Schedules, names and driving.

You may be wondering what our latest news is with the insanity that is our lives. We are happy to announce that the news is really fantastic. Yesterday we were lucky enough to receive our visitation schedule and it is way better then we could have ever expected. As long as everything goes smoothly and our weekend visits go without a major hitch little V is set to move home on Dec. 23. Talk about an amazing Christmas present for both of us. The schedule includes lots of hanging out for short times and then a mix of really long weekends until the move in date. For the first time in many years I cannot wait for Christmas to get here because we will have our child to share it with. We are all crossing our fingers that there is some cousin love ahead and not a disaster zone:)


I was thinking a lot about V's name and how we stressed and stressed about how we wanted to be able to name our child. Let me tell you folks that when you are adopting and you see the picture or get the call that you are chosen to be parents, the last thing that matters is the name. In some ways we are lucky because we actual like his name though it could not be farther from something we would have actually chosen. Our plan is to give him a new middle name and big shocker it will be after Matt. All and in all the sadness about naming V suddenly went away. We may never find a cup with his name on it or souvenirs from family trips but it fits him.


One last big thing that I have been thinking about is the amount of driving that we will be doing during our visits. We really need to come up with some way to not let these hours go by without still being some sort of bonding time. The problem being that I get crazy car sick after awhile and will not be much of fun mom in the car. So if anyone has fun car games that do not involve reading in the car, we are all up for suggestions:) Keep in mind he is five. We may resort to the DVD player if he totally hates it. So please send along your wonderful ideas.

Wordless Wednesday

A wonderful lady named Katie who also blogs does an occasional Wordless Wednesday and because I think  it is a wonderful idea,I will start doing the same. So here goes!

Our Son.

This is not something that we are used to saying AT ALL. I am waiting for the moment that we say our son and V is right beside us. Everything is new, exciting and scary. If all works out as planned we should be meeting V later this week. We cannot even explain how much we want to just sit in the same room with him and hear him play and watch him move around. Every time that I walk down the hallway upstairs I think about how the room at the end of the hall is now the room for our son.


I truly understand how when people become parents all of the things that seemed so big and worrisome no longer matter. When Ms. M told us that we had been chosen for V, my whole life just shifted. When we are making decisions it is  with the goal of how it will affect life with the little guy. Our biggest joy will be introducing him to his family and friends.


Telesa and I went to Babies R Us to start a registry because we have been asked by folks if we will register somewhere for gifts. I started crying as we were filling out the papers because this was something that I had in some ways convinced myself would never happen. It was such a blessing to be able to just scan for an ear thermometer. As you can imagine Telesa was horrified that my tears would not stop flowing. I just kindly reminded her that she had a few pyscho moments in Babies R Us when she was pregnant with Q.


I cannot wait to tell everyone about how our visit goes and what it is going to be like to go through these holidays as parents. When I think about how adoption is different it makes me think of a few things that are just amazing and they go like this:


1. I do not have to wait 9mths to meet my son.
2. I do not have to go through labor and Matt gets to avoid the hospital.
3. Our child will always be able to know that we chose him and the world chose us to find him.
4. That he will come with an amazing foster family that will be extended family to us.


Oh, there are a tons of reasons why I cannot be happier about adoption but those are the big ones. Who knows the way our family will grow but one thing we know for sure is that our hearts are bursting with love and excitement for V.

Blogging through tears.

Okay, so first I have to say that the comments,phone calls and texts mean the world. Thank you for all of the love that is being sent our way. At this moment there are so many emotions that take place and are impossible to really explain in a way that makes any of you feel the extent of our happiness. I can only imagine that this is how most of the parents reading this felt at the first ultrasound that was during the safe time. 


All I have ever wanted in life is to be a mom. I knew from a very young age that I wanted to be the person that was able to be there and help a little person grow and learn. The older I got and the struggles that I went through with fertility made that dream feel so far out of reach. Part of my "growing up goals" included being a mom before 30. As the months of been clicking along, I did not think it was going to happen. Turns out I was very wrong. 


So now there is the whats next question...and that is a little tricky because there are all kinds of laws for the protection of the child's privacy, our privacy and that of the foster family. So to start we will go and meet V next week and then we start regular visits. When those are going well then we will get an overnight. Our hope is that he transitions well enough to move home at winter break.


After he is with us for five months then we can petition the court to adopt him. To clear up any worries now he is being placed as an adoption placement. Mostly that part is just all of the legal changes of an adopted child. 


The important part is that we get to meet him  and play with him and establish a relationship that brews in your heart the second you learn about them. We are going to be parents!! I am pretty sure that the hearing the word mom and dad is going to make me cry for a few days at very least.




Here are the things we have learned so far:
1. He is five.
2. He loves all things with wheels.
3. He is great eater and not picky (thank goodness)
4. The school bus is the highlight of the day.
5. That he will be the most important part of our universe.


Life is full of blessings.

THE CALL!

We got the call!!! At this point I am so not able to put in to words the joy that we are experiencing when I say that we got the call to find out that we are going to to be parents to V! We will meet our son next week and start the process of transitioning to come home. When my brain can understand what just happened I will post something with more words.

At this point Matt and I are happy to announce that we have been given the blessing of being parents to V.

Adventures of trying to breathe...

Another day has passed with no word. Though the one word that we keep hearing from everyone is to just breathe. If only it was truly that simple. I am breathing is what I want to say...it is just some times really fast and then other times it may take a moment due to lack of focus. The anticipation of joy is mixed with the fear that maybe they will not realize how much we could love little V. 


