Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Big girl bed

Caroline tried out her new toddler bed last night (a great Pottery Barn bed that I got on Craigslist). I really didn't intend for her to use it until D comes along, but its novelty was just too much for her to resist.

I went to bed prepared for multiple "get ups." But she didn't make a peep all night. Morning came a little earlier than usual, I think, because the bed was right under the window and sun was shining on her face. But instead of climbing out of bed, she just shouted down the hall like usual. When I opened the door she was standing on the bed holding her blanket, just like she does in the crib. I guess it escaped her that she could escape on her own.

A little aside: C just climbed up on the bed next to me and upon seeing my hair twisted up in a towel said, "I don't like your hat, Mama."

Monday, April 27, 2009

Just a glitch

It appears that the judge did hear our case. But a mistake was made, which the judge asked our director to have corrected. That has been done, so they'll submit the correction next week for approval. Then we should be good to go.

And still we wait...

Hello all you friends and family in waiting!

Our court is rescheduled for next week. I don’t know exactly why, whether the case was actually heard, or what date next week the reschedule is, but I’ll pass on more information when I know.

We'll survive, but I'm disappointed.

Friday, April 24, 2009

No news

Looks like we'll be waiting til Monday for news on our court date. Milkiyas did not contact Grand Rapids with the outcome, and now Grand Rapids is closed for the weekend.

If I were to let that pesky slide rule or the laws of probability sneak into my psyche, I would be bummed as the aforementioned family who passed this week found out the same day, and the family who did not pass waited a day to hear. But I refuse to be bummed...yet.

We have a fun weekend planned, with paddle/picnic on Roaring River tonight, a hike at Standing Stone State Park on Saturday and a paddle on Clear Creek Sunday.

A shout out to Shadley and Cindy whose court dates are Monday.

Momversation

Spence: I may try to go canoe/camping with Uncle Jim the second weekend in May.

Me: Okay. Isn't that Mother's Day weekend?

Spence: Oh yeah, maybe it is. But we can get together with Mom earlier in the week.

Me: Okay. You can go as long as you get me a really nice present.

Spence: For your birthday?

Me: Um, I'm a mom too!

Spence: Oh yeah! (sheepish grin) Guess I walked right into that one, huh?

Me: You doofus.

Spence: I woulda remembered.

Me: Uh-huh.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Highs and lows

Ups and downs. Joy and sorrow. I've been following two families this week that had court dates. One passed - yay! One didn't - boo! It just goes to show that my slide rule and the laws of probability are NOT going to help me predict our outcome. Nor will my checking the BB waiting list 67 times in an hour speed things up.

Dang, I hate being a control freak!

"You have to..."

Caroline is a pretty polite kid for a two-and-a-half-year-old. She knows the magic word and most of the time remembers to say "thank you." One time I sneezed and she said, "Bless you, Mama." Not sure who taught her that.

But sometimes...

...when she forgets the "please" part, her requests begin with "You have to..."

"You have to wipe my nose." "You have to get me some orange juice." "You have to button my coat."

This morning, when I went upstairs to get her out of bed, the first words out of her mouth were, "My nose is stuffy. You have to wipe the stuffy off."

:-)

Important side note: In less than 24 hours, our court fate will be decided. Not sure if we'll find out anything tomorrow or have to wait til Monday. But I'll shout it out as soon as we know.

Monday, April 20, 2009

I'm a cheapskate

This is something that appalls my brother. When I tell him about my half-price Goodwill forays, he just rolls his eyes. Yes, I can hear them rolling right through the phone. So this weekend, I went in search of bargains at the Watertown Mile-Long Yard Sale. My yard sale price standards are even higher -- or lower, depending on how you look at it. At Goodwill, toddler clothes are $1.25/item. At yard sales, I'll pay no more than $1/item, and 50 cents is even better.

Driving into Watertown was like cruising the strip in Pigeon Forge during Rod Run -- it took FOREVER. When I finally arrived, parked miles away and elbowed my way through the other five gazillion people seeking a bargain, my heart was no longer in it. I walked around for an hour and didn't buy anything!

