A Worthy Journey

Our Easy Solution for the Day.... A Small Playhouse Make-Over

2012-01-30T13:19:00.000-08:00

As I previously posted about, Madi and Conner got a playhouse for Christmas. We got it off of Craigslist and specifically searched this model of Little Tykes house out because it has a side panel that opens up, making it wheelchair accessible. There was a small issue with the playhouse; that issue being that there were cupboards to store things in, but madi can't reach down in to the cupboards in her wheelchair or mobile stander, and it's hard for her to even in her up-ups.

I went to Lowes and talked with a guy about what I was trying to accomplish (shelves inside the cupboards that are more easy to reach. He was amazing and looked in a million isles with me, brainstorming a bunch of different ideas and options. Finally he remembered a newer product they had, industrial strength Velcro that can stick to most any surface, even rough ones. I went to the dollar store and found baskets that were just the right size.

Because the baskets I found had open slats, and I wanted the sticky back of the Velcro to be able to stick, after sticking on the Velcro, I used a thin plastic vinyl (found at any fabric store) for the inside of the basket (so the Velcro went on the outside with the sticky part facing against the outside slats. Then, the Velcro went on the inside, across the slats and stuck to the stick part of the Velcro). I used the baskets on the walls, so that they would be easy to reach.

Next I added our play cups, plates, utensils, and bowls, so that Madi would be able to reach them easier.

I'm not done yet, I just ran out of Velcro and baskets :). My plan is to add a few more down below the others and also add a few inside of the cupboards that will open out when the cupboards are opened. I'm glad to have such an easy and fast solution, though! So far, it's working out well!

$58 closer to our goal (and a quick update)

2012-01-29T22:30:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to say a big "thank you" to Amanda for hosting a thirty-one fundraiser for us. Thanks to her (and the generous people who purchased from her for our fundraiser), we are $58 closer to our goal!! YEAH! I updated the ticker, and we are getting closer!

We do have a small update on the adoption as well. The i-800a information came back saying that my fingerprints didn't go through (because they stink and they can never get a good copy), so I have to, instead, send in a letter stating I have no criminal background. I already had a letter written, but that one went to India, so I go tomorrow to get a new letter. Once that is done, we will hopefully hear back on our i-800a. Once the i-800a is approved, we can be processed/approved in India. Our paperwork is already in India, but for now, it sits waiting for our i-800a approval. So, another un-update, but an update none-the-less.

Thanks for following our journey and for walking it with us!

Our Snow Adventure

2012-01-27T13:29:00.000-08:00

My parents have a cabin in Flagstaff and we went there to go sledding over the 3 day weekend. We had a BLAST! Just thought I'd share some photos :).

(Yup, that's a giant snow ball in his mouth :))

She wanted to sled by herself, so I took her up just a couple feet and she sledded down !

Need Valentine's Day Gifts? Love Avon?

2012-01-27T08:11:00.000-08:00

Carena is still giving 20% of her purchase towards our adoption!! If you need anything from Avon, she's your gal! Here's the info...

I will donate 20% of all sales toward bringing Ramya home. Please consider placing an order- even a small one, to help support this amazing family in their journey to bringing Ramya home. Thank you!

http://cstamps.avonrepresentative.com/online_event/view.php?rep_spnsr_evnt_id=217566

Click on "online events" and shop from there to benefit Ramyas adoption.

Need Valentine's Day Gifts? Love Avon?

2012-01-27T08:09:00.001-08:00

Carena is still giving 20% of her purchase towards our adoption!! If you need anything from Avon, she's your gal! Here's the info...

I will donate 20% of all sales toward bringing Ramya home. Please consider placing an order- even a small one, to help support this amazing family in their journey to bringing Ramya home. Thank you!

http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youravon.com%2Fcstamps&h=ZAQHL8K0fAQEIk0Jvg21si6kWRUOD1DDAJ9JNTHAyNNoQuA

Click on "online events" and shop from there to benefit Ramyas adoption.

Check Out How You Can Help Us G.L.O.W (Adoption Fundraiser)

2012-01-22T20:31:00.000-08:00

G.L.O.W

Grow Love for Orphans Worldwide

Our AMAZING friend Kimberly and her family donated 200 of these bracelets to us to sell as a fundraiser to bring Ramya home from India. Aren't they awesome!?!?

They are made in the USA, high quality, and most importantly, they glow in the dark!

We are called to love and care for the orphans of the world; God's children.

Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.

- James 1:27

Some people choose to adopt domestically, some internationally. Some choose to donate to help support others adoption, some choose to support organizations that care for children. It's not about how you choose to help, nor where you are called to help, but instead, it's about doing what God leads you to do... whatever and wherever that may be. God has lead us to bring home Ramya, but we need your help! You can G.L.O.W and help us bring Ramya simply by purchasing one of our bracelets.

We are selling these for any donation to our adoption fund (with a minimum suggested donation of $5 each). Shipping for two costs about $0.60. Please consider sharing our fundraiser with your family, friends, coworkers, and Church congregation.

If we can sell each bracelet for $5, after the cost of shipping, we can earn over $800 for our adoption!!!!!!

All the bracelets are size medium, 7.5 inches. Here is how it looks on Conner...

And on me...

And on David...

To order, please e-mail me at jamie_lugo@hotmail.com and include your name, the quantity you would like, your address, and how you would like to pay (check, paypal, cash, etc...).

THANK YOU FOR GLOWING!

What Does it Mean to be a Girl in India?

2012-01-19T12:21:00.000-08:00

The answer is very often not a good one. I plan to write a post soon that goes in to more details, but for now, check out a new film comming out that discusses the topic and spread the news, because that is the best way to raise awareness!

It’s a Girl! Documentary Film – Official Website

Madi's New HKFOs (AKA Up-Ups)

2012-01-18T19:50:00.000-08:00

Madi got her new HKFOs today and is SO SO excited! Ron at Hanger re-did her design. This one will take more strength, but will give her more mobility at the same time. She can kick her legs so much better in them! We took her old HKFOs and are took off the H (hip) part so that we try using them as her night-time knee immobilizers.... that's one way to reuse and recycle, right?!?!? :). I'll get a video of Madi cruisin in her new up ups tomorrow for everyone to see them in action!

Being great waiters! The little girl on the right is Kaylynn, whom I watch 3 days a week. Conner is so good with her and she is such a little sweetie!

YEAH! Time to try them on! (pardon the chocolate from her granola bar on her clothes ;))

Left... old; Right... new

My kiddos sure do love Ron!

Our Rifton Stander at the Science Center

2012-01-18T16:31:00.000-08:00

I had really cool news to share, but need some time to get it all together. In the meantime, I have been wanting to share these photos from the science center (I'm a bit behind... we went a while ago!!). We took Madi's Rifton Dynamic Stander and it worked out really well. She had a blast cruising around and interacting with everything! Conner had a blast too, and I bet you can figure out by the picture what his favorite part was ;)

.... Yup, you guessed it right. His favorite thing to do was walk through the stomach, then slide down the intestines to get "pooped" out. Such a boy!!!!

My Big Guy Turned 5!!!

2012-01-12T21:44:00.000-08:00

I seriously cannot believe that my little guy is 5! It seems like only yesterday that I was pregnant with him. We are so blessed to have such a sweet, funny, and inquisitive little man in our lives. He is so special!

Conner requested a hotwheels party, so a hotwheels party he got!!

A Chance to Join a Spina Bifida Research Project

2012-01-11T21:56:00.000-08:00

I got an e-mail about a current study that is looking at genetic links to spina bifida and wanted to share. We would participate, but we already participated in round one :). Here's the info....

Help Make a Difference, with a few minutes of your time:

The Spina Bifida Genetics Research Project is starting the second phase of a study to determine if genetic variations in folic acid metabolism account for an increased risk of having a child affected by Spina Bifida. From the results of the study, it may be possible to develop a test that can identify women who may not be adequately protected by standard prenatal vitamins, but who might benefit from high dose folic acid therapy prior to conception.

We are seeking mothers who have had children with Spina Bifida, and who did not participate in the first phase of this study, which was conducted in 2009-2010. We are also enrolling mothers of children who have not had children affected by Spina Bifida to serve as controls for the analysis.

Participants in the study are asked to complete a brief online survey and provide a DNA sample using a simple, at-home saliva collection kit that is delivered and returned by mail. For more information and to enroll in the Spina Bifida Genetics Research Project, please go to the website at www.sbgenetics.org and select ENROLL. The website and survey are available in both English and Spanish.

Upon completion, participants may choose to receive a $10 gift card or we will donate $10 to a spina bifida organization of your choice.

The Spina Bifida Genetics Research Project includes scientists from UC Berkeley, Stanford University, UC San Francisco, Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute and VitaPath Genetics.

A Super Yummy Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Carrot Cake Recipe (and a Regular One Too ;))

2012-01-08T13:40:00.000-08:00

This is our family carrot cake recipe, and it is really, really yummy! It's very moist and the cream cheese frosting makes it delicious! I modified it for Conner's birthday party (pictures to come soon) and it came out super good, so I thought I'd share! I'll post the regular recipe below, with the changes to make it gluten and dairy free in red. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Cake:

2 cups sugar
2 cups flour (Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Gluten Free for a GF version)
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup wesson oil
4 eggs
3 cups grated carrots
dash of salt
1 teaspoon xanathan gum for GF
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar for GF

Frosting:

1 8-ounce package of cream cheese (Use dairy-free vegan cream cheese for a dairy-free version)
1 stick of butter or margarine (Make sure to use a dairy-free margarine (we like soy-free Earth Balance) for dairy free)
1 box (3 1/2 cups) of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts OR 1 cup shredded coconut (optional)

Sift dry ingredients including xanathan gum if you are doing GF (or don't, I never do, I just stir ;)). Add oil and blend by hand. Add in eggs and apple cider vinegar if you are doing GF and beat until smooth. Fold in carrots. Grease and flour your pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. While baking, beat all frosting ingredients except for the nuts or coconut, until smooth. Put on the cake after it comes out of the oven and cools a bit. Top with nuts or coconut if desired. Enjoy!

WOOOO HOOOO! Great News for Madi!

2012-01-07T11:47:00.000-08:00

Madi has an Amtryke at home, which she LOVES and rides often, but I was hoping for one for her to have at preschool as well. The preschool Madi goes to on Thursdays, and will soon be attending twice a week, always has tricycles out for the kids to ride. Madi can never ride them, though, because she needs a trike she can work with her arms, not her legs. Whenever I've gone to help, Madi has really wanted to ride them, but it just doesn't work. Since I can't very well tote her, her chair, her supplies, AND her Amtryke to and from preschool when she goes (since she has about 2 1/2 years of preschool ahead). I decided to write up a "Wish" for Madi on the Amtryke site, stating that it would be used for preschool for her. Our wish was granted in FULL!! They are sending Madi a trike for preschool! It will have hand petals, foot blocks, a little strap to keep her knees in, a helmet, and a seat belt, just like she needs! We are SO excited!! Now Madi will be able to cruise with all of her friends! YEAH!

A HUGE HUGE thank-you to the Texas Ambucs Chapter, who donated this trike for Madi. We are so thankful for you!

If anyone would like to donate to this very cool program, or would like to submit a wish for their child, you can go to www.ambucs.org, or e-mail ambucs.@ambucs.org

A "Thank You" for the Adoption Help :)

2012-01-05T12:24:00.000-08:00

If you have helped us towards the adoption in any way (garage sale donations, help organizing or running our sales, monetary donations towards our adoption, etc....) you should have gotten a "thank you" from us in the mail, or will be getting one soon! If for some reason you donated, but do not get a card, PLEASE let me know. It's nothing personal, I promise! I have just sent out about 40 cards (aren't we blessed!?!?!?!?), and keep thinking of more people to send them to, so I just have a lot of names in my head :). Please e-mail me at jamie_lugo@hotmail.com if I left you out.

We really do appreciate every one of you and you have been a true blessing in our lives!

Need Avon?

2012-01-01T20:36:00.000-08:00

My wonderful friend, Carena, is doing a fundraiser for our adoption!! Here's the info from her:

I'm doing an online event to benefit a great friend who is working hard to adopt a little girl from India. I will donate 20% of all sales toward bringing Ramya home. Please consider placing an order- even a small one, to help support this amazing family in their journey to bringing Ramya home. Thank you!

http://cstamps.avonrepresentative.com/

click on "online events" and shop from there to benefit Ramyas adoption.

A Very Merry Christmas

2011-12-30T13:27:00.000-08:00

We had an amazing and blessed Christmas this year. We were very lucky to be surrounded by friends and family that love us, and that we love. Here's some photos from our special day!

Baking Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies

Spending time with our cousin, Micah

Aunt Angi and Cousin Lauren

Madi and her papa

Spending time with Cousin Nathan

Love this photo of the boys!!

Enjoying time with Grams and Granddad

Us being our typical selves

New fingerless gloves... perfect for zooming!

And some for Conner too, of course :)

Merry Christmas Ramya! We love you and are preparing our home for you!!

Enjoying Christmas with Grammy and Papa

Our new Christmas gift.... yeah for Craigslist! It is wheelchair-accessible

Another new gift... a sand and water table that has adjustable heights!

The Local Spina Bifida Association Christmas Party

2011-12-29T21:40:00.000-08:00

We attended the local Spina Bifida Association Christmas party again this year and had a great time! Madi ran in to a few of her friends, including Owen, who is one of her favorites!! Santa was there again and the kids had fun sitting on his lap.

Madi and Owen

One thing the Rifton Mobile Stander is great for.... DANCING!

Madi and her buddy Tanner

Thanks to the local chapter for such a fun day!

Our Trial Run With Two Needing Medical Care

2011-12-27T12:19:00.000-08:00

Kyla, the teen staying with us for a bit, has been having some health problems. She gets attacks of very intense abdominal pains that leave her in tears and unable to lay down or fully stand. They have landed her in the hospital twice, and so far, nothing big has been found to be the source of her pain. She's on a very bland diet and medication to coat her stomach, but so far, nothing is helping.

While I was in the hospital trying to help Kyla get to the bottom of her pain, my mom and David did an amazing job taking care of the kiddos. David learned how to cath Madi (though we'll save him doing it for times like this) and even got the kids down for a nap. My mom came in the morning when David had to get up for work, and did a great job keeping them asleep. She, of course, did an awesome job playing with them too, but that goes without saying!!

For those of you I owe phone calls and "thank you's" too, I promise, they are coming! Between this, the flu, and Christmas, there hasn't been much time to catch up, but I'm getting there! (Sue and Petey.... two of these people are you... you guys are such a blessing to me!!)

Please keep Kyla in your prayers and pray they can get to the bottom of this!

The 12 Days of Christmas for Parents of a Child with a Disability

2011-12-24T13:21:00.000-08:00

This is stolen from another mighty mom that lives locally, though I'm not sure where it originated. It's worth the share, though!

♥ The Twelve Days of Christmas ♥

On the first day of Christmas, the good Lord gave to me: a child with a disability.

On the second day of Christmas, the good Lord gave to me: a heart full of love for my child with a disability.

On the third day of Christmas, the good Lord gave to me: an ache in my heart and a heart full of love for my child with a disability.

On the fourth day of Christmas, the good Lord gave to me: a tear in my eyes, an ache in my heart and a heart full of love for my child with a disability.

On the fifth day of Christmas, the good Lord gave to me: an unsuspected strength for the tear in my eyes and the ache in my heart and my heart full of love for my child with a disability.

On the sixth day of Christmas, the good Lord gave to me: a ray of hope, an unsuspected strength for the tear in my eyes and the ache in my heart and my heart full of love for my child with a disability.

On the seventh day of Christmas, the good Lord gave to me: a sense of humor, a ray of hope, an unsuspected strength for the tear in my eyes and the ache in my heart and my heart full of love for my child with a disability.

On the eighth day of Christmas, the good Lord gave to me: supportive friends, a sense of humor, a ray of hope, an unsuspected strength for the tear in my eyes and the ache in my heart and my heart full of love for my child with a disability.

On the ninth day of Christmas, the good Lord gave to me: remarkable doctors & therapists, supportive friends, a sense of humor, a ray of hope, an unsuspected strength for the tear in my eyes and the ache in heart and my heart full of love for my child with a disability.