I am grateful that we have Ms. M to help navigate the time delays and is willing to say things like "yank the chain" of people who should be responding. None of this can fast enough. Even when the  call comes that we are matched it will all still will be waiting. Waiting to meet him..waiting to visit...waiting for the first overnight...waiting for him to come home. Those are the good waits. Waiting for a yes or no about a child we are dreaming about is the terrible wait. 


I really want this blog to not just be us complaining about the wait or reminding everyone that we are waiting, so with that being said we will share some of hopes for the upcoming future and things we are looking forward to when our child/children come home.


1. I am really excited to have a car seat in my car. (Yes, I know this is a weird thing to state, but looking in our backseat now that has perfect upholstery is another sign that it is just the two of us)


2. We are excited about having a little person that wants to go to the park and snuggle on the couch at the end of the night. (Again, we realize these moments will be few and far in between)


3. One thing we always worry about is how our furkids are going to do with the new kids. So far the cats are going for the win. Ziggy has allowed Q to lay on him and not even scratch. The dogs are not doing so hot. Bogart barks non stop and Keiichi just bites (thank goodness he has no teeth). Our dogs have been our children so we really hope that they adjust to having children all of the time and love them, well eventually.


These are just a few things that come to mind. As for now I will jump every time the phone rings and wonder if it is THE CALL or get excited when my phone tells me that a new email is coming.


Thank you to everyone that is being so supportive and loving through all of this. I know that we have been terrible about returning phone calls, mailing packages or generally keeping up. The time has a way of getting away from us even if it isn't as fast we want. So thanks for the love and patience.

Waiting for V

For this post I feel like the title says it all. We are waiting for V. On Friday was our formal meeting that turned out to be somewhat informal. It only ended up being six of us and it was really great to learn more about this amazing little guy. We were able to see an updated picture and get to hear all about his day to day life. There is a really great chance that this could be our child. When we walked out of the interview I knew in my heart that we would be great parents for him.

It is a blessing that he was placed in such an amazing family that has done incredibly work for him. He has come so far from where he started. We are on the phone call stand by for the next four days. His caseworker is due to call by the end of the week to let us know if we are going to be parents. There are not words to really explain how we are feeling right now.

As soon as the word comes we will pass it along! All thoughts and prayers fully appreciated.

On the eve of our second formal interview...

Tomorrow morning we will wake up at 5 am and get dressed to drive a bit away from home to interview for V. Right now though our house is incredibly loud with the American League Playoffs and a husband who does not want a word said in fear of missing something in the game.

When I arrived home from a day at work, it was amazing to see that Matt had taken the time to do all of the yard work and decorate for Halloween. The funny thing is that this morning before I left for work, I was thinking about how we had not put anything up for a favorite holiday. Then I walk into the house and smell something wonderful..that turned out to be roasted duck and veggies in the oven. Seriously I could not have been more shocked or happy. It is the little moments like this that I am really overwhelmed with the things I have to be grateful for.

So the interview will start at 9 tomorrow and there is a possibility that we could have the answer on if we are chosen for V by the end of the evening. We are probably every emotion that you can imagine. There was positive feedback from our interview with M and M. We learned that it will be a few weeks before the give the final decision but that they were impressed with us. Funny how something that small was enough to bring extreme joy and faith that we are making the right steps for our family.

Tonight I finished the photobook that many of you have heard about me talking about on my facebook. When we were not set to interview and we had no idea what children could possibly come to our home, I struggled with finishing the project. It became so much easier when I thought about wanting to show M and M or even V what their life would be like. I cannot even imagine how overwhelmed we will be when the final call comes in and we become parents.

Until that call it is more uncomfortable clothes, interviews that feel all kinds of strange and lots of waiting.

Oh and a small taste of our night time Halloween house. Wouldn't it be lovely to bring home the newest little family member to this:

Adventures in figuring it all out.

Explaining how these processes take place and how they change us each time is becoming harder and harder. For every moment that something positive happens, we then take a step back and have to analyze every moment. When I was sitting down with my sister it was hard to find the words that can explain how the start from inquiring to interviewing really feels. So here is what I can came up with:

When you are looking to buy a new house it starts with a website of pictures (ours is very similar because the children are listed on a site). You then read the description of the house and you keep in mind that it is telling you all of the wonderful things for you (our is similar because we got a small blurb on the children of positives). Then you view the home and get a bit more info (this comes in a form of a social summary for us that has a bit more information about the child and their history). At this point you either go ahead and start the purchasing process (Adoption) and all of the steps that follow. So when you put in the offer the agent suggests a home inspection (This would be a our formal interview). The home inspection reveals that your homes foundation is cracked (This is where we learn all of the severe issues that may present with the children that they do not tell in the initial levels). After the inspection you negotiate what you need to help fix the foundation (This is where it may be hard to follow, but we will negotiate for what levels of support and state care that will stay with our children). When you are done with inspections, it comes to the final decision of purchasing the home (Will we finally adopt these children).

So after all of that which was much quicker in person I promise, it leaves us where we are now. If we are chosen for M and M we have to make the final decision on if we are the right parents to give these amazing children everything they need to grow. It is not an easy decision and one that we have to make with and without our hearts. In the end we want everything to be perfect for them. What is truly hard about this process is that we have to decided we want to be their parents before we even know if the people in charge of their future agree. 

I have to admit that we are really trying our best to figure it out and we are still waiting to hear what the council will have to say. We are grateful for the chance to interview and even be considered for this little guys. Hopefully soon we should have some answers from all of us. October 7th is our formal interview for V. So lots for me to come in our ever growing lives.