Caught Red Handed

In an effort to organize my home before the new year hit, I decided to spend a large chunk of today working in Gus' bedroom to get it cleaned up and organized.  I went through all of his clothes, pulled out the ones that were too small, packed some up to keep and created a box of clothes to donate to a shelter.  Since I was working in his bedroom, Gus had to take his nap in on my bed.  If he sleeps on my bed, I always make sure to surround him in pillows so that he cannot roll off or get into any trouble.  I know what you are thinking, "how much trouble can a 6 month get into?"  He can't crawl yet so he couldn't cause too much trouble....so I thought.  As I was organizing jammies, I heard the tv in my bedroom turn on and the volume was gradually increasing.

Little did I know that the remote was near him!!  So glad that I had the camera near by!  I am sure that this is only the beginning of the shenanigans that I will be blessed to witness.

Gus' 1st Christmas!

Christmas 2008 was a very difficult time for me.  My Papa had just passed away the week before and I missed him terribly.  And all I wanted for Christmas was to be a mom...and that wasn't happening.  Little did I know that a month later I would find out about the baby that was going to entering our family!  This year I feel so incredibly blessed to have Gus in my life.  I am such a lucky lady!!  In previous years, I knew exactly what I wanted for Christmas.  This year I already had everything I need and want and he is such a precious little boy!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

Who doesn't love the first big snow of the year?!?  Gus got to experience his first snow on Saturday.  He wasn't quite sure what to do about it.  He touched and ate it...and then we had a conversation about how he should never eat the yellow snow.  :)  I just love being able to experience all of these "firsts" with him!

Possible future?!?

While attending his cousin, Hannah's, gymnastics birthday party, Gus decided to test out his skills.  He did a pretty good job on the uneven bars and the balance beam.

Later that night Gus helped Hannah test out her new toys, including Gator Golf.  Perhaps he will end up a professional golfer.  (Just hope he isn't like Tiger Woods!)

Too funny!

So last night I had the opportunity to go to the Scholastic Book Warehouse with my sister-in-law, Sarah and my friend, Diane.  We found some great deals on some really fun books!  After dropping them off, I called Joel on my way home to see what Gus was up to.  In typical Gus Gus form, he was fighting going to sleep and causing a little bit of trouble.  Joel said, "You'll never believe what your son did to me..."  Typical things came to mind...spit up, pee, etc.  Apparently Gus took his nunny (pacifier) out of his mouth and seemed to shake it at Joel's face.  Although I know that this isn't something that Gus was aware of, it still made me laugh pretty hard to think about Gus doing that to Joel.  "Listen here, Dada, I am not going to sleep!"  What a little stinker!!

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

I LOVE CHRISTMAS!!  I love the the joy and excitement of the season.  I love that people take time to get together for holiday parties.  I love the festive decorations and the billions of lights scattered throughout the neighborhoods.

Growing up, my sister and I would count the number of houses that were decorated while in the car coming home from the different Christmas gatherings.  We had rules for this little tradition of ours.  We could only look out our own side of the car.  You had to count out loud so that we kept track along the way.  Any Christmas decoration counts.  If you could only see the lit Christmas tree inside the house...it would count.  I love this little tradition that she and I have and I cannot even tell you how it started.  To this day we still play when we are together.  I hope to do the same with my kids as a way to entertain ourselves on the way home.

Gummy Grins

I knew this day would come...but it still makes me sad.  We can now see a little bit of white poking through his little bottom gum.  It makes me sad because I love that little gummy grin.  I am told that I will love the little toothy grin as well.  So I will cherish these little gummy grins for now...and go buy a toothbrush for Gus for Christmas since we will need to brush that little tooth that is starting to show.

I must be crazy...

I love long weekends such as the one that we just had...but this was exhausting. 

