Revocation period is over!!

Ahh!! Soo peaceful!

Bath Time

He enjoyed his tummy time today!

YAY! Yesterday was the end of the 10 day period. We can relax know and just be little Samuel's parents! Sorry that my posts are getting a little slack but as many of you can imagine we stay busy with him. We learned that he can roll over from his tummy to his back last night at two weeks and two days old. I just wanted to cry!! He's growing entirely too fast! We did manage to capture it on video but we need another cable before I can post it. Hopefully it won't be long but we shall see! For those of you who have asked I will attach a few pics to this post. Enjoy!

Merry Christmas

We hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas! We have had the best one EVER!

Just a few pics.......

In one of his Christmas outfits!

Just enjoying some sleep!

With his Grammy

Home at last......

and loving it! Our 7 hour trip turned into an 11 hour trip. We got stopped in traffic on the interstate due to a horrible accident. We sat there for over an hour without moving an inch. Samuel didn't mind the ride home at all. He slept the entire time and Mommy was taking naps to store up for the night. I just knew I'd be up all night with him. Boy was I wrong! That kid slept the entire night! He only woke me up twice to eat and went right back to sleep. We slept in until 8:45 this morning. I was soo proud of him! I guess he knew I really needed some rest. We have his very first check-up in the morning!

Homeward bound.......

come Wednesday morning! We got word today that we have been cleared to come home. We can hardly wait! We are soo ready! It only took one and half days to get cleared. We NEVER dreamed it would have happened so fast. Ok I'm off to pack and pack and pack so that we can get out of here! We will see everyone soon!

Signing day......

This is where Samuel likes to sleep!

Still snoozing!

This was after a diaper change that went bad!
He needed to be bathed off a little and so did Daddy!
Check out those curls!

is over and she signed all the appropriate documents to terminate her parental rights. Our coordinator told me that she was doing really well and seemed to be dealing with things. She talked a lot about how she was making the right decision for him and that she knew he would be loved. The next step is getting us cleared by Interstate Compact here and at home. She delivered our paperwork to the office here. The lady she spoke with said that she would go ahead and review to see if there was any additional documents needed but that it would most likely be tomorrow before they could review all documents and clear us. She will call tomorrow and check to see how things are coming along and to see if they need anything. We will keep everyone posted!

Samuel has been released!!

Our first family photo!

Samuel LOVES his paci!

His leaving the hospital outfit!

This was his main nurse who we LOVED by the way.

He's all ready to go!

We can't hardly put him down. He's soo precious!!! He's already got both of our hearts with both hands. We've finally heard him cry for the first time today. He does it really well actually! We got to leave the hospital at 8:30ish tonight and we couldn't be happier. It's well worth everything we've done to get him and then some! The hospital staff were really great. We left with several packs of diapers, a case of formula plus some, and other little odds and ends we will need. We can't wait to get home so that everyone can see him!

We have a court date.....

set for Monday @ 8:30. We were hoping for Friday but at least it's first thing Monday. She has to go before the judge and sign her relinquishments over to us. In the state that we are in she will then have 10 days to change her mind. If she were to change her mind she would then have to go back before the judge and withdraw her consent to the adoption. We still need your prayers! We have faith that God will get us through this period! Please continue to pray that he's placed in our arms FOREVER! More later!

Introducing..........

Samuel Greyson

Born 12-11-07 @ 10:45PM

Weighed in @ 8lbs and 14oz

He's 21 inches long!

Check out all the hair this kid has!!

He's absolutely precious! He has dimples on his checks and chin. The little outfit he's wearing that fits perfect by the way is a newborn size. He won't wear that one long! Baby and birthmom are doing well. The only problem at this point is that little Samuel doesn't want to stay awake long enough to eat. The nurses are telling us that he has to do much better before they will release him. We still need everyone's prayers over the next few days.

ON THE ROAD!!

We got the call tonight at 9:45 that it was that time! She had been in labor since 7:20 (8:20 our time). The coordinator forgot to grab our home number before getting on the road. I had let her know a couple weeks ago that she would need to call us at home if it happened at night because I charge my cell at night so that I will have it during the day. She had to call the agency Director and get her to go to the office to pull our file and call us. We've been waiting on 'the call' for days but for some reason I still almost had a panic attack! After speaking with our coordinator we find out she's definately being admitted and he will be born soon! We will post an update once we get to the hospital. Please pray that things go smoothly and that he is placed in our arms forever!!

A little progress!

Her doctor's appointment yesterday went well. She's now a little over 4cm dilated!! She's having some cramping/light contractions and he stripped her membranes. He told her that he would be very suprised if she didn't have him in the next day or so. He went ahead and set an appointment for next week but told her that he should see her in the next couple days to deliver. We shall see! We are getting VERY anxious!

At 3cm and holding......

or so it seems! Today's doctor's appointment went well. She is still holding at 3cm dilated and having some pelvic pain. He has scheduled her for another appointment on Monday. Jen told the coordinator if he hasn't been born by then that she will request that he induce her. I'm not sure if he will but we shall see! Oh, I'm such a bucket of nerves!!

We are getting close!!!!

Jen went to her doctor's appointment today. She is measuring right on target and the baby looks healthy. He is in position to exit and she is dialated to 3cm! The coordinator told me that we should have a bag packed and be ready. OMG! We realize it could be any day or it could be another week or two but at least that's progress!

We have decided that it's time................

to publish the old posts concerning our adoption progress. We are REMATCHED with a birthmom!! I did ask for and received proof of pregnancy from her doctor's office. We are cautiously excited this time but have been too scared to tell too many people. Sunday she will be 36 weeks pregnant with a little boy!! WOW! The official due date is December 16th. We were officially matched on September 19th and we continue to pray that God will give her strength and help her feel secure about the decision she has made. If you look back through the old posts you should find where I've went back and released those old posts to be published. We thank everyone for their prayers as we approach the due date!!

