Madilyn's Spot T-shirts

Thank you so very much to Alicia and Sydney at SPoT oN - be your own spot.

We officially have the link for everyone to pre-order their Madilyn's Spot t-shirts. Copy & Paste the link below, read a few words from our Miss Madilyn and from Alicia too. Thank you to everyone for your prayers, emotional support, and fundraising support. There's no way we could get through any of this without God and our family and friends.

https://www.beyourownspot.com/products-page/unisex/madilyns-spot-pre-order/

ONE CRAZY HOT MESS

Does anyone else ever feel like they’re living in a constant “hot mess” or they’ve gone crazy? Well guess what…that’s me! I think I’ve gone crazy living in our hot mess. Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t think this is a terrible situation for me and that’s probably why I’m crazy. I actually believe it’s a blessing.

As a family we say grace at meal time, we pray together with Madilyn every night, and then I have my silent prayers. However, for months, I have been praying to God (more frequently, longer prayers) that everything would come together for us as a family. God did it and answered my prayers because in the last few weeks my life has become one hot holy mess.

As long as I can remember, the most important thing to me growing up has been to become a mom. I have always wanted to adopt but little did I know this would be my only option for becoming a mom. This road has not been easy but so very rewarding. Scot and I have been through the ringer becoming parents and a family. We of course wouldn’t change any of it for the world. I’ve been praying so much lately because I was beginning to think that our dreams of growing our family weren’t in the cards so to speak. And of course I can’t just “Let Go and Let God” because I’m a...CONTROL FREAK!

One day after the next I’ve questioned the road we have taken. Scot has had more than enough road blocks with his career and it’s been no fault of his own. In those moments you think “WHY?!” For years we have asked “WHY?” Finally he decided to go back to school after being unemployed for almost 2 years. You add that to the fact that we found out we couldn’t adopt through Gladney again. We had to start all over, research adoption agencies, find the right one for us, apply to the agency, get accepted, attend orientation, and find a way to complete our approval process in a reasonable period of time. This is important because Scot and I aren’t spring chickens by any means. Then I decided to take another position at another firm. Next Scot and I thought it would be a great idea to volunteer and be the co-VPs for our Fort Worth Gladney Family Association (GFA) Board for the next 2 years. Can you see how my crazy hot mess has developed?

God was holding out on us. Ok not really…he just knew the right time to let us in on his plan for us. It’s so hard to explain but it’s as if in one little moment

I can see it all coming together and GOD has placed his plans for us right in front of my little “I think I know it all” face. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in those moments or in yourself. All those hard times have led us to this point in our lives.

1. Scot is coming full circle. He can see the light at his educational tunnel. He’ll be graduating in December with a Bachelor’s in Social Work. I am beyond proud!!

2. I have absolutely no regrets beginning a new position at another firm. It has been a wonderful year!

3. Madilyn has had a difficult transition to her current Pre-K class so she’ll be starting Pre-K in a new school on September 23rd. She is beyond excited.

4. I have enjoyed every moment of my volunteering with Gladney for the 125th anniversary, Blossoms in the Dust this past spring, and the birth mother events. I also love that I was able to get Scot involved as well. Again because we’re crazy, I will be coordinating the birth mother events and assisting with Blossoms again, and Scot and I will be the co-VPs for the next 2 years.

5. Even though we couldn’t adopt through Gladney again, Scot has had the opportunity to intern with Gladney. Not only has he learned so many new things but he has been an asset to Gladney. He was designated as the coordinator for Aunt Edna’s Closet. This closet is available to foster parents, transitional care parents, foster to adopt parent in the DFW area. It’s a place where they can come in emergency situations to find clothes, baby accessories, backpacks, and so much more for children in the foster care system.

6. Finally, GOD also plans for us to continue growing our family and I couldn’t be more excited. We are managing to complete our Wills, get our physicals, FBI fingerprinting, and either this month or October we will have our interviews and home study. And Madilyn’s Adoption Spot is a hit. We are so thankful and blessed to all of our family and friends for joining Madilyn (and Us) on this second adoption adventure.

As you can see, my craziness created from our hot mess is a blessing!