On the tenth day of Christmas, the good Lord gave to me: an appreciation of small accomplishments, remarkable doctors & therapists, supportive friends, a sense of humor, a ray of hope, an unsuspected strength for the tear in my eyes and the ache in my heart and my heart full of love for my child with a disability.

On the eleventh day of Christmas, the good Lord gave to me: a sense of pride, an appreciation of small accomplishments, remarkable doctors & therapists, supportive friends, a sense of humor, a ray of hope, an unsuspected strength for the tear in my eyes and the ache in my heart and my heart full of love for my child with a disability.

On the twelfth day of Christmas, the good Lord said to me: Reach out and share your sense of pride, your appreciation of small accomplishments, your remarkable doctors & therapists, your supportive friends, your sense of humor, your ray of hope, your unsuspected strength for the tear in your eyes and the ache in your heart and your heart full of love for your child with a disability.

A Quick Update on Our Day of Surprises

2011-12-19T23:41:00.000-08:00

The first surprise we got today was when we took Madi to get her HKFOs adjusted by Ron at Hanger. He said she had just grown too much and there were too many adjustments, so she is getting new ones. He casted her right there on the spot! He's going to change things around a lot to give her less trunk support, but more hip support. I'm excited to see what he comes up with. I love that Madi loves Ron. She gets so excited when she sees him and it makes the visit so much nicer. He is really an amazing guy. He was given an award at our local Spina Bifida Association party (more to come on that in another post :)) for a lifetime achievement award because of the many, many lives he has touched. We love him! Anyhow, Madi should have her new HKFOs in about 2-3 weeks! We are going to keep the bottom half of her old pair to use as knee immobilizers at night, since she is supposed to wear those to keep her stretched out but they are a bit of a problem because they always pinch her funny and stuff. Here she is getting casted...

She did great! Of course, we had to keep Conner busy, so Ron gave him some scraps of the material they put under the casts so that the casts don't stick. Luckily Conner is a very bright and creative boy and he got straight to work casting his Bionicle! Conner gets drug around to a lot of appointments, and I'm thankful that he does so great. He's such a great little boy!

Our second surprise of the day is that our dossier paperwork here is done and is officially on the way to India. Well, I shouldn't say our paperwork is done, because it's not ever going to be done (the e-mail containing the information about our dossier came with many more papers to fill out :)), but it is finally on the way to India and that is HUGE!! Please pray that our paperwork is processed quickly and that we are approved.

Yeah for a great day!

Celebrate with me!!

2011-12-19T16:33:00.000-08:00

I have more to post about later, but I just came home to this...

I just wanted to let you know that I sent your completed dossier to Vathsalya today! Congratulations.

Our paperwork is officially on the way to INDIA!!!! WOOO HOOOO!!

Sigh.

2011-12-16T18:15:00.000-08:00

It's always something!

A few days ago I got a document in the mail from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services department. The form basically said that they received my I-800A (an application for determination of suitability to adopt a child from a convention country). The weird thing, though, is that it went to my parent's address. Huh. I figured it was an error on their part and assumed they just accidentally sent it to my previous, instead of current, address.

I called Jessica, our adoption coordinator through WACAP and told her about the error. She gave me an e-mail address to e-mail the correction to. Today, after a very long day, I heard back from her. They said that I had written that address on my application as my address. Ooops. I have lived at my parent's house most of my life (my dad built it when I was 3 and I lived there until I got married), and we did live there after we sold our old house before we moved into this one, so I'm not really surprised that I messed up, but obviously that was a dumb mistake. They say it's "very unusual" for an application to come in with a completely wrong address and told Jessica that basically they are worried we are being dishonest about where we live. WHAT?!?!!?? Why in the world would we do that? So now they have to wait to hear back from Oasis, who did our homestudy, to confirm that we do in fact live where we say we do (we do ;)) before they will update our address and continue with the application.

I really hope this mistake doesn't further delay our already delayed paperwork. It just always seems to be something with us, and this isn't the first time something "very unusual" has popped up. I guess we are just really special like that!!

Please keep praying for our Ramya, and that we get her home quickly. Thanks!

Last Chance for the Arbonne Fundraiser :)

2011-12-13T20:46:00.001-08:00

TOMORROW IS THE LAST DAY!

I am hosting an online Arbonne Party with a Purpose! Arbonne is a 30 year old Swiss health and wellness company with fantastic vegan products free of Petroleum, Phthalates and Fragrances. Arbonne marries current technology with botanicals to produce products that deliver results. Whether you are interested in skin care or cosmetics for yourself or holiday gifts for friends and family, your purchases will make a difference! Suzi Istvan, Independent Arbonne Consultant, will be donating 25% of all retail sales from this party to help us bring Ramya home! Suzi isn't taking any commission, and is donating all her commission to fundraiser for us! How awesome!! THANK YOU SUZI!

The instructions for ordering are below. Please be sure to e-mail or message me and tell me you ordered, so that your order counts for our fundraiser.

To shop online:

1. Click Here: http://bit.ly/tS7WW8

2. On the bottom right side of the page, use Sponsor's ID number 19689391

3. Register as a "Client" (first choice) and fill out all info on this page.

4. Submit and get shopping!

5. After you've made your purchases, (email, message, FB post- Jamie insert how you want people to get in touch with you here) and let me know you did so Suzi can count your purchase towards this party.

This party will be active this Wednesday 12/7- next Wednesday 12/14. These orders will qualify for ground shipping to be received by Christmas! For gift-giving ideas or product questions, find Suzi on her Facebook page: www.facebook.com/ArbonneWithSuzi.

Thank you for your support!!

Come Read an AMAZING Update!

2011-12-10T21:40:00.000-08:00

Our latest goal was $10,500 (I previously said $10,200, but had my numbers wrong) to raise for our adoption. I paid $3,000 of the bill from money we had saved up from me babysitting three times a week and money we had put aside. That left $7,500. At our garage sale we made $1,800, but we also sold a trash compactor that was donated to us on craigslist for an additional $200, making our grand total $2,000. That brought our money owed down to $5,500. I posted about my friend Emily's mom donating $200 to us, bringing us down to $5,300. She also told me the company her mom works for will match her donation, which will bring it down to $5,100. My friend Monica donated $50, bringing us down to $5,050. My good friend Mary told us she would be donating $100, bringing our current goal down to $4,950. And on top of all of this, yesterday I got some completely amazing news......

Someone (whom wishes to remain anonymous) donated $5,000 towards our adoption. Yes, you read that correctly, $5,000!!!! We are SO amazed, thankful, and in awe! What a completely selfless and amazing donation! Words cannot express how much this donation means to us. It brought me to tears!

With our recent donation, we have a surplus of $50 on our current goal!! Praise God!
After this round of bills, we will still have a big chunk to raise, but we are getting closer and closer every day! We will owe the agency about $4,000 more approximately, will need about $5,000 for a lawyer here in the states (India does not finalize the adoption in-country. Instead, you finalize after you bring your child home. It is recommended you get a lawyer for this), and will also need travel money (about $10,000.... $7,500 in airline tickets (since we are bringing the kids), then money for hotel, food, and anything else that comes up). There may also be a few more fees here and there, but that is the bulk of it.

Our initial goal was $40,000, and we are already down to needing just half of that! We are feeling incredibly blessed and thankful for everyone traveling this journey with us. Your love for Ramya and our family is so touching and we really cannot thank you enough! We love each and every one of you!

Does it get any cuter than this?

2011-12-07T21:38:00.000-08:00

Nope, it doesn't!

P.S. That shirt was David's when he was a little boy!! Isn't that cool?!?!?!?

Love Arbonne? Join Us for a Fundraiser Just in Time for Christmas!!

2011-12-06T08:30:00.000-08:00

I am hosting an online Arbonne Party with a Purpose! Arbonne is a 30 year old Swiss health & wellness company with fantastic vegan products free of Petroleum, Phthalates & Fragrances. Arbonne marries current technology with botanicals to produce products that deliver results. Whether you are interested in skin care or cosmetics for yourself or holiday gifts for friends and family, your purchases will make a difference! Suzi Istvan, Independent Arbonne Consultant, will be donating 25% of all retail sales from this party to

help us bring Ramya home! Suzi isn't taking any commission, and is donating all her commission to fundraiser for us! How awesome!! THANK YOU SUZI!

The instructions for ordering are below. Please be sure to e-mail or message me and tell me you ordered, so that your order counts for our fundraiser.

To shop online:

1. Click Here: http://bit.ly/tS7WW8

2. On the bottom right side of the page, use Sponsor's ID number 19689391

3. Register as a "Client" (first choice) and fill out all info on this page.

4. Submit and get shopping!

5. After you've made your purchases, (email, message, FB post- Jamie insert how you want people to get in touch with you here) and let me know you did so Suzi can count your purchase towards this party.

This party will be active this Wednesday 12/7- next Wednesday 12/14. These orders will qualify for ground shipping to be received by Christmas! For gift-giving ideas or product questions, find Suzi on her Facebook page: www.facebook.com/ArbonneWithSuzi.

Thank you for your support!!

Thankful for His Plan

2011-12-05T14:36:00.000-08:00

God will not permit any troubles to come upon us, unless He has a specific plan by which great blessing can come out of the difficulty.

-Peter Marshall

When we got the news about Ramya's transfer, we were very disappointed. We were trying to be optimistic and see that this could be a good thing for her, but we were, quite honestly, feeling very frustrated and bummed about the news. Then, we picked our heads up and did what we could. We focused on the garage sale and the money we needed to make to bring her home. Having our garage sale be so successful was really encouraging and reassuring for us. The blessings haven't stopped there, though. Kindness and generosity continues to pour in! Today we went for a play date at our friend Emily, Dominic, and Mile's house. We had a blast playing and when we were leaving, Emily gave me a check from her mother. She has been following our journey and wanted to help us bring Ramya home. AND, her employer will match her donation!!! WOW! We are so thankful for her and her love for Ramya!

When I think about how many people love and care for Ramya already, though they have never met her, it brings tears to my eyes. Ramya is one special little girl, and every little child deserves to be loved and wanted this much! We feel so blessed and are so thankful for the love and support Ramya is being given, and for each and every one of you. THANK YOU!

And the Grand Total Is......

2011-12-03T21:37:00.000-08:00

Just over $1,800 earned at our garage sales on Friday and Saturday!! YEAH! We earned just over $1,200 on Friday, then almost $500 today. I had also forgot to total in a few checks, giving us a grand total of just over $1,800. We couldn't be happier with how well we did. This money is going to be a HUGE help with our recent round of adoption bills!

We couldn't have done this without the help of our amazing friends and family. Those who donated items for our sale, those who baked items for us to sell, those who helped us price and sort, those that helped us run the sales, and of course, those that prayed for us!

We are also very thankful for my parents, who were there to help price, helped set up both days, helped run the entire sale both days, and brought additional items to sell. They are always so supportive and helpful, and we couldn't have done it without them! They are so excited and anxious to bring Ramya home as well, and it's awesome to have such great support behind us!

There was a very good chance of rain on both Friday and Saturday, but we were praying BIG TIME that there would be no rain. Both days, there were grey clouds and wind, but there was no rain. On Saturday, we brought everything in after our sale. About 10 minutes later, it started pouring down rain. It was crazy! It was as if God was reminding us that He is in control, and that He has our back :).

I'm also excited to say that this total does not include our two latest donations! Today, my friend Mary, her husband George, and there adorable kiddos, Alena and Teague, dropped by the sale on their way out of town. While they were visiting, Mary told us that instead of their usual Christmas donations, they have decided to donate to bring Ramya home instead. YEAH!!!! I'm so thankful for their friendship, and their generosity!! They are always there for us, and it means so much! I also got a note from my good friend, Sue, who has always been there to support us and somehow always knows just what I need to hear. She is amazing! She told me she had some furniture to put up for sale and has decided to sell it for a donation to our adoption fund. Whatever she makes on the furniture will go to help bring Ramya home. YEAH!!!! I am so thankful for such amazing friends!!

If you are reading this, and following our journey, thank you for your support!

A Garage Sale Update

2011-12-02T17:54:00.000-08:00

We had the first day of our garage sale today. We were PACKED! We sold most of our big items, and lots more too. We had some generous and amazing people who gave just to give. One man bought one bag of cookies and gave us $20. A group of three women donated an extra $30 and someone put a $20 bill in our cookie money jar as well. Then, tonight, as I got on to post this, I saw that my friend, Monica, send us an adoption donation as well. Wow. I was touched beyond words!

I just wanted to say a quick "thank you" to those of you who donated items, baked goods, helped us set up, prayed for and with us, and who have been there to support us. We are so thankful for you!!!

So without further ado.....

Our total today was $1,200 in sales, and that doesn't include the donation from Monica!!!!!!!!!

We will go at it again tomorrow as well. We won't have as much big stuff to sell, but we still have lots of great things. A big thanks again to our village of support!

When Life Hands You Lemons....

2011-12-01T20:42:00.000-08:00

.... Pray (and cry a little). That's what we're doing right now, and we'd appreciate it if you would join us (though I don't recommend the crying part. It's not too fun)!

I got some not-so-great news about Ramya that we are struggling with. As we knew, Ramya's orphanage is trying to go to only offering domestic adoptions. After the small amount of children they have now are adopted, the orphanage director is retiring and they are closing their doors to international adoption.

Because our paperwork is taking so long, they have decided to transfer Ramya to a different orphanage. The good news is that we can still adopt her.

Unfortunately, this will, again, delay our paperwork as we will need to modify documents for our dossier. Additionally, this will be Ramya's 3rd orphanage in her short years of life. It, once again, severs any attachments she has. When we do finally get her home, it will probably be hard for her to see it as "home" and not just another place she's transferred to, again. My little girl just got out of a long hospital stay, where she was alone and probably very scared, and is now getting transferred to a new orphanage where she knows no one. This breaks my heart. I'm sure she will feel so sad and alone. I just want to run and scoop her up and throw her on a plane, but I know they won't let me. I wish they would send her to us and at least let us foster her until we can get her home, but they won't. We are powerless to help her right now.

There is, of course, one huge thing we can do for Ramya. We can cover her in blankets of prayers. Please join us tonight as we pray for peace, comfort, and understanding for Ramya. Pray for a miracle in getting her home to us quickly.

Additionally, tomorrow is our big fundraiser sale. Please be praying for no rain (I type this as it rains ;)), a great turn-out, and lots of mulah!

Basically, just pray a lot tonight for, and with, us!

For Those Who Asked to Donate for Our Adoption

2011-11-29T22:37:00.000-08:00

I have to admit, this post has taken me a long time to write and I've been putting it off for a while. Accepting money and help is something that I really, really struggle with. I appreciate the hearts of those who have asked to give, though, and I am ready to admit it takes a village to bring a child home; not just financially, but with prayers, help, and support as well. So, to our village, THANK YOU!

Here's the latest update on how you can donate, for those of you who have asked :)

You can give a tax deductible donation through Wacap in our name, which would specifically be for Ramya. If for some reason our adoption was not approved, the money would not follow us, but would stay with Ramya for the family that was approved to adopt her. If this happened, we would be more than ok with the money staying with Ramya, since her having a home, even if it isn't ours, is extremely important to us! Wacap said the easiest way is to mail us a check, then I can gather all the checks, write a letter that they are for Ramya and our adoption, then mail them all in at once.

Here is the response I got, with more information: If you have several people that would like to donate money for Ramya’s adoption, it would be best if they could send the checks to you first and then you can bundle them all together and send them all to us. The checks can be made out to WACAP and should indicate on the check or in a letter from each family that this money is a donation for Ramya’s adoption. Then, when you bundle them together and send them to us, you can add a note that these checks are donations for Ramya’s adoption and that you are the family currently matched with her. Keep in mind that if for some reason your adoption of Ramya falls through, you will not receive the money since it would stay with Ramya for whichever family does adopt her. The people who make the donations should talk to their tax accountants for more information about how to apply this as a donation for their tax purposes

You can give a donation to Wacap that is NOT tax deductible, but that would follow our family in the event our adoption with Ramya was not approved. You can mail the check straight to them, but you would just need to include a letter that it is for our family. Here's the info I got about that...

