Meeting Julia

One year ago today we met beautiful Julia, Georgia's birthmom, for the very first time! I can't believe we've only known her for a year and Georgia is already 10 months old! I can remember the day very well...we had about a 4 hour drive and the closer we got the more nervous we got. A week before I got my hair cut & colored and she took extra time on it...making sure it was perfect for our meeting! I even went out and bought new make-up and a new shirt, wanting everything to be just right. I think we even bought Shelby a new shirt! It was a wonderful lunch meeting and we thought Julia was absolutely beautiful and precious and we still do. It was on that day that we learned the baby was a GIRL! How exciting! Tears of joy were shed all the way home as we called our family and friends to share the news. Although we don't talk much to Julia (she's planning a September wedding and I am pregnant with a 10 month old!) I pray for her every day and think about her all the time. She has given us so much joy and happiness through Georgia!

Here are the two things she's still doing that I think are adorable...

Tilting her head...

And squinting her eyes...

I HAD to take a picture of the picture Mary Katherine drew for us. She is not quite five...will be on June 24th. Andy typed out our names on the computer and she wrote them all by herself. It's so cute I think I have to frame it! Notice the baby is a girl...she's wearing a pink dress! We shall see! I think it would be great fun to have a little girl (it certainly would be easy with all that we have from Georgia) and to watch two little girls 14 months apart grow up together. But, I also think it would be great to have a little boy, too! A boy would carry on the Braman name...Shelby is the last male Braman. Either way, we are THRILLED! Our prayer has been for a healthy baby and it will continue to be our prayer, regardless of what sex the baby is!

Thank you God for this past year, the joys and surprises that have come, and the months and years ahead of us. We trust in you and look forward to seeing your beautiful plan unfold.

Quick Trip to "The City"

We made a quick trip to attend Aunt Heather's art show this past weekend. She won 2nd place for "Where it Settles" (pictured below). She is definitely a very talented painter and I am SO happy for her and the direction her life is headed. We enjoyed getting to see both of her paintings, as well as some sketches she had in the show.

Here she is receiving her 2nd place ribbon (we all thought it should have been 1st place!) and prize from the Art Department...
And here is the artist herself with her masterpiece!
The whole crew minus GrandBarry (he was on his way back from Branson, MO)...
Shelby & Georgia enjoying the beautiful weather, waiting to eat some good 'ol BBQ for lunch! Georgia now has 4 teeth and two more are VERY close. Notice her necklace in the picture...she is always chewing on something!
It was a great weekend...too short, as always, but very enjoyable!

H-O-M-E

Mom & Dad went to Houston on Friday, prepared to stay until Sunday or even later, if Angie & Joe needed them. Saturday morning Angie called Mom & Dad in their hotel room and said, "Well, you better hurry up and get over here if you want to see us because we're GOING HOME TODAY!" That's right, Saturday--just five days after major abdominal surgery, Will was going home. He called his big brother Gabe and Gabe said, "COOL!"

Angie sent this picture to me with the title, "ENOUGH SAID"...it definitely speaks for itself!

This little guy never ceases to amaze our family. On Sunday he rode his bicycle a couple of times in front of his house and rode his "razor" around the kitchen table three times! When Angie told him she didn't think it was a good idea he would NOT take no for an answer. He could barely squat down on the floor and play but he was determined to get on his bike & scooter! Will can be VERY stubborn, but that's why we all think he bounces back so quickly! He's a fighter and we are so thankful.

Improvement in Will

Here is a TERRIFIC picture that my sister Angie sent me this afternoon of WIll-sitting up, coloring, and watching Franklin. The best part of the picture? HIS PRECIOUS SMILE!

And here he is eating breakfast...

And here is the latest update from Angie...

When you are in the hospital you become very focused on numbers...almost obsessed with them especially when it is your child. Numbers on the monitor, numbers on lab work, and the number of "tubes" connecting your child to exterior healing forces. When Will came out of surgery he had 9 tubes. This morning he is down to 7 - a sure sign of progress. He no longer needs oxygen or continuous fluids through his IV. Today the plan is to wean him off his epidural and to discharge his catheter, so tomorrow he'll be down to 5.

