My smiley little boy on Christmas Eve
Grandpa Hal trying to get Steven interested in his new toy :)
Getting a bottle from Nannie
Meeting Aunt Beth
It's hard work being a little baby! (and apparently a new grandfather too!!)
Saturday, December 29, 2007
It's Been a LONG Week
I wrote the on Friday, but for some reason it didn't post!
It's hard to believe that two weeks ago tonight we were meeting with Steven's birthmother and praying that she would choose us to raise her son. Now we're nearing the end of our second week with him, and it's hard to remember what it was like without him!
Some highlights from this week:
1. We spent Christmas Eve and Christmas day with my parents. We always go to the Christmas Eve service, which closes with a candle light time. Each year my dad lights his candle first, then my mom, sisters, Mark, and I light ours of his, and then we go around the auditorium and light everyone else's. This year I carried Steven with me, and it was so neat to have him be a part of that tradition.
After the service, we always go to my parents' house and watch a Christmas movie (Elf this year) and have pizza and shrimp (and a few other things). After that we open our stockings, which haven't actually been in stockings for a really long time. Each of us buys a stocking stuffer for everyone else, so it is fun to see what everyone comes up with. After that, we open the rest of our gifts so we can sleep in on Christmas day! (And so we look nice in the pictures instead of looking like we just woke up, according to my mom.)
The best gift this year was an ornament my dad gave to Steven. He went to five stores before finding one with a little black baby on it, and when he went to get Steven's name put on it, the girl asked him it he would rather a boy one instead of the girl one he had :) He was just so excited to find a little black one that nothing else mattered I guess!
2. Mark's parents and sister Beth came out to meet Steven on Wednesday, and they seemed to enjoy their time together. They left this morning, so it was a quick trip, but they were happy to meet their new grandson.
3. We bought Steven's stroller and car seat yesterday. I'm excited to have that done, even though I still have to finish putting together the stroller. I stopped when it called for a hammer. I will be even more excited when it is no longer in the middle of our living room!
4. We had our first heart stopping experience as parents last night. Around 5:00 this morning, Steven let out the worst scream/shriek I've ever heard. I grabbed him out of his bassinet because it was obvious something was wrong. He was bright red (which says a lot when he's a black baby) and would really calm down. We were afraid that he had choked or had his mouth/nose covered or something, so I didn't want to put him back down. Eventually, we figured out that it was gas, so we did what we could, which wasn't much, and then tried to settle him down. He finally wore himself out about TWO HOURS later. Poor little guy. Today a friend gave us some gas drops to try. I don't want to have another night like last night!
5. To top the week off, Mark came home sick from work today. I could probably count on one hand the number of times Mark has missed work because he was sick, so this is not good at all. I had him take the night time formula several hours ago even though he said that he should take the daytime one to be able to help out with Steven tonight. That was sweet, but I know that he needs to rest. That doesn't mean that I'm looking forward to doing all of the feedings tonight though!
I'll try to post pictures tomorrow. Posting now would involve my getting up and tracking down the camera, flash drive, adapter, etc. I'm way too tired for that!
It's hard to believe that two weeks ago tonight we were meeting with Steven's birthmother and praying that she would choose us to raise her son. Now we're nearing the end of our second week with him, and it's hard to remember what it was like without him!
Some highlights from this week:
1. We spent Christmas Eve and Christmas day with my parents. We always go to the Christmas Eve service, which closes with a candle light time. Each year my dad lights his candle first, then my mom, sisters, Mark, and I light ours of his, and then we go around the auditorium and light everyone else's. This year I carried Steven with me, and it was so neat to have him be a part of that tradition.
After the service, we always go to my parents' house and watch a Christmas movie (Elf this year) and have pizza and shrimp (and a few other things). After that we open our stockings, which haven't actually been in stockings for a really long time. Each of us buys a stocking stuffer for everyone else, so it is fun to see what everyone comes up with. After that, we open the rest of our gifts so we can sleep in on Christmas day! (And so we look nice in the pictures instead of looking like we just woke up, according to my mom.)
The best gift this year was an ornament my dad gave to Steven. He went to five stores before finding one with a little black baby on it, and when he went to get Steven's name put on it, the girl asked him it he would rather a boy one instead of the girl one he had :) He was just so excited to find a little black one that nothing else mattered I guess!
2. Mark's parents and sister Beth came out to meet Steven on Wednesday, and they seemed to enjoy their time together. They left this morning, so it was a quick trip, but they were happy to meet their new grandson.
