Another Go?

A few years ago my husband and I embarked on a journey; a journey in adoption.  I wanted to share that journey with you.  

September 25, 2010

Nadia is now 20 months old. She has been a "toddler" since the day she turned one. She love to climb, dance, play outside, yell at the dog and cats (I guess she gets that from one of us). Nadia is a delight. Scott and I often sit and watch her play. She is constantly doing things that make us laugh and love her more. I HATE cliche's but I really need to say God had her picked out for us. She is the most amazing part of our family.

Now that Scott and I are settled in as first time parents, our thoughts are moving to the idea of a second child. Though we have certainly been hoping that we might get pregnant in the last 6 months, that has not happened. So back we go to Adoption, which is truly an amazing blessing to us. It is NOT a second choice. For us, allowing there to be a natural birth order for our first two children, is important. So we are thinking that we would like to adopt a child younger than Nadia. Which should not be too difficult because by the time Scott and I go through the process to become licensed foster parents again, Nadia will be 2.

Our plan is to work through the application process, take the mandatory classes and be licensed in the spring time. So let hope, pray and see what is next for our little but hopefully growing family. And here's a few of my favorite pictures from the last few months.

She is growing so fast

A few years ago my husband and I embarked on a journey; a journey in adoption.  I wanted to share that journey with you.  

January 11, 2009

Okay so motherhood has meant that I have not been able to post anything to the blog lately. So I will do my best to run through an update of the last 3 months.

We had a fantastic trip to Dallas. Nadia did great on the plane and was the life of the conference. Grammy B (my mom) came with us and we all had a great time. She was so interested in everything that she would just not sleep much. So she would play and laugh at everyone then crash.

Nadia had her TPR (Termination of Parental Rights) at the beginning of May. It went well, although there was one short scare. We thought we would have to come back to court because of some paperwork complications due to the fact that the adoption is a Safe Haven. The law is so new, that some of the people in the court and social services don't know exactly how it works. But Scott and I truly believe the judge decided to go forward with it because he saw Scott and me with Nadia. We are not sure but most foster and adoptive parents don't come to the TPR. We are so glad we went.

We love the summer with Nadia and have put her in a baby pool a few times. She loves the water if it's not too cold. She loves walks and has a great time anytime she is outside. She is now rolling over and scoots all over the place. She is close to sitting up. We have a Bumbo and she loves being "up" to look at everything. She is sleeping through the night from about 8-6 or 7. She grabs everything she can and loves to pull hair, especially daddy’s beard.

We have waited to introduce solids under the suggestion of our DR. But this past week we made the decision to start her on rice cereal. She is less and less interested in her bottle and is showing other signs that she is ready. She watches us eat and will open her mouth when food is brought near her mouth. American Diabetes Association is now recommending waiting until a baby is 4-6 months old before starting solid, because there are studies showing a link between starting solids early and Diabetes. So this morning she had her first experience. She was not too crazy about it and did not actually swallow much the first time. But she ate a little more the second feeding. I am sure it will take a week or so for her to really start eating.

We are still having our social worker visit us 2 times a month and are set to complete all the paper work at the end of this month. We have been given more hand-me-down clothes than I know what to do with. She is going to be the best dressed little girl. We will not need to buy clothes or shoes until she is 3 years old.

The adoption date has been set for August 28th at 8:30AM. Parents, brothers and our pastor will be present at the hearing. It’s going to be a big weekend. We are having a Party the next day Aug 29th and are having her dedicated at our church on Sunday. 

It is amazing to be a mother, but it has meant that I need to let go of some things. Being organized is one of them. I sometimes feel like I just can’t keep on top of the laundry, cleaning and organizing. Our house has been a mess lately. Scott has been such a help but it’s hard for him to keep up too. We have both been really tired too. Parenting is full of sacrifice and change, but every time she looks up and gives us a smile (which is all the time) my heart melts.

Discover your town

Family Time Friday

Every time I have friends come to town to visit me, I find out something new about my city.  There is so much to do here and because I live her, I often overlook it.  If you are looking for something new and different to do with your family, look no further than around your neighborhood.  

You could go to one of the websites designed for visitors to your town or city and find what you have been missing.  Maybe it is a restaurant your kids would love for a little treat or a urban ecology center that you have driven by every day.  Find something you have never done before and be a tourist in your own city.   

Sahara Special

Teaser Tuesday

Sahara Special

by Esme Raji Codell 

Sahara Special is a wonderful story about Sahara Jones, an underachieving but very bright student who must repeat 5th grade.  

Sahara loves to write, but much of what she has written ends up in the counselor's file and the educators think Sahara needs special education.  Except her new 5th grade teacher, "Miss Pointy," who is like no other teacher Sahara has known.  Kids will love it,--even reluctant readers, especially those who don't want to start back to school in a few weeks.  

I found myself laughing out loud at many parts.  Great for 4th to 8th graders, as well as their parents and teachers.

Review by Alice Brown 

Check out the book on Amazon below.  

 

First Date

Monday Motivation

9 year old Mike was asked "What do people do on a first date?"  

