Grace

Here are some recent pics of Grace. She'll be a month old on the 13th. So hard to believe we've already had her a month. She is still such a good baby. She likes to cuddle, and is having more "awake" time as the weeks go on.

She has had 2 visits with mom now. I actually sat in on the last visit to help mom with Grace. Mom is very low-functioning and can't be in the room alone with the baby. The social worker observed us via closed circuit television, and took notes for the court report. It was quite an interesting experience, to say the least. I kept asking mom questions about how she feels about being a mom, what her life is like, etc. She likes to talk about herself so she just rambled on and on, with no consideration for what is "acceptable" to share. I even heard about the night Grace was conceived. I told the social worker later that I think I threw up in my mouth. Just kidding. But it was a lot of information to learn about her on the first meeting! What was interesting is that as she talked, she almost forgot she was holding Grace, and a few times I thought she was going to drop her. Mom got so caught up in talking about herself that she would relax her arms until Grace would start moving or whining, and then she'd say, "Oh," as if she totally forgot she was holding the baby. The social worker said that everything about mom, how she responds to the baby, what is going on in her life (transient lifestyle, etc.) is the same as it was with her first 2 children. Hopefully it's just a matter of time before mom agrees to voluntarily terminate her rights, and then we just have to hope that no relative of mom's or dad's steps forward and wants to take the baby.

We do have some really good friends who have just learned that they will be able to adopt their foster son. They've had him since birth and he's 10 months old now. I am so thrilled for them and can't wait to celebrate at his adoption party this summer. I know that one day we'll be hosting adoption parties of our own. I'm just thankful that we have people to walk this journey with us.