She did a doodle; your turn to change her. I'll give you a thousand dollars if you'll do it.

We're alive!  So, I promised the story of the adoption and here it is, mixed with some cute pictures of Berlin from the last six weeks, in categories and chronological order.  Yes, I am OCD. But as my friend Baylee says, it should be called CDO, so that the letters are in alphabetical order.

Here she is just lying around

4/21

4/24

4/29

5/3

5/10

Now, wait for it!

Here it comes...

Big Smiles!

5/22

Okay, so on Wednesday, April 13th, Liz called me to tell me she was on her way to the hospital.  She had gone to the Doctor that afternoon and he decided to send her to the hospital because of severe swelling and high blood pressure.  She still wasn't dilated at all and Berlin hadn't dropped yet, so she knew she was in for a long night.  She wanted to try to have the baby normally if possible so she wouldn't have as long of a recovery.  Anyway, her mom called me around 7:00 that night and told us nothing was really happening and to just come to Phoenix in the morning.  So that is what we did.  I didn't get much sleep, mainly because I was so excited.  We left our house on Thursday, April 14th, at 5:00 AM, picked up some breakfast burritos in Globe, and got to the hospital at 8:30.  

Pause for more pictures...sleeping this time. And for the record, I do not pose my baby, she comes up with this stuff on her own.

 4/24

 4/27

 4/27

 5/3

5/6

 5/7 

5/13

5/17

5/17

 5/21

5/23

So they induced Liz and did all sorts of unpleasant things to try to start the labor, but Berlin wasn't really cooperating.  So, around 5:00 PM Liz's doctor came in to talk options.  She could continue to try having the baby vaginally or do a c-section.  The entire day, Liz's swelling and blood pressure issues remained a concern, and they weren't going away, so she didn't have the option to go home and wait.  Her doctor recommended the c-section because of a lot of factors.  Liz decided to follow his recommendation, and got prepped for the c-section.  They only allow one person in the operating room with the mother, so Liz's mom went in with her.  But Liz's nurse said she would come and get me after Berlin was born, even though it was technically against the rules.

Okay, now for some funny shots!

Yawning

4/24

5/10

Punching- she likes to do this in her bouncer while wearing her mittens that coincidentally look like baby boxing gloves, haha!

4/25

5/8

Story Time-CUTEST THING EVER!  She loves it when we read to her, especially Josh; she likes his voice.

5/14-one month old

Bath Time-Berlin loves her bath A LOT

4/23

5/26

After bath time-she DOES NOT like to get out

4/27

5/26

Is it bad that these make me laugh?

 My Personal Favorite-plotting to take over the world...or maybe just our lives!

 4/25

Liz was taken back to the c-section operating room at 7:37 PM and Berlin was born at 7:44 PM.  Those c-section deliveries are fast!  Liz's mom said Berlin was sucking her thumb when she came out.  She was 8 lbs 13 oz and 19.5 inches long, and she looked really cute from the very beginning.   When they took Liz back, a different nurse told us to go wait back out to the waiting room and she said I wouldn't be able to see Berlin until Liz was back in her room.  So we waited, and then Julie, Liz's mom, came and got me.  She said the nurse sent her to get me.  Anyway, I got back there, and they had just finished cleaning Berlin and were taking some vitals.  Liz was coming out of the anesthesia, so the nurse let me hold Berlin and feed her a bottle. Then I took Berlin over to Liz so she could see her and hold her since she hadn't yet.  We just talked about how Berlin is like the cutest baby ever.  The minute Berlin heard Liz's voice, she started looking around for her. It was pretty special to be back there.  Liz said when she saw me holding her, she knew I was supposed to be her mom, and the same thing happened when Josh held her for the first time.  That was such a HUGE blessing for all of us.  Liz was downright amazing from this point on.  

I never once wondered if she was going to change her mind after she had Berlin.  The caseworker told us that birth moms really have to make the decision to place their child twice: before the birth and then again after.  Liz made this look easy and I couldn't have asked for a better birth mom in those four days between birth and placement.  She was INCREDIBLE!  We had a pretty great time!  

Picture interruption-these are her sitting up, just chilling.

5/9

5/14-One Month Old!

 5/17

 5/17

 5/20

On Monday, April 18th, Liz signed the papers relinquishing her rights as Berlin's mom. She seemed to do it with ease, even though I know it had to be really tough.  Berlin slept through the whole thing.  Liz has great faith in Heavenly Father and I am so grateful for that.  It is a humbling experience for someone else to choose you to raise a child they carried and delivered into this world.  I can't really wrap my head around it even now.  But I am so grateful there are wonderful, courageous women who do it every day, all for the love of their child.  We love Liz, and all the other birth moms out there.  And we love our little Berlin so much.  It's been a fun challenging experience so far, and we are excited to be her parents!

4/18

4/18

4/18

Our Little Family

"You will not cry, or sneeze or barf or fart! No annoying sounds."

Our new little one does all of these very well, but I don't think they are annoying, of course!  I LOVE everything she does, especially her cute little sneezes!  Seriously, she is like the cutest baby ever.  We have been so blessed through this whole thing, and I can honestly say I don't think it could have been more perfect.  And that is all because of our wonderful birth mom and her amazingly supportive family.  Liz, please know that not only are you a hero in our eyes, but in the eyes of so many others who you don't even know.  We have had so many family members and close friends who are in awe of you.  They love you and pray for you, just as we do. We love you so much and are eternally grateful for your sacrifice.  You are a beautiful, strong woman who deserves all the blessings you can handle!

