PEAS!

Last week Colt's teacher mentioned how much he LOVES eating rice cereal from a bowl and how she thought he was ready to try baby food. We decided that for a while, we'll only feed him green because John and I are, how do you say, not vegetable-eaters. We don't eat very much green and we vow to make sure our child eats green.

So we tried peas tonight. From the moment he saw the spoon he was excited. And he ate every bite and would have eaten more if we'd let him! The last picture is his very first bite...right before a big smile!

**I have some really cute video but John and I both sound kind of stupid in it, so I won't post. But at least we have it. We must get better about taking video.**

He's growing up so crazy fast...

Final post-placement visit

So remember when I said we had scheduled our final post-placement visit with our caseworker for this Thursday? Well, there was miscommunication and she had it scheduled for TODAY! So about 20 minutes before she was supposed to be at our house she called to confirm. Needless to say, we were both at work and in meetings. I ran out of the office and sped home because CASEWORKER! COMING! RIGHT NOW! We hadn't unpacked from our weekend trip, the house wasn't clean, and I hadn't finished all the paperwork I'd put off for two months since our last visit.

You can only imagine the stress.

Luckily, she of course didn't care about any of that. John brought Colt home from school and he napped while we did our "interview" then we woke him up and he showed off his charm and all his skills: bouncing, laughing, rolling over, grabbing his feet, etc.

Ultimately she decided to let us keep him. :)

It feels good to have this all out of the way. During our visit, our family-friend/attorney called to confirm that she will represent us in July. The agency will send her all the paperwork, she'll file for a date, and Colt will be "officially" ours, no strings attached by July.

I haven't regretted or been angry or irritated with any of this process, honestly. Nothing in life is easy, and I know that. Our difficulty was finding our way to be parents, others have difficult pregnancies or a long legal battle during adoption. We have had an incredibly smooth, lovely experience. And while some might be turned off to adopting a second time because of a difficult experience, we may very well be turned off to adoption again for fear the experience can never be as perfect as it has been.

Number two discussions are a LONG way off. But it's interesting how much I'd like to have a second, but how satisfied and content I am with one perfect, amazing little boy. Now is as good a time as ever to let God have total control and lead our hearts in the right direction in His time.

Love that our caseworker, our agency, Colt's birthfamily are all extensions of our family and our hearts now. So many people who want the best for him, just as we do, and who will always be there for us. His caseworker told us today she'd love to come babysit, but was pretty sure she'd have to fight off his grandmothers!

Pretty great day.

Perfect Moment Monday

Well, I decided to take several perfect moments over the last few weeks and mention them. In no specific order, here ya go:

- Colt has learned to play games. He played this game with my mom where he lays his head on the floor and pretends he's asleep until she pretends she's asleep, then lifts his head and squeals and she shouts "we're awake!" and he finds this to be the funniest thing EVAH.
- A "Jon and Kate Plus 8" marathon today (I'm honestly really sad they are having marriage problems because I love that family!)
- Eating both Cheddar's and cafeteria food this weekend while visiting my grandparents
- Finding perfect shorts and shirt at Old Navy for my GIRLS TRIP THIS WEEKEND!
- $1 flip flops that were purchased for me with NO standing in lines that wrapped around the store.
- 4 pairs of shoes for under $90 (including 2 pairs of Clark's and a pair of Cole Haan's)
- Colt sleeping perfectly on our first road trip out of town (until, of course, we came home)
- Catching up with my cousin Josh, who I think is one of the coolest people in the world, as he was on a road trip of his own.
- Colt crying and reaching for me (I LOVE it, I do)
- Cuddling with the cat after getting home
- Watching my grandma snuggle Colt all weekend
- Listening to my grandpa call him "Grandpa's Boy" and "Little Greyhound" all weekend. Little Greyhound comes from him saying that we take Colt so many places since he was born that he has more miles on him than a Greyhound bus!
- My awesome intern finally starting last week!
- Trip to little restaurant called Pops last week to send off my friend in the office to have her baby this week; and I got all kinds of yummy glass-bottled pops to come home with.
- Sick days with Colt where he had a fever, but didn't feel sick so it was more like fun day at home with my boy.
- Attending Special Olympics, which is one of my favorite things all year with work.
- A successful wedding shower at my home with almost 30 people for my best friend.
- Peaceful weekend alone with Colt while John was on his boys trip.
- Two Wednesday nights in a row of going to church - monumental!
- Scheduling our final post-placement visit with the adoption agency, to take place this Thursday!
- Finding out that a family friend will be handling our finalization hearing this summer for little to no charge because she loves us and loves our story.
- Lots of cupcakes

It's been an awesome couple of weeks!

Torture

Want to know the best way to torture yourself as a parent? Comparison pictures. Take a picture of your child from the first week of his life in a carseat, then another of him now at FIVE months old and then weep at how much he's grown.

