after waiting 256 days (that is 8 months, 13 days), we became the legal parents of Declan!

our original court date was august 19th, but due to circumstances beyond our control or understanding, our final adoption hearing was rescheduled to today. while the state laws of indiana require a 3 month period for the finalization of our adoption, the state laws of nevada (where dexwas born) require a 6 month waiting period. so we’ve been waiting, and waiting, and waiting for this day to happen for us.

 
and when we arrived on time for our appointment, we learned that we’d have to wait some more. 2 hours in fact. 2 hours in a stuffy hallway with an 8 month old and a 17 month old was interesting (our morningstar family entourage).
add in a 4 year old, an 18 month old, a 3 month old and a 4 month old, and it was amazing there weren’t more meltdowns. and that was just the hallway. there were even more babies and children in the actual waiting area for the court room. all during naptime!
i was so pleased by the good behaviors of our boys. despite the waiting, the warmth, the boredom & the hunger, dex & jake did great!

when it was finally our family’s turn in the queue of 6 final adoption hearings, it lasted all of 15 minutes. a few questions posed to jon & i about the adoption process and then the judge approved our request. YAY! oh, and dex was a amazing during all of the proceedings as well. we are greatly blessed to have a wonderful son with a joyful disposition.

and now at 8 months, he’s so fun to be around. yes, there’s been some rough fussy phases that we’ve endured. but once he’d made it through the developmental struggle, the fussies hibernate for a few weeks. some of the fun things he’s learned or currently learning:

and that’s just the things i can recall at this point!

thank you family & friends for joining us on this journey. we’ve appreciated your support & prayers during this time, and we know how loved we all are. We are the happy, blessed parents!

We are thrilled to announce the arrival of Declan Kekoaokalani Morningstar.

1st – pronounciation guide & meanings :: 
Declan (deck-lin)  origin gaelic – full of goodness
Ke koa o ka la ni (Kay ko-ah oh kah-la-knee) origin hawaiian – the warrior from heaven

2nd – stats ::
Weight – 8 lbs. 9.3 oz
Height – 20 in.
Head circumference – 14 in.
Date: January 11, 2010
Time – 4:36pm Pacific
Place – Reno, Nevada

Click here for our simple photo gallery of Little Man Dex.

Our heartfelt thanks to everyone around the globe who has been praying for us. Not just for the new addition to be part of our family, but for the health & well-being of his wonderful, caring birthmother; for the staff here at Renown Regional who have been great to us as adoptive parents; for the most peaceful labor & delivery we could have imagined; for all travel plans & arrangements (huge thank you for the Ken & Becky Holderman and Jim & Patti Hemsley); and especially for Little Man himself. We feel so loved and supported by all of you during this blessed time in our lives. This little guy will know how many people have prayed for him and loved him before he was even born.   Our biggest thanks is to God Himself – for His wonderful ways and His plans for our lives. Without Him, none of this would have been possible.