Today is the last day of school. The weather is still stuck on spring, 50* and gray. The kids are wearing sweaters and sweatshirts, long pants and warm socks! We just shake our heads...the variety is nice, but at times we wish things would line up a little better!
I have wanted to write a lot of things for a long time, but for 3 weeks now I have been kind of off kilter. I keep mumbling about being busy, which I sort of am, but not really. We haven't had any foster kids, haven't gone on any major trips, haven't dealt w/any 'crisis' type of situations. What has been going on? Not much really report-worthy! But a few things here and there...so if you want to read another rambling list of moderately interesting happenings...follow me! (And w/such a stellar set-up as that, how can you resist, right? ;)! Here goes...)
- The chicks are now 3 weeks old. They have developed a mix of fluff and feathers! They stand quite tall and are able to fly/jump/throw themselves into the air quite well. They like shiny things and until we put a feeding container in there, they would make all this noise until I fed them every morning. Soon (I think) we will be able to put them outside for a bit each day. I will be asking my niece (our chicken expert - she has MANY chickens!!) about this soon. In a week or so, Dave will be working on some sort of tractor/coop type structure...still researching that one...
- Colleen can almost say the letter S!! She has made so much progress!! She can identify the letters in her name, the letter M, and a few others. She knows her colors (mostly), some shapes and a bunch of fun songs. She recently had a doctors' appointment at Children's about her hips/knees/legs/ankles/feet to see if she needed to start wearing braces again (or bracelets, which is what she calls them), but they said no. They recommended high top shoes, however, but despite Dave's pleading, they will not be Air Jordans! Goofball. Colleen recently got her hair cut to about chin length, making her look quite a bit older. There may be a picture post on that coming soon...In general, we have loved listening to this girl sing! It seems to be a new thing that she wants to do all the time now =)
- Moses reads. Not just tries to, he reads! If I'm busy doing something, he'll pick up a book and quietly whisper-read most of a book to himself! I said it before, I know, but it's a pretty amazing thing to watch/hear. Now he also writes to us a lot - "I love the ranaan suott you hav. Lov, Moses" (I love the running suit you have. Love, Moses) I'm constantly finding adorable notes like this in his backpack, on the floor of his room, on my pillow, etc...He loves to send mail in hopes he will get some! We are slowly working our way through the family and friends - when he is in the mood, we make pictures and notes to send to someone new. If you haven't gotten one, summer is coming and we'll soon have more time to write! Mo has been enjoying piano and swimming lessons and soon will start T-ball. I will say this though - I have been pitching to him in the yard and when my pitches are decent enough, he can hit it and I nearly pass out from heart failure trying to get out of the way of the ball! I got hit w/one once and I'm not sure which is worse - getting beaned or dropping to the ground to avoid getting beaned! I'm too old for this!! He laughs so hard and I get up off the ground, brushing dandelion fuzz off my clothes, marveling at how far the ball went...his hand-eye coordination is MUCH improved from last year!! My pitching is not, so really out of 50 pitches, I only need to worry about 5 of them going anywhere near the bat. But it is a ton of fun and if I had as much energy as he does, we'd do that every afternoon. Sometimes I feel like I am failing him by not spending more time teaching him to ride a bike, but then I remember my own experiences learning that. It took me forever! And then my brother just watched me, hopped on a bike and did it w/o barely any teaching at all. Maybe he'll be a late learner in that. Until then, we are having fun w/the plastic bat and whiffle ball!
- This is the part where I update you on me. But I feel weird talking about me! I will say this - I've been slacking a little in the running department. Only running about 2-3 times/week, but wishing it were more. I got water baptized this past Sunday! That was pretty awesome! I'm so grateful I could celebrate w/my family, friends and church family and friends! I am sort of twisted up about summer vacation. On one hand, the kids bicker and drive me nuts at times, but on the other hand I am hoping we can do some fun activities together. I always wish for a routine - maybe do activities from a different subject each day...Monday - math, Tuesday - art, Wednesday - science, Thursday - history/govt, Friday - Spanish. But I know me - I know that won't happen! So maybe we'll just work whatever into each day. I like having things that keep them from being bored, just little things that keep them learning. I know Dave will be taking us to the beach and the lakes in the afternoons - no complaints here! We will also be doing some camping too, of course! I think the biggest thing that I am looking forward to this summer is my regular date nights w/Dave. We have been going out each week and it's a good break for me. Now that summer is here, we hope to go play mini-golf, walk on the beach, ride bikes, etc...That stuff is fun to do w/the kids, but it's also nice to remember how things were before kids, before marriage, when we did all that kind of stuff on dates!
