The Waring's Journey: December 2009

Saturday, December 26, 2009

Snowed In For Christmas

Merry Christmas

Everyone!!!

We've had a pretty busy few weeks around here.

Lots of visits and visiting with friends and family.

We spent a great evening with Bailey's birthfather's family. They came sporting yummy pizza, and gifts for the kido's. The girls introduced their family to the joys of an Ipod Touch. Will and Shay were quickly sucked in and it was so funny to watch them play.

Shay was trying to conquer the water slide game and her poor girl kept screaming as she'd fall off of the slide. Too Funny!

Madison and her Mommy :))

The kids all opened their gifts from each other

Levi was given these 100 balls and a wonderful drum set. You should have seen our house there were balls EVERYWHERE and we are STILL enjoying such lovely sounding music!!

Thanks Will! LOL

We had a blast with our Shotton Family ( you guys are great!) and can't wait to see them again.

Love you!

Christmas Morning...

My parents arrived early and snuggled in our recliners until the coffee was ready. Dad wasn't feeling well but still got up and cooked everyone yummy pancakes, bacon and OJ for breakfast. Grandma gave Levi a new card game and taught him how to play. We've been playing ever since. :)) Watching him play is just too cute. I thought I'd share some pictures.

Thanks Grandma!!

After breakfast the crew showed up. Gabby, Reiko, Heidern, Pollo, and Juani.

(Levi's birthmother and family)

They came despite the fact that it was snowing like crazy out and had been all night long. The streets were not plowed and everyone was getting stuck. They made it all the way until they got to our street and we had to park their car and go get them in our van.

We opened gifts, ate a tasty meal together, and played games for most of the day. This was the first time that my parents were able to meet Gabby and the guys and that made my heart happy. Anytime I can enjoy my family along with my birthfamilies it's AWESOME to my heart!

Thanks Dad and Mom for being here with us. :))

This was Heidern's first Christmas and he seemed to already get the concept of gift opening. LOL

Heidern (our Grandbaby) snuggling with his Grandpa.
Everyone just passes him around and it's pretty special when you get him for any length of time alone.

Our family loves to play card games and it didn't take long before we had everyone hooked as well.

Levi did not always understand the concept that it wasn't his turn. LOL

We played games for most of the day and into the night. Before we knew it, the snow was way too deep for anyone to get out and our Christmas turned into one big slumber party. Our kids slept in Bailey's room, Reiko and Gabby got the hid-a-bed, Heidern slept with us and Pollo and Juani slept in the bedroom downstairs. Fortunately, my parents left for home before it became impossible to leave.

Breakfast the next morning was biscuits and gravy.

The snowplows did finally make it down our street and everyone (but me and Heidern) went out to help shovel the driveway and play in the snow.

Reiko and Levi playing in the snow

It was awesome to have so much help shoveling.

Levi and his icicle

Reiko showing Levi how to use the snowboard down the driveway.
She too funny!

All in all, we had a wonderful time. I think we might make it tradition to keep everyone overnight for Christmas. It sure made a memory for us to wake and have breakfast together.

There's just nothing like waking to the smell of fresh coffee, and yummy food amongst loved ones.

God is Good!

Friday, December 11, 2009

Addi's 11th Birthday :))

Last night was Addison's 11th Birthday slumber party. She was pretty excited to get her Ipod touch. Now, she won't have to bug her sister to play on hers. Kids started arriving after school and played and watched fun movies until 11:00 pm when we made them all load up in their pj's for a late night run to Dunkin Donuts.

Levi

Grandpa decided to take a quick little nap and Bob decided he'd join him. LOL

I tried to tell Bob to get down and leave Grandpa alone but I think the love between them is mutual because Grandpa said he could stay.
Just look at that face...He knows he's getting away with something.
Hahaha

The ladies from our church surprised Addi by decorating a table with cookies, donuts, and hot cocoa. When we arrived they jumped out shouting

SURPRISE!

How's this for a cake? LOL

These ladies are AMAZING!

Mayshell did so many of the behind the scene things for Addison's party.

She is such a Blessing!

Kathryn, Bailey, and Tyler

Here is a snapshot of some of the birth sibs with our kido's

Love this of Kathryn and Bailey

Levi being Mr. Funny!

Bailey and my friend Megan

Here's one of me being silly with Michelle and Bailey

Me and my Bails

We had a wonderful time and it was a blast to do it so late at night. I'm sure Addison will remember this birthday party for years to come.

God is good...

Our Hope To Adopt Embryos

Hi, my name is Tracy and here is our story,

My husband, Richard, and I have been happily married for 21 years. Early on in our marriage, we were diagnosed with complete male factor infertility. We have been blessed with three beautiful children through separate open adoptions. Bailey, now 17, was born during the time of our lives when my husband and I were grieving the loss of our only pregnancy from donor insemination. She was born when our baby would have been. Her birth was like a healing salve to our hurting hearts. Once we discovered that the Lord could fill our aching arms with such delight through adoption, we began to pray for the Lord to bring us another child.

We hoped and prayed for 6 years when Addison was born. She is now 11. In the time of waiting until the Lord brought our second child into our lives, He did an amazing work upon our heart towards opening our relationship up with Bailey's birthmother. We started out slow and before we knew it, she was a full active part of our family. Today, she is my best friend and we share many of our life experiences together. When Addison came into our lives, her birthparents were already friends that we had known for some time and loved dearly. Keeping the doors of our relationship open throughout her adoption was easy and our hearts today love them with even a greater love than ever before.

Levi is 3 and we just had his birthday party with many friends, our family and his birthmother and her family also. Reiko, his birthmother feels like a daughter to us and her presence in our family is wonderful. She has recently birthed another son named Heidern (pronounced Heiden), that we consider our grandson even though he is Levi's 1/2 brother.

We love all of our birth families very much and have contact with them on a regular basis. We have five birth families for our three children. Keeping everyone up to date with all that goes on in our family is much easier done with updates on our family blog.

For me, the road to motherhood for the past 21 years seemed only possible through domestic adoption. Now that the Lord has opened my eyes to embryo adoption, the longing to birth is again revived and stirred within me. The thought that there might be a way to hold a child of mine without traveling through the pain of another person, is something I look forward to. I love my children so dearly but I also know that their birth parents felt deep sorrow during my greatest time of joy (their birth). That realization is so hard on my heart because of the love I hold for them.

As a profession, I am a labor doula. I watch families birth without sorrow and it is so different than what I've witnessed with the births of my children. I pray that the Lord will allow me to experience this side of motherhood and to have joy without sorrow as our sweet new baby/babies come into our lives. We are praying that the gift of someone's embryos would be this for us.

We are so excited to meet and get to know the family of the embryos and make them a part of our family. We promise to love and cherish the children that come from them and the door to our hearts and home will always be open for you to get to know the children born. Honestly, there is nothing more precious to us than the lives of our children and the hope of the children to come.

We will continue to pray for this dream to come true and place our hope and trust upon the Lord to continue to build our family. We know that in His perfect timing He will bring us our precious little embryos, and bond us to (hopefully) you , a beautiful genetic family.

I have a life verse that has encouraged me throughout our journey.

1 Peter 5:10

But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.

Waiting for the joy set before us,

Richard and Tracy Waring.