Are you ready for some football?!?!


Three seasons ago we made the long drive from Tulsa to Austin for the Ohio State game and the Texas A&M game; it has taken this long to be willing to attempt it again. It is a very long drive and after a loss it is even worse. However, we figured that an older Brooks (with a newly developed Star Wars obsession and DVD player) combined with a game against the University of Louisiana-Monroe might work out better for us. So, Chris said he wanted to go to Austin and the game for his b-day and off we went.

IT WAS GREAT! We had heard so much about the Lake being very low that we had given up on the idea of getting in the water, but after quite a hike over the rocks we were able to get to the water(for those of you who've been to the Lake house; check out the pictures!).




Making it even better was the fact that Aunt Terri and Uncle Ronnie were there and let us take out their jet skis. This was a first for myself and Brooks, and we both had a blast. Brooks swam around in the lake like a fish. He was so much more comfortable and relaxed than in the pool--go figure! Sorry, Aunt Terri, about all the splashing in the face! In fact, we had so much fun that we lost all concept of our carefully planned schedule (so sorry Cameron--we WILL see you next time!). But we were able to get in a visit with Chris and Alaina Hanson and their adorable little girl, Olivia. Here you can see Brooks is already making little girls run!





We had a leisurely lunch at The Oasis and realized that we were supposed to be somewhere--Oh yeah, the game. After some nervous moments looking for a ticket for Brooks, a nice gentleman one section over sold us one for $20 on the condition that we promise that we didn't send Brooks to sit with him. Brooks was tired, but he did really well and looked too cute!

We were able to make it to Kelli and Erin's new place in Kingsland in time to help with the last moving truck and spend a few short hours visiting and playing with Lance. I think this photo is so funny because of Brooks's mouth. Apparently it is ingrained in our human DNA to open our own mouth when feeding a baby. Soon after this picture, I hear Brooks tell Lance, "You know what would make you a big boy? Learning to feed yourself." This sunset photo is at a scenic overlook on the way to their house.





We intended to stop at the Dallas zoo for a break, but instead we saw a road sign for this dinosaur place and stopped and had a great time. We then took the wrong fork of I35 and went to Fort Worth instead of Dallas, but that even turned out great because there was a Salt Grass on the way back into Dallas which we had been hungry for all weekend.






So, a great weekend full of unexpected fun and a UT win!

Then after a short recovery week it was an evening under the Friday night lights of Oklahoma for the "Backyard Brawl" between Union and Jenks High Schools. Let me give you an idea of why this Oklahoma game was "Texas" sized. These two teams are ranked 1 and 2 in the state; between them they share the last 14 state titles; they moved the game to TU's stadium because almost 20,000 people show up! For a high school game! Anyway, Brooks had fun--we're down a few articles of clothing (Note: Red face paint does NOT wash out of clothes and it itches little boy's noses!)




Adoption update: Nothing to tell; please just pray for a quick approval and protection for our son, whoever and wherever he is. To be honest, I was trying to not think about how long the 6 monthish wait could be when all of a sudden my thought process reversed. I MIGHT ONLY HAVE 6 MONTHS TO GET READY FOR THIS CHILD! When I began to think about all I would be doing if I were pregnant and bringing home a baby, I began to realize that 6, even 9 months, isn't that long. Of course, I'd gladly accept an even shorter waiting time (if anyone in Rwanda is reading!)! However, I want to enjoy these last few months with Brooks as my only; I want to close out this time of ours by having all the fun in the world! A side note here: We pulled him out of Pre-K so ignore those first day pics--I'll take more next year! He's my baby and I'm going to enjoy him for a little longer.

Also, I was touched by a blog post of another family going through this process: read the post at, http://hunterandadrianne.blogspot.com/2009/09/god-is-so-good.html. It gently and eloquently addresses the tendency I feel from people to treat adoption as being given the chance to "pick" your child. What if he is mentally or developmentally delayed? What of he has a genetic disorder you didn't know about? What if he disrupts your family?
Are are we asking for these things? Of course not. Could they happen? Of course. Just like they could happen if I was pregnant. God is going to place our son in our family--God knew our son and all his days when He knit him together in the womb, even if it wasn't my womb. We will love him and all the good and bad that comes with him, just like we do with Brooks, no matter what.

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