If desired, the donator could write the check to WACAP and make it specific to your family’s adoption, regardless of which child you adopt. As long as you do complete your adoption through WACAP, this money will be applied to your fees, but the person who sent the money cannot write it off as a donation.
The address is: 315 S. Second St. Renton, WA 98057

You can donate through Paypal using the link below. The money would NOT be tax deductible, and there are paypal fees (unless you give as 'personal' and 'gift', instead of as a donation), but it is an easy way to give!

Of course, you can also mail/give a donation directly to us. If you have any questions, please e-mail me at jamie_lugo@hotmail.com. For those of you who have donated items for our garage sale, donated your time to help us prepare/organize, are planning to donate, or who have prayed for us, THANK YOU for your support! We love each one of you and are so thankful for you!

Our current goal is $10,200, due ASAP. They have agreed to let us make a small payment, then send in more once our garage sale is complete. Whatever else is left we will put on our credit card so that we don't delay the process. Because we have already paid some of our fees, however, our overall goal is $30,000 and includes our trip to India to bring Ramya home.

A Leggy Update

2011-11-29T21:55:00.000-08:00

Today Madi visited Dr. Segal, her orthopedic surgeon, for her 6-month check-up. He said things are looking great! I always worry about her hips, since they pop sometimes and she tries to w-sit a lot, but he said they were doing great. He showed me some strategies for stretching out her "curly toe" and told me it was about time to get her HKFOs adjusted (again!). He also said that her right knee is getting a little bit tight, so I am going to order her a knee immobilizer for her right leg as well. She already wears one on her left leg at night while she sleeps. Madi has decided that she loves Dr. Segal, so that is always helpful. She didn't cry at all, and loved playing with him! He is great with her too, which helps a ton. Yeah for a good appointment!

Happy Three to Madi!

2011-11-21T20:59:00.000-08:00

Miss Madi turned three on November 11th and we had her party the next day. As I sat reflecting on all we've been through over the past three years, one thing really stuck out to me. When I first heard about Madi's diagnosis, I wasn't sure what it meant. I wasn't sure if she would be able to be born and live her little life. I would pray and tell God that I could deal with anything He sent my way, as long as she was able to have life and know love. It's an amazing feeling looking back at the three years of her life and see how much my prayers were answered. Madi is such a determined, smart, and amazing little girl. She can be pretty darn spunky too! There is no doubt that she is full of life, and we feel so blessed to get to see her grow and develop in to the amazing little gal that she is!

I'm a little slow to get everything uploaded, but here are pictures from her special day!

The centerpieces I made....

The cake Madi's grandmother, Grams, and Aunt Kim made for her...

Of course we had lots of good food (and by lots, I mean wayyyyy too much!)

A pinata, of course!

I love his smile...

Blowing out her candle...

She already insists she's 4!

We had lots of friends and family celebrating her special day with us....

Madi loooooved her presents!

Such a girly girl.....

Madi with Grams and Uma.... 3 generations right there!

Madi showing off her new Minnie dress from Grams

And, yes, her wheelchair is still decorated. It's too cute to take off! I think we are going to make decorating it seasonally a new tradition!

Garage Sale Reminder... WE NEED YOU :)

2011-11-21T13:21:00.000-08:00

Our garage sale is next weekend, December 2nd and 3rd. We will happily take:

- Items to sell
- Bake sale items to sell (breads, jelly, cupcakes, cookies, muffins, brownies and more)
- Help to organize or run the sales (Really just on Friday, I think we have Saturday covered. Even just helping set up would be HUGE!)
- People to come shop
- Prayers..... we just got a bill for $10,500 in the mail, and I thought I'd have more time until that came around, so we're freaking out a tad right now

Thank you SO much for all your support!!

Our Spina Bifida Walk-N-Roll

2011-11-07T22:02:00.000-08:00

First off, I want to say THANK YOU to everyone who donated and participated in our walk-and-roll for Spina Bifida. I know Madi felt very special being surrounded by those those that love her. Team Madi raised over $500 for the local chapter and we are so grateful for each and every one of you that donated!

Secondly, I want to say a bit about what I noticed at the walk. Too often, I talk to moms who just found out their baby has spina bifida and they were told by their doctor that their child would have no quality of life. It's absurd, absolutely absurd. When I looked around at the walk-and-roll, I was taken back at all of the life I saw. These kiddos were not just going through the motions. They had a twinkle in their eye and they were genuinely happy. They were full of smiles and laughs. Their leg braces and wheelchairs didn't slow them down one bit. They had a true love for life and they were inspiring to watch. I am not saying spina bifida is always a walk in the park, nor am I saying that every person or child with spina bifida loves every little part of their life (who does!), but what I am saying is that these kiddos have an amazing spirit and love for life. If you asked them, they would not tell you they had no quality of life, but instead, that they loved life!

We decided to deck out Madi's chair and it was a lot of fun! I think we're going to make it a tradition and decorate it every season. It sounds like a great tradition!

Here are some photos from the day...

From left to right: David (dad), Umpa (great-grandpa), Conner (brother), Uma (great-grandma), Madi (the little star) Papa (grandpa), Grams (grandma), Nathan (cousin), Jamie (mom), Kim (aunt), Grammy (grandma)

Taking a little break to run up the mountain

I did it!

This is own, Madi's friend. They were showing off the rainbows on their arms. Owen showed Madi how to pop wheelies at the last Spina Bifida Association party in December.

Madi's cousin, Nathan

Madi's great-grandma, Uma

Madi's buddy, Ezra

Dancing :)

It was a great day!!!

Yeah for Rifton!

2011-11-07T14:56:00.000-08:00

Rifton read my post about needing a handle for our dynamic stander and sent us one that is technically for another piece of equipment but that they thought would work with her stander. We got it today and so far, it seems like it will work great! We have it on right now and I took a few pictures so you could see it (ignore the Halloween decorations... haven't gotten around to getting those down yet!!).

We plan to test it out today so I will come back and update everyone on how it works. It was very easy to install, though, so I was excited about that! I've also been very pleased with Rifton's customer service.

I took this picture of Madi earlier today (before the handle came). She wanted to go out for a stroll in her stander, and for some reason, insisted on a helmet :). It was cute!

Why I've Been M.I.A and an Un-Update on the Adoption

2011-11-04T23:04:00.000-07:00

I've been in a bit of a funk lately. I've sat down multiple times to write this post, and it just hasn't happened. Tonight, though, I'm going to get it all out :).

On the 27th of October I got an e-mail from Wacap. They decided to send Ramya for surgery to correct her renal reflux. When they took her in, though, she had a UTI so they were not able to set a surgery date. Instead, they were keeping her in the hospital until her UTI cleared up and were doing the surgery after that. Our agency was told...

“We had problems getting a date for the surgery as her urinary tract infection had to be addressed and treated prior to the surgery. She is still in hospital and is convalescing well. I will send you the discharge summary as soon as we get it."

We still have not gotten a discharge summary, so I am not even sure if she has had the surgery yet or not, or if she is still sitting in the hospital waiting. It breaks my heart thinking of her just sitting there, in pain, scared, and all alone. It makes me want to cry. Actually, I won't lie, I have cried. I'm having a hard time thinking about it. I just really want to get her home so that I can be there with her and for her, and be the one making the decisions for her.

We have also had some delays with our dossier paperwork. We had it all filled out and went to get our apostilles from the secretary of state. More than half of our paperwork was missing some of the verbiage needed to get the apostilles, though, and it had to be fixed. We went to the bank to talk to the guy who did most of it, and of course, he was on vacation. We waited until he got back and just couldn't get him in the office. I finally wrote all the correct verbage down myself, convinced that they would reject it, and sent David downtown (about a 30 minute drive) to try and get the apostilles. Thankfully they gave it to him on all but two pages, which were our passports. I had written the verbiage for written documents, not photos, on them, so they had to be fixed. David drove back to the house, got our passports, and rushed back to get them corrected. After getting those stamped he brought them home for me (I've got a good man :)). We went to Staples that night to copy all the pages. It took quite a while because they had stapled the apsotilles on the front of each of our documents, so we had to scan, turn, scan, turn, scan, turn, well, you get the picture. It took a while. 97 pages later we were finished. We got home and I opened my mail to find more paperwork. I stayed up to work on it that night, so that it would be ready to mail with our Dossier.

The next morning we had my mom come over to take some family pictures of us in semi-formal attire. The photos will be send to India along with our dossier. I packaged up both sets of paperwork (the dossier and the new paperwork) and drove it to the post office to get it off to our adoption agency. I sent it priority with a delivery confirmation in hopes of getting it there quickly and safely!

Today after the baby I watch left, I hopped on the computer to check my e-mail. Let's just say I wasn't too happy. There was an e-mail from our agency that basically said that CARA, the organization that oversees adoptions in India, is postponing all new paperwork/adoptions until the beginning of the year. They were originally going to still work on special needs adoptions, but now they may even be halting those.

Unfortunately this morning we received news from two orphanages that they had just received from CARA a circular advising that CARA will now not be processing cases of children with special needs prior to January 2012.

I wasn't able to get ahold of our agency, as they were already closed for the day, so I'm not sure if Ramya's orphanage is one of the two in India that got word that adoptions are postponed. I'm absolutely heartbroken and saddened that our adoption may, once again, be halted. It's just not fair. Our agency is going to write letter and fight it, and I will absolutely write one too if they will let me, but i feel so hopeless. I know God has a plan, but this waiting is rough. Right now, I'm praying for a miracle!!

We just payed a nice big adoption bill and I"ll post our fees so far, just in case anyone is interested. We're going to start up some fundraising. If you are local and have any goodies you don't want any more, send them our way! Big, small, we'll take it all! We'll be having a big garage sale in December for a fundraiser. My friend Amanda is also hosting a thirty-one fundraiser. There are great bags, lunch boxes, organizers, and other great stuff, all that can get personalized, that the company sells. 10%-15% of all sales goes towards our adoption. You can check out more information here (http://www.aworthyjourney.com/2011/10/ready-for-some-christmas-shopping-join.html). A few people have asked me to put a chip-in button on our blog so they can chip in towards the adoption. I'm not ignoring this request, I promise, I just want to wait to see if there is a way to make donations tax deductible first :).

That's really it for now. Please be praying that we can get approved in India quickly, without any more delays, so that we can be one step closer to bringing Ramya home. Most importantly, please be praying for Ramya and that God's hand will protect her.

Adoption Fees Paid:

Oasis Adoption Application Fee $75
Fingerprints $35
Court Fee for Fingerprints $62
Learning Partners Classes $149
Dr. Luberto- Physicals $65
Homestudy Fee $1,250
Birth Certificate Certified Copies $60
Apostilles Round 1 $36
Apostilles Round 2 $69
Apostilles Round 3 $6
First Round of Wacap Fees $6,050

Total So Far: $7,857.00

Gluten-Free Dairy-Free (GFCF) Delicious Crepes (and a Regular Recipe too ;)

2011-11-02T13:34:00.000-07:00

My aunt and uncle gave me a crepe maker they were no longer using. Of course, I HAD to try it out ASAP. I am addicted to kitchen appliances, so I was very excited for my new toy! I modified the recipe (found in the "Tibos Crepes from around the world" book) to fit our dietary needs. I wasn't sure what to expect, but man, they were yummy!! Here's the recipe and photos:

Ingredients (makes 15 crepes)

1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon buckwheat flour (I used ground flax seeds, not flour)
1 tablespoon melted butter or oil (I used olive)
1/3 cup water
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (make sure to use gluten-free)
2 eggs
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour (for gluten-free, I used 1/3 cup tapioca flour (gives it a good consistency), 1/2 sorghum flour, and 1 cup brown rice flour. You could use any gluten free flour blend you like, though)
2 1/4 cups low-fat milk (I used unsweetened coconut milk)
Skip this if you are making regular, but use this if you are doing gluten-free...... 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar (not sure why I use this, but if I don't, things don't turn out right, and if I do, they do, so I use it!!)
Skip this if you are making regular, but use this if you are doing gluten-free...... 1 teaspoon xanathan gum
Fillings

In a bowl mix together the sugar, buckwheat flour (or ground flax seeds), melted butter or oil, water, salt, vanilla, and eggs. Then, alternate adding the flour and milk, mixing well after each addition.

Follow your crepe maker directions for spreading and turning the crepes. Cook each side for about 1 minute.

Fillings are fun, and you can vary your crepes a lot by changing it up. We like powdered sugar, peanut butter (well, cashew butter) and jelly (these are GREAT to make in advance and put in the fridge to grab on the go or for a fast lunch), egg with veggies (cheese would be yummy too if you can eat it), honey, fruit, jelly, and so on. Enjoy!

Not sure why this photo looks green in the middle. It wasn't. Maybe it's steam.

Got Acorn Squash?

2011-11-01T14:24:00.000-07:00

We get our organic produce through bountiful baskets to save money. One week I got 3 acorn squash and I wanted to try something new with them. I ran across a recipe for apple and acorn squash pie, yum, yum!!! I had to modify it to make it gluten and dairy free, so I will post both the original and the modified recipes for you. Try it, you will like it!

First off, if you are making your dessert dairy-free, make your sweetened condensed milk before you start your pie. I found the recipe at www.godairyfree.com.

Dairy-Free Sweetened Condensed Milk (Makes 1 Cup):

3 cups coconut milk (or soy or rice but we used coconut and it was reallllly yummy!)
1/2 cup evaporated can sugar (or plain white if that's what you have)
Vanilla Extract (make sure this is gluten-free if you need it to be)
Salt

Add the milk and sugar to a sauce pan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly (or just often, like me ;)), until the volume is reduced to 1 cup (this will take a long time!). Add a few drops of vanilla to taste, and a pinch of salt. Cool before using. May be stored in the refrigerator.

Acorn Squash Pie Recipe (from www.thefreshdish.com)

2 whole acorn squash
4 tablespoons butter (we use a vegan butter so that there is no dairy)
1 cup evaporated milk (I just used the sweetened condensed milk recipe since that's what I could fine and it came out really yummy!)
3 eggs
1 cup sugar (if you are using the dairy-free sweetened condense milk, reduce this to 3/4 or 1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cardamom (skipped this)
1/4 tsp. cloves
A pinch of salt
1 granny smith or Macintosh apple

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Cut acorn squash in half lengthwise and scoop out seeds with a spoon. Put 1 teaspoon of butter in each half. Place cut side up (I've always done it down, but it's better up I've decided :)) in a baking dish with 2 cups of water and bake the squash for 1 hour until it is tender when you poke it with a fork.

Scoop the squash out of its skin and puree it in a blender or food processor (I used a blender but also blended in my condensed milk to make it creamy and blend easier). Puree until very smooth. In a bowl, combine the squash, eggs, evaporated milk (or dairy free condensed) sugar, vanilla extract and spices together than mix until combined well.

Peel and cut the apple in to 1/4 inch slices. Arrange the slices into a circle around the bottom of a well-buttered glass pie dish OR use a crust and just put the apple straight in to the crust. I did not use a crust but it would have been very yummy and pumpkin pie-ish. Pour the filling over the apples until it almost reaches the top of the dish. Bake for 1 hour or until a knife comes out clean.

Let the pie cook for about 20 minutes before cutting and sering. You can eat it cold or hot. Topping it with ice cream or whipped cream would be very yummy too! ENJOY!

Ready for some Christmas shopping? Join us for a fundraiser!!!

2011-10-31T22:32:00.000-07:00

Like personalized bags, lunch boxes, organizers, and more?

My friend, Amanda, sells Thirty-One and is having a fundraiser sale for our adoption. We get 10%-15% of sales towards our adoption fees! We will also earn free items that we can raffle off for an additional fundraiser :). There are also monthly specials that you can get as well!

The "party" opens now and closes on November 12th. All orders must be in by the 12th.

To browse and purchase go to http://www.mythirtyone.com/amandamcmahon/ , then click on "my events" and then "Jamie's fundraiser for Ramya".

HAPPY SHOPPING!

If I won the lottery

2011-10-25T00:40:00.000-07:00

My mom and I like to talk about what we would do if we won the lottery. It's a silly thing to talk about considering we don't play, but we have fun with it anyhow.

This weekend the kids, Kyla (the teenager living with us for a bit), and I tagged along with David to a work conference he had in Vegas. The only cost for the kids, Kyla, and I to go was what we ate in food, so hey, why not?!?!? Anyhow, while we were there I got a really good look at how some people, who are blessed beyond comprehension with money, choose to spend it. I have to say, I was very disappointed.

