Life

We made it to church this morning...on time...just barely. :) Everything takes a little more time. I cooked a little yesterday and today but a few friends are providing some meals this week which will be a huge blessing. Andrew has used up all the time he can take at the moment so he will be headed back to work on Tuesday. I will miss him!

The boys are absolutely LOVING preschool and we will probably be transitioning them to go from 9-2 instead of 9-12 (two mornings a week) - they don't like leaving when other kids stay. :) I'm just so glad it's going well! We had decided at the beginning of the school year that we would give it a trial run of 2 months and if it wasn't working out, we would not continue. Little did we know that it would be so wonderful for them. They are two weeks in and we can already see improvement in Calvin's speech which was our main motivator for choosing to put them in preschool this year. I'm looking forward to getting more involved in the coming weeks and hopefully meeting some of the other moms. They have their first field trip next week to an orchard which will be so fun! I've been so impressed with how much they encourage parents to take part in all the activities - even in the classroom. We are so thankful that God directed this for our family this year and we hope it continues to be a good experience.

We are getting excited for my sister's wedding coming up in less than two weeks! The boys (except Ty) will be ring bearers, I will stand up with my sister, and Andrew will be an usher. It will be so much fun and we are so happy for her and Jeremy. Now I need to write my toast... It makes me a little nervous - but for Steph, I will be brave because I wouldn't miss it! It's just that I'm not crazy about public speaking - in fact, I opted out of it in college. I took a communications class at 7:30 in the morning to fulfill the speech requirement. Yeah, I really didn't want to take speech. :)

So that's what's going on here. We have our fantasy football draft tomorrow. Here. I'm taking the easy way out. We already bought the drinks, we will order pizza or wings or sandwiches, and everyone else will pitch-in. It's the one party Andrew plans every year and I just didn't have the heart to not host it this year... :) Life will eventually return to some semblance of normal - a new normal but normal none the less. I'm going to give myself permission to rest this week - alot - well, after tomorrow.

Of Note

Today was Titus' actual due date.

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig :)

We arrived home around 1 this afternoon to a whirlwind of activity. Ty went to the doctor at 2 - he had a great check-up and his weight is up to 6 lbs. 13 oz.! Hooray for him! I went to the chiropractor around 5 and then we all headed to my parents for my youngest brother's birthday. We decided it would be a great chance for everyone to meet Titus and to enjoy a meal and family time.

Tomorrow we have set aside as a day just for the 5 of us. We are really looking forward to reconnecting as a family. The boys are thrilled that we are home and ecstatic about being big brothers. We are just enjoying all three of our boys - we feel so incredibly blessed! We continue to pray that all will work out and we will be able to finalize Ty's adoption in the coming months.

Thank you all for your prayers, encouragement, notes, comments, and for following along on our amazing journey. You have blessed us more than we can express. And while our journey is not over, the blog will begin to go back to it's more eclectic topics. :)

Yay!!!

We're Going Home!!!!

Still Here

We are still here. Today has been one of the toughest of the last week - it's a long story. We have some hope that we will be allowed to return home tomorrow. Meanwhile, Ty gets cuter by the day! It's hard to believe he will be two weeks tomorrow! He is such a sweetie and as we've said before, totally worth all the frustrations. We never dreamed that IN would be so difficult. The guy that needs to approve us will be gone until Wednesday after tomorrow so we hope and pray that he does not leave us hanging for another week.

We are weary. We have been blessed by the family here - they have not only encouraged us when we've been down but our hostess has gone to bat for us and worked hard to figure out what needs to happen. We are thankful for them and for this time with Titus.

Pictures & Good News!

Well, what normally takes "weeks" here will happen tomorrow! We are so thankful! It's been so exciting to see God's amazing work. We received the phone call this afternoon and we were told that this was definitely a God-thing and we couldn't agree more! We also were told that it was no problem for C to sign and she didn't mind - we were glad. We don't know exactly when we will be home but it looks like sooner rather than later. :) I don't think this would have felt long or even as stressful if it weren't for our wonderful sons at home. We miss them like crazy and thus our antsy-ness (yes, I'm making up words :))!!!