Yesterday afternoon we had a little scare, Will spiked a fever of 100.9. Technology is amazing. I couldn't leave the room to update the care page (we can't get an internet signal on the PCU), so I had to resort to texting. I quickly texted 4 key people in our lives, and within minutes a prayer chain was started all over Texas and beyond. An hour later, Will's fever was gone and it hasn't been back! So amazing to see first hand the power of prayer. The fever also led to a flurry of lab work which has all come back normal. If you were involved in this chain of prayer...thank you!

Will is getting to eat more today...scrambled eggs and yogurt, which he is tolerating and enjoying very much. The highlight of the day....Joe doing a silly disco dance for Will while twirling some 7 foot long fiber optic light up plastic tube things Child Life brought to our room for entertainment. Joe was hoping to liven things up a little...Will just sat in his bed staring at him ...not sure what to think. I on the other hand was laughing so hard I almost choked. It feels so good to have a moment of joy like that in the hospital. It is a gift.

Thank you, thank you for all your words of encouragement - we feel so connected to all of you despite the distance.

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I know that many of YOU were involved in that chain of prayer she wrote about...thank you from the bottom of my heart! Mom & Dad are there with them again. When Mom called me at about 2:30 Angie & Joe had left the hospital to get a little rest and some fresh air. Will was perfectly content sitting in his hospital bed with Paw Paw looking at Dad's "Green" Magazine...a John Deere magazine that Will LOVES! When Mom & Dad were in Fredericksburg a few weeks ago Will specifically asked Dad to bring some tractor magazines. She said he was giggling and smiling...what a precious picture!

Will

Fighter, tough guy, trooper, and the list goes on and on...those are all words that describe my four year old nephew Will. I could also say goofball, nut, life of the party, etc. He is such a BLESSING to our family! As many of you know, Will had surgery this past Tuesday, April 20th, at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston. This surgery was to repair a large hernia in his diaphragm that was causing his stomach to slide up and down, to reposition his stomach, and to stretch his esophagus. Will was born on September 14, 2005, and has had countless surgeries and medical procedures in his 4 1/2 years of life. He was born with Goldenhar Syndrome but it hasn't slowed him down much!

On Monday, Mom, Dad, Georgia & I met up with my sister Angie, my brother-in-law Joe, and Will in Houston. We went to eat supper together and Will was running and playing...so much so that you would never know he was sick! He was all over the place, rubbing Dad's noggin, playing with Georgia and getting hot & sweaty! Thank you, God! Angie told us that this past month he has felt EXTREMELY good, which is an answer to prayer because we all wanted him to be healthy and as strong as possible when he had his surgery. For supper he ate chicken, mashed potatoes & gravy, green beans, and orange jell-o. At one point he turned to me and said, "BB? Are you going to eat all of your roll?" to which I replied "Go for it, dude!" He took a huge bite out of it and kept on eating. I would have given him everything on my plate if he had wanted it!

After supper we went back to where they were staying and Will opened a few gifts and we finished watching "The Sandlot"...GREAT movie! Here are the pictures I was able to get that night...

He loves hanging out with Paw Paw...

"Paw Paw? Do you need some help with that?"...as Dad was trying to work his puzzle!

Will LOVES Georgia and we were trying to get a picture of the both of them together. Georgia wasn't cooperating, SO...

Will made her look at the camera! Ha!

Instead of trying to write what went on the day of his surgery, I thought I would insert bits of his carepages site that Angie has been updating...

This was written on Tuesday morning, after he was in surgery...

