Travis and Megan

Update...

2009-10-11T20:30:00.000-07:00

Okay, I really didn't mean for a month to go by before I posted again.

What's new...

School is underway. We are on week 8. Most of my students have gotten the routine down and things are going great. We still have our challenges, but over all I'm excited about the way things are going. My students are so funny. One of my kiddos thinks that the words to "I Gotta Feeling" by the Black-Eyed Peas are "I gotta girlfriend." It's pretty cute to listen to him belt it at the top of his lungs. Another one of my kids always says "Oh, my goodness, gracious, Heavenly Father." I laugh, but have to remind her that we're not praying at school. The good times/days definiatly outway the hard moments.

Travis is still trucking along at his math class. He seems to be enjoying it, mostly. He just doesn't like doing the homework. Who can blame him? He recently went to the doctor and was told that his eye is looking awesome. He says that he can almost see as well out the right eye without a prescription as he does out his left one with a prescription. He won't even know what to do when he can see so well. We are excited about his progress and hope he will be able to get a prescription soon.

This summer I planted 2 tomato plants, hoping to be able to have lots of fresh tomatoes for BLTs. Well, the first 2 plants I bought were eaten by Lexi within the first 30 minutes of being outside. I then went and got 2 more plants. We blocked them off with chicken wire. We soon got several tomatoes. This July when we went on vacation, my brother stayed with the dogs, and when we got home, ALL of my tomatoes were eaten...red and green. The plants continued to flower and, as you can see from the picture, our harvest was bountiful...okay, not really, but it was great attempt.
I'm hoping to one day have raised gardens with a fence to protect the garden from the dogs.

We are still waiting to hear anything about our adoption. We are still hopeful that it will happen soon. Please continue to pray for us and if you hear of anyone that may be considering adoption, refer them to our blog or email... travis.megan@hotmail.com

We love you all and appreciate your support!

Okay, so it's September...

2009-09-12T09:29:00.000-07:00

Man, I feel like I just posted something, but turns out, it's been a while.

Update...
School started 3 weeks ago. I have great students, mostly. They each have their challenges, but for the most part I think it will be an awesome year. There have been more good day than bad days. I have 8 students ranging in ability. They are all so funny and it has been fun to get to know each of their personalities.

Travis also started school again. He is taking another math class this semester. He complains that he doesn't like it, but he is doing a great job. He is such a dedicated student. I am so proud of him.

Another month has gone by and nothing has changed with our adoption situation. We are still just waiting. 6 months down...

Thanks for you love, support, and prayers.

We're Back...

2009-08-05T11:00:00.001-07:00

We just go back from beautiful Redfish Lake, Idaho. It was so much fun. The weather was perfect! We left on Sunday, July 26 and got home Saturday, August 1. It was awesome. We meet up with Travis's brother, Seth and his family Sunday night. We slept on the river, which is about 45 minutes or so away from Redfish. We drove up to the lake on Monday morning and had to wait around for a little bit, because the campsite did not open until noon. So while waiting, we walked to the visiters center, which was closed and we also walked to the lodge/general store. When we were able to go into the campsite, we quickly set up camp and then hit the beach. Our niece, Olivia and I played in the sand for a while and built a swimming pool. It turned out looking like a big hole and didn't hold much water, but Olivia and I had a great time building it. We then tried fishing for minnows. Olivia had a big purple rope that she was hoping the minnows would bite. It didn't work, obviously, but it sure was cute watching her! Olivia and I became buddies and she was glued to my hip for the first couple days. It was a lot of fun hanging out with her.
Wednesday brought more family and excitement. Grandma and Grandpa Great came Wednesday afternoon. It is so good to see them and spend time with them. I was soon replaced as Olivia's buddy by Grandpa Great. Olivia loves Grandpa Great! On Thursday morning, Grandpa Great was in his camper by himself and Olivia said, "Grandpa Great looks lonely, I'm going to eat breakfast with him." It was so sweet!
Wednesday also brought Tashy, Sissa, and G-Jo. It was good to have the whole family together.
We spent the next fews day, hanging out in camp or on the beach. We walked to the lodge/general store daily for ice cream. We rode bikes and just enjoyed being together.