As a side note: I wrote this blog post this past Saturday, and when I attended Church on Sunday I was in awe of the sermon that morning and how it hit home! Pastor Alexander talked about 1) you are doing better than you think you are and 2) God has a dream for your life. Most settle for dreams less than what God wants you to do and be in your life. Live absolute confidence in what God wants you to be over the course of years and not just the next 7 days. God's dreams are connected; therefore, Scot and I both must live/pursue God's dreams for us indivdually to set others dreams free too.

Hugs and Kisses from the Smiths!

Growing Families Through Adoption

So many exciting things happening in the adoption world around us…

Congratulations to our friends, the Vaught Family on the new editions to their family over the past year. Tammy and Chris finalized the adoption of their son Cristian on Monday, August 19, 2013, and earlier this summer in June, their daughter Scarlett was born and they will be finalizing her adoption in the near future. We are so happy for your family.

We are praying for the Priddy and Duvall Families. They are both waiting for news on a court date. Once the Priddys receive news of a court date they will travel to Honduras and see their little girl. Once the Duvalls receive news of a court date then they will travel to Korea to see their son. We hope that both families are one step closer to bringing their children home this year.

As for the Smith Family…Our second adoption is going to be so different from the first but that makes it so much more exciting. First, Madilyn is going to be involved the entire time from interviews to our home study, choosing pictures for our “Dear Birth Parents” letter and meeting the potential birth parents. Second, we are adopting through Buckner International out of Dallas, TX this time. We are so lucky b/c we had the most wonderful caseworkers the first time around…Raquel McFadden and Betty Noyola. Our caseworker and the maternity caseworker are just as fabulous at Buckner for our second adoption. We are definitely blessed to be working with both of them. Third, there’s a hope that we will actually be matched earlier in the process this time with the birth parent(s). That is very exciting for us. Finally, we have decided to fund raise which is actually exciting. It will give us the opportunity to keep all of our family and friends involved in our adoption process, and Madilyn will be very involved as well. She has told us repeatedly that she’s ready for us to adopt a brother or sister for her. She’s ready to be a big sister, and she’s actually asked for a little brother AND little sister.

We attended our two-day seminar last week at Buckner! It was a plethora of information in only 2 days. Some information we already knew, some of it was nice to refresh our memories, and other information was new. We also had the opportunity to meet 4 other couples going through the process with as well. Two couples have biological children but feel they are being called to adopt now, one couple has no children and have chosen adoption to grow their family, and the final family is adopting for the second time like us. It’s so wonderful to hear everyone’s stories and what led them to adoption. Everyone’s story is so amazing and so different.
So now what happens??? Well at the end of our two-day seminar, our caseworker informed us that because we’ve adopted before that our process in getting approved will be moving a little more quickly.

WHAT???!!!! In that moment I freaked out…just a little bit!

If you know me then you know I’m a little OCD, and now my plans have been altered. EEEEEEEKKKK! So Scot and I are concentrating on finalizing our Wills, scheduling our appts for our fingerprints to be sent to the FBI, scheduling our physicals and completing our required reading. Next we will be scheduling our home study and interviews for all three of us…oh yes Madilyn will be interviewed as well. She’s so excited. Of course her first question when I tell her that she’ll be interviewed, “Mama, can I tell her what I’ll teach my baby brother or sister…OH and show her my room?!” And my answer, “Of course”! How can you not love Miss Mads?!

Scot and I have constantly been praying about this entire process because it’s not easy by any means, and there’s so much to consider since we have Madilyn now. But after this weekend, we know we are moving in the right direction in growing our family through domestic infant adoption again with Buckner. No one can know what it’s like for us unless you’ve experienced the journey of Cancer, infertility and miscarriage. The road we’ve traveled together has not been easy but it’s been well worth the joy and tragedy we’ve experienced. Upon our journey we’ve had positive and negative comments from people. When you’re in the moment of your tragedy or joy those comments can get to you. Sometimes it has made us doubt the decision we were making but not this time. Scot and I are together in our decision and KNOW we are choosing what is right for our family. It won’t be easy but it’s what it’s RIGHT. I don’t mind the comments and opinions any longer. I am stronger and stand strong with God and my family.

