Happy Gotcha Day!

One year ago today, David and I were on our way to the Memphis office of Bethany Christian Family Services to meet our son. I can hardly believe that was a year ago. I remember being so incredibly nervous. What would this little person look like? What would he act like? What would he smell like? Would he like me? Would he attach to us?

...and about a million other things. 

We got there early and had to fill out a lot of paperwork and then we sat. And waited. And heard the bell on the door ring that someone had come in and we knew that was him. When they brought him in, I immediately burst into tears and couldn't believe the beautiful little boy that God had planned for us all along. 

We are so thankful for the blessing that he has been in our lives and how God has used him to teach us so much. For our full adoption story, read here.

(top photo taken by our friend LeLe who lived in Memphis at the time and was kind enough to come over the day after we brought Ezra home...well, to my sister's home!)

Ezra's First Birthday

Ezra is one and I can hardly believe it! This has been the fastest year ever (tomorrow is our "Gotcha Day!"). We had his party a few weekends ago and it was so much fun! We are blessed by some of the greatest friends and family. We had hoped the weather would be nice and had planned on a little whimsical outdoor picnic inspired by his best stuffed friend, Reggie (short for Reginald P. Fox). However, it was way too cold and overcast, so our friend Joel allowed us to use the building for his college group and it was so nice to be inside and warm!

Also, mother of the year over here didn't think about the fact that he was getting his 12 month shots on Friday...he slept through most of his party. But he woke up for cake and presents and didn't cry, so that was a win in my book! My wonderfully talented (and just all-around wonderful) best friend Mandy took a few highlight pictures and it was really hard for me to not use all of them. Here are some of my favorite...

Why Ezra?

so, i get a lot of people asking us why we chose the name ezra. it's not a very common name (bonus!). however, old testament names are pretty popular - at least in our friend group...we have an asher, jeremiah, levi and amos and a noah (we think) on the way.

to tell you the truth, we had completely different names picked out before we started the adoption process, but once we started filling out the paperwork, a lot of them just didn't seem to fit. so we went back to the drawing board. then, one day last summer, i felt like the Lord just spoke to my heart and said "his name is Ezra." that really blew me away. first of all, i instantly loved the name. second, i thought, "whoa, God! does that mean this is going to be a boy? for real?" about a week later, i couldn't stop thinking about the name (and the idea of holding a little boy that i couldn't adequately imagine got me so excited), so i decided i needed more information about ezra. i opened my Bible to the first page of ezra and there in the margin, written well over a year earlier, i had copied from a commentary:

theme of ezra: the sovereign hand of God is at work in perfect keeping with his plan at his appointed time.

it was perfect. it just fit. it fit our story. it fit what God had been teaching us over 3 long, hard, painful years. it got me even more excited.

the other day david was talking to our friend joel about the ezra of the Bible and what kind of man he was and joel paraphrased ezra 7, saying "ezra gave himself to know the law, to do the law and to teach the law in that order." i love that. almost as much as i love that little boy.

bonus:
here is our little man at 4 weeks and 8 weeks. i can't believe we are 1 week away from 12 weeks! it's flying by so fast!

Our Ezra Story (Long Read)

well, i know this post is well over due (8 weeks, to be exact). and i have no idea how long it will wind up being or if anyone is even interested in reading it all, but i will now attempt to share our journey. i have sat down multiple times to write this and every time, i struggle with my thoughts and how to best order them, and i am more than likely going to struggle now, but hopefully you will bear with me. and i will intersperse this post with pictures to make it more fun.

THE "FEELING" (TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 21)
we got an email from bethany updating us on birth mothers they were working with and it also stated that a boy had been born the previous day and was taken into custody from the hospital as his birth parents had decided to make an adoption plan for him. i immediately forwarded the email to david and we agreed not to get our hopes up, but by the time david got home, i had the overwhelming feeling to pray for these precious parents. selfishly, yes, we hoped they would choose us. but, also because i can't imagine sitting in the hospital, holding your child, and for one of a million reasons you believe adoption would be the best plan for them.