Timothy Sykes, the guy putting on the conference, had a big blowout party one night for the guys attending his conference. He hired a bunch of women to the party and mingle with the guys that were attending the conference. He rented a huge studio, got tons of booze, and paid each of those women an insane amount of money to be there that night. He spent $25,000 total. That is more than half of the adoption fees we are trying to raise blown in one night!

One day, David and I shared an elevator with a man that David called the $60 million dollar man. I thought he was joking. Nope, apparently the man had just sold his business for $60 million dollars!! One of the nights he was in Vegas he went to a club and threw hundred dollar bills in the air so it would rain money on the people at the club. He literally threw his money away! I was teasing David and told him I should have asked the million dollar man for some adoption money. David says that our adoption will mean more because we will have to work for it. I'm pretty sure he's right ;).

After seeing all this I started thinking about my mom and my conversations about what we would do if we won the lottery (though first we'd have to start playing ;)). My story goes like this...

First I'd buy a big house (stop shaking your head, it's for a good reason, I swear ;)). Next I'd adopt lots of kiddos to fill the house with. I'd hire people to cook for me, people to clean for me, people to help me home school, and I'd spend my days playing on the floor with the kiddos, taking them places they have never been before, and loving on them. David, of course, would be working his dream job, trading the stock market with his own money. He'd be loving on the kids a lot too, though. He's great at that. Of course, we'd take some awesome vacations (with all the kids in tow) and I'd probably get a pedicure every now and then, but I like to think that we would use our money wisely and not just (literally) throw it away.

I know we will never win the lottery and we will never be millionaires, but I also know our life is amazing just the way it is and that we are blessed beyond measure. We can't wait to bring home Ramya and include her in the next chapter of our story; one that will never include millions of dollars, but one that will always more amazing than any life money could buy!

Save the Date and Your Unwanted Stuff!

2011-10-20T15:21:00.000-07:00

Live in Phoenix?

Have lots of unwanted stuff you want to get rid of?

Looking for an easy way to help us raise money for our adoption?

Well, I have the perfect event for you!

Mark your calendar for:

Saturday, December 2nd and 3rd

We will be having another fundraiser garage sale at our house. I know it's late in the year, but better late than never! We will probably have another in March as well.

How can you help? Great question!

1) We want your unwanted stuff! Clothes, electronics, exercise equipment, old movies, toys, household items, etc... We want it all! Anything we can sell at our sale, on craigslist, or on e-bay that you don't want, send our way! All the money will go towards our adoption.

2) Volunteer a couple days here and there some time before the sale to help us price and organize, or to play with two cute children while I price and organize.

3) Help me run the sale the day of, so either December 2nd or 3rd, or both!

4) Bring me coffee when I'm a walking zombie and come prepared with a smile and a joke to keep me motivated!

Thanks so much for all of your support!!!!

A Sweet Face of Spina Bifida

2011-10-19T23:37:00.000-07:00

Join Team Madi!

2011-10-17T23:07:00.000-07:00

Next Satuday is our local Walk-N-Roll for spina bifida! Our goal is to have 10 people walking with us and to raise $500. We are at 5 people walking and $285.00, so we are over half way there! Please join us!

http://www.sbaazwalknroll.org/faf/r.asp?t=4&i=484149&u=484149-332052133&e=4765266894

Spina Bifida Stories: Michelle

2011-10-16T22:31:00.000-07:00

I was born in 1971 - the early days of spina bifida. I was born with Myelomeningocele (L4/L5) and hydrocephalus. Not long before I was born, most babies with SB died due to either infection caused by their spinal cord not being surgically closed after birth or hydrocephalus. I was truly born at the right time! Another thing that worked in my favor was being born in Chicago and Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago was pretty much the birthplace for the treatment of babies born with SB. In fact, the Spina Bifida Association of America started off in Chicago with just a few parents. Amazing what a grassroots effort can turn into.

I had about 30 surgeries by the time I was 10 years old. Thankfully, the majority of those were done before age 6 so I don't remember much. Even though I had many surgeries and physical issues growing up, I feel I had a pretty typical childhood. I went to a regular school and attended regular (mainstreamed) classes, had lots of friends, went to summer camp, played with my sisters, fought with my sisters, loved playing with my dolls, and loved to swim. I also went on many trips with my family - California, Mexico, Florida, Ireland. My parents did their best to not let my having spina bifida keep me down - even with my leg braces and crutches.

As I grew up, I always knew I would be independent and live on my own. My parents told me so as I grew up, so I had no other frame of thought. I got my first job at 16 being an annoying telemarketer, learned how to drive at 18 and moved out when I was 25. I decided to move to Florida with a friend from high school and so I quit the job I had the time (working in a law firm) and packed up my car and drove down here in January 1997. I have been here ever since! There really is no comparison to the weather from Florida to Chicago. Florida wins hands down!! Moving down here was the hardest thing I have ever had to do. It wasn't (and isn't) always easy, but so worth it. I wouldn't change my decision to move out for anything. I still go back home for Christmas and usually in the summer and my family comes visit me. It's a nice arrangement!

My most recent job I had was at a small family-owned company that made and installed counter tops. I was their production coordinator. Unfortunately, I developed a severe pressure wound 4 years ago that required many lengthy hospital stays, so I had to resign and go on Disability. My 20 year work history worked in my favor though, as I make much more than people who are on Disability and have never worked. My wound is finally healed and I'm hoping to be back working in 2012. I miss working and making my own money!

Life with spina bifida can be difficult at times, but every life is presented with challenges and hardships. Mine just happen to be physical. As strange as it may sound, I am grateful for that. There are many more wonderful things about my life than negative things. I try to remind myself of that fact everyday.

A Piece of Equipment We Love

2011-10-13T21:22:00.000-07:00

I blogged a while ago about getting Madi a Rifton Dynamic Stander (mobile stander). I haven't updated about it for a while and thought it was about time! I really love Madi's stander. I love that she can easily wear her HKFOs to use it and that it keeps her upright and weight-bearing. Another thing I love about it is that it puts her at eye-level with the other kiddos her age. She can maneuver it very easily and get where she wants to go. Most importantly, Madi loves her stander as well!

I've talked in the past about trying to vary Madi's activities while she stands up. Usually that is a mix of spending time using the walker, spending time in the learning tower, spending time holding my hands to walk, getting carried in her HKFOs, and spending some time in her Rifton mobile stander. Madi is two, so she likes to keep busy. Changing activities often keeps her happy and also keeps her upright, which is so very, very important for her. It's important for her bone growth, muscles, bowels and bladder, circulation, and so much more!

The only thing that I wish I could change about the stander is I wish it had a removable handle. I'd prefer to take this out, instead of Madi's wheelchair, but it's hard to use in busy parking lots and places like that. Because of the design, I have to bend over to push Madi, and it is hard to safely maneuver Madi around without killing my back and while watching Conner. Madi is amazing at getting around in it without help, but I always push her in the parking lot to keep her safe (ask her how much she loves that ;). She always yells, "NO! I DO IT BY MYSELF!" and gets upset at me). I have plans to try and get someone to rig a little handle for me, so I'm hoping I can work something out there. Other than the lack of the handle, the stander is amazing!!!

We bought a little table that works great with Madi's mobile stander. We got it at Costco and it was only $20 but it is adjustable to four heights. It fits when she is standing in her HKFOs, when she is in her stander, and when she is in her wheelchair; it's great! I love easy and simple solutions that are affordable! Here's a picture of Madi using it in her stander:

We eat at the table, do stamps, color, paint, make food, and so much more. It gets a lot of love! In fact, it has some paint and ink stains to prove it!

If you want to check out Rifton's stander, you can go to http://www.rifton.com/products/standing/. They also have a blog you can read at http://www.rifton.com/adaptive-mobility-blog/.

We found our stander on craigslist and were able to buy it because of the money we get through Madi's amazon associates account. Anytime you purchase through Amazon and use Madi's link, we get money back that we use towards therapy equipment and other equipment that insurance won't cover. THANK YOU to everyone who purchases through her link for us!! You are such a blessing! http://www.amazon.com/?_encoding=UTF8&tag=missmadi-20

I am stealing a post ;)

2011-10-12T22:27:00.000-07:00

With permission, of course, I'm stealing a wonderful post I read yesterday. But, before I share, I'll explain why I'm sharing. In our adoption adventure, we've met three groups of people (probably more, but I'll simplify it to three for you).

1) The you are crazy, but we wish you the best group
2) The you are crazy, period, just crazy, and you are making a mistake group
3) The you are crazy, and this may not be easy, but wow will this be amazing and we are here to help group.

I like the third group the best :). It's hard, though, not to second guess yourself when the number two group speaks up. Thankfully, that group is small, but they are there, and they make themselves known. I can say, though, that God has spoken much, much louder than that group. (I should also say that I do appreciate that second group, because when they speak up, it drives me in to a frenzy of book reading, chatting with other adoptive families, and prayer. At the end of the day, I come out even more confident of our adoption plans because of this group.) David and I know that we are walking the road God has called us to walk. When I read the post below, it reaffirmed how I am feeling.

As sure as David knew he'd defeat Goliath, I am sure that God is leading this journey.

(On a side note, Sarah, the author of this post, and her family are on a journey to adopt a beautiful little girl, Elisha, who is waiting for them. Check out their blog and read their story, it is an amazing one!)

http://alongtheroadadoption.blogspot.com/2011/10/david-and-goliath.html

WHAT'S YOUR GOLIATH?

We all know the story. Even those that aren't faithful can tell the basics of the story of David and Goliath. David was a small shepherd boy, Goliath was the big bad Philistine giant, Goliath came to attack, no Israelite would fight him, and then little David stood up to him with just a few stones and a slingshot, konked him square in the noggin', and took out the Giant once and for all.

But before David even made it onto the battlefield, he had other goliaths to contend with.
First there was his family. Filled with good intentions, or perhaps not, I don't know, they basically shot him down when he suggested himself as the person to take care of the issue at hand.

In fact, his brother said to him:

“Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.”

Who do you think you are?

You have no right to do this.

You aren't a warrior in my eyes; just a shepherd.

You have no idea what you are doing.

A goliath.

But still, David was willing to fight.
Then David was sent to King Saul, and told him, (more or less), "Hey, King, don't worry, even though no one else is willing to go and fight, I'll do it."

And the king's response?

“You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.”
You can't do it.

You've go the odds stacked against you.

He's big. You are little.

This isn't your problem to deal with.

A goliath.

But still, David was willing to fight.
David was willing...
because he knew God was on his side. He knew, with the greatest of confidence, that this battle was not just between a small Israelite boy and a giant Philistine warrior. We always picture a little shepherd boy up against giant, but what we often fail to recognize is that God was there all along, standing next to David, guiding the slingshot for a direct hit. David was confident, and, although he may not have known what exactly the end result would look like, he knew that whatever God had in store was worth standing up to fight.
We may not face Goliath, but we face our own goliath problems all the time.

We get questioned, beaten down, told we are wrong, how dare we, who do we think we are, this isn't our battle, let it go, let someone else do it instead.
So many times, even those with good intentions end up as the goliaths in our lives.

When I heard this message, I realized just how closely it parallels with our adoption journey. Not just ours, in fact, but many families. Can I get an amen? :)

The decision to adopt isn't to be taken lightly.

But then again, if you have confidence that God is on your side, do you really have to worry about heading into battle?
Shortly before we filled out our commitment paperwork stating our intent to adopt "Taylah", we were faced with a situation that made me question whether or not this was the path we were truly supposed to take.

I asked God for guidance; I specifically asked that He speak boldly, clearly than ever before,
to let me know if this was a battle we were truly supposed to fight.
I opened my Bible, and the answer was blazing before me.

Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion: for I will make your horn iron, and I will make your hoofs bronze: and you shall beat in pieces many people: and I will consecrate their gain unto the LORD, and their wealth unto the Lord of the whole earth. -Micah 4:13
When asked, "Are you sure this is God's intended path for you?" I can without a doubt say,

As sure as David knew he'd defeat Goliath, I am sure that God is leading this journey.

Thank you, Sarah, for letting me share your words!!

Getting Crafty

2011-10-12T15:08:00.000-07:00

My kiddos love to be creative and get all crafty. With Madi, it takes a bit of extra creativity to make sure that she is able to do anything she puts her little mind to. One thing that we use all the time and LOVE is our learning tower. I should be a spokesperson for them because we love ours so much! We seriously use it every day. We got it when Madi was just itty bitty, and I knew it would get a lot of love. We use it with Madi in her HKFOs, but had planned to use some sort of chair or stool in it if she wasn't able to stand in it. We try to encourage Madi to be up and standing as much as possible and it helps when we can vary her activities for her. The learning tower allows us to cook, do dishes, play in the sink, do crafts standing up, etc... Today we used our learning tower to make peanutbutter play-dough (recipe below) and to paint. It was a ton of fun! Here's some pictures from today:

P.S. Both of the kids fit in it as well, which is awesome. It is very roomy!!

Peanut Butter Play-Dough Recipe

(We made ours peanut-free! We also used the dairy-free version :) I will put my modifications below)

1 C. Peanut Butter (we used sunflower butter, however, hazelnut chocolate butter would have been very yummy too!

1/2 C. Honey (we used wild, raw, local honey)

2 C. Powdered Sugar

1/2 teaspoon gluten-free vanilla extract

(You could also add m&m's, chocolate chips, rice crispies, or something similar to change it up a bit)

In a bowl mix peanut butter, honey, and powdered sugar with your hands. Dough should feel soft and pliable, shape into the forms of your choice. You can be creative and use cookies cutters, and all kinds of things. Enjoy!

(the above picture is a link to the learning tower on amazon, using our associate link ;))

Do You Use Ebates?

2011-10-12T08:38:00.000-07:00

This is just a little spam :)

Ebates is an online site you use to go through when you do your online shopping. All you do is go to your ebates account, click on the store you want to buy from, then go to that store and shop like normal. You get a percentage back of all your purchases! Amazon isn't one of their shops, but e-bay is :).

If 50 of you sign up and use ebates, then Madi can get a FREE iPad! How cool would that be?!?!??!? Here's our link...

http://www.ebates.com/rf.do?referrerid=QiPkA0sjDBaucRcWabxCBA%3D%3D

Here's the fine print from the site....

A qualified referral is a new user to Ebates referred by you who makes a purchase of $25 or more earning cash back. No self-referral allowed and returned purchases do not qualify. Posting messages or links on any Ebates partner stores' Facebook pages or forum pages using your referral links is not allowed and will result in disqualification from the referral bonus program. Keyword bidding for search marketing campaigns is not allowed. To qualify for the bonus, the new member you refer via your custom referral link, the invitation forms on this page or other methods supplied by Ebates that allow for proper tracking of referrals, must make a qualifying purchase of $25+ between 10/1/11 and 12/31/11. Only one bonus level per person awarded, you will receive the highest bonus level for which you qualify. Each qualified referral to Ebates earns $5.00 which is added directly to you Ebates account. The bonus levels indicated above include the original $5.00 credited to your account, and the additional monies will be added to your account at the conclusion of this promotion. Ebates decisions are final. In the event that the iPad2 as described above is not available, a similar bonus of equal value will be awarded. You are responsible for any taxes, as applicable by law. Referral Bonus Promotion is open only to individuals who are legal residents of the fifty (50) United States, the District of Columbia or Puerto Rico and are eighteen (18) years of age. You will be contacted within ten days of the final qualifying purchase date regarding delivery of your bonus.

To good not to share!

2011-10-10T21:39:00.001-07:00

SPINA BIFIDA AWARENESS: You should be aware that having a child with SB may cause increased motivation to help others, a new found perspective in times of trial, a desire to enjoy the little things and commitment to change the way the world defines "disability". Studies show that raising a child with SB will induce strong feelings of gratitude for even the simplest of milestones and produce a willingness to do anything, talk to anyone, try any method necessary to make life better for your child. Side effects include feelings of worry, fear, uncertainty, and anger but are tempered with love, faith, determination and hope. Having a child with SB is not easy...but loving one is. ♥

Written by Joanna Penny http://www.babyboypenny.blogspot.com/

Take that Spina Bifida!

2011-10-10T15:51:00.000-07:00

I feel like Madi is saying, "Take that, spina bifida!" in this picture. This photo really captures her amazing little personality... she lives with so much joy, and brings so much joy to those around her! She has such a great sense of humor as well.

