Christmas

Christmas was absolutely magical this year. We had so much fun with Jocelyn and she was so excited about every aspect of the season. Christmas is my favorite time of the year, I love all the togetherness, the family gatherings, the decorations and lights - I wish the spirit of Christmas was truly with us all year long and I have promised myself to try to keep the spirit going as much as possible.

Some December highlights: (my apologies I can not figure out how to format all this stuff!)

* My grandparents came to visit for a week and it was wonderful to have four generations together

* Sledding!

* Jocelyn loved the Zhu Zhu pet she got

* *Jocelyn's school program

* She loves to dress up like a princess :)

* In front of Aunt Heidi's tree

* Gingerbread train

*Jocelyn singing in the Christmas Pageant at church

* Festival of Trees

* Zoolights
* having Jocelyn pick out gifts for the Angel Tree

* The end of my first trimester!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Katriel

Katriel was finally able to go live with his Dad on November 30. We felt so bad for his Father who had been trying to get custody of Katriel since his Mother died. Because they were not married they had to establish paternity etc., the court dates kept getting continued and the state seemed to be taking its sweet time accomplishing what needed to be done. It was nice to see a happy ending that we actually agreed with.

Since we are expecting our second baby in June of 2011 (woohoo!) we will most likely not have any more babies come stay with us. The state requires us to have another bedroom if we have 3 kids in our home so until we are able to finish our basement our adventures in fostering will have to be put on hold.

Dance Class

Jocelyn started a tap/ballet class this month and loves it! The class started the end of September so she has some catching up to do but she is enjoying every minute of it! She is the youngest but that doesn't seem to bother her at all. I am so excited for the recital they will put on this spring!

Baby Catrell and Ellie's Birthday

Jocelyn went to Ellie's 4th birthday party on Saturday. It was a fabulous princess party and Jocelyn was so excited about it!

On our way home we received a call from DCFS asking if we could take a 13 day old little boy. His name is Catrell, his mother died Friday night from heart problems although she was living a rehabilitation center with him it was not drug related. He is a tiny little thing, born 3 weeks early. We most likely will not have him very long, he has older siblings that were already in foster care and they are trying to find someone who will take all of them so they can stay together.

Halloween

Jocelyn was a ballerina (bowawina) for Halloween this year.














































Two of our pumpkins.













































Joss picked out her own bowawina costume for the church party.















































Trick or treating at the Zoo.

Disney World!

We went to Disney World for a week in October with my sister and Cayden - what an amazing vacation!

Jocelyn loved every minute of it (except for the air show that was going on over our hotel the first part of the week!).

We were able to go to Animal Kingdom, Epcot and Disney World for two days as well as hang out on the beach and go on an Airboat ride.

Jocelyn loved meeting Ariel, Minnie and Mickey, going on all the rides, the fireworks show over Cinderella's castle and playing in the sand. It was the BEST vacation and we can't wait to go back!

Triston

We found out today that Triston will be going to stay with his paternal grandma on Friday. I am hoping this is the best for him but don't have the greatest feeling about it. She has already basically said that she is doing this so that after the adoption is final she can allow the Mom and Dad to raise him.

We are going to miss the little stinker for sure!

On a more positive note, Matt and I are going to see Gary Allen Thursday night and are so excited! Then we continue the weekend with lots of activities with friends and family, we can't wait!

Go Redskins!

Marcia and Joss having fun with glowsticks :)

Triston update

Triston will most likely be leaving us sometime in the next 2 weeks. They were able to establish paternity so his paternal grandmother will be adopting him. I hope this is the best thing for him but only time will tell. It will be harder to let him go than it was Destinee, only because they gave us the impression that we would get to adopt him.

Something that I find extremely weird.. the grandmother told me that after a weekly visit with Triston, if there is any formula left in the bottle the mother drinks it?! Ugh.

Jocelyn at the Wiggles

I can't seem to figure out how to rotate it...

Jocelyn and I went to see the Wiggles, she had the best time!!!

Captain Feathersword gave Dorothy the Dinosaur Jocelyn's rose... so exciting!

Baby Triston

I received a call yesterday around 3:30 from DCFS asking if we would be available to take a 2 month old baby boy last night.... 3 hours later 2 week old baby Triston was handed to us. He was born July 20, is half Tongan, half white and cute as a button.