THE CALL (WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 29)
it was around 4 in the afternoon and my cell phone rang. i looked at the clock and thought "what if this were debby (our social worker)?" not sure why, but i did, thinking it was still within business hours, and that's what i did during that time...waited for the phone to ring between 8 and 5. i picked up my phone and saw the memphis area code and my heart stopped. i answered and debby's voice was there saying she had a case for us and she thought it would be a perfect fit. i would like to say here that i gracefully cried, but i sobbed. i sobbed like a little baby and told her i wouldn't be speaking for the rest of the phone call, but i promise i was still there. she went on to describe the stats of mother/father/child as well as a statement from the birth parents and the interim care family that was caring for him at the time. all very formal and sterile but beyond exciting to me (it was a leap day miracle!). she did warn us, however, these birth parents are married and this case is a little more touch and go than typical cases. they are much more likely to change their minds and they wanted to meet us first. they had 3 other children ages 3, 2 and 1 and this pregnancy was a game changer. after talking to david (we flipped out together) we told her we would be there as soon as they wanted us there for the meeting. we were kept on hold until they could schedule something, but we were told to be ready to come the next day.  obviously, exactly what you can imagine unfolded that night. we called our families and closest friends. we weren't ready to announce it to the world or anything. we weren't sure if this would work out, after all. and then we started packing. we each packed one bag for the weekend and one bag for 2 weeks, just in case things worked out and we had to stay while interstate paperwork was being worked out.

on thursday, we waited and waited...ran errands and waited some more until we heard that a meeting with baby boy's birth mother was scheduled for friday at noon. we decided to head to memphis thursday night so we could wake up and take it easy before the meeting. we had dinner with our best friends mandy and joel so that we could enjoy one last dinner potentially as not parents (their little boy henry was due at the beginning of march and we weren't sure if we'd be back before he arrived), and then we hit the road. we got in late and stayed up talking to liz and jd, getting all kinds of advice and encouragement and then went to bed, but unfortunately for me that did not mean sleep. i spent a lot of sweet time with Jesus in the wee hours of the morning that night and in those to come...and besides being really really tired, i wouldn't trade it for the world.

THE MEETING (FRIDAY, MARCH 2)
friday morning we woke up and were mainly distracted by amos and evie and spent the morning playing and hanging out. then we made our way to bethany's memphis office where we were able to spend some time with our social worker going over what to expect and some questions we could ask as well as some questions we could be prepared for. we were only going to be meeting with his birth mother, which was at the same time a little disappointing and relieving. we heard her walk into the office and then were led into the meeting room (basically set up to look like someone's living room) where we would have our interview. as we walked in, the first thing i thought was "she is so beautiful." she said she was so nervous and we assured her we were just as nervous. probably more. we spent the next hour talking, telling each other about ourselves. it was almost like a proposal. i am vaguely aware of what we talked about, but it was so overwhelming that i've forgotten most of it. she shared that they really were looking for confirmation of the impression they got from looking at our profile book. and at the end of it, she felt good about everything. she did tell us multiple times that she was trying to protect us by making absolutely sure this was what they were going to do before we met baby boy. we really appreciated that and she was so wonderful, we were just excited to get to know her and share with her that we wanted to stay a part of their lives, if they were comfortable with that. she said she would go back home and share everything she learned about us with her husband and they would make a decision over the weekend. we also learned that they had already set a court appointment for tuesday morning to sign their surrenders (termination of parental rights).

we really just went away from the meeting being blown away by her. she was such an outgoing, sweet person who truly loves her child so much and told us that multiple times. people often think that children who are adopted have been abandoned (which is sometimes the case, yes), but there are so many cases where there are extremely loving and responsible parents trying to make a way for their child where they can't find a better option. it is a decision made out of love, and they make a plan, and they care. and ezra's birth parents love him.

