Ole!

Mr. Temmie loves him some spicey food. When we first dated, I could barely tolerate black pepper. Now days my palate can take a little heat. So the other day Mr. Temmie came home with 1 1/2 bushels of green chilies from Hatch, New Mexico. They had been washed and roasted. All I had to do was cool them and then bag them up to freeze.



Here they are cooling.

And bagged up for the freezer.

That there is 21 quart size freezer bags, each with about 5 rather large chilies in each bag.




Sure hope I don't need that bottom shelf for anything else.

And now begins the days of chili verde, chili rellenos, and anything else I can think of to do with about 30 lbs. of green chili. :)

3 months, custody and another delay.

Marcus is 3 months old today! I don't have a new picture of him though because my favorite nurse is still on vacation. :( I'm hoping to at least have the nurse get his feet and hand prints for his baby book. I can't believe it's been 3 months already. Of course the first 6 weeks we weren't really sure if he was going to be ours or not. Now we know he will come home with us. Let's just pray it happens soon!

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So my last post was about 8/17 being our anniversary. From now on it will be our anniversary AND the day the judge signed the custody order. For all intents and purposes we are his parents!!!!!! I couldn't have asked for a better gift!

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Finally, the bad news. More delays. We were so excited to learn that Marcus was doing better with his feeding and we would start to make a discharge plan for him soon. Then he had his eye exam on Tuesday and he didn't pass...twice. =( So rather than wait another week, he is having a follow up exam on Friday. If he passes that test, they will check again on Tuesday. If he doesn't pass this exam, he will have laser surgery right then and there. If he has surgery it could delay his discharge by up to 3 weeks. In addition to the possible eye surgery, these exams he has to have are very painful for him and it's affecting his feeding. He hurts and therefore doesn't want to eat. I'm heartbroken about this news. We have waited so long to have a baby and now that we finally have him, we have missed the first 3 months of his life and have no idea when he will get to come home. I know if he were in the same state I wouldn't be as upset. I could at least be there for him. I could hold him and kiss his downy soft head and promise him ice cream when it was all done. But I'm not there. And I can't go to him. I looked at airfare to fly out for 48 hours. But since we put everything we have and some we didn't have into adopting, we can't swing an extra $500 for a quick trip. So I will just have to keep praying that he will be home soon. And I have to keep finding the silver lining on the whole situation. The more days I work, the more PTO I accrue, the more days off I can take with Marcus when finally does come home. The other positive thing is despite all these obstacles and challenges, he continues to grow every day. As of this morning he is 5 lbs. 8 oz. =)

08/17/02

Warning: Cheese filled post ahead!!

Eight years ago today I married my best friend. It was a warm, but not too warm, August Saturday. We were surrounded by family and friends that are considered family. There was good food, A LOT to drink, music and laughter. It truly was the best day of my life.

We had a very simple and beautiful ceremony at our Parish followed by a reception at my sister's house. I don't think I will ever be able to thank my sister enough for offering her house/yard for our reception. There was a lot of hard work that went into getting things ready for that day. She used to joke that she should have purchased stock in H.ome De.pot because her paychecks all went there that Summer. And we can't forget the fact that her master bathroom remodel that was already started (bathroom was gutted!), ended up being put on hold and then stalled for 7 years! I'm not exaggerating at all either. =( It's done now so that's all that really matters right?

Anyway, Mr. Temmie and I had a great time spending the day with everyone we love. We also found out that an extended family member on Mr. Temmie's side also got married that day. When we left our reception we tried to find theirs but we had bad info on the location. So we scrapped the idea, picked up some burgers and headed to our hotel to watch pre-season football. Like I said, best. day. ever!

The last eight years have been filled with highs and lows, laughter and tears. It's not always "Happily Ever After". But what I have found is that when we hit the lowest of the lows, we're still together and we're there to help each other climb back up and out. In eight years we have learned to communicate better with each other. We have our own language and we can finish each other's sentences...sometimes. ;) We've seen each other at our absolute worst and best. And yes I still get butterflies in my tummy when Mr. Temmie surprises me with a phone call or an evening out. And sometimes I get them just because he is holding my hand.

So to Mr. Temmie: I love your guts babe! Thanks for making the last eight years (o.k. nine if you count the time we dated too!) the best years of my life. Whadda ya say we shoot for another 100 or so more? ;)

Hurry up and wait

Well it seems that Marcus has decided to drink all of his bottles. But he also decided to stop gaining weight. So it's still more of the same. Hurry up and get ready. Then wait. According to one of the NP's we should have a discharge plan by the end of the week. The staff has promised to try and give Mr. Temmie and me 3-4 days notice so we can get our work schedules figured out and get in the car and go. So while we wait we are making sure the laundry is done and the house is clean.



