When Friends Visit

So Steven's friend, Josh, is here visiting for a week! And it started out kinda lame. I'm sure everyone knows about the Tsunami warning that we had because of the Earthquake in Chile. It was his first full day here, and he woke up to not being able to do anything, and the possibility that Hawaii would be swept away. Actually, all kidding aside. It was serious and we did not take it lightly. Now we are laughing it off and joking about it. And we are so grateful that it wasn't anything major! God was really looking out for the people of Hawaii!

SO after the warning was lifted, I wouldn't let us go right away, I was still worried. So we waited a few hours, and went to a beach. I'm not sure which one, but there weren't that many people, and the water was pretty calm close to shore, but the waves were pretty rough farther out! I wasn't feeling like swimming, so the boys did. After the beach Josh wanted to go to the Swap Meet at Aloha Stadium. Steven and I hadn't been yet, and so we went. We stopped at this sunglass tent, and we found these UGLY things! WHO wears them! Seriously, I wouldn't be caught dead in them. But we got Steven to try them on!

It was amazing to see after the Tsunami warning, resembles the promise God made us, and how He is in control! AMAZING!

We went to the North Shore today to see the waves, they were HUGE - there was a sea turtle just hanging out and then a big wave washed up on shore and took him back out to sea!

This is at Sunset Beach, the waves were wicked huge, and we weren't able to swim but we sat and soaked up some sun for about an hour!

Show Us Your Life Friday

Show Us Your Life - Your Ministry

Sorry this is so late in the day, but I hope it finds someone and is able to help others. I'm not the most knowledgable about Adoption and Birthmom things. But I want to help other girls who have been in my shoes make more of their lives after placement. My heart breaks for all the birthmothers out there who don't have the support system I did. I was very blessed to have such amazing friends and family. I've had my ups & downs, but that is normal in any situation, in any life. But I'd like to help someone decide on what to do if they are ever placed in a situation of parenting or adoption. I am wanting to be a sounding board for women who find themselves pregnant and alone. So, if you know someone who is struggling, please send them my way. I can try my best to listen, comfort and support. I might not know the answers to your questions or concerns, but I can sure do  my best to help you find it. Two heads are better than one, so they say!

Changes

You may or may not have noticed, but I took off every picture of my son, or most of them. There may be a post or two I forgot, but I went through the whole blog and tried to. It is not my place to put them on a public site. They are on my facebook, but only my family and a FEW close friends can see them. I check the security on them OFTEN and make sure that only certain people can see them. And I am very careful about who I allow.

Holy Crap - it's my 50th post

And in honor of it - I've done a mindless survey so I wouldn't have to come up with something - besides, the last post was pretty heavy! Enjoy!

ABC of Me

The Letter A
Are you available?: nope, happily married
What is your age?: 24
What annoys you?: fake people, and people who take advantage of others
The Letter B
Do you live in a big house?: Nope
When is your birthday?: July
Who is your best friend?: Emily, Melissa & Steven
The Letter C
What's your favorite candy?: anything Chocolate
Who's your crush?: my husband
When was the last time you cried?: probably when I dropped Steven off at the airport
The Letter D
Do you daydream?: all the time, ha
What's your favorite kind of dog?: yorkie
What day of the week is it?: Tuesday
The Letter E
How do you like your eggs?: hard scrambled, or cheese omlette
Have you ever been in the emergency room?: oh geez, too many times
What's the easiest thing ever to do?: turn on a computer
The Letter F
Have you ever flown in a plane?: yes
Do you use fly swatters?: no
Have you ever used a foghorn?: no
The Letter G
Do you chew gum?: sometimes
Are you a giver or a taker?: both
Do you like gummy candies?: NO
The Letter H
How are you?: sick
What color is your hair?: brown
The Letter I
What's your favorite ice cream?: Chocolate
Have you ever ice skated?: yes
Do you play an instrument?: piano, very little
The Letter J
What's your favorite jelly bean brand?: Jelly Belly
Do you wear jewelry?: Yes
The Letter K
Who do you want to kill?: nobody
Do you want kids?: YES
Where did you go for kindergarten?: Joppatown Elementary in Maryland
The Letter L
Are you laid back?: for the most part
Do you lie?: who doesn't?
The Letter M
Whats your favorite movie?: the Twilight ones right now
Do you still watch Disney movies?: from time to time
Do you like mangos?: no
The Letter N
Do you have a nickname?: Mandi, Mandapanda, Manda
What is your real name?: Sarah Amanda
Whats your favorite number?: 23
Do you prefer night over day?: yes
The Letter O
What's your one wish?: to have a relationship with my birth son
Are you an only child?: nope
The Letter P
What one fear are you most paranoid about?: rejection and being alone
What are your pet peeves?: too many to name, lol
What's a personality trait you look for in people?: caring
The Letter Q
What's your favorite quote?: "You were with me for such a short time, but you'll stay in my heart forever!"
Are you quick to judge people?: sometimes, but i try not to
The Letter R
Do you think you're always right?: no
Are you one to cry?: yes
The Letter S
Do you prefer sun or rain?: sun
Do you like snow?: yea
What's your favorite season?: Spring or Summer
The Letter T
What time is it?: 8pm
What time did you wake up?: 8:30am
When was the last time you slept in a tent?: April or May last year
The Letter U
Are you wearing underwear?: Yes
Underwear or boxers?: Underwear
The Letter V
What's the worst veggie?: Peas
Where do you want to go on vacation?: Italy or Australia
The Letter W
What's your worst habit?: swearing
Where do you live?: Hawaii =D
What's your worst fear?: rejection or being alone
The Letter X
Have you ever had an x-ray?: yes, a ton
Have you seen the x-games?: on TV
Do you own a xylophone?: no
The Letter Y
Do you like the color yellow?: it's pretty, but I can't wear it
What's one thing you yearn for?: again, to have a relationship with my birth son
The Letter Z
Whats your zodiac sign?: Cancer
Do you believe in the zodiac?: not really
Favorite zoo animal?: Panda

My Adoption Story part 1

It just occured to me that I had not posted my adoption story. So here it goes...

