Where Is Little Roo?

Wow... I've Been Really Bad!!

2009-02-12T17:07:00.004-05:00

No updates in a long time.... I"m a huge slacker! Meaghan would say "Bad Bad Baby!" to that (a nice little tidbit she's picked up at school... not). Anyone that has me as a friend on Facebook knows that I don't even have a single picture up on my account... now that's bad.

Anyway... I promise I will get everyone caught back up in time. A lot has been going on around here but the quick update for today is that we have entered Meg into the Beautiful Babies 2009 Search so here is our submission picture:

I just took it this morning, happened to catch her giggling while playing with the dog in the yard. She got to play at the beach for the first time over the weekend and I got some cute shots but none where she was really looking at the camera. Of course I believe she's the cutest little girl that ever existed, but we'll see what everyone else thinks!

Meg had her 15 month appointment last week and she is now 32" tall and weighs 22 lbs, 4 oz. She has all 4 molars in now (thank GOD) but she does have her first ear infection, which should be pretty much cleared up by now. Sleeping through the night is a GOOD thing!!

Santafest 2008!

2008-12-11T09:13:00.003-05:00

Remember Meg's first picture with Santa in 2007?

Well... what a difference a year makes!!

We are all feeling much better, so we headed out to go see Santa and follow that up with a treat of frozen yogurt - yum!!! It was 82 degrees here today - not the kind of weather for dressing up in tights and a Christmas dress. LOL!

At least the photographers took 3 pictures and we could pick the best one. The first one, Meg had a look of absolute horror to be sitting with these people. The second one was a little better, but she still wasn't looking all that convinced that this was a good idea (flash back to the pumpkin patch picture). This was the third one after they talked to her for a bit and said they had a piece of candy for her. Did someone say "Candy"??? All is right with the world now!!

Meg is off all breathing treatments - we have them on standby to make it through the winter just in case. They made her so stinking hyper and we were doing them per orders of every 4-6 hours. She stopped sleeping!!!! My good sleeper, who usually sleeps 10-11 hours at night, was only sleeping 1 hour (or less) at a time and then she was up, ready to play! Even at 2am. She was like this for 2 nights and then we got smart.

She has a third tooth on the bottom now (on the right, next to the center two)! It came in last week in the middle of her sickness. AND at her followup appt on Tuesday, the doctor said one of her molars is coming in on the bottom left. Holy cow - poor kid!

We're All Sick.

2008-12-08T14:01:00.002-05:00

Yep - everyone.

Meg has another bottom tooth now.... along with bronchitis and possibly the beginnings of pneumonia. She's on breathing treatments with a nebulizer and antibiotics.

It's been grand....

More Teeth!

2008-11-24T10:34:00.002-05:00

Meg has been Little Miss Cranky lately - all thanks to 2 more teeth coming in on top!!! One popped through on the top left 2 weekends ago, and the one on the right is coming through now. She has 8 teeth now - 2 on the bottom, 6 on top. We keep waiting for more on the bottom so she can "balance out". LOL! Everyone says "oh look at her two little teeth!" and I say "and there's 6 more on top that you can't see!". So don't stick your fingers in her mouth - yowie!

She has been doing great in her new class! She's taking naps on the cot instead of a crib and she's going down without a binky! Yippee!!! We had went cold turkey on all bottles the last time she had a stomach bug and couldn't have any dairy right before her birthday. We were going to work on the binky next. She only has one in her crib at night, I usually don't let her take it out of her room. Giving it up at night will be our next trick.

Meg is doing a lot more walking than crawling! In school, the teachers get her to walk to each new station or activity. At home, she walks to Biscuit, thinking she can grab on when she gets there and then the dog jumps out of the way at the last second. She gets mad about that! Meg has learned how to use her scooter and as Bill says, our furniture will never be the same. LOL! Her absolute favorite toy right now is the box that Bill brought all the sugar pie pumpkins home in. Crawl in and crawl out, put toys in and take toys out, push and pull the box around all day long. She just loves sitting in it! When it breaks, we are going to have a hard time finding another one as sturdy and then we'll have some real toddler 'tude on our hands!

Things are very busy around our house right now.... so if I don't post again in the next few days, I wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Historic Election

2008-11-05T09:50:00.002-05:00

To all of you that voted early or stood in line yesterday to make your voices heard... no matter which candidate you support... THANK YOU for voting!!

12 Month Stats!

2008-11-04T09:22:00.002-05:00

Meg had a check-up this morning!

length: 31.5" inches (98%)
weight: 21 pounds, 1.2 ounces (52%)

Tall! No wonder she can still fit into her 9 month clothes as long as they are 2 pieces! The Gymbo 12-18 month clothes (mainly the rompers and pants) still seem a little big for her, as do her Hanna size 80's even though she is right in the middle of the size charts. Her size 4 shoes are still a little big on her feet too but I know this will all change very quickly.

She's being transitioned to the next toddler room at school since she is standing and walking now. We've also been told that she is one of the more dominant kids in the current class and the teachers had to remove some play structure in the room because Meg would just bowl it over instead of playing with it quietly. I really hope she doesn't become Little Miss Bossy. Yesterday, she spent half the day in the new room. It was pretty evident to me because when she got home, she was standing and walking more than usual. I know she's trying to keep up with the bigger kids. The note said she did really well - and even participated in their circle time. She knows what circle time is... when she was at the kid gym, they called everyone to the circle. All the kids sat on the edge of it, Meg crawled and sat right in the center of it!

Happy 1st Birthday Meaghan!!

2008-11-03T16:31:00.009-05:00

A year ago today, we met our sweet little Meaghan for the very first time. She was not even 24 hours old and she was so small. Bill and I had a discussion at lunch today, looking back at that moment and about our week in Iowa while we waited for the legal paperwork to be filed and approved. It was such a wonderful time for us to bond and be a family.

This was the first picture I took of the little angel:

Well a fast year later, and here we are! It's Meaghan's first birthday party! Things don't always go as planned as moms of toddlers already know. With the time change, it definitely threw things for a loop a bit. Naps were off and with us having a busy weekend, it just went crazy pretty fast. Then we were trying to hurry things along since we had some guests that had to leave early. All the food was very good though!!! I did forget about the tub of potato salad in the refrigerator!

Meg got a pink pokey ball from Grammy and Granddad!!

The Pooh Surprise birthday cupcake cake!

"I don't want this stupid hat on - what are you all looking at?"

"Stop all the singing - I don't like cake!"

For all of you that say my child never cries..... here was the big melt down.

Ding ding! Cake - round 2! Meg did a little exploring with a spoon.

And then she got dirty so all was not right with the world again.

Clean up - Biscuit, where are you??

Meg went into the bathtup and then we decided to take a break from the cake and open presents!

A box!

"I don't know how to work this thing, but it makes good noises!"

"Ohhh another toy!"

Grammy and Papa got Meg her very own rocking chair!

"How does this thing work??"

Grammy and Granddad found a scooter for Meg!

"Ohhhh streamers!"

"It's good to be me!"

Ding ding! Cake - round 3!

In the end, Meaghan does like cake after all. She apparently is just not a big fan of getting dirty. After a second bath and some playing with her new toys, she was back to her normal self!!! She was one tired little girl.

Next year I'm sure will be hard to keep her out of the cake and she will want to smash it when we don't want her to!

All of these pictures were taken by my brother Jon! Thank you!!!!!!! :)

More Walking!

2008-11-03T14:37:00.004-05:00

"I rock!!!"

Halloween Pics

2008-11-03T12:53:00.004-05:00

Happy Halloween!!

2008-10-31T08:12:00.002-05:00

Wow!

Today is a big day at school! They are having a big Halloween party and a kid parade. Meaghan is Tigger. We tried it on her last night and she is cute as can be! I wasn't so sure she'd be happy to wear the head part but once she saw herself in the mirror, she thought it was very funny. Bill is taking pictures at the party today and I'll have my camera back for the big pictures tonight. We carved two pumpkins last night that we purchased from the great pumpkin patch - they don't last very long here in Florida!

I can't believe it is almost Meaghan's birthday. This time last year, I was going completely insane, trying to distract myself. We hadn't put up any decorations, nor did we have any candy in the house because we were so close to traveling for Meaghan's birth! I sent Bill to the store on the way home from work and he pulled in with the candy loot literally 5 minutes before the first door bell rang!

It's been an amazing year. I've revisited all of Meaghan's pictures, pulling together the year update for Meg's first mom, H. It's hardest for me to write the letters because I get very emotional. I love telling H all about what has happened since the last update but I know they must be bittersweet for her. The best part is pulling all the pictures - the places we've been, the things we have done, the funny faces, new milestones. I alternate between laughing and crying and sometimes both at the same time!

Meg has grown so quickly and every day I am reminded what a blessing and true miracle she is. My life will never be the same. She has made me a better person. She made us a family.

The Great Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-30T09:06:00.006-05:00

Ooooohhhh... pumpkins!!!

I spy a sticker!

No.... I'm not pulling it off.... it was some other kid, so I'm just fixing it!

Pumpkins are fun!

Can we come here everyday?

Seriously - why do you think this is a fun place for me to sit? And why are you laughing?

I like sitting here much better!

My pumpkin!
Noooooo, not time to go home yet!

Laundry Time!

2008-10-27T12:20:00.002-05:00

If you have a front loading washer, you probably keep the door open, like we do, so it can dry out between uses. Yesterday morning, I was washing breakfast dishes, and it was quiet.....

Little Miss Helper was doing her thing:

Everything was pretty much sorted into that pile for washing anyway, so she finished loading it all in, I put the soap in. When it was time to move the clean clothes into the dryer, Meg was right there! I handed her each piece from the washer and she put it into the dryer. She was sooooo proud of herself!

She also likes "cleaning" the coffee table and floor with a hand towel. She is fascinated with my feather dusters! I wonder if this trend will continue????

How To Eat Cereal

2008-10-27T11:38:00.004-05:00

stir stir stir
STIR STIR STIR

Get on my fork already!

Forget it!

Got ya oatie!

Into my mouth you go!

chew chew chew

Well I do declare!

These are the best oaties I've had all day!

Insert fork into mouth now... I'm a big girl!

Trip Pictures!

2008-10-23T08:21:00.006-05:00

OK, apparently I was trying to upload pictures that were too big! I was doing our year update for Meg's first mom H so the pictures I had were large so they could be printed nicely. Well I resized them all and here they are!

We went to Culver to visit Bill's grandma and Meg spotted the little rocking chair right away! She started throwing off all the bears on the chair and wanted to climb right up. This rocking chair belonged to Grandma Mert's father - so I hoped we would get some good pictures of Meaghan with it. A family tradition!

She was more than happy to model for me!

Meaghan with Grandma Mert!

One morning, Meaghan and I went with Amanda to the skating rink. It was the only time she wore her cute mouse coat! Meg loved watching the girls skate and was dancing to the music. Amanda gave her a new kitty named Trickster... she loves it!!!

This happy face lasted for about 20 seconds and then she realized the hood was over her head...

... not a happy camper! Mean mommy! In all fairness, it's 35 degrees in the rink and we were there for an hour so I was sure she was going to get cold....

The night before the marathon, we stayed downtown at the Hard Rock Hotel. Amanda and Meg were getting silly!

Millenium Park - Bill and Brock finished!!!

It was a great trip - the leaves were starting to change and some changed overnight while we were there. I wished for cooler weather but it was still much better than hot, humid Florida!

Back From Chicago!

2008-10-17T14:04:00.001-05:00

We're back home and I just tried loading up some new pictures. It's not behaving at the moment, so I will have to try again soon.

The weather was a lot warmer than we had hoped but we had a great time! Both Bill and Brock finished the marathon on Sunday morning.

Stay tuned for some new Meaghan pics!!!

Animal Kingdom Pictures and News!!

2008-09-30T15:12:00.009-05:00

Animal Kingdom was great! We had a blast, the weather was perfect, the guys had fun with the race, and Meaghan was an angel the entire time (well except for when it was time to go to bed that night)!

