Well, that was an exhausting weekend. I experienced every emotion possible. It was all so difficult and definitely sad at times. But we've got to keep breathing and praying that we will have our baby soon. Another reminder that I am NOT in control but that God is. He knows what baby is ours and His plan will be revealed in time. Hopefully soon.
We have been in contact with our caseworker and our profile will be reactivated today. Our prayers were always for a baby by Christmas. We still have time for that so we are hopeful. Again, just praying for some clarity and trusting that it will all happen in time.
thanks to all of you for thinking about us and praying for us. We definitely felt God's arm around us and through all of you we felt love.
**
What would we do without text messaging and email? Texting was a huge help when I couldn't find the words to speak and couldn't get the words out without crying. So......brief advertisement........text messaging is great in any situation! :)
love you all very much. we will keep you all updated as best we can in the coming months.
**Jenny
Proverbs 3:5 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean NOT on your own understanding."
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Monday, June 29, 2009
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Sad News
The risk that was involved with this adoption came true. Our birthmother decided to parent the baby last night after her parents found out about the baby and convinced her to keep the baby. This is obviously difficult but we knew that the risk was there and both Jenny and I had fairly strong feelings that a disruption would happen to us. That is probably why many of you couldn't understand why we were not getting more excited about this birthmother choosing us.
We do know that God is in control and will take care of us. We know that his plan is for us to have children, there are so many reasons why we know. So we are going to be put back into the available approved family group and pray for another birthmother to find us.
We thank you all for the support you have given us and we know that we can lean on you in this tough time.
Walking with Christ,
Jerry
We do know that God is in control and will take care of us. We know that his plan is for us to have children, there are so many reasons why we know. So we are going to be put back into the available approved family group and pray for another birthmother to find us.
We thank you all for the support you have given us and we know that we can lean on you in this tough time.
Walking with Christ,
Jerry
Friday, June 26, 2009
Happy Birthday!
We received news yesterday that the birthmother was close to delivery. The doctors actually began inducing labor this morning at 5am. By 10:05am a baby girl was born. She is 5lbs 8oz and 17 inches long. She is amazingly beautiful. There is a pretty funny story that goes along with today that could have only happened to us.
We got the call to go to the hospital at about 11:30am. Luckily the hospital is just 5 minutes away from our house so we were there before noon. Our birthmother wanted to make sure we were in the building for her support and for the baby. So we waited in the lobby until the proper paperwork could be done to clear us to go to the nursery. Well, there was a complication with the birthmother's last name since she was recently divorced and does not have a photo ID with her now legal last name. This went on for 4 hours and the funny part happened at about 2:30pm or so.
As we are waiting and talking with one of the social workers from Generations, they announce over the intercom "Code Purple, Infant Abduction!" With that several staff and police began running thru the lobby to guard the entryways and hallways. Jenny and I looked at each other and without saying a word about it both were thinking the same thing - what if a family member found out about the birth and tried to steal the baby for the family. This went on for about 5 minutes before they announced it was only a drill. At which point Jenny and I almost hit the ground in laughter, of all things that could happen and make this journey any more difficult. The stress overload just made us laugh, what an emotional test.
So finally around 4pm we were cleared and allowed to go back and see the baby girl. She is so small and adorable. We got to do the first feeding and Jenny got to change the first diaper. We took pictures and videos and were able to stay with her for about 2 hours. The birthmother requested to spend time with the baby tonight before she is discharged in the morning. The baby will stay in the hospital until after 48 hours and the paperwork is signed giving us the ability to bring the baby home. So we will go see the baby tomorrow morning and spend most of tomorrow with her.
We appreciate your continued prayers of peace for the birthmother. She is making an extremely brave and courageous decision. We hope that her recovery is quick and that she finds peace with her decision.
36 hours to go!