Last but not least we’ve launched Madilyn’s Adoption Spot on Facebook. On our Facebook page we will post updates to the blog, anyone can ask us questions about our adoption or adoption in general, we will have “Monday Madieisms” and information/updates about our three fundraising partners. First, we have Breathe Deep Designs by Deepa Lal and she is currently working with the three us to design three bracelets that everyone can purchase. Second is SPoT oN – be your own spot by Alicia Taylor and she will work with us in creating a t-shirt for purchase. Third, is Ground to Cup Coffee out of San Antonio, TX and it’s already up and running. The link is on our FB page, here it is now: http://www.groundtocupcoffee.com/online-store/merchant.mvc?Store_Code=COFFEE&Screen=PLST&Affiliate=smith5100, OR you can click on the Ground to Cup Coffee image at the top, right-hand side of our blog. All three will take you directly to our online store. At our online store anyone may purchase single origin coffee, decaf coffee, flavored coffee, teas, specialty drinks and/or gift boxes. Ground to Cup Coffee is truly freshly roasted, blended, flavored and packaged by hand when you order it. They achieve this by roasting all of their coffees daily and in small batches. Their coffee selection is constantly being expanded and they have a full selection of origins and flavors. The company is devoted to combining their passion for freshly roasted coffee and their desires for making a real difference in the lives of others. They give back a minimum of 10% of all their proceeds to organizations and individuals that embody and represent these causes.

We would love everyone to “like” Madilyn's Adoption Spot, share our page, and join Madilyn’s quest in becoming a big sister. Madilyn's Adoption Spot is not only for us to fund raise but it's also an opportunity for us to keep in touch with our family and friends, share our story, and educate about adoption if anyone asks. Thank you everyone for being a part of our lives! We are a truly blessed family to have such amazing friends and family!!

Love Always,
The Smith Family

Quick Update

The Smith family has almost turned in ALL of their paperwork to Buckner International Adoption Agency. Whew!! We completely forgot how daunting it is to fill out all of the paperwork, answer the questionnaires with super private questions, send out reference forms, all three of us go for physicals, request physicians to prepare reports, complete our finances, finalize wills...well you get the idea. BUT IT'S ALL WELL WORTH IT, and everyone can see that when you meet Madilyn!!

We will attend our two-day adoption seminar at Buckner on August 15th and 16th. Also I'm hoping that my blog updates will be more consistent since our second adoption journey is beginning. We will also be creating a Facebook Page for anyone and everyone to join. Madilyn has requested we adopt a brother or sister so she can be a big sister.

We have found three wonderful companies to be our fundraising partners in Madilyn's quest to become a big sister. Madilyn, Scot, and I are currently working with 2 of the 3 companies to create specific jewelry and t-shirts that will help us fund raise. There will be much more information to come once everything has been finalized.

Scot is finishing up his summer internship with Gladney, and he will begin his final semester of college on August 22nd. We are all so excited that he will graduate in December 2013. I always give him a hard time but I'm so very proud of my Scooters because he never quit and he found his dream career. He will also begin his Fall internship with Gladney mid-August as well.

As for me...I'm still loving my position with my firm. August is my 1 year anniversary. I can't believe it. Time definitely flies. Oh and Scot convinced me to be co-VP with him for the next 2 years on the Fort Worth Gladney Family Association board. I obviously like staying busy.

A few fun facts about Madilyn...she can count to 100, she's learning to tie her shoes, she's speaking Spanish, she loves to make up her own songs and dance at the same time, AND she will start soccer in September. She is loving every minute of her 4 year old life, and Scot and I plan to keep it that way!!

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Love from the Smiths!!

Vote, Vote, and Vote

Hi everyone!! I have a huge favor to ask. Parents magazine is having a cover photo contest and I decided to enter Miss Madilyn. They have a weekly winner and then the FINAL winner receives $10,000 and a photo shoot in NY. How fun!!! Please go vote this week. You can vote everyday through May 26th, Sunday. You don't have to enter any personal info. You will have to copy and paste the link below, it will bring up her picture, click vote and then you just have to enter some silly answer to a question to submit your vote. OH and please feel free to pass the link on to others for voting.

http://www.parents.com/photos/parents-cover-contest-2013/2013-05-20/y5al

In other Smith news...Scot and I attend orientation at Buckner Adoption Agency this Friday. We are very excited because they chose two final families to join their program and we were one of the two. They won't be taking anymore families for an extended period of time this year. We still haven't decided which agency we will go with but we know attending the orientations will help us make our final decision.

