Our Story

Exciting family news today!!! Adoption papers came back in the mail today, signed by let's call him "sperm donor". Our little family will be official in no time.


I am very open about my life, my past (even the bad parts), and how I got to this point in my life. This is my story about how I got my happy little family.....

At 23, I was a carefree party girl with little responsibilities and had no interest in a serious relationship. Fun was my top priority! Summer of 2004, one of my girlfriends and I went to Valleyfair, stayed at a hotel, went shopping and made a weekend of it. Sitting at the pool, there was a group of guys our age so we talked to them, drank with them that night and had a great time. We quickly learned they were staying there for the summer for work. I exchanged numbers with the one I hit it off with (later to be known as sperm donor) for now I will call him J. I made a few more trips to the cities and then before I knew it I was there every week even if it was for 24 hours. One weekend late July, I forget my birth control for the weekend. Who would of thought missing three days could make u get pregnant!? Not me!


The 2nd weekend in August I was down there, we went out for some drinks and to play pool. To my surprise my first drink tasted awful and I just felt funny. Didn't think a whole lot of it, just thought maybe I was getting sick. So I took driving role and let the boys drink. The following Thursday night was my "tap room ladies night". My girlfriend and I went out, same thing happened with my drink. We talked about it, and discovered I may be a couple days late. Shit! That's all I could think or say. We decided to go to Perkins (which was a common thing) and the smell of our food made me wanna throw up. That moment, I said "OMG I'm pregnant!" Did I mention my boobs hurt the last two days but I was trying to convince myself it was something else? Couldn't eat my food, could barely sit at that table with it in front of me. Stopped at Walgreens on my way home to buy a test. Couldn't wait until the morning, I had to know now! Yep, positive almost instantly. At the time all I could say was "oh my god! Shit!" my poor roommate at the time, I swear I had her up all night with me freaking out. Called J the next am and here began the downward spiral. Instantly started questioning if it was his, blah blah blah. All my thoughts changed quickly, all I cared about was this baby. J's feelings were the complete opposite. Even asking me about getting a abortion, multiple times. That wasn't even a option to me.


Through the next couple weeks, we got it confirmed at a doctors office, giving me a due date of 4/25/05, started talking about the future, J said he would move here after his work was over, trying to figure out how this is gonna work. September came, they were headed to CA for their last project (which was about 3 weeks long) before headed back to his hometown, Dallas TX. J became more and more distance as the time went on and by Nov he was no longer returning my phone calls. This continued until March 2005. Finally, he calls to tell me when he got home he started using meth on a regular basis, he wasn't moving here, and if I would let him he wanted to come for the birth. At this point, I had high BP, was on bedrest, and very angry with this guy leaving very little to say. When the time came closer I let him come up for C's delivery (now regretting that decision). J slept 18 hours a day, was a crabby jerk the entire time, ate everything I had in my house, and had nothing to say to me. I wasn't getting a paycheck anymore being on bedrest, and he didn't give me a dime for anything. Including gas for my 2.5 hour drive to get him from the airport and drive back. Fun, fun!


Delivery day, he couldn't have been less interested. Lucky for me, I had made my sister my labor coach many months before. J had left and went to my apartment for most of my labor, came back about a hour before I started pushing. In the room he was hiding in the corner and I had my sister and best friend at my bedside. Which I wouldn't of wanted it any other way, BUT why did he want to come for this exactly?! Still unknown.

After C had arrived, J started to act like a human again and I saw a glimpse of the guy I knew 10 months prior. 36 hours later, J left to go back home. He had been here 2 weeks waiting for them to induce me. We all thought it would of been sooner then it was.

During the next 6 weeks, J called almost daily, we were getting along again and it seemed there might be a tiny ray of hope we'd somehow figure this out for this little innocent boy. The last weekend in May, J came back for 5 days. Everything changed. He was back to being a jerk, didn't want to help with C, and even got in my face yelling about C not being his, he didn't believe me, wasn't paying child support, infact called me "crazy" for thinking he would ever pay anything when he's not going to see him. Who said he wouldn't see C? It would just take some work, plane trips, or one of us moving. I did say, I would not move. In my mind, I had this little boy, he was my responsibility, I needed the help and support from my family that was here. I wasn't moving for this guy who was so unsupportive, meth doing, mean guy he had become. He had no interest in moving here anymore, to quote him "Duluth is F**ked up! I can't live here!" I guess his son wasn't a good enough reason.

