An incomplete sneak peak-- Ireland :)

So, a few of the things we are very much looking forward to seeing in Ireland.

Bridges of Dublin:

Who knew Dublin had so many gorgeous bridges? Well... I plead the 5th, but for all who share my lack of familiarity with the beautiful Irish City, the "Liffy" is a river that runs through, and thus, they have many bridges.

Of course, a few of the old homes in the neighborhoods are still around for us to appreciate after a few hundred years.

And, the number 1 draw of Ireland, the views. The "Ring of Kerry" is supposedly the most scenic and beautiful part of the country in the southwest corner. It is a lovely drive or bus tour.

The Giant's Causeway is one of the coolest accidents of Geology in the world. It

is a collection of vertical hexagonal stones. There is a legend about Giants... I won't go into it here, mostly for lack of time. But, very cool, eh?

And, Brent's #1 reason for going to Ireland, The Cliff's of Moore, or as we know them in Utah from the Princess Bride film, the Cliff's of Insanity. "Move the thing... and the other thing! Move it!"

We have a whole day set aside to enjoy these beautiful and clearly very memorable areas.

The countdown has begun. For anyone who may try to contact us, you should know we will be unavailable for awhile, except by email. Seth will be staying at the house for us, and taking care of Buster, aka Gabe.

We do have a magic jack US number that we plan on using regularly, so you can call us at 801-850-6124, and we will be checking voicemail (as we figure out how).

SO EXCITED!!!! :)

CSI: K9

Some crime scene photos:

This first is from last year, dozens of dollars of damage and mass destruction:
We installed a prison fence to contain the suspect in this destruction. He escaped, allegedly by using his teeth to pull the fence so hard that it bent the latch. We repaired the latch and reinforced the gate after the second time. Then, last night, there was another escape. This is what we found at the gate:

Yes, that's a hole in the gate, and no, it wasn't there before.

More evidence, from this morning: Destructo, caught in the act?

The suspect continues to act all innocent, here's a mug shot, see what you think:

Innocent patsy or diabolical destroyer? You be the judge.

Super Curtains!

Some of you may note the "superheroes" in the address and title of this blog. This is a post on that topic...

Last year Nicole decided to give me a superhero themed office. We started working last summer and got it in workable condition for the school year, but despite having bought the fabric for my curtains, my windows have been bare, since then...


Until now:

I did the sowing myself! (Nicole helped with some of the ironing).


And presenting...
Super-dog with his green-ray vision:


Next project for the super-office, finding a way to display the arsenal of freedom:

(Some of these go back over a decade to freshman year, others are my little brother's, but still, it's an impressive sight)

April Fools Snow

We looked out the window and what did we see...


So even after a nice warm stretch AND the official Spring Equinox, on April 1st we woke up to snow... I always knew the supreme forces in the universe had a good sense of humor. This shot is actually from Easter Morning when we had even more snow, taken from the back window.

Why would she want to give up her baby?

Ouch!

I cringe lately when I hear this.

I have been sharing with people that love us and support us about a birth mother we are hoping to get to know soon. I don't know very much about her, but I know she is not a teenager. When hearing this, people, even people that I consider very much supportive of adoption, kind of look confused and ask innocently, "Why would she want to give up her baby?" or "Why wouldn't she want to keep her baby?"

Really, guys?

I know it's not your fault. Our society glorifies single mothers, even teenage ones. I had a heart-breaking conversation with a sweet gal at Kinko's a couple of years ago as I was putting together our 23 copies of our profile for all the Utah offices. I will never forget it.

She was a single mom, and hoping to be pregnant again soon (still single). She was a loving and hard working mother. And she had absolutely no concept of why someone would choose a stable family with a mother and a father for their baby.

She said something like, "Yes, I'm sure there are lots of babies that need families. Women on drugs and people who leave their babies in dumpsters."

I could have fallen over.

My best friend had the courage to place her baby for adoption about 8 years ago. I get that it was the hardest thing she has, or will probably ever do. And she did NOT do it because she didn't "want to keep her baby." She would have given ANYTHING to "keep" her baby. But she wouldn't have been able to give him an eternal family with a mom and a dad, and she wanted that for him more than she wanted anything for herself.

No human being gives birth to a baby and doesn't want to "keep their baby." No one. People who don't want a baby get an abortion. Adoption is not about not wanting to "keep" your baby.

Adoption is about wanting something more for your baby than you have to give. It is about wanting that more than you want anything for yourself. As far as I'm concerned, it is the most selfless act a mother can do besides giving her own life for her child. And it is probably harder.

Single mothers who choose to place their children in a family are a small percentage in any age group, but most are not teenagers. Many more are in their 20's or even 30's. These women know life is not just about them and they know that there is more that their baby can have than what they can give.

If you've said something like this, please don't spend time feeling bad. Just consider this some sensitivity training, and please, if you know a birth mother who is making the courageous choice of adoption, let her know that you get it. It has been hard for me to hear these kind of comments. I can't imagine how painful it would be as a birth mother to hear this over and over.

By the way, this is one of our family pictures we have posted on our new profile. Check it out and give us feedback :).

