Introducing Parker Jeremiah!!

On May 5th, 2011, we added a new addition to our family: our little boy Parker Jeremiah Smith! I was scheduled to have a c-section at 1:30 on Thursday, May 5th. Everything went very smoothly. We spent the morning at home with Logan and then dropped him off at my in laws house. We got to the hospital at 11:30 and got all hooked up to the monitors. Ray enjoyed watching the monitors and trying to get Parker to move so he could see the changes on the screen. At 1:15, I was wheeled into the operating room, shaking because I was so nervous! I was given a spinal that kicked in very quickly, and then Ray was brought into the room. He did such a great job keeping me calm and talking to me the whole time so I wouldn't be thinking about what was going on. Finally, at 1:42, they held up a mirror and told us we could watch as our sweet boy made his way into the world! This was especially exciting for me since I was put under general anesthesia with Logan and didn't get to see him or hear him cry. Parker had a very high pitched cry, and as soon as they took him out and began cleaning him up, he stopped crying and was totally calm. He weighed in at 7 lbs, 13 oz and 20 1/2 inches long, a whole pound smaller than Logan! They brought him over to us and Ray got to hold him by my head while they put me back together! He was so sweet and so calm.
We had an excellent hospital stay with many family and friends coming in and out to meet Parker. Logan loves his little brother and tells everyone we see that he has a baby brother. When we got home, we found out that Parker was quite Jaundice and we had to go back to the hospital and stay overnight until it got better. He is doing great now and we are hoping that at his next doctor appointment he will have passed his birth weight. We still plan on being foster parents but are taking a little break while we adjust to being a family of four!

Blessed Beyond Measure

Wow, I am really bad at updating this blog! Life as a mom and foster mom has been very busy, but I am thankful to have lived every minute of it! Over the past year, our family has been through a lot of changes. We had a wonderful summer with Logan and our foster son, and in September had the joy of seeing our foster son start 1st grade in a mainstream classroom rather than special education. He was, and still is thriving so well. At the beginning of September, the 5th to be exact, we found out that we were going to be welcoming a baby into our family in May! Logan was going to be a big brother! Than God gave us another blessing that we were not expecting... On Monday, September 13th, we got a phone call from our foster care agency saying that they had a newborn at the hospital who was in need of a foster home. My heart melted at that moment at the thought of having a baby in the house, so my husband and I talked about it, and we decided to go for it. On Tuesday, September 14th, we went to the hospital to pick him up. I will always remember that day! I remember walking down the hall toward the nursery, and seeing through the window a little 7 lb baby look up at me, and I just knew it was him! We got him dressed and brought him home, and then the real fun began! At now 6 months old, he is such a sweet and happy boy!
In February, we had a new experience as foster parents. It was time to say good-bye to our 7 year old foster son, who was being adopted! We were able to work very closely and build a great relationship with his new family, but it was still very hard to see him go. We are so grateful and happy for such an awesome family for him, and watching him go to his "forever family" makes fostering such a joy! He is missed, but we get updates from his family and we are even getting to visit with him this week!
It's now almost April, and our baby BOY is scheduled to arrive on May 5th (I am blessed to know the day since I will have a c-section)! We are in a tough spot right now trying to figure out where our foster son will go, as we feel a strong desire to see him get adopted to someone who cannot have children or has a big desire to adopt. We feel blessed to have a baby coming, and would like to watch as someone else gets the joy of accepting our foster son in their home. As much as God has given us this desire, I am very attached to the little guy and am having a hard time letting go, but I know that God's plans are much greater than my own, and His glory will be shown through this time!
Ray and I have learned through this time that the hardest part of fostering is saying good-bye! However, it can also be a joy to see these children move on to wonderful, loving families or go back home to their birth parents. Fostering has been a terrific ministry for us, and our goal is to live the gospel out to these children and families. We will fail, but we know that God will be glorified through this ministry.
Logan update: Logan is almost 3 years old! He is the most curious little boy, and loves taking things apart to see how they work (just like Daddy)! He is a healthy eater, always trying to steal fruit out of the fridge, but I guess that's better than sweets! He is great at adjusting to all the changes, and so excited to be a big brother! He loves to talk and has an amazing vocabulary, and is non stop on the go ALL THE TIME!