Good Times Delgado Style

Day 2 (2nd Trip)

2012-01-27T14:07:00.001-06:00

Hey guys! Jason and I are doing good just tired (it's 11:55pm on Friday right now).
We got to go spend a few hours with Baby A today! He was asleep for about half of the visit so we just watched him sleep. It totally felt like when we brought our kids home from the hospital and we would just watch them sleep. We would have friends come over and we would say "sorry if this is boring to you but we love watching them sleep." That's what is was like, we just loved getting to watch our sweet baby. He was scratching a lot today more than I have ever seen him. He woke up several times when he was sleeping and I got to push his stroller back and forth to help him fall back to sleep. Once he woke up he was super fussy. I think his eyes were hurting because his nanny put medicine in them he could hardly open his eyes. We were able to get him to smile a few times but overall he was not happy. His nanny was really sweet and was having me help with different things today! Jason got to help with his bath. In fact he held Baby A (on his blanket) while his nanny bathed him. We had to leave right after that though because we needed to get our medical exams done.

Our medical exams were... well... not the most fun I have ever had but I sure am glad that part is over. We had to see 8 doctors who interview us and examined us. They said we passed and they are just waiting on the blood work.

Please be praying that God would give us wisdom during court. We have already been asked some questions that were hard to answer and I know it won't be easier with the judge. We will not be asking to have the 30 days waived (because we were told not to) so we will come home on February 3rd and return in March to pick him up.

I can't wait till we go to court on Thursday. I am super nervous but I am just praying and reminding myself of Philippians 4:6-7 (Emilio the timing on that message was perfect!).

Thank you so much for all of the support!

Don't really feel like blogging but I wanted to share our court date...

2012-01-24T10:39:00.002-06:00

This past week has been such an emotional roller coaster for me.

I know of 3 other families that are adopting from the exact same place as us using the same agency. Three of them got emails saying our coordinator in Eastern Europe was going to be asking for court dates on the 17th of January. I was so excited but I wasn't sure if we were getting one since we didn't receive the email everyone else did. I emailed our coordinator in America and asked her if everyone was getting a court date on the 17th and she said yes. I was so excited I told everyone that we would be getting a court date on the 17th.

Friday the 13th I emailed our coordinator in America and told her that we hadn't received the email everyone else did and I just wanted to make sure she knew that we could travel ASAP. She email me back and said our coordinator in Eastern Europe didn't include us in the email either because it was an oversight or all of our paperwork wasn't ready yet. She said we would not be getting a court date on the 17th and I was devastated. I must have just completely misunderstood her and thought we were getting a court date.

I talked to some of the ladies at our church about it and they just shared scripture with me and prayed for me. I felt so much better after that. I know that God is sovereign over all things and I know his timing is perfect but sometimes I just need to be reminded of that. I was totally at peace with not getting a court date yet and I would just keep getting the house ready until we got a date.

Then Saturday the 14th I had the worst headache and I was just laying on the couch trying to get my head to stop hurting. Then Jason saw online that Tripp had passed away and I was so so sad. My head hurt so bad that I couldn't really process all the emotions I was feeling. Sunday during worship it hit me though and I lost it. I cried and cried as I was overcome with grief. I was so sad for Courtney and so sad that Tripp had passed away. I was of course relieved that he wasn't suffering anymore but Courtney still lost her baby and my heart couldn't even handle the emotion of it all. I couldn't help but cry and mourn the loss of sweet baby Tripp.

Then on Tuesday the 17th I was so excited for all my friends who would be receiving their court dates. My friend Kelly called me and I thought she was going to tell me what her court date was but she said "have you checked your email?" I said "no, why?" She said "because you GOT YOUR COURT DATE!!!!" I said "SHUT UP!!!, YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME.....!!!!!" I was so excited I couldn't believe it. I said "okay I have to call Jason, talk to you soon." Then I looked at my phone and saw I had a text message that Jason sent me it said "WE HAVE OUR COURT DATE!" He can't really talk on the phone at work so that's why he sent me the text. We were both so excited.

Then Tuesday night Jason , Kenya and I drove to Louisiana to go to Tripp's funeral. Wednesday was his funeral and I blogged about it here. It was so devastating and heart breaking.

Then we came back home and have been getting ready to go to Eastern Europe every since.

I feel like my heart is torn in two. Half of my heart is so excited to be so close to adopting Baby A but the other half is devastated and still mourning the loss of Tripp so please know when I blog about how excited I am I am also as equally sad thinking about Courtney and Tripp. It is a very strange thing going through my heart right now.

So now here is the exciting news WE LEAVE TOMORROW FOR EASTERN EUROPE!!!! Our court date is FEBRUARY 2ND!!!!!

Please be praying that the Judge will approve our adoption and please be praying if it is God's will that they would waive the 30 day wait so we can bring him home with us this trip.

Here is how it will all go down..
*we leave tomorrow to head to Eastern Europe and we will arrive on the 26th.
*as soon as we land we will head to have blood work done
*Friday the 27th we will have our medical evaluations done and I'm guessing we will get to see Baby A.
* we should get to see him every day we are there.
*then Thursday the 2nd we will go before the judge and they will read over our whole dossier (which includes our home study financial forms, medical papers, and tons of other things) then we will be asked a lot of questions regarding why we want to adopt Baby A, how we plan on caring for him... I'm not sure what all we will be asked but I know it will be a lot.

It is still very important that we are not linked with Baby A online ANYWHERE so please don't post his name and say we are coming to adopt him or anything like that. I will let everyone know when it is safe to spread the word.

That is the latest news. Please join us in praying for God to be glorified through all of this and for His will to be done!

Thanks,

We love you Tripp and Courtney!