Just when I was about to give up and visit the funnel cake tent, I happened upon a huge crate of globe beach balls (with a world map imprinted on them). I searched out the seller who said they were a quarter each. I said, "I'd like them all, but can I let the air out of them so they're easier to carry?" She looked at her friend and sighed, "I just blew them all up. They sat here flat all day yesterday and nobody was interested." So I said, "Well, I'm going to take them to Africa and give them to some kids in an orphanage." That corked her cryhole and she helped me deflate them. Two separate women stopped while we were working and sheepishly asked if I was buying them all. I told them why and let them each have one. That find put me in better spirits, so I kept shopping.

A little later I visited a house that had only big plastic crates in the front yard, full of what looked like boys' clothes. I quickly realized this woman was no cheapskate -- Gap, The Children's Store, Tommy Hilfiger, Nautica -- all in pristine condition. She said a quarter apiece and 50 cents for shoes. Let me tell you, you can have no shame when you encounter a bargain like this. I dug through the crates like women let loose in a "clothing-by-the-bale" liquidation. For some reason, I had no competition. People seem to be more drawn to clothing on hangers at $3/each down the block. I gathered all I could carry the half-mile back to my truck. Score! D is going to be stylin' til he's at least 3. Eat your heart out, Stevo!

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Five days 'til court

I've got one hand doin' a countdown...and the other hand is crossing my fingers.

Friday, April 17, 2009

Glorious bike ride

Really, there are just not that many opportunities to use the word glorious. But my bike ride was one such occasion. I was supposed to be working, but since there was not a cloud in the sky and every other creature seemed to be out enjoying the greening valley, I decided to knock off and ride the loop.

The loop is a 10-mile, well, loop that includes a long stretch along Roaring River, a long stretch along Spring Creek, a 1-mile pull up Poplar Springs Hill and an almost-mile rip down Stock Gap Road. Spence loves to blast down the hill, which was recently improved and smoothed from its toaster-size gravel, teeth-rattling washboards and bike-eating ruts. My downhill speed, on the other hand, is directly proportional to the speed at which I'm comfortable skidding down the gravel on my face.

As I was biking the last stretch home, after a short conversation with some cows who were crowded around a salt lick near the fence, I had a glorious idea for an evening activity: pack up the leftover pizza and take the big blue canoe upriver for a dinnertime float back to the house -- with Spence and Caroline, of course.

Spence may quash the idea, claiming the water's too cold to risk a toddler tumble, but really, it's pretty flat and easy, so we'll see...

UPDATE: Well, Spence was all for it. Caroline did great. We explained that she was not to stand up in the boat, a directive she took to heart, refusing to stand up to step out of the boat when we stopped for dinner. We had to lift her out. She enjoyed a PBJ and cheese stick riverside and we all ate a little Easter candy for dessert. It was delightful!





Monday, April 13, 2009

Can't think of a title

I think the waiting has gotten to me. Sucked the desire to blog right out of my fingertips. I'm having a hard time even typing this. I've actually deleted more than I've posted because nothing sounds right. Nothing sounds like it's not a complaint. And my grandma always said, "If you can't say something nice..."

So, here's nice. Isn't she a cutie in her Easter bonnet?



After church we had a wonderful lunch with Mama Norma and Pop.


Then while C napped, Spence and I snuck off to Burgess Falls. We hiked all the way to the bottom. This was a "before" self-portrait.
And I mean ALL the way to the bottom. If you look close you'll see that I am drenched. We had to sprint through some serious spray near the bottom.
You can see the spray from this pic.

This is also a "before" taken by a nice couple we met. In case you're curious about my t-shirt, check out http://www.abbajava.org/. Be sure to look at the blog, which chronicles my friend from high school's trip to adopt a little girl from Zambia. His new coffee company, Abba Java, will help support African coffee farmers and provide needed funds for African orphans. You too can have this t-shirt.