And he shall be called...

'One who hunts' and 'beloved' or in other words our baby's name will be Hunter David Burns.  We have had this name picked out for quite some time.  Let me tell you the story behind his name.  After we were first married we talked about baby names.  Noel always said he liked the name Brody.  Well, 2 1/2 years ago my nephew was born and was named Brody.  The funny part is that my brother always said he wanted the name Hunter for a boy.  They decided to not use that name because their friend's son is named Hunter.  So good news for us because we always liked that name too.  It also has special meaning because Hunter is the maiden name of Noel's mom.  We picked David for two reasons as well.  David is Noel's dad's middle name and also for David of the bible.  He was a man after God's own heart and we pray that our son will be also.

And in other adoption news, we got the "cooperative plan" in the mail yesterday.  This is the plan Stephanie came up with for the birth and contact afterwards.  I was a little anxious about this, but it was absolutely perfect.  She wants me in the delivery room with her and then see and hold Hunter just after he is born.  After that he will go to the nursery where we can visit and bond with him.  At the 48th hour after his birth, she will sign her rights away and he will be ours.  She would also like to communicate afterwards with letters and pictures until he is 18.  This is exactly what we were hoping for.  I am just so thankful that the Lord has blessed us with such a wonderful birth mom.  I can't help but wonder how she is going to be feeling during this time.  I know this must be a very hard decision and I pray that she gets through it with as little emotional pain as possible.  I can't even imagine the sacrifice she must feel.  Again, I am so grateful for such an amazing person that Stephanie is.

Only about 8 more weeks to go!  We can't wait to meet you baby Hunter!

A special day

Today was a special day for us.  We were able to meet with our birthmom, Stephanie, and take her to lunch.  She brought her younger sister with her and we all had a great time.  You might be asking why this day is so special?  I have two reasons for you.  The first reason is that Noel got to be with his son on Father's day.  This is not something that many adoptive parents can say while they are still in the process.  It was just neat for us to know he was just inches away and kicking up a storm.  The second reason is that Stephanie was baptized today!!  We picked her up at her house right after church.  She and her sister hopped in the car and one of the first things out of her mouth was "I was baptized today!"  Her hair was still wet from the water that changed her life.  She seemed so happy and excited.  We decided immediately that this lunch meeting was going to be a celebration.  So we celebrated with her and pigged out!  It was a lot fun being with her, meeting her sister, and growing in our relationship.

Stephanie told us that the baby is moving a lot and kicking her in the ribs.  She said he is already in "upside down mode" and the doctor said that he will be here a little early.  We are expecting him to be here around mid August, which would only be about two weeks early.  We don't want our little guy to make too early of an appearance. 

Yesterday we decided to brave the crazy heat wave and join my brother and his family at Fiesta Texas.  I think it was 105 degrees.  We only lasted four hours but had a great time.  The only casualty was my cell phone which is probably somewhere between the Whirligig and the park exit.  We had a blast with our niece and nephew, Natalie and Brody.  It seems like Natalie takes after her dear ol' aunty and is scared of every ride.  She did ride the kid rides but only if I rode with her and she could wrap her little arms around me in a death grip.  Here are a few pictures:

 The first ride of the day; Brody wasn't convinced yet

 The Kiddie Koster-  that is about all the excitement I can handle

Watch it Scooby!

After a fun filled weekend I am exhausted but grateful.  Please continue in prayer over baby "H" and rejoice with us for Stephanie's decision this weekend.

Sneak Peak

So I have been diligently working on the nursery and here are some sneak peak pics.  I still have a few finishing touches to add before the baby comes.  I love to just come in here and look at everything.  Charlie likes to come in here too and try to get the stuffed toys.

I made the small quilt and the valence for baby.  I made the big plaid quilt on the foot of the bed for Noel when we were engaged.

 

Here is your hint for his name.  This verse has been our prayer for so many years. (1 Sam. 1:27)

 This is a pirate owl I made based on a piece of art that will be in the nursery

So far this is my first choice for bringing baby H home from the hospital

Baby's newly decorated bathroom

There has been a lot going on behind the scenes in our adoption story and with our birthmom lately.  To protect her privacy and because we highly respect her I cannot share those stories here.  I will just say that she is facing some very heart breaking things right now in her life and really needs a lot of prayer.  Could you pray specifically for the Lord's peace and comfort and for Him to give her strength.  These issues she is facing could potentially effect our adoption so we would ask for prayers over the baby and her continued decision to place him with us.   The Lord has given me peace and continued confirmation so I am not worried, but a big part of me is REALLY ready for baby H to be here.

The second lunch date and a new friend

On Saturday we met with Stephanie again.  This time she brought her older brother.  She said that he didn't really want her to give up the baby, so she wanted him to me us so he knows why she is making this decision.  We picked them up and went to The County Line on the River Walk.  It was a nice lunch and a beautiful day but she wasn't very talkative this time.  I think the brother brought a different dynamic and I kept having to remind myself of that.  Every time he went to the restroom she seemed to perk up a little.  I asked brother if he had any questions for us, and he just said "no, y'all seem cool and nice."  That was it- cool and nice. If that is all he needed to see than I am happy with that.  We all had ribs and Stephanie seemed really happy to satisfy that craving.  It was fun to see everyone going to town on those ribs with BBQ sauce all over the place.  Noel didn't disappoint and as usual entertained us by the massive amount of meat he ate :)

That night we had the "birthday bash" with our friends.  If we weren't full enough on the ribs, we sure were after the carb fest at Spaghetti Warehouse.  It was awesome!!!