2012-01-19T22:41:00.005-06:00

Jason, Kenya and I drove to Louisiana Tuesday night so we could be at Tripp's service on Wednesday. It took about 9 hours to get there. Normally Jason and I can't last long on road trips but Jason never got tired and drove the whole way there. Kenya did great on the trip, she read books and played on the Kindle Fire most of the time until she fell asleep. I really enjoyed getting to spend time with Jason and Kenya (when I wasn't sleeping).

Jason always makes this face when I take a picture of him driving.

Kenya and Mommy :)

I had never been to Louisiana before and one thing that really surprised me is how much water there was. I'm sure that is a well know fact but really there is water EVERYWHERE.

On the drive down there it was dark so these pictures are from our trip home.

We got to our hotel at about 2AM (I think) and we all crashed out.

We woke up and got ready for Tripp's service but had some time to spare so we drove to New Orleans to get some real Cajun food. We didn't know where we wanted to go and the first place we went wasn't open yet so we ended up at the Rajun Cajun. The outside looked SUPER cool but the inside looked like a Italian restaurant (which is fine if your name isn't "Rajun Cajun").

The food was really good! I was brave and got gator sausage over jumbulia and fried green tomatoes! Even though the food was good I only took a few bites cause I couldn't get over the fact I was eating gator :)

As we drove closer to the church all the buildings in the little town were covered in red balloons and red ribbons. I couldn't help but cry seeing the love this town has for Courtney and Tripp.

We walked into the church and there were people in line waiting to see Courteny and the rest of Tripp's family. As we waited I almost decided to get out of line because I knew Courtney was most likely exhausted and I'm sure was ready to just sit down. I thought about it though and I knew if I didn't give her a hug I would regret it so we stayed in line. As I walked up to Courtney I could feel the tears coming on, I told her who we were and then I lost it. We hugged each other and I told her that Tripp has changed the world forever and we love him so much. I told her how much we loved her and that we were praying for her. Knowing what it is like to lose a child you wouldn't wish that pain on anyone and I would have done anything if I could have taken her pain away. Then she introduced us to her Mom and sister. Courtney and her family are amazing! I pray I can be half the mom that Courtney is.

As we walked to the back of the church to find a place to sit I saw Patrice. I have missed her so much so it was great to get to hug her. Then Bella's Dad Tim came over and I gave him a big hug. We all talked for a few minutes then went outside to take a few pictures.

Kenya was shy at first but soon jumped into Patrice's arms and just snuggled with her.

Then we met more of Courtney's family. They are the sweetest people ever! Courtney's Aunt kept asking us if we were hungry or needed any water. Then after the funeral and before we left to head home she asked us again if we wanted any food or water for the road. I was really blown away that she wasn't just thinking about her pain but she really wanted to make sure we were taken care of.

We love you Tripp and we will NEVER forget you. You have changed the world forever sweet boy.

Please keep Courtney and her family in your prayers over the next few days, months and years. I love you Courtney, thank you so much for sharing your baby with us he has changed my life forever!

SOOOOO WAY BEYOND EXCITED!!!!!

2012-01-17T11:00:00.000-06:00

WE GOT OUR COURT DATE TODAY!!!!!!! I AM RUNNING AROUND THE HOUSE LIKE A CRAZY PERSON! I AM SO SO SO SO SO SO EXCITED! PRAISE GOD HE IS SO SO FAITHFUL!!!!!

My sweet friend Shannon

2012-01-17T06:00:00.001-06:00

Today is Shannon's birthday so I wanted to say a big huge HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my sweet friend Shannon. I love you and your family very much. Your friendship means the world to me!

Shannon and I have been friends for well over 10 years. We have grown closer and closer over the years and I so enjoy her company. We now trade kids once a week so the other one can have a break and get stuff done. Sadly that will be coming to an end soon because she will be having baby number four (one of their babies is with Jesus) and we will be getting Baby A. I will enjoy it while it lasts though.

She asked my to take their family pictures a few weeks ago and I of course said yes. I just want to say I am NOT a photographer and I don't want to be. I enjoy taking pictures of my family and of course I enjoy taking pictures of my friends if they ask but I by no means want to do it professionally. If you want an amazing family photographer or someone to take amazing new born photos contact Michelle Monk or if you want amazing birth photography contact Keri Duckett. Okay now that we got that out of they way here is my friend Shannon and her super cute family.

Jadyn, Shannon and Baby Sapp, Jay and Eli.

Love these two peeps... no three peeps (as she is pregnant) :)

I really like how this picture turned out.

She was "hugging" him... poor boy!

Eli's expression cracks me up!

Shannon is such a sweet Mama.

This is one loved baby!

Shannon and Jay are waiting to find out if the baby is a boy or girl. Let me just say this is driving me nuts. I know we did this with two of our pregnancy's but man it's hard for me not knowing what they are having.

The plan is for me to be in the room when this baby is born (as long as were not in Eastern Europe) and I can't wait to cheer my friend on as she has her first natural delivery!

Happy Birthday Judah

2012-01-16T23:28:00.001-06:00

My sweet baby boy turned 2 today. It amazes me how fast time flies by. I feel like I was just holding him in my arms for the first time and now he is TWO!!! We didn't really have anything planned for his birthday but we had a really fun weekend celebrating his life.

We went to some friends house after church and we decided to pick up a cake on the way so we could all sing Happy Birthday to Judah. Judah was so excited! Our last minute "Birthday Party" (if you could even call it that) was a HUGE success. He LOVED it even though all we really did was have pizza and sing Happy Birthday to him.

Everyone was telling Judah to stick his face in the cake but he wasn't too sure about that. Silas had NO problem doing it though.

Judah finally joined in on the fun!

While I was picking up a cake for him I saw a basket full of books that were 75% off. I looked through it and got a few kids books for fifty cents to a dollar. I NEVER find deals like this so I was super excited!

Today we spent lots of time playing outside.

Judah, Kenya, Dilan and Blake all helped make Judah's birthday cake.