He was removed from his home right before he was given to us, Mom apparently was involved in the death of her one year old child 4 years ago. Subsequently she has lost 3 other children who were adopted by family. The case worker said the judge will most likely terminate her rights to this baby too. The Dad is in prison, so once paternity is established they will ask his family if they would like Baby Triston. If the answer is no, it is very possible that Matt and I will be able to adopt him :)

Changes

Destinee went back to her Mom last Thursday. It was a sad day for us, we will miss her a lot. I am hoping that the Mother or at least the Grandmother will keep us posted on how she is doing. We are now back on the "list" and awaiting our next placement. Jocelyn asks about Destinee occasionally but has stated that she would like the next baby that comes to live with us to be a boy. :)

Some cute Jocelyn moments...

Daddy: You are the cutest damn thing!
Jocelyn: I am NOT a damn thing!

Our niece Rachel is pregnant, Jocelyn was asking me if I had a baby in my tummy too. I told her no, did she want a baby brother or sister? Her response, no I want a Giraffe instead.

She has picked up a Southern accent somewhere, it is so funny to hear her say where, go, couch etc and sound like a southern belle!

She is obsessed with the Fresh Beat band. Ugh.

Jocelyn is having her first private swim lesson this Thursday. She is so fearless that is scares me, I am determined that she learn to at least get to the side of the pool by herself. I will post after the lesson.

Picture overload...

The bear crawl at Little Gym
















She is ready to go!




















Mama Doane with Joss and Baby D














Fourth of July outfits























































Playing with Blake at his 2nd
birthday party.
















Playing in the fountains at Gateway
















This is the house that Avon built...
All of my earnings from Avon thus far went to buy this wonderful playground for Joss. She spends hours everyday playing on it! Matt and I love that she has something to keep her occupied outside :)
This was also the grand prize for being potty trained.

June...

I finally got a job! I start tomorrow as the office manager at Woody's Hardwood Flooring, Monday - Thursday, 9-3. I have mixed feelings, it will be nice to get out of the house and the money will be a lifesaver but I will miss being home with the girls and Matt so much!
Sadly I also found out today that Destinee will probably be leaving us sometime in the next month. Her mother is at the House of Hope and they really want Destinee to move in with her as fast as possible, somehow that is supposed to help her with her treatment, getting back to reality and all that. I am not convinced that it is a good idea. Personally I think more of a foundation should be laid before Destinee goes back to her full time... she has been clean what? a month?! And she is currently in an environment with 24 hour supervision but what happens when she's not? Hopefully the state will be keeping a close eye on things after the transition happens. We meet with the social workers, the House of Hope, Baby D's Mom on Thursday to discuss everything. I will post more after.
On a much more positive note, Jocelyn is out of diapers! She still wears one to sleep in but that's it! I am so proud of her I can't stand it. She is growing up too fast...

Binky Box

Jocelyn was a Binky baby and has now turned into a Binky toddler. She is also extremely attached to her lovey, a pink square of satin with a rabbit head on it she affectionately calls Hop-hop. I have no problem with the lovey, I know that in time it will stay in her bed -not true for the Binky. I hate that she carries it around all the time, talks around it, cries for it, wakes up at night for it... and I don't like the looks we get when out in public either. Matt and I have tried several things, trying to get her to keep it in a pocket (that lasted about 5 minutes), taking it away cold turkey (that lasted until bedtime and we have never had a more miserable day). This week I decided to let Jocelyn make a Binky Box. She painted a small wooden box and I wrote Binky Box on the top. Every morning she has to put her Binky in the box and cannot get it out until nap/bed time. This has actually worked! We have had a few fussy moments, the first day especially was a little rough but now she is used to the idea and does not fight it at all. She actually gets a excited to pick a Binky from the box when it is time to sleep! The next step will be getting her to sleep without it... something I am not looking forward to!

Mother's Day

See the Mother's Day post... look at the post from May 4, for some reason I cannot get it to change the date!

And today's visit....

...is cancelled. Destinee's Mom relapsed on Monday and has checked into a detox center and her Dad sprained his ankle and that is preventing him from coming to the visit. We saw Destinee's Mom on Sunday picking her up from her Grandparent's visit and Matt and I both commented on how much better she looked than when we first met her. It's sad that she couldn't stay clean but hopefully she will get the help she needs. As far as her Dad goes, I can only say that nothing would stop me from seeing my baby after not seeing her for a week, especially not a sprained ankle!

