Turkey and News Crews

Well this Thanksgiving was a memorable one.  We arrived in Seattle around 11am and the boys were THRILLED to see Seahawks jerseys, flags, car stickers and hats everywhere they looked.  They were just as thrilled to see the "forests" of trees too. "Whoa Mom!  That neighborhood is in a forest!  The freeway is in the forest!"  Yes forests and Seahawks, they are in little boy heaven.

We arrived at Grandma and Grandpa's house in time to enjoy a yummy turkey dinner.  Well, everyone else ate but my stomach was in knots and butterflies because after dinner a reporter and camera man from Seattle's King 5 news were coming over to do an interview.  Yep you heard me right.  So if you know me at all you can just imagine how I was feeling.  Physically ill.  Nauseous, anxious, ick.  I DO NOT like talking in front of people.  I don't like standing up in front of people.  It's not only that I don't like it, but my body doesn't like it either.  My throat closes up, my chest tightens, my heart beats so fast. It is what I imagine a heart attack feeling like.  Absolutely miserable.  Too be honest, I don't even like watching people I know speak in front of others.  When Chris has spoken at different things I haven't even watched because I just get too nervous for him.  When friends do the announcements at church my heart pounds for them the entire time they are on stage.  Weird right?  But I can't help it.

Luckily the King 5 reporter, Heather Graf was the sweetest person and was able to make talking and answering questions in front of a camera as comfortable as it could have been.  I still shook, sweat, and thought my heart was going to beat out my chest, but I survived.  It was fun talking about our favorite Seahawks moments and why we are fans.  It was exciting talking about what we hope our future family looks like and why we are choosing to adopt.  But, it was emotional talking about our adoption journey thus far.  I am hopeful that our hearts are heard as others view the news clip and read the article.  It still feels crazy and surreal to be putting ourselves and our family out there in such a big way.  It is scary.  But the opportunity to share our story with others in hopes that they would join us on our journey to adopt our daughter is worth the fear.

Below is the link to the news clip that aired Thanksgiving evening.  It also includes the article that Heather Graf wrote to go along with it.  The article also was featured on Today.com and NBCnews.com.  Still praying for a miracle!

http://www.king5.com/home/Seahawks-fans-turn--233799741.html 

We started the morning bright and early at the airport.  The boys were very excited to "blast off!"

This is what my view was… so intimidating!

After the news crew left we decorated giant gingerbread cookies.

Did anyone notice Great Grandma lounging in the recliner during the interview?  She was the star!

And then it aired!

And no, my in-laws do not have a dvr, so yes, we definitely took pictures and recorded the story live with our phones!

The picture below is from our first date.  We made a Seahawks sign for the upcoming game!

Thanks for tuning in and sharing friends!  We will keep you posted if the tickets sell!  Still praying for a miracle here.  :)

Why $32,000?

In case you were wondering what our Facebook post and Ebay listing are about... here you go!

Our friend put this video together for us...

On Monday night Chris had a dream.  It didn't make any sense to him at the time and had no context.  In his dream he was asking for $32,000.  Right before he woke up he heard a small voice say, "your faith is too small".  He woke up and it was 4am.  He wasn't able to fall back to sleep but also didn't give his dream much thought.  On Tuesday morning we received an email from a private grant organization that awards grants and non interest loans to adoptive families.  It said that we had not been approved.  It was defeating.  Later that day we received a call from an adoption lawyer letting us know he was with a birth mom who is interested in our family and would like to speak to us!  Amazing.  Knowing that we would need to have funds ready almost immediately I called a family member who had previously thought they would be able to help with a short term immediate loan until the rest of our fundraising and savings was in.... that was no longer happening.  We had to say no.  No to a birth mom and no to a baby...  because we are not ready with funding.  Devastating again.  Immediately Chris remembered his dream.  We knew that we had already decided to list our Monday Night Seahawks/Saints tickets for sale to use the proceeds towards our adoption.  Why not just put it out there, step out in big faith and ask for our entire adoption amount?!?!  Sound crazy?  Ya I know.  It did to me too.  But with the emotional up and down year we have had Chris has done nothing but stand strong and listen to God's guiding.  Why should I question him?!  So I'm not.  And so far, it's been crazy.  We have asked friends to share our story through social media and it has been amazing to see them step up.  We have been contacted by Seattle news media and will be doing interviews later this week once we get into town.  Crazy?  Yes!  Amazing?  Yep!  Needing a Miracle for it to happen?  100%  Did you know that we were the first couple ever to get married on the field at what was then Seahawks Stadium?  Did you know that our first son Jackson was brought home from the hospital in a Darrell Jackson jersey?  Did you know our dog, and ring-bearer at our wedding, who wore a jersey walking down the aisle is named "Fumbles"  (which was a totally appropriate name for a Seahawks fan at that time).  We both have early childhood memories of being Seahawks fans and it couldn't be more fitting than to have other Seahawks fans help us bring our baby girl home.

