Carnival Fun

Last night, Jack and I headed to his birth mom's hometown. Every year, their high school has a carnival to raise money for the yearbook. (The school will not allow the kids to sell ads.) They also crown a carnival princess and Jack's aunt was one of the four young women up for the honor. The carnival consisted of lots of fun games for the kids to enjoy. Of course, the little kid inside of me couldn't wait to play the dart and hoop game along with Jack's great grandma. (They were out of cakes at the cake walk when we arrived. Bummer.) This allowed Jack's birthmom plenty of time to introduce him to her friends.

We also saw great grandpa who is out of the hospital. Unfortunately, Jack's aunt did not win, but that means she can be up for homecoming. So, we hope some other royal title will be bestowed upon her at a later date. I scored a sequined crown from one of Jack's uncles. Jack is still too young to be horrified and embarrassed by my weirdness. Also, he had a sucker in his mouth so he was happy at the time.The town and school are very cute, fairly small with a charming hometown feel. The school even had a spotlight for the ceremonies (see below). Since I'm from a small town myself, I was eating all this up, having a really good time.This is a picture of Jack's aunt's back. Either her nails or hugs from well wishers created this torture. She had on fake nails for the occasion so I bet she did most of this herself. Looks painful but she was in good spirits even when she discovered that she hadn't won the title. She was so beautiful.A really horrible story about last night. We rode back to our car in Jack's great grandma's car. We took all of our stuff out, I closed the back door and started heading to my car with his grandma and uncle. Well, somehow, I slammed grandpa's fingers in the door. Not sure how that happened since he was sitting in front, but I felt horrible and embarrassed. I thought, of all things, grandpa doesn't need more pain. Also, he is having surgery on his leg next week.

*As always, these pictures are published with permission from Jack's birth mother.

Weekend in Review

What a nice long weekend! Do I really have to return to work tomorrow? We spent most of the weekend at mom and dad's house. On Sunday, we went to a parish picnic where we ate way too much.Jack enjoyed the cupcake.I snapped this great shot of the cousins in a little toy house.We actually saw Jack's birth mom and his great grandma at the picnic. It was nice to see them. I would have taken some pictures of the three of them if Jack hadn't been such a clingon with me. We learned that great grandpa is getting better all the time. We hope to see him soon.

We visited my grandparents which means we went to the cemetary. There was a guy playing a banjo across the street which was neat. Mike said the man must have been serenading souls to heaven.Trees line the road leading to the cemetary and it brings to mind a long, southern road leading to a mansion. It is a beautiful sight considering it's a cemetary.Some good old-fashioned tree scratching! Not sure what those boys were thinking.Of course, no parish picnic would be complete without porta potties and a tent compliments of a local funeral home.We saw my brother who only makes it home several times a year. He and my mom made cheesecake! We all enjoyed the fruits of their labor.My niece is in kindergarten and has a habit of raising her hand when she wants to say something now. It's pretty cute.Jack's artwork.Mike and Garrett.Jack and Grandpa.We went to the Maramec Spring Park today. It was beautiful although my pictures won't do the place justice. Also, the sun didn't pop up until we were almost ready to go home which was probably a good thing since it warmed up in the afternoon.The cousins enjoyed feeding the fish - lots of trout!We stopped at Burger King on the way home. We ate like kings.And we ended the evening with hot dogs on the grill and roasted marshmallows. Yum! We also enjoyed a ride on "Poppo's" tractor.

Great Grandpa Update

Jack's great grandpa, who was in the hospital because of a vehicle accident, had a heart attack last week and had double bypass surgery this morning. I hear that he is doing fine tonight. Wonderful news! We've been doing a lot of praying around here. Before Jack went to bed tonight, he asked, "Poppo?" We hope to see him as soon as his immediate family says it's okay. Jack's birth mom said that grandpa's eyes brightened when he saw Jack last week in the hospital!

Fun at the Park

We had fun at the local park Wednesday night. Jack did not want us to leave, neither did the mosquitoes.What a big boy!The plane! The plane!Houston, I don't think we have lift off.Silly daddy. These rides are for kids.Time for dessert!

Summer Update

We've been fortunate to see our son's birth mother and her family a few times this summer. We attended a family get-together in July and also their hometown picnic. Jack learned how much fun aunts and uncles can be especially when they take you in the bounce house and on a little train.Our son's great grandpa through his birth mom's side is in a nearby hospital. We were able to see him last night. Thankfully, despite a broken leg and some messed up vertebrae, he seems to be doing okay.

Our son is a big fan of my father and his tractor. He's been able to ride inside the tractor a few times, one of the highlights of going back home.Another highlight of going back home is seeing the farm kitties.We went to the local county fair and had a blast in the petting zoo. We didn't do so great on the rides. I'm sure he'll be more excited about them next year.We went to a Little Swimmer's event and that was fun. Our son loves the water and the rubber duck prize he received.Our son loves balloons!Petting sting rays at the zoo!Every child's favorite accessory - a pot holder.Having fun with his cousin!

First Family Vacation

Last month, we took a family vacation to Arizona. Our son did very well. There were a few meltdowns, including one in rush hour traffic in Phoenix, but we kept our cool and had a wonderful time. Our son went swimming, saw the Grand Canyon, cliff dwellings and dinosaur bones at a museum. He also did well on the planes. And I actually managed to change a poopy diaper in a plane restroom. I felt like I went through a rite of passage in that tiny stall.

Happy Spring!

I love this time of year. After the long winter, everything seems new including the birds and their songs. We are enjoying weekends on my parents' farm. My son and niece love being outside. Unless it's raining, it's hard to bring them back in.

We are in the process of updating our home study in the hopes of adopting another little one in the future. It's amazing how much paperwork a person needs to gather for the process. We trust in God's timing and hope He will bless us with a second miracle.