Zach is 3

I can't believe it has been so long since I posted. Zach keeps me busy. He is a very active 3 year old. I asked him what he wanted to do for his Birthday and he said bowling, so that's what we did. He had a ball! He got to bowl with Lauren and Emma so that made it much more fun for him.

He had his 3 year check up. He weighs 32 pounds and is 36 1/2 inches tall. This puts him in the 25 percentile for his age group. In the words of Dr. Kathie "He is just a tad small". He is at his age level on most things and above on others. Unfortunately his speech isn't where the Doctor thinks it should be so I have to get him speech therapy. In my opinion he is doing a little better every day so I think if I just waited he will be better in no time at all. But, I will probably go with the Doctors advice.

He is starting pre-school in August. I think he is going to love being with the other kids. Well, maybe not at first, but I think once he gets use to going he will love it! My baby is growing up so fast.

I am still in touch with Zach's foster family through e-mails. I love that they are still part of our lives. They took such good care of him for the first 15 months of his life. I know they love him very much.

Hopefully it won't be so long between posts next time!

1st Gotcha Day

Here are a couple pictures of Zach at the Park. I was trying to figure out what to do today for our first Gotcha Day and realized that going to the Park (which Zach loves) is probably the best thing for him. We had a great time. It is so hard to believe that it was a year ago today that I held my sweet baby for the first time! Some days it seem like it was just yesterday, but other days it feels like he has been with me forever. We had a great day playing at the Park, McDonalds (at his request), playing soccer in the back yard all afternoon and then out to dinner. It was a great day. I am still so excited to be "Zach's Mom".

Mother's Day

Here is a picture I took with my phone yesterday! Is he cute or what!! It was a wonderful first Mother's Day with Zach. I can't tell you how wonderful it was to wake up Sunday morning knowing I had my little guy in the next room. Finally a Mother's Day that wasn't sad. I still did my traditional visit with the Angels on my memorial bench, but this year I took Zach with me. I tell him that they represent the four little angels I have in heaven. I know he doesn't understand yet, but he will.

We had a great day! We went to my sisters for a bbq. We celebrated Mother's Day and her birthday (which is today). So if you are reading this Aunt Tete, Happy Birthday! It was the perfect day spent with family. I am truly blessed with the wonderful family that I have!

This is a picture of Zach's Foster Mom (and her two daughters) in Guatemala. I did not want to forget her on Mother's Day since she was Zach's "mom" for the first 15 months of life. So, we sent her the flowers, candy, lotion and powder. The service I use to deliver them takes a picture to prove that they received what you sent. I could not imagine not including her in our celebration even though we are so far apart. I also remembered Zach's birth mom in my prayers yesterday. I am so grateful to her. I do wish there was a way to let her know what a great little boy he is and how well he is doing.

I hope all the Mom's reading this had a wonderful Mother's Day!

Re-Adoption Day

Yesterday we had our re-adoption hearing. Here is a picture of us with my lawyer Bob and his wife Julia. They are our friends from church which made it more special. The hearing consisted of the Judge coming in, saying he had reviewed our file and the home study and then he signed the papers and gave them to Bob and told us congratulations! Bob was amazed that I didn't have to say anything. He said it was the first adoption he has done where a parent didn't have to speak! Thats just because the adoption was meant to happen! It truly was an amazing day!

Here are two pictures of us holding the "Official" papers. One in the court room and the other outside of the Court House on the steps. Now, my sons legal name is Zachary! I am so excited! The only things left to do is our last visit with our Home Study agency next month and when Zach's new birth certificate comes in, we can apply for Citizenship! Then we can just concentrate on being a family and having fun (OK, we already do that, but you know what I mean).

Just look at that little face! I am so blessed! I am honored that the Lord chose me to be Zach's mom! I can't help but think about his birth mom on this day. I will forever be grateful to her. And even though she doesn't know me, I pray that she knows that he will always be taken care of and loved so much! I also think of his foster mom who took such great care of him for the first fourteen months of his life. I am also grateful to her. I am still in touch with her frequently and I send her pictures so she can see how good Zach is doing and how much he grows. My wish is to one day be able to take him back to Guatemala to visit her and her family.

The Gift of Life

I didn't give you the gift of life,

But in my heart I know.

The love I feel is deep and real,

As if it had been so.

For us to have each other

Is like a dream come true!

No, I didn't give you The gift of life,

Life gave me the gift of you.