Love those eyes.

Then we went to the park and had a picnic. It was so nice outside today. I think it was in the 70's.

Judah got these boots for his birthday and he has been wearing them every since. He even sleeps in them sometimes, Ha!

Sweet KK is a few months older than Judah.

Papa T and Wita sent Judah cookies and this is what he did when I told him to smile.

My sister and her family came over and brought gifts for Judah and Baby A. We can't share when Baby A's birthday is until after court but I thought it was so neat that they thought of him and got a present for him! Our family and friends have been so supportive of us and they all love Baby A so much! This is Baby A's first birthday gift and I know he is going to love it!

Judah got some man cars.

Then we went over to my Mom's house and she got Baby A the mattress for his dressing change table and a wet bag for his cloth diapers and Judah got a "tablet." I LOVE it because you can plug it into the computer and upload prerecorded emails. Kenya sent him 2 from her and we sent him one from Baby A. I love hearing Baby A's name coming from one of Judah's toys!

We didn't end up finishing the cake this afternoon so we took it to my Mom's house where Destinee and the kids decorated it.

and then we ate the cake right out of the pan!

Happy Birthday sweet boy you have brought nothing but joy to our family! We love you more than words could ever express!

Tripp

2012-01-15T09:12:00.000-06:00

Sweet Tripp went to be with Jesus Saturday. Please be praying for comfort for his family. I am so so amazed at God's faithfulness to his family, Tripp died within minutes of his Mommy getting him out of bed and holding him in her arms. I am so thankful he died peacefully in his Mama's arms. What an answer to prayer!

Please go to their blog and leave Tripp's family a comment letting them know how much they are loved!

http://randycourtneytripproth.blogspot.com/2012/01/heavens-little-drummer-boy.html

Sweet Tripp

2012-01-14T05:00:00.000-06:00

Please be praying for sweet Tripp and his whole family. His Mama thinks Tripp will meet Jesus soon.
http://randycourtneytripproth.blogspot.com/2012/01/strongest-boy-ill-ever-know.html

Flash Back Friday - Duct Tape Night

2012-01-13T06:00:00.019-06:00

After Jason and I got married we started helping out with the youth group at the church we use to go to. Our friend Chris was the youth leader and he was PERFECT for the job! He taught them the Bible and wasn't afraid to talk about doctrine with them but he also knew how to plan a super fun youth night. One of my favorites was Duct Tape Night. We all had to create costumes using duct tape.

Jason was a punk rocker and I was a ladybug.

This is Chris the youth leader.

American Flag.

Love Gabe's outfit.

Sara (Chris' wife) and me :)

We played a game where we had to tape someone to the wall and see which kid would stay up the longest.

haha.

We used a TON of duct tape to get them to stay on the wall.

If I remember right our team WON!

and the losing team.

This was such a fun night... oh to be young again, ha! :)

Hanging with Wita

2012-01-12T06:00:00.003-06:00

Jason's Mom came in town on December 15th and stayed with us until after Christmas (his Dad flew in a few days before Christmas). It was such a HUGE blessing having her here! She helps me out a ton when she is here and I really enjoy getting to spend time with her.

We went running around one day and decided to have lunch at a Hibachi Sushi place right down the street from our house. Both of our kids have been before but Judah was a baby the last time we went so it has been awhile.

This is our chef cooking right in front of us.

Judah was watching him non-stop and was so entertained.

so was Wita.

The chef kept asking Kenya if she like this or that and this picture is how he responded most of the time.

This is my favorite part.

Judah got so freaked out when this happened he burst into tears, Jason was able to get him calmed down pretty quickly. It was really sad and really cute at the same time.

We had a great lunch and had fun spending time with Wita.

Day trip to Austin.

2012-01-11T06:00:00.000-06:00

I needed to get some paperwork apostilled a few weeks ago so I decided to take BOTH kids on a road trip to Austin to get it done. We got there around lunch time so Uncle Toe Toe and his girlfriend "Tiff Tiff" met us for lunch at Chuck E Cheese. I'm thinking my Mom must have taken Judah a few times while we were in Eastern Europe because as soon as we pulled up he yelled "CHUCK E!" It was so cute.

Judah was really excited to be there but I am starting to think he hates having his picture taken.

Kenya had fun riding this flying bike thing.

Kenya was so funny during lunch she felt the need to hold Tiff Tiff's hand the whole time.

We all got a good laugh out of that one.

Judah kickin it with Barney.

It is a four hour drive there and of course four hours back but as we were almost home we passed a church doing a live nativity so we of course had to stop. It was raining a little bit but it was so neat to watch. I was able to stop and just reflect on the fact that it really happened. Of course I know that it happened but I think I take it for granted sometimes so it was neat to just stop and thank God for sending His son to the Earth for sinners. God is so amazing and faithful to save sinners through repentance and faith in Jesus.

The kids LOVED getting to see it.

They even got to pet some of the animals before we left.

It was a really neat road trip with the kids but I sure am glad all the paperwork for the dossier is DONE. Now if I can just fill out our visa applications and our embassy paperwork we will be good to go :)

Oh and on a side note an insurance agency called me today and wanted to try to compete for our business and I said "we are in the process of adopting so I CAN'T bare the thought of doing more paperwork, you can try back in a few months though..."

Christmas Day

2012-01-09T08:00:00.049-06:00

We started Christmas morning by reading about the Incarnation of Jesus from the Bible and we sang a few hymns. After we were done Jason told the kids how every good and perfect gift comes from God and since God gave us the greatest gift of all (His Son Jesus) we also want to give good gifts to others so lets give gifts to our grandparents. They ran over and got the gifts for Papa T and Wita and were so excited to watch them open their gifts.

Softest towels EVER. We put a few aside for Baby A.

Kenya had so much fun opening her gifts.