WEDNESDAY
Wednesday morning started with a trip to Gus' doctor.  Poor little guy has a little infection.  (Got a prescription for it and it is starting to clear up.)  Gus, Joel and I stopped at Home Depot to buy our Christmas tree stand.  I met Sarah at Hannah's preschool and then whisked my adorable niece off with me for the rest of the afternoon.  She went with me to entertain Gus while he and I got our hair cut and then she and I made Thankgiving desserts.  She and I did this last year, too.  I hope this little tradition continues.  We were supposed to go get our Christmas tree that evening but it started to rain.  :(

THURSDAY
Sarah and I kicked off our Thanksgiving Day traditions with a trip to Meijer to check out any deals they have on Thursday before racing back to her house, meeting up with Joel and Jason and going to the Lions Game.  Gus was decked out in his Lion's gear for the day while he stayed home with Grandma Jo, Papa Scott, Brendan and Hannah. 

That night Sarah and I decided to go to Toys R Us at midnight.  They were opening early and were supposed to have some good deals at 12 am.  We ended up standing outside from 11:30PM- 1:30 ish...in the spitting rain and cold.  We finally got inside.  I immediately went and got in line to check out while Sarah ran around the store and brought the items back to me.  We didn't get home until about 3:30.  Crazy I know...but I loved it!!

FRIDAY and SATURDAY
Sarah and I went scrapbooking in Chesaning.  I was finally able to start Gus' baby book!!  Joel and Gus came to pick me up on Saturday night and on our way to my parents house we went to meet up with Joe Maly and Jane Wong.  So excited that Gus got to meet them!  We finally got to my parents house after midnight.  Whew!  Did I mention that Gus wouldn't ride nicely in the car unless the interior light was on?  If we turned it off, he screamed at the top of his lungs.  So, I sat in the backseat with the light on trying to entertain him.

SUNDAY
We went to visit my grandmother, Mamie, and then went to the Otto Family Christmas.  We weren't able to stay very long because we had a very sad little baby.  So we hit the road and traveled home.  It was a long trip around the mitten we call Michigan.  And I am SO glad that we are home!!!

Psst....

"Psst....I want to tell you something..."

This picture just makes us laugh out loud!  Gus must be trying to tell us something.

Goofing around with Aunt Annie. 

I left my parents for an hour and Aunt Annie kept Gus occupied and entertained him.  They both made sure to get in plenty of "tummy time".

"This lady is so silly..."

Gus is in awe of his Aunt Annie.  She is so silly that he barely ever takes his eyes off of her.

Me and two of my favorite guys in the whole world doing one of my favorite things in the world....hunting for the perfect Christmas tree for my parents house.  This was my 30th year on the tree hunt with my parents and I am beyond excited to pass this tradition on to my son.  This is one of the best parts of my year and I hope that he grows to love it as much as I do.

We let Daddy and Papa do the hard work of cutting down the tree and hauling it to the truck.  My sister and I love trying to find the fattest, roundest tree for my parents house.  We found a pretty good one.

It may not be for his house, but Gus took home his first Christmas tree!!  Our little family will get our tree for our house tomorrow, but I love that Gus' first Christmas tree hunt was with my family.  The tradition continues.  Now I can't wait for Gus to see the trees all lit up and decorated. 

I am so pumped for Christmas this year!!  All I wanted for Christmas the past couple of years was to be a mom...my wish finally came true!  I can't wait to celebrate my first Christmas as a mom!!

It's in the mail!

Finally!! My thesis is in the mail! What a relief! Now I can play with Gus-Gus!  Who wouldn't want to play with this little munchkin?!?

Bipolar Wednesday

Today was such a weird day.  We had our cheerleading tryouts today.  It is a day full of emotion for all involved.  The girls are nervous when coming into their tryout, the coaches are stressed out making sure that everything is just right and it all collides at the end of the night.  At the end of the night we tally up the scores and write up our rosters.  We then invite the girls to come back into the room.  When they enter they see that the floor is covered in paper lunch bags and each one has their name on it.  Inside their bag is some candy and a little note that tells them that they either made the team or that they should try again next time.  It is fun to watch the girls run into the room with so much excitement.  For some, that excitement continues.  For others, it is crushed and they leave the room in tears.  My heart leaps for those who made the team are so excited and my heart drops for those who didn't make the team.  It is just such a strange day to experience. 