Will went into surgery at 7:45 riding on a miniature John Deere tractor with a front loader....only as Will can do, checking himself out in the mirror along the way. We are already being immensely blessed by all your prayers. I was worried about Will waking up this morning and being hungry and thirsty, and having to tell him that he could not have anything. Well...he never once asked for a thing to eat or drink all the way up to going into surgery. Your prayers have fed him. He woke up happy, and has played all morning, only getting upset when he had to take off his jeans and "peace" shirt to put on the hospital gown. The other thing we were concerned about was Will going under anesthesia, since he coded 2x last time he was put under. Well, the surgeon himself, Dr. Darrell Cass, came out to the waiting room at 8:04 to tell us Will is completely asleep and that the anesthesia went very smoothly! Thank you God! Will's PawPaw, Grandma, Aunt Becky, cousin Georgia, and our pastor, Jeff are all here with us in the waiting room, surrounding us with love and support. And....we feel the love and prayers from all of you. We are very confident that this surgery is going to help Will feel better, grow, and blossom in Will style.

Dr. Darrell Cass is my new hero! He is the Texas Children's Fetal Center Co-Director and Pediatric Surgeon...and one AMAZING physician, taking time out to email and talk with Angie and Joe personally throughout their journey. We truly believe that God led Angie & Joe to him. I am so thankful for the power of prayer, as well as the power of modern medicine! We believe that God has saved Will through the work of this doctor, and his incredible "A Team" of assistants and nurses.

I took some toys for Georgia to play with and Mom had a blanket that we spread out on the waiting room floor...she did SO WELL!

Here is another update written by Angie. This was at about 10:00 Tuesday morning...

We just got an update from Will's pulmonolgist, Dr. George Mallory. The surgery is going very well. It will probably take another 2 hours. Will's pulmonologist said that Will's right lung is full of puss and mucus, stating that they could put a drain in it all day and it would not take care of it. So, they have had to put a balloon in the right bronchus to block the mucus from draining out and causing respiratory distress. Dr. Mallory said "Will is doing so well because he has the Great Physician". I cannot stress enough my confidence that the team working with Will right now was chosen by God. He is in good hands. The plan, according to Dr. Mallory, is to extubate Will as soon as they can, so he can cough and get some of that mucus out. Then put him in the Progressive Care Unit. This unit will allow us to stay over night with him, which will be a comfort to all of us.

Will will be facing another surgery, probably sometime this summer, to remove his right lung. It will continue to make him sick if it stays in his body. This is the update Angie wrote Wednesday morning...

As many of you have already heard, Will's surgery was a success yesterday. Will's stomach is now where it is supposed to be, and the large hole in his diaphragm where his stomach was herniating through is now closed. Hopefully his reflux is now eliminated. His surgeon, Dr. Cass, was very pleased with how the surgery went, and also very puzzled by Will's unusual anatomy. I cannot say enough about Will's amazing surgical team, including anesthesiologist, Dr. Glover. Will went under and came out of anesthesia beautifully! His post op nurse was so amazed by how quickly he recovered. We were very pleased too, but not quite so amazed because we know how many prayers have gone up on our behalf. Thank you! Will now is in the PCU (Progressive Care Unit). He had a difficult night, with sleep interrupted by periods of pain. He is also very congested, the surgery having stirred up the "endless" amounts of mucus in his "sick" lung. This morning, pain management has increased his epidural to improve his comfort, which seems to be helping. Will continues to require frequent suctioning because of the large amounts of mucus coming from his right lung. Now he has a low grade fever of 99.6. Please pray that Will does not develop pneumonia or infection....that is our priority prayer right now, and of course that he stays as pain free as possible. We walk a fine line with the pain control because it is so important that Will moves today and gets out of bed to improve the healing process.

We are so grateful to all of you. We feel your prayers and love across the miles.

Because will was in the PCU, only siblings under the age of 14 could be in his room. SO, Georgia and I spent time walking around, making friends, and Mom & Dad took turns with me as well so that I could see Will. This picture was taken Wednesday before lunch...Georgia and I were in the bridge area that connects two of the large towers of the hospital. It has these big windowsills that you can sit on. Georgia enjoyed watching the traffic, the construction across the street, and all of the people walking by. We even read a few books while we were there. Dad called me on my cell and asked where we were. Will was awake and when Dad asked if he wanted to see BB he shook his head yes! I practically ran to his room! Of course, when I got there he wasn't in much of a mood to hang out, but it was great to see him awake.

