The missionaries came over to dinner the other night (yummy fresh basil and mozzarella and tomato pasta) and they gave a little thought at the end of the evening. They talked about the Nephites in the Book of Mormon, when they were captives of the Lamanites and we're being very harshly treated. They prayed, and the Lord said he would lift their burdens, would make them lighter. We talked about how the Lord helps us through our trials, and how trials can make us stronger and better people. How true that is! Two of the "trials" of my life were my pregnancy with Noah, and then not being able to get pregnant again and going through the ups and downs of adoption. But I can't now even call them trials! I was so uplifted and sustained through all of my pregnancy with Noah, and he is one of the greatest blessings of my life. Sure, his Down syndrome has been challenging, but I wouldn't change things. He is such a joy, a wonderful, happy kid who gets the most out of life. Because of him I have met wonderful people, learned enormous amounts of information, and become a better, more patient person. And if I hadn't gone through infertility and a long adoption process, I wouldn't now have the most perfect precious baby in the world right now.
I look at what the people in Haiti are going through, and I know that I have no grounds for any kind of complaint. I have a wonderful family and a great life. I've been following the blogs of people who have experienced trials (one is a woman who was burned severely following a plane crash, and the other is a woman whose husband had a stroke at a young age). The attitudes these women have is amazing - - so much faith! They turned to the Lord in their time of need and as a result they are stronger and better people. Great examples for me! So a good resolution for me is "no whining" because things are awesome!
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Monday, January 18, 2010
More Catching Up
It was sad to see Mom and Dad and Kyle and Linzi and Evy go, but great to welcome Scott and Ethan back home. I sure did miss them! Scott has recently moved his office to a place only a couple of miles away. It's so great to have him closer, and he loves not worrying about a long commute. Scott uses some of his extra time playing tennis at the gym. He has several friends he plays with regularly and he loves the friendly competition. It's also a great way for him to stay in shape.
Ethan got a wonderful report card for his first trimester. He's now taking Spanish, and liking it. He's been playing basketball with the scouts and soccer in P.E. and getting a lot of good exercise. He's also started wearing contact lenses, mostly for sports. He helps me a lot with Meredith, especially on Mondays when I work. He watches her by himself for about an hour until the babysitter arrives. Ethan is doing great with his priesthood responsibilites. Recently a new member told me how impressed she was with his helpfulness and maturity when he came to collect fast offerings. What a great kid!
Noah also had a very good report card. I'm so proud of how far he has come in school! We had his IEP (Individual Education Plan) meeting last week. All of his many teachers said how much they enjoyed working with him and how well he is doing. He loves to help his classmates and especially encourages them to get involved in P.E. Noah is a very active kid, and physically is doing exceptionally well. He would be in the regular P.E. class if he were taller, but the teachers are afraid of him getting hurt because he is so much smaller than his typically developing peers. We just signed Noah up for swimming lessons and special olympics track. I think he's really going to do well!
The month of December was busy but fun. We had several parties to go to, including the annual Down syndrome group party. It was nice to not be in charge this year!! The kids had a great time. I'm back to writing the newsletter for our group and I love it. That's definitely more where my talents lie. I'm also once again the secretary for the young women. I love putting together handouts and invitations. Recently the church revamped the Personal Progress program and the new books are great. I'm actually going to do the program myself again, and I'm looking forward to it.
I also had a work party at a nearby German restaurant. The food was fantastic, and very filling! I sure love my job and the people I work with. All of the ladies had a special baby shower for Meredith and me and it was a blast. I am so lucky to have a job I love and only have to work at once a week. It's perfect. There were many times during dental hygiene school that I wondered if I'd made the right decision, but I know that I did. It's not glamorous, but it's perfect for me. Well, I'm not glamorous, right?!
Ethan got a wonderful report card for his first trimester. He's now taking Spanish, and liking it. He's been playing basketball with the scouts and soccer in P.E. and getting a lot of good exercise. He's also started wearing contact lenses, mostly for sports. He helps me a lot with Meredith, especially on Mondays when I work. He watches her by himself for about an hour until the babysitter arrives. Ethan is doing great with his priesthood responsibilites. Recently a new member told me how impressed she was with his helpfulness and maturity when he came to collect fast offerings. What a great kid!
