Finally Catching Up: April/May 2013

In an effort to keep up with the months (and months and months...) of waiting, I want to continue doing a monthly recap.  Not even so much for my readers, but mostly for me so I don't forget :)

April: 
I spent the whole first week/weekend in Disney World having a blast, and Mark spent his Spring Break in Charlotte taking care of his mom.  I know he had  a great time just being with her and being able to help out with her recovery, but he definitely missed being able to get away to a warmer/sunny place during Spring Break.  (Don't worry we made up for it in May with a surprise weekend getaway)

The end of April I took the dogs with me to Hickory to visit my dad and Karin, while Mark went off to a bachelor party for his friend Brian.  The guys had a blast (maybe even too much fun), while I had a nice relaxing weekend with all four dogs

May: 
We knew that May would be a busy month, so the first weekend we stayed around home and spent time with friends.  Our very talented friend Mariela had her artwork at a community festival so we got up bright up and early and helped her set up then hung out for most of the morning.  She sold lots of awesome pieces and we came home with the turtle and whale art below, for the nursery.   That afternoon we headed over to a local park/lake to celebrate a friend's birthday and spend time just catching up with friends.  It was nice to see everyone running around with their kids.

The second weekend in May Mark planned a surprise get-away to Wilmington NC.  It was awesome.  I work in Wilmington once every other month for a day, but I've never actually had time to explore the city of Wilmington.  We stayed at an awesome hotel right on the river and spent all day Saturday wandering up and down the river front and some cute shops not far from the river.  We tried out some awesome restaurants, spent some time just stopping in bars and grabbing a drink, and just some time sitting on the river front eating ice cream.

Third weekend:
Every year our adoption agency hosts a spring picnic at an area park.  The picnic is a really great opportunity for the families who have already adopted to get together and catch up, but its also a good opportunity for waiting families to get some encouragement from those who have been through the process.   This was our second  year going so it was nice to see families who last year were "waiting" and this year had babies.  Although we are excited for everyone who has received a placement, it also makes us a little sad that we are still waiting.  We know that God has an awesome plan for us though and so we have to continue to place our hope and faith in Him.

To end this weekend we celebrated Nicole's 30th birthday early by going to see Sister Act at the DPAC.

The last weekend in May Mark was in his best friend Brian's wedding.  Brian is one of the last guys from Mark's group of high school friends to get married and Mark was honored and excited to be a part of it.   The wedding was a beautiful outside wedding and the reception was a great big party.  Everyone had a great time and we had the opportunity to hang out with friends that we don't get to see very often.  After the wedding we all ventured out on the town to a few more bars before calling our personal taxi (Mark's mom) and heading home.

Look at this goof - ball...he continued to tell us he was "business on the top and party on the bottom"  

Disney World

The first week of April I was lucky enough to attend a four day work conference at Disney World.  I went with my co-worker/friend Jess and we left our husbands (and her son) at home!  Mark was taking care of his mom after her hip surgery and I was having an awesome, I mean boring, time in Florida!

Jess and I arrived early on Tuesday and had all day to sit out in the sun and just enjoy our resort.  Tuesday night we went to the Magic Kingdom, and has so much fun riding rides and just enjoying Disney.  We even managed to catch a parade and see Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, and a few other characters.

Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday we had conference sessions all day long, and like good conference attendees we actually went to almost all of them.  But in the evenings we were able to get away from the resort and spend more time exploring Disney and enjoying delicious food.  We went to the Disney Boardwalk one night and to Downtown Disney two nights.  Our favorite places to eat were Wolfgang Puck,  House of Blues and Ghirardelli

Saturday, sadly we had conference sessions all morning and then had to leave and catch our flight pretty much as soon as it was over.  We did steal 30 minutes in the sun between the end of the sessions and the shuttle to the airport.

It was such a fun week with Jess and a good reminder of why we do the work that we do.  I came back feeling re-energized and with a new commitment to my job and the transplant population!

March 2013

First weekend
Finally a month where we spent (almost) every weekend at home :)  Jenn started out the month with an all day Saturday conference at work, where I actually presented in front of 100 people about the importance of my job!

Second weekend
Another weekend at home to do "normal stuff".  Running errands, buying new patio furniture (an amazing deal at Kohl's), Enjoying Church and a leisurely Sunday lunch with friends, and finally the weather was nice enough that all the neighbors spent the afternoon just hanging out in our backyard!

Third weekend
Yay!  A third weekend "at home".  Spent the day at a local winery with friends, had dessert with some friends who are also "waiting" for their adoption call, and caught up on some housework!

Fourth Weekend
Went to Charlotte to spend Easter with our families.   While there we had the opportunity to hang out with friends and attend a going away party for some good friends who moved to Texas!  Mark's mom had hip replacement surgery planned for the Monday after Easter so Mark stayed in Charlotte to take care of her, while I went to Florida for a conference (pictures and a whole post about that week coming soon)

Nursery Update

After months of procrastinating we finally finished the nursery!  We made a small flip book of the pictures and sent it off to our agency as well, so that it can be shown to the birth moms.  We are really excited about the way that the nursery turned out and we absolutely can not wait until there is a baby sleeping in there!

We still have a few things to do like hang pictures and buy curtains...but for now we are calling it done!  The wall is a light green/blue (you can't really tell from the pictures) and the curtains will incorporate some color from the letters and comforter, we just haven't decided which color yet.

Another Fundraising Party!