Picking up the race packets, Meg knew something fun was going to happen! I expected her to take a nap in the car on the way over... she did not. She was much more interested in playing with Jon in the backseat.
We weren't exactly sure how character greeting was going to go, but she really liked Minnie! Meg is trying to give Minnie a kiss on the nose, or bite it, one of the two!
And Minnie played back with Meg's nose!
We went to the Lion King show... and we got VIP seats right up front! Meg was quite intriqued.
But then the big stilt leg people came out...
and Meg wasn't so sure about them. "There's something definitely wrong with their legs!"
Then the monkeys came out and did their thing!
And Meg was delighted once again! "Yay monkeys!"
She was very interested at the end of the show when the kids were rounded up for the little parade.
Since morning nap time was non-existant, she crashed!
OK, here's the big news..... Meaghan took her very first steps at the Animal Kingdom!!! I don't have any pictures... maybe my brother does. In any case, it was very exciting!

At the Conservation Station, after riding the train out there.

Almost recreating the unassisted steps!
What does one do when meeting Pocahontas for the very first time? We put her down to get some crawling time in on the carpeted floor... she decided to lay and roll instead.
Ahhh.... two princesses, as cute as can be!
Mickey Mouse ice cream bar - yummy!!
"What do you mean there's no more?"
The start of the Expedition Everest Challenge.
Part of the obstacle course... Jon on the left, Bill on the right.
"We finished!" Their official race time was 58:25.
Our room at the Animal Kingdom Lodge was excellent - and we had animals outside the window! Meg was so excited that we let her be out on the patio in her monkey jammies. Such a little mop top! The wild kingdom outside our room! It was so quiet... so amazing.
We found rocking chairs - Meg was all over it!
Literally... our little monkey!

Senate Bill 1738 Passed!

2008-09-26T15:25:00.001-05:00

Thank you to everyone that wrote, called, emailed, or all of the above!!

Animal Kingdom - Here We Come!

2008-09-26T10:53:00.004-05:00

Happy Friday everyone!!

We're heading over to the Animal Kingdom at Disney this weekend. Bill and Jon are a team in the Expedition Everest Challenge on Saturday night!

I'm so looking forward to watching Meaghan experience the park for the first time. Keep in mind our first Disney trip was to Epcot last December and she was ity bity! We'll be staying at the Animal Kingdom resort - so we'll have animals right outside our room. Speaking of which... off to charge all my batteries for the camera!

We recently went to the aquarium on a Sunday afternoon for some fish watching and more water play!!!

Meaghan has a new shopping cart and she LOVES it! She runs into everything and her basket is usually filled with interesting items she collects from around the house. You never know what you are going to find in there!

PSA - Clean Your Dryer Vent!

2008-09-22T15:05:00.002-05:00

I've been putting it off.... actually, until I started seeing articles about how important it is to have your dryer cleaned, I had no idea that I was actually supposed to do more than clean the lint screen after every load! How did I not know this???

Well, I bought a dryer cleaning kit with the brushes and a flat vacuum attachment and took off the venting hose off the back of our dryer... it is amazing that we have not had a fire in our laundry room!!! We had a serious lint issue and combined with pet hair and dust, I am grateful that I cleaned it when I did. Bill and I are fanatics about cleaning the lint trap after each and every load but it's not enough. I cleaned everything I possibly could and I feel much better now!

We purchased our house brand new in 2002. I'm sure we've done tons of laundry in the last 6 years, but no where near households that do at least a load every day. I never leave the dryer running when we leave the house. Now I don't want it running when we go to bed either.

Please... if you have not cleaned your dryer vent at least in the last year or cannot remember the last time it was ever done, do it today! Either do it yourself or call a professional to have it inspected.

Help Pass Senate Bill 1738—The PROTECT Our Children Act

2008-09-22T14:58:00.003-05:00

Your U.S. senators will be voting on the bill soon, so it is crucial you contact them immediately!!!!

Go to http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm to find contact information for the senators in your state.

Be sure to tell them, "Vote yes on Senate Bill 1738—The PROTECT Our Children Act."

I sent an email to both of my senators using the form that was available on their website. I got this letter from Oprah.... and by the next day, I had gotten a response from one of them that said he was supporting this bill when it comes on the floor! I watched the show and it breaks my heart. Everyone can make a difference. Please make a difference for the children that desperately need our help.

Dear Senator:

I know that you believe, like I do, that we must do everything possible to protect children from sexual predators. That is why I am asking for your help.

Last year alone, U.S. law enforcement identified over 300,000 criminals who were trafficking in movies and pictures of young children being raped and tortured. Experts say that one in every three of these criminals has local child victims. Child pornography trafficking over the Internet has given us a trail of evidence that leads straight to their doorsteps, but the vast majority of these children will never be rescued because investigators are overwhelmed, outnumbered and underfunded.

As your constituent, I urge you to do everything in your power to pass the PROTECT Our Children Act (S. 1738, Biden-Hatch). This bipartisan legislation passed the House 415-2, but it is now the victim of petty partisan politics.

Now that we know where these children are and how to protect them, there is no excuse for the Senate to fail to take action this session.

(Your name here)

Orlando Weekend!

2008-09-19T20:57:00.004-05:00

A few weekends back, we took a spin over to Orlando for a visit. I know.... I didn't get these up quick at all!

Kid Gym! We need to find one of these by our house - Meg had a BLAST!
Besides "kid watching", she loved these nubby plastic balls... we're trying to find some!
First time in the ball pit! She cried when we took her out!!

Going to the kid gym was not nearly enough.... we had to go swimming all afternoon!
And here is Biscuit... doing a flying leap....
... right into the pool!!! My dad took these awesome pictures!
"Here Pooh.... let's rock together."
"Pooh... you need some hugs!"

"I can do it myself!"
"I'm rockin'.... I'm rockin'..."
"Did you catch that mama? Just making sure!"
"Yeah Meaghan!!!"

We've had a rough week.... the little princess has FOUR teeth coming in on top right now!! It made for some *interesting* nights, but now they have all broken through and peace is restored throughout the kingdom.

10 Months Old!

2008-09-02T09:45:00.005-05:00

So now Meg has not two teeth coming in on the top, but three! The two front ones and one more on her top left. She has good moments and bad.... but at least with all of them coming in at once, it's not all drawn out! There's a light at the end of the tunnel.

Serious cheese!

I'm not sure what this look is for, but it sure makes me laugh!
What a little munchkin!
She would not sit still long enough for me to fix her hair, so Meg is rocking the "hair fountain" or "Pebbles" style! She's going to kill me when she gets older...

No walking yet but she's feeling pretty stable on her feet. She can stand by herself for a few seconds and when she chooses to do it, it's always by surprise (like in the bathtub). We're also working on getting away from the bottles, but with the teeth coming in, it's not a great time. She likes chewing on the nipple way too much right now so we're putting that on hold. She is doing well with her cups, just not wanting to give them up completely!

A Story by Little Roo!

2008-08-26T15:28:00.009-05:00

Hi everyone!! I have to tell you about my Sunday morning! I just got up, had some oatmeal, and my mom "fixed" my hair so I could see where I was going. I was just hanging out in my jammies, minding my own business.
But then it called to me.... the great treasure chest of fun! I wonder what secrets it holds...
It's seriously cold in here!
This is like nothing I've ever tasted!!!
OK, why is it so slippery??
Oh no! I'm losing it!
No problem.... I'll get another one....
This one right here.
Hey there Biscuit... my old pal.... pick up the evidence I just dropped on the floor, will ya?
Uhhh a little more to your left... thanks!
Oh why haven't I found these tasty treats until now???
I shall try the two-handed approach this time.
Darn it! Lost it again.
It's OK, Grammy. You don't need to move your shoes... they hold these treats really well!
Why is everything getting so wet?
Need another treat here...
Hi Mom! No... I'm not doing anything... promise!
I can't get enough! Must have more!
I love my treasure chest!
Who put in this dumb juice box? See ya!
Is now a bad time to mention that I'm sitting in a cold puddle??
Sunday was my Baptism at Nativity. A lot of people that I love came to watch and we had a lot of fun at my house afterwards! Unfortunately Mom told everyone that I was not allowed to play in the treasure chest anymore and I watched for my opportunity but no one left it open.

I'll get someone to post my special pictures when they arrive... but here's me in my beautiful party dress and my Bear!

Bath Fun!

2008-08-26T15:19:00.003-05:00

Have I mentioned lately how much we love baths in our house???

And the shampooing is crazy fun!
Get ready for the big reveal....
Ta-da!!! The newest trend in baby hair styles!
Made ya laugh!

The big news of the weekend is Meg has not one but two teeth coming in on top! Her top left front has broken through completely and the one next to it still has the corner sticking out. That front one took us by surprise for sure. It was just there one day!

Saturday Morning at the Park

2008-08-18T16:29:00.004-05:00

Big news - Meg has another tooth coming in! One of the corners on her top left side has broke through. The one on the right is close, but has not come through yet. She has been a little cranky.... *sigh*

I'm starting my half marathon training and Meaghan is my training partner, riding along in her BOB! We were out pretty early Saturday morning and after our walk, we stopped off at the park across from our subdivision for some fun!

I was glad that I took my camera along, as we found a bush full of beautiful butterflies!

We found a flock of birds... ... and a bunch of bunnies!
Rolling along!
She wasn't so sure about this swing thing - look at the death grip!
Well, maybe this is not so bad.
OK - this is fun!

Oh a shiny bolt!
Chilling in the swing! My smart dog Biscuit...
... who has learned very fast that the best place to lay is under the high chair! It rains food!
Now we're hoping this tropical storm Fay is blown far, far away. It's going to be a rainy day tomorrow - all schools are closed. Hopefully our power stays on so we can stay entertained watching the Little Einsteins!

Go Team USA!!!

2008-08-15T12:13:00.004-05:00

In all seriousness, we love watching the Olympics around here. I've been waiting all summer for these games and the TV has been on every night! Last night was great - Nastia and Shawn going gold and silver!

For fun and nostalgia... an old SNL clip revisited!!

Balloons and Kitchen Pantry Destruction!

2008-08-15T09:52:00.009-05:00

There is a definite advantage to going to the grocery store during the day on a Saturday.... we had ladies practically chasing Meg and I around the store trying to give us balloons, crackers, and coloring books! Balloons are a hit around this house!

But balloons only keep the little explorer distracted for so long before the open pantry door is spotted!
Yep... busted!
This is the face I get when I say "Not for babies!"...

Daddy's race drinks and gels come in all sorts of fun packets and tubes.... they also make great noise makers!
The many faces of Meg!!!

OK, back to the balloons!

She's such a little busy bee! I wouldn't have it any other way!

9 Month Check-Up

2008-08-14T21:00:00.002-05:00

Quickly... here's Meg's 9 month stats!

Height: 28.25 inches (69%)
Weight: 19 lbs, 6 oz (57%)

Where is my little girl going???

Summer Fun!

2008-08-07T10:43:00.009-05:00

Meg is having a blast playing in her little pool this summer!

Biscuit mostly watches.... wishing the pool were bigger so she could join in too!

Wet dogs stay outside...

Another morning of pool time - now sporting the "Pebbles" hairdo!!

Happy 9 month Birthday Monkey! Lots of singing and raspberries to celebrate!

Meaghan has her 9 month checkup next week... I'll be sure to post her stats! I'm sure she is well over 20 pounds.... she is heavy. No walking yet and I think she has a top tooth ready to start coming in any day now!

Bubbles By Chris

2008-07-24T16:01:00.003-05:00

I owe a HUGE thank you to my Aunt Chris!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She makes the.best.soap ever!

We are quite enjoying our private stash of "Meaghan's Baby Soap" and Meg smells so yummy right out of the bath.

Thank you Aunt Chris!!!!!!!!!! Now I have to take some fun bubble bath pictures... :)

Marine Biologist??

2008-07-08T13:03:00.006-05:00

For the 4th of July, we went to the aquarium! They have extended hours and front row seats for fireworks that night and we knew it was going to be fun to take Meg with us. She was so enamored with all the animals and fish - she didn't want to miss a second of the action.

The mermaid lady and Meg!

The otters were very fun to watch!

Meaghan loved this little duck - just like the ones in our back yard!

This was at a cute exhibit about turtles and preserving their habitats!

Nice turtle!

Look - a ray!!

Why can't I touch it??

Look at me - I'm in a shell!

Hey little girl... wait your turn... I'm smiling for the camera here!

These fish REALLY liked Meaghan... they were following her!

And the best part of the whole day.....

... WATER!

Hahahaha Daddy... I can crawl faster than you can walk!

Wheeee!

Ohhh a shark!

I will climb on it!

Weekend Trip!

