The story of our boy...

I have been meaning to sit down and write out the story of Dex’s birth for awhile, but I have been so busy starting a new at-home job and having a precious infant! But, here goes…

July 20- We pack the car to the brim and leave to head to Florida. Dex’s due date was July 21. We made it to our destination and settled in the hotel. We waited for word from our caseworker that our boy was on his way. That call didn’t come….

July 21- We hadn’t gotten a call by noon, so we decided to head into Orlando for a bit. We went to the Millennium mall and then decided to go to Downtown Disney- this momma knew that mouse ears would get our boy to come on out J On our way home from Orlando, our caseworker called. Our birthmom’s blood pressure was high so they were going to admit her and induce that night. Our caseworker also said that she wanted to meet us that night…And then came the butterflies and million questions- what if she didn’t like us, what if she changed her mind after she met us, etc. But we went to the hotel, freshened up and headed to the hospital. We were greeted by our caseworker and birthfather. I immediately felt at ease. He had kind eyes and greeted us with a hug. As we rode the elevator up to the 2^nd floor, all I kept thinking is that I was so close to my sweet boy. I was overwhelmed and tried not to cry as we walked into the room and I saw our birthmom and her big belly that had been my son’s home for 9 months. We visited for a bit and went back to the hotel after calling our families to tell them we would have a son tomorrow…or so we thought.

July 22- We woke up early, showered, ate and were at the hospital by 8 AM. When we got there we learned that labor was not progressing very quickly. We settled in to hang out and get to know our birthparents until Dex made his appearance. Bryan describes it bet when he says it was like we were in an episode of Seinfeld…We talked about “nothing” all day! They were a hoot to be around! By noon, she had still not progressed more than 1 cm. They started another drug to see if that would help. We talked and laughed more together. It was a sweet and strange time all at the same time. 2 more drugs later, we were still waiting. We went down to the closed cafeteria for dinner- we enjoyed the delicacies of pizza rolls, chips, reese’s and a sprite. I don’t think Bryan or I will ever forget that dinner. J When we got back it was time for the epidural! Finally! We were close! (this was 9 PM) Our birthmom went to sleep after the epidural, so we chatted quietly with our birthfather.

July 23- About 3:30 AM they came in and said- TIME TO PUSH!!!! At that moment I felt like I was going to faint, throw up and my heart was going to jump out of my chest! I was about to meet my boy! Our birthmom decided that she wanted both Bryan and I in the room when he was born. (Bryan stayed behind the closed curtain and gave a thumbs up every now and thenJ) I was right next to the birthmom, holding her hand- til it felt like it was breaking, and I began to feel faint. (I do not have a strong stomach) I moved behind the curtain to talk to Bryan for a second , and the nurse grabs my arm and said “look, he’s crowning, there is your baby!” I am not going to lie, I almost fainted. I was overjoyed to see my boys head, but not really ready for the “labor” I saw. Right at that moment they told her to stop pushing. I was not sure why, since he was already partially out. We had to waiting on a surgeon to come in…(more on that later) 2 more pushes and there was a little person wrapped in a towel being taken next store and we were following behind him…

We got to the other room, and I panicked immediately. My baby boy was blue and they were giving him oxygen- they said not to worry that he would be fine, but the cord had been wrapped around his neck twice. This is why they had to call in the surgeon. I am so thankful that he was ok! I know that could have been very serious! I watched them suction his nose and mouth and a little cry come out of him. I was standing there with my husband looking at our perfect, (and bruised) little boy. The wonderful nurses had cut the cord extra long, so that Bryan could cut the cord when we got into the other room. What a cool experience! We watched them do his Apgar test and check for the signs of Down’s Syndrome (I’ll get to that story later) The nurse handed me my son wrapped in a blanket, and I have never felt such joy and peace. I have never felt that way before. I was holding Declan Janek Noel. He was precious! Bryan held him next. I carried him down to the nursery where we said goodnight. I DID NOT LIKE LEAVING HIM! He had just met me. I wanted to spend every moment with him!! We called our families and went back to sleep for about an hour.

July 23 (later)- We were back at the hospital by 7 AM. We got there just in time for his feeding- which he did awesome at. (He is still a pro-eater) The hospital was so wonderful and gave us our own room so we could bond with him and take care of him. It was so surreal. We took a million pictures and prettymuch stared at him all day! We also went back and hung out with our birthparents a little more. They will always hold a special place in our hearts and we know that we would not have our precious boy without them!

That is the story of our little man’s birth! We were so blessed with amazing caseworkers, birthparents, hospital staff and doctors….

