Am I a Dork?

I don't really get much free time, and then it's usually at night when everyone is asleep. What do normal people do with their free time? Do they blog more or do they -
- watch the New Moon trailer multiple times when they're feeling down (watch it on Hulu!)?
- practice twists and braids on their daughter's My Little Pony because they're still waiting for lovely African hair to style for real?
- read Us Weekly cover to cover while curling their lip in disgust and/or gleeful derision?
- skip exercise because going up and down stairs ten times a day and lifting/carrying a 27 pound toddler already counts?
- sacrifice sleep to keep reading a good book (current sleep stealer: An Accomplished Woman)?
- compose angry letters to editors/congressman in their heads, but never get around to actually writing them?
- look for things on ebay that they have no intention of buying?
- watch stupid videos on youtube like Christopher Walken reciting Lady Gaga (my husband, not me)?
- procrastinate doing things like bills, laundry, shower in favor of puttering on the computer or reading (Mom, I know you know what I'm talkin' about)?
- do devotions on a very sporadic schedule?
Okay, that last one's not dorky so much as lazy.
Sometimes I feel like Hugh Grant in About A Boy, measuring out my activities by time units.
Although, he had a LOT more free time than me.

13+ Months Waiting...

Our agency officially upped the waiting times today. They have been telling families 12-18 months for a while now, but at this point most families have been waiting 17+ months. They are currently giving referrals to families waiting since June, 2008. They are now quoting 16-24 months. I saw it coming, but it is horrible to see for real. I'm peeved today, but hopefully we will be on the shorter end since we have already been waiting this long. Theoretically, 24 months would apply to families that submitted dossiers more recently. Theoretically...

One Year Waiting...

Yes, we celebrated our our one year waitiversary. We went to see Zombieland, which seemed appropriate somehow. It is so out of character for me too, the last scary movie I saw in theatres was Scream (the first one). Embarrassing right? but Zombieland wasn't scary, so much as over the top silly and really funny.
We did get our homestudy update in the mail and we went and got re-fingerprinted this month. Everyone asks about that, and I still can't answer why. I don't think our fingerprints changed in the last fifteen months, so I don't know why they can't just use our original fingerprints and check them through the FBI again. But there is no finding sense in the government's workings. If anyone has a good reason for it, please enlighten us.
They are still working on dossiers from May 08 and a couple in June 08, so we're looking at at least four months probably more like six... Ick.

Amazon Free MP3 Downloads

I love Amazon's free MP3 downloads. They send me an email every now and then with new ones, but I only get to go through them every few months. So I spent a few hours listening to snippets and downloading oodles of music by bands I have never heard of. Here are some of the best (I think):
Eternal Baroque by Various Artists (whole album is free!)
Boom by Anjulie
We Should Fight by Ezra Furman and the Harpoons
Rat Race by the Hundreds and Thousands
Animal by Miike Snow
the Sounds of Soweto by the Soweto Gospel Choir (whole album! highly recommend!)
Ancestors by Throw Me the Statue
Lille by Lisa Hannigan
100 best Digital Sampler by Various Artists (classical whole album)
Here are some more full albums that were free, but I chose to delete a few songs I didn't like:
Barsuk Records 2009 by Various Artists
Be On the Lookout! (Lookout Records) by Various Artists
Sargent House Sampler by Various Artists
I'm not very good at describing music, but I tend to go toward alternative, indie, with a bit of punk. And my tastes are varied, so I have no idea if your taste will agree with mine. But I gurantee you'll have fun sifting through music samples :)

11 Months Waiting...

Well, courts are closed right now until October 5, so things are a bit quiet. Boring, really. We are waiting for our finished homestudy, and re-fingerprinting appointments. And that's about it.

Oh, and our house hasn't sold...

10 Months Waiting...

Has it been 10 months? Am I losing count yet?
Boy, that means we are definitely more than halfway there. I think.
So, what news? We met with our social worker to do our homestudy update. We still have to get a couple updated forms, then it should be complete (I'm hoping by the end of August/beginning of September). Then we get to redo our fingerprints downtown. Yay!
Ethiopian courts stayed open longer than usual, but it looks like they will be taking the annual rainy season vacation sometime between Aug. 22 to Oct. 6. We're not sure how that will affect the wait.
Should we start taking guesses on when we'll get a referral? Or should I wait to our 1 year anniversary for that? Suggestions? Right now, I'm guessing between Christmas and Valentines Day. But I think, at some point, I would like to get everyones guesses for the exact day that we'll get the call, and maybe I will come up with a prize for the one who guesses closest. Yes, I think I might just do that.