Once Judah figured out how his pez dispenser worked he was pretty much done opening gifts and just wanted to eat the candy.

We take Kenya to the Dollar Store every year and let her pick out gifts for her family. This year Wita took her and this is what she got for Papa T.

Papa T rocking out on the drums and Jason setting up Judah's computer. I have got to video it but Judah gets email (you pre-program it to send emails to him) and now he yells "EMAIL, HI JUDAH..." that is what it says when he gets an email and he has it down. It is so funny. Thanks Papa T and Wita he loves his computer.

Then we went to Momo and Gramp's house for our Christmas celebration. The kid were so excited to open more gifts. My Mom got Judah the coolest Toy Story game if you have toddlers-preschool aged kids they will LOVE this. HERE is the link. They can play several different games with it like hide and go seek and one of the games they have to find whichever character Woody calls out. Kenya and Judah both LOVE to play with that toy!

My Mom also got Shrinky Dinks for Kenya. They are plastic designs that you color (Kenya's were horses) then you bake them in the oven for three minutes and they shrink down to a little tiny size. They are so cute. Kenya has spent a lot of time coloring and baking hers.

We were so blessed this year by how many of our family members got gifts for Baby A. He got an ExerSaucer, books, a soft car, soft blocks, 2 tubs of aquphor, a blanket and pillow set that is super soft, a super soft pillow pet, a gift card to Target from his friend Sydney and a hand made ornament. It was so neat to see our family and friends include Baby A this Christmas!

After all of this we went to church and our kids passed out :) Our Pastor taught on the birth of Christ and it was a great message. You can listen to it HERE!

I hope you all had a very blessed Christmas.

Christmas Eve

2012-01-07T08:00:00.027-06:00

We went to my sisters house for about an hour Christmas Eve and exchanged gifts with the kids. I am so bummed out I didn't get any pictures. I am so excited my sister, brother in law and nephews live right next door to us. They moved here from Tennessee a few months ago and I am soooo excited to have them live so close to us. I missed so much of the boys growing up but I am so excited to make up the time now.

Saturday afternoon we (our family and Jason's parents) headed to Jason's Aunt Ana and Uncle Dan's house. Aunt Ana always has such neat things planned to make great memories with the kids.

This was the DREADED ginger bread house. I know I just said great memories but this thing was almost impossible to put together.

Here are the happy ginger bread house makers before the hard work began.

And here is whose left after they realized they couldn't get the walls to stay up.

Aunt Ana is brilliant though and used string to hold it together ha.

Judah is not impressed he just wants to eat the candy.

Kenya had a blast making this house even though she looks mad here :)

Haha what a pose!

Aunt Ana promised snow and oh boy did she deliver. She got instant snow at the Christmas Tree store and all you have to do is add water. It was so much fun to play with snow on Christmas Eve!

Snow Ball fight!

Watch out she will get you.

Remember how Kenya doesn't like to get wet??? Well she doesn't like snow either apparently. Judah loved it though.

I thought this was cute but didn't think he would throw it at me.

boy was I wrong!

Kenya and I have been talking a lot about people in other countries that don't have enough money for food. I told her that her Uncle Dan collects money for Penny Manna and they help feed kids who don't get to eat. She started collecting her money to give to her uncle Dan as soon as she found out she could help. I wasn't sure if she was going to go through with it but Christmas Eve she asked me if I brought her purse, I gave it to her and she took it right to her Uncle Dan. She handed it to him and he said, "what is this?" She said, "It's yours." He said, "No, it's yours." She said, "No, it's yours to feed the kids." It was so sweet and I was so proud of her. She put all of her change in the Penny Manna jar then she pulled out all of her dollars which I didn't know she was going to do. Uncle Dan told her to keep those for herself but she said, "No, I want to give it for the kids to eat." I started crying because at the tender age of 5 she has more compassion than most adults (including me sometimes). I sure do love this girl and I was so proud of her!

That night we went to the candle light service at their church. It was such a great reminder to keep our eyes on Christ during the busy Christmas season. Both of the kids fell asleep and slept through the whole service.

Judah, Wita, Papa T and Kenya :)

Our family. I can't wait until Baby A is in this picture next year!

The Eve of Christmas Eve

2012-01-06T08:00:00.000-06:00

Almost 2 years ago some very good friends of ours moved in with us while they were waiting to transition into their new home. There were 8, soon to be 9, of us living in our small house and we had a BLAST. Calida was pregnant with their 4th child and Judah was 3 months old at the time. We loved living with them and were so sad once they moved out. We have remained good friends, in fact they lived next door to us for about a year before moving into their new home.

We started having our own Christmas celebration with them last year and we plan on continuing to do so every year.

Maycee, Kenya, Judah, Moriah, Silas and Alysah

Such sweet friends!

Haha funny picture!

Kids enjoying their gifts.

Silas with his cowboy :)

Making homemade sopapillas with the kids.

Judah had so much fun getting dirty.

oh man this is a funny one too...

ya so we were making them at 10:12 at night... that's how we roll :)

They turned out sooo good and the kids had a blast!

Dallas World Aquarium

2012-01-05T08:00:00.000-06:00

We took Marisa, Kenya, Natalie and Judah to the Dallas World Aquarium on Saturday and we had a blast. It is basically a HUGE indoor zoo/aquarium.

This is is a giant anteater and was one of Judah's favorite animals there. Every time it would come by the glass he would scream with delight.

Marisa and Natalie were waiting to feed blueberries to some birds.

I was shocked that Kenya wanted to do it too. She is normally scared of things like this but she did great!

Jason, Judah, Natalie, Marisa and Kenya checking out the sting rays.

Judah also loved the giant otters.

This lizard was creepy but cool. Not sure what the kids are looking at cause it is right below Kenya ha.

One of my favorite parts was this viewing area where the manatee would swim right up to the glass.

I thought Kenya was so cute trying to play with this turtle.

