FSA Conference

This week we went on a mini vacation to a near by city so that Allan could take a class on computer software for his job. We had so much fun. The company put us up in a Marriott and that was absolutely fabulous. While Allan was in class I went shopping for some Christmas presents. J.C. Penney sent out some coupons so I went there first and found success! The things I bought totaled about $150.00 but I only spent $15.00, saving $139.00 total! Thank goodness for coupons and clearance racks.

We had a lot of fun playing mini golf the first night there. Allan and I don't keep score, instead we like to see how many different ways we can create to hit the golf ball. We like to hit it as if we're playing pool, spinning in a circle, closing our eyes, backwards, and left-handed. We also like to race to see who can get it into the hole first, blocking each other along the way. It was a lot of fun. We forgot our camera that night though so there's no pictures. Sorry.

The next evening we went to a mini museum. It it incredible how small people can make things and still be so intricate. They had three different rooms but the fantasy room was my favorite. I loved all of the little fairies and the music boxes. Allan didn't really have a favorite room but he really enjoyed learning about how the silversmiths created their tiny worlds, and the tiny castles. Here are a couple of pictures.


We ate at Applebees, Cheesecake Factory, and Texas Roadhouse on the company. Woohoo. I haven't been that full in a while and Allan and I both agreed we need to go on a diet until Thanksgiving. But, I just want to say that I love cheesecake especially when there is also chocolate involved.

We also attended our first Families Supporting Adoption (FSA) Conference. The company wasn't paying for that so we stayed at a really cheap hotel, and boy was it a disappointment after the Marriott. It looked like a dorm room, the sink had obviously been broken off of the wall once before and was currently hanging on for dear life. I was a little worried that it might fall off while I was washing my hands or something. The bed and pillows left something to be desired as well. But it was only for one night so we survived.

We really enjoyed the conference. We attended several classes that were really helpful in explaining what to expect. I really enjoyed the birth mothers panel. It really puts a new perspective on adoption when you hear what they go through in placing their babies. I know what it feels like to have your heart ripped out month after month and then to loose the hopes and dreams of ever having a baby, and what it is like to grieve for the children you were never able to have. But, I don't know what if feels like to know that you have a baby on the way and you won't have the opportunity to raise it. To know that someone else will be bringing the baby home with them. I really appreciated the openness of the women on the panel in explaining the heartache that they experienced. They also talked about that even though it was heart-wrenching, they knew that what they were doing was the right thing for their babies. They each talked about how much peace they felt when they finally made the decision to place their child with an adoptive family. I am very grateful for their courage and self-sacrifice, and for the atonement of Jesus Christ that makes it possible for all of us to go through trials that we don't have the strength to face on our own.