My little Diva!

Santa was too good to Cody and Carleigh this year!

Fisher Price Christmas!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS 2005!

Merry Christmas 2005  and a Happy New Year 2006 from Matt, Jennifer, Cody and Carleigh!!

Mommy's two favorite Christmas presents!

He peaked!!!!!

While watching "Survivor" last Thursday, Matt and I were not paying attention that Cody sneaked out of the living room, crawled through the kitchen and our bedroom. He sneaked down the hallway into Carleigh's room. Well, Matt and I both commented "Where's Cody?" Matt looked for the little guy and found him in Carleigh's room....He was playing with one of his Christmas presents! We bought a bead/wire maze which he LOVES to play at the physical therapy waiting room. He was busy playing with it enough though it was still in the box! Well, I have learned a lesson: I will have to HIDE the presents next year! Oh well!! He loves the toy and he is going to be soooo much fun this Christmas! It looks like I have a peaker on my hands!!

Candids of Cody and Carleigh

Carleigh loves to play in the exersaucer, however, Cody doesn't like to share it. He will play nicely with her at times. He loves to spin the cylinder with lots of little balls inside.

My sick little ones

I strongly believe that Cody is teething and cutting his 2 year old molars because he is drooling and now has runny nose and a cough. I have noticed that his immune system is a bit weaker than Carleigh's and he seems to ALWAYS have a runny nose! Today was the last visit with his birthfamily. I am sure it was a bittersweet moment for all. I hope that someday I can write a letter to them letting them know that Cody and Carleigh will be well taken care of and will have a long, happy and secure life with us. Cody is 22 months old now and Carleigh is 8 months. Carleigh has the sweetest smile! She loves it when I "nibble" on her belly....she rolls with laughter which is an added bonus for Mommy or Daddy!

Lately, Cody is nicknamed "The Wrecker" because anytime that I stack cups or blocks, he comes over and knocks them down. It is like something inside of him snaps, and he can't control the sudden urge to knock them down! Sometimes, he beats me to the punch and knocks them down BEFORE I am finished creating my masterpiece!

Christmas will be wonderful this year. I am finished shopping for them and still have 8 more people to buy for! I have 4 people finished....buying for 12 people can be quite $$$ to the wallet but I have started early! My sister and I will do alot of shopping on our annual Day after Thanksgiving shopping. I am hoping to have everyone done by then but I think that is wishful thinking. That is all for now....stay continued!!

Look at me!!

Cody can drive his car around......forward and backward! I am so proud of him!!

Raggedy Ann and Andy!

Don't they look adorable? They wore their costumes three days in a row! Boy, I sure got my money's worth out of them!! Carleigh didn't mind her costume but Cody did! He hated the wig/hat. We had to distract him or he would keep pulling it off. We went to Matt's sister neighborhood for a little bit of trick or treating and then on to my mom's house and her neighbors. Cody got cold in his little short costume so we let him play with his Papaw. They got plenty of candy!

I got THE NEWS!!

After over 21 months of being in our home as a foster child, today I received the most wonderful news that I have been dreaming for, for over a year. Cody's caseworker called around 9am this morning to announce that our agency was granted permanent custody of Cody. She then began to state that Cody will be transferred to the adoption unit this week and we will begin the adoption paperwork this coming month---November! This makes it very special because November is the National Adoption Month!! Words cannot express the joy that is in my heart. This joy has replaced fear and worry that has been in my heart for over 21 m onths. I can now breathe and not think "what if.." This joyful, special needs child will now become apart of my forever family. He has always been in my heart as a son, but now we can officially name him Cody Matthew Schmidt! Praise the Lord for His wonderful blessings! "Matthew" means gift from God and that is what Cody truly is!

Halloween 2005

Last night, our family went to Matt's family's church. They had a Harvest Party where children dressed in costume and went around to play games for candy. Cody's costume this year is Raggedy Andy and Carleigh was Raggedy Ann. They were too cute! I plan on posting the pictures soon. My digital camera needs to be repaired so I am waiting until my sister takes pics of them this evening at our church Harvest Party and then I will post them. They were the cutest kids there!! Okay, I am a little biased! Their cousins looked cute too. Raygan was a girl pirate, Riley was Jeff Gordon with sunglasses and a cap, Ryan was Spiderman and Devin was a Middle Ages Knight in Armor. Cody did not like the sailor hat with red yarn hair attached. He tried pulling it off many time, but then he got used to it and he was simply adorable. Carleigh looked like a real Raggedy Ann doll and would smile and coo all evening! It was a fun time!

My poor little girl!