This was my bed buddy for two nights...it is hilarious how she sleeps! I had pillows on the edge of the bed so she couldn't roll off and she propped her feet on them and pulled her blanket up over her face and fell asleep. Of course I took the blanket off her face after a few minutes.
And last but not least, here are some pictures of Will...this first one is from Tuesday, the day of the surgery. He was definitely out of it.
And this one was Wednesday, before we left to come home. He was awake and watching Tom & Jerry.
I just spoke with Angie, Joe AND Will! He said hi and that he was feeling OK. Apparently he's being pretty demanding of his mom and dad, which is a good thing...he's getting back to the Will we all know and love! He's had apple juice and jell-o this morning and has not had fever! Praise God! When I called he was sitting on the couch in their room with Joe looking out the window at the airplanes. He wants to go down the hall, but it's hard to be too mobile when he has so many tubes attached. They are hoping he will get some of them removed tomorrow.

We serve an awesome healing God and we are so grateful for the care that Will is receiving. We know that our God is The Great Physician and we all believe that He has an incredible future for William Robert Cross. Being at Texas Children's Hospital reminded me how truly blessed I am to have a healthy baby. It really puts things into perspective when you see sick babies and children all around you. I am so very thankful for Georgia Claire and her health. BUT, I am equally as thankful for doctors like Dr. Cass, Dr. Mallory, & Dr. Glover who feel called to help the families like ours and children like Will. Angie said it best when Dr. Cass came out to give his report. She said, "We are expecting a long and happy life for Will." Simply stated but SO true.

Ten Months Old Today

"They grow up so fast!" I've heard that phrase so much these past 10 months. A lady at Hobby Lobby on Thursday actually got tears in her eyes telling me about her daughter who was graduating from high school this year. She said, "It seems like yesterday she was that small" as she pointed to Georgia. One thing I can honestly say is that Shelby & I are definitely enjoying every minute of Georgia and watching her grow and learn. I can remember the day 10 months ago and seeing her for the first time...so tiny and precious...and in the back of my mind wondering if this was our daughter. The fact was Julia had 48 hours to change her mind, and I knew it was possible. Friends and acquaintances would say things to us like, "What if she changes her mind?" and "I can't imagine giving up my daughter". I found myself getting defensive and protective of Julia and her totally selfless decision to PLACE her baby for adoption. She didn't GIVE UP Georgia...she chose to give her a life with a mom and a dad who wanted a baby more than anything else in the world! As a 17 year old, her maturity was and still is (as an 18 year old), hard for me to wrap my mind around. All I can say is thank you God that she (and many other birthmoms) DO choose to give their babies LIFE. I would respond to those who had questions, "Aren't we so thankful that there are women like Julia who choose adoption for women like me, who can't carry my own biological child?!" (Little did I know what God had in store for ME!) And to the question about her changing her mind...that was something we thought about every day but we trusted that God had brought us to Julia, and had brought Julia to us, and that this baby was going to be our daughter. Now here we are 10 months later and loving our life as a family of 3...soon to be a family of 4. "Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body will also live in hope." -Acts 2:26

Ready to go!

Laughing at momma...
LOVE LOVE LOVE my baby girl!
I think she is happiest when Daddy is home...
Hanging out, enjoying our day together...Shelby & I look happy, Georgia looks a little scared! Ha!

My How Our Life Has Changed!