Daily in Christ,
Jerry
We got the call to go to the hospital at about 11:30am. Luckily the hospital is just 5 minutes away from our house so we were there before noon. Our birthmother wanted to make sure we were in the building for her support and for the baby. So we waited in the lobby until the proper paperwork could be done to clear us to go to the nursery. Well, there was a complication with the birthmother's last name since she was recently divorced and does not have a photo ID with her now legal last name. This went on for 4 hours and the funny part happened at about 2:30pm or so.
As we are waiting and talking with one of the social workers from Generations, they announce over the intercom "Code Purple, Infant Abduction!" With that several staff and police began running thru the lobby to guard the entryways and hallways. Jenny and I looked at each other and without saying a word about it both were thinking the same thing - what if a family member found out about the birth and tried to steal the baby for the family. This went on for about 5 minutes before they announced it was only a drill. At which point Jenny and I almost hit the ground in laughter, of all things that could happen and make this journey any more difficult. The stress overload just made us laugh, what an emotional test.
So finally around 4pm we were cleared and allowed to go back and see the baby girl. She is so small and adorable. We got to do the first feeding and Jenny got to change the first diaper. We took pictures and videos and were able to stay with her for about 2 hours. The birthmother requested to spend time with the baby tonight before she is discharged in the morning. The baby will stay in the hospital until after 48 hours and the paperwork is signed giving us the ability to bring the baby home. So we will go see the baby tomorrow morning and spend most of tomorrow with her.
We appreciate your continued prayers of peace for the birthmother. She is making an extremely brave and courageous decision. We hope that her recovery is quick and that she finds peace with her decision.
36 hours to go!
Daily in Christ,
Jerry
It could be soon!
Well, yesterday our birthmother went to another follow-up doctor's visit. The doctor said that he thinks she will have the baby by this weekend. A little early but we are definitely okay with that. Our birthmother has decided that she does not want anyone there while she is in labor and delivery, but she has asked her social worker to call us as soon as the baby is born so that we can go up to the hospital and see the baby in the nursery. She does want to spend a little time with the baby at first but then is planning to go home and leave us "in charge". The baby will stay in the hospital until the paperwork is signed at 48 hours giving us custody of the baby.
The nursery is almost finished. All that is left are some paint touch-ups and painted the baseboards. This past Tuesday I had to go to College Station for work. As I was driving around town I realized that we still needed to get an Aggie outfit to bring the baby home in. So before I left town, I went to our favorite Aggie store - Aggieland Outfitters, www.ao12.com, and bought a maroon outfit and cap. I also found a cute giraffe wearing a maroon A&M shirt. I had to buy that to go with the baby safari them of the bedroom and it fits right in. So there is really not much left to do to prepare.
Please pray for a safe weekend for our birthmother and the baby. This is potentially going to be a very busy and stressful weekend for all involved.
In Christ All Things Are Possible!
Love to All!
Jerry
The nursery is almost finished. All that is left are some paint touch-ups and painted the baseboards. This past Tuesday I had to go to College Station for work. As I was driving around town I realized that we still needed to get an Aggie outfit to bring the baby home in. So before I left town, I went to our favorite Aggie store - Aggieland Outfitters, www.ao12.com, and bought a maroon outfit and cap. I also found a cute giraffe wearing a maroon A&M shirt. I had to buy that to go with the baby safari them of the bedroom and it fits right in. So there is really not much left to do to prepare.
Please pray for a safe weekend for our birthmother and the baby. This is potentially going to be a very busy and stressful weekend for all involved.
In Christ All Things Are Possible!
Love to All!
Jerry
Friday, June 19, 2009
Fund Completion
Isn't it amazing what God can do when you let him be in control and you follow his word? My mom had a garage sale 2 weeks ago to raise money for our fund and raised just under $500. So once we put that in the adoption fund at the bank it put us over the top. We now have enough money to cove the final placement fee for the adoption - 2 weeks ahead of schedule. For those friends, family, co-workers and anonymous donors that donated to help us - We can't thank you enough.
The only thing we have to worry about now is unknown fees. But if we continue to let God control the process then I know that should any other costs arise He will give us the means to pay for them. So there is really no worry at all.
