agenda to try soon.
A continues to make us smile daily. He's a spunky 2 year-old who loves to ask questions! He's a great big brother and we frequently hear him console H when she's crying saying, "Don't cry H. Mama's here." He tells us, "I wanna hold you," when he wants to be held. A loves cars and alerts me to any trash trucks or school buses when we're in the car together. Trash trucks, by the way, (according to A) take the poopie diapers away- boom! boom! He's very interested in helping me clean and loves to get the swiffer sweeper out of the pantry to push it around the house. It didn't take me long to get smart and make sure there was a dry cloth on there at all times! This morning, I woke him up and got him started eating his breakfast, then was going to go get dressed like I always do- which usually makes A unhappy that I'm not sitting there, watching his every bite. This morning, though, as I turned to walk away from him, A says, "A not cry. I ok!" Goodness, I love this boy!
A funny story- last week when I went to pick up A from his classroom, I was busy looking at the sheet his teachers fill out about his day when I realized his teacher had been talking to me. The reason I didn't realize it at first? She was calling me Mrs. D-, using A's current last name. I smiled and told her my last name and then explained that we hadn't adopted him yet. We had talked previously about H being in the foster care system, so I guess I just assumed that she knew that A was as well. Anyway, I got a kick out of it! We've had him for 10 months without that happening!
At 9 months old, H weighs in at 16.5 lbs, measures 25 inches long, and is in the 10th percentile and 3rd percentile respectively. She's still tiny! But she's crawling all over the place, pulling up on everything and crying when she can't figure out how to sit down from that position. Her two bottom teeth are in and she's working on her two top ones. And on that note, there's nothing cuter than her baby-drool-grin she gives us. She's trying more and more table food- she had her first taste of Cheerio's this past week and she approves. Sliced avocado and brown rice are on the agenda to try soon.
A continues to make us smile daily. He's a spunky 2 year-old who loves to ask questions! He's a great big brother and we frequently hear him console H when she's crying saying, "Don't cry H. Mama's here." He tells us, "I wanna hold you," when he wants to be held. A loves cars and alerts me to any trash trucks or school buses when we're in the car together. Trash trucks, by the way, (according to A) take the poopie diapers away- boom! boom! He's very interested in helping me clean and loves to get the swiffer sweeper out of the pantry to push it around the house. It didn't take me long to get smart and make sure there was a dry cloth on there at all times! This morning, I woke him up and got him started eating his breakfast, then was going to go get dressed like I always do- which usually makes A unhappy that I'm not sitting there, watching his every bite. This morning, though, as I turned to walk away from him, A says, "A not cry. I ok!" Goodness, I love this boy!
A funny story- last week when I went to pick up A from his classroom, I was busy looking at the sheet his teachers fill out about his day when I realized his teacher had been talking to me. The reason I didn't realize it at first? She was calling me Mrs. D-, using A's current last name. I smiled and told her my last name and then explained that we hadn't adopted him yet. We had talked previously about H being in the foster care system, so I guess I just assumed that she knew that A was as well. Anyway, I got a kick out of it! We've had him for 10 months without that happening!
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Happy 2012!
My birthday/Christmas gift this year:
to have our living room, kitchen, entry, and playroom re-painted...
and not have to do it myself!
Five days after Christmas, the painters arrived and the job was complete in about 6 hours, split between two days. And they did a much better job than if the job had been left to me!
and a white animal head similar to this one that I'm diy-ing...
book shelves using ikea spice racks
What about you? Does the new year cause you to re-organize/ re-decorate/ re-do anything?
to have our living room, kitchen, entry, and playroom re-painted...
and not have to do it myself!
Five days after Christmas, the painters arrived and the job was complete in about 6 hours, split between two days. And they did a much better job than if the job had been left to me!
Entry
Playroom (formerly the dining room)
We also did some furniture-rearranging and it's been nice to start off a new year, looking at our house through newly painted walls. Our walls are looking kind of bare, but I'm okay with that right now. This go-around, I'm waiting to find the things that I really love to hang on the walls, adorn the mantel of our fireplace, and place above our kitchen cabinets. The few things that are hanging are the set of three photographs that my dad took and had framed for us and a new canvas of one of the pictures my sister-in-law took during our photo session back in October.
I also have some projects up my sleeve:
like this quote of Mother Teresa's
and a white animal head similar to this one that I'm diy-ing...
book shelves using ikea spice racks
What about you? Does the new year cause you to re-organize/ re-decorate/ re-do anything?
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Looking Back
Wow. In just a few days, we'll celebrate one year from the first time we laid eyes on our A. January 4th, 2011 we received an email- a legal risk broadcast- about a little boy who was 16 months old. We read his information, looked at those adorable eyes, and emailed our adoption coordinator asking her to submit our home study. All in 3.5 seconds. Seriously. Less than a month later, we found out we were one of the final three couples chosen for him. A week after that, the call came that we were chosen- we would be A's foster-to-adopt parents.
