Love

Source: None via Tara on Pinterest

A Day in the Life

Another blogger is documenting her life with two kids age 2 and under, just writing down the daily routine so she can look back on it one day and remember what it was like.  What a good idea!  So... here's my day:

4:30am- H wakes up; feed her; change her diaper; burp her; back to sleep
8:00am- H wakes again; feed her; change her diaper; get her dressed; play until A wakes up;
10:00am- A finally makes his appearance (seriously, he doesn't normally sleep that late, but he did today!) Feed A; change his diaper; brush teeth; get dressed; comb hair; H is ready to take a morning nap so A and I take the monitor and play outside while she sleeps;
11:00am- H wakes up; feed her; change her diaper; tummy time!
11:30am- a friend, K, comes over to see the little ones; she holds H while I get A's lunch ready;
12:00pm- A and I eat lunch; K holds H; (don't worry- I invited her to join us for lunch but she was meeting someone else later)
12:45pm- H goes down for afternoon nap; clean up lunch; A goes down for nap;
3:00pm- H wakes up; feed her; change her diaper; play;
3:30pm- A wakes up; give him a snack and watch a cartoon together;
4:30pm- H falls asleep in her swing; takes a short catnap; A and I play and then I start getting dinner going;
5:00pm- H starts to fuss so I move her swing to the kitchen while I cook; A plays with his cars and trucks, driving them over the couches, through the kitchen, etc.
5:45pm- D's home!  He plays with A while I continue getting dinner ready, then feeds H;
6:15pm- Dinner!
6:45pm- We all go outside to play/ rock in a rocking chair; then we go for a walk around the neighborhood;
7:30pm- Bath time for A; then clean up toys in living room and playroom;
8:00pm- Bed time for A; bath time for H;
8:15pm- Last bottle of the night for H;
9:00pm- Bed time for H; clean up kitchen; sort through mail; tell myself I'm going to bed earlier tonight... though that never happens!
11:00pm- Bed time for me!

My days are crazy/hectic/chaotic... but I wouldn't have it any other way! 

Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!  2 Corinthians 9:15

There's nothing better than...

the feeling of your feet in the sand.

wasting an afternoon away at a beautiful beach.

enjoying a slice of key lime pie in Key West.

  spending time away with great friends. 

There's nothing better than coming home.

And seeing A.

And holding H.

And being together under one roof.

Winner, Winner!

I used random.org to generate the winner for the giveaway- they picked commenter #2...

which would be...

Kelly, from makingmonkeysoup.com!  Congratulations Kelly!  If you still have my email address from earlier communication, you can just shoot me an email with your address and I'll ship the bracelet as soon as possible.  The bracelet, by the way, is really cute!  I might have to order another one for myself!

Thanks to all who participated!

Giveaway ending soon!

My giveaway is ending soon- midnight Saturday night, so if you haven't left a comment, go leave one on this post!  You'll have a great chance to win!

Happy Father's Day, D!

Three years ago this month, we embarked on this journey to become parents.  So much has happened, so many things have changed in those three years.  Enduring the news that we will never have children on our own-the traditional way, was so difficult to process, but I'm so thankful I had you by my side.  We were always a team- at appointments, adoption conferences, and finally, through 30 hours of classes last summer to get to where we are now. 

When we received the news that we were selected to be A's new foster parents, you were so excited.  We both were floored.  And as we drove the three hours to meet him the first time, we were both so nervous, even stopping at a fast food restaurant to compose ourselves before arriving at his current placement's home.  I'm so glad I have pictures to capture the larger-than-life smile plastered on your face that day.  The icing on the cake was that we were also celebrating your birthday- and it was hard for me not to remember celebrating your birthday last year, when I wanted to do anything to encourage you, cheer you up, let you know how much I appreciate you.  Would either of us ever have thought that a year later, we would be meeting our first foster placement and (hopefully) soon-to-be-adopted son?

And then, when we'd had A for two months, we receive a phone call asking if we would take his sister, and your response was, "How can we say no?"  So it was that H entered our lives, and you became an even more caring, attentive father.  This little girl has you wrapped around her finger- and I don't think there's any other place you'd rather be.  You are such a hands-on dad and I'm so thankful to have you as my partner and best friend.  Changing diapers, bathing little ones, taking A for walks when you get home and playing with him in the backyard, making bottles, rocking H to sleep, walking laps around the house to get her little eyes to finally close- the list could go on and on.  Thank you for being you and for keeping me laughing, even during the chaos.

I love you so much and am so glad your day has come.

2-0 giveaway!

I mentioned a few posts ago that I would like to do a giveaway in celebration of my blog reaching 20 followers.  When I started writing this blog, my intent was to be able to have a place where I could write about the obstacles D and I were facing, and hopefully get advice from others who had already been down this road and commiserate with those on the same journey.  And now, almost two years later, I can say that I've made great friends through this blogging community.  Your blogs have been such an inspiration to me- they have given me hope, encouragement, and brought laughter to times when all I've felt like doing was crying.

I can still remember finding Julie's blog, and waiting in anticipation with her for the results on her hubby's tests.  Through Julie's blog, I found Foxy who always writes such thoughtful and thought-provoking posts.  I found Rachel's blog (or actually, she might have found mine first, but I quickly began following her as well) and have truly felt for her as she has endured the ups and downs of this infertility roller coaster- and now I have my fingers crossed that a match will happen soon for her!  When we decided to go down the fostering road, I found Denver Laura's blog, Penelope's blog, Kelly's blog, Mandi's blog- and they have all been so helpful in providing support, knowledge, and encouraging comments.

I could mention so many more blogs (and bloggers) that have been instrumental in my continuing to come here and post.  Thank you for coming to my little blog and reading, and not only reading, but leaving comments of encouragement, support, and promises of prayers.  And now for the giveaway...

a retro red braided fabric bracelet with hand-stamped tag from theadoptshoppe, where the sale of each item goes to fund their pending adoption.  The tag will be stamped with the word hope- something I think speaks to the heart of every infertile- whether they have gone on to have children of their own, are adopting, or are currently on their own journey of overcoming the odds.

How to enter:
Leave a comment on this post with what you want your blog followers to glean from your blog.  Are you looking to inspire others?  Just needing a place to put your thoughts down?  Or maybe even more important, a place to document your journey?  One entry per person.  Giveaway will end midnight June 25th with the winner being announced the following day.  Good luck and happy blogging!