If You Adopt...

...then you'll get pregnant! Anyone heard that one before? There are so many things wrong with that statement and I really love Wendi's comments about it. Hop on over to her blog and see what she thinks about the myth that once you adopt, you are sure to get pregnant. She, like I, got pregnant soon after adopting her son. And so the comments go, "I knew that would happen," or "See? All you had to do was adopt!" or "That ALWAYS happens!" I cringed when I knew I was pregnant and adopting, because I knew those comments were coming and those comments seemed to imply that I adopted in an effort to get pregnant. And that is SO not true. Jason and I would have been just as happy and content with our son, Jackson, if he was our only child. We love him that much. Of course, we adore our daughter and wouldn't want our life any other way...but that is in no way an indication that Jackson wasn't enough, all on his own.

I'm not going to repeat what Wendi wrote, so head over there and see the statistic of how many adopting couples actually get pregnant after adopting. It's not that many. As she so smartly points out, it's more that you hear those stories more often simply because they are that spectacular and unique. People tell me all the time that they tell my story to people. I find myself being introduced as, "This is Faith and she adopted her son and had a baby 6 months later!" They find it that interesting because it doesn't always happen that way.

I absolutely don't believe that I "just relaxed" and that is why I got pregnant. In fact, I was anxiously awaiting a call to be matched when I became pregnant, not relaxed at all. Yes, I had let go of the intense motivation to get pregnant, but certainly the agonizing wait to be a mommy was not over! I believe that our children were always meant to be our children. They were meant to come how they did, when they did. We didn't know the plan, and thank God we didn't. Because we may have tried to mess it up. And what a mistake that would have been. What we have is perfect. They are perfect.

So, when you do repeat our story (and please do, we are beyond blessed and want the world to know it!), please do so in an educated way. That means leaving out the, "It happens all the time when they just relax!" part of the story. Because it's not true. And there are many implications to that, and we don't want our story to be a part of those implications. We of course want people to see hope, beauty and miracles in our story because that is what we see. So please share those pieces! This is our miracle....

Jackson is 8 Months Old!!

Jackson has had a busy month for a baby boy! His bottom two front teeth are now in and he seems to be working on more. He has become a mover and shaker and rolls around everywhere (which makes taking pictures slightly more difficult:)). He has already gotten a couple of minor injuries from being so mobile, so we have to watch him very carefully. It's amazing how fast he can get from one end of the room to the other just by rolling! He also scoots a little on his tummy, but doesn't pull his knees up under him to crawl. Jackson shows some signs of jealousy and tries to climb in our laps when we are holding Addison. He has got the annoying whine down to a science, which is his way of saying he is tired, hungry, or wants to be held. But, for the most part, he is a happy baby boy. Whenever I take him out, people ask me if he is always that happy. And, I have to say, he usually is! He is such a joy!

Jackson continues to eat 3 solid meals a day and 3 bottles, plus a small bottle right before bed. He loves, loves, loves to share our food more than anything. Now when we sit down to eat, he stares at us and yells until we share. It makes eating in peace impossible, but it is so cute! He hasn't quite perfected feeding himself, he's still working on the pincer grasp. He does grab puffs though and bring them to his mouth. He just needs a little more coordination to make it all work for him. He loves to read a book with us before bed and it seems to really calm him down. He is still sleeping very well, for the most part, through the night. Very rarely he has a rough night, which really only means he wakes up crying a few times, but we think that is due to teething. Jackson has such a bubbly personality and cracks himself up on a regular basis! He LOVES to play peek-a-boo and giggles like crazy when we play, which has us rolling with laughter pretty quickly. He is also a ticklish little guy and has the cutest giggle when we tickle him. He also babbles a lot and does make the "mama" sound, but only when he's playing with his voice, certainly not a true word yet. Jackson gets bored very easily, so I find myself looking for new toys and activities to keep him busy. My next experiment is to bring out the tupperware, pots and pans, and wooden spoons and let him go to town:). Any other ideas on fun activities for 8 month olds would be much appreciated!

And our newest accomplishment: he pulls himself up to stand!! He is pretty wobbly, but if there is something worth it up on the ottoman (like a cell phone or TV remote for instance), he can pull himself up to get it and stand there for a little bit. I almost cried the first time he did it a couple of days ago - I can't believe he is doing this! He grew up so fast! Here he is showing off his skills:

I swear he is just the cutest baby boy ever - I see babies in magazines and think, "Jackson is cuter than THAT baby!" LOL! Everyone who comes to see him adores him. He has had visits this month from his grandpa and grandma E, aunt, uncle and his GiGi. His Papa comes next week. And he has won all of them over - they are wrapped around his little finger forever! Happy 8 Months, precious boy! We love you!

Addison is 2 Months Old!