Thinking back on those times, the not-knowing, the anticipation, the excitement of being chosen, the waiting to see if everything would pan out in the courts, the relief when his case became an adoption case- and then walking into his room each night before I go to bed, watching him sleep. The blanket slowly rising with his deep breathing. And realizing he's going to be ours. Like really ours. It still hits me- and the thankfulness, the gratitude, the feeling of how blessed we are is still as real as ever.
Less than two months after A was placed in our home, we got the call about Miss H. The sweetest little thing, weighing in at 5 lbs and already a month old, we were smitten from day one. To see her now as a smiling, laughing 9 month old little girl who crawls all over her brother, steals his toys and his sippy cup, it's hard to imagine that she was ever that small. She's still a petite baby, but as one doctor said who saw her when she was that tiny and then saw her again a few months ago, "I would never think this baby was the baby I saw back in June. She's become quite the Michelin baby."
2011 was the year we became parents. It was a year of growth for us, as a family, as a couple, as individuals. Here's our recap:
January: submit home study for A
February: we're selected to be A's foster-to-adopt parents and get to meet him for the first time
March: A comes home
April: I return to work after 5 wonderful weeks of bonding with A
May: H arrives, then she's supposed to leave, but the judge suspends the order and she stays!
June: Florida Keys and we celebrate 7 years of marriage
July: my younger sister gets married
August: school starts up again
September: A's case becomes an adoption case
October: after months of silence in H's case, things start to pick back up again
November: I celebrate my first birthday as a mom and our first Thanksgiving as a family
December: our first Christmas together and interesting developments in H's case that leave us hopeful
Though 2012 is looking like it will be remembered for adoptions and not appointments, I know there are many of you out there who are gearing up for tests, procedures, results. And you are never far from my thoughts. Anytime I drive past our local fertility center, I can't help but think of the couples inside, waiting for answers, desperate to know the whys. And so I pray. For strength, for endurance, for peace. Know that you are never forgotten. Back when we were going through the gauntlet of appointments, we would joke with our friends that we were taking one for the team since the statistics say that 1 out of 10 couples struggles with fertility. But the fact is, we haven't been able to protect many of our friends from traveling this same road. And that breaks my heart.
You know who you are. And know this- that you are loved. You are treasured. And you will be an amazing mother, no matter how God builds your family.
Thinking back on those times, the not-knowing, the anticipation, the excitement of being chosen, the waiting to see if everything would pan out in the courts, the relief when his case became an adoption case- and then walking into his room each night before I go to bed, watching him sleep. The blanket slowly rising with his deep breathing. And realizing he's going to be ours. Like really ours. It still hits me- and the thankfulness, the gratitude, the feeling of how blessed we are is still as real as ever.
Less than two months after A was placed in our home, we got the call about Miss H. The sweetest little thing, weighing in at 5 lbs and already a month old, we were smitten from day one. To see her now as a smiling, laughing 9 month old little girl who crawls all over her brother, steals his toys and his sippy cup, it's hard to imagine that she was ever that small. She's still a petite baby, but as one doctor said who saw her when she was that tiny and then saw her again a few months ago, "I would never think this baby was the baby I saw back in June. She's become quite the Michelin baby."
2011 was the year we became parents. It was a year of growth for us, as a family, as a couple, as individuals. Here's our recap:
January: submit home study for A
February: we're selected to be A's foster-to-adopt parents and get to meet him for the first time
March: A comes home
April: I return to work after 5 wonderful weeks of bonding with A
May: H arrives, then she's supposed to leave, but the judge suspends the order and she stays!
June: Florida Keys and we celebrate 7 years of marriage
July: my younger sister gets married
August: school starts up again
September: A's case becomes an adoption case
October: after months of silence in H's case, things start to pick back up again
November: I celebrate my first birthday as a mom and our first Thanksgiving as a family
December: our first Christmas together and interesting developments in H's case that leave us hopeful
Though 2012 is looking like it will be remembered for adoptions and not appointments, I know there are many of you out there who are gearing up for tests, procedures, results. And you are never far from my thoughts. Anytime I drive past our local fertility center, I can't help but think of the couples inside, waiting for answers, desperate to know the whys. And so I pray. For strength, for endurance, for peace. Know that you are never forgotten. Back when we were going through the gauntlet of appointments, we would joke with our friends that we were taking one for the team since the statistics say that 1 out of 10 couples struggles with fertility. But the fact is, we haven't been able to protect many of our friends from traveling this same road. And that breaks my heart.
You know who you are. And know this- that you are loved. You are treasured. And you will be an amazing mother, no matter how God builds your family.
Friday, December 30, 2011
Giveaway!
