Are you ready for an update? I'll try to keep it as short as possible so I don't bore you with too many words.

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

On April 27 I was subbing at an elementary school. I was sitting at my desk eating lunch when my cell phone rang. I didn't recognize the number so I figured I'd just wait to see if they left a message. They did. The message was from Lara at the adoption agency. My rep is Jennifer. Jennifer told me back in October that when we were chosen by a birth mother I would get a call from the birth mothers rep. This person named Lara simply asked me to call her back. That's when my hands started shaking.

I called her back and she said a baby boy was born at 3:03 this morning. If I am interested in the match I needed to be in Mississippi in 24 hours. The shaking continued! After I got all of the details about the birth parents, the baby and the location I sent an email to J. Actually, three emails as I have three different addresses for him that he checks daily. I decided to give him 30 minutes to call me and then I was going to get ahold of my neighbor K who has the same secret squirrel email that J has. Then I called my mom and said "Do you want to meet me in Mississippi tomorrow to meet your Grandson?". She was speechless. I gave her the details and hung up so she could get back to work (yeah right!) and I could get ready for my next class to come in.

J called after about 15 min. I asked him if he was ready to have a son. He was as shocked as I was that someone chose us while he was depoloyed! The connection was horrible and we were disconnected 4 times but I was eventually able to give him all of the details. All he kept saying was "I can't believe I have a son". He had just worked 16 hours and was ready for bed when he got my email. I have a feeling he didn't sleep well that night.

My class came in at 1:00 and probably thought I was nuts. I have little memory of the next few hours. I know I was vibrating for the rest of the day. And I know I called my neighbor L and gave her the details. She asked great questions that I didn't know the answers to so I started making a list of what I need to ask the agency.

When I walked into my house from the garage, L was walking in the front door. I had a long list of things to do. Print out the adoption match contract, read and understand it. Yeah, right! I had to find a notary who would accept my power of attorney. Then I had to drive around town getting everything done. Drive...I was in no condition to drive. I couldn't even get my eyes to focus! We decided to wait until P got home from school and then L would drive me around town.

When P came in the door I asked her if she was ready to have a baby brother. She said "Are you telling me?" and I said "yes, that's what I'm telling you". She was SO EXCITED!! She squeeled and jumped around the house like a crazy child. When she calmed down we hopped in L's van and headed out. I was able to get the contract notarized, faxed and UPS'd next day. We found a little gift for the birth mother and came home to make hotel reservations, purchase airfare for my mom and I and reserve a rental car. I had a list of names, addresses and phone numbers for the adoption agencies and social workers, hospital, hotel, etc. I'm not sure how, in my state of shock, I was able to keep all of this organized. L played a huge part in my preparations!!

P and I packed that night and talked about activities she had coming up and how Nana would take care of everything. She was not happy about me leaving.

I think I slept that night but I'm not sure. I woke up at 4:30 and decided to get up and start getting ready. The plan was for P to go to school and then L was going to take me to the airport. P was VERY upset so we decided she would go with us to the airport and then L would take her to school. That didn't fly either. So P spent the day with L.

I won't go into detail about my trip to Mississippi. There is just too much to type. I will however say that after three days of P crying, L and P hopped in my car and L drove P down to Mississippi. L flew home the next day and P spent the remainder of the time there with my mom and I. I will also paste a link to my mom's blog about Mississippi. It sums everything up.

http://parisgramma.blogspot.com/2010/05/dear-mississippi-i-wouldnt-exactly-say.html

Since we came home it's been a little crazy. I forgot how exhausting it is to have a newborn. I realized that I'm not as young as I used to be! We were home for about two weeks when J came home for R&R. He finally got to meet his son!

My exhaustion eased up a little be with J home. He took over one of the midnight feedings and helped A LOT during the day. Whether it be general household duties or playing with the kids, he was on it. His time home went way too fast, as it always does and before we knew it, it was time for him to go back to the desert. The goodbye's were tough but knowing we only had a short amount of time before he's home again helps.

P is a fabulous big sister. She feeds her brother, changes his diapers, feeds him, burps him, talks to him, rocks him, etc. There are times when I have to remind her who the Mama is.

We had two baby shower/meet and greet's. One in NC given by our friends and one in OH given by my parents. Both parties were a blast and we're so happy our friends and family got to meet little K-man.

So our spring/summer so far has been very eventful. We're going to stay home for awhile and get used to our new normal life. We have more friends coming in from around the US over the next few weeks who are very excited to meet our baby. By mid-July life should settle down.

I am enjoying the summer chaos. Really, really enjoying it. But I am also fantasizing about the fall when J will be home and our family will be together again.

There are tons of details that I've left out and visits from friends and family that I've neglected to mention. We love every one of those details, friends and family. It was just too much to write.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. LIFE IS GOOD!!!

