2010

Good morning and Happy New Year everyone! Yesterday was a day like no other. It was the first day that I fully felt like the weight of school, clinical, etc. had been lifted and we here at the Davenport home had a magical day. We started the day by watching two beautiful people get married after waiting for so long. Congratulations Terri, your wedding brought tears to my eyes, you and Ed are such special people.

After the wedding we headed home, threw my hair up in a pony tail, put on some old scrubs and for the next 5 hours Lauren, Danny, Bailey, and I sang, danced, put away Christmas decorations, organized, cleaned, kissed, held hands, and felt like "us" again. Survival mode is finally over.

I also put on my ipod and went for a run by myself which I haven't done since last June. This was an awesome time with God. Just thanking Him for all He has done, the miracle of Lauren in our lives and in our arms. It was also a time of prayer for my family and extended family and asking, so..what's next. Medical missions has been in my heart since I was five and cried to Jesus while sitting behind dad's recliner with my big headphones on listening to Keith Green. I know my trip to India 16 years ago was just the start and I am excited to see where God takes us next.

It's going to be a great year! :)

Dreams do come true...

Thank You Mary!

My Lauren is so sick...

Poor Lauren has been so sick since last Sunday and her temp is still in the 103-104 range today. Today was supposed to be a day of celebration, my graduation, etc. but instead we spent the day in pediatrician offices and getting Laurens first xray. It has been heart breaking to see her so miserable. I know she loves me, but I feel so cruel shoving medication down her throat, giving her cool baths, etc.

Thank you Mary for dinner the other night. I cannot tell you how much that meant. I am SO fortunate to have you as a friend and am really glad we are neighbors now. :) I took a pic of the dinner you sent, but I am hardly able to keep my eyes open to download the pic's right now. It's been a long week.

Please keep Lauren (Lo Lo) in your prayers. She did test positive for the Influenza A today, so at least I know what we are dealing with, but I tell you it is one thing to be a health care provider and a much different thing to be a mommy of a very sick little girl.

650 Clinical Hours...Done.

Christmas Jubilee

Well, I woke early this morning and can't go back to sleep, so I thought I'd blog. My first thought today was of my good friends Steph, Terri, and Suz who are on a flight to China to get their girls at this moment. It brings back memories as I watch them all take off on the trip of their lives. I still think there is so much we did and felt during that trip that it still hasn't all sunk in and I look forward to more time pretty soon to sit back and reflect on all that has occurred since July 7,2009. Everytime I watch Lauren sleep or laugh, I am overcome with an emotion that is like no other. She is such a miracle, only God could bring this amazing little girl all the way from Zhenfeng county, China to our arms here in Peoria, AZ.

As a side note, I finally graduate next week and cannot wait. It's pretty much been survival mode lately with all we have on our plate here, but soon, Lauren won't have to say, "mamma work..bye bye mama" nearly as much and that will make me very, very happy. :) It breaks my heart everyday. But, what seemed impossible just a few months ago, is finally going to be finished next week.

Well, tonight we decorate our tree and drink hot cocoa and start our first Christmas with Lauren! Our amazing friend, Bella, got us "Polar Express" tickets and so we are going to the Polar Express on Dec. 21st! I will post pic's! Lauren is going to have a blast, she thinks the train at the zoo is amazing, wait until she gets to ride with Santa on a real train!

Anyway, this post is kind of random thoughts, but I thought I'd say hi and Merry Christmas to all of you! Love you!

I'm PC and I'm 2!

Lauren and Kai

Last Saturday was my good friend Terri's baby shower...she's hopping on a plane very soon to get her beautiful daughter Gwyneth! Below are a few pics of Lauren loving her new friend Kai! As Mary can attest, the carpool trip to the shower was a little rough, but we survived and it was so nice to see Lauren and Kai becoming sweet friends!

Zoolights with Lauren!

Well, for YEARS Dan and I have talked about taking Lauren to our annual tradition of Zoolights and we finally were able to experience seeing this amazing night through her eyes! Below are a few pic's...Now, I know my Midwestern family and friends are going to say...you're in arizona and she's dressed like it's the tundra! hehe..it really was a little chilly this evening. :)

Halloween!

I'm a little late posting our Halloween pic's, I've been out sick since Halloween with the dreaded H1N1. Wow, is it good to be feeling myself again today! Lauren and I had a breakfast date and then went to play at the Gymnastics arena for preschool power hour today. I am more amazed each day by this amazing gift that has been placed into my arms. Lauren is such an incredible little girl.

She loved Halloween, she only went to our 2 neighbors homes to say "trick or treat", and then spent the night excitedly giving out candy. She LOVED passing out candy. We sat in the driveway with Dan's parents and had such a nice night. Gosh, how many YEARS I had been waiting to experience Halloween with my daughter! It was everything and more than I dreamed it would be. It's so fun to be experiencing all of our first's together as a family.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Finally!!!!!! It's raining Babies!!!!!

Congratulations to all you wonderful mommies who are seeing your long-awaited daughters today!!! I am over the moon excited for you all and cannot wait to follow you on this exciting journey.

This is sweet little Zoey, her mommy designed my blog and has been a friend from the very beginning. If you go way back to my first blog post, you will see a post regarding a poem she wrote for her Zoey, so many years ago.



This is Terri's beautiful Daughter..Terri is one of the original Arizona Adoption Mama's! Our group has grown over the years and I have been so fortunate to have met this beautiful person during our journey to Lauren.





Terri, Sooze, Steph, 3D, Kelly....I am soo happy for you.

Kayce...you rock and you are next!!!!

Three Months Ago Today

Today...

