Sick again

Oh my gosh, we've been hit with another wave of germs here. What is going on with the cold and flu season this year? It's ridiculous. I haven't been sick this much since I was pregnant. Darrell and I both have horrible colds that refuse to die. I sound like Burgess Meredith. Are you guys old enough to know who he is? It just means my voice is probably on its way out. Alex and Evan are just getting over the flu. It looks like Tuck and Bri may be next in line for colds (please, God, no). Livie seems okay, and as usual Mike isn't sick, but finds reasons to be angry and complain anyway.

All of this means that, once again, I am waaaaaay behind on my life. If you could see my house, you would think thieves ravaged the place looking for diamonds, or something. And they left their snotty kleenexes everywhere. Rude thieves. But no. It's just the destruction caused by 8 people who don't give a flip about anything but their own bothersome, germ-filled bodily fluids.

I desperately want to spend the day cleaning. Really I do. Desperately. But I haven't been keeping up with my blogs. You know I gotta find out what you guys are up to. I miss you goofy people. There are big stories to be read. Lives are being lived out there and I just simply must know what's going on. I won't have time to do both. Obviously. Can't spend a day on the computer reading and cleaning disgusting germ-covered toilets at the same time. Hmmmm. What to do, what to do?

Enough about that. I have a tiny bit of positive adoption news. Turns out our FBI fingerprints were not lost. They were sent to our agency and our coordinator didn't know they were there (she isn't in the main office where the mail goes). Once she got them, she sent them to us, so that's done. And our completed homestudy is now in the mail, on it's way to us, so I can mail it to USCIS. These were the last two things we were waiting on, so YIPPEE! Our dossier will soon be ready to send in to the agency!!

I got to hold a teeny tiny baby in church last Sunday and could hardly stand it- she was so precious. I'm ready! I want my baby! No more waiting!

Xin Nian Kuai Le!

Happy Chinese New Year!

This is the Year of the Ox. If you were born in 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 0r 2009, you are an Ox Baby.

We have our decorations up and we'll be having a big Chinese feast tonight- Yay!

Time to post... something

Although I have nothing of value to say, I guess I'd better say something. I'm being told by certain people that they worry when I haven't posted in a while. They wonder if I'm sick or in jail.

I've been a bad blogger again. Sorry. But I really haven't had anything to say, or any time to say it. Everything and nothing is going on around here. I guess I'll just fill a post with useless, random tidbits. Then at least certain people will know I'm still alive.

I assume we all watched the same thing on tv last Tuesday, right? The all-day "House" marathon on USA? YES! HOUSE! I kid. You know me with the kidding. I though it was important for the kids to see the worship service coronation obamination inauguration for the historical significance and educational value- so I put on my big girl panties and watched like everyone else, although I couldn't keep from vomiting in my mouth just a tiny bit.

Talking about B.O.- oh, excuse me- that's Pres. B.O. now- always reminds me of Alex's dog, because of that one post a couple weeks ago where I was talking about the dog and said he was evil, and that girl got mad at me for linking the word evil to His Holiness and not being reverent enough. Remember that? Yeah, good times. Good, good times.

So anyway, I'll talk about the dog now. Alex's new puppy, JD, is growing like crazy. I need to take a new picture of him and post it. Sometimes he looks bigger from one day to the next. He's big enough now to get up on my couch by himself. AND he is still peeing in my house. I do not appreciate this. If he pees while he's up on my couch, that will be very, very bad for the Jay Dizzle. He started Puppy Kindergarten (yes, that really is what it's called) a few weeks ago and is learning to sit and stay and all that business (for scant moments at a time), but he's still a little spaz. I'm pretty sure he's on the crack. Do they make ADHD meds for dogs?

On the adoption front: We're still waiting... The homestudy is being reviewed by the agency, so I haven't been able to send it to USCIS yet. Our current I171-H expires Feb. 2nd. I've already requested the extension, so I don't know if the homestudy has to be submitted before the 2nd or not. We're also still waiting for our FBI background checks. They should have come by now and I'm getting worried. I can't find a phone number or valid email address to contact them and check on anything. Very frustrating.