It was a lot of fun, but it was nice to get home. We missed the dogs so much and it was good to see them again. When we got home, we noticed that Lexi had some pretty bad wax build up in one of her ears, so I took her to the vet. Come to find out, she had a pretty bad ear infection. The vet said that it was the worst one that she had ever seen. She was put on antibiotics, a topical cream, and we have to wash her ears once a day with a special solution. She also received a steroid shot that helps with the itching. They said that it could be an environmental allergy that is causing it, and we should plan on washing her ears at least once a week for the rest of her life. It will be a pain, but if it keeps her healthy, we'll do it.

I return to work in 2 weeks...Where did the summer go? I can't believe that it is almost over. I am excited to get the year going and meet my new students. Hopefully, this will be a good year.

Still nothing with our adoption. We are still just waiting. Thanks for all you love and support!

Pass Along Cards

2009-07-12T18:57:00.000-07:00

We recently had Pass Along Cards printed. Basically, they are business cards that have our profile link and our email address on them. We are planning on sending these out to our family and friends for them to distribute to those that they know. This is a way for our story to get out there. I was talking to our case worker a couple weeks ago and she said that a birth mother came in with a pass along card and decided to place her baby with that couple. If you are interested in receiving a few of our cards, please email or post your address and I'll get them out to you asap.

Thanks again for you love and support.

Catching up...

2009-07-02T18:43:00.001-07:00

I can't believe that it has been so long since I have posted last...Where does the time go? I guess that I haven't written for a while, because it doesn't seem like there is much to write about.

The main things that have happened since I wrote last:
1. School's out for the summer! Ü I only have one more week of summer school and then I am completely free until the end of August.
2. Travis's vision has had a huge improvement. He went from 20/2200 (basically blind in his right eye) to 20/50. He is amazed at all that he can see.
3. We may or may not be able to go on our annual family vacation to Idaho. We are still waiting to see if Travis's supervisor is going to okay the time off. We're keeping our fingers crossed.
4. We dog-sat for my brother last weekend. They have a little shitzu maltese mix named Chubbs. He is only about 5-7 pounds and was obsessed with Lexi, who is about 55 pounds. He followed her everywhere. It was pretty funny. At first, Lexi seemed really irritated, but by the end of the weekend she acted like she enjoyed having him around.
5. We have decided that we are going to have to completely redo our yard. We thought that we might be able to save it, but after talking to our neighbors, we learned that the previous owners did not put in a sprinkling seems for five years. The weeds would grow taller than the fence at times and when they decided to move they mowed down the weeds, put the sprinklers in and layed sod on top of the weeds. It is so frustrated, because now we have to fix a problem that could have been handled when the yard was first put in. The joy of buying a previously-owned home.
6. We purchased new furniture for our front room.
We were using my sister's furniture while they were living with my parents. They recently moved into their own apartment and we decide that we should go get some stuff of our own. The sales guy at RC Willey really wanted to make the sale and I was able to talk him down on prices, so we go a screaming deal.
7. We have reached the 3 month mark on being approved for adoption. It has been a very difficult 3 months, but we're surviving. I was able to speak with our caseworker today and we are now able to see the statistics on our profile. It as been viewed over 300 times. Our caseworker did say that our profile is having good activity and is being viewed by lots of birth mothers and other caseworkers.

I guess that we have been a lot busier than I thought...

Looking back...

2009-05-24T20:55:00.001-07:00

Catching up!

2009-05-24T19:51:00.000-07:00

It has been a few weeks since I posted last, so I thought I would take a minute to update...

