Had To Share...

My mom went shopping for PINK before my parents came over for the weekend! It's possible she was halfway to the department store before I even hung up the phone when I called last Thursday to say that Little Roo is a girl!! I wanted to share what she bought for the baby...



It is the sweetest little outfit any little girl could ask for! The tiny embroidered flowers match the flower on the side of the bonnet. It has ruffles around the leg openings and now we just have to find her some precious little socks. I think this makes a wonderful "coming home from the hospital" outfit!

If you click on the picture, it will open to show the full picture so you can see the beautiful details!

Little Roo is "Half-way" Cooked!

Little Roo is 20 weeks along today and has 20 weeks to go until her official due date!

140 more days.... and we've got a lot of stuff to do!!

We're planning on a quiet weekend. We have some family coming into town, including the grandparents-to-be for a birthday celebration!

Big News!!!

Our "feelings" about Little Roo were correct!! We are beyond excited!

The conference call with the birth parents went extremely well. The social worker asked if everyone was nervous. 'D' said she was a little nervous and I said "Well, I'm a lot nervous!". Everyone laughed and that really lightened the mood from the beginning.

The call wasn't very long but I did get to say how grateful I was to the both of them and that we are here to support them. The birthfather 'G' had a very important question that he wanted to ask and we talked about that issue and our answer put him at ease. It was very funny because I heard G say some of the very same things that Bill was just talking to me about the night before. I had thought from the beginning when we had first received the birthparent's file that Bill and G had very similar interests. This really put a smile on my face.

'D' did say that she had another doctor's appointment just this last Tuesday and she had more ultrasound pictures for us. The first set are much better, she said. I told her that I was thrilled that she was wanting to share those with us because I wanted to add them to the scrapbook that we are keeping. Then D said "You guys are having a little girl" and I literally couldn't say a word. Bill jumped in with a "That's wonderful!" and we both had the biggest smiles on our faces!

We chatted a bit more and we agreed to exchange cell numbers. We weren't so sure that we were going to want to do this in the beginning until we knew them better, but as the call progressed, we thought it was a good time. 'D' gave me hers first and said that I should feel free to call her anytime. Then I looked at Bill and I know that he was comfortable with giving out our info. Now they know that we live at least in the same area code as they do as before, they only knew that we were in the same state. I said they can call us anytime for even the smallest little thing. 'D' wants to talk on the phone a few more times before she wants to agree to a face-to-face meeting. I think that it completely fine and we have plenty of time for that.

I will probably call in the middle of next week to say that we were thinking of her, unless we hear from her first! I definately don't want to come off too pushy and will let her set the pace. Hopefully we can build a good relationship, even if it is just over the phone, because I think it is best for the baby. I want to be able to tell HER all about her birth parents and what wonderful people they are. She will know how much they love her!

Thank you to everyone that was wishing us good luck on our call today!! We truly appreciate the love and support everyone gives to us.

2 Days To Go...

Our call with 'D' and her social worker is on Thursday morning and I can't wait!!

I still haven't exactly figured out what I am going to say. A lot of it just can't be planned ahead of time. I do have a few things that I want to let her know, but I don't want to come across too "gushy". I hope that we can convey to her how grateful we are that she choose us to help her in this journey. I wonder what else she wants to know about us or if she still has some concerns.

We are going to let her set the pace of this call. I can imagine that she is as nervous as we are! I keep trying to put myself in her shoes and this would absolutely be the hardest decision I would ever have to make. I hope that we can be a source of emotional support and that she feels 100% confidence in her decision to have us parent her child. I am going to revisit the manual that the agency provided about successful matches.


OK, I bought a few new clothes for Little Roo... just a few. We were in Costco and when they have it for a good price, it would be crazy to not pick it up right?? We purchased two more sleepers, one that is in the 6 month size and one in the 9 month size. They both look HUGE! We also picked up two onsie/pant sets in the newborn size that are too cute for words! One has a string of animals on it that says "Going to Grandma's...." (someone is going to LOVE that!) and the other has light green turtles on it. I hadn't bought any little newborn sizes but we are expecting this baby to be around 5-6 pounds and not 8-9 pounds like our families! Most of the clothing that I have is in the 3 month range which is 8-12 pounds.