So what is left - besides waiting and praying? We started painting the nursery last night. No hints as to color or design but we will post pictures when we are done. But other than painting there is really nothing left to do but pray and make sure our phones work and are on at all times.
If I do not post again before Sunday just let me say Happy Father's Day to all the father's out there. Hopefully this will be the last time that I do not get to celebrate father's day.
God Bless,
Jerry
The only thing we have to worry about now is unknown fees. But if we continue to let God control the process then I know that should any other costs arise He will give us the means to pay for them. So there is really no worry at all.
So what is left - besides waiting and praying? We started painting the nursery last night. No hints as to color or design but we will post pictures when we are done. But other than painting there is really nothing left to do but pray and make sure our phones work and are on at all times.
If I do not post again before Sunday just let me say Happy Father's Day to all the father's out there. Hopefully this will be the last time that I do not get to celebrate father's day.
God Bless,
Jerry
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
The Waiting Game.
Well, I haven't posted in a while but then there hasn't been a whole lot going on either - at least with the baby. What has been going on you ask???
TEXAS A&M Men's Track Team won their First National Championship!!!!
And TEXAS A&M Women's Track Team won their First National Championship!!!!
And LOS ANGELES LAKERS won their 15th NBA Title!!!!
What a weekend for my sports teams.
Now - on to what this blog is all about. The nursey is coming along as Jenny said. Haven't painted yet but everything else is pretty much in order. We have not heard from Generations in a few days so we are assuming that no news is good news. So we wait and wait and wait. And when we get tired of that we wait some more. I've even gone so far as to look up the date of the closest full moon to our birthmother's due date. It is July 7th. If you do not already know, baby tend to be born more on the night of a full moon than any other night of the month. Interesting little fact.
Well, it is time to feed the dogs so I've got to finish this off. As Bartles & James used to say "Thank you for your support!"
Jerry
TEXAS A&M Men's Track Team won their First National Championship!!!!
And TEXAS A&M Women's Track Team won their First National Championship!!!!
And LOS ANGELES LAKERS won their 15th NBA Title!!!!
What a weekend for my sports teams.
Now - on to what this blog is all about. The nursey is coming along as Jenny said. Haven't painted yet but everything else is pretty much in order. We have not heard from Generations in a few days so we are assuming that no news is good news. So we wait and wait and wait. And when we get tired of that we wait some more. I've even gone so far as to look up the date of the closest full moon to our birthmother's due date. It is July 7th. If you do not already know, baby tend to be born more on the night of a full moon than any other night of the month. Interesting little fact.
Well, it is time to feed the dogs so I've got to finish this off. As Bartles & James used to say "Thank you for your support!"
Jerry
Sunday, June 14, 2009
The Nursery
The nursery is almost ready. All the furniture is in place and the clothes are put away. Jerry worked really hard getting the closet finished and fixing the drawers in the "chester drawers". Ok Chest of Drawers....to be exact. The only thing left to do is paint the room. Jerry won't tell me what color he is gonna paint it but he has a "plan".
I washed all the clothes on Friday. That was the most fun I have had washing clothes EVER! They were so cute and tiny. I can't wait to see a teeny, tiny, tooshie in those diapers! We will take some pictures of the nursery and post them soon. In the meantime, if you want to know the general idea....baby safari with the pattern malawi by kidsline. Google it and you will see. So CUTE! (I think!)
No new news about the birthmom. We are just continuing to pray for her and her decision. I am sure she is having a difficult time right now with her decision and preparing for the birth and.....it is 102 degrees outside. I am sure that is super tough being 9 months pregnant and 102 outside. We do know that last week at her appointment she was dilated to a 2. The doctor felt that that could mean she could advance by this week but on the other hand she could stay at a 2 for a few weeks even.
Please continue to pray for us and for her and the baby. Thank you so much for all your support and encouragement. WE love you all and love taking you on this journey with us.
Have a good week. We will update at the end of this week after her appointment on the 18th.