Thinking back over the last year almost takes my breath away at how incredibly GOOD our God has been. It's hard to express in words how truly thankful and happy we feel each and every day that we wake up and see our baby girl's face...it is so humbling. Not a day goes by that we don't think about & pray for Georgia's birthmom, Julia. A year ago today I got a call at school from Laura at Generations Adoptions, our wonderful agency in Waco. She informed me that Julia had narrowed down her search to two couples, and we were one of the TWO! WHAT?! Just two weeks earlier we were "official" and our profile was available for birthmoms to preview in the agency's office and on the website. I can remember having a "pity party" the day before...I knew the reality of the situation was that we could be waiting for 2 months or 2 years! To be honest, we had been trying for over four years on the emotional roller coaster of infertility treatments, procedures, and even surgery, and I did not want to wait 2 years! The fact that Julia had read our profile and was considering US was a HUGE confidence booster. I can remember Shelby & I talking and we decided that if she didn't choose us, at least we knew that someone had found us interesting and maybe another birthmom would, too! She was going to take the weekend to think about her decision and would let the agency know on Monday. That day was a Friday and Shelby & I decided to get out of town to try to take our mind off the fact that on Monday we would be receiving the call...it's us or it's not us! WOW! We went to Shelby's parent's home and ate out a lot and watched lots of movies in their media room. We had trouble sleeping, talking about Julia and wondering what she was doing, what she was thinking...our minds would not turn off. A lot of tears were shed that weekend, thinking about how our life could change in an instant on Monday. We turned to lots of prayer, as we had numerous times before, and just trusted the fact that God knew if this baby that Julia was carrying was supposed to be ours or not. We had to rest in that truth. Now, here we are a year later and Georgia is exactly 10 months old and I am 21 weeks pregnant! GOD IS GOOD!

I don't really like this picture, but many have asked if I was showing yet so I wanted to post a profile picture...YEP, I'm showing! Granted, this shirt is a t-shirt that fits pretty tight, but 21 weeks pregnant definitely shows! I never thought I would take one of these photos....I never thought I would be pregnant! We talked to our neighbors last night and they are expecting their first baby, a girl, at the end of June. We never get to see them...he's a police officer and she is an ER nurse. They both work weird hours, so we played catch-up last night in the front yard. Yea-another baby girl! Looks like play dates might be in our near future!

Here are just some random shots of Georgia...ones that I've taken this week that make us smile!

When she sleeps, when she eats, and when she sits in her carseat, her little ankles are usually crossed...Shelby & I just love it!

The precious head tilt...little flirt!

She is getting SO close to crawling! She will now get on all fours and rock back and forth and then usually face plants on the carpet. It's funny...several sweet little ladies at church have given me advice...things like, "Well, just put some toys out there for her to go get!" or "She needs to be on her stomach a lot!" Believe me, we've tried it all.

This is after her face plant...turned to smile at the camera!

GranBarry & Mimi Come for a Visit

GranBarry & Mimi came for a visit this past weekend...we enjoyed hanging out on Friday night and Saturday. Since Barry is on staff at their church, they always have to go back on Saturday to be home for church on Sunday morning. Georgia enjoyed the attention, that's for sure!

I love this picture of her playing with Barry...

Full tummy after a bottle with Mimi & (sleepy eyes)...
After Barry & Paula left we did a little shopping in Tyler and then came home for a nice evening together. Here are Georgia and Shelby hanging out together after supper, watching Wheel of Fortune.
And here are a couple of pictures of the two of them wrestling!

Azalea Trail

Shelby's parents, Barry & Paula (GranBarry & Mimi) came for a visit this past weekend. We always enjoy our visits so much. It had been about six weeks since we had last seen them. On Saturday we made the drive over to Tyler to hit a couple antique stores, have lunch, and do the Azalea Trail. If you have never been to the Azalea Trail I HIGHLY recommend it! Our pictures don't do it justice. It is set in the Azalea District, a wonderful area of Tyler with historic homes...from mansions to little cottages...each one SO unique! These pictures are in the backyards of two houses. Every year the homeowners open their yards to the public to take pictures and ooh and aah over their beautiful landscaping.

As you can tell from this family picture, there is no mistaking that I am pregnant! I am in my 21st week now...three more to go until we find out the sex of the baby! I told Shelby last night when that happens, it will be full steam ahead getting our home and the nursery ready for Georgia's new sibling!