BUT... To help myself stay sane and happy as I wait, I bough a crib! I saw it on sale online, so we bought it. It should be here any day and I'm so excited. This is it:
I saw it in a store and loved it- it seemed really rock solid- but it was way beyond what we wanted to spend. I was thrilled when I saw it on sale. It was still more than we'd hoped to spend on a crib, but the peace of mind in knowing that it's sturdy and safe is worth it to me, and apparently- every single baby item on earth is more expensive than we'd hoped. Why didn't any of you people tell me that babies and their belongings are incredibly expensive? Every single baby item I see is One Milllllion Dollars (said in my best Dr. Evil voice). Now, we just need... let me think... Oh, yeah- Everything else! Ha! We seriously, honestly have nothing for this baby! Can you believe it? A family with nine children has no baby crap in the house! We have to buy everything from the biggest piece of furniture down to the tiniest pair of socks. HAHAHAHAHAAAA! Cripes. That's really not all that funny, now that I think about it.

It's like Luke and Laura withdrawal all over again

Remember back when you were in junior high and high school and you would spend the summers lazily baking in the sun (covered with oil, reeking of coconuts, with the lemon juice in your hair, pretending you didn't see your mom's note to "pick up your room and do some ironing") right up until it was time to come inside and watch "General Hospital," because you were a spoiled brat and you didn't have a job or do anything of importance all day long (besides the baking and the GH watching, I mean)?

Remember how attached you got to all the characters and goofy story lines on the show? Luke and Laura

(I hated that stupid headdress/veil thingy but, man, her teeth were freakishly white), Scottie, the Quartermaines... Bobbie and Dr. Noah Drake... hmm, hmm, hmm... Rick Springfield was such a fox. Later, there was Blackie Parrish- before he was Uncle Jesse, Rebecca Romijn's hub, or Dr. Tony Gates, Frisco Jones, Greg and Jenny... No, wait- that was "All My Children-" another must-see show at the time.

Anyway, remember how horrible it was to go back to school each fall and leave GH life behind? How foreign it felt to be sitting in Science listening to Mr. Wilson (who kicked the trash can like a psycho when he got angry), when your heart, mind, and soul wanted to be back in Port Charles with Luke and Laura?

You remember that, right? It's not just me, is it?

Huh? Is it, guys?


Oh, I see... Maybe it is.

Well, anyway- that's exactly how I've been feeling again lately. In an effort to become more organized and manage my time better, I've forced myself to to through my Reader folders and unsubscribe to some of the 65 blogs I was following. My goal was to cut it down to 10-15 blogs. I'm down to 29. I cannot possibly part with one more blog. I can't do it, I tell ya. I'm missing out on everything. I don't know what's going on in some of your lives now. It's worse than GH withdrawal. Much, much worse.

Progress

Real quick update: I talked to our agency coordinator the other day and she said things are moving along nicely with the RMI program. Two more babies were recently referred. She encouraged us to have our dossier turned in by the end of the month, saying that we could possibly move ahead a couple spots in line since we're open to either gender.

Then I talked to our social worker today and she's getting ready to send our completed homestudy to the agency for their review (we asked someone else to be our reference and they filled out the form and faxed it back to her lickity split-yay!- and during that time, the reference we had been waiting for came in the mail- yay again!). Once it gets their approval, it can be sent to USCIS so we can get our updated I-171H. So, the only thing that's still up in the air right now is our FBI clearances. We haven't received them yet, but our agency is going to call them about those. Other than that, the dossier is done! Yesssss! A round of Ben and Jerry's for everyone!

Oh yeah, I almost forgot...

this is supposed to be an adoption blog, isn't it? So how about an adoption update?

Okay...


...


...


...


Get the idea?

There's no update, is basically what I would be conveying here.

I guess I could update you on why I don't have an adoption update, but I'm probably going to get my bloomers twisted over it and get madder and madder as I talk. If that doesn't turn you off, here's the deal:

We still don't have our dossier completed, so we are going NOWHERE. The dossier's not done because the homestudy is not done. That's the big hold-up. No homestudy. Ask me why we still don't have our homestudy done, when our interviews and most of our reference letters were completed back in November- go ahead, ask me...

