Link to my regular blog...

Read all about Andre's one month in review.

http://blubberfatality.livejournal.com/

Announcing Andre Adam McCombs

It's been a whirlwind since I last posted. There is so much to tell. As I type this my son is laying against my bosom asleep in his sling and I am truly blessed to be a mom.

There are many details I should recall about his birth, his birth mother and the circumstances surrounding his entrance into the world but I just wanted to write a quick update.

Andre Adam McCombs
Born Dec 28th at 5:28pm
7 lbs 6 oz 18 inches long
He has lots of dark hair and is a very good day sleeper! (I'm going to give him a month or so to just be and then we will work on helping him align his schedule with the night and day.

I promise to write more details soon, but for now I will leave you with a picture.

NEWS BREAK!!!

Yesterday was a tremendous day for us!

The social worker emailed yesterday morning with birth mother having an african amerian baby boy and said she's be taking our portfolio and another families portfolio over to her. Normally it takes a few days for them to make a decision but the social worker called us back in the evening to tell us that the birth mom loved our portfolio and wanted us to be her match!

Elated, I called Paul at work and he was flabbergasted and of course we got caught up in the details. I was still at work and called Kendra to see where she was all the while playing it cool and not letting on what I knew. She was shopping at the mall nearby so I took the opportunity to stalk her and tell her in person. She was very excited. She is one of the many people who have been praying for us and was VERY EXCITED and moved to tears to hear the happy news. I called my mom and dad on speaker phone and told them, luckly my brother and his girlfriend were there so we got to tell all of them at once. Everyone is excited and I just can't believe this is happening. I know there are a few hoops left to jump through but here is our tentative plan:

Start driving to Utah on Saturday, get to Boise and then drive onto Utah in the morning, have some dinner w/ the birth mother (an early one since she will be induced in the morning). She will hopefully have the baby on Monday. We are not sure how long we will have to be in Utah but since some of our family live there it should be a good time for them to see the baby!

This is all we know right now, I will post pictures and more updates as we know them!

Updates

Well, we are in the waiting game now. Have been presented to several birth moms who have chosen other families. I cannot pretend that this does not sting a bit. Sometimes we are very excited and in the same day very discouraged. The adoption people have told us that we have a great profile, that our pictures are wonderful and that on paper we look like a great family, some have said, it just isn't our time yet. While this is completely the truth, and I believe we will be parents someday this is the hardest thing I think I've ever gone through. I thought after meeting Paul online and getting married that I was over being rejected. (that last bit seems a little over the top but it is how I feel) I am thankful for Paul during this time and his patient ways. He is only ever encouraging even when I know sometimes he feels as sad as I do about not being matched yet.

As far as preparations are concerned, we have a new ceiling in the nursery, new carpet and baby furniture. I want to decorate the walls and get everything set up just to ease my mind. (sort of an if you build it they will come philosophy)

There are several possibilities yet to consider but I don't think we'll be parents by Christmas. Hopefully next Christmas we will have the joy of knowing what it's like to have a child in our home for the holidays. Only time will tell.

We've applied...

We have decided on an agency. Had a meeting last Friday with an agency that is pretty close to where we live. They seem organized, friendly and open minded. We filled out our application over the weekend and dropped it off on our way home from work tonight!

On the way, we passed a familiar place where almost a year ago I talked with some friends about the first adoption situation we encountered. I thought about how much has changed since that night and how much more educated we are about this process. It is not as easy as the me of last year made it out to be but it is worth it. I think this whole process has brought Paul and I closer together. It has helped us to clarify what we want for our family and how we are willing to go about getting/doing the necessary things to raise children.

And now as I read back I see I've used the word "process" lots. Wow....

His giving has only begun.....

I want to post something that really spoke to me today from this blog....


I think this could be just what I needed to read right now...

He Giveth More Grace
by Annie J. Flint

He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labors increase;
To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.

Fear not that thy need shall exceed His provision,
Our God ever yearns His resources to share;
Lean hard on the arm everlasting, availing;
The Father both thee and thy load will upbear.

His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,
His power no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.

Followup to the wait....

I ended up emailing the social worker today to see if she had made any progress with the birth mother. She wrote back a little while later. She had just finished meeting with the birth mother for a counseling appointment. She said at this time, she is not comfortable matching the birth mother with any parents due to some new developments that had come to her attention. She said that until these issues were resolved, she would not be presenting any families to her.

Hey, we are of course a little disappointed to hear this BUT, at least this happened before and not after the child came to live with an adoptive family. We took this as a sign to check out the other agency (much closer to home) that was recommended to us by our lawyer AND a friend of a friend. The earliest appointment they had was July 16th. The case worker did send me some information which was helpful and encouraging.

I will as always update as information becomes available!