Getting Ready for Christmas

The stockings are hung on the fireplace. The tree is up and presents are starting to appear. The letters are almost ready to be sent out. The CDs are almost burnt! The children won't nestle all snug in their beds because they are too excited for Christmas to come. 25 days left!! We can't wait!

This is our first family picture taken on July 1st 2008. We took the kids and their foster mom to Double Dave's Pizza. I can't believe how much they've changed in less then 5 months. To read the post from this night click here.

http://texasandersons.blogspot.com/2008/07/we-are-happy-family.html

National Adoption Day

Our lawyer and us before we started!

With the judge after it was over!!

Our first family picture.

Taken at the court by a volunteer professional photographer.

Almost Final

Tomorrow is the big day. We have to be at court at 8:30am. The court starts at 9am and we are first on the list of adoption finalizations. It should be a good day. If you live close enough and want to get up early you're welcome to come witness history!! It has been a crazy week full of emotions. I don't even think the kids know why they have been so emotional. They don't fully understand all that is going on.
The best part about tomorrow is that we can post pictures when we get home!!!! So check back tomorrow night to "see" what we've been up to since July!!!!!!!!!

The Anderson Family
Invites you to witness their beginning
On National Adoption Day,
Saturday, November 15, 2008 @ 8:30am
At The Henry Wade Juvenile Justice Center
2600 Lone Star Drive, Dallas, Texas

National Adoption Day

We just received approval to finalize our adoption on National Adoption Day - Novemeber 15th!! We will post more info as we receive it! We can't wait until they are legally ours!!!!!!!!!!

TURTLE NEWS

Our dachshunds Peanut and Ginger will chase anything that move in our big back yard. Mostly it's squirrels but a few weeks ago we had a lot of rain and on 2 different occasions they brought in dead baby rabbits. Then one morning I was working at the desk when I looked down to see this weird object that Peanut had brought in. I It was a turtle shell! The shell was all sealed up and I thought that maybe it was dead so I put it in a box to show the kids when they came home. Awhile later I heard a noise and it was the turtle trying to get out! I kept the turtle until the kids got home so that I could show them and Liz. See, Liz is afraid of turtles! You know, they might get her! Her toes were curling so I had to release the turtle into the wild to fend for himself!

PS: Now we can add field mice to the list since they brought in 2 of them the other day. One was a live and was was dead.

LIFE OF DAVE...

I called the doctors office to make an appointment for a sleep study for my sleep apnea. The girl explained the details of my upcoming visiting including that I should wear what I would normally wear to bed. I told her that I normally sleep in the nude. There was a long silence.... "Is that alright"? I asked... She replied... NO!

I went to the AT &T store to get a new cell phone. I walk in at the same time as a woman with her 2 kids. The AT &T employee ask us if we were "together" and I said that we were just good friends! With out missing a beat the woman with the 2 kids said "and I do not even know which one is his"!

We came home one night and the kids noticed the Gecko lizards on our garage. "Do they bite" the kids asked. In which I replied "No, they just sell insurance"

This is just some of the stuff that Liz has to put up with on a day to day basics!

HAPPINESS IS....

Happiness is....

Listening to your kids sing primary songs. "J" and "B" love to sing and they know the words. They love to sing while we are driving, at the computer or going to bed at night. Nothing could make Liz or I happier.

TACO BUENO

When the kids get to pick the place to eat it is always Taco Bueno. Think "Del Taco" but not as good which is not saying much. If it is not Taco Buena then next up is McDonalds, Wendy's, Chick-fl-a or Taco bell. I offer Chipotle, Chili's, Jason's Deli anything! I mean I would even eat Taco bell or McDonalds! We do save "kids choice" for special events and since Liz was in McAllen, TX having dinner at Tony Romas (None in DFW area) I got to eat at Taco Bueno! I am going to try to talk them into Buffalo Wild Wings for the Tuesday night wing special before we pick up Liz at the airport.

Time flies when you're having fun...

I can't believe it has been only 3 months since we became a family. It has been a wonderful 3 months - crazy, fun, wild, happy, tough, but soooooo worth it. We are actively working to finalize the adoption early. Tomorrow we will meet with our case worker (who is okay with early finalization) and the kids new case worker (if she's okay we are going for it!!). So hopefully we will have a court date soon. Our wish is to finalize on National Adoption Day - November 15th. Once it is finalized our blog will get much cuter - pictures galore!!!!!!!

Thanks to everyone for your kind words and support. These kids are lucky to have parents with such great family and friends!!!!!

IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT

All of us get hooked on goofy stuff. Mine is the old TV show "In the heat of the night". The show ran from 1988-19994 and like a lot of shows I did not really start watching it until it went into reruns. For years the show was on a lot but then they took it off the air. I am excited to say that WGN is back to showing the reruns and I am filling up my DVR with the shows. The show is not on DVD so I need to find a way to record it to DVD myself. I gotta get back to watching my show!

Things I never thought I'd say...

"Because I said so"

That has got to be the best phrase ever!!!!!!!!!

Ramblings of an old woman!

