Changes In Our Family (also In Which We See God Is Faithful) part 5

Through it all God was and is faithful.  We waited years and years, we went through levels of emotions that we did not expect, we had fears and thoughts that stretched us and drew us to God.  We saw his faithfulness when we took the time to look for it.

G was released from the hospital at 97 days old.  She was released just days before her actual due date.  She came home a whopping 6 lbs and 14 oz.  She was a miracle.  She was not just a miracle she was our miracle!  With every visit back for checks the doctors and nurses are just amazed at her growth, her strength and the things she can do.  Her outcome has surpassed their expectations.

4 months old and she has filled a hole in our hearts.
5 Months and she smiles for the ones she loves.
This girl is 6 months and is growing both in size and personality.
She is getting stronger and more busy, and a personality all her own.  7 months of love.8 months of energy and sweetness.Check out how the princess has grown in her 9 months.  Pink Poodle has not changed, and it is hard to believe that in the beginning pink poodle was bigger than our girl, now she is tossed about, wrestled with, and chewed on.

The whole experience is really more than I can put into words.  It was the hardest, most rewarding thing we have ever experienced.  When I think about the joy of adoption and the words of the judge “as though she came from your body” she is ours.  Everything that we have belongs to her, she has a family history, she has a family name, she has a legacy.  The first few weeks, we held our breath as we learned of the struggle of the bio-mom, and we realized the depth of her gift.  We held our breath as G struggled in the first few days and weeks when she was ours.  We cheered her daily weight measurement as we saw her grow and change. And each new skill is brings our awe and wonder.  She is a mama’s girl, sure she loves her family, but she adores her mama.  She has a bond that will never be unbroken.  Ellen’s adoption journey began 4 years ago, when she presented her idea of adoption to us all.  4 years of uncertainty, 4 years of hoping and praying and waiting.  But G is worth the wait.  We are so in love.One day last month the courts finally recognized what we knew on September 9, or actually on September 5th.  This baby is our baby, this child has our hearts.The Cousins.

The entire court proceedings lasted less than 10 minutes.  GEJ2O had 17 family members at the ceremony.  17 people who have loved her before she was born.  17 people who will be there for her as Beda, and Grandparents,aunts and uncle, and cousins.

I want to encourage you if you are thinking of giving a child up for adoption, that the process is hard, and it is big and it is love.  You are giving a gift to a family that is bigger than imagined.

If you area a family waiting for a baby, know that it really is worth the heart ache, the heart-break.  The love will heal your broken heart.

God has been faithful and we were all given the chance to watch it happen.

Go hug your kids, and wrap your arms around the ones you love!

jen

Changes In Our Family (also In Which We See God Is Faithful) part 4

The Story is not over, that was only the beginning of her story.

September 9th the sun rose, just as it does every day, the moon disappeared into the horizon and people began going about their morning routine.  As the sun also rose over that great Children’s Hospital that September morning, the nurses began changing shifts, they had no idea the greatness of that day.  They scrubbed in and listened to rounds, they patted bottoms and rubbed heads, they moved wires and silenced alarms.  They hooked up tubes and started their daily routine.

J2 had no idea what our great and mighty God was doing, as her day began, under her blue checkered cover, she lay waiting…

God knew that J2’s story was just getting exciting.

We knew the significance of that day September 9th, an hour and 15 minutes away we all woke with a spring in our step and joy in our hearts we knew what a great and wonderful day that September 9th would be for our family.

Ellen and my mother, left for the longest/shortest ride of their lives to an adoption agency in a city not too far away.

From the agency to the Children’s Hospital they all went with a rush.  When they sent me this picture I sat on stage, painting again, with tears of joy in my eyes.  My sister was finally getting her dream come true!  She was going to be a mommy.  They sent me pictures of Ellen signing the legal papers, they sent me pictures of Ellen walking the bridge in the hospital, they sent me pictures in the elevator and then they sent me the best pictures of all.

They sent me the picture of the new mommy and her baby girl!
Meet GEJ2O
Ellen’s daughter and my Niece.
Ellen kept the J2 as a way to honor the bio-mom.  A connection to her past and a hope for her future.  The bio-mom made a difficult decision.  She is our hero, she chose to show her baby how very much she loved her.  She chose Ellen for J2’s mommy, she gave J2 the greatest gift of all, she gave her life, and she gave Ellen the best gift ever, she gave her the title mommy.  Ellen has sent pictures to the bio-mom, she will continue as long as the lines of communication are open.  We realize the greatness and solemnness of that gift.  We will speak of the bio-mom with honor for she gave us G.