My trip to Amy's house.....

was great! It was a much needed get away. Terri and I left last Thursday and came home on Sunday. Let's just say I think I have reconfirmed my decision of not liking to fly. We flew out of Albany and our plane was an hour late arriving and in return it made us really late for our connection flight in Atlanta. We were running from one end of the airport to the other and only had 15 minutes. Then we realized after checking our flight that it had also been delayed by 30 minutes which was great. We spent the weekend relaxing and just hanging out with each other. On Friday we visited Baylor University and the community college where Amy works and goes to school. Baylor is a Christian college and one of the buildings was in the shape of a cross. It was neat to get to see. Then on Saturday we went to the local zoo and the Dr. Pepper Museum. We all really had a good time and enjoyed ourselves. Sunday morning we were up and back at the airport. Things were running really smooth until it's time for us to board our plane in Atlanta to fly back in to Albany and there's no crew to fly the plane. We end up sitting for an extra hour in the Atlanta airport before we are able to fly out. We made it home safely and that's the important part!

She made it......

home by the weekend! I know she's happy to finally be back in her own bed. She will start going to physical therapy on Monday so I'm sure that will be a total different ball game. Thank you everyone for your prayers!

The BIG TB test.....

for out homestudy update. Oh how fun it was!! Yeah right! Chad was out of town so I decided that I would be a big girl and go all by myself. WRONG!! I broke all of my rules for how to 'handle' being stuck with a needle. You see there's a process I have to go through to prepare myself. First I have to eat breakfast, then I have to lay down, and lastly NO MATTER WHAT I don't look at the injection site! I broke EVERY last blasted rule I've always followed since I discovered I have the vaso-vagal response (fainting due to sudden loss of blood pressure). Some people will never know what this response is like but after an episode you feel completely horrible for the rest of the day. It took me an hour to recover before I felt comfortable enough to drive away! Let's just say that I've learned my lession and I will NEVER try to be a big girl again when it comes to needles!!

Please pray for my mom!

She had a partial knee replacement surgery today. The doctor said she done well and the hard part will be recovery. She will be in the hospital for two or three days before she can be released to go home. She wants to be out of there by the weekend because she swears you don't get as good of care over the weekend. Please pray that she does well and gets home soon!

Frustrated.......

with the process! I completely understand that everyone has to be paid at the end of the day but I feel like every corner we turn there's someone there with their hand out. We got word today that our homestudy has to now be updated. We will have the update fee with the social worker, a doctor visit fee for a physical, more lab work fees, fingerprint fees, and on and on. I realize in the end when we are holding our precious little guy it will be way worth it but today I'm just soo overwhelmed! All of this because he's due just 10 days past it's expiration. URGH!

Cautiously but anxiously waiting....

for December. Our birthmom, Jen, will be going to doctor's appointments bi-weekly from now on out since she's now in her third trimester. Last night I was in the nursery just looking through baby clothes and so forth to see what we had that could be used for him. I started packing up all of the girl clothes that would not be appopriate for him. We aren't going to do anything with them until we have received placement and the revocation period is up. It was a little sad to see the twin outfits that had been purchased especially for 'the twins'. It will just have to be a work in progress since we refuse to redecorate until we are 100% sure he will become part of our family. We aren't saying we won't take down the pink but we will keep it and not put back until after we are home. We feel like this is the best decision!

Ultrasound results..............

are BLUE!! Looks like he will be pretty in pink since that's all we have! LOL! Chad would pitch one more fit if I even went near him with a spec of pink. We think it will be nice to have a fresh start and get rid of those things that have such bad memories attached. We may start little by litlle trying to get rid of the major things and wait to repurchase until we are home with the lil man. We'll see! I'm just not to comfortable with the thought of going ahead and preparing again. It's hard to not get excited but I also believe it's good to try and guard our hearts to some degree. Come on December!

Spent Saturday........

at St. Simons fishing. We had an exciting time considering we actually caught something. We drove over for the day with another couple and fished the flats. We caught two fish (not sure what kind), a blue crab, an eel, and three sting rays. You would have thought that we were under attack by something unknown to man the way us girls reacted!

Are you ready for this? We are.......

REMATCHED!! YAY! We can't help but be excited. I received a call today at 1:20 on my cell letting us know that a birthmom has chosen us to parent her baby. She is due on December 16th. I always said I'd like a Christmas baby! Please pray that things will go smoothly for us this time and that we won't have to experience another heartache. We don't know if the baby will be a girl or boy but we should find out next week. She has a scheduled doctor's appointment for an ultrasound to determine the sex. We have also requested to see verification of the pregnancy and her medical records. They told us that it shouldn't be a problem. The coordinator has met with her and performed a pregnancy test that turned positive. Please, please, please let this be real!!

Looks like we are stuck........

working with the same agency. We got the response that no fees were going to be refunded but that they would uphold their orginal contract and rematch us with those fees we've already paid. We could file suet against them but it would drag things on for months with no end in sight. We need to move on from this and not risk losing anymore money. Trust is going to be an issue and things will just have to be done differently. Hopefully things will progress fast and we can have our family so that we can move forward with our lives. It seems this entire process has overcome us and become who we are. That is not what we wanted to happen!

As for Renay we are doing our part to try and make sure no one else is scarred by her. We sent in our statement along with a copy of the evidence we have. They are thinking that maybe they can file federal charges against her!

I Would Die For That

I ran across this video and thought it was amazing! I know that some people who frequent my blog can totally relate with this song as I can. Unfortunately this is a part of our life that we will always remember. I believe in a sense that infertility changes who we are and how we relate to certain things. I will never know what it's like to carry a biological child but hopefully by the grace of God we will know what it's like to be Mom and Dad. She done a great job of touching every avenue. I remember those days to well! Hope you enjoy!

Renay was not who we thought she was!

For those of you who don't know we got some very disturbing news last week to add to everything we've gone through the past five months. I received a phone call from the agency on Wendesday with an update. It appears we've been scammed!! Renay has done nothing but lie for months now and has robbed our dreams and several others of becoming parents. It appears it may go back as far as 2002. We are almost positive there are more that just aren't aware that it was never true. Renay is not and has not been pregnant this entire time. We are pretty sure she has NEVER been pregnant and that she has NO other children. Everything was a lie!! The first baby, the almost miscarrying that baby, the second baby, the cancer, and her changing her mind. She knew she had to do something because she couldn't produce any babies!! I'm furious and we are heartbroken once again that she has done this. We are upset that our agency didn't protect us from her. That's what an agency is for! They never once verified her pregnancy or any of her medical records as they told us they did.