I was poking around on Kristi's blog the other day and it reminded me that I needed to start searching for a sling. I found The Peanut Shell microfleece sling in periwinkle on sale!! Periwinkle is good... it's not pink, it's not blue. Bill probably won't gag on it. I think it will be great for bonding, especially for when we are around the house in those first few weeks.

What is babywearing?

New Nursery Pictures

This is the original picture was submitted with our family profile. I needed to move this bookshelf because that corner is needed for the crib so we ended up moving the bookshelf to the opposite corner of the room. The bed has stayed the same. I have some room to still move it to the left, but I think it will be fine.

Here's how it looks now and I hope it doesn't look too squished together since it is right by the dresser.

That's all of the bottles from Karen on the top shelf until we need them in the kitchen!!! THANK YOU AGAIN!

I dug out all the children's books and child friendly toys we had out of the closet and packed away some of the breakables we used to have out on the shelves.

All of the tiny little clothes are folded and put away in the drawers. On the left are all the sleepers, rompers, nightgowns, and onsies. On the right are all the socks, hats, bibs, and diaper bag supplies.

The my burp clothes that I made are in the basket on top, next to Kanga and Little Roo, of course!

I also moved the glider and footstool into the room to get it out of family room, at least for now. It's sitting in the corner where the crib is going to go.

Harley has found "her" chair again and everytime I come home, she pops out of the nursery like I won't know where she has been. She's been laying next to the bear on the blanket but I'm OK with that. I don't think she will be able to jump up into the crib... too much effort.

It's a .... baby!

Our birthmom is .... !!!!

Our birthmom "D" checked in with her social worker today. She got the letter that was sent to her and basically didn't remember to call back in to say how everything was going. I'm sure she has a lot on her mind. A lot of my worrying is from my own insecurities...

Her appointment last Tuesday went well and the baby looks great. The updated due date is August 10th and D has some sonogram pictures that she wants to share with us. She is very excited that we accepted the match and is looking forward to meeting us. We are going to have a conference call with her next week on Thursday morning.

The social worker did not mention any baby gender to me.... I get the feeling that D wants to tell us in person, if she knows. It doesn't matter to us, we like surprises!! We want happy and healthy - 10 fingers and 10 toes!

Daylight Savings Time *sigh*

Can I say how happy I am that the daylight savings time change has come and gone??? I was on pager for work this weekend and it was pretty rough. All of our servers got new vendor patches pushed at the last minute and we had to report how the systems were after that. Then we had to wait until the next night to report how our servers were doing once the time had officially changed. My sleep cycle is all screwed up from staying up every night until 3-4am testing and then with the missing hour yesterday, I'm a mess! It was so dark this morning... blah. Nice that it is going to stay lighter for longer in the evening. I always have this problem with the time change and my body will eventually get used to it!

Karen brought me the rest of her Dr. Brown's bottles and the cutest Eeyore toy ever on Friday. THANK YOU!!!! We are completely ready for feeding!

The big cleanout continues! I got tons of work done on the nursery, mostly on Saturday when I had a lot of mean energy to burn worrying about the DST change. Underneath the bed is all cleaned out - I found my Lady and the Tramp picture that my mom had made back in 1981... it is now hanging in the baby's room and looks perfect! I've left the bed in the same place. It could be moved closer to one wall if we need to once we have a crib in the room too. I cleaned out the closet and it is all nice and organized. I was even able to get the baby swing and the Baby Einstein play mat in there and out of the way. The glider and foot stool have also been moved into the room, but it's in the corner where the crib will eventually go but for now, it is out of the family room. I put a throw and a stuffed bear on it, so it's all cute looking!