2008-07-08T12:57:00.003-05:00

We went to my parent's house the weekend before the 4th for a triathlon. Bill won his age group! The guy that came in second was more than 6 minutes behind him! Way to go!!! My brother also participated and he rocked the race too!

My parents have a pool.... and look at our little swimmer girl!

Meg had a blast! We are going to enroll her in some infant swim classes soon but we are waiting on some events that may or may not be happening at my job. Biscuit fell in chasing one of the star toys we had for Meg and then decided that the pool was a pretty fun place. We chased her out but we were all pretty surprised when she fell in.

SNL

2008-06-20T14:53:00.001-05:00

I heart SNL! This is one of my favorite recent skits.... LOL!

On The Move!

2008-06-19T10:41:00.004-05:00

First... I wanted to post how our Father's Day pictures turned out for Daddy... I think I did pretty good. Meaghan wanted nothing to do with holding the letters so we'll try again next year. I think we'll keep this as a tradition - until she refuses to do it any longer!

Now onto the crawling.... she has been doing a lot of exercise at school because she is coming home absolutely exhausted! Watch out kitty!!!!

And here's the newest trick... yep, she's pulling herself up to standing! Much celebration and singing!!

What are moms good for??? They make good jungle gyms, of course!

Is It My Hair???

2008-06-17T13:21:00.003-05:00

The ladies at Meg's school LOVE playing with her hair and she usually ends up coming home from the day looking like Pebbles Flintstone. And this is the result from when she pulls it out:

No worries... we were able to tame all the hair back into submission!

Meg is a crawling machine! The last few days have been a total crawl fest. Before, she was crawling but she would take a few "strides" and then rest. Now she is non-stop. AND she has discovered the fun of how to pull herself up into a standing position. She'll even take a few steps while holding onto something.

I sent Meg a memo that said she was growing up toooo fast and to please stop immediately. She can't read so I guess that's why she is ignoring it!

On another note, I have ordered my new screaming fast computer and it will arrive at the end of the week!

7 Months!

2008-06-03T13:45:00.006-05:00

Wowie! I haven't updated here in a LONG time. I'm having serious computer problems and the software that keeps all my pictures breaks constantly because it chews up all the memory. The last few days have been the straw to break the camel's back because now I'm on a hunt to find me a new computer! The one I have now is good but not good enough to manipulate all the huge files. It literally takes me hours to get just these few pictures ready to post here. It's a painful process. I keep taking pictures but I just don't get them posted.

Bill and I got the stomach flu from hell.... good times!

Anyway...

6 month stats...

17 pounds, 2 ounces
27 inches long

Meaghan is a big baby!!

She eats lots of fruits and veggies - loves veggies more than fruits really. We don't give her too much cereal... she doesn't really care for it and since she is on formula, her iron levels are really good. We try to not eat a lot of grains ourselves, so it doesn't seem that unusual to us anyway.

Her FIRST TOOTH (bottom right) popped through the day before Mother's Day. We were eating out and she grabbed my fingers, stuck them in her mouth, and there was something sharp in there for sure!

Her SECOND TOOTH (bottom left) is just now popping one corner up. We just returned from a trip to Chicago and of course, the little bug was teething like crazy. We're trying the amber necklace thing too and so far, she doesn't get too agitated, just a bit cranky at times. She is still the happiest baby we know!

AND she's almost crawling! She's not completely got the forward motion down yet so she's not chasing us around the house yet but last night she scooted from her play area to the kitchen where I was doing laundry. When she gets really going, the dog and cat better head for the hills!!

Here's a few pics from our Chicago trip!

We went to the Brookfield Zoo... it was a chilly day so Meg was wrapped up like a burrito!

I finally caught her doing a "fishy face"! She makes little oink oink sounds when she does this too.

Sitting by herself at the Dragonfly play area!

Peek-a-Boo!

Daddy and Meg at Dragonfly Pond.

She's the only kid that we know that can fall asleep on the roughest of roads!!

We had several reasons for this trip and one of my cousins got married! Here is Meg in her pretty pretty handmade dress from Grammy!

Who wants more dessert???

Meg dancing with Daddy!

Meg and the bride!

On Memorial Day, we had a wonderful picnic. Ahhh - real grass!!

Fingers in the mouth - come on new tooth!

I'm opening wide - can you see my tooth??? (Actually this picture does get bigger if you click on it!)

So Behind!!!

2008-04-15T16:18:00.005-05:00

I can't believe I haven't updated this in a month. That's so sad.... things are going well at home. Work, on the other hand, is a completely different story.

But on to better things!

Meg is growing like a weed... I never did post any of her Easter pictures. Let me do that now!

She wasn't feeling so smiley at the time I guess!

Meg is on the roll... literally! She isn't crawling yet but she is doing a lot of "side scooting", almost like swimming!

And look at the proud pumpkin!!! She's sitting up all by herself!

Meg and her best pal Biscuit!!!

A Story by Little Roo!

2008-03-18T10:27:00.005-05:00

Hi! I have a story to tell about St. Patrick's day!

It started off like any other morning.
I woke up crying because I was hungry. So I had a bottle of milk. I got dressed in my new shamrock dress because it is St. Patrick's day!
Wait... let me get my new bib on because I happen to drool a lot. Ok, so here's the good part of the story.
Daddy was in the kitchen putting my bottles in my cooler bag for school.
Oh cute shoes!! I love my feet!
Oh right... my story! So then Daddy says "Can we put green food coloring in the bottles to make green milk today?"And I said "Green milk?? Yuck! Are you crazy?"
And Mommy said "Oh no, you better not touch those bottles if you know what's good for you!"I tried very hard not to laugh because Daddy was in trouble.So I pretended to be interested in something else.Oh is that my finger??? I wonder what that does? So Daddy packed up my things for school and we gave Mommy kisses good-bye!I laughed all the way to school! Silly Daddy!

4.5 Months Old!

2008-03-18T10:22:00.002-05:00

I really have no commentary for the pictures... strange I know! The last one was a result of her new best friend coming over.... Biscuit! She is completely enamored with the dog recently.

Zoo Day!

2008-03-12T16:10:00.006-05:00

First.... I have to post the little bug's newest Friday picture!

Saturday was a day at the zoo! We had a private tour - thanks to Katherine! We had such a good time finding all the animal babies! It was a little chilly but what a beautiful day!

Katherine and Meg waiting for some kangaroo love!

This is Rufus... and no, he is not dead, it's just tough being a Roo sometimes!

I'm sure these penguins think that all blue shirt people have food!

This little guy thought Meg was the bomb.... they are the same size!

Meerkat babies! I think the one the right was trying to stand on his head!

More meerkat families!

Naptime in our new Comfy Joey sling! And yes, that's my slinging husband (brown side out, purple in please)!

Tamani playing on the steps by the water!

Baby chimp Sasha!

No sooner had Katherine finished telling us about how these two rhinos peacefully co-exist when there was a show down at the watering hole!

They were pretty loud and one eventually gave up!

Thank you Katherine!!!

4 Month Stats!

2008-03-10T12:28:00.003-05:00

Doctor's appointment this morning... despite a little cold and congestion, the little bug is healthy!

Weight: 14 pounds, 13 ounces
Length: 26 inches

So I did great at guessing..... on her weight I thought she was going to be over 15 pounds - she gets heavy! She has doubled from her birth weight! On her length, I was right on. She is 95% percentile on her length.... no wonder she can still wear her 0-3 clothes and they look perfectly normal as long as they aren't one piece! If it's a onesie, forget it because trying to snap it would take an eye out! All of her smaller size dresses and top/capris outfits still fit her great. She's still in size 1 shoes, so she's grown into her feet too!

And this is why I tell Bill that having a lot of clothes in all different sizes is an advantage. Now I just hope that she's in 6 month sizes for a long time because we have a lot of those - mostly dresses and 2 pieces so I think we are good!

4 Months Old!

2008-03-06T09:55:00.004-05:00

What a little monkey!!!

Where have all these weeks gone?? Meg is rolling all around and scoots... no crawling yet! Which is a good thing.... I'm not ready for that yet! She has her 4 month check up on Monday and I will post her new stats!

We Finalized!

2008-02-26T17:48:00.003-05:00

Our finalization hearing was perfect! What a wonderful day!! It was pretty emotional at the end when we realized this was IT. Of course, we had tons of pictures taken and a video! Then we went off to dinner with all our family that attended and I think it was a great day for everyone. A very happy occasion indeed.

I don't have any pictures from when we were at the courthouse - I haven't gotten those from my brother yet. I do however have pictures of Meg from when we got back home that day!

Meaghan was given a special bunny to commemorate her special day!

She was pretty enamored with her new friend!

And... since it was Friday.... we had our weekly photo shoot with Bear. 16 weeks old!

Telling Bear all about her big day!

Couch potatoes Meg and daddy... watching ESPN on Saturday morning!!

A Week Late!

2008-02-21T08:32:00.002-05:00

But.... Happy Valentines Day!!

Every picture, she has her finger in her mouth! And if it wasn't her finger, it was her dress!

15 week pictures.... Yes, it's been quite warm in Florida this winter!!

And again... eating her clothes...

My cutie-pie!

Tomorrow is our big day in court... Meaghan's finalization! We're all so excited for this day to finally be here! I will post pictures... I promise!

Little Roo's 5K!

2008-02-13T10:15:00.006-05:00

Meg and I did the 5K stroller roll this past Saturday. While we didn't break any land speed records, we did have a lot of fun with all our friends and family!

All bundled up!!

Look at my blue eyes!

Let's go Mama!

Yay - we finished!

Shopping at the expo! How cute am I in my little Bondi Band?

3 Months Old!

2008-02-04T17:13:00.000-05:00

And she's reading already!

Well, not really, but she likes books anyway! She pays attention during her books before bed and I think she likes the stories about Piglet the best. Sorry Pooh and Biscuit!!

Here's some pictures with bear...

Happy Birthday Daddy!!!

12 Weeks!

2008-01-30T17:04:00.000-05:00

It's hard to believe that January is almost a distant memory. February is right around the corner! For everyone that said time speeds up when you have a child - you are absolutely correct!

Our last post-placement visit yesterday was great. Meg was talking up a storm and the social worker thought it was the funniest thing ever. She also showed off how great she is in her Bumbo seat.

I was going through recent pictures today.... found a few to share! These were taken last weekend for her "12 week" photoshoot!

Such Big Things!

2008-01-28T17:27:00.001-05:00

1. Tomorrow evening is our LAST post-placement visit with our social worker. Actually this kind of bums me out because she is a great lady and who knows when we will see her again. Maybe when we come back around for child number two - hopefully!

2. Meaghan is sleeping in her own room! One night last week, amist the hacking and wheezing, I realized that I was disturbing her, so her and the Amby bed went right into her room. I doubt she even knew other than it got a bit quieter and we aren't turning on the lights after her bed time anymore! She is very predictable when she gets up so I'm already listening for her on the monitor by 6am. It's working out well and it seemed like the right time to move her.

3. This is her first full week of "school" and we have the routine down!

4. The little bug is teething or something is happpening in that little mouth. She is a drool monster that I had to change her outfit because it was all wet! We went out to dinner with Auntie Katherine last night and Meg was just all out of whack, by her standards anyway. She wasn't happy just hanging out and she was quite restless. I hope Katherine didn't take it personally!!

5. This weekend, we are taking Meg to the zoo for the first time for a private tour with Auntie Katherine! Maybe we will see some marmosets....

I don't know who this picture belongs to in order to give credit... but it sure is cool!

Retraction!

2008-01-25T17:20:00.000-05:00

Even though Kristi did tag me.... and for that I will still call her a booger (LOL).... but for the record, she did NOT forget to leave me a message that she tagged me and therefore she DID follow the rules entirely. Except for the part where you were supposed to tag three more people and she only did two... :)

I will cut her major slack... she's a busy bee with two girls!! And one of them just turned one.... it can't be true!

I was tagged....

2008-01-25T09:42:00.000-05:00

I was tagged by Kristi. What a booger! :) Apparently it took her a week to leave me a comment that said she was tagging me, so I didn't even know about it!!! Way to follow the rules girl... :)

The rules are:
1. Link to the person that tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
4. Tag at least three other people at the end of your post and link to their blogs.
5. Let each person know they been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
6. Let the fun begin.

OK, here are my six non-important things about me...

1. I only eat vegetarian sushi. I hate fish... the smell, the texture, the taste, everything. That makes eating in sushi restaurants quite an adventure!