- Dave is currently packing up school stuff to move into a new room next year. Actually, he will be in a new room at both schools! That's a little bit stressful right now, but thankfully it seems we will be done right on time. He got the boat ready for the season and the few nice days we had tempted him to skip out on the packing and hit the open water! But he has been very responsible which means there will be more time for boating later. He has been teaching piano a bunch, going to men's prayer breakfast and men's group, playing a little softball and church music...I know that he is looking forward to summer break more than any of the rest of us!!
- The high school friends who were matched to adopt an infant got to bring their baby home the other day! She (the baby) was born a little early but w/no complications! Such sweet pics...other friends from church are going to be adopting their grandbaby and maybe his brother. Keep them in prayer - it's an exciting time but also a transition for them. Also heard word that other acquaintances are looking into adoption and other friends are serious about foster care. It's such a blessing to see and hear about God raising up families, regardless of whether or not they are related. When I feel frustrated that we don't have more kids in our house, I remember all the others that have such great news and I pray that the lack of need for us as a foster home means that things are going well for kids in our area. I am constantly in awe of the adoption news I hear and I am so proud and inspired by the people around us!
Friday, June 10, 2011
The ultimate sweater.
Today is the last day of school. The weather is still stuck on spring, 50* and gray. The kids are wearing sweaters and sweatshirts, long pants and warm socks! We just shake our heads...the variety is nice, but at times we wish things would line up a little better!
I have wanted to write a lot of things for a long time, but for 3 weeks now I have been kind of off kilter. I keep mumbling about being busy, which I sort of am, but not really. We haven't had any foster kids, haven't gone on any major trips, haven't dealt w/any 'crisis' type of situations. What has been going on? Not much really report-worthy! But a few things here and there...so if you want to read another rambling list of moderately interesting happenings...follow me! (And w/such a stellar set-up as that, how can you resist, right? ;)! Here goes...)
- The chicks are now 3 weeks old. They have developed a mix of fluff and feathers! They stand quite tall and are able to fly/jump/throw themselves into the air quite well. They like shiny things and until we put a feeding container in there, they would make all this noise until I fed them every morning. Soon (I think) we will be able to put them outside for a bit each day. I will be asking my niece (our chicken expert - she has MANY chickens!!) about this soon. In a week or so, Dave will be working on some sort of tractor/coop type structure...still researching that one...
- Colleen can almost say the letter S!! She has made so much progress!! She can identify the letters in her name, the letter M, and a few others. She knows her colors (mostly), some shapes and a bunch of fun songs. She recently had a doctors' appointment at Children's about her hips/knees/legs/ankles/feet to see if she needed to start wearing braces again (or bracelets, which is what she calls them), but they said no. They recommended high top shoes, however, but despite Dave's pleading, they will not be Air Jordans! Goofball. Colleen recently got her hair cut to about chin length, making her look quite a bit older. There may be a picture post on that coming soon...In general, we have loved listening to this girl sing! It seems to be a new thing that she wants to do all the time now =)
- Moses reads. Not just tries to, he reads! If I'm busy doing something, he'll pick up a book and quietly whisper-read most of a book to himself! I said it before, I know, but it's a pretty amazing thing to watch/hear. Now he also writes to us a lot - "I love the ranaan suott you hav. Lov, Moses" (I love the running suit you have. Love, Moses) I'm constantly finding adorable notes like this in his backpack, on the floor of his room, on my pillow, etc...He loves to send mail in hopes he will get some! We are slowly working our way through the family and friends - when he is in the mood, we make pictures and notes to send to someone new. If you haven't gotten one, summer is coming and we'll soon have more time to write! Mo has been enjoying piano and swimming lessons and soon will start T-ball. I will say this though - I have been pitching to him in the yard and when my pitches are decent enough, he can hit it and I nearly pass out from heart failure trying to get out of the way of the ball! I got hit w/one once and I'm not sure which is worse - getting beaned or dropping to the ground to avoid getting beaned! I'm too old for this!! He laughs so hard and I get up off the ground, brushing dandelion fuzz off my clothes, marveling at how far the ball went...his hand-eye coordination is MUCH improved from last year!! My pitching is not, so really out of 50 pitches, I only need to worry about 5 of them going anywhere near the bat. But it is a ton of fun and if I had as much energy as he does, we'd do that every afternoon. Sometimes I feel like I am failing him by not spending more time teaching him to ride a bike, but then I remember my own experiences learning that. It took me forever! And then my brother just watched me, hopped on a bike and did it w/o barely any teaching at all. Maybe he'll be a late learner in that. Until then, we are having fun w/the plastic bat and whiffle ball!
