Tractors and Toilet Paper

Kaden got to ride in the tractor with Daddy today. He loves to do that and once Ryan begins full-time at the phone company he won't get as many chances. So, I plan to let him ride with Ryan as much as he wants during the upcoming harvest!

As we were in the van and leaving town to go out to the farm, I noticed something blowing in the wind down the street near my parents' house. So, we drove past there to investigate. It turns out they were TP'd! Since we live in a college town and Dad works there, this happens at least once a year.

So, I parked the car and pointed it out to Kaden. Then we had the following conversation:

Me: "Kaden, what's that in Grandpa & Grandma's trees?"
K: "I don't know."
Me: "It's toilet paper."
K: "Ewwww.......that's nasty! Toilet paper goes in the potty, not trees!"

In his cute toddler voice, it sounded more like, "Ewwww.....dat's naseee! Toewet papuh goez in da poddy, nawht twees!"

Most kids would say "gross" or "icky". But, I do tend to use the word "nasty" quite often and so does Ryan, so I know Kaden picked it up from us. He has quite the vocabulary!

More Kaden Funnies

Kaden has picked up on some things from Ryan. They, luckily, are good things and a credit to his character. Ryan is always very complimentary of me and often tells me how nice I look or how much he likes what I am wearing. So, every morning now Kaden compliments me on my appearance.

Now here's the funny part! Kaden is too young yet to know what is appropriate to comment on and what is not! Here's what he had to say today as I was getting dressed:

"Mommy, I like your green bra. It's very pretty."
(Yes, I have a green bra.)

And as we put clothes in the dryer later today:

"Is this your yellow underwear Mommy? I like it a lot!"
Then he proceeded to put it on his head and shout "Underwear, underwear, underwear!"

Oh my! He does compliment me on my outwear as well, so that's a relief. He's also picked up on other things from Ryan too. Ryan rarely calls me by my name. He usually refers to me as "Hon", "Babe", or "Funny Bunny". So, I'll give you three guesses what Kaden's been calling me lately!

"Can I have a snack hon?"
"Thanks for getting my teddy bear babe."
"Funny Bunny! Funny Bunny! I need my sippy cup."

Usually when he does this I just look around as if trying to find another person in the room and then ask, "Who are you talking to?" Then he smiles and says, "Mommy! I mean Mommy!"

Finally, he has listened in on enough of our conversations to have figured out that we have other names that other people call us. The other day Ryan and I were having a conversation and apparently Kaden didn't feel we were giving him enough attention. He yelled at us, "Hey! Ryan and Tricia!"

We have quite the precocious 2-year-old!

Our part's done!

We received our homestudy packet yesterday. Since we've done this before, I knew exactly what would be in it and had prepared as much ahead of time as I could. So, this morning, I sent it all back to her. That means everything we can do to be ready for the homestudy has been done (paperwork wise). Now we'll just be waiting on our references to get in and the KBI & SRS background checks. Once those have been received they will invoice us and schedule a date for the homestudy. I really hope it can be done soon. I hate waiting!

But, while we wait, we have a lot of housework to do. They don't like to see any peeling paint or any type of remodeling at all. We have to have a "safe" environment for the children. So, since our house is very old, we have a lot of work to do to get it up to snuff. It's amazing how much it has deteriorated just in the past 3 years since Kaden's homestudy. There was no peeling paint back then.

Anyway, things are progressing. The case worker has recommended that we go ahead and put in our waiting child application too. I was going to wait until our homestudy was complete, but she said the wait list is long enough that it would be better to get on now. The chances of us getting a referral before the homestudy is complete is very unlikely. So, we might as well have our names in the queue so that when it is ready, so are we!

I think we are going to be launching a fundraiser soon. The homestudy fee and I-600A fee (which is filed with the homestudy) have both gone up significantly since Kaden's process. It will be $3,000 total. So, we are going to distribute baby bottles at church and ask people to fill it up with change for us. Every little bit will help. I'm trying not to freak out ahead of time about the $20,000 bill that we'll get with the referral. God will figure it all out, but it sure is daunting.

Adoption Update

Well, it's been 2 weeks now since we submitted our application for baby #2. Time is already going quickly! We still haven't received our homestudy packet, but there was a message on our answering machine earlier from the case worker. So, I'm guessing she was calling to let us know it's on the way.

