Ten Years with Our Daisy

On August 18, 2002 we brought our first dog home.  She was about a year old at the time. She came to us from a humane society, and she's proof that you can get a beautiful, well tempered dog from the shelters. Daisy is 11 years old now, and she still chases the younger dog around the house.  We celebrate her addition to the family every year on August 18th. 
 

I took both of the dogs to Three Dog Bakery, where the clerk was nice enough to let them taste some some treat before we bought them. They also both got a free "pupcake" - a cupcake for doggies and a little present.

What's in the bag?

Doggie Cardinal's jerseys.  The clerk let me try these on the dogs before I bought them. Which was great, because I would have bought the wrong size for Lily if I'd had to guess on the size. 

Daisy has always been a fun dog. She's given us a few scares - seizures and mysterious blood work. Last year we had diagnostic test after test done on her. Early this year, her vet called late one night with lab results following yet another test. Much was the same - liver enzymes still high, except for one thing. Newly found anemia. My first thought was cancer, particularly something like leukemia that originates in the bone marrow. I asked the vet if there was any chance that it was a solid tumor that could be surgically removed. She said it was unlikely. At that point, we decided that we were not going to put her thru anymore tests. We aren't going to give her chemo. Chemotherapy is rough on your body - killing healthy cells along with unhealthy cells. She doesn't act sick. She acts like an 11 year old dog with arthritis. She can still keep up with me and Lily for a 2 mile walk when it's not too hot.

She's adjusted well to having Samuel around. In fact, she's adjusted to him better that she adjusted to Lily when we first brought her home. I was sitting in the floor playing with Samuel a few days ago, and she was interested in what we were doing. I called her over and laid her down in between me and Samuel and she let him pet her belly. 

What we learned about Swaddling

Samuel has always enjoyed being swaddled, but neither of us knew anything about swaddling or the different types of swaddling blankets that are available. While he was in the hospital, the nurses taught us how to swaddle him with a blanket. When we first brought him home, he would cry if he was not swaddled at times. However, it only took him a week or two before he was able to bust his arms loose from the swaddling blanket.  James had read about Miracle Blankets, and I went shopping looking for them one day. The store was out.  When I got home, there was a package on our doorstep from a friend. Inside were two different kinds of swaddling blankets! The first kind we tried were Summer SwaddleMe blankets.

I really liked the weight of these, but Samuel could get his hands free if we were not careful to get it wrapped tightly.

James' parents gave us a couple of these Garanimal's fleece swaddling blankets. My mother-in-law found them at Wal-Mart and they were a nice weight for the colder days that we had in the late winter/early spring.  These had a fabric strap that wrapped around his arms and waist. It kept his arms down at his sides.  He was able to break free from this type as well.

When Samuel outgrew those swaddlers, we moved up to this:

It is called a Woombie. It zipped all the way from the baby's feet to his neck, and there was no strap or flap to wrap around him. This one gave him the freedom to move his arms around, but still kept them close to his body. I really liked these, but we had to stop using them when he began to roll over onto his tummy at night.  He needed to have his hands free so he could roll back over, if he wanted/needed to. They do make a convertible style of these that has arm holes that can be napped shut or left open, and wish that I had bought those instead because we would have gotten more use out of them.

Next, we started using HALO SleepSacks. These can be put on the baby where their arms are free, or they can be wrapped up in the swaddling flap. These have a fabric flap that covers up the zipper on the inside, so it doesn't irritate the baby's skin.  It has been so hot here, that even with the AC running, it still gets a little warm in the house when the sun comes up.  Samuel can sleep in this with just a diaper, if need be.

He has actually outgrown the one in the photo. He is using a larger HALO SleepSack that does not have the swaddling flaps.  You can see the flaps wrapped around his midsection in the photo.

James took off work in March, and stayed home with Samuel and he broke him from being swaddled during naptime early on.  I'm glad he was home to do it, because I had a tough time getting the little man to nap without swaddling him.

Father's Day 2012

Six months ago, I had begun to wonder if James and I would ever be able to celebrate Father's Day. We'd had such an awful time trying to adopt, and we didn't know if we'd ever become parents. We are so thankful that we were able to celebrate James' first Father's Day this year.

I had unique Father's Day cards made at Shutterfly for James, our dads, and James' grandfather. All four cards were different, and they had photos of the recipient with Samuel. I love the way the turned out! I wish I had gotten a photo of all four cards, but we were in a hurry to get the other cards in the mail after we finally got them on Wednesday last week. I waited a week and half for these to come in, and I will not be using Shutterfly for these kind of cards again. CVS stores will make these, and I will use them next time. These cards don't cost any more than what you'd spend on them at Hallmark, and I like them so much better.

My parents wanted to give us something this year for our first Mother's and Father's Days. They gave me a pink hydrangea and they gave James two books - James Dobson's Bringing up Boys and Bedtime Blessings by John Trent. Thanks, Mom and Dad!

 James is definately the better cook between the two of us, and it was time he had his own apron.  I local store called Instant Imprints did the embroidery, and I am pleased with the way it turned out.