There have been different variations of her story. Some couples were told it was a single pregnancy and some were told twins only to be told later that one passed away in the womb. I thank God she at least spared us of that misery. I have been exchanging emails with another lady whom Renay betrayed. Our stories are almost identical with minor changes here and there. They were told twins and are as prepared as we are. How can someone prey on people who can't have children and literally torture them for months? It's just extremely hard to comprehend! She only got $250 for maternity clothes but she stole our dreams, hopes, and tormented us emotionally! I feel as if she has even moved into our home since we have a completed nursery that constantly reminds me of what she done to our family!

BTW: If the two babies that we've loved in our hearts would have actually existed they would have been a month old today!

Not much to update

We really know nothing more than we did three weeks ago. The girls should have been a week old on Friday and Renay hasn't even sent word that they've been born and that everyone is ok. We would even like to know how Renay is doing. How her treatments are going and so forth. As the days progress I am growing more bitter with her decision to not give us any updates. We are not asking for continued contact. We only want to know that they were born and if they are in the NICU or what. I need answers so that I can try to find peace with her decision to parent. I feel lost these days. How do you go from preparing to bring home a precious baby to preparing to bring home two precious babies to such heartache? We have a completed nursery with no knowledge of when we may be able to fill it. Our contact with the agency has dwendled down to nothing unless we call with a question. We were told that we would be added back to their list of hopeful adoptive couples according to our application date. This really gives us NO comfort at this point! We need answers that I'm afraid we may never get!

Moving on....

is something we must do but I find myself asking how. How are we supposed to just let go? We realize that the girls never belonged to us and that they are Renay's children and ultimately it's her decision. I wish we didn't know what day they are going to be born. Knowing the date just makes me want to be there more. We stayed guarded for a long time when we first matched and as things progressed we dropped that guard. It just seemed soo real!

We had a good weekend all in all. We went out of town Saturday and came home Sunday. It was nice to be able to just get away. I think it was the first step in healing our hearts. We really needed that time together! We pray that we NEVER have to experience this pain again. We thank God for not letting us meet them before Renay changed her mind! After holding them in our arms I think we would have rather died than to have given them up.

I spoke with our coordinator yesterday and if for some reason Renay reconsiders placing the girls they would call us first. For now we have decided to proceed onto the next step. We can't get our heart set on her changing her mind. If it happens that's great if not we have moved on. They will start showing our profile and DVD to potential birthmoms ASAP. When the time is right God will bless us with a family!

Missy the verse below that you sent me to a while back has helped me through this!

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, lean not unto your own understanding, but in all your way acknowledge him and he will direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

Two Broken Hearts!

We received the call yesterday that no adoptive parents EVER want to receive! The agency informed us that Renay has changed her mind and decided to parent the girls. We are extremely overwhelmed with saddness. It feels like they have died. I know that is not the case but my heart just aches. I know time will heal our pain and the baby that is meant for us will be sent our way but it's soo hard to let go. We have been matched with Renay for four long months now and had gotten to know her and her family so well. This pain is worse than any negative pregnancy test or negative beta we ever received! I feel like I'm having the worst nightmare of my life and I'm ready to wake up.

For those of you who are learning about this here on the blog I apologize! It's been very hard for me to tell anyone. I couldn't even tell Chad. I had the agency to call him and send him over to my work to pick me up. Then he phoned parents and grandparents so that I didn't have to place the calls. I know he's hurting to and I know it was hard for him as well. Thank you Chad and I love you!

One more week......

and we will be heading north! I can't believe it's getting soo close! It seems like just yesterday we got the phone call about Renay's situation. I didn't think time would fly so fast but it really has. Now if we can just get through this last week and a half of anticipation we'll be doing great! Everyone keeps saying rest now while you still can. Yeah right! The excitement and anticipation is getting the best of me.

Sunday I hear Chad just laughing in the kitchen. He's standing there holding a bag of chips with a bag of salad clipped to them. We had pizza and salad the night before and while I was cleaning up the kitchen instead of putting the salad in the fridge I just clipped it to the chips and slung it in the cabinet! So much for that bag of salad mix!

Brain stem biopsy scheduled.....

for next Thursday, July 19th. We are praying for good news. Renay has requested to speak with us one more time before we travel. I'm excited to get to speak with her again! It's been over three weeks since our last phone call. I think it will be good to get reacquainted before we meet in person. She has graciously agreed to us spending some time with her the days before delivery. Soo EXCITED!!

Bitter Sweet.....

is the way I think of things! It seems after the tests that her cancer has also spread to her other eye and to her brain stem. Her left eye doesn't appear to be as progressed as her right so the doctors are hoping that they will be able to maintain her vision in at least that eye. The name of the cancer from my understanding is Myeloma. It seems to be a very rare cancer that normally occurs in older individuals. It saddens me to know that it's not a curable cancer and is only treatable to prolong her life. She was having a hard time with things but has now chose to spend the rest of her time with her children instead of being depressed and crying. I'm sure she has her days when it's harder than others but to a degree I believe she's trying to find peace with her prognosis.

Her doctors have decided to perform a c-section on Friday, July 27th, to deliver the babies. She sent word that I'd better be there in the delivery room with her. Are you kidding? I wouldn't miss it for the world! We have made the decision to leave on Tuesday and spend the night maybe half way and drive the rest on Wednesday morning. That would give us Wednesday afternoon and Thursday to spend with Renay. We would like to do something with her and maybe go out to dinner. We were also thinking we'd take lots of pictures and maybe some video clips for the girls to have later in life. Most likely they will NEVER have the chance to meet or even speak with their biological mother. I believe this is one of the harder things for me. I really wanted for them to have the choice when they're grown to find their Mom. I have asked that we be kept informed about Renay after placement. They have assured me that we will be. We are extremely excited to welcome them into our lives and home but also extremely sad for Renay and her other children!! As I said it's just BITTER SWEET!

Sneak Peak

Thought I would post something more upbeat. I decided that everyone might like a sneak peak at their room. It is now finished! We decided we needed to step on it since the babies could be born soon. Their names have been a working progress. I had Emma's name painted and ready to hang about two days before Ella made her grand appearance. Meagan came over tonight and we added the ribbon and got them up on the wall. I couldn't have done it without her help. Thanks again! It was nice to stay busy and keep my brain occupied even if it did drive us a little crazy. We hope to have more answers from the tests soon!

Answers please!