Take care and God bless you,
Jenny
**Give your family and friends a hug everyday and tell them you love them!**
I washed all the clothes on Friday. That was the most fun I have had washing clothes EVER! They were so cute and tiny. I can't wait to see a teeny, tiny, tooshie in those diapers! We will take some pictures of the nursery and post them soon. In the meantime, if you want to know the general idea....baby safari with the pattern malawi by kidsline. Google it and you will see. So CUTE! (I think!)
No new news about the birthmom. We are just continuing to pray for her and her decision. I am sure she is having a difficult time right now with her decision and preparing for the birth and.....it is 102 degrees outside. I am sure that is super tough being 9 months pregnant and 102 outside. We do know that last week at her appointment she was dilated to a 2. The doctor felt that that could mean she could advance by this week but on the other hand she could stay at a 2 for a few weeks even.
Please continue to pray for us and for her and the baby. Thank you so much for all your support and encouragement. WE love you all and love taking you on this journey with us.
Have a good week. We will update at the end of this week after her appointment on the 18th.
Take care and God bless you,
Jenny
**Give your family and friends a hug everyday and tell them you love them!**
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Baby Shower....
We had an amazing weekend last weekend. Again, God's timing is Perfect! We were elated when we got our CALL last Friday and what a perfect time to go see family and friends. It was an emotional weekend and it is just what I needed!
We shared our news with our family face to face and were so blessed with a huge amount of support and prayers.
Saturday we spent with family celebrating my cousin's recent wedding. Sunday we spent with family and friends at OUR BABY Shower! I can't believe I said that. It has been a long time waiting and I was so blessed by it. It was a lot of fun to share it with my "girls" from high school and college. They have been my solid support system through all the tears, disappointment, and heartaches. It was only fitting that I got to share this happy time with them. Also, all the moms of these girls, my mom, my grandmas, aunt, and some of my Mom's friends were there. WE had had a lot of fun catching up on each other's lives.
Then the awesome display of baby gifts ........Wow! I was amazed at how generous and caring all of these ladies were with the gifts they showered us and the future baby with. WE all at some point were teary eyed. Me for sure! MOm and I couldn't even look at each other without crying tears of JOY of course! Praise God in all this!
stroller, carseat, pack n play, diaper bag, diapers, wipes, pacifiers, musical "soother", onesies, Winnie the Pooh outfits, handmade blankets (thanks mom!), comfy sleepers, adorable toys, bottles and so many more things.....
We are officially ready for baby. This was perfect timing and perfect giving. I am in awe of how supportive people have been and genuinely excited for us.
Thank you to everyone for everything!
Update: Our birthmom has been to the doctor and everything is going well. The baby is healthy and now we wait. She has chosen not to know the sex of the baby, which is fine for us. It will be surprise! Please continue to pray for her decision and that it will be a peaceful decision and she will be emotionally strong in her decision. It is ultimately what God wants for this baby. Let that be a clear picture for her and for us. Pray for our hearts as well. It is really hard not to know what will happen and not to get too excited.
stay tuned for more details. I am off to help Jerry paint the nursery!
love to all and God bless,
Jenny
We shared our news with our family face to face and were so blessed with a huge amount of support and prayers.
Saturday we spent with family celebrating my cousin's recent wedding. Sunday we spent with family and friends at OUR BABY Shower! I can't believe I said that. It has been a long time waiting and I was so blessed by it. It was a lot of fun to share it with my "girls" from high school and college. They have been my solid support system through all the tears, disappointment, and heartaches. It was only fitting that I got to share this happy time with them. Also, all the moms of these girls, my mom, my grandmas, aunt, and some of my Mom's friends were there. WE had had a lot of fun catching up on each other's lives.
Then the awesome display of baby gifts ........Wow! I was amazed at how generous and caring all of these ladies were with the gifts they showered us and the future baby with. WE all at some point were teary eyed. Me for sure! MOm and I couldn't even look at each other without crying tears of JOY of course! Praise God in all this!
stroller, carseat, pack n play, diaper bag, diapers, wipes, pacifiers, musical "soother", onesies, Winnie the Pooh outfits, handmade blankets (thanks mom!), comfy sleepers, adorable toys, bottles and so many more things.....
