The end of 2008

WoW, what a GREAT year 2008 has been. I am caught between looking forward to 2009 and wishing that time would stand still just as it is right now.
On the one hand, I wish that I could just hold my punkins here for ever just as they are right now. Not wanting them to get bigger and protect them from the big world ahead of them. But, on the other hand, I truly believe that they are going to be such great men and continue to be a joy to everyone that they come into contact with and the world needs more good people like that.

2008 started out with me getting a Hysterectomy and resulting in feeling better than I have in YEARS! ((this was a great thing)) Then we started our Adoption Journey and are still riding that roller coaster looking for the rest of our future family. In August, we bought our first HOME! What a blessing to our family and we are forever thankful. The boys are both doing GREAT in school and growing like weeds.

Praying that 2009 will bring that special child or children into our lives that is meant for us. We hope that 2009 turns out to be as good a year for YOUR family as 2008 has been for ours! Love and Blessings

All the McDermott Family

All of Larry's family is in town. Which includes all the ones that live here & is brother from NY and brother from TX and their families. The whole family together.......

 

Our trip to GA & NC. We had so much fun!

 

Leonids Meteor Shower "EVERYBODY WATCH"

Hi All,

There is another Meteor Shower going on and they are expecting an outburts of activity from 7:00pm to 7:30pm ((FL time)) tonight ((Sunday)) and then peak viewing also in the morning before dawn ((on Monday morning)) http://www.meteorblog.com/ Don't miss it!! Larry and I were out this morning @ 4am and saw quite a few in a short amount of time. It is TOTALLY worth it. AGAIN !! They are expecting a major outburst between 12:01 AM and 12:30 AM Universal Time/GMT. FOR US IN FL, THAT WILL BE 7pm to 7:30pm Sunday 11/16/08. Happy Meteor Watching and as Meteor Mark says = Keep Your Head Up!

Approval on Extended Ages!!! WooHoo

Just heard from our case worker and she is mailing our new Home Study with our wanted ages changed. We will now officially be considered for ages 0 through 7.
We have inquired on 2 little girls this week. One of them is new on the list and getting all kinds of inquiries. While the other, we inquired about several weeks ago and never heard anything back. So we re-sent it last week and I called today. Almost all the children that we have inquired on are out of state so I won’t even worry myself thinking of how we would get the money to go get them till we hear back one day.
Anyway, the newly listed little girl’s agency requires that our CW contact her CW directly. Our Case Worker is so awesome and in less than an hour of hearing from me, she had already called, left a message and faxed our HS over to her. SHE IS SO GREAT!! Lets hope that upping our oldest age from 3yrs to 7yrs will get us a few matches. . . .

A Moment of Frustration

If the following doesn’t make any since, sorry, just ranting______
We have inquired about aprox. 4 different situations in the last week or so and either haven’s heard back yet or they are not open to out of state placement yet. Uggggggg. What a pain. Larry and I had originally had our oldest age desired as 3 and then once we started searching ((and spent our private agency money on the house)) we upped it to 6. Well, we had to request to have it changed in our Home Study because 2 of the situations that we have inquired on this week, if those Case Workers checked the exchange ((list of parents fitting the profile)) we wouldn’t have shown up because we they were like 4 and 5 years old and we caped ours out at 3. Our Case Worker has to submit a request to the higher ups ((not really sure who that is??)) and will let me know next week.

Ok, lets just think about this for a sec. The chances of us getting a NON special needs girl under the age of 3 from the FL foster care system are pretty much slim to nun. It would have to be either pure luck of the draw or a myrical from God and laid right in our laps. It is a total Zilch from other states.

I guess I am just a little depressed about it all. And with the Holidays coming up, it really bothers me. No child should be without a family for the Holidays. The other day, J asked me if we could buy a present for his future sister and if she didn’t come before then, we could just save it for her.

Just having a moment of frustration, I will be my normal happy, cheery self in the morning. Sabrina

Totally Addicted to Watching Meteor Showers!

