How You Doin'?

First, what t.v. show is my title from? Second, is it legal for me to use that as a title?

Okay, sorry. On with the show. I want to thank those of you that take the time to read and comment on my blog. I know by blog standards it's probably not that many, but I just took a look at the stats and by my standards, it's a lot. I've always loved writing, and as a child, I dreamed of being a writer. Unfortunately, I don't think my fiction writing is anything spectacular. I'm too analytical, and it always falls flat. So I think I'll stick with sometimes slightly exaggerated truth. (If you read my blog but have never commented, I'd love for you to give me a shout out and tell me who you are. Is shout out like so 1999?)

Our Dossier is in Bulgaria being translated, but the MOJ is asking that all new and recently submitted Dossiers get new medical letters so I'll be calling our doctor in the morning. Thankfully, we have a fabulous and supportive family doctor.

We're almost done with the second week of school (like how I rapidly change topics without transition?). It's taking us a little while to find our groove, but we're getting there. One of the things I love the most about teaching is also one of the things that I also find the hardest to deal with. I was going to say "hate" but that's not really correct. Anyway, it's getting all new students every year. I really have a huge love-hate relationship with this. I love a whole new set of kiddos to get to learn about and work with, but man, oh, man is it hard to let my other kids go. First of all, they're trained. Does that sound horrible? I'm sorry, but it's true. They know me. They know the routines, the rules, how to push my buttons, and so on. Second, I just miss them. And then before I know it they are in high school and driving and too cool for the likes of me, and you'll find me crying in the corner of the classroom. But I'll get used to my new kids, and they'll learn what makes my world go 'round, and I'll try my best to figure out what makes their worlds go 'round. Then just about the time we all have it down pat, it'll be time for them to move on, and we'll start the whole process over again. Such is the life of a teacher.

As far as three (almost four) year olds go, just about the time I think I've figured out what makes Andrew tick, he changes it all up on me. I guess that's a preschooler's perogative. Anyway, my little man is doing much better. His voice is less raspy, and he's breathing without any problems. I'm extremely thankful for that.

Well folks, we survived more than half of the week. Only two days to go, and then (hopefully for everyone) a three day weekend!

Some Slightly Sarcastic Tuesday Tidbits

Isn't alliteration an amazing thing? It just makes everything sound so superb. I'll stop now.

Did you enjoy my thrilling post about meal planning? I know . . . it brought your life to a place of completion. You. Are. Welcome.

Right now the news is talking about people that drive slowly in the left lane. Isn't that one of the most irritating things in the world? People if you're going to drive slowly (or the speed limit) move over. Not that I ever speed.

The other day, I was talking to Patrick about something funny that happened to us once upon a time. At the time, I was thinking, "That would make a great blog post". Wish I remembered what we were talking about. I just asked Patrick, "What were we talking about the other day that was funny . . . you know, that happened to us . . . you know, that was funny?". He just looked at me like I was crazy. This is happening more and more frequently. If I remember, I'll write it. If not neither of us will ever know what you've missed.

Have I told y'all that I'm running fumes by the end of the school day? As if you coulnd't tell. Do you see how I just spelled couldn't? My point is made. I think part of the problem is the heat. It should be against the law for the temperature to reach 113, much less at the end of August.

Fortunately, the end of the week looks to be cooler. Like around 98. I may break out the parka and the snow boots. I kid. I'll wait until it's at least 75 for that kind of foolishness.

Today, I got kind of annoyed. I so rarely get annoyed that it only happens in days that end in "y". I'll save you the effort. All days end in "y". Anyway, I had another adoptive parent (that I've only had contact with through email and very little at that) basically tell me that we should've picked another country besides Bulgaria because according to her sources, it would be at least 3.5 years before we saw a referral. She thinks she's the queen of adoption stats. Courtney! That was ugly! Still it annoyed me. I don't want to wait 3.5 years. Heck, I don't want to wait 12 months. But wait we will until we receive a referral. So na-na-boo-boo. There's more to that. I used to get in trouble for saying it when I was little. I'm much more mature than that now.

I think I should probably stop writing. I'm in a sarcastic smart-alec sort of mood. I'll blame the heat. It gets the blame for everything else.

Hope you have a wonderful whimsical Wednesday everyone.

Planning Ahead

Hold on to your pants people. This is a super exciting post . . . okay, so I'm lying, but I thought I'd share anyway.

By nature, I'm a control freak planner. I like to know what's going to happen and when it going to happen and usually, how it's going to happen. But when it came to meal planning and grocery shopping, I've always let the chips fall where they may. I figured why not let the question of "what's for dinner?" be a mystery that gets solved around 4:30 every afternoon.