2. I will NEVER put any stickers (bumper stickers or the little stick family or the like) on my vehicles ever. I prefer to remain mysterious to strangers on the highway. If Meaghan brings home a sticker from school, it's not going on my car... sorry.

3. If I am working from home, I usually do not bother to get dressed until right before Bill comes home. Who is going to see me??? The flylady probably would say I'm a very bad girl.

4. I may not always have on "real" clothes, but I always have makeup on! I have only been out in public once in the last 5 years (at least) with a true bare face. I just can't walk around like that!

5. I dress very conservatively, but I go crazy over funky socks! Stripes, polka dots, animals, you name it.

6. I obsessively balance my checkbook every single day. Poor Bill gets yelled at if the day's receipts are not left in a specific location.

OK... so I'm tagging....

Linda because she hasn't been updating her blog... even worse than me!

Rachel because she is one fun mom to a cutie-patootie !

and last but certainly not least...

mom2themoose because I stalk her blog frequently for new adoption updates!

Our Little Puppy

2008-01-24T10:13:00.000-05:00

Most of the time she was trying to lick the fur.... oh well! There's a few chilly days left to wear this before Meg gets too big for it.

Thanks Auntie Katherine - aren't I the sweetest little puppy ever???!!!

Sick

2008-01-23T15:47:00.000-05:00

Only me... luckily! I HATE being sick, but at least I'm finally getting better.

Here's a recent picture of our little munchkin and Bear...

Daycare is going well... we say she is going to "school". All the ladies love her and she usually is pretty tired by the time she gets home so there must be some serious playtime going on there! It helps to be in a good routine and we're all getting used to it. Bill drops in at lunch time to give her a bottle.

Meaghan and I are gearing up for our Kellogg's "Special K" 5K Walk & Stroller Roll in February. Traditionally there have been no strollers allowed, but this year they have created a special category just for us stroller mamas! Stroller age children will all receive the #1 as their Race Number and upon crossing the Finish Line will be presented with their very own Finisher's Medal. Look for us with our orange BOB stroller on race morning! Bill and Jon are running the longer races, as well as Auntie Katherine and her hubby!

January Update!

2008-01-10T09:36:00.000-05:00

Oh I have been SOOOOOO bad about keeping this blog updated. I know you all are wondering what in the heck has happened to us!

When I say that taking care of a baby full time and working at home full time is overwhelming, that would be an understatement. I'm not a full time work from home person so it has been a struggle. I need to get out of the house, I just do. Next week, Meg is starting daycare and really, I'm OK with it. I know she will be taken good care of, we know a few of the ladies that work there. It's a few blocks from Bill's office, so he can go a few times a day to see her. I'm looking forward to getting back into the office and reconnecting with my adult self!

On the Meaghan front, she had a doctor's appointment yesterday. My little buttercup weighs 12 pounds, 4 ounces and is 24 inches long! A growing girl! She is smiling a lot, especially for her daddy, and talks up a storm. She can roll up on her side, but hasn't flipped over all the way yet. I'm sure she is very very close to doing so. She loves tummy time and her new Bumbo seat!

On the adoption front, everything is moving very quickly! We've done 2 out of 3 post-placement visits. We even got the court date for our adoption hearing - February 22nd. It's going to come quick! I've sent H several pictures and letters so far. I told her that I would send her more pictures from Christmas.

We made it through the holiday season! Meg was spoiled of course and her bib says it all.... "Santa Loves Me". Not that she cared much - too busy sleeping! Here's a few pictures from my brother....

This weekend we will be at Disney for the marathon. Bill and Brock are running on Sunday morning and it is supposed to be on the warmer side.... please keep them and all the athletes in your thoughts!

First Santa Photo!

2007-12-11T12:06:00.001-05:00

We got brave last night and headed off to the mall to get Meaghan's first picture with Santa.... I braced myself for chaos. Once Thanksgiving comes and goes, there is no going to the mall for me!!! Actually, it was great! Not as many people as I expected and the line for Santa wasn't a mile long. Meaghan was awake the whole time we were in line until the kids in front of us were getting their pictures taken and she fell asleep. I couldn't wake her up either so oh well. She's doing what she does best!

This was our first experience doing this obviously. The mall had a nice set up and a little "Winter Wonderland" thing going on. BUT right before it was your turn to get to Santa, they had this "great" snow machine and it was snowing on you while you were in line. Kids loved it! Parents hated it! We heard a lot of "Oh great - look at you now! You're all messed up for your pictures! Geez!!!!!". Flakes of soap everywhere and looks like instant dandruff. We tried to avoid it, pressed up to the wall, scooting past, but it ends up everywhere. The stroller was snowed on, the diaper bag, Meaghan's dress, my dark gray sweater, everything. Oh well.

We're going to Epcot this weekend because my mom is singing in the Candlelight Processional. Hopefully we can get some more pictures taken with the Santas of the world... but we're not sure they will hold her since she is still pretty young. I will try! She will not be wearing her "party dress" either... so last night was "the" night.

Update from race weekend: Bill won 3rd place in his age group for the duathlon! Congrats honey!! Meaghan and I are very proud of you!

Birth Announcements

2007-12-07T09:36:00.000-05:00

Our birth announcements arrived yesterday! We're doing a combined baby announcement and holiday card, mostly because I'm lazy and don't want to send out two cards!!

I think they turned out really great.... thank you Tiny Prints!!

Bill and Jon are doing races tomorrow (duathlon and triathlon) and we have to be there by 6am. It's going to be an early morning!!

Meaghan is doing so well! I love my little girl to pieces! There are times where I cannot put her down. I always give her two kisses at once - one for me and one for H.

Meaghan is sleeping at good stretches at night - usually midnight to 5 or 6. I'm not complaining about that! I'm doing a better job of juggling Meaghan and working at home. My office looks like a mini nursery! She's going into daycare full time in January, so as hard as it is to do both, I'm enjoying our time together. We listen to a lot of kids songs during the day... Meaghan really likes music. That's a treat for people that call me during the day!

And for all those wondering - we love our cloth diapers!! I LOVE taking out fresh warm diapers from the dryer. There is nothing better. It is much easier than I had thought it was going to be.

Here's a few more recent pictures...

Happy Friday everyone!!

1 Month Well Visit

2007-12-04T13:03:00.000-05:00

Meaghan's stats as of 10am this morning....

9 pounds, 12 ounces
21.5 inches long

We think that the length that was taken at her 2 week check-up was wrong because it was exactly the same as today. I also think the way they measure her is completely unscientific and produces weird numbers. I am not worried.... she's a healthy girl! She's growing out of her newborn clothes but the 3 months outfits are still too big. When she has a cloth diaper bottom, we definitely have to go up to the next size on the bottom!

I never did tell everyone that our first post-placement visit that we had last Thursday went really well. It was with the same social worker that did our original homestudy, so she loved seeing where we've ended up since January. Our next one is going to be right after Christmas!

Which of Santa's Reindeer Are You?

2007-12-04T13:02:00.000-05:00

You Are Donner

The most loveable and sweet reindeer, you're also a total dork!

Why You're Naughty: You keep (accidentally) tripping the other reindeer while flying.

Why You're Nice: You're always smiling, even if you've fallen flat on your horns.

Which of Santa's Reindeer Are You?

TPR Completed!

2007-12-03T16:54:00.001-05:00

The final TPR (parental rights termination) court hearing in Iowa for Meaghan's birthparents took place this morning. All of their ties have been officially and legally severed. Every state is different how they handle this. We were never concerned about this hearing because after the revocation period had ended when Meaghan was a week old, someone would have had to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that fraud was commited. That wasn't going to happen! So even before we left Iowa, we were in the clear.

So now it is Florida's turn to get moving for finalization! It is possible we will have that done around February or March. It is nice to be past each little step.

I got my new camera yesterday.... well it's new to me anyway. I bought Jon's Nikon D200 because he purchased the new D3oo for himself. You can imagine what I've been taking pictures of.... hmmmm... wonder what that could possibly be!? I'm quite enjoying myself. I also think my old digital camera was dying, it has been acting strangely. I also realized why I was getting blurry pictures, especially in low light conditions. It has a shutter lag of almost 1 second so after I had pressed the shutter button, I was already moving my hand down while it was still taking the picture. What a pain, not to mention a lot of crappy pictures!!! I don't have the most steady hand either. The D200 is a digital SLR and the actual click and feeling of the shutter movement is very satisfying!!

Meaghan has a peds appointment tomorrow. I'll post her new stats. I'm sure she is over 9.5 pounds!

4 Weeks Old Today!!

2007-11-30T09:50:00.000-05:00

Where is the time going??? Meaghan is getting bigger and changing everyday. She is over 9 pounds now! She loves to eat obviously - especially at 4 in the morning. She has a peds appointment on Tuesday so we'll have to see officially how big the munchkin is. We had a pleasant surprise today! Meaghan slept from 12:3o to 6:15! I couldn't believe it!! She was really awake last night before her last bottle and we really played with her so we probably tuckered the girl out. That trick is being commited to memory....

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! It was a little crazy around here as we hosted both families at our house. Considering we had just been home for week, it was a little much. I said there is NO way we are having Christmas here, but the more of a routine we get into, the easier it is so I might be changing my mind. A lot of it right now depends on what my work group decides to do about the Christmas holiday. If I am holding down the fort for my group, we are not going anywhere.

Speaking of work.... I made it (almost) through my first week of working at home! It's been a bit crazy at times, but we're making it work. Meaghan is still sleeping a lot, so that is good. She has a knack for wanting to be fed at key times when there is a complete meltdown at work.

It's Friday so it's picture day around here! Before I get too far behind.... here are Meaghan's 3 week pictures.... I'm going to try and keep everyone updated better now that we are little more settled.

New Pictures!

2007-11-18T19:44:00.000-05:00

It's been a great first week at home! What a joy!! I can't believe Thanksgiving is in a few short days. We have so much to be grateful for!

Here's the new pictures of Meaghan. Enjoy!

I'm Such A Slacker!!

2007-11-17T19:47:00.000-05:00

I'm not doing a good job keeping up my blog!!! I know you all are checking in for new pictures and updates. I'm sorry!!

We're doing great! Meaghan is a really good baby and we're able to figure out what she wants pretty easily. My mom spent the week here giving me a hand. I hope to get into more of a routine now that the steady stream of visitors has slowed down a bit and we can catch our breath finally. It's still a little strange to be home with her but I wouldn't trade this for anything in the entire world.

I have some new pictures that I need to post to our gallery and I will post the link when those are ready!

Meaghan had her 2 week peds appt yesterday and she is up to 8 lbs, 5 oz and is now 21.5 inches long. Where is my tiny girl going??

We're Home!!

2007-11-12T14:45:00.000-05:00

Meaghan is such a good traveler! She didn't cry and pretty much slept through the whole trip. We did get our first class tickets on the flight from Minneapolis and Florida. It was awesome!! We had so much space and we were so comfortable the entire time, it was a special trip. Of course, Meaghan was the hit of the flight and everyone just gushed over her.

We've had a steady stream of visitors and the grandparents have all been over to meet their new granddaughter. It was so fun to see them meet her for the first time and hold her.

It's quite an adjustment being home with a new baby. It was so different being in Iowa and the only thing we had to do was take care of the baby. Now, as predicted, there is a million things to do but the only thing I want to do is snuggle my sweet little angel.

I will do more updates and pictures when we are more settled into life at home!!

Officially Ours!

2007-11-09T18:59:00.001-05:00

Meaghan is ours! The revocation period ended at 2:40pm today. I've talked to H and she is doing really well.... at this point, we are trying to make a plan when we are going to meet up this weekend. It's very important that we get together with her again before we go. Everyone would be sad if we missed this last opportunity. We actually got the call this afternoon that we are free to go home. Both states have approved our ICPC packet. It's a very strange feeling to know we will be sleeping in our own beds again soon in warm Florida! Once we get home, real life begins again. This has been an unique opportunity to bond with our daughter with no other distractions.

Meaghan had a peds appointment this morning and she got a clean bill of health! She regained back to her birth weight and then some. She's gained 6 ounces since Monday!! She's now up to 7 pounds, 9 ounces. Yep - we have been up feeding her at night!! It's been fine... we try to feed her late, around midnight or so. Then she only gets up once to eat and then she is up around 7 am again. It's working out well and honestly, there is nothing else I'd rather be doing at 3am than feeding our little munchkin!