We missed her call because we had full morning. We left home at 7:45 and drove to the police station where we were fingerprinted. After that, I had a doctor's appointment while Ryan had a dentist appointment. Then we switched and I went to the dentist while he went to the doctor. Finally, be both had HIV and tuberculosis tests. So, at least we got several steps of the homestudy done and out of the way without even having the packet yet!

When we do receive the packet we will be faced with a mountain of paperwork. The fingerprint cards will need to be sent to the KBI along with payment to have background checks run. We will also have to send a form to SRS with payment to be cleared with them as well. Then there's the ever-so-fun 16 page questionarie full of personal questions to complete. Add to that a full financial worksheet/statement, employment verifications, certified copies of birth and marriage certificates, and you pretty much have our entire life on paper! After Holt receives all of this plus our medical reports from today and our personal references, we will be able to proceed with the actual homestudy. Oh, and don't forget the payment for that! They won't schedule the homestudy until that hefty check has been sent.

We would appreciate your prayers as we continue to jump over the hurdles that are adoption. If the above list sounded bad, wait until you hear about the I-600A, I-600, FBI fingerprinting/background checks, I-864, etc., etc. When we do finally get a referral and accept, we have about 16 documents that have to be signed and notarized in QUADRUPLICATE!!!

But, all the hoops are worth it. We are very excited to be on this journey for a second time. Kaden is such a blessing and we know God has big things in store for us with baby #2. I saw a T-Shirt the online that I would like to save up to buy (it's $29.50 which is a bit pricey to me). But, I love what it says:

WARNING!

I am in love with a child I haven't met yet.

I am in the process of adoption.

I am subject to cry at any moment.

Please bear with me until my referral comes.

EDIT: The case worker just called back. She is going to send me everything she can electronically so we can get the ball rolling. The added benefit to this method is that I can just fill everything in on the computer and e-mail the documents back. It saves postage! The other great news is that we don't have to do the full 16-page questionnaire again. She said to simply update any information that needs updated and leave the rest blank. They asked a lot of questions about our childhood, how we met, etc. Since all that information stays the same, we don't have to fill it all out again. Hooray!

Gotcha Day #2

Can you believe Kaden has been home for 2 years already?  I'll never forget that monumental day 2 years ago.  I was so excited and nervous about meeting my baby boy for the first time.  I could have never imagined the joy and happiness that lay ahead for me!

We had a great time celebrating with Kaden.  We took him to the zoo and then let him choose where we ate lunch.  Of course, he chose McDonald's!  Then we did some shopping and met my parents for dinner.  Kaden got presents and got to eat pizza.  I think he'd agree it was a great day!

We also told Kaden his Gotcha Day story.  He grinned ear to ear as we told him how excited we were to meet him and how it was the best day of our lives.  He is very proud of his story and I hope he always will be.  We love you sweet boy!

Here's some pictures of our special day:

From the mouths of babes......

Today Kaden and I cleaned up his play room.  It was so cluttered, no "playing" could actually occur because there was no floor space!  Anyway, once it was cleaned up he was delighted to realize he could now use his Sit 'N Spin because he had plenty of room. 

He was spinning along, having a great 'ole time, and then asked me if I'd like to try it.  I told him it was very nice of him to offer but that my booty was too big.  He got up, came over to me, and said, "Let me see."  He then stared at my rear for awhile and exclaimed, "Yep.  It's big alright!"

What's in a nickname?

I'm not even sure how it happened, but when Ryan and I started dating, we began to refer to each other as Funny Bunny (me) and Silly Goose (him).  When Kaden came home, we called him many different nicknames.  He was Wiggle Worm, Cranky Pants, Smiley Boy, Pumpkin Head, and many others. Nothing seemed to "stick" until we came across Buddy Bear.  Now he'll even tell you that he's Buddy Bear!

So, all of our nicknames are animals.  The other day, we were trying our hardest to come up with a nickname for our next child.  We couldn't seem to come up with anything, at least not animal related.  But today, the inspiration came!  Ryan said, "You'd better write the story of how this name came about now before you forget it."  So here I am, blogging the story.