So, my kids are totally addicted to watching Meteor Showers!
The boys went to bed the next night asking if we could get up again at 1am and watch them. I told them no but, we would watch the one next month. Then I found this cool site with tons of info on it and realized that even though it’s past the peak, you can still see them.
Site= http://www.meteorblog.com/ So, we went out the next morning before breakfast and saw more than we did the night before. TOTALLY AWESOME! We got up earlier this morning to go out but, its over cast and you can’t even see the moon. So, we went back to bed. We are going to try again tomorrow morning cause they just can’t seem to get enough of them and that is wonderfully fine with us cause again, the Wishes and Memories are totally worth it! As Meteor Mark says on his site = Keep Your Head Up!

Happy viewing everyone, Sabrina

Our 08 Family Pictures

We inquired about a sib. pair today from FL, 1girl and 1boy. haven't heard anything yet.

So if you know me (Sabrina), you know that I LOVE Pictures of my family. We had our Christmas pictures done early this year and I think they turned out really good. All the adoption books and info website's say not to put studio pics up because they look staged and people want to see you in your natural setting. WELL, scroll down and you will see plenty of us in our normal setting because we are always snapping pics here and there.

I like to think that our family picture helps show that there is plenty of room for more little "Punkins in the Patch" so to speak.
I hope everyone is enjoying this WONDERFUL fall weather!!

 

Every Child should Wish Upon a Shooting Star ! !

It is now 2:30am and I just snuggled my punkins into bed after watching a little bit of the Orionid Meteor Shower. We had this whole lesson about how this shower is actually small pieces of dust and rock from Halley’s Comet that only passes earth twice a year. So on and so forth. Anyway, they were so excited yesterday afternoon. But, we were so sure that when 1am rolled around, they would probably choose sleep instead. To our surprise, they hopped right up and were raring to go. We took snacks, pillows, blankets (the whole 9 yards) and had fun.

We only saw aprox. 12 to 15 total. But, that was enough for 2 little boys who had NEVER seen anything like it.

We all made WISHES and MEMORIES tonight and that is all a mother can ever ask for in life.

Sabrina

P.S.
J got his hair cut!! After 2 years of letting it grow long, he got it cut. We were trying to let him be his own person and have it his way but, are sooooooooooo happy that it is short again. IT LOOKS SOOOOOO GREAT !! did I mention how thrilled we are that it is short again? hahahaha, they grow up so fast!

 

Pictures of "Smores by the Fire" & Fall Pumpkin Pics

Pictures of our "smores by the fire" & Fall Pumpkin Pictures.

 

Pics of Bugs room now that the planets are up!

I forgot to put up a pic of the bug's room now that it has the Planet's on the wall & hanging from the celing. ((the greeen and yellow pic on the lower right is the before pic))

 

Fall is Here!!

We have inquired on 2 sets of children this week, 1 girl and 1 sib. group with 2 girls. When I showed Larry the 2 girls, his response was ((when do we fly out to pick them up??)) But as our LUCK would always turn out to be.... They were not supose to have been listed yet because they are trying to place them with a Texas family first. So that brings us back to the never ending cycle. No news on the 1 girl. She is in ME and The Case worker did respond and ask for our Home Study but, is now on vacation. hahahahaha I could almost laugh!!!!!!! UGGGG

Fall is here ((even though it doesn’t feel like it))
I LOVE FALL!! I wish it lasted longer. I came to this realization yesterday evening. There are only a few things better in this life than driving with the windows down, the wind blowing in your hair, the Chipmunks rocking out on the radio & my boys in the back seat singing along with them ((screaming really)) & laughing till they cried.
IT WAS GREAT! I love when it’s cool enough to drive with the windows down ((saving gas)) and open the windows at home. Our family loves the holidays and we all get excited and energized. Ready for the busy season.

The boys are doing great in school and eating me out of the house.
We are going on our annual Snow Skiing trip in Dec. and was so hoping to have our new addition to take along. The boys were so excited the first time they saw snow and I so want our next child to have that memory. Plus, they make such cute Girl, Snow Bunny cloths! J But, I know if we were going to have placement by then, we probably would have to have found a match by now. (I will still pray though)

Bye Summer Time.........