Belly Buttons!

2007-11-08T19:20:00.000-05:00

We went out running errands today... Meaghan is such a good traveler. A few days ago, she wasn't too hip on sitting in her car seat, but slowly she has gotten used to it. She snoozes when in the car but she still gets really annoyed when she can't do a great big stretch.

I checked her diaper to see if she needed to be changed, and when I was sticking her velcro tabs back down, something looked different. I thought maybe I had covered her little belly button stump by accident so I un-did the tabs again. Then... I saw it.... a real belly button! There was no little stump there! I freaked out, thinking we had torn it off by accident, but I looked and nothing was irritated or bloody, so it must have fallen off on it's own. Later I stripped Meaghan down and found her little stump in the bottom of her footie outfit. It is very dry.... so yep, it was just ready to come off. It's sitting here on the table and we're not sure what to do with it, although we will probably trash it. I can't imagine keeping it, but we keep looking at it!

Meaghan has a ped appt tomorrow morning. I wonder if she has gained back to her birth weight. She was only down 3 ounces at discharge on Monday. I also want to get a letter that she is healthy to travel in case the airline cares. She is going to be at least a week old, so I doubt anyone will bother us. We bought a bunch of fancy chocolates for the staff at the hospital that helped us and we will go up for a quick visit after seeing the doctor. I hope they will enjoy having some special treats and it will give us another opportunity to thank them for being so accomodating to us.

Iowa Approval Today!

2007-11-07T23:27:00.000-05:00

New pictures here!

Today we had a big day! We had our first dunk in the kitchen sink! We went out to the grocery store.... big stuff!! The attorney called to let us know that Iowa received the ICPC packet this morning and have approved it. They are sending it to Florida tomorrow, which means our state will have it Friday morning. We just might get approval to go home Friday afternoon! However, we are going to spend some time with H before we go home, so we aren't in a hurry to leave town just yet. I am also going to be a little picky about our return flights home so we don't end up killing ourselves. I also have a little dream about flying home first class.... LOL! I think the latest we will get approval would be Monday, unless there is a question that comes up of course. We hope it will all go smoothly!

Meaghan and I are off to the recliner to enjoy some late night kisses and cuddles.... wanted to get the link up to the new pictures.

24 Hours

2007-11-06T21:33:00.000-05:00

Our first 24 hours as a family has been wonderful!!!

I've been wanting to update my blog but I literally have my hands full with the baby. She is soooo good and very easy, but I just can't put her down! She's eating 2 ounces every 3 hours. I can set a clock by it! She's just so sweet and cuddly - we can't get enough of her!

Last night was good too. We fed her pretty close to 11:45pm and then we were up at 2:30am, 5:30am, and then 8:45am. I can honestly say that my job has done a great job of preparing me for baby nights... LOL! There was absolutely nothing else I'd rather be doing at 2:30 in the morning than feeding our sweet angel.

We've been talking to social worker L on a regular basis. She has been checking in with H and relayed to us that she is doing very well. It is hard for her but she expected it and when she is feeling sad, she talks about it, makes phone calls and gets the support that she needs. H called me this evening and she sounded great! I am able to tell when she is really tired or not feeling well, but she really sounded like herself. She went to the mall today with a few of her cousins and getting out was great for her. She felt so much better than sitting at home.

We have been thinking about her, she has been thinking about us. She was going to call last night and then fell asleep early and then thought it was a little too late to call us. She also said that she wanted us to have a full 24 hours of being a new family. Even though this is an emotional and hard journey, it really is a time of great joy! We are going to be meeting with H this weekend, probably for brunch on Sunday. We're going to talk on the phone many more times before then. I told her that we are family now and she is stuck with us! She said "Thank you!!! I wouldn't want it any other way!"

I have more pictures here from when we were discharged from the hospital yesterday. The pink and blue blanket is the same blanket that I came home from the hospital with!

One more thing.... thank you everyone for the amazing support you have given us. We know that we would not be here without all your prayers and good thoughts! I appreciate all of your sweet comments and we will cherish them always!!!

Our Greatest Joy!

2007-11-05T17:11:00.001-05:00

See more pictures of Meaghan Marie here.

The papers are signed. The attorney said it went extremely well, H was very adament about her decision. H said that she will call me tonight to check in on us. She is so amazing!

We have been discharged from the hospital and now at "home" in our hotel, enjoying our new daughter!

Quick Check-In

2007-11-04T22:59:00.000-05:00

Things are going very well! We've been at the hospital for a majority of the day!

We got there at 8 am, H had us come get the baby so we could feed her and spend some time with her while H was getting showered and ready to go home. Baby had her newborn screen at 10:30 and we went back to spend a little time with H. We gave her a necklace and talked, cried, hugged. We went down the cafeteria to get a bite and I just cried and cried and cried. I could just not get a grasp on how I was supposed to be happy for us when we knew someone else's heart was breaking. I know that everyone that saw us assumed that we just found out someone died.... they would have been surprised to hear me say "We have a new baby!".

H said that she wanted an hour or so alone with her to say her good-byes. We said we wanted her to take as much time as she needed and we worked out that she would call me when she was ready to have us come back. She said it was important to her that she hand her to us when she leaves.

We went the capital for a while and took pictures of the changing leaves and the grounds around the building. It is a very beautiful area. We didn't want to go too far since we knew when H got up enough courage to want to leave, we did not want to prolong that.

H called a little after 1pm and said she was ready, as ready as she was going to be. We prepared ourselves for what was about to happen. H gave the baby lots of kisses and cuddles. We took many pictures together. She handed the baby to me and we spent a few minutes, creating a special bond, gazing at the miracle in front of us. H said that she feels so good about what she was doing and that we were going to be amazing parents. She is so excited for us!

And when she was ready, she left. H is so strong. I have no idea how she is keeping it together. We were alone with the baby and all we can do is stare at her. For the rest of today, we have fed her, changed her, sang to her, talked to her, everything. She is soooo beautiful! We fed her a late bottle, changed a full diaper (yikes!), and rocked her to sleep before wheeling her back to the nursery for the night. The nurse we have been working with was able to work out getting the baby to stay in the nursery an extra night...all the prayers are being answered! All the nurses stop us and tell us how they love the baby's hair and how good she is. She never cries... but I'm sure that will change!

We will back at the hospital tomorrow morning to meet with the pediatrician during rounds. The lawyer said we should be discharged around 2pm and then they are meeting H at 2:30 for her to sign the papers. So we still have a few steps to go.

All I can think about is the baby and H. I hope H is happy to be back home, back in her own bed. I hope that she is able to get some good rest tonight. She is surrounded by her family and friends that love her. We met so many of them in the last few days and they are wonderful. They have all looked through the photo album that we made for H with all our pictures. Everyone feels that they know us... I am thrilled that she is sharing so much. I hope that tomorrow is not too painful for her and that she is still able to follow through. I hope that it gets a bit better each day.

Please continue to keep H in your prayers. She is an amazing woman and I am better person for knowing her. There are some big steps still left... please keep good thoughts for us.

Updated Stats!

2007-11-03T18:58:00.001-05:00

I completely forgot to give the rest of the stats on the baby.... sorry!!!

Born Friday, November 2nd at 2:08pm Central time
7 pounds, 6 ounces
19.5 inches long

I just got off the phone with H... she sounds very tired. We offered to bring her some "real" food for dinner, but she is doing well with the hospital menu. She has had a steady stream of visitors after we left and she is hoping for a quiet night tonight. I told her that absolutely would not turn down any time with the baby, but she keeps telling us that this is her last night with baby girl and we do not want to interfere on her time. We think it is important for her to say goodbye on her terms. She reassured me several times that just because she is spending time with the baby, she is not waivering in her decision. She is just using the time that she has wisely. The last thing we want to do is make her feel that she has to entertain us because she needs her rest. H also said that after meeting us today and seeing how Bill just melted when she gave him the baby, she knows that she is doing the best thing.

The hospital has been great to us. They offered to set up a private room for us tonight so we could spend some time with the baby. Again, we're letting H finish her time alone. I talked to the social worker and the nurse, and Bill and I will be going to the hospital first thing tomorrow morning to start our bonding time. That was their recommendation. I'm pretty tired but I don't know that I will sleep too well. I'm nervous, no doubt about that. I don't want to get too attached. H will not sign any of her papers until Monday afternoon. H has said that she wants us to start bonding with the baby too.

H is being released tomorrow. It is a little up in the air about what is going to be done with the baby. Again, the nurses have been great... they know who we are and they are going to talk with the doctor to see if he can sign off on keeping the baby an extra night and release her on Monday. H does not want to walk out of the hospital with the baby and I cannot blame her. There is just no way she would be able to hand her to us in the parking lot and I would NEVER ask her to do that. This should not be any more difficult than it needs to be. H said she needs to walk out with her mom and frankly I would not be able to watch her handing us the baby. We are going to work on this tomorrow morning with the staff.... I know that we have been asking for a lot of prayers from everyone lately, please pray that we can work something out with the hospital to keep H's wishes.

Back From The Hospital!

2007-11-03T15:49:00.000-05:00

First.... I am going to say that we did not take any pictures today. It just didn't seem like the right thing to do. I'm sure it wouldn't have been a big deal, but it was right to just be sitting together and talking.

H is wonderful, amazing, so open and honest. We really felt that we could be ourselves. She told us over and over that she is doing the right thing, she will not change her mind. I want to trust her 100% but I just can't completely let myself go. She understands that. H has been spending a lot of time with the baby and I am very glad that she wants to. I think it is important and we are giving her as much time and space as she wants. We spent about 2.5 hours together and she had a few visitors coming and we left so she could spend time alone with them. She said she was going to get a steady stream of visitors because they all know that the baby isn't going home with her and if they wanted to see her, today was the day.

As for the baby girl.... she is beautiful! H was not lying about her having lots of dark hair... oh my! She has dark blue eyes right now and we'll see with time what the end color is. She has blonde eye lashes, so H thinks that her hair will probably turn much lighter eventually. Her skin is a little scaley since she was definitely full term and her little hands are tiny. She has very long toes and big feet for her size. Her nose is still a little squished to the side, but I think she is perfect just the way she is. Bill and I just kept passing her back and forth. Everyone just stares at her.

We made our run to Target for supplies and now we are going to go eat. I haven't had much to eat today - surprise! It just doesn't seem very important right now. LOL I'm more nervous than I'm admitting to myself.

I'm still pretty overwhelmed right now. I'm sure I'll think of more later...

Didn't Sleep!

2007-11-03T08:52:00.000-05:00

It's still 30 degrees.... Bill is out running on the trails nearby (sucker!) and I just ordered flowers for H. We will pick them up before we get to the hospital.

The first night in a new bed is always an adventure. I did not sleep too well. I'm obviously very excited about today, but I just couldn't get comfortable and I was tired! I'm used to my sleep number bed and the memory foam topper! The bed here is nice and all... but it's a spring coil and it will take me a few days to get used to it. I'm soooo spoiled!

The water here is very different... I'm sure the hotel has some uber water softener because I used way too much shampoo and had to rinse, rinse, rinse. It's going to be a wacky hair day but it is what it is. Our room is very clean.... but I'm feeling a compulsion to clean it more. My own version of nesting maybe? A few Lysol wipes will do the trick. I didn't get to the store this morning... Bill took the car to drive over the trail. I wasn't in the mood for scrambling around either. So we will go later today.

Jonathan stayed at our house with the pets last night. I wonder if Biscuit tried to crawl in bed with him... she is very sneaky! He is going to take them back to his place today.

Wow... it's been a nutty 24 hours! Who knew? I have to say for both plane rides, I was pretty catatonic and just staring off into space. I had my MP3 with me, but I listened to it for probably 18 minutes at the most. I also had a Sudoko book and a brand-new copy of "Eat, Pray, Love" with me and didn't touch either. And for future reference, a 59 minute layover in Detroit is NOT enough time to make a connecting flight. I have to pay attention to this on the way back home because we were really booking it. The car seat was empty and flying around and we barely made it with a fast bathroom break.

When we got to Iowa, the baggage handlers were not in a hurry to unload the luggage very quickly so I went and got the rental car at the counter. I had reserved a compact knowing that I would probably upgrade if asked because it is much cheaper that way instead of reserving that ahead of time. Yes, I was taking a huge chance, but I didn't even think at the time I called yesterday to at least think that we needed a 4 door with the car seat. I'm not used to traveling with a child obviously. The young guy at the counter told me that he was sorry, but that he had to give me a free upgrade to a mid-size because they only have 2 compact cars, and both were out. LOL! He was afraid that I was going to get upset having to buy more gas! So we have a Malibu.