I love to cook. I love to throw things together based on how I feel at the moment. Before, I had Andrew this was really not a problem. I'd decide what we wanted at the end of the day, run in the store, grab what we needed, and head home to make dinner. But since I had Andrew, dinner has been more work than fun. Especially, on days when I'm working. So finally, after fighting this battle for almost four years, I decided to plan our meals. Yuck and boring. I also, decided to plan them for an entire month to save time. The last and only element of surprise has now been removed from my life (slight exaggeration? maybe). And you know what? It's not as bad as it seems.

So here it is in all it's glory. My goal is to cook four nights a week. Most weeks it happens. Wednesday nights are mostly sandwich nights. No need to plan that. Of course, this isn't set in stone, but after doing this whole meal planning thing for a month, I have found it to be very helpful. I look ahead to the next week and know what I need to buy and what I have. It cuts out a lot of the guesswork and the "oops, I didn't thaw anything out for dinner". Also, I've found that I've been saving money at the grocery store. I used to start with a basic list and grab as I went through the store. But now I know exactly what I need, and I don't buy a lot of extras. I will probably stick to this when I'm working, but when I'm off, I think I'll wing. Makes life more interesting.

So that's it. I told you it was exciting. But really, it's fairly simple and straightforward. And yes the picture is in sepia . . . not because I feel that it makes the thing look better but because that's what my camera was set to when I took the pic, and I was in a hurry to get it taken. If Patrick caught me taking pictures of my meal plan he would (1) laugh at me and (2) think I was completely off my rocker. And he may not be far off.

Attack

Note: Just before I was going to post this, I checked on Andrew, who has been sick, and noticed that he was sleeping but breathing very rapidly (almost like a dog panting). His ribs were also retracting, and I quickly decided that a trip to the ER was in order (no, I don't make a habit out of ER trips). Anyway, after one lung x-ray (clear), a dose of steroids, a breathing treatment, checking his breathing rate and oxygen levels five or six times (which both improved considerably after the steroids and breathing treatment), two prescriptions, and a diagnosis of croup (yes, I was right, but I'm not bragging) we were on our way.

In some ways I hesitate to post this, but in others I feel like I need to. If you know me personally, you know that I'm a pretty grounded and practical person. I'm not flighty by any stretch. I'm not the type of person that sees a devil around every bush. While I firmly believe that satan can and does attack people, I also think that some things go with the territory of life. Tires go flat, car batteries die, you forget everything you need for work one day . . . it's life, and we live in an imperfect world. Having said that, I've felt like since we got everything notarized and apostilled for our Dossier and ready to send off, the devil has been working overtime in the "attack" department.

The good news is the Dossier is on its way to Bulgaria. But y'all there have been a few times in this adoption process when I've felt fear so strongly that I could hardly think straight. It's not your run-of-mill everyday fear. It's an unnatural fear (and it usually hits around 2:00 a.m.). There is no other way to explain it. In the past two weeks, I've been not been feeling too great physically. Of course, some, if not a lot, of this probably has to do with the stress of being back at work, but another part of it just seems unnatural. To top it off, Andrew started out with a mild cold on Thursday and Friday and yesterday it suddenly ballooned into to fever, croup-type cough (I'm not a doctor so I won't say it's croup . . . . even though it's croup), and some vomiting. Andrew gets sick. He's a kid and kids don't have the greatest hygiene. But last night when I was lying in his bed with him and praying for him, the thought that we were/are being attacked was screaming in my head.

I firmly believe that the devil hates adoption. First, because it's a picture of what Christ has done for us. He has adopted us into His kingdom and called us His children. How beautiful is that? Second, because it takes a child out of a life with little hope and gives them hope. I believe that the devil does everything he can to discourage parents and try to bring them down and sometimes out-and out stop the process. But the thing is "greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world." (1 John 4:4)

I'm asking you to pray for us and with us today. We are nothing special but feel overwhelmingly that we are meant to be where we are and doing what we are doing. I ask you to pray for adoption families in general as they face the challenges, trials, and triumphs of this process.  I'm asking you to pray specifically for a little fellow named Danil. I don't know all the details, but I know that he is basically being denied adoption due to the specific name of his type of Down Syndrome. And finally, I ask you to pray for us to be strong and healthy physically, mentally, and emotionally and to have favor throughout this process.

Ephesians 6:10-18

The Whole Armor of God
¹⁰ Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. ¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ¹² For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age,^[c] against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. ¹³ Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
¹⁴ Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵ and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; ¹⁶ above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. ¹⁷ And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; ¹⁸ praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints

Just Stuff

• What am I going to blog about for the next one to two years? Obviously, I'm not blogging about adoption on every post right now, but I still have quite a few "adoption" related posts. But there's going to be a lot less info coming our way for quite a while. Of course, I'll still update when the opportunity presents itself, but will y'all still read if the updates are fewer and further between?
• Another family received a referral of a three year old girl last week! Did I already tell y'all that? I can't remember to save my life.
• In yesterday's Bulgaria update a young man wrote about returning to the orphanage that he had lived in as a child. One of his caregivers was still there. He said (I'm paraphrasing here) that he had never believed he was really loved, but realized how much he was loved when he went back. It made me cry. I thank God that there are people willing to care for the precious orphans in Bulgaria and all over the world.
• I survived the first week of school in spite of 100+ degree temps. Nuff said.
• Speaking of heat . . . I wish it would go away.
• We picked up our mail last night on our way home from dinner. Our electric/water bill was in there. Geeze Louise the water bill was high. Oops.
• I already have papers to grade this weekend. I don't waste any time. Tests on the first week of school? Yes, please.
• I'm really sorry for the people that have to endure Hurricane Irene, but hurricanes in general fascinate me. They are so powerful and awesome and amazing.
• I think Andrew has my lack of spatial relation skills among other things. Poor kid.
• Also, Andrew's feet stink. He wore his sandals (which obviously need to be burnt) last night, and when he took them off, his feet stunk like nobody's business. We scrubbed his them (his feet not the sandals), but they still stunk. Gross? Yes, but he thinks it's hilarious. Boys.
• Well, that's about all I can think of that's of relatively little importance. Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Super Quick Update

Let's see if I'm capable of doing a short post.

Our Dossier is heading to Bulgaria this week. Woohoo! We should be registered with the Ministry of Justice by the end of September. Woohoo! The wait from registration to a referral is 12-24 months. Not so woohoo. But really, we are so excited and relieved to be at this point.

Now how's that for a short post?

The week's almost over everyone! Smile and be happy.

These Boots (ummm . . . shoes) Ain't Made for Walkin' . . .

Disclaimer: I blame the meaningless ramblings of the following post and the horrific grammar in the title on the fact that I am virtually brain dead.

Okay, here's the deal. I'm not sure if I have a brain cell left in this head of mine. First of all, no one in their right mind voluntarily gets up at 5:30 in the morning. If you are hopping out of bed all happy and Sunshine Susie before seven then I think you need to have your head examined. I'm just saying.

It's only Tuesday and only the second day of the school year, and I'm plumb wore out. It has nothing to do with the kids. It's just that my feet, back, head, throat, and everything else that can hurt does hurt (slight exaggeration? . . . maybe). I haven't had to think or talk this much since May. And I talk a lot on most days of the year. I may or may not even talk to myself on occasion. Now thinking? Well, it depends on who you're talking to.

So here's the main reason my entire body is in the throes of pain at this very moment, I wore heels to school yesterday. Occasionally (or like once a week), I feel the need to do something stupid like wear heels. Have y'all seen fourth graders lately? They're like seven and a half feet tall. I'm not. In all honesty, it doesn't matter. After eight years of teaching I have the "teacher" look down pat . . . whatever that means. Back to the heels. The heels looked cute so I wore them. Thankfully, I'm starting to get feeling back in my little toes. Apparently, the angle of these particular shoes constricted the blood flow to my toes. Hence rendering them feelingless. I also have absolutely no arch in my foot and weak ankles which frequently give way and almost cause me to fall. The operative word being almost. To date I haven't fallen and when my ankle (or ankles) gives way, I just keep walking as if I have no clue that it almost snapped in two. All of which leads into the fact that I probably shouldn't wear heels. But do I let that stop me? Are you kidding? Cuteness reigns supreme on Mondays, Tuesdays, and sometimes Wednesdays (depends on how the week is going). By Thursday and Friday common sense has kicked in and sensible shoes are the star of the show.

Not to worry though. By next Monday, the feeling will be back in my toes. My feet, legs, and back will no longer hurt. And I'll have completely forgotten how painful heels are. Thus forcing me to strive for cuteness once again. Maybe next week I'll wear these . . . or maybe I'll just wear them tomorrow. I don't have any brain cells left. Remember?

I Call His Name . . .

I never used to feel that I was an overly emotional person, and I've always prided myself on being rather level-headed. Having a child killed a lot of that in me. First of all, tears come much more quickly than they used to. I think having a child tends to bring out the tender side in a person. As far as being level headed goes, well let's just say I've put my phone in the refrigerator more times than I can count since I had Andrew. In addition to bringing out the tender side, having a baby also zaps some of the common sense brain cells.

Nevertheless, I think being a mother has to be one of the greatest privileges and honors I've ever been given. There is just something about having the enormous responsibility of shaping the life of a little human being that makes you step back and take inventory of your priorities. Over the past few weeks, I've been reading emails which have been flying back and forth between adoptive parents in a Bulgarian Adoptive Parents groups I'm a member of. To be quite honest, sometimes I just delete these emails because of their enormous negativity, but you can also find some good advice and support in these groups. Anyway, the latest discussion has been about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, and the risk of your adoptive child having it. If you know anything about FAS then you know that it is brain damage due to alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Now the risk in Bulgaria is less than the risk in some of the other Eastern European countries. However, the risk is still present.

