He's ALL BOY!!

                                        
Charley officially WORE ME OUT yesterday!!  I must admit, I enjoyed every last (sometimes grueling) minute, but I am TIRED!  It's so fun to see this tiny baby develop into a "little man".  He's laughing, grunting, growling, insisting on standing oh about....89% OF THE TIME!, and he's dealing with constipation/gas because we started solids last week.  Whew! 

We started the day an hour and 15 minutes early (5:45 am), with loud singing and a poopy diaper.  Remember...it was Saturday.  A day for sleeping in!  Guess Charley missed that memo.  After a diaper change, some applesauce and a bottle, Charley snuggled into his bouncy seat to play and I grabbed a cup of coffee, since I obviously was up to stay.  Not 5 minutes later, I noticed Charley was awfully quiet.  I looked over to see that the little stinker was asleep again!  Hmmm, should have waited on the coffee since I could have gone back to bed.  "Oh well," I thought, "guess I'll drink an extra cup!"

Charley continued to take a couple short "cat naps" = no real naps, and he ate only half of his bottle twice as many times = 1/2 bottle every 1 1/2 hours.  We had regressed to the newborn version of "eat, sleep, poop"!  By this time, I was getting pretty tired, but I have to say...Charley made it all worth it with a pretty fun playtime, full of laughs and giggles, while laying in the bed between MoMo and PoPo in the middle of the day.  After that, I even snuck in an hour nap! Thank heaven for little treasures!

We ventured out in the afternoon to the jewelry store to purchase the charms I talked about in my previous post.  That experience is a whole story in itself, but in short...we (including the sales associate who was helping us get Charley's fingerprint mold) had to convince other customers that we weren't "hurting" the baby.  The wax wasn't hot and we weren't squeezing his fingers, but you would have thought we were doing surgery!  To top it off, in the hour we were there, he wanted a bottle and had to have his diaper changed twice.  I'm pretty sure he's one of only a handful of individuals that has ever had a BM in the Borsheims jewelry store! He's normally a social baby, but that day, he wanted to sit in his stroller with the sunshade closed.  We saw many disappointed women who attempted to get a smile by opening the shade, only to get a snarl.

Once home, I changed what SEEMED 5 more poopy diapers (it was probably only one or two), fed Charley, and put him to bed.  We topped off the night with one more poopy diaper at 11:00 pm.  That never happens!

Instead of collapsing into bed, I passed out, curled up on the floor with my sweet husband, in front of a blazing fire.  Was it worth it?  YOU BETCHA!!  I woke up this morning (at 7:00 am, thank goodness) to a happy singing baby, who had a big, open mouthed grin for me when I lifted him out of his crib.  Lovin' life...that's what it's all about isn't it?

Love to ya!
Shell


                                

The Fingerprint Bracelet

For Christmas 2008, Curtis took Claudia and I to Borsheims to buy my Christmas present.  I was SO EXCITED!  Let's just say that Borsheims is the Tiffany's of Omaha! Ha!  Owned by Warren Buffett, it has some of the most beautiful jewelry and luxury gift items.  It's a lot fun to just walk around and "gawk" at some of the unusual pieces.  Borsheims was advertising a charm bracelet that year that I just couldn't pass up.  A link bracelet with round charms engraved with a name/birthdate on one side and a fingerprint impression on the other.  I thought this would be a wonderful way to celebrate Claudia being our first foster child.  I also envisioned eventually having a bracelet full of fingerprint charms, representing foster children that would pass through our lives.  Little did I know what that bracelet would symbolize for me.

When Claudia returned home to her mother in early 2009, I couldn't bear to take off the bracelet.  I seriously wore it ALL the time.  Showering, sleeping, working out, gardening.  It had become a part of me.  I even decided that the ONLY fingerprint that would ever make it onto the bracelet would be Claudia's.  When I look back at my actions, I realize that taking off the bracelet, meant having to "let go" of the part of Claudia to which I was still desperately clinging. 

The only person that ever talked me into taking off the bracelet was my physical therapist (now my dear friend), Teresa. She has such a kind, sweet spirit and she was very sensitive to my feelings. Even though I hadn't uttered a word about what it meant to me, other than describing what it was...she knew.
I never told Teresa how taking off the bracelet changed me.  It symbolized letting go.  Maybe just a little, but it was a start.  At the time, I believed that she was just doing her job, working on my shoulder and arm, and didn't want to risk breaking it. But, God was using her to get through to my heart. I'm thankful that Teresa was a willing soul, used by God to begin a long journey of healing.

So, about now, you're probably thinking that I don't wear the bracelet much.  Nope...I still wear it pretty much all the time. But, I'm able to take it off without hyperventilating.  And when I look at Claudia's fingerprint, I'm able to think about my sweet baby without having a serious meltdown.  Sounds extreme?  Yep...but that's where my heart was.  I'm just being real and honest.  And "real people hurt real bad" sometimes.  But, thankfully God is mending my heart.