Also Scot will begin his intership with Gladney Center for Adoption the first week of June and it will be for 11 weeks. Then he will complete his internship with Gladney in the Fall and graduate in December. We are both so elated.

On a serious note! Praying everyone is keeping safe and dry! So much tragedy has taken place in the past month or so. It seems as though it's neverending...Boston, West, Granbury, and now OK. We are so thankful that my family in OK was not affected by the tornado. They were 20 miles away though. We continue to pray and be hopeful for those that have survived these tragic events. The aftermath of these tragedies will be difficult too. It definitely makes me think about the small things in life and I'm so grateful.

49th Annual Blossoms 2013 - More Love to Give

Never did I think I would survive! However, I did more than survive. A few words come to mind to express this event...successful, amazing, touching, beautiful, and I could keep going. It was one of the most amazing events that I've been a part of in my entire life. On Tuesday, April 23, 2013, I co-chaired Gladney Center for Adoption's 49th Annual Blossoms Event.

Edna Gladney is a woman of perserverance, passion, independence, love, strength, and dignity. More than anything she had an undying devotion to a cause that was greater than herself...children. She always had "More Love to Give". At Blossoms, I had the opportunity to share my day and passion for Gladney and children with so many other wonderful people.

My main responsibility for the event was organizing the Bazaar. I contacted vendors, organized the vendors that participated, kept in continuous contact with them prior to and all through the event, designed the layout of the room/tables, coordinated with hotel staff, coordinated with caterer for vendors' lunch, Thank You gifts and cards, and so much more. As I mentioned before I wasn't sure if I would survive because co-chairing this event was in addition to working full-time, family obligations, and so much more. However, I survived and triumphed.

It was a joyous moment when Tuesday morning arrived. I finally met these business women I had been corresponding with for months. After spending so much time with them and getting to know each woman individually, I believe each one embodies so many of Edna Gladney character traits. They are passionate, kind, strong, independent, and so much more. All of these businesses took time out of their busy schedules to support our event. Each one of them expressed their "Thanks" to me, but I was the one that was honored and happy because the time I spent with them was enjoyable and I was sharing my passion with them as well.

The luncheon was amazing and the food itself was beautiful. The fashion show was successful, and we even had a few surprises...an aerialist in the beginning of the show and an electric fiddle at the end. Scot and Madilyn were both in the fashion show and we all had an amazing time.



Of course none of this would have come to fruition without my co-chair Carol Perry (on the right with our emcee Gloria Campos), and committee members such as Robyn Charles (The Leslie Amend Award Winner), and Gladney Staff: Wendy Lee, Nonya Jordan, and Susanna Coldiron just to name a few people. Thank you to all of Gladney Staff and Board of Directors for making the event possible!!

Scot and I are definitely blessed every day that we wake up and see Madilyn's beautiful smile. We are reminded of her birth mother's courage and how she has entrusted her child to us. We continue to keep our promise to her birth mother that Madilyn will be a responsible, loving adult one day that will contribute to society in a positive way, and she will know she is loved by all of the people that have touched her life and have given her life in more than one way.

A Minor Change in Plans

We have recently decided that we will no longer be pursuing our second adoption with the Gladney Center for Adoption. This by no means is bad news. We are actually very excited that this "bump" in the road is presenting several unexpected opportunities for us as a family. Scot will be interning with Gladney to complete his Bachelor's degree in Social Work, and we will pursue our second adoption with another adoption agency. We are currently researching all of our options/agencies. We believe we have found one, and this agency comes highly recommended by community members and couples who have adopted with this agency.

We have decided not to disclose this information at this time because we have not made our final decision. In addition, we have to apply, and the agency will have to approve our pre-application and invite us to be a part of their program. Therefore, we are asking everyone to keep us in your thoughts and prayers!!

STUCK and a couple of updates!