Marcus' good nurse sent me another picture the other day. Unfortunately it also came with the bad news that she is on vacation until the 25th. So no more weekly pictures unless he still isn't discharged by the time she gets back.



Growing stronger every day!

Get it done now, before the baby comes home!

With all the hustle and bustle getting ready for Marcus, I haven't really had a lot of time to relax. Between work, getting ready for the homestudy, and getting to visit Marcus for the weekend I've been running around like a mad woman. I'm tired! I want to rest. I need to rest because soon enough there will be a baby in my house that needs all my time and attention (I can hardly wait!).
This weekend we were supposed to be packing up to head to Lake Powell for a week of camping. But we found out about Marcus and we backed out of the trip. Then we were supposed to be packing up to head to CA to GET Marcus. But he's not ready yet. So now we have nothing going on. While I wish my baby were coming home, I'm beyond thrilled at this turn of events! I get to relax! I'm going to sleep in, play in my craft room and stay in my jammies until 4:00!
I have big plans for tomorrow. I want to finish bro-cha-cho's tapestry since he will be in town for the Lake Powell trip. I want to finish my niece's baby book. I want to start Marcus' baby book. And I want to make the name letters for Marcus' room.
There is also a hot air balloon festival this weekend. Mr. Temmie and I were out to dinner one evening last year and we saw all the balloons. We made a mental note that we wanted to check it out the next year. So that's just what we're going to do! It's going to be awesome! I'll be sure to remember the camera.
I also need to post pics of the baby's room. Thanks to the help from my other bro-in-law, the three of us were able to paint and pull carpet up last weekend. Now instead of an office it's a nursery/office combo. It's so cozy and I find myself spending time in his room just to look at all his things and wait for him to come home. :)

Big day

Today at 1:00 p.m. PDT birth mom will meet the CA attorney to terminate her rights. Mr. Temmie and I will then be given guardianship of Marcus. At that time the 6 month waiting period to finalize will start. We are so close to bringing our boy home we can hardly stand it!




Yesterday I spoke to Marcus' doctor and she filled me in on his status with a little more detail than the nurses. He is doing well, gaining weight and getting stronger every day. He has pretty much stopped his de-saturations completely. He still has had a few but he didn't drop very low and he self corrected so the nurses aren't counting them. So it really is down to his eating. He's only taking 1/3 to 1/2 of his feed from a bottle. They won't discharge until he eats the whole thing consistently. You can do it little guy! We're all cheering for you! :) His doc said he has at least another week in the pokie. I hope that's all he has left!



In the mean time, my favorite nurse is assigned to Marcus today. That means I get more pictures! Here's the newest of him in his BIG BOY cribette. No more warmer!!!! Oh and he now weighs in at a hefty 4 lbs 13 oz.

Update

So the order has been signed. The judge ruled that the CA agency can take birth mom's relinquishment signature. I'm working with my lawyer to coordinate a meeting for this to happen. Once is does, Marcus will be placed with us and then the 6 month waiting period to finalize the adoption will start. I'm so excited right now, I'm shaking! All the waiting and stress and frustration is finally starting to pay off!

And in other good news, Marcus has let up on his de-sats. When I called this morning to see how his night was the nurse said he had only had one de-sat and it was after he ate. Damn reflux!!! But it also means he's getting stronger! And now he just needs to take his whole feeding from a bottle. We're getting close! I feel like I should pack a bag or boil some water or something. ;)

Petition to adopt

As part of the adoption process, Mr. Temmie and I had to file a petition to adopt. The draft arrived the day before I went to California but we didn't have time to look it over until I got back. We did finally get a chance to look it over and make one correction and then I mailed it back to the attorney last week along with a hefty court fee and the attorney's retainer fee. The petition was filed on Friday. A judge will order a meeting between birth mom, a CA attorney [that = more fees :( ] and a social worker so birth mom can sign a consent saying she is relinquishing her parental rights. This meeting could be as early as WEDNESDAY. Once that happens, Mr. Temmie and I are granted guardianship of Marcus. This meeting will also start the ICPC process. This is the interstate agreement that has to happen before we can take Marcus out of the state of CA. I'm praying with every ounce of me that his discharge will line up with the completion of all the paperwork so that when he is discharged, we can visit with his CA grandma for a day or two and then COME HOME!!!!!