I came home tonight and collapsed on the couch and snagged up my little boy to cuddle with.  And for only a few more hours I am care free.  I get to relax and take a deep breath before my season begins.

In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit...

Augustus John Martin Stapleton was baptized into the Catholic church on November 8th.

I'm not really sure why, but I cry at every baptism...even if I do not know the child being baptized.  (In fact, I am crying right now, just thinking about it.)  I just think that it is so exciting that these children are being welcomed as a member of the church.  It is such a huge day for these little ones and they have no idea!  But as a parent of a child who was just baptized, it hit me that there is an enormous responsiblity placed upon us as parents to be strong role models to our son and to help build his faith.  WOW!  Just amazing!

After the baptism, we went to celebrate at Funtastic.  Lots of food and lots of play time for all of Gus' friends and cousins.  We were so blessed to have so many friends and family there to celebrate Gus' big day!  He is a lucky little boy!

Happy NAAM!!

HAPPY NATIONAL ADOPTION AWARENESS MONTH!!!

November is dedicated to creating more awareness for adoption.  Obviously, adoption is a very important thing to me.  Adoption was an option that Gus' birthmom chose.  Adoption was the way that we chose to build our family.  Adoption made me a MOM!!  I couldn't imagine what my life would be like if adoption wasn't available to me.  I think that there are so many misconceptions out there about adoption.  Each year, as a family we will do something in November to help create awareness.  To do my part in helping to create awareness I wanted to separate some facts from the myths out there. So this year we are just starting by sharing what we have learned.

MYTH
There are very few babies placed for adoption.
FACT
20,000+ infants in the United States are placed for adoption each year.  This does not include the international adoptions.

MYTH
It takes years to complete an adoption.
FACT
The average time span is two years.  Yes, we were very lucky that it went so quickly.  This month marks 2 years from when we started the adoption process and 11 months since we first showed up on "the list".

MYTH
The birthparents can show up at any time to reclaim their child.
FACT
Once the adoption is finalized, the child is legally considered part of the adoptive family.  The publicized stories that we often hear about usually did not follow the proper process for adoption and therefore there are loopholes.

MYTH
When you adopt, you are just buying a baby.
FACT
Yes, adoption is costly.  But nobody "buys" a baby.  The money doesn't go to the birthparents so they are not selling their child.  The money that we pay helps to go towards the salaries of our social workers.  (And God bless Dawn and Louise!  They are fabulous!)  It also helps to pay the legal and court fees.  Plus a variety of other things.  I just spoke with a mother of one of my students who actually adopted this student (G.G) when he was an infant.  She told me how the adoption process was so different 16 years ago.  His birthfather tried to file for custody after G.G. was 6 months old.  They spent 2 years in and out of court and racked up $300,000 in litigation fees...but she said it was worth every penny.  (Later they found out that the birthfather did not actually share DNA with G.G!!)  If I was in her situation, I would give anything and everything to pay the fees needed to keep Gus.  Even if that means going into that much debt.  Those professionals can do things that I can't in order to help with the adoption.

MYTH
Birthparents are all troubled teens.
FACT
Most birthparents today are over the age of 18.  (Gus' birthmom is 30.)  It has been found that many teenage moms actually choose to parent their child.

MYTH
Parents can't love their adopted child as much as their biological child.
FACT
This one just makes me angry!!  First of all, are you kidding me?!?  Second of all, it will never matter if Gus grew in my uterus or in my heart.  I loved him from the day the social worker called to tell me that we were matched.  I love him beyond words!  I don't think that having the same DNA makes any difference to how much you love your child.  There have been a number of conversations at work among co-workers about pregnancy.  I remember one day they were talking about maternity pants and how much they love them.  One co-worker turned to me and said, "Just wait, Beth...you will love them."  I just smiled and kept my mouth shut when in reality I wanted to sob, "I may never have that opportunity."  Recent conversations have been had with two people who are pregnant with their second child.  They were talking about how this pregnancy was different, etc.  Or how this kid just keeps sitting on their bladder or moving or whatever.  Yes, I am jealous.  In my head, all I could think was, "Yup, I have given anything to have a kid sitting on my bladder or doing cartwheels in my stomach."  But then I remembered that it didn't matter...I am head over heels in love with my son and it doesn't matter that I didn't get to wear maternity pants.  I have been overweight for many years...I have had my share of elastic waist pants...no big deal.  Waiting for my son to arrive and even after he was here I had my fair share of "sickness"...I don't need morning sickness.  And I certainly don't need to give birth with that kind of pain.  (Gross!)  I had plenty of "pain" and heartache as we waited through that five week risk period.  So just because I didn't carry him inside me doesn't mean I didn't have my own sort of "pregnancy" and "childbirth".  Okay so I kind of ranted on that one...sorry...it has been on my mind lately.

