Behind on Posts

Sorry that I haven't posted much this past week and very sorry to have missed Favorite Photo Friday. Lili was sick several days this week and needed a lot of holding. Of course this meant that a lot of things got put on the back burner and blogging was one of them. I'm also working on a little (actually big) project that I hope to have completed by October, and it is taking up much of my blogging time as well.

Lili is now feeling better and has been introduced to art. A few weeks ago we introduced her to crayons, which she loves and this week she was introduced to sidewalk chalk. Here are a few photos of Lili van Gogh creating her masterpieces.

Okay, mommy helped get her started and as you can see, mommy doesn't have a lot of artistic ability.

Look at the concentration.

Creating this beautiful artwork is hard work and apparently Lili needed a break.

Okay, drawing on my arm is fun too. Maybe someday I'll be a tattoo artist.

Guess art time is over. Wait a minute, what's this tiny creature crawling across the driveway? Mommy says it's an ant, but he's really hard to catch.

Okay, so staying on task is not Lili's strongest trait yet, but we're working on it.

Let me fill you in on adoption #2.

We submitted our application to the new agency last week and they received and accepted it on Friday. We have another form that needs to be completed and sent in to the agency and then we'll receive the contract and start on our dossier.

We can't being our homestudy until the end of September and even though we're using the same agency, we have to complete and submit a new application to them as well. We'll do that about this time next month with the hope of beginning the new home study the first week of October.

As many of you already know, adoption is not an inexpensive venture and families who are dedicated to growing their families through adoption find creative ways of raising money to help with those expenses. I wanted to find a way that we too could raise some money to help out with our upcoming adoption expenses, so last month we had a garage sale and sold enough items to pay our application fee. In addition, we cleared our house of things that had been sitting unused for quite some time and still have some items that we need to clear out. Those items will be posted on Craig's List and eBay over the next few weeks in the hopes of selling them quickly.

All of this brings me to the project I've been working on and am very excited about. In an effort to clean out closets and cupboards and to raise money toward our future expenses I came up with an idea that I hope proves to be a successful fund raiser for us. So, for the last couple of weeks I've been entering recipes into the computer as we create the Weeks' Family Cookbook. The cookbook will consist of all the recipes we've enjoyed over our almost 23 years of marriage. In addition, we will include recipes from our children's birth countries, Guatemala and Ethiopia. It will be a very simple cookbook, but one that I hope many will be interested in purchasing and will enjoy for years to come.

Like I said earlier, I hope to have this project completed and ready for purchase sometime in October (in time for the Holidays). I'll post more on my blog as time goes on and will include a link for ordering the cookbook once we get close to printing.

Spreading the Word

I'm posting again about Guatoberfest. Apparently there has been an overwhelming response to the invites this year. According the the blog site http://www.guatoberfest.com/ there are 69 families registered to attend, but a cap on the rooms of 75. Therefore, if you want to attend you need to get your reservations made asap. Also, check the blog site for additional information about registering for Guatoberfest. If you don't get registered by the cutoff date, your hotel reservation will also be cancelled and your room given to someone on the wait list.

There are so many people I've corresponded with thru the forum and via email that I'm anxious to meet and others who I've met and can't wait to see again.

15 Months Old - FPF

Two days ago, our little beauty turned 15 months old. She has now been home just over 4 months and I took her into the doctor today for her check up. I now have verification that she's doing very well.

Here are the stats . . .

Height - 31 3/4 inches long

Weight - 22 lbs 3.2 ozs

Head circumference - 45 cm

This puts her in the 85th percentile in height, 40 percentile in weight and 25 percentile head circumference. When she first came home her weight was in the 10th percentile and head circumference was in the 5th percentile, so she's really grown and blossomed since coming home. The other nice thing to hear was that developmentally she is right on target in everything. So all is well.

Here are a few pictures of our 15 month old healthy girl.

These pictures were taken this afternoon, after her doctor's appointment where she also received a shot and a TB skin test. She's looking pretty happy for someone who got stuck twice today.

What A Messy Girl

Yesterday, I decided to make some fruit dip and to make it easier to mix, I used the hand mixer. Afterwards I decided to give Lili her first experience with "licking the beaters" and here is the result.