SO, here are some pictures (there will also be an album on facebook):

Prayer

Please PRAY TODAY! There is some more paperwork being signed and filed. We are hopeful this will enable us to return home sooner rather than later but here is still the "weeks" possibility. Pray that we will find favor in the sight of the court here and the processors in IN. These are not laws in the legal sense - they are policies. Also, please pray for C - she has to sign something else this morning and we feel awful that she has to do that. From our understanding, IN is the only state that requires this particular thing. You better believe we will be writing some letters when we get home... :)

We will be going out today - yay! We are planning to go to the mall, Starbucks (to upload pictures - okay, and for a mocha :)), and to lunch - just the 3 of us! Yeah, I'm excited. :) We haven't gotten out much. :)

Rides to Remember

I feel like venting about policies, competency and other such issues but alas I shall restrain myself... We are pretty much no closer to resolution (at least that we can tell). IN is being very difficult for unknown reasons.

So for now, I will tell you about two elevator experiences. In our short stay at the hospital I had two rather interesting rides. :)

The first occurred when we got on an elevator with several others before realizing there was a vomiting kid on board. He stood in the corner gagging and tossing his cookies into a cup - loudly. It took everything in me not to puke myself. Note to self: if child is sick, ask others to take a different elevator - do not hold the door for them and wait for them to enter. Poor kid.

The second happened a couple of days later. I was by myself and got onto an elevator with several hospital employees. They began discussing the fact that a couple of them had given blood moments before. One of the ladies was feeling woozy and then she slumped over. Thankfully there were several people on board. I held the old elevator doors open (they were bound and determined to squash me) and asked for a wheelchair (before I realized that she had passed out cold). A man came and helped carry her out of the elevator and laid her on the floor. He started calling for smelling salts (it felt like a movie by this point). I made sure she had the help she needed (four people or so) and quietly closed the elevator door to ascend to my floor - by myself. I will admit, I hesitated to ride the elevator with anyone after that - I looked at them thoroughly to ensure optimal health. :)

We are working on keeping positive here. I know in the realm of time, this will be such a short amount of time but right now it's just frustrating. Not knowing is perhaps the most frustrating. We will probably go to a Starbucks tonight or tomorrow to get wireless internet so we can post pictures!

Rest

We've enjoyed a restful day today. We attended church this morning with our gracious hosts and took naps this afternoon. We were able to have dinner with my sister and brother-in-law since they were camping not too far away this weekend. It's been a refreshing day which was much needed.

We are hopeful that things can be quickly sorted out tomorrow - though we expected to be here possibly two weeks, we had definitely been given hope that we would be home much sooner. Even on Friday, there were thoughts that we would be approved to return home that afternoon. So hearing that it may be another 10 or more days was a pretty tough blow yesterday. We will keep you updated and as always, we appreciate the prayers and thoughts.

Every time I look at this little boy, I am amazed. He is wonderful and I cherish these early days of getting to know him. We feel so incredibly blessed. Yesterday it was beautiful to see our older boys so instantly in love with this little guy. I planned to post a few pictures here from that but haven't had access to the camera and internet at the same time. So stay tuned for them - yes, we have decided to post some of those pictures. :) We are such a happy family - completely enamored with the newest member.

Update

We are hearing that we may be here for over another week. Please pray - I cannot even tell you how discouraging this is. On good news, our boys came for a visit with my mom and brother today! It has done our hearts good but also makes our hearts ache that we are apart. The boys loved meeting Ty!! So sweet.

Big Prayer Request

All the paperwork has been approved here but the office in our state is saying that they don't have everything they need. It's Friday. So the long and short of it is that we can't go home, we don't know what they need, and we don't know when we will be able to go home - could be a early next week or it could be much longer. We are so discouraged and down today. Please pray that everything will be quickly sorted out on Monday. It's been another bump in the road but Ty is completely worth it. We miss our other boys so much. So some tears are shed today - we don't have a lot of answers so please just pray.

Homesick

We are still here. :) Hanging in there. We are really missing our boys at home. Paperwork is definitely under way and we hope to get approval to return home soon. Ty is doing well. He is pretty constipated at the moment. So you can pray for that. Our hosts are so kind and we've had such a nice time here but we are ready for home! Sorry this is pretty uninteresting...just wanted to give a quick update.