 

Just Waiting!!

So, we are searching and waiting, waiting and searching. We have come to the understanding that if you want a child under the age of 5, it is going to be pure luck of the draw to get a little one and without major special needs. (and that is if at all) When they are in the states care and come available for adoption, they give first adoption choice to the Foster Parents. Almost 9 out of 10 times, the Foster Parents do adopt OR if they don’t, then the SW already has a list of families on her desk to call and the child never makes it to the BIG pool of children. And most states don’t choose out of state placements unless it is a really hard to place child which usually means very special needs & they have been available for a while.
I can see how other families give up and turn to a private agency to be matched with a birth mother. But, that avenue also comes with a hefty price tag.

We had intentions of doing both. Putting our eggs in a few different baskets (so to speak) and have a profile being shown to prospective mothers while we were searching and waiting on foster care. But, after our MAPP class, we started re-thinking that because there are already soooooo many kids out there that need good homes. Then that decision was made for us when we bought our new house. ((NEED I SAY MORE?)) Now we don’t have the extra money to spend on a private agency. ((unless there is a Money Tree hidden on our 2 ½ acres somewhere))

WE ARE OFFICIALLY SEARCHING AND WAITING!!!!!!!!!

We got our approval letter and packet today!! I spoke with our SW and she said that we could start searching other counties and states right away! WoooHooo!!!!!! We have been waiting for this point. I of corse jumped right on the computer and made 2 inquires on 2 cases that we had seen online but couldn’t inquire about since we didn’t have our HS to fax them.

We are so excited and then getting a little discouraged at the same time because there just doesn’t seem to be any available kids out there. When you see one and just start to get your hopes up, you get to the part in the profile where it says that this child is placed with Foster Parents that intend on adopting them. After calling a few different caseworkers to inquire about this, we find out that if the parents file for subsidy, legally the state has to list the child on their public registry. I know that there is a child/children out there somewhere that is meant for our family but the waiting is going to be the hardest part.

I now know why so many couples turn to private agencies and pay small fortunes to be matched with birth mothers. Months or a year of searching and waiting will be torture. ((God, please be with us and give us the patiencs that we need to endure this process and not give up.))

First Day of School

So, the boys started school and had a good first week. We are still waiting to hear about our HS and make sure it all went well. Heartland had said that typically you had to wait 3 to 6 months before going out of county and give them a chance to place with you first. But one of the other families said that since we wanted younger children, they were not making us wait being that they don’t have any children under the age of 5 in our counties. So, I guess we will find out soon enough.

I am attaching some pics from the boys first day and week of school!

 

Our Home Study is Complete!!! WooHoo!!

Well, our Home Study is finally Complete!!! Whewwwwwwwww
Jen (our SW) was sooooo nice and it all went totally smooth. We had so much help over the weekend and even up till the morning of, Miss Jo showed up at 7am that morning to help me make things look nice ((well, as much as U can with boxes everywhere)) and make sure I didn’t get nervous. We have such wonderful family and friends!!! So, she was here for aprox. 2hrs & 45min. Of corse, I just chatter away when I get nervous so I am sure I talked her ear off. She said not to worry, that we were approved and would get our final copy in a few weeks. The boys did great even though “C” told her that he wanted a boy so that he could name him Ben Ten after his favorite Alien Force Super Hero. So, now I guess we just wait for HeartLand to find us a match and if not, I guess we will start checking the online listings. It was so funny, Larry seemed giddier then I was after she left. Hopefully our wait won’t be that long.
THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO CAME TO HELP US FIX UP THE HOUSE. WE LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!!!

Before and after room pics & Fixer Uper weekend!

Below are the before and after bedroom pics of the house and pics from our Fixer Uper weekend! We still have a ton of un-packing to do but for the most part, it is starting to feel like home!

 

Baby's Room ((Lady Bugs and Dragon Flys))

 

C's Room ((Space, rocketships & robots))

 

J's Room ((Sports theme))

 

Master bedroom ((green and brown))

Here is some Pics from our Fixer Uper weekend!!