Travis had his cornea transplant about 2 weeks ago. It went well and the doctor says that it appears to be healing well. Travis has already noticed an improvement in his vision. He went back to work last week. He says that he is having a difficult time there because it is hard to stare at a computer screen all day, but he is adjusting.

As for me, I am so excited to see the school year winding down. I took all of my 8th graders files to the high schools this past week...that is a sign that it really is almost over. It has been a very difficult year and it will be nice to have a few weeks off. I start ESY (basically summer school) with my students on June 15 and go until July 9. It is only 3 hours a day/4 days a weeks, so it's not too bad.

As far as our adoption goes, nothing has changed. The past few weeks have been really hard on me. Travis is so strong. I ask him often if he ever gets discouraged about the whole situation. He says he does, but he is really good about being strong for me. It sometimes feels like it is never going to happen. It is frustrating because my whole life all I have ever wanted is to be a mom. I know we haven't been waiting very long, and that there are couples that wait much longer, but I am not, nor have I ever been a patient person. When I decide I want something, I want it now. I am just trying to figure out what Heavenly Father is trying to teach us and what we can gain from this trial. We continue to pray and have faith that it will happen and take it one day at a time.

Tomorrow is Travis and my 3rd Anniversary. It is crazy to think about it. It seems like we have been together so much longer. It feels like he has always been in my life. He is my best friend and I love him so much!

Nothing new...

2009-05-03T12:30:00.000-07:00

There is really nothing new to report as far as our adoption goes.

This is a portion of one of my favorite books, "Today Is Your Day" by Dr. Seuss, it kind of explains where we are at

The Waiting Place......
for people just waiting.
Waiting for a train to go
or a bus to come, or a plane to go
or the mail to come,
or the rain to go or the phone to ring,
or the snow to snow or waiting around for a Yes or a No
or waiting for their hair to grow.
Everyone is just waiting.

Waiting for the fish to bite
or waiting for wind to fly a kite
or waiting around for Friday night
or waiting, perhaps, for their Uncle Jake
or a pot to boil, or a Better Break
or a sting of pearls, or a pair of pants
or a wig with curls, or Another Chance.
Everyone is just waiting.

We are defiantly just waiting...

Everything else in our lives are going well. Travis is excited to see the end of the semester. He has his final tomorrow and will be off for the summer. He is going in for surgery on Friday to have a cornea transplant in his right eye. He is looking forward to being able to see a little better, but not so excited to have surgery. It should go well, though.

I am looking forward to summer break. I love my students, but I am ready for this school year to be over. It has been very stressful, not just because of my students, but because of everything that has been going on in our lives.

We are so excited for what the future holds for us! Hopefully soon we will have a new addition. We appreciate all the countless prayers that have been said in our behalf. We love you all!

Travis's Birthday

2009-04-16T16:24:00.001-07:00

Travis is 28 today. We are having our families come over for cake and ice cream. I am so grateful for Travis. He is such a wonderful husband. I'm grateful that he honors his priesthood. A few weeks ago, I was having a difficult day, and Travis was able to give me a blessing of comfort. It really helped and I am so glad that Travis has made the choices in his life that allows him to have the priesthood. I am so thankful that we will be able to be together forever. He is so good to me and I love him very much!

No New News

2009-04-01T15:16:00.000-07:00

Nothing has changed. We are still just waiting. We have heard of a few situations that may be benefical for us, but nothing has been confirmed. I feel that at this point, we are in a good spot. We are still living our lives in hopes that it will happen quickly, but we still have to continue on.

Approved...for real

2009-03-15T15:06:00.000-07:00

We received official word on Thursday, that we are approved for adoption. Our profile has been published and birth parents are able to start viewing it. We are so excited and now all we can do is wait. We are going to continue to get our names and story out there and hopefully we will have a new addition to our family soon. If you would like to check out our profile or know anyone that is considering placing their baby for adopt please refer them to our profile:

https://beta.itsaboutlove.org/ial/profiles/22586199/ourMessage.jsf

We love you all and are so thankful for all your love and support.