As is normal for me, I started to worry about this (along with a million other things . . . it's how I roll). FAS can affect the way a child bonds, as can a myriad of other problems that come from life in an institution. I was already formulating a plan of how we would deal with this problem should it occur, but the truth is if it's not FAS then it will be something else. The list of potential problems is long, and you cannot be 100% prepared for every single one. Then this morning in church we sang "I Call Your Name" by Ricardo Sanchez. The whole song is great, but the chorus really struck a chord with me.

I call your name
Lord You reply
You bring Your kingdom
To stand by my side
giver of life
all that I need
Father Your everything that is precious to me
There is no one like You Lord in all the earth

I've said (and blogged) it before, and I'm sure I'll have to say it many times as we enter the waiting phase, but there is absolutely nothing I can do, outside of praying, for my child to protect her. And while I know that prayer is more than enough, as someone who is not passive by nature, I find this insanely frustrating at times. But then I listened to the words of this song, and I was reminded that those prayers aren't empty words to a distant God. I call His name, and He replies. And furthermore, I serve a God who says "I will never leave you nor forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5). He's the giver of life, and the creator of all things. He created (or will create) both of my children, and they are special and unique because He made them that way. They are not defined by the circumstances surrounding their births. Andrew certainly wasn't, and I don't expect our little girl to be either.

I'm not saying that every moment of the next year or two (or thereafter) will be easy, but I know that God is standing by my side, and I know that I can trust Him to see us through this whole process and beyond. In the meantime, I will continue to pray these scriptures over my children knowing that I serve a God who is more than faithful (I know I've printed this before also, but it never hurts to be reminded).

Psalm 91

Safety of Abiding in the Presence of God

 ¹ He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
         Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
 ² I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
         My God, in Him I will trust.”
       
 ³ Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler^[a]
         And from the perilous pestilence.
 ⁴ He shall cover you with His feathers,
         And under His wings you shall take refuge;
         His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
 ⁵ You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
         Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
 ⁶ Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
         Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.
       
 ⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
         And ten thousand at your right hand;
         But it shall not come near you.
 ⁸ Only with your eyes shall you look,
         And see the reward of the wicked.
       
 ⁹ Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge,
         Even the Most High, your dwelling place,
 ¹⁰ No evil shall befall you,
         Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;
 ¹¹ For He shall give His angels charge over you,
         To keep you in all your ways.
 ¹² In their hands they shall bear you up,
         Lest you dash your foot against a stone.
 ¹³ You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra,
         The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.
       
 ¹⁴ “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him;
         I will set him on high, because he has known My name.
 ¹⁵ He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him;
         I will be with him in trouble;
         I will deliver him and honor him.
 ¹⁶ With long life I will satisfy him,
         And show him My salvation.”

The Beginning of Chapter Two

We began the adoption process on February 14, 2011 when we sent our application to All God's Children International. Just a little over a month later, after signing contracts and sending in payments, we received this binder in the mail.

I remember ripping open the FedEx box in a flurry of excitement. Then I opened the binder. Y'all intimidated and overwhelmed don't begin to describe how I felt. I might as well have been reading Cantonese for all I understood. The thought "how will we ever do this?" flew through my mind more times than I can count. When I talked to our caseworker for the first time, I told her point blank how I was feeling, and she assured me it was normal.

We officially started working on our Dossier on March 17. We officially finished our Dossier on August 18. It may seem like a long time, but in reality it takes a while to gather and get all the documents you need. This unassuming little stack of papers contains some of the most important documents we've ever signed.

If you were to flip through it, you would most likely not find anything of any interest to you. There is no extremely confidential or life shattering information contained in that seemingly (and shockingly) thin stack of papers. But those papers are the key to our little girl. On Monday, we will send that stack of papers off to our adoption agency where they will be translated and sent on to Bulgaria.

Right now, I am feeling an overwhelming sense of relief and thankfulness. God has been extremely faithful throughout this process. Our home study went incredibly smoothly; our family doctor wasn't just helpful, he was encouraging (and is still encouraging us to this day); our USCIS appointment couldn't have been easier; the list goes on and on.

I want to thank all of you for your prayers and support throughout this part of the process. We now begin the wait, and to be honest, we really have no idea how long we will be waiting. As always, we hope and pray that it will be shorter than anticipated, but we are also dealing in the reality of international adoption. I ask you to continue to keep us in your thoughts in prayers as we will definitely need them in the months and years to come. Your prayers mean more than you will ever know.

And that ladies and gentlemen is the end of Chapter One.

1 Samuel 1:27 "For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition which I asked of Him."



Us vs. Them . . . Can't We All Just Get Along?

Sorry if I completely grossed you out yesterday with my tale of a tail (I promise that's my last cheesy "tail" pun). I have a high threshold for grossness (I teach 4th grade) so sometimes I forget that others aren't quite as tolerant as me. Oops.

Anyway, things are moving along. I think Patrick is going to run (or drive . . . ha!ha! . . . I crack me up) the papers to the Secretary of State's office tomorrow to get apostilled. I'm curious to see exactly what this apostille is, and what makes it so stinkin' official.