Hope you learned a new adoption fact.  Sorry that you had to listen to some of my rants as well.  I'm going to go snuggle with my little chunky monkey...because he is all mine!!!!

Running my fingers through my hair

Right now I am able to run my finger through my hair.  I LOVE having my hair washed by someone else, cut and straightened.  It is so much better than when I do it myself.  (Kind of like when someone else cuts up vegetables...they taste so much better!)  Tonight, after 6 months of chaos, I finally got my hair cut and colored!!  WHEW!!  It was getting a little ridiculous!  Not only that but I think I only straightened my hair twice during those two months due to lack of time and energy.  It is so nice to have had someone do that for me as well.  My friend, Miranda, is a hairstylist and I went to her for the first time to have my hair done.  (Yes, she is also Gus' hair stylist!)  Not only was I so happy to have my hair done, but to my surprise when I went to pay, I was presented with a gift certificate for a cut and color...so it was all free!!  Apparently, Amy, one of my closest friends, had contacted Miranda earlier this week since she knew I would be there this week and paid for my hair.  I was so shocked!!  I think that I was still speechless (I know, it is hard to believe) when I left the salon.  And then I cried.  Between the two of them, they took care of my hair and just helped me to feel a little more human again.  In a week that has been so frustrating, this was by far the highlight!  Thanks, Miranda and Amy!!  What a surprise!

Happy Halloween!!

Tonight was Gus' 1st Halloween!!  He couldn't enjoy the candy but he sure was super cute!!  We continued our Halloween tradition by spending the evening with Amy, Chris and Rylie Sulewski.  Thanks to Kathy and Abby Willis for our monkey costume.  We had many costumes for this season but this was the winner for Halloween night.  Thanks so much!  It was perfect for our chunky monkey.

A few shots of our chunky monkey!!

I'm not sure who was having more fun...Gus or Momma?

This is the ride the Rylie had for the night.  The lights were powered by the battery from her daddy's car!

Just monkeying around!!

How rude!

Do you ever have one of those days where you are just astounded by how rude people can be?  I think that I encountered rude people all day today.  Is it just the people that I have been encountering?  Or is this what our world is coming to?  I felt like there were many people today who had no common courtesy for other people. How hard is it to be polite to others or at least be courteous? 

Many of them were students and although they are kids, I do not feel like that is an excuse.  They are old enough to know how to treat people.  Not to mention how to respond to adults.  I don't know why I am surprised.  I hear how these kids speak to their parents and their parents do nothing about it.  Why would I expect them to treat me with respect?  I guess giving respect isn't enough anymore to receive it.

But then there were staff members who were rude.  Some are always rude so I am not surprised.  Others do things because they feel like they are entitled.  For example, we have to send our documents to the copier to print since we no longer have classroom printers.  Twice I sent something down to print and when I got there, the same teacher had just cancelled my print job in order to run his own copies.  Would it have killed him to wait a minute?  Just because he was standing right there doesn't mean he can just delete what others are doing.  I went to use the staff bathroom today and was disgusted to discover that someone didn't flush the toilet when they CLEARLY should have.  Are you serious?!?  Aren't we adults?  Flush the toilet for crying out loud!!  And as I was leaving today with my arms full and in a hurry, a teacher who is incharge of sending cards/flowers to staff members for new babies, illness, funeral etc stop and talk to me.  She wanted to go into a long conversation about why she didn't send us a card when Gus was born.  Seriously, lady?  I don't care what your excuse is...it is four months later...too little, too late!

