So I guess I am a little behind on this.  The boys have been keeping me  pretty busy as I love spending time with them.  They are both growing like weeds.  When we went to their 2 month check up on the 19th Angelo weighed 10lb 3oz and Lorenzo weighed 8lb 10oz, doctor said everything looked really good and they are doing great.  I know I am pretty happy with what they weigh as my cousin's baby who was born a week before these guys was 12lbs at her 2 month check up and my other cousin's baby who was born a week after was 11lbs at her 2 month check up.  I know I can't compare because they are twins and they are preemies but I think I always will and it will just give me some guideline to see how they are developing also even though it don't matter I will ALWAYS love my boys.  I can not imagine my life without them now.

The boys love it outdoors!  Which makes me very happy because I love it outdoors during the summer also(not this summer though too HOT!)  So yesterday we went to Lake Vermilion to visit my dad who is camping there after camping in Yankton for a couple days.  Mom can't go this time because her company was bought out and they are in training.

Sometimes I just stop and think of how blessed we really are and get overwhelmed with all the love that these babies have brought to our lives and how many other people truly love them also.  We have been very blessed by everything people have been giving us.  I told Chris the other night I felt bad because we hadn't really bought them anything even clothes because we have been given everything.  But I did go buy them some matching outfits for the showers that family and friends are going to be having.  I guess we will just save our money for when we need to start buying them things or when we need different car seats because they are too big for the carriers.

I am going back to work on August 6th, so last night I decided that I needed to start getting into a routine of getting ready for work and getting the boys ready.  This morning I had to go get some more formula so I thought I would also do the drive to the babysitters and then to work to see how long it is really going to take me.  I was surprised didn't take me near as long as I thought it would. 
So I think we will do that a couple more times next week, just so I can really judge my timing.  Hopefully the boys will be on a similar schedule once we start that but we will just adjust as long as I know how long it takes.  I am hoping that I will be able to work 4 1/2 days a week (before I worked 4) and that way I can have one afternoon off to go get supplies and such while they are still at daycare as it is much easier than trying to do it with them and this winter I don't want to take them in the cold as much as possible.  I also want my weekends to be with them.  Guess we will see what happens the first couple of weeks back at work brings.

We did have the boys pictures taken last weekend so hopefully I will get those this weekend so I can post some on here for you to see.

Don't know how much time I will be able to blog in the next month as it is pretty busy starting this afternoon as we have our first home visit with our social worker and then Sunday is first baby shower, Monday we have visit with birth father and supper with some friends, need to get my hair highlighted and cut, Sunday have to take Amber and her family to the airport to go to Florida and  2nd baby shower, Monday back to work, Sunday have another family function, then the next Sunday we have another baby shower and my nephews birthday party and the following Saturday we are going to have the boys baptized.


Thank you to everyone for their love and support during this journey.  We truely appreciate it all.


F.R.O.G

Michelle

Monday the boy's birth mom went to court to terminate her rights and then we had a meeting with her, her mom and her five other kids including the set of twins that were adopted last year along with their adoptive parents so that was an exciting time for us.  It is amazing how much the boys(4) look a like.  Kind of give us an idea of what they might look like in a year and 18 years as that is how old their oldest brother Titus is and Troy is a year old. 

Boys are doing good, growing like weeds.  I took them to get weighed before we went to the visit and Angelo weighed 8lbs 14oz and Lorenzo weighed 7lbs 6oz.

Well got to run sounds like someone or both of them are unhappy at the moment.

Michelle

The boys are keeping us busy!!  Chris went back to work on Tuesday so it is just mom and the boys home now during the day.  They keep me hopping.  I sometimes feel like I feed them and then the next thing I know is that it is time to feed them again, but that is ok because that is what makes them grow.  And let me tell you they are growing.  We went to the doctor on Wednesday just for a weight check(Grandma Raabe went with) and Angelo weighs 7lb 6oz 19.75 inches and Lorenzo weighs 6lbs 2oz 19 inches so they are bothing doing really good.  The doctor said that they like to see them gain 1/2 to 1 oz a day and Angelo gained 23oz in 13 days so he did almost 2oz a day and Lorenzo gained 18oz in 13 days.  The doctor said just keep doing what we are doing.  They are up to eat about every 3-4 hours so I have really learned to nap when they nap.

