Family Days

The weather is starting to warm up for a few days at a time. When the sun is out we are outside! We love taking the kids to new places and see how they interact with people and new scenery. Last weekend we took them to the waterfront for lunch at Joe's Crab Shack and then a walk to Fort Vancouver. They had a blast watching the planes fly in and out of Portland Airport. Jayden gave a little yell when a boat would go by, it was priceless! Our walk was around 3 miles and Jayden was such a trooper walking the whole way. I need to rewind a few days, I have been reading him the Three Little Pigs and Little Red Riding Hood. He loves pointing to the pictures and asking what everything is, which is great, then I'll ask him and he'll tell me what everything is. He kept saying "wolf bad Mommy". Well at the Fort he made me so proud. In one of the buildings they had a station set up for the kids and it was furs on display of all things. The animal pelts were foxes, bears, beavers, badgers and coyotes. Jayden walked right up to the coyote and whispered "Wolf, Bad Wolf"! I had to laugh. The guy who was there helping out the kids told him that it wasn't a wolf and proceeded to tell him it was a coyote. I step in and told Jayden, great job, yes it's the bad wolf. He looked at me and smiled. That night we came home and went to read a different story and he pointed out the wolf from the stories and said, "Mommy, that's him, the bad wolf the bad wolf! I loved sharing that moment with him, only Jayden and I knew what he meant inside that building, it was OUR moment!

Today we took Jayden and Tyran to the Farmer's Market in Vancouver. We walked around and ate lunch and looked at all the booth's. Watching them react to what was around them was incredible. Tyran waved and said "hi" to everyone who past us. Jayden impressed us by eating a whole corn dog today. We stopped to watch a performer called "The Curt Show". He was funny and Tyran would clap. Jayden would rather walk around, so after the show we took them to a store. Jason and I would walk by it and see these cool sweat shrits in the window. So today we went in to see them. We tried one on Jayden and he loved it. Well being new parents we love shopping for them. He gets so excited when he sees fun things to play with. While we were in the store the brought out a remote control helicopter. He screamed with excitement and everyone loved it. The bad thing about that store is that they try and push everything down your throat. I just wanted to be left alone to walk around and see things for myself with the kids. Tyran also came out with a very cute pair of sandals for our summer vacation. We ended our day at home, with family time. Let's see what tomorrow brings.

Love,

Jason & Christina

Our home is full of Love

Really need to be better at this bolg thing. Fast forward to Oct 27th. On Oct 27th we had 2 brothers come and live in our home. Isaiah-9yrs and Acadian-3yrs. We were a little scared with having an older child in our home. You hear such crazy stories about older children in Foster Care. This home went from a family of 2, to a family of 3, then a family of 4 in a matter of 2 1/2 mo. It was very hard at first. My husband was so terrfic, he made sure Isaiah was registered for school, found him a Boy Scouts troop closer to our home. He was on the ball. He took all the kids to their appointments while I handled Tyran's appointments. We enjoyed our 1st Halloween as a family. It was a lot of fun. I wish I could attached photos of the boys, but I'm not allowed too. In the mean time we were wanting to adopt Jayden and visit him. Our life was so busy, Isaiah spends every weekend with his stepfather Jordon, who's really like a birth father to him. We call him Isaiah's father, because they way he loves and takes care of him. We are sad to say that by the end of May 2011 he'll be leaving our home to live "Forever" with his dad Jordon. We are very happy for Isaiah just sad because we'll miss him so. We make plans for Jayden to spend Thanksgiving and Christmas with us. As we near Thanksgiving Jason and Isaiah go and pick him up. When Jayden gets here he's not feeling very well. My poor littl guy spent the night vomiting in his bed all night. Woke up the a high fever and we felt that maybe he wanted to be back with his grandma. So we drove him home and waited until Christmas. Christmas came and Jayden spent a week with us. Christmas in our home was wonderful. The kids had a blast, 3 days of opening gifts. What more can a child ask for. After Christmas Jayden left with his grandparents and we missed him so much. I remember sitting at the table looking at his empty chair. I went upstairs and cried. We had a plan to move him into our home in the middle of January. Jason and I were very upset the night he left. Kassy called me that night and said that they talked about it and they both thought the same thing. That night when they left our house the stopped off at Walmart and at one point Jayden ran up to a girl how kind of looked like me and asked her to pick him up. That's when Kassy knew where he wanted to be. So that Friday Dec 31st Jayden moved into his home. We were so happy and sad. Kassy and I are great friends so of course my heart ached for her and Kirk. That's when our family grew to 5. Our house was loud and a little crazy!! There were times where we just wanted to be able to bond with just Jayden and grow as a family. We knew that the Lord had brought these kids to us for a reason. So as the days went on our family had some struggles. We thought for the best interest of Acadian, we needed to find him a new home. Isaiah would be leaving soon, at that point he was to be living with his day already. It was the hardest decision we had to make. So our social worker gave us the name and phone number of a couple she thought would make a great fit for him. She asked us to talk with them and interview them to see if we thought the same thing. We did and from day one we knew there were his family. After phones calls we set up a weekend for Acadian to stay and from the moment he came home he couldn't stop talking about them. His transition into their home was smooth and perfect for Acadian. It was very hard for us. Packing his belongings was very emotional for me. I cried the whole time. We talk to them often and Acadian, he's so VERY happy, it melts my heart. I couldn't be happier for him. In the mean time we are bonding so much with Jayden, our family's love is growing with each passing day. We get all of the paper work in order for the adoption of Jayden.