Social worker L just called and was asking about the stats on the baby. Aside from the weight and what color her hair is, I have no idea how long she is or what time she was born! I will get those details today and let you all know!! H has arranged for us to get our hospital bracelets today which will give us unlimited access into the nursery. That is very sweet of her!

Have I mentioned that Bill is absolutely jumping out of his skin??

We're In Iowa!!

2007-11-02T22:31:00.000-05:00

It's 30-something degrees, there's an ice scraper in the back of our rental car, and after 7 hours of travel, we made it here!

H left me a message approximately when we were flying over Chicago. She did have a baby girl, 7 pounds, 6 ounces, "really cute", "really sweet", has "lots and lots and lots of dark hair". We can't wait to meet her! H said the baby's nose is squished to one side and her face was pretty swollen from sitting in the birth canal for so long. She was really worried about this but the doctors assured her that she was perfectly normal and she will be just fine. H said she is absolutely beautiful and I said that we never had any doubts! Baby is in the nursery and I'm sure that she is being well taken care of.

I called H back when we arrived at the airport and we agreed to meet tomorrow. She is exhausted but unable to sleep, the nurses probably just gave her an Ambien 30 minutes ago. I said that we wanted her to get some rest and we can come in the morning, but we wanted her to know that we made it here. She said she wants to be "perfect" to meet us tomorrow and she will be more like herself tomorrow after a shower and make-up. Like we aren't going to be doing the same thing before going to the hospital tomorrow!

Bill is going running first thing in the morning, I'm going to head to the Super Target to get supplies for our suite. It's nice and clean and we need food, stuff like that. I've been making a ton of phone calls trying to keep everyone informed. If you haven't heard from me, I'm sorry! It's nothing personal.

I'm going to unpack and organize all our stuff. And then I'm going to go to bed. Bill has already crashed out in the recliner in front of the TV!!

Little Roo Is Coming Today!!

2007-11-02T10:01:00.000-05:00

H is at 6cm.... they are trying to get her epidural done ASAP!

We have a flight out at 3:30 and should be there 8pm-ish. OMG

Labor Time!

2007-11-02T08:55:00.000-05:00

H just called.... she is going to the hospital! She is definitely not sounding like herself and said she has not gotten much sleep because she was having irregular contractions all night. The doctor said to start timing them and let him know in the morning how she was. Now they are regular and bothering her, so this sounds like the real deal.

H's mom is going to call me after she is checked to see if she is being admitted or sent back home. I really think they are going to keep her.

I really had no idea what to say.... but I did tell her that I hoped they can give her the epidural soon so she can get some sleep!!!

40 Weeks!

2007-11-01T09:11:00.000-05:00

Oh snap! How did H get this far???

No Halloween baby... Little Roo said "No way" to an October birthday! That's OK. There are some of the best birthdays in November. My cousin Michelle's birthday is this weekend. My grandmother, who passed away almost 2 years ago, was a November birthday too! So it's a great month to have a baby!

My dad is flying up to visit my other grandmother today and will be there through the weekend. He tells me if we happen to be up north for the big day before he comes back, he will change his plans to come visit. I feel bad.... he is coming home on Sunday and I don't know that we will traveling before then!

I read only one magazine last night and then I crashed out on the couch. No, I wasn't in a sugar coma, I actually did very well with the chocolate temptations through the night. I was just tired and Bill was watching some 6 hour ghost show on the Sci Fi channel! What is left of the candy is in our freezer... a little treat now and then is not a bad idea, I just don't want a big bowl of it looking at me!

I'm going to give H a ring later today and leave her a message if she doesn't answer. She is probably sick of people calling and asking "Have you had that baby yet??" and I can't say that I would blame her. So I'll say the usual... thinking of you!!

Guess Little Roo doesn't want to wear Auntie Katherine's sheep dog outfit for Halloween. Now she will be Thanksgiving puppy and a Christmas puppy instead. If it's cold enough in January, she will be a Disney Marathon puppy too! I took pictures of it anyway... here it is...

Evil Candy!

2007-10-31T18:13:00.000-05:00

Bill called me from work and said that he would stop on the way home and buy candy for tonight. Sure... sounds like a good plan to me.

He comes home with $50 worth of candy. I am not kidding... I have the receipt as proof. $50. 4 ginormous bags of candy. We're talking somewhere around 800 pieces. We better have a lot of kids tonight and the rest is being marched over to the triplets next door!

Meanwhile.... it is calling to me from the front hall.... "I'm yummy in your tummy...Eat me!!"

Happy Halloween!!!

2007-10-31T09:27:00.001-05:00

I have to stop on the way home from work today to buy candy for the neighborhood kids. We didn't buy any yet because I didn't want it in the house (because I'd be eating it) and we didn't think we would still be home. LOL It appears that Little Roo does not want an October birthday.

More magazine reading tonight between answering the door!!

Magazines, Night Two

2007-10-30T21:10:00.000-05:00

Number of magazines read and recycled to date: 33

Number of magazines left to go: Almost a year of "Women's Health" and "Body & Soul"

Oldest magazine found so far: October 2006 - Allure

Good distraction technique? Yes and it's still working!

Verdict: I have too many magazines.

Mornings

2007-10-30T09:56:00.000-05:00

I usually wake up in the mornings with Biscuit laying on me... not just by me, but ON me. I've gotten used to it over the last few years! Thank goodness she weighs less than 70 pounds! Bill laughs that she uses my behind for a pillow. It's better than her using my real pillow as a pillow. I just say that Biscuit is my personal space heater and we need each other.

It's hard to describe the feelings of the last week when I realize first thing in the morning that I've been woken up by my alarm clock and not by my cell phone with a middle-of-the-night call. It's really a let down. Maybe I'm getting myself too worked up when going to bed saying "Maybe this will be the night!". I don't know how NOT to do it. I don't know how to not think about all of it.

HOLY SHRIMP! I took a break after that last sentence to get a drink.... and my phone rang. It was H... NO labor yet! She wanted to call and apologize for not calling me back sooner, but she is just not a big talking-on-the-phone person. She is not feeling well, nesting like crazy, and doing what she can to get through the next days. I can certainly understand that. She was also afraid of disturbing me.... yeah, right!!!

H's doctor's appointment was yesterday and she is still at 2cm. No change from last week, with no change in sight as she says. Believe me, she is way more disappointed than we are! Her next appointment is on Monday.

I admitted that I was struggling with how much to call her and I want to give her the space that she needs. I'd rather show her that I am human and that I sometimes don't know what I am doing! She said she doesn't need space, this is just how she is! She also said that we do not know each other very well, so it's a little strange at times. I asked her what plans she and the boys had for Halloween tomorrow. I know that I can always "hear" a smile from her when I ask about them.

H said she thinks about Bill and I often and she is so very excited for us. I said we think of her a lot too, hence my problem with wanting to call her all the time! She said hopefully the next time she calls me, it will be from the hospital! Sounds good to me! I offered if she was more comfortable calling her social worker, L, that I won't be upset if she wants to call her first. H said no way, she wants to call me first for sure and I can tell L. Great! Things sound like they are going just as planned, I am so thankful. I am go grateful she called and renewed my spirit.

So tick tock.... time is going much slower for H than me I know. She is watching a ton of TV. I'm going to see if I can finish my magazine project!

Magazines, Night One

2007-10-29T23:01:00.000-05:00

Number of magazines read and recycled to date: 15

Number of magazines left to go: Too many - not even half done!

Oldest magazine found so far: November 2006 - Glamour

Good distraction technique? Yes!

Verdict: I'll be doing this again tomorrow night for sure! I also gave my kitchen a good scrubbing after dinner and did a quick spin to the grocery store so Bill could have eggs to make a pan of gluten-free brownies... not bad for a night's work.

Operation: Read Magazines!

2007-10-29T15:42:00.001-05:00

I have a whole huge stack of magazines on my office floor. Some are from the spring! Ooooppps! I am going to read these and throw them into the recycle bin and get them out of my office for good!! I think I have 3 different titles and I only renewed one of them so this should get easier. I've just been piling them up and thinking I will get to them when I get to them. Well I never did, so I'm doing it now. What else am I going to do??

I just wanted to thank everyone for the very kind thoughts and words of encouragement that you all have been sending our way. Bill and I are very grateful to all of you and it warms our hearts that others are joining us in our journey. We are trying to be very strong and I pray that I can look back on all this in a few weeks and laugh at myself for being a huge brat.

On the adoption front, social worker L just left a voice message for H this afternoon. We'll see if H checks in before her appointment tomorrow or even afterwards. At this point, the social worker and I agree that H needs her space. Bill and I will offer support from afar... sometimes it comes in the form of just staying out of the way!

Sunday Night

2007-10-28T20:33:00.001-05:00

Yeppo.... still here in Florida!!

Watching game 4 of the World Series! Is this like groundhog day??

I helped Katherine put together her wedding album this morning. All of their pictures turned out sooooo nice! I wish Bill and I could have been married in a castle... she was really a princess that day!

I also called H's social worker this morning. I was seriously going to stress all day about if I should call H again today or not and I figured that it was worth my sanity to call L. This is really part of her job right? Mainly I wanted to tell her that even though H said she was going to call me on Friday, she didn't so L was not out of the loop in any way. I told her that H has actually never called me.... we've talked on the phone when she has answered it when I have called.

L does not see this as any indication of things going south. She believes that H is not wanting to get involved with us emotionally, it is just too difficult for her right now. She is trying to protect herself? L is going to call H in the morning to see how she is and get back with me. She is also going to chat with her about a specific hospital plan. I told L that the only thing H has told me is that she wants to spend only a few minutes saying good-bye to the baby and then she is going to let us be the parents from that moment on. L also told me that she does not think that H is planning on spending much time with us in the hospital. Again, a move that she might need to do to make it through this period. I am pretty disappointed, but I do know that if we are going to have any relationship, it will develop far off in the future anyway. I know that is not because she doesn't like us - it's not a personal thing. We will take our cues from her and we will give her the space she needs.

We will always think H is amazing and a much stronger person that either of us could ever be. Even if we don't communicate, she will always get the pictures and letters per the agreement we made with her. Little Roo will always know what a wonderful woman H is!

So Little Roo.... where are you????!!! Auntie Katherine bought you a fuzzy puppy Halloween costume so you need to appear BEFORE Thursday!

Saturday Night

2007-10-27T21:11:00.000-05:00

We're "enjoying" a night at home... we skipped the hockey game and a Halloween party invite and we're watching game 3 of the World Series. Dinner last night was great! I have to laugh about the Rockies being in the play-offs because when we were in Denver at the beginning of September, everyone had pretty much written them off. The games were having low turn-out and the sports casters were saying that the only way that the Rockies would even reach the play-offs would be if they won every game for the rest of the season and other key teams would have to have a few losses. So not many people would have dreamed this would be happening!

It's a nervous night. It just is. Probably the weekends are a little more stressful because there is less going on than if we were at work because that is always a great distraction. We ran some errands today and it has been a typical fall afternoon, watching college football. We've had no news from H or her social worker so we're trying to live life as usual. But it is anything but.

We've been here before so we can't help but be nervous about getting some bad news. I feel horrible that I second-guess everything that H has told me. Our bad experience in the past is not her fault in any way. It's not fair to think that she has not been anything but honest with us. I think it's very normal to feel the way we do and we expected this, but it still stinks. My heart skips a beat everytime my phone rings. Is this the call that says "Come now!" or will it be our worst nightmare again - "Baby is here... but please stay where you are."?

I can tell Bill is on edge. I'm on edge. This is definitely a test in patience and it is a test of faith as well. Nothing about this is in our control, except the way we feel. I know for me, most of the anxiety comes from not talking to H myself in quite a few days. My anxiety is feeding Bill's. I left her messages on Thursday and Friday. Then her social worker called me yesterday after work and gave me an update and said that H was planning to call me that night. She didn't. I am so thankful that I have gotten some news and at least she is still talking to her social worker or I would probably be a total wreck today. I know that she is still nervous to talk to me, she has never called me herself. She is not a talkative person to begin with. I can imagine that it is possible that she doesn't want to talk to me. It's not a personal thing, but having to interact with me is another reminder of the difficult task that she has ahead of her. She has prepared herself the best that she can but she still knows that it is going to hurt like nothing she has ever experienced before.