Noah also had a very good report card. I'm so proud of how far he has come in school! We had his IEP (Individual Education Plan) meeting last week. All of his many teachers said how much they enjoyed working with him and how well he is doing. He loves to help his classmates and especially encourages them to get involved in P.E. Noah is a very active kid, and physically is doing exceptionally well. He would be in the regular P.E. class if he were taller, but the teachers are afraid of him getting hurt because he is so much smaller than his typically developing peers. We just signed Noah up for swimming lessons and special olympics track. I think he's really going to do well!
The month of December was busy but fun. We had several parties to go to, including the annual Down syndrome group party. It was nice to not be in charge this year!! The kids had a great time. I'm back to writing the newsletter for our group and I love it. That's definitely more where my talents lie. I'm also once again the secretary for the young women. I love putting together handouts and invitations. Recently the church revamped the Personal Progress program and the new books are great. I'm actually going to do the program myself again, and I'm looking forward to it.
I also had a work party at a nearby German restaurant. The food was fantastic, and very filling! I sure love my job and the people I work with. All of the ladies had a special baby shower for Meredith and me and it was a blast. I am so lucky to have a job I love and only have to work at once a week. It's perfect. There were many times during dental hygiene school that I wondered if I'd made the right decision, but I know that I did. It's not glamorous, but it's perfect for me. Well, I'm not glamorous, right?!
Saturday, January 16, 2010
November Family Letter
Those of you who read this who aren't family members may not know that we do a semi-monthly family letter in my family. My mom has betting putting one together at least 10 times a year ever since Scott and I got married (over 16 years now!) Anyway, since I started this blog my mom has just taken my family letter from it, and guess what - - I am way behind! So here's the catch up.
The highlight of November (and of the whole year, really) was going to the temple so that Meredith could be sealed to us. We went to the Twin Falls temple (my first time there) because Scott's dad is a sealer there and could perform the ceremony. Mom got to be the person who dressed in white and held Meredith, and Dad and Scott's brother Blair were witnesses. So everyone in the family was involved, it was very special. Meredith looked so beautiful in her long white dress, and she was a perfect angel. In fact, during the ceremony itself she held perfectly still and seemed very intent on what was happening. Ethan and Noah got to attend as well, which is a pretty unusual occurrence and was very special for them. I was especially glad for Ethan because he's old enough to remember, and to plan for attending the temple himself and being sealed there someday. We spent a lot of time talking to Noah about proper temple behavior beforehand. We had family prayer before we left the house and Noah asked to say it. It was so funny - - in the prayer he said, "running, no no, talking no no" - - he knew how he should act. And he was very reverent. He loved the end best of all when everyone got to hug everyone else.
After the temple we went to a nearby restaurant for lunch. It was so fun to have so much family there, Heidi and Devan and their kids (and we finally got to meet Rowan!) and Beebs and Scott, and lots of Scott's family. Also cousin LeeAnn, who watched Heidi's kids while she was at the temple. We especially appreciated those who had traveled long distances just to come. We went back to Scott's folks' house and talked for several hours before people had to leave. And then we left the next morning. It was a short trip, but oh, how wonderful! We are so grateful for the sealing power of the priesthood! And for adoption, which made this possible for us. (Amazing, by the way, how much there is about adoption in the scriptures!)
Only a week after we got back to Chicago Scott and Ethan left on a "trip around the world" with Scott's friend Gary. I'll let them post about their adventures. Scott knew that he couldn't just leave me here with Noah and Meredith and no company, so Mom and Dad and Kyle and Linzi and Evy all came for Thanksgiving! Mom and Dad stayed a whole week, and it was so fun to see them! We went shopping and hung out and talked and of course read books. Noah and Meredith were thrilled to have their Omi and Opa all to themselves. (Noah sometimes calls Dad "Poopa".) Kyle and his family came later and it was awesome! We played games and made sketches of eachother and laughed and laughed. I enjoyed getting to know Linzi better (we went shopping with Mom on black Friday!) and it was fun for Noah to get to know Evy. Evy seemed very taken with Meredith and was very sweet to her. We had a very nice Thanksgiving Dinner with all the trimmings. I made way too many brussel sprouts (they're good cooked with bacon, but I over-steamed them a little). Also my jello just would not set, so we ended up with tasty strawberry soup :) Anyway it was lots of fun, and though we missed Ethan and Scott, they had a good time too.