Thank you for asking. We had one major delay that I will not discuss because it was all my husband's fault, and if I think about it too much, I'll get so mad that I'll be tempted to put his hand in warm water next time he's sleeping. Or shave half his head. Or both. I haven't decided yet. After the delay caused by the procrastinating hub, we had to wait on the tax people who write our self-employment verification letters needed by the social worker to be able to finish the homestudy. Approval was required from the corporate office, or some such load of frap. But, basically- the WHOLE THING IS STILL THE HUB'S FAULT, in case I hadn't made that clear. God love him. He's precious. Just precious. Wonderful man.

"But, Michelle," you say. "This all sounds oddly familiar... Isn't this the same scenario that delayed your Vietnam dossier?"

Why, yes. Yes, it was. How sweet of you to remember. The funny thing is we have changed tax people, but still had a delay in getting the letter. Gosh- life is funny, ain't it?

We finally got the employment letter mailed to our social worker and did a little happy dance that now, finally, our homestudy would get finished and our dossier would be ready to turn in to our agency.

Hahahahahaaahhh. How crazy of you to think it would go that smoothly.

Our social worker emailed me to let me know she was still waiting for one of our references. I contacted the reference, who said it would get mailed out soon. Good. It's all taken care of. We're making some headway.

Hahahahahahaaahahhahahah!!!!

The social worker just emailed today to say she still hasn't received the reference letter. We have to ask someone else now.

See that little ticker thingy up at the top of my blog, saying it's been 21 months since we originally planned to adopt again?

Haahahahahaaaahahah. I'm fairly certain twenty-one months is, like, almost two years. Did you know that?

HahahahahahaahaaaahaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.

I'm mildly irritated but I will remain calm. This is just a small glitch. I will simply take a deep breath and remind myself that good, Christian women are not supposed to invent new creative cuss word combos or challenge themselves to come up with filthy words starting with each letter of the alphabet. Godly women do not run wildly down the middle of the street shouting, "What time do the bars open around here?"

Truthfully, I keep reminding myself that this adoption will not happen one second sooner or later than God has planned. I truly believe that. If God has a specific baby in mind for us (and I believe He does), then the timing has to be just right. He will use all of this to work for our good, I'm sure- and I'll look back on this frustration someday and see how it all worked out just exactly as it should have. So, there's no need to start spewing the cuss words (at least not out loud).

I've thought up some pretty interesting cuss word combos though... I'm kinda proud of myself, really- but I'll keep them to myself.

Eff Words

Our grandson, Braden, came over yesterday and stayed the night last night. There's always a lot of... um... fun and, uh... activity here when he visits. Yes, that's a good word- activity... he's a very active boy. Never a dull moment with Mr. B in the house.

We really do love having him- I don't want to make it sound as if we don't- but he's... um... constantly active. We went to Walmart yesterday to buy things to keep the active people happy and occupied. Here's a little tip: Active people do not stay happily occupied for long, no matter how much crap you buy at Walmart. Nana is exhausted. Papa is ready to pass out. We're going to the movies this afternoon, then Mr. B is going home and we are going to collapse on the couch, looking forward, of course, to his next visit.

One thing about him that I adore is the way he starts certain words with the letter F. For example, cookies don't have sprinkles. They have frinkles. Until recently, Spiderman was Fiderman.

My son's name is Tucker.

Think about it.

Never a dull moment.

Goals for 2009

Here's my list of resolutions goals for the coming year. What are yours?

1. Get my weight under control (to me, this means losing 70-80 lbs.), preferrably by my 43rd birthday, and establish healthy healthier eating habits for my family.

2. Always... No, that's not it... Never... No. I forget. Skip it.

3. Get my home and family organized ONCE AND FOR ALL.

4. Always carry a litter bag in my car.

5. Finish that little Tolstoy novel I've had sitting around here forever and a day. Let's see... What's it called? Seems there's something about war... and peace. Lots of Russians... I forget.

6. Attempt to treat the people in my home as if I actually like them on a semi-daily basis.

7. I can't think of another one. I was going for ten. Ten is a nice, round number. I don't have ten things.

8. OOOH- but I have eight!!!! I thought of another one: Get our finances under control.

9. AND NINE!!! I have nine! How could I forget to mention completing our adoption? That should have been at the top. Let's pretend like this one was up at Number One and my weight was Number Nine.

10. Crap. I don't have ten. Almost, though.