THREE MORE DAYS TO GO!!!!!!!!

We are so excited and counting down the days until Rachel and Tyler's arrival.  Larry and I can't wait to spend time with our daughter and grandson. Larry had a vacation planned during part of the time that Rachel would be here but he decided to cancel it so he could be with Rachel and Tyler longer.  Gee, he is not a proud grandpa or anything is he?? Larry's family is coming over to see Rachel and meet Tyler for the first time on Friday and they too are very excited.  We can't wait to see you Rachel and Tyler!!  Get ready for major hugs!!  

We get to visit Mary next Sunday!!

We got a call from Mary's mom yesterday while she was at the park with Mary.  Mary was talking to us while she was going down the slide.  It was so cute.  We get to see Mary next Sunday afternoon for the first time since she went back to her birth mother.  Excited does not even come close to how we feel about finally getting to see her.  Her mom, Shana,  says she talks about us all the time.  Shana wants to move with Mary to Illinois to be closer to her family, and to have a better support system.  They go to court this Thursday to see if the judge will grant her request.  We will miss her dearly if she moves.  Until then, we will get to see her and give her lots of love.  This picture of her was taken recently by her mom while Mary played in the sprinklers with a friend. 

Play buddies!

Lily, our foster baby,  just loves to play with Carter, my childcare baby, when he is in the exersaucer.  She grabs all the toys that he holds and he never complains!! She will enjoy having him as a buddy when I start watching him four days a week beginning in September.  Two great babies to love and care for....what a great life I have! 

Giddy up horsey!

I took Lily to the Irvine Spectrum today to ride the Carousel.  She was a little frightened at first but soon had a huge smile on her face as she went up and down on the horse.  We went to the awesome baby store called Bellini.  The young girl that worked there was so sweet.  When I told her that Lily was my foster child,  she told me that she had a daughter that was in foster care for awhile and she was so thankful that she got her back.  She gave us a 30% discount on some sandals for Lily!! She also gave Lily a free stuffed bunny that was regularly $25.00! It is amazing how many people really appreciate the work that we do with our foster babies.  We are so blessed to meet such nice people whenever we venture out with our little ones.   

Date Night......YIPPEE!!!

Last night Larry and I had a "date night".  We hired Bree, one of Larry's students, to babysit Lily.  She has been so wonderful with the foster babies when we need her to watch them so we can escape!  We went to the Irvine Spectrum and had dinner and then went on the ferris wheel.  It was a blast! We were up so high and the view was spectacular.  

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RACHEL!!!

Rachel in 1978

What a special day it is today! My gorgeous daughter is turning thirty years old today. It is so hard to believe so many years have gone by since the first time I saw her face after delivering her in Newport Beach, California. I will never forget the feeling of suddenly being a mom. I was so ready and loved every day I spent with her watching her grow and learn about her world. Today she is the most wonderful mother to Tyler and wife to Andy. Thank you sweetheart, for thirty of the happiest years of my life as your mom. You are amazing.......can't wait to experience another thirty!!

Love you,
Mom

Rachel and Tyler in 2008.

Ribbet, Ribbet, Ribbet..... Froggy Pool fun!

Larry set up our new Froggy pool yesterday for Lily to play in.  She loved kicking her feet and splashing with her hands in the water.  Isn't it the cutest baby pool?  I just wish it were bigger so I could join her!

We get to see Mary soon!!

We are so excited because we got a call today from Mary's mom.  She said that we could see Mary as soon as she gets the court papers in the mail.  She has told us that this day would happen for some time now and we were beginning to wonder if she really meant it.  Needless to say we are so thankful that she called and that she wants us to finally see Mary.  As most of you know, Mary was our foster child for thirteen months.  She went back to her birth mom on February 29th of this year.  We haven't seen her since.  We were supposed to be part of her re-unification plan but the social worker said we could not see her.  Come to find out, the social worker was not following the normal plan of re-unification by leaving us out of the whole process.  During this time Mary's mom would talk to us on occasion, keeping us up to date on Mary's progress.  We miss her terribly.  We cannot wait to see her again soon.  It is indeed wonderful news for us!!!

What a beautiful day!

It is so beautiful outside today.  The sun is shining but it is not too hot with a slight breeze. I am watching Carter today and he is five months old.  He loves to swing and hang out with "Auntie Susan".  He is such a happy baby and a delight to take care of.