Friends

So I gotta give a shout out to a few people who in the last week or so jump out to me as being huge prayer support and mommy support. I've got a few on the brain right now but I'll mention one - drum roll please... Nichole! Oh how I love her. She bounced into my life a few months ago, well almost a year I guess and we didn't "hit it off" cause we didn't really spend a lot of time together for a while but since we have a small church home group in our home we have become closer, and my oh my am I better for it. I've had her weigh in on a few things and isn't' it funny how usually we know the answer to the problem but it takes someone else saying it for us to register it like it was a good idea? Funny, I'm so that way, I'd like to think I am on my game all the time but let's face it that's just not me especially lately. I'm strugglin and I mean in a gut wrenching kinda way about having to work full time outside the house. My goal was to only be gone til our guy gets home but as it looks now serious medication will need to get me through. So I feel in my gut I gotta quit right, but uh that doesn't exactly make sense right now? In the middle of a costly adoption, I got this job so fast when I thought I wasn't going to be working for a while so that was a blessing for sure, but I completely and totally lost the reality of what being gone all the time is like and how stinkin hard it is. I've fought like mad comin up with odds and end jobs to be at home and now I'm gone 36+ hours a week sometimes 48 depending on overtime situation, and it's a crappy job and I do mean that literally, I clean crap. Gross eh? Yup, that's the blunt way to put it and not that the job isn't necessary - somebody's got to do it, but just not this somebody. So I have a had a few talks with friends this week and the same message is - find peace and be home with your kids. Which I know in my heart right but explain that to the hubby - hey I'm gonna cut the 1,000 + a month cool? Yeah and I don't know how to help us raise money for the adoption but it's all good right? Anyway, so back to my shout out - I love Nichole, I need her to say what she said and it wasn't revolutionary but it was needed and publicly to all 5 of you who read this blog I just want to say - I love ya Nichole, you are one amazing mommy and you hold a special place in my heart. :).
So yup that's it for now. So I am going to try a little mini business thing if it pans out I'll share it but it's in dream phase almost reality phase so we'll see. Jas is all for it which is great, I know he wants me here with the kids he did tell me the other day " I just want you to pick what you want to do and do it, I don't care what it is, just stop jumping around jobs" So I know he's game but I gotta trust that my Jesus cares that I want to be with my kids and He will show me how to do it and how to tackle our adoption moola situation. So anyone who wants to join me in prayin BIG things for this family of 5 getting their boy home to make 6, let's see what we've got in store.
Kala

Excited!!

Well all you following this perilous (ok maybe not that bad) journey we are pumped. We have our social worker meeting on Oct 6th to get our home visits done and then as soon as she is able to compile our approved homestudy we are ready to send off our paperwork to our agency. Then it goes to D.C. to be authenticated, then back to our agency to be sent to Ethiopia. Once in country it will be translated, paired with our little man's file, and then awaits court approval. Once court happens we are told our travel dates and then ladies and gentleman, we are outta here on a ungodly long flight to meet our guy. The idea of flying for like 30 hours sounds horrific BUT the idea of wrapping my arms around that little guy gives me butterflies in my tummy and makes me want to scream with delight. What a process. Ok so I just typed "horrific" and it made me think of Faithie. So the other day I was explaining to Grammy Joann that Faithie is quite good at braids these days and she pipes up " Well only on other people, on me it's just horrible!" And I laughed, what a grownup thing for a 6 year old to say. Hehe. She's a doll. I've also got to get some video on here of Mikey screaming "Mooom!" Way too cute. We also have some praises on the financial front for the adoption. We have a donor giving like $5000 which is amazing. 2 in the states tickets given so we only have to pay from New York or somewhere on the East Coast to Ethiopia and then back plus our guy. And some other people have given money totalling around $1000. So that's like awesome. We are going to apply for grants and see what comes of it. Like everyone applies and not very many get it. So we'll see. The worst that can happen is we don't get it, and that's ok. Well I'm a dope and took advil for a killer headache this morning and then ate something. Shoulda reversed that. Eat and then pills. Cause my oh my do I feel like crap! Bummer eh? Oh well, Hope is excited to lay with me on the couch and Mikey is just running around laughing so whatever! :).
Thanks for tuning into yet another ADD moment -
Blessings,
Kala

The Picnic

Ok so we pulled Faithie out of school yesterday to head to AGCI's picnic in Battle Ground WA to meet Almaz the director of Hannah's Hope in Ethiopia. So any of you ever have a plan of how things are to go and then FREAK out when it doesn't work out like you wanted? So... here's our day. I rock first of all, I packed the whole car by myself, filled up the tank, got all the clothes including jammies for all of us but Jason cause well let's face it he's a grown man he can get his own stinkin clothes, went to lunch with a friend I hold quite close to my heart, got my dad's GPS system, and was ready to head out the driveway when Jason got home with Faith. So we get on the road after a Starbucks stop ( obviously) and off we went to meet Almaz. My mind was racing with all sorts of things, what will she say about our little man? What will other people be like? Will older kids from Ethiopia be there to play with the girls? And so on and so forth. So we are doing great, one potty stop at Goldendale and we keep on truckin'. The bridge at Biggs was closed so we went to the Dalles and over the Columbia. THEN we hit a traffic delay, so for an hour and a half we moved approxiametly 4 miles! GRRR. The kids did surprisingly well except for Mikey losin it, so I let them run around the van while I impatiently waited for traffic to move. We could see smoke in the distance and speculated the entire time (and still are actually) about what was going on to cause this kind of delay. So we waited and waited some more, all this time I've planned to be in Battle Ground by 5:45 and be able to eat, play, talk, and relax. So now it's 5:45 and we start to finally move. I was a mess. I wanted to cry but I didn't thank you very much. So we made it and I held it (potty) the whole way to the picnic which if you know me personally that is a major feat in itself! So we get there at 7:10 and the picnic was scheduled to be over at 7. I was determined to meet this lady if it was the last thing I did. So we piled out of the van, the kids took off for the toys, and I anxiously waited to meet this slender, petite, pretty Ethiopian woman who would give me word on my boy. As we walked up to the picnic I almost cried. There were babies EVERYWHERE, no big kids, but babies galore. And it hit me, we are apart of this. This is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. All these drop dead gorgeous babies in the arms of their forever parents. It tears me up thinking about it now. So we met Almaz who told us our guy has a big head - literally - (he'll fit in great, I think Faith just grew into hers!) and he's amazing at soccer. He can kick the ball up from his feet, head butt it and pass it off to other players. I guess according to the parents who just traveled within the last month, he's just an amazing kid. So the wait, drive, and determination paid off BIG TIME! I'm on cloud 9 and can't wait to get this kid home!! Oh then we took the kids to Chuck E Cheese (it's) as Faith calls it to play and run off the energy. Then drove home, got in at 1am got up at 5 am for work, worked 12 hours and am now about ready to pass out! One more 12 and then 4 days off! Woohoo. Anyway, for those of you who are praying and are as excited as we are to get this boy home - buckle up cause I guess he's somethin else! :).
Blessings,
Kala