A Look Back

The 13 days between Jan 20th and Feb 2nd are very special to us, as you can imagine.  It was the craziest time of my life and I sometimes felt like I was riding a roller coaster.  There were times when I felt totally overwhelmed, helpless and unworthy.  At other times, I was ultra focused, decisions came easily and I worked with a clear purpose.

Jan. 20: Matched!

Jan. 21: I begin preparing to leave work indefinitely.  Gifted 2 tickets to the DUKE/Wake Forest game for Saturday the 22nd!  Shop at Home Depot that evening for bead board for Saturday's project..

Sat. Jan. 22: Up early for a DIY day with my girlfriend Susan.  Finish and go to the Duke game!

Sun. Jan. 23:  Go to church and share with friends. :)  Our Life Community class, AiM, has a rescheduled Christmas pizza party and we enjoy fellowship with new and old friends.  I arm wrestle Josh into helping me cap off the bead board in preparation for our painter.

Mon-Tues Jan. 24-25: We both continue at work, though our bosses know by this time.  Our painter comes Tuesday and transforms the kitchen.  It looks amazing. I stop at a friend's house to pick up a load of clothes.  Her son was born in March, so they will work perfectly!!!

Wed. Jan. 26: Our friends Kelly, Jeff and their 3 kids arrive in the evening with a van full of baby goods- stroller, car seat, crib mattress, baby bath, moby, boppy, etc., etc. !!!!!  We are SO blessed!

Thurs. Jan. 27: My last day of work!!!

Fri Jan. 28: Spent morning folding freshly laundered baby clothes, talking with grand parents and nesting.

Sat. Jan. 29: My sister Colleen came to help me organize nursery and clear out junk.  We make a list of baby necessities and hit Target.  She also helps me buy my first cloth diaper purchase- 30 prefolds and several covers- from a craigslist person.  Josh is with Mike checking out a friend's home brew set-up.  (yes, you read that correctly) He has a great time.  Meanwhile, I'm calling people about cribs from craigslist.  Josh comes with me and we pick up a beautiful crib!  Mike & Colleen help us set it up and arrange the room 4 different ways before I'm satisfied.  Our dear friends Eric and Betsy come over for a quick visit.  I show Betsy the nursery and she needs to rest on a chair.  (she's pregnant and past her due date).  We marvel at the Lord's timing and wonder whose baby will be born first. . . :)

Sun. Jan. 30: Church that morning and our last class in AiM.  We are prayed for by Jim & Robin and share our story with the class.  Our table group has offered to come over and help us in any way.  We don't actually need help, but have them over for lunch and the Duke game.  Duke got whooped and I notice that my Aunt has called several times about a storm coming through the Kansas/Missouri area. . . I mention this to Josh and we breath in deep.  .  .
We say goodbye to our friends and quickly decide we need to leave that NIGHT for Kansas to beat the massive snow storm!!! My neighbor and girlfriend Kelli comes over to help me pack a bag for our unnamed son and her husband installs the car seat for us.  I throw together some clothes for myself, pack some snacks and make a final call to a breast milk donor.  We google directions, print them and head out the door!  We head right to the donor's house and pick up several hundred ounces of Mommy milk. Our last stop is to pick up dry ice to keep the milk cold on our 20 hour trip.
We drive through the night to St. Louis, where we crash around 6am at my Aunt and Uncle's house.

Mon Jan. 31: Aunt Dara wakes us around 11.  We stare at the weather channel, the radar and listen to schools scheduling early releases because of the bad weather.  We pack up quickly and head out into the blizzard.  This day was the hardest leg of the journey.  The windshield wipers did not work because of the chunks of frozen ice, the road conditions were bad and the visibility was poor.  Somehow the Lord helped us to our destination of Wichita, Kansas.  Along the way, we tried our various baby boy names and decided to use our birth mom's father's name- John- as our son's middle name.
We arrive from our long trip around 7 in the evening.  We have found the home which will accommodate us and our newborn son.  It also houses 2 other adoptive couples and we are thankful for the camaraderie there.
After bringing in our luggage, we prepare to meet Susan and her 2 boys, Franklin and Julian.  I'm nervous but exhausted.  I wonder what she'll think of us and if she'll like us.  We meet, eat pizza and it's as normal as it can be.  They stay till 9.
As politely as possible, we say goodnight to our new friends and hosts and crawl into a giant, king size bed.  I remember waking up the next day and feeling so refreshed and recharged.  It was the best night's sleep we've had in years.  ha!

Tues. Feb. 1: I am invited by Susan to attend the final ultrasound with her.  The doctor must check the baby's lungs to make sure they are developed and then they will schedule a c-section for her.  Everything looks great and her c-section is scheduled for Wed. Feb. 2 and 2pm.
While we are at the doctor's, Josh is back at the house with Susan's boys.  Susan and I are dropped off and the 5 of us spend the rest of the day together.  The snow is falling like crazy, the drifts are high and Josh has the weather channel on and appears mesmerized by it.  The boys and I play hide-n-seek, cars, etc.  It's a special day.  The time seems to slow down and we visit and get to know each other.
Susan is not feeling well after the morning's procedure and that evening we drive in with her to see if everything is OK.  The hospital clears her and we arrive home very late at night.  Sleep does not come easily!  :)