The highlight of Judah's day was finding Nemo. He yelled as loud as he could "NEMO, NEMO, NEMO!!!!"

I loved the design on this fishes face.

Natalie

and Marisa chillin with the penguins!

Here we are with our kids :)

This was a super cool tunnel that you could walk through and see the SHARKS!!!

Kenya loved getting to spend the day at the aquarium and has decided (after watching Dolphin Tales) that she wants to be a marine biologist.

My sweet Baby A

2012-01-04T08:00:00.001-06:00

Dear Baby A,
I haven't written a letter to you in a while but I can not get you off of my mind so I just wanted to write a letter to tell you how much I love you. I had a dream last night that your "Papa" and I were back at the hospital. I picked you up and danced and danced around the room with you. You laid you face against mine and I lost it. I just cried and cried as we danced around the room. I remember how heavy you felt in my arms and how warm your cheeks were against mine. I remember how much I loved to have such a sweet moment with you.

I woke up and was so disappointed that it was just a dream. I can't wait to go back to Eastern Europe for court I can't wait for the day they finally say we can take you home. I can't wait until you get to meet your sister and brother.

Your birthday is coming up and I am so sad we wont be there to celebrate with you. I have a bit of Mommy guilt because we brought your birthday gift with us the first trip but I was too excited so I gave it to you early. Now I am sad because you wont have anything to open from your Mommy and Daddy on your birthday. I am so so blessed though that you are surrounded by people who love you and will celebrate your birthday with you. I am so so glad you will be held on your birthday and told how special you are. I can't wait for the day I get to tell you Happy Birthday and tell you how much I love you but until then just know how much you are loved sweet boy.

I miss you so much and I can't stop thinking about you. We have been working hard to get everything ready to bring you home. You are going to love it here sweet boy. I know it is going to be hard on you at first. I know you are going to miss your nanny, your room at the hospital and all the staff but I just want you to know that we love you and we will help you to adjust to your new life here. We can't wait to have you in our arms again.

You are so so special and so so loved. I wish I could make time fly by so we can see you again but it will be here before we know it. I can't wait to post pictures of you for everyone to see. You are getting so big and are growing so much. I can't wait for the day we officially get to announce that YOU ARE OUR SON! Today my heart is heavy because I miss you so much but I know we will see you soon.

I love you and I can't wait to kiss your sweet face again sweet boy! Enjoy your day and love on your Nanny. I know she will miss you so much and my heart breaks for her. You are so special and so loved. I will see you again soon!

Love,
YOUR Mommy

2011 highlights

2012-01-03T13:13:00.001-06:00

January:

We celebrated Judah's 1st birthday!

February:

We found out about Baby A and started working as fast and as hard as we could to bring him home.

We got to meet Ella and her Mom Katie. Ella has the same type of EB as Baby A. It was so neat to meet Ella and such a huge blessing to get to talk to Katie about Ella's day to day life.

March:

I went to stay with the Williams Family so I could learn all about day to day life with EB.

Jonah is such a joy to be around and made me so excited to bring Baby A home.

Once I got back from staying with the Williams Family we had our home study.

Jason and I celebrated 6 years of marriage March 5th!

April:

We celebrated the resurrection of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ.

May:

We celebrated Mother's Day.

June:

I turned 27 WOO HOO getting up there in age ;)

We celebrated Fathers Day!!!

July:

The kids and I went on vacation with Jason's family. We went to Disney Land, California Adventure, Sea World and ended the vacation at Jason's family reunion. Unfortunately Jason couldn't go because he was saving up his vacation days for when we went to Eastern Europe.

We also had a HUGE garage sale to raise money for the adoption.

August:

I only took 47 pictures in August and not my normal 1500 so not a whole lot to share from August :)

September:

We celebrated my nephew Blake's 4th birthday and my nephew Dilan's 5th birthday.

October:

We celebrated Kenya's 5th birthday!

November:

Jason turned 29 and enjoyed participating in no shave November :)

Melody and Madison have been in Heaven for 3 years. I can't believe that much time has gone by. We still miss them a ton but are comforted knowing we will see them again!

We got to meet Baby A and officially commit to his adoption!

December:

We celebrated Jesus' Birthday and enjoyed hanging out with our family and friends.

2011 Was a super busy but great year. We can't wait to see what God has for us in 2012!

THIS is why Jesus came

2012-01-01T06:00:00.000-06:00

2 minute video worth watching!

My sweet girl and her tender heart...

2011-12-30T00:04:00.002-06:00

Kenya talks about Melody and Madison a lot. Sometimes she ask us why they are not here and sometimes she says, "But I didn't want them to die." but that's about as far as it goes. I can never remember her crying because they died or every being really sad about it but that all changed a few nights ago.

The day before yesterday Kenya told me that she really missed her sisters and she broke down in tears. We talked about her sisters and I prayed for God to comfort Kenya as she was missing them. We talked about how exciting it will be to get to see them again in Heaven. Then she was ready to move on and I thought that was the end of it.

Last night after Kenya was supposed to be asleep she came out into the living room burst into tears and said "But I didn't want my sisters to die!" She came over to me and I held her as she cried and talked about her sisters. She said that she just wanted to go to Heaven so she could be with her sisters. I told her how exciting that day will be and one day it will come but for right now we want to live our lives and enjoy being here while we are still alive. We talked for a long time and I prayed for her and loved one her. She just cried and cried and cried. I will tell you right now that holding your 5 year old as she cries herself to sleep because she misses her sisters is a lot harder than missing them yourself. Kenya and I both ended up falling asleep on the couch after we were done talking about her sisters.

She seems to be getting sad about them at bed time so I was trying to think of something tonight that would help her and I remembered we had a lot of toys that remind us of the girls. So I went through the whole house and found them all. I put them in her room and told her the toys would help her to remember her sisters and she could snuggle with them all. Here she is getting ready to go to sleep with all of them.