3. We bought Steven's stroller and car seat yesterday. I'm excited to have that done, even though I still have to finish putting together the stroller. I stopped when it called for a hammer. I will be even more excited when it is no longer in the middle of our living room!
4. We had our first heart stopping experience as parents last night. Around 5:00 this morning, Steven let out the worst scream/shriek I've ever heard. I grabbed him out of his bassinet because it was obvious something was wrong. He was bright red (which says a lot when he's a black baby) and would really calm down. We were afraid that he had choked or had his mouth/nose covered or something, so I didn't want to put him back down. Eventually, we figured out that it was gas, so we did what we could, which wasn't much, and then tried to settle him down. He finally wore himself out about TWO HOURS later. Poor little guy. Today a friend gave us some gas drops to try. I don't want to have another night like last night!
5. To top the week off, Mark came home sick from work today. I could probably count on one hand the number of times Mark has missed work because he was sick, so this is not good at all. I had him take the night time formula several hours ago even though he said that he should take the daytime one to be able to help out with Steven tonight. That was sweet, but I know that he needs to rest. That doesn't mean that I'm looking forward to doing all of the feedings tonight though!
I'll try to post pictures tomorrow. Posting now would involve my getting up and tracking down the camera, flash drive, adapter, etc. I'm way too tired for that!
Monday, December 24, 2007
Who Knew?
I would have never guessed that finding 184 diapers on your front step would be so exciting! Thanks, Kristen!!!
Sunday, December 23, 2007
The New Swing!
On Wednesday, we got a nice surprise when we opened the front door! My Aunt Becky bought us our swing, and it has been amazing. Steven just loves it, and he takes most of his naps in it. He even tracks the bird and butterflies on the mobile, and eventually he'll notice the mirror above him.
We have just been so blessed by everything that people have done for us. My friend Rachel came over on Thursday to help me out while Mark was at work, and I definitely needed her there that day! She was great to just help me out and keep me company (and keep me sane!). She also called on Tuesday to find out what we needed and showed up a little bit later with burp cloths and receiving blankets.
Our Sunday School class has been bringing over meals, and our friends Kris and Katrina have been invaluable. They are letting us use their car seat and their son's clothes and have given us a lot of encouragement and advice (part of which was to only follow other people's advice if we wanted to, including theirs!). Katrina also helped me out with my Target registry and is coordinating our shower (Jan. 7th--the same night as OSU's national championship game!).
Other friends have prayed, offered use of various items, and given us very cute gifts. It is just so awesome to be a part of a family of Christians!
We have just been so blessed by everything that people have done for us. My friend Rachel came over on Thursday to help me out while Mark was at work, and I definitely needed her there that day! She was great to just help me out and keep me company (and keep me sane!). She also called on Tuesday to find out what we needed and showed up a little bit later with burp cloths and receiving blankets.
Our Sunday School class has been bringing over meals, and our friends Kris and Katrina have been invaluable. They are letting us use their car seat and their son's clothes and have given us a lot of encouragement and advice (part of which was to only follow other people's advice if we wanted to, including theirs!). Katrina also helped me out with my Target registry and is coordinating our shower (Jan. 7th--the same night as OSU's national championship game!).
Other friends have prayed, offered use of various items, and given us very cute gifts. It is just so awesome to be a part of a family of Christians!
A Very Content Baby
We've found that Steven is generally a very content baby. As long as we feed him, hold him, and let him sleep, he's good to go. He fusses a little bit when he's hungry or tired, but it doesn't go to a full blown cry very often.
However, he has been having the hiccups A LOT the last two days, and he really doesn't like that. His poor little body just shakes with each one. I know that part of the problem is that he eats too fast some of the time. He uses stage 2 nipples, and he really should be using stage 1. His foster parents were feeding him with the faster nipple, so when I gave him his first bottle with the newborn nipples, he didn't like having to work so hard.
Any advice?
However, he has been having the hiccups A LOT the last two days, and he really doesn't like that. His poor little body just shakes with each one. I know that part of the problem is that he eats too fast some of the time. He uses stage 2 nipples, and he really should be using stage 1. His foster parents were feeding him with the faster nipple, so when I gave him his first bottle with the newborn nipples, he didn't like having to work so hard.
Any advice?
Just a cute little peanut!
Hanging Out with Grandpa
Dad finally got to hold Steven last night after he helped Mark put together the crib. Dad's had a cold since we brought Steven home, so it was nice for them to finally get to hang out, even if only for a few minutes!
The Close-to-Being-Finished Nursery!
Last night my parents came over, and Mark and Dad set up the crib. We are really pleased with how good it looks! Here are a few pictures of the nursery.