March 18, 2011 is the day Jayden became our son! We were so happy to have our family there with us and my friend Lindsey. We couldn't believe how fast the hearing was for the adoption. When it was over we just looked at eachother and said ok and we walked out. That's when the tears started. To think I'm a Mommy to this wonderful handsome little boy. Thank you Lord for hearing my prayers and taking away my pain so that I could be strong enough to make it to the day I met this beautiful little boy. This little boy who I love so much, Thank you Lord for lifting us up when we were hurting the most so that we had the chance to hold him in our arms and listen to him call us Mommy & Daddy, to say I Love You to us! It took me almost 2 weeks for it to really sink in that he was our son. I remember telling my Mom before we left for court that I was so nervous, I had butterflys in my stomach like the day of my Wedding. She laughed and hugged me. That was a crazy week. Tyran was very sick with the flu hopping Jayden and Isaiah didn't catch it. The best was that we were Jayden's parents before his birthday! Watching our son at his party was the best. When we all sang Happy Birthday to him and he yelled it's my birthday, yeah! It was the best.

We are truly Thankful to the Lord for our blessings. Even on our bad days, we couldn't be happier. We love being parents and getting to talk with our friends. I'm very thankful to have a friend, Beth, who has 3 boy and a little girl. To be able to call or talk to her at church and ask her did your boys do this, how did you handle it! Plus all of my Hannah Sister's who I get to spend time with and Rejoice with!

Love,
Jason & Christina

We Did It!

It's been way too long since our last post! Here's our update:

On Aug 4th 2010 we had our final inspection of our home for our Foster License. My Mom, Sande and Taryn were here. Mark our inspector came over to check our house one more time. We were expecting him to tell us, ok now you have to wait 5-10 more days and you'll be Licensed. Instead he looked at us there in our soon to be child's room and gave us a really big smile and said, "I knew you would have everything done, so I'm very happy to say that as of this morning you are Licensed for Fostering". I was so happy I couldn't move. He kind of laughed and looked at us and said it's ok to cheer, scream or cry. We just thanked him and laughed. It wasn't until after he left that we came into our living room where my Mom was sitting and said Thank You Lord!! My Mom asked us how it went and we told her it's done, we have our license. Then we cheered and jumped up and down! We just embraced eachother and cried. After 13 1/2 years our prayers were going to be answered. We didn't know how quick it would happen!