My friend Erin over at Worthy of the Prize is hosting a giveaway for the cutest printable and necklace from TheAdoptShoppe! Does that name sound familiar? If it does, it's because I gave away one of her cute bracelets this summer when I hit 20 followers.
My 2011 resolution? To find joy in the journey... yeah, I really want to win this!
My 2011 resolution? To find joy in the journey... yeah, I really want to win this!
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Different
Edited to add: This was supposed to post yesterday... not sure what happened.
"Not alike in character or quality; differing." I'm rejoicing in the fact that the holiday season is different this year. There's the obvious growth from a couple to a family of four that has taken place. There's the excitement of seeing Christmas through the eyes of a child who talks about Santa and signs Jingle Bells non-stop as well as the innocence of the season through the eyes of a child who trusts you so completely to care for their every need. There's the closing of the chapter of Christmases past where I told myself "This year will be our last Christmas without a child..." There's the keeping of traditions and creating new ones as we celebrate our first Christmas together. It has all been so wonderful, the feeling of contentment and satisfaction so overwhelming that, at times, I've been brought to tears as I rest in the newness of it all.
It doesn't take much to make me tear up these days... seeing our set of four stockings that a friend's mother made for us. Picking out and purchasing our tree together and watching A help D- the happiness in the eyes of both as they wheeled the cart around together in the cool night air. The basket of Christmas books A chooses from each night before bedtime- a new tradition we've started. The sock monkey ornaments with the names of A and H hanging on our tree. Adding two new people to my Christmas shopping list- getting them something they want, something they need, something to play with, something to read. Picking out a book for each was so special; writing a note inside the cover to A and H made me cry as well. I love these two more than words can say so trying to write a note to convey that love was difficult. I wanted to just squeeze the book as close to my heart as possible and say, "There- did you feel that? I love you so much my heart hurts."
We'll be spending time with both families over the holidays and just returned today from spending a few days with the foster grandparents. They are such a special presence in our lives- we love them dearly. We'll go to our church's Christmas Eve service and then eat dinner with a friend's family before coming home to let A and H open a gift (Christmas pjs). Christmas morning will be celebrated with just the four of us and I'm so looking forward to having the morning to ourselves, to open gifts together and to rejoice in the birth of our Savior. D's family will come later that day. We all live relatively close to each other so we do see each other more often, but it will be so fun to just hang out without having to be anywhere. Plus A and H love their aunts and uncles so I know it's a treat for the little ones, too!
Merry Christmas!
"Not alike in character or quality; differing." I'm rejoicing in the fact that the holiday season is different this year. There's the obvious growth from a couple to a family of four that has taken place. There's the excitement of seeing Christmas through the eyes of a child who talks about Santa and signs Jingle Bells non-stop as well as the innocence of the season through the eyes of a child who trusts you so completely to care for their every need. There's the closing of the chapter of Christmases past where I told myself "This year will be our last Christmas without a child..." There's the keeping of traditions and creating new ones as we celebrate our first Christmas together. It has all been so wonderful, the feeling of contentment and satisfaction so overwhelming that, at times, I've been brought to tears as I rest in the newness of it all.
It doesn't take much to make me tear up these days... seeing our set of four stockings that a friend's mother made for us. Picking out and purchasing our tree together and watching A help D- the happiness in the eyes of both as they wheeled the cart around together in the cool night air. The basket of Christmas books A chooses from each night before bedtime- a new tradition we've started. The sock monkey ornaments with the names of A and H hanging on our tree. Adding two new people to my Christmas shopping list- getting them something they want, something they need, something to play with, something to read. Picking out a book for each was so special; writing a note inside the cover to A and H made me cry as well. I love these two more than words can say so trying to write a note to convey that love was difficult. I wanted to just squeeze the book as close to my heart as possible and say, "There- did you feel that? I love you so much my heart hurts."
We'll be spending time with both families over the holidays and just returned today from spending a few days with the foster grandparents. They are such a special presence in our lives- we love them dearly. We'll go to our church's Christmas Eve service and then eat dinner with a friend's family before coming home to let A and H open a gift (Christmas pjs). Christmas morning will be celebrated with just the four of us and I'm so looking forward to having the morning to ourselves, to open gifts together and to rejoice in the birth of our Savior. D's family will come later that day. We all live relatively close to each other so we do see each other more often, but it will be so fun to just hang out without having to be anywhere. Plus A and H love their aunts and uncles so I know it's a treat for the little ones, too!
Merry Christmas!
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Tiny
I know we're not supposed to post pictures of A or H (to protect their privacy), but I figure pictures of little feet are fine, right? H has the tiniest, most petite little feet- so tiny that at 7 1/2 months old, we are finally fitting into 0-3 month shoes. She was sporting these little shoes yesterday and I just had to take a picture:
We are so excited to be celebrating our first Thanksgiving as a family of four- we have so much to be thankful for!
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