- This is the part where I update you on me. But I feel weird talking about me! I will say this - I've been slacking a little in the running department. Only running about 2-3 times/week, but wishing it were more. I got water baptized this past Sunday! That was pretty awesome! I'm so grateful I could celebrate w/my family, friends and church family and friends! I am sort of twisted up about summer vacation. On one hand, the kids bicker and drive me nuts at times, but on the other hand I am hoping we can do some fun activities together. I always wish for a routine - maybe do activities from a different subject each day...Monday - math, Tuesday - art, Wednesday - science, Thursday - history/govt, Friday - Spanish. But I know me - I know that won't happen! So maybe we'll just work whatever into each day. I like having things that keep them from being bored, just little things that keep them learning. I know Dave will be taking us to the beach and the lakes in the afternoons - no complaints here! We will also be doing some camping too, of course! I think the biggest thing that I am looking forward to this summer is my regular date nights w/Dave. We have been going out each week and it's a good break for me. Now that summer is here, we hope to go play mini-golf, walk on the beach, ride bikes, etc...That stuff is fun to do w/the kids, but it's also nice to remember how things were before kids, before marriage, when we did all that kind of stuff on dates!
- Dave is currently packing up school stuff to move into a new room next year. Actually, he will be in a new room at both schools! That's a little bit stressful right now, but thankfully it seems we will be done right on time. He got the boat ready for the season and the few nice days we had tempted him to skip out on the packing and hit the open water! But he has been very responsible which means there will be more time for boating later. He has been teaching piano a bunch, going to men's prayer breakfast and men's group, playing a little softball and church music...I know that he is looking forward to summer break more than any of the rest of us!!
- The high school friends who were matched to adopt an infant got to bring their baby home the other day! She (the baby) was born a little early but w/no complications! Such sweet pics...other friends from church are going to be adopting their grandbaby and maybe his brother. Keep them in prayer - it's an exciting time but also a transition for them. Also heard word that other acquaintances are looking into adoption and other friends are serious about foster care. It's such a blessing to see and hear about God raising up families, regardless of whether or not they are related. When I feel frustrated that we don't have more kids in our house, I remember all the others that have such great news and I pray that the lack of need for us as a foster home means that things are going well for kids in our area. I am constantly in awe of the adoption news I hear and I am so proud and inspired by the people around us!
I have wanted to write a lot of things for a long time, but for 3 weeks now I have been kind of off kilter. I keep mumbling about being busy, which I sort of am, but not really. We haven't had any foster kids, haven't gone on any major trips, haven't dealt w/any 'crisis' type of situations. What has been going on? Not much really report-worthy! But a few things here and there...so if you want to read another rambling list of moderately interesting happenings...follow me! (And w/such a stellar set-up as that, how can you resist, right? ;)! Here goes...)
- The chicks are now 3 weeks old. They have developed a mix of fluff and feathers! They stand quite tall and are able to fly/jump/throw themselves into the air quite well. They like shiny things and until we put a feeding container in there, they would make all this noise until I fed them every morning. Soon (I think) we will be able to put them outside for a bit each day. I will be asking my niece (our chicken expert - she has MANY chickens!!) about this soon. In a week or so, Dave will be working on some sort of tractor/coop type structure...still researching that one...
