Where We're At

Troy and I continue to be completely humbled and blessed by the generous donations from our friends and family members and, in some cases, total strangers. Please share our story with everyone you know--every single dollar helps us! Just one dollar donated gets your name on Kate's wall so that we will always be able to remember and honor those who helped us bring her home. If you want to donate, click on the Adoption 2015 tab to see how!

Here's where we're at right now:

We've done everything that we can do on our end. We've updated our home study and we're waiting on our FBI clearance which is necessary for state to state private adoptions. We've retained both our Utah and our California attorney and, once approved by the state of Utah, we'll retain a lawyer on behalf of the birth mother.

We've started the task of turning a blue and beige playroom into a pink and gray baby girl's room. (We're hoping the baby actually comes out a girl because, otherwise, our third son probably won't like his fantastically girly room.)

We've made a paper chain and are down to just 54 days until the due date.

We've raised almost 55% of our funding!

The boys are bouncing off the walls excited. Of course, they've also chosen this past month to start fighting like cats and dogs. But mostly, they're both really excited. I made the mistake of taking them in to Carter's yesterday. You'd have thought I'd taken a couple of pregnant moms in instead of two elementary aged boys. They were exuberantly bringing me ALL THE OUTFITS and begging me to buy them. I wasn't even there for our baby. I was shopping for a completely different baby. In the end, I decided that, because we are in dire need of newborn clothes, I'd let them each pick an outfit for her. Matthew chose a blue sleeper with tiny pink hearts and Garrett chose little blue pants with a whale on the bum and matching short and long sleeve onesies. They talk about Kate all the time. I am beside myself with excitement over how adorable I think they'll be with her.

I continue to endure the adoption horror stories, "Just so you're prepared, can I tell you about my friend's failed adoption..." JUST SO I'M PREPARED? ARE YOU INSANE? YOU'RE TALKING TO THE LADY WHOSE SON'S ADOPTION WAS PUT ON HOLD FOR FOURTEEN MONTHS WHILE BIRTH PARENTS WERE AT A STALEMATE AS TO WHO SHOULD RAISE HIM. I know about failed adoptions. I know about moms changing their minds at the last minute. I know about all kinds of things. Just stop talking. Because the truth is, adoptions fail all the time. Adoptions are finalized all the time. If the Lord permits this to continue moving forward, we will keep walking through open doors. If He closes the doors, we will deal with it. No amount of you telling me horror stories is going to change anything. It's just going to make my chest constrict. And my blood pressure will probably elevate to an unhealthy level. I do enough worrying all on my own. I assure you, I don't need any help.

I finally dreamed of her last night. I really hadn't done that yet--at least, not that I can remember. But last night I dreamed that she was already all grown up and away at school. She got terribly sick (not, like, sick with a life threatening disease or anything, just...awfully sick with a gross flu) and I went to bring her home to get better. I woke up and I was happy. Not because she was sick but because she finally made an appearance in my subconscious. And also because, in the dream, I looked exactly like I do now. I was a very well preserved post 50 year old. It was so totally a dream because, aside from my having found the fountain of youth, Kate was whiter than I am (a real challenge) and had long auburn hair. Which is really weird because, in real life, she's biracial.

We're waiting. And preparing. And hoping. And praying. And that's about all we can do.