April Needs....

• a new camera - that would be nice. can it be a camcorder?
• someone - yes. my child from vietnam. soon.
• TO GO! - where? can it be someplace tropical?
• $1m - doesn't/wouldn't everyone? it would be nice to have.
• a pancreas transplant - WHAT!!!??? maybe I should visit the doctor.
• harp stings - maybe this is a sign that I should learn to play the harp.
• advice - always.
• Christmas - absolutely! dinner at the new house this year.
• to be kissed - of course. doesn't everyone?
• a home - actually just to sell one. i have a new one. see previous posts.

Just go to Google and type in "your name" needs and see what you need. These were the top ten. Actually top eleven. I left off one that really isn't appropriate. I'd like to take credit for finding this fun little game, but I have to give credit to Allison who gives credit to Tori who gives credit to....Well, you get the picture.

My Current Home

Yes, the home that I have lived in for just under 13½ years is on the market. It's kind of scary, exciting and overwhelming at the same time. I know the housing market isn't really good at this time, but I'm hoping that it won't take too long to sell my house. There have been 4 house up for sale in my neighborhood that are all ranches and only one is still on the market. 45 days and counting. The others sold within 2 weeks of their listing dates. I'm hoping I will be in the latter category. Here are the pictures that the Realtors photographer took of my house on Tuesday.

What do you think? Do you think it will appeal to people? What kind of people? ie: older, starter homers, singles

Front
Upstairs Living Room
Dining Room
Kitchen
Master Bedroom
Lower Living Room
Lower Living Room
Basement Bedroom
Backyard

I really hate the pictures that they take because they are skewed. Not the outside ones, but the inside ones. Everything looks longer than it really is. Not that the rooms are small, but they aren't as long as they look. I feel the only inside picture that isn't skewed is the second lower living room photo and I don't like the master bedroom shot they chose to use. I hope it doesn't turn anyone away. I would have taken an angled shot of the front and I'm happy with the backyard picture because all my mowing lines look great. LOL! If you click on the backyard photo you will notice the yard art bicycle that I bought. I'll take more pictures of that and post later.

Weekly Quip

New House

Here are some photos of the new house that Tim and I just bought. The furniture is not ours, but you can get the idea. We will be closing in late October and moving in November. Well, I guess the actual moving depends on when I sell my house and when Tim rents his house. So, one of us maybe be living in the house after we close and the other may not.

Front
Foyer

Dinning Room - to the right when you walk in front door

Formal Living Room - to left when you walk in the front door

Upstairs Family Room - straight when you walk in front door

The see through fireplace between FR & Hearth

Breakfast Nook & Hearth Room area

Kitchen area

Back

There are four bedrooms upstairs and three bathrooms. Two bedrooms share a bath and the other two have their own. The master is very nice with a sitting room and a see through fireplace between the sitting and whirlpool tub. There is also a half bathroom on the first floor next to the laundry room and there is a laundry shoot.

The downstairs is finished. There is an Informal Family Room, two offices, a workout room, a full bathroom and some storage. It is a walkout, so that will make it very nice for the dogs and Tim since he works from home most of the time. I wish there was a window in the workout room, but it's not that big a deal.

There are some landscaping things that I will change, but overall the landscaping is very nice. We are going to fence the yard ASAP as well. Currently there is an invisible fence, but I just don't care for those. We also need to paint a few rooms upstairs, but that is the easy part. I'll post more pictures after we get our stuff moved in. Heck, I'll probably post pictures of furniture we'll be getting rid of as well.

DEADLINE

It's drawing closer to the September 1 deadline. 10 days and counting before the ceiling possibly falls in. I have signed another petition in hopes that Vietnam will continue/start the negotiations with the US on a new agreement and urging them to keep all currently logged dossiers at the Dept. of International Adoption and not send them back. Believe me, I can understand VN's hesitance in wanting to renegotiate an agreement after the reports the US has published on their adoption system and all the new regulations that the US has imposed ASAP, but I really hope that both governments pull their heads out and stop beating their chests to realize that THIS is not about them, it's about the children that are stuck in an orphanage living life in non optimal conditions. Not that the orphanages are dirty or anything. From what I've seen in pictures and heard from adoptive parents the orphanages are very clean and the children are cared for and loved to the best of the nurses/nannies abilities. It's just not the best place for any child.