- Colleen can almost say the letter S!! She has made so much progress!! She can identify the letters in her name, the letter M, and a few others. She knows her colors (mostly), some shapes and a bunch of fun songs. She recently had a doctors' appointment at Children's about her hips/knees/legs/ankles/feet to see if she needed to start wearing braces again (or bracelets, which is what she calls them), but they said no. They recommended high top shoes, however, but despite Dave's pleading, they will not be Air Jordans! Goofball. Colleen recently got her hair cut to about chin length, making her look quite a bit older. There may be a picture post on that coming soon...In general, we have loved listening to this girl sing! It seems to be a new thing that she wants to do all the time now =)
- Moses reads. Not just tries to, he reads! If I'm busy doing something, he'll pick up a book and quietly whisper-read most of a book to himself! I said it before, I know, but it's a pretty amazing thing to watch/hear. Now he also writes to us a lot - "I love the ranaan suott you hav. Lov, Moses" (I love the running suit you have. Love, Moses) I'm constantly finding adorable notes like this in his backpack, on the floor of his room, on my pillow, etc...He loves to send mail in hopes he will get some! We are slowly working our way through the family and friends - when he is in the mood, we make pictures and notes to send to someone new. If you haven't gotten one, summer is coming and we'll soon have more time to write! Mo has been enjoying piano and swimming lessons and soon will start T-ball. I will say this though - I have been pitching to him in the yard and when my pitches are decent enough, he can hit it and I nearly pass out from heart failure trying to get out of the way of the ball! I got hit w/one once and I'm not sure which is worse - getting beaned or dropping to the ground to avoid getting beaned! I'm too old for this!! He laughs so hard and I get up off the ground, brushing dandelion fuzz off my clothes, marveling at how far the ball went...his hand-eye coordination is MUCH improved from last year!! My pitching is not, so really out of 50 pitches, I only need to worry about 5 of them going anywhere near the bat. But it is a ton of fun and if I had as much energy as he does, we'd do that every afternoon. Sometimes I feel like I am failing him by not spending more time teaching him to ride a bike, but then I remember my own experiences learning that. It took me forever! And then my brother just watched me, hopped on a bike and did it w/o barely any teaching at all. Maybe he'll be a late learner in that. Until then, we are having fun w/the plastic bat and whiffle ball!
- This is the part where I update you on me. But I feel weird talking about me! I will say this - I've been slacking a little in the running department. Only running about 2-3 times/week, but wishing it were more. I got water baptized this past Sunday! That was pretty awesome! I'm so grateful I could celebrate w/my family, friends and church family and friends! I am sort of twisted up about summer vacation. On one hand, the kids bicker and drive me nuts at times, but on the other hand I am hoping we can do some fun activities together. I always wish for a routine - maybe do activities from a different subject each day...Monday - math, Tuesday - art, Wednesday - science, Thursday - history/govt, Friday - Spanish. But I know me - I know that won't happen! So maybe we'll just work whatever into each day. I like having things that keep them from being bored, just little things that keep them learning. I know Dave will be taking us to the beach and the lakes in the afternoons - no complaints here! We will also be doing some camping too, of course! I think the biggest thing that I am looking forward to this summer is my regular date nights w/Dave. We have been going out each week and it's a good break for me. Now that summer is here, we hope to go play mini-golf, walk on the beach, ride bikes, etc...That stuff is fun to do w/the kids, but it's also nice to remember how things were before kids, before marriage, when we did all that kind of stuff on dates!
- Dave is currently packing up school stuff to move into a new room next year. Actually, he will be in a new room at both schools! That's a little bit stressful right now, but thankfully it seems we will be done right on time. He got the boat ready for the season and the few nice days we had tempted him to skip out on the packing and hit the open water! But he has been very responsible which means there will be more time for boating later. He has been teaching piano a bunch, going to men's prayer breakfast and men's group, playing a little softball and church music...I know that he is looking forward to summer break more than any of the rest of us!!
- The high school friends who were matched to adopt an infant got to bring their baby home the other day! She (the baby) was born a little early but w/no complications! Such sweet pics...other friends from church are going to be adopting their grandbaby and maybe his brother. Keep them in prayer - it's an exciting time but also a transition for them. Also heard word that other acquaintances are looking into adoption and other friends are serious about foster care. It's such a blessing to see and hear about God raising up families, regardless of whether or not they are related. When I feel frustrated that we don't have more kids in our house, I remember all the others that have such great news and I pray that the lack of need for us as a foster home means that things are going well for kids in our area. I am constantly in awe of the adoption news I hear and I am so proud and inspired by the people around us!
Friday, May 20, 2011
Phinally! More photos!