THE WAITING (FRIDAY, MARCH 2 - SUNDAY MARCH 4)
we spent the weekend trying desperately to distract ourselves. we went out to dinners and went to the playground and went shopping, etc, etc. we had a great time with liz, jd and the kids. i don't know what we would have done if we had been in a hotel somewhere. saturday night, we went on a date where we finally settled on baby boy's name, and then we met up with liz and jd for desert before heading back home. sunday morning i woke up with a weird feeling. it wasn't a terrible feeling but it wasn't a peaceful one. we stayed home from church because we both just felt restless and i felt like i would burst into tears at any moment.

throughout the weekend, whenever i felt anxious, i just reminded myself that here was this married couple deciding whether or not they would be able to parent their 4th child...an unimaginable position and that helped give me a little perspective. i spent the sleepless nights praying that their marriage would be strengthened by this, that they would lean on each other and that whatever happened, they would grow through it together. and then i prayed the same for us. it was a hard prayer, because for a little while i was really afraid that God was going to use this to grow us through a hard time. and that's terrible to admit, but there it is.

sunday night we got a call saying the bad news was they still hadn't heard anything. the good news was if they changed their minds they would have heard from them saying they wanted their baby back. if nothing else, we should stick around until tuesday to see if they showed up to court.

THE DECISION (MONDAY, MARCH 5)
monday morning i woke up with the greatest sense of peace. i truly felt like we were going to become parents and that we would hear from them soon. we knew our social worker had a homestudy that morning so we wouldn't hear from her until after lunch. david was going stir crazy and had to get out of the house, so he headed off to starbucks to get some work done. around 2, i got a call from debby and it was the quickest, most wonderful phone call where she said "we've heard from [birth mother] and she and [birth father] are in agreement and would like to move forward with placing their baby with you and david! since the court date is tomorrow, we will let them sign their surrenders and you will get custody tomorrow. so go celebrate and i'll call you back later with details!" literally, that was it. she obviously said those things with great excitement. but it was definitely short and to the point.

so then i called david and he was just speechless and mad that he wasn't there and then he was on his way to get a celebratory cookie cake (because who passes up on an opportunity to get a cookie cake?). he came home to liz and i sorting through amos's baby clothes and making a target list. we went that night to target and were ridiculously giddy, practically skipping down aisles. and then that night i folded a bunch of tiny baby clothes that the next day my son would be in. between the emotions and the staying up late to fold laundry and the lack of sleep nights prior and the relief, i slept like a baby.

GOTCHA DAY (TUESDAY, MARCH 6)
tuesday was sort of a grueling day because we weren't supposed to get to the agency until 3, which made for a looooooong morning. but it was awesome, because it was the big day. i remember debby calling to tell us that the surrenders had been signed and i was so excited and at the same time mourned for these precious parents. around 2 david put the car seat in the car and it became very real what was about to happen. we headed up to the office and had to sign about a thousand papers, and then were led back to that same living room-type place. we sat there and then i heard the doorbell ding that indicated someone new had come in and i knew it was our baby (well, the interim care mom carrying our baby). my heart started pounding and i felt like time slowed to a crawl. i realized later they were taking him out of the car seat so they could actually hand him to us, but at the time i just wanted to run down the hall and grab him. i was kind of a wreck. when they came around the corner and said "here's your baby!" i had a total come-apart. we just sat there and stared at him and held his little hands and talked to him and it was so wonderful. we then had this time where we talked with the interim care mom and got the basics of his schedule/needs, etc. he was two weeks, one day old when we took him home. the next 30 minutes we spent with our social worker, the birth mother counselor and the interim care mom were kind of a blur, but then we got to take him with us (really? they let us do that?) and it was so exciting. i think david drove 20 mph the whole way home.

when we got back to the house, the kids were asleep and we immediately had to hand him over to aunt liz. shortly after we got home, evie woke up and when we went to get her, she had the most hilarious look on her face of "why is mommy holding a baby?" and then she looked at me like it was my fault. it was really hilarious. when amos woke up, we were a little more interested to see what his reaction was going to be (we're tight...me and amos), but he was so excited and just kept saying "hey, baby!" over and over. and he just wanted to touch him. the picture above is one of my favorites. he just wanted to be close to him.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

my mom came to visit during the week. sadly, i didn't take any pictures and didn't realize it until just now. hopefully she took some!

