Things on the adoption front are looking good! We had our second call with "A" yesterday and it went well. We told her that we'd like to use her middle name, "Leigh," for our baby's middle name (doesn't Meredith Leigh Garner sound wonderful?). She was very touched by that. She expressed again that she feels that she is doing the right thing, and she told her case worker that she feels very comfortable with us. At first her mother wasn't too excited about the adoption, but she was in the car when A spoke with us yesterday and afterwards told her that she thinks she is doing the right thing as well. So everything is on track for now. She is due August 4th, and we've already started looking into accommodations in AZ for that time. I've told a lot of people and of course everyone has been incredibly supportive and excited for us.
For the last couple of years I've avoided the baby section in stores for the most part. Now I can finally look and shop (well, I'm holding off on buying most things for now, but it is sure fun to plan!) I did order some bedding for the nursery and I've started going through all my old baby clothes (an enormous task!!) Some of them are gender neutral and I'll keep them. The boy stuff will go to my sister Heidi, who is due in September. And some of the stuff is too grungy to keep. There are also a couple of little outfits I have to hold onto because they were such a part of the boys (Ethan's "tough tanks" sweatshirt, for instance). It was really quite enjoyable looking at the little clothes and remembering when my big boys were that tiny.
So I'm keeping plenty busy getting ready for this new arrival, along with all the other stuff that I keep busy with (yard work, house work, laundry, homework, getting the car's emissions checked, planning for summer camps, my church callings, blah blah blah I could go on all day, and I usually do :)
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Reverence Cards
My darling sister Brittany has put together some beautiful reverence card at Heritage Makers. She has cards with the Articles of Faith, Proclamation on the Family, Latter-day Prophets, and scriptures about Christ. The finished products turn out beautifully. If you're interested go to her website, www.dawlings.blogspot.com and check them out.
I love you Beebs!
I love you Beebs!
Diamonds in the Rough
Just a quick note - - if you want to smile today go to http://www.youtube.com/ and look at singers Paul Potts and Susan Boyle (just put their names into the search engine). They're singers from "Britain's Got Talent" and they're pretty amazing. Both are not terribly attractive on the outside, but what gorgeous voices. The reaction of the audience is priceless. Enjoy!
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Happy Easter
A couple of years ago the young women at church made a cute activity for an Easter family night. You need 12 plastic eggs, write the numbers on them. Then print out the following:
1. And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt. Matthew 26:39
(sacrament cup)
2. Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, and said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. Matthew 26:14-15, see also Zechariah 11:12-14
(three silver coins)
3. When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death: And when they had found him, they led him and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor. Matthew 27:1-2
(knotted twine)
4. When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: See ye to it. Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be upon us, and on our children. The released he Barabbas unto them: and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified. Matthew 27:24-26
(piece of hand soap)
5. And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe. And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it on his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying Hail, King of the Jews! And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head. Matthew 27:28-30
(square of red cloth)
6. And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put on his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him. And as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name; him they compelled to bear his cross. Matthew 27:31-32
(small nail)
7. And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots. And sitting down they watched him there. Matthew 27:35-36
(small dice)
8. Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; . . . Now when the Centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly, this was the Son of God. Matthew 27:50-51, 54
(crushed rock)
9. There came a rich man of Arimathea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus' desciple: He went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered. And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock. Matthew 27:57-60
(strip of white cloth)
10. And he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed. Pilate said unto them [the chief priest and pharisees], Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can. So they went and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch. Matthew 27:60, 65-66
(small stone)
11. And when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, had brought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint Him. Mark 16:1
(whole cloves)
12. HE IS NOT HERE; FOR HE IS RISEN. Matthew 28:6
Roll up each numbered strip of paper and put it, along with the appropriate items, in the numbered eggs. I had all of the items just around the house, except for the sacrament cup, which I'll get at church tomorrow. When we did this with the boys a year or two ago it was really special. Even just now, typing up the scriptures, I'm reminded of how much our Savior did for us and how much I love Him.
Happy Easter!