I had to take a half-day yesterday because my mom called and said that Carleigh had another fever. She started to feel bad Sunday night, but I thought it was a little cold. On Monday, mom thought she was teething, but I wasn't so sure. So on Tuesday morning when the fever wouldn't go away and she was just crying, I called the dr. She started screaming when the dr. barely touched the tip of her ear. The dr. said that part of her ear drum was torn due to the infection and pus breaking through to relieve pressure on the ear drum. She prescribed an oral antiobiotic, ear drops and Tylenol or Motrin as well. My poor little girl! Cody was even concerned for her because he would cry or touch her little head yesterday. It was so precious....I have such a sweet, tenderhearted little boy.

Progress!

Well, yesterday, Cody was dragging around his Rock-n-Play Piano by walking on his knees and using the piano as a "walker." I decided to try the walking toy and he started making steps and pushing the toy along! I am so proud of my big boy! Then, today in physical therapy, his therapist placed him on a riding toy and he used his feet to push himself along!! He is making such progress in balance and stepping that I truly feel he will be walking by Christmas! That would be the best Christmas gift he could give Mommy!! I was planning on getting him a riding toy for Christmas, but due to his success, I might have to give it to him early for an extra reward! I thank God each day for his progress. Thank you Lord!

Update

Carleigh is sitting up by herself! She can sit up by herself for about 10 seconds before losing her balance and falling sideways or backwards. It is such an improvement for her! She loves to play in Cody's old exersaucer and doesn't not like to be put down. Spoiled!! We cannot wait until she can sit up in a high chair well and will not have to lug around the infant carrier seat! She is getting heavier and the carrier is getting almost impossible to lug around. Boy, I can't wait until we get her a new carseat like her big brother! Cody's newest skill is to take out everything from a diaper bag or a purse. The cute and annoying thing about it is that he takes everything out one by one!! He is literally getting into EVERYTHING! We really have to keep our eyes on him at all times. What a fun stage they are at right now! I am loving motherhood....I didn't know if I would ever be a Mommy to two small little ones and God has surely blessed me indeed!

I'm home today!

My mom became sick yesterday and had a fever, so I took a personal day and stayed home with the babies. Of course, I loved it! The babies could sleep in and so could Mommy! It has been great getting more time alone with them! I wish I could be a SAHM, but it isn't possible. Carleigh is learning new things every day. I am so proud of her! She has the cutest smile and Cody keeps saying "Ga Ga Ga." I just know that he will have a word explosion soon and LOOK OUT!

It's getting cold!!!

Cody and Carleigh donned their new sweater jackets for Canal Day on Saturday. Their Aunt Connie bought them at the Pork Festival from Native Americans. They looked adorable in them! I will try to post a picture of them in their sweaters. They were so well behaved at Metamora on Saturday. Aunt Connie bought Carleigh the cutest colorful poncho from Native Americans there and she has been wearing it everywhere! She is adorable in that poncho! Yesterday, Cody crawled into his bedroom and was laughing. Of course, I had to find out WHY he was laughing alone in his room. Well, he crawled to his full length mirror and was looking at himself which made him laugh!! He is such a silly guy! Carleigh is very jabbery now. I just love the stage they are in!!

Canal Days

My sister, Matt, Cody, Carleigh and I are going to Canal Days at Metamora, Indiana tomorrow. I go every year! There are hundreds of vendors selling everything you can imagine! I love buying clothes and toys for my little ones there and of course I love buying things for myself also! I hope it isn't too chilly tomorrow and that the crowds won't be impossible. Cody and Carleigh usually enjoy riding around in the stroller and I hope they aren't whiny.

She finally did it!

Yesterday, Carleigh officially rolled over! I was very worried that she was going to start slipping into Cody's delays. Last night, I placed her on a pillow and took my eyes off of her. The next thing I notice, she was on her belly! She rolled from her back to her belly. Tonight, I was finishing her butterfly beaded banner and Matt has placed her on a blanket on the floor. She was playing and babbling as I was stringing on the last row of beads, then all of a sudden...she was crying! I looked up and she was on her belly! She rolled over on her own! Yeah! Go girl!! I am so proud of her. We are still going to work on her rolling from her belly to her back and sitting up unassisted. We are closely monitoring her as we do not want her to get behind developmentally as Cody. I also have to keep in mind that she was also 5 weeks early so she is at a 5 month development and at 4 months they are rolling over, so she is not as delayed as I was afraid. Help Me Grow will be coming out this week to evaluate her and for a weekly visit for Cody. I am so proud of my girl! She ate a full container of sweet potatoes and wanted more so we gave her a 8 oz bottle. She is such a growing girl!!

His newest favorite foods...