Doctor's Report

We just got back from the doctor and things look good! He gained 2 oz. which is right on track. He cooperated beautifully but was a little dramatic - grunting everytime the doctor touched him. :)

I'm hoping to put up an album on facebook soon - we can't access anything here very well so it will probably be next week. If you aren't already my facebook friend - feel free to ask. :)

And if you still haven't received a picture and stats - please e-mail me again or leave a comment with an e-mail address or way to get in contact with you! I've been working on it...

Slept Well

Ty slept very well last night - I had to wake him up for his feedings. He woke up at 7:30a.m. and was ready for some interaction. :) He has been getting the hiccups a few times a day - poor guy. We go to the doctor today and hope he is gaining weight! He was down 8 oz. by the time we left the hospital which was within normal but we are hoping he is more now. He is still spitting just a little but nothing like before so we are thankful for that. He is a doll!

Report

Last night went well overall, I was tired this morning, though. :) He was a little restless (due to sleeping so much during the day) but wasn't cranky. I am a light sleeper when kiddos are nearby so I was awake a lot! At 5, he decided it was definitely time to wake up. I stayed up with him and fed him until about 6 (and enjoyed the time) and then passed him off to Andrew while I rested for awhile. He has been more wakeful today and I took a nap this afternoon while he napped and hung out with Andrew. Not having to think about meals or housekeeping has been wonderful - we are able to focus on Ty.

Please contine to pray for things to work out. And please pray that our paperwork will be processed quickly and well and enable us to return home soon! Thank you all for your continued support and encouragement - you have no idea how much you have blessed us in the midst of difficulty and tremendous joy.

Settled

I'm typing one-handed so please forgive any mistakes. :) We are doing well! We are settled into the home of a lovely family who will be taking care of us for most of the rest of our time here. Ty is wonderful and very sleepy. I'm afraid he may have his nights and days mixed up - he has slept most all of the day today. Oh well. He's beautiful and I just can't get enough of him. :) If you haven't received an e-mail, I'm so sorry. I've been trying to get them out to everyone but it may take me a couple of days. Our internet access may be a little less frequent but I will try to keep up! Thank you for the prayers - we are so touched and encouraged. Please don't stop! We still have some time that the birthmom could change her mind and we still have time for the adoption to be final. The past few days have been incredibly emotional and I think we are both exhausted. We are so thankful for the wonderful nurses at the hospital - saying goodbye today was tough (even though we were ready to go!). As we adjust to a newborn's schedule, we would really appreciate your prayers. We want to take the best care of him that we possibly can! He is a blessing. More tomorrow.

Released!

He is being released this afternoon! The delay has been that attorney being able to get here. He is doing GREAT today - eating is hugely improved, jaundice is normal, and he is less restless! I've gotten to hold him most of the morning. :) We are headed back up for our crash course in newborn care (thankfully, we did take a class before coming :)). Thank you all - we will let you know when we are settled tonight!

Introducing....

**UPDATED: We we will continue to post here as our journey continues.**

TITUS PAUL
(we will mostly call him 'Ty')

One Happy & Thankful Family

If you would like pictures and stats, please shoot us an e-mail or leave a comment and we will be more than happy to send them! We've been advised to not post pictures and we had already discussed concerns with how easily our blog is found just via our first names (since mine is unusual). We thought about making it private but we have quite a number of readers (at the moment) and blogger limits the number you can have. So our immediate solution is to keep it public but not post pictures or specifics. We are more than happy to share it with you though! We'll try to get something out right away to many of you but if you don't get it, please just ask - you aren't being skipped on purpose! :) Thanks for understanding! Oh and congratulations to the 26% (or 16) of you who guessed the name correctly!

Long Day

It's only 7:15 but it feels like a forever long day - it's been a bit emotional and a bit challenging. But...TPR is signed! We are thrilled and blessed beyond measure but really feeling for C tonight. Pray for her, please. I cannot imagine making the courageous decision she has made. She did come to say goodbye to him after she signed.

