Andi- 9 months

Weight:  20 pounds

Length:  27.75 inches

Wears: a couple 6-9/9-12 months, mostly 9 months clothes, size 3 shoes

Loves:  Waving bye-bye, books, kisses, tickles, eating snacks, tv shows with music, playing with mom, dad, & the cat, walking while holding on to things, & of course, pacifiers.


Eats: 3 meals & 2 snacks/day followed by a 4 ounce bottle. Andi just started eating solid foods this week, and now eats snacks like Puffs, yogurt melts, and baby crackers.

What's new: Our girl got 2 new teeth this month! Both of her top incisors came in at the same time. Not sure why she skipped the top front teeth, but she looks like an adorable little vampire. :) She started eating table foods this week and is doing amazing with the new textures and flavors. I've added pasta, some meats, & yogurt to her diet. She now gets cut up pieces of food, baby food, & then a bottle. She's loving the mess she gets to make. I was worried about introducing food, but she's been perfect.
Andi has mastered pulling up on anything and walks along the furniture with ease. She just started letting go and standing on her own for a few seconds before falling. She'll be walking before we know it!
Her stranger anxiety has turned from mean mugging to hiding. (Thank you, Jesus!) It has been so fun getting to know this little girl as her personality is really starting to shine. She is actually a lot like me! She's one of the most emotionally aware babies I've ever known. If she senses any frustration or upset in the adults around her she gets very upset and looks for me to reassure her. Even when someone (like Daddy) is talking loudly/excitedly Andi gets nervous. Crockett and I have to tag team a lot when putting her to sleep because if we are even the slightest bit frustrated, she will get beyond consolable. God is definitely using her to teach me to be calm and patient. She's also developing some sass and throws a fit when she doesn't get her way, but that's not nearly as often as she is making us laugh. She loves to hear herself talk and make noises. I love watching her learn and explore what she can do (like dancing to Mickey Mouse!). :)

Mom & Dad update: This month was filled with house hunting and then a short trip home to marry off another sister. (I left Andi for longer than a work day for the first time the night of the wedding. I did really well, but I think that's because she was with my mom and I was having too much fun.) Andi did fantastic on the plane! We're back in Kansas until Thanksgiving though and our schedules are starting to fall back into normalcy. Crockett is in a volleyball league, I have Bible study at church, our home group is starting back up this week, and we both started serving as teachers in the children's ministry at church. It's nice to be busy and back in routine, but it's crazy to think the next time we'll be home is for Andi's 1st birthday party! Time to plan!

Andi- 8 months

 Weight:  19.8 pounds

Length:  27.25 inches

Wears: 6-9 months & a couple 6 months & 9 months clothes, size 2 shoe, hair bows (her hair is finally long enough for a small pony tail!)

Loves: Exploring new areas in the house, like the dogs bowls, Mo's cage, under the table, & in the kitchen, crawling everywhere, drinking water from a sippy cup, touch & feel books, toys that light up and sing, Mickey Mouse, swimming, giving kisses, & tickling.

Eats: 9 ounces 4 times a day, cereal/fruit in the morning & a veggie in the evening.

What's new: Andi still has just 2 bottom teeth and she's eating more and more new fruits & veggies. She is pretty picky about her veggies though and will only eat sweet potatoes and avocados without some fruit to hide the taste. She does not like peas, apricots, or carrots. (She also fell asleep while eating for the first time this month!) She still spills water from her sippy cup on herself for fun, but she can actually drink out of it now too. We tried puffs a couple weeks ago, but she choked and threw up so we'll wait to try those again later this month.
We are officially, definitely crawling! Andi crawls EVERYWHERE in the house on all fours and man she is fast. We're having a hard time containing her to the baby proof areas. She still loves to follow the cat around when he actually comes down from his cat tower.
She's also pulling up on everything and sitting all by herself. On the 4th of July was her first time to move from a crawl to sit on her own. :) She has tried to let go of whatever she pulls up on, but always falls. Thankfully, she's not ready for standing yet. She's getting too big as it is! With all this new moving Andi has gotten hurt more in the last month than in her whole life. It's really hard for me to let her explore what she can and can't do without wanting to stop her from doing things I know will lead to her falling. Fortunately, she's learning VERY fast and already catches herself almost every time she falls and has mastered how to get down once she pulls up. (At first she'd pull up on something and not know how to get back down on the floor so she'd just stand there and cry.)
Andi has stranger anxiety pretty bad and where she used to smile at strangers in the grocery store, she now scowls at everyone who is not Crockett or me. Especially men, it's kinda embarrassing. She even has to warm back up to people she knows who she hasn't seen in a few days. She's very cautious. She's into whining/crying not just when she needs something, but also when she is unhappy/displeased. (Mom is not amused.) Her hair is as dark as ever and those beautiful eyes are still dark blue. :)