Considering the fact that she wanted the entire bowl of dip after licking the beater, I'd say she likes the dip.

Tonight Lili asked for a drink. I don't know if I've shared this with my blog readers or not, but I've been teaching her some sign language and drink is one of the signs she knows. Her favorite drink out of her sippy cup is ice water, so into the kitchen we went for some ice water. She was drinking her water and would carefully sit it down on the sofa in between drinks. I'm sure she would used the end table, but it's not convenient unless you're sitting on the sofa or one of the chairs. Apparently, she was done drinking her water, but still had some left in her sippy cup and didn't want it to go to waste so she proceeded to put a drink in her mouth and then let it dribble out her mouth onto the rug or down the front of her clothes. Afterwards, she would look up at me with a big cheesy grin and then laugh. Fortunately, it was just water.

Since she wanted to play with water I decided it was a good time to give her a bath. I got her washed up and as usual let her have some playtime. Suddenly she started sucking water into her mouth out of the bath tub and would stand up and try to dribble it over the side of the tub. I'm not quite sure what came over her tonight, but I hope it doesn't become her game of choice. I must admit, it is pretty funny to watch and is probably something I should try to catch on video.

Also, what is it about bath water that makes kids want to drink it? Things that make you go, "hum?"

Guatoberfest Information Posted

If you plan to attend Guatoberfest in Myrtle Beach this October, please make sure you check out the registration information and itinerary now posted on the blog http://www.guatoberfest.com/.

Another FPF on Saturday

For those checking in yesterday, I apologize that I didn't get pictures out there. We were gone a lot of the day and my computer time was limited when home.

I'm told that the theme this week is "friends." However, since I don't have permission from my friends to post photos of their children on my blog, I decided to show you some photos of Lili in the morning.

Even with serious bed head and running around in her p.j.'s, she's just as cute as can be.

Switching Agencies

During the paperchase for Lili's adoption, our agency informed us that Guatemalan adoptions were becoming increasingly uncertain and they strongly encouraged all families adopting from Guatemala to come up with a Plan B should the worst happen and adoptions stop. Although adoptions have stopped and it is certainly having negative effects, it didn't have much effect on our adoption of Lili (fortunately). Of course when our agency told us to come up with a Plan B, we had no way of knowing what would happen so I started researching information on other countries. This research required that I contact some other agencies and one agency in particular was very helpful. For a matter-of-fact, I've traded emails with one of the program coordinators off and on since the Spring of 2007 about a couple different country programs. Last week I received an email from the program coordinator and as we traded emails I discovered they have an Ethiopia program. She sent me information regarding their program and answered several questions for me. I liked what I read and as Dave and I discussed the email conversations I realized just how much time and effort this woman had put into answering my many questions over the last year. We weren't clients of this agency, yet no other agency I had ever dealt with had given me so much information. I researched the agency and was again pleased to find that several families were very pleased with the agency. So much so that some had completed 2+ adoptions with them. We decided to make the switch and I'm now working on our application and hope to have it submitted within the next couple of weeks.

Because we're moving to an agency with a smaller Ethiopia program, our timeframe will most likely shorten by 3-4 months which means this time next year we may be getting ready to leave on our pick up trip. Things are always changing in the world of International adoption, so I'm not going to hold my breath on that one, but I also realize it's a distinct possibility.

Favorite Photo Friday on Saturday

Yesterday was a busy day at our house and I didn't get around to posting anything for FPF. However, this morning I attempted my first double pony on little miss wiggle worm and thought I'd share the outcome.

Not too bad for a first attempt if I do say so myself. At least they are somewhat even :-)

Ways to Save

With gas prices continually rising and thus the cost of everything else rising, Dave and I have been discussing ways of saving money. Slowly but surely we are making some cost saving changes so last week we cleaned out one of the rooms in the basement to make room for shelving, a freezer and fridge and joined Sam's Club. Today we made our first Sam's Club trip and here is what we have bought so far.

Aren't you glad you checked out my blog to see this photo!!!! LOL

I'm sure our first few visits will be trial and error while we figure out exactly how much a month's worth of groceries are, but this gets us started down the road to bulk shopping in an effort to save on groceries and fuel costs.