 

Our New House!!

Well, we are new Home owners and our Home Visit is schedualed for Next Wed. WoooHooo, it is done!!!

 

Prayers needed ASAP!

Ok,
So we are officially going to loose our minds!!!!!!!!!! Everything has been approved with the house and we should be able to close by like Thursday EXCEPT one little thing, which we just found out……………………………………….
The underwriter is saying that the Roof Has 2 be REPLACED before closing. Ugggggggggg
R U kidding me????????? We already had the roof looked at and have arranged to get it repaired. The roofing contractor ((ya know, the one who is an expert on roofs!!!!)) said that it just needed repairing and not replacing. But, because the first appraiser ((who isn’t a roofing expert)) said it needed to be replaced. The underwriter is sticking with his opinion.
I understand that they want to be very careful and all but, come on!!!!!!!!!! I am soooooo over the whole house thing and it will be a very long while before we ever buy another one.
In one way, I still hold ((the crazy lady)) responsible for ALLLLLLL of this!!!!!!! We were supposed to be in her house wayyyyy back in March. That is why we started our adoption process back then. Now, we are down to the wire and stand a chance on loosing our whole Home Study process.
I guess the flip side is we will have a new roof and added security. Prayers needed thanks!!!!

Just talking

Ok, well, we should be having our home visit (which is the last stage in our home study) around the 28th. Other than that, we are just enjoying the summer with our chickey-doos. ((that means our kids for those of you who don’t speak Sabrina language)) In MAPP class, they tell ya to stay away from the photo listings till you have your home study ready to send out and I now know why. It is pure torture to look at all those sweet little punkins and know that you don’t have room for all of them. I make a wonderful boy mom and would love another one of those but……. When I see the round little Asian girls or this one I saw earlier that was too cute with round cheeks, red hair and tons of freckles. Oh my goodness! I really, really wish I could just run down here to Target and pick one off the shelf. Welllllll, maybe not just one :)~
I will go for now and wish whoever reads this a good night!

Best pic of the week!!

Class info

So, still waiting on the keys to the house and still packing. I had a great birthday. Larry and the boys threw me a surprise party. It was GREAT. I have spoken to some of the other couples in our adoption class and some of them have already started getting matches and some have already started the adoption process on a child. Others are still waiting and 1 other is like us and hasn’t had the home visit yet. I think it is so Awesome to see how each family is different. There were 3 couples in our class that have never had children before and I pray that they get matched first. How wonderful it will be, especially for them. PS. Looking at photo listings is not only addicting but it will drive you mad! I just want to hug and squeeze all of them.

Update and 40th & 30th Birthdays

Ok, so we are still waiting to get the house keys and start painting so that we can move in. We are really hoping for next weekend but, it might be mid next week.

A wonderfully nice lady with our home study service just called to see when we would be ready for the visit and seemed ok with maybe having to wait till Aug. 1st. I explained the situation to her and she said that was all just fine.
I would really like to get all the bed rooms painted and fix up the front of the house a little ((as in, clear the little bit of brush and paint the trim)) before she comes. I realize that I might be trying to fit a watermelon into an apple by trying to do too much, but I really want it to be nice. The house isn’t in bad shape its just a little out dated. The down stairs has been remodeled over time, but when you hit the top of the stairs, you walk into the Seventies ((literally)). LET ME JUST TELL YA, if we could be rejected as adoptive parents because of really funky colored, old SHAG carpet, it would be all over for us!!
I LOVE the history in the house and I even love the bright colors but I am so happy that the Green and Blue tubs and showers will be going when we remodel. J
So, today is my ((Sabrina’s)) 30th birthday and I am not happy about it one little bit. I don’t feel 30 and I guess that is what counts. Either way, my family is making sure I have a GREAT day and I know that is what really counts!!
Larry's 40th & Sabrina's 30th Birthday>>>>>

 

Packing for the Move!!!

First time on a bike without training wheels!!