Work is as usual flying by. My room is not ready, but I do have my lesson plans done for the first week. And all of the long range planning is done. Hallelujah!

Speaking of work (like the smooth segue? pretty good huh?), there's been a lot of talk lately about working moms vs. stay at home moms and vice versa. I'm not sure who started the whole competition, but somehow I don't think it was a mom because, if you hadn't noticed, most moms "work" whether it be inside the home or outside the home or both (I'm sure there are a few out there that lead a life of leisure, but I don't know them personally). Honestly, I don't think I have to justify why I work or even the fact that I work, to anyone but myself, my husband, and my children. But still, it always gets me all riled up when people think and/or imply that I'm less of a mother/wife because I work.

The truth is, I think it is a completely personal decision whether you choose to work or not. When people ask me why I work my short (and snappy) answer is usually, "to pay the bills". But in all honesty, there is more to it than that. I work so that we can pay the bills and still live somewhat comfortably. In addition, my husband is a self employed business owner so it is always good to have one steady income coming in at all times. Finally, while there are plenty of days when I would like to stay home, I like my job. I have a passion for education, and I like working with kids. That doesn't mean that I plan on teaching school forever, but for now, I know I'm where I'm supposed to be. And no matter what I do, my most important jobs will always be being a wife and a mother.

So why tell you all this? Because I know that there are moms out there that feel guilty about going to work everyday, and I know there are other moms who feel like maybe they are settling by being a stay at home mom, and I don't think that either one should feel bad about their choice. If I had one word of advice for a new mother facing the whole work vs. stay home decision, it would be do what's best for you and your family both financially (sorry girls but that's an important one) and emotionally, and don't let others make you feel guilty about whichever choice you make. And that's all I have to say on the topic. Anyone that wants to chime in feel free.

A Whale of a Tail

Sorry for the cheesy title. I couldn't resist.

Remember a couple weeks ago how Daisy injured her tail, and I had to bandage it, and there was blood splattered from floor to ceiling in my house? If you do great! If you don't read about it here.

Anyway, I thought it healed. It looked healed to me, but Saturday morning, I went to let Daisy and Lady out and low and behold, blood . . . everywhere. It was much, much worse this time. Y'all I think she chewed her own tail off (or at least tried). I know that sounds crazy, but sometimes I call her Crazy Daisy. She's as sweet as can be, but she's an extremely nervous dog. And with me going back to work, her nervousness has been compounded. She doesn't like it when I leave.

The tip of her tail seriously looked like ground meat. So, a trip to the vet was more than warranted. Thank the good Lord both my vet's office and my pediatrician's office are open on Saturday mornings. We have had plenty of Saturday emergencies. The vet gave her antibiotics, explained that the tail has a lot of blood flow (hence all the crazy bleeding), cleaned her up, and told me to keep her bandaged. We also decided that it was best to keep the e-collar on her until her tail healed.

Guess what y'all? Dachsunds have long noses and long tails. Which means that even with the dumb collar (which I hate by the way), Daisy still managed to pull the bandages off. I kid you not, I think I cleaned up blood and rebandaged her tail six times on Saturday. She was fine as long as she was in my line of sight. But if she could get away, off came the bandage. Finally, Sunday morning, Patrick made a run to Tractor Supply and bought a muzzle. I hate the muzzle even more than the collar, and I would never muzzle any of my animals except out of neccessity. I'm only making her wear the muzzle when I can't keep an eye on her. But I am really afraid that she is going to do some serious damage to her tail. Needless to say, the muzzle helps some, but if she can find a little bit of tape to pull at with the half a centimeter her mouth will open, off comes the bandage.

Last night I slept with her right beside me to make sure that the bandage stayed on. And when I came home for lunch she was still bandaged so that's good news.

Needless to say, we had an interesting and rather gross weekend (I would show you a pic, but I don't want to make anyone any sicker than I've already made them).

In other news, all our paperwork is notarized and ready to apostille. We should have our Dossier turned in by early next week at the very latest. Yay!

And now I have to finish eating so I can get back to work. Happy Monday all!

An Ode to Laundry . . . Sort Of

It's Saturday! Sheesh folks, it's been a week. I feel like Monday was yesterday. I'm not sure where the time went, but it has been busy. In my two months of leisure, I had forgotten has stinkin' exhausting it is to work full time and keep up with the housework, cooking, laundry, etc., etc., etc.

One thing I've decided is I'm not going to let things pile up. And by things, I specifically mean laundry. I have a very bad habit of leaving all of the laundry . . . sheets, towels, clothes, jeans, whatever else it is that these people in this house get dirty every week . . . anyway, I tend to leave it all for the weekend. Which is a big mistake. We usually have around nine loads of laundry a week (not to mention the folding, ironing, and putting away). Please don't ask how we make so much dirty laundry. But trying to do nine loads of laundry along with all the other chores and cleaning that have to done isn't the smartest idea. So I'm determined to do laundry and change the sheets, towels, etc. throughout the week. I'm also determined to get other things done, like vacuuming the couch, and putting up aforementioned laundry. Which means that on weekdays, I hit the ground running at 5:45 a.m. (which should be illegal by the way) and don't stop until I fall into bed between 9:30-10:00. Which means I'm tired. But it also means that I can enjoy my Saturday, a little bit more so I'm not complaining (too much).

