Monday, October 14, 2013

taking risks. and scoring big on craig's list.

Greetings and happy Monday/Columbus Day (worst 'holiday' ever) to lucky people like my banker-husband who get to celebrate such non-holidays. Bah. I'm not bitter at all that he gets to recover from our exhausting weekend by having a nice day off, while I'll be trying to stay awake at work. NOT BITTER AT ALL.

I feel like I should apologize for not blogging on Friday-- Thursday was for sure emotional and depressing, and then when I didn't write on Friday, I felt bad because apparently that worried people (based on your very sweet emails and inquiries)! The truth is-- I felt MUCH better about things on Friday, but we were up bright and early Friday morning packing up the car and hitting the road to drive to North Carolina for a family wedding weekend. There was no time for blogging, although I did my best to respond to emails while in the car. This is the first time I've actually touched a computer since Thursday...I mean...three days of no-computer? I didn't even know it was possible. So anyways- I'll be working hard at catching up on emails and such today...but also I'll actually be at work, so it may take awhile to actually catch up.

First things first: we are still pressing on in our desire to adopt Ellison. I struggle with how many details to share here, and for much of an over-sharer as I am at heart, I really want to protect her family, their situation(s), and their right to privacy, so I hesitate to say much even though I know I've kept everything anonymous and what-not. I just wouldn't feel good blabbing. But then that also makes it hard to explain why we make certain decisions or whatever. So anyways. Sorry if we're light on the details and back stories here. But anyway, at this point, both the birth mom and Matt and I very much want to proceed with the adoption as planned. We all recognize that there is a potential for bumps in the road later on. There has always been that risk-- this isn't really anything new. It's a risk that right now Matt and I are willing to take. Adoption and biological father laws in Georgia (and probably every state, but I can only speak for Georgia) are complicated and there are any number of possible scenarios that could play out with ours. For a quick primer, I located this little document with handy FAQs. I have no idea how legit this web page is or anything about the source, but the answers in the FAQs seem consistent with what we've heard from our lawyers and other people in the adoption field. Questions number 4, 10, and 13 (in the "birth father" section) are particularly relevant in our situation.

SO. We proceed forward with much prayer, a freshly-sobered attitude, and try desperately to cling to hope that this could work out. I am so thankful for all of your promises of prayer and support-- the peace that we felt once we woke up with Friday morning was such a HUGE contrast to the non-stop ugly crying of Thursday...I certainly can't attribute that kind of peace to anything we did. So keep it up, partners. ;)

Skipping over my planned wedding ridiculousness recap in favor of a fun story from last night. But I'll get to the wedding later, because guess what? I WAS THE WEDDING FLORIST. Yeah. True story- and there are pictures!!

 So ever since I started thinking about/planning our nursery (when we initially prepped the room and I made curtains, almost 2 years ago), I've had this great plan that when the time came, I wanted a turquoise dresser (that would also serve as the changing table). I wanted gray walls, a white crib, and above all- a turquoise dresser. That is fact #1.

Fact #2 is that shortly after I made the curtains, I did the #1 Smartest Thing Ever and carried a swatch of my curtain fabric over to Lowe's and proceeded to grab little paint chips that matched the colors in the curtains. It's not that I planned to paint anything all of these colors- I just thought it would be a handy way to always have the room colors with me, in case I ever found something and I was wondering whether it would match/clash with the curtains. I keep them in my wallet and regularly pat myself on the back for coming up with such a genius plan. They are SO handy. You can see me holding them in the pictures of me at the fabric store last week-- they worked perfectly for making sure the fabrics we bought for the crib bedding will match the existing curtains at home. 

So anyways. Although we're still trying to adhere to The Plan and not buy anything much, the fact remains that if I want a turquoise dresser, that's going to require a little more thought and work than just sending someone out to pick it up later once Ellison is home. So I've been scouring Craig's list, yard sales, and the like in hopes of finding a suitable dresser that I can paint my desired shade of turquoise. I figure buying it and doing the manual labor now will be highly preferable to trying to attempt the same thing with a newborn strapped to my chest. High five for these smart mom instincts now, right? Right.