Much of this part of our journey will forever be carried in our hearts and shared with our son when he is ready. We have experienced the gamut of emotions but we love that little boy sooo much! We are going back to spend a couple more hours with him. We will post a picture etc. when we get back to our hotel tonight. There is much more that still needs to happen before this little guy is officially and forever ours but this is a great big step. We are so thankful.

Maybe we should wait until the poll ends to post next? Or should we end the poll early? Or should we wait for 100 votes? :) :)

Monday Morning Update

Baby boy is doing well this morning. He was a little spitty with his last feeding but overall has done better. His jaundice is much improved and they have removed one light and reduced the intensity of the remaining two. The pediatrician (who is great, by the way!) wants to keep him until tomorrow. So hopefully he will be released tomorrow morning and paperwork can start. Four days has felt like a week or more. His bruising is improving which is good - he has had some hemorrhage in his eyes do to the traumatic birth.

The missing document is being tracked down. Please continue to pray that they will be willing to overnight what we need. We need it ASAP. Papers are scheduled to be signed tonight.

We are loving taking care of him and can't wait for him to be free of all the cords! They did take out the IV this morning and the monitors are off but the cords have not been removed. He LOVES being held and is responding to our voices and touch. He looks up at us and sometimes even smiles (involuntary, I'm sure, but I'll take it!). He has stolen our hearts. We can't wait to introduce him to Calvin & Patrick and to be a family of 5! We continue to hope and pray that all will work out. Maybe the next post will be pictures, stats, and name???? I hope so!

Four Prayer Requests

God has been answering in amazing ways and we appreciate all the prayer support! Here are four specific ways you can pray:

1) Baby Boy has jaundice and is being treated with three photolights. Pray the numbers will go down quickly. This is not unexpected - his face is VERY bruised and he was a little early which both increase the chance.

2) Pray that he will make enough progress to be released sometime tomorrow. The TPR can be signed tomorrow but evidently our paperwork cannot start processing until he is released.

3) We requested a document two weeks ago and we were told that it was sent out 10 days ago but we have yet to receive it. Pray that we will be able to sort that out quickly tomorrow and get things overnighted to avoid delay.

4) Please also pray for our two precious sons at home. It's hard being away from them (even though they are in great hands!). We miss them.

Finally, we are so thankful to report that baby boy is doing better with eating! We talked to the doctor this morning (thanks for the reflux tip, Monica!) and she made a couple of changes. He has done much better today and hopefully that will continue to work! We are headed back to the hospital after having some dinner during their shift change. We continue to feel well - big praise!

Quick One

We are feeling better - praise the Lord! Hopefully it will stay away! Andrew went to the hospital early this morning and I stayed to rest for awile because I was still not feeling quite right. I was so glad he was feeling back to normal and was able to go because it broke my heart to have to leave last night. He is on his way back to the hotel to get me so I can go love on my baby boy. :) Thank you, thank you for the prayers. We will update later if we get a chance...or you may be getting sick of 2 and 3 posts a day...in that case, sorry, they probably won't stop at the moment. :)

What's Going On...

We miss our kiddos but they are hilarious on the phone! :) They are excited to meet the baby and promise to help. :) It's been a tough journey so far but we are trusting that everything will work out and that the boys will get to be big brothers!

The boys have their preschool open house tomorrow and start preschool this next week. I'm sad to miss being there with them but they are in good hands. Remember to take pictures, Nana! They have been eagerly anticipating school and I hope they love it! We are so thankful that God directed the decision to enroll them in school this year - little did we know that our fall would be so full!

Two Prayer Requests

Neither one of us is feeling well tonight...please pray that whatever it is will quickly pass. We weren't able to spend much time with the baby tonight because we felt so bad. We think it is a short-lived bug that is going around our family at home or possibly something we ate - it came on quite suddenly. Please also pray for the baby - he is having a really hard time keeping formula down and he can't be released until he is doing better with it. He is a good eater as far as sucking etc. but a lot of it comes back up. We've changed formulas per the doctors orders but it hasn't improved very much (I know it can take time). Thanks again for your encouraging words, thoughts, and prayers. We feel so grateful and so loved. We really can't wait to introduce you to our little guy!