There was a meeting in Hanoi on the 14th of August between the USCIS (immigration) and the DOS (State Dept.) to discuss "things" however, from what I can tell (which is based on what was reported to me) everyone keeps talking about the same stuff and nothing gets done or solved. The only real piece of information (what I consider real) is; they restated that older children and special needs children are prioritized in the approval of the I-600. They said they do not have a formal definition of what a special needs child was, but stated that children that had physical issues or diseases and needs that needed to be corrected in the US would qualify. Then there were the excuses as to WHY it's taking so long to process the I-600's and they stated that they were increasing the staff to help process the onslaught they received. I just think it's ridiculous that families wait SO long. There is a family who is adopting two absolutely adorable brothers, 5 & 3, that have been waiting 10 months since their acceptance of the boys to get the I-600 approval. That is beyond ridiculous to me. Now that they finally have the "golden ticket" they have to wait for a G&R (adoption) date. Usually a G&R date comes before the I-600 and keeps getting rescheduled because the I-600 isn't approved. I don't know what the deal is over there. I haven't checked lately and I can't remember if they have received the second "golden ticket" which is the official letter from the DIA stating that the boys are truly able to be adopted. Things change daily, so the letter may have already been sent hence the I-600 approval, but it may still be forthcoming. Either way, I hope that they travel soon because 10 months is WAY TOO long to wait.

Weekly Quip

Are you Right or Left Brained?

Your result for The Right Brain vs Left Brain Test ...

Center Brained!

Much like Goldilocks, you have gone the middle way.

Slightly less typical, you could consider yourself center brained. Center brained people are neither left nor right dominant, but rather exhibit equal qualities of both. If you are center brained, you are likely both logical and creative, excel in the maths and sciences, and also art and philosophy.


I always knew I didn't fall into a certain category. Now I know for sure that I'm a middle of the road kind of gal. Good or Bad? Who knows, but as Popeye would say, "I yam, what I yam!"

You can take the test here and find out whether you are a middle of the road kind of person like me or actually can make a choice between left and right. Yet another reason why I screw up my left from right. I can't decided which side of the brain I'm on, so how can I decided which direction I'm supposed to go.

Special Olympics

Let me start by saying that two friends who are adopting from China received their referrals in the last two months. Karen will be traveling to pick up Joaquin (see Joaquin's Blog on the left) in mid-September. He's an adorable little 3 year old boy and I can't wait to meet him. Jackie and her crew will be traveling around late-September to pick up Lydia. Lydia is a beautiful 10 month old little girl who I'm also looking forward to meeting. Sorry, there blog is private, only I can read it. That's right, JUST ME! LOL! Seriously though, their blog is private.

So, back to the title. Jackie's, daughter, Lauren, has given me the honor of naming a Polly Pocket (PP) after me. PP April just competed in the Special Olympics and Jackie sent me the action photos of PP April's accomplishment in the triathlon, so I just had to share them with everyone. WAY TO GO PP APRIL!!!

Swim, PP April, Swim

She needs a little work on her biking form

Run, Run, Run

The joys of winning. Take a look at that trophy and wrap!

Again, Congrats PP April on a job well done.

Weekly Quip

Answers

No, not answers to the MANY questions I have regarding this adoption. Unfortunately, "in the dark" seems to be the way everyone wants to operate this debacle.

I'm going to answer the two questions I got from my this post. Please, if you have any others post them and I'll answer them.

M and H asked...
What is your favorite meal?

I have one that I make and one that I buy.

I really love Spinada Enchiladas from Jose Peppers. They are so good.

I make crock pot chicken. I don't make it very often, but it is so good. Spray the crock pot with Pam, line with dried beef slices, wrap 4 chicken breast with turkey bacon, mix together (3/4c flour, 1/2c sour cream, can of cream of mushroom soup), lay some more dried beef slices over the chicken and then pour the mixture over the top. Set the crock pot on LOW and cook for at least 8 hours. I've cooked it for 13 hours before and the chicken was so tender. Serve over egg or spinach noodles.

J&T'sMom asked...
When did you start running and why?

I've always run just not distance. I thought running over 1 mile was CRAZY talk. I was a sprinter from as far back as I can remember, but stopped running after high school. I got a small scholarship to run track in college, but it wasn't significant enough to "make" me run college track. I probably ran a handful of times (not including intramural sports) from May 1987 to January 1, 2002. In December of 2001 I got a wild hair up my backside (after many conversations with my friend Mike about his adventures in marathons and triathlons) to run a marathon. I chose to raise money for Diabetes and go with Team Diabetes to the Big Island in Hawaii and run the Kona Marathon in June 2002. I raised $4,300 for Diabetes and had a horrible first marathon experience. Initially one marathon was all I was going to run, but because my first one was SO awful (that's another story) I decided that I needed to do another because I HAD to have a better experience the second time. 8 marathons later (Kona, Chicago, Phoenix, Chicago, Oklahoma City, Napa Valley, Disney's Goofy-FL, Marine Corps-DC) I'm taking a long needed break from running 26.2 miles. Mentally I'm just not prepared to run another anytime soon and I don't know how much longer or how many more my body can handle.