Approved...

2009-03-04T16:56:00.000-08:00

well, not yet, but soon. We received word yesterday that our case will be presented to the adoption board on Monday, March 9. We are so excited and are hoping that all goes well. Our case worker said that she doesn't think there is any reason that we won't be approved. Please keep us in your prayers.

Where did the time go?

2009-02-26T20:42:00.001-08:00

I can't believe that so much time has gone by since I wrote anything. Last weekend, Travis and I went to our adoption training class. It was really good. It was overwhelming/discouraging to see how many couples where trying to adopt. It made me question if we will ever get a baby. I realize that is Satan discouraging me. He is doing everything in his power to destroy the family. I know that we will have kids, it's just a matter of when. We have already been so blessed and I know that Heavenly Father won't deny us this blessing.

At the training, they had 3 panels; couple who have adopted, adults who were adopted, and birth parents who have placed their babies for adoption. It was really eye-opening. Having the birth parents come and talk about their stories was amazing. I don't know if I was being nieve or what, but see them and listening to them made it all connect. In order for us to have a baby, someone has to, for lack of a better word, lose a baby. I can't even begin to imagine the courage that it takes to reach this decision. I know when we finally are selected, there will be special place in my heart for our birth mother.

We should find out in the next week or so if we are approved and then it's just waiting. We wait to be picked. We hope that we won't have to wait too long, but we have prepared ourselves for long haul.

Thank you to all our family and friends for your love and support. This would be a much tougher journey without you...

More to come

A new addition

2009-02-08T12:55:00.000-08:00

We got a new dog!!! She is so adorable. Her name is Lexi and she has so much energy. I forgot how hyper they are when they are young. She is a one year old pit bull. Cameron is adjusting well and actually seems to really enjoy having her here. Lexi is crazy and we love her. She is afraid of the stairs and did not like the hallway at first. It took her several hours before she would even attempt to go down the hall. I found her on KSL classified. We weren't really looking to get another dog, but I was just browsing to see what there was. I found a picture of this adorable puppy and decided to call on her. Turns out that one of the kids in the family developed severe allergies and the family was no longer able to keep Lexi. She had a great home and they took really good care of her and were sad to see her go. Lucky for us, we have her! It is going to take some time to adjust, but I think it will be a great situation for everyone.

2009-02-02T19:09:00.000-08:00

I feel like I always get on here and say that there is nothing new going on...which is seems to be true most of the time. Today is not much different. I have started to have the nervous-exciting feelings that come along with a baby. Sometimes I panic and worry that we may not be able to provide for a child. Other times I get so excited that I can hardly stand it. I really hope that we get chosen soon, but know that it's in the Lord's hands and we will be blessed with a child when the time is right.

No news

2009-01-26T19:49:00.000-08:00

You know what they say...no news is good news. Not much has happened in the past week. We're just pluggin' along.

Today was the first day of the 2nd semester at school...that means I'm half-way done with this school year. I am so ready for summer break! This has been a very difficult year. I don't know if it's because of the kids or because of all the stress that has been going on in our personal lives. Probably it is a combination of both. My students are great...most of the time. There are moments that I really wonder why I got into Special Ed. It is rewarding, but so draining. I think finding out that we can't have kids has added to the stress this year. I don't think I have cried so much in my life as I have the past few months. All of this will be worth it though...one day, hopefully soon, we will be choosen by a birthmother and we will able to add to our family.

More to come...

So close!