I think I found out I was pregnant in March or April of 2008. My best friend and I were hanging out, like we normally did. We were talking and some how we got on the topic of pregnancy. She asked me some questions, I answered, and she was like, you're pregnant. I was like, whatever, NO. So we went to the drug store and bought a test. I took it, instant positive. I was like, WTH, so we went back and bought 2 more. I took a second one at her house again, positive...I ended up staying there that night, and decided that in the morning I would take another one. Freaking positive again...crap. I had called the guy who I thought was the father and told him. He made up some bull about how he couldn't be the father because he had a low sperm count, that he had it tested for a gay friend who wanted him to be a sperm donor...YEA RIGHT...at the time I was not sure if he was the father or if it was the guy before him. The dates were too close at the time. Well, about a week later I guess, I told my father. I went to the doctor, and found out about how far along I was, and knew right away that the guy I had called that weekend was in fact the father. Only problem is he denied it up and down.

I think every woman thinks they are going to parent when they first find out they are pregnant. I know I did. But then I thought about my options. Abortion was NOT an option for me. I knew a couple when I went to school who had a few miscarriages and how I thought they would make great parents. That is when the adoption plan came to theory. I e-mailed my friend, and told her what was up. We talked, they decided to pray it over and give me an answer when they got back from a mission trip. They knew God would let them know while there. And sure enough, they got the answer. She called me shortly after the trip, and told me they were honored, but that God wasn't leading them in that direction at the time. She mentioned another couple I knew, who I will bring up in a bit. I don't know if most of you knew that the people you asked to raise your child were going to say yes or no. I knew they were going to say no. So it wasn't a big surprise. And I don't think it affected our relationship at all.

Well, another good friend of mine had mentioned the same couple to me at another time. The first 16 weeks of my pregnancy were ROUGH, in and out of the hospital for dehydration and not being able to eat. Well, the last time I was in the hosptial (before I had him) a friend was having surgery and was going to come out of it not able to have children. I knew they wanted to adopt at some point. They had mentioned it to me before I got pregnant. But their plan was to have 2 of their own and then adopt. Well, they had 1 bio child  when they found out they couldn't have another. I had thought about them, but I knew that her hormones were all over the place and I didn't know if she could handle the adoption, and this that and the other. Well, after 2 people said "hey have you thought about so and so" I had to start praying about it. At the same time the mom had been emailing me and asking me questions, and I honestly dont remember how she found out I was pregnant, or how I told her. But one email she asked for me number. I thought it was really odd. But gave it to her anyways. A few days or a week or so later she called me and asked if they could pray about adopting my son. I said yes, and told her how 2 other people had mentioned them. A few months later they were going to a wedding out of state and were going to be coming through Chattanooga. They stopped for the weekend and took me to dinner and told me that they were in fact interested in adopting my son. Like I knew with the first couple, I knew they were going to say yes, and that I had in fact found the parents of my son. We kept in contact through email and phone calls. I sent them the ultra sound pictures in the mail after the appiontments, and we got a lawyer who could do out of state adoptions. I met with him and signed the papers I could sign before the birth and read over the ones I'd sign after the birth. We talked about how open we wanted it, and how we would handle things. Things kind of got swept under the rug when it came to that aspect, and it wasn't until after the birth I stepped up and said I wanted more communication. (but again, that's for later...)

I had gestational diabetes, and so the doctor did not want me to go past my due date. So the week I was due the mother came up to Chattanooga. She went to my last appointment with me and we set up the c-section for Wednesday (my appt was on Monday). I was unsure of whether I wanted the mom in the OR with me or not, and had told her that I would let her know the day of the birth. I knew it would mean a lot to her, but I just wasn't sure I'd be able to handle it. She got to witness the birth. So I let her come in. I got to see my baby boy right after he was born and love on him a little...seeing as I was still on the table...HA! They took him to get tested and what not, she went with him and stayed with him for the rest of the stay. The nurses at the hospital were super nice and had set up the OR next to mine in case I wouldn't be able to handle him in the same room with me. Our original plan was for me to NOT see him until the next day. And I really only saw him right after he was born. And didn't see him again until the next day. I got to spend some time with him, and hold him and love him and tell him how much I loved him. He was doing really well so they let him go "home" that day as well. The parents had to stay in Chattanooga for a short time, not sure of why, but it had to do with paper work and stuff. I had 10 days after signing to change my mind, which I wasn't going to do, but the law and stuff...it was so hard to say good bye. I cried my eyes out when I handed him to her. I remember hugging her and telling her how thankful I was for her. And how I knew my son was in good hands.

I think this is where I'm going to leave it for now. I'm tired, and this is long enough.