The question is not "To be or not to be," it is what we should be until we are not.-Soren Kierkegaard

And tomorrow is a big step in who we want to be.

Tomorrow we have our first court date for J. From what I understand, this is to find 'grounds'; grounds to terminate parental rights, even though J's mother is voluntarily giving them up.

The next step will be 'findings'. Hopefully the judge will 'find' that J belongs in a good adoptive home-preferably ours, since he's known no other and seems to be thriving.

The last step will be the adoption, complete with a party at the courthouse and balloons and champagne.

All of this could be finished within sixty days-or six to seven months. Not knowing J's father puts uncertainty into the court system.

But speaking of thriving, our youngest is 'scooching'-getting around doing a form of an army crawl. He's fast enough to get into trouble, but not so fast that we don't have time to finish baby-proofing. He's eating more table foods-not a one he doesn't chow down on. He's getting a little Buddha-belly. And clapping. There's our update on his progression.

What we want to be is a family-and that's what we've been being. Our last task is to convince the court to acknowledge us as what we are.