Growth!

Today's pediatrician appointment went really well.  Our little guy is up to 4lb 11oz.  10 days ago he was at 4lb 1oz, so he's been gaining weight at an ounce a day.  He's an inch taller and is just doing great.

Stomach flu and angels

Wow. That was  NOT how the first week back was supposed to go. We pulled into our driveway on a gorgeous autumn Thursday afternoon.  Later that evening,  the Murdocks brought Pippin back so we could all be together again as a new family.  That night was a rough one.  Little Joshua was unsettled from two days of traveling and refused to settle if laid down in his bassinet. Paul had work on Friday, so it was my first all-night shift. The next morning came finding both Josh and I worse for wear, so Paul was able to arrange to stay home.

That was fantastic until he started having horrible stomach pains and then started throwing up. He still had to dj his school's dance that evening because he was the only one who could work the sound system,  and how he got through that is beyond me.  With Paul being sick, he couldn't help with Joshua, so it was my first, real dive into the deep end of newborn-mom-survival-school. Josh and I sequestered ourselves to the guest room upstairs and prepared for night #2.

Aaaaand then 3am came-  with stomach cramps waking me up and getting worse as the hour wore on.  It was obvious I was dealing with the same stomach flu Paul had. 4am. I was exhausted and teary from throwing up and knowing minute by minute that I was becoming less and less capable of taking care of my baby.  Thank goodness for sweet friends you can call on at 4:20 in the morning. Half an hour later, Melinda was there,  had sent me to bed, and I knew Joshua was safe and loved.

Over the next day and a half,  three more guardian angels swooped in at a moment's notice and cared for Joshua throughout the night and into the peace of Sunday morning.  The more I reflect on that development our first few days back, the more fitting it is. When it came to getting this little one to our home, there is nothing- and I truly mean nothing we could have done on our own. We tried and tried for so many years to bring children into our home on our own. However, when Heavenly Father began preparing our hearts and home for Samuel, who prepared them for Joshua, there was not a step of that journey we took without help from those around us.  How fitting that his arrival here in Oregon become a community experience.

As Paul and I recovered,  I think the biggest beneficiaries of our downtime were Pippin and Mali who snuggled with us to their hearts content while we slept off that stomach bug.

Now here we are at the end of two wonderful sick-free days. Joshua doesn't appear to have been touched by the sickness at all and is developing the diaper-eat-sleep routines that are the center of our little world right now.   Love and support continues to envelop us in the form of little gifts left on the porch, texts and messages,  and delicious meals (now that food once again sounds appealing).

Tomorrow is our first Oregon pediatrician's appointment, so we're hoping Joshua has some good weight gain and that his little body continues healthy.

Love to you all.

Made it to Boise

This morning we skedaddled as soon as we were ready and had a gorgeous drive to Boise. Joshua did so well and saved his first messy diaper blow out for when we got to our destination with family so everyone could witness it, lol. It is such a relief to be heading back home where we can all get on a schedule. 

Had a wonderful evening visiting with Grandma and Grandpa, Aunt Alicia, Aunt Amber, Aunt Jill, Uncle Kevin, and cousins Kevin & Matt.

The stress of waiting

You'd think that by now we'd be pros at waiting, but patience is still something that eludes me and today was one of those days.  Having had the car packed for two days so we could leave at a moment's notice and hearing nothing hour after hour was crummy to say the least.

Finally,  while I was taking my late afternoon nap to prepare me for my night shift with Joshua, Paul got the call that we can finally take Joshua across state borders without becoming felons. Hallelujah!!

So tomorrow we drive to Boise, stay overnight with my parents at my Aunt Sue and Uncle Dave's house,  and then come home on Thursday. 

In brighter baby updates, we have him his first home bath in the bathroom sink and we all made it through in one piece, lol.

So little Joshua is up to 4lb. 1.3 oz! Almost back to his birthweight. 

The states haven't processed the going home paperwork yet, so tomorrow will be the soonest we'll start travelling back.  While bummed that we're not heading back for yet another day,  we now know that there must be a reason for it. It's also been wonderful to be her

Bullet journaling and data tracking for the win.

We've had a great weekend of eating and are hoping for a great weigh in today at the pediatrician. 

I'm big into bullet journaling and data tracking and that's working to my benefit this week.  :)

More blessings

Ok- I'm just going to need to stop feeling frustrated or put out when things don't go n according to my timeline.  On Friday we had an appointment with birth mom but they were unable to make it.  We rescheduled for Saturday and the incredible social worker came in on her day off so we all could visit.  It was a sweet, tender sacred time with the birth parents, the birth mom's sister,  and a dear friend of theirs.

Then later yesterday afternoon,  we found out that there was a torrential, gusty storm that was kicking up debris in the air that would have made driving stressful.  To boot, the family member's home we were going to stay the night at had a power outage.  This has been just testament after testament that my Heavenly Father is aware and involved in the tiniest details of this experience.

Now it's Sunday morning- a beautiful, quiet day of rest.  This morning for the first time he is settled right down after his feedings and we've got him laying in his crib. Our arms are liking the bit of a break, lol.

Updates at Joshua's one week birthday

So- great news from the pediatrician's appointment.  After holding steady at 3lb 14 for the last 3 weigh ins, baby Joshua now weighs 3 lb. 15.5oz!! This is the first time his weight has gone up since birth.  Everything else looked fantastic and we're looking forward to a calm  weekend of eating, sleeping,  and pooping.

As some of you may have read, paperwork between states hasn't cleared yet, so it'll be Monday at the soonest before we get to start heading home.