Mom & Dad update: We were in Texas for most of July and when we came back to Kansas we brought our 4 year old nephew with us to stay for 10 days. Andi enjoyed the company. She thinks her cousin is hilarious! Crockett and I loved seeing everyone and getting to spend time in God's country, but it was nice to be back home in our normal routine. We have a couple weeks before heading back south for a wedding. We survived the drive to and from Texas with a squirmy 7 month old & 4 year old, but we're glad to be flying for the next trip. ;)
Crockett & I are both in shock just about every time Andi does something new, which has been a lot lately, because we can't believe we're already here. It feels like just last month we were bringing that 6 pound little girl home. She's so big and smart and mobile now. We're so in love with her and just can't imagine what our lives would be like without her!
(Also, we're in the process of buying a house here in Topeka so that's stressful exciting!)

Andi- 7 months

We were on vacation for Andi's 7 month and I did not do her blog, but we did takes some pictures on the 4th of July!

And the outtakes... 

Andi- 6 months!

Weight:  16.9 pounds
Length:  26.75 inches
Wears: 6 months & a couple 3-6 months clothes, size 1 shoe
Loves: Scooting everywhere, playing with anything she can get her hands on especially cords, eating baby food, playing with toys in the bath, reading books before bedtime, spitting, and talking as loud as possible. 
Eats: 8 ounces 3 times a day, cereal/fruit in the morning & a veggie in the evening.
What's new: Andi has 2 adorable bottom teeth and she's started teething again, no signs of where it's coming in though. She's been on the verge of crawling for a few weeks. She gets herself up on all fours and rocks back and forth, then falls flat. She can scoot anywhere she needs to go though, and likes to follow the cat around the house. Andi is still enjoying her baby food. She's now eating squash, zucchini, sweet potato, avocado, peas, apples, bananas, & carrots. She's also getting water in a sippy cup now at meals which is basically just a chance for her to get soaking wet twice a day. We had our first family day in the pool this week and Andi loves the water. Mostly she likes chewing on her bath toys in the pool. She's finally getting over the stomach flu and her appetite's coming back. She lost almost 3 pounds while she was sick and became a very fussy and needy baby. We're hoping she'll go back to her normal content self soon. The princess can almost sit up all by herself too! She can stay for a little bit before falling over. She might even be sitting before she's crawling.
Mom & Dad update: I'm finally a stay at home mommy and it's been fantastic so far. I am far less stressed and enjoying my days with not much to do, but cuddle and play with the princess. Crockett got some leave in July and we are planning to be home for a couple family traditions at the beach and lake. We are so excited to spend our first summer with Andi. I can't believe a half of a year has gone by already. We'll be planning her first birthday before we know it!

Andi- 5 months

Weight:  16.8 pounds
Length:  26 inches
Wears: 3-6 months clothes & a couple 3 months, size 1 shoe
Loves: Bath time, playing with toys, pacifiers, talking/yelling, putting everything in her mouth, grabbing Mo's hair, sleeping on her tummy, and eating baby food.
Eats: 7 ounces every 3-4 hours, 1-2 ounces of baby food in the evening
Longest sleep: 12 hours, She usually sleeps from 8:30 pm to somewhere between 7 & 8:30 am
What's new: This was the month of change and growth for Andi! She cut her first tooth and has another one right next to it already swelling up. She rolled over both back to belly and belly to back. She now rollie pollies herself all around the living room. She gets upset when she's on her tummy too long and forgets she knows how to roll over. We have to go save her just for her to roll herself back as soon as we walk away. She has started rolling herself over in her crib too and prefers to sleep on her tummy. We weened her off being swaddled at night. That was a rough weekend, but it was necessary now that she is rolling. It's quite adorable to see that little tush in the air while she snoozes. :) Tonight she found her feet for the first time! In the tub she had both feet in her mouth just smacking away. She is still eating baby food and really seems to love everything we give her. She is on a rotation of avocados, bananas, and sweet potatoes. We're introducing peas this week and she loved apples when we tried those, but I don't think her tummy was quite ready for all that fiber so we'll try again when she's a little older. Andi also started playing in her exersaucer this month and LOVES it. She plays with all the toys and makes all the sounds and lights go. It's adorable.
Mom & Dad update: Only 3 weeks left of school and then I get to be home with my baby! :D I'm so excited and ready. We are hoping to go home this summer as soon as we can. Crockett and I are both so in love with Andi it sometimes blows us away. We talk about how surreal it feels sometimes that we have her. Our lives have changed and everything revolves around her, but we wouldn't change it. She is the best thing that ever happened to us.

