It's now on public record...

Have you ever had to appear in court? Both Jim and I have. He for a traffic violation as a teen and I had to evict a tenant of my Dad's. It is intimidating and we felt out of sorts because you know there are "court rules" of etiquette and also big decisions that impact your life are going to happen in that room.

Today we went to court and the mood was a bit more cheerful. When we walked in, we were stunned to see the judge's desk lined with balloons, beanie babies, plants and a little stepstool right in the middle of the desk. Today was a celebration indeed! We had to go sit upfront and our social worker sat across the aisle. The judges opened the proceedings by talking a little bit about National Adoption Day and one of the Michigan Supreme Court justices was there as well. Our social worker had to recommend Ty for adoption and said, in court, on public record (we have a video of it too) that we are good parents. Then they asked us if we had anything to say. We said how thankful we are and blessed to have both our children. And, as Ty didn't protest, they made him our legal son. Ta da!!! It was official when Marie climbed the step stool and smacked the judge's gavel hard on the little stand. The judge made Marie explain to him that she and Momma had on matching dresses for the day. Then it was present time for the kids and we had a nice luncheon there at the courthouse.

The kids were given balloons, cake, stuffed animals...thankfully, they are now both napping.

Photos of the day...