Some plans...

don't go the way you expect. The Olympic Ceremony Party was cancelled, so I got to stay at home which was very nice and Tim went to downtown Kansas City, KS to watch the Tour of KC. I ran 10 miles on Saturday AM which seemed easier than last weeks 10 even though the course was much hillier. It rained until about 2p which ruined the plan to hang out at the pool or do yardwork. Tim and I went to a Tour of KC party at a friends house that night. It was fun, but I felt a little out of place since I was 1 of 3 girls in the 30 party guests. I planned on running Sunday AM with another group, but when Tim and I got there no one was there. We went to downtown Overland Park, KS to watch the final day of Tour of KC. We took a short break during the criterium racing to see a house. Amazingly we both liked this house. That is a HUGE FEAT for us. The rest of the night was spent watching the Olympics. I missed the festivities tonight since I went running with SB2SB again.

Something Not So Original

I'm taking a page from a few bloggers that I read (one who is listed to the left) and asking if anyone out there has anything they want to ask. I don't think I have that many readers, but I thought I would give it a whirl since there really isn't much else to write about. SO, if you have a question that you would like to ask me please leave it in the comments section (if you are not a blogger member you can still leave a message as an anonymous poster just sign your name if you would please) and I'll do my best to answer.

Nothing too exciting planned for me this coming weekend. MAY be watching Olympic opening ceremonies at a friends house Friday night, MAY be watching friends participate in an all women's triathlon Saturday morning, MAY be going to a post race party Saturday night, MAY be going to look at a house on Sunday. What I would like to do is sit at home doing yardwork and then hang out at a pool. YEA RIGHT!!! The pool part ,YES, the yardwork, NOT, but it has to be done. Oh the joys of home ownership and yet I want a new one. I'll let you know how the weekend turns out.

Weekly Quip

For the month of August I thought I would have a Weekly Quip theme. I hope I don't offend anyone in the next four weeks, but I thought these were pretty funny.

Nothing too Exciting

That's right. Nothing is going on. It's hotter than H E double hockey sticks here, but a break is coming on Wednesday. Or so the "I'm rarely Right" weather people say. I can't wait for upper 80's!!!

I didn't do anything exciting this weekend either. I ran 10 miles on Saturday AM which is the farthest I have run since March. I rode 50 miles on Sunday AM which is the farthest I have ridden since this time last year. I'm still beat! Due to the excessive heat and humidity Sat AM I had braided my ponytail while running unfortunately the outcome I had expected was not to be. I know that my hair freaks out in the humidity when I run, so I thought braiding it would help out the nattiness of it. WRONG!!!! My friend Stacie could barely get the braid undone after the run. It took 30 minutes in the shower to get all the tangles out. OUCH!!! I decided that it was time to get the hair cut (7 inches off). I was trying to grow it out for Beautiful Lengths, but I just couldn't take it anymore. I was about an inch and a half too short, but it was driving me nuts. I'll have to try again next year, but in the winter this time. I was much happier on Sun for the bike ride. No hair sticking to every inch of my back. OK, so it really was not that bad, but almost. I do feel as if I have NO hair. It's so weird, but it looks much healthier now.

Still no news on how the special needs adoptions are going to be handled after September 1st. Nothing like waiting until the last minute. Please Oh Please keep everyone in suspense as long as you can and make it even more stressful and frustrating than it already it is. I did look into domestic "private" adoption. Apparently there really is no such thing as truly private anymore however, the lawyer that I spoke with is as close as it gets. Thankfully he doesn't charge to maintain a profile for you or to show it to birth parents he charges when he actually starts working your case. So, I can put together a profile and wait. Unfortunately, it could be indefinitely for me since I'm single, but maybe not. He said it's not common place that birth parents choose singles, but it has happened. I hate to do anything until I know for sure how the US & VN are going to process special needs.

Nothing too exciting planned for the week either. It's pretty sad. I'm sure you don't want to hear about my daily running schedule or lack there of or my yardwork which is going slowly in the heat, so I have nothing to post about until something truly exciting happens. : )