P.S. Madi's middle name is "Joy" after my mom (Lynda Joy). I think she's living up to her name quite well :)

P. S.S. There are actually Take That Spina Bifida! shirts for sale for a great cause. If you would like to check it out, head to http://takethatspinabifida.blogspot.com/2011/09/take-that-spina-bifida-t-shirts.html.

A Great Poem

2011-10-09T22:22:00.000-07:00

I had to share this poem written by Tricia Proefrock. I love it!

Dear mommy,

I have felt your tears, falling on my face.

... Someone else might think they are tears of sadness, because of what I can't do.

... I KNOW DIFFERENT.

I know those tears pour from your heart out of gratitude for me, because of what I CAN do : I can love everyone in the purest form possible. Unconditionally. I can be judged, but will never judge in return. I know different because I feel, in your hugs and kisses, that I'm perfect just the way I am.

I have seen you hang your head down in shame, when we go out on adventures.

Someone else might think you are ashamed of having a child like me.

I KNOW DIFFERENT.

I know you are ashamed of the grown-ups who ignore me, yet talk happily to all the other children. The grown-ups who won't look you in the eye, but stare at me, when they think you don't see. I know different because I've seen the many, many more times you have raised your head up high, with pride, because I'm yours. : )

I have heard you whispering desperate prayers at night. Someone else might think you are asking God to make me a typical kid.

I KNOW DIFFERENT.

I know you are thanking Him that I got to be here, with you, for another day- exactly how I am. I know different because I have heard you ask me never to leave you. And I have heard you cheer for me, every single day of my life- you tell me I don't need to be typical to be amazing, I just need to be here.

I know you have a big job, taking care of me.

I know your body hurts, because I'm getting so big.

I know that more than anything, you want to hear me say your name.

And I know you worry that you aren't good enough, and that you will fail me.

BUT I KNOW DIFFERENT MOMMY.....

I know that even on your worst days, you will always be enough for me, and I will always love you more than you know. ♥

Who Cares?

2011-10-08T14:47:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I think back to all the things the doctors said about Madi and what our lives would be like. They made it sound like such an awful thing that she might never walk. They made cathing seem like the end of the world. They said she might have a learning disability. And you know what I say? WHO CARES! I get to love on this vibrant, life-loving, adorable little girl every day. Nothing else matters.

Guest Bloggers

2011-10-07T23:00:00.000-07:00

We are guest bloggers on two other sites. Check us out!

http://atalw.blogspot.com/2011/10/spina-bifida-awareness-meet-madi.html?showComment=1318053229951#c8593795524730287131

http://simplysoares.blogspot.com/2011/10/spina-bifida-awareness-meet-madi.html

Spina Bifida Stories: Julia

2011-10-07T15:48:00.001-07:00

I was born in Indianapolis in 1960 and of course in those days no one knew ahead of time that their baby had SB until the baby was delivered. I was my parents’ first child and there was no history of SB in the family. I have a brother 3 1/2 years younger than me without SB.

I was born with lipomyelomeningocele at L5/S1. A couple of very good doctors were called in and they closed my small lesion and removed a piece of skin that was hanging by the opening. Unfortunately, I got meningitis and was very sick for a number of weeks, spending about a month in the hospital. One doctor told my mother when they weren’t sure whether I would make it would be just as well if I died because with the SB and the spinal meningitis, my brain would not function properly--and I’d basically be a vegetable. Yes, those were the words they used back in those days, and I cannot imagine a mother hearing that about her firstborn child—or any child!

Needless to say, SB kids are fighters, and I survived. As an infant I wore shoes with a bar to turn my feet straight, but I eventually started crawling and pulling myself up and walking (without the bar, of course) at about 13 months. My mom thought this was “late” but my own daughter, who does not have SB and is also a first born, started walking about that same age, so apparently 13 months isn’t that unusual for kids to begin toddling.

I had a bladder/ileal colon surgery when I was barely age 5. I won’t go into all the details, but I remember being VERY happy about it, running around and telling all the neighbors about it when I got home from the hospital, lol! This type have surgery has been improved upon over the years, but it worked for me, and has served me well for 46 years. So take heart about that, moms of SB kids!

I had an unusual gait, of course, and over the years I had numerous surgeries, leg braces, and even a cast at age five to try to turn my foot straight (no surgery—just a cast!). I wore a leg brace on one leg from 6th to 9th grade. I attended two public grade schools and both times my mother marched me to the principals’s office before school started to show the principal I was just fine on my own. In those days, disabled kids weren’t really attending public school, so I know my mom had to try to convince the school I would do fine. I was indeed the only “handicapped” kid at both of my schools, so I got a lot of comments and sometimes rude remarks about the way I walked or about my brace. However, I also had a lot of nice friends at school, so that called less attention to my being “different.”
A lot of people asked if I’d had polio, even though polio had basically been eradicated in America by the time I was born. But people knew about polio; most had not heard of Spina Bifida or knew almost nothing about it.

Through grade school and high school, I had surgeries every few years: tendon transfers, bone rotations, foot corrections, spending time on crutches, full leg casts, walking casts, and wheelchairs. Since I have little sensation in my legs, the surgeries didn’t hurt all that much, and I actually felt in some ways “special.” I did have achy legs for a number of years on very rainy or snowy days. At 25 I had my four hammer toe bones fused straight (left foot). Funny story: I fell down the stairs in my lovely wooden hospital shoe and toe pins after the surgery, bending my pins! So, I DO have fused bones, but they are anything but straight, lol!
My teen and adult life has been pretty normal: I went to public high school, won awards for art and writing, got a part-time job at age 15, drove at 16, went to college out of state for my BS in Graphic Design, did internships in various states, backpacked Europe (alone) for three months, graduated, moved far from home for my first job, got married, had three kids (very easy to deliver babies when you have SB, btw--#3 was accidentally born at home!!), worked for various companies at each of the five places we moved to, taught adjunct in a college, and started my own freelance editing business.

The only really major SB event in this time was at age 40, when I realized my walking was getting worse (well, I actually started when I realized I was having trouble getting up from a squat), I had an MRI and learned I had a tethered spinal cord. Like a rubber band, it had been stretched for all these years and was just giving out. They didn’t usually check for TC routinely back in the day, so I had never known! So, I had TC surgery done in Chicago at age 41. My balance was pretty bad by this time, and I was starting to use a cane (which I still do). The surgery had some complications that required a revision and then four months lying flat in bed trying to get a pinhole leak to heal (it was leaking spinal fluid). It healed, I went back to work, caught West Nile Virus—a spinal fluid condition of all things!—and the pinhole reopened. Three more months in bed and just about the time they were going to put me in the hospital to try drain my spinal fluid away from the pinhole for awhile, it healed! Woohoo!!!

Having a good sense of humor, and parents who encouraged independence and trying a variety of things to see what I was good at (and encouraging those things--like my art and writing) were some things that really helped me get along with all kinds of people despite my SB. That is not to say I never felt (or feel) different, or that people never felt uncomfortable around me (at least subconsciously). It just means that growing up I was able to laugh (at least later!) at most awkward situations caused by my SB and that I rarely thought much about my physical limitations, instead focusing on things I enjoyed doing and felt I had a special talent for. Guess I’ve done OK for a “vegetable.” : )

Picture overload from our vacation

2011-10-06T22:03:00.000-07:00

Fist off, sorry the pictures are so out of order. I could fix it, but I'm tired, so I will leave it like this for now :)

Papa and Madi

Madi is wearing her adorable dress that my mom (grammy) made her. She LOVED it!

Conner and Kyla

Disney was all decorated for Halloween. It was awesome!

The whole gang

Madi and Grammy

Madi showing off her new (adorable) hat

On the beach. It was beautiful!

Madi at the zoo being her typical self :)

At the zoo

There were so many starfish at the beach, it was awesome!

Madi loves Tinkerbell. This gal didn't look so 'tink-ish', though, so Madi kept asking where Tinkerbell was.

Lunch with my birth mom, Deana, and half sister, Lindsay. We try to meet up with them every year and always enjoy our time together.

I love this picture of the kids, and can't wait until we have a third kid snuggling up close for pictures :)

Spina Bifida Stories: Mary Jo

2011-10-05T14:16:00.000-07:00

I often think about how I arrived at this moment in time. I am 37 yrs old. I am a social worker in a large hospital in Chicago. I have a bachelor’s and a master’s degree. I have worked in Minneapolis, MN and Spokane, WA as part of a national volunteer program. I have twelve brothers and sisters, twenty-five nieces and nephews, and lots of cousins! I also have Spina Bifida. I think I’ve had about a dozen surgeries, thankfully I don’t remember the early ones! I have an amazing family who have always been a great source of encouragement for me.

I was teased as a child, as I’m sure many others can relate to. But very early on in life I learned that I had a choice. I could let bullies win and live my life in a 24/7 pity party (I tried it for a while-trust me, it’s NOT a party,) or I could look at the world in front of me and do the best I could. “Can’t” was never a part of my vocabulary. I never asked if I could do something; sometimes I just needed to ask how I could do something. I tried a lot of things. Some were more successful than others. But you don’t know until you try. I learned to roller skate in the dark with a pillow strapped to my bum(daylight would reveal the unconventional & embarrassing teaching method to passersby.)

Life is hard at times. But it’s hard for everyone. I don’t think my life is harder than someone else’s because I have Spina Bifida. I think our lives our different, but I can’t judge someone else’s life unless I’ve experienced it myself. I know I’m a stronger person because of my challenges. I am not a boastful person, but I do feel proud when I can reflect on all that I have accomplished in my life and think about all that I have yet to do. I am a successful, hardworking, kind-hearted, child-at-heart, fun-loving, tax-paying woman. Spina Bifida, a shunt and a pair of afo’s are just my accessories!

Our Spina Bifida Awareness Photo for the Day...

2011-10-04T23:11:00.000-07:00

Whenever you hear someone say that children with spina bifida have no quality of life, think of this smile. I think it says it all.....

Spina Bifida Stories: Liza

2011-10-03T14:07:00.000-07:00

My name is Liza, and I was born in 1982 with Myelomeningocele. My parents had no idea I had this until I was born. Luckily the umbilical cord was wrapped around my arm and my mom had to have a C-section. The story I have heard is, as soon as they got to me, I rolled over so the doctors could see my back. I was then flown from Laramie Wyoming to Denver Colorado where my SB lesion was closed.

I remember every year going to "MM (myelomeningocele) clinics" where I would see all of the specialists: Urology, Neurology, Orthopedics, Nutritionist, Social workers. I also remember getting to pick out a toy every year at the clinic in Denver (that was totally cool :). I never really minded going to these clinics. It wasn't until my Dad went with me one year when I was about 15 that I realized it could be a little boring. My dad's exact quote, as he paced back and forth in the room after I had only seen 1 doctor, was "How do you do this?". It was just part of life.

I have had about 11 surgeries so far. Tendon transfers, 1 tethered cord release, Ureter implants, Vesicostomy. Surgery became a normal part of my life too ( But I will admit that waking up from anesthesia always sucked ).

I've always been able to walk independently. I had AFO's and orthotics as a kid, but decided to stop wearing them sometime around High School. I did get teased quite a bit for the way I walked as a kid, but the other kids quickly got bored when they didn't get any reaction from me (thanks for teaching me to ignore them Mom :). I played basketball in school from about 3rd grade until 6th grade. My orthopedic surgeon decided I needed to have my ankle fused during one of these years, and when I asked if I would be able to run and play basketball after the surgery, he told me "well you're not able to run now." (Yeah, I was MAD!). When he asked for a demonstration, he couldn't wait long enough for me to get my shoes on so I could show him...

In Junior High my health teacher asked if I would be willing to give a talk about Spina Bifida. I did research and gave talks to my health class both years of junior high, and went back and did my talk to all of the girls health classes for the first 3 years I was in High School.

I worked full time for many years, doing mostly fast food. It was hard, and my body always hurt quite a bit, But I just thought that's what adults did, so I sucked it up and did it (and didn't move when I was off work...).

I got pregnant when I was 27 years old (which was a HUGE shock to me, because I vividly remember at least 2 doctors telling me I wouldn't be able to get pregnant. The one time I listen to what a Doctor said...). My mom was totally terrified most of my pregnancy that my son would have Spina Bifida as well, because my Spina Bifida is more than likely genetic. My thoughts on it were "well if he does who better to deal with it than someone that has dealt with it for 27 years and knows the ropes?". After 22.5 hours of labor, Gage was born perfectly healthy in December 2009. My pregnancy was great (after the "morning" sickness was gone.). I was totally amazed to have warm feet in the winter! All of the nurses that came into my hospital room commented that "He's just so alert, and he's just so active!" And that has NEVER changed... He keeps me on my toes! lol.

In November of 2009 my left hip started feeling weak and I had to stop working, I figured it was part of the pregnancy hormones, but it didn't go away after my pregnancy. When I mentioned this to my OB/GYN about 6 months after I had my son, she agreed that it was part of pregnancy and "it would go away, or it wouldn't". Eventually I found out that I have another tethered spinal cord, and will need surgery to release it. After doing some research I found out that pushing during the delivery of a baby can cause Tethered cord. (Had I known this before I had my son, I more than likely would have had a C-section.) I remember being scared before a couple of my surgeries as a kid, but it was nothing like it is now that I have my son to worry about too.

Spina Bifida has always been a part of my life, so everything that goes along with it is just normal. It sucks sometimes, but everybody has struggles in life. Having Spina Bifida has taught me a lot of very valuable lessons in life: It's taught me patience, to be kind to other people, it's taught me not to listen to any of the "neigh sayers", it's taught me to look at things from more than one point of view. Luckily I learned early, that having a positive attitude makes a world of difference.

People think that my life is hard, and it can be, but it's all I know, and there is very little I would change about my life.

A Great Poem I Had to Share

2011-10-02T21:15:00.001-07:00

I Love Being Me

by Gemma Hayton

I can't run the fastest

I can't swim the sea

I can't type the quickest

but I love being me

I can't kick a ball

or even climb a tree

I can't roll in the grass

but I still love being me

You see, this is my life

as others would see

they don't know what it's like

to really be me

So next time I'm about

rolling down the street

don't think of me disabled

but someone cool to meet

I have lots I can teach you

I have loads I can share

you will never gain my wisdom

if you just point and stare

So maybe I can't run the fastest

maybe I can't kick a ball

but I wouldn't change being me

not for you, not at all

Just the way to arrive home from vacation!!!

2011-10-01T18:11:00.000-07:00

Feeling at Peace and Utterly Exhauted

2011-09-26T00:38:00.000-07:00

Exhaustion. That pretty much sums it up. The last few days, I have felt physically and mentally exhausted. For the first time in a long time, though, I've also felt at peace and not distracted. I think all of the stress and lack of sleep these past few months has caught up with me and that's why I'm so exhausted, but my mind is still clearer than it has been in quite a while.

I know we still have a LONG adoption road ahead of us, but I do not feel like we are stuck anymore. I feel like we finally can move forward. All the loose ends I had to tie up before we went on vacation are finished and the adoption is finally approved in Arizona. I can finally just relax without feeling the weight of my "to do" list. I am finally catching up on rest and it feels pretty awesome. For once, I'm away from it all, and I can just relax and fully enjoy my time with my family. It is a wonderful feeling and this vacation was JUST what I needed!

My confusion and a HUGE prayer request!

2011-09-23T16:04:00.000-07:00

My amazing friend, Amanda, brought caths to India for us. She gave them to a friend who brought them to Ramya's orphanage for us. We had called ahead to make sure it was ok to send them, and they said it was fine. The caths got there and.....

They said Ramya is to little to get cathed and refused them!

Huh?!?!?!?

When we first started the process, we were told she was getting frequent UTIs from cathing and that it was effecting her kidneys. It's one of the reasons they put her on the "I really need to get adopted now" list that they send out. When we had read the initial information about her, it said she was cathed every 2 hours around the clock. On the recent paperwork, though, there was no mention about cathing at all. I thought it was strange but didn't give it a second thought. Even on her wacap photo and information page, the photo and information is different. It's still her, it's just updated (although her name on there is different as well, but I think they change names to protect their identity).

So, for now, I am very stumped. I really do not get it. I suppose it truly is just a game of "wait and see"! If her UTIs have stopped, that would be AMAZING news, so I really pray that she is getting better there.