So that's my post on laundry. Which contained too many uses of etc. and ellipses. I apologize for that and quite frankly, for this whole thrilling post. But hey, I'm just "airing my dirty laundry" literally. ;)

One Step Closer

Today was a long, hard, exhausting day. Very little got done in my classroom because I spent 90% of the day working on long range planning. I didn't leave the school until 4:45, which is late for me. By the time I pulled up to the mailboxes down the street from our house, I was hot (probably because it was 106+ outside), I was tired, and I was hungry (what's new?!?). And I may or may not have been a little grouchy. That's up to you to decide.

Back to the mail . . . I went to pull the mail out, thinking that it was most likely all junk, when I saw this on one of the envelopes . . .

And then I danced a little jig. Not really, but it sounds good. You people have no idea how happy I was to see that little stamp staring up at me from the outside of that beautiful envelope. Actually some of you probably do. It made my day . . . no, I take that back . . . it made my week. Inside that envelope was the approval notice from the National Benefits Center. It might as well have been pure gold in my opinion. It was the last piece of paper we needed to complete our dossier. Now we can get everything notarized and apostilled and sent off to our agency. I can see the light at the end of the paperwork tunnel, and I couldn't be more thrilled.

Lessons Learned

Now presenting, in no particular order, the top ten things I've learned (thus far) from being a wife, a mother, a teacher, and dare I say it, an adult:

1. Men are more immature than women. They always will be. Deal with it. It makes life interesting.

2. Whether it be for better or for worse, resist the urge to compare your children to others. Everyone, thinks their child is a genius. It's fine to be proud and share their accomplishments, but there is a fine line between sharing and bragging. And bragging is uncouth and quite frankly, irritating. Likewise, don't worry if your neighbor's kid is doing multiplication problems at four years old while your trying to get your kid to stop picking his boogers. It happens. Be informed. Know what is and is not "normal". If you are concerned about something, then speak up. There's no shame in asking for help.

3. Work hard, but don't be a workaholic. If missing work bothers you more than leaving your sick child while you go to work, then you have a priority problem. We've all had to call on reinforcements from time-to-time, but I can tell you right now that while I love my job, I love my family more.

4. Taking number three into consideration, when at work, do your job and do it well. I have a friend at work that always says "focus on the task at hand". Such great advice.

5. You don't play until you pay . . . your bills that is. One of the biggest and best lessons I learned from my parents.

6. Credit cards are not the devil. They can actually be quite useful. Americans use them irresponsibly. It's not the credit card company's fault that people run up bills beyond imagination. Okay, enough on finances.

7. Don't procrastinate. You'll regret it later.

8. Take risks in life. One of the biggest and best lessons I learned from my husband.

9. Shut up!  This is my motto. "Shut up Courtney! Shut up Courtney! Shut up Courtney!" If only I listened better.

10. God first, spouse second, kids third, extended family fourth (if possible), everyone and everything else follows. When your priorities are right everything just seems easier.

Back in the Groove

Well, ladies and gentlemen (or gentleman as the case may be) it's official. Summer is over . . . at least for us teachers. Too bad it's still six million degrees outside. No seriously, when I got in my car a little bit ago, my thermometer read 109. Ridiculous!

Today Andrew started school full time and was so excited to see some of friends from his old school. For me, it wasn't an "official" workday, but I did head in to work for a couple of hours. I got some "stuff" done, but spent a large part of the morning catching up with friends. Tomorrow we begin the process of trainings, evaluating data, and putting together long term plans and goals for the new school year. It's thrilling I tell you . . . thrilling!

After finishing up at work, I went to lunch with my mom, my grandmother, my sister, and Anthony came along for the fun. It was a nice way to end the summer. Unfortunately, I intended to take a couple pictures but as usual, forgot. Maybe next time.

Going back to school means a lot of things. It means alarms going off at 5:45 each morning (not my favorite thing in the world) and early bedtimes (one of my favorite things in the world). It means back to craziness and time crunches. It means that in order to get things done in a timely manner, I have to step up the organization a notch. Every week at school I create lesson plans, and to a lesser extent I try to create a "lesson plan" for home too. I create a flexible meal schedule for each month, and a laundry and cleaning schedule for each week. I do have a lady that comes every two weeks and does all the major cleaning, but things like my kitchen have to be cleaned each and every day. And of course, the dust and messes that collect in the meantime can't go unchecked. I also keep a daily calendar of things that have to be done for both work and home. Yes, I'm a crazy Type A personality, but without some sort of plan, I'd probably come home everyday, and plop on the couch with a carton of chocolate ice cream and never get anything accomplished. Not a pretty picture . . .  I'll tell you that much.