After the doctors office we went to see Great Grandma Raabe again because she kept asking when we were going to bring the boys back to see her and to be honest we don't go out that much with them becuase it has been so hot and for me alone it is a lot of work, but it is all worth it!

Sorry for the lack of updates we are just spending time with the boys and interviewing daycares.  The boys are doing good they are growing a little all the time, they are sleeping between 3-4 hours a time and then want to eat. 

We are truely blessed with these wonderful boys that we can not even explain it to everyone. 

Got to run as I need to get a few more things done before it is time to feed again and tonight we have a wedding to go to for my co-worker.

F.R.O.G

Michelle

We are HOME

We are home with the boys since about 12:30 this afternoon and things are going great.  I stayed up at the hospital last night and had my first night without any sleep due to the boys were fussy because they got circumcision and shots yesterday. 

We feel very blessed and can't wait for everyone to meet them.  We are up for visitors but just remember if you are feeling sick or have recently been sick we ask that you wait so the boys don't catch anything right now.

We are struggling to find daycare so that is on our agenda tomorrow to call around and see if we can find anyone that can take twin infants.  Our options are out in Hartford that we know of so now we are on to Sioux Falls which scares me a little bit more because I don't know them and don't know anyone else that does either.  At least in Hartford someone else would have know them.  Oh well everything will work out just have to have faith. 

I will continue to update this site but it might not be often just depends on how tired I am.  I am going to go feed the boys in a few minutes and then go to bed for a few hours between feedings.


F.R.O.G

Michelle

Passed the car seat test so should be coming home on Tuesday!!!

Please keep praying everything continues to go as planned.

Will update more after everyone gets settled in.

Michelle

WOW!  What a week it has been, we are very overwhelmed with emotion.  It is truly a blessing that we have been given.  We both have been working and then I head to the hospital about 4:00 and Chris goes to his mom's to shower and eat and then comes up for the 8:00 feeding and bath time. 

Boys are doing great!!  The started bottling on Sunday with 5cc 4 times a day and now today they are bottling all their feedings(8) and as much as they want to eat.  The doctor said today they are doing great and would look at releasing them next week sometime.  We went out and bought car seats today as they are going to do the car seat test tomorrow.  Car Seat test is where they have to be in the car seat for 90 minutes with monitors to see how they do and if they drop their heart rate or respiratory.  So we are praying for good results as that is just one step closer to home.

Birth mom has signed her papers to petition the court to terminate her rights and we have a court date of July 9th so we have a month to go but I think everything will be ok but I am asking for everyone just to keep praying.

Angelo(dark blue) weighs 5lb 3oz now and Lorenzo(light blue) weighs 4lbs 8.5 oz now so they are growing everyday.


F.R.O.G

Michelle

06/02/2012

The last couple of days have been the most rewarding it is unbelievable.  Friday I took mom to chemo got her all settled in and then went over to the other hospital, while Chris went to his great uncles funeral.  I spent the morning with the boys and then once Chris got home from the funeral we went back to the hospital and spent the evening there.  Today we started our schedule that we will follow which is birth mom will be there during the day so we can work and then we will be there in the late afternoon evening.  The weekends are the hardest because we aren't with them, but I guess it does give us time to get a few other things done that need to be done also.

Both boys continue to gain weight each night, hopefully tomorrow they can start bottle feeding again.
Chris changed his first ever diaper tonight and we gave the boys baths also.

I will continue to update but for tonight I am going to call it so I can get some pictures uploaded and sent to Walgreens to print so I can take them to my grandma because I am sure she is waiting..