Oh yeah- the doctors! Let me back up to the first week of July- we received a call that our baby was measuring small and they believed he had Down’s Syndrome. Our birthmom decided to have an amnio 3 weeks from her due date to find out. Our agency told us to think about it and let them know what we decided- well, it really wasn’t an decision for us. We knew that this little man was our son no matter what. An old friend reminded me that God was not surprised and he gave us the special gift. We called the agency back and told them he was ours and we loved him. We never once were upset or sad. We see our son as perfect gift from God! He was ours before he was even conceived. But back to the doctors- when it was confirmed that he did have Down’s Syndrome- the pediatrician immediately did heart tests and other necessary tests. When we got to Jacksonville, we visited another pediatrician who specialized in DS. She had more tests run- and sent us to the best pediatric cardiologist  and ophthalmologist in Florida. And let me tell you- my boy is perfectly healthy!!!!!!! I have never felt so at peace and joyful- knowing that although my boy could have many health problems, the Lord allowed him to be perfectly healthy. I have not let one day go by that I don’t thank the Lord often for our son and his health. I am also thankful for the people he has placed in my life with knowledge and understanding for my many questions J

So that is our story….now, I will update this blog more to keep up with my boy!

it has been awhile but big things are happening!

Well, I realized that I have not written in almost 2 months! Here is a list to get you up to date quickly:
1. registered at babies r us the day our home study was completed
2. started working on grant and loan applications
3. continuing to work on fundraising (put June 18th on your calendar- it is our huge yard sale)
4. WE GOT MATCHED WITH A BABY BOY WHO IS DUE IN JULY!!!!
5. Things have been busy preparing and praying for things to work out...
6. Had my first baby shower from my Canton Elementary friends yesterday, and that was surreal!

I know this is a quick post and i promise to post again soon once school is done on Wednesday :)

Thankful Thursday

 

This is what I am thankful for today:

OUR HOME STUDY IS COMPLETE AND SIGNED!!!!!

Thankful that this was such a great, and easy process! So thankful that we also had Cheri Denmon to help us complete it! So glad she was a part of our story!!!

Happy Thursday, y'all!!!

Thankful Thursday

Wow, I can't believe that it has been a week since I posted last! Time is flying!

This week's Thankful Thursday is about one of the fundraisers we had this weekend. One of my sister's best friends is a consultant for thirty-one. She offered to have a party for me in which a portion of the proceeds go toward our adoption. She set it up so people could order online, and I had a party at my mom's house.

I am so thankful for all of the supporters who bought online or at the party in order to help us raise the funds we need to adopt our baby! It was a big party and I was also blessed to get lots of free goodies for baby! (I will post a picture when it comes in :))

To top off today's thankful Thursday, I will leave you with a few pictures of the party!

I am so thankful!

Until next time,

       ~Elizabeth

Oh yeah- and Kasey is leaving the party open the whole month of April, if you would still like to order!!! Visit her site- www.mythirtyone.com/kaseybaxter

 The pretty food table- all pink and blue!

 Looking at all the thirty-one goodies

 My mom had the party at her house- so sweet!

 Our thirty-one consultant, Kasey and my big sis!

Thankful Thursday...

I have several friends who do thankful Thursday and wordless Wednesday- I am going to try to keep up with these. I feel that I have so many things to be thankful for right now, and I always love a good picture (for wordless Wednesday) So here are 5 things I am thankful for today:

1. My student teacher this semester, which has left me much time to work on adoption applications, grant applications, etc. The Lord knew I needed help this semester

2. My husband's help. Just about every day I send Bryan an email with at least 5 things I need him to do that day...even though he is so busy with his new job, he always gets things done to help me out. Don't know what I would do without him!

3. Friends who generously give. As of last Saturday we are halfway to our first $10,000 mark! This is from our support letters we sent out and the premier jewelry fundraiser that my friend Emily did for me. I see people giving so generously and it makes me want to give to others the same selfless way. Bryan and I have been so blessed with so many people who want to be a part of our story.

4. Speaking of funds, it is amazing the people who want to help and have great ideas for fundraisers! People have come out of the woodwork and offered to do different fundraisers for us. Stay tuned to the blog for what is coming up!!!!

5. I am so very thankful to friends who send me messages or notes on a daily basis. Some of them I do not even know very well, but they are always so encouraging and it is a blessing to know that so many people are praying for us and our little one.

I am one thankful girl!

Happy Thursday!!!

~Elizabeth

Can't pass up a good deal...or cute baby clothes!