2009-01-18T15:29:00.000-08:00

It's true...we are so close to being approved for adoption. We had our home study this past week. I don't know what I was expecting, but I was surprised how easy and quickly it went. Our case worker and the director of adoptions came to our house and asked a few questions about it. They then walked through and that was it. They had us show them where things were like the CO2 and fire detectors, the fire extinguisher, the gun, and the lock box. We had to go buy a few things to the we could pass the home study. We had to purchase a trigger lock for Travis's shotgun and a lock box for the ammo. They also gave suggestions for child-proofing the house at a later date, things like putting a cabinet lock on our cleaning products and a child gate on the stairs. It seems like a lot of things to do, but it will be worth it and I think that our willingness to get it done shows how dedicated we are to the process. Our case worker keeps telling us that we are on top of things and getting everything done fast, and we just tell her that we really want a child and want to be approved as quickly as possible. Our adoption training course is in just a few weeks, so after we attend that our case is presented to the board and then we should be approved. And then...we wait to be selected. We are hoping that we won't have to wait too long, but we are prepared for the long haul. We will wait as long as we have to to start our family. We are so grateful to be surrounded by such great family and friends. They are our strength and have provide more comfort and love then we could have even imagined. We love you all!

Adoption News

2009-01-09T21:34:00.000-08:00

Well, things are moving along. Travis had his interview with our case worker this last week. Then we have our home study this next Thursday. All we have left is turning in a few more documents and attending the adoption training classes. The classes are Febuary 20 and 21. Then after that, our application is presented to the board and then we should be approved. I can't believe how quickly things are moving along. Not to much longer and then the waiting game will start. After we have been approved the next step is to wait and hope that our profile is shown to lots of birthparents or try to get our names out there so that people know we are adopting. That is where you come in. If you know anyone that is considering placing their baby for adoption please direct them to our blog. As I mentioned in a previous post, 33% of adoptions facilitated by LDS Family Services are direct adoptions, meaning the adoptive parents find the birth parents or vice versa. Any help spending our names and story would be greatly appreciated.

I want to also take this opportunity to thank our families and friends for all their love and support through this process. It has been very difficult, I am so grateful that we have such wonderful people that surround us, building us up. Travis and I have truly been blessed.

Happy Holidays

2009-01-01T12:25:00.000-08:00

Wow! I can't believe how fast the holiday season has come and gone... We had an awesome Christmas and were completely spoiled by our families. I found a Superman cardboard cut-out for Travis and he loved it, and as you can see by the picture, he couldn't stop smiling! Travis's family came to our house Christmas morning. We had breakfast together and then started opening presents. Olivia was a lot of fun to watch. She was so excited about everything. Everyone got great stuff...lots of multiples, but it was still so much fun.

We went to my parents house in the afternoon. It was crazy. We were going to just open one present and then eat and then finish opening presents after lunch, but the kids, Gavin and Bre, were so into it, so we just kept going until there was nothing under the tree. We spent the rest of the day just hanging out and eating. We got out the traditional Christmas puzzle and started to work on it. It's a tough one and I gave up pretty quick.

We were spent New Year's Eve at the traditional party with some of Travis's high school friends. It was a lot of fun. We ate and did a white elephant exchange (Travis got an amazing vase that is in the shape of a bust...I just have to figure out where I'm going to put it), played Wii, and mostly just got caught up on everyone's lives. It's crazy when you only see everyone every couple of months how much changes. The kids are growing up so fast. Even though, Travis has been out of school for almost 10 years, his buddies are as tight as ever. I first met everyone at the New Year's Eve party 3 years ago and they have excepted me with open arms, and I have become close to many of Travis's friends. It has been a crazy holiday season, but I'm sad to see it come to an end.

Our adoption is moving along. I had my individual interview this week. I meet with my case worker and another case worker and we talked about my life, my marriage, and many other things. The next step is for Travis to have his interview and then the home study. Then we just need to get some paper work done and attend the Adoption Training classes, then we should be approved. And then we just wait...hopefully we won't have to wait too long, but we'll wait as long as we need to. More to come!

Long time...

2008-12-17T16:55:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I have written anything...it's crazy how fast the time goes. Not much has changed, we're just busy trying to get ready for Christmas. I love shopping for others and anticipating their reactions. I love the joy that Christmas brings. It's crazy to think that Christmas will be here in a week! I'm so excited to spend time with family and friends.