F.R.O.G

Michelle

First Meeting

We got to meet the boys on Thursday evening at 4:30 so we were there for their 5:00 feeding and got to hold them during that and let me tell that was the best!!  Birth mom has been wonderful about everything so far.  Birth Father went back to Chamberlain to work and birth mom plans to go back once she can got to court to terminate rights and her social worker was going to check into when they could get that scheduled today(Friday).  We spent the evening with them at the hospital and I really didn't want to leave but I have to remember I have to take care of myself and also give birth mom her time with them also yet. 

I am going back up to the hospital this morning after I get mom all settled in at Chemo and then will go back and pick mom up after Chemo.  Chris is going to his great uncle's funeral so after bring mom home from Chemo I will wait for him and we will go back to the hospital.

I am planning on working yet while they are in the hospital and so birth mom is going to be there during the day and then we will spend the evenings with them.  Once they come home from the hospital I am going to take 10 weeks off to be home with them.

Angelo is baby a and as of last night he weighed 4lbs 8 oz, Lorenzo is baby b and a little smaller at 3lbs 12 oz.  Lorenzo is a little more fiesty than Angelo.  They are identical and let me tell you I really can't tell them apart at the point.  Chris says he can tell them apart but I think he is just saying that.

Both boys are doing really good they are hoping to move them to cribs today out of the giraffe beds as they are maintaining their own body heat and lungs are doing good.  They had started bottle feeding at 5cc and then the doctor said they are doing so good lets push them to 10 cc and that didn't go very well so they took the bottles away and they are just getting their feedings through the tube in their nose, but hopefully when they are 34 weeks they will start bottle feeding again. Lorenzo has some matter in his eye right now and it just started Wednesday night so we asked what they were going to do and they said they would watch it over night(thursday) and see if it got better or worse.  The nurse was thinking he might have a blocked tear duct.

Hopefully in the next several days I can get some pictues posted up here but last night I just took them on my phone and I can't figure out how to get them here and believe me I am not going to try very hard so I will just try when I get some with the regular camera.


Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers that everything continues to go as well as it is now and the boys continue to grow.

F.R.O.G
fully rely on god

Michelle and Chris

05/29/2012

Today was a good day!!!  We got the call we been hoping for, the birth parents have decided they want to go through with the adoption!  We are going to meet the boys on Thursday afternoon, birth mom wants to be present for this so after that we will decide on hospital time for us.  We are pretty excited but yet very nervous!!

I will post more on Thursday after we know more.

Please keep the babies and us in your thoughts and prayers

Thanks
Michelle and Chris

Just an update today..  Just got a call from our social worker who just got off the phone with the social worker from the hospital.  One of the nurses heard the birthparents say that they weren't ready for us to meet the boys yet.  So really don't know what that means!!!

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as I don't know if we can do this again.  Breaks my heart!  I keep trying to tell myself when it is meant to be it will happen but then I think when is it going to be the right time..

Michelle

Meeting 05/22/12

So we had our meeting with the birth parents yesterday and we thought it went very well but one never knows.  They know that adoption is the best decision for the boys even though it is a very hard decision for them right now.  The have been living in Chamberlain with the birth mom's birth mom as she was adopted also and prior to that in Aberdeen with her adoptive mom.  The would like to relocate to Sioux Falls as they want to be closer to the boys and there is more opportunity her for them.  Birth mom is originally from Minneapolis so she is a city girl at heart.  So when we left I had a good feeling but was a little disappointed we didn't talk about when we would meet the boys, but I have to remember this is a very hard decision for them to make also.  The boys do have names and we have decided we would keep them and respect what they have chosen as it does represent the birth fathers heritage.  Their names are Lorenzo and Angelo. 