Andi- 4 Months

Weight:  14.2 pounds
Length:  25.5 inches
Wears: 3 months & 3-6 months clothes
Loves: Bath time, holding Taggie and toys, pacifiers (specifically taking them in and out of her mouth), talking/yelling, seeing mommy & daddy in the morning, putting everything in her mouth.
Eats: 7 ounces every 3-4 hours
Longest sleep: 12 hours, usually it's 10-11 hours each night
What's new: Today Andi tried bananas for the first time! The jury is still out on the taste. We plan to try again later, but she did pretty well for a first timer. She is getting closer to rolling over and she is still talking VERY loudly every day. She loves her toys and tries with all her little might to get every toy in her mouth. She gets pretty frustrated when she can't get the bigger ones in. Teething is in full force with lots of drool and fussy nights with baby girl pulling on her gums. Poor baby has even run a slight fever with it. We're hoping those teeth will cut soon, but so far no signs of them. Cold teething rings seem to calm her down a little in the mean time. Andi scoots out of things now and has to be buckled in or not left alone. She is on the move! This month we took another road trip to Houston for Spring Break and Andi did really well in the car and hotels. We were really surprised and very thankful. She's such a happy baby. It was great to spend time with family and let everyone spend some time with the princess. :)
Mom & Dad update: I continue to love teaching 4th grade, but after a whole week off with Andi it was REALLY hard to go back to work. I miss her so much during the day and hate how much I feel I'm missing. I'm counting down the weeks left of school, and am so excited about having the whole summer off with my girl!

Andi- 3 Months

Weight:  14 pounds
Length:  24 inches
Wears: 3 months clothes
Loves: Bath time, holding soft things like Taggie or a blanket, pacifiers, playing on the play mat, talking, seeing mommy & daddy in the morning or when they get home from work, & putting her hands in her mouth.
Eats: 5-6 ounces every 3-4 hours
Longest sleep: 12 hours, usually it's 9-10 hours each night
What's new: Andi has really found her voice. She loves to talk to us very loudly (there's Johnston in there)! She has discovered she can put her hands, blankets, and toys in her mouth and it's become a small problem when she's trying to eat and put her hands in her mouth at the same time. She is very wiggly now. She kicks and moves her arms almost nonstop. When she is sitting in a lap she'll try to kick off of us and roll so we think she'll be rolling over soon. She moved up to a level 2 nipple and we had to expand her cloth diapers to the next level. She's growing so fast. Her hair fell out just on top around 2 months and it's grown back in, but it's at an awkward length so it doesn't lay flat. It's pretty funny. She still loves her bath time and hates her tummy time, but she is getting better at it. She also scoots on her back like a little inchworm. We put her to bed at the top of her crib and some mornings we go to get her out and she is at the bottom. She also rotates like clock hands when she is on her play mat. She is still swaddled for naps and bed time, but it's almost time to stop that and start sleeping like a big girl! She normally wakes up between 6-7 am to eat and then goes back to sleep until 9 am. She naps for an hour or so around 12 pm and then again around 4 pm with a strict bedtime routine starting at 8 pm.
 Mom & Dad update: Crockett and I are both back at work and blessed to have an in-home nanny who comes to watch Andi during the day. Crockett is usually home before I am, so I am living for the weekends when we get to snuggle all day. It's also nice now that Andi is a little older we get to leave the house. She does really well in the car and the ladies in the church nursery just love her. My class orders from a monthly book order and Andi already has a set of Disney princess I Can read books! She'll learn pretty quickly that I will never say no if she wants a book. People are already asking us when we'll have another little one and our answer for the time being is "never." :) We are so content with our little family and just relishing in the blessings we've been given. We are not even going to open up that conversation for a while.

Andi- 2 Months

Weight:  11 pounds (63 percentile)
Length:  22 inches (57 percentile)
Wears:  Some newborn & 0-3 months clothes
Longest sleep: 12 hours

Andi- 1 month

I AM ONE MONTH OLD!