On Aug 5th 2010, the next day, the girls and I drove about an 1hr away to go shopping. We had just went into our 1st store when Jay called me. He said I needed to get home right away. I asked if I had locked him out of the house or something. He said, "No Chris, I just got a call from Social Services and they have a 10mo old boy who needs a home for right now. He gave me the details and said we needed to go pick him up if we wanted too. I remember looking at my Mom and telling her. I felt sick to my stomach at first. I've taken care of children but they always went home after a few hours. This was going to be different. He may one day be ours. My Mom went and got Sande and Taryn. We walked to the car and Sande offered to drive home, but I needed to drive so I wouldn't panic. Then it was great because I didn't know what a 10mo baby would need. So they made a list, we were so Thankful they were here! When I got home Jason and I put in our Car seat and were on our way! We prayed on the way over and couldn't believe it had only been 1 day, well not even 24 hours since we had our License. When we got there we met our Tyran. He was so happy and full of smiles. I picked him up and didn't want to put him down. We signed all of our paperwork, not knowing what we were doing and brought him home. We had to stop off and buy a play yard. When we got home my family was here and they helped us take him a bath and feed him. After that he play with Taryn and us for a while, of course we had to take some pictures. That first night was a hard one for Tyran. It took me a while to put him to bed, but after a night or two it was too easy. On Monday I had to attend a meeting regarding Tyran and his family and also his care. I met his parents and we've had a great relationship ever since.

On Aug 9th 2010 after Tyran's meeting I came home to pick him up and take him for a visit with his parents. As I was walking out the door I received a phone call from my friend Patti. She knew of someone who needed to find a "Forever Home" for their Grandson. He was 2 1/2 at the time and would we be interested. She gave me the phone number to the Grandmother if we wanted to think about it. We talked for a few minutes and then I was off to take Tyran. I prayed about it and called Jason. We talked about it and decided to call her. So I did and after a few phone calls we got to meet Jayden. We meet at a Chuck E Cheese in Longview and had a blast.

Not only did we connect with Jayden but we also connected with his Grandma Kassy. Kassy and I would talk a few times a week and started meeting them on the weekends to start our transition with Jayden. In the mean time we are connecting with Tyran and doing everything you need to do the first 30 days they are with you. Our life was full of appointments and visits. We got to experience a lot of firsts with Tyran. His 1st Birthday, 1st swing ride, 1st steps. It was amazing. We could not stop rejoicing in the Lord. We knew that our Journey wasn't over yet. There were nights that I would stare at the toys from Tyran playing and cry because the Lord was letting me be a Mommy to this little guy. I'd look at the diapers organizer and be happy. This is where I will stop and post more later!

Love,
Jason & Christina

When He Fills Our Hearts

We feel God working in our hearts. Going through this process so far has been full of peace. Getting to see Him there with us has been so uplifting. It started with the phone call the same day we received our first envelope. Then it was us sitting in class on our second day. Bare with me as I explain this to all of you. We were sitting in class and a picture came up on the screen. Our instructor just had this picture on the screen, waiting for all of us to get back from break. So that we could move on to the next session in our book. I'll show you the picture.

This picture means a lot to me. When I lived in Carlisle, PA I volunteered at the Church office. I worked on the bulletin. I had to find a picture every week to go with our sermon. I remember the week I used this same photo. It took me all week to find the right picture and when I seen this photo, I connected with it for some reason. I would think about that photo for some reason or another. Well on Sunday He told me why. Jason seen the photo first on Sunday. He caught my attention and pointed to the screen. I seen it and my heart flutter again. I stopped talking and just stared at the photo. Peace just came over the both of us. When the movies we were watching or the material we were going over came to be really hard on my heart. I would think back to that photo and pray.

Those movies were so hard to watch. I pray for all the little lives out there that are going through anything that hurts them or their hearts.

Love,
Jason & Christina

Catching Up

I have some catching up to do. I really need to start staying on top of this. I'm happy to say that as of June 5th we have officially started the process. We have to take some classes to start with and fill out lots of paperwork. We've done some paperwork already but still have more to do. We've talked to our Social worker Mark and he seems very nice. When we called and left a message, a couple of times already to ask questions, he's called us right back. He's taken time to answer us and talk to us to try and get to know us a little better. We are very thankful he's been so great.

Jason and I are so excited it's funny. We even took a picture this morning of us right before we got out of the car. I asked Jason if he thought that was funny of me to do and he said "yes". I said why, "we'd take a picture of me and us getting our first ultra sound, what's the difference"! LOL It's true.