The day I brought J to the airport, I wondered if I would ever see him again. Sad to say, I was hoping his plane would crash on the way home. I know that sounds mean, but he was so awful to us I couldn't believe this was the father of my child.

We talked briefly the next week or so, I went back to work and so did J. He said once he got his paycheck he'd send me some money to help with daycare ect. Guess who changed his number and never called?! Seriously. Thank god I was able to sign up for daycare help through the county and figured it out on my own. J also never signed C's birth certificate, cause he denied him for so long. After I started getting daycare help, they wanted to find him to pay child support. It took 13 months for them to find him and force him to do a DNA test. After that came back he was obligated to pay. 7 months later I got a half payment for 2 months, then nothing for another year. Quiting your job and working for cash he thought he could get away from it. He now owes me about 10,000 in back pay.

October 2006, DD and I met. DD and C hit it off right away and C loved to jump around on him and seemed so excited to have a guy around. They bonded so quick, like it was meant to be this way. C was into baseball since before he could walk. Always wanted a ball in his hand! DD was excited about that, and took on daddy role and was playing catch with him, teaching him how to bat ect. Not to mention, C was entering his "terrific twos and threes" and DD stuck it out with us. If that didn't scare him away, I knew we were golden. Haha, C was a screamer too...did I forget to say that? It was bad, but yet he was so sweet at least twice a day too :). We took C to his first Twins game summer of 08, he's been in love ever since.

Shortly before C turned 3, he had a new name for Doug(DD), it was Daddy Doug...where DD comes from. So freaking cute! Now, almost 4 years later daddy doug gets to become just daddy. Couldn't be happier or more grateful how things have turned out for all of us. Thank you all for your support during this journey! xo

Coming Together

Remember the week I got back from Vegas and I thought it would be a good idea to start painting?? Well...I am finally finished (for now!). What?! It was only like 4 or 5 or maybe 6 weeks. Some things I put on our registry...(at target of course) I knew I'd have to paint to use them. I have done the living room in tan and brown tones, which matches all my stuff well. Actually didn't require new wall pictures ~yay! Can that count as saving money? I couldn't get a good picture of my dark brown wall, with the big window the sun always had a huge glare. Here is the other two colors :)

 

My bedroom is my favorite to date! Never thought I'd want a black bedroom wall LOL but I am lovin this room! Saw the purple on a episode of The Hills (I know, don't laugh) but thought it was so fun. It was Audrina's bedroom...just incase you were secretly wondering. I was able to make some good use out of some wedding pictures, even our picture that our closest friends and family signed. The purple makes it a little on the girly side...but the black even's it out right? Poor DD lol. He actually seems to like it...at least commented he liked the black wall. The other two walls are gray :)

Can't wait to get blackouts under those curtains!

Vegas ~ Bachelorette ~ Wedding ~ Reception

Where do I begin?!? Its been nearly 2 years, now I am trying to get back into blog world.
Got married 5 weeks ago! In Vegas!!

Wedding was at Planet Hollywood Resort, which was awesome. The couple months leading up to the wedding, was stressful (what wedding isn't). PH was not the best people to deal with. I will never recommend anyone to get married there. In fact, I will discourage it. We booked a outdoor ceremony 16 months in advance....3 weeks before the wedding they called to say they were booking a pool party with a DJ, 5 feet from where our guests would be seating. Yes, not even kidding. After a couple days of arguing with them, we moved inside and got comp'd with a very fancy suite on the top floor of PH. Honestly, not worth it or a fair trade to me. Um, this is my wedding and they just f*#ked it up! What made us agree to this was when we were told our pictures could be outside.... Guess what wasn't outside?! Still got a bunch of good, cute pics, but still...thinking about writing a letter to the head guy at PH and see what happens. There was so many things along the way in the 16 months we dealt with them. Happy that part is over.

