It's Officially Official...

We've just received Miles's birth certificates in the mail! Although the adoption has been official and final for awhile, this is the last step in a long process. He now officially has our name, and we are thrilled. Sometimes we look at him and wonder what we ever did before he came. It seems like he's always been a part of us, and I guess in some ways he has. He was growing in our hearts long before he was ever conceived, or before his birthmom chose our family to adopt him.

You may wonder where we have been lately in the world of blogging. The answer is: right here! I (Jill) spend most of my days at home, chasing after Miles and homeschooling Grant. Although I do enjoy writing, by the end of most days I am exhausted and can't put a sentence together. But I do treasure the memories we daily make with our boys, and I want to do better about sharing those with you, even if it's just a picture or a short sentence. So keep checking back.

7 Months

Well, it seems like all our updates are long-overdue. Miles is now 7 months--the time has flown by! He is such a sweetheart and keeps us laughing. As he grows, he surprises us with many things. Two recent "tricks" he has pulled out of his hat are: 1. drinking out of a straw, and 2. saying "mama". We thought 6 months was way too early to talk, but he is proving to be quite a mama's boy, and he definitely lets us know that :)

Grant and Miles are becoming inseparable pals. On a recent car ride, they were taking turns screeching at the top of their little lungs. The sound wasn't so little, but they were having so much fun. Miles thinks of Grant as his toy, and Grant (for the most part) is happy to do whatever Miles likes. Having two boys is definitely a lot of work, but the joy is immeasurable.

On a business note, we recently met with our attorney to begin the finalization process. All our papers are in order and our post-placement visits are completed, so we hope to actually finalize in early spring!

A Long Overdue Update

Hi Friends! It has been quite some time since we've written--not because we don't have anything to share, but because we've been so busy. Miles is growing and changing every day. He gas gone from a little five-pound bundle to a fourteen pound chunk! He is always so alert and interactive when he's awake, and such a wonderful sleeper at night. His favorite things are being outdoors, riding forward-facing in the Baby Bjorn, batting at his toys, looking in the mirror, eating, and talking with us. He's not so fond of riding in the car, tummy time, and getting dressed. As you can see, the "favorite" list is much longer than the "un-favorite" list, and that describes Miles's personality well. He's such a happy, laid-back baby, and he brings us so much joy!

Many of you have asked how Grant has adjusted to being a big brother. He loves Miles so much, and is very kind and gentle with him. The main thing we have noticed is that he has all the sudden "lost" certain abilities--such as the ability to feed himself. Of course he hasn't actually forgotten how to eat, but when we sit down to dinner he pleads, "feed me, feed me!" Although this is quite humorous since he has been eating by himself for years, we do realize that he is needing some extra love and affection since his place as only child has been permanently lost. It's been good for him, though, and overall he is thrilled to have Miles as a part of our family.

I have to sign off for now, but I will try to update more frequently with pictures and news. Oh, one more thing. November 4th is the scheduled date for the termination of birthfather rights. We are extremely grateful that God has so far answered our prayers and yours, and everything has gone smoothly. Thank you all for praying.

Love,

Jill, Stephen, Grant, and Miles

A Picture is worth a thousand words...

In our home lately we haven't had too much time for blogging. (Hmmm...I wonder why? :) Miles is a wonderful baby, but of course caring for him is 24/7, and we couldn't be happier. We just wanted to share a recent picture...can you tell that Miles is now 11 pounds?

Happy Birthday, Miles!

On Sunday, Miles will be one month old. Even though we have not had him with us for all of his first month, our time with him has flown by.

As you all may have guessed, we are now home and in the full swing of 24/7 baby care. Miles seems to be as happy to be home as we are. He is doing really well on his feeding/sleeping schedule, and does well at night. He is such a blessing from the Lord, and we absolutely love having him in our family.

Miles is ready to eat again, so this is a very short post. We hope to be at church on Sunday, so those of you who are there will hopefully get to meet him then. I will try to post more soon...

Heading Home

This is just a quick post to thank you all for praying--our Interstate Compact went through really quickly, and we are headed home tomorrow (Friday)! We are driving and will be stopping over with some dear friends tomorrow evening, then returning to Virginia on Saturday.

Miles had his first big outing today at the Georgia Aquarium which he loved :) He seemed to get as much attention as many of the fish did.

Virginia, here we come!

First Week with Miles

Today, Miles has been with us a week. In some ways it has flown by, but in others it has seemed quite long (especially at night :). Miles is such a cute and happy baby, and we love every minute with him--even the 2 AM feedings. Recently he has had some minor tummy troubles with gassiness/burping, but we're hoping a change in formula and some other small adjustments will help him.

We heard from our adoption agency today that Georgia has given approval for us to leave the state, and now it's up to Virginia to let us return. We hope to hear something by Thursday, and then we will return home over the weekend.

This past weekend my parents drove down to visit their new grandson. It was so nice to have them here, and we all enjoyed Baby Miles together.

We have a specific prayer request for all of you who are so faithfully praying. We have recently learned that the termination of birthfather rights might not be as straightforward as we had originally thought. At this point this isn't a big cause for concern, but it could potentially make it so the birthfather rights aren't terminated for another month and a half. Please pray that there won't be any issues with this, and that it can be done quickly.

Thank you all so much! We can't wait to introduce you to our little man.

~Jill