1. And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt. Matthew 26:39
(sacrament cup)
2. Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, and said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. Matthew 26:14-15, see also Zechariah 11:12-14
(three silver coins)
3. When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death: And when they had found him, they led him and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor. Matthew 27:1-2
(knotted twine)
4. When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: See ye to it. Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be upon us, and on our children. The released he Barabbas unto them: and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified. Matthew 27:24-26
(piece of hand soap)
5. And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe. And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it on his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying Hail, King of the Jews! And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head. Matthew 27:28-30
(square of red cloth)
6. And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put on his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him. And as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name; him they compelled to bear his cross. Matthew 27:31-32
(small nail)
7. And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots. And sitting down they watched him there. Matthew 27:35-36
(small dice)
8. Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; . . . Now when the Centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly, this was the Son of God. Matthew 27:50-51, 54
(crushed rock)
9. There came a rich man of Arimathea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus' desciple: He went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered. And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock. Matthew 27:57-60
(strip of white cloth)
10. And he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed. Pilate said unto them [the chief priest and pharisees], Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can. So they went and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch. Matthew 27:60, 65-66
(small stone)
11. And when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, had brought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint Him. Mark 16:1
(whole cloves)
12. HE IS NOT HERE; FOR HE IS RISEN. Matthew 28:6
Roll up each numbered strip of paper and put it, along with the appropriate items, in the numbered eggs. I had all of the items just around the house, except for the sacrament cup, which I'll get at church tomorrow. When we did this with the boys a year or two ago it was really special. Even just now, typing up the scriptures, I'm reminded of how much our Savior did for us and how much I love Him.
Happy Easter!
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
At Last, a Match
I was hesitant about posting this, because with adoption there's so much uncertainty, but it looks like we might be "expecting." A birth mother, "A," has chosen us. We got the first call on Friday, from our caseworker. She said that A had seen our profile and had expressed interest in us. Over the weekend the whole family prayed. We didn't tell many people because it seemed like a long shot. But Monday our caseworker called back. She said that A had thought about it all weekend and didn't want to see any more profiles because we were the family she wanted to adopt her baby. It's a girl, by the way, and she's due the first week in August. When I got off the phone with Erica (caseworker) I just cried. This has been such a long process with so many disappointments and I couldn't believe it was really maybe happening at last. And the fact that we were praying so much (and listening to conference) over the weekend and that's when she decided - - well I knew we were being blessed.
We set up to have a telephone conference with A and her caseworker Tuesday afternoon. I was a zombie at work Monday night - - just subconsciously thinking non-stop about the "maybe baby" and wondering how everything was going to turn out. Scott and I did a lot of talking and felt good about things. Tuesday my friend Gretchen, who I hadn't seen for years, came to visit with her 3 darling boys (so cute! so well behaved!) and she had to sit and wait while Scott and I chatted on the phone for about 30 minutes. It was a great call overall, though the connection wasn't good and there was a lot of talking over eachother. A is an amazing person, I cannot imagine making the difficult sacrifice she is making. She said that one of the things that made her choose us was the fact that we had a son with special needs, because she has a daughter with special needs. She asked if I was going to be working when the baby was born, and it was great to be able to say, "well, I only work 4 hours a week, and I can take any time off that I need." I am so grateful that I can stay home and be a mom full time! She also asked if we would be there for the birth. I wasn't sure what to say, of course we wanted to be, but we didn't know if that would invade her privacy or if she'd feel comfortable with that, so we told her we'd go along with her wishes. Turns out she really wants us there so that we can immediately bond with the baby (she even said, "your baby" to us). All of this fills me with hope that everything will work out. I have known other people whose adoption plans had not worked out, so I'm trying not to be too excited, but I can't help it. A is being induced, so we should be able to be there in plenty of time for the baby to be born. Thank goodness we've still got flight benefits, that will make things a lot easier.
A lot of things still have to happen before we can relax, but we are so happy. I went up to the nursery today and looked at some of the baby girl clothes I've been hanging onto for about 6 years and thought about little Meredith (that's the name we've had picked out since before Ethan was born.) Now to get through the next 4 months of waiting!