I know what you are thinking when you look at this picture…



No, we have not been matched, and no we do not know what we are having, but I want to be prepared! I have now become a goodwill baby clothes junkie. I mean I bought all this over February break, and I probably put back 50 more things that I did not buy L. It is all gender neutral, so no matter whether we have a boy or girl they can wear the clothes (except for the cute pink ruffled rosebud outfit, but that was too stinkin cute to pass up! ) It is amazing the treasures I found and they all look practically new. I am loving being able to shop for baby clothes now! For so long I made myself stay out of the baby department and now I spend as much time as I can there looking at clothes that our sweet little one will wear one day!



I have also discovered a love for consignment sales. A few weeks ago my mom and I went to a few consignment sales around her house and mine, and let me just say...I will be going to consignment sales from now on! It is amazing what amazing treasures I found that we will need. Again, I went a little overboard on the girl clothes, but they are so cute...and if figured if we don't have a girl then one of my two pregnant friends might...I didn't buy as many clothes at the sales, mainly sheets, towels, a great boppy pillow, lap pads, washcloths, etc. Thankful that my momma went with me to help me find practical things we would need!



This last picture fits right in with all the clothes pictures. This was my valentines present from my parents. The yellow blanket my mom crocheted. It is the perfect size to snuggle a newborn in :-) She also bought two cute outfits with socks one for a boy says Romeo in traing (Bryan loved this one), the little girl outfit has pink and polka dots (these are two of my favorite things) I think Mim is ready to spoil a new grandbaby!

We are going to have one well dressed little one!

Until next time,

Elizabeth

Why "even the sparrow"?

You may be wondering why we chose "even the sparrow" as our blog title...

We were trying to come up with something cooler than- the noel's adoption blog or something. Since I love birds, I began to look for things having to do with birds. I came up Psalm 84:3 which says:

Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young- a place near your altar, Lord Almighty, my God and King.

This really spoke to me because our little one will be finding a home with us, and I also idenitifed with the swallow since she finds a place to build her nest for her young. We kindof adopted the phrase "even the sparrow" when we talk about our little one.

Can't wait to meet our little one!

IT IS WORTH IT ALL!

As I am writing this, my eyes are blurry from looking at Adoption Agency applications all day! I think I may start reciting my name, social security number, and hair color in my sleep.

I want to start at the beginning though…We began the adoption “process” in August when we met with Christian Adoption Consultants. Check them out here. It is a cool story of how we found them , I actually taught their daughter last year in my kindergarten class. I know that this is no coincidence. We met with them in August to get a little direction, because the whole process is quite overwhelming to a newbie!They told us that the first step was to complete a home study.

A home study is when you meet with a social worker, get background checks, references, and other documents to be approved to adopt in the state of Georgia. The state requires 3 visits, and we have completed 2 already. The second visit she came to our home. We have really enjoyed getting to know Cheri with Hope For Adoption. Check her site out here. There has been a lot of waiting during this homestudy…waiting for birth certificates to come in, waiting for FBI prints, waiting at the doctor’s office for a physical, but overall this has been a fairly quick process. We are waiting for a few more things, but as soon as they come in we can have our final meeting!!!!

After the home study is complete we are going to send out applications, our profiles and our homestudy to multiple agencies. That is what I have been working on today is getting applications done, so that as soon as our home study is in our hands we can send applications out and wait to be matched with our special little one!

So, it is back to the applications for me…

But like our consultant, Amy said, you labor for the baby in one way or another- and we are laboring through piles of paperwork right now, It will all be worth it when I see that little face!!!!

From the beginning

What an incredible beginning to 2011. My wife and I are experiencing some incredible life changes.

First, lets talk about our adoption. My wife and I decided when we were first married that we would adopt eventually in our marriage. So this year is the year. It is somewhat overwhelming and pages and pages of paper work, but every second is worth it. From going to the jail and getting our finger prints to yard sale fund raising, it will be an awesome journey.

Second, I have been compelled to work with Parable Creative, a Creative Agency helping Non Profits tell their story. I started the first week of February. I worked with a great company CCL Associates, a real estate and development company who worked primarily on large church planning and construction project, and now through Parable Creative, we are able to preform all the creative elements CCL needs.

My life at Parable. I am the Director of Operations, which is a title that means, Parable is growing so fast, we need someone to help manage all the projects, influence client leads / prospects, and hold accountable the vision of Parable products.

We have worked on some powerful projects as we try to help Non Profits tell their story.

My wife and I are so thrilled to share this journey together. Changing everything is not easy, but passion and calling always seems to provide what it takes!