So today I was working at home as part of our disaster recovery test and nobody around to bother me so I got lots done but lots of thinking also.  It was driving me crazy not knowing what they thought of us, so I emailed our social worker and asked if she had heard from their social worker what they thought of us.  She indicated that they really like us and they have another meeting on Friday to discuss further and hopefully make some hospital plans.  When I say hospital plans I mean when we would be able to go up and see the boys and when we could spend time with them.  I totally understand their wanting to spend time with them also so it could be a struggle for us.  The nurse did tell our social worker yesterday that they would probably being in the hospital for a month. 

I keep telling myself that if it is meant to be it will happen and if not there is always next time.  We are not in control.

So keep praying!

Michelle

Exciting News

Well I know it has been a long time since I posted here once again, but I created this really for the adoption experience and since we hadn't had anything happen with that until TODAY.  We got a phone call that birth parents have chosen us for babies that were born May 16th at 31 weeks so Baby Boy A weighed 3lbs 14 ounces and Baby Boy B weighed 3lbs something, social worker couldn't remember.  So they wanted to know if we were interested and of course I said yes right away but said I would need to check with Chris at his lunch hour and when I did he of course said yes. 
There are a few concerns as the birth mom did drink some during her pregnancy not exactly sure how much because she has told different people different things and there may be some possible signs of fetal alcohol but we have chosen to move forward anyways as the boys deserve a good loving home no matter what! 

We are very excited but yet very nervous.  All Chris keeps saying is we will need two of everything. 

We are going to meet the birth parents tomorrow afternoon and then will know more after that exactly what the next steps are.

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers that everything continues to go smooth!!

Love
Michelle and Chris

PS remember please do not post anything on facebook walls only private messages!!!

Wow!  I was just looking at this and realized I hadn't updated the site in a long time.  Maybe because nothing has really changed other than we just sit and wait.  We did have our home study updated in July, which went really well.  I asked our social worker in August then if she had heard anything negative or positive about our profile as I thought maybe we needed to change something, but I would say no at this time because she did let us know that another birth mom had pretty much choose us, but she hadn't fully made up her mind if she was going to give the baby up yet or not, so they didn't want to put us through meeting her until she decided what her choice was and guess what she decided to parent.  So it was a good thing we didn't have to meet her, I don't know if we could have dealt with that again.  So I just have to keep reminding myself that we were only in the book 6 months and we had 2 birth mom's choose us, so that is a positive thing.  Just keep reminding myself that when the time is right it will happen.  Somedays are just so much harder than the next.  Someday I think we should just give up and then I have to remind myself that good things happen to those who wait!!

Michelle

June 30th

Well it has been a few weeks since my last post so just wanted to let everyone know we are doing good!  The first couple of days after we found out that we didn't get to bring Brooklyn(don't know if that is her name but will always be her name with us) home with us was the toughest, but we have decided that it just was not the right time for us to bring a baby into our home.  We have put our faith in God that he made the right choice for us.  I did get some good news the next week after this, as I had applied for a new position at work and I got the job.  I really didn't know if I wanted to apply for the job because I didn't know if I wanted to start a new position with a newborn, but someone that I have great respect for at work, asked me if I was applying and offered to write me a recommendation, so I thought what do I have to loose.  I really didn't think I had a chance because I knew of one other person who applied and thought she would get it.  So now I will be doing more technical stuff at work, which I like to do and have the time to do it as I did some of it before but didn't have the time to dedicated to research like I wanted.    So it has been a busy couple of week, but that is also a good thing because don't have much time to do a lot of thinking, because sometimes when I do have too much time to think that is when I think we could have done something different, but I know that it was not our fault.  We have also been watching our friends kids on Thursday night so that is fun for us..  2 boys and 1 girl.

Update on the adoption..  We have been put back into the profile book and I did talk to one of the social workers yesterday and she told me that they have been very busy with potential birth moms, so that is a positive thing.  Just keep saying a prayer that we won't have to wait forever!!