Yes, I'm old. Well, I'm 40 - not quite yet. I still have about an hour. I was born around 2:30pm. The only reason I know this is that I used to tell all my friends at school I was born just in time to get out of school. So in just a little while I will cross over the 39-40 bridge and my parents will no longer have any kids in their 30s. Turning 40 feels weird because I don't feel like I thought 40 would be way back when I thought 40 was older then I now feel. I still feel like I could go out dancing Friday night to the local YA dance and hit the nearest Denny's after and stay out until 2am. But in reality if I tried that, I'd be home by 10pm and that would be pushing it! The best part about today is that I became a mom before now. I really didn't want to be 40 and not be a mom. And getting approved just 6 months before my birthday really scared me - that I might not make it. But my Heavenly Father blessed me and Dave and gave us the two best kids I could have ever picked out. They are so perfectly normal, with all the normal ups and downs of childhood. "B" is going to be our star student. We are trying to teach her that she doesn't have to be perfect in everything yet. That the reason she is going to school is to learn and sometimes we make mistakes when we learn and our S's aren't perfect (she hates that letter S). And "J", well lets just say his teacher and I are becoming friends because we talk so much!! The good thing is that his teacher loves him and wants to help him find his place in this world. She is so good with him and seems to understand him as much as we do. He totally gets an A for effort. He so desperately wants to be good, but just can't do it sometimes. I love them both more then I thought possible after just 3 months. They are the perfect birthday present!!! I want for nothing more (except more money to get all the things they need and want!) Of course it is all about them now. It's all about helping them become the best people they can be and grow up happy and healthy and strong - knowing that they are loved and wanted! Well those are the ramblings of an old woman - well a 40 year old (@ about 2:30pm) woman at least! Thank you for listening all these years, thank you for being my friends and for acknowledging me as your family. I have a pretty great life with a wonderful husband, two adorable kids, the best parents ever and great in-laws, brothers & sisters, nieces & nephews and cousins and aunts. Love to you all - from this 40 year old!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LIZ!

A BIG HAPPY 40TH BIRTHDAY TO LIZ!


To a great Mom, Wife, Aunt, Daughter and friend!

Love Dave and the kids

The kids and dogs likes to hang out with Mom and Dad in our dinning room that is now an office. We like to watch TV and play on the computer together as a family. Everyone wants to sit in the one and only chair in that room so we want to replace it with something that everyone can use at once. We have a jar full of loose change and our goal is to buy a love sac (see below) for the family to celebrate Mom's birthday.

Dave called a lawyer today...

but it was a good thing. We recently got the name of a lawyer who will bill the state directly (we get reimbursed for our adoption fees). Dave talked to the girl in the office who told him she didn't think we would have a problem finalizing early. The general rule is that the kids have to be in your home for 6 months before finalization. But we found out today that we might be able to finalize this on National Adoption Day - Saturday Nov 15th! We tried to explain to the kids, but there kids and don't pay much attention to their parents. We'll keep talking about it. And we'll post when we know more. And once it's finalized - we'll post pictures!!!!!!!!!!!!

BIRTHDAY BASH

On September 6th we had a 7th birthday party for "B". We had about 60 people at our house and it was a blast! We were able to borrow a big bounce house and the kids loved it! "B" wanted nachos and burritos and they were a hit! Everyone had fun and Mom and Dad were worn out afterwards! A big "thank you" to all of those who help us with this fun event and to all of you who attended and sent gifts. You made "B"s 1st birthday with us very special!

Out of the mouth of babes...

It's been two months (yesterday). It seems like they've been here forever. We are constantly reassuring them that they will be here forever. Tonight "J" said the prayer at dinner. He wanted to do it all by himself. It was a little jumbled but the effort and spirit were there! It was beautiful. And tonight "B" wanted to say our family prayer before bed. After only two months of helping them, she said she didn't want help. We have talked about what prayer is, that we start with "Dear Heavenly Father", thank Him for things, ask Him for things and close "In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen". She asked tonight if she starts by saying "Heavenly Father". I said yes and then she said the most beautiful prayer I've ever heard. It came from her heart. She was talking to her Heavenly Father. Telling Him what she wanted to tell Him, not what mom & dad told her to say. How wonderful to have a daughter who is getting to know her Heavenly Father and starting a real relationship with Him. I love prayer. I hope my children will love it too. I love being able to talk to my Father and tell him the things in my heart that sometimes I can't tell anyone else. I hope my children can learn to do that. I hope they come to know that Heavenly Father loves them and will listen any time they need to talk.

12TH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY

July 2008
Our wedding day September 7th, 1996

Today is our 12th wedding anniversary and I need to take a minute and thank my wonderful and beautiful wife for 12 great years of marriage! I love her more today then when I first meet her at a dance that I was Dee Jaying in November, 1995! We have been through both the good and the bad together and I thank her for always being by my side. Now we are parents to 2 great kids and life is even better now that we are parents. Thank you Liz for always holding my hand!

"J" says the darnest things

While reassuring the kids that we want them and they are exactly what we always wanted and perfect, I told "J" that we wanted a boy & a girl. And this is the conversation that followed -

J - "You only wanted two?"
Mom - "Yes".
J "Why didn't you want three?"
Mom "Do you want a brother?"
J "Yes"
Mom "Well, if you get a brother, God has a sick sense of humor"
J (panicking) "I don't want 6, just one!"

We are learning that kids don't always understand us the way we want them to. Especially kids who have had the life our kids have had. Some of the simplest things are completely misunderstood. Oh the fun of having kids!!!