First of all - today was a beautiful day! We had a lot of fun outside! Which, of course, means I took a bunch of pictures....
Super Moses!
Mushroom man, taking after his momma.
So I added warm water to the mini-greenhouse thing, hoping it quickly expand the 'dirt plugs'. It did. I laughed rather loudly when I noticed HOW they expanded...anyone else think they look funny? Like...um...waste products? ;)
Dave hatched chicks in his classroom again! So far only 3 have made their grand entrance, and that might be all, but we are enjoying Pip, DeeDee and Lois a lot!
Finally, what would a fun day be w/o goofy pictures of ourselves?!
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
May I be late?
It's late May and I haven't done a goals update! Here we go...
Physical
-DRINK MORE WATER! Well, I'm am drinking more...but I find it easy to fall back into old habits.
-Get 8 hours of sleep each night. Nope, not happening. Re-committing myself to this one right now!
-Complete a 5K in under 30 minutes before the snow flies at the end of 2011. If you've been reading here lately you know I finished my 1st 5K in a while =) I came in just under 36 minutes! So this goal is totally do-able! I am planning to run another 5K (I keep typing 5L for some reason...??...) the Saturday of Memorial Weekend. More on that later...
Personal
-Have a weekly planning time. I have just instituted a plan to do better than this - daily planning time. More on that plan in the spiritual category.
-Go out on a date w/Dave every other week. GOOD NEWS!! For the past 6 weeks or so we have gone out every week!! It is so cool - we put the kids to bed and have a great sitter come over. We go out kid-free for 2 hours - mission accomplished. We hope to keep it up during summer!
-Two hours of scrapbooking, sewing or crafting each week. Another thing not happening. Again, re-committing myself to this one.
-Go on a women's retreat before 2011 is over. Proud to say I 'survived' a 2 day women's conference at our church. (I don't say survived b/c the conference was bad - if you remember from the goals post in January, I explained some of my issues w/women's events...) The cool thing was, this conference included worship in Spanish, a rockin' awesome speaker in Spanish and just some really cool topics. I felt very inspired by the women/speakers and I know this will help my attitude about attending more! =)
Spiritual
-Track my Bible reading. Still catching up on The Purple Book, but I have just joined Inspired to Action's Hello Mornings Challenge. I am getting up before everyone else to have 'me' time - worshipping, reading my bible, praying, getting organized for the day, and exercising if there's time. So far so good! This also ties into getting to bed earlier each night. All around, all good stuff for me to be doing...it's not that hard, but my inner morning person has gone into retirement lately and needs a jump start. I think this will be just what I need!
-Family Devotion once a week. I am currently blaming life for this one. Too many activities. Not happening. Over summer would be a good time to start...
-Go on a missions trip??? There's a reason this one has question marks behind it! No progress here, no surprise...
Physical
-DRINK MORE WATER! Well, I'm am drinking more...but I find it easy to fall back into old habits.
-Get 8 hours of sleep each night. Nope, not happening. Re-committing myself to this one right now!
-Complete a 5K in under 30 minutes before the snow flies at the end of 2011. If you've been reading here lately you know I finished my 1st 5K in a while =) I came in just under 36 minutes! So this goal is totally do-able! I am planning to run another 5K (I keep typing 5L for some reason...??...) the Saturday of Memorial Weekend. More on that later...
Personal
-Have a weekly planning time. I have just instituted a plan to do better than this - daily planning time. More on that plan in the spiritual category.
-Go out on a date w/Dave every other week. GOOD NEWS!! For the past 6 weeks or so we have gone out every week!! It is so cool - we put the kids to bed and have a great sitter come over. We go out kid-free for 2 hours - mission accomplished. We hope to keep it up during summer!
-Two hours of scrapbooking, sewing or crafting each week. Another thing not happening. Again, re-committing myself to this one.
-Go on a women's retreat before 2011 is over. Proud to say I 'survived' a 2 day women's conference at our church. (I don't say survived b/c the conference was bad - if you remember from the goals post in January, I explained some of my issues w/women's events...) The cool thing was, this conference included worship in Spanish, a rockin' awesome speaker in Spanish and just some really cool topics. I felt very inspired by the women/speakers and I know this will help my attitude about attending more! =)
Spiritual
-Track my Bible reading. Still catching up on The Purple Book, but I have just joined Inspired to Action's Hello Mornings Challenge. I am getting up before everyone else to have 'me' time - worshipping, reading my bible, praying, getting organized for the day, and exercising if there's time. So far so good! This also ties into getting to bed earlier each night. All around, all good stuff for me to be doing...it's not that hard, but my inner morning person has gone into retirement lately and needs a jump start. I think this will be just what I need!