Kaden and Ryan were playing a game.  Kaden would cover himself up in his blanket and then Ryan would say, "I wonder what's under that blanket?  Is it a cow?"  Kaden would respond by making the sound of the animal just mentioned.  Then Ryan would run through a list of types of that animal.  "Is it a Jersey cow?  Is it an Angus?  No! (he lifts the blanket) It's a Kaden cow!"  Then they'd both giggled and the game would begin again.

Well, as Ryan was listing different types of sheep, he said, "Is it a little lamb?"  For some reason, that just struck me!  It was like a light bulb came on over my head.  Little lamb!  That's it!  That's our little girl's nickname.

So, Little Lamb, Mommy, Daddy, & Brother are excited to be starting the journey to you!

It's Official!

I submitted our online application with Holt International this morning. They will send us an adoption agreement that must be signed and notarized and then we should recieve our approval and homestudy packet! My goal is to have our homestudy completed and sent to Korea by the end of the year. Then we will officially apply with the Waiting Child program to request a girl. After that, it's anybody's guess. We could get a referral within a few weeks, or it could take over a year. But, hopefully by the end of 2009 we will have a daughter!

Kaden's 2 year-old pictures

Although they're 3 months late, we finally got around to having Kaden's 2-year-old portraits taken. We tried JC Penney's this time around because Portrait Innovations is closed on Mondays and we were trying to fit a photo shoot in with a doctor's appointment, so the day wasn't movable.

At PI, they taken about 60 photos for you to choose from. JCP only took a total of 17! But, all 17 turned out really great. Kaden was a perfect angel for the session. The photographer said she was the best 2-year-old she'd ever had. He followed every single one of her directions and even posed himself for several shots!

But, unlike PI, JCP is not very affordable. So, I was only able to get the advertised portrait package and could only choose one photo. Since I was going for "look who's 2", I chose the best one of him with the present and #2 cake. I really liked the one of him with his elbow on his knee too. It was so hard to decide.

Another disappointing thing about JCP is that the online viewing for the pictures is very, very small. It's really hard to see the pictures and you can't enlarge them at all. Plus, you have to enter your full name to get into the site. That's not exactly something I want to post here on the internet for the world to see. So, rather than giving you the link to the site, I have created a collage out of my favorites of the 17 poses. Sorry they are so small!

In regards to my last post, nothing definitive has been decided. I'm just holding on for now. After Ryan is full-time at the telephone company and we've had a chance to figure out the new insurance, we will re-evaluate. I have another appointment with the doctor on Nov. 9. Hopefully she can answer a lot of my questions about the hysterectomy at that time. I'm also hoping that the new insurance will cover a visit to a endometriosis specialist in Nebraska. I guess only time will tell.

Major Life Changes Ahead

I am 32. At least, I think I am. Anymore, it's hard to tell. I feel like an old, old woman. I have some major decisions to make that I don't think anyone at my age should have to face.

What am I talking about? The big "H" word. Hysterectomy. My endometriosis has been getting very, very bad again. I had laproscopic surgery 4 years ago and the pain subsided for awhile. The doctor is now tellingme that doing another lap would be a waste of money, my time, and her time. So, here are my options:

• Do Nothing. Keep living with the pain for now. Revisit options 2 & 3 at a later date.
• Take Lupron. This is a highly controversial drug that would throw me into early menopause. While it would help the pain, it has many negative side effects and is still just a temporary fix.
• Hysterectomy. This would stop the endometriosis and could possibly help the IC as well. But, I would have to take measures to prevent premature aging, loss of bone density, and to maintain hormonal balance. There's also a higher risk of cancer and heart disease and if I do take HRT, the endo on my intestines will still grow. Plus, it takes away any hope of ever having a biological child. I don't really have any false hopes of ever conceiving, but it is a loss I'll have to grieve.

After doing a lot of research on Lupron and talking to people who have taken it, I think I would honestly just rather do the hyst and get it over with. So then the biggest issue is timing. If I were to have it done now, before October 1, the surgery would be free. We've already met our deductible for this year because of Ryan's broken hand. But, the timing is bad. I am teaching a class and would not be able to miss several weeks in a row. Ryan will be in harvest in September and then he starts a new job. Mom is saving her days off for when my sister's baby is born. So while we could probably find people to care for Kaden, who would take care of me? Or, should I wait and keep muddling through until I'm 40 and then not worry about HRT?