Prayers for Mothers based on scripture

I had to repost this.

Dear God,

In her face we see our own reflection. To love her is to love ourselves, to understand our complexities, our dreams, our boundaries.

We thank you for Eve, who stretched our thoughts and wonders, and who felt the depth of loss of her own son.

We thank you for the Mother of Moses, who risked the dangers of 'letting go' when she placed her firstborn in the Nile among the alligators.

We thank you for Sarah who wandered around the desert with her husband, became pregnant beyond her safety net... and laughed in the face of the future.

We thank you for the generations who followed the patterns of promise in the destiny of all those created in your female image, and for their children who helped nurture their siblings, their households, the communities and the churches in every age.

We thank you for the mothers of John and Jesus who suffered the loss of their sons in the way of the Lord. They shared their joys and their triumphs, their sorrows and their loss with the world. We thank you for your passion for this world in the way of the mothers and fathers of generations who suffered, sacrificed, bled and died because of their love and hope in the future.

We thank you God for our own mothers.

Happy Mothers Day - I can't think of anything that I would rather be than a Mother, it is the best thing in the world!

Updates

We met with Destinee's parents and grandparents last Tuesday. It was an interesting experience... I walked up at the same time as they did and we were all eye-balling each other, I held Destinee up and said " I think this belongs to you", thank goodness they smiled and introduced themselves. They then had an hour visit with Destinee and after that the social worker, Matt and I, Destinee and her parents and grandparents had a team meeting. We went over what they would have to do to get her back and the grandparents got to put their two cents in. It was weird because you could tell that the Dad's parents did not think they should get Destinee back, it made for a very awkward situation since he was obviously very angry at them. Destinee's Mom has been accepted to the House of Hope, an in-patient drug treatment program and has apparently been doing as much as possible to get the ball rolling for her treatment plan. The Dad not so much, he seems to be dragging his feet and constantly complains what this is costing him financially.
So far my feeling is that Destinee's Mom might do what it takes to get her back so I am not getting my hopes up on her being a part of our family permanently. The best place for her is with her Mother if that becomes a healthy situation. I am trying to leave it up to God and not judge.

We had the girls pictures taken this week, I will post them as soon as I can.

Jocelyn's new thing is when Destinee is crying she runs to her yelling "I'm coming sweetheart". Too cute!

On another note - Happy Birthday to my fabulous husband. I don't know what I would do without him, he makes every day brighter for me. I love you Matt!

Baby D

Meet Destinee :)
The nurses at the hospital have been calling her Desi, and we may continue that unless we find a more suitable nickname!
Jocelyn is so happy to be the "big sister" . She is so soft and gentle with her. Every time she cries Jocelyn runs and gets her a binky. Jocelyn also gave her a lovey that she doesn't use.
Desi was born with heroin fetal addiction and has spent the last three weeks being weaned off that with Morphine. The only apparent setback that she has suffered so far is a terrible diaper rash, the doctors said it was the worst they had ever seen. She is a tough little girl and has already been through so much! I was expecting her to be really fussy since she just ended her Morphine yesterday but she was just like a normal happy baby.
We meet with DCFS and the biological parents on Tuesday, not sure what that will involve. We are already attached to her so it will be heartbreaking if we ever have to give her back, unfortunately I think the ones most effected by that would be Jocelyn and Desi.
More later!

Going private...

In order to post about Baby D I need to make our blog private. If you would like to be"invited" please send me an email! Thanks!

A New Addition

Matt and I found out tonight that we will be bringing a new addition home from the hospital on Saturday. Baby D is a baby girl, born March 25. She was born with fetal heroin addiction and is finally ready to leave the hospital. We will get to go to the hospital and meet her tomorrow and then bring her home on Saturday. We are excited and scared at the same time.
The parents want reunification so if they succeed with their treatment program Baby D will be returned to them at that time. I am already heartbroken at that possibility although I wish them the best. If they do not complete their program we will most likely be able to adopt her. It is so hard not knowing the future but we knew that we would go through this when we became foster parents. As tough as it may be I am so glad we made this decision and can't wait to make a difference in this precious little child's life.
More to come...

Pictures