One Great Daddy

Happy Father's Day to Muskie Man (a few days late). We had a nice day as his family came over for a cookout and an afternoon of sitting outside and playing a few yard games.

Muskie Man is a great daddy and Minnow absolutely adores him. These pictures illustrate the wonderful dad he is and the fun they have together:
Meeting Minnow on her birth day:

In the mountains on finalization weekend:

First boat ride:

Playing Peek-a-boo:

Ready for a game:

Father's Day weekend:

You're a great dad, Muskie Man, thanks for all you do for our family.

Two Years Ago Today

Two years ago today we met the most amazing woman--we met Minnow's firstmom. Muskie Man and I took a trip to Colorado to meet the woman who was 7 months pregnant with a baby that could potentially be our daughter! It was an exciting, emotional, scary adventure, and that was just our side of it. I can't imagine the feelings and emotions that N was experiencing.

We met at a restaurant and a social worker was with N to kind of lead the conversation. Things went very well. We talked and laughed and even cried a little. N told us that she was talking to the baby that morning and told the baby that she would be hearing her mommy and daddy's voices that day. What do you say to that?! Amazing!

We didn't know what to expect at the meeting. What do you say? "Hi, nice to meet you, can we have your baby, please?" We were so grateful the social worker was there to ease our anxiety and lead the conversation.

N wanted to spend more time with us. We spent the whole next day with her. We went on a picnic and drove to see Pike's Peak. It was an unforgettable day. At one point the baby was kicking and N grabbed Muskie Man's hand and put it on her belly. He said, "Wow, that's cool!" That is a great memory.

The trip was wonderful, we met the most amazing, special person, the first mother of our daughter to whom we are forever grateful.

We took this picture the day before we met N. Muskie Man and I ventured to the Rockies for the afternoon. To me, it is the most beautiful picture and it symbolizes the beautiful person we would meet the next day.

I'm Glad We Weren't Camping

"I'm glad we aren't camping this weekend." Those were the words from Muskie Man as we looked outside at the rain that was coming down in buckets and listening to the thunder. I had to agree with him. We got over 4 inches of rain in two days this past weekend. Thankfully, it all stayed outside and none made it into our basement. Muskie Man spent a while bailing out one of our basement window wells, just as water was about to start seeping into the basement. It was raining so hard the water had no where else to go.

We have spent many wet weekends camping in our marriage. We haven't ventured into the woods to camp with Minnow. . .yet. We've also had some great conversations while stuck in the truck in a campsite while it stormed around us. One of the recent times was the summer before Minnow was born. It was a stormy evening so we drove to town, got some beer and sat in the truck and talked. We talked alot about adopting and becoming parents. It was a fun night, even if we were a little wet.