Now on to the huge prayer request. Ramya is having surgery in just a few days. She has renal reflux, like Madi does, except hers is on the right side and Madi is on the left. She will have surgery to fix it, and then they said she will be cathed, and will have to be cathed forever. I'm not really sure what surgery they are doing, because with "traditional" surgery to fix reflux, that does not mean you have to cath for the rest of your life. With a different surgery where they attach the bladder to another organ to help it grow (we haven't crossed that bridge yet, so please excuse my really terrible, and possibly not-quite-accurate description), then you do have to be cathed for the rest of your life if you get it. I'm not really sure what surgery she is getting.

I cannot imagine being in pain and being in a strange place all alone. That has to be terrifying for her. I am so sad they are doing the surgery, and that I cannot be there with her. Please pray for peace and protection for her. Pray that she will be calm and not scared. Pray that she will heal quickly and that she will be given adequate medicine to handle the pain. Pray that there will be no complications and that the surgery will be successful. Pray that she will feel God's love and protection around her at all times.

Thank you for praying for our little girl!

To Big Not to Share (Even at 12:26 am)!

2011-09-22T00:38:00.000-07:00

Today we left for California to start our vacation. We left pretty late, at about 3:30 pm, and at just about 3:45, I got a call. It was from Amy, the liaison helping us figure out what is delaying our adoption approval. She said had an update for us and had just spoken with Commissioner Clark, who is in charge of our paperwork (though I was told it was transferred, so I'm not sure what happened there). After months of hearing nothing, I am sure you can imagine how excited we were!

Amy said that our paperwork was signed TODAY and as of today WE ARE APPROVED!

Wait, let me repeat that last part. WE ARE APPROVED!!

Did you see me just do a happy dance, cry some happy tears, and say a very thankful prayer?

It is only in the state of Arizona, meaning we still need to get approved in India, but we are so excited! It is a big step forward, and now nothing will be holding our adoption up (well, until our paperwork gets to India, that is ;)). We won't get the "official" paper approval for a week or two, since it still needs to go to another department, but I was told we are approved!

Thank you for being here to pray for us, pray for our (soon-to-be) little girl, support us, and love us. We are so very thankful to have so many people on our side rooting for us! God is good..... WE ARE APPROVED!

An Adoption Un-Update and Our Upcoming Vacation

2011-09-13T23:19:00.000-07:00

Today I heard back from Amy, the liaison helping us figure out what is going on with our adoption paperwork and approval. She was in a training today and low and behold, there was Commissioner Clark, the judge in charge of our adoption! She called me for our case number and was having the judge look it up to give her some information on it. Basically, the judge was trying to say it was probably our adoption agency's fault, but I've talked to our agency many, many, many (did I say many??) times, and I know they have been on top of things. I hope Amy can help us get to the bottom of everything!

In other news, we have a vacation coming up next week and we couldn't be more excited. I really, really, really struggled with whether or not we should go on vacation this year. I am finding there is a really fine line between living and enjoying our lives right now and planning for the adoption and the future with another child with a disability. I always feel torn on what we should do. I had planned to not go on vacation this year, but then re-thought the idea when my mom told me that they had gotten a two-bedroom timeshare in California and that we would be able to stay there for free. Then I thought about how long it would be until we could take a vacation if we waited until after the adoption went through and we went to bring home Ramya. That could very easily be 18- 24 months out still. So, there's that 18-24 months, plus all the time after we bring her home where we need to lay low. I'm a vacation girl, so that seems like a very long time to me.

The plan is to drive up to Anaheim, stay for a few nights and go to Disney, then head over and stay with my parents in their timeshare. The timeshare and our hotel in Anaheim will have kitchens, so I will be able to cook and save some money on the food side of it. We will drive which saves some money as well. Plus we are not paying to stay with my parents for that week. Disney, of course, is not cheap. That's the part I struggled with the most. I decided to go, though, because I remember reading in The Connected Child that you should keep newly adopted children away from noisy places, especially like amusement parks and fairs and other places that would be very overwhelming and overstimulating for them ( a child in an orphanage is used to a sterile, white, quiet environment). That would mean probably not going for a year or so after the adoption as well, if even that soon. So, basically, I caved :).

Kyla is coming along with us for part of the trip. She has not been to Disney since she was 4 years old, and is SO excited about the trip. I'm even more excited just seeing how excited she is :). Of course, there is Conner and Madi too, who ask me every day if we are going to Disney that day.

I have a lot going on right now with trying to finish up Dossier paperwork and church curriculum, plus do what we need to for vacation, so I'm a bit stressed out, but I know it will all work out in the end :).

A Step in the Right Direction, I Hope!!

2011-09-08T22:53:00.000-07:00

Well, Senator Bundgaard wasn't joking when he said he was going to see what his office could do to help us out. Today I got a call from a lady named Amy who is the legislative liaison with the supreme court. She is working with someone else to try and figure out who can help us speed up the adoption and exactly what they can do. She has a call in with the judge in charge of our adoption here in Arizona and is going to 1) request that our 90 day maximum waiting period (each time you change or update paperwork, they can re-set the 90 days they have to respond to you) is not extended from sending in photos to a different department like they requested and 2) try to get a timeline on when we can expect to hear back on whether we are approved.

While we still have no concrete answers, I'm excited to at least be moving int he right direction! YEAH for that!

My quick 10 minute update :)

2011-09-07T01:05:00.000-07:00

My amazing Aunt, whom I love very much, e-mails back and forth with me (she lives in Hawaii so as much as I'd LOVE to chat in person this often, it's just not feasible). She is a great support and I can tell her anything knowing that she "gets it". She's such a huge blessing in my life! Anyhow, she always makes sure to send me quick 10 minute updates, as she calls them, so that I know she is thinking of us and is keeping up with us, which is uplifting and encouraging. Today it's my turn for a 10 minute update, which I will share with all of you :).

I had e-mailed our district senator, as well as the state senator, about our adoption and the time it is taking to get an approval. I was very encouraged to hear back from our district senator today. He said that the adoption seemed like a wonderful opportunity for our family and that he is going to see what his office can do. It might not have been a concrete answer, but it is for sure a step in the right direction! YEAH!

I also just had to share what my friend Sue did for us, because it touched me so immensely. This weekend while we were at my parent's cabin, I got an e-mail from her saying that she has been in prayer for us and our adoption. She also said that felt God laying it on her heart to e-mail our Governor as well as Senator McCain about our adoption approval situation. Isn't that amazing?!?!?! I am so touched that she would take the time out of her day to advocate for our family. What an amazing woman she is! I am blessed to have her as a friend!

I pray that we will have more good news to update you with in the near future, but for now, I am thankful to have a renewed sense of encouragement and hope!

Before I run (man am I EXHAUSTED), here are a few pictures from the county fair in Flagstaff that we went to over labor day weekend.

My sweet girl in the Ergo

Conner and our newly adopted third child, as we like to call her, Kyla

Conner on the kid's roller coaster. He kept throwing his hands up in the air and smiling... adorable!

Madi and her papa. Madi sure does love her papa, and she talks about him all the time!

Papa and Conner on the Ferris wheel.... Conner's first Ferris wheel ride ever!

Madi and my mom on the train... sadly the only ride Madi was big enough for, besides the carousal!

We had a blessed and wonderful weekend with family!

Dear Ramya,

2011-09-04T23:46:00.000-07:00

I must say, it is hard to wait for you. It is hard to pray for you and look at your sweet face, but not know if you will be ours. I feel so useless and stuck because I just simply cannot make this happen any faster. I am trying, oh trust me, I am, but the phone calls and e-mails just have not done the trick so far. I feel like I should be fundraising and doing something more productive right now, but on the other hand, I feel like we need to wait until we are approved in Arizona, at the very least, until we start too heavily in to that. For now, I am thinking and gathering ideas, but I want to be doing more.

I am told that the wait is harder on us than it is for you, because you do not know that we are here waiting for you. I am sure in some ways that is true; You do not feel the same urgency and concern that we do. On the other hand, though, I cannot imagine the angst of waiting your entire life wanting nothing more than a family, and feeling like you will never get one. I remember reading that one of your social workers said that not having a family, yet wanting one so badly, was taking a toll on you. And that was over a year ago. I cannot even begin to imagine how you feel now. I wish there was a way for me to tell you that we are here, that we are praying for you, that we WANT you, and that we are trying our best to get you here as fast as we can. I wish you knew how much we love you already.

Your brother, sister, father, and I are waiting for you. We pray that one day soon we will get to tell you how much we love you as we hold you close to our hearts. We pray that one day soon we will be able to come bring you home.

My boring but productive day, our little blessing, and a HUGE prayer request

2011-09-01T21:57:00.000-07:00

First I want to start off with the prayer request. If you pray, I need you on this! Baby Evangeline was due to be born in a few days. She has spina bifida. Today, her mother was in a car accident that was caused by a drunk driver. I am not sure how they are doing, and they need your prayers. You can follow Evangeline's story on her mother's blog at http://mrskugler.blogspot.com/ .

Today I decided I needed to get some adoption paperwork out of the way and be productive. It helps me feel like I'm "doing something" for the adoption. In case you do not remember, our adoption agency sent us our dossier paperwork even though we aren't officially approved, since our approval in Arizona is taking so long. Yesterday I sent away for certified copies of our birth certificates and pulled out the certified copy I have of our marriage certificate. Today I decided I would tackle the bank, which ended up being a 1 1/2 hour trip.

India requires that you deposit $1,000 in to an account in the name of the child you are trying to adopt. That poses an interesting problem, though, as you cannot open an account for someone that is not a US citizen, does not have a social security number, is not in your care, and has no last name. They also want financial statements from your bank with all of your balances, your average yearly balance, and all of that converted to rupees. Fun, fun! I went to the bank today with the information on what we needed and prayed for the best. The man who helped us was really a blessing. He had two friends adopt internationally and knew pretty well all the hoops they had to jump through to be able to do so. He was willing to jump through hoops to help us figure out how to handle the paperwork and account information we needed. He was really amazing.

He got us the information we needed, converted to rupees, and got it notarized for us. Then he helped us tackle the account problem. Basically we ended up opening a checking account (fee-free) in my name, with Rama as the secondary. We used our last name as her last name and her estimated birth date for her birth date. Then we filled out some paperwork that they use to get people accounts that do not have a social security number. After that, he typed up a letter stating we had deposited the money in to an account for her and had that notarized as well.

The whole process took about 1 1/2 hours, which was not fun, especially with the kids in-tow, but I'm thankful to have it done. The kids did really, really well, which was great. One of the tellers gave them a sucker and later brought them crayons and coloring paper to help keep them busy. I rewarded them with some sorbet at Yogurtology when we left because they did such a great job.

We still have no news, but it did feel good to get some things out of the way. I don't know what God has up his sleeve, and I realllly wish he'd let me peek, but I do find peace in knowing His plan is perfect.

OH! I also wrote a letter to our senator today asking for help with getting our adoption approval pushed through. Hey, can't hurt!

Welllllll..... that makes sense, but I'm still bummed!!

2011-08-31T17:17:00.000-07:00

Today I called Oasis, our homestudy agency, to see if they ever heard back from the Judge's office about our paperwork/approval. They still haven't heard back, and I guess the judge's assistant (not sure what they are called) is no longer there, which is who she had left a message with last week. She said that was a bad sign, but I'm not sure why, maybe because it will take longer or something. Anyhow.... Oasis had faxed in the pictures of our pool fence in July. The judge asked Oasis to also send in hard copies straight to her, so they did. Today when Oasis called, they talked to someone else at the courts (the people that oversee the whole process or something like that), and they said they have no records of the hard copy being sent in. Oasis is going to send it to that department now as well, just to make sure that everyone has what they need.

The problem, though, is that the courts have 60 days to respond (basically approve or deny your adoption petition) to the paperwork once it is submitted. Whenever you send something new in, though, that re-sets that 60 day waiting period. So basically, when we sent in the photos of the latches, that re-set the 60 days that they have to respond to us. That would mean that we should hear back by mid September, UNLESS sending in the photos to the other department will re-set it again, and then we will still have up to 60 days! AH! Not cool!

In better news, we went to the Children's Museum today and it was a blast! My friend, Mary, had free passes for us (THANKS MARY!), so Kyla and I took the kids. We brought Madi in her HKFOs (up ups) and helped her walk up the big climbing structure, go through the noodle forest, and all that good stuff. The kids really loved it! I also got to meet a local lady, Kiara, that has been a lot of support and help for our adoption, so that was really awesome! We didn't know she would be there but bumped in to her, so that was neat. Here's some pictures of our day:

All Quiet, Nothing to Report

2011-08-30T23:07:00.000-07:00

Conner seems to be doing better with how often he has to urinate (YEAH!), Madi is stable medically (YEAH!), and life has been busy, but blessed.

I wish I could say I had an adoption update, but sadly, I do not. I really, really, really did not anticipate it taking this long to get approved in Arizona. We finished our homestudy and had it all submitted to the Arizona court system by the third week in May, roughly. And, since May, we have been waiting for approval. Our agency called the judge in charge of our case and has not gotten any updates back yet (she called last week). I keep picturing Ramya's face and imagining her sitting there without us, and it makes me sad. I am really struggling, but just trying to see that it will all happen in God's timing, and that His timing is perfect. So, to that end, please be praying for approval with us!

That's really all the news I have, which is really no news at all! I hope to have an adoption update soon :). Thanks for stopping by to check in on us! Here's some pictures to make you smile!

Madi's new bathing suit

"Benny Bear" from the Been Bear Club (from the Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus association)

Conner doing what he's wanted to do every day this summer.... SWIM!

Conner found his Halloween cosume a little early this year and is very excited!

A face full of spaghetti and still as beautiful as could be!

An Update on Conner's Testing

2011-08-26T17:40:00.000-07:00

Wow, today has been a BUSY day!! I'm beat! ~~This is the first time I'm sitting down today, and I wanted to come here and update everyone before I do anything else, since I know that we have had many people praying for us.~~ Scratch that. Had to run and take my brother to pick up his car, then go to the grocery store, so now, for real, I am sitting down to type :).

First off, THANK YOU for your prayers. They seriously, genuinely mean the world to us!

Today Conner had an ultrasound to see if they could figure out why he is urinating so often. They looked for masses putting pressure on his bladder or kidneys, they looked to see that he had all his tubing and that no tubes were fused together or anything, and they looked to see that everything was as it should be size-wise.

They found that everything looks normal! The only issue Conner has is that his urethra opening is too small (about 1/2 the size it should be). Dr. Zuniga said that is common for circumcisions, as scar tissue forms from the circumcision, making the hole smaller than it should be. I have to say, that was hard to hear. It was hard to hear because I really, really, really did not want to circumcise Conner. I fought David on it, but finally gave in. My gut was telling me not to do it, and I gave in. I am still mad at myself for that, because I did not trust my instincts. I'm not knocking those who choose to, trust me, I'm not, I'm just mad because I just knew it would go wrong, and I didn't listen to that little voice telling me so. They did not take off enough skin either, so he still looks uncircumcised (we have known they did not take off enough skin for a while now), but I told them they are not touching it again to fix it, unless he wants it done when he is older and can make that choice himself (which is how I wished we had handled it to begin with). The doctor said it could be contributing to the problem, but he does not think it is the cause of the problem. He said we just need to watch it. If the opening does not continue to grow adequately, then he will need a surgery to make it bigger. He said that wouldn't be until he was 7 or 8, though.

The doctor said it is very common for children Conner's age to have this problem, and that they normally grow out of it on their own. He said allergy testing couldn't hurt, but he also did not feel that was the issue. He said we need to watch it and just see what happens. He said to expect it to take about 6 months to 1 1/2 years to go away, though it should slowly get better. That's a long time to carry plastic cups for when we're driving and Conner has to go NOW and I have to pull over so he can go, but hey, I will GLADLY take that over the alternative :). He also said to come back if he starts having accidents and being unable to make it to the bathroom. He was a bit surprised he's waking up to go 1-3 times a night, but said that is ok too.

So, for now, we watch and wait, but we feel much better knowing it's nothing major (a mass, diabetes, etc...) and it's not a UTI.

Conner has decided he loves the hospital. After his appointment we went to the cafeteria to eat because it was past lunch time and we still had a 30 minute drive home. On our way to eat, we saw.....