The highlight of November (and of the whole year, really) was going to the temple so that Meredith could be sealed to us. We went to the Twin Falls temple (my first time there) because Scott's dad is a sealer there and could perform the ceremony. Mom got to be the person who dressed in white and held Meredith, and Dad and Scott's brother Blair were witnesses. So everyone in the family was involved, it was very special. Meredith looked so beautiful in her long white dress, and she was a perfect angel. In fact, during the ceremony itself she held perfectly still and seemed very intent on what was happening. Ethan and Noah got to attend as well, which is a pretty unusual occurrence and was very special for them. I was especially glad for Ethan because he's old enough to remember, and to plan for attending the temple himself and being sealed there someday. We spent a lot of time talking to Noah about proper temple behavior beforehand. We had family prayer before we left the house and Noah asked to say it. It was so funny - - in the prayer he said, "running, no no, talking no no" - - he knew how he should act. And he was very reverent. He loved the end best of all when everyone got to hug everyone else.
After the temple we went to a nearby restaurant for lunch. It was so fun to have so much family there, Heidi and Devan and their kids (and we finally got to meet Rowan!) and Beebs and Scott, and lots of Scott's family. Also cousin LeeAnn, who watched Heidi's kids while she was at the temple. We especially appreciated those who had traveled long distances just to come. We went back to Scott's folks' house and talked for several hours before people had to leave. And then we left the next morning. It was a short trip, but oh, how wonderful! We are so grateful for the sealing power of the priesthood! And for adoption, which made this possible for us. (Amazing, by the way, how much there is about adoption in the scriptures!)
Only a week after we got back to Chicago Scott and Ethan left on a "trip around the world" with Scott's friend Gary. I'll let them post about their adventures. Scott knew that he couldn't just leave me here with Noah and Meredith and no company, so Mom and Dad and Kyle and Linzi and Evy all came for Thanksgiving! Mom and Dad stayed a whole week, and it was so fun to see them! We went shopping and hung out and talked and of course read books. Noah and Meredith were thrilled to have their Omi and Opa all to themselves. (Noah sometimes calls Dad "Poopa".) Kyle and his family came later and it was awesome! We played games and made sketches of eachother and laughed and laughed. I enjoyed getting to know Linzi better (we went shopping with Mom on black Friday!) and it was fun for Noah to get to know Evy. Evy seemed very taken with Meredith and was very sweet to her. We had a very nice Thanksgiving Dinner with all the trimmings. I made way too many brussel sprouts (they're good cooked with bacon, but I over-steamed them a little). Also my jello just would not set, so we ended up with tasty strawberry soup :) Anyway it was lots of fun, and though we missed Ethan and Scott, they had a good time too.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Whine Flu
Ugh - - this has been a sick month so far. Actually it started in October with colds for both Ethan and Noah. Then Ethan was sick several days last week, and Noah got sick too. They were both sick a day and then fine a day and then sick a couple of days. I took Noah to the dr. and he got a prescription for Tamiflu and an antibiotic. I do think it was the piggy flu, because he had all of the requisite symptoms, including throwing up. Fun! Poor Noah is such a snuggle-bug when he's sick that I do enjoy it. He doesn't get grumpy, just a little clingy. Anyway we kept him home from church today because he still had a pretty gnarly sounding cough, but he hasn't had a fever for over 24 hours, so that's great. He is sitting in the TV room watching the finale to "Much Ado" over and over and over. What a funny kid!
Ethan had an interesting project for school - - a model of a plant cell. It took a lot of ingenuity, but we used plastic eggs, clay, fun-foam, paint, bubble wrap, push-pins, bouncy balls, toothpicks, a hollow spherical thing from a bowl of potpourri and lots and lots of hot glue, and I think we came up with a pretty darn good replica. If he doesn't get an A I'll be ticked. Teachers should realize that parents have to get heavily involved in these projects! I wasn't about to let Ethan get his hands on the glue gun, I had a hard enough time with it myself!
Ethan continues to work hard in school and play hard with his friends. He's got some buddies that live near enough for him to ride his bike to their houses, now we just have to get him a bigger bike! He is doing bowling in gym, and plays football with friends. He's reading Don Quixote now and writing a "dark" story about the Italian Mafia. A lot of his friends have "air soft" guns, which shoot little rubber balls (tiny ones) - - a cannister of compressed CO2 makes them shoot. He really wanted one and I said "no way no how." Fortunately there are some great nerf guns out there. I'm ok with that. I hate guns, but I remember when Ethan was about 2 and bit his sandwich into the shape of a gun and was playing with it. I don't know how he ever even saw a gun, all he watched was Barney, but I guess the shooting thing is just a part of male DNA.