Our little princess is 2 months old! Addison is still a little peanut. Her 2 month doctor's appointment isn't until next week, so we will see what she weighs but I know she is nowhere near as big as Jackson was at this age. She is very long and is in 0-3 month clothes now. She grew out of her newborn sleepers by 1 month because she was too long for them. Addison is still a very serious baby. When she is content, she is so sweet. She has a little raspy voice when she coos and you have to almost strain to hear her. Her smile is huge and she saves it for only very special times. It's like a little treasure every time she smiles because she doesn't do it just any old time:). Daddy's fun noises elicited this precious smile:

Our struggles this month continue to be fussiness and sleep issues. Addison is only content for 15 minutes or so after eating usually and then it is back to fussing. She sleeps on and off all day, sometimes taking a substantial nap, sometimes waking up the minute we put her down. She had some good nights this month, sleeping up to 4 hours at a time. But, alas, she is back to only sleeping 2-3 hours the first stretch at night and then an hour or two here and there the rest of the night. Needless to say, I am praying for sleep on a daily basis now. My eyes and head hurt pretty much non-stop from pure exhaustion. I do have my sweet times with her in the early morning. She wakes up very early and I nurse her in bed and then she cuddles there with me while I try to doze. She doesn't ever go into a deep sleep, but I savor that time with her. She finally gets sick of it and fusses enough that I get up with her. Usually she has to poop right away in the morning and that is why she gets me up:). Speaking of pooping, this girl poops like a machine! She still goes up to 6 times a day and usually at least one of those is a "blow out" and the entire outfit needs to be changed! Such a lady:).

We absolutely love our little girl. We know that even though it is hard now, the time will fly by and pretty soon she'll be an independent big girl! So I am enjoying our sweet moments and surviving all the rest for now. In the end, I feel so blessed to have my little girl. I love, love, love that I get to have a son and a daughter. They are both so special in their own perfect ways. Addison certainly did complete our family in a way only she could, and we couldn't be more grateful!

In Case You Are Wondering...

We are still here! We are still surviving...kind of. The days seem to be a blur of crying, diapers, feedings, nap times, more crying, and repeat. As I speak, Jackson is rolling around the floor - he has become quite the mobile little guy - and Addison is currently fighting sleep in her papasan, as usual.

I am still nursing. I had to see a lactation consultant and she concluded I was not making enough milk. So, I was started on Domperidone, a medication to increase milk supply. Since then, we have not had to supplement. And Addison now takes 20-30 minutes to nurse instead of over an hour. And, she usually goes 3-4 hours between feedings, a little longer the first part of the night. Of course, that doesn't mean she takes peaceful naps between feedings. Oh no, she is up fussing on and off the entire time. We have to swaddle her, rock her, walk her, bounce her, etc to get her to go to sleep, then keep holding her for at least 15-20 minutes, then put her down *finally*, then pray. And usually it doesn't work and she is up crying within 5 minutes. And I can't hold her all day, so she gets to cry a lot. I kept worrying that she was hungry, so I'd give her a bottle with breastmilk or formula, and she played with it and eventually spit it out, so I concluded she was not hungry. I consider daily switching to formula feeding, wondering if she would do better on it? I go back and forth. We worked so hard to get nursing to work, and I feel proud that I stuck with it, but is it really working? Would formula be better, would she calm down? Any thoughts?

And at night, well, it's on and off. She gets up after about 4 hours of sleeping to nurse, and sometimes falls asleep and can be put back in bassinet for another couple hours of sleep before her early morning feeding. But if she wakes up too much, it's all over. For instance, last night she got up for her feeding at 2:30am and did not finally go back to sleep until about 5:45am. She would fall asleep before that, but the minute we put her down, she was back to crying. Needless to say, we are often sleep deprived and non-too-thrilled with our newest "bundle of joy."

I have had help on and off, and thank God for that. A good friend of mine came and stayed and took Addison in her bedroom for 2 nights, except when I had to nurse. It was heaven. And Jason's family was visiting and they held the babies a lot, giving me a break. And Jason's mom is coming next week, and I am literally counting the hours. I am so thankful to everyone for coming to help - well, i think they are more coming to just see the babies, but I put them to work anyway:).

Before I forget, any ideas on baby wearing would be much appreciated. I need something that I can have both hands free and know she is safely tight against me. The Moby eludes me. Every time I put her in it, it seems too loose and I can't get it tight enough to feel comfortable for me. I have the Seven sling, but that's awkward. I also have a Bjorn, but it's not secure enough for her yet with her head flopping, so I can wear her in it, but can't get anything done. It's good for outings, but not for getting stuff done around the house. If you do have suggestions, let me warn you of one thing - my brain cannot figure out wraps or slings well if they are at all complicated. The Moby is a perfect example. I just can't work those things. So, simplicity is key here:). I'd love your thoughts!

Oh, and we are currently looking for a new house (we need WAY more space) and will probably move in the next couple of months. Uggghh. Ok, currently both babies are melting down and I want to scream. Gotta go....