We got these Zebras at Kenya's baby shower and after we had the twins Kenya started calling them Melody and Madison. So these remind her of her sisters.

My friend Laura brought these lambs to the girls funeral I thought they were a really sweet and thoughtful gift. These are Kenya's Melody and Madison lambs.

Jason and I hot glued two baby dolls together when I was pregnant with Melody and Madison to try to prepare Kenya for when she met her sisters. HERE is the original post I wrote about the dolls. She loved them and still does. She still plays with them and she tells her friends they are her Melody and Madison dolls and they are stuck together like her sisters.

Wita (Jason's Mom) got these panda bears for Kenya at the San Diego Zoo because they reminded her of the girls. Kenya fell asleep holding them tonight.

Here is Kenya loving on her sisters the day they were born.

Kenya was really excited to go to sleep with all of the things that reminded her of her sisters. She fell right to sleep with out a single tear. I love her so much and it is so hard to watch her be in pain knowing there is nothing I can do to fix it. I am so glad that she talks about her sisters and they are still a super important part of our family.

Melody and Madison we will miss you until we get to see you again but I am rejoicing knowing that you have been made whole in Heaven!

Judah's loves....

2011-12-29T08:00:00.006-06:00

When I was pregnant with Judah we were out shopping when Kenya spotted a bear wearing a dino costume. She said, "Mommy can we get this for my baby brother?" (we waited until after Judah was born to find out if he was a boy or girl but she thought she knew for sure he was a boy) It was so sweet how could we say no??? Wita (Jason's Mom) bought it for her to give to her baby brother. Once Judah was born she gave that to him in the hospital

This is right after she gave it to him (see the bear right under Judah?) and decided no one else could hold her brother.

Here he is one day old with his bear.

The bear and Judah were always together.

My goal was to take a picture of the bear and Judah every month for Judah's first year of life... That only lasted for the first few months... my bad!

Judah at one month old.

Judah at 2 months old wearing my favorite P.J's he has ever owned.

Judah eating his bear (yes he is unbuckled, we were at a drive through zoo thing so it was okay)

I wanted Judah to be attached to a blanket but I didn't want him to be attached to any one blanket so I gave him a different one as much as I could. Well this plan backfired because he became attached to a CHRISTMAS blanket. It is super cute DURING Christmas not in July when he HAS to have his blanket with Christmas trees all over it. I guess I really don't mind it so much anymore but it drove me nuts when it first happened. It bothered me so much (I don't know why I cared...) that I tried to get him attached to a different blanket which also backfired because now he is attached to his Christmas blanket, his bear blanket and his bear that Kenya gave him.

Here he is watching a movie with all of his loves!

When Judah gets hurt he runs over to me crying so I love on him then he gets down finds his blanket and comes back for more love. If he hits his head at all he has to have ice. He puts it on top of his head even if that's not where he hit it and just leaves it there.

He thought he needed his sister, ice, his bear and blanket this time :)

I walked into Judah's room and found the poor bear trapped in Judah's toddler bed. I thought it was a fluke but now it happens all the time. For some reason Judah loves to trap his bear.

poor bear... I can't help but laugh!

Here he is setting it free after nap time.

I never would have let Kenya be attached to anything but with Judah I think it's cute. It is amazing how parenting styles can change from one kid to the other. What are some things you have noticed changing in your parenting styles as you have added more kids to your family?

Good Bye Dallas (the dog)

2011-12-27T23:30:00.002-06:00

I (Vanessa) have never really been an animal person... No I take that back I had a pig that I loved when I was 8, and 2 horses when I was 13 so I was an animal person only as a kid I guess. We have had a dog before and I thought I would grow to love it but I never did. He ended up biting one of our friends kids so we had to get rid of him. I never really planned on having any more dogs because it just never seemed to work out but a good friend of ours needed to find homes for his dogs and he needed to do it quick. We saw the email and still didn't do anything because I just didn't really like animals. After a few weeks though Jason and I were kinda regretting our decision because we kept hearing our friends talk about how good the dogs were. No matter who we were with if we brought up those two dogs they RAVED about how amazing they were.

We decided to take them in just to see if we liked them. Bailey is a Golden Retriever and Dallas is a Black lab. After a few days we knew we couldn't keep both dogs because they were big and our house just wasn't big enough for two large dogs. We knew we couldn't keep Bailey because she was a little hyper and liked to put her paw on our arms to get out attention. For us that was fine but we knew she would hurt Baby A if she did this to him. We decided we wanted to keep Dallas though because somehow he won us over. He was so sweet and so calm. He never jumped on us, barked or played rough. He was the dog for us for sure.

After a few months of having him here we got an email from a friend who was concerned about us having such a big dog and getting Baby A. We really felt like Dallas was a good match for our family and for Baby A but after reading her email Jason and I talked about it and we both decided it would be best to give Dallas away. He is a great dog and I don't think he would ever hurt Baby A but he sheds a TON and of course gets the floors dirty all the time. With EB one of the biggest risks is infection so we want to do everything we can to keep Baby A healthy and so we knew what we needed to do.

We were planning on giving him to my Mom but when we went to Eastern Europe she dog sat for us and Dallas hated it there. My Mom has 3 little dogs and Dallas is a big chicken. I think he was scared the whole time because he stayed in the garage and wouldn't come in her house. She had a heater and blankets out there for him though so even though he wouldn't come inside he was being taken care of :)

One of Patrice's best friends Jen moved to Texas about a year ago and we have been trying to get together this whole time but it had never worked out until a month ago. She came over and over the course of our conversation she started telling me about a dog they use to have that was a black lab. She was telling me how sweet he was and how much they loved him but they had to give him away (a while ago) and they really wanted to get a new dog. Then in walks Dallas... she instantly fell in love with him and he put on the charm. He went and laid right by her and didn't move the whole time. Her 3 year old son loved him too but her one year old son wasn't too sure about him. I told her we were going to give him away and she told me love would love to have him if it didn't work out for my Mom to take him. Once we realized Dallas was scared of my Mom's dogs I asked Jen if they wanted him and they said yes. We were so excited he was going to a home that would love him and a place where we will still get to see him.