Because I realize that most of you check in to see pictures of Lili, I tried to get a few of her this afternoon for your viewing pleasure. Let me just say that it's getting harder and harder to get a still photo of Ms. Lili. Here's what I was able to get.

She had shorts on, but when I changed her diaper she didn't want them back on. She's been walking around the house all smiles ever since. Little did I know not wearing shorts would be so much fun.

Coming in for her close up. My new camera is faster than my old camera but apparently not fast enough.

Look mom, I have Jada and Lexie's toy.

Her new thing is pulling the dog toys out of their toy basket. However, she rarely pulls her own toys out of her toy basket.

Myrtle Beach, Here We Come

We are going to Guatoberfest this year at Myrtle Beach, SC. I've never been to South Carolina and am so looking forward to this trip. Not only will it be great meeting so many other adoptive families, but our friends Josh and Nicole are going too. Nicole and I became email buddies while waiting for our babies to come home and we were on our visit trips in Guatemala during the same week and were able to meet in person. That was October, 2007 and now in October, 2008 we'll meet again, but this time we'll be bringing our kids with us and taking them back home with us.

I have many other email and blog buddies who I would love to meet at Guatoberfest, so make sure to leave me a comment if you'll be attending.

Guatoberfest

I'm still following my Guatemala adoption forums and just read some information about Guatoberfest. Because I realize there may be some who read my blog, but don't follow the forums I thought I'd post the information for those who might be interested in attending.

http://www.guatoberfest.com/

If you click on the above link you'll discover that Guatoberfest is taking place at Myrtle Beach, SC. Dave, Lili, and I are very seriously considering making the trip since it's within reasonable driving distance for us. I'll keep you posted (as if us going is going to be the deciding factor for others going. :-) Ha, ha, ha!!!)

No, I Was Not MIA

Okay, I realize it probably seemed like I was MIA, but I'm still here. I actually started a blog post a few days ago and didn't finish it. Someday I'll get back to it, but since it's a more serious post, I decided to take my time and really think through what I want to say.

So, what's been going on here you ask?

Our 4th was quiet. We decided not to attempt fireworks since we were worried that Lili would be a bit too scared of them. I didn't want her traumatized over the celebrations here in the U.S. Instead, we hung out at home. It's probably a good thing since Lili ended up with a fever and has had one ever since. Tonight, however, I figured out why she has had a fever the last few day . . . . . . . .

Lili is the owner of her very first molar!!!!!!!!!!! Her gums have been swollen for the last 2 + months, but those stubborn molars have refused to make an appearance. I gave her a bath this evening and while drying her off she gave me a big smile and there was the tooth. Since I had my fingers in her mouth yesterday and it wasn't there, I know it just popped through sometime today.

In honor of Lili's first molar I decided to try and get some pictures of her. I hope you enjoy Lili's cheesy grins.

Here she is walking toward the camera.

Check out the after bath hair.

Thank you, thank you very much!!! (Say this in your best Elvis voice)

Yes, I'm going to squint in every picture.You have to admit, I'm pretty cute even if I won't quit squinting.

Now, for some non-Lili news.

We submitted our application to Children's Home Society and Family Services for our adoption from Ethiopia and after a short game of phone tag, the social worker contacted us today. She asked for some additional information, but said everything looks good, so we are officially on our way to daughter #2. Although I would like everything to happen yesterday, I'm trying very hard to not get overly anxious about things this time through. We won't be able to begin our home study until the end of September, so we have time before things really get moving, but it is exciting to know that sometime in the fall/winter of 2009 Lili will have a beautiful little sister from Ethiopia to share her life with.

That's it from the World of Weeks for now!!!

U.S. Citizen for 3 Months

Today marks 3 months since Lili's little feet touched U.S. soil and she became a U.S. citizen. In many ways, time has flown by, but I still find myself looking at her at some point during the day and being amazed that she's here.

Most adoptive parents understand the sadness of missing out on so many firsts in our children's young lives, so in celebration of Lili being home 3 months, I've decided to post photos of some of her recent firsts for Favorite Photo Friday.

Last weekend we met some friends at a local zoo. Lili loves animals, although I'm not quite sure how they feel about her :-) I don't think she had been this up close to a goat before, but she wasn't at all afraid.