So, if you notice that my blog posts are fewer and further between, I've not fallen off the face of the earth. I'm just trying to get back in the groove of things.

Why I Love Lucy

Did you know that today is Lucille Ball's 100th birthday? And come October, it will be 60 years since "I Love Lucy" first aired. I'm sitting here in bed watching an "I Love Lucy" marathon, and even though I've seen every episode like a bajillion times, it still cracks me up. I just laughed so loud that Patrick came in the room to ask me if I had been drinking again. Can you say vitameatavegamin? Just so you know, I don't make a habit out of drinking. Patrick was joking. Now that we have that cleared up. The point is a show that originally aired 60 years ago is still, in my opinion, one of the funniest and best shows ever made.

So why do I love Lucy? Maybe, it's because I can turn it on at any time of the day or night and not worry about what is being said. Maybe, it's because it's good clean humor instead of a string of vulgar, dirty, and crude jokes. Maybe, it's because it's wholesome, and the fact that Lucy was pregnant on television was about as risque as you could get in the 50s. Maybe, it's because Lucy is just plain crazy, and there is a lot little bit of Lucy in all of us (or at least in me). Maybe, it's a combination of all of those things. Whatever it is, I will always love Lucy.

Someday, I'll blog about my love for "The Cosby Show". Where have all the family shows gone?

Fits, Work, and Animals with a Little Vinegar Thrown In

So I threw a big little fit yesterday. I'm over it. I still want those approval letters yesterday, but there's no use spending my days and nights in a bad mood about the whole thing.

This is my last weekend before I officially go back to work. I say officially because I've been working on my classroom while Andrew is in school on Tues. & Thurs, and I've also been working on timelines from home quite a bit. I won't go into to all the boring, gory details, but essentially, every time a curriculum changes or the state changes the "test" (which they are currently doing), our timelines for the year have to be revamped. Which is what I've been doing. Yesterday, I had two computers going at the same time. Mine, because I was using it to research and check twitter and facebook, and my work computer, because it has all the timeline files saved on it. I'll transfer them to the network(?) when I go back to work. A teacher's work is never done . . .

Now that you're bored and drooling all over yourself.

Yesterday, I cleaned out my Keurig with vinegar. Then I ran like a gazillion gallons of water through it. This morning I made my cup of coffee. It tasted liked vinegar. Blech! So now I'm running another gazillion gallons of water through the stupid Keurig. My house smells like dill pickles. Nice . . .

Doing a complete 180 here. Have you ever met my animals?

This is Marty. We call him Cat. My mom found him at the post office a little over seven years ago. He was probably about six weeks old. My dad calls him Cliff Claven because he was a postal kitty. He still is a postal kitty. He is crazy and pretty much hates the world. He likes me, he tolerates Andrew, and he fights with Patrick. Which is why we love him. Yeah, I know that made no sense.

These two beauties are our full bred dachshunds. Lady is the Dapple and she's just over four, and Daisy is the brown one and she's just over six (I think . . . she was given to us). They are both overweight, because the refuse to do anything that requires physical exertion (with the exception of chasing the cat), and they steal food from Andrew.

Lady licks everything. The couch, the floors, the walls, us. It's gross and annoying. She can also be a little on the hyper side especially when guests come over. Her social skills are greatly lacking. She seems to think that everyone wants to be licked and covered in slobber. Which is one of the reasons we still have a crate. On the other hand, she's just about the sweetest dog you'll ever meet, and you can't help but love her once she stops spazzing out.

Daisy, oh sweet loving Daisy. She has issues. Her favorite place in the world is curled up in a blanket on the couch. She gets mad when we leave home, and has been known to unzip the couch cushions and pull all the stuffing out. Which is the other reason we still have a crate. Daisy's other fault is that she hates to go outside so she holds her pee as long as possible (tmi . . . I know). Drives me crazy. I swear she only goes once every 48 hours. Girl needs help. Just the same, don't tell anyone, she's my favorite. She's for the most part a very calm dog and is really protective of Andrew which gets her a check plus plus in my book.

Yes my animals, my dogs in particular, could stand a little obedience training, but since they aren't aggressive and are great with kids, I choose to ignore their annoying faults. Besides, dachshunds are one of the hardest breeds to train. Mostly because they are hard headed, and I don't have the time or the energy to deal with that.



FRUSTRATED

Oh my word. I tried to check our case status with USCIS online. It told me that there was no such case number and directed me to call USCIS. Which I did. Talk about confusing. The lady didn't have a clue what I was talking about. It took us a good 10 minutes to figure out that I actually needed to call the National Benefits Center department of USCIS to check on my case status. Before we got to that point she read me a book of information on the Hague Convention which I've read myself a million times before. Because she was trying her best to be helpful, I endured it and didn't tell her I already knew all about the Hague Convention.