 I also got him tickets to the Cardinal's game yesterday. The game was fun, but our seats were in the sun. We got up after the 5th inning and stood in the shade in the "standing room only section." Samuel made it through the first nine innings, and we went home and watched the rest of the game in the air conditioning.  The Cards lost in the 14th inning.

I wanted to give James something that had Samuel's name engraved on it, but he never wear jewelry other his wedding ring. I found an Etsy shop where you can get personalized sterling silver guitar picks.  Check it out: Tomi's Treasures. James has a guitar that he plays from time to time. He said this was his biggest surprise. He took it to work today to show everyone.

Welcome Home Solomon!

Last night, we had the joy of greeting our friends, Jack & Dana and their newly adopted Ethiopian son at the airport.

Back in January, Dana and I made plans to meet for lunch. I had some things that we had purchased in Ethipioa & I wanted to give to her. She already had one Ethipian son and they were in the process to adopt again. I figured her kids would probably appreciate the items from their country of birth. We talked about some of the trials James and I had faced and what it had been like switching to our agency's domestic adoption program. Then she told me she had some news. . .and pulled out some photos of a boy that they had accepted a referral for. I recognized him from the waiting child list.  I had prayed for the kids on that list, and I know God heard. I teared up, so thankful that this child would soon be coming to his new home. That was on January 28th, little did I know that in one week I would be holding my own son in my arms.  Dana was the first person I called after we found out that we had been chosen to be Samuel's parents.

 Finally home, after months of waiting and a very long trip!

New brothers!

Traveling with Samuel

We've taken two road trips with Samuel so far. His first road trip was to Louisiana to meet our family there.  He was only three weeks old, and yes we were a little crazy to take him on a 9+ hour road trip. The only reason we went when we did was I had signed up for a photography class. The photographer who shot our wedding began offering classes a few years ago, and I have been wanting to go to one of them. I had paid the deposit for the class long before we knew about Samuel, and I wanted to make it to the class. We left on a Friday after I worked half a day. Our dogs usually travel with us, but we decided that it would be best if they stayed at home this time. One of us sat in the back seat with Samuel so we could keep him happy. We had to stop twice and feed him, so it took us a little over 10 hours to get there.

He got to meet a lot of people who had been praying for him for a long time. My parents do not live in Louisiana, but the live closer to James' parents than to us. So, they drove down from Arkansas and spent the day with us. My mom's mom fell and broke he hip the day we brought Samuel home from the hospital, so they had been terribly busy taking care of her. This was their first time to meet there new grandson.

With his aunt and uncle

 Meeting his great-grandparents

James' parents hosted a "Sip-and-See" at their house on Sunday afternoon so people could stop by and meet little Samuel. It was so good to see everyone. We had to go back home a day earlier than we wanted because we needed to meet with our attorney.  The little man diffused a speeding ticket on our way back home. I was driving, and we had just gotten back into the St. Louis metro area. I have driven thru that area dozens and dozens of times, and I never realized that the speed limited dropped in that area from 70 to 65 mph. The officer asked for my license, registration, and proof of insurance and then he started talking about the baby. He let us go without a ticket.

At the end of March, we took Samuel to Arkansas for the first time. We bought a luggage carrier for our SUV. so we could take our dogs with us this time. They rode in the cargo space. My grandmother finally got to meet him. Samuel is her third great-grandson.

 I got to catch-up with my aunts and cousins at Samuel's baby shower.

A few things that make traveling with Samuel simpler:

Using On-the-Go packets of formula

Pack only enough diapers and wipes to cover what you will need on the road. Buy a small pack of diapers once you get to your destination.

Pack his stuff in his own suitcase. On our first trip, his things got packed with mine - which made it hard to find stuff.

Our first week with Samuel

Our first week with Samuel was spent with him in the hospital.  It was a very busy week.  I had to work three days that week, and James had his usual Monday through Friday schedule.  We both tried to be at the hospital at least once a day to feed him.  Samuel was having a difficult time taking a bottle, and we wanted to be there as much as we could so the nurses could coach us through feeding times. If I had to work, James and I would leave for the hospital around 8 pm, and I'd stay there until midnight. James would feed Samuel at 8:30, and I would feed him at 11:30. It made for some late nights. I woudn't get home until 1 AM.  At this point, our families still didn't know about Samuel. After all the problems we had trying to adopt internationally, we wanted to wait until Samuel was home with us before we told our families.

We had several things had to get done that week:

• get the nursery in workable order
• choose a pediatrician
• meet with our attourney
• find a rocker for the nursery
• get an infant car seat

I am really pleased with the rocker that we I found.  I had been looking at Pottery Barn's upholstered rockers, and was seeing $$$$.  I was determined to find something cheaper that was comfortable and durable.  A children's furniture ctore opened near us not too long ago, and I'd never been in there. I decided to check it out before shelling out way too much at Pottery Barn.  I told one of the sales ladies that I was looking for a rocker, and she told me that it took 4-6 weeks to get them in. That wouldn't work! Our son was already here.  I explained our situation, and she showed me three floor models that she could sell.  I bought one of them for $400 under the budget James had given me. James brought it home in his truck that afternoon, and one of our neighbors helped him get it set up in the nursery.