Ellen was not able to hold G yet because she was so frail, but the sweet nurse let Ellen life her up while they changed her bedding.  G was now a whopping 2lbs and 3oz.

Shortly after they arrived and G was settled in with her new mommy, she choked, alarms went off and in a split second Ellen and Grandma, were moving backwards while a team of nurses and doctors showed up to work on our baby.  It was very traumatic.  The amazing Children’s Hospital took a minute to explain to Ellen, that because she was a micro-preemie that would likely happen a lot, to not be alarmed that the staff was equipped to take care of our baby, but it would happen again.After the room settled down Grandma took a minute to pray for our GEJ2.  Please notice that my mom’s hand is normal (actually kind of smallish) and it covers the baby.  It is really hard to understand how very small she is.Saying Goodnight for the night.
They kept the beds humid and dark, just like a mothers womb.

On September 10th Mommy and Daughter were able to spend some time together.She was so small that baby doll clothes would not fit, her hand could not even wrap around her mommy’s finger. So completely perfect and so precious in God’s Eyes.  A gift that no matter what we could never repay the bio-mom for.  We are forever grateful for this gift of LOVE.O and I took a visit to see her that first week. She was so tiny and so beautiful.

The months ahead held many ups and downs, G did have another choking episode, she was on a nasal cannula, she was given puffs of room quality air, at that point she did not require extra saturation oxygen, her lungs were strong enough for room air.  Because she was on the nose cannula she was at risk for an eye disease (ROP) that only happens to premature babies on oxygen, the test was quite traumatic for both baby and mommy’s, one nurse admitted it was one of the hardest parts of her job. G began showing signs of the disease But God…  he protected her, her number remained low and went lower as she grew.  She was tube fed until she was strong enough to suck, she was so small and so frail but the more her mommy held her the faster she grew.  The nurses commented on her growth which we claimed was mother love, prayer, and all the books that she was listening too. Ellen was able to kangaroo care with G for weeks and weeks, the more she held her the faster she grew, the faster she grew the stronger she became, and the more they snuggled the greater the bond between G and Ellen.   Daily Ellen left school at 3:30 and drove miles and miles to spend every minute possible with her baby girl., Saturdays and Sundays Ellen was there too,  On Sunday her grandma went along, she sat next to G and whispered payers and songs, she told her stories and how much she was loved.  Here is another gift from God, Ellen was worried about all the cost of driving and filling her tank.  But God…  God knew that Ellen was going to be going that distance every day for months, and God, who does all things well, provided Ellen with gas.  Money from friends or gift cards from students.  Ellen was given the gift of gas so she could save money.  God was such a provider for Ellen.  On weekends mother went along, she sat next to G and rocked next to Ellen, she graded papers and sang sweetly to baby G.

G was in the NICU at that great Children’s Hospital for 97 days.

Baby G 1 month old.  2 lbs and 9 oz.
So small the preemie onesie did not fit and the sticker was bigger than she was.Baby G at 2 months a whopping 4lbs.  Which is so small, but more than doubled her birth weight.3 months of perfect sweetness 6lbs and 8oz and 18 inches long.
{The size of a full term baby, only she was 3 months old already}

We took a Saturday and went out to see our new cousin.  R was so eager to hold her and was not willing to let her go when his time was up.  O was just as in love with baby G.  She was quite content to spend time in her cousins arms.  She had no idea what to expect from the rest of her cousins.She fit perfect in my arms and I will admit I was not willing to give her up when my time ran out either.  Oh to get that sweet baby home we were ready!

Finally after 97 days in the NICU GEJ2O was able to come home, just in time for Thanksgiving.  We are so thankful for this blessing in our lives.