So I know its been a while since I've posted...don't worry, you haven't missed much of anything.  Its been a busy couple of weeks with work and a trip to Disney World for a conference (more on that later).  But for now, I wanted to let you all know about another fundraiser we are having.  This weekend we are having a Silpada jewelry party.  Our sweet friend Julie (who sells Silpada) has been offering to throw the party for months and she is going to give us the proceeds that she would normally make from all of the sales, to use toward our adoption fund!  Thanks again Julie!

Here is the link for anyone who would like to do some shopping.  They have awesome jewelry and you might even find some great stuff to use as Mother's Day gifts!!!!

https://mysilpada.com/sites/julie.garber/public/content/jewelry/index.jsf

I'm going to try to get caught up on posts again...so stay tuned there will be some posts about Easter, my trip to Disney, and other "what we do while waiting" posts.  I'm also hoping to reveal the nursery as soon as i get the rest of the pictures uploaded....

On the Tough Days...

If you read my blog often, you know that I typically try to remain really positive, especially when talking about adoption and the adoption process.  I want to make a blog book with all of my posts and I would love to be able to show the book to Baby Harrill one day, and I don't ever want them to hear me say something negative about adoption.  But, I also wouldn't be painting an accurate picture of adoption if I didn't talk about the tough days.

The tough days are those days when you realize how badly you want for your baby to come home.  That there is a spot in your heart just waiting for that baby, and that empty spot physically aches the longer you wait.  With pregnancy there is a count down, you know roughly when your new baby will arrive.  With adoption there is no count down...it could happen today, it could happen  next month, it could happen next year!  The wait can be good, it gives you time to get the nursery ready, pick out a daycare, save money, spend time as just a family of two, and really prepare our hearts to be parents.  But the wait can be hard, it can be excruciating  it can be sad, it can be lonely, but the wait is part of God's plan!

On those tough days, when I'm feeling sorry for myself and wishing that I could control my own destiny, I'm reminded of Jeremiah 29:11.  "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope".  What a blessing to know that I don't need to be anxious about my lack of control in this situation, because I am NOT supposed to be in control.  God is in control, He knows exactly which baby is going to be joining our family and His timing is perfect!  A friend, who is also waiting to adopt, recently reminded me that God had our babies chosen long before we even made the decision to adopt.  I know all of this is True, and although the road is still difficult at times, this gives me peace in the process.

So what do I do on those tough days?  I come home and spend time with my amazing husband and awesome puppies!  That always seems to make everything better :)

2012 Recap

 I absolutely can not believe how quickly 2012 flew by.  As I type this we are already 1/2 way through January, 1/2 way through February, 1/2 way through March!!!!.  I really don't know where the time is going.  I am thankful that we have kept ourselves so busy though, because I was afraid the adoption wait would drag, but these past 6 months were gone before we knew it...here's hoping this spring proves to be equally as exciting and busy!

*As you look at the pictures below, if you click on them they will get big enough to see without a magnifying glass :) *

January 2012 
Settling in back from an awesome trip in Las Vegas, Christmas with Jenn's dad, and  praying about a very important decision (hint hint..something we decide in February)

February 2012 
Mark's 30th Birthday, beach trip with friends,  spa weekend for Shannon's 30th birthday (no pictures), and after many prayers we made the decision to attend an adoption information session with our agency!

March 2012 
We decide to move forward with the adoption process and complete our preliminary application, trip to Charlotte to celebrate Mark's mom's birthday and tell our parents that we are starting the adoption process.

April 2012 
Attend our first adoption conference at our agency, visited with friends and family in Charlotte, and managed to catch a Bulls game

May 2012 
Mountain Trip with friends, Charlotte for Mother's Day, Finally some free weekends to work on our massive amounts of adoption paperwork

June 2012 
School wrapped up for Mark, Summer officially started, Jenn took a trip to lake with the girls, Mark to the beach for a Bachelor party, Home Study completed, Trip to MD to visit with Shannon and Brady, and  annual trip with friends to Charleston and Hilton Head.

July 2012
Philadelphia with Catelyn to visit Bryan, Mountains for Jon and Sarah Jean's wedding, Melissa and Eric's wedding in Raleigh

August 2012 
Officially on the adoption waiting list (August 1)!  Trip to NJ to visit with family, School starts back, Summer comes to an end

September 2012 
Fall started off with a bang...our friends threw us an amazing adoption shower Click here  and here  for pictures from a previous blog post.  We hosted our first (and likely only) adoption yard sale Click Here to see pictures from that post.  Then we went to Maryland to spend time with Shannon and Brady and celebrate his 2nd Birthday!  And then we went spent time with Mark's family at Myrtle Beach...Remember? (click here)

October 2012 
Three weekends this month were spent in Charlotte; Girls weekend, wedding weekend, and then our 2nd adoption conference.  The last weekend we got to enjoy a high school football game and some time with family!  Click Here to remember

November 2012 
Flapjack Fundraiser, Panther's Game, Jenn turns 30!!!! and Thanksgiving.
Click Here, Here, and Here

December 2012 
2012 Ended with month full of time with friends and family, Christmas parties, illnesses, and Christmas!
To Remember Click Here  and Here

I know this is a l.o.n.g. post, but I know that when I look back on this blog after a few months I will be so glad that I did a 2012 recap.  It was tough trying to remember what we did each month but so fun to go back and look at pictures and remember all the fun times.  I hope to stay on top of it this year so that I don't have to spend 3 months of 2014 trying to remember what I spent all of 2013 doing!