Some of our good friends gave us some necessary items, like clothes, diapers, and wipes to get us started. On Wednesday that week, we found out that Samuel was going to be discharged on Friday.  A couple of our neighbors jumped into to action and they left a big basket of clothes, bottles, formula, diapers, wipes, and toys on our doorstep.

 Our basket of goodies from our neighbors

 James sanitizing bottles

 We made plans for Samuel to be discharged after I got off work on Friday.  And no, I was not much use at work that day!  We began making phone calls to our families on the way home from the hospital.  Samuel is the first grandchild on both sides of our famillies, so needless to say everyone was very excited!

 Getting discharge instructions from Samuel's nurse practioner, who was also adopted.

 Sameul's first car ride. He is covered with a blanket that my mom - his Nana made.  She gave it to us some time ago.

Finally at home with Daddy, in our new rocker.

It's a Boy!

I know many of you have been praying for us through all the drama we've experienced in our adoption process.  Those prayers have finally been answered! We switched to the domestic infant adoption program with our agency in December, and we have some wonderful news to share!

At 3:38 pm on Friday 2/3/12, James called me and asked if I had seen the message from our agency about a new cold call situation. I was at work, and I had not seen it. I was on my way to the hospital to deliver medications to a transplant patient. I asked him to read the post to me. It was about a newborn baby boy right here in the St. Louis area. (FYI - A "cold call" is when the birthmom has no contact with the adoption agency prior to the child's birth. She contacts the agency soon after the child is born.)

On my way to the hospital, I prayed and asked God to let my heart and James' heart be in agreement if this baby was to be part of our family. After I was finished at the hospital, we decided to ask for more information on the case. By the time my shift was over, we had received the second email. We talked things over that night after dinner, and we decided to proceed. I sent the social worker a text message at 9:42 pm saying that we wanted to be considered for that child.

Saturday morning (2/4/12), James and I were getting ready to go to the YMCA.   At 9:58 AM we got a call from our agency telling us that we had been chosen to parent this little boy! Three of the social workers that have been walking down this road with us, and praying for us were on the phone - they all wanted to be able to deliver this long awaited news! It just did not seem real.  After spending almost three years trying to adopt a child from Ethiopia, our son was born 30 minutes from our home. My head started swimming.  There was so much to be done before we brought this baby home. The nursery was a mess. The furniture was partially taken apart and none of it was in the right place. We didn't have an infant car seat. We didn't have diapers, wipes, or bottles. We needed a name! We didn't have a single boy name picked out.We made plans to meet our social worker and the hospital at 2 pm so we could meet our baby. I went on to the YMCA, hoping that getting some time in on the elliptical would help me think clearly.  (It helped, but not much. Ha!)

While we were getting ready to go to the hospital, we talked about a name.  We threw several options around, and we were able to make a tentative decision.  We left for the hospital and prayed on the way there.























We spent four hours at the hospital with our little man that day. We both fed him, and changed his diaper.  By the next day, we had decided on a name -

Samuel Stephen

Samuel is after James' maternal grandfather.  His name is Carl, but he is known as Sam to many. He was the youngest of five children, and his momma was out of baby names when he was born.  His still didn't have a name by his second day of life. His siblings started asking their mom what they were going to name the baby.  She said -"Anything but Sam."  Well, siblings being siblings, they started calling him Sam.  He is 85 years old, and he is still known as Sam.  Little Samuel, may you have the long life, devotion to God, and wisdom that your Great-Grandfather has had.

Stephen is after my dad and after Samuel's Godfather.  My dad has a kind heart, and he is ever ready to tell someone about Jesus.  I've heard him tell telemarketers that they need Jesus. Part of his speech that he gave at my rehearsal dinner was the Gospel.  He also enjoys entertaining the kids at church - Samuel, I bet the first time you met Santa it will be with your Grandpa dressed up playing the part. Early in our adoption process, we had to name a guardian for our future child. We prayed about it, and the same two people kept coming to our minds - James' youngest cousin Stephen and his wife Elizabeth.  They prayed about it too, and they agreed.  I was at a St. Louis Blues Hockey game when Stephen called me to tell that he and Elizabeth wanted to be our child's Godparents. Stephen has an adventurous spirit, a heart for the Gospel, and the willingness to serve God and follow him where He calls. He and Elizabeth went to Kenya on a dental mission trip this past summer.  Samuel, may you value obedience to Jesus above all, may your tongue be a quick to speak of Jesus as these two men, and may your feet be swift to follow the call of Jesus wherever He may take you.

Samuel, people all over the world have been praying for you. People all over the US, friends in Canada and Ethiopia.  When we started our adoption process, we thought we'd be adding a little brown-skinned girl from Ethiopia to our family.  After suffering through four failed referrals Ethiopia, we just didn't know why God did not see fit to add one of those little girls to our family.  He knew all along when you would be born and that you were meant to be our son.

"For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition that I made to him."

1 Samuel 1:27 (ESV)

Thanks be to God from whom all blessings flow!