I finally left school today and thought that I wouldn't have to deal with anymore rude people....I was wrong.  My friend Amy and I were going to head up to the hospital to see another friend of ours who just give birth to a baby.  Amy called Kroger and ordered a bunch of balloons for us to take up there.  I was going to stop and pick them up before Amy came to get me.  When I got there, nobody was at the flower/balloon desk, nobody at the customer service desk and our balloons weren't ready.  When I finally tracked down an employee, I was treated with rude service as if I was the inconveniencing them.  Seriously?!?  And to top that experience off, Kroger for some reason does not carry baby cards.  I found thousands of birthday cards...no baby cards.  ARG!!!

Finally, I thought, I would get to go home and see my sweet boy for a little while before leaving for a meeting.  On my way to the meeting, I tried to call and make a hair appointment.  When I called the lady asked if she could put me on hold.  Only she never pressed the hold button.  She continued to carry on a conversation with someone else while I waited for her.  And it wasn't as if she were helping a customer.  She was clearly having a conversation.  After 6 minutes I hung up!  Thank goodness I am friends with my stylist and I just called her directly instead.  But really, the lady could have at least pressed the hold button.

Needless to say, I am just fried!!!  I hope to encounter only positive people tomorrow.  Thanks for letting me vent.

The end...

Last night marked the end of the Flat Rock football season.  (Above is Joel and fellow coach, John Lawson.)  I would be lying if I said that I wasn't jumping up and down about it!  We had some of the yuckiest weather for football games this year.  I sat through a handful of games in the rain this year looking like a drowned rat. 

For some reason though, this was an emotional evening for me.  We had "parents night" where the parents walk their kids out onto the field and all I could think about was how someday I would be walking my kid out onto a field and he would be playing his last football game and then he would leave the field in tears like many of our seniors did last night.  But I suppose if Gus wants to be a tap dancer instead of a football player then he won't have that problem.  One more reason for him to be a tap dancer...

I was surprised to see that my husband had a tough time last night.  Joe Conner even got a few tears out of Joel when he hugged him (above).  Joel can identify so much with how these boys were feeling.  He felt that way when he finished playing football in high school and then again when he finished in college.  But for some reason, this group of seniors was special to Joel and he had a strong bond with a couple of them.  Joel has coached most of the seniors since they were pint-sized little 7th graders and has been with them ever since.  He is extemely proud of them and how hard they have worked since they first suited up for him in 7th grade.  It made me laugh last night when one of the seniors said to Joel, "Thanks for everything Coach!  Your the one who taught me how to put the pads into these pants."  It makes me chuckle because I remember when Joel quit coaching Varsity and went to coach at the middle school.  He talked about how funny it was that there was such a big difference between the two levels...at the middle school, he had to teach kids how to put the uniform on!!  It is hilarious to me that it has come full circle and one of the kids remembered that!  "Football season is over....time to get ready for your winter sports, boys!"

Topo, Danny, Koby, Vroman, Stape, Joe and Jake

Picking Boogers

I don't pick my boogers.  This is why God sent us tissues.  So I am just as surprised as you are that I have been picking boogers lately.  Not mine of course, they are Gus'.  The poor kid hasn't learned how to pick his boogers or even blow his nose and yet he really needs to have one of these two skills right now.  So what's a mom to do? 

I have been using the "snot sucker", "boogie wipes" and in dire times of need...my pinky finger nail.  (And yes, to answer the questions my students asked when I told them about this, I wash my hands right afterwards.)  My poor little baby either has a cold or is starting to teethe.  I'm not sure which I would rather have right now.  Either way, I know that Gus is not a happy camper.  He knows what happens when the "snot sucker" comes his way and he does not enjoy that at all.  He isn't sure what to think about the "boogie wipes", which are saline wipes that are soft on little noses.  He doesn't quite know what to think when we use these.  He does, however, try to eat them.  But for some reason, my son does not mind at all when I pick his nose.  How strange!  And how gross!  Never would I have guessed that I would do this.  It is amazing what you do for your kid.