Today, I'm adding not one, but TWO charms to my bracelet.  Curtis and I are taking Charley to Borsheims to have his fingerprint molded in wax to be put on a charm.  I'm looking forward to it.  It will be a fun outing for us.  Afterwards, we will go to lunch and maybe even have another picture with Santa. 

The other charm will represent "Little Star", our second foster child.  I never intended to have her fingerprint molded in the hot wax due to the severe burns on her hands, but I will have a charm on my bracelet for her.  She was one of our children, and I won't ever forget how she touched our lives.

God is changing my heart.  He is healing me in ways that I never believed he could.  He's shown me that even through the heartache, there were countless blessings that I just can't ignore.  He brought special friends into my life to walk alongside me and lift me up to Him.  He gave me a husband with an endless amount of compassion and understanding.  And, He has shown me that in all things, even in healing my heart, His timing is so much better than mine.

Off to Borsheims!.....Merry Christmas to me! :-)   and to YOU my special friends!

Love to ya!
Shell

Charley & MoMo

                           

"Little Star"  & MiMi



Claudia & MoMo

                               

A Forever Family

Charley - 1 month & Jordan - 16 months

Three of Charley's siblings were officially adopted 2 weeks ago.  Even though they may not fully understand it now, their lives have forever changed.  These children have experienced things that no child should be exposed to, but now they are loved by two parents who have made a commitment to protect and provide for them, and most importantly, love them forever. 

A part of me aches for Charley, that he's never going to celebrate these happy times with his siblings.  We were not asked to be a part of this occasion and I fully understand why.  Two of the other children are old enough to know that Charley is their brother, yet too young to understand why he's not with them.  The adoptive parents want to give these children a life that is as close to "normal" as possible, given the circumstances. 

So, I'm posting this beautiful article that was written in the Omaha World Herald...for Charley.  When he's old enough to understand, I want him to know that his brothers and sister have a wonderful, permanent home where they are loved and well taken-care of.  My prayer for Charley is that someday he will be able to have the same. 

Until then, Curtis and I will love this little guy like our own, and give him a home where he feels safe, warm, and loved.


Shyanne - Age 3



Jordan - 16 months



Dakota - Age 4

Kids, new parents celebrate

By Rick Ruggles
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Gail and Patrick Schmidt thought hard about the fact that they would be in their 60s by the time these kids are teenagers.  Didn't matter. The three children wouldn't be bounced around through foster care. They would have a permanent home and reliable parents.

The Schmidts adopted siblings Dakota, a 4-year-old boy; Shyanne, a 3-year-old girl; and Jordan, a 20-month-old boy, in a National Adoption Day ceremony Saturday in Omaha.

Similar gatherings took place this weekend in other communities in Nebraska, Iowa and nationwide. National Adoption Day promotes the joy of giving a child a permanent family and publicizes the need for more adults to do so.

Twenty-nine children received adoption decrees Saturday at the City-County Building. The children, their parents, relatives and friends then celebrated in the lobby. They ate cookies and drank juice and coffee while face painters and balloon makers did their stuff.

Patrick Schmidt, 47, originally was willing to be a foster parent but had no interest in committing to adoption. They took in a little girl, Danielle, about three years ago.  She had been moved from one foster home to another. Patrick Schmidt gradually realized he couldn't allow that to continue happening to Danielle. He and his wife adopted the 8-year-old girl in July.  Meanwhile, they fell in love with three other children in their foster care. They adopted those kids Saturday.

They moved out of the courtroom after the ceremony and into a room for photo-taking. A man took numerous shots of what had just become the six-person Schmidt family.  “How much pictures did you take?” Danielle asked the photographer.

Patrick Schmidt's father, who turned 73 Saturday, came up from Texas for the ceremony. So did Patrick's three sisters. They took turns carrying the kids, holding their hands, placing them on their laps.
Jordan reached into the purse of new aunt Cathy Williamson and touched her camera. “He likes electronics,” she said. “Yeah, you're gonna be a geek.”

Dakota had the image of a snake painted on his face. Shyanne looked in awe at a young woman on stilts who then handed Shyanne a small cluster of pink balloons. Danielle, her face covered in colorful flower images, drew with crayons.

“At this stage of our life, it's very interesting,” said Gail Schmidt, 47. “It's awesome. It's just awesome.”
Patrick Schmidt, the guy who once doubted he could adopt a child, now had four adoptees.
“I am thrilled to death,” he said with sincerity. “It's a great, great ride.”

2010 Christmas Card

Candy Cane Wishes Christmas

Make a statement with Shutterfly Christmas photo cards.

View the entire collection of cards.