More later . . .
Ethan had an interesting project for school - - a model of a plant cell. It took a lot of ingenuity, but we used plastic eggs, clay, fun-foam, paint, bubble wrap, push-pins, bouncy balls, toothpicks, a hollow spherical thing from a bowl of potpourri and lots and lots of hot glue, and I think we came up with a pretty darn good replica. If he doesn't get an A I'll be ticked. Teachers should realize that parents have to get heavily involved in these projects! I wasn't about to let Ethan get his hands on the glue gun, I had a hard enough time with it myself!
Ethan continues to work hard in school and play hard with his friends. He's got some buddies that live near enough for him to ride his bike to their houses, now we just have to get him a bigger bike! He is doing bowling in gym, and plays football with friends. He's reading Don Quixote now and writing a "dark" story about the Italian Mafia. A lot of his friends have "air soft" guns, which shoot little rubber balls (tiny ones) - - a cannister of compressed CO2 makes them shoot. He really wanted one and I said "no way no how." Fortunately there are some great nerf guns out there. I'm ok with that. I hate guns, but I remember when Ethan was about 2 and bit his sandwich into the shape of a gun and was playing with it. I don't know how he ever even saw a gun, all he watched was Barney, but I guess the shooting thing is just a part of male DNA.
More later . . .
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Happy Fall!
I love this time of year, especially the cooler weather and the changing colors. I got to examine the trees up close and personally with Ethan recently. He had a school project - - he had to get leaves from at least 10 of 13 specific trees (maples and oaks). We looked in our neighborhood and got some maples, but no oaks. Then looked in another neighborhood. Then went to a big park. Finally we went to a nursery and I surreptitiously sneaked leaves off of trees that I knew were correct (it sounds worse than it is, the leaves were about to fall off anyway.) It was kind of a stupid assignment, but Ethan came to me this morning and said, "Mom, I'm glad we did that project together, because I think our hard work brought us closer together." So it was all worth it after all.
Ethan continues to sprout up like a weed. He is within a few milimeters of as tall as I am, and his voice has somehow deepened. He is really enjoying 7th grade, and is doing well so far. His favorite class is life skills, because he gets to cook food (and then eat it.) He is like a bottomless pit when it comes to food! Ethan recently read "Les Miserables" - - the unabridged, 1200 page version. He started it at the beginning of the summer. I honestly didn't think he'd make it through, but he sure proved me wrong! And I am so proud of him! One thing that really helped him was seeing the movie (it's his favorite) so he knew the story line. I took him and his friend Adam out to lunch and then to a movie yesterday to celebrate.
Today was conference. After the first session we went to Scott's cousin Cheryl's house in Antioch (about 45 minutes away). Cheryl and her husband, Dan, are a great couple. Their kids are in college, and their daughter was adopted, so we had a lot to talk about. While we were there Noah's pull-up overflowed (wet) onto their recliner. I apologized profusely, cleaned him up, and put a new pull-up on him. Sadly I didn't have another pair of pants, and this proved deadly a few minutes later when he had another accident, this one stinky, on their couch. I was mortified! Luckily Cheryl was a great sport. I told her that if Ethan vomited on her loveseat than we would have covered all her furniture. I think I'll send her a nice gift . . .
Other than that Noah is doing great. He really is doing well in school this year, and is reading at a first grade level. We tried spelling, and his first test came back as follows:
(rat) rtq
(sat) lmpg
(cat) aanollqt
(at) alsieonsljiowsjfow
His teacher wrote a little note: "I think we'll hold off on spelling for now." Well he is still doing great in reading and math, and his behavior has been wonderful. He and Ethan both continue to be loving and helpful big brothers.
Little sister Meredith is growing up fast! She is almost 3 months old, and just as cute as can be. I love love love to hear her little squeals and coos! She is so happy and smiling all the time, it is wonderful. She's sleeping 6 to 8 hours at night, which is also wonderful! We are so very happy to have her in our lives!
Scott recently moved his office to a space about 3 minutes from our house. We are all very excited about the short commute! Now if I have something come up it will be so easy for him to come home. On the other hand he has been traveling a ton, and is usually gone 1 to 2 nights every week. So it kind of evens out. He plays a lot of tennis and has some good friends to compete with. Our United flight benefits run out in the springtime, so he is working hard to take advantage of these last few months of ultra cheap travel.