So...I'm picking boogers...

Time flies!!

I can't believe that Gus is 4 months old already.  I am sure I will continue to say that with every month that passes by.  And even more so as the years pass by.  These days he seems to be doing something new everyday!!  It is amazing how much they are able to pick up on.

Sorry...I can't help but love this little guy.  Sometimes I just sit and look at him and wonder what my life would be like without him.  It brings me to tears to think about how blessed I am and what a sacrifice Gus' birthmom made for him.  This little boy is SO loved!!  I am such a lucky girl...I get to keep him!!

I had just finished changing his diaper and snapped this picture.  This is the look I get as I am rocking him to sleep.  Such innocence and curiousity.  Today when I was rocking him before his morning nap, I realized how much Gus has grown.  His head was on my shoulder and his feet were near my knees.  When did my little boy get so tall.  Is there a way to keep him little?!?!  Gotta run....I hear someone waking up....

October Fun

Just some October fun.  Gus and Daddy stopped up to the Homecoming Dance and Gus posed for a pic with his buddy, Joey.  Gus got a fun new toy!  We were able to get his exersaucer out and started to have lots of fun.  Gus also dressed up as a Stapleton chicken and an Otto turkey!!  So much fun and we haven't even gotten to Halloween yet!!!  So much more fun to be had!

Updates

Some of our blog followers have mentioned that they wish that they received an email when we updated the blog. I think that I have figured out how to do it. If you would like me to add you to the list of those who receive emails, please let me know! Thanks for following!


As you can see, I have kind of gotten carried away with the themed blog.  I really enjoy changing it up and making it look different.  And I think I did pretty good with this one considering the fact that I was holding a sleeping baby in one arm and blogging with the other.

It is Homecoming week at Flat Rock High School which means that my life is more chaotic than normal.  My poor son has been going to float meetings, skit practices and banner paintings.  I hope that the weather stays somewhat decent tomorrow.  I have fun outfits for Gus to wear and I would love to be able to have him actually wear them.  Unfortunately, it is supposed to be cold with a 70% chance of rain...fantastic!!

I can't believe that Gus is 16 weeks old today!!!  Time flies!  I am amazed every day by what he does.  He is really loving rolling over these days.  The other day Joel went in to get Gus up before school and Gus was on his tummy and turned around completely in his crib.  He is a mover!!

We interrupt this life for football season...

It has been a crazy time here in the Stapleton household.  Football season is always super crazy around here.  In addition to football and cheerleading practices, we had something going on every night this past week.  Monday- cheer stunt clinic.  Tuesday- dinner with Sara Griffin. Wednesday- dinner with my parents.  Thursday- JV football game.  Friday- Varsity football game.  Saturday- coaching clinic.  And this is what most of our weeks are like.  Gus has been going with me to cheerleading practice and is quite spoiled by all of those crazy cheerleaders. He also goes to most of the football games...if it isn't too cold or rainy.  He has been wearing his dinosaur hat to all of the games.  We have decided that his hat is good luck for the team and therefore needs to wear it.  Every game that he has gone to where he had his dino hat on, the Rams have won!!  We are hoping that it continues to be lucky for the rest of the season and we hope the weather is nice so that Gus can go to the game.  (He didn't go on Friday and we lost...bummer...)

Luckily Gus travels well right now and seems to be okay with the chaos.  So until he isn't okay with it, we will continue to enjoy the chaos.  We only have a few more weeks of football so life will get back to normal soon.

Gus has started to roll over a lot more now.  It has been a lot of fun to watch and he has been scooching on the floor and in his crib.  But watch out!  That means he is going to be starting to move earlier than we thought.  Regardless, it is fun to watch how much he learns everyday!!

3 Months Old

Our family grew by two feet this year!

Chillin' in the rocking chair that Uncle Chris made him and wearing his "76" shirt. 

(76 was Daddy's football number.)

Bare naked on the bear rug!  This is a fun Otto family tradition!

