The scene at our house

This is what things look like around here at the moment:

There are stacks of boxes everywhere!...ok, more exactly in the kitchen, in one of the bedrooms, and out in the garage.

That's a good thing though, because that means its starting to look more like this:

And less like this:

I am really feeling tired (and crazy) with all the piles and mess everywhere. I hate it, but that's part of the fun (HA HA) of moving.

That's what we've been up to lately. Kaden thinks its the best to pack boxes (WHY?) and wants to do it all the time. Seriously, what's with this kid? AND, he didn't want me to take his picture while he worked...he's too busy to stop for the camera.

In other news....we bought Splash Passes again to Cherry Hill. We've been 3 or 4 times, and both of the boys LOVE IT. I need to take the camera, but it seems like by the time I haul kids, water wings, floating rings, swimsuits, swim diapers, sunscreen, towels, dry clothes, etc. my hands are full. Kaden's favorite is the water slides with Daddy, while Bosten is quite thrilled to float down the lazy river (while kicking and splashing the whole way).

STILL waiting on news of Bosten's adoption. We passed the date we were waiting for last week, and thought we'd hear something this week. Nope. It's a killer waiting for the phone to ring all the time. Its been a long wait, and we're so anxious to have it done.

We've got our first "show" this weekend at Herriman Days with our watches. We're excited to see how it goes. We've done several watch parties, and are headed to Oregon in July with them for Garibaldi Days and the Tillamook County Fair.

This is some of our newer stuff. Isn't it cute? Remember you can get a free watch by hosting a WATCH PARTY (see watchoutdesigns.blogspot.com for details)

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to some of the best Dads in the "whole wide world" (as Kaden says):

Curious George and the Man with the yellow hat (halloween 2008)

Kyle and his two best little buddies

My dad (aka Papa, Peeps, Pops)

Grandpa Fred

Grandpa

We LOVE you and hope you know we think you're the best.

Oquirrh Mountain Temple

Yesterday we went to the Oquirrh Mountain open house. We're so lucky that we've been able to go to two so close together. What a good experience for our family!

Bosten LOVED the fountain, and couldn't take his eyes off of it even for a picture!

Here's some of the things Kaden thought were great about this temple:

-they had a water jug with paper cups (just like his Primary class) in the tent where we watched the introductory video.

-there were lots of stairs and an elevator (which he didn't get to go on)

-there is a bathroom at the temple, and we got to use it

-the water in the baptismal font looked "really so cold"

-the chandeliers in the sealing and celestial room were big

-they have a room there where we can get married to Bosten

-the cookies at the reception were "really, really so good"

We're so grateful for the temple and can't wait to go as a family!

Tagged

My friend, Heather, tagged me the other day (loser!...you know I love you though). Like I have time to do this right now...I think I've done this one before but its been awhile, so I'll make her happy.

8 Things I'm Looking Forward To:

-Bosten's adoption being finalized

-Going to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house (such a good experience for our family...especially with Bosten's sealing coming up)

-Having a definate plan on what we're going to do when we move (yeah, I know...we'd better figure it out since its only a couple of weeks away)

-Bosten sleeping through the night (we're on another stretch where he thinks he needs to eat a bottle at 2:30am...almost on the dot every night.)

-Getting that massage (that I got a gift card for) from the boys for Mother's Day

-Watching Kaden play his last soccer game of the season tomorrow (WITH his Mr. Incredibles underwear on...did you know they make him run faster?! He decided that about the second game and now makes sure that he wears them every week!)

-Getting to watch something on TV that isn't on the Disney Channel (Kaden's been sick and he's been in our bed watching TV alot this week)

-Going to Cherry Hill for the first time of the season and watching the boys play together

8 Things I Did Yesterday:

-Packed Boxes

-Looked at a rental house

-Laundry

-Sent Kyle a million texts (ok, not a million but a lot. we're not on the same calling plan any more, so we're texting instead of talking)

-Emailed Bosten's birth mom

-Talked to my sisters on the phone multiple times

-Ate popsicles with Kaden and Bosten

-Packed Boxes (yes, I already did that one but that's all I've been doing around here)

8 Things I Wish I Could Do:

-Terminate Bosten's birth father's parental rights on my own

-Hire someone to clean my house and cook dinner (hey, I can dream can't I?)

