Quick 8 Week Update

More shots today and he weighed in at 9lb 5 oz. I will post some pictures from our Labor Day weekend up north when I have some time. Aunt Carlee got some great pictures!

Ben's Stats at 7 1/2 weeks

Ben weighed in at 8 lb 13.5 oz
He is 20 3/4 inches tall
This puts him in the 75th percentile for preemies his age. Keep on growing Benny Boy and you and daddy will be sharing that pepperoni pizza in no time! His weight right now is right in between mine and Pat's birth weights as Pat weighed in at a whopping 9 lb 3 oz when he was born and I weighed in at 8 lb 6 oz.

The shots today were not so fun....I only had him get half of his 2 month shots today so next week he will have to go back in and do this all over again but I just did not want my teeny tiny little boy getting too overwhelmed with all the vaccinations at once so I was "That mom" today.... "the first time, overly cautious worried mom" ... and decided to error on the side of caution. He has been sleepy mcsleeperson all day and when he has woken up he has not been a happy camper. We are hoping our happy alert boy is back in action tomorrow so that we can have a fun Labor Day weekend with him!

Smiles

I am pretty sure I got a wide eyed grin from Bennett this morning. I keep trying to get him to do it again but so far I have not seen another one yet. Maybe it will take me singing "Baby got back"....it worked for Rachel and Ross.

Full Term

Today was a big day for Bennett....well technically I am 38 minutes late on this post...but August 28th was Bennett's original due date. It is unbelievable to me that he could possibly still be on the inside given he is so alert and alive and squirmy! For seven weeks, he has been the last person we see at night and the first person we wake up to in the morning...it just boggles my mind that he could still have been inside where nobody could see his big brown eyes and his puckered up lips nor hear his digestive grunts and passes of the gas. I am just so glad we had these extra seven weeks with him that would normally have been spent on the inside! Today is the big day where he crosses over from being in the negative gestational age to the positive! Happy Due Date Bennett!

Although it is always a little risky for a baby to arrive that early, he came at the absolute perfect time. God's plan was so perfect as he knew that Bennett needed to be born on July 12th so that he could be a part of our family! We started talking about the timing of his birth this week and we came to the really scary realization that if he had come even a day earlier, our prior match in AZ would not yet have fallen through and if he had come any later, his birth mother was planning to choose a family while still pregnant and we would not have been presented given that in Texas we were only open to being shown to situations where the baby was already born. I am sure every parent feels this way....but it just could not have happened any other way! We were absolutely meant to be Ben's mom and dad and so for that I will always be thankful that Bennett arrived so early! I will eventually post our entire adoption story as I want to have it all written down so that I never forget all the little details and also because I just think it is a beautiful witness to how perfect God's plans are for our lives....but I have not gotten that story written down yet.

We have Ben's next doctor appt on Wednesday and I am so excited to see how much he has grown. He just seems so much bigger to me and I am excited to know what his full term weight is!

Liliana's Baptism

Liliana in her Baptismal gown that was once worn by her mommy, Kristy.

John, Kristy and Liliana

Us with Liliana

Our precious God Daughter, Liliana Nicole, was baptized on Sunday. Liliana is an extra special little girl because she was adopted from Texas just like Ben. She was placed with Kristy and John through the same exact agency. Her parents were such blessings to us as we were on the adoption rollercoaster. They had experienced everything that we were going through and they were great advice givers and great listeners through the ups and downs. I will always remember Kristy's famous advice to me, "It is like labor. Once you meet that baby that was meant for your family, you forget all the pain that you went through along the way." She was very right. I cannot imagine it any other way. It was worth every tear and every worry and every notarized piece of paper.

We are very happy that Bennett will have Liliana as a special friend to grow up with. He is already learning from her as he took great notes on Sunday so that he knows exactly what to do on his Baptism in a couple of weeks. We are excited to be part of Liliana's faith formation it was great to be a part of such a special day.

An Exciting Visit with Liliana

We have gotten together with Kristy and John and Liliana a couple times since getting back from Texas and everytime Liliana seems so excited to see Bennett. She is at such a fun age because she is all smiles and giggles. Here are the two of them having a little playtime. Bennett is holding on for dear life while Liliana wants to play. Could these two be any cuter?

What a Difference a Month Makes

July 24

Aug 24th

One month ago today we were discharged from the hospital with Bennett. He barely fit in his carseat back then. Now look how much more of the carseat he takes up. And his head is so much bigger than his carseat friends "Lady" and "Bug". It is crazy to think how much he has changed in just a month.