He replied "On the first date, they just tell each other lies, and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date." 

Hope it makes you laugh to think about on this Monday but also make you realize just how much of what we do and say effects our children.  

Our first to months as parents

A few years ago my husband and I embarked on a journey; a journey in adoption.  I wanted to share that journey with you.  

April 11, 2009

When last I wrote, I had been a mom for a total of 15 hours. I have now survived 2 months. I was talking with someone recently that has a similar experience we began discussing the frustrations and joys of being a parent. She found that though the frustration of being a parent are certainly still there, every time she encounters one, she is able to better handle it because she remembers back to when she was in agony over waiting. 

I think it is similar with me. When 2 AM roles around and Nadia is up or it’s her cranky time, I can close my eyes and remember back a few months to the heartache and feeling of abandonment. I then am better able to “hear” past the loud shrieking sound and care for this wonderful creature God has entrusted us with. However, that’s just how I’m feeling today. If you’re a parent, you know, that could change at any moment. 

Nadia is wonderful. She is more and more alert every day. She is smiling at Scott and me, and at anything that she likes. She also smiles at the monkeys that hang on her wall and at the cat. She has about 2-3 hours of very awake and happy time in the morning then naps on and off most of the day. At night, she again has about 2-3 hours of alert time and it depends on the day and her mood if she is happy or cranky. She gets a bath every night and this is by far her favorite part of the day. It’s probably mine and Scott’s too. She is just so happy and looks so cute during her “tubby” time and she knows when it’s coming too. She can be the crabbiest baby and you put her down on her changing table, take her clothes off and she smiles, knowing the “tubby” is coming. She is kicking so much in the tub that in 5 minutes half the water has splashed out. 

Nighttime is right on track. She goes down between 8 and 9 then sleeps until around 2 and sometimes 3, she eats and goes right back down until about 6:30 – 7. At this point she is up for the morning and happy, sometimes not even hungry.

She has her 2 month check up next week which comes with her first immunization. I’m sure she will do just fine. Let’s hope I do just fine too. 

She is getting so big; I think she will be at least 11lbs. The Birth to 3 program tells us she is a little ahead of the curve in gross motor skills. Nadia thinks she has complete control of her head. I call her my little “bobble head” because that’s what it looks like. Her head just bobbles all around. Sometimes she even gets mad if you try to hold her head, she wants control. We could have a very stubborn little girl on our hands. She is such a little snuggle bug too. When you kiss her on the cheek, she moves her head so you get her lips. It’s so sweet. 

She has now met all her Great-grandparents and they are all just doting over her. Great Grandma Eva has threatened to put Nadia under her coat and bring her home with her. Great Grandpa is sad because he does not get to see her enough and Great-Grandma Sanborn got the biggest smile out of Nadia. My parents and Scott’s parents are of course in love. “Crazy Grandma” has baby sat a few times and my mom “Grammy B” is traveling with us to Dallas at the end of April. Both Grandpas put up a good front pretending they aren’t too interested but you can just see their hearts melt as soon as they see Nadia. Everyone who meets little Nadia falls in love with her, and how could you not? She is sent from heaven.

So, how are the Hall’s doing? Well we are not quite on cloud 9 anymore. Reality and sleepless nights have set in, but we are incredibly happy and blessed, and would like to take a quick moment to say thank you to every single one of our family and friends. Scott, I and now Nadia are so very lucky to have people in our lives like them. There has been such an outpouring of support that I get a little choked up every time I think about it. So to all of them:

THANK YOU and May God reward your love and generosity to us from the bottom of our hearts

Long story short - Nadia Anne!

A few years ago my husband and I embarked on a journey; a journey in adoption.  I wanted to share that journey with you.  


February 12, 2009

Last Monday we received some bad news. We did not get the little girl that we had hoped and expected to get. It was a sever disappointment. We spent the first 2 hours crying, yelling and simply being angry with the whole system. We then considered going to Costa Rica for the remainder of the week. We decided against this and began to get our life back together again. I got a new job and though we were far from happy about it we were doing okay. I truly believed it was not God's first choice for us to loose this little girl but that it would work out in the end. We had released it to Him and were ready for what ever. If that meant waiting for another year, we knew it would be worth it.

So it was a complete shock and surprise when I got a call yesterday afternoon on my day off. There was a baby just one day old at a hospital near us that had been surrendered the night before. I could not believe it and said "I will have to talk to my husband". I was thinking, there is no way he will say no, but I gotta talk to him.

So, I write this this morning at 5:30AM from a hospital room after my first night as a MOMMY. I could not be happier and Scott just can't stop smiling. We are proud parents of a 7lb 4oz - 19 inch little girl we have named Nadia Anne. Nadia means HOPE and Anne means GRACE. Both of which we have received in full from God, even when it was tough. I am here to tell you it is a crazy roller coster ride and there have been times I wanted to get off the ride, but what a ride it has been. It's not over yet, but we continue to be hopeful that this is our forever little girl. 

MOMMY AND DADDY