david's family came up that weekend and got to spend some time with sweet little man. david's dad wins the award for most effort! he drove all the way from texas to birmingham on friday to meet up with david's mom who had come to visit liz and charlie (they had just moved into a new house) and then all of them drove up to memphis on saturday morning - just to have to turn around and drive back to texas on sunday. we love them so much and it was really hard to see them go!

the pictures below were taken the day we left. on tuesday, march 13 we got the call that our paperwork was approved and we were getting to go home. it was really bittersweet. we were ready to get home - to get to some level of normalcy - but at the same time i broke down into tears. i was so sad to leave. the reality that liz and i don't live in the same city anymore hit me and i just knew that going home meant leaving her. but we got our butts in gear and amazingly got the car packed, fed ezra, got in the car and left. we made it home around 9 to an apartment full of our closest family and friends. they were total troopers to party that late and it was great to introduce ezra to his new people!
(liz said that amos woke up the next morning and went downstairs and the first thing he said was "baby?" she had to tell him that baby had gone home and then he said "bekah home?" -yep. bekah's at home too. "day-day home?" -yeah, baby. bekah, david and their baby went home. sweet boy. he thought we were moving in.




that day everything changed. that little boy became the greatest thing in the world to us. we were overwhelmed by how beautiful he is and how much we loved him immediately. yes, there was a 10 day waiting period where his birth parents could change their minds, but we really felt that - based on her previous protection of us - that they wouldn't have even made this decision if there was the slightest possibility that they may change their minds. we just stared at him, as did amos and evie! we were and still are so overwhelmed and thankful for our little blessing. he amazes us every day. his is 10 weeks old now and completely fascinating. he knows his mommy and daddy and will turn towards us when one of us starts talking - even in a room with other people talking! we think he's advanced. and we just are head over heels in love.

we are so appreciative of everyone who supported our journey, whether it was financially or through prayer. to say that we could tell that people were praying for us is an understatement. there was no reason for us to be as calm as we were. We are so thankful for those prayers of our sweet friends and family.

Adoption Update: We're Approved!

We have HUGE news. We have officially been APPROVED by Bethany and our profile will now be shown to prospective birth parents! (side note: we used Pinhole Press for our profile book and could not have been happier with them and their customer service!)

We still have no idea how long it will be before we are matched. It is almost entirely up to the birth parents at this point. Originally, we had been open to the whole country, but it turns out that since there isn't an "Alabama" option on the website and it would misrepresent us to birth parents to make it look like we were from Memphis, our profile will only be shown to parents who come into the Memphis office. But there is always a chance that another office may call if they haven't been able to place a birth mother with a family from their office or online. In that case, they can show it. Make sense? So there is still a chance we could get a baby from another city, but it is most likely they will come from Memphis or the Memphis area. 

I woke up in the middle of the night last night and couldn't sleep, so I was checking my email and had a message from some sweet friends who just found out their son in China, who they were finally going to meet in a few short days has passed away. The saddest part is that they will probably never find out what happened. But their words were so encouraging as they were reminded that their sweet son (who had some special medical needs) is now made whole and perfect in the arms of our everlasting Father. As I lay there wide awake and deeply saddened, I prayed that God would just put his arms around them and they would be reminded of his grace and mercy and goodness. And then I realized I was praying that for us, too. As we have passed each milestone, I seem to have grown more and more impatient. I prayed that God would just remind us of his sovereignty in all of this. This child has been prayed for for three years. God hasn't carried us this far to let us down now. And I am so thankful for that.

In other adoption news, one of David's friends bryan was on the local news with his family and their new daughter Finley. Such a great story of the urgency and simplicity of adoption!