We set up to have a telephone conference with A and her caseworker Tuesday afternoon. I was a zombie at work Monday night - - just subconsciously thinking non-stop about the "maybe baby" and wondering how everything was going to turn out. Scott and I did a lot of talking and felt good about things. Tuesday my friend Gretchen, who I hadn't seen for years, came to visit with her 3 darling boys (so cute! so well behaved!) and she had to sit and wait while Scott and I chatted on the phone for about 30 minutes. It was a great call overall, though the connection wasn't good and there was a lot of talking over eachother. A is an amazing person, I cannot imagine making the difficult sacrifice she is making. She said that one of the things that made her choose us was the fact that we had a son with special needs, because she has a daughter with special needs. She asked if I was going to be working when the baby was born, and it was great to be able to say, "well, I only work 4 hours a week, and I can take any time off that I need." I am so grateful that I can stay home and be a mom full time! She also asked if we would be there for the birth. I wasn't sure what to say, of course we wanted to be, but we didn't know if that would invade her privacy or if she'd feel comfortable with that, so we told her we'd go along with her wishes. Turns out she really wants us there so that we can immediately bond with the baby (she even said, "your baby" to us). All of this fills me with hope that everything will work out. I have known other people whose adoption plans had not worked out, so I'm trying not to be too excited, but I can't help it. A is being induced, so we should be able to be there in plenty of time for the baby to be born. Thank goodness we've still got flight benefits, that will make things a lot easier.
A lot of things still have to happen before we can relax, but we are so happy. I went up to the nursery today and looked at some of the baby girl clothes I've been hanging onto for about 6 years and thought about little Meredith (that's the name we've had picked out since before Ethan was born.) Now to get through the next 4 months of waiting!
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Books
I just finished Anna Karenina and Ethan is (gasp!) 125 pages into it. I really enjoyed it, found it much easier going than War and Peace (though I fell confident about tackling that now). I started rereading Wuthering Heights but it's kind of depressing, so instead I picked up Don Quixote. I love it! I didn't realize that it was written close to the same time as Shakespeare's plays. It's very funny so far. I've also read my share of pulp, a couple of Grishams and the new Maeve Binchy. But I am trying to elevate my literary pursuits a little bit. :)
Conference
I just finished watching the last session of conference. What a blessing to be able to meet with members of the church all over the world every 6 months and listen to the prophet and apostles and other leaders of the church. And what a blessing to do it at home, using the internet. I finished crocheting my 4th leper bandage and started on number 5 (that's over 16 feet!). I also filed a bunch of papers. I do this every time I listen to conference, and it's great because I feel like I'm getting my life in order in more ways than one!
Scott has been in Idaho, meeting with a friend about work. The kids and I missed him, but he'll be home tonight (and I have a surprise for him - - I cleaned his closet!) I enjoyed the time with Ethan and Noah - - Ethan is learning to crochet and made some good progress. And Noah amazingly cleaned up his toyroom all by himself! (Well, he put most of the stuff on the couches, but still!) We had artichokes for lunch as a special treat, and we have fresh strawberries for dessert tonight.
Thursday I had a big meeting here for our DS group. I'm going to start doing the newsletter again, thank goodness, because I enjoy that much more than being president (and I'm better at it). We divided up the responsibilities in a way that will help people not feel so overwhelmed, and we have a great guy in charge of community outreach, an area that needs work.
Hope you all had a great weekend!
Scott has been in Idaho, meeting with a friend about work. The kids and I missed him, but he'll be home tonight (and I have a surprise for him - - I cleaned his closet!) I enjoyed the time with Ethan and Noah - - Ethan is learning to crochet and made some good progress. And Noah amazingly cleaned up his toyroom all by himself! (Well, he put most of the stuff on the couches, but still!) We had artichokes for lunch as a special treat, and we have fresh strawberries for dessert tonight.
Thursday I had a big meeting here for our DS group. I'm going to start doing the newsletter again, thank goodness, because I enjoy that much more than being president (and I'm better at it). We divided up the responsibilities in a way that will help people not feel so overwhelmed, and we have a great guy in charge of community outreach, an area that needs work.
Hope you all had a great weekend!
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