Lily's Court and More

On February 16th I hosted a cooking party! It was for DeMarle at Home products and we had a great time. Many people stayed until pretty late deciding what products to buy and the man who did the cooking, Jim Gordon, didn't leave until after 11. I ended up being able to get quite a few items with the credit from the party and I love trying new things.

Abby and Lily really play well together. Here are a few examples!
Abby's birth father's family sent her a box for her birthday and she had so much fun opening it. We are so grateful that they want to be a part of her life and she absolutely loves getting presents. They always have a way of choosing the right things. Thanks Huff Family!
Our New Beginnings Young Women's program this year turned out to be a very nice evening. Each Young Women leader set up a table for one of the values and Integrity was my assignment. I thought a lot about what to show on the table and ended up with a lot more than I could fit!
On Saturday, the 25th Abby and I wanted to surprise Matt who was on a camp out and tear out the garden to prepare for this year's crops. It was a lot more work than I anticipated as the roots of some of the plants were quite deep and long. But we managed to clean it up. Matt was very happy!
February 29th was the date we've been anticipating for a long time. It was the day the judge could terminate reunification services for Lily's birth parents--the first step in us being able to adopt her. I arrive at the court house at 7:45 not realizing you could not go inside until 8 a.m. Lily's birth parents--Angel and Nick were also there as so we spent 15 minutes outside together. She held Lily and I took a picture, but it is on my phone, so I will post it later. Then we waited over 2 hours before we went in to see the judge and it was an extremely long 2 hours as I sat with her parents most of the time. We went in to see Lily's attorney and I really like him. I told him that the visits were tough on Lily and that she most often came out screaming and crying and had been doing that for at least half the visits. Plus, one of the last times they fed her donuts--a 7 month old eating donuts....the caseworker fortunately stopped them before she had too much. At one point Angel came up and took Lily out of my arms and I just stood there. Lily wasn't very happy with her and when she went to the bathroom she gave Lily to Nick with strict instructions not to give her back to me. Lily then really started to cry and reach for me, so he gave her to me. When I picked her up she gave a big sigh and buried her face in my shoulder. Then within minutes she was asleep. Angel was not happy when she came back....The court process made me feel sorry for Lily's birth parents. The judge reiterated many times that they had not fulfilled their case plan. Then the attorneys fought over how often they could visit her during the next 120 days before the next court date. Angel's attorney insisted that they should still be able to see her weekly even though the caseworkers recommended every other week for one hour. Lily's attorney went to bat and gave many reasons the caseworkers plan would be the best for Lily. Finally the judge agreed and I was relieved. The birth parents also have to set up the visits, so I am hoping that they do not set them up. Finally, the judge said that he was terminating their reunification services and it was over. Angel was emotional and Nick tried to comfort her. Then they went and signed up for their parenting and drug classes. They seemed very motivated to do what it takes to get her back and this made me very nervous. We will see what happens. This next 120 days seems full of unknown and I pray with all my heart that we can keep our Lily forever. I'm not sure what I would do if she left us. We love her more than I can possibly say.
Here is a picture of the court building.
Finally, Abby has been doing quite well in dance and gymnastics and I couldn't help taking this picture of her on the beam at gymnastics. We really appreciate all of Teacher Summer's patience!