If you need more proof that she wasn't afraid, here is Lili trying to kiss a goat and it looks like the goat was returning the kiss. For those concerned about germs don't worry, she only attempted to kiss the goats, but was never completely successful.Another first for Lili was a ride on the carousel. She was all smiles sitting on a hippo, at least while the carousel wasn't moving. Once that hippo started going up and down, the smiles quickly faded and this is where we ended up.The good news is that she did like being on the carousel and she made it very clear that she wanted to go again, so we rode a second time.

If you read my post from a couple days ago, you know that we've officially started the process for adoption #2. By-the-way, Dave doesn't refer to our next adoption as adoption #2, but as "our last adoption." :-) Anyway, we needed to send a photo of Dave, Lili and I together with our application and I realized that since it's usually Dave or I taking pictures, the only one I could find was one that my friend Cammie took during our visit trip back in October. I decided it was time to get some pictures of the 3 of us. I pulled out the owner's manual for my camera and quickly figured out how to set the timer so we could get a picture for our application package. I actually managed to get some decent pictures and thought I'd share our attempts with everyone.

I didn't send this one because Dave was partially hiding behind Lili's head.

No, not this one either. I'm now hiding partially behind Lili's head, but only because I'm trying to keep her from escaping.

Okay, this is a good one. However, Lili was still considering an escape. Maybe we could get a shot with my hand in a different position.

This one would have been really good if Dave was smiling, so we'll have to try again.

Smiles and/or pleasant looks, good hand position, I think we have a winner!!!!!

Finally, the photo shoot is over and we now have some recent photos of the 3 of us. Maybe we can get pictures with the boys in the future. LOL!!!!!

Two Posts in One Day

I thought I should really give everyone an update on our lives and promise I'll try to keep it short and sweet.

Lili and I have been enjoying time outside on walks, playing on her Little Tikes play set (okay she's playing on it, I'm not) and for the last couple of days, swimming. While I continue to have pool problems this year, they're getting worked out slowly by surely. Good thing too since tomorrow is supposed to be in the 90's.

In Dave's younger years, he purchased a couple hundred albums that have been sitting in a closet for the last several years. We decided it was time to try and part with them so I've been trying to sell them on eBay. In addition, we decided to part with most of our DVD's. We have several that we haven't watched in 2+ years, so obviously we must not need them. I've listed a few on eBay and have sold some. It's nice getting some de-cluttering done. Also, the money we make off the sale of our eBay items will go toward our next adoption. So far we've made enough to cover our agency application fee.

Since we made enough for the application fee, I mailed it in yesterday. I guess that means we have officially started the process. Because of our home study agency requirements, we won't be able to begin a new home study until the end of September, but at least we can get some of the other paperwork out of the way in the meantime. I won't have as much free time to work on it this time around, so the wait may be a good thing.

Dave begins his Infant Care Leave on Monday. He'll be home with Lili and I for 4 weeks. He had originally planned on beginning his leave when we went on our pick up trip, but due to some significant things going on at work his boss asked if he would consider waiting. Obviously, he agreed. In many ways, it is working out better this way.

Since I said I'd try to keep it short, I'll stop here and will update more at a later date.

Tag, I'm It

I've been tagged by Nora.

Ten Years Ago: Seriously, you think I can remember 10 years ago. LOL!!!!! I had 2 teenage boys and a 9 year old. The 9 year old was playing baseball, so I'm sure we were traveling around to his games across the state. I was working at State Farm and trying to figure out how I was going to survive the boys teen years.

5 Things on My List Today: Laundry, getting ready for our garage sale this weekend, cleaning bathrooms, getting to the post office and updating my blog. Guess I'll be able to mark one of those things off my list.

Snacks I Enjoy: Pretzels, chocolate, chocolate covered pretzels, chocolate ice cream, Dove Dark Chocolate. Wow, there is virtually nothing healthy about the snacks I like.

Things I would do if I Were A Millionaire: Pay off our adoption expenses, pay off all our other debts, travel, donate money to various causes (orphanages in Guatemala and Ethiopia, clean water projects, CAN (Cure Autism Now), and invest more for retirement. Wonder if a million is enough?