Happiness Happens Day 13–Lillian!!!

Warning- This is a long post   

I got the call at 3:00 in the morning. It was time to go to the hospital! I got there by 3:30 and Baby Girl was born at 5:59. She weighed in at 5 lbs. 15 oz. and was 18 3/4inches long.  I got to be there the whole time and I even cut the umbilical cord.

 

We spent the whole rest of the day with her most amazing birth mom. We watched TV and shared Baby Girl back and forth between us. Birthmom was the first to hold her after she was all cleaned up and swaddled, but I got to give her her first bottle. It went back and forth like that all day.

Jacob joined us around 3:00 that afternoon. He had been in the Boise area for annual training with the Guard. I had to call the American Red Cross and request he be given emergency leave to come home for the birth of his daughter.

He was exhausted from having been working 20 hour days for the past week and a half so as soon as he sat down he was out. That was okay because taking a bath had been hard work for her and she was out too!

Birth mom went home early that evening but Lillian had to stay for 24 hour observation. We stayed with her, sleeping on the hospital bed and the pull out couch. It wasn’t the most comfortable arrangements, but it was pretty nice. I think this new St. Luke’s hospital in Twin is pretty great. Everyone handled the adoption smoothly and there were almost no awkward explanations or uncomfortable moments. 

We have named her Lillian, but her middle name is still pending. We are still a little anxious about all of the adoption legal hoops to jump through, so as I always seem to need, please include us in your thoughts and prayers.

Happiness Happens Day 12- no baby yet

Okay, so this is more of an update than a happy fact. There’s no baby yet. No nothings yet. Our birthmom has an appointment on Thursday so we’ll know more then. Of course, hopefully Baby Girl comes before that but we’re just taking it one day at a time. 

Right now I have a hospital bag packed. I’m planning on spending the night with the baby at the hospital if its allowed. My friend, Amanda, helped me bake brownies today. I will pack these into my bag as well so that I have treats to share at the nurses station. My house smells like chocolate tonight.

I’ve been kept busy today which has kept me distracted. I went into work for a few minutes this morning to put away some more school supplies that I bought. Then I came over and got a visit from my friend, Christian. Then Amanda came over and took me shopping at JoAnn Fabrics. Then we made cookies. Then Alex came over to show me a wetbag that she made. It’s for keeping soiled clothing in. It’s a cute little bag with a waterproof liner. After our TV show we got a visit from another friend, Rachel, who brought me a cover for my car seat.

I’m feeling very spoiled with all of the Love that I got today.  It has helped me stay calm and not get too anxious.  I also got texts from several friends who were checking in to wish me a Happy Due Date day. As soon as I hear something, I’ll keep everyone posted, I promise!!

Happiness Happens Day 11–sleep

I know that this will be a precious commodity for the next few weeks so I’m trying my best to enjoy it while I can.  I do love languishing in my bed on a weekday. That’s really the true essence of summer vacation!

Happiness Happens Day 10- finished the nursery

Here are some pictures of my nursery which is finally finished!

The primary colors are red and blue. (oh so punny)

I have already spent many hours in this rocking chair, just daydreaming. It’s very comfortable.

The quote above the crib reads:

Read me a story,

Tuck me in tight,

Say a sweet prayer,

and kiss me goodnight.

Thanks Alex for cutting and hanging my vinyl!

“Aunt” Alex also helped me make a crib mobile. It’s one of my favorite things in the room.

Teddi helped me hang the wallpaper border of teddybears and bunnies wearing pink and blue.

Happiness Happens Day 9–An Organized Life

Haha! That title makes me sound like I’m not a total basketcase. That’s so not true. I’m losing my mind. 

I have been trying (and mostly failing) to stay calm and level-headed about this adoption. I’m trying to stay grounded in the reality that while everyone involved is 99% positive that this is a sure deal, nothing in adoption is a sure deal until all of the paperwork is signed. And that’s a long way off still.

So, even if this adoption was to fail (heavenforbid) there is some good news. My life is pretty organized right now because I’ve done the following things to keep myself busy the last few weeks:

1. My house is clean—swept, mopped, vacuumed, dusted, sanitized, organized, and decluttered.

2. My grocery shopping and food storage are all caught up. I even put together several crock-pot freezer meals to cut down on prep time later this fall. I can’t wait to try that homemade chili!

3. I’m ready for school. I have organized my classroom and written three weeks of lesson plans for a substitute and even made copies of all the worksheets, etc. The only thing I need now are my class lists so that I can make a seating chart.

Happiness Happens Day 8–Cloudy Weather

The fact that it is overcast today is making me very happy. It makes me think that maybe Autumn isn’t too far away. Yea!

Happiness Happens Day 7- County Fairs

Going to the Jerome County Fair tonight made me happy. I met up with my parents and sister and her family there.

There’s so much to do at a county fair. Even a little one like in Jerome. We ate hand dipped corn dogs, I ran into two former students (one pretended not to see me, whatev), we pet baby lambs, saw the cutest baby piglets, ran into old friends, met new friends, and ate an elephant ear.

Elephant ears make me happy. Fresh warm scone. Honey. Cinnamon and sugar. Powdered Sugar. YUM!

Happiness Happens Day 6- temple

I’m so glad that we have a temple in Twin Falls. It makes me happy that I can go whenever I want.

Happiness Happens Day 5– food!

Prijoskis are a favorite in the Schwab family. And I gorged myself on this yummy meat-filled pastry tonight.

August is a busy month in the Schwabedissen family. We have two birthdays and two anniversaries to celebrate! We had a nice big party today and Tiara requested this yummy dinner. An unhappy thought- some important family members weren’t able to be there. But the rest of us had a grand time!

Last night my mom made fried chicken for dinner. This is a favorite in the Fiala family. I gorged myself last night too. I’ve got to stop doing this. It’s soooo tasty.

Happiness Happens Day 4- Jacob

Happy 7th Anniversary!