Go hug your kids, and again look for God’s grace on your life
jen

P.S. I think part 5 will bring us up to date on our sweet G

Changes In Our Family (also In Which We See God is Faithful) part 3

Once again I am going to go back before I move forward. People were still finding our about our failed match, they were still stopping us and talking to us with tears in their eyes, they were showing love to Ellen, they were offering kind words, and sweet words.  Oh, there were a few well-meaning people who made comments that honestly were more offensive than comforting.  I think they were well intended, just offensive.  Please do not make any “well at least…”  or any “good thing…”  comments to an adoptive family who is sad and recovering from a failed match.  I’d like to think you mean well, but it does not go over well, it hurts and stings and the words echo in our head long after you think you offered comfort and left.  Really a simple “I’m so sorry” is enough, actually better than enough, it is perfect.  It shows you really care, and you really wanted things to work out.  {there I feel better}

On Sunday September 7th Ellen’s profile was shown to the bio-mom of the still critical and high risk J2.  We were anxious and we were prayerful, we were filled with nervous energy.

September 8th had us more anxious, surely we would have heard something.  Anything really, we needed an answer.  By this time in the school year we were up on stage painting for Alice In Wonderland, We had finished the garden scene and we were on to painting Wonderland.  The crew of people who work on set, have a close relationship we share each others joy and pain, we listen and we give advice, but mostly we offer friendship.

It was mid morning on September 8th.  The cafeteria was empty, save the lunch room ladies who were eating their lunch before the meal rush, the set crew was on stage working away and my kids were with me.  It was quiet and calm, I was painting and nursing PS, while little A was riding her scooter around the empty cafeteria, the other painting moms were working behind me.

My phone rang.

I looked at caller ID, it was my sister.  I’ll be honest I was afraid to answer, because I was afraid I was going to have to go find her to comfort her.  I suddenly was scared, and I wanted to ignore the phone.

“hello”

“Hi Aunt Jen”

I screamed.

I screamed so loud the lunch ladies jumped, they thought I was hurt, behind me I heard KS say “I bet Ellen is a new mom”

I could not stop the tears, I am not even sure what was said in that conversation on the phone except for Hi Aunt Jen.

After squealing and crying and laughing we hung up.  I turned to my set crew and just nodded my head.  I did not need to share my news, they knew!  I swore them to secrecy,  Ellen came on stage during lunch where we cried and hugged and laughed some more.  September 9th she was going to go in and sign papers.  Just like that I was a new aunt and just like that my mother was a new grandma!

That night we smiled a lot, we grinned and we giggled.  It was a spirit night at Chick-fil-A, while we were there taking up 2 tables, a sweet school mom came to us with tears in her eyes, she had learned of our failed adoption and she was offering comfort and sympathy.  The funny thing is we knew Ellen had a baby, we were about to bubble over in excitement, so with her sympathetic offering Ellen just kept reassuring her “God is good,”  and “it will all be for God’s glory in His perfect time”  That poor mom must have thought we were a little crazy, big grins and weird encouragement back to her.

September 8th was the longest night in Ellen’s memory.  She went to bed as a single woman, with dreams in her head about her future.  She knew in the morning she would be a mommy.  She was so anxious to get the paperwork signed, she could not wait to see her baby.

Go hug your kids, and remember the excitement of new love.
jen

 

 

 

Changes In Our Family (also In Which We See God is Faithful) part 2

Before I continue on with her story, let me back track a little bit, then I can move forward.

You see, we were still praying for our baby, our failed match, she was still heavy on our hearts, we wanted to be sure that she was going to be loved, we knew that in all reality clothing brand, or nursery style were not a top priority, but would our baby girl be loved, and comforted, would she be protected, and played with.  We still love our baby girl, and we still pray for her mom, and honestly our hearts still hurts a little bit for her.

But God…

God already knew that, he knew that with the failed match, we would still worry and love from afar, our baby girl, God knew what we were feeling, and thinking and even those last few hurt questions we would have.  {If this is what rejection felt like I cannot imagine the pain we put on Jesus when we reject his free gift of salvation.  He paid the ultimate price for our adoption into God’s family, and yet some people look at that gift, the exchange of His life for our life, and reject Him.  I cannot imagine the heartache that must cause.}  We knew we had to stay out of the “If Only” thought family.  Those are hardly trusting, and they only serve to draw us away from God, away from trust, away from moving forward.  So we marched forward.  We had a farewell lunch for the man-child, we prayed for him, and loved on him and left him in Ky.  We came home, we started school, we moved forward.   Ellen prayed daily for her new bio-mom, my mother prayed daily for comfort for Ellen and for her new grand daughter. We prayed for our niece and cousin and we prayed for her to come quickly.  We all told God we were sad, we all told God we were confused, we all told God we trusted.  We waited we prayed.