In other news...it is officially time for a new carseat. We can hardly get the straps around him anymore and his feet are hanging off the end! Oh, and it weighs 40 pounds. Try lugging THAT in and out of Eileen's Colossal Cookies...

The fine art of rolling over

Rolling over is an art.
First, you must find your center. Take a moment to lay back and get ready.
Next, you have to find your feet and tell them where to go.
Then, you take your arm and begin the roll.
And suddenly - You're up! Eyes squeezed tight, because you just don't know how it will come together.
Finally - all eyes open and a big smile. Pretty soon you'll be crawling everywhere!
(by the way, he also rolled from his stomach to his back for the first time yesterday!)

THAT Day....and a new normal

So, there is this cake that my mom has made before. It's called a Better than Sex Cake. It's delicious and I believe it's even been served a time or two at church functions. Anyway, my grandma also makes this cake...except she refuses to say the name and calls it THAT cake. Ever since I found this out many years ago, I always laugh a little when I think about it and when things come across my path that I don't like to name I always call them "THAT (whatever)".

Mother's Day the last several years has been THAT Day for me. I am happy to report that no longer is it THAT day for me. It is Mother's Day. And yesterday was a fabulous first Mother's Day for me.

The last several years I've skipped Mother's Day service at church. They have all the mothers stand up during the sermon and clap for them, each mother gets a flower, there is Muffins for Moms gathering before Bible class, etc. For someone wanting to be a mom, it's incredibly difficult. I imagine for those who have lost a child, lost a mother, or have a bad relationship with their mother it's a difficult time as well and our ministers always do a great job of recognizing the pain in THAT Day for some in the congregation. But I have flat out skipped to avoid it the last few years.

Yesterday I was on the verge of tears all day, and not just because I woke up with a headache! But it was a great day, and fun to snuggle with Colt while standing to receive my flower. And then they sang both "Faithful Love" and "How Deep the Father's Love" and that just pushed me right over the edge.

And the gifts I received were great, too. Plaster molds of his handprints...priceless. I can't wait for yarn necklaces and fingerpainted cards as he gets older!

I've seen a lot of blogs that are recognizing those still waiting and those who had a hard day yesterday. I think you all know that I recognize that, remember, and hurt for you. And there's nothing I can say to make it better other than I did think about you all the entire day, and I promise when YOUR Mother's Day does come, it's better than you can even imagine. Hugs...
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In other news, we received word today from Colt's birthmother, N, that her grandmother is in the hospital in OKC and very ill. She asked if we would be willing to take Colt up to see her, give her a chance to say goodbye.

It was funny how quickly I said yes and called John to arrange a time. And as I was driving, I thought about how abnormal that might seem to some people. But this is normal for us. We will rush to her side like we would any other family member. We care for her and hope she comes out of this illness (not contagious, it's more her body starting to shut down). N, her grandmother, her dad, her sister...they are an extension of our family. I can't think of anything more honorable or humbling than to be able to take our precious little boy to see them when they are hurting.

It's a new normal, OUR normal. Who knows where the relationship will go and how it will develop over the years...all I know is that right now I long for these kinds of opportunities. Maybe it's because I like showing Colt off, I like watching him make people smile. But mostly because they are forever a part of our history and our life, and every day includes them in some way or another. So, we'll see if the opportunity pans out and if she is well enough for visitors.
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Great weekend all around. See below for pictures of our big FIRST this weekend: first haircut!

First Haircut

It was time...his hair was so long and unruly on top and in the front! We needed to get his hair cut! The lady who cuts John hair, Peri, agreed to cut Colt's and he was so good while she did it. And it looks soooooo much better now!

Have you ever heard it's bad luck to cut their hair before their first birthday? I hadn't, but I don't care! He NEEDED a hair cut. We did not cut any off in the back, so the rat tail remains in-tact!

And, yes, I did save some of his hair...though I'm not sure what to do with it. His baby book (which I have so not started) doesn't have a place for it. But I guess I'll put it in an envelope and keep it in the book anyway. I was not sentimental about this day AT ALL, hope that doesn't make me a bad mom! Maybe if he'd had curls or something I would have been sad...I was just ready!

Doesn't he look so grown up?!

Randomness

Found out yesterday that one of our friends was in a contest to win a trip to the NBA lottery in NYC. He submitted a 7-word reason why he should win a trip with the OKC Thunder and his reason was "Gonna wear my Thunderwear in Times Square". We were sending it all over the FB and Twitter worlds and it worked! He got the call today that he and a guest will be there when the OKC Thunder (hopefully) chooses Blake Griffin! Check out the story here and also the video where the Thunder is calling Randy with the news. Congrats!
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Colt rolled over for the first time today! Well, at least the first time to us. I don't know if he's done it at daycare because they don't tell us. I like that! So the first time we see him reach milestones, it IS the first time! But it was SO awesome because we were both here and he's been so close for a while.