March update

So much is going on in the near future and I'm so excited.
First things first, my wonderful husband decided it was time for me to get a bigger diamond. So he tripled the size. It is beautiful!!!!!!!!
In less than two weeks my awesome friend H is coming down to visit me. As soon as I pick her up from the airport we're heading to a Washington Capitals vs. Carolina Hurricanes game. H has never been to a hockey game so I'm excited to be the first to take her. I'm sure she'll become a Capitals fan in no time :)
The weekend after that, D, P and I are heading up to VA to visit some ex-Army friends. They are a fabulous family and I can't wait to see them! When we leave their place we're going up to DC to catch a Capitals game on home ice. I'm sure I'm more excited than D and P. D is a Canes fan and P can do without hockey all together. Tough, they're going to have to suffer through it.
We're going to spend a couple of days in DC for the Cherry Blossom Festival and then we're going to Baltimore. While there we're going to check out the HUGE aquarium and a catch the traveling Broadway show of The Phantom of the Opera.
We'll have a few slow weeks before J comes home for R&R but I'm sure with Spring upon us we'll be able to pass the time with a lot of fresh air.
It's been a LONG deployment but we're more than halfway through it. It's just starting to feel like there's an end in sight.
P has been doing very well. Last semester she made the A-B honor roll. We are very proud of her for all of her hard work. It really paid off. Now we just have to keep her on the ball so she can have a repeat performance.
D just got engaged to K and is so happy. They are planning on moving to Florida and getting married. They would like to renew their vows in Ireland in the next few years. J and I will miss having D here but we couldn't be happier for her.
No word on the adoption yet. Hopefully as the deployment comes to an end birth mothers will be more comfortable with choosing us.
That's all for now :)

It's been a long time...

It's been a long time since I've updated. We're not doing anything much different these days.
On Nov. 30, D and I went to a Carolina Hurricanes vs. Washington Capitals hockey game in Raleigh. I was in full Capitals gear and a little afraid of the Canes fans. Luckily, most of them were very pleasant. I met an awesome family from Virginia Beach, VA who gave me a ticket to sit RIGHT BEHIND THE CAPITALS BENCH with them. It was almost more than I could handle! If not for the plexi-glass separating me from the team I think I would have hugged them all. To sit that close to Ovechkin...there are no words!! And now I have new friends who may move to NC in the near future. YEAH!!
P is doing well in school. She really likes her new teacher and enjoys going to school again. She's taken a break from horseback riding which is fine with me. I'm not a barn girl and it was getting a litte too intense. She's now taking piano lessons and really enjoys being able to play actual songs instead of just beating on the keys. Her best friend this year is S and she spends the night with us almost every weekend. P and S get along so well and have so much fun together. We love having her over and she's always welcome. We may even take her with us when we move :)
J is getting through this deployment day by day. They have moved to a new location that is a bit more remote. He hasn't had running water in about four weeks and he just got heat in his sleep tent on Christmas day. From what I understand things will get better. It just takes time. He'll have to depend on wet wipes for showers for a while. He's eating well and working out which is good. This is definitely the hardest deployment so far for both of us. I can't even describe how much I want him home and he wants to be home just as much. We're hoping that after this deployment we'll have a good year and a half together before he heads out again.
Thanksgiving was a lot of fun this year. We celebrated with our neighbors and a good time is a given when we hang out with them. L is one of the most awesome people I've ever met and her boys, N and A keep us laughing. They are fabulous "big brothers" to P.
Our Christmas was good this year. We traveled up north and I have to say, it was the most interesting trip I've ever had. Due to the weather it took P and I 21 hours to get to our desitination which is less than 10 hours away. We sat on the WV turnpike, literally not moving, for 7 hours.
While in our home state we were able to visit with a lot of friends and family but there were so many that we didn't get to see. I always come back home with some guilt for not being able to fit everyone in. P got everything she wanted and more. As did I. Next year will be even better when J is with us.
Our New Year's celebration took place in Raleigh at J's uncle's wedding. It was a beautiful little ceremony at his house with food, fun and hockey :) We left the crowds at his place around 10pm and went to Aunt J's house for a quieter New Year. Our fabulous friends D and D were with us and they can light up a room with their presence. Good times were had by all.
As far as the adoption goes, we're still waiting. Our profile is out there and getting good exposure. I'm pretty sure the deployment is hindering us but I try to think positive. When the right baby is out there, the birth mother will choose us.
In order to stay sane while waiting I got a job substitute teaching on post. I took on a position in a special ed inclusion class for 7 weeks replacing an aid who was out on maturnity leave. There were 5 kids in that class and I really enjoyed my time with them. Now I'm taking positions here and there in the different schools. Just today I subbed in an elementary Spanish class. I don't speak Spanish so it was very interesting. I'm shooting for 2-3 days per week.
So that's my update for now. Everyday I hope to get a call from the Agency. When I do, you'll be one of the first to know.
Happy New Year to all.