Day at the Zoo

Last Thursday was my first birthday as a mommy and wow was it wonderful! We went to the zoo for the first time and Lauren had a blast! She loved feeding the Giraffe, Sam, and clapped each time after she fed him. The train ride was another big hit, she loved yelling "choo choo!" throughout the zoo. The animals were really active and it was just such a fun day!

To all my friends who were anxiously awaiting referrals only to find the CC*A*A did not send them in September....I am truly sorry. It's so hard to take off the armour only to have put it back on again. Just know you all will be holding your daughters and enjoying times like these very soon. I have felt since having Lauren that somehow she knew she was waiting for us. Also, from our experiences in China, I believe your daughters are safe, cared for, and being told mommy and daddy are coming soon. They are anxiously awaiting you just as much as you are awaiting them. I look back on our whole experience and look into Lauren's eyes and just think...what a miracle. Only God could orchestrate something so beautiful.

It's the Craziest Time Ever, It's The Most Wonderful Time Ever

Life is like I've never experienced before. Lauren brings such joy into my life. Her hugs melt away any anxiety or stress I have. As I see more and more of her personality, I am amazed at what an incredible little girl she is. I am so grateful that God placed her in my life.

School right now consists of 3 (soon to be 4) full days of clinical, a Capstone research project, weekly discussion boards, 2 research papers, 6 practicum expanded clinical notes, 2 clinical papers in APA format, 4 specialty rotations (some are 2 hour commutes), and a partroge in a pair tree...I mean and I work three 12 hour shifts a week! Can I say...I cannot wait until December 18th! Graduation day!

Some days I feel paralyzed by the weight of school and wonder how it will all be done, but Danny keeps reminding me to take one day at a time. He is my voice of reason lately. I love him so much. As I am taking on this mountain, he is being such an amazing Daddy to Lauren (and tutoring part-time). They read, sing songs, go to the mall, play at the Children's Museum, etc. She loves her daddy so much and what is encouraging to me is that despite my busyness, she has attached to both Danny and I. Whenever she sees one of us after being away she smiles so big, jumps up in our arms, and squeezes our necks soo tight! It's the best. :)

Lauren just loves dancing, singing, and climbing anything in site(I see gymnastics in her near future) :). She recently started to take an interest in books too. She is saying more and more words every day. Last night as we layed in bed together reading, she pointed to my nose and said, "nose", and then my chin and said, "chin" and so on. Her little, sweet voice is just too cute. She also has surprised us in how she loves to pray. She will say "pre!" grab both of are hands and close her eyes and whisper her words only she understands. Then she says "ameen" and claps her hands so excitedly! I really need to get it on video. :)

This week is such an exciting week because many, if not all, of the March LIDers will be matched and receive referals of their little long-waited gifts! It brings back memories of our referral day and I am so excited for you all. It's been a loong wait and it's finally your turn. I love you all and am so thankful to have met such amazing friends like you on this journey to our daughters.

Our first post-adoption visit was last week and it was nice to see our SW who we've gotten to know over the years at our yearly homestudies. Lauren showed off for her the whole time and brought out every toy we own and kept walking through the living room with her doll in the baby stroller and saying "hello". :) We have two more post-placement visits and then we are done with the paperwork process of our adoption.

Well, I better get back to my work. It's been nice to have some extra time today. When I got to my clinical, my preceptor was off for a conference, so I got a surprise day off! ;)

I'll try to update again soon.

West Fork Trail w/Lauren

Last weekend we headed up north to our favorite hiking trail with Lauren for the first time. Lauren had so much fun and,as Dan and I said while we were hiking,as good as it was with the three of us before, it's even better with the four of us now.



Half way through the trail there is a swimming hole where the creek gets deeper and we sat in the shallow end with Lauren. She had so much fun, she didn't want to get out!


Bailey also had a great time and I think it made her feel a little more like things were going to be okay in this new life with our newest addition.

One Great Day

We recieved Lauren's official U.S. Citizenship document today and it was such an awesome feeling seeing this document with, "Lauren Elizabeth Yu Davenport, US Citizen" written on it. She's official! :)

We all had the day off together today as well and since Lauren has been starting to run we decided it was time for her first pair of running shoes! Uncle Larry, we thought of you a lot today and these pic's are especially for you. :)

I also brought out the rebounder today and she had a blast jumping on this with her new shoes. Today was just one of those days that I know I will look back on as some of the best times in my life. As I rocked Lauren to sleep tonight, I put her in her crib, and then sat back in the rocker and just watched her. She is so beautiful inside and out. I am just amazed that I have been chosen to be this incredible little girls mommy.

I also found out today that referrals from China have been sent out and they are now up to the LID of March 24th. This means many of my fellow March LIDers are NEXT in line! I am soo excited and am looking forward to the day that I am able to see all of you with your daughters. Take it from me, as hard as it is to believe right now, this wait will be a distant memory very soon. :)

Love to all,

Goodnight :)

Birthday Party Pic's

Hi everyone,
First of all thank you so much for all the gifts, cards, calls, etc. We are just amazed at what an awesome family and group of friends we have. Life continues to be the best of our "golden years". It's been hard going back to work and school, but it makes me just that much more happy to pull into my driveway each night.

We are really excited to be going to welcome Kailahni Schneider home! She arrives tonight on the same flight from China that we arrived on just 3 weeks ago! We are soo excited for Mary and it's awesome seeing our March LID group coming home with our daughters! Terri will be at the airport as well and I can't wait to be greeting her soon with her new daughter! Kayce, Steph, and Sooze, you're soo close!! I'm rooting for a big batch of referrals and cannot wait to follow you all on your journeys. We will definetly all have to get together once we are all back from China.

Love you all. Hi to my Michigan family. You are such a blessing to us and we are praying you are able to come visit at Christmas!!