We are officially ready for baby. This was perfect timing and perfect giving. I am in awe of how supportive people have been and genuinely excited for us.
Thank you to everyone for everything!
Update: Our birthmom has been to the doctor and everything is going well. The baby is healthy and now we wait. She has chosen not to know the sex of the baby, which is fine for us. It will be surprise! Please continue to pray for her decision and that it will be a peaceful decision and she will be emotionally strong in her decision. It is ultimately what God wants for this baby. Let that be a clear picture for her and for us. Pray for our hearts as well. It is really hard not to know what will happen and not to get too excited.
stay tuned for more details. I am off to help Jerry paint the nursery!
love to all and God bless,
Jenny
Saturday, June 6, 2009
The Call!
I really wanted to post yesterday because I could have used a phrase from what was one of my favorite rap songs in high school - "Today was a good day" by Ice Cube. This was a very good week really. It started off with the Texas A&M Men's Golf team winning the NCAA National Title (WHOOP!), then Wednesday was our 9th Anniversary and we enjoyed a trip to relax on the lake. I'll only mention this once but Thursday The Lakers won game 1 of the NBA Finals. So I'm pretty excited and pumped as Friday starts. I'm out making sales calls on schools on there last day of school for the year, another reason to be pumped because my summer is starting and I won't be driving nearly as much while school is out. Well, I get a call about 11:00am from a number I don't know. My immediate thought is that it is one of my schools and they need something right away before they leave for the summer.
But it wasn't a school, it was Generations calling. Cathy was calling to let me know that we have been chosen by a birthmother. Needless to say that I got lost in a neighborhood while on the phone with her until I finally pulled over at the school I was originally heading to. So what do we know? Well, let me go back to the beginning. About 3 weeks ago we got an email about this birthmother asking if we wanted our profile shown to her. She didn't exactly fit our pre-set criteria so they asked if it was okay and we said yes. Then last week we got an update that she never came in to look at profiles because she does not have transportation. So we figured that this wasn't going to happen and we needed to prepare our hearts for waiting a little longer. Then out of the blue the call came.
So what can we tell you about her? She is 25 and recently divorced. She had 2 children thru her marriage that are healthy so that is a good sign. She is not wanting to meet us right now, the agency said she is very shy but is committed to the adoption plan. She is Hispanic and the birthfather, who is not in the picture at all, is also Hispanic. Her family does not know that she is pregnant and planning adoption. This is a HUGE RISK FACTOR. The Hispanic culture has a very strong family bond, which is really great, but it also means that very few Hispanic birthmothers get the support needed to follow thru with their adoption plan. So we are proceeding with guarded hearts. We are excited yes, but very nervous. Oh, and I guess I should mention that she is due on JULY 2ND! That's right less than a month from today and less than 7 months from the date we started filling out paperwork for the adoption.
Obviously we need your prayers but we also ask that you pray for our birthmother. Yes I said "Our Birthmother". I can say that now, especially after the agency sent us the invoice for the matching fee (did we say somewhere in our blog before that adoption is not cheap). She needs a lot of encouragement from God and her friends who are her support system right now. I pray that God gives her the courage and strength she needs to make it through this difficult time in her life and the peace to know that she is making the right decisions with her adoption plan.
Last little story. Wednesday night I was working on Microsoft Money and looking at our budget. Back about 2 months ago I decided to include the payments that we would be making to Generations in our budget and just picked some "random" dates for those payments. So Wednesday I was looking at the dates and told myself "we haven't heard anything yet so I am going to move the matching fee payment date back one week from June 5th". Yes, 2 months ago at random I put down June 5th as the date for making the matching fee payment. So after I got off the phone with Generations and then Jenny, I sat in my car and asked God forgiveness for not believing in Him on Wednesday night. He obviously had a plan all along and I tried to take over by changing the date. And to go one step further, the original date that I put in the budget for the final payment to Generations which comes when we take the baby home was July 1st. That's pretty close the the due date for our birthmother isn't it. GOD IS AMAZING AND I'M SHOUTING IT FROM THE MOUNTAINTOPS (or at least the new age mountaintops called the internet)!