But God…

God knew what we did not know.

August 17th Ellen received this picture.
Not only was our family praying, our friends were praying, and Ellen’s students were praying.  A parent sent Ellen this picture, during Sunday-School the child’s teacher asked them to draw a picture of something they were praying for.  This child was praying for his teacher, and her baby to be.

August 19 Ellen posted this picture.

August 19th our lives were changing.  We had no idea what God was doing for Ellen.  We had no idea what God was doing for our baby, for our bio-mom, and for our family.

August 19th a bio-mom went into labor.  It was early, it was too early.  She was only 25 weeks, she knew it was early.  We were not there, but I am sure the mood in the delivery room by hospital staff was somber, I am sure the doctors and nurses tried to convey hope with the facts of reality.  I am sure there was a lot of hurried steps, and a lot of quiet conversations between the medical staff.  They realized what gravity they faced, I do not know if the bio-mom knew the gravity of the situation.

August 19th the nurses and doctors delivered twin girls J1 and J2.  They were tiny, they were so tiny that it is hard to believe.  They were beautiful but they were too tiny.  They were rushed from the hospital they were born in, to The Children’s Hospital, the hospital where they were born was not equipped to care for such small, and high risk babies.  They were taken to the best hospital in the area.  They were not given much hope, but the staff of nurses and doctors were the best.  The girls were J2- 1lb 12oz and 13 inches long.  J1 was no longer than a ruler.  A child’s school ruler could measure those precious babies.  There were wires and tubes, there were bells and whistles.  There were alarms and nurses, bright lights and scrubs.  The babies were in the best possible location.  They were getting the best possible care.  J2 was a little bigger than her sister, she was a little stronger, she was a little healthier.  J1 was smaller, she was more frail, and even with all the medical acton, the best doctors could offer J1 was not going to make it.  Then a sweet nurse took the heavy job of loving J1 and snuggling with her, she rocked J1 into Jesus arms.  She gave her warmth, and human touch, she gave her a quiet resting spot as J1 went to see Jesus.  Juliette is now resting in heaven waiting for her family.  She did not suffer and die alone, she was rocked, she was loved and she was cared for.

But God…

God already knew that when we learned this part of our baby’s story, we would hurt and cry for a little lost lamb.

This is not the end of her story J2 was stable, she was holding steady and she was getting the best possible care.  That Children’s Hospital was part of God’s plan for Ellen, for us and for our baby.

Baby J2 continued on steady, she has some ups and some downs, she gained the littlest of weight and grew the smallest amount.  And she waited…

September 5th.  Ellen and our mother decided to forgo the preseason football game in sweltering heat.  They decided to go shopping to finish off baby girl’s closet.  We still had no baby, but we were still trusting that God, who knows all things, had a plan for our lives.  On the way over, mother and Ellen were talking about her baby, and the desires of Ellen’s heart.  She admitted that she did not know if she could ride the pregnancy/adoption roller coaster again.  It was emotionally exhausting and she was not sure she wanted that ride, she would do it all over again and again if that was God’s plan, she was just not sure her heart could handle that again.  What she really wanted was a ‘stork drop’ a baby who was born and then the bio-mom chose adoption.  No holding her breath for months, no worry every time contact was lost, a baby who was already here whose mom knew that she could not parent that baby like the baby deserved.

God was in Ikea when Ellen’s phone rang.  God was with Ellen on a bed in Ikea when she sat down to take that call, the agency wanted to know if she would consider being a mommy to a very critical pre-term baby girl.  Ellen asked them to give her a few minutes.  She called me, I wish I could remember the conversation correctly, but what I do remember is the question she asked me.  There is a pre-term baby girl, she was 25 weeks gestation, should I let them show my profile to the bio-mom.  Oh the joy in my heart.  My answer was an instant YES!  Yes we will take that baby, she is our baby!  I knew in my heart that J2 was our answer to prayer.

Ellen called the agency back, Yes, please show my profile.  I will be J2’s mommy, I do not care what medical needs she might have, I love her already and I am ready for the challenges of being a NICU mommy.

Saturday Sept 6th was a long day…  We waited by our phones, we paced, we prayed, we were not peaceful we were anxious and we kept crying out to God.