Festival of Trees

2008-12-06T20:22:00.000-08:00

This week I went with my family to the opening night of Festival of Trees. My mom has donated a tree for the past few years. We have made it a tradition to go together and go out to dinner before or after. It is defiantely a good way to get everyone in the Christmas spirit. I was also able to take my students to see the trees on Friday. I thought that they would enjoy it more than they did, but it still was a fun and successful field trip. They did like to listen to the music and a couple of them got a glimpse of Santa. It was long day, but worth it. When I got home, I just crashed.

2008-12-01T19:48:00.000-08:00

It is finally the Christmas season. We bought a new tree on Friday...I actually braved "Black Friday" to get it. I know, every once and a while I get a crazy idea. It wasn't so bad, though. Marlee and I first went to Lowe's to see if they still had the tree that I wanted, but they were all gone. We then decided to go to Wal-mart. The parking lot was packed. We decided to park on the street to avoid the mess. It took me a few minutes to decide on a tree, but once I did, we got out as quickly as possible. We got there at around 6:30 am and I was home and back in bed by 8:00 am. Later, after we had taken a nap we ran to Sam's Club because they had some ornaments that I wanted, but they were all gone, so I found some silver ornaments. I also found some ribbon that I love. It is brown with silver trim. I found a cute star at the Quilted Bear. I wasn't able to find a tree skirt that I liked so I went to the fabric store and made one myself. I think it turned out pretty well.

Travis spend Saturday putting lights on the house. He did a great job! I love seeing all the lights. I remember as a little girl going with my dad and grandpa on Christmas Eve to see Christmas lights while my mom and grandma got all the last minute Christmas things finished. Decorations are such a small part of the season, but defiantly bring the Spirit of Christmas.

Thanksgiving

2008-11-26T15:09:00.001-08:00

I am so grateful that it is Thanksgiving. I love this time of year, for the most part. I was able to go shopping with my mom and sister today and it is so awesome to feel the holiday spirit everywhere you go. Some places are crazy, everyone is trying to get all their holiday goodies and sometimes they aren't very nice, but for the most part people are nicer around this time of year. I wish that everyone would carry the spirit of Christmas year round.

We met with our case worker yesterday. She is very nice and helpful. I am super excited about everything, but I am also nervous and overwhelmed. I just want to make sure that we do things right and that we don't screw it up somehow. Part of me is scared that they might say the we can't we approved for adoption because of some crazy reason...I don't know what could cause us to be denied, but I'm still stressed about it. I guess that this is something that I have wanted for so long that I just want everything to go smoothly.

New pictures...

2008-11-24T19:38:00.000-08:00

I know that I just posted something yesterday, but Travis and I got some new pictures taken a few weeks ago and I just got them back today and I'm excited to share them. Thanks, KP, for taking our pictures...you are a rock star!

We have decided not to get a new dog...as much as I want one, we just feel that with all that is going on in our crazy lives right now, it's just not the right time. Maybe one day, after we know what is going on with the whole adoption situation.

Another day...

2008-11-23T18:11:00.000-08:00

Well, I don't really have much to write today. Not much has changed in our lives over the past few days. We did go to Petsmart on Saturday and found a dog that we are considering adopting. He is a beautiful 1 1/2 year old baby boy! He is so sweet. We introduce him to Cameron and for the most part they did really well. I would image that it would get better with time. We are not sure though if adopting him at this point in our lives is an option. Mostly, Travis is nervous because he did not grow up having dogs, where I grew up with multiple dogs and often other animals, including rabbits, fish, lizards, and hamsters. I think that he would make a great addition to our family, but ultimately we need to come to a decision together.

As far as adopting a human baby, not much has changed. Travis did receive a message from our case worker to set up our intake interview, but has been unable to get hold of her due to her part-time employment status. Hopefully, we'll hear from her tomorrow or the sometime this week.