I am overwhelmed by this all and would really appreciate prayer. I want to have God's peace and a clear sense of discernment regarding this decision. I want to be sure that whatever course I choose, I will have no regrets and will be able to see that God's hand led me to that decision. Right now, everything is very unclear. I feel as though I am in a dark, locked room and am groping for the light switch.

On Friday, Ryan and I will have been married 10 years. Can you believe it? When I look back on my wedding day, I realize that I could have never imagined the road that life would take us on. As a idealistic bride, it never occurred to me that I wouldn't be able to have a baby or that I would be facing a huge life changing decision like this one at age 32. I am very glad that infertility led us to Kaden, but the medical side of it has become more than I can bear.

So, please pray, pray, pray!

Exciting News!

I've lost 10 lbs.!!!! Yeah!!!! My pants are literally starting to fall off of me and I couldn't be happier. I just started this diet, actually more of a lifestyle change, just 3 weeks ago. Seeing the change in how my clothing fits has definitely motivated me to keep it up. I know that the first 10 lbs. are always the easiest to lose and then it gets harder from there. I'd ideally like to lose another 20, so I've got a ways to go.

More Kaden Funnies

Kaden is talking more and more these days and starting to get really good at formulating sentences and complete thoughts. But, the English language can still be a bit confusing at times. Here's a couple of examples!

We were having a discussion one morning and he told me something that I knew could not possibly be true. So I asked him, "Are you lyin' to me?" His response: "Roar"! I guess I just have to ask him if he's telling me the truth next time and leave the King of the Jungle out of it!

A couple of days ago Kaden couldn't find a toy he was looking for. He told me he didn't know where it was and I told him I didn't know either. He looked at me funny and asked, "Eyeore?" I guess he wondered what Pooh's donkey friend had to do with it! How exactly do you explain the word "either" to a 2-year-old?

He has me laughing a lot these days. I know there's been other funnies this past week, but I think my brain is fried or something. I can't remember what I did 2 hours ago, let alone remember all the things Kaden has said. I need to keep a notepad with me at all times so I can jot these things down as they happen!

Bad Blogger

I can't seem to keep up with my blog anymore. But, I'm excited to announce that I have lost 6 lbs. since my last post! Apparently the diet is working for both health and weight. Seeing the numbers on the scale gave me the encouragement I needed to keep going strong. No sugar for me!

It's amazing to me how observant Kaden is. He picks up on things a little too well sometimes. Today we were playing with his "Rescue Heroes" (a set of wooden figurines). I was playing the part of the stuffed bunny rabbit who was asking the Rescue Heroes about their jobs. Kaden was having fun and I thought it was a good way to teach him about different jobs. For example, I had the bunny ask the Fireman, "How do you put out fires?" Kaden didn't know at first, but after playing this scenario several times, he knew to answer, "I put water on it!"

So, we were playing with each of the Rescue Heroes and finally got to the Policman. I had the bunny say, "Thank Mr. Policeman for keeping us safe. I'm glad you put the bad guys who are naughty in jail so they can get better." Kaden then put down the policman and said, "Yeah. Uncle Tim is naughty. He's in jail, but he can get out when he decides to be good again." We really haven't talked directly to Kaden about this situation. I thought that he just knew that Uncle Tim went "bye, bye". He definitely listens to everything we say, even when we are not talking to him, and analyzes it all. So, if you have a toddler, beware! Little ears are listening!

Not much to post

There isn't too much going on around here. I've started a new diet. It's more of a "get healthy" diet as opposed to a "lose weight" diet, but I'm hopeful that it will actually do both. I am cutting out sugar entirely. I did this once before about 6 years ago and actually lost 30 lbs. and felt great, but eventually my willpower collapsed (it's not a temporary diet, but a total lifestyle change) and I started adding sugar back in. So, now I've gained all that back plus some.

It's going to be even harder this time around. When I was on the diet before, I could at least indulge in sugar free snacks. Sugar free jello, pudding, etc. really don't taste too bad. But, thanks to my interstitial cystitis, I can no longer have anything that contains aspartame. Well, I can, if I want my bladder to feel like it's on fire and have to go to the bathroom every 15 minutes! So, in order to protect my sanity, I can't have anything sugar free either.

Where does that leave me? I'm pretty much eating meats and vegetables. I think I'll need to start taking a calcium pill, because I can't drink milk anymore (lactose is a sugar) and soy milk is on the IC no-no list. Maybe I'll try rice milk. Anyone know if that's decent?