Looking forward to spending the time at the campground for the 4th. 

Happy 4th of July!!

june 7

as some of you may have heard things did not go as planned yesterday.  we did  not get to meet the baby as birthmom is having second thoughts.  last night was really hard but i have decided that god has a plan for everyone and even though we might not like it or understand it he knows what is best.  i told chris that we didnt do anything wrong and i dont think we could have done anything different, so we are just going to try to make the best of the hand we have been dealt.

michelle

June 6th 12:00 pm

Just got a call that birthmom is back in the hospital and is dialte to a 6 and they are going to keep her this time, so I am just waiting for Chris to get home so we can leave!!!  Will keep everyone update!!

Michelle

June 5th

So at about 6:30 tonight(Sunday) we got a phone call from the social worker saying that our birth mom was in the hospital, but they didn't know if they are going to keep her or not because her contractions are not real regular.  She is dialate to a four!  So we packed the car and sit and wait for phone call to tell us that they are keeping her and we should head out or they sent her home and we just wait again.  She hadn't seen the doctor yet when the social worker called us just the nurse.

So we here we sit with ants in our pants

Everyone say a prayer for us!!

Michelle

Journey

So as I have told some of you I was going to start a blog to keep everyone updated and I finally have done it and so I am going to start by just sharing some of our journey!

Our Journey began in October of 2009 when we first went to an adoption workshop with different agency and groups there and had round table discussions and a panel of adoptive families.  We then decided that we would go with Lutheran Social Services as they have been around a long time and we wanted to have someone that we felt we could trust.  So after much thought we decided we would wait until the first of the year to start the whole process, so in January we went to our first informational meeting and found out the next workshop was in February, which you had to be signed up for in a about a week otherwise the next local workshop wasn’t until June, so we hurried up and filled out our paperwork and got registered for the February workshop.  February 4 and 5^th we went to a 2 day workshop which is all about different aspect of adoption and came home with being overwhelmed each night!!!  Then in March we had to do a profile meeting which was another 4 hours for them to explain what our profile book (book birthparents look through to pick the adoptive family).  We then had to just wait until there was enough openings in the book for our whole workshop group to be able to go in at the same time as they only allow about 20 families in the book at a time, and we were told that we should work on our profile and it would be sometime between October and December when they would need them.  So of course I didn’t work on it for the summer, and then one day I decided I had to get it done and so sat down and wrote it all out with the expect for Chris’s part which was like pulling teeth to get him to do because he didn’t know what to write.  So we then just waited and finally got notice that December 15^th we would go into the profile book!!  That was a good Christmas present for us.  So the next waiting game began and we got a phone call in March asking if our profile could be viewed by a birthmother from another agency and we said yes of course but were kinda nervous about that one because of all the stuff she wanted so when we got told she didn’t pick up we were ok with it and knew the right one would come along and then on April 5^th I got a phone call from Shirley out of the Rapid City office asking if she could release our profile to Catholic Family Services as they had a birthmother that didn’t like any of their profiles and I said yes.  She told me that she would be looking at the profiles on Friday which was the 8^th and then on Monday April 11^th Shirley called to tell us the birth mom had chosen us and as you can imagine we were extremely excited!  We then set up a time to meet the birth mom as she wanted me to be in the delivery room when she had her c-section, so we meet with her on April 21^st and everything went very smooth and she was happy with her choice in us, so that was a wonderful birthday present for myself.  So we have just been getting everything ready for the arrival of our new baby girl, of course I have been doing some shopping!!  I think she is going to be one spoiled little girl.  They have changed from having a c-section to just letting birth mom having the baby natural so no we just are sitting and waiting for the phone call that she went into labor and will have to make a mad dash to Rapid City to meet our new baby girl.  Our bags are all packed and just waiting for the phone call and once we get it I hopefully will be able to update this site from my phone or maybe the hospital will have a computer I can use to update.  I will also post pictures and such once we get home!!!