Baby Shower!

Yesterday was the baby shower for our very loved little boy. Some people have already asked me if it was weird at all being a part of it, but I didn’t feel that way at all. In fact, even when I was still in Alaska I was hoping to be a part of the baby shower! There were about 30 people in attendance, and Bill, Shelley and I didn’t know most of the people there. But once again, I was reminded of how wonderful of a place this little boy will be raised in and the incredible people who will be around him.
From the time we first arrived, there were friends and family members who were so excited to meet us. I had people coming up to me saying how happy they were that I was becoming a part of Doug and Maura’s family, how they couldn’t wait to get to know me better in the future, and how excited they were to meet the baby. Maura’s niece led the group in a Mad Libs about our adoption story, which turned out to be really funny! Everyone got to paint a onesie (he’ll be well stocked with a very creative wardrobe for the first year of his life!), and we all wrote down our guesses for the due date, time, and weight . When it was time to open the gifts, Doug, Maura, Bill and I all sat on a sofa and took turns opening them. Bill and I gave them a framed print to hang in the baby’s room of a giraffe walking up to a house, with the title of the painting being “Home Coming.” We also got him some really snuggly winter onesies, one of them came with a little hat with bear ears on it. Doug and Maura gave Bill and I each a photo album, with a card about how wonderful it will be to fill them up with memories of our baby and our times together.
Before we opened presents, one of the guests pulled Maura and I aside and gave the both of us gifts. We each got a card with a hand written note that

(Here we are hard at work painting onesies)

celebrated the bond between us as mothers, and we both got matching necklaces. It was such a sweet gesture, Maura and I really appreciated it and we love our necklaces. We also got a toast from Maura’s mother, who welcomed Bill and I into the family, and thanked Shelley for her special role in our lives. I have to admit that I was thankful when I looked at Maura and saw her watery eyes, which assured me that I wasn’t the only teary eyed sap in the room.
All in all it was a great time. I never felt uncomfortable, and was so happy to see all the people who supported our son’s future family. We were able to meet more of Dougs family who came in for the shower and visited again with some family members we had already met. The guests made it a point to tell me that I couldn’t have chosen better parents (which I already knew!), but at the same time I didn’t feel like it was only about the baby. They were all so supportive of our open adoption relationship and went out of their way to welcome Bill and I into their circle of friends.

(here's my cute little onesie I painted for my favorite little monkey!)