One more interesting week down. 

This week has been a busy one, full of all sorts of fun chores, work drama, and fun with Izzie. 

It has always been our intention to keep this blog updated, to show you how our process is going, how our family is doing, and of course, what you really want to know, is how cute Izzie has been lately. Tonight, I'm going to try to touch on all of those, before she wakes up. 

Our classes have gone very well, and we have learned a lot. We have our last class tomorrow (Tuesday) night, and I have to tell you, the classes have been an emotional time for us. Most of the class  topics are in preparing potential adoptive families for the ins and outs of adoption, placement, the potential relationship with birth parents, birth families, and explaining adoption to friends and family along the way.

We have had the unique position of coming into this class, with some experience, a lot of understanding of the potential complications, and to be honest, all of our expectations have been pretty well broken. We have had an ability to really relate to a lot of the guest speakers in the class, as they explain the journey that they have taken, be it as adoptive parents, or even as birth parents and how their stories show the potential outcome for our birth mom. All in all, things have gone very very well. 

We have had the typical new-parent lack of sleep that so many people know so well. I would say that if you asked me at 4:30 this morning how things were going with Izzie, I probably would not have responded favorably. She honestly, is doing well. She has gotten to being smiley, and cooing at us, which balances out the fussy time between first and second dinners and right before bed. Babies really are like Hobbits, in that they insist on having first and second breakfasts, pre lunch, lunch, pre dinner, dinner, and several snacks throughout the night. Life is an ongoing Thanksgiving Day for them as far as meals are concerned. In some ways it makes me envious. In others, just tired.

Becky and I are also starting our third week of clean eating, again. We did this once before, and were, in fact, a week or two in when we first heard about Izzie, back in October. What has changed, is that after two months of grabbing whatever we could to eat whenever we could, we decided it was time to reset a bit, and get back into a habit of eating well. This has not been easy, because now we are trying to grab whatever we can, as long as it has no additives, or sugar, or grains, or anything besides just the food it is supposed to be. I have to be very honest and say that every mention of the word "we" in this paragraph has actually referred to Becky primarily, and me secondarily. Becky decided to try clean eating again, and now I have nothing but clean foods in the house. Becky decided to give up sugar and grains and such, and I could really go for a cheeseburger. The last day of this meal plan is the day before St.Patricks Day. There will be much corned beef.

Izzie amazes us daily with how much she has grown. Becky was cleaning and organizing baby clothes this weekend and stumbled upon a onesie that Izzie had worn like a giant bathrobe when we brought her home. Now, putting the same onesie on her would be most likely impossible, and definitely inappropriate for her to leave the house in. She has started being able to wake up and just watch us, without screaming loud enough to wake my extended family back east, although she still does that just to stay in practice. 

Izzie has always had strong legs. Our birth mother, while texting Becky back in November, told her that Izzie had kicked her so hard that she had the wind knocked out of her. This was a month before she was born. Izzie likes to practice said kicking at my stomach and waist while I change her in the middle of the night. We found out this week, that while she is still much to young to balance on her own, she is strong enough to stand up, if we support her leaning. 

Izzie also amazed us yesterday, as she was laying on her play mat, and managed to squirm herself 90 degrees to get a better look at one of the little stuffed animals that hangs above her. Before we know it, she's going to be chasing the dogs around the house with a stick. 

Realistically, we're in love. As the process moves forward, and we continue to wait on the slower aspects of it, we fall more and more for her. She's a treat to be around, Grandparents would agree. 

And we still know that the process is not over and that we have to hold her loosely, as we hold her tightly.

New needs have arisen, and as such, we want to continue to tell you what are needs are. Our birth mother's medical bills have come in, and we need to continue to fundraise to cover those. I have reopened our fundraiser through youcaring.com, and as always, you can also send donations through paypal.  

We have a list of puzzle pieces that still need to be filled out with your names, but we have also decided to put together a facebook. We're talking about a real one, not a website. 

We want to take our puzzle idea a bit further, and put together a book with all of your faces and names in it, a very tangible and very visible list of the people who have helped build our family, have helped bring Izzie home, and have helped us continue to witness to her Birth family… And we want you to be in that book.

We realized through listening to one of the guest speakers in our class last week, that our life, our story, our journey with Izzie is a ministry to not only the birth families and those we work with and who come to know her story, but it is a ministry for those who have been a part of the journey as well. It is one that you have been a part of, reaching out to take care of a little baby girl who was in need. 

Thank you everyone for your part in this story so far. Thank you to those who have given selflessly, to those who have surprised us by telling us how touched they were. Thank you to the families who we have had little interaction with , but have amazed us with their care for us and for Izzie. 

You have done amazing things for our family, and we love you… We could not have come this far without you…

the link to the you caring site is in the sidebar, and the paypal address is jesse.brimhall@gmail.com.