The bookshelf in the corner was moved to the opposite side of the room so there is room for a crib now. The bookshelf now has books and stuffed animals on it. I had to move over the dresser a tad, just so it didn't all look so squished together. The dresser is my biggest accomplishment. It only has baby stuff in it now, all organized and tidy. Top left drawer has the waterproof changing pads and the tube of Mustela diaper cream. Top right drawer has all the baby bottle parts (nipples, vents, collars, brushes) until they need to be moved into the kitchen for use. Middle left drawer has clothes separated into nightgowns, onsies, and rompers. Middle right drawer has socks, hats, pacifiers, rattles, and supplies for the diaper bag. Bottom left drawer has all the blankets including the wool baby blanket we bought in Ireland many moons ago when we thought having a baby was going to be oh so easy. Bottom right drawer has some toys. I'll probably move those into the closet because they are for an older child once I need more room for clothes or whatever.

I also cleaned out and organized our linen closet. Yikes!!! Who knew we had so much of that stuff??? We also did a few test runs with the car seat in Bill's new car. As much as I would love to put the baby in the center of the back seat, I cannot get the install tight enough to minimize the side-to-side rocking. Since it has leather seats and a hump in the middle section and the fact that we have to use the lap/shoulder seat belt, it just doesn't seem like a winning combination. LATCH is not approved to be used with the car seat in the middle position. The LATCH install on the outboard position is rock solid. The center of the backseat is theoretically the safest location, but an outboard position will be safer only because I can get a better install there.

D's social worker called me this morning. Unfortunately D has still not checked in with her so we don't know if she went to her OB appointment last Tuesday or not. The social worker sent D a letter in the mail in case she is not able to get the phone messages that have been left. The letter basically says that Bill and I accepted the match and we can move forward with a meeting when she is ready. I told the social worker that we have been trying very hard not to read into the situation of her being MIA.... and really it has only been a little over a week! I have not been calling the social worker on the phone because I know that the she will call and tell me the news as she knows it. Me calling her all the time isn't going to change anything and I think she appreciates that I'm not being a huge PITA!

Maybe D needs to take some time for herself to know in her heart that this is the right thing for them to do. I know she loves her baby, that is very evident on all the papers that she filled out. I hope she gets the letter today and it reminds her that her social worker wants to talk about how she is doing and what she is feeling. I can imagine that she has far worse concerns on her mind. I try to remind myself that she is not even half way through with her pregnancy and there is no rush here. She is not due next week! She is living her own life.

I am praying for patience and a renewed sense of hope. I am praying for D and the baby. I am praying that she has the support she needs around her because I cannot do that for her yet. I envisioned that each step of the adoption process would be easier than the last, but that is not really the case. First I was worried that something would go wrong with our homestudy. Then I was worried that our profile wasn't good enough and we wouldn't get matched. Now that we are matched, it is much more real that D can change her mind and parent the baby herself. I waver on my confidence level every day. I probably won't stop worrying until I know all the papers are signed and the baby is leaving the hospital with us. With the story of the kidnapped (and returned) newborn in Texas, that is just praying on my insecurities even more! There is absolutely nothing we can do but wait and let this journey play out how it is meant to. If this is our child, Little Roo will come home with us when he or she is good and ready.

Sewing Projects

Here is what I've finished so far with the terry cloth that I had purchased....

On the left is a blanket/towel that is 35"x35" that I'm thinking I will probably use for bath time. I might make it into a hooded towel, you just fold down one of the corners and stitch. The fabric says "bathing babies" and it has puppies, bears, and elephants at bath time. The leftover flannel and terry cloth, I made some matching burp cloths.

On the right are burp cloths I made and are also backed with terry cloth. I found found these cute prints at the store and thought they were gender neutral. Now I have a bunch of these to keep around the house for feedings. Their finished sizes are 8"x20".

I have more sewing to do.... I am going to make more flannel blankets and cloths that are backed with microfleece.