I know this is a long post but HELLO, this is big news. We thank you all for your prayers and just ask for support over these next few weeks. It is going to be very nerve-racking knowing that there is a strong chance she may decide to parent the child on her own. We are going to write her a letter this weekend to hopefully reassure her of who we are and that God is in control and will take care of her. As I said, it is with guarded hearts that we tell everyone because this could be very exciting but it also could be very difficult.
Jesus is the Reason no matter what the Season!
Jerry
But it wasn't a school, it was Generations calling. Cathy was calling to let me know that we have been chosen by a birthmother. Needless to say that I got lost in a neighborhood while on the phone with her until I finally pulled over at the school I was originally heading to. So what do we know? Well, let me go back to the beginning. About 3 weeks ago we got an email about this birthmother asking if we wanted our profile shown to her. She didn't exactly fit our pre-set criteria so they asked if it was okay and we said yes. Then last week we got an update that she never came in to look at profiles because she does not have transportation. So we figured that this wasn't going to happen and we needed to prepare our hearts for waiting a little longer. Then out of the blue the call came.
So what can we tell you about her? She is 25 and recently divorced. She had 2 children thru her marriage that are healthy so that is a good sign. She is not wanting to meet us right now, the agency said she is very shy but is committed to the adoption plan. She is Hispanic and the birthfather, who is not in the picture at all, is also Hispanic. Her family does not know that she is pregnant and planning adoption. This is a HUGE RISK FACTOR. The Hispanic culture has a very strong family bond, which is really great, but it also means that very few Hispanic birthmothers get the support needed to follow thru with their adoption plan. So we are proceeding with guarded hearts. We are excited yes, but very nervous. Oh, and I guess I should mention that she is due on JULY 2ND! That's right less than a month from today and less than 7 months from the date we started filling out paperwork for the adoption.
Obviously we need your prayers but we also ask that you pray for our birthmother. Yes I said "Our Birthmother". I can say that now, especially after the agency sent us the invoice for the matching fee (did we say somewhere in our blog before that adoption is not cheap). She needs a lot of encouragement from God and her friends who are her support system right now. I pray that God gives her the courage and strength she needs to make it through this difficult time in her life and the peace to know that she is making the right decisions with her adoption plan.
Last little story. Wednesday night I was working on Microsoft Money and looking at our budget. Back about 2 months ago I decided to include the payments that we would be making to Generations in our budget and just picked some "random" dates for those payments. So Wednesday I was looking at the dates and told myself "we haven't heard anything yet so I am going to move the matching fee payment date back one week from June 5th". Yes, 2 months ago at random I put down June 5th as the date for making the matching fee payment. So after I got off the phone with Generations and then Jenny, I sat in my car and asked God forgiveness for not believing in Him on Wednesday night. He obviously had a plan all along and I tried to take over by changing the date. And to go one step further, the original date that I put in the budget for the final payment to Generations which comes when we take the baby home was July 1st. That's pretty close the the due date for our birthmother isn't it. GOD IS AMAZING AND I'M SHOUTING IT FROM THE MOUNTAINTOPS (or at least the new age mountaintops called the internet)!
I know this is a long post but HELLO, this is big news. We thank you all for your prayers and just ask for support over these next few weeks. It is going to be very nerve-racking knowing that there is a strong chance she may decide to parent the child on her own. We are going to write her a letter this weekend to hopefully reassure her of who we are and that God is in control and will take care of her. As I said, it is with guarded hearts that we tell everyone because this could be very exciting but it also could be very difficult.
Jesus is the Reason no matter what the Season!
Jerry
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