Urgent prayer request!!!

Please pray for sweet Mattie. He was born last Tuesday, and has been struggling and fighting for his life since then. The Lord is doing an amazing work in this boy's life. Please pray for his amazing family and the strength they are needing. You can read here to learn his story and follow their journey. www.tracieloux.wordpress.com

We're out of the hospital!

And at the hotel! The girls are excited! Ato T is having a tough time; not because of Miss SJ, but because of all the travel and being away from home. Enjoy the new pictures!

Introducing Miss SJ!!!

Today was a great day! Hanging out at the hospital with Miss SJ and her birth mom. The plan is that they will discharge Miss S tomorrow, and she'll then place Miss SJ with us. We'll need to be here about another 2 weeks so that all the paperwork can go through. Enjoy the pictures!

No shower

Well, I didn't get to take a shower today. Miss S (birth mom) called us at about 6:20 am to tell us she was on her way to the hospital, and we should meet her there! Now, we all know I usually move fast, but I've never seen Mike move this fast before! :) There's a long story I could tell you, but I'm tired, so for tonight you get the short version. She had the baby at 9:42 am!! It's a girl!!!! Her name is Shiloh Jeanell, 8lbs ever, 50 cm long, apgars 8 and 9, lots of hair. And she is GORGEOUS!!!! We will be waiting to post pictures until placement, which will hopefully be on Thrusday. We'll be spending all day tomorrow at the hosptial with birth mom and baby, and Thursday all day until they are released, God willing.

I know so many of you have been praying, and we have felt your prayers. THANK YOU! Please continue to pray for this hospital time to be a great time of bonding for all of us, and for Miss S and all of the transitions and emotions she'll be dealing with. She feels like a long time friend, and we're so thankful for her and her wisdom and grace throughout this process.

Thanks again!

The new plan

Well, birth mom told us that she wanted to give it one more day, and if she doesn't go into labor tonight, she will be induced tomorrow. We're really hoping this will happen. She wants us here for labor and delivery, but we just don't have the money to stay here longer than the 7-10 business days after she signs that we need to stay already. So, our first prayer is that she is able to go into labor on her own tonight. Our second prayer is that if she doesn't, she will be willing to be induced tomorrow. We're truly hoping that these changes don't mean she's questioning her decision, but in reality we know that's just what it might mean. So we are praying that she has peace of mind and heart.

We'll post when we know anything tomorrow!

Another bump

We've hit another bump in the road. Birth mom is afraid of being induced. She doesn't want the doctor to have to break her water. She's with the doctor now, and has told us she'll call us when she is don. PLEASE PRAY. If she is not induced, we will most likely have to leave, because we just can't possibly stay her for an indefinite period of time.

I will update when I know more.

Good Day

Thank you all for your prayers! Birth mom and I had a wonderful afternoon together! We went out for lunch, and then she offered to take me grocery shopping so I could stock up on food for when the rest of the family got here. She drove my by the hospital so that I would be familiar with where to go, and she took me to the dollar store for items at the grocery store that she said we could find cheaper at the dollar store. What a wonderful woman she is! I feel like we're old friends catching up!

Just as she was about to leave the hotel, Mike, Lynn and the kids drove up! So she came in to meet everyone, and we all ended up going out to eat together. Ato T was having a tough night, so we're really hoping she doesn't think it's always as crazy as it was tonight. She just called to let us know she got home safely, and she's going to call us tomorrow when she's on her way to the hospital. Her plan right now is that I would be in the room with her for delivery, and Mike will step out. Of course, we know that her plan can always change.

On a side note, we went to this great restaurant tonight called Sal and Mookie's! They had the BEST homemade ranch dressing, they were incredibly hospitable to us, and were even willing to blend up food for Ato T. We highly recommend going there if you're ever in the Jackson, MS area!

We're all off to bed now. Hopefully the next time I post I'll be able to tell you about our new baby! Thank you all again for your prayers!

Update

Well, I arrived here in Mississippi yesterday afternoon. I was not able to meet up with the birth mom yesterday. We have planned to get together for lunch today. I spent all yesterday and last night alone and wondering. Adoption feels a lot like "hurry up and wait." This morning is more of the same waiting. I miss my family and can't wait for them to be here tonight! It sounds like the drive is going as well as can be expected. Mike was able to roll up towels and make some supports for Ato T during the drive, but he was still extremely tired when they finished driving last night.

