Birthday Banner

I'm back for my once a month post!! We are all doing great...loving our new little guy to pieces! Samuel is doing great, he turned 3 months old last week. He's rolling over and smiling and laughing like crazy! Our 3 month post placement visit is later this week so hopefully pictures will be coming SOON!!

Em and I worked on a project the other night while Samuel was napping and our boys were at a church activity. I have wanted to make a reusable birthday banner for a while now, something neutral that can be used for everyone's special day. We got out some scraps of fabric and denim, some ribbon and no-sew tape and made this together! It turned out super cute and gets to stay up all week since a special little girl turns 10 this weekend!

Busy...Busy...

Yikes, has nearly a month really flown by since the last time I posted?!?!? I told you this blog would be on the back burner!! Things have been busy around here...we had company last week from Dave's Mom, sister, and aunt and are getting ready for another visit tomorrow from Dave's Dad and stepmom...everyone is so excited to meet Samuel!! Speaking of which...he is doing great!! He turned two months old yesterday and is such a sweet and good baby. Last week he started smiling at anything and everything and just melts my heart. He is a BIG snuggler and LOVES to be held, which no one around here minds at all. He just fits so perfectly into our lives!

It feels like Spring may finally be arriving after a very long and cold winter. We've had a chance to play outside and take a few walks this week which has been wonderful. Dave's work is getting busy, which is always a sign that warm weather is coming. We just finished up our third quarter of school and are looking forward to our Tapestry of Grace end unit celebration next Friday. We spent several weeks studying Ancient Greece and are having an Olympic Games event.

I have no home projects to show you and have spraypainted nothing in months...and I couldn't be happier about it!! Although, I did paint a dollar tree frame robin's egg blue the other day and it turned out pretty cute! Have a blessed weekend...hopefully we'll be back soon with some pictures!

February...

It's hard to believe the month of February is already half over! My blog is definitely sitting on the back burner for now as we settle into our new routine. I'm sure I'll be back in full force once Samuel's adoption is finalized by the state and we are free to post photos of him. For now we are enjoying every minute of these sweet newborn days. He is doing wonderful! We went for his one month checkup yesterday and has grown an inch and weighs 10 pounds! He is such a happy boy and we are so blessed by him! He was definitely worth the wait!! He got his feet into a little pink ink the other day and made some Valentine cards for all his special people!! We are keeping busy with school, plugging away while the weather is still so cold...we only have around 55 lessons left until summer break (not that we are counting!). The kids have also been addicted to the Olympics and we made this chart to keep track of the medal count for our favorite countries.

SNOW DAY!!!

We got a real treat this weekend with about 5 inches of snow!!! We have been snowed in since Friday and enjoying every minute of it! Dave has been taking the kids up to the big hill to sled while Samuel and I stay snuggled up inside by the fire. Here are some fun shots of them sledding! Yes, those are pool floats we use as sleds...they work great!

Settling In...

It's hard to believe that this time last week we were anxiously awaiting the phone to ring to hear news if Samuel would be ours forever and now he is part of our family! We were just saying last night how it feels like he has been here for much longer than just a few days. He is such a good baby and we are so blessed by him! Nathan and Emily have been the most wonderful helpers, I knew that they would be anxious to help but had no idea how willing and helpful they would be. They are doing a great job fetching diapers, helping make bottles, and loving on their new baby brother. They have a love for him that is so deep it can only come from the Lord. Emily calls herself "sissy" to him and Nathan refers to himself as "big brother." It melts my heart to see how much this little guy has increased the love in our house!!

We still will not be able to post any pictures for a few weeks, but if you would like to see our little guy just send me an email and I'll send you a private message. For now our dishwasher looks like this every day...
and we just did our first load of "little laundry"...loving every minute of it!!

Forever Ours...

He's home forever!!! What a whirlwind last few days...Thursday was a day our family will never forget!! Samuel is beautiful beyond description, he has stolen our hearts and forever changed our lives. I know what you are thinking...where are the pictures???? We will not be facebooking or blogging any photos of him until his adoption is finalized by the state, but he is ours forever!! For now, my blog will sit on the back burner...I may update every now and again but for now there are far more important things to do. We are up to our eyeballs in diapers and bottles and loving every minute of it! Samuel is a big cuddler and needs lots of snuggling!! Pray for us as we bond with Samuel and that he will come to know he is with his forever family. This verse has been on my heart since the moment I first laid eyes on Samuel and held him in my arms...

"I will praise thee for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well." Psalm 139:14

IT'S A BOY!!!!!!!!

Last Tuesday night, shortly after 6:00 the phone rang...it was a conversation that will forever be engraved in my mind and heart. It was the director of our agency, she asked me to get Dave on the other line and said the words we will never forget "It's a Boy!!!" Samuel Dalton McClard was born last Tuesday afternoon weighing 8 lbs 2 ozs and 21" long. Needless to say we were bouncing off the walls, crying, screaming, and lots of hugging!! We knew that the next part of the journey would be the longest and hardest part yet as we would wait and pray over the next 7 days that he would be ours forever. We decided to keep the news private and spent this time in prayer for our sweet boy and the birthmother that chose life for him and us to be his parents. We knew that the Lord was in full control of the entire situation and His will would be accomplished! The 7 days has passed and tomorrow morning at 10:00 AM we will see his face for the very first time and hold him in our arms!!

Never in my wildest dreams did I expect this journey to be so life-changing, not just for me but for our entire family. I have seen time and time over again how faithful and sovereign our Lord truly is. The wait was longer than we ever anticipated and now I understand why...hindsight it always 20/20 isn't it??? The Lord knew from the moment our journey began that Samuel would be ours and we would be his parents. I also have to stop and thank my husband for being an absolute ROCK on this journey...I could not (or wouldn't want to) have walked through this with anyone else. He has seen me cry more times then I can count and put up with a roller coaster of emotions for what has seemed like an eternity. During the past 7 days whenever my faith was weak or my emotions were topsy-turvy he would look at me and say "God's got this Hon'...He knows exactly who will be Samuel's parents." Seeing him get ready to be a new Daddy again has made me fall in love with him all over again.

The little clothes are ready, the diaper bag is packed, car seat is in the van, kids have their Big Brother/Sister shirts ready to wear and their is nothing left to do but wait for these last few hours to pass!!!