I love being at home with my little baby, although shopping is more of a chore. Meredith had her first "playdate" - - a lady in our ward has a baby boy just a few weeks older than she is. The babies didn't really connect, but my friend and I had a great time chatting!
We wish you all a happy autumn!
Ethan continues to sprout up like a weed. He is within a few milimeters of as tall as I am, and his voice has somehow deepened. He is really enjoying 7th grade, and is doing well so far. His favorite class is life skills, because he gets to cook food (and then eat it.) He is like a bottomless pit when it comes to food! Ethan recently read "Les Miserables" - - the unabridged, 1200 page version. He started it at the beginning of the summer. I honestly didn't think he'd make it through, but he sure proved me wrong! And I am so proud of him! One thing that really helped him was seeing the movie (it's his favorite) so he knew the story line. I took him and his friend Adam out to lunch and then to a movie yesterday to celebrate.
Today was conference. After the first session we went to Scott's cousin Cheryl's house in Antioch (about 45 minutes away). Cheryl and her husband, Dan, are a great couple. Their kids are in college, and their daughter was adopted, so we had a lot to talk about. While we were there Noah's pull-up overflowed (wet) onto their recliner. I apologized profusely, cleaned him up, and put a new pull-up on him. Sadly I didn't have another pair of pants, and this proved deadly a few minutes later when he had another accident, this one stinky, on their couch. I was mortified! Luckily Cheryl was a great sport. I told her that if Ethan vomited on her loveseat than we would have covered all her furniture. I think I'll send her a nice gift . . .
Other than that Noah is doing great. He really is doing well in school this year, and is reading at a first grade level. We tried spelling, and his first test came back as follows:
(rat) rtq
(sat) lmpg
(cat) aanollqt
(at) alsieonsljiowsjfow
His teacher wrote a little note: "I think we'll hold off on spelling for now." Well he is still doing great in reading and math, and his behavior has been wonderful. He and Ethan both continue to be loving and helpful big brothers.
Little sister Meredith is growing up fast! She is almost 3 months old, and just as cute as can be. I love love love to hear her little squeals and coos! She is so happy and smiling all the time, it is wonderful. She's sleeping 6 to 8 hours at night, which is also wonderful! We are so very happy to have her in our lives!
Scott recently moved his office to a space about 3 minutes from our house. We are all very excited about the short commute! Now if I have something come up it will be so easy for him to come home. On the other hand he has been traveling a ton, and is usually gone 1 to 2 nights every week. So it kind of evens out. He plays a lot of tennis and has some good friends to compete with. Our United flight benefits run out in the springtime, so he is working hard to take advantage of these last few months of ultra cheap travel.
I love being at home with my little baby, although shopping is more of a chore. Meredith had her first "playdate" - - a lady in our ward has a baby boy just a few weeks older than she is. The babies didn't really connect, but my friend and I had a great time chatting!
We wish you all a happy autumn!
Saturday, September 5, 2009
End of Summer, Start of School
Catching up! We enjoyed the end of our summer. It was a fairly cool and somewhat rainy summer here in Chicagoland, which was fine with me, because I don't like the heat and I didn't have to water the grass (although I have to admit my yard has really gone to pot, I just don't have the time to work outside - - keeping up with the inside is about all I can do right now!)
Anyway Noah finished up his NISRA summer camp and did another week-long camp at the Light Center, where they have animals and it's run specifically for people with special needs. He also got to do a lot of swimming. Noah is so sweet with Meredith. I do have to watch him pretty carefully, because he wants to hold and hug her, but he does try so hard to be gentle, and he has not shown any aggression toward her whatsoever. I worried about his reaction to no longer being the baby of the family, but he has adjusted beautifully and I'm so proud of him. He really does love his little sister!
Ethan also had a week-long camp, through the McHenry County conservation society. The only problem was that it took about 90 minutes to get there, it was way out in Johnsburg. So I spent many hours in the car that week. But it was worth it, a wonderful experience for him. He made lots of friends, including a boy who has a brother with Down syndrome (they're in our group.) It was quite a coincidence! He got to go canooing and learn about fur traders and pioneers and all kinds of historical things.
We also had our annual Down syndrome picnic. It was a bit rainy, but lots of people came anyway and we had a great time. Noah especially had fun seeing his good friends. What a great group of people! I'm writing the newsletter again, and though it's a lot of work it is definitely worth it.