So right now I'm waiting for birth mom to come and pick me up so that we can go to lunch. The plan was for her to be here at 1:00, but she called at about 12:40 to tell me church ran late, she was going home to change and would be her within an hour. It's 1:10 right not. I'm just praying everything goes smoothly, and praying that birth mom is feeling at peace and comfortable with her decision.

As I was anxious last night, the Lord gave me these verses. "Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you. So may we boldly say 'the Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?'" (Hebrews 13:5-6)

What a wonderful message from my Heavenly Father! It brought peace to my heart, and I have continued to read and ponder these words.

The Plan

I will be flying out to go to Mississippi early Saturday morning. This was the cheapest flight we could find, which is why I'm going down early. Mike and the kids will follow in the van, with his mom, who has volunteered to go with us and help with the older 3 kids while we do hospital. Mandy (the dog) will go my parents farm and have a fun "vacation" with their dogs!

I'm really hoping that flying down 2 days early will allow me to spend some time with the birth mom, but we need to talk to her and see what her schedule will allow. If nothing else, I'll spend time shopping for groceries for the time we'll be there and checking out things to do in the area. We'll be in Mississippi 7-10 business days, waiting for the interstate compact to go through, and then we'll drive home.

Right now, the plan is to fly Mike's mom home once the hospital stuff is done. Unless we have a very crabby baby, then plans could change. :)

I'll do my best to keep you updated on our blog. Thanks for the prayers!

Here we go!

We matched with a wonderful woman last night, and her due date is this Sunday, October 23! She is in Mississippi, and we will be traveling there for the birth. We're currently waiting to her from our agency, because she was going to ask her doctor today if she could schedule an induction, to be sure we would be there for the birth. We are excited and flustered all at once! Mike has been in New York on work since Tuesday, and is due to come home Friday. He's been doing lots of financial work for us in between his meetings, and I'm at home trying to get laundry and packing done, and looking for a place for us to stay.

We were hoping to have some of our fundraising done before another baby came, but we are ecstatic that it is happening so quickly. Today Mike secured a loan for us, so that we could cover all of the fees, and we still hope to hold a dinner in December to help us cover some of the costs. However, we do still need to pay for our travel and stay in Mississippi. If the Lord is calling you to it, please feel free to make a donation to our adoption fund. You can use the paypal button at the top our our web page.

Most of all, we ask for your prayers. Especially for our birth mom, and all the decisions and transitions she will be dealing with in the next few days. And for our kids and their stress levels during this time of anticipation.

Thank you all so much for your support! We will do our best to keep the blog updated as we have time and information.

UPDATE: "Our" birth mom is being induced Monday at 1:30!!!!!

S: if you're reading this, we can't wait to meet you and we love you already!

Photos

After 2-3 sessions with the kids, I got some photos I feel good about blowing up for our "professional" photos for this year. I really wish I could figure out how to use the external flash for my camera, because I would have gotten so many other great shots if I could figure it out. So that's my goal for this fall. Maybe I'll get it figured out in time to do some shots of a baby. No news on the baby front, but we know that it will all happen when God is ready for it to happen. We continue to pray for our future child and his or her birth mom.

Enjoy the photos!

We're NOT having a baby .. not now at least.

We are sad, but feel we have made the right decision. We took some time to research the facilitator that had found the birth mom we matched with, and what we found was NOT favorable. This particular facilitator had many complaints from adoptive couples that made us question our ability to use this facilitator's services. I prefer not to mention the name of the facilitator, as we did not personally have a bad experience with them. We are sad, because we truly believe this birth mom has every good intention in making an adoption plan for her baby. But we also know that in good conscience we cannot in any way support this adoption facilitation company. Please join us in praying for this birth mom, D and her baby girl. Prayers may include peace, understanding, and guidance in her next steps. Thank you all for your prayers and support! We know our baby is out there, and God will bring him or her to us at the time that the Lord has already planned out.

We're having a baby!!!!!!

If you couldn't guess by the new background - it's a girl! We spoke with a wonderful lady on Friday night, and couldn't be happier that she has chosen us to be the parents of her little girl! She's due on December 7, and we can't wait! We're excited to have some time to get to know her before the baby is born. As we walk through this next few months, we ask for your prayers. Especially for this wonderful woman who we'll call D., and the child she is carrying. Prayers that our relationship could continue to grow, and she is able to feel comfortable with us. Prayers that the Lord would shine His light through us. Thank you all! Praise the Lord for His perfect timing!