It was so hard to tell Kenya. She was devastated! Dallas slept in her room and he was her dog. She is doing a lot better now and is excited to go see him soon. So now here are a few pictures of us with Dallas.

Jason and Kenya giving Dallas a bath a few days before he left.

Kenya does not like to get wet so that's her idea of helping... just standing back and watching. She isn't wearing shorts but she sure pulled her pants up to make sure she would stay dry ha.

And here is Judah's idea of helping.

Just because I think my nephews are cute here is a picture of them swinging with Judah.

Kenya and Dallas the day before he left.

Judah getting in some snuggle time.

We took Dallas to the park to make some memories with him but it was FREEZING outside so we didn't stay long.

I have no idea how Kenya got that tank top on Dallas but we died laughing when this poor MALE dog came out of the room sporting a hot pink tank top.

Dallas is spoiled and drinks out of water fountains :)

It was really sad to see Dallas go but we will do whatever we can to make sure Baby A is taken care of. I just wanted to give you all an update for those of you wonder if we still had him.

I hope y'all had a great Christmas!

What Christmas is all about...

2011-12-25T06:00:00.000-06:00

Day 5 with Baby A (our last visit this trip)

2011-12-24T10:00:00.004-06:00

Knowing this was going to be the last visit with Baby A this trip was very bitter sweet. I was so excited and so thankful for all the time we got to spend with him but after seeing him everyday for 5 days it was going to be so hard to leave him.

Here is the email I sent out to our family:

I am so blown away by God's faithfulness to us. We had a great visit with Baby A again today.

I tried to take everything in today and really just focus on Baby A and this was my favorite visit yet! Today was also our last visit with him this trip so that made it extra special! We sat with him and played for a little while but he was getting fussy so his nanny put him on his little car and let Papa push him around for a little while. I tried to take over at one point but Baby A was not having that. He doesn't mind playing with me and I can always get him to smile and laugh but when it comes to pushing his car or stroller he wants Papa to do it. When he was on his car he would look back to make sure I wasn't touching his car ha.

Then it was time for bandages changes so we got our scrubs on and headed back to his room. They do his bath in his room then his dressing change in the O.R. He did really well during his dressing change and I even taught him how to blow kisses!!! They let me help today which was really neat. I assisted by keeping his arm and leg out of the way while they wrapped his other arm and leg. They are very cautious of germs and infection so they do everything they can to make sure and keep everything as clean as possible. Everyone that has gone to the hospital tells us how nice it is and they are so surprised by how well he is being taken care of.

Once we were done with that we went back to his room and played with him for a little while. Sandy (DERMAKids Germany) made Baby A a book about his life. There are tons of pictures in there and all of his doctors and nurses have signed it and written letters to Baby A. Today we got to write in his book which is a moment I will never forget. I have known about this book and have seen pictures of it but to be in our sons room signing his book was such a surreal feeling.

It was getting to the time we needed to leave and I got more and more sad! Our translator asked us if we were ready to leave and I said no not yet. We took a few more pictures and loved on Baby A before we left.

Before we left we told his Nanny bye and thanked her for everything she has done for Baby A. We told her it was so hard for us to leave him but it was so much easier knowing that he was being cared for by her. She gave me a HUGE hug before we left and she told me Jason and I were a nice couple and she was happy Baby A would be going to us since we cared about him so much. This was a really neat moment! I think she know knows how much we love him now after spending a week with us so I help that helps her a little bit once we take him.

It was time to go say bye to our boy and I couldn't help but cry. I knew he was going to be well cared for but the thought of leaving him for 2 or 3 months until we could return for court broke my heart. I kissed him on the head and told him that we would be coming back for him as soon as we could then Jason told him bye as well. His Nanny carried him out to say bye to us in the hallway and I was comforted knowing he was in the arms of the person he loves the most. She will take good care of him while we are gone and that makes it a lot easier to leave. We told the doctors bye and they all said they are looking forward to our return. As we drove away it all seemed so final but I know it's not we will see our boy again soon and next time we wont have to say bye to him.

I am so thankful for everything God has allowed us to do this week I have grown to love Eastern Europe and the people here. Honestly we would have LOVED to stay longer and we look forward to going back for court. Everyone was so nice to us, we enjoyed the cold (for the most part) and the food was sooooo good!

This whole process has given me such a better understanding of our adoption as sons and daughters of God. God has made us co-heirs with Christ through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I am so thankful for the free gift of salvation through repentance and faith. God is so so amazing!

Here I am teaching Baby A to blow kisses. He would smile so big while we were doing this. Then by the end of it he put his hand up to his own mouth and would blow kisses!

Day 4 with Baby A

2011-12-23T10:00:00.003-06:00

I don't have any pictures from day 4 that don't have pictures of Baby A in them so there wont be any pictures in this post sorry.

I also wanted to say thank you so much to everyone who left comments telling us that over time Baby A will bond to us. We know it is going to be hard on him at first but we do know over time he will bond to us as his parents. We have taken online classes, read books, talked to our social worker and also talked to other adoptive families about ways to help him bond to us.

Lisa wanted to know how old Baby A is and I can't share his birthday but I can say he will turn 2 in January. Please feel free to ask us any questions you might have.

Here is our email from day 4 with Baby A!