Weight: 9 pounds
Length: 21 inches
Wears: Newborn & 0-3 months clothes
Loves: Bath time, sleeping with my hands near my face, pacifiers, & being swaddled.
Eats: 3.5-4 ounces every 3-4 hours
Longest sleep: 6 hours
What's new: Watching my mobile turn, looking at ceiling fans and lights, & lifting my head up. I took my first road trip to Texas and back and did really well with the long drive. I got my very first sickness: RSV, and have been very grumpy and not sleeping/eating well. :( Mommy hates it when I throw up, but hopes getting all the crud out will help me get better faster. Daddy went back to work this week, but plays with me and bathes me every night.

Andi Nicole

She's here and we can finally tell you all about her!

Andi Nicole Thompson was born on December 3, 2014 and her adoption was finalized today, December 29. She is officially and legally OURS. Forever.

Let's start with her birth story.

On November 17 Crockett and birth mom arrived in Topeka from Michigan. She stayed with us until my mom, sister, and 2 nephews came into town the following week for Thanksgiving.  Once they arrived she was given some peace and a quiet place to sleep at a local hotel. (Would you believe that between 4 adults, 2 toddlers, 2 dogs, & a cat in my tiny house not many people got sound sleep that week?) My sister left the Sunday after Thanksgiving (the 30th) which was the due date. My mom left Dec. 2 hoping to be here in time for the big arrival. Andi had other plans. 

We went to the hospital 2 or 3 times thinking it was time and they sent us home super bummed each time. Apparently birth mom needed to feel inches from death before they considered her in active labor. The night of Dec. 2 I took my mom and nephews to the airport in Kansas City (~1.5 hours from our house). On my way home Crockett called me and said, "We are going to the hospital!" I met them there at 8 pm, just in time for the nurse to come in and check birth mom. The last time we were there she was at a 2. (For all you non-labor/delivery goo-roos the goal is a 10.) The nurse checked her and she was still at a 2. :( Total bummer. She sent us home. 

Side note: During the last few days of this waiting game I was having EXTREME anxiety. I don't even know what was going on with me. I was nervous, excited, scared, jealous, afraid, and 1,000 other things. My pulse was elevated and I was shaky; I couldn't eat and felt nauseous. I felt like I was losing my mind. I made my sister go see a movie with me just so I could have 2 hours outside my own head. It was Mocking Jay part 1; I didn't have to force her too hard. ;) It never went away until we were home from the hospital with Andi in tow.

Back to the story. So we go home and birth mom is having pretty painful contractions. Crockett went to bed thinking he'd probably have to go to work the next day and I stayed up with birth mom. She took a warm bath. She tried several different positions to get comfy and finally at 4 am she decided she needed to go back to the hospital. I took her and told Crockett I would call if we were admitted. We got to the hospital and it was the same nurse from 8 hours before who checked her and she was at a 3.5! Hooray for progress! She called birth mom's doctor and they decided to admit us. (Before leaving triage birth mom got her IV and y'all... they couldn't get the needle in her arm! They, yes, TWO of them, stood there poking and prodding her arm for like 15 minutes trying to get the IV. I, being the soldier I am, had to walk away before I passed out. I felt pretty terrible about that, but at this point I hadn't slept all night and hadn't eaten for over 8 hours. Not to mention all that weird shaky anxiety stuff. Luckily, when I stepped in the hall to heeve nothing came up. The nurse at the station in the hall probably thought I was the weakest lesbian partner in the world.) Off we went to the huge labor/delivery room. (Seriously, biggest hospital room ever.) Enter Crockett with bags and coffee in hand.

Birth mom was a total champ. She labored to an 8.5 before getting her epidural and then it was only about an hour until Andi arrived. I was able to be right there with her through the whole thing. It was amazing. Crockett sat in the corner of the room waiting for that little girl to make her debut and I got to watch my daughter come into the world at 8:02 am. 

Another side note: I handled the epidural. I. Did. NOT. handle the catheter. At all. The nurse told me to go lay down and then had Crockett go get me food. I was teetering a bit. Apparently I was a scary shade of ghost. I had a banana and some milk and rested until it was push time where I resumed my position. :) Thankfully, birth mom was able to rest at this point too when the epidural kicked in. BTW, anyone looking for a dula? Don't call me.

Here's our princess!

Ok, this picture may seem creepy with all the pixelation, but she just has pixlexia, guys! J/k. (Wreck-it Ralph reference) I don't have birth mom's permission to post this so I'm just going to show you this sweet, sweet moment without revealing her. This picture will be in Andi's room as soon as I can get some prints. I love that this is an open adoption and I'm blessed to know and love this woman.