Yard Sale Success

the yard sale went so well on saturday. thank you so much to all the people who donated, who came by to visit and especially those who bought stuff. we actually got to talk to some people who have adopted, who had siblings who were adopted and even one woman who gave up a child 10 years ago. they were all so encouraging and sweet. we are just so ready to have this little baby home!

hilarious story...at one point a police officer pulls up and david walks over and gets micah. all i can hear from the porch is "did you get a permit?" to which micah told us he replied, "yeah, i got one from the mayor." micah thought the guy was joking, and then he said "well, i need to see it." so micah starts to back track saying he thought it was a joke. he really didn't have a permit. the next thing i see is the cop start laughing and saying he was just messing with us. he was there to shop. julianne told him he had to buy something after that.

julianne made these super sweet onesies to sell at the yard sale. thankfully, i was able to snag one.

so i have to say a huge, gigantic, enormous thank you to julianne and micah who had the idea in the first place and who did pretty much all the work. we are so thankful that they are our friends. we love them and their two sweet babies so so much. sadly, we didn't take a picture together either so i borrowed this one so i could show their sweet faces. (photo)

Adoption Fundraiser (Please Come!)

Prayer

Adoption Update: In the Waiting

We actually don't have much new information in the way of approval or anything. We are still waiting on our approval from Agape which we are expecting any day, and then that will be sent to Bethany Christian Services in Memphis who will sign off on it and at that point, it will take up to a month before we are officially and totally approved, at which time they will start showing our profile book to birth mothers. Our profile book is essentially our life in pictures and captions. That was a slightly nerve-racking experience knowing that whatever we put in  that book is what will speak to a particular birth mother. But it's really just another way to experience God's grace in all of this. We know that there will be something that we seemingly off-handedly decided to add that will excite or comfort or intrigue the birth mother that God has already chosen for us.

So right now, we are in a period of waiting. It's not easy. Especially when you think you would already be past this point. But we are continually resting in the knowledge that God is not surprised by this. He isn't asleep on the job. He knows perfectly and lovingly who our child is, and just like He knows how many hairs will be on it's sweet little head and how many times it's heart beats in a minute. He knows our child's birthday. And I'm not even going to sit here and pretend that my heart has grasped that, yet. I am a perpetually faithless and impatient person, but I know that the waiting will bring great reward and that his timing is perfect. And I am thankful for a gracious God who has nothing but our best in store. So if waiting is what is best for us, we will wait.

update: Since i scheduled this post, I was able to talk to our social worker and this morning I went and picked up our homestudy!! And as soon as i send her a few tiny corrections, it will be on it's way to Tennessee!! Yay!

Kisses from Katie

yesterday, katie davis came and spoke for a little bit at our church. she is the author of the well known blog "kisses from katie" and is now the author of a book by the same title. i have this book and can NOT wait to start reading it. I would highly recommend everyone picking up a copy.

her story, in a nutshell: as a senior in high school she committed to teaching kindergarten in uganda for a year before heading to college. after her year was up, and she was back in the states, she felt called to return to uganda for an extended time. she then through a series of amazing events came to have 14 little girls under her roof, who call her - a 22 year old - mama. her blog is an amazing example of the strength and power and grace and mercy of the Lord in impossible situations (not to mention, she is an amazingly gifted writer).

listening to her speak was amazing, because (like she says in the video below) she didn't miraculously find what God wanted her to do with her life. she just followed Jesus's teaching to love the Lord with all your heart and love your neighbor as yourself. she never set out to be this famous adoptive mom, she just slowly started taking in children who needed a home. she also is a major advocate for keeping children in their biological families, so she will also rehabilitate children on top of her own 14 and then send them back to family, or she will sometimes even take in the mother as well to teach them how to care for their children. she has had the homeless town drunk live in her back yard, so that she and her girls can share Jesus with him and she and her girls went into one of the worst slums in uganda and created relationships with women who even ugandan women won't talk to. she is so inspiring, but more than anything it just shows how simple it is to obey the call of God on your life - whatever that may be. she just kept saying, "God told me to just be faithful in the little, and he would be faithful in the much." absolutely.

here also is a video promoting her new book and sharing her story.