Just a little update for everyone. On Monday, February 25, 2013, we received an email from Gladney stating the following:

We have received your adoption information sheet applying to work with The Gladney Center's Agency Assisted domestic adoption program for your second adoption. I am very happy to let you know that you have been accepted.

So we will be attending orientation on Friday, April 12, 2013. It's not required since we've adopted through Gladney once before, but Scot and I thought it would be a nice refresher course for us. Soooooooooooooooooooooooooooo excited!

Other update alert...Scot was informed yesterday that he will be interning this Summer and next Fall with Gladney in their Columbia program. We are ecstatic that he will be completing his social work hours with Gladney and maybe...just maybe a position will come open when he graduates in December.

I promise my next blog will be some fabulous pictures of Miss Madilyn. I have yet to post our family Thanksgiving/Christmas pics and the pictures from the Elmo show this past weekend. So be on the lookout for that which I hope is this weekend.

Finally, I leave you with this trailer of STUCK which is the award winning documentary produced by Both Ends Burning sharing stories of kids and parents navigating the international adoption system. Scot and I will be attending the one night showing in Fort Worth on Sunday, March 17 at 7 pm. Go to this link to see if there's a showing near you. http://tickets.samuelgoldwynfilms.com/
You can also go to their website or Facebook page to learn more.
https://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/STUCKthedocumentary

http://bothendsburning.org/

She Amazes US

It has been far too long since I last blogged. Life has definitely been busy for all of us. Scot has started his last semester of classes this Spring. He will only have his intern hours left for Summer and Fall once May rolls around. He will be graduating in December 2013 with a Bachelor degree in Social Work. I am a very proud wife. He is so excited to get his new career going. I have started the 6th month at my new job. After almost 10 years with Baker Botts, I left and started a new position with the firm Patterson & Sheridan, LLP. It was definitely an adjustment in the beginning because it's a smaller firm, but it has definitely been one of the most wonderful career decisions I have ever made in my life. Sometimes the grass is greener on the other side. I'm glad I took the leap.

Gladney continues to be a huge part of our lives. In 2012, I convinced Scot to join the Fort Worth Gladney Family Association Board with me, and he has done a fabulous job so far. He is now our Outreach chair on our Board. I continue my work on the board as well with planning a few events for the birth mothers in the dorm. This year I will also be volunteering my time to co-chair for Blossoms 2013. I will be in charge of the exhibitors for the event. AND Scot and Madilyn will be showing off in the fashion show. We are all so excited.

Scot and I are also a year older and life is letting us know. We both just got glasses. He wears his all the time, but mine are more for work and driving at night. OH and I cut my hair. I love reinventing myself.

As far as Miss Madilyn goes, Scot and I definitely feel that life seems to go by in a blink of an eye every time she hits a new milestone. Our baby isn't our baby anymore, and she lets me know it.

"Mommy, I'm not a baby anymore. I'm your little girl."

I find myself looking into her eyes filled with wonder and innocence and repeating my own mom's words,

"...but you'll always be my baby."

She gazes at me and gives me her little, mischievous smile. She loves to try new things, and she embraces life. She has given me the opportunity to get back some of my innocence that I once lost in my 20's, and I embrace those moments. She is teaching both Scot and me patience. Trust me it's not easy with an almost 4 year old.

She's also an intelligent little girl. Everyday she either tells us something new she learns or just through conversation with her or her actions we find out she has discovered something new. My mom gave her an easel for Christmas (which she absolutely loves), and about three weeks ago we were drawing pictures on it and writing letters. Well I left the room for a minute and when I returned I discovered that she had written the words "MOM" and "DAD" on her easel. Scot and I were so excited and proud. No one was there to help her with the letters and no one told her how to spell them.

Just last night Madie and I were talking about my Mr. Bear...who I've had since I was a baby and now it's her bear. She asked if she could take Mr. Bear to school, and I told her that he was too fragile to go to school so he needed to stay home. She looked at me and said,

"Mr. Bear is fragile like glass?!"

I smiled and said,

"Yes, he's so old that if we're not careful he could fall apart just like fragile glass."

She amazes US.

One last note...we are beginning our second adoption adventure. Madilyn continously is requesting a baby brother, sister, OR both.