Dad's first time to hold Andi. He is totally in love. <3 p="">

                                                                                                               

  As soon as Andi was born consent papers were sent to birth dad and birth mom signed her papers in the hospital the morning after. (Also, at the time of signing her consent she also signed the papers giving Crockett and me legal temporary custody which were immediately taken across the street to the court house and signed by a judge.) Birth mom was recovering in a room across the hall from us. The hospital gave us our own room to stay in with Andi as long as she was there. (Total of 2.5 days)

A couple hours after signing her papers she came to our room and told us that birth dad had texted her and said he wasn't sure he wanted to do an adoption anymore. We thought she was joking. 

She wasn't. 

Immediately we called him and put him on speaker with birth mom, Crockett, and myself in the room. I did most of the talking and just asked him what was going on and tried to understand. He said he would think about it and let us know what he decided. 

Crockett and I spent that day in prayer pleading with Jesus for this little girl who we were already so in love with. There were many tears. But I have to say, within hours Crockett and I both felt a very real sense of peace. We had to take the pictures we had posted on Facebook down because birth dad had said the reason he was changing his mind was because he saw a picture of Andi. That day I had people ALL DAY texting and messaging me comfort and prayer. It was truly one of those moments you can look back on and say, "Jesus showed up big." We hadn't told anyone what had happened and people were telling me that God had laid my family on their hearts and they had just felt a sense to pray for us. People I haven't talked to in YEARS. It was a mind blowing day. Within a couple hours of talking to birth dad on the phone Crockett and I were still processing and my friend texted me, "This may seem odd, but Jesus just told me tell you that it's going to be ok." 

I lost it. Tears everywhere. 

My soul was so cared for by my brothers and sisters in Christ and most importantly by the God of the universe who sees me and my situation and loves me and cares for me and intervenes for me.

We spent the next 3 and a half weeks uncertain of how this would play out, but certain that God is sovereign and through it all he would be glorified. We had a court date set for Dec. 19 to finalize the adoption pending birth dad's consent papers. That day came and went and there were still no papers. He wasn't returning my calls and he told birth mom via text he had no intentions of signing and asked her to come back to Kansas and get Andi and bring her to him in Michigan (he doesn't have transportation himself.)

Because we had legal temporary custody it was actually going to be a little difficult for birth dad to actually come and take Andi. He would have had to come to KS, hire a KS lawyer, and take us to court. We weren't counting on that happening, however, what we were afraid of was him just not signing the papers and making us wait. That would have required us to pay additional fees to both our lawyer and the courts to present our case to a judge and try to get birth dad's parental rights taken away by the judge. There are 5 different qualifications in Kansas for a father's rights to be removed and we had 4 going for us. So eventually it became a matter of time and money to get the adoption finalized, not a question of if. But in the mean time we were advised not to leave the state. It wasn't a court order, but a reccomendation by our lawyer.

Don't tell him, but I wasn't about to miss Andi's first Christmas with our families. :) 

We drove 13.5 hours and stayed for 11 days in Texas.

While we were there we got a call from our lawyer... HE HAD RECEIVED BIRTH DAD'S CONSENT!!! We were going to court to finalize the adoption! :D

God is so good.

We got back to Kansas yesterday and we had our day in court this morning. 

In the words of Jesus, "It is finished."

So now it's time to play some catch up with all the pictures you missed between then and now.

Going Home!

4 days old and headed to her 1st Dr.'s apt.

 

First Bath

 

Love this face!!

 

                                        

Daddy put the play mat together and as soon as he was done she was asleep.

 

At the Dr. in her cloth diaper.

View we have on our "nanny cam" in her room.

 

 

We loaded up the truck bed and our little family of 6 snuck to Texas.

We had to stop every 3-4 hours to eat.

Meeting my grandmother.

Letting cousin Brody feed her. :)

 

my mini-me, Brooke, and me feeding our babies

all my Memaw's great grands together!

napping with Papaw

Our first Christmas together.

 Presley's turn to hold the baby.

Christmas outfit

Meeting cousin, Bryce, who is 4 months older.

 

All but 1 of her great grand parents.

Me & my daughter on adoption day!!   

Not thrilled about being back in Kansas in this freezing cold.

I give all praise and glory to God for answering my prayers and providing for all my needs all my days. This child is his and I'm honored to be given the responsibility of raising her into a ferocious woman of God.