Adoption Update: Homestudy Complete

We are so excited to say that we have completed our home study and are now just waiting for our formal approval. We are using two agencies (because our placement agency does not have an office in Birmingham). Once we are officially approved by our home study agency, everything will go to our placement agency in Memphis to be checked off and approved there. we are thinking this whole process will take somewhere between 6-8 weeks. 

So what to do in the mean time? Well, we have some online classes we have to take as well as a trip to Memphis that we will make next week for a class there. And then there is a whole lot of praying to do...we are so burdened/thankful for/prayerful over our birth mother. We are aware that she may be going through or has already gone through a lot of painful decision-making, and we just so desperately ask the Lord to be with her during this process, even though we have no idea who she is or, specifically, what we are praying for. I get emotional every time I think of her. I can't imagine what it must be like. We have already been so blessed by her. 

We Are Adopting!

we have big news! now that all those most dear to our hearts have officially been informed, we can let  y'all in on our little news as well. WE ARE ADOPTING!

i don't think we could possibly be more excited than we are, except for when we get to meet that sweet, little baby. we are adopting domestically and have just finished all of our initial application paperwork, background check paperwork, etc. and once all that goes through will start our homestudy. 

we are just so excited for the opportunities to share the gospel of adoption. our church tweeted earlier this week "we care for orphans not because we are rescuers. we care for orphans because we are the rescued." and that's it. plain and simple. so we do covet your prayers for wisdom and peace during this process. and for money (your prayers that it will be provided...not me asking your for your money...ha!)! i actually am working on getting an etsy shop up to help raise some money, so i'll have more details on that later. 

and of course we'll update here as things go along. 

Pain, Suffering and Blessing

i know people don't really like "wordy" posts, but i hope that you will read this. it's great perspective...

"Maybe you're infertile [read: having a hard time...sickness, death, depression, etc] and you're wondering if this means you're personally cursed by God. maybe you read passages in the old testament about the blessing of a fruitful womb for the obedient and the curses of barrenness for the cursed, and you're wondering if you're rejected by God.

No.

remember, we can't bypass Jesus when reading passages that he tells us are all about him (luke 24: 44-45). he is the obedient israel and he receives the blessing of God. he is also the One who bore the curse on our behalf, every bit of it (galatians 3:13). if you've believed in Christ, you are blessed and not cursed, whatever the situation you see around you.

I can't explain what the infertility means for you, but i can tell you that God is not punishing you. how do i know? if you are in Christ, your punishment was absorbed in the body of a crucified Jesus. there is no more condemnation for you (romans 8:1). God is disciplining you, shaping you and he often uses suffering to do so, but he isn't punishing you. he views you within the body of his Christ and he loves and delights in you. whatever is happening in your life, nothing can separate you from the love of God in Christ. (romans 8:31-39)..."

- dr. russell moore, adopted for life

also, congratulations to our friends beth and matt peele who have just found out they will be adopting a precious baby in february!

what if you're not a Christian?

"...if you don't know Christ, God isn't punishing you at all (hebrews 12:8), though he is sovereign over everything that happens in your life. he is calling you to be found in Christ, and the curse that awaits you comes at judgement, not now. for now there's a temporary suspension of doom, and God is doing good to you, as you can see by the air you're breathing and the blood pushing through your veins (acts 14:16-17). as Jesus tells his disciples, the horrible circumstances that happen to people in this life aren't a one-to-one retaliation for sin (luke 13:1-4). but Jesus does tell us that if we don't repent, these things - be it infertility or towers falling on us - will be the least of our problems."

Adopted for Life

"when we adopt - and when we encourage a culture of adoption in our churches and communities - were picturing something that's true about our God. we, like Jesus, see what our Father is doing and do likewise (john 5:19). and what our Father is doing, it turns out, is fighting for orphans making them sons and daughters."

