Eye Candy of the Junior Mint

One of my nicknames for his is "The Junior Mint".

On this morning I noticed my son is GIGANTIC!!! Where did my baby go??

I spend my days separating him and the dog. They just want to love on each other but it ends with one or both of them getting PO'd! Plus nothing is as much fun as a dog toy right?

His last month's birthday portrait. Attitude all the way! He ripped off his sock and flipped up his collar!

Is he going to bite me or kiss me? It's hard to tell. LOVE LOVE LOVE him!!

5 months old

March 1, 2010

Dear Heath~

You are 5 months old today (well, yesterday – but there was no February 29th this year so it's today). You continue to delight and amaze us!

You're sleeping through the night almost constantly. We give you a bottle around 5 or 6 pm and put you in your jammies (most of which you are quickly outgrowing!). Between 7 or 8 pm you fall asleep for the night.We usually don't have to get up with you until 430 or 5 in the morning! The pack and play is still in our bedroom so you're very easy to get to!

The exersaucer is your favorite piece of equipment. You can pull the things to make noise and music. You love to lurch back and forth in it while throwing your hands up in the air, squealing and smiling. Today, I thought you were going to flip it you had it rocking so much! You've just started to laugh occasionally. It's the best sound in the world and squeezes my heart!

You HATE to miss anything. You're constantly looking around, craning your neck and twisting your body to follow the puppy, papa, me or Nicky. When it's time to go to sleep you fuss and cry while rubbing your eyes and kicking your feet. It goes on and on and the POOF! All the sudden it stops and you are conked out. Pulling your blanket, lovey, or bib up over your face and eyes is a favorite thing to do. If we dare to pull them down or move then away from your face or mouth you wake up and glare at us! It makes us laugh everytime.

We've tried giving you cereal for a month now. Horrified is the best way to describe. I managed to capture your expression on film. It's priceless! Although, you love to eat, cereal is not cutting it. Sometimes with your bottle you're eating 8oz of formula. You've just started pushing the bottle away if you're not interested or jamming it back in your mouth if you want more.

I've been calling you “rootie toot toot” because of how gassy and stinky you are! Sometimes the puppy will even leave the room – and he LOVES stinky stuff!

We finally got your social security card in the mail. The next step is to go and get your passport. You and I went to the photographer here in town to get your passport pictures taken. The photographer said they were the cutest baby passport pictures he'd ever taken in 25 years!

Your birthmom loves you and misses you. She called the other night to make sure you were o.k. (you were). She said to give you “lots of loves”.

We need to measure and weigh you again. It seems like you are much bigger (and longer) all of the sudden.

Heath, you are such a delight. We love you to pieces! We can't believe you've been ours for 5 months already!

Love,

Mama and Papa

3 months old!

He smiles til the preflash goes...then i get this grumpy look!

They're getting used to each other! I call this "Two Poopers on the Couch"

I love this hat! He's not really ever very grouchy, though!

Heath was not too sure about his first bath fully in the sink. He had been just laying him on one of those giant sponge things and scrubbing him off that way. He's longer than the sponge now, however!

Here's my little chubba lubba on his 3 month birthday! He's unofficially 18.5# and 25 inches long! He doesn't have another doctor appointment until Feb 1.

His birthmom and I recently came to the brilliant idea of her tagging herself in FB pictures that she wants! It's been way easier than guessing which ones she might like.

I am so happy to be Heath's mommy! I cannot believe how quickly he is growing and changing! It's really too bad the waiting didn't go this fast :-)

2 Months Old

Somebody is growing way too fast for his Mommy!

He's 12.9 lbs now and 23.75" long! He's awake a lot more but is still a sweet, mellow, chilled out baby! People marvel at him!

I went back to work on Monday. I threw my back out that same day. I spent the rest of the week at home inert. Mr H had to do all the baby duties all the time (along with taking care of me duties)! I was in so much pain physically, plus I couldn't pick the little bugger up or hold him for very long without aggravating it. I hope I'll be better by Monday.

A girl at work's mom is watching him the few hours a week I work. It's really ideal. I love my job but I'm not sure how long I'll last. I really miss my punkin when I'm gone!

One month old

My Dear Little Squeaker -

You're One Month old now! I can't believe it! It's been the best month of my life hands down so far! Papa and I love love love you and can't remember life before you arrived!