That paragraph seems so boring but it's not! It's really awesome! I can't believe how awesome it is, honestly. Now he wants to roll all the time. Not fun when trying to change his diaper.
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I submitted Colt's nursery to Rate My Space on hgtv.com. I'm still receiving pretty high rates, so that's exciting! My next plan is to submit my master bedroom in hopes that Angelo will come and make it over and we'll be on TV!

Please go Rate My Space and give us 5 stars!
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One of my favorite websites is The Lost Ogle. Which, if you're not from Oklahoma City, you won't find it nearly as funny as I do. Anyway, it's mostly a sports and local politics blog with a sprinkling of making fun of local celebrities. They are HILARIOUS.

Anyway, they keep losing Best Blog contests to Oklahoma mommy blogs...like The Pioneer Woman, maybe you've heard of her? Anyway, they decided they needed to be a mommy blog for the week to better their chances of winning future Oklahoma blog contests. It's hilarious. As someone who write about my kid, I think it's hilarious. Check them out sometime, especially if you're local. This week they are really funny...but only if you don't get offended easily!
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I hate the iPhone.
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Ok, lots more randomness but I spilled most of it on FB and Twitter this week so I won't rebore you. And John is getting awfully antsy because I'm in his chair and he wants on the computer.

Bladcoxerson Baptism

John and I have some amazing friends we've made through all walks of life. Some of our best friends are these folks: Nathan and Liz Blais and their daughter Anna, and Derek and Brooke Adcox and their son Van.

Seems like our life the last few years has been dotted all along the way with these people. As you can see, we've all had kiddos around the same time. We were all married within a few years of each other. Anna and Colt are just 3 weeks apart (Van's the older brother in this scenario at 2 years old!).

Anyway, this past weekend was Anna's baptism. It was an honor to be invited, I've never been to a baby baptism before. At our church, we baptize as adults (or teenagers). It was not too emotional, other than when the priest was asking Liz to commit to raising Anna in a Christian home and being a good example as a mother and Liz started crying, so Brooke and I started crying and it was a whole thing...

Something else to note: because it was my first baby baptism I didn't know we were supposed to dress up. John and I both wore jeans and we walked in and felt SO underdressed. But no time to change so I just made sure everyone knew: "I DIDN'T KNOW THERE WAS A DRESS CODE!"

Also, John is standing on a step...I'm not that short.

Anyway, we love these people (Bladcoxerson is a combination of all three last names). Their families are like our families, and we are blessed to have them put up with us (in B&D's case - 10 YEARS of putting up with the likes of me!).

Love you guys!

What kind of mom am I?

The last 5 months have been so lifechanging for me, and sometimes I stand back and I take a look at my son, my home, my career, my LIFE and just shake my head at how it's all come together. How mature and responsible I feel. And how surprising that I feel mature and responsible...

There are many things about my life as a mom that don't surprise me at all. I'm not at all a germaphobe (some things get me, but in general I don't get bothered by much). I'm not easily rattled by cry fits or dirty diapers or even middle-of-the-night wake up calls. I'm accustomed to going out with Colt, because he's been doing that since his second day of life. In fact, my grandpa calls him "Greyhound" because he thinks Colt has more miles on him than a Greyhound Bus. Probably true. I've even pretty much accepted that my house is going to be messier, more cluttered, and laundry takes longer to do.

But one things that really surprises me about life as a mom is just how naturally it's coming to me. Oh, I don't mean I'm like the best mom ever and I'm an example all should follow. No, I mean that it truly feels like something I was born to do. I was afraid that I would get easily frustrated, have a short temper, get tired of a baby during my DVR time, be afraid to take him out, even have a rough time spending hours alone with him. I had prepared myself to ADOPT but I hadn't prepared myself to BE A PARENT.

But it turns out, I didn't need to worry. Oh, sure, everyone has their moments where it's just too much. But for the most part, I'm so much more patient than I ever realized. I am watching less and less TV and instead making faces or reading books or just laying down next to him to talk. I can read his cries (when there is crying, which is almost never). I have a running timeclock in my head for when he needs to eat or get medicine or change his diaper. I remember when we first brought him home I recorded a log of all those things and studied it religiously. Now, it's all in my head.

I FEEL like a mom. I even sometimes feel like a pretty good mom. No matter where he is or who has him, when he sees me it's an automatic smile. I guess that's the reward I look for, and I like to think that's his way of saying "we've got a good thing going - I love you".

I guess I'm just surprised how different I am, and how not-so-different I am at the same time. He's a part of my life, and it seems to be working.

That's all. I just love being Colt's mom.