Renay's doctors have scheduled several tests for tomorrow. One of the tests will be a full body scan where they can determine if the cancer has spread to another part of her body. This will also allow them to check the babies and make sure everything is ok with them. We are praying for more answers tomorrow. They hope to know how progressed the cancer is and to determine how long they can leave the babies before she must have treatment. The babies could be here as early as next week or they may determine they can stay a little longer. Everything is soo uncertain at this point. Everyone is just sick with worry for her, her children, and the babies. This is just so unimaginable! I know I shouldn't ask why but sometimes I find myself wanting to ask. Please continue to pray!

Not what we expected!

We expected to speak with Renay tonight and see how she was feeling. That's not what took place! Instead we received a call from Sandy, our consultant, with an update. Renay had to go back to the cancer specialist today and received devastating news. She didn't feel up to talking tonight. The tumor is larger than they originally thought and the cancer has spread to her eye. The doctor wants to go in and remove the tumor and her right eye. This would leave her with very limited vision. The doctor is saying that if they wait and do nothing it will spread to her brain. She desperately wants a second opinion so she is trying to get in with another specialist this week. If he says the same thing they will proceed with the surgery. I really wish there was something more we could do for her. She is just asking for everyone's prayers!

The results are in.....

and Renay has cancer. We are concerned and worried for her and her family. She is taking things very hard! At this time she is staying with her mother so that she doesn't have to be alone. She will be able to begin treatment immediately. According to her cancer specialist and high risk pregnancy specialist it will cause no harm to the babies. They are going to begin by draining the fluid from her eye and then administer three low dose treatments of radiation to shrink the tumor. We are hoping to get to speak with her this week. That will give us a better idea of how she's coping.

Renay needs our prayers!

She has been having some trouble with blurred vision and headaches. On Tuesday she visited her eye doctor thinking that she was just needing glasses. During her exam they discovered a tumor behind her right eye. It seems that it's attached to her optic nerve causing her headaches and blurred vision. It's also causing her left eye to be strained and to work overtime to compensate for the blurred vision in her right eye. She has an appointment scheduled with a specialist on Friday for a biopsy. After the results from the biopsy we will know more about how this will affect the rest of the pregnancy. Please keep her, her family, and the babies in your prayers.

Baby Care Training

We had to attend a baby care training at the hospital tonight. It was part of our requirment for the adoption. Us mommies just got to sit back and watch the dads dress, diaper, feed, burp, etc. the babies (dolls). They went over what the babies would look like, what would be done to them after birth, and how to care for their umbilical cord/belly button. We also got lots of goodies! We got twice as much as everyone else since we are having two babies. That's only fair, right? We thought so anyway! One lady asked what year we were having twins because there was no way two babies were in my tummy. LOL! That was just hilarious! She didn't realize that we were adopting. We were the only non pregnant couple in the room. It was kinda strange in a way. We are now trained, CPR certified, homestudy approved, DFCS cleared, and probably anything else you want to add. Bring on the babies!!

30 Weeks.....

and soo close! I can't believe Renay is already 30 weeks along with the babies. It seems like just yesterday that we got the phone call and were matched with her. I guess time really does fly when you're having fun. We can hardly wait to meet them for the first time. I know delivery day will be here before we know it but for some reason it almost feels as if the clock has stopped. This week has been a little rough so maybe that's why. I did get to speak with her on Friday and all is well with everyone. Another check-up is scheduled for this Thursday. Her doctor is hoping for at least 34 weeks and if they aren't here by 37 they will induce.

A sigh of relief!

Yesterday my nerves got the best of me. I spoke with the coordinator we will be dealing directly with while out of state taking placement of the babies. She was answering all of my insurance questions about the care the babies will receive after delivery. We are having to make sure that all doctors that may need or want to bill us afterwards are considered In-Network providers for my insurance. If they are Out-of-network our fees could sky rocket. This is all soo confusing! At the end of our conversation she asks if me or Sandy has had any contact with Renay this week. Ummmmmm........come to think of it we haven't! I let her know that we had a conference call scheduled for last night and as far as I knew we were still on. She proceeds to tell me that she had been trying to reach her all week and had been leaving her messages but that she hadn't returned any of her calls. Oh no! I tell myself that everything is fine but to just confirm I'm going to call Sandy and make sure we are still going to have our call. Yep! Everything will proceed on schedule.

Time rolls around for our call and Sandy calls to let me know that she can't make contact with Renay. Ok I'm VERY concerned at this point! This just isn't like her. She notices the complete panic in my voice and reassures me that everything will be fine. Like Sandy said anything could be going on but if anything were wrong she would make contact. She felt very confident about that. We hang up on the note that if Renay contacted her she would give me a call. I was very concerned and didn't get much sleep last night.

This morning first thing Sandy calls to let me know that Renay has just contacted her and that EVERYTHING is fine!!! :-) I return back to calm mode at this point. That's all I needed to hear. Just hearing from her makes a world of difference in my stress level. She had attempted to call Sandy back several times last night with no success. Sandy doesn't think her cell was having good reception because her phone never registered her call or mine. (I called her back at 8:30 last night to check and see if she'd heard anything. I didn't get an answer either.) Sandy also asked her about why she didn't return the other coordinator's call. It turns out that there was a misunderstanding between them that Renay was upset about. She promised to return her call today. Our call was rescheduled for today and calm mode has been restored!

OH MY GOSH!!!

We found out yesterday that we are having identical twin girls!!!! We are in TOTAL shock but we are very excited. Both babies are growing great and are very healthy. Each baby weighs in at approximately a little over a pound. Baby A is 12 inches long and Baby B is 10 inches long. Renay and our consultant saw both babies clearly. We are being sent ultrasound pics of both of our angels very soon. WOW!! We feel like we're dreaming and will wake up at any minute. God is really going to bless us as we asked!

The story: Last Saturday the 9th we had a scheduled phone call with Renay. We were talking about the baby and her next doctor's appointment. She told me that she had an appointment scheduled for this Thursday (today). I asked what they were looking for on the ultrasound and if they were just going to check her out real good and make sure she's growing ok and everything. She then spoke directly to our consultant and said that she needed to speak with her. She reassured me that everything was ok and that nothing was wrong. She told me not to worry! (Yeah right!) We ended our phone call and then our consultant called me back to update us on 'the situation'. Sandy told me that everything was ok with the baby and Renay because she knew that was where we were going. She paused .....................um........ ..................um..... (I knew something wild was about to come out at this point!) The doctors think they may have heard another heart beat (well that's good because I think mine just stopped!) They said that it could have been the baby's heartbeat echoing or Renay's but they just weren't sure. On Thursday they were going to go in with a scope ultrasound and investigate to make sure there was only one baby. Ok I'm calm by this point and thinking there is no way, everything is fine, and that the baby is just playing games with us. Oh was I soo wrong!!