Our little pumpkin in a pile of pumpkins!

It's good to know I'm not alone...

Today I was reading a blog written by another adoptive mom, "BohoGirl".  She is really struggling right now and shared a lot about it.  It was kind of crazy how parallel our lives are.  We have VERY similiar adoption stories, we both became moms to little boys this summer (both of which have crazy hair), she is a crazy good photographer and I am just a crazy one...there is much more.  But what really struck me today was how she has been feeling lately.  It is almost like she and I are thinking with the same brain and heart these days.  And I realized that I am not alone and that I shouldn't feel guilty for the way I have been feeling lately...it is normal for all adoptive moms...really for any outside-the-house working mom, as well.

It was difficult this summer because for a while there, I was afraid to get close to this little boy since I feared that he would be taken away from us.  It wasn't until the birthmom signed off her rights that I was able to really start enjoying him.  So I feel like I only had a month to really be with Gus before going back to work.  But on top of that I was doing my internship so I had to be gone for long days for a handful of days.  I did a lot of reading about attachment between parents and babies that became families through adoption.  It is very important to form that attachment but almost in the same breath they warn you about becoming too attached until after the birth parents have terminated their rights. 

Going back to work means spending less waking time with Gus each day.  We are very lucky that Gus gets to go to my sister-in-law, Sarah's house.  They love Gus so much and I know that he is safe and well taken care of with Sarah.  I do not worry about him while I am at school...I know that he is okay.  I know a lot of mom's who work outside the home understand how it feels to not be with their children during the day...that is nothing new.  I am sure that many feel the same way that I do. 

Since he spends so much time at Aunt Sarah's house and since he is adopted, many questions go through my head.  Will my child even know that I am his mom?  (And when will other people stop referring to his birthmom as him mom and start referring to me as his mom?)  Will he think that his aunt/uncle are his parents and that his cousins are his siblings?  Are they really more of a family to him and I am just "babysitting" after school and thru the night until he goes back in the morning?  Will he ever be excited to see me when I go to pick him up from Aunt Sarah's?  How does this affect our bond as mother and son?  Since I did not carry/birth him, I have a lot of catching up to do on the bonding front with him.  Is our bond different because of this?  Would I feel better if I had carried him and given birth to him?  Is it detrimental that I am not staying home with him?  But then again, if I didn't work, there is no way that we could afford to give him the life that he deserves.  I struggle with these things on a daily, almost a moment-to-moment basis. 

And although Joel takes the night duty, I have not been away from my son for one night yet. At least I get to see him every day...may not be for long, but I get to see him every day and watch him sleep and snuggle with him before putting him to bed.  I am very lucky for that and I am lucky that he is well taken care of.  And I am lucky to have this little boy in my life.  It was strange and reassuring that this other adoptive mom is dealing with the same questions, guilt and insecurity.  My journey to becoming a mom has had its ups and downs...its hills and valleys.  Just stuck in the valley right now, getting the energy to get up the next hill.  At least I know that I am not alone..."BohoGirl" is there, too.  I am sure if we open our eyes, there are others there with us.

Now off to bed so that I can play with Gus when he gets up at 5a.m....the best part of my whole day!!

1st Haircut

I realize that Gus is only 12 weeks old but the mullet was really getting to me.  His hair was completely out of control!  Our friends, Drew and Miranda came over for dinner last night and I asked Miranda to bring her scissors.  (I thought it was a good idea to have a trained professional do it this time and not me and my kitchen scissors.)  Gus was very well behaved until the end.  He only cried for a minute but it was probably because we were talking about how good kids get suckers after haircuts and then I told him that he was too little to have a sucker. 

Let the cutting begin!!!

Gus was so well behaved during his haircut.

Suddenly Gus wasn't so sure about what was going on.

Gus and his stylist, Miranda.

Kid of the Month!!

We entered Gus' picture in the Kid of the Month contest at Tip Toes. (An adorable children's boutique in Holland, MI.) And believe it or not, Gus was one of the two winners!!! As a winner he gets a $50 gift card at the store and 25% off anything else he buys at the store all month!! We are very proud of our little winner!!