We had a wonderful Vegas vacation as well! We went out there 3 days before the wedding and stayed a couple days after:) never get enough! There was a bachelor/bachelorette party Vegas style 2 days before. Thats the way to do it! Us girls went to Dicks Last Resort for apps and drinks. Highly sarcastic wait staff...that will give bachelorettes lap dances. It was a blast! Then on to see the Austrailian strip show Thunder from Down Under...yummy! Must say the host of the show (also a secret dancer) is my favorite:) Ended our night at LAX, a dance club inside the Luxor. I have mixed feelings about that place. There was so much roped off for VIP tables and walkways and dancefloors. The part that was for us normal people that only wanted to spend $10 a drink instead of buying a bottle of vodka for $300 was so crowded. If I could afford to spend $300 on a bottle of vodka we would of been, well, high rollin. Since we were not...we missed the "be prepared to be pushed, bumped into every 10 seconds, and 20 minute lines at the bar" sign before we got in the door. OR maybe they should have those...just a thought. So I wore cute heels (of course) out, started our night at 7:30pm...ended about 3:30am. All of our places were at Excalibur, I was staying at MGM Grand. Which is "technically" across the street. With walking through the casinos, up and down the stairs, across the bridges its probably close to a mile. Since everything is so damn huge. Dancing in heels for that 4 hours we were at LAX, the second we stepped out the door back into the casino, my drunk ass took my shoes off. thats right, walked barefoot across the dirty, alcohol spilled, ashed on, casino floor. It gets better.....Shelly and I were solo by the very end. We had to walk through what seemed like every inch of the Luxor to get to the moving walkway to Excalibur. Moving walkway and barefeet do not mix! Tried to put my shoes back on for this....so swollen it wasn't happening. sad. So what do I do after many cocktails, sat my ass down. There was a couple guys that even offered piggy back rides lol. I didn't take them, I was gonna suffer through it I guess. Finally got to Excalibur which felt like 2 hours later. Shelly went up to her room, and I went right out the front door and got a cab to take me across the street. My first words to the cab driver was not "MGM please" it was "please don't laugh or be mad" LOL he did giggle a little bit and say I don't know whats wrong with you girls that you wear shoes like that. At that point I didn't know either. Never felt feet pain like that in my entire life. Also, hope not to ever again. I laugh about it now, but if I would of tried to make it outside I am afraid I would of ended up sitting on the bridge crossing Las Vegas Boulevard hanging out with the homeless guy begging for money. Just couldn't risk it. The next day was also rough, good thing I was fine for Friday!

The men, started for apps and drinks at ESPN Zone, then off to Fantasy which was a topless girl show, then met us girls at LAX to end the night. DD will have to start his own blog to fill you in on his bachelor night. The basics that I remember, ESPN Zone kicks ass. Fantasy is not worth going to. LAX, the boys seem to have the same opinions we did.

We had lots of pool time. C loved the lazy river, could of stayed in there all day! There was a Spongebob arcade that he fell in love with, we almost had to buy another suitcase for all his prizes and stuffed animals he won. DD and I didn't get as much casino time as we would of liked. We did get out Saturday night to play some cards at the Flamingo(so fun!) and won some money to take home with us. Since Saturday was the only night we really had to to enjoy Vegas, we thought it would be smart to take advantage of it and stay out gambling and walking the strip all night long. Got back to PH about 5:30 am...Oh! and did I mention our shuttle for the airport was picking us up at 6:45am?? hahaha at 5:45 we decided to try and stay one more day. Checked with PH and the Miss America padget was that next night so they had no rooms. Thought, thats ok we can move hotels....so called the airline. $200 PER TICKET! Of course we said no, took a 20 minute power nap and got on the shuttle. We get to the airport at 7am to get asked if we would be willing to switch our flight because they are overbooked. REALLY?!? I thought I was going to go postal. I am not a very nice girl when I am tired, then throw in crabby...and you're better off to just not talk to me at all. DD has learned this, incase you were wondering. Took a 2 hour nap on the plane then drove home from mlps. Longest day ever!!

I had another 4 days off after we got back, which kicked ass! I thought I'd try to be "normal" for my last couple days off and do NON wedding stuff! (that was dumb!) So I started to paint my living room. Which by the way, took me 4 weeks to actually finish! Then as I went back to work...for 8 days in a row keep in mind. I started to realize just how much we had to do before the reception. Stress level rising on a daily basis! Ativan please...

Three weeks of madness later, we had our reception. Those three weeks is where my procrastination flaw came in to haunt me! I didn't realize just how much was left to do in this short of time. I was trying to play catch up at work with my hours, even had to work 3 weekends in a row (ROUGH)! Did I mention I had three showers in April and I still had piles and piles of gifts scattered around my house?? good times. After multiple 1am bedtimes, I think we finally finished with two days to spare. Thanks to my bridesmaid Jaime for coming to rescue me and help one night, and to set things up at Blackwoods. Love that girl! Then my FL BFF (also bridesmaid) Lucie, who took time away from her family here in MN to come help me finish 2 nights before the reception when I was about to admit myself into a padded room. LOL. Everything turned out great and I had a amazing time.
Thank you to everyone involved, for all your help, all our guests, our kick ass bridal party that made it to Vegas, and all of your support along the way! We love you all <3>