UPDATE!!!

...Baby P's not on his way quite yet...little stinker!! =)  He's proving to be quite stubborn, so that assures us that he will fit in VERY well with this family!  Haha!

We did receive an update today (LOVE the updates on our little guy - they put our hearts and minds at ease and we get so stinkin' excited!)...  S had another doctor appointment and everyone is still doing great and very healthy.  Unfortunately for S, her doctor is not going to let her go another week past due.  She has to go in for another appointment tomorrow (Thursday) afternoon and they will be setting an induction date for early next week.  We know that S really didn't want to be induced...  but... we are SO EXCITED that we are only a few short days away from meeting Baby P and holding this precious gift!  We obviously, won't know the exact induction date until we get another update... But, how cool for Ben and I if our little guy was born this next Monday (February 2nd)???  That is our 7th wedding anniversary and what a PERFECT way to celebrate!

And...because I have several messages/texts on my phone in regards to this...  Many of you who live in the DFW area have been invited to one of our two baby showers (I have the greatest friends in the world!!)  The Keller/Bedford shower will still be held on Sunday, February 8th - no changes there.  The Keystone Shower is being moved from Thursday, Feb 5th, to Thursday, Feb 12th.  You will be receiving an email/evite confirming those changes... but wanted to let everyone know.  As I said... I have THE GREATEST FRIENDS AND FAMILY in the world and am so appreciative for all that they are doing!  They all scrambled to put the showers together, and now some of them are having to scramble to move the date.  They have all gone above and beyond.  Thank you...we love you!  Baby P's just making sure we know that he will NOT be following our schedule...he's got his own plans!  haha

Update on Baby P =)

We're still waiting, folks! =)  Ben and I have been joking around that this could be a good sign that sweet Baby P is much more laid back than the two of us - which works well in his favor!  =)

Our case worker has said that S has not been admitted to the hospital yet.  There is some progress into natural labor, so the doctor is holding out to see what happens over the next several days - hopefully she will not have to be induced.  Thank you for all of the prayers and well wishes - we'll do our best to keep everyone updated!

Still Waiting...some more.

Enough said.  Just wanted to let you all know... =)

To pass the time...

No new news yet, my friends... sorry if I got you excited with a new blog post.  Hopefully we will find out later today about our little Baby P's induction date - we CANNOT WAIT!!!  (Have I mentioned that before???  Ha!)  Most likely, we will be heading down towards Austin to meet our little guy on Tuesday or Wednesday...  Believe me, we will keep you posted! =)

A lot of our friends have been asking us what in the world we're doing to pass the time - this waiting is so hard!!!  Our answer... not much.  Sticking to our normal routines.  Work, hanging out (trying to enjoy our last few days with just the two of us), I've been frantically reading Baby 411 (AWESOME book for new and veteran parents!), we packed the little dude's bags yesterday - everything's ready to go.  Oh!!!  And my glider for the nursery came in on Saturday (8 WEEKS EARLY - yea!!!)!

And... my big distraction for the waiting... has been planning our trip to Maui for the end of March!  This trip was on the calendar long before we ever knew about our sweet new addition to the family... so we'll see how everything pans out with a precious newborn in the mix! =)  Should be a truly incredible time!!!  We'll be staying at the Grand Wailea Resort and Spa for 6 nights...check out the pics below - we're so excited!

And...before anyone gets up in arms about how in the heck we're affording this trip just two short months after adoption expenses... no, we did not win the lottery.  This is a COMPLETELY FREE trip for us (which makes it that much sweeter!).  Ben won this trip through work - I'm so very proud of him!  It's a great reward for the many hard, long hours he has put in to provide for our family.  And, we're getting to go with some of our greatest friends that we spent a year with up in Minneapolis during training.  We haven't seen any of them in a very long time, and we can't wait to spend an entire week with them!  

Ok... that's about all the distraction I can take... back to checking my email and phone every 2 minutes to see if we've received an update from our caseworkers!  Hopefully we'll have exciting news very soon =)

The flow of adoption in the state of Texas

Several people have asked about the finalization process for our adoption of sweet Baby P, so I thought that this info would make for a good post...just killin' time people...SO ANXIOUS for our little boy to get here!  =)

In the state of Texas, relinquishment papers cannot be signed for Baby P until 48 hours after his birth.  Our case workers will be at the hospital during this time to facilitate this whole process.  Baby P's birth mom will sign her relinquishment papers at this time, then Ben and I will complete a short round of paperwork for Baby P to be placed with us in our home before we leave the hospital.  Then the finalization begins...  The state of Texas will not finalize an adoption until 6 months after Baby P has been placed in our home.  During those 6 months, we will send reports and pictures to our case workers on Baby P's progress (one report each month).  We will also have two post-placement visits with a caseworker in our home (one immediately after we get settled, and the other at the 5 month mark).  When we hit 6 months, our finalization paperwork will be filed in San Antonio where we will appear in court on a Monday morning for approximately 10 minutes.  At that point, the court will declare sweet Baby P to be in our FORVER family...hallelujah!!!!

It truly is a remarkable process...one that protects Baby P's rights, mine and Ben's rights, as well as the birth family rights.  And...because I know some people are wondering...  No, after the 48 hour relinquishment period, there is no way that the birth family can come back and change their minds or reverse their decision.  I think that this would be so much easier on them because I cannot imagine going back and forth in my mind for a 6 month period until finalization.  Not every state does it this way, but thankfully our great state of Texas is making this process as smooth as possible for all parties involved.

Thank you for your continued prayers - please continue to lift up our precious baby boy, S, and S's entire family.  We'll keep you posted...

Still no news...

... Baby P's original due date was today, but no signs of labor yet.  Thank you for all of the prayers and well wishes!  Looks like our little stinker's going to be late =)  We'll be sure to keep everyone posted!

Still Waiting...

...on our little guy to be born!  This week has seemed like an eternity!!!  Baby P's due date is THIS TUESDAY...  but the doctor said that he will most likely be a little late.  So...we could be waiting at least another week or so.  We'll keep everyone posted =)

We finally feel prepared, though...(if that's even possible! ha!).  We have all of the necessities we need to bring him home... have all of his little clothes and blankets washed and ready to go... bottles sterilized... house sterilized... nursery organized... bouncers, beds, and bassinets all put together... Ben and I even got a date night in on Saturday night.   All I have left to do now is pack his little bag =)  I've been loving every minute of preparation - we are so, so, so ready to meet our sweet baby boy!