Another first for Daddy and Gus

GO BLUE!!
Gus got all dressed and ready to watch his first U of M football game with Daddy. And to top it all off...they won!! What a fun day!

READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL!!!

Some MAN TIME on the first football Saturday of the season. Fire Up!!

Anybody out there?!?

Well I am glad to know that there are other people in our life that read our blog besides just my mom. For quite a while I was thinking that only my mom was following. A big shout out to Kathy Willis!! Thanks for being one of the few that follow us. Sara Swidorski also checks us out every once and a while. Thanks so much for following us!! And if there are more of you out there....let me know!!

Well, tomorrow is Gus' first official day at Aunt Sarah's house while Joel and I go to work. I am sure that he will have tons of fun...not sure that Joel and I will. We have boring meetings all day! Yuck!! We are so lucky that Sarah is able to watch him while we are at work. It certainly makes going back to work a little bit easier. We will miss him lots, but it is good to know that he is being well taken care of and loved while we are apart. Tomorrow the chaos begins!!! Back to school....

Gus Goes to the Game

Gus went to his very first football game. His daddy was coaching and they even won. Flat Rock beat Ida 40-6. It was a great game to watch and it was fun for Gus to meet so many new people. It was his first game of many, many more to come!!

Gus hanging with some of his Varsity football buddies at his first game!

"A.J." and his buddy Joey. When we introduced Joe to our son and told him the full name (Augustus John Martin Stapleton), Joe decided to call him "A.J."

(They even have a secret hand shake!!)
Chatting it up before the first JV game. Gus got to hang out on the field with some of the Varsity players.

Fun times in the Orchard

Gus and I went to visit Gramma and Papa in Byron Center for a couple of days. Aunt Annie came to visit us last Tuesday and spent the night. Gus and I then rode back to Byron Center with her on Wednesday. Before we left for the west side of the state Annie and I took Gus to his 2 month doctors appointment. Gus now weighs 13 lbs and 6 oz and is 23.5 inches long. He is growing like a weed!! The doctor wanted Gus to start sleeping through the night, or at least longer than 3 hours. We were told to cut out one of the middle of the night feedings. I decided to try this our first night at my parents house...fun fun!! The first night was rough but now he is sleeping at least 5 hours at night time. YAHOO!!!

On our way to see Gramma and Papa!!! Apple orchard here we come!!!

Reading the paper with Papa in his big chair.

Joel finally joined us on Friday for my cousin Andrea's wedding. We are so excited that she finally married Eddy. He and Joel get along really well (a.k.a. "get into trouble together") and Eddy fits in with the whole Otto family. We were pretty excited. Not only that but it was Gus' first wedding. He had a great time!!

My beautiful cousin, Andrea and her dad, my Uncle Chris. So glad that the rain stopped long enough for the ceremony to be outside.

At the reception they had a "snowball" dance. When the DJ said "snowball" everyone dancing had to go find someone else to dance with. My cousin, Nate, came to get Gus out on the dance floor. Unfortunately, Gus slept in his stroller the entire time and didn't know how much fun he was having. I think that the rest of us had enough fun for him.

Gus had a chance to snuggle with the beautiful bride!! He had so much fun at his first wedding!

Later in the weekend, Gus finally got to wear his "Spike" shirt. Before he was born we called him "Spike". When we found this shirt we HAD to have it!! The look on his face tells me that he isn't so sure about this shirt, but I think it is pretty cute!

Joel and I had our first night out together without Gus. We went to South Haven for the evening to hang out with our friends, Sally and Tim.

We had a great time visiting but it is nice to be home. We spent time today up at school. Gus got to help in both Momma's classroom and Daddy's classroom. We went out to lunch then with Uncle Mike and Auntie Diane. And then Diane, Gus and I continued on a small shopping trip. We found a baptism outfit for Gus and went to Office Max. Gotta help Gus gain the love for office supplies. I LOVE office supply stores. The poor kid will probably spend lots of time there.

Gus gets his 2 month shots tomorrow. Should be a fun day for all of us....