I will of course come back to the traveling thing when I'm inspired, but the knowledge that it is sitting there waiting for me was completely causing me to not blog and that is NOT OKAY!!
School has begun.
New pencils, paints & lunchboxes.
Kids grinning at their friends & running to my arms for hugs after the school day (except for the big kid).
Really it has gone well. We are all a bit tired, what with the new schedule & all. The big 2nd grader is begging for "just some homework, Mom. He (the teacher) says we have to wait til next Thursday or something!" in an appalled voice, as you can imagine. Our middle schooler is balancing his first sport along with school, but it seems a good match for him, as long as he gets to bed on time...
Dave & I just went to a "murder mystery" party tonight. Thank goodness, we were not the murderers or the murdered...we laughed lots & exhibited our "spicy, Latino" relationship.
yeah. I know. Hard to imagine.
A family got a referral for a set of siblings on Friday, as reported on our yahoo Ethiopia group. So the good news is that we move up on the list! It's encouraging to see things happen, even if they aren't happening to us.
On that note our good friends adopting from Guatemala got their travel notice & will be traveling within the next few weeks to bring home their 6 month old boy! So we are thrilled to help them get ready to welcome him home.
our turn soon enough...
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Sunday, August 13, 2006
cheap vacations, part 1
Some of the blogs I've been reading lately are talking about vacationing & how to do it cheaply & still have fun. Since we have done a bit of that sort of thing, I thought I would start a little how-to series on the topic. Many seasoned bloggers do that sort of thing all the time. Maybe this will get me writing every or every other day...we'll see...
So....some tips & ideas for planning & executing (long) vacations that can be taken on a school teacher's budget...
~We planned our longest trip (5 weeks) around the location of two siblings we wanted to visit: one south & one north; then we connected the dots with places we really wanted to visit, including lots of National & State Parks because we love showing our kids the beauty of creation. It opens their eyes to the character of God & the variety found in creation, as well as being educational, which teachers always love. Anyway, the obvious result of this was that at both ends of our trip, we had homes to stay in, and because our relatives love us, they did not charge us rent (hee hee).
~Camp, camp, camp! There are different ways to do this, & obviously a range of costs. We have collected all the various tent-camping equipment at garage sales & Target clearance, so we just have to buy food & grab the cast iron pans out of the kitchen & we're off. Those less prepared can stay in yurts at some state parks, which are "permanent" shelters of wood & canvas, or similar options at other parks (outfitted tents or teepees for instance). You would still need a camping stove to make meals a bit simpler, but you can borrow one from a "camping crazy couple," who I'm sure pops right into your mind. A Rubbermaid tub of various kitchen utensils from your own kitchen should fill out your needs.
Another good tip re: tent camping is to check out the various areas available to camp in the area you are headed for. You will want to know the availability of campsites and/or if reservations are necessary, the location of showers, etc. We have stayed at national & state campgrounds or forest reserves for as little as $6 & as much as $20, so know your options before you commit. Also consider that arriving at 6 or 7pm & expecting to set up the tent & make dinner for squirrelly kids can be a little frustrating, so plan a super simple meal the night you arrive & give the kids time to run off steam in a lake or stream.
Well I think that is enough rambling for today. I'm off to share my pink jello at a little potluck. Enjoy your Sunday.
Oh yeah. No news is good news. We'll hear about our sweeties sooner or later...
So....some tips & ideas for planning & executing (long) vacations that can be taken on a school teacher's budget...
~We planned our longest trip (5 weeks) around the location of two siblings we wanted to visit: one south & one north; then we connected the dots with places we really wanted to visit, including lots of National & State Parks because we love showing our kids the beauty of creation. It opens their eyes to the character of God & the variety found in creation, as well as being educational, which teachers always love. Anyway, the obvious result of this was that at both ends of our trip, we had homes to stay in, and because our relatives love us, they did not charge us rent (hee hee).
~Camp, camp, camp! There are different ways to do this, & obviously a range of costs. We have collected all the various tent-camping equipment at garage sales & Target clearance, so we just have to buy food & grab the cast iron pans out of the kitchen & we're off. Those less prepared can stay in yurts at some state parks, which are "permanent" shelters of wood & canvas, or similar options at other parks (outfitted tents or teepees for instance). You would still need a camping stove to make meals a bit simpler, but you can borrow one from a "camping crazy couple," who I'm sure pops right into your mind. A Rubbermaid tub of various kitchen utensils from your own kitchen should fill out your needs.
Another good tip re: tent camping is to check out the various areas available to camp in the area you are headed for. You will want to know the availability of campsites and/or if reservations are necessary, the location of showers, etc. We have stayed at national & state campgrounds or forest reserves for as little as $6 & as much as $20, so know your options before you commit. Also consider that arriving at 6 or 7pm & expecting to set up the tent & make dinner for squirrelly kids can be a little frustrating, so plan a super simple meal the night you arrive & give the kids time to run off steam in a lake or stream.
Well I think that is enough rambling for today. I'm off to share my pink jello at a little potluck. Enjoy your Sunday.
Oh yeah. No news is good news. We'll hear about our sweeties sooner or later...
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
In the meantime
I have spent some time working around the house, as another summer of home makeover continues. I have included pictures of the bathroom upstairs, which was completed last week. The pink is before, and the bright eye-popping green is after! How'd you like to wake up to that in the morning? We have also changed out our stove to a newer on someone donated (electric to gas...thanks Mike), painted the kids closets and finished up their rooms, and worked in the garden (tomatoes FINALLY coming), alll this knowing that we could our call today or even as late as October. We are trusting in God's providence through it all.
We were told that we could be like number 5 or six on the list of people that are waiting for sibblings...for sure less than 12. How's that for a difinitive answer? Sonya joined a news group of people adopting through our agency and we have been on it just long enough to see some of them get referals and others prepare to travel this month. It is exciting to see some progress, even if it is not our own. Our time will come.
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