Spouseless in Seattle

Well, boo. Hubby left before sunrise for a 4-day conference in Denver. Together with his brother he will be signing sample copies of their book coming out this September. They will also be meeting with publishers regarding a new book series. In the meantime, I'll be having my first go at parenting three kids alone for four days. We're filling our schedule to the brim with grandparent visits, playdates, and whatnot in order to make time fly by that much faster...and keep boredom to a minimum.
Having Hubby gone means less laundry and more of the bed. It also means that I don't have to cook, per se, because my boys would happily subsist on peanut butter and jelly for all eternity and I'm content with a sandwich or salad. See how I'm looking for the positives here?? So, yeah. Talk to me in a couple days and see how positive I'm feeling!

Now where'd I put those Kleenex??

Wordless Wednesday

Back in the High Life Again

For some strange reason I decided to reactivate my Facebook account today. I took it down over a year ago because...well, to be honest, I'm insecure. I got tired of reading about everyone's social exploits. It sort of felt like being in junior high again, riding the bus and overhearing other girls making plans with each other and then having to hear all about what they did the following morning. When your days are spent keeping siblings from killing each other and appeasing a demanding baby the last thing you want to read about is some event to which you weren't invited. And Facebook just lays it all out right in front of you.

So, given my bad attitude, why did I rejoin? Mostly just to be able to reconnect with old friends. And to stay connected with current friends. So I'll be around...but I'll be keeping it simple.

The Short of It

Ha! I posted new photos of myself on the blog, then I went and chopped my hair off. Those who have known me a while know that I'm no stranger to short hair. For most of the last 12 years I've had a sort of pixie cut -- in contrast to the first 18 years of my life in which my hair was down to the middle of my back. A year ago I started growing it out, but kids and acne have made it more work than I like, so for that yearly occasion on which I got a year older, I got it cut off again. The gal who cuts my hair talked me out of chopping it all off, though I did have my husband's permission to do so. (He met me when my hair was at its shortest and holds a certain fondness for it at that length.) It is, however, nice and short again. I don't have photos yet -- and I'm not one to take a picture of myself just because -- so those of you in say, Virginia, Maryland, or Wisconsin, will have to wait a bit, but I will try to get something up soon...because I know the status of my hair is your top concern these days!

Your second-most important interest, I'm sure, is my children. Specifically, photos of my children. So let me just satisfy your curiosity with some from our weekend, during which we enjoyed the many outdoor opportunities the great state of Washington has to offer.

On Saturday we got together with my parents and my brother, his wife, and my nephew at a park on the beach, to celebrate that occasion which I alluded to above but shall not mention. Sunday we headed up towards Mt Rainier and spent a few hours playing in the river. (Both of these activities are an hour away, but in opposite directions. Its the best of both worlds, as Hannah would say. And I think its a very good reason for people in Virginia, Maryland, or Wisconsin, for example, to move out here.)

The Beach

My nutty Nugga

This child could live in the ocean, if given the chance.My adorable nephew, CyprianNothing but boysMelat meets the ocean. Well, technically the Puget Sound, but salt water none the less.

The River

Thankfully Melat loves the out-of-doors!My Handsome HubbyI'm happy as long as I have something to chew on! (No teeth yet!)One of my little dam builders, pausing to pose.Crocs are the BEST kid shoe ever!A lovely view!

Catch-up

Regardless of circumstances described in the prior post, life does indeed go on, so I thought I should bring everyone up to date on the fun things we've done and how things stand in other areas.

Our big boy, Toby, finished out his kindergarten year last Friday. His report card and IEP update are simply amazing. He has made so much progress, especially socially. Back in September we really didn't know what to expect, particularly when things started out a little bumpy with the person in charge of his IEP and special services. It was a constant joy to see him blossom, make friends, and be so excited about what he did in school each day.

Our now middle child, Henry, is having a pretty rough time. He is four and thus frustrated with life in general, but now he's had to give up his baby position AND have big brother home from school each day. Alas, big brother takes the brunt of much of his anger, which big brother doesn't know how to cope with appropriately. Things get pretty ugly around here most days. Henry is one angry little man. We have since established some set alone time with each child and lots of space between the two boys. We are also trying to potty train...still. Its not going well. He is stubborn and sensitive and not at all motivated. Gotta love the little guy though!

And, of course, the Princess Herself. She has kept us busy with all of her busyness. You know, growing, eating, scooting around the floor -- backwards! -- occasionally napping, eating, getting her ears pierced, eating, throwing tantrums because she's not eating, eating, pooping, eating, almost sleeping through the night, eating, and generally being a happy baby. She has a bit of a mommy obsession, but that's not necessarily all bad...except when mommy needs to cook dinner.

Finally, I know the most important part of an update is pictures, so here are some from our Father's Day visit to the zoo:

He Gives and Takes Away

When you're self-employed there are many months when you don't know where your income will come from. For the last year or so, due to changing contracts, we have known that we would probably be reaching the point where we had no income. Literally, no income. There were a few possibilities that were potentially available to tide us over until other work could be found, but as of today those have pretty much been ruled out. Another characteristic of barely scraping by each month is that its nearly impossible to maintain a savings account. What money is saved goes quickly when the van needs new tires, or someone visits the ER. (And then the Lord calls you to adopt....)

So, here we are. We will get our last known paycheck this week and then its up to the Lord. Not only will we not have the means to pay our mortgage or other bills next month, but the business will likely not have enough money to pay such things as our health insurance and the cell phone bill upon which our family relies. (We have no land line.) When you're self-employed you aren't eligible for unemployment. Our state has stopped accepting applications for state health insurance. Things are looking pretty bleak.

I am well aware that the Lord could have made all those pending pieces fall into place, but He chose not to. So, I have to believe that He will provide an alternative. Even if it involves watching the demise of our credit record and the possible foreclosure of our home, I guess He has more important things in store for us. He has carried us thus far.

Please pray for our family and that of my brother and sister-in-law, that we will be wise and seek the Lord -- and of course, that the Lord will provide work for my husband and his brother.

He gives and takes away. My heart will choose to say, "Blessed be the Name of the Lord."

The Condensed Version

I am working on merging our family site and our adoption site into one. By "working on", I mean that every several days I sit down at the computer and log in, only to be pulled away by some other pressing issue (read: child). I thought it would be fun to make a little project out of it and design it myself. Well, its slow going. I should have just hired somebody to do it (or had my husband do it -- which would have taken like 30 seconds) but now I refuse to give up.

This whole endeavor is an excellent example of just how much time I have right now to even post on a blog, but I have determined to keep something going, mostly for the sake of extended family and as a means of keeping in touch with other church/adoptive families. (To you AGCI folk: Ya'll don't abandon me now!) Its not like I have impressive wisdom I need to impart or that I think I have that interesting of a life.

Anyway, the family blog is coming soon...hopefully by this weekend. I will try to at least get some photos up in the meantime.