So after getting off with her, I called NBC. First of all, the lady that answered at USCIS was super nice and very friendly. She was so helpful and patient. The lady at NBC was rude. There is no other way to put it. Maybe she was having a bad day. Maybe she hates her job. I don't know, but a little customer service would be in order. Anyway, long story short, my case has not been assigned to an officer yet, and I'm assuming, if mine hasn't been assigned then neither has Patrick's. Stinks doesn't it?

I have to admit that I'm a little bit more than a little disappointed. I asked the lady for an approximate wait time, meaning about how fast things are moving and she responded, "less than 90 days." Thanks . . . I knew that already.

Sorry this is a whiny post. I'm just frustrated. Our dossier is complete, and all we need are the approval letters, and we'll be good to go. I know that bumps, hills, mountains in the road are "par for the course" when it comes to international adoption, but I get very frustrated when it seems like our own government runs so inefficiently. If you work for the government, I don't mean you. I just mean the system as a whole.

So, that's where we stand. Will you please pray for us? Pray that our cases get moved quickly through NBC/USCIS so that we can submit our paperwork, and pray for me to have patience. I need it, and I know I'm going to need a lot more in the future.

Life As I Know It

Last night, we went to eat at Chili's. Andrew kept loudly asking, "Are you gonna beat me Mommy? Are you gonna beat me, and then Daddy's gonna beat me?" He was talking about who was going to finish their food first, but it didn't sound that way. Patrick just as loudly responded, "You mean are we going to win and finish first?" To which Andrew answered, "Yeah, I said you and Mommy are going to beat me." I told Patrick to give up.

Andrew put three french fries in the to go box. It was very important that he bring these home.

Afterward, at Sams, he was with Patrick when he suddenly hollered, "My stomach hurts. I have to go poo-poo." I pretended I didn't know them. :)

When we got home, I let the dogs out and we were getting stuff out of the car when Andrew said, "Eww, there's blood all over the kitchen floor." Sure enough, there was blood all over the kitchen floor, and Patrick and I frantically searched for the source. Turns out it was Daisy's tail. She had somehow torn the hide off of it. There was blood on the floor, the walls, and the back porch. Yes, I cleaned it up. I also held Daisy between my legs and put a band aid on her tail. This morning the band aid is gone. Vanished. Adios little band aid. I'm pretty sure either Daisy or Lady ate it. Nice huh?

This morning Andrew chased Daisy around screaming, "Daisy, stop! I need to check your tail. C'mere. Quit wagging it." She didn't stop. She's spastic.

And that is life as I know it.

Did You Know? Bulgarian Trivia Edition

Because school is starting in a few weeks (at least in TX). . .Because I'm a teacher (a.k.a a nerd). . . Because I love learning about Bulgaria, and have a little girl there somewhere . . . Because I love learning in general . . . Because this is my blog and I can write what I want (within reason) . . . I present to you Bulgarian Trivia. There will be a test at the end . . . just kidding, but I love to do that to my students. Last day of school . . . pull out your pencils for your end of 4th grade test . . . 22 students look on me with fear and confusion . . . I let them sit in fear for around two minutes before I crack a smile and tell them I'm joking. I kid you not, I did that at least five times last year and they fell for it every time. Teachers have to get their fun in somewhere. Anway, without further ado . . .

Did you know that Bulgaria is a multiparty democracy? Here's a question. Is the United States a democracy or a republic? Do you know the difference?

Did you know Bulgaria is only a little larger than Tennessee? It has mountainous terrain, with cold, snowy winters and hot, dry summers. Us Texans can relate to hot and dry . . . blah.

Did you that the population of Bulgaria is actually shrinking?
84% are Ethnic Bulgarian
9.4% are Turkish
4.7% are Roma or Gypsy (this is most likely the group from which we will adopt our little girl)

Did you know that Bulgarian is the native language of Bulgaria? Makes sense huh? It's a Slavic language, and I've heard that Slavic languages are hard to learn.

Did you know young Bulgarians like fashion just as much as young people everywhere? But clothes are expensive in Bulgaria so casual clothes are worn at home to keep "nice" clothes in good shape.

Did you know that "yes" is indicated by shaking the head from side-to-side? Might want to work on that one before we travel otherwise a lot of people will be really confused.

Did you know Bulgarians remove their shoes when entering the homes of others? Always a good idea.

Did you know women often work outside the home, and also, take care of household duties? I feel your pain women of Bulgaria.

Did you know that in Bulgaria telephone service is not fully developed, but most villages have some access?

Did you know that most urban families live in apartments? I guess that's similiar to many urban areas in the United States.

Did you know that family is very important in Bulgaria? As are visiting with your friends and relatives on a regular basis.

Did you know that while Bulgaria may not be a wealthy country, their lives are rich ones filled with cultural tradition, family, and food?

Now you know.