.... Star Wars characters! They were set up in the hospital for the kids to see. Madi hated them, but Conner loved them. R2D2 was a robot controlled by remote control. Conner LOVED it! They also gave both of the kids a toy. Conner chose an Anakin Skywalker (sp??) figurine and Madi chose a doll with a bottle. Conner says he wants to come back to the hospital soon. Oh, dear child, let's not say that. We will be back soon enough.

In other news, we have a teenager, Kyla, staying with us for a while. Her mom and younger siblings moved to be with her younger sibling's father (he moved for work) and she is staying with us to be able to finish up with highschool. I helped her have a garage sale today to get some money for gas and all that fun stuff, and she made $150, which is great! I'll help her again tomorrow. The kids really love her, and she's great with them!

That's it for now, thanks again for the prayers!

Easy Canvas Prints Review

2011-08-21T22:37:00.000-07:00

I was contacted by a member of Easy Canvas Prints and was offered a free 8 x 10 canvas in return for a review on our site. I, of course, said yes. I love the idea of putting your favorite pictures on canvas, and just happen to have a wall needing some sprucing up.

There are many things I love about canvas, but a big one is that you don't need a picture frame. I cannot tell you how many times we have accidentally bumped a frame off the wall and the glass broke. Not to mention you have to worry about trying to find frames that match for all of your pictures. Then you have the fact that the glass gets all smudgy when it gets touched or bumped, the reflection from the light coming in the windows makes the photos hard to see, and the frames get dusty and have to be cleaned often. Basically, I'm not a fan of picture frames. I do love canvases, though!

The last canvas I bought was through Costco.com. Though their prices do initially seem cheaper, I found that Easy Canvas Prints offers free shipping pretty often and also run discounts pretty frequently. The Easy Canvas Prints site was very easy to navigate. They also have a quality rating so that you can make sure that the photo you are uploading will be a high enough quality to look good when you get it printed on the canvas. The turn-around time is really fast, and you get your canvas quickly.

I was really impressed with the quality of our canvas and also with how vivid the colors were. The photo looked clear and the detail was good as well.

I tried to get a good picture of our canvas, but it was hard because of the glare. Here's how it came out, though.

And for comparison, here is the original picture...

Overall, I'm really happy with our canvas and think it came out great!

An Un-Update

2011-08-18T14:04:00.000-07:00

Conner's final test results came back and everything looks normal. His kidneys are functioning great, his white blood cell count is great, no culture grew, so no UTI, no diabetes, and whatever else they looked at is good as well. Yeah! He is still having the same symptoms, though, and now his boy parts are getting a bit sensitive, so right now we're just waiting to get the ultrasound next Friday. Hopefully that will give us some sort of clue to what's up. If not, I think we'll do allergy testing next. Thanks for thinking of us and keeping us in your prayers!

My little mystery man....

2011-08-15T22:25:00.000-07:00

We got in the preliminary report from Sonora Quest and have a few questions answered, which leaves us with even more to ask.

Based on the preliminary reports, Conner does not have a UTI or diabetes.

The doctor is still waiting to hear back to see if his urine culture grows, and is also waiting on a white blood cell count to come in.

He is stumped and thinks we need to go to the urologist to have ultrasounds done to see if there is any abnormal swelling, blockage, bits and pieces growing oddly, growths causing pressure, etc..... He does not think it is allergies, though he is open to testing again if we want to go that route.

Conner has shown no improvement, so that's disappointing. I put him in a diaper tonight so he could just relax and sleep. I know I'll kick myself for this later on, but the poor little guy is exhausted from not sleeping well and getting up multiple times a night to pee. I wasn't sure what else try. He just needs sleep.

I have noticed that if I give him a lot to drink, he pees often and a decent amount. If I don't give him much to drink, he still thinks he needs to pee often, it's just that not is much coming out. That worries me. It makes me think there is something causing pressure to his system, which is making him think he has to pee, even when he doesn't.

Honestly, I was hoping they would say he had a UTI and just wasn't showing symptoms. I know that sounds silly, but that would have given us answers, as well as something easily treatable.

I do not think it is behavioral because he is having to pee during his favorite activities (watching a movie as a family, reading his favorite book, playing baseball out back, etc....), and the peeing is really bothering him emotionally. I really think something is causing it. I'm just not sure what.

Tomorrow I will call and get a referral to the urologist. I also plan to call and try and talk to the urologist, as he knows us well.

I will keep everyone updated. Thanks for your prayers, and don't stop yet!

Testing is done... now the wait!

2011-08-15T13:10:00.000-07:00

Dr. Vitaro called just before 9 to tell us he was faxing in the paperwork for the tests. I was just about to feed Conner when he said "Conner has been fasting, right?" Thankfully, other than the cranberry tab, he had been. My mom came over to watch Madi, since there is no way I could hold her and take care of holding Conner still and reassuring him at the same time (thank God for respite hours, the fact that my mom is our respite provider, and that she only lives 3 minutes away!!). Conner and I packed him a little baggie of food (dry cereal, raisins, a fruit strip, and an organic sucker) for afterwards.

We got to Sonora Quest to get the blood draw and urine tests, and of course Conner already had to pee, so they let us do the urine part right away. They knew Conner was fasting, so they put us at the top of the list to get in, which was awesome. We only waited about 20 minutes, but it was packed in there, so it would have been much worse.

The blood draw went well. I won't lie. There were tears and some screaming, but he sat very still on my lap and let them do what they needed to do. He did a great job. Afterwards he had lots of questions about blood draws vs. mosquitoes.

Now is the waiting. I would have updated sooner, but we had to run off to speech about 20 minutes after we got home. I will update as soon as I know something. Thanks for the prayers and support!!

Here we go again with the unknowns....

2011-08-14T22:17:00.000-07:00

Only this time it is for Conner. It started early last week. I noticed he had to pee, a lot; even at night when normally he would not need to pee. He was also drinking a lot, but I didn't know if he was peeing from drinking a lot, or drinking a lot from peeing a lot and being dehydrated. I did notice, though, that he would drink a ton at once, like a whole kid's water bottle worth in one car ride. David and I also started a juice cleanse (watch Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead on Netflix, it's very motivating) on Monday, and Conner had been drinking our juice and smoothies, so he was having more liquid than normal as well.

On Wednesday my mom and I took the kids to the water park. He had to pee at least every hour, many times more often than that. I figured it was the cold water, or the extra water from being outside, or..... I'm not sure, I just figured it would go away. I sent David to sprouts to get cranberry tabs just as a precautionary measure, but really thought it would just stop. It didn't. Thursday came and it was pretty frequent, but not terrible. Thursday night came and it got bad. Really bad.

We were watching Mars Needs Moms as a family, and during that one movie, I had to pause it 9 times for him to pee. Yes, 9. Here's the crazy thing, though. He pees almost every single time. Not a full pee, but not droplets either. A pretty decent amount.

Friday was pretty frequent again, so I called the doctor's office, but it was after hours. I talked to a nurse who asked me 999,999,999 questions, only to give me no information whatsoever. All she told me was to go to the ER if I was worried. Gee, thanks. We decided to watch him very closely and see what happens.

Saturday was filled with lots of peeing again. We did not let him have any green juice or green smoothies today, just to be on the safe side. I went Walgreens and got him a glucose monitor test kit to test his sugar levels, just to be safe (and the man at the pharmacy was AMAZING and walked me through exactly what to do, what to look for, what his numbers should be, etc.... That man was such a blessing!). My game plan was to go to the ER if his blood sugar levels were high. After he woke up from a nap, I tested him and he read 78, which is low. I called our naturopathic doctor this time and left a message, hoping to get more feedback. We went to a meet-and-greet for Church, where he peed many times, then came home and went to bed, a bit later than normal. Conner did not fall asleep until midnight, though, because he could not rest, he just kept having to get up to pee. Poor baby. I tested him again in the morning, when he awoke bright and early at 7:15, and this time his blood sugar level was 80, so again, a bit lower than normal (I guess 120 is average, and 100-200 is normal, so it's off, but not a ton).

Today was the same, lots of peeing, no green smoothies or juice, just to be sure. The naturopathic doctor called us back and was a lot of help. He offered to go in to the office to get the forms to request testing done, but I told him Monday morning would be ok. If Conner was acting funny in any sort of way... lethargic, having painful urination, having pain, having cloudy urine or stinky urine, seeming out of it, running a fever, etc..., I would have rushed him to the ER, but in every other way, he's just Conner. He does have darker circles under his eyes, and he does seem a bit more squirrely than normal, but mostly, he's just Conner.

So, for now, we wait. I hate this unknown. It could be something HUGE, it could be nothing at all. It could be food allergies again, or diabetes, or hypoglycemia, or cancer, or stress, or just plain nothing, or.... who knows! Tomorrow morning paperwork will be faxed to Sanora Quest, a local lab, and we will go in to have some testing done. We will test his urine for possible UTI and keotones (the keotones would tell us if this is diabetes), and will also be doing a blood draw to check his kidney functioning and other fun things like that.

On an interesting note, I have always suspected David had some form of hypoglycemia/low blood sugar so I tested him. He came out low as well. It was about 80 the first time, and 75 the second. So, I'm wondering if whatever is wrong with Conner is also wrong with David. They share many of the same traits. They both crash and get grumpy if they don't have food in their system pretty often. They both prefer to graze. The both are effected negatively by sugar, but the both crave it. They both like carbs and love fruit, and could eat fruit all day.

For our prayer warriors, please pray:

1- That it is nothing major
2- That we diagnose the problem quickly
3- That Conner handles the blood draws well
4- For healing for whatever is causing this
5- For peace for Conner as this is really worrying him
6- For peace for the rest of us as we wait

We will keep you updated!

Our Dynamic Urodynamics Appointment

2011-08-11T22:27:00.000-07:00

Ok, I admit, I failed at making the title enticing. It's a bit hard to think of a clever title when you are talking about updates from the world of urology. I tried, though.

Today Madi had a urodynamics study, her third thus far, and the results were pretty good!

It was a looooooooooong study, much longer than normal. First, the nurse had Madi lay down, but then left the room to talk to the doctor. We happily waited. Then, she cathed Madi and told me her urine was a little cloudy. I told her it was because I had to wake Madi up from a nap to get her there, and she had not had anything to drink since the last cathing, since she was napping. She decided to test the urine, just to be safe (which was a decision I supported, don't get me wrong!), but left Madi all hooked up to the monitors and tubes while she left to test it. The test showed a very slight infection, so she had the doctor spin it and look at it under a microscope. The doctor did not see anything that looked like an infection/bad bacteria (bacteria is expected with a child cathed, so they only look for certain bacteria), so they sent it off to be cultured, then she came back to finish the test.

The test itself took about 10 minutes, but poor Madi had to lay there closer to an hour. She was SUCH a trooper, though! They put a movie on for her, but she could care less about it, so I had to be creative in finding ways to convince her to lay still and not mess with the tubing. Annie's organic gummy rabbits were amazing... for about 3 seconds until they were gone. After that, the phone worked for a bit (looking at the photos and videos on it), then we read some books, played with her baby monkey stuffed animal, drew (while laying down), played with the stuffed animal more, sang songs, and did the etch-a-sketch. Fun, fun!!

After the test, we met with the doctor, who said her bladder was not being spastic and appeared to be pretty normal, which is an improvement from last time. He also said that it has grown and is holding more urine. Though it is still not a "normal" bladder, which for her age would hold about 120 somethings of urine, it's pretty good, holding about 80 somethings of urine. He started to tell me the dithropan was doing it's job, then remembered we took her off the dithropan ;).

The plan is to watch and wait, and see what happens. He moved her to once a year for her tests, which was nice. Sadly, she cannot go off of antibiotics yet, though the doctor and I did have a nice lengthy discussion about why I hate them, and he agreed, so that was good. He explained surgery options that might fix her reflux so that she didn't need it, and why those were just not good options right now. So, for now, we watch and wait.

In other news, Madi also had wheelchair clinic this week at CRS. She needed some small adjustments made to her chair. Here's a picture of her and Conner goofing off together. They had so much fun!

They tweaked the breaks to tighten them, lowered the foot plate, and we are good to go! Madi hasn't even had this chair a year, and in the beginning, her feet did not come anywhere close to the foot plate. This time they lowered the foot plate by 1 1/2 inches, so that her feet just rest nicely. Good growing, big girl!

The first trimester stinks!

2011-08-10T23:05:00.000-07:00

The joy, the anticipation, the nervous waiting until you get that first appointment (or approval ;)) and know that things are looking like they should, the longing, the excitement, and all those other feelings that come along with the first trimester.

And, no, I'm not pregnant, though I am longing for a very special someone!

I've heard people say that even with adoption, you go through trimesters. We are in the first trimester. This is where you do all your paperwork, homestudies, and wait for approval.

The funny thing is, I have physically gone through many things you would in the first trimester of pregnancy. I gained weight, I would get sick if I did not eat, then sick after I ate, and was super tired. I had cravings for all kinds of foods too, which just really helped that weight gain ;). I even took a pregnancy test, because that's just how pregnant I felt (The chances of us getting pregnant are very slim, as David had a vasectomy about 2 1/2 years ago. We knew we were finished birthing children, and were ready to move on to adopting them :)). Thankfully all of that has passed, but I am still left with feelings that are new to me. Usually I am an amazing multi-tasker that thrives on being busy and loves to be creative and productive. Lately, not so much.

The worst thing is this adoption brain I have. I seriously cannot focus on anything lately. I am scatterbrained and forgetful. The tasks that have come so easily to me in the past can be challenging some days. Not in a sad/depressing sort of way, just in that I feel distracted, like my mind is elsewhere, so I find I'm not always fully paying attention to the task at hand. I have been keeping myself busy with the kids to help keep my mind off of things. We have played more card games, swam more times, and had more play dates than I can even count. They are having a blast, so I suppose it is not all bad :). Once we get approval from the state and things can move forward (meaning approval from Wacap and approval in India), I will feel sooooooooooooooo much better. I seriously cannot wait!

I know that God has us waiting for a reason, even if I do not know that reason. I also know that His timing is perfect, and I know I should be finding peace in that. So, for my praying friends, please pray for peace as we wait. And, pray that the second trimester is just around the corner ;).

A beautiful new awareness necklace

2011-08-08T23:58:00.000-07:00

Gretchen made a beautiful new spina bifida awareness necklace. I just had to share! She does great work, for a great cause!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/79411694/hand-stamped-blessed-awareness-necklace

Spina Bifida Stories: Monica

2011-08-04T22:01:00.000-07:00

My name is Monica J. Foster and I am a woman with spina bifida at the L3/L4 level, a full-time wheelchair user and amputee in Landis, N.C. When I was born with spina bifida in the early 1970s, my mother was told by the 'experts' at the hospital I would not do the following: live, recognize her voice, sit up, walk, lead a quality life, go to school, be independent, graduate college, live on my own, have any meaningful impact on the world, find someone to love me. The list goes on.

As of today, I am a vibrant amputee on wheels after dealing with life-threatening infections in my left foot for a long time, In January 2010, I made the hard decision to literally cut my unhealthy losses and continue on the next successful 'leg' of my journey living life to the fullest with one and a half legs on wheels. I am married to my husband and soul mate, Bryan Foster, a stroke survivor who taught me that I could not only be my own best advocate as I got older, but his as well. I am a proud, nationally sought-after professional speaker, trainer, writer, life and career coach and consultant running my own business, BUTTERFLYWHEEL® Motivation, Advocacy & Consulting (www.butterflywheel.com). I have a college degree in English-Writing Studies with a over 20 years of combined experience in top-fold quality print journalism, customer service and disability civil rights. I am also hold professional certifications in life, life purpose and career coaching, vision board coaching and mental health peer support. Bryan is a juvenile court counselor and we have been accessible home owners for almost two years now. We have no children --at the moment -- but do enjoy our rambunctious kitty, Annabelle. Bryan and I are each and together active in various civic and community organizations as well.

We've both learned that no matter what people tell us we can't, won't or shouldn't do, we will find a way --- even if we have to do it in our own time and our own way. The sky's the limit!

Thank you so much, Monica, for sharing your story!!