I forgot to mention in my last post that while Scott and the boys were in Idaho for the Garner reunion they had a little baby shower for us. Since I couldn't be there they put me on speaker phone and Scott took pictures of all the gifts and emailed them to me. It was so much fun! And then in August my friends Michelle and Dwinell and Katie had a baby shower for me. I just love my friends. I had a great time and got so many cute things for Meredith. And 2 of my friends who have adopted were there, they have been so supportive of us.
Meredith is 8 weeks old today. She is growing so fast I can hardly believe it. She is filling out, but is still petite. Her hair is getting even thicker and longer. It is curly when wet, but as soon as it dries it puffs out like a little dandelion. She has started to smile, which is so wonderful. She usually has a very pleasant expression, but her smiles are just adorable. She loves it when Ethan wiggles her legs or arms. Both of the boys are so sweet with her! As soon as Ethan gets home from school he goes straight to her and holds her. He is getting quite good at feeding and burping her. Noah has been wonderful too. I was a little worried about him being jealous or aggressive, but he has been nothing but gentle. He sings lullabies to her sometimes. It's so cute!
Ethan has started 7th grade (can you believe it?) He is really enjoying it, and is making new friends. He is up to about page 800 in Les Miserables (only 400 more pages to go!) And he is as tall as I am and his voice is changing. Pretty scary, huh?!
Noah is so happy to be back in school. His teachers said his math and reading skills improved over the summer, so I must have done something right! The other day I asked him not to be a baby (about going potty or something) and he said, "I'm not a baby, I'm a fourth grader!"
What a wonderful life, what a wonderful family!
Anyway Noah finished up his NISRA summer camp and did another week-long camp at the Light Center, where they have animals and it's run specifically for people with special needs. He also got to do a lot of swimming. Noah is so sweet with Meredith. I do have to watch him pretty carefully, because he wants to hold and hug her, but he does try so hard to be gentle, and he has not shown any aggression toward her whatsoever. I worried about his reaction to no longer being the baby of the family, but he has adjusted beautifully and I'm so proud of him. He really does love his little sister!
Ethan also had a week-long camp, through the McHenry County conservation society. The only problem was that it took about 90 minutes to get there, it was way out in Johnsburg. So I spent many hours in the car that week. But it was worth it, a wonderful experience for him. He made lots of friends, including a boy who has a brother with Down syndrome (they're in our group.) It was quite a coincidence! He got to go canooing and learn about fur traders and pioneers and all kinds of historical things.
We also had our annual Down syndrome picnic. It was a bit rainy, but lots of people came anyway and we had a great time. Noah especially had fun seeing his good friends. What a great group of people! I'm writing the newsletter again, and though it's a lot of work it is definitely worth it.
I forgot to mention in my last post that while Scott and the boys were in Idaho for the Garner reunion they had a little baby shower for us. Since I couldn't be there they put me on speaker phone and Scott took pictures of all the gifts and emailed them to me. It was so much fun! And then in August my friends Michelle and Dwinell and Katie had a baby shower for me. I just love my friends. I had a great time and got so many cute things for Meredith. And 2 of my friends who have adopted were there, they have been so supportive of us.
Meredith is 8 weeks old today. She is growing so fast I can hardly believe it. She is filling out, but is still petite. Her hair is getting even thicker and longer. It is curly when wet, but as soon as it dries it puffs out like a little dandelion. She has started to smile, which is so wonderful. She usually has a very pleasant expression, but her smiles are just adorable. She loves it when Ethan wiggles her legs or arms. Both of the boys are so sweet with her! As soon as Ethan gets home from school he goes straight to her and holds her. He is getting quite good at feeding and burping her. Noah has been wonderful too. I was a little worried about him being jealous or aggressive, but he has been nothing but gentle. He sings lullabies to her sometimes. It's so cute!
Ethan has started 7th grade (can you believe it?) He is really enjoying it, and is making new friends. He is up to about page 800 in Les Miserables (only 400 more pages to go!) And he is as tall as I am and his voice is changing. Pretty scary, huh?!
Noah is so happy to be back in school. His teachers said his math and reading skills improved over the summer, so I must have done something right! The other day I asked him not to be a baby (about going potty or something) and he said, "I'm not a baby, I'm a fourth grader!"
What a wonderful life, what a wonderful family!
