All's quiet on the western front

Well fortunately our week that got off to a rather rocky start has smoothed right out. Wes is fine and has been enjoying working from home. Brandon is home from school today with the cough/cold that all the rest of us had last week. Hopefully he will go back tomorrow.

Some of you are aware of our adoption drama lately, but I figured it was probably time to fill the rest of you in. To make a very looooong story short, we found out last week that a birth mother in North Carolina had chosen us. Needless to say, we were thrilled beyond words. Then we found out she may have chosen another family instead, or decided to find an attorney and do a private adoption. It was a stressful week of phone calls with the birth mother, with our case worker, and with her case worker. The emotional ups and downs were drastic, and it was draining to say the least.

After a few days of the emotional roller coaster, I just prayed that we would have peace. My prayers were truly answered and I have felt calm ever since. She is meeting with her case worker tomorrow for the first time, so she should come to a decision very soon. We are praying that she will be comforted and know what is the right decision for her and her baby. I know that if we are meant to have this baby, she will come to us and everything will work out. If she is meant to be with another family, I know we will find our girl soon. If it isn't soon, at least I will have more time to crochet blankets, sew clothes, and make hair bows. She is going to be one spoiled little girl!


Today I am grateful for the miracle of adoption, even with its ups and downs. Birth mothers are amazing and I have so much love and admiration for them. I can't imagine making such a difficult decision. They are some of the most courageous people in the world!

Dang, this one is off to a rocky start too!

After last weeks hectic, stressful, and emotionally draining week, we were hoping that this one would be smooth sailing. Alas, it has not started out that way. Yesterday morning Wes woke me up with "I'm sorry to wake you up, but I think I need you to drive me to the emergency room."

He'd been up for two hours with horrible head pain and ibuprofen wasn't touching it. Luckily it was just an ear infection. If you're laughing, it's because you've never had one as an adult. I had one a few years ago. Oh.My.Goodness. They are seriously painful. I remember feeling like the whole side of my face had been hit with a sledgehammer. You can't tell if the pain is coming from your ear, your head, your eye, your throat, or your neck. The whole thing just hurts.

Anyway, they gave him some antibiotics and pain meds. Of course being Wes, he came right home, showered, and went to his High Council meeting. He didn't want to miss the first one. He came home and slept for three hours, went to church, then came home and slept again. He is feeling much better today, but since he get's dizzy when he turns his head, he'll be staying off the road and working from home.

As if starting off the week in the ER wasn't enough, our adoption saga from last week continues. At least Wes is here so I won't have to deal with all the phone calls, texts, and decisions alone. I am grateful for that. I'm not so sure he is. ;)

Bit of an overwhelming week

This has been one heck of a week so far.

Wes was just called as a high counselor in our stake.
He hasn't been released from his calling with the young men.
I am getting over a cold.
Wes has the cold I gave him.

It's my month to be in charge of the nursery and teach the lessons.
It is my turn to drive the basketball carpool.
Every day.
We had scouts today.
I am planning and typing up the wolf den schedule for the entire year.
I am in the process of de-junking every room in our house.
I am teaching a cooking class tomorrow night to about 50 ladies.
Six of them are coming over in the morning to help me prepare the food. My house is a wreck.



And I can't focus on any of it. We are having a very emotional adoption week. We thought that we had some great and wonderful news. Then we got some not so good news. Then we thought we had some great and wonderful news. Then we got some more not so good news mixed with some good news. Needless to say, I have been a basketcase. One hour I am elated, the next I am on the brink of tears.
I am so grateful for my amazing husband. I know this week has been hard for him too, but he's been level headed and solid as a rock. I couldn't have survived without his support. I know we'll get through this, and I'm praying that we will be guided through some tough decisions.

And I'm hoping I won't have a nervous breakdown.

Under the weather

After enjoying a fabulous weekend with my parents (who came down for a couple days), everyone in our family has come down with a cough/cold thing. It's not really horrible, just mostly annoying. Hopefully it will pass quickly and we can all get back to normal.
I am grateful that we were all healthy while my parents were here. We thoroughly enjoyed their visit!

Proud to be a Panther Mom

Brandon is really enjoying being on the freshman basketball team. Know how I can tell? I think he's talked more in the last few weeks than he did in the four months before that. It is awesome listening to him come home and talk about how practice went, or give us play by plays of the games.

It is so fun going to the games and watching him play. I have still not mastered the art of taking action shots. Maybe I should actually read my camera manual? Anyway, here are a few shots of his game yesterday. I'm keeping them small so you won't notice how blurry they are. ;)

I am very grateful that Brandon is having the opportunity to play with such a great group of young men. I love watching him play. Go Panthers!!

Grateful Journal

Not a lot has been happening at our house lately, so I haven't had much to write about. I find that this little blog gets neglected because I feel like I have nothing noteworthy to say.

I noticed that a few of my friends have started keeping a Gratitude Journal on their blogs, and I thought it was a great idea. I figure that even on the most boring days, I always have something I am grateful for. So here starts the first of my "Grateful Journal" posts.

Today I am grateful that Spencer is OK. He fell at recess yesterday and landed right on his face. His nose and lip are really banged up. (He refused to let me take a photo, the turkey.) I am glad that he did not knock out any teeth or even need any stitches.

So Sad and So Grateful

We went to the funeral of a neighbor this Saturday. He was killed in a freak car accident last Tuesday. He is leaving behind a wife and seven children, five of whom still live at home. Spencer is friends with the 11 year old boy.

I was so shocked and devastated when I heard the news. I can't even imagine how his wife is going to cope with his loss. It would be terrible to loose someone without even being able to say goodbye. I can't think of anything worse than loosing Wes. I have resolved that I am going to spend more one on one time with each of my family members. Life is so fragile and you just never know which day will be your last with the people that you love.

I am so grateful for my knowledge that families are forever. I am going to count each day as a blessing and try to live it that way.