-Family Devotion once a week. I am currently blaming life for this one. Too many activities. Not happening. Over summer would be a good time to start...
-Go on a missions trip??? There's a reason this one has question marks behind it! No progress here, no surprise...
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Narco dog
I was reminded of this funny story today and thought I'd share it here for my kids (and the 3-4 extended family members who actually read my blog =)!).
When I was in college, I used to go to the animal shelter w/a couple of other kids from my dorm to walk the dogs. It was a lot of fun! Big dogs, little dogs, noisy dogs, happy dogs! We were not allowed to walk the dogs together, so they sent us all out on different routes, which made sense, until the day I was handed the leash of a narcoleptic dog.
Yes, narcoleptic dog.
They told me this dog frequently fell asleep in the midst of whatever activities, but not to worry, b/c he liked walks and we probably wouldn't be gone long enough for an episode. (You can see what's coming here, can't you?)
At this point in the story I would like to include the detail that the animal shelter was back in a quiet, almost empty, industrial area of town, like on the edge, tucked back by a field and such...So the dog and I set out for a 'wog' - walking jog, or maybe you prefer 'jalk'? - anyway, we were off through the field towards town. We happily made a loop around the grocery store, sniffed around the bushes by the local 2 year college campus, and generally wore ourselves out. When I was convinced this dear dog's tongue could hang out no further, we turned back to the shelter. We began to cross the field and I was talking to the sweet boy, telling him I'd come again and such, when I felt a tug at the leash. Those of you who have walked a dog before know how you can get going and looking on ahead, not noticing that your dog has stopped to do business or something and it catches you off guard, but you feel the tug of the leash and turn your head and look down and stop when you see what he/she is up to. Well! I felt the tug of the leash and I turned to find my furry friend flat out flopped down in the grass. Out cold.
I had no idea what to do! I had no idea how long it would last! I called his name, I massaged his belly, scratched his ears, tried to make him think I had bacon, etc...and there were no signs of life. A car went by and it wasn't until it disappeared around the bend that I realized that since this was a secluded area, another probably wouldn't pass for a long time. What was I going to do? Carry him?? He looked to weigh close to the same number as me, and despite thinking I was young, strong and active, that was just not going to happen.
Sigh. I was beginning to feel like I was on candid camera or something. I looked around for someone, ANYONE!, who could help me...
And then the dog jumped up on all fours, gave me a look like, "What are you doing just standing there??" and we picked up right where we left off! I laughed so hard all the way back to the shelter! I kept telling that crazy dog how he scared me, how he should never do that again and how I really hope there is a special family out there to adopt him! I told him I hope they love you and laugh w/you =)
The shelter people were not surprised by my story, of course, and they told me my guy was quite the character...the next time I went back he was gone, so I guess that's good, right?
You're probably wondering why I labeled this post as adoption and foster care (or maybe you're not but I'm going to tell you anyway!). You see, in a weird way, I think this story says a little about fostering and adopting people too. Lots of kids have character. They have quirks and qualities that you might not think kids are capable of having. Up until I met that dog, I didn't know dogs could be narcoleptic. Up until I met some of our foster kids, I didn't know really young children could be so affected and changed by their life situations. Like the narcoleptic dog, kids of all kinds need love, a family to laugh with, and someone to take them on walks =) Like the episode in the field, if you just hang on and hang in there, some of the kids' issues will pass and you will carry on...
If you didn't already know, May is National Foster Care Month. If you have been reading here for long, you know how that is one of the topics I am passionate about. I encourage you to ask me questions if you have them or find someone in your area who can assist you. I pray for all the foster kids in waiting, the kids up for adoption, the parents in waiting, the families in the process of getting certified and those that are part of foster and adoptive families. God bless you all!
(PS - thanks for reading the long funny story that took a turn into soap box land...)