A Few "Up Ups" and AFO Adjustments

2011-08-03T20:21:00.000-07:00

This evening Madi had an appointment with Ron at Hanger. Have I said how much Madi LOVES Ron (and, of course, I do too because he always takes amazing care of my little gal)? She was not happy about getting in the car, but when I told her we were going to see Ron to get her up ups fixed, oh boy did her face light up. Then she yelled, "YEAH, RON! LETS GO SEE HIM!" as loud as she could. This is really a big blessing because normally a mention of the doctor gets the opposite reaction.

(coloring on the paper examination table cover to keep Madi happy while her up ups got fixed)

Ron made Madi's up ups a little wider in the booty. He also made them a little taller and moved the shin pads up so they would help keep her knees from popping out. He added a pad to her AFOs so her heel does not pop out at night when she's wearing it. Next he gave us a knee immobilizer so we can keep Madi's left leg (her tight leg that was casted to treat her clubbed foot and also had a heel cord lengthening) stretched out. This will keep her leg straight at night, since she usually curls it in, and help keep her from getting tight in that leg.

Before we left, Madi had to show off her walking skills and, of course, it wasn't good enough that I hold her hands. She insisted that Ron helped her.

Ron is walking in the local spina bifida association walk-n-roll, so we will get to see him again soon. Madi will be excited!

Just to prove that Madi is a typical life-loving two year old (only possibly a little more mischievous), you can see what Madi did today. I walked in to the family room and found that Madi had gotten in to my makeup bag.

Yup, she spilled my charcoal grey powdered eye shadow and my blush. It's hard to get mad, though, when you look at her and she is grinning from ear to ear looking like this...

I see makeup application lessons in our (very distant) future! If you haven't already, please join Team Madi for the upcoming walk-n-roll. Here's a link to join. We hope to see you there!

Encouraging Words

2011-08-03T15:25:00.000-07:00

You hear, O LORD, the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry .

Psalm 10:17

I "met" a wonderful woman, Sue, through our blog. She had adopted a child with spina bifida and was needing some encouragement and advice. She has also adopted two children from India, and had encouragement and advice to offer me. It's the perfect match :). Though I have never met Sue, and I have only known her for a short time, her words have always been uplifting and comforting, and I have appreciated having her in my life. Today I got an e-mail from her that was EXACTLY what I needed to hear. I just had to share part of it.

I wanted to share something with you before I forget! The woman who headed up the India program for both of my Indian adoptions is coming to Delaware tomorrow. There are five families now who have adopted from India after we did - mostly church families but not all. Anyway, she is incredible with placing special needs children. Long story short, she has been to the orphanage where Ramya is (I told her about you and Ramya and shared your blog address). She said it was one of the best places she could be while you are waiting.

Oh how I needed to hear that today. This wait has been really hard on me emotionally. I literally run to the mailbox as soon as I hear the mailman, and am always saddened when I find nothing from the courts in there. I think about Ramya all the time, and pray for her often. In a way, I think this waiting is good. I believe that this yearning for her is going to help build attachment. The wait is really hard, though. David has a great attitude about it. He says he sees it as a done deal and that things will happen in God's timing. I know he is right and I envy his peace with it all. I, on the other hand, feel like part of me is missing. I feel distracted and pretty blah. I am sure it is silly to feel that way since we have not even been approved yet, but I do. So to hear Sue's words to me today were such a huge blessing.

"She said it was one of the best places she could be while you are waiting."

Praise God!

Our Schedule

2011-08-01T13:45:00.000-07:00

I get questions pretty often on what our schedule looks like, so I thought I'd share :). We are in "maintenance" mode with Madi's doctor's appointments, so that is awesome! We used to have to see certain doctors weekly or monthly, but now, it's more like every 6 months! WOO HOOOO! Right now Conner is still in speech twice a week and goes to preschool twice a week. Hopefully speech will taper off soon, and we will be a homeschooling family by next year for kindergarden :)

Weekly:
Monday: Conner's Speech
Tuesday: Madi's Physical Therapy (PT), Conner's Preschool
Wednesday: Madi's Occupational Therapy (OT), Conner's Speech
Thursday- Conner's Preschool (this is usually the day I help at school as well)
Friday- Rest :)

Every 6 Months:
Urology (tests we get include VCUGs, renal ultrasounds, and urodinamics)
Orthopedic Surgeon

Once a Year:
Neurosurgeon (tests include MRI, CT scan and X-Rays)
Pediatrician

As Needed:
Hanger (where Ron is at who makes her HKFOs and AFOs)
Wheelchair clinic

Not too bad, I don't think!

Yummmmmmmmy Brownies (both gluten and dairy free and regular) Recipe

2011-07-30T11:26:00.000-07:00

We love love love this brownie recipe. I'll post the original recipe, then my changes that make them gluten, dairy, wheat, casein free. Enjoy!!

Double Delicious Chocolate Brownies (Taken from Cooks.com)

1 1/2 cup flour (for gluten free, use Bob's mult-purpose. I have tried other blends that I have made myself, as they are cheaper, but I just don't like them as much. They come out best with the Bob's Red Mill multi-purpose gluten free flour)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter (We use 1/3 cup Earth's Balance vegan butter, the soy free version, and 1/3 cup organic unrefined coconut oil. Olive oil also works pretty well)
1 1/2 cup sugar (we use raw organic sugar)
1 (12 ounce) packages of chocolate chips (If you need dairy free, make sure you read carefully as many brands add milk fat. We don't get ones labeled "dairy free" but make sure there are 0 dairy ingredients. They are usually the ones that are 60% or higher in cocoa/cacao. We get them when they are on sale and store them in the freezer)
1 teaspoon vanilla (make sure to get GF :))
4 eggs
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
4 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon xanathan gum for GFCF brownies
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar for GFCF brownies

In a saucepan combine butter, sugar, and water. Bring just to a boil. Remove from heat. Add in 1 bag of the chocolate chips and the vanilla. Stir until chips are melted and mixture is smooth. Put in to a bowl (we never do this, we just leave it in the pan but remove it from the heat) and add the dry ingredients (including the xanathan gum for GFCF) and mix.

Add eggs one at a time, beating after each egg. Also add in apple cider vinegar if making GFCF brownies. Stir well. Then add in the second bag of chocolate chips, and nuts if you want those. Spread in to a 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 30-35 minutes.

We like the taste of the GFCF ones much better after they have sat for a bit of time, then been refrigerated.

Enjoy!!

Fear

2011-07-29T15:23:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, I ordered our Redefining Spina Bifida shirts. I have a photo I am planning where I want us all to wear them, but I did not want to spend the money on them right now. I saw a sale on second quality shirts, and nabbed them up. Heck, we'll stain them anyway, so who cares if they are second quality!

I was so excited when I got our shirts, but was a little taken back when I read the back. I had read it before I bought it, but it didn't really resonate with me until I saw it on my little gal.

Fear. Right in the middle of everything I feel about my amazing daughter and spina bifida is the word "fear". Fear.

It really made me pause and think. Am I afraid of spina bifida? Is Madi? Is our family? The answer, simply, is no. We are not afraid of spina bifida.

Now, when I first heard that Madi had spina bifida, I was afraid. I was afraid because no one could tell me what life would look like. I was afraid because I did not know if I would be able to hold my little girl in my arms. I was afraid because no one could tell me what Madi would face. There were lots of guesses, but the fact was, no one knew. I hear the fear in the posts and questions of new parents. Terms like "mentally retarded", "no quality of life", and "brain dead" get thrown around, and yeah, it sounds scary! Doctors tell parents the only human thing to do is to terminate the pregnancy. They tell them spina bifida is incompatable with life. It saddens me to no end that doctors STILL describe our children and their lives that way, and it could not be further from the truth! Madi is not your "best case" of spina bifida. She has a fairly high lesion, needs a shunt, had a clubbed foot, and cannot move from the waist down. But guess what, to us, she IS the best case. She is just perfectly perfect and we are so thankful for the opportunity to get to see and be part of her greatness every day

The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown.

-H. P. Lovecraft

Seeing Madi and the astounding little blessing that she is, there is just no way I can fear spina bifida. She is not her spina bifida. It does not define her. It does not rule, nor ruin, our lives. I truly do not think Madi is afraid of spina bifida either. I see her looking spina bifida in the face and saying, "Hey, get out of my way! You don't stop me!" Sure, sometimes it annoys her (or 'bannoys' as Conner would say ;)), but she is a bright and determined little girl, and she finds a way.

I am not afraid of tomorrow, for I have seen yesterday and I love today.

-William Allen White

So take that spina bifida, we are not afraid of you!

P. S. My friend said that "fear" is smaller on the shirt because we are overcoming it. That is exactly my prayer. I hope that by wearing our shirts, keeping up our blogs, and being open with the rest of the world, those of us that are touched by spina bifida can reduce fear for new parents. We can reduce that fear of the unknown. Now if we can just figure out a way to work on those darn doctors and get them to be more fair in how they describe our kiddos.....

P.S.S. You can buy the shirt here http://www.babysnazz.com/redefining-spina-bifida. It is a great shirt!

We have a swimmer

2011-07-26T21:48:00.000-07:00

I just have to brag on Conner a moment. My little dude is finally swimming by himself! He took 8 swimming lessons this summer, which helped him learn the basics. He was not quite swimming on his own yet, but I knew it would be a matter of time. All he had to do was get comfortable putting his head under water. This weekend he figured it out and now we are out in the pool every day, multiple times a day! I told him I was so proud of him for trying even though he was scared and for sticking with it. He grins from ear to ear when I tell him that. He talks about how proud he is of himself. It is so cute! I took a good video but don't have it uploaded yet, so for now, here is a crummy video from my phone. Enjoy!

Mark Your Calendars!

2011-07-25T23:35:00.000-07:00

On October 29th, we will be walking (and zooming) in the local Spina Bifida Association's Walk-N-Roll 2011. Please join Team Madi in supporting the local organization, which we are part of and have gotten much support from. We would LOVE to have you walk with us! You can also support Team Madi by donating to the cause. All donations will go directly to the Spina Bifida Association of Arizona and can be made online through the Team Madi website. THANK YOU for your support!

http://www.sbaazwalknroll.org/faf/r.asp?t=4&i=484149&u=484149-332052133&e=4765266894

Click Here to Donate

Let there be latches.....

2011-07-25T22:37:00.000-07:00

Tonight my awesome hubby got to work on the door latches. They worked!!!! We officially have self-closing, self-latching doors! I sent word to Oasis, our homestudy adoption agency, so that they can notify the judge. Fingers crossed that they accept it! We used the Watchdog Latch(es) that we had bought (the ones that were hand delivered) and they were a pretty easy install and very easy to use. Conner is a bit confused as to why he can no longer operate the doors, but we'll all adapt soon :). Yeah for a simple solution!!

(A totally unrelated but funny picture ;))

Just the little blessing I needed tonight...

2011-07-21T22:43:00.000-07:00

We think we found the solution to our pool situation. As you know, we have a pool net, but the state will not approve us to adopt (except a child over 6) with the net. The law is written you have to have either a pool fence or self-closing, self-latching doors, so that is what is needed to adopt. Our doors are self-closing, but the previous owners did not put in a latch that meets city code, meaning one over 58 inches high (or something like that). If you have a sliding door, you can find about a million latches. It's not so easy, though, to find a latch that will work on the types of doors we have leading out back (double doors). David and I think we found the solution; latches sold at http://www.watchdoglatch.com/wdl.html.

We ordered the latches this afternoon, and I realized there was no way to choose a shipping method. We had planned to have them expedited so that we could get them on quickly and notify the judge so that she could continue with our paperwork. I had to pay through paypal, so I decided just to add a note that we needed them ASAP for our adoption approval and that we would be willing to pay for expedited shipping if we could get it.

Guess what came today? Yes, the SAME day we ordered it. Our latches. The company is apparently based in Tempe (which is about 40 minutes away from where we live) and they DROVE the latches to our house for us today. I am in awe and so touched that they would take time from their day to do that for us. Talk about AMAZING customer service!! With gas prices they way they are, there is no way it was cheaper for them to do that. They did it out of kindness, and it was just the blessing that I needed today. So, thank you, to the amazing latch man on the motorcycle. Your kindness brought tears to my eyes!

A Pool Fence Answer

2011-07-19T22:44:00.000-07:00

Well, it turns out we do need a pool fence. Though I know it's better to be overly-cautious, I am just bummed that we have to fix something not broken; something that takes a good chunk of money to fix! Statistically speaking, a pool net (which we have) is safer than a fence, but the law is written that we need a fence, and the judge is holding us to that. Bummer. And they won't approve us until we get it. Big bummer. Well, they WILL approve us, but only for a child over 6, and Ramya is only 4. The fact that she might very well be 6 by the time we get her home does not matter, as it goes by their current age. Sigh.

There is a glimmer of hope, though. IF we had self-latching, self-closing doors on all doors leading out to the pool area (3), then we would NOT need a fence. It just so turns out our doors are self-closing, so all we need to add is some sort of self-latching mechanism (that has to be up 5 feet or taller). We have calls in to some pool companies and have been searching the internet for an answer. We have found many latches for sliding doors, but we have double wooden doors. They have wood frames with glass panes in them. Our goal is to get this all taken care of by the beginning of next week, so that our adoption can proceed. If anyone out there knows of a product or has any ideas, please please send them our way!

(You can actually see our net in the pool in this picture. That's not typical... David was just lazy that day ;))

A very small and uneventful adoption update

2011-07-13T21:38:00.000-07:00

Today I talked to Oasis to check up on our home study approval through Arizona (there are only 2 states that require you to be approved in your state first for international adoption, and we live in one). They called the courts to check on it, and found out the court wrote them a letter requesting more information about our pool fence, and possibly other things but since Oasis hasn't gotten they letter yet, they aren't sure. We have a pool net, but the law is written that you need a pool fence, because it was written before nets came out. We have lots of reasons for using a pool net instead of a fence, so we wrote a letter to the courts asking them to approve our net since the goal is to have a safe pool, and we do. I'm really praying they will accept it, as the last thing I want to do is spend money on a fence we don't need, since we do have a safe pool. We'd appreciate your prayers in that as well.

On to happier news.....

My friend Stephanie that I used to teach with came by with a very special gift today. Before I tell you what it is, I'll tell you a fun story about Stephanie. She and I taught at Desert Horizon Elementary School and had a lot of fun being silly together. We would hide funny things in each other's rooms to find at random times. One time I stuck a huge wooden bird that was on a stick in her library center. Her kids loved him and they named him Diego. Last I talked to her, Diego still graced her with his presence. Anyhow, back to our special gift.... Stephanie made Ramya a quilt that matches the girl's room perfectly. It is absolutely beautiful and it's so nice to start collecting things for Ramya, as it makes it feel much more real. Thank you Stephanie (and Stephanie, if you are reading this, I forgot to ask you how Diego is doing ;))!!

I am no good at waiting

2011-07-05T23:46:00.000-07:00

When I started working at a daycare, I thought God was teaching me patience.

When I got married and all of a sudden life didn't revolve around me, I thought God was teaching me patience.

When I started teaching and had large class sizes in a Title 1 school where many kiddos didn't speak English as their native language (or at all yet), I thought God was teaching me patience.

When I had kids of my own, I thought God was teaching me patience.

When Madi was diagnosed in-utero with Spina Bifida and no one could answer my questions, other than to tell me we'd have to wait and see, I thought God was teaching me patience.

And now, as I sit here waiting for adoption approval, I can see that I really have not learned any patience at all. Maybe this is my time to learn.

Every day I rush to the mailbox to see if we have an approval letter. Every day, I am disappointed. Every day I have to resist the urge to call or e-mail our agencies about our paperwork and (hopefully) approval. The waiting game is really hard. I expected to wait after our approval, while things went to India to get approved, but I was really praying things would go faster here in the states. Wacap has had our paperwork since May, and still have not approved us. The state of Arizona has had it since May too, yet we are still not approved. I KNOW that all of this waiting is for a reason, even if I cannot see it, but man am I struggling! I know I should be enjoying the calm before the (paperwork) storm, but I'm not. I just want to know if that precious little girl that needs a home will be ours. I know it won't be easy to bring her home, but I know she will be a blessing (please remind me I said that when things get rough ;)).

So since I'm no good at waiting, will you please all join me in praying that we get approved here quickly? Ok, ok, I get it, I know I need to be patient.....

And let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we shall reap if we do not grow weary.

-Galatians 6:9