So Many Miracles...

These past two weeks have been full of so many miracles! So many of you have asked about our trip, and so I wanted to blog some of the many miracles we experienced while getting Samantha.

On Friday Dec. 7th, Jonathan came home from school and said an ice storm was coming and that we should leave right away for North Carolina. This was a bold decision because they weren't going to induce our birth mom until Dec. 17th, and that's a long time to be away from med school. We said a prayer and both felt that we should leave. We stayed the night in Kentucky and at 4:30 am the next morning, we got a call that our birth mom was in labor. We were already half way there and got to hold Samantha when she was just a few hours old!

We also had the blessing of staying in a time share in North Carolina. Jonathan's dad flew from Utah and checked us in so that we had a nice place to stay with our newborn. And it was nice...complete with a private jacuzzi! It was so nice to have a kitchen and living room, three bathrooms, and cable tv!

When Samantha was released from the hospital, the nurse said she needed to go to a pediatrician right away because her billirubin was high. Well, we didn't know any doctors and our birth mom couldn't give us a referral because we were staying two hours outside of where she was. So we called the bishop in New Bern (where we were staying) to ask him or his wife for a referral to a good ped doctor. Well, turns out the bishop IS a pediatrician and we got Samantha in the next day. Her billirubin was down and she was just fine.

During the middle of our second week in NC, we were getting nervous about going home. Jonathan's school said he had to be back on Thursday to make up tests before the break. We were praying for clearance to leave so that we could leave together. The clearance didn't come and Jonathan flew home on Wed. night to make up tests, leaving me alone with Samantha in a city I didn't know. Jonathan checked me into a hotel before he left. Our birth mom and her family were so kind and I spent some time with them. They fed me and helped me feed Sami. It was fun to spend time with them and get to know their family better. Finally on Friday morning we got clearance and so we are home for Christmas, a wonderful miracle!

One of our greatest blessings ever has been our birth mom! We love her more than words can say! She loves Samantha so much and her sacrifice has made our dreams a reality! She is one of the best people we know and we love her family as well. I am so grateful that she is a part of our lives. It was a miracle that she found our profile online, and I am still amazed that she picked us!

It is the season to celebrate miracles, especially the miracle of our Savior. As I look into Samantha's beautiful face, it is easy for me to picture a newborn babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in manager so many years ago. How grateful I am for the miracles in my life: my Savior, my family, and my friends. Thank you for all of your prayers on our behalf, we truly felt their power! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Home Sweet Home

It's so good to be home! We made it to Kirksville this morning at 10:00 am. We were 90 miles from home last night when we drove into a blizzard and stayed the night in a hotel. Samantha is a perfect traveler, she didn't cry once during our cross-country trip! She just slept and slept and we had to wake her up to eat. We had such wonderful experiences in North Carolina, and we miss our wonderful birth mom and her family, but are so grateful to have Samantha home for Christmas!

A North Carolina Update

We just found a hidden internet signal in our condo! So, we thought we'd post some more pictures for you. We are just waiting for the states to say "GO! GO NOW!" then we'll travel back to the colder climes of Kirksville. Jonathan's med school dean was asking why Jonathan wasn't back and he said that he could come back, but a Class C Felony would accompany him. The dean said that might not be the best on his record when trying to get a license and a job. He said we could stay ;P Samantha is changing everyday and we feel so blessed to have her in our family. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers.

SHE'S HERE!!

Samantha Christine was born on Dec. 8th at 12:32 pm, weighing 8 pounds 6 ounces and 22 inches long. She is beautiful and we feel so blessed!! We have had so many miracles on this trip, thank you for your prayers!

Tiger Pride

Today I put on my "Tiger Pride" sweater for the last time as a full-time employee. It has been more difficult than I thought it would be to say goodbye. I have learned so much and felt so much love from the staff and the kids. My work at the preschool has been such a huge part of my life, a part that I know that I will miss very much. I know that I am leaving for the best reasons, and I can't wait for all of my friends at the preschool to meet Samantha. So to all my preschool friends, here's a shout out to you: THANKS for the good times, you will be missed!!

Oh Christmas Tree!

I LOVE Christmas! It's my favorite holiday. I love the music of Christmas, the lights, shopping, and I love my tree. Last year was the first time we had a tree as a married couple, and we set it up on Dec. 23rd, so we didn't enjoy it very long. This year, the tree went up Thanksgiving day, and I love it! I love turning off the lights and just looking at it. I hope you all have a tree to enjoy.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

We are so thankful for all of you, our friends and family! We spent Thanksgiving with wonderful friends (thanks Katherine and Ashley), and had one of the best meals ever!! We have so many things to be grateful for, and we are especially grateful for our little daughter who will be arriving soon. We hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Finals Rainout

It is bad enough to be forced to take finals. It's even worse when you get drenched from a flash flood after finishing one. We haven't had much rain in the past few weeks, but we had a complete downpour for about 7 minutes last Monday. The time it took Jonathan to run from school to his car (about 100 yards) and from the car to the front door he got drenched. Jonathan thought it was exceptionally humorous that it started just before he left school, and stopped immediately after walking in the door at home.