Serious Life Magazine

I wanted you to know about this publication I’m a part of called Serious.Life Magazine. They just published a new issue today, and I am in their Featured Blog Directory. It’s a very high quality magazine… you’ll really like it.
The magazine includes a lot of great content from bloggers you’ll appreciate, as well as great features, photos and other content. The magazine is owned and published by a family who have seven kids, three adopted and one who has Leukemia (www.riggsfamilyblog.com). The magazine gives away a bunch of ads to charities and ministries. Besides great articles on interesting people, there is a lot about family, adoption, personal finance, spiritual life, humor… all sorts of “life” topics.
Again, the subscription is FREE, and I know you’ll enjoy the magazine, so take a minute to check it out and sign up to get future issues. www.seriouslifemagazine.com

Praying for Stellan

Please pray for Stellan. To learn about what is going on with his little heart click on his picture to the right. He and his family need our prayers!

Zach is 2

My little man is 2 now. Here are some pictures I had taken at Penney's. They turned out so good. His birthday was such a special day. I am so happy I got to spend his 2nd Birthday with him. I got an e-mail from his foster mom wishing him a happy birthday. She said last year she was with him on his birthday and misses him terribly this year. She asked if I was going to teach him Spanish and if so maybe he could call her when he gets older. I think that would be so wonderful. They took such great care of him for the first 14 1/2 months of his life and did such a great job. I will be forever grateful to them! I will ask her if she minds if I post the pictures of her family on here so that all of you can see them. She has two beautiful daughters.

We have a court date on April 9th for Zach's readoption. I am so excited about that. I can get his name changed everywhere and the Doctor's office can finally call him Zach! The next step after the readoption is to apply for his Certificate of Citizenship. We have his last home visit in May and then EVERYTHING will be complete for him and we can finally relax and not think about those things anymore.

Thank you to everyone for your support. I am very lucky to have all of you in my life. I love you all!

If you have not checked out the story on my little friend Abby, please click the button on the right hand side that says "Praying for Abby". She is a sweet little 4 year old that was adopted from Guatemala. She is a very sick little girl and is going through very strong chemo. She needs our prayers along with her family. They are the most amazing christian couple you will ever meet. Abby's illness has brought them even closer to the Lord. How amazing is that! Me and Zach says prayers for Abby every night. (It's cute how he says Abby).

First Snow

Here are a couple pictures of Zach in the front yard playing in his first snow. Grandma said at first he wasn't sure about it and didn't want to get his boots wet. But she told him it was alright to get them wet and he had a ball. As a matter of fact, I think she had a hard time getting him to come inside. I love the picture where he is making a face! That might have been when she told him it was time to go in and he was letting her know he didn't want to.

My friend Stacy gave Zach this big bear. The past week or so he has been sitting on its lap and sometimes he puts his other stuffed animals on there with him and jabbers to them. Grandma snapped this picture of him.

I tell you, I am so blessed. I know every mother says that. Actually, thinking about it, every mother is blessed to be a mother no matter if you gave birth to your child or you adopted them. It seems like I waited so long to have my son, but at this point, I do not remember a time without him.

He is my little sponge right now. Everything I say or do he tries to do. It is so cute. He loves being around people. We got together with a house full of people at my brother and sister-in-laws for the Superbowl. Zach loved it! Of course no matter where we go he is the center of attention. While watching the Superbowl, Zach would yell at the TV when we would and often yell "Touchdown". He loves any form of ball. I took him to his first basketball game to see my nephew play. He was mesmerized!

If you get a chance, please click on the link to the right and read the story about Abby. She definitely needs our prayers. She is only 4 years old and is so sick. Please keep her in your prayers and ask your friends to pray for her also. She is going through too much for anyone to bear let alone a 4 year old. Thanks!

I guess that is all for now. Zach will turn 2 on March 1st, so I will be posting pictures then. Everyone take care and God Bless!

Zach's First U.S. Christmas

Well, as I am sure you have all guessed, we had a wonderful first Christmas. This picture is a little blurry (sorry) but you can see he has lots of toys! When we got up, I was so excited and showed him the presents under the tree. He looked at them and then spotted his balloons (from the night before) and pointed and said "BALLOONS". Once I sat him down by the presents and showed him how to start opening them, he got more excited. The funny thing is that every little piece of tape and wrapping paper had to be off the box before he would get excited about the present. It was kind of cute! Between me, my family and my friends he now has enough toys to fill his room and the living room. The garage in the picture was his favorite! Now, he goes from one to to the other and loves them all! It was definitely an awesome day. Of course, like I have said in other posts, I got my present May 19th. That's the day my life changed and I thank the good Lord every day for it!!