Here's a funny story for you...on Wednesday I was looking through our adoption agency's website at the parent profiles.  I like to check it periodically to see when families get matched or their babies are born.  I find myself praying for them and rooting them on.  It is encouraging to see this happen.  Sometimes I have seen families that were matched and then not a few weeks later.  I know that pain so I definitely pray for them.  Anyways, I had a very random thought as I was looking at the profiles and seeing all the new families added recently-  "wouldn't that be funny if one of these families found me on face book to ask me questions?"  Totally random thought, right?  Well tonight when I checked facebook I had a friend request from someone who's picture I recognized but name I did not.  I then remembered that she was a "waiting" parent on the website!  Incredible, right?  So I send her a message and we ended up messaging each other back and forth.  This new friend is a wonderful Christian woman who recently started the process with our agency and had some questions.  She shared her blog with me and as I was reading it, I almost felt like I was reading my own.  I love how God does things like this.  And I know she is probably reading this entry now just laughing about the wonderful God-thing this is. So, Hi Karen!  For those of you who read my blog, please be praying for Karen and her family as they are on the adoption journey too. 

A new decade

Last week I entered a new decade of life-- my thirties :)  I just can't think of much to say about it at this point; it just felt like any other Tuesday.  I did come home to 3 dozen roses from my sweet husband.   We also went out to dinner at our favorite place, La Madeleine.  Other than that, it felt like any other Tuesday.  The real celebration will take place this weekend.  A good friend of mine is also turning 30 this month and we have two other friend's with birthdays this month, so we are having a big dinner together.  Can't wait for the carb fest!

My in-laws came in the weekend before last.  My father in law wanted to help Noel build a shed, so that is what they did.  Well, they got about a third of the way done.  So far, I am impressed at the work they have done.  The best part about this is that I haven't had to help Noel on it yet :)  We also worked on the nursery.  I made baby quilt and some curtains.  I will post pictures when I have it complete.  I still need to find some pictures to hang on the walls.  It is looking really cute so far though.

Just this past weekend, I went to a women's retreat for my church.  I got to spend the weekend with the Lord and several of my favorite girls.  We had a great time together.  Beautiful Lord, beautiful weather, and beautiful ladies!

 And my busy month is not over, also on Saturday we are meeting with the birth parents for lunch.  Stephanie told me she has really been craving some good ribs, so I have done my best looking for a good BBQ place.  We are looking forward to our lunch date with them and getting to know them better.  Please pray for this meeting that we may be a blessing to them and that she may grow more confident in us and her decision.

It's a......unicorn??

Ok...let me explain.  A couple of weeks ago we were visiting my parents and my brothers, sister-in-laws, niece, and nephew were there.  Natalie, my 5 year old niece, asked me what we were going to name our baby.  I told her the boy name and the girl name.  She replied to me, "I don't like that girl name."  I then said "You don't?  What do you think we should name the baby if it is a girl?"  She thought for a minute and then proclaimed "Unicorn!!"  Then she said with all seriousness again, "I'm gonna pretend I don't know her name and just call her Unicorn."  This is one story I will always remember and will have to tease her about.

Well, yesterday Stephanie went to the doctor for a sonogram to find out the sex of the baby.  So the news is.......drumroll.......IT'S A BOY!!!!!!  Sorry Nattie, you cannot call our son Unicorn :)  She sent me a picture text of the sonogram pictures and I must say this is one cute baby already.  She is almost 18 weeks along and he weighs 1.5 pounds  and all healthy.  Praise God!!!  Most of you who know us, already know what we've named him, but I will keep the rest of you in suspense for a while longer.

Today, we were able to meet with Stephanie and Raul.  They are such a sweet couple and so nice!!  We went out to lunch and just got to know each other.  They are laid back and down to earth.  Stephanie is such a neat girl.  She talked about some of the challenges she's had and how God has really helped her though it.  She is a Christian and is growing in her faith so much.  It was such a blessing to be able to discuss our mutual love for God over lunch.  I never dreamed that our birth mother would be a Christian and that we could be discussing faith and praying together.   She has such a positive attitude about life and her circumstances and seems to have gained wisdom during her struggles.  Please pray for this sweet girl as the Lord strengthens her faith.

This meeting was so encouraging and we are so excited to have our baby boy here in about 4 1/2 more months.  Stephanie and I have been keeping in touch by text messaging.  We decided to try and meet up once a month for lunch.  Now since I know we are having a boy, I can start decorating the nursery- Woo Hoo!!!!!

Here is Baby Boy Burns :)

A pleasant surprise

On my way home from work today, I got a call from our adoption counselor.  She had Stephanie in her office who wanted to talk to me.  Stephanie told me that she was sorry for not coming to the meeting and explained why she didn't come.  After hearing her explanation, I can't blame the girl for one minute.  She had to deal with some very serious stuff last week.  She told me that she's been pretty nauseous during the pregnancy, but didn't want medication because she'll get over it.   She really wants to meet us and sounded genuinely excited.  We talked about getting together next week.  It was such an unexpected and pleasant surprise and a great first conversation.  I look forward to the next few months and getting to know Stephanie and Raul.