We spent the first 10 days of your life in Arkansas where you were born and where your birthparents live. They love you very much, too!

While we were in Arkansas we visited The Clinton Library, the Central High School National Historic Site, the State Capitol, and the Art Museum. Papa and I ate lots of catfish and bar-b-Que while we were there.

You went to your first restaurant which was the Woodfire Grill. Uncle K, Aunt J and the boys took us out when they came to see us in Little Rock. You weren't impressed, sleeping the entire time.

Big Grandpa and Grandma G came to see us in Arkansas and went to the Finalization hearing with us.

On October 8, 2010 at 10:10 am you became ours forever!! You slept through that as well.

You sleep a lot. At first you slept almost constantly. You don't fuss much. When you're upset or getting hungry you make little squeaking noises. Now that you're a month old you're awake a couple of hours a day. You like to look around. The ceiling fan and lights are your favorite things to look at.

You're eating 4 oz of formula consistently. It takes about 45 minutes to feed and burp you. Papa and I usually do a diaper change in the middle to wake you up and get you to finish your bottle. Some days you are super hungry and we have to give you 2 more ounces.

You're not a puker and you don't spit up very often. Although, you did get Mama good today while we were at Grandma G's. You gulped down your bottle in 10 minutes, then burped and puked it all over my shoulder, my back, and Grandma's chair! I had to wear one of Grandma's sweatshirts home!

Loud noises and being cold are your least favorite things in life.

I call you "Squeaker", "Punkin" or "the Lump". Papa calls you "Little One". We both call you "Francis" sometimes which is the dog! That's just because he was our baby for so long before you arrived and it slips out when we aren't thinking about it.

Francis wasn't sure what to think about you at first. He's a little bit jealous and will want to sit on our laps or next to us when we are feeding you. He likes to lay on your playmat and make the things that hang down jingle and rattle. If I'm not paying attention he'll try to lick your head!

When you were born you weighed 6 lbs 13.1 oz and 20 inches long. At your one week check up you were still the same length but you were up to 7 lbs 4 oz! AT your 2 weeks check up you weighed 7 lbs 8 oz and were 20.5 inches long. You're just a little guy! You're in the 10-25% for weight; the 50th percentile for length; and with a head circumference of 13.25" you're in the 5th to 10th percentile.

Your hair is getting darker. You have a swirly, counter-clockwise cowlick on the back of your head. Your eyelashes and eyebrows are very, very faint and just starting to come in.

Your cheeks are starting to get chubby. I love to kiss them when I'm burping you. You love to sleep with your hands up by your face or with both arms thrown above you head. When you're in that position I say you must be French because you surrender to everyone!

Right now you are sleeping in the bassinet in Papa and Mama's room. During the day we'll put you on the couch or love seat with a pillow to keep you from rolling off. You can't roll over yet but you really, really want to do so! You've been trying to since you were 1 day old! You're never very far away from us.

It's not necessary to rock you, bounce you, or sing to you to get you to go to sleep. You're really the most mellow and easy going baby. You hardly ever fuss. If you are fussy people that don't know you don't notice because your fussy is most babies' "good" behavior!

Papa and I love you very much! MC and C love you very much! We're so very glad you are here!

Love,

Mama

He's Here!

Mr and Mrs H are proud to announce the arrival of Baby H!

I can't believe it! We got here at 3:41 am on the 29th. 6#13 oz, 20 inches long. He arrived at 9:54 am. He was delivered by the anthologist! MC went from 6cm to "omg he's here, he's here I have to push!"

"You can't push you're at 6"

"NO HE'S HERE - I HAVE TO PUSH"

"you can't...."

I'm looking down there, I gulp (and gag a little...i mean ewwwww) and sure enough...He was here! He shot outta there like a canon after a tiny quarter of push.

I was all teary and sniffling..It was disgusting and awesome at the same time! He was covered in the stuff (which I'm too tired to think of). They had a hard time getting it all off him. MC didn't want to see him right away...she was in a lot of pain. They did the initial assessment, I cut the cord, i went to get the fathers....stepped out of the room for 3 secs and then had to get into fight with an old lady nurse/gatekeeper to get back in there. She was misinformed about how MC wanted to see him. I got back in with Mr H. The birthfather had gone to the restroom. The old lady had taken off with the bassinette so the anesthesiologist wrapped him up tight, scooped him off, and sprinted down the hall to the other side of the birthing center to our room where further assessments were made.