The Surprise is out! I'm taking Brent Paragliding :)

We have decided to create adventures every month, and this months was going to be a surprise. But, the big day came and the wind was going the wrong way so we had to postpone. But, one day, very soon, Brent and I will be screaming... I mean streaming through the air on a tandem flight through the sky.

Stay tuned for more...

Bienvenido a Miami

Ah the things we do in the name of science...

(This is from my recent trip to a Psychological Conference in Miami, sometimes it's hard being an accademic)*

*The convertabile was NOT my idea, I selected a compact, but the guy I was sharing it with got in first and added an "upgrade." Ironically, there's the same amount of leg room in the back...

And Back!

Now showing the end of Blonde Nicole! And a bit of our St. Patrick's Day party. I made an awesome corned beef and cabbage feast (and 6 kinds of potatoes)*. When you've served a mission in Ireland, you've got to represent!

*In a funny twist, most of these foods are actually not native to Ireland, but I was the only one at the dinner who knew that...

How's the adoption coming?

We get this question a lot, and I'm pretty sure that the people who don't ask are just being shy. I'm also fairly certain that most of our loving friends and family who ask have no idea what they are actually asking, so I thought I would take a moment to offer for anyone who is interested--

"Adoption 101: The 4 Step Process."

Step 1: Make the decision to adopt and choose an agency.

This is a very big, very scary for many people, and a very important step. It includes getting a lot of information about how different agencies work (very differently) and making a decision and usually some kind of payment to your agency of choice. (With LDS Familly Services, it is a very reasonable $1000.00.)

You get a case worker and a very large stack of paper (or passwords to a very large stack of electronic online forms).

Step 2: The Application Process, Home Study and Approval.

After selecting an agency, you spend the next 2-6 months getting approved. The process includes:

1. Filling out an obscene amount of information including statistical (age, weight, race, location, etc.), financial (pretty much your taxes, plus your assetts, debts, and credit report), personal (likes and dislikes, hobbies, interests, relationships, career, education, etc.), religious (bishop writes a letter), and finally legal (birth certificates, marriage certificates, authorizing criminal background checks, etc.).

2. The Home Study: In addition to providing information on your home and everyone in your family, you prepare your home for a safety inspection.

3. The Profile: Summarize your life stories, everything that you value and that is important to you, your personalities, testimonies, etc. on one piece of paper. Don't worry, you get to use both sides :) Then you get to use both sides of an additional piece of paper to create an illustration of your family (a picture collage).

This is what a birth mother will use to chose you, so no pressure. ;)

(Can you tell this was the hardest part for me).

3A) After all this was approved, LDS Family Services switched to a new online profile system, so we got to build another profile online. We like the new system. It is not limited in the amount of information or pictures you can include (and as far as I can tell, it is not biased towards people with the ability to scrapbook). They may not require the physical profiles anymore.

Step 3: The Waiting/ Finding Game

LDS Family Services calls the next stage the Finding Stage. But, I think most adopting couples call it the Waiting Stage. There are lots of creative (and many might say awkward) things people can do to get the word out that they are adopting. Many people send their friends and family a letter and profile that they can share with anyone they may run across who is considering adoption. Some people purchase advertising online or in other sources. Slightly less assertive are methods such as sharing with people you know that you are trying to adopt. My good friend made beautiful "business" cards to hand out that included the information that they were trying to adopt.

And of course, your profile is out there on "itsaboutlove.org" for anyone searching to find.

There is no waiting list. There is not really an "estimated time to arrival." It could be 10 days or 10 years. Someday, a birth mother chooses to give her baby an eternal family with a mom and a dad, and from the thousands and thousands of waiting couples, she chooses you.

Step 4: Placement and Finalization

See, the question "How's the adoption going/ or how is it coming along..." Unless someone is in the process of an overseas adoption (which is an extensive process that does come along) or unless they are working with a birthmother before a birth or placement, adoptions don't "come along." You just wait... and wait... and wait... and then they happen. Sometimes suddenly. Sometimes you have a few weeks to get to know your birthparent(s) and get ready for the new arrival.

Please check out our updated profile, and yes we would LOVE feedback! :)

(PS I wrote this a couple of months ago, and am just getting around to posting it).

Blonds are more fun!!

So, it was my birthday, the first one with a zero in a long time, and I needed a fun change, so here it is, I'm blond :)

My dad is in denial. He says I'm not blond, I just have highlights.

I called my nieces to chat and found that my secret had been released as barter for top secret information (My mother-in-law traded my blond pictures for "If you tell me whether your new baby is going to be a boy or a girl, I'll give you pictures of Aunt Nicole's new hair!") I was surprised at the amount of anxiety it caused. Poor Grace!

"Aunt Nicole why did you change your hair! You don't even look like you! I would never be able to find you in Disney World now!"

I assured her that by the time she needs to find me in Disney World again, I'm pretty sure I'll be a brunette again. Not because I don't love it, but because I just don't spend enough time on my hair to keep it up.

I think she had a harder time getting used to it then Brent, who, by the way was very supportive.

Love you Honey!