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
More About Meredith
I never really finished telling Meredith's story (somehow I've been busier than usual lately!) We'd met with Amy, the birth mother, and her friend and also the caseworker on Sunday at breakfast. Afterwards we took the boys over to the hospital to meet their little sister for the first time. They were so adorable with her! Noah's first words when he saw her were, "oh cute!" They both held her so tenderly, and were so sweet and protective of her. I think the pictures of them with her are worth a thousand words.
Scott took my mom and the boys back to our rental house and I spent most of the rest of the day there. He came back in the evening and we all spent some time together, and then had to go home and get a little bit caught up on sleep.
The next day, Monday, was almost as stressful as Saturday had been. The Illinois agency we were working with had a bunch of paperwork that hadn't yet been finished. We knew Meredith was going to be released from the hospital that day, and unless the paperwork was finished she wouldn't be able to be released to us. She would have to go to a foster family, which would be terrible for us and for the birth mother as well. Scott had a business meeting in Phoenix, and he spent the entire drive there and back on the phone trying to make sure everything got done. Our Gladney caseworkers really worked hard for us and, thank goodness, everything fell into place. I left the hospital with Meredith and Scott and I both ended up arriving at the rental house within just a few minutes of eachother. So we got to bring Meredith "home" together.
She spent her first night there with us, and did quite well. The next morning (Tuesday) the birth mother signed the relinquishment papers. Afterward we met our caseworker, Vanessa, at a Starbucks and signed all of our papers (even more signatures than when we bought our first house.) Finally we were all done. I didn't realize how stressed I'd felt until it was all over and a huge weight rolled off of my shoulders. Vanessa gave us a teddy bear for Meredith, and she'd given a matching one to Amy. We then went to Amy's house so that her children could meet Meredith. It wasn't something you'd do in most adoptions, but we felt very good about doing it. 2 of her kids were there, an 11 and a 12 year old. They were so sweet, and had written a note for us, thanking us for taking care of Meredith. Amy got to have "closure" - - we talked for about 45 minutes and she got to hold Meredith one last time. It was somewhat emotional right at the end, but Amy said over and over that she knew she was doing the right thing. What a wonderful lady she is, to make such a sacrifice for us. We were so happy!
The next day Meredith had her first doctor's appointment (a requirement before we left the state). Then we drove to Phoenix to wait for clearance to leave. We stayed in a nice condo/hotel with a kitchen and laundry, very convenient. There was also a swimming pool, but it was so hot that I didn't even venture out. Scott did swim with the kids though. Speaking of hot, I left my cell phone in the car and the heat ruined the screen. Yikes! It got up to about 115 while we were there. I don't know how people manage to survive those kinds of temperatures!
That weekend was the Garner family reunion, and Scott decided to go and take the boys, leaving Meredith and my mom and me there in AZ. It was kind of a nice break. We spent several hours at the mall, just to keep from going stir crazy. Lots of people commented on Meredith, saying what a beautiful baby she is. A couple of people said how great I looked after just having had a baby, and I had to admit that I hadn't actually given birth. It was nice though! And at least no one said, "wow, you only have about 10 pounds left to lose!"
Scott left Ethan in Idaho with his parents, to "work on the farm" for a few days. He and Noah came back and Omi left. Oh it was so nice to have my mom there for me! She was so helpful, watching Meredith so I could nap, and we had a lot of fun talking and reading and watching tv and eating (Mom is a great cook, and always puts me to shame). Anyway it was a huge help and support to have her there, I don't know how we could have done it without her!
Scott and I had a couple of nice days together with Noah and Meredith. We had Sunday dinner at the home of our friends the Woodwards, who moved from Illinois a few years ago. It was so nice to see some familiar faces, and great to chat with them. We were really hoping to get clearance to travel on Monday, because Scott had business in Illinois on Tuesday, and sure enough, it came through. I was a little bit nervous about traveling with Noah and Meredith, but they both did great! It was wonderful to finally be home with our little angel.
Ethan flew back home along with Grandma Garner, who stayed for several days. That was wonderful too, because it took a lot to keep the boys entertained and take care of a baby at the same time. She also watched them while Scott and I took Meredith downtown to do some legal stuff. We had to go to the Daley Courthouse and meet with our attorney and present her at the sherrif's office where she was "served" with papers (the guy had to literally touch her with the papers!) Then we had to go before a judge, who asked us a few questions about work and our living arrangements. Meredith was perfect throughout. It looks like the adoption will be complete sometime in January. Could be sooner, but we're not counting on that. But barring a felony on Scott's or my part, she's ours!!!
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