Sunday Sept 7th the agency showed the bio-mom Ellen’s profile, but their printer was not working, she was only able to see a few pages of Ellen’s photo album (the agency had an album to show what Ellen’s life was like) they faxed it and not all of it came through.  But God… God knew, and God had a plan.

Sept 8th my phone rang…

Go hug your kids, think about the strong bond of love you share with someone.  Tell them you love them, that they are treasured.

jen

 

Changes in Our Family (also In Which We See God Is Faithful) Part 1

So, like I promised some Changing News.

This is a long one.  It is so long in fact that it will likely be a 2 part or 3 part series.  Just depending on how quiet the girlies are while I write this story.

All set?

Ok, if you will remember last year, March to be exact I announced that a biological mom had chosen my sister to be her child’s ‘forever mom’, do you remember?  I posted our excitement and thankfulness for God’s goodness on our lives.  We were so thankful for this mom and her gift to us.  My sister began putting money to the bio-mom’s account (per the adoption agency policy-lest you think she did anything dishonest) and we all began praying for her, and loving her from afar.  (how can you not love the woman who is going to give you her child?)  As school drew to a close, the bio-mom wanted to meet my sister.  So it was decided that Ellen would drive up to meet her.  (In the beginning the bio-mom lived in a different state, by the time they were going to meet the bio mom had moved to the very farthest corner of our state)  So Ellen, my mother and O went up to meet her, planning on taking her out to lunch, loving her, getting to know her, and then going to the doctor’s office with her to hear our babies heart beating and get any other medical news we would need.  Through a series of unfortunate events, it was determined that the 3 travelers would only get to go to the doctor’s office.  After returning home from the visit, the bio-mom made it increasingly difficult to get in touch.  With 2 days left to her due date the bio-mom texted her agency she changed her mind, she was not going to give Ellen her baby.  She was going to keep our baby girl.  We were left speechless, and dumbfounded.  We were blindsided by this news, and struggled to cope.  We knew God had a plan, we were so sure that baby girl was our plan.  We cried, we sobbed, we got angry (okay I got angry, I was very angry) but strangely enough my sister did not get angry with the bio-mom, she was sad for her and she was scared for baby girl, but she never got angry.  (I did, I was very angry HOW could anyone do THAT to my sister?  What was she thinking? Why had she changed her mind, this was not best for our baby.-I might still be a little bitter)  We all suffered and began the slow process of healing from that loss.  My sister had a brand new room all outfitted for baby girl, she had clean sheets in the crib, and her hospital bag packed and sitting by the door, she had plans drawn up, the car seat was buckled in her car, the stroller was in the trunk.  Now this woman has dealt us a blow that we did not know how to recover, it was like a death to us.  July was an extremely difficult month for us.  Slowly we began to recover, our hearts began to mend.  Through it all we knew that God had a plan, we assumed that baby girl was our plan, we trusted God, but we were confused and hurt. Did you know that you can trust God and still be sad or hurt?  Yes, God knows your emotions and your heart and He is the one who created you and that pile of emotions you have!  God knew best for our lives, we trusted him, but we were so sad, we were surprised at the change of His plans for our families.  July turned to August, which was difficult in a different way, school was starting, at the end of the school year, all of my sisters students, current and former had celebrated her great news, now she would have to share over and over the loss in her life.

But God…

You see this is the happy start of our story .  Or actually the amazing showing of God’s faithfulness in Ellen’s life.

But God…

But God knew what was best for us, God knew Ellen’s needs, God loved my sister more than I did, more than my mom did,  God loved Ellen so much more than we can grasp.  God had a perfect plan for Ellen and her future.

Soon after school started, August 19th actually, a young woman went into labor…

Go hug your kids, and look for the rest of the story.  While you are waiting, look for some But God… in your life,  Look to see how God shows Himself faithful over and over in your life.

jen

Hello, Is Anyone Out There?

Hello?
Hello, is anyone there?
Hello

Knock-Knock
Hey, I’m back…

Hello?
Anyone?