Pics from last night:

Getting our ducks in a row

Holy cow! This little guy has one busy agenda. Today included a court appearance, a paper signing party at the adoption agency, and a second pediatrician's appointment.  His weight is holding steady at 3 lb. 14oz and we'll keep working on getting that number to climb. With all the appointments,  we were going from 8:15 until 4:30. Needless to say, our little one was beyond done with all the car seat shenanigans by the time we got home.

I laid down for a nap and drifted off while laying in bed reading all your comments about our court picture and crying and crying over the avalanche of love and support I see right now in my life and have always had.

Now to logistical details- in Utah there is a six month probationary period before the adoption is finalized,  so we have a few more hoops to jump through as far as that is concerned. 

Our adoption agency has overnighted all the interstate adoption forms to Oregon, so as soon as Oregon processes it and green lights everything,  we can travel with him across state lines.  We're hoping and praying the authorization comes through tomorrow so we can drive to Boise on Saturday and finish coming home on Sunday.  If Oregon is slow,  though,  we'll be looking at mid next week before we can get home.

Busy first full day.

Today sure kept us all hopping. We had an appointment at the adoption agency to fill out all the piles of forms,  but everyone met us with such overwhelming love.  There had been times when I had wondered if they even really remembered us or were tuned in to our journey. How wrong I was.  I met sweet people who kept our photo on their desk and kept looking at it as they did all they could to bring the right baby to us.

From there,  we went over to our first specialist pediatrician appointment.  She had actually been with Joshua up at the hospital the day after he was born,  so she was already tuned into his challenges and needs.  The biggest thing we're focusing on is to get him gaining weight.  He's still at 3 lb. 14 oz.

We learned a lot that first night of feedings and diaper changes, lol. Kent and his sons have been so kind about having a newborn crying in the middle of the night.

I got a bit of a nap in this afternoon and am now set for the first night shift until 2.  Then Paul's on deck.

Tomorrow morning we appear before a judge to grant b us temporary custody. There b will be a six month probationary period and then the adoption can be finalized.

We are home with Paul's brother Kent and had our first night with Joshua. We both witnessed more significant periods of withdrawal symptoms than we've seen before, but he's doing alright now.

Today the lawyers start their work with the courts and we have a meeting at the adoption agency with the birth parents to go over the open adoption parameters.

On our way home!!!!!!

We still have to stay in Utah for a little while, but we just checked out of the hospital!!!

Going for a ride

We got back from lunch to find 'lil pumpkin riding in this cool contraption.

Monday updates

Lots of snuggles and skin to skin contact with little boy today.  He's been more restless and arms more rigid today, which are some signs of the meth withdrawal.  However,  the nurse says that the amount of skin to skin and cuddling is helping him settle and soothe more quickly. We can't change what he's been exposed to, but at least we can help that way.  His withdrawal scores are still low,  which is good.

Josh weighed in at 4lb 4oz, but has lost some body weight.  We're trying a new bottle with him today to see if that helps him eat more easily.  Right now he weighs 3lb. 15oz. To use the car seat, he needs to be 4lb.

It looks like he'll be released tomorrow and we'll start getting all the legal stuff done.

We have been overwhelmed by the love apparent in your comments and reactions.  It has just reminded us that even when we felt so isolated that we were never on this journey alone.  You all walked with us.

Day 2

Spent the morning cuddling with our little Josh. I'm practicing swaddling and am getting a little better at it. The dolls I practiced on didn't twist and turn like he does,  though. 

We're eating lunch in the cafeteria and then Josh gets to meet Grandma and Grandpa Clegg when they get here in half an hour or so.  Then he gets to be introduced to his Aunt Jeri and Uncles Cole, Alan and Kent.

We're staying at the Ronald McDonald house to be close to the hospital.  As divine alignment would have it, our niece Ashley works there and will be there to greet us when we go back tonight.

So far,  vitals are looking good on our little one, so fingers crossed that he'll be discharged to us Monday or Tuesday. Then we need to stay in Utah until everything is finalized in the courts and then we can bring little boy home.

Got a kick out of this sign in the cafeteria:

The most alert he's been since we arrived.

A day of miracles and shock

Trying to formulate coherent thoughts and sentences is really a challenge right now.  In the course of 24 hours, our lives have completely changed.  An adoption opportunity came up Friday afternoon.  I happened to check my phone at 4:55- five minutes before an appointment and sent in the confirmation that we were interested in a newborn baby boy born the night before in Salt Lake City.

At 8:30, while watching the Great British Baking Show, we got a call from our adoption agency that the birth mom had picked us as the baby boy's adoptive parents.  The last 22 hours we have both been in shock.  We dropped everything, reached out to friends and family to cover what needed to be covered in our absence, and drove all night to get to the hospital. 

Now we're here. Stunned and grateful. This little one has been provided for and prepared for by all of you and we offer you our sincere gratitude from the bottom of our hearts. 

Our little guy needs to stay for the next two days for observation.  His birth mom had a meth habit during pregnancy and they want to watch him closely to see if he shows any signs of withdrawal. So far, he's doing great- no withdrawal signs, he's eating, and pooping and it looks like his tiny body is doing well.  He was born four weeks premature and weighed just over 4 lbs. 

Since we want to keep you all in the loop, we'll put updates here on this blog when we can.  Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we finalize all the legal documents over the next week.  We're sure you understand that we won't really trust that this is true until we are on our way back to Oregon with him. 

Our love to you all.

Paul & Ruth