Anyway, enough about my depressing new eating habits. In other news, I am filling in as the church secretary this week. I've really been enjoying it. As much as I love and adore Kaden, I've really enjoyed spending my mornings around adults and doing work that doesn't involve putting accessories on potato heads. Kaden's been loving his break from me too because Uncle Buh is watching him when I go to work. We all know how much he adores his Uncle Buh!

I guess that's about it. I told you there wasn't anything exciting to report! Kaden continues to grow and his vocabulary and speech clarity continue to grow as well. Unfortunately, his attitude has also been growing a bit, but I guess that's to be expected for a 2-year-old!

Happy 4th of July!

This was Kaden's first year to experience fireworks.  He really, really enjoyed them!  I think he's going to be a pyromaniac like his father.  I will eventually get more photos posted to DropShots, but for now, here's a cute one of Kaden with the flag.  Happy 4th!

Two Years Ago Today

Two years ago today, we saw our sweet boys face for the first time. It was such an amazing day! To recall Kaden's referral, you can watch the video of us seeing his picture for the first time on DropShots.

I can't believe how much our lives have changed since the day of Kaden's referral. He has brought us so much joy. It's been so fun to watch him grow and learn new things. We love him so much.

Happy 2nd Referral Day Kaden!!!!

New Cute Kaden Sayings

Kaden has been extra sweet lately. I am so proud of our caring, compassionate boy. The other day, I took a little too big of drink and it caused me to cough and catch my breath. We were in the car at the time and I heard a little voice from the back seat ask, "Are you okay Mommy?" It melted my heart!

Then yesterday, I was opening a Handi Snack (you know, the crackers you dip in cheese) for Kaden's snack. I pulled back on the wrapper a little too hard and the crackers went flying everywhere. As I was profusely apologizing to Kaden, he began to pick up the spilt crackers and reassured me, "It's okay Mommy. It was an accident."

Finally, I always get nervous when Kaden climbs on things. The other day, Naboo decided to climb up our screen door. Of course, I yelled at the cat and said, "No Naboo! Get down." Kaden, however, had a different approach. He went over to Naboo (still hanging on the screen), gently petted him and said, "Be careful Naboo. You could get hurt." Awww.........

Watch our video!

Okay, so it's not really "our" video, but I found a link to the Stephen Curtis Chapman video of "When Love Takes You In" that features clips of adoptive families, including US! No, I did not make this video! It was made by SC2's people and he shows it at his concerts. You can watch the video by clicking on the picture in my sidebar to the right. We're about halfway into it.

Speaking of SC2, please continue to pray for him and his family. They lost their youngest daughter, Maria, in tragic accident last week. My heart goes out to them.

I WON!

A few months ago, Digital Srapbooking Magazine ran a contest. They were having their own digital scrapbook "awards". You could submit a layout for best comedy, romance, documentary, etc. I asked Debby & Ferrell Allison if they would mind if I submitted my "Greensburg Tornado" page. The page prodominently features a picture of their destroyed home, so I didn't want to enter it in a contest without them knowing.

Well, guess what? I won the "Best Documentary" category! Here's a picture of the prize package I received:


There are 3 Digital Scrapbook Memories C.D.s (these contain digiscrap kits!), 1 Scrapbook Max C.D. (more kits!), a photo album, and a perfect printing pouch. I'm also getting some scrapbook actions and prints from Shutterfly. Yahoo!

The letter that was enclosed in my prize package said that they aren't sure yet whether or not they will print the winning pages in the magazine or not. But, they will at least list the winners. I'm excited either way!

BTW, here's the winning page:

The ZOO!!!

Yesterday, the whole family took Kaden to the zoo. We met up with some friends there and had a great time seeing all the animals. It had been almost a year since we had last taken Kaden. He was a little too young then to really "get" it. But this time, he had a blast! It was so cute to see him point at the animals and say their name or the sound that they make. His favorite thing by far was the gorillas. I think he would have stayed and watched them all day if we'd let him.

Here's some pictures! You can click on them to see them full screen.

Kaden pointing to the baboons:

Getting a better view of the zebra:

Here's all the kids:

As always, just pop on over to DropShots to see a LOT more pictures and video clips!