So I think I have been off blog for most of 2015.  Things happen, both planned and surprises for us.  Some were good, some not so good, but all point to God and His sovereign plan over our lives.  At times it is easy to trust God, and know that before time began He had a perfect plan for our lives and our family, while I like the things I feel are good I have to trust Him during the hard times. The 3 little girls and I took a road trip to go collect the man-child from college.  We were so good at the road trip that we took a 28 hour trip and turned it into 36 hours.  We found this peach orchard along the way.  It has an amazing playground and plenty of picnic area, along with a restaurant (try the peach milkshake or peach bread)This kid is home from college.  And due to some changes he will not be returning to that great college in Ky.  I wish he was going back, I advised him to go back…  But he is not going back, and right now he is not going anywhere.  He will be continuing his education some place I just don’t know where yet.  I am sure I will keep you posted, we all know I love that boy but he has GOT to go away to school.This upside down kid is now a middle schooler in 8 more days.
Making changes faster than I can keep up.   Child #3 is now in braces.  I cannot believe how fast his mouth is changing.  He looks different already.  Much to O’s complaining, R has hardly had any mouth pain, except that his teeth have moved so much the wire has been clipped once and has to be clipped again before his appointment in a few weeks.Someone has been visited by the tooth fairy 3 times already.  How is it possible?!?!  She is changing and growing up right before my eyes.Big changes are coming for these two best buddies.  In the fall one begins her education, while the other completes her high school career.  I can promise that a lot more of us will be crying this year.  You all know I hate that kind of change!The littlest one is now walking, she can walk easily behind the couch but gets stuck when she wants to turn her head.  I can’t believe how big she is getting.  (Can you see the biggest change we are experiencing?)
In a day or so I will update the big change.

What about you?  How have things changed this year?

Go hug your kids, they need your love
jen

God is Still Good

Sometimes things don’t go as we plan
Sometimes it is hard to see how it will work out for God’s Glory
But
through it all God is still Good
all the time

Go hug your kids and tell someone you love them today!
jen

PS Has An Announcement To Make

Ok, are you anxious to learn PS’ announcement?

I’ve had 1 friend, Mrs Random, and another reader AF, guess that we are expecting another baby.  AF is a friend of C, and she sent him in a mild panic yesterday when she stopped him in the halls to question him, he sent a desperate text to Keith, then to me, in mostly shouting text, asking if we were in fact pregnant…  {like I would tell my family on my blog… silly boy.}  So, no Mrs Random, no AF and no C we are in fact not pregnant.

But PS does indeed have baby news.

Are you ready?

We have been waiting for this announcement for more than 2 years, if we are honest we have been waiting for this news for 2 years and 10 months.  Or for 34 months.

PS is going to be getting a new COUSIN.  That is right, we are in fact expecting, and celebrating a pregnancy, just not my pregnancy.

We found out in March that a lovely woman has chosen Ellen to become a mommy.  We could not be more happy or excited, or crying with joy.

We got a phone call leaving ballet one Thursday in March.  I was sworn to secrecy so I did not text, call, or post it on FB until permission was granted.  The same was expected from our family, with our babies born after social media knew everything about our lives.

Ellen has a match.  A dream come true.  She is going to be a Mama!  I cannot wait to see her rocking her baby, I cannot wait to watch her love her daughter, to snuggle her daughter and to sit still as her daughter sleeps relaxed and loved in her arms.

Tears of joy, racing heart, shock and excitement.

She was at school when the call came.  She grabbed my kids to share the news, some cried in excitement, some were confused and did not realize the ‘got a match’ meant she was chosen, some were awkward in their excitement, but all were excited.  So excited.

Baby Girl is due first week of July, Ellen’s neighbor said she should name her Flag.  What?!?!  That is not even a proper noun, let alone a name.  So for now we are practicing nick names for baby girl.  I like cupcake and she says NO!  I’ll keep trying.

So a match.  The lovely woman is making a hard decision.  She chose life, and she chose Ellen for that life. We realize the difficulties of this decision, for which we can never repay.  Ever. I can not ever thank her enough.  I can, however, pray for her, and pray I will.  I am praying she finds peace in Jesus.  I am praying that she will find comfort and grace.  In the next weeks, months and years ahead.  I can not thank her enough.  And I love her because of this choice.

We are so filled with love for this baby girl!