The finished crib.
This is the bedding my parents drove 45 minutes on a bad weather day to get so that we could start painting the room. They're awesome!
Can you believe that we have several (okay, quite a few) more shelves of books for Steven? He will be one well-read baby!
My mom is going to make a cover for the chair. . .when we find the time :)
The little man's clothes. We sure appreciate Eli's letting us borrow his newborn and 0-3 month clothes!
Trying out the new place--I think it'll work!
Such a LITTLE man!
We still have to finish the dresser. My mom is stenciling it, and I also need to get the letters for his name that we're putting above his dresser. We're also painting the fan to match the room and need to get curtains, but considering we haven't even had the little guy for a full week, I think we're doing pretty well!
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Thank you, Marie!!
Yesterday my friend Marie loaned us a basinette. It's the traditional kind that it about bed height, and I had been wanting one but definitely didn't want to spend the money on it. Last night I put a rolled up blanket under the top part of the mattress to raise it and then placed Steven on his side in it (propped up by another rolled up blanket), and. . .he slept!!!
He woke up at 2:00 and 4:00, and I fed him both times (2:00 was only a half bottle). He seems to be pretty congested, so he was having a bit of a hard time breathing, but he fell back asleep both times fairly easily. We just went without the pacifier so he could breathe easier. It was so nice to have him right by my side of the bed, and I had already set out bottles, formula, diapers, wipes, and purell. My bedside table has a bit of everything on it! That allowed Mark to sleep most of the night while I took care of Steven.
This morning Mark got up with Steven around 7:30, and I slept in a bit longer. I was glad that it worked out for Mark to sleep better through the night because he goes back to work tomorrow :( and he needs to get his sleep if he's going to be able to focus at work!
So, thank you Marie for letting us sleep last night!!
He woke up at 2:00 and 4:00, and I fed him both times (2:00 was only a half bottle). He seems to be pretty congested, so he was having a bit of a hard time breathing, but he fell back asleep both times fairly easily. We just went without the pacifier so he could breathe easier. It was so nice to have him right by my side of the bed, and I had already set out bottles, formula, diapers, wipes, and purell. My bedside table has a bit of everything on it! That allowed Mark to sleep most of the night while I took care of Steven.
This morning Mark got up with Steven around 7:30, and I slept in a bit longer. I was glad that it worked out for Mark to sleep better through the night because he goes back to work tomorrow :( and he needs to get his sleep if he's going to be able to focus at work!
So, thank you Marie for letting us sleep last night!!
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
A Day of Firsts
Today's been a big day for both Steven and us. We're getting to know each other and learn how life is going to work. In the process, we've had some small adventures.
1. Mommy got to experience green buggers. It was not a good sign when she started dry heaving :(
2. Steven got to hang out in a swing that someone is loaning us, and he LOVED it. He slept in it for hours, which allowed us to actually get a few small things done. He does a really good job of focusing and tracking things, and he enjoyed watching the fish rotating on the mobile.
1. Mommy got to experience green buggers. It was not a good sign when she started dry heaving :(
2. Steven got to hang out in a swing that someone is loaning us, and he LOVED it. He slept in it for hours, which allowed us to actually get a few small things done. He does a really good job of focusing and tracking things, and he enjoyed watching the fish rotating on the mobile.
3. Steven also got his first bath at our house. He did really well and didn't really fuss at all! It was a bit of a challenge for us, but we all came out cleaner in the end :)
Yum! The burb cloth from Aunt Rachel must be very tasty!
Look at those curls!
4. Steven is sleeping in a borrowed bassinette tonight. I placed a rolled blanket under part of the mattress so he'd be on an incline. I also put him on his side. We're hoping that he'll sleep tonight! (And since we now know that he sleeps in the swing, we have a back up plan!)
Well, mom and dad are off to bed. Tomorrow we'll post pictures of his newly painted nursery. Grandma (and Grandpa if he starts feeling better) is coming over to set up the crib, and then we can start getting our house back in order. (Probably a lost cause, but I'm being optimistic!)
Have a good night!
Steven's Story
Dear Friends,
Yesterday we brought home our son, Steven James! He was born on Thanksgiving Day and weighed in at 6 lbs. 2 ozs. and was 21 inches long. He was a few weeks early, so he spent some time in the NICU.
His birthmom had already contacted Bethany Christian, so after he was discharged, he went to live with his interim care parents (similar to foster care parents), Mary and Allen. A week ago Friday (Dec. 7), we were contacted by Dawn at Bethany and asked if we were interested in him. We scrambled and put together our portfolio (picture scrapbook), and waited and prayed.