I keep reminding myself that we will have plenty of time with her when we are with her and it will take time to develop a relationship if it is meant to be. She doesn't know us and we don't know her. I just hope that I haven't run her off already! It's a very fine line to walk between calling her to let her know that we are thinking about her and coming off as someone that is trying to annoy her. Wow, this never gets easier! I feel bad for "whining", this is what we have asked for, this is what we have prayed for. I am grateful for this day and where we are right now, so very close to being parents. This is part of the process, whether anyone likes it or not!

I have plenty of projects to do around the house, but I'm terribly unmotivated. LOL! Jon is coming over tomorrow. He is going to do a long ride while Bill does a 16 mile run. I am going over to see Katherine in the morning and we are going to put her wedding albums together.

A Wee Bit of Magic Maybe??

2007-10-26T16:19:00.000-05:00

H's social worker L called me while I was on the way home from work. She talked to H and wanted to let me know that she had checked in with her.

H said she is at 2cm and doesn't think that she will make it to her next OB appointment on Tuesday! Meaning she thinks she is close to going into labor! She has been getting the urge to be up and about, getting things moving. I'm glad that she is feeling better enough to be out doing things. I think she can use the distraction right now!

Here's hoping for a call soon!! Come on full moon!!!!

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No Magic Yet!

2007-10-26T09:45:00.001-05:00

No phone calls in the middle of the night. My work pager did go off at 1:37am this morning and Bill, who normally doesn't even hear it go off, was awake immediately asking "What's going on? What's happening?? Is it time to go?" I had to laugh!

It appears that my source of information for the full moon may not be exactly correct either. I haven't been able to confirm one way or the other, but maybe the full moon is tonight! I don't know exactly when the 24 hour time frame is. There is still time for magic!! Bill is still thinking we will be leaving this weekend, I say not. We're making plans with friends for dinner tonight, a hockey game tomorrow night, and Katherine wants me to help her put her wedding pictures together sometime in the next few days. So I have enough to do.

I didn't get a call back from H yesterday so maybe I will try giving her another call this afternoon. I certainly don't want to annoy her!

Left Messages...

2007-10-25T16:12:00.000-05:00

Both I and the social worker have left H a message on her cell phone this afternoon. I'm glad that she is out and about, I'm assuming she is anyway! She's up walking around, which is a very good thing.

Maybe we will get some of that full moon magic!! ** Hoping! **

On a much different and pee-your-pants note..... want to see some Human Tetris?? You can thank Katherine for digging up this comic relief!

Full Moon Tonight!

2007-10-25T09:07:00.000-05:00

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OK, I know it's a long shot and not statistically proven in any way, but a girl can have hope!

.•´¯`•._.•´¯`•._.•´¯`•. LABOR VIBES! .•´¯`•._.•´¯`•. _.•´¯`•.

I have a few more items on my list to do today but last night I closed up the little pink suitcase that has all the baby stuff in it. I had to run to Target to get some new compression bags since our ones that we tend to use a lot have developed holes over the last year. I had to get one for H's pillow that I made her so it would squish down! I also put the blanket that my mom brought me and my brother home from the hospital with in one so it won't get dirty. I have a bunch of Bath & Body Works stuff for H and I taped all the lids so hopefully they won't leak at all (and they are all in a big freezer bag).

I've decided not to take a purse with me (VERY shocking!), but to put everything in our Overland Noho bag that Bill picked out for a diaper bag. Since I'm bringing all sorts of paperwork, my camera, and will not carry a purse on the way back home with the baby any way, why even take one to begin with just to end up putting it in the suitcase in a few days? So it's just a bigger tote... no big deal. Since I have to lug the car seat with me too, I'm thinking I'm pretty smart right now. LOL!

I found all my non-Florida clothes.... long sleeves, wool socks, and grabbed my coat from the front closet so my suitcase is getting full. Last night I was spraying my new Earth shoes with water repellant and then I did my Keen mary janes too after I finally decided which shoes I was taking with me (never more than 2 pairs!). The secret is out.... yes, I buy the same style of shoes no matter what the brand cause I'm cool like that. Then I sprayed a bunch of shoes for Bill looking for something to do! I always travel in my Keens since they are easy to get on and off at the airport and I can walk forever in them. The Earth shoes are definitely different for me since they have some negative heel thing going on but once I really walked around in them, they are very comfortable and I can always work on my posture! See I don't have much else to do right now but to distract myself with dumb details!

I will be calling H later today to see how she is doing.

No Progress....

2007-10-23T15:06:00.001-05:00

Bill predicted early last week that we would not be home this weekend. However, it looks like we will have at least a few more days of "us" time. Well, that is the assumption anyway! I have not heard from H, so she may still surprise me. I think if anything was news-worthy, she definitely would have called me by now. Baby girl is obviously happy where she is and doesn't feel like making an appearance any time soon.

My mom was just telling me last night that the day before I was born, she was at her normal doctor's appointment. The doctor told her confidently to schedule another appointment in a week because there was NO WAY she was going to have a baby in the next 7 days. Well I showed them and I was born less than 24 hours later! So no one really knows and it will just have to be good enough!

I've been going to bed with my phone on the nightstand every night. And I've taped a note to my garage door reminding me to make sure I have my phone when I walk out the door! That's the only thing I can do right now to be ready. That and pack a few more things or have them in a central location to grab quickly. Bill laughs at me. I don't think he has figured out how quickly I am going to shove him out the door when the call comes in. It's going to be fun!

Sherpani Sale!

2007-10-23T11:30:00.000-05:00

Everyone is quite enamored with my poppy Cali bag and I am constantly being asked where I got it! Well if you're in the market for a new bag, Sherpani is having a sale!!

I don't work for them and I'm not paid to advertise.... I just think they make great products! Bill will probably hurt me if I buy another bag in the near future so I'm going to have to pass on this great sale.

H should be at her doctor's appointment now. She is going to call me if there is any progress to report. So I will post an update here if I get any news from her this afternoon!!

.•´¯`•._.•´¯`•. LABOR VIBES! .•´¯`•._.•´¯`•.

Happy Monday!

2007-10-22T13:11:00.000-05:00

I was pretty bummed coming into the office today because I was thinking about the email that I had to send H's social worker L. Plus today is my first day on a pager shift for work and I have it until Friday morning - YUCK! I was not the happiest camper rolling into the parking lot today.

I sent social worker L an email that I had yet to talk to H recently and that I had left H another message on Friday afternoon. I knew she was having problems with cell phone minutes and I'm sure it is resolving itself but I was pretty disappointed that I hadn't been able to talk to her myself in a week and a half. I was wanting to get in some more "getting to know you" conversations before everything goes down, but if we don't, we don't. We will have plenty of time for that later. I just want H to know that we are thinking about her.

My phone rang shortly after getting into the office and it was H's lawyer's office. I have been working with "N" in that office and she does a great job of keeping everyone informed on what is going on. She was calling this morning to tell me two big things that have happened recently. The first being that H was able to meet with them last week and she signed some of the preliminary papers that would allow the lawyer to file the TPR (Termination of Parental Rights) petition with the court. Obviously H cannot officially sign the "real" TPR until the baby actually arrives, but this allows her lawyer to get on the books with the courthouse. The hearing that the state requires to make the TPR permanent will be scheduled faster. This one surprised me! I had no idea they could do this but it is very good because things are moving in a great direction!

The second big item is that the birth father was served with papers last week that said he was going to be named as the father to H's baby and that there was an adoption plan in the works. It said that he could contest if he wanted. The law firm received a letter from him this morning that said that he didn't believe that he was the father (not a surprise), but that if the lawyer could attest that the adoptive family was "good", that he would sign away his parental rights and not hold the process up. The only thing that he asked was that he be called after the birth to let him know what the gender of the baby is. So this was also very welcome news to us as well! The next time I will talk to N will be after the baby is here! She said things are looking very very good from her standpoint. Every bit of encouraging news helps!

L sent me an email that she had talked to H and her cell phone issue was resolved yesterday. Then L proceeded to say that H was expecting my call this afternoon! She is afraid about bothering me at work so asked that I call her when I had a free minute. So I called H and we had a great conversation!

Her back is still very bad... and she is soooo bored that she is sleeping to pass the time. I'm glad she is able to get some rest! Her doctor has not even mentioned an induction because she might just take him up on it! She also cannot get an appointment with a chiro because they said she is too close to delivering and they are afraid of putting her in labor. Like that is a bad thing! LOL She gave me a few reviews of movies she has rented lately. H gives "Knocked Up" two thumbs up! I haven't seen it yet although I have heard great things about it. Her next doctor's appointment is tomorrow at 11am and she said she was going to call me if she is dialated any more. Last week she was at 1cm so we are HOPING for some good progress tomorrow! Otherwise I said I would call her later in the week to check in on her.

She sounds in very good spirits and said hopefully she will be calling within the next few days to tell me she is in labor. I told her how excited we are to come see her. The preliminary plan is to call me when she thinks she might be in labor. Then after she gets checked out at the hospital, she will call again to let us know for sure that they are either keeping her or sending her back home. So at least we can start getting ready to travel but wait for the final word to make sure. We're hoping for sooner rather than later! I think an October baby will be great but she will get here when she wants to get here.

So Little Roo... where are you??!!

38 Week Update!

2007-10-18T15:39:00.000-05:00

Update from the social worker - H's back is REALLY bothering her. She has had no relief in the last week. She is trying to see a chiro fast to help and I hope that works out soon. I am so concerned about her and I feel terrible that she is in so much pain.

I called and left her a message last night but I didn't hear back from her. I also told her that we were going out to watch a friend's hockey game but I was just calling to see how she was doing. I told her social worker that if I didn't hear from her, I was going to leave another message this afternoon. Her social worker said she was also going to call her also.

The message I just got from the social worker told me about her continuing back situation and that H wants to talk to me, but that she has run out of minutes on her cell phone. She is getting more minutes tomorrow and asked me to call her in the afternoon. BUT the bigger news is that she did go to the doctor and she is dialated to 1cm. I know that she could stay there for days or weeks, but it's some progress, right?!

The portable bassinet showed up. It is huge!!!! I am very surprised for sure. It folds down nicely and I think it will fit in my suitcase but it could fit my 70 pound dog, Biscuit!! I think we will get a lot of use out of it!

Other than that, I have picked through my prized carriers and I think I have selected the ones I will be taking. Thanks to Kristi for reminding me how much I'm going to love my stretchy wraps with the baby and that's the first one to make sure I have room for! If I really don't have room for the others then my Bali Baby Stretch will last me the entire trip for what I need. I can't wait! She's going to be wrapped up like a baby kangaroo! I'm trying to pack as light as I can, so I might take my BBS and one pouch sling. I'm leaning towards my Bounding Blossoms Hotsling! Oh snap... Hotslings is having a sale????

Packing Up!

2007-10-17T09:28:00.000-05:00

I have been packing like a fool the last few days. I just have a feeling that I need to get it done. Whether or not my feeling means anything at all remains to be seen! I'm probably going to call H tonight or tomorrow and see how she is doing. About 2 weeks to go! Really the baby will be here within the next 3 weeks for sure. There is no way they will let her go too far past her due date since she is measuring at a good weight already.

So I've packed up all the goodies and gifts we are taking for H. I've been doing laundry and all the tiny clothes are packed up and ready to go. My parents popped in last weekend and brought a few sleepers with footies since we are traveling north and the weather will be much cooler than here. I have undershirts, socks, babylegs, hats, bibs, rompers, all the essentials. I also have a list going of everything we are going to buy there to get us settled in and I'm collecting coupons LOL! I have a red gatecheck bag for the car seat and someone gave me a great idea to pack blankets in the carseat to get it out of the luggage. Did that!!

I've also been gathering stuff for me.... and I packed up my toiletry bag. I'm keeping up on my laundry so I can pack and go when the great call arrives.

Now I have the age old question to answer that every baby-wearing mama asks herself..... WHICH baby carriers do I bring? How will I ever choose??! I will probably bring one of each: MT, Hotsling, stretchy wrap. I just don't know which patterns I want!! Such problems!

Injury Report!