Monster of a Cookie

I love it when my friends post their yummy recipes, so I want to post one of my very favorites. Their called Grandma Elizabeth Noakes' Montana Monster Cookies (we just call them monster cookies for obvious reasons).

6 eggs
2 C. white sugar
2 1/3 C. brown sugar
1/2 Tbs. vanilla
1/2 Tbs. white corn syrup
4 tsp. baking soda
2 cubes butter
3 C. peanut butter
9 C. oatmeal
1 bag chocolate chips
1 bag M&M's
1 C. peanuts

Mix well by hand (it will ruin a hand mixer). Use full-sized ice cream scoop to scoop cookies onto cookie sheet. Flatten slightly with a sugared glass (if you want to, I just use the back of my ice cream scooper). Bake at 350 degrees for 12-14 minutes. Enjoy, and plan to have a TON of cookies for your enjoyment! They are well worth the effort!

My Little Heros

Everyday I get to work with some very amazing kids. They struggle with autism. They live in a world that they often don't understand and often doesn't understand them. Every twenty minutes a child is diagnosed with autism. One in 150 kids born today will have a diagnosis of autism. The kids I work with have taught me about love and working to overcome. They have become "my kiddos" as I have tried to help them succeed, and their love has taught me a little bit about how I will feel toward my own children. While I am overcome with excitement and anticipation of becoming a mother to my own sweet daughter soon, I will miss my kiddos. Working with them has been a great learning experience and a privelage I will always treasure.

Girl Power

Our nursery is finally ready! I worked all day, cleaning and organizing, but it was fun work. I am really happy with how cute it turned out. I even hung the name boards by myself! That's right, all by myself. I got out my pink tape measure (the one that says "Home is where the heart is") which was given to me by my mother-in-law, and I started measuring. Then I hammered and hung. It's not perfect, but it will stay the way it is until July when we move. It has been so much fun getting ready for a girl!

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween!

Here's a fun Halloween joke: Why did Godzilla jump off a building in Times Square? He wanted to make a hit on Broadway!

One more...Where does Dracula buy pencils? Pennsylvania

Hope you have an awesome Halloween!! (I know the picture has nothing to do with the jokes, just thought it was cute).

Crafty, Crafty

I made Samantha a wall sign this weekend, and I really like how it turned out. I was going to put it above her crib, but I think it will take up the wall above her crib. Under the sign is her crib bedding. Her nursery colors are pink and yellow. We are so excited for her to come home!!

We're going to Michigan! Yes, I know that I will be cold there, but what's new? I'm always cold. We are so excited that we know where the next chapter in our lives will be. We won't be moving until next summer, so we have lots of time to prepare. We already know that we want to live in Commerce which is only 15 minutes from the temple! And we have friends who will be moving there too, how cool is that?!

Gender War

We love our callings! Jonathan works with the Young Men and I work with the Young Women, and it rocks! Our activity this past week was a gender war. It started off with a high heel race which the team "Eye-Candy" (that would be the girls) won hands down. Later, team "Beefcake" (yes, that would be the boys) made up points fast by changing a tire in record time. Not to mention the fact that they identified 23 auto parts and the girls only got 16 right. My favorite part was the fingernail painting. The boys and girls each did one French-tip nail, and the girls won. But it was so fun to see the boys try so hard, and I'll have to admit that it was a close call. It was a fun activity and everyone had a great time.

The Eye of the Storm

This is what I see after a test. Okay, so it's not always this bad. These past two weeks have been full of tests, and sleep has been a luxury for Jonathan. But there are no scheduled tests this week! Yeah! He's gearing up for finals which is always intense. Oh well...no one ever said medical school was supposed to be easy. Thanks for working so hard for us Jonathan.

A Perfect Day

I want my first official blog entry to be about our trip to North Carolina. It was a wonderful trip! It started out rough though because we missed our flight out of Kansas City. We ended up spending all day in Kansas City and finally got to NC around 9:00pm (we started our journey at 3:30 am). We didn't get to meet our birth mom until the next day, but it was a wonderful day! We got to her house around 10:00 and were able to spend all morning with her and her parents. They are wonderful people and made us feel like family! Later we went to a lake, visited the temple grounds, went to the hospital where she will deliver, and had wonderful Southern food at a cute BBQ restaurant. The visit with our birth mom was a spiritual experience as we got to meet in person the beautiful woman who we have grown to love so much over the past weeks and months. Her parents are equally wonderful and we feel so privelaged to know them and be a part of their family as our two families are joined by a beautiful baby. One of the neatest parts of our trip was when we were able to feel our baby move inside her, it was super cool!! As we drove away from their house, Jonathan said "that was a perfect day." I couldn't agree more. We feel truly blessed. By the way, NC is a beautiful state and we look forward to our next trip!

Welcome to my blog!

Hello friends! Welcome to my blog! My goal is to keep it updated so you know what is going on with us and our family. Eventually I want to print this blog so for now it will be an online journal but later it will be my "scrapbook" when it is printed. Thanks for checking in and let the blogging begin!