All Quiet on the Eastern Front

After many months of stalking the top of the FBI List, I know that the lack of a post can sometimes make people wonder if either:

a) we have indeed gotten our referral and are off basking on cloud nine

or

b) we have completely lost it

I am here to tell you that neither is true. The phone is still sitting here quietly, and that although the freaky claw/toe and weird 80's videos may make it look like I have "lost it", I assure you I have not.

What I have been is exceedingly busy. Unusually, unnaturally busy. And not the "I'm going to throw myself into something to distract myself from this wait" kind of busy, but more like "business is crazy and we need you in a million places at once". Like a lot of companies right now, we are trying to do more with less, so I have taken on the responsibilities of what used to be divided amongst two+ people.

All this busyness is a huge distraction from my favorite past times of late (namely blog stalking, blog writing and day dreaming about how the call is going to go down, who my babies are going to be, what kind of mom I want to be) but I know the distraction is a blessing and I am counting it. There are so many other blessings wrapped into this too - like the fact that I have a job, and that business is good. And that on some days a busy work day looks like that picture above (snuggles on the job always make the work more bearable).

It is also temporary. Everyone knows that when these babies finally come home, I'm going out on leave. Clearly they plan to milk me for all I'm worth until that day, but that's ok. The more I work, the more I make, which translates into a longer leave. Lots and lots of blessings and perfect timing stuff here...

And it may not always feel like it, but I know that this is all happening just as it should...

And, OK, all that said, it sure would be nice if it happened soon!

Music Clip Monday

I do not remember this song, but I am endlessly entertained by the over the top 80's style, and the lyrics are fitting...

No News Yet...

Thought you might like a real post with actual words so here are a few random thoughts on this lovely, but rather chilly, Friday...

We're getting quite good at this waiting business, and it's a good thing because even after we get the sought after call, there will be more waiting for a court date, and then more waiting to pass court, and then more waiting to travel. But there will also be lots of retail therapy during that stage of the wait! Seriously, we're hanging in there, and if anything was ever worth the wait, this is it!

Some of you have been wondering how we are learning Amharic so I thought I would share a few links. First there is Simple Amharic for Adoptive Families. Great CD and little book with practical, every day phrases that you might want to know if you are adopting toddlers or older. I will warn you, pronunciation is a bear and all those years of Latin and Spanish that I took aren't helping one iota, but the more I listen to the CD, the more it sinks in, and it helps to focus in on a few key phrases a week. This CD will never make me a fluent Amharic speaker, and the dogs look at me funny every time I say enhay ehnahtekh negn (I am your Mommy), but I am having fun.

The other CD I have is Talk Now! Beginner Amharic, which is OK. Good for building your vocabulary with every day words. If you were only going to get one I would recommend the Simple Amharic for Adoptive Families.

Lastly, in case you were wondering if all this waiting has made me loose my sense of humor, I share with you a picture of the freaky toe and its cousin, freaky claw!

I know, ew! I probably just lost half my readership, but I couldn't resist! Freaky claw turned up on my plate a couple days after I wrote Random Fact #3!

Another Wordless Wednesday

Music Clip Monday

Call Me
by Blondie

Color me your color, baby.

Color me your car.
Color me your color, darling.
I know who you are.
Come up off your color chart.
I know where you're coming from.

Call me (call me) on the line.
Call me, call me any anytime.
Call me(call me)I'll arrive.
You can call me any day or night.
Call me!

Cover me with kisses, baby.
Cover me with love.
Roll me in designer sheets.
I'll never get enough.
Emotions come, I don't know why.
Cover up love's alibi.

Call me (call me) on the line.
Call me, call me any anytime.
Call me (call me)I'll arrive.
When you're ready we can share the wine.
Call me.

Ooh, he speaks the languages of love.
Ooh, amore, chiama mi (chiama mi).
Ooh, appelle-moi, mon cheri (appelle-moi).
Anytime, anyplace, anywhere, anyway!
Anytime, anyplace, anywhere, any day!

Call me (call me) in my life.
Call me, call me any anytime.
Call me (call me) au revoir.
Call me, call me for some overtime.
Call me (call me) in my life.
Call me, call me any sweet desire.
Call me, call me for your lover's lover's alibi.
Call me (call me) inner line.
Call me, call me any anytime.
Call me.