We are in the final days of fund-raising.  Red Elephant has a few days reserved as fund-raisers.  Another local restaurant will be having 2 fund-raising nights this month.  I like the food fund-raisers.  Any chance to not cook a meal, not listen to the picky eaters complain, and not wash cereal bowls for those picky eaters, I am all in.  Ellen still has a few puzzle pieces left for sale if anyone of my readers is interested in being “A piece of her puzzle”  Of course if you don’t want a puzzle piece you can still go onto Paypay and donate money to her account.  My heart was full and happy on Monday.  All along we have told the kids if they want their name on a puzzle piece, they need to buy it themselves.  On Monday unknown to us R took his own money and quietly bought a puzzle piece at the Red Elephant fund-raiser.  My R is a part of her puzzle, a part of her story, he loves someone he has yet to meet.  When Keith and the kids got home {C and I were unable to come, that is a whole different blog post} J went to his room and took out his own money and bought a piece of baby girl’s puzzle.  He also is in love with this little one.  He cannot wait for a new someone to love and hold.

Ellen is about $8,000 short of the total amount needed for this adoption.  More than money, we covet your prayers, pray for Ellen as she shows grace and love and shines Christ to this birth mother and her family, pray for Ellen’s finances she still desires to adopt debt free.  Pray for baby girl to continue to grow, and stay healthy.  We love this sweet girl and cannot wait to see her.  Pray for Ellen as she transitions from single woman to single mother.  Pray for grace and a good sleeper.  Right now that seems to be her biggest concern, Ellen likes her sleep.  {I won’t tell you what I am praying for, insert evil sister laugh.}

This is only another part in Ellen’s adoption story.  We are thrilled for you all who have shared, loved, prayed and cried with us as we take this journey.  It is only a part of the story.

Forever Family

What about you will you pray for Ellen and baby girl?
Go hug your kids, and sigh as you remember the feeling of bliss as you snuggled and held your new baby.

aunt jen

 

Dinner and a Puzzle

How did the Dinner and a Donation with no Dishes to wash event go?  Thank you for asking!
It went well, not as crowded as that first event, but there were a lot of people there to visit with laugh with and be blessed by.  Seriously we stand in awe at what God is doing for baby girl.  We are so blessed, and she is so blessed.

Okay for my friend at the COOP who jumps ahead to see the results of events, Ellen was given a check for $180 which she will put right on her next home study, which comes up in a few weeks.  The cost of her home study is $425.  When she posted the blessing on Facebook, a friend sent her a private message, she wants to cover the difference on the home study.  We were brought to tears.  God is so good, all the time.

How about the puzzle piece fund-raiser, how did that go?  Thank you for asking about that too.  It is moving along, there have been 50 plus pieces sold since Tuesday.  So many families have shared the love, and $10 for a piece.  Yesterday someone dropped off an envelope in her classroom, they wanted a piece to be labeled from “uncle b and aunt m”  brings tears to my eyes with every puzzle piece.  Another family purchased one and put a tiny little heart on it with their name.  I did get teary when my mom wrote “love,____” and her special name the kids call her.  Seriously sweetness.  This baby is so so loved.  If you want a piece of the puzzle let me know, we would love to put your name on it.  This is a 250 piece puzzle!

If you are interested in purchasing a puzzle piece, you can do it through your paypal account.
1 open your account
2 choose send money
3 enter ellenoncu@yahoo.com
4 choose the amount you wish to send
5 choose “sending money to family or friends”
6 submit
7  leave a note {these notes make us cry}
8 confirm
Really it is that simple!

Ok this is great and wonderful and lovely but more than the puzzle or donations you can pray.  Please be praying for the birth mom.  This cannot be easy, but it can be peaceful.  Pray she has peace, that God will show her love, pray that she will have the support she needs.  This young woman who has a choice to make needs our prayer and our love.

Pray as we wait for baby girl, pray that we continue trusting God, that we continue to remember that He has this all planned out for our lives.

Share Ellen’s story, we don’t know who will be the one who connects this baby girl with her mommy.  Share it when you get the chance.  Someone will be our connection and wouldn’t that be exciting if it was you?

Pray for Ellen and baby girl.

November is adoption month, who knew?  Now you do!  What an amazing way to see a family grow.

Go hug your kids, and pray for Ellen.
jen

Here is a funny thing…  On the way home from O’s basketball game A was talking away and started talking about poop.  She went on and on whispering and talking about poop.  O and I were cracking up.  Finally O asked “why are you talking so much about poop?”  Little A whispered back “because you like poop” O replied back “no I don’t” little A whispered even quieter, “yes, you do like  poop”  Weird little girl.  For the record O does not actually like poop… but I am sure that goes without saying.