Fast forward to Wendesday~ At about 11:45 as I'm about to leave work and meet a friend for lunch my cell beeps. I realize that Sandy has called and left me a message. I check the message and she just says that she has a question for me. Ok this won't take but a minute. I returned her call. As usual she asked how my day was going and so on. Then she just says CONGRATULATIONS you guys are going to be parents to IDENTICAL TWIN GIRLS!!!!! Can you repeat that for me? Are they sure? WOW! OMG! Are you kidding me? This is a day early. It turns out that they called her in a day early because they had an opening. We are asking for everyone to continue praying! God is giving us TWO wonderful miracles! WOW!

Slight change of plans....

We found out yesterday that Renay will be delivering at a different hospital than orginally planned. Since she has been put back on high risk due to the problems that she was having at 25 weeks her doctors decided that she should deliver at a high risk hospital. The hospital that she will now deliver at has an excellent NICU. This is just a precaution in case she comes early and needs medical help. The switch in hospitals works out well for us because we were having a really hard time finding somewhere to stay. There are actually several possibilities with the new location. We are confident that everything is going to work out just fine in the end!

Happy Birthday Mama!!!

I want to wish you a HAPPY 55th birthday!!! I hope you have had a wonderful day. You shouldn't cook on your birthday so tell Peter I said the he should take you out somewhere of your choice for dinner. Kick back and enjoy the rest of your day. You deserve it 55 years and two kids later! Love ya!

We got RAIN!

We finally got to see what rain looks like again! I can't even tell you when the last time it was that it rained here. Mama and I had planned a shopping trip Saturday to pick up a few more baby items. We were determined not to reschedule due to the weather. When we left it was pouring rain and when we came home it was pouring rain. Not complaining at all though because we really needed it and could even use more. We got a few things accomplished Saturday while out shopping. The main one being that I finally found the perfect outfit for her to wear home (or should I say to the motel) from the hospital. It's a pale pink short sleeved gown that buttons down the front. It's simple but very cute. Maybe it will match that pink bonnett that her Aunt Evon has for her. I also have a crocheted bib and bootie set that my Grandma made for us before she passed away. Now all we need is to fastward to August!

God has answered our prayers!

We would like to thank everyone for their prayers! I spoke with Renay tonight and she is doing MUCH better. I was growing increasingly concerned tonight because we had some trouble getting in touch with her. When we got to talk with her we found out that she was at the hospital! Her daughter had fell and broken her arm! Renay said that she hasn't really skipped a beat. Her only concern was that she may use her cast as a weapon against her brother!

She had another Dr's appointment today and everything seems to be back in check. She has a good heartbeat and her stress test showed no stress! That's awesome because all of her previous ones showed at least some stress. Renay told me that we should be prepared because she doesn't like night time. She seems to be really still during the day and then wants to turn cartwheels when she tries to sleep at night. Renay has purchased her a Bible and a gift certificate so that we can take it and have her name inscribed on the front. We just think that is awesome!!

We are still cautious but not as scared as we were. God has answered our prayers!

We need your prayers!

Here is a picture of our little angel. She seems to be perfect in every way! She is becoming a little anxious. We got a call yesterday afternoon that our birthmom woke up to blood and went to the emergency room. She's only 25 weeks along and is already 40% effaced. The doctor stitched her cervix and she will receive three celestron shots a week to help strengthen the baby's lungs. She has also been placed on strict bedrest. The agency has assured us that everything will be fine with the doctor's monitoring her. We're just sick with worry and was wondering if everyone would just say a little prayer for our baby girl!!

OMG!

Saturday, May 19th, us girls were off for a day of shopping. My Aunt Terri and Uncle Buddy were here visiting for the weekend and she wanted to get us a baby gift while she was here. My Mom, Aunt, and I decided to visit a few of the local baby shops to see what they had to offer. We got to the second store where disaster struck! My Aunt had picked out two little dresses, called my name, and started to walk over to me. OMG! I can't believe my eyes! She tripped landing face first on the hardwood flooring. She is screaming with pain and holding her left arm. I try to help her get up with no success. There was no way we could transport her to the hospital. The shop owner dials 911 and my Mom and I do our best to comfort her. She is meanwhile asking for her husband and we can't seem to locate him. The police arrive first (Big Surprise) and they started moving things around to make way for the paramedics. We follow the ambulance to the hospital and while on the way put my brother, Cliff, on the mission to locate her husband. After being examined at the hospital she has a large bruise on the left side of her forhead, a large skin tear on her left arm, and her left arm is broken in TWO places above her elbow! WHAT?!?! How in the world?

Movin' on up!

I got to have a girls chat with Renay tonight. She really opened up to me this time and talked my head off. She let me know that her doctor's appointment went well yesterday and that they have decided to induce three weeks early. She will be born the beginning of August!! (Thinking 8/7) They also took a video ultrasound of the baby yesterday and she is having us a copy made and will send it to our coordinator to be mailed to us. They are expecting her to be a big baby as her last child was 7lbs at 37 weeks. We are excited about the induction because it will allow several things to take place. This will give us a chance to make plans ahead of time and not to have to make all arrangements at the last minute. I am NOT a last minute person!! We discussed us flying in a day early and going out to dinner with Renay beforehand so that the first meeting is not at the hospital. She really liked this idea and we will have the coordinator present during this time to answer any last minute questions. Things are moving right along!

Happy Mother's Day!

Today is Mother's Day and I would like to thank my Mom for putting up with me and Cliff. I happen to believe you done a great job in raising us and I also believe that it probably wasn't always an easy job! However I think I was your 'good' child. At least I never tried to tie-dye my jeans on your brand new carpet! No I'll never let him live that one down! How could I? That's just hilarious! I will always remember our trips to Disney World at Christmas and to the beach during the summer. We always looked forward to those. I can remember counting down the days until each occasion. Those are our memories as a family we'll always have! I'm soo glad that you and Daddy gave us those memories. I pray that we can do as well with our little girl so that she will always remember the good times with us. I hope nothing happens to us for a long time but as we learned you just never know when our time will come. Unfortunately I also have December 26, 1997 bookmarked in my brain as if it were yesterday. What 16 year old who lost their Daddy suddenly wouldn't? The important thing is that you picked up and got us all through those hard times as well!! We have lots of wonderful memories of him and you together with us as a family. That is what's important in life! Thanks MAMA for putting up with me being extremely picky and downright hard to handle at times! Chad calls this being high maintenance. I just pray that I can be as good of a mother to our little girl as you have been to me!