Spinster House

I have often made the comparison of selling a house to courtship. You gussy it up with paint and elbow grease, then you put it out there on the market hoping for the phone to ring. When a walk through comes, it's like the first date. Sometimes you do all that cleaning/prettying up and they stand you up. Sometimes they show up early when you're not ready. And then you wonder if they liked you enough to call back for a second date. Well, our house is becoming an old maid. Nobody wants a second date much less an engagement. In fact, we haven't had a call in three weeks. I find myself cleaning things up in expectation and I keep thinking "wishful makeup-ing" (Pretty in Pink reference for the John Hughes fans out there). I can find no logical reason for our loser status. Our house is one of the newest in the neighborhood, and one of the cheapest per square foot. Sometimes it feels like God has made it invisible.

I find myself constantly asking Him why?? What is His purpose? I like having things figured out in my head. I have a very hard time going day by day trying to discern His will when it is completely unclear. God seems to know that about me, and I think He likes me to be uncomfortable sometimes. Don't you find that is when you are on your knees and talking to God the most? If nothing else, I will say that my walk with Christ has changed in the last couple months. I've gone from fasting from chocolate or soda or whatever to being on my knees and crying in prayer to a more consistent morning and night devotion and prayer. I find my priorities and personality changing a little too. I've never heard a booming God voice in my head telling me what I was supposed to do, and I've often wondered if that really happens (or if I just can't hear it). Even when I was dating my husband and I knew I was supposed to marry him, there was no voice, I just knew.

I'm reminded of a few years ago when my husband was working and living hunreds of miles away and I was taking care of two toddlers with a house up for sale all by my lonesome. It went on for four months, and we kept praying for wisdom, clarity, guidance. What were we supposed to be doing? But I couldn't hear anything. Don't get me wrong, I felt peace when I really needed it, but He never gave us a neon sign or an answer of why. Then two months after hubby came home and we decided to stay put, everything came together perfectly... for a totally different job, different state. It made sense then even though it hadn't when we were going through it.

Oh yes, God is stretching me. I'm hoping that it will all lead to our house selling, and us finding the perfect house in the perfect neighborhood (closer to everything). But either way, I think I've matured a little more this year. I don't want to be a waiter, waiting for the house to sell, waiting for a referral, waiting to pick her up, waiting, waiting, waiting... Everyday must count because we don't know what tomorrow holds. Sorry to get all schmaltzy and philosophical, but I needed to just talk that out. I know it's just a house, but it's gotten to the point of frustration.

Give Away Day Winnings

Here is my much delayed post about all the cool stuff I won from the Sew Mama Sew giveaway day. I just recieved the last item this week (I guess she was much delayed also :). Let this be a lesson to you, if you neglect house cleaning and cooking dinner for a few days and devote yourself fully to entering oodles of blog giveaways, you too could be just as lucky as me. I was extremely surprised by all contests I won, and I made sure to share with my family, children and friends.

So, in photo #1, we have a Surfing Nelephant from Danger Kitty Designs, underneath that is a heavenly smelling tropical soap set from The Nadalet Family, and the adorable little red bag is from Mackville Road.

In photo #2, I put my 20 year old pincushion next to the beautiful cupcake that I won from Hillary at Designing Happy (she also included that lovely fabric scrap). I am still going to keep my old pincushion. Child #1 is very excited to be able to start using it.

In photo #3, cupcakes were the charm this year, and my cupcakes actually came on my birthday. How cool is that? This is my lovely personalized apron and cupcake clippies from Julee at Green(ish) Mama. I love this apron and I keep it hanging in my kitchen. My daughter wore the clippies on her birthday four days after mine!

And lastly, in photo #4, a super soft pair of wash mitts and goats milk soap from Breezy Babies. Seriously, I just kept closing my eyes and rubbing my cheek against the mitt. I cannot recommend the goats milk soap enough, it's fabulous!

9 Months Waiting

I have been busy busy busy lately. Relatives visiting, summer camps, and occasional walk-throughs. I'm feeling happy this week because Ethiopia just announced they will be leaving courts open longer this year. See, usually Ethiopian courts close for about two months every year during the rainy season (August-September). It has been confirmed that they will be staying open through August, not sure about September yet. It is great news for anyone waiting and anyone in the process. I just feel bad for the judges because they won't be getting the normal vacation time this year. We will be updating our homestudy this month, whether we move or not. So there you have it.