Someone brought Baby A a little toy car for him to ride on and he LOVES it! Of course "Papa" pushed him around first then Jason got tired (we had to bend all the way over to push him since there was no handle so it was pretty tiring) and then I got to push him around. Jason was laughing because I was pushing him so slow :) after a few minutes Baby A started looking around then found Jason and pointed at him and cried until Jason started pushing him. I tried to push him on his car several more times but he only wanted Jason to do it! I think it is so neat that he is already bonding so well with Jason. Jason says he didn't want me to push him because I was going too slow ha!

I continue to play with him and make him laugh and let him bond with me at his own pace and I know over time it will happen. He is confused though because his Nanny is his Mama and now everyone is calling me his Mama so I know he is not really sure what is going on.

Then we took a walk down to the bottom floor of the hospital where they had a HUGE Christmas tree and took pictures with Baby A, his nanny, our translator and us. Then something amazing happened his Nanny handed him to me standing up! It felt so amazing to hold my boy standing up. I LOVE him so so so much it was a great feeling to have him in my arms again!

After we were done taking pictures we went back upstairs and Jason pushed his some more while he rode his car. After awhile his nanny sat him at his table and we played with his tractor and farm animals from Momo and Gramps. He loved playing with it and liked the animal sounds.

Then he got fussy and was overstimulated so our translator decided it was a good time to go because we needed to head to the notary. We said bye and headed out.

I really love his Nanny and I am so thankful he is surrounded with so much love!

At the notary we were able to sign paperwork OFFICIALLY COMMITTING TO HIS ADOPTION!!!!! I have waited for this day for so long it was such a HUGE blessing for it to finally get here!

Our love for Baby A only continues to grow and we are so excited we are getting to spend so much time with him!

Day three with Baby A

2011-12-22T09:34:00.000-06:00

I am going to post parts of the email I sent out to our family from day 3 and I will add more details at the end of this post :)

We got to the hospital at 11am and Baby A was happily playing in his chair at his little table. His Nanny had us sit in the little chairs beside him so we could play with him there. The whole time we were doing this I was a nervous wreck because I was afraid he was going to fall. Jason kept telling me Baby A was fine and I knew he was but I was still nervous. It was fun playing at the table with him but I was so glad when his nanny decided we should move on to something else.

Baby A's Nanny loves Jason so everything we do she says "Papa walk Baby A around, Papa push Baby A in stroller." It is so funny and so sweet that she respects him so much. Today she had Jason hold onto Baby A's arms and help him walk around the hospital. I love watching Jason interact with Baby A, Jason loves him so much and he is getting more and more confidant as the days go on of how to handle Baby A.

After the walk we went into Baby A's room for some hot tea (us not him) and his nanny put him in his bed so we could sit beside him and play (not while drinking tea of course). His nanny had left the room at this point so it was just us, Baby A and our translator. It was at this time I noticed Baby A wasn't interacting with us the same and I could tell he was getting upset. And then he lost it... He was looking everywhere for his Nanny and we could tell he was not going to stop crying until she came back. I wasn't really sure how to comfort him but I found a frog puppet and started playing pick a boo with the frog. Baby A soon calmed down and would try to hit the frog with Jason to make it disappear then I would bring it back out and they would hit it again. It was so cute. Then he lost it again but this time his doctor came in and took him to his Nanny. Which was good because that's who he wanted.

She calmed him down and went back out to the little table to play with him. They told us to go out there too so we got some more play time in while he was comforted by his Nanny. We are so amazed by how much she loves him and by how well she takes care of him. She really tries to give us some good one on one time with him during our visits but sometimes he just wants her and we totally understand that. We want him to be happy not stressed out during our visits.

His nanny then put him in his stroller and let "Papa" push him around the hospital which Baby A LOVED. Then Jason let me have a turn but Baby A was not having that he turned around saw me and started to cry until he found Jason. He pointed to Jason and cried until Jason started pushing him then he stopped crying and enjoyed the rest of his ride. It is so cute how much he loves Jason. He is already a "Daddy's" boy. I loved watching them walk around and around.

Once he was done with his stroller ride it was time for his nap. Today we got to stay and watch her get him to sleep. She put him in the stroller and pushed it back and forth while singing a beautiful song to him. It made me cry watching her with him. She loves him so much and once we adopt him I know that she will mourn the "loss" of him as her child. I know that might sound strange but she has cared for him 24/7 for over a year. As far as he knows that is his Mama and he for all practical purposes he is her son. Today we (through our translator) spent some time telling her that we know that she is and will always be his first Mama and we know it is going to be so hard on her once we take him but we will always tell him about her and show him her pictures. She will always be a very special part of our family and we can see how much she loves him. We told her how thankful we were for everything she has done for him and we hoped to keep in touch with her once he is adopted so she can "watch" him grow up. She smiled really big and said "we just want you to love him as much as we do." And we reassured her that we did indeed love him just as much as everyone at the hospital does.

I gave her a big hug before we left and she at first wasn't hugging me but then she gave me a big squeeze and hugged me some more. Then she decided we would all get dressed up tomorrow and take family pictures in front of the Christmas tree in the hospital. Us, Baby A and her :). I was so excited about this!

Once we got back to our host families house we decided to go to a little coffee shop/cafe and enjoyed some lunch and coffee. After that we came home and watched our host family's kids so they could go on a date. They have 2 boys that are Kenya and Judah's ages so playing with them really makes us miss our kids. We had a blast though building towers and knocking them down.

There are coffee shops everywhere in Eastern Europe. We loved going to get a quick bite to eat and getting to enjoy some fancy coffee was also really fun!

My amazingly tasty chocolate "pancakes" and Jason's chocolate cake with prunes in it.

Jason and C enjoyed building a tower.

Then Jason was left on his own to keep building...

while C watched ha

Not for long though because then it was time for C to destroy the tower haha

M joined in on the destroying the tower action.

And here is Baby M such a cutie!

I hope you are enjoying the updates. If y'all have any questions please feel free to ask and I will try to answer them as best as I can.