Our First Christmas

I already have my Christmas Present. My son being home with me is everything I have ever wanted! I can't believe we have been home for almost seven months now, but then again I can't remember a time without Zach. He lights up my life every day! I was thinking the other day about this time last year was when my Agency confirmed that Zach would definitely not be home for Christmas. I was devastated. But, I am glad he was with people who loved him (still do) very much! His foster family was great. They took such good care of him. I am so thankful for everything they have done. Maybe when Zach gets older we can go back to Guatemala so they can see him. I know it would mean a lot to them and to Zach (and me too).

I would like to wish everyone and your families Happy Holidays! I hope you are surrounded by the people you love.

God Bless You All!

Halloween & Fall Pics

I wanted to share pictures of my little Winnie the Pooh. He had so much fun trick-or-treating! I didn't think he would like the outfit especially since there was a hood on it, but he was so excited when I put it on. Even today if you ask him who Pooh is, he points to himself. When we went to my brother's house, he helped Aunt Lois hand out some candy to a few of the kids. He thought that was great! We didn't go to many houses, but they loaded him up with candy.

The other pictures are from last weekend. My family went to a park nearby to see the trees that have changed in to the beautiful fall colors. Aunt Lois took these pictures. They turned out really good. Thanks Aunt Lois!!

Trip to the Zoo

Zach got to go to the St. Louis Zoo for the first time. It was so much fun! He thought every animal said "Mooo". He seemed to really enjoy it. The day was absolutely beautiful. He also got to ride a carousel for the first time. He smiled the entire time.

Even though I missed the first year of his life, it is awesome to think about all the "firsts" he will be having with me. I know the holidays will be so much better than they have been in a long time. I haven't put a tree up in a couple of years and have not looked forward to Christmas in many years, but this year it will all be different. So much better! I'm actually excited about Christmas morning, not dreading it. He has brought so much meaning to my life. It is amazing how one little person can do that! Out of all the prayers that I have ever had answered, I am so thankful that this one was (not that I'm not thankful for the rest, but this is the one that I have had the longest)!

Good Report from Doctor

I took Zach for his 18 month check-up. She said he is doing great. He has gained 3 pounds and grew 1 1/4 inches since I brought him home. His weight is now in the 50 percentile for his age. She said that is perfect. He is right where he needs to be with talking, running, feeding himself and doing all the things he should be doing! I was just looking at him last night and wondering what I have done to deserve such a wonderful son. I am truly blessed! I hope and pray that I can give him a good life because he deserves the very best!

Here is a poem that I found for my sweet boy!

TO MY SON
As I sit here
I watch you play
Thinking back
to that special day
When I saw your face
for the very first time
Staring into those beautiful brown eyes
That soft brown hair
perfect little nose
Fingers and toes
Watched you grow
Bigger and stronger everyday
I would not have my life
any other way
You were smiling and laughing
crawling now walking
Growing so fast
soon you'll be talking
It makes me happy
just to see you smile
Or to hold you in my arms
for a little while
There will be a day when you're grown
and this baby stuff will be done
But I'll always remember the day
when you became my son

Mommy loves you sweet baby boy!

My Little Movie Star

I thought I would share an adorable picture of my little movie star. He has his own sunglasses but refuses to wear those. We were out watching a friend of ours son play football and Zach decided he needed to wear mommies sunglasses! I am having so much fun with him! The Lord has truly blessed me with the most amazing little guy. He is still doing so well. Happy all the time. I take him next week for a check up with Dr. Kathy. I will update you all on his progress!

My Niece's Wedding

I wanted to show you some pictures from my niece's wedding. She was absolutely beautiful! Everything went well and I gained a great nephew! The picture with Zach awake is with Aunt Gina. Everyone was enjoying holding him and playing with him and of course he loved every minute of it. I was hoping for a dance with him, but he crashed as you can see in the other picture. That's alright, I took him out on the dance floor anyway. He had so much fun he crashed early.

It is so exciting having Zach here so that he can be part of these special memories. We have been home 13 weeks now and it seems like forever. I can't remember a day when he was not here. He is so much fun! He wakes up every morning with a big smile. He has turned in to quite the comedian these days. He will do something to see if he can get a laugh. If it works, he will continue to do it and then do a belly laugh himself. He has adjusted so well. I think from day one he has felt comfortable. All I have to say about that is "Thank you Lord for answered prayer". I am so blessed! When I am at work, I can be having a bad day and someone will ask me how Zach is and they say I just start glowing. Being a mom is just the most wonderful part of my life! I guess now I know what God's plan was for me. So, my advice to everyone is to try and be patient. God does have plans for all of us but they happen in his time, not ours. Trust me I know the waiting is the hardest thing. I waited for over 20 years for this and let me tell you that it is definitely worth it! And the timing is excellent. God knows what is best for us, we just have to believe in him!