2007-10-11T15:45:00.000-05:00

I wrote H's social worker "L" a note yesterday about the gifts that I have been gathering and to make sure that we were not going to violate any of the state laws about the price tag attached. Florida is very lenient about the whole gift thing and in short of giving someone a new car or an expensive diamond ring, it would be allowed. In short, everything we have sounded perfect to L and no troubles there.

Then L tells me that H hurt her back recently and has been doing time on the couch. I had been thinking about giving H a call in the next few days to check in but then when I heard she was not feeling well, I decided that I was calling her that night! Besides, L told H that "Jenn is going to call you soon... probably tonight!" So I did.

She sounded great and I told her I was concerned about how she was feeling. She said she's physically feeling pretty crappy. Not only has she hurt her back just doing normal everyday activities, but she is having some serious sciatica pain and the wiggly baby isn't helping. This happened with her previous pregnancy as well and she knows that it will go away as soon as she has the baby. She only has a few weeks to go! So she's spending time on the couch with a ton of pillows and her mom has been coming over to make her dinner and keep her company. They have been watching a lot of movies lately - my kind of girl!!

She did tell me that she had a doctor's appointment and the baby is head down and ready to go. OH! Apparently the doctor mentioned that he thought within the next 2 weeks, she could go into labor but H is afraid to get her hopes up because she knows then she is sure to go past her due date. We're obviously hoping for sooner rather than later!! Not that I don't still have plenty to do and am sitting around twiddling my thumbs...

We had a very nice chat. She admitted that she is still a little nervous talking to me on the phone, but that is very natural. Until we really meet each other in person, it probably will be that way. We talked about how this is very strange situation for someone looking from the outside in. If you haven't been through it, it's hard to understand and something that most people will never have to deal with! It's very much like dating - trying to figure out when to call, what to say, what not to say. H laughed when I told her that and she definitely agreed. I'm trying to be as human as possible... we're in the same boat and I'm not Super Woman, you know?

As time goes by, I think we will be great friends. H is happy that we want to have a relationship with her. That made her feel really good. We would never ever forget about her and skip off into the sunset. It seems that we have a lot of similar interests, did I ever mention that she played the violin in school? It is very easy to talk to her. I wanted her to talk more about her boys because I could tell in the first call that she just lit up thinking about them so I think that helped her be more at ease. She said she is going to pack up some pictures in her hospital bag to share with me. She wants to give me updated pictures through the years to keep in a special book for the baby. I am thrilled!

H told me at least 6 times that she is not going to change her mind about the adoption and that she is *really* excited for us to become parents. She said she did not want us to worry about her changing her decision. I think it is very sweet of her to want to tell us that but we'll still be cautious until it's all said and done. She has been thinking a lot about what is going to happen in the hospital and she is preparing herself the best she can. She is in counseling weekly and it is really helping her. I think she said a few things she wanted to say to me. I really wanted to keep everything light and up beat but I had to tell her that we will never be able to tell her how grateful we are to her for making our dreams come true. She said we didn't have to tell her, she already knows!! This is a case where actions really will speak louder than words.

We talked for 20 minutes or so. I didn't want to keep her too long since I knew it was close to dinner there and I am not one to stand between a pregnant woman and food! Her mom was there making her dinner and is taking really good care of her. H said she is very lucky. I think we are the lucky ones!

Purchases!

2007-10-08T15:13:00.000-05:00

It still feels strange to make baby item purchases. I am a little superstitious about the whole placement thing sometimes. But sitting back and not doing anything doesn't work either.

So, because we had a coupon from Target to get 10% off anything and because we had a $100 gift card that we got for buying my Dyson in the spring, we bought the big daddy car seat. This is NOT the seat that we will be taking with us. It's huge!! Britax Decathlon Convertible Car Seat - in Sahara (Taupe/Gray). I REALLY like the cowmooflage Marathon for my truck... Bill not so much. I mean how much more fun can a car seat get?? This tan and gray one is going in his car... snore! But he has an image to uphold and all his friends told him to not get a girly seat. This battle is far from over!

I did also pick up a travel bassinet to take with us. My only other thought was to buy a pack-n-play when we got there and then mail it back to myself when we were leaving to come back home. Holy smokes - those things weigh 30 pounds!! Good grief! So I found this hopefully handy little thing that folds up flat in the suitcase:

A Pogy Travel Bassinet (also on target.com). It folds like those sunshades that pop out for your windshield. Yep, this is going to be loads of fun! I always hit myself in the head with those. It has a little mattress on the bottom and mosquito netting that lays over the top. In that respect, it will be handy to use outdoors maybe? I just want somewhere for the baby to sleep without sleeping in her carseat, a stroller, or who knows where else. Great for little trips, naps and whatnot on the go. I found some other travel beds but the small height on the side really bothered me but this one is 18" deep. Sure, a really wiggly kid might tip it over and crawl right out when bigger, but I intend to use this on the floor and maybe barricaded with pillows. I have high hopes for this thing!! I really wish we could take our Amby bed with us, but that's not going to happen either.

I did pick up a few baby things over the weekend from the real Target store.... some white long-sleeved shirts, a few pairs of little pull-on pants, couple hats, tiny socks. It's all good fun! Then I thought the washer or dryer ate 2 of the tiny socks and I was soooo mad. Turns out they were hiding in some other clothes. I need to remember to put all those little things in a washable bag or I'm going to lose them for sure!!!

Hopefully I am able to chat some with H this week. I don't want to drive her away screaming. I'm sure this is a very difficult situation for her. I pray for H all the time. It's the only thing I can do besides be at her side, advocate for her, cheer her on, lend an ear when she needs one.

Amanda called today to see what's going on. She asked me what I was going to be for Halloween. I said "Hopefully a mom!!!!".

Bill Says....

2007-10-05T13:25:00.000-05:00

Don't sweat the small stuff because it's ALL small stuff!

Yeah well, I'm trying very hard to subscribe to that theory. I know the month ahead will be hard on me, on Bill, on H, our family, her family, everybody. It just will. And no one can predict what the outcome will be until it's actually happened.

I called H yesterday. I completely expected her not to answer her phone, although I hoped she would! She didn't so I got to talk to the voicemail. I said it was nice to have talked to her on Wednesday, Bill and I are looking forward to meeting her in person and giving her a big hug. Then I proceeded to say that she didn't need to call me back, I just wanted to say a quick "hi" and if I don't talk to her until next week, that I hope she has a wonderful weekend.

So with that, I hung up. And then I started questioning whether or not I addressed her by H (which I'm sure I did) or if I called her Nicole because I was in the middle of sending one of my girlfriends an email. It is driving me nuts. The next time I do talk to her, I will have to ask and I can make light of myself because I'm human. Guess my crazy Jenn time has started. I can put on a great face but inside everything is going nuts. H hasn't called me back.... I shouldn't be disappointed because I didn't ask her to. I will probably call again later next week and hopefully we can chat a bit. It's small stuff, right?

I'm feeling a bit guilty sharing the news of the latest match with our family. I know they are very happy for us and they would want to know what is going on in our lives, but I recognize that this journey is a rollercoaster for them too. How much is too much? How much good and bad news do we spring on them and make them deal with? The hardest thing I ever had to do was tell my mom on that sad Thursday morning that D and G kept the baby and we had nothing. She was so upset, probably because she knew how much I was hurting. I remember telling Bill that he needed to call his mom and I was sorry but he was going to have to tell her. I just could not do it again that day.

I know that some people choose not to tell their families until they are 100% they have the baby, which means they are probably already at home by then. Could you imagine getting that phone call?? That would be a hard thing to keep to myself, I'll tell you that. I think our families would not be happy if we kept that kind of thing from them. Our parents and siblings have been absolutely amazing - we are so very lucky. They have supported us 100% through thick and thin, good and bad. I just know we are in some ways dragging them along behind us.

It's interesting how your perceptions change as you get closer and closer to being a parent yourself. It's not an easy job!!

Not much on the "to do" list this weekend.... I have one baby carrier to finish, and another to start and finish. A box of "new to me" baby clothes arrived that I want to wash. Probably not a bad idea to start throwing things in the little suitcase and make a list of what we will need to buy when we get to where we are going.

I know we are going to get one of those in the middle of the night phone calls! H told me that her first son was 2 days late, 12 hours of labor, next son was 1 day early, 5 hours of labor. Hmmmm... when are things going to go crazy??? I really doubt we will make it there for the birth, there are no plans to induce unless she seriously goes beyond her due date. We're just along for the ride!

A Great Call!

2007-10-03T15:12:00.000-05:00

My call with H this afternoon went extremely well. She sounds like someone I know already! I can't wait to meet her in person and give her a big hug.

She affirmed that she was making the right decision for the baby. She knows it is going to be hard and difficult emotionally on her. She knows how it feels to be a mom already but she wants to do this because it's the right thing to do. She said that she knows we can give the baby all the things that she cannot. A third child is just out of her capability.

We talked about adoption being an opportunity to create an extended family. She is very happy that we will be as open with communication as she would like. H knows that she will always be curious about the child and I want to share as much information as she is comfortable with without making her feel bad.

At this point, she said she wanted to spend only a few minutes after delivery saying good-bye to the baby. She said she only wants her mom in the delivery room... and we are perfectly fine with that! It's a very private thing and she doesn't know us at all. H wants us to start bonding with the baby immediately. She wants us to have the new parent experience as much as possible. H asked me if we had picked out a name and I said that we did.

H is very sweet and so open. She said she could feel from our profile what kind of people we are. Her social worker just wrote me a little while ago and said H said I was very nice and made her nervousness go away quickly. We exchanged cell numbers.

The first call is usually a little strange and no one really knows what to say. I will probably call at the end of the week just to wish her a very happy weekend and make that first reach out to her. Hopefully this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship!

Meeting Tomorrow!

2007-10-02T12:44:00.001-05:00

The social worker has set up a conference call with H and myself for tomorrow afternoon. I'll be at work and I reserved a conference room so I won't be sitting at my desk annoying everyone sitting around me. I'm getting nervous! I want to make a good impression!

Katherine's Wedding Day!!

2007-10-02T08:20:00.000-05:00

Katherine and Jonathan are getting married today!! (Note - this is not my brother!) They are in England at Langley Castle with all their family. I am so excited for them! We really wanted to go but then we decided to take our trip to Colorado in September. Up until she left last week, I was hoping impulse would take over and I'd fly over there too. Hahahaha!! Anyone that knows me is sure that I would NEVER just do that! I'm glad we stayed here, otherwise we would have missed The Call. Katherine doesn't know....hopefully I can tell her when she gets back before we head out. Congratulations!!!!

I wanted to say Hi to Kristi's Mom!! I got your message... thank you!!!

So they papers came in yesterday and they went out today. They are all notarized and Mr. FedEx is carrying them now. Yesterday was absolutely crazy. Besides trying to do my real job and being on a stupid crisis call for 5 hours, I got 3 calls from our lawyer, 2 calls from H's social worker, 1 call from the agency's accountant, numerous calls from Bill ("what are you doing?"), and clingy pets that kept wanting to sit on my lap. I had time to make an emergency run to the post office to priority mail our $66.50 to the agency - thankfully I did not have to overnight that or wire it! Geez!! As soon as Bill got home last night, we ran to the notary to get our papers stamped and we forgot to stop on the way home and buy more dog food. Poor Biscuit - we have to get to the store today!

Hopefully H will get in touch with her social worker today so we can get a conference call together. I am so excited to talk to her!!

Papers Came!

2007-10-01T08:25:00.000-05:00

I have them. I feel so much better!

It also included a ton of medical records which we did not get last time. Level II U/S reports, everything, looks great! Wow this is really happening again!

Mr. FedEx - Where Are You???

2007-10-01T07:25:00.000-05:00

I hate the waiting! I want these darn papers so badly! I know exactly what they say, but until we have them notarized and returned, it feels like more limbo!

I was praying they would come on Saturday... they did not. I told H's social worker "L" that I would call her on Monday to either ask her more questions or to let her know the papers were signed and in the mail. I have to call her this morning and say they are still missing or they just arrived and they will go out tomorrow. Ugh!!

BUT as I was typing this.... our lawyer here just called wanting to discuss our match since we are getting close to the birth so I'm pretty sure they have the right family now. :) There is no way she would have called us again. She gave us lots of advice with our last match as she was drawing all the papers for that round too. She has been talking a lot with the other lawyer so things are moving fast. She is sending us more papers too!

Come on Mr. FedEx..... please knock on my door!!