Maybe we should have a name poll to see if you can guess the correct name? :)

Update 2

Things are looking better - I'm not going to go into details but we are feeling more confident that we will get to bring this guy home! There have been some very good developments today.

Please know that throughout our own emotions we also really feel for C. I cannot imagine how hard this must be for her! Things definitely did not go according to her plan. We have seen her and it was very emotional but in a good way, I think. We love her.

To answer some questions: the birthmom cannot sign the TPR (termination of parental rights) until Monday. She will then have 20 days that she could change her mind. It is our understanding that we will need to wait 60 days for the birthfather's rights to be terminated since we haven't heard anything about him signing anything. So we are definitely still anxiously awaiting all of that. We will feel like things are pretty sure once C signs the TPR and at this point, we do anticipate that happening. But we are still very cautious.

We do not know how long we will be here - up to two weeks. We do not know when the baby will be released - could be as soon as tomorrow but it may be longer than that. He is doing well overall. His face is very bruised from the unexpected delivery and must be very sore! He is a trooper. He has been sleeping a lot and I think the bruising makes it uncomfortable for him to open his eyes very much. He hasn't cried much - I'm sure that will change. :) He has LOTS of black hair and dark eyes. And have we mentioned that he is adorable and beautiful and we are completely smitten? :)

We have been overwhelmed by the amazing nurses - they have been so kind and have been rooting for us! Several have said they are praying and have expressed their desire and hope that things will work out. We have been allowed to come and go as we please. We mostly stay. :) We did go out for lunch and to Target for a Boppy pillow. I'm afraid he is going to be rather spoiled - we are holding him all the time right now. :) We will probably both go back to the hotel for rest tonight - we'll see. They are swamped here at this small hospital and thus maxed out on space! Yesterday, he was the only NICU baby and now there are six.

So that's the report from here...

Update

We are hanging in there. We had a good night of sleep and are headed back to the hospital (they were at capacity last night in the maternity ward and the baby is in the NICU so we both stayed at a hotel). We are trying to protect our hearts but it's pretty near impossible - we spent most of the afternoon and evening with him yesterday and he is just so sweet and so cute! We won't be posting pictures or name until things are signed. There are still too many unknowns at this point and we certainly do not feel that this is for sure. Please continue keep us in your thoughts and prayers. It's been an emotional roller coaster.

You all have been such blessing with your kind words, encouragement, excitement, and prayers - thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

PRAY!

Please keep the prayers coming...things have not gone quite as planned. Remember the 60% statistic...we still aren't sure if she is going to sign. She says yes but has waffled. Due to his unexpected entry, she did see him and that has been hard for her. We just left the NICU (he's doing okay) so she could see him - she says for goodbye but we do not take anything for granted. We are nervous wrecks and just praying that all will work out and that we will be able to come home with a baby. We know that we may not and that would be so sad for us.

He is adorable!

THE CALL

Well...I had this whole post about the draft scheduled for today (see below)... BUT INSTEAD WE HAVE A BABY!!!! At this point, all we know is that she had it at home (that was, of course, unplanned :). I was already to leave for work this morning but we will be leaving for Kentucky instead! We are so excited and I'm a teary mess. Pray for us! We'll update as we are able!

Draft Day

Today is the day...okay, not that day (at least that I know of - no call, yet :)). No, no it's the annual live fantasy football draft hosted at our house. Tired of being football widows, several of the wives, girlfriends, etc. decided to try and join in the obsession so we could 1) understand, 2) be more knowledgeable, and 3) see our significant others. Little did we know, that three years later we would 1) still be playing, 2) actually enjoy it, and 3) mostly know the players and understand the game. To say that our men are proud of us is a bit of an understatement. :)

Over the past three years, we've lost a few women who just didn't have the time or interest but we have gained others who are willing to give it a try. This year we will have 8 teams - 5 returning, 3 new. Last year, after a rough season, my team (the ChocoFrogs - inspired by Harry Potter) finished 2nd. This year, I will be debuting my new and hopefully winning team...LaughingWombatZingers. There is no rhyme or reason to the name - it just sounded like a good one for this year. :)

Twelve men will gather in our dining room intensely weighing their options as if their life depended on it. Eight women will gather in the loft upstairs, laughing, chatting, and drafting with a little less intensity. Papers and computers will be spread out by both groups as selections are made. Food and beverages will be consumed...fun will be had by all. Critiques, analysis and comparison of teams will conclude the evening.