So, we are packing for the Big Move to the new house and the boys are sooooo excited. The new house is a big 2 story 4br 3ba that sits on 2.5 acres that is fully fenced. Jobe is doing his room in Sports and Cody is doing his in (Space, Robots & Rocket ships). They have had so much fun picking out all the new stuff for their rooms and deciding how we are going to paint them. The nursery is still in the discussion stage. We have a white armoire and crib but haven’t decided on any kind of bedding set to determine the colors. I am not for sure that we are going to do it in anything particular yet being that we don’t know if we are going to get 1 or 2 children, a girl and boy or just 1girl so on and so forth. We have said approximately under the age of 2 and they might want to pick out their own stuff. We have gotten all the safety stuff for the doors, cabinets and outlets in preparation for the home visit and I think we are pretty much ready.

Cody rode a bike without training wheels for the first time this weekend!

We hope you had a GREAT 4th of July weekend!!
I am attaching some pics from ours.

Past Due Update on us

Ok, so we haven’t put anything on here since we started MAPP classes but, I think we were in limbo about weather it was really going to happen or not seeing as we didn’t have a house yet.

Well, we are now for sure moving and are all too excited!! We completed our MAPP class back in June and not only was it eye opening but we met the nicest people there. The Home Study service has agreed to wait and do our home visit just before Aug. 1st so that we can get moved in and paint. I think we are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel and it is gorgeous. We are deff. leaning more toward domestic adoption being that it is cheaper but, Sabrina's longing for an Asian little girl is till there.

During the MAPP classes, we decided to open ourselves up to a possible sibling group. The funny thing is that I would have a million more if I could but always thought the idea of adding more than 1 more to our family scared Larry. But, it was him who when they asked us in class, said “oh yes, we would diffidently be open to adopting a sibling group”.
Well ok then.

The good Lord knows that with the new big house, we will have plenty of room.

 

I wish everything would hurry up!

Well, I go back to work tomorrow. Part time that is, till we actually get our Princess because who knows how long that is going to take. I am doing advertising for Larry’s company and Love being there. He loves having me just around the corner so that he can flirt with me when he walks by. Hahahaha He is so funny.

So, we are leaning towards domestic again. Being that international is so expensive and I couldn’t travel for long periods of time away from the boys.
I really love the idea of being matched with a birthmother and getting to know where our Daughter came from. We can’t help but think that this would be a plus because it shows that she cares enough to find a good home and loving family for her little one and give her all the advantages that she can from the very beginning.

On the other hand, it breaks my heart to know that there are so many children out there that need good homes and a loving family.

At this point, we are leaning towards both baskets for our eggs ((so to speak)) and see which one hatches first. Not to say that our Darling Daughter will be a chicken by any means. But, we have waited so long and want to make sure that we open up all avenues available.

WE START OUR MAPP CLASSES THIS SATURDAY !! woooo hoooo

Trying to Decide...UGGGG

OK,
So, we start our Home Study/aka/MAPP classes through the state of FL on March 29th & are still trying to decide which adoption rout to go.

We are really leaning towards Korea ((but, have no idea how we will come up with the money)). I have found all this info on it and an awesome forum with TONS of info.
We would both LOVE to go with China but the wait has gotten sooooo long. & There is that little problem of not being married 5 years because it is a re-marriage. Larry said it should be ok because by the time we get our princess; it will be over the limit.
((YA WELL, IT DOESN’T QUITE WORK LIKE THAT, NOW DOES IT))
Good theory though.

Slide Show

First time!

Hi all,
I have started this blog to vent all of life's frustrations and keep the extended family updated on our family. We are an everyday family with mom, dad, 2 abundantly growing boys, 1dog & 2cats. We have 1son with AUTISM and 1 son who thinks he is a genius.

We are finalizing the purchase of our new house (can't wait to move) and have decided to start the adoption process (that we have been researching for over a year) in hopes of finding a wonderful princess to complete our family.

Life is crazy and you have to have to become crazy to survive in it.

Been there, got the T-shirt!