July 4th Fun!

Aaron reading to Gabe. Gabe loves this book. He coos and laughs and cries when we take it away.

Sweatsuits are so cute on him. He looks so chubby. This is one layer of clothing for our fireworks outing.

Gabe can barely move in this outfit. He stayed warm though. It was pretty cold in Laramie on the 4th.

Our 4th of July was great! I think that this holiday has to be one of the best because it is pretty relaxed. Gabe let Aaron and I sleep in till past nine (well aaron got up earlier to play ultimate frisbee, but not too much earlier) and we lazed around the house for most of the morning. At about 2 we met up with the family at the park. We took Gabe in the stroller and just walked around for awhile. It was nice. Later that evening we got together for a BBQ with Aaron's family. About an hour or so before the fireworks, Laramie got hit with a lot of rain and flash flooding. Luckily our apartment did not flood this time. The rain stopped long enough for us to go out to watch the fireworks. It was freezing, so Gabriel was bundled up to stay warm. He looked like a little state puff marshmallow. He was cute. He loved the fireworks. He stared and never made a peep except for one Awe noise after a big firework went off. He was entranced. The fireworks were okay, but the day was a blast.

This next tidbit I want to share is a article written on the families supporting adoption blog. I just thought it was perfect to share with my friends and family. In a little over a week Gabe will be legally our child as if he was born to us (that is was the court documents says- cool). The process has not been easy and it is hard to explain my feelings about the whole process. I read this article to Aaron and we both felt it was a perfect way to describe our feelings. I would encourage everyone to visit this blog. There are a lot of wonderful article thay might give some insight to how people with infertility feel as well as great articles about adoption. I think it would be helpful if you needed some insight or are just curious. The blog is http://familiessupportingadoption.blogspot.com/. Please visit it. Here is the article:

Deciding to have a baby is like planning a trip to Australia. You've heard it's a wonderful place, you've read many guidebooks and feel certain you're ready to go. Everyone you know has traveled there by plane. They say it can be a turbulent flight with occasional rough landings, but you can look forward to being pampered on the trip.

So you go to the airport and ask the ticket agent for a ticket to Australia. All around you, excited people are boarding planes for Australia. It seems there is no seat for you; you'll have to wait for the next flight. Impatient, but anticipating a wonderful trip, you wait--and wait--and wait.
Flights to Australia continue to come and go. People say silly things like, "Relax. You'll get on a flight soon." Other people actually get on a plane and then cancel their trip, to which you cry, "It's not fair!"

After a long time the ticket agent tells you, "I'm sorry, we're not going to be able to get you on a plane to Australia. Perhaps you should think about going by boat."
"By BOAT!" you say. "Going by boat will take a very long time and it costs a great deal of money. I really had my heart set on going by plane." So you go home and think about not going to Australia at all. You wonder if Australia will be as beautiful if you approach it by sea rather than air. But you have long dreamed of this wonderful place, and finally you decide to travel by boat.

It is a long trip, many months over many rough seas. No one pampers you. You wonder if you will ever see Australia. Meanwhile, your friends have flown back and forth to Australia two or three more times, marveling about each trip.

Then one glorious day, the boat docks in Australia. It is more exquisite than you ever imagined, and the beauty is magnified by your long days at sea. You have made many wonderful friends during your voyage, and you find yourself comparing stories with other who also traveled by sea rather then by air.

People continue to fly to Australia as often as they like, but you are about to travel only once, perhaps twice. Some say things like, "Oh, be glad you didn't fly. My flight was horrible; traveling by sea is so easy."

You will always wonder what it would have been like to fly to Australia. Still, you know God blessed you with a special appreciation of Australia, and the beauty of Australia is not in the way you get there, but in the place itself.

I love my Gabriel so much!