No News Yet!

We have not heard anything about our birthmom's appointment on Tuesday. It is possible that she just hasn't checked in with her social worker. The social worker has told me to not be alarmed because there are times when our birthmom talks to her a lot and times when she doesn't hear from her for a while. It's part of the process and to not read anything into it.

I just hope that she knows that we have accepted the match and we want to be with her in this journey and support her the best we can. Our social worker and hers are working on setting up a meeting. So that's where it is. Sometimes no news is good news!

I've been sewing easy baby stuff... like burp cloths from flannel and terry cloth. I have some larger pieces of flannel and fleece that I am going to make into some blankets so I am having fun doing that. Going to the fabric store is a dangerous thing for me these days as there were so many years that I did not allow myself to buy anything possibly baby-related! And no, I have done not a lick of work on the nursery since last week!!! I go in there and open the drawers to look at our collection of clothes, hats, socks, and blankets but that doesn't count. There's still a ton of STUFF everywhere!

Thank you!

I just wanted to thank all of our friends and family who are so supportive and just as excited as we are to know that we are matched! I am feeling better finally after my turn with the stomach flu and I think it is really starting to sink in!

I think about this precious gift of life every day. I pray for the birthparents to have strength and to feel peace in their hearts with their decision. I pray the baby is healthy, thriving and feels how much they are loved. Our birthmom is scheduled to have a doctor's appointment today. We are anxious to know the latest due date and possibly what the gender of the baby is, if she wants to find out. If there is any news to pass on, you all will definately know!

While this is such a joyous time to know that someone has picked us to raise their child, we have a new set of worries. Will they change their minds? Once we meet face-to-face, will they like us? Will they trust us with their most precious child? I can't begin to know what they are going through. All I know is that one of the happiest days of our lives is going to be one of their worst. I hope that we can convey to them how loved their child is and that we support them in every step they take.

The reality is that they can change their minds and it is perfectly within their rights to do so. Some days I'm sure they would not change their minds and others I wonder what would happen if they do. All we can do is be prepared for any outcome. If they decide to parent this child, it was not our child. We go back to waiting for the right time and the right place to find our miracle. I know that I am still very guarded. I don't want my heart broken into a million pieces. God will have to show me the way and I have to have faith that this is the right path.

Anyway.... it's raining babies! So I just wanted to say a few things to some of my friends...


to Kristi who just delivered fat healthy twin boys! They are beautiful!!

To Barbara and Kristin - Big hugs and high fives because they both found out they are ...And to my friends who are up to their eyes in their IVF journeys this week - I send to you the most luck you can have!!!

It's A Match!

We got "The Call"!

After I wrote about our week one wait, I was feeling very settled and ready for the long journey ahead. I wrote in adoption journal and planned to write a page each week with what we had accomplished the previous week towards getting ready for baby. I finished the cushions for my brother's couch.

Wednesday I was at work and keeping up with the daily grind. I went to a late lunch with a co-worker and my phone started ringing in the elevator. It never does that!! It was the agency. I was very confused and I said "You said that you would only call us if you had good news..." Well, they did have good news for us. A set of birthparents selected us for a match. I was in shock (still am!) and my head was spinning as I was trying so hard to write down everything that she was telling me. As much as I thought I was prepared and ready for getting the call, I wasn't.

We received all the forms on Thursday and started going over them. Friday we sent the forms back and I wired the match fees to the agency so it's official. The social workers are going to work at getting a meeting going with all of us. No one knows if it is a boy or a girl yet but the birthmom has an appointment on Tuesday. The baby is due at the end of July/beginning of August so thankfully we have a while to prepare ourselves.

I started feeling crappy on Thursday night when we were getting all the papers notarized for the match. I thought I was *that* nervous! Now I know that it was the stomach flu which is going around like wild fire. Thank goodness!!! I have been doing a bit of couch time yesterday and today but I'm feeling much better. I have to get back to my list of things to do!!