Andrew is praying that our hoped-for baby boy will wait until at least midnight tonight before deciding to make an appearance. :) Yay for the start of another season!

Vacation Pics...Finally!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Things of Note (or not)

- I like being an adult because it means I don't have to eat the crust (when the kids aren't looking, of course :)).

- Evidently Twinkle, Twinkle got it all wrong - it's a big, BIG star according to Calvin who yelled at me that it wasn't little.

- Our tomatoes are beautiful and bountiful this year and we've enjoyed sharing them with neighbors! I need to put some in the freezer.

- Our zuchini is not good at all - first time we've ever had them fail.

- Seeing things at the fair is overrated...animals and tractors are good enough. That and eating...

- Resigning indefinitely from one of my jobs was a difficult but necessary part of this week. It's been a pleasure working there.

- Getting mentally prepared for a new baby has been a challenge. Somehow it just doesn't feel real yet.

- I LOVE watching the Olympics!

- I'm absolutely exhausted and have gone to bed early pretty much every night since the weekend.

- I think Lindt chocolate truffles are soooo delicious.

- Fantasy Football season starts in less than a month - I should probably prepare. It's my 3rd season and may get a post all it's own.

- Diet Coke, coffee, and iced tea make life all that much better!

- Crunching ice is a horrible, very bad habit but oh, it's so good - especially crushed ice!

- I'm stalling some work I need to do this evening...I have a meeting tomorrow...I probably should get it done...but blogging is so much better....

So, there you have a few random things for today. And yes, we are still here and may be for awhile - who knows?! My heart stops a little every time the phone rings, though! :) Oh and to answer a question from the previous post - we will stay in KY for 1-2 weeks for the paperwork to be in order.

Any Time!

That's the latest...so we could have a little longer or it could be any time according to the physical signs. :) The attorney and our adoption agency owners (one is a social worker and the other an attorney) met with C today and it went well. We are so glad! It looks like we will have to wait 60 days for the father's rights to be terminated since he doesn't intend to sign anything but no one seems worried that he will contest it (at least at this point). We should be able to come home after 1-2 weeks (once the paperwork is okay'd by both states). Anyway, that's our understanding!

I'm Back...

I took a week off last week but I need to get back to menu planning. :) I'm still keeping it fairly simple - I should probably be putting things in the freezer to make life simpler with a new one. Well, maybe I'll get to it...that or we'll eat cereal and eggs for a couple weeks. :) Okay, yeah, I'll make it a priority!

We have a lot of tomatoes and pepper so we will be eating them for snacks and I will be featuring them in our menu plan. We will be having about 20 or so over on Friday night for the annual men's and women's fantasy football draft - we decided to order pizza. And I'm sure at least one night, Andrew will work late (or have a board meeting) so the kids and I will likely eat what we can easily scrounge up. :) So here are the five planned meals for this week (in no particular order):

- Hotdogs, Chips, Fruit, Veggies
- Pasta w/homemade sauce, Salad, Breadsticks (I'll probably add some garden fresh green peppers, use homegrown tomatoes and possibly add zuchini or sqash to the sauce)
- Grilled Steaks w/Grilled Veggies, Blueberry Muffins
- Lentil Stuffed Green Peppers (this will be my own creation - I'll post the recipe if it turns out!), Fruit Salad
- Egg Casserole w/spinach, tomato & cheese - probably no meat, Biscuits, Fruit

I'm adding an easy chocolate fondue recipe to my recipe blog. We made it for a shower this weekend and served it with angel food cake, strawberries, pineapple, bananas, marshmallows, brownies, waffle butter cookies, and almond butter cookies - so good!

As always, thanks to orgjunkie for hosting MPM every week! Hope you all have a wonderful week preparing meals for your family and may it bring you together around the table!