So last week I saw a plain wooden dresser on Craig's List that would have been perfect for my paint and nursery. I contacted the seller and was sad to learn that it had sold almost as soon as she'd posted it. She did say, however, that she was going to be posting a similar dresser the next day, only it would be blue. If I was interested, she'd be happy to send me the photos before she posted it.

DEAL. Sounds great. I'm not really interested in blue, but I can paint over that just as easy as I can paint over brown wood.

She didn't end up contacting me til Saturday night. By then I'd figured that she'd forgotten about me and sold it on CL. But then she emailed me and there were pictures. The dresser was actually really cute, and the 'blue' was really more of a light turquoise. I mean, from the tiny picture on my phone, it actually looked kind of perfect...but then...no. Surely not. BUT I was interested enough to ask if we could come over last night, after we got home from Charlotte, and take a look in person. I mean, the price was SUPER right ($60). The dresser was a great shape. And the paint...well, it could always be painted over again.

So we drive out to her house last night. After arriving she took us out to the garage. In the weird shadowy lighting of the garage, I gaped at the dresser. It looked just like the lighter turquoise paint chip I've been toting around for two years!! Seriously?? And not only that...but it was a really cute dresser! She had just finished painting it-- so this wasn't someone's old nasty blue dresser that'd been hanging out in a garage for a decade. This was a freshly-rehabbed, cutely-hardwared dresser that looked basically exactly like what I'd been envisioning for my nursery!

I pulled my paint chips out of my wallet. I laid the light turquoise one on the dresser.

BINGO.

If they weren't the exact same shade, they were like...well, whatever the next closest thing would be. The seller looked at me and said "what is the paint chip for?"...and I said, "well, it's the color I was planning to paint the dresser. But it looks like you already did." We were both a little giddy and ridiculously excited about the 'coincidence.' She'd just picked the color on a whim. I've been carrying the paint card around for two years.

Of course.

So of course we bought it, and it fit into the back of our hatchback like it was born to live there. But then it turned out that the seller and her husband were both really friendly and warm people. We got to talking about the adoption. Turns out they'd gone through several years of infertility too, before having their sons. We're of similar age, both couples living in small towns...and apparently both wives have a thing for painted furniture filling their garages. So we ended up hanging out with them for about an hour, and before we left we'd all swapped phone numbers and made tentative plans for hanging out in the future!! And she gave me a baby gift!!! Holy cow. She just happened to have a few little 'girl' gifts she'd been waiting to pass on, and...well, there I was. 

We were hoping to get a dresser that I could fix up. We ended up getting the perfect dresser that was move-in ready. And some new friends.

It was a pretty sweet Craig's List experience, if you ask me.

When we got home I couldn't wait to see how the dresser went with our fabrics. Check it out!!


Could it BE any more fabulous?!?! Eeeeeeekkkk!!! I am so excited!!

I finished painting the bookshelf gray and we moved it back in last night, too. I couldn't wait to put our kid books on it and LOOK- suddenly our nursery looks like it might actually be a nursery some day!!



 And now I need to work. Happy Monday!!

30 comments:

  1. What a cool Craig's List story! That worked out perfectly!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think it's great you are pressing forward!!! So glad you had a fun getaway wedding weekend and hooray for the fabulous CL find! Praying!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Wow, that is perfect! It even has the ledge on top for the changing pad.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Wow! I love how The Lord took a simple Craigslist experience and used it, not only to encourage you, but also to make such a special connection! Our God is so creative! So glad you are feeling His peace. Continuing to pray for all involved!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yay! I'm loving how all of these things keep coming together... giving me hope each and every day. : ) The dresser is precious!

    Thanks for the adoption link... super helpful. I think I'm starting to understand what y'all are dealing with. Lots of prayers, but I'm still feeling hopeful!