November is National Adoption Month

Did you know November is national adoption month?  No?  Me either, until last year.  A whole month of thanksgiving and celebrating adoption.  By now you all know adoption is important to me.  It is important because my sister, Ellen, is still in the process.  She says she has been “paper pregnant” for almost 2 years now.  This December will be 2 years.  That is a long time to wait, a long time to trust, and long time to pray.  Oh there is activity once in a while, the recertification process is a bit of a hoop to jump through but nothing more than a weekend of checking things off a list, getting fingerprinted again, and answering questions on her philosophy of parenting, of discipline, of education, and all sorts of other things parents encounter without formulating a plan.

I don’t know if you remember last year when we had the GIANT ADOPTION YARD SALE.  {These lovely matching shirts were fun, who knew that 2 different people would donate the same shirt?}
That was a lot of fun, a lot of work and we raised a lot of money.  Sadly we did not raise the final amount but we are close.  We are so close.  Ellen would love to adopt this baby girl debt free.  You all know that she sells THIRTYONE GIFTS {ohhhh side note check out her page and check out this month’s special!!!  Guess which blogger is going to be stocking up on the special!?!?!?- me!}  Anyway she has been saving for two and a half years now for this adoption.  We had the YARD SALE and 2 RED ELEPHANT fund-raisers.  {her first one was the largest donation our local Red Elephant had made.  I would love for this next one to top it!}

We are really praying that this month she is chosen, of course we are praying that she is chosen, but we are praying that the final funds will be raised for the baby.  We would love to get a phone call, write a check to the agency and be the proud mama and proud aunt of a sweet baby girl!

How can you help?
This month we have 2 fund-raisers.
Dinner and a Donation and Piece of our Puzzle
Dinner and a Donation
The first is tomorrow night {Tuesday November 5} our local Red Elephant is hosting another fund-raiser for Ellen.  Last fall was the biggest donation that they made.  I would be thrilled if we could top it this year.  If you are local, would you go to Red Elephant, and enjoy a nice meal or two.  Be sure to mention Ellen’s Adoption, so the meal counts towards her donation.  How easy is that?  Order some yummy boiled peanuts and hot wings, or go for their loaded fries, my personal favorite is the tomato soup.  Don’t forget to order some elephant ears, you do know that when participating in a fund-raiser the calories cancel themselves out with the good feeling you have.
How simple is that?  Dinner and a Donation, and best of all no dishes to wash!

“But I’m not local, I live far from you how can I help?”
I know that most of my readers are not local, and I am thrilled that you want to help.

Piece of our Puzzle How cool is that?!?!?!
Seriously what a great idea!  You have the opportunity to have your name put on the back of the puzzle for baby girl to hang in her room.  I get tears in my eyes when I think of how sweet of a reminder this will be, a reminder of all the people who have been praying, who have been asking, and have been giving, {time or donation} I am amazed at the sweetness of this!  I will be selling pieces at Red Elephant tomorrow night if you are local and want to come put your name on the back.
Here is the super easy part for my blog readers who want to give but are not local.  Ellen now has a paypal account set up for puzzle piece donations.  It is simple, secure and safe.  Here are the easy directions:
1 open your paypal account
2 choose “SEND MONEY”
3 type in ellenoncu@yahoo.com
4 choose the amount you want to donate
5 choose “sending money to family or friends”
6 submit
7 add a note in the space provided
8 confirm

The puzzle is beautiful, I’ll post a link tomorrow of the website she used.  There are 250 good-sized pieces in the box, big enough for your family name or message to go on back.

Please pray for this baby.  Pray for the birth mom who has such a hard decision to make, but a decision that will forever change the lives of so many people.  Pray that Ellen is chosen, 2 years paper pregnant is a long time to be pregnant.  Remember how long your pregnancy seemed?   Hers is still going on.  No quick adoption like they portray on television.  Pray for Ellen to remain patient, and trusting in God who before time began had the steps of this adoption planned out.

I would love to see my sister be a mommy soon, so please pray!

Go hug your kids, because you can.  Hug them and give them a good squeeze today!

jen
If you do not have a paypal account but want to give, let me know I can message you the school address so you can send the money to her school.