She looked at two portfolios on Thursday (Dec. 14), and even though the other couple already had a biracial daughter, she felt a connection to us and liked that we had been together for so long (12 years on Jan. 4!!). We met her on Friday night and really hit it off. We went to visit Steven on Saturday at Mary and Allen's and got to know him a bit. Steven's birthmother went to court yesterday and relinquished her rights, and we brought him home yesterday afternoon.
In the midst of this, we had our last homestudy visit (no, we weren't approved yet!), and rushed togther our psychological evaluation reports, financial statement, and other details. Our poor sick social worker got the report finished this weekend, and we were approved yesterday morning!
Steven was named after his birthfather, and after calling him that for the week we were praying and waiting, we just couldn't change his name. After visiting him on Saturday, we went through our list of 15+ names (we never had a boy's name picked out, so that was a scramble too!), we said that he didn't seem like a Jacob or Michael or Silas or any of the others. So his name stayed the same. His middle name is James, after my dad.
Yesterday at the courthouse, Dawn told his birthmother that we kept his name, and she was really touched by it. It is a nice gift for him to have the name his birthmother picked out for him, and we liked that he was named after his birthfather.
Steven is a pretty easy going little guy. He likes to eat and sleep and just be held. The only real problem we've had is that he's not used to sleeping on a flat surface (he slept in a bouncy seat at Mary and Allen's), so he and Mark were up most of the night. Mark was so sweet and took his pillow and Steven to the living room and let me sleep the entire night. When I got up this morning, Mark went back to sleep and Steven and I hung out.
Thank you to all who have prayed for us. The past eleven days have been an absolute whirlwind, but God's hand has been so evident in this process. I only got one class for next quarter, so I'm only teaching on Friday nights. I'm also on break and don't go back to work until Jan. 11, and we had been praying for a long time for a baby by the end of the year. What an amazing God we have!!
We can't wait for each of you to meet Steven!
Love,
Rebekah, Mark, and Steven (and Sadie and Jo too!)
Yesterday we brought home our son, Steven James! He was born on Thanksgiving Day and weighed in at 6 lbs. 2 ozs. and was 21 inches long. He was a few weeks early, so he spent some time in the NICU.
His birthmom had already contacted Bethany Christian, so after he was discharged, he went to live with his interim care parents (similar to foster care parents), Mary and Allen. A week ago Friday (Dec. 7), we were contacted by Dawn at Bethany and asked if we were interested in him. We scrambled and put together our portfolio (picture scrapbook), and waited and prayed.
She looked at two portfolios on Thursday (Dec. 14), and even though the other couple already had a biracial daughter, she felt a connection to us and liked that we had been together for so long (12 years on Jan. 4!!). We met her on Friday night and really hit it off. We went to visit Steven on Saturday at Mary and Allen's and got to know him a bit. Steven's birthmother went to court yesterday and relinquished her rights, and we brought him home yesterday afternoon.
In the midst of this, we had our last homestudy visit (no, we weren't approved yet!), and rushed togther our psychological evaluation reports, financial statement, and other details. Our poor sick social worker got the report finished this weekend, and we were approved yesterday morning!
Steven was named after his birthfather, and after calling him that for the week we were praying and waiting, we just couldn't change his name. After visiting him on Saturday, we went through our list of 15+ names (we never had a boy's name picked out, so that was a scramble too!), we said that he didn't seem like a Jacob or Michael or Silas or any of the others. So his name stayed the same. His middle name is James, after my dad.
Yesterday at the courthouse, Dawn told his birthmother that we kept his name, and she was really touched by it. It is a nice gift for him to have the name his birthmother picked out for him, and we liked that he was named after his birthfather.
Steven is a pretty easy going little guy. He likes to eat and sleep and just be held. The only real problem we've had is that he's not used to sleeping on a flat surface (he slept in a bouncy seat at Mary and Allen's), so he and Mark were up most of the night. Mark was so sweet and took his pillow and Steven to the living room and let me sleep the entire night. When I got up this morning, Mark went back to sleep and Steven and I hung out.
Thank you to all who have prayed for us. The past eleven days have been an absolute whirlwind, but God's hand has been so evident in this process. I only got one class for next quarter, so I'm only teaching on Friday nights. I'm also on break and don't go back to work until Jan. 11, and we had been praying for a long time for a baby by the end of the year. What an amazing God we have!!
We can't wait for each of you to meet Steven!
Love,
Rebekah, Mark, and Steven (and Sadie and Jo too!)
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