-Pack up and leave for Maui in an hour

-Attend all the finals of major sporting events (NHL, NBA, MLB, NCAA Football, March Madness)

-Visit friends and family in Oregon sooner than later

-Eat at Cafe Rio more often (LOVE it...wish Kyle did too)

-Have an adoption experience where everything went smoothly the first time

-Be on the show "What Not To Wear" (although I'd probably cry when they trashed everything about what I wear)

8 Show I Watch:

-All Sporting Events (ok, not a big fan of boxing)

-The Amazing Race

-24

-What Not To Wear

-American Idol

-Jon and Kate Plus 8 (I was watching before all the craziness started)

-Adoption Stories (on Discovery Health...makes me cry more than not)

-that's all I can think of at the moment....I should say shows on Disney Channel! :)

OK, so fun. Now....how about Jill, Charity, Kelly, and anyone else who wants to do it.

I need a vacation

This is the view from the condo where we stay when we're in Maui.

Isn't it fabulous? I LOVE Maui. I'm not sure if its Maui or the fact that I can read a good book, sit in a lawnchair all day, and take a nap. That sounds really good right now. I've been so stressed and can literally feel the weight of it on my shoulders.

It feels heavy.

I'm not talking about moving, although it is a little scary to not have a plan yet where we're going to go. We're working on it, but nothing set in stone yet.

We could be on our way to Phoenix today to adopt a baby girl that was born last night. My aunt knew of a potential situation for us, and called us about it last week. We had no idea it was so soon, but she called yesterday morning before 7am and said the birth mom was in labor. I spent all day on the phone with my aunt, the birth mother, attorneys in Arizona and Utah, LDS Family Services, my family, Kyle's family....you get the idea.

We were trying to get the information we needed to make a decision. There were some potential issues that came up with the birthfather. SCARY. The more we found out, the more scarier it got. We had our caseworker from LDSFS come and do an update for our homestudy (yes, that's in the middle of packing the house...SCARY in a different way)

While she was here, we asked our caseworker her opinion of all of this. She said that Bosten's adoption was one in a million (as far as being hard and stressful and complicated) and that somehow we found a situation that was WORSE.

On the other hand, how could we turn our backs on a baby that was pretty much falling into our laps? The birth mom (although not LDS) was willing to work with LDSFS and it turned out to be a healthy baby girl.

After a LONG night, we both feel like this baby is not meant for our family. It was with tears and a heavy heart that we called and let those involved know that we wouldn't be pursuing this. Yes, I'm sad. Yes, I wonder at what could have been. But honestly, I feel better than I did yesterday. It boggles my mind that we're letting this one go (especially since it wasn't that long ago that we would have done anything to have a baby), but I know that this is how its supposed to be.

While I was up in the middle of the night, I found this new video that I thought was great:

All I can say is AMEN, sister!

Captain Hook and his pirates

On one of our trips down to Riverton lately, Papa and the kids started playing pirates. Everyone thought it was SO FUN...

Here's the captain (complete with his hook...from the Kitchen Aid!) with his loyal crew

Up on their ship (the loft) with their treasure maps printed from the internet

AARRRGGGHH!

Updates

We met with our caseworker this week.

This cute little monkey...

...is ALMOST official. We're getting really close to being done with the legal drama in our lives. I can't begin to tell you what a RELIEF it will be to have it over.

He is now the proud owner of 2 teeth, and has been fighting an infection this week. I thought it was another ear infection (ugh). But, not this time. He's been much happier since he's been taking medicine.

Our other big news of the week:

We sold the house.

We had a someone come look 2 days in a row at the end of last week, and they made an offer over the weekend. We countered a couple of times and now have a signed contract. Kaden and I have alot of work to do! :) He's a good little helper and keeps reminding me of all the stuff we need to remember to take with us (I guess he doesn't realize we're taking everything!)