Today I kissed an angel.

I knew it from the start.

The first time my angel smiled at me:

I gave away my heart.

Today I kissed an angel;

This angel child of mine

Though not of my creation,

My child by God's design.

Today I kissed an angel.

My heart is dancing wild;

My family, by a miracle;

Blessed by my angel child.

Baptism

Zach's Baptism went so well. I cried most of the way through it. It was just so moving to me. The first picture is of Pastor Michael, myself, Zach, my sister Teri and my brother Jerry (they are Zach's Godparents). The other picture is most of my family. One of the ladies from the church that has an amazing voice sang "I Hope You Dance" for me. During the adoption process when I received good news, that morning on the way in to work I would hear that playing on the radio. So, it became my song for Zach. I am so excited to teach Zach the Bible! He won't sit still long enough for me to read to him yet, but I know it will be a matter of time and he will.

Amazing

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. Going back to work has been exhausting! When I get home, I want to spend every minute I can with my little guy. I have to tell you all that being a mom is so much more amazing than I could have ever imagined. This picture says it all! Zach is doing so well. He wakes up every morning with a big smile on his face. He is definitely a morning person. It is so hard to believe that we have been home for nine weeks tomorrow. I can't remember what my life was like without him. He is definitely my little ray of sunshine. I thank God for him every day. The way he has adjusted has been so wonderful. I know it is answers to many, many prayers (just like he is).

The other day I was looking at the pictures of us from the airport and I realized how much he is growing. He is starting to repeat words now. It's so cute to hear him try to pronounce some of them. I took him to the demo derby at the fair a couple of weeks ago with Uncle Jerry and Aunt Lois. He loved it! We have him raising his arm up and yelling "smash". Of course it comes out "mash" which is so cute. When he gets in trouble, all I have to do is give him "the look" and he stops and puts his head down. Well, the other day that happened and he looked at me and put that tiny arm up and said "mash". Needless to say he knows how to melt my heart. It was so cute.

I am very excited to tell you that Zach is getting Baptized this Sunday. Bringing Zach up in a Christian home is so important to me. I have asked Uncle Jerry and Aunt Teri to be his Godparents. They are so excited! I will post pictures next week.

I guess that is all for now. I will try not to let so much time go by between posts. Blessings to everyone!

Made it through the first week of work

Well, I made it through the first week. It wasn't the best week I have ever had but I expected that. The first day Zach would not even look at me when I got home. I was devastated. I never gave it a thought that he would be mad at me. The second day was a little better and the third day he was happy to see me. It was so hard to leave him each day. I would say that it will get better, but after talking to other parents I know it won't. Saturday when I went in his room after he woke up, he had a huge grin on his face and he said "mom, mom, mom". So, I think he was excited to see me. He is doing so well. He is picking up words left and right. He makes the cutest faces. I will have to get pictures of them and post them here. Saturday he got his first haircut with Aunt Lois. He was so good for her.

Well, I guess that is all for now. I am starting another week at work. Nothing against my job, but I wish I didn't have to work. Talk to you soon!

I'm Very Sad Tonight!

See this sweet little face, I have to leave it tomorrow and go back to work. I don't know how I am going to do it. I held him for an hour tonight while he slept and just looked at him and cried. The past five weeks have gone by way to fast. I know I am just being a big baby and everyone has had to go through this, but I can't help it. I finally got my dream and now I have to go to work (so that little dream can eat and live). I know he will have loads of fun with Grandma though! Grandma might get tired of me calling and saying "what's he doing now?" I'm sure she won't mind. We are just going to have to make the most out of the evenings and weekends. And then there's the holidays to look forward to! :)

I love you my sweet little sunshine! Mommy will be home after 4 each day to play!

First Family Photo

We had our first family photos taken. I think they turned out pretty good even though Zach didn't want to cooperate. There is nothing better than seeing that little grin on my little mans face.

He still seems so content and happy here. That's just awesome. He has been really sick this week though. Today was the first day he was a little like himself and didn't have a fever. I even had him giggling! It's so hard when a little one is sick and can't tell you what is wrong. But I am very happy he is getting better.

Thanks for letting me share and checking our blog!