I'm in love...it wasn't instant. It was weird at first. I'm looking at this baby looking at me looking at him! It's 135 am now and they've got him in the nursery doing a bath and his 2nd 8 hour assessment.

Everything is going great with the birthparents. It's been very, very special. Sweet and heart wrenchingly wonderful.

Since then

It's been a week since we met the birthparents. It's been a relatively calm week. One text for money - all of which was reasonable and expected. She REALLY does not like our lawyer. So she is preferring to go through me. Anything to keep her calm and happy.

Her FB statuses (stati?) have been more and more upbeat as the weeks go by. That gladdens my heart (my cynical, fearful, excited heart).

She had some tests two weeks ago. They never got back to her with the results. I wonder how much of that is because she's a Medi.caid patient? There are two hospitals where she's giving birth. She's now being seen at the "better" one. I had to laugh though because the hospital overlooks a cemetery. If that's not incentive to get well and go home I don't know what would be! Anyway, they called her in yesterday because they'd forgotten to run one test. She's now officially in her 9th month. She was measuring small but the dr said at this point that can change from big to small daily. She's scheduled for an ultrasound on Friday. She says the doctor said "if you make it that long" GULP! Mr H and I have some serious shit getting to get done this weekend!!

Still waiting

Hello all...anyone still bother to check this blog I never update?

I just got back from a driving trip to CA.

I'm going to be a better blogger :-)

I'm reading all your blogs. I just live by the adage of "if you don't have anything good to say, don't say anything at all."

SO the emom that we talked to.....
she called the facilitator right after we talked and said she really liked us...but wanted to talk to another couple. Then she called C late, late that same night asking for a counselor. C found out she was upset that her purse had been stolen, she'd lost her rent money etc etc. C said it sent up huge red flags for her. C suggested she call the police. Said she couldn't really do anything for her. After all at this point she was just an emom calling about the services she wasn't "signed up" or anything.

C hasn't heard from her since.

And THAT would be the latest on our adoption front. I've accepted the fact that if..after our 3 years with C are up (we have 2 left) that we may not have a child. Then I'm done.

Currently, I'm ok with it. I'll be 41 then. Mr H will be pushing 50. We'll just call it another one of those life things that didn't work out like we thought it would.

Maybe I"ll be surprised. We'll see.

Thanks for hanging in there with me.

What does that tell you?

I didn't call for an update last month or this month.

I'm about over this whole adoption journey.

Update Time

We've been shown 17 times since we went active in August. I see another family has gone missing from the website so now it's at 18. C said Dec was quiet but January has been very active thus far. Dec had 2 births and there's been one this month. She also said there are 2 matches working for January and she's hoping to have several more.

So that sounds pretty good.

I just read The Thirteen Tale and loved it! My bookclub was tonight and we discussed The Rope Walk. It was a slow book to get started but then I found it to be sweet and very descriptively written.

Have you all been reading anything good? There's not much fun to do here with all this snow and ice and cold.

Good Choice!

I am VERY happy with our facilitator, C. She called today because she knows the holidays can be tough. She wanted to wish us a happy holidays, find out if we had any travel plans that might affect being able to contact us (ha!), and give us a mini update. We went active Aug 9th. We've been shown 14 times. Four of those were new emoms. Only one of them has made a match with anyone. I guess I d0n't need to call her for an update this month!

My birthday party was lovely :-) I spent yesterday in a bed. We had a heck of a good time packed into 4.5 hours! Now we're currently waiting to see if we're getting this blizzard that is predicted. It's to start after midinght tonight. 100% of snow for Tuesday with 6 - 13" of snow by Wednesday night with 40 mph winds. I better check our grocery supply!

Update #2

Nothing new to report. We've had two letters go out so far this month. Of the 11 to 13 moms we've already been profiled to she said none of them have made a choice for or against anyone.

C also said a bunch of new adds are dropping this month. She said October was kind of slow but it looks like November is going to be booming judging from the activity she's already had in the first 10 days.

A day last week was really strange to me. I think it was wed or thursday. Baby Mac finally arrived, a friend with PCOS was unable to conceive and whose medical condition was so bad IVF couldn't even be attempted (who has 2 adopted kids) gave birth to her biological child, and an internet friend had a match fail. All in the same day! Adoption and infertility is a strange, strange world.