6 year Anniversary......

together and still going strong! We had a nice weekend together. We spent the day fishing out on the lake and then went out for dinner together at Enricos. They have the best Italian food EVER! I never thought I'd find any Italian I enjoy any better than Olive Garden but Enricos put them to shame. The restaurant was located beside the lake. We had a little table close to the window where we were able to see the sun as it started to set. We finished dinner and headed back to the lake to finish watching the sunset. Absolutely beautiful! This has been a fun but crazy year. For more than three years we tried to start our family and God told us no. We now in a matter of months have started the adoption process, completed lots of paperwork, have been matched, and are awaiting the arrival of our little girl. WOW! God works in amazing ways! In a couple of months we may find out why God hasn't answered our prayer before now. LOL! Just kidding! We've never expected parenting to be a breeze or to be all fun but do expect her to be the BEST gift ever! We know that this year will probably be just as wild and crazy if not more. Hang on with us and enjoy the ride!

First call went well!

We believe the first call with Renay went relatively well. Once we were all on the same line Sandy introduced everyone and then she let us take it from there. I began the conversation on a light note with a few 'get to know you' questions. We found out that she's a cat person, likes vanilla better than chocolate, her favorite movie is A Walk to Remember, and she enjoys watching American Idol and Deal or No Deal. Sounds exactly like me other than the whole cat thing. That's one topic I'll have to disagree with her on. LOL! She had a really sweet and shy voice. We asked a couple medical/health questions that she was able to answer for us. Renay hasn't hardly been sick at all but she has been more tired than usual. She wanted to make sure that we knew the baby was a girl. I was curious as to how sure they were that it was a girl and she let me know they are VERY sure! Renay told us that she wasn't shy at all during the ultrasound. She also let us know that ultrasound pictures should be on the way to us before long because she took her copies to CVS to have us a copy made. She wants to keep the originals so that she will have a copy. She has handmade a blanket to give the baby at the hospital and has started a baby book for us. She has noted things like her first kick and when she found out the baby was a girl. We wanted to make sure she understood that we are willing to communicate as often as she'd like. The more we hear from her the better I think we will fell. I feel like if she gets to know us a little then maybe it will help her at placement in not feeling we are total strangers. We let her know how awesome she is and how grateful and honored we are to have the chance to be parents to her baby!

Can you say NERVOUS?

One more day and we get to speak to Renay! It's extremely exciting but also makes me very nervous. I have all of these questions in my mind. Will she like us? What will she think of us? Will we fit her expectations? Will one of us ask something that will offend her? Will we ask all of the questions we would like to know? I'll stop now because I probably could go on and on. Our call will be at 5:00 our time so we are asking that everyone say a prayer for us. I have NO doubt that once the conversation gets started good that it will take off. My nerves play on how to start the conversation and get her engaged. I will update everyone afterwards! God please guide and be with us!!

It's a GIRL!!!!

We found out today at 12:05 that we are having a baby girl! We couldn't be more excited and now we can head to the stores for even more fun. I have my heart set on a pink glider rocker that's dark wood but I haven't been able to locate one as of yet but I haven't gave up. All I've found is white wood with pink. I'm not sure that it would match our cherry furniture in the nursery very well. Now we have to decide on a name. We've discussed this topic some and have a few possibilities but nothing set in stone. Evon we can hardly wait to see her in that bonnet you've been saving! We look forward to the weeks ahead filled with planning and nervousness!! Oh soo exciting!

We are going to get to talk with Renay....

Next Friday the 4rth at 4:00!! Oh man! I’m nervous but soo excited! What do you say to someone who is going to give you the gift of a family? There are no words to describe how grateful we are and will always be towards her. We are currently preparing a list of questions to send over to our coordinator of things we’d like to know about the birth family. Renay will do the same so that our coordinator can share our questions with her and her questions with us ahead of time. I think this will be a valuable tool to help calm everyone’s nerves to a degree. Sandy, our birthmom coordinator, tells us that she’s very excited to meet us and that we’ll just love her. I don’t see how we couldn’t!

Tune back in on Tuesday the 1st for the verdict! Pink or Blue?

Fast forward a month!!!

This morning we received a call from our new birthmom coordinator, Sandy. I had prayed for some answers to our questions. We were having a little trouble getting some of our questions answered. The other coordinator we were assigned to in the beginning always had excuses but we thought they were good excuses! (had a birthmom deliver, had scheduled appointment, sick all weekend, etc.) That is until we got our new coordinator today. All our questions were answered and we received LOTS of updates!! We found out she had a Dr's appointment scheduled for this afternoon at 1:00!!! She answered the questions that I had been asking for about a week and then told me she would call me with an update after her appointment.

She called me back around 4:30 this afternoon and our baby will be born a month earlier! She is farther along in her pregnancy than they originally thought. We are now 21 weeks along instead of 17!! WOW! This is going fast! She informed her OB today that she wants to deliver on the OB wing of the hospital and after the baby is born she would like to be moved to another part of the hospital. She has requested to be moved so that we can have her room and begin bonding with our baby! This woman is AWESOME!!! Our birthmom also requested for ultrasound pictures to be sent to us and for us to be involved in the pregnany. She wants us to get all updates on the baby's health. The baby had a heart rate of 147 today and was very healthy. The birthmom was previously considered high risk but after her appointment today everything was great and he said there was no need in keeping her on high risk. The BIG ultrasound appointment is Tuesday, May 1st!! Next week we may know pink or blue! (If the baby cooperates!)

Triple Digits........

on our counter deserves a post! Our birthmom is 100 days pregnant today (16 weeks 2 days) . I have gotten to speak to our birthmom coordinator over the phone this week. Her name is Carrie and she appears to be very supportive to both us and the birthmom. She is completely open to answering or obtaining answers to all of our questions. She is very confident that we will receive ultrasound pictures of our little one! YAY! Currently we are in the process of our birthmom being switched from her regular doctor to an OB. We are awaiting the news of her first OB appointment. Hopefully we will have an appointment scheduled in the next two to three weeks. I'm ready to head to the stores for some retail therapy!! Carrie is also working to schedule a conference call with us and the birthmom. She encourages both sides as she feels it helps both parties calm their fears. Everything seems to be progressing smoothly at this point!