- adopted for life, dr. russell moore

["so Jesus said to them, "truly, truly, i say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. for whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise." john 5:19]

Adopted for Life

awhile back, i started reading adopted for life by dr. russell moore. for those of you who aren't familiar with the book or the man, he and his wife adopted two sons from russia about 6 years ago. they are adoption advocates, but most importantly he wants to promote that the reason for adopting is purely because God adopted us. therefore, that is why we are called to do it and that is the only real reason for it.

i love this line:

"without the theological aspect, the emphasis on adoption too easily is seen as mere charity. without the missional aspect, the doctrine of adoption too easily is seen as metaphor."

p.s. here are some new ones of this little fella!

Amos's Baby Shower

last night [this post was started a few weeks ago], our sweet friends mandy and joel came over for dinner and mandy dropped off the pictures she snapped at liz and amos's baby shower. they are so great! i was so excited. i had so much fun making these decorations! i'm so glad we have such great pictures of the day.

it was such a fun day! so many wonderful people came out to bless the wilsons and the arrival of their sweet baby boy. sadly, the stomach bug was going around so amos didn't come until the tail end of the shower to be able to lower the chances of catching it. but it was still such a fantastic day!
also, a huge thanks to morgan who opened up her beautiful salon - morgan ashley - for the day!

this picture is for vanessa

i absolutely LOVE this picture of morgan (dear friend and salon owner) with her son, shepard.

our sister-in-law, alison (who there was 8 months pregnant with our newest nephew, pierce), liz, granny (our mom's mother), momma, and me

sadly, there were so many hostesses and they were coming and going that we didn't get a hostess picture :(

Amos David

sweet friends and family, i can't remember to whom i've told what, so here is the craziness that has been the last few days.

monday, liz and i were working at mom's, as usual, scraping ceilings and whatnot. we were talking about how crazy it is that they were completely done with everything on their end of the adoption. everything had been sent in and monday was their first day to have their profile officially shown (they made photo books for birth mothers to look through when choosing who to give their child to). we were talking about how excited we were and how we couldn't believe that they had gotten everything finished in around 3 months, yada, yada, yada...

monday night, liz calls and i stop drying my hair to answer. the first things out of her mouth were "becky, we got a baby." i don't even remember how long it took me to actually compute those words and my first response was to cry and futilely try to put coherent questions together (this caused david to run in from the other room thinking some tragedy had befallen the family). i finally managed to ask when the mother was due, and liz just laughed..."she's being induced this friday!" oh yeah, and the mother has no idea the sex of the baby. we spent the next while laughing and crying together on the phone and made plans for me to come over the next day to get things done.

tuesday morning i go over bright and early and while liz is on the phone (phone call after phone call, as you can imagine in a situation like this) i start making a to do list, planning out the next few days (jd is working in georgia, at this point). liz's sweet friend lauren with her baby boy, harris, comes over and we head out to babies r us to pick up a few necessities and pick out a car seat, which my mom was going to come and pick up later. well, on our way to b.r.u. jd calls. liz just starts saying, "no she's not. no she's not." i am driving and start crying because i think the mother is changing her mind. then, liz grabs my arm and screams "she's in labor right now!" i almost wrecked the car. (is this too much detail?) so jd leaves ga and starts his 5 hour trek home. we go to babies r us with a whole new objective (once we actually got there we all had to pause, sit down and collect our thoughts. we were so crazy and frazzled). we grabbed the necessities, including a car seat which was now a necessity and headed back to the house.

more sweet friends, blair (with baby micah), morgan (with baby shepard), katie (with baby asher) and laura come over to help. we spend the next few hours doing laundry, getting liz packed, washing and sterilizing bottles...you name it. all with the laughter of babies in the background (they were just as excited about their new friend). we work and work and laugh and stress and laugh some more and then a little after 5, jd calls...IT'S A BOY! so then we celebrated!

shortly thereafter, jd got home and we all watched awkwardly taking pictures :)

so, yesterday morning they drove up and met their son! i wasn't planning on going up until friday but once i saw the picture (and realized i don't work, so there's no reason i shouldn't) i begged david to go with me today...so we are!

meeting him for the first time!

i could not stop staring at this sweet sleeping baby

me and mandy went over yesterday and worked on the crib