On a side note did you know that a domestic adoption in the United States through a lawyer or an adoption agency averages between $25,000-$40,000.  Here are a couple links to help you better understand why.

https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/s_cost/s_costs.pdf

http://www.americanadoptions.com/adopt/why_does_private_adoption_cost_so_much_money


With all that said we need to get the word out.  We are excited (and nervous) to do the interviews later this week!  And we are hopeful and prayerful that something BIG is going to happen!  Would you join us in spreading the word?  THANK YOU!

If you feel called to give towards our adoption fund but don't have $32,000 laying around to buy the Seahawks tickets, you can click on THIS LINK and give.  Or there is a Pay Pal link in the side bar.

We are SO THANKFUL for your support, sharing of the link, and prayers.  Thank you!

And in case you missed it- here is the link to our EBAY LISTING!

Some Seahawks Birthday Fun!

Last year, in November, at Jackson's 5th Birthday Party he requested next year for his 6th Birthday Party a SEAHAWKS PARTY.  This made me happy for so many reasons.  First- a Seahawks party, during Seahawks season, perfect.  Second- being HUGE fans we already have A TON of Seahawks decor.  And third- how proud am I of my boy?  Planning ahead, looking forward to his next party.  Like mommy, like son!  I was excited for this one... and I was determined for it to be simple.

So a year later we celebrated his 6th Birthday Seahawk-Style!

We started the party with an obstacle course.  The kids had a BLAST!  

First things first- Get your Seahawks gear on!

Then run like crazy through tunnels, passing footballs, and hold on to that ball!!!

It was intense!

Cheering on our friends as they race to the end zone!

(Pom Poms were made with tissue paper)

And finally a huge tackle in the end zone and a touchdown dance!

The birthday boy enjoying pizza with his friends

Decor included Pom Poms, helmets, jerseys, balloons and flags.

Instead of cake Jackson chose Seahawk donuts and SKITTLES!!!

We finished the day with a Seahawks victory over the Vikings.  It couldn't have been better.

THANK YOU to all who came and celebrated with us!

An "Autumn" Shower

My good friend Amy is due so soon with a little girl she will be calling Autumn Grace (isn't that such a beautiful name?!?)  Well I had the honor of helping throw her an "Autumn" themed baby shower.  My girlfriend's Lindsay, Katelyn and I really enjoyed putting this day together for Amy.  Here are some pictures and details of the shower.  My friend Katelyn of Domestic Charm also wrote a post sharing some more details.  You can find that post HERE.

 We held the shower outside and set the tables with burlap, wood stumps, and place settings which included mason jar water glasses.  We brought in some color with the cloth napkins, gold mason jar vases, pomegranates, cranberries, pumpkins and oranges.

 

For lunch we served an Autumn Vegetable soup and a Baked Potato soup with a salad and rolls.

For dessert we offered an assortment of pies which included cherry, pecan, chocolate peanut butter, apple and pumpkin.

As a thank you gift each guest left with a jar of Pear Butter (thanks Mom!).

Thank you Amy for letting us be apart of celebrating you and your new baby girl.  I cannot wait to meet her!

 To finish off the week of celebrations, tomorrow I will share some pictures from Jackson's 6th birthday party.