Breaking the news on Easter.......

was lots of fun! We were matched just in time to celebrate over Easter and we wanted to do more than just blurt it over Sunday lunch. We've waited a LONG time to become parents! We decided to use plastic Easter eggs with confetti and these different phrases:

Spring has sprung a new addition!
Unloading this fall! Hope you're ready to change diapers!
Extra egg hunter on the way!
Get those arms ready!
Aren't you eggcited!
Easter bunny is dressing up as a stork this year!
Pitter Patter Pitter Patter! It's not the easter bunny you hear!
A new flower is blooming!
We have eggcellent news!
Hope the Easter bunny brings eggstra diapers!
We are adding an extra rotten egg to the bunch!
God has delivered instead of the Easter bunny!

Under each phrase we also typed baby due October 1st. I think a few people had to read it twice before they really understood what was happening! It was GREAT!!! Granny told us it was the best Easter present she could have gotten. Then she went on to tell us we couldn't name the baby after her but we had to raise him/her to please ourselves and that we couldn't please everyone. Then my Mom went on to tell us what we could name the baby. Oh and Chad's mom is thinking it will be a boy! These next couple months are going to seem like eternity!!

We're Matched! We're Matched! We're Matched!

Chad and I talked Tuesday night about the adoption and different situations and circumstances that we would accept. We decided that whatever child God brought before us was meant to be ours! On Wendesday morning, April 4th, I sent a simple email to all of the agencies in which we had been submitted to let them know that our information should be updated to include our new budget, etc. Approximately 30 minutes afterwards my cell phone rings. It's a long distance number that I don't recognize and I hesitate to even answer since I was at work. I decide to just go ahead and see what the person wanted. It was Karen with Adoption Advantage! (One of the agencies that we applied with.) She told me that they had a situation that she thought we may be interested in and asked if I could talk. I shut my office door and told her to proceed. Before calling me she had called Chad's cell phone and he immediately referred her over to me. LOL! She went into detail and it seemed that almost everything was just perfect in EVERY way!! I wanted to shout that we would accept the baby! I knew this was not the appropriate thing to do. I let her know that we were very interested and that I would need to give Chad all the details so that we could make a decision. I told her that I would call her back with a decision. She let me know that since we hadn't paid any of our adoption costs we were on a list with other potential adoptive parents. This meant it was open to more families than just us and whomever contacted her back first would become the parents to this baby. This made me VERY nervous!!!! We knew that we had a decision to make but we also knew that we had to take some time to think about every aspect. That afternoon Chad called me back at work and let me know that he was DEFINATELY interested in proceeding with the adoption. I frantically dial Karen to ask if the baby is still available for adoption............................I can't tell you yet! I had to leave a message because she was out of the office. The next twenty minutes was the longest twenty minutes of our life!! She returns my call and tells me that she still HASN"T found a family that would accept this baby. YAY!!!!!! I let her know that we were ready to proceed with the adoption. She emailed me the adoption contract for us to look over that night and asked for us to fax it back the next morning signed. She also said if there was any changes we wished to ask for they would be open to our request. I forwarded the contract on to our consultant and she let us know that it sounded like a really well rounded adoption situation. There was a few small things she let us know that we may want addressed or corrected. I called her back and she was open to the changes we requested.

The birthmom is VERY healthy. She is receiving prenatal care and the father is willing to sign his rights over to us as well. She has consumed NO drugs, NO alcohol, and NO cigerrettes! She has requested for me to be in the delivery room and for me to take the baby after delivery. She has also requested for it to be a closed adoption with no pictures or letters mailed to her. I will refrain from posting the state where the birthmother resides at this point but we will have to fly when the time comes.

WE HAVE A BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Three Months of Waiting!

Today marks three months of waiting and wondering. We are currently submitted to four agencies and sending in the paperwork tomorrow for the fifth agency. We also have paperwork coming from an adoption agency in Utah. Somehow I feel that if we had a larger amount of money we could be matched tomorrow. How do they get away with charging different amounts by the race of the child? To me that's just unethical!! I realize that ALL children need good homes and that different situations could cost different amounts depending on the circumstances. What I don't understand is how agencies get away by specifically pricing their situations by race. One website that I visit has their fees by race. For example caucasion infants are $28,000, biracial are $18,500, and african american infants are $14,000. WHAT?!?! How can that be ethical? How can people not think they are degrading african americans?

Ok I'm done venting now! We will receive the angel that's meant to be ours and I know that but it just really makes me sick sometimes. I hope we can post progress soon!

Two months of waiting......

and I'm getting impatient! God is trying really hard to teach me the meaning of patience and I don't like it. Unfortunately he didn't ask me if I liked it or not. For some reason I don't think it's going to be on our timeline or we wouldn't have been waiting for four years. At least we are getting a couple steps closer or at least we feel like we are.

We are going to be fully stocked with diapers before we are even matched! (laughing!) I've gotten into this habit of going to the store and purchasing a pack of diapers when I feel like nothings happening or I feel a little down. At least I'm buying something that will serve a good purpose in the end, right? If only we knew boy or girl we'd really be in trouble. I would have us stocked up on clothes to last the first ten years of their life. Just kidding! Chad would take my checkbook before I got that far.

Praying we hear more soon!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's Day! Today at work we are having a small gathering and we were all supposed to bring something. I tried and tried to think of something creative but there's just nothing that sounds better than a banana pudding. I spent almost an hour looking around Wal-mart for something different. In the end as you can see above the banana pudding won. When I was putting it together last night I took vanilla wafers and drew out a heart just playing around. That's what sparked the heart on the top and then I found the sprinkles. Just had to do it! Anyway I had fun and I'm sure it will be tasty. I guess that's the two important factors. Hope everyone has a wonderful day!

Words for thought.....