My mom started giving Cody puffcorn and he absolutely LOVES it! I have to hold it and he bites down on it and chews up the piece in his mouth. If I am not careful, he will bite down on my fingers. For a boy who has feeding issues, he has a strong bite!! He also loves to eat any cake, macaroni and cheese, breads and french fries. I think I have a carb-addicted little boy! He also takes 8 oz of Pediasure to give him the extra vitamins and nutrients lacking in his diet. We are hoping he will gain a little weight! At the beginning of Sept., my little man was only 22 pounds! He is soooo tall and skinny. Carleigh on the other hand is such a little pig. She knows what to expect when I put her bib on her, she gets hostile and almost cries until I put the bottle in her mouth. So far, she has tried green beans. I am introducing sweet potatoes and squash this week. If that goes well, it will be onto fruits next week. She eats her cereal regularly and likes it but the new solids, she isn't interested in yet....but I am sure she will fall in love with them soon.

Thinking about Christmas already

We are thinking about Christmas now due to the fact that we have two children and partially because we got the Wish List for both of them to fill out and return to our agency before the end of the month. We write down 3-4 items that total to $50 or less. I hate writing down 5-6 little things so I put down 1-2 big gifts that both of them will enjoy. Last year, Cody received a Laugh and Learn Learning Table that he loves to play with now. PARACHUTE (Child's advocacy program) gave Cody 7 really nice Christmas gifts last year. So, we are probably looking at a living room FULL of just toys. We are thinking about buying them 2 big gifts and then stockings (with little things) from Santa since they will get presents from the agency and from family. Cody's birthday is less than a month after Christmas so I don't want to overload him with so many presents. We are thinking about purchasing a Radio Flyer with wooden trim wagon for his second birthday. Over the summer while I was working at school, I took him for a ride in one of the wagons we had at school and he LOVED it! Christmas and birthdays are sooo wonderful when you have small children! I love being a Mommy!

The Food snatcher!

Lately, when someone sits on the couch with food, Cody watches for a minute, then he moves into action. He crawls at lightning speed to Mommy (mostly Mommy) or Daddy. He pulls up to a standing position and stares until one of two things happen: 1) Whoever has the food gives in and gives him a bite or 2) He takes matters into his own hands and grabs the plate or food! He is such a little character these days. Last night, he was in our bedroom with Matt and he decides he wants to go to his bedroom so he crawls out of our bedroom, through the kitchen, through the hallway until he meets his desired destination. In the hallway, I start chasing him and that fuels him to crawl faster! At bedtime, he wasn't in the mood and starting crying for a half an hour which in return woke up his baby sister! ARGH!! The joys of parenting!!! (I wouldn't have it any other way though!)

Cody at play therapy

Cody has several activities he does at home per the P/T or O/T (For those of you that are not hip to my terminology...it stands for Physical Therapist and Occupational Therapist). He really enjoys some of the activities like the balls in the laundry basket that help with his sensory issues. He absolutely hates water so we had to cancel the aquatics class that we had him enrolled in. We are hoping he will get more comfortable with the water so we can re-enroll him soon. He is making slow but steady progress, it seems like he can do something new every day!

Carleigh at 6 months

Carleigh is growing. At her 6 month checkup, she weighed 15 lbs 10.5 oz, measured 27 inches long, and her head circumference was 16.25 cm. The pediatrician was pleased with her growth and isn't overly worried about her physical developments. She will be referred for Early Intervention services due to her birthfamily and her brother's progress. She isn't rolling well, but can roll to her side, scoot her bottom while sitting on her back, and she holds her head up very well. She loves to play in the exersaucer and loves tummy time when I place a mirror in front of her so that she can laugh at herself. Her biggest thing is to smile and stick her tongue out. She also loves to watch "The Wiggles" with her big brother Cody.

Cody and Carleigh's Progress

I am new to the blog scene, so I will be posting pictures of my family as soon as I can. Cody and Carleigh just had their fall pictures taken and I will try to post to the blog their pictures. They turned out so well! They are growing and changing every day! Cody is 20 months and Carleigh is 6 months. Cody is pulling up on furniture and standing and physical therapy is really helping. He will be walking and running in no time! I predict that he will be walking at Christmas. This would be one of the best Christmas presents that he could give me (besides our finalizing his adoption!) Carleigh is rolling from side to side and is trying to get up on her belly to crawl. She can hold her head up really well. When she laughs or smiles, she is always sticking her tongue out. She is such a cutie pie! They both sleep very well for us at night. We are so proud of them!

My first post!

Welcome to our blog! Our journey for our family is "in process" so to speak. We have our children which are our foster-to-adopt children, however, we must go through the foster care and legal requirements before they are officially "ours." Right now, we are awaiting the verdict from Cody's permanent custody trial. We should hear the verdict in late October or early November. Then, if this goes well, it will speed up Kiya's (we will name her Carleigh) case. We are praying that both of them will be adopted by the summer of 2006. I will post weekly or as often as I can. Feel free to check it out often and make comments!