Oh, call me, ooh ooh ah.
Call me in my life.
Call me, call me any anytime

Number 9

Today marks completion of nine months on the wait list. We have been getting a lot of questions about how we're doing and what it feels like at this stage of the wait.  The answer is we are doing great and it feels like running a marathon - this last leg is the hardest part but all those months of training are paying off and we are going to finish strong!

Wordless Wednesday

"The Weight of the Wait" by Julie Corby

Have you guys read this yet? The Weight of the Wait...so aptly put and a phrase that I can't get out of my head lately.

I will admit, the first time I read this article it scared the hell out of me. At the time I was overwhelmingly excited and undeniably optimistic about our journey. To think otherwise felt like it could jinx us, and I just didn't want to ruin my excitedly optimistic state with too much reality.

Everyone has their own way of coping with challenges, and sometimes optimism is the life raft that keeps me afloat.

The scariest point in Julie's article was the fact that they had been given a 6-9 month estimate and had been waiting 16 months and counting when she wrote this article back in April. We were given a 4-6 month estimate but I am no dummy and I had done my research, so I was pretty sure that those times were going to increase. That said, that doesn't mean I wanted to believe it or read about someone who was living it.

As of today we have been waiting 15 months and 3 weeks. Of course that's counting from our first agency meeting, not from when we made it on the wait list, but it's not counting all the years of wanting to start a family and not being able to, so I think that's a fair number.

As we approach 16 months ourselves, what I now know is that waiting this long is both easier and harder than I imagined. Easier because I am stronger and more patient and have more faith in God than I knew. I am still filled with hope and tremendously excited and, yes, optimistic. I have learned a lot about myself, I have grown, and I have found this wait to be rewarding in other unexpected ways. But there are times when I feel tired of all this waiting and times when it feels like this is never going to happen. And lately I feel like a little kid on Christmas Eve. Every day, Christmas Eve. And that kind of anticipation definitely has a weight to it.

What helps me carry that weight is the support I get from all of you - friends, family and the open, honest expressions and comments of my fellow adoptive parents. Every comment on my blog boosts me up a little, so I keep writing. And, yes, like Julie, I spend a fair amount of time blog stalking and watching home coming videos with a box of Kleenex. I take great pleasure in living vicariously and celebrating the happy milestones of others.

Mark is coping by completely loosing himself in the land of chores. How can I complain about that, right? But it is lonely when two people cope in different directions so once a week I drag myself away from the computer/blackberry/books on attachment and bonding, and I pry the paint brush or tool out of his hand, and we go to our favorite restaurant to eat oysters and hold hands and talk.

I am also going to the gym, trying to strengthen my body so that I will be able to carry the actual weight of my children. And I am grateful that work is extremely busy right now. It forces me to stay focused...most of the time...except the occasional blog stalking from my Blackberry in the middle of a boring meeting to see if so-n-so got their referral!

Deep breaths and a seventh inning stretch. I am ready for another week and all its possibilities!

Oh, and if you don't know already, Julie is finally home with her two children :) Happy endings do happen...

At The Top!

That's right! We are number one...numero uno...at the tippity top of the unofficial list! I would like to say I can feel the call coming, but that might just be all the butterflies in my stomach...

Reflections on Backyard Gardening and Gratitude

As many of you know, Mark and I are avid backyard gardeners. Each year our vegetable garden expands and we take great pleasure eating the food that we grow.

Recently we were lamenting the failure of a few crops. We didn't plant many tomatoes this year and most of the ones we did plant are still green, even though it is September 2. We were very excited about trying cantaloupe and corn for the first time, but over the course of a few nights some critter took bites out of every single cantaloupe and every ear of corn, just as we were getting excited about eating them ourselves.

Note to self: build a higher fence and plant tomatoes earlier...

We did, however, have great success with radishes, lettuce, spinach, swiss chard, beets, cucumbers, summer squash, sugar snap peas, onions and watermelon (and raspberries, blackberries and strawberries, but the darn dog ate most of those!).

We can also get in our car and drive a few short miles to a choice of three stores and buy whatever we need. No cantaloupe from the garden this year? Dog ate my strawberries? No problem!

I came across this video on u-tube and was reminded of how easily I take both our garden and the availability of food in this country for granted. If you tend to do the same, please watch.

Note to self: remember to be grateful for all that I have...