 And now for the pictures!  I put these on Facebook, but I know some who read this don't do Facebook.  I will write the story of her birth from our my point of view soon, but I am too tired right now.  We are all doing wonderful, and Berlin is already sleeping 3-4 hour stretches at night.  Josh is so cute with her, and I know he is just dying for her to get a little older so they can play.  Anyway, here is our precious daughter, Berlin Elizabeth Jensen!

Here she is just moments after being born. C-section babies are always so pretty.

The nurses let me come back to the recovery room and feed her even though it was against the rules.  She knew EXACTLY what to do with the bottle!  She is a really good eater, and will fit right in with our family-we're foodies.

This was the night she was born, after Liz came out of recovery.

This is the only infant who my husband has ever wanted to hold.  When I asked to hold her, he said Berlin didn't want me to.  She does love her daddy already, and he can get her to burp WAY better than I can.  

All wrapped up in her blanket from Aunt Kathleen!  She loves it.

Watching "Pawn Stars" and cuddling after Liz was discharged.

Her eyes are open all the time!  Liz was so tired, but Berlin loved cuddling with her.

I know, she is the cutest baby ever!

This was taken about 10 minutes before Liz signed the papers.  I can not adequately describe the Spirit in that room.  It was a little slice of Heaven.

She sleeps in her crib really well.  But she does prefer to sleep in the car seat.  She slept the entire drive from Queen Creek to home and while we unpacked the car.  Aunt Kathleen put her in it yesterday so she could have her close while she was in the kitchen and Berlin slept for 4.5 hours!  Woohoo!

Newest Member of our Family

"The truth is, she doesn’t have to choose....

"She can have us both, love us both. And she’ll become a better person because of me and because of you."

Who knows the title of this movie?  My post title is sort of not on subject if you read it in the context of the movie.  Use your imagination, people.

Drum Roll Please!  On second thought, lose the drum roll, it's kind of annoying when everyone bangs on the surface in front of them.  But anyway, we have BIG news!  We have finally found our birth mom!  So without further ado, let us introduce you to Liz!  (Liz, I hope you don't mind that I stole your picture off of facebook. ***Update: I asked Liz and she doesn't mind.)

Liz is GREAT; we totally love her.  And here's a plus-she likes that we're quirky.  Whew, that is a relief.  We met her on a no-strings-attached basis on Friday, January 7th.  But she said she knew we were the right couple the minute she saw us.  How awesome is that?  We had a great lunch and sat and ate and talked and laughed for about two hours and then we did some more sitting at talking and laughing at her house.  It was a great day!  She is seriously the best!  She lives here in Arizona, so we have been able to hang out with her since then as well.  I went to a doctor appointment with her last Tuesday and Josh and I went to the LDS birth mom support group on Thursday.  Then we went out for ice cream with her mom and dad, who were also great.  We had a very nice visit with them.

Speaking of birth moms, the ones we met at the group are amazing! (Liz is still my favorite, but I might be biased).  I just want you all to know that BIRTH MOMS=AMAZING.  These wonderful girls are funny and strong, selfless and caring; pretty much amazing.  Did I mention they are amazing?  Lindsey at the r house defines birth moms really well I think.  She says "When pressed I would say, 'Brave women who make the impossible and usually unpopular choice to choose their child above their own wants and needs and handpick the life they want them to lead while having the courage to realize that that life may not be with them as the everyday mother'."  I like the run on sentence almost as much as what she says in it.  Sitting in the same room with all of the birth moms was an incredibly humbling experience.  The sacrifice they make is HUGE and anyone who thinks otherwise is WRONG.  Just sayin'.  These beautiful young women love their babies so much, and yet they choose to give them a life they can't provide for their child at this time, even though they know how much they will miss them.  How many people do you know who would do that?  It takes a special person to be able to choose adoption.  And even though there is pain and sadness associated with their choice, they know what they did was right.  Josh and I were talking about it today, and he said "Group was pretty cool.  I would go every week if it wasn't so far away."  I totally agree.  Although I thought it was funny that Josh said that, because he was the only guy in the room, and he said about three words total.  Anyway, here is a photo that Chelsey (one of the birth moms) took.  Hi Chelsey! My husband and I thought you were really funny, by the way.  And I really loved hearing a little of your story.

So, would you like to know more about Liz?  Here is some of the important facts that I know.

~ Her favorite cereal is Crispix. Just like me.
~ She is a REALLY good singer. Not so much like me and definitely not like Josh.
~ She loves animals. Just like me and Josh, maybe a little more like Josh.
~ She just graduated as a Medical Assistant. (Help her find a job if you know of one!)
~ She plays the piano and the trombone. Piano just like me, Josh is not so musical.
~ She has three older brothers. Josh and I both have three brothers...weird huh?
~ She is funny and has a great sense of humor. Just like me and Josh.  I would never say so myself, but my friends tell me we're hilarious.
~ She likes to travel, just like me and Josh, and has been to Italy and China. (Lucky! I want that to be just like me, but no such luck.)
~ She likes ice cream. Okay, who doesn't? But still.
~ She likes volleyball. Just like me.  Are you noticing a trend?
I know other stuff too, but I am going to stop there.

Anyway, the title to this post reminded me of another quote I read on the r house blog, but is actually from Desha Wood (who is a birth mom) talking about her son who she placed. 
“He is mine in a way that he will never be hers, yet he is hers in a way that he will never be mine and so together, we are motherhood.”  
And that is totally how I feel, and why I am so excited that we are going to have an open adoption with Liz.  Yeah for Liz!  We are so lucky!