May The Force Be With You....

Okay...I almost forgot to post photos from Benjamin's birthday party!!! We had the best darn little Star Wars party ever!! Benjamin and his buddies got to put on Darth Vadar masks (except the girls...who can blame them!) while the grown ups visited and enjoyed some good food. The day was extra special because we were also celebrating the finalization of Maggie's adoption!

Four Years Ago Today...

We had just arrived home from a trip out of town. We'd spent a long weekend in Modesto at a friend's baby shower. Nate and I had lived with Jennifer in college and here she was pregnant with a baby boy due in May! We had been speaking to a potential birthmother before we left town. She was also pregnant with a baby boy due in May. We were pretty excited about the prospect but knew that she had other families to talk with and meet.



I had just gotten out of the shower, I think it was around 9:00 in the morning. I remember looking at the suitcases we hadn't unpacked since we'd returned home the night before. The phone rang...I remembered that this potential birthmother was supposed to call but I didn't think it could be her already. I answered the phone and sure enough...it was Amber! She called to tell me that she was in the hospital....she was in labor....and she had picked us! I told her we'd get to her as quickly as we could and hung up to call Nate.

Nate was home from work within an hour making hotel reservations for Sandy, Utah. We unpacked our "modesto" clothes and repacked for April in Utah. We drove to the airport to catch the first flight out of San Diego that we could. The first flight out left almost immediately and the tickets were at exorbitant amount. The next flight was just under an hour and much MUCH more affordable. We decided to wait the hour for the next flight. Little did we know what that decision would cost us!

As the time approached for our flight to depart it became clear that things were not moving on time. Our plane had mechanical difficulties. After several hours our plane was finally ready for departure. Unfortunately we missed our connecting flight in Phoenix and had several more hours to wait at that airport. When we landed in Phoenix we got the message from Amber's mom Janet that the baby had been born. She said he was beautiful and that they couldn't wait for us to get there!

We arrived in Salt Lake City around 11:30pm and were waiting for our luggage when Janet called. She wanted to make sure we would still go by the hospital that night. She and Amber were anxious to meet us in person! We finally arrived at the hospital (after driving around in the dark trying to find the entrance) sometime after midnight.

When I walked through the hospital room door I saw Amber first. She looked tired and wired at the same time. She was so beautiful with a mane of curly blonde hair and big blue eyes. She looked as relieved as we felt to finally be there. Then she pointed to a tiny baby boy sleeping in the bassinett. He was the smallest baby I had every seen. He had on a little cap and he was all snuggled in a receiving blanket. He was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen, and I knew my life would never be the same after that moment.

I will always remember the story of Benjamin's birth, though not the same way that women remember giving birth to their children. I will always be a little sad that I wasn't present when Benjamin made his way into the world and took his first breath. But I will always be SO grateful to his birthmother Amber for her bravery and to his birthgrandmother Janet for the support she provided in our absence. On April 5, 2005 our lives were changed forever by the birth of our son Benjamin and the addition of Amber and her family to our family. We are SO blessed to have them all in our lives!

Happy Birthday Benjamin!!

And Now....Pictures!

Just For You Auntie Jill!

Yes...yes...I am a bad blogger. But I actually have some excuses this time. Do you want to hear them? Okay, I will spare you all the details, but our desktop computer has died and I have been working off the laptop. I haven't installed any photo software yet on the laptop so I haven't been able to download any photos. However, I PROMISED Auntie Jill today that I would post an update on the blog. So here it is, the photos will come later.

So I'm sure you are wondering why it was so important that I update the blog today of all days. Well, Wed. March 11 was a very important day in the Huff family. This morning we went to court to finalize Maggie's adoption. IT'S OFFICIAL!!!! Maggie is now legally our daughter...yea!!! Yes, I spent hours searching for the perfect outfits for Maggie and Benjamin, we woke up extra early to get ready and look beautiful (I swear....I will post photos soon!) and rushed down the the courthouse. In attendance were Nate, me, Benjamin, Maggie, Grandma McCurdy, Grandma Suzy, Auntie Jill and Auntie Eli. Thanks to you guys for sharing our special day with us!!