Today I received an email from a good friend of mine. Many of you probably know Missy but for those of you who don't she is currently at Emory fighting leukemia. She has been fighting since October 10, 2006 and is currently on phase three of her treatments. She had been reading our webiste and wanted to refer me to another verse in the bible:

Jeremiah 29:11 - "For I know the plans I have for you, " declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

I find this verse to be very true! I'm soo glad she is a woman who walks with the Lord and looks towards him for guidance. I truly believe he is the one getting her through this very hard time in her life along with her family and friends. For as long as I've known Missy she has been a follower of Christ. She was there when we began our struggle to become a family and she was the one that kept me focussed on God's will. She has always told me that I would be a Mommy when the time was right with God.

Missy if you are reading this I have been and will continue to pray for you. Hang in there and thanks for resurfacing that verse for me. I can hardly wait to make the 'I am a Mommy' call to you! I know you will be jumping for joy with me. I look forward to seeing you on your next visit home. Take care!

Here is a quote I ran across today:
"Life is not measured by the breaths you take, but by the moments that take your breath away"- Anonymous

We have a crib.......

and it's even assembled! Thanks to Granny who purchased us this beautiful piece of furniture. I think the baby will be in a nicer bed than we are! Granny ordered the crib from JcPenney and we went ahead and ordered the changing table and full size converting rails. This crib will take the baby all the way to adulthood. It's one of the three in one beds. It will convert from a crib to a todler bed and then to a full size bed when the time comes. The crib is the only piece that has came in so far. We had it shipped directly to Granny's house since we knew we wouldn't be home when it arrived. She went the afternoon of it's delivery and picked up a mattress. She said there was no way we could have a crib with no mattress. I think she's having as much fun with this as we are. Of course actually getting the baby will be the BEST fun!

Thanks to Mama and my friend Meagan we can now warm a bottle every way possible and in every situation we can imagine. Mama purchased us a warmer for home that just plugs into the wall and a portable ThermaCELL (who would have thought of that?). The portable warmer can be used in the car, restaurant, or on the plane. NICE! We even have a backup for the car because Meagan provided us with a car warmer. Our baby will not have to drink a cold bottle!

Update on Chad's fingerprints: Our consultant said that she would check into this for us. She's thinking that they just forgot to stamp his as clear. Worst case scenario we will have to call and request an additional copy that is stamped. She didn't sound like it was too big of a deal. WHEW!

Is Chad a criminal?

Yesterday after a horrible day at work we come home to a message on our answering machine. It's from our homestudy agency and there seems to be a problem. We sent our GBI and FBI fingerprints off back in November for processing. Our GBI has came back and I have my little stamp that I have no history of criminal offences but Chad on the other hand does NOT! Yep you read that right. They didn't clear him! WHAT? He swears there should be no problem. I've even threatened him with his life! (laughing) Could they have just forgotten to stamp his or made a mistake? They didn't attach any 'proof' of any problem. I have emailed our consultant to find out what the next step should be. Just when I thought the paper chase was over! DANG!

Happy Birthday Chad!!!

Chad turned the BIG 30 this past Sunday. Needless to say I had to pick on him about arriving at that milestone. No he didn't get a homemade cake. Shame on me I know! I did however make sure he had one. On my way home from work Friday I stopped by Harvey's and picked up one of their whipped icing cakes. YUM..... Anyway, it was decorated with NASCAR and even had one of those toy cars on top. You would have thought he'd turned 3 instead of 30!

We spent Sunday morning at church and had lunch with Chad's parents. He ordered fried chicken. Did he get it? Of course, he's the miracle baby! I bet he thought after he was married he wouldn't hear that anymore. WRONG!

Pritchard Baby Fund......

We have had several people to ask us what they could do to help out with our adoption. This process is really teaching us alot about our family and friends. All good things, I promise! As most of you know we've taken out the equity on our home, held a BBQ fundraiser, applied for adoption grants, and filed our 2006 income taxes. Our beginning adoption budget was $0. We have now reached the 75% mark to our adoption budget goal amount. YAY! We're almost there!

We really take pride in being self-sufficiant and it has been hard for us to ask everyone to help out. We are trying hard to make our dream of a having a family come true. If anyone is interested we've placed a 'Make a Donation Button' on the right hand side of our blog above our picture. If you will click on the button it will take you directly to paypal for a secure donation. You just enter your donation amount and payment information. If anyone has questions feel free to call or email us!

A month of waiting.....

and still counting. I know a month really isn't that long considering what we will receive in the end. An angel! But considering the fact that we have been waiting almost four years for this to happen it makes it seem like soo much longer. There's not too much to update as of now. We've officially began clearing the 'nursery' of non baby items. We have one or two items still left but nothing major.

We will be picking up Savannah for an overnighter tonight and having dinner with Granny. We have also decided that we should go ahead and let her purchase the crib. We will order the changing table at the same time to make sure they match. We want to be prepared as a 'just in case' measure of precaution. When we're home with our baby we shouldn't have to worry about putting together nursery furniture and moving it around. We should get to be enjoying our new bundle of joy just like everyone else! Hopefully we won't have the typical nine month wait most parents do and we can't buy everything at once.

We appreciate everyone's prayers and hope you will continue to send them up for us!

First Baby Shopping Trip

Saturday, January 6th
(I know I'm a little delayed with my posting. Sorry!)

We made a trip to Macon to start purchasing baby items. We realized that there would be NO WAY we could run out and purchase everything at once. My Mom, Granny, and best friend, Meagan went to Baby depot, Target, and Wal-mart. We now have the basic baby items like bottles, bibs, a few diapers, a few wipes, and one piece outfits. I've never seen soo much baby stuff at one time! My Granny was on a mission to find us a crib but unfortunately we didn't get that accomplished. She and I have since found a really nice one in the JcPenney's catalog. Once we have one I will do my best to post a pic.

The past two Sunday's we have traveled back to our hometown church. It's soo nice to be back in our hometown where we know everyone and everyone knows us. We have a few friends here but there's nothing like seeing people who knew us growing up and seeing people we grew up with. We pray we can continue attending there at Dakota Baptist. It's only about a thirty minute drive and we can visit family while we are there. I think the only downfall will be not being able to go during the week. We shall see how things go!

Happy New Year

We hope this year brings joy and happiness to everyone! We spent New Year's Day with family. Chad's Mom cooked us lunch and my Mom prepared dinner. Both were wonderful!

We told Todd and Erine we had to hold Ethan since it's rumored that whatever you do on New Year's you will do all year long. He broke me in good with a big spit-up and a full diaper! I'm confident I helped him feel better. After he showed Chad what he could do he no longer put in to hold the little guy. He was just trying to break him in right!