We both enjoyed the class and think it's very informative. You get so much information in these classes. I remember doing something similar in Carlisle, PA when we went through the process there. It's great splitting up in groups and meeting new people. We are 1 of 6 couples adopting. There are 15 couples total in our class.

We are praising God as we take another step in this Journey. He's given us so much to be thankful for. Most of all we are thankful for the peace in our hearts. It's always so easy to listen to your head, but we know that's not were He is.

Plus I get to go shopping for some baby and toddler stuff. They want us to have different sizes and things on hand. We won't know when or how old the little one will be. Better safe than sorry, not having PJ's or clothes for them for a few days. It's a little hard watching the movies in class and see what they might be going through in their homes. Our hearts go out to the children who are out there now wanting someone to just love them.

Love,

Jason & Christina

Our Next Step

Our next step has begun for us. On Thursday May 20th I wanted to get home to meet the dog sitter and give him a key. I stopped by the mail box to grab the mail and I seen it. The white envelope with the green writing: Department of Social and Health Services. My heart fluttered a little. I couldn’t wait to get home and open it up with Jason. When I walked thru the door I had the biggest smile on my face. Our application had made it safe and sound. It must have because before I put the envelope in the mail I kissed it and said a small prayer. I felt my heart beating fast waiting to open the letter. Jason tore it open and I laughed because I acted like a baby or child was going to fall out of that envelope. It was an application to have our finger prints done. We sighed a little. I don’t know what we expected. So, we went online and scheduled an appointment for the 12th (Sat). In the middle of me scheduling our dog sitter came by and we got to talk to him a little about our Journey. He must of thought I was a little nuts. I couldn’t stop smiling when he got here. Then I told him the reason and that’s when we starting talking about our Journey. When he left we were still on cloud 9. I thanked God for guiding our special envelope home and filling our hearts with peace. About 10 minuets later the phone rang and it was Social Services confirming our class attendance. I honestly wanted to cry when I hung up the phone. I called for Jason upstairs and told him who had called and he couldn’t believe it either. I stopped on the stairs and praised Him. I was filled with peace just getting our envelope in the mail, then with the phone call I felt so loved by my Father. It was a great start to a great weekend. We left on Friday to Seattle to spend a weekend celebrating our Marriage. After 13 awesome years, we feel very blessed to have such a wonderful marriage. We can’t wait to start our classes and meet everyone that will help us get where we need to be. I thank all of you for your prayers and support.

Love,
Jason & Christina

Our Path

Jason and I have been doing a lot of praying and talking. We feel the Lord has guided us to our decision not to do IVF in the Fall. Instead we feel He is leading us to Foster to Adopt. We are very excited about this. We went to an orientation class they offered. We sat for 3 hours, lots of information and were given a folder full of paperwork and an application. We are currently filling out our paperwork & application as you read this. In the State of Washington they require you to take 32hrs of P.R.I.D.E. training classes. So, on June 5th we will have our first class. Our classes are every Sat & Sun in June. Sometimes I get a feeling of taking to many turns on our Journey, like we say one thing then turn and say something & do something else. My heart feels so unsure when I listen to my head and not turn to the Lord to stop and listen. Well we stopped and listened. We prayed and both came to the decision together. For those of you who know us, we have a habit of coming to a decision together. Sometimes on the same day or same time. We truly feel blessed to have that connection.



I want to Praise the Lord today. He has done some incredible healing in my heart. In the past couple of days and a few more to follow, I have an opportunity to babysit a 3mo old baby girl. I am praising the Lord because I don't feel a tug in my heart where my "Mommy" part is. Now don't get me wrong. I WANT to be a "Mommy" and I know that He has a plan for us. What I'm saying is I can go home at the end of the day and not cry. I'll be with this precious baby for 1 more week. It's amazing to me, believe me when I say this. In the past when I would go home from babysitting I would be upset. Knowing that when I got home my arms would be empty, along with our home. No laughter, no running around of little ones. These last couple of years He has healed us. We are at such peace. Like I said, "I want to be a Mommy". I don't need to give birth to a child to become one. There are so many little one's out there that need a home. Well we have one and it's filled with lots of love to give. So, we ask that you pray with us on our exciting journey.

Jason & Christina