    Can't wait to hear about your wedding florist skills!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Um, that story is A.Maz.Ing!! And I may have read that document word for word. And considered looking up some adoption cases for precedent. But I didn't actually do that part. Yet.

    So, so glad you're feeling better!

    ReplyDelete
  7. ok so that story just gave me goose bumps!! You can't make that perfect story up!! So Glad to hear you are in a better place now :) Still keeping the prayers going for you guys!

    ReplyDelete
  8. The dresser story is epic. I love her room so far! I'm glad everything is looking a little better after Thursday. I was thinking about you and praying all weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  9. What an amazing story! That's awesome!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I LOVE this story! It was like God was telling you that everything will be alright. Xoxo

    ReplyDelete
  11. The dresser story gives me goosebumps! I love how God is so involved in the details. Continuing to pray that you'll get to be Ellison's mama.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Yay!! First, I'm so happy with your renewed sense of hope and positivity!! :) And that dresser is so delicate and pretty and perfect!

    ReplyDelete
  13. I just died a little with the dresser story. Just saying.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Love that story - a great turnaround after a rough ending to your week!! And it looks great!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Love this, and love that you're going ahead with things. I love the nursery :) we have similar taste, for sure :)

    ReplyDelete
  16. Not going to lie... I was little worried with the "radio silence". Dresser rocks! Such great taste and style.

    ReplyDelete
  17. So glad to hear that you are finding some balance during the ups and downs of adoption. My husband and I are on the same path. Your attitude and blog always inspire me. Keep your hope alive, we'll be praying for you guys out here in Minnesota.

    ReplyDelete
  18. How adorable...both the dresser and Craig's list story! Happy you enjoyed your weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  19. I am so happy to read this blog. I wanted to call you, but I don't have your number - you only have mine and I can't understand why you wouldn't post it on your blog, oh wait, I totally do because that is creepers. I understand so much about having so much to share but not being able to share. There were so many things about our match with LittleM's birthmother that I haven't been able to share at all. It's hard, but it's for his and her best interest. By the way, are you on "Production not Reproduction?" It's like the best adoption website out there. Lots of opinions from all sides of the triad.

    Also, the only thing I've ever found on Craiglist is sexual predators and hoarders. WHY does everyone luck out except for me???

    ReplyDelete
  20. Craigslist has always been such a win for me. I've gotten jobs, furniture, lamps, random items I need on the cheap... nothing but AWESOME. But despite my years of successful CL'ing, your story totally takes the cake. That is just so meant to be. I love it.

    Goes without saying, I hope everything works out. Holding out the hope right along with you.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Okay, the perfect dresser, new friends and baby gifts all from "wanting to get a dresser" -- that is AMAZING!!! I just really love that story.

    And I love the way the nursery is coming together. I can't wait to see the finished room.

    Also, I am just slightly envious that you can add "wedding florist" to your resume. Seriously cool :)

    ReplyDelete
  22. Also, thanks for posting the link to the FAQ About Adoptions in Georgia thing. I read it all and am now completely clear on how it all works. Or not.

    ReplyDelete
  23. That is a great CL story! And now you are best friends and you will have slumber parties, and do each others hair and eat raw cookie dough.. or not. :)

    ReplyDelete
  24. Thankful for that perfect fit of a dresser and the renewed hope that it brings! :)

    ReplyDelete
  25. Love the dresser story, a sign of good things to come! We have a wooden dresser that we found at the Athens Goodwill, stripped the paint, and I wanted to paint green, but hubs ain't goin for it.... We will see what happens ;)

    ReplyDelete
  26. I can't wait to see everything!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  27. What a cool Craigslist story! Fun! And I love the dresser btw!

    So thankful you guys are feeling peace as you continue to move forward in your adoption journey. I pray for you guys often, every morning actually, and will continue to do so!!

    ReplyDelete
  28. This is such an awesome story!!!! I mean, it was totally a God-thing, love when He does stuff like that! How crazy! I love it AND the dresser!!! :)

    xoxo

    ReplyDelete

I love comments almost as much as I love Mexican food. Seriously.