We waited a few minutes in the hall, then we waited a little while in the courtroom. Lucky for us they went by age (youngest going first) so we were first to be lead into the judge's chambers. It took all of 2 minutes to complete the process (always surprisingly anti-climactic) and then we were rushed out with our paperwork! Lastly we all enjoyed breakfast at The Pancake House. I can't believe it's actually over. The only thing left to do is apply for Maggie's Social Security card. I'm sure THAT will be fun!!

Love & Laundry

I was shocked to realize I haven't blogged in almost a month. I really must stay off Facebook once in awhile! For those of you interested...here are some happenings from our house lately. The biggest news (as far as I am concerned) is that we FINALLY broke down and bought a new washer and dryer. Our dryer had died...well, at least partly. It was taking about 3 hours to dry one load. The GE repairman said it wasn't worth the cost to fix it. So Nate and I searched and searched. We debated buying a used dryer...but they were at least $250 and were about 30 years old! No thanks! So then we looked at lower end new ones but figured since we were spending the money we might as well get what we really REALLY wanted. So I am the proud owner of a front loading LG washer and dryer. The day we got it Nate and I just stood in front of it and watched our clothing being laundered...it was so quiet I didn't think it was working! Very happy with our purchase so far!

Okay...on to the good stuff. The kids are growing and changing more and more every day! Benjamin has become so well spoken and funny...and quite the smart alec sometimes! We just bought a Wii game system, and we weren't sure that Benjamin would have the dexterity to play the games. We were completely wrong! He almost kicked my butt bowling tonight! I love it because he gets so physically active when he plays...he actually sleeps better at night! I was concerned about the whole video game thing with a three year old, but I looked on the American Academy of Pediatrics website, and for his age they recommend no more than 2 hours a day of combined television, video games and computer time. He's really good a decided if he wants to blow the whole 2 hours playing video games or if he wants to save some for television later. And the best part...I finally have a bagaining chip to get his cooperation!

Maggie is doing fabulous! She is beginning to get rather "chatty" and has just started rolling over! She hates her "tummy time" but will put up with it if she can look at herself in the mirror. She still eats about every 3 hours except at night, then it's about every 5 hours. She is absolutely, positively in LOVE with her Daddy (as evidenced in these photos.) She will just light up when she sees him! She is getting a lot more social and doesn't like to feel left out. I swear, she can be sound asleep when I put dinner on the table and as soon as we start eating she begins to fuss. Once Nate puts her near the table by us she is happy as a clam!

Caught Her Smiling!

Okay...So I realize I haven't been blogging as much as I should be lately. But boy it's very true what everyone told me before we adopted Maggie, having two children is exponentially more work. One friend said I might as well have 30 children! Well, with 30 children I would hope that at least some of them would know how to do laundry!! Which reminds me...my dryer is broken. The repairman comes tomorrow so say a little prayer that it is an inexpensive thing to fix! Now...for the purpose of this post!

Maggie was at the doctor on Friday for her two month check-up. Other than a littl reflux Maggie is doing just great! She weighs 11 lbs. 1 oz. which is a gain of almost 3 pounds! She is 23 inches long....read that looooonnnnngggg. She is getting too long for her 3 month sized clothes but they are swimming around her waist! She slept through the night for the first time last night....THAT'S RIGHT.....ALL night!! I know that officially once babies are sleeping 5 hours straight that is officially "sleeping through the night." But last night she slept from 9:30pm until 7:30 this morning...HEAVEN!! Let's hope she does it again tonight...I won't be holding my breath though. Maggie is also smiling a TON but it's sort of difficult to catch with the camera. Lucky for me the other day I finally caught her smiling!