Georgia has learned to say "Bye Bye" and wave...this picture almost looks like she's giving the Boy Scout salute! She is interacting so much with us now and is SO MUCH FUN! She is an absolute JOY!
She LOVES her Daddy..."Dada" was the first word she said and when I try to get her to say "Mama" she usually looks at me and says, "Dada"! She can say "Mama" it just has to be on her terms, I guess! Little stinker...
A nice lady along the way asked if she could take our group picture...love this picture! It was a wonderful day, the azaleas could not have been prettier and Georgia could not have been better.
Just another picture of these incredible yards...

Easter 2010

Our first Easter together was a memorable and very happy one. I am so incredibly thankful for the death, burial and resurrection of our Savior. Easter is always such a great reminder of his amazing love for us and I am humbled that He died that horrible death so that I, Shelby, Georgia, and all of us who believe in Him could live a glorious and beautiful eternity in Heaven. Because of Him, I have a God who is as close as a friend...He's not some unapproachable God that is too busy or important for little me. I can call on Him at any time and He will answer me! I hope that everyone reading this blog knows of His love. I cannot wait until the day when I can explain to Georgia about His wonderful love for HER! It brings joy to my heart to think of those sweet conversations that we will have as mother and daughter.

We started our day with the early service at church and Sunday School and then we went to Andy's & Kathy's home for Easter lunch and an egg hunt. After that we all enjoyed a two hour nap...aaahhh! The evening ended with a beautiful Easter musical at church and a ham sandwich with Grandma & Paw Paw.

This was the best picture that we took as a family...either I wasn't looking or Georgia wasn't looking...reminiscent of our Christmas photo experience! =)

Luke gave Georgia an egg and she enjoyed it very much!
The Easter Bunny came to our house!
Cutest little Easter Bunny I've ever seen!
Pretty girl...

Fun Weekend

I've decided that the older I get my idea of "fun" continues to change. My idea of fun lately is just being with my family...planting flowers, shopping, playing with Georgia and Shelby, just spending time together. Shelby has been travelling quite a bit lately and I've missed him tremendously, but it was evident when he got home on Friday that Georgia missed him just as much as me, if not more! She couldn't quit smiling or looking at him...PRECIOUS! We enjoyed Friday afternoon together, just us three, and then went out to Mom's & Dad's for my sister Kathy's belated birthday dinner. On Saturday I got a pedicure...first one of the season (I could have stayed in that chair for two hours) while Shelby and Georgia shopped at Academy. Poor guy had to spend a whole hour in his favorite store! I swear if he had $1,000 to spend, he'd spend it there. On a side note-he got to go fishing last weekend with a group of about 12 guys to Arkansas. Shelby loves to fly fish and even ties his own flies...he's VERY good at it. I love watching him cast his fly line...it's so pretty and soothing to watch. I think we may go back to that spot either just us three or with the family. After my pedicure we went to Lowe's and talked about all of our projects we'd like to do this spring and summer, before baby #2 arrives. I guess we wore Georgia out because she slept for 2 hours in her car seat. When we got home we did a little outside. I planted some Zinnia, Poppy, & Hollyhock seeds...I hope they grow! They will be so pretty in our front yard! (I spent about $3 for the seeds, so I figure if they don't make it there is not much harm done.)

Happy Georgia with her Daddy...

Happy Georgia with her Momma (& our Jasmine that is FINALLY taking off and growing...YIPPEE!)
This is one of her favorite things to do now...play with toys in front of a mirror. She will just laugh and talk to that baby in the mirror! It is SO CUTE to watch!

In the midst of her 2 hour nap...

Kathy put her hair in "water spouts" as Caroline & Mary Katherine call them...notice the squinty eyes again! Shelby has started a new nickname with her...SQUINTS! Hahaha!

Kathy getting lots of help blowing out the candles in one of two homemade strawberry pies made my Grandma.

And the perfect way to end the night...chocolate milk made by Paw Paw!