Overheard

I was doing some last minute shower shopping today when I overheard this exchange:

Highschool Girl 1: I don't really use an organizer...maybe I will when I'm old.

Highschool Girl 2: Like how old?

Highschool Girl 1: I don't know...like really old.

Highschool Girl 2: You mean, like, 30?

Highschool Girl 1: I mean like really old.

Highschool Girl 2: Like what?

Highschool Girl 1: Like maybe my mom's age.

So there you have it. 30 and above are old - and once you hit above that you are positively ancient. You heard it here first, folks. :) Have a great weekend to young and old alike...I'm guessing most of you fall in the old category. :) How does it feel? :) I'm still a youngster for another, oh, 10 months...

Entertaining This Week :)

We are trying desperately to fit everything in before we get "the call."

Last night, we hosted our youth Bible Study group for a cookout (turned to pizza party due to the a.m. weather). We said goodbye to a couple of them that will be moving away this fall. But it was a great evening - so relaxing! We even enjoyed a new game - Flapdoodle. It's a hilarious game that gets you to do some pretty embarrassing things. :) It was so much fun! These kids have blessed our lives tremendously and we love them!

This weekend, my sisters and I will be hosting a family shower on Saturday morning for Ashley (Elliot's fiancee). It's a brunch at my house but each of my sisters is pitching in something. I can't wait to have everyone! Saturday night, we will have Stephanie's personal/bachelorette party - also at my house. We came up with what I hope will be a fun theme - wine, cheese, and chocolate. We invited her closest friends and we will shower her with those fun little items. :) I hope it will be a great evening that she always remembers!

In preparation for all the festivities, we will be:
-steam cleaning the carpets - they are horrible!
-putting together favors
-planning games/activities
-making food
-cleaning bathrooms
-decorating
-shopping for last minute things

I really do love entertaining and planning events! I can't wait for it all to be here even though I still have much to do! I'm off to get busy... :)

Update on Life

Our laptop is having serious problems so writing and posting pictures is proving challenging. The home computer is just not convenient and does not lend itself to multi-tasking...

I'm not even doing a menu plan for this week... Whatever we eat will be simple, focused on fresh ingredients (peppers and tomatoes are prolific right now), and quick to make.

Today I ran around to get medical papers filled out and signed by the doctor and to turn in paperwork and write checks to our adoption agency. I also bought a carseat and stroller - Graco Metrolite. I hope we like it! I came home to find out that I won a brand-new baby-wearing sling/carrier from all the giveaways last week! I am so thankful and it looks similar to one of the ones I was considering - I will try wearing it and make sure it will work but it looks great. I love seeing how God provides!

Patrick had a wonderful party yesterday (grandparents, aunts, & uncles). He was so delighted to have everyone and felt very self-important. :) Pictures to follow - there were some really great ones! I made a cake for him - I didn't have much time but he was pleased with the result. :) He chose a strawberry cake and he even helped to make one of the layers - it was a highlight for him and for me. His favorite gifts were from Uncle Luke & Aunt Liz - a semi with a car that drives into the back and from Uncle Elliot- Mack truck with three cars. He literally screamed and jumped up and down when he opened the latter which is a ton of emotion for my shy boy. :)

Tonight we will focus on getting the house tidied up, clothes folded, and bags ready to go for the "in-labor" call. I'm tired today, but it was a great weekend! Oh and we do have a name...we are 95% sure but you'll have to stay tune for the blog birth announcement. :) Hope your week is off to a good start!

Washing Fun

I sent Calvin into the bathroom to wash his hands this afternoon...it seemed to be taking a loooong time. I told him it was time to be done but he came out rubbing his hands together with soap. So I instructed him to rinse them off and turn the water off. A very short while later, I followed him in the bathroom to discover...he not only had an amazing amount of soap on his hands but he had taken it upon himself to soap his hair and clean his toothbrush. What a mess! It took me several minutes to rinse his hair - it was that much soap. And by the time we were finishing, bubbles were nearly overflowing the sink. I stifled the urge to burst out laughing at the situation as I cleaned him up and instructed him on proper amounts of soap. :) He smells very nice tonight - do you think it was a bath time hint? :)