When I was in college, I used to go to the animal shelter w/a couple of other kids from my dorm to walk the dogs. It was a lot of fun! Big dogs, little dogs, noisy dogs, happy dogs! We were not allowed to walk the dogs together, so they sent us all out on different routes, which made sense, until the day I was handed the leash of a narcoleptic dog.
Yes, narcoleptic dog.
They told me this dog frequently fell asleep in the midst of whatever activities, but not to worry, b/c he liked walks and we probably wouldn't be gone long enough for an episode. (You can see what's coming here, can't you?)
At this point in the story I would like to include the detail that the animal shelter was back in a quiet, almost empty, industrial area of town, like on the edge, tucked back by a field and such...So the dog and I set out for a 'wog' - walking jog, or maybe you prefer 'jalk'? - anyway, we were off through the field towards town. We happily made a loop around the grocery store, sniffed around the bushes by the local 2 year college campus, and generally wore ourselves out. When I was convinced this dear dog's tongue could hang out no further, we turned back to the shelter. We began to cross the field and I was talking to the sweet boy, telling him I'd come again and such, when I felt a tug at the leash. Those of you who have walked a dog before know how you can get going and looking on ahead, not noticing that your dog has stopped to do business or something and it catches you off guard, but you feel the tug of the leash and turn your head and look down and stop when you see what he/she is up to. Well! I felt the tug of the leash and I turned to find my furry friend flat out flopped down in the grass. Out cold.
I had no idea what to do! I had no idea how long it would last! I called his name, I massaged his belly, scratched his ears, tried to make him think I had bacon, etc...and there were no signs of life. A car went by and it wasn't until it disappeared around the bend that I realized that since this was a secluded area, another probably wouldn't pass for a long time. What was I going to do? Carry him?? He looked to weigh close to the same number as me, and despite thinking I was young, strong and active, that was just not going to happen.
Sigh. I was beginning to feel like I was on candid camera or something. I looked around for someone, ANYONE!, who could help me...
And then the dog jumped up on all fours, gave me a look like, "What are you doing just standing there??" and we picked up right where we left off! I laughed so hard all the way back to the shelter! I kept telling that crazy dog how he scared me, how he should never do that again and how I really hope there is a special family out there to adopt him! I told him I hope they love you and laugh w/you =)
The shelter people were not surprised by my story, of course, and they told me my guy was quite the character...the next time I went back he was gone, so I guess that's good, right?
You're probably wondering why I labeled this post as adoption and foster care (or maybe you're not but I'm going to tell you anyway!). You see, in a weird way, I think this story says a little about fostering and adopting people too. Lots of kids have character. They have quirks and qualities that you might not think kids are capable of having. Up until I met that dog, I didn't know dogs could be narcoleptic. Up until I met some of our foster kids, I didn't know really young children could be so affected and changed by their life situations. Like the narcoleptic dog, kids of all kinds need love, a family to laugh with, and someone to take them on walks =) Like the episode in the field, if you just hang on and hang in there, some of the kids' issues will pass and you will carry on...
If you didn't already know, May is National Foster Care Month. If you have been reading here for long, you know how that is one of the topics I am passionate about. I encourage you to ask me questions if you have them or find someone in your area who can assist you. I pray for all the foster kids in waiting, the kids up for adoption, the parents in waiting, the families in the process of getting certified and those that are part of foster and adoptive families. God bless you all!
(PS - thanks for reading the long funny story that took a turn into soap box land...)
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Springing into action
I know, you are all waiting w/baited breath to see how well I did in the foster care/adoption 5K...go read about the success and failure of the day (yes, both!) at the other blog!
In other news...I've been pretty busy w/end of the school year stuff, laundry (it's finally stopped raining a little so I can hang stuff outside!) and a few other around the house projects. I've been plotting a lot of things for summer - garden, camping adventures, a few changes to our food/eating habits...I've also been on the hunt for summer clothes for Colleen. We don't have girl clothes stashed away in the basement like we do boy clothes! Nothing from last summer fits her, praise God!, so that means I'm visiting the consignment shops and thrift stores. So far, so good...I keep thinking that if I just put her in sun dresses every day, I won't need to find both shirts and shorts! I'm all about the one piece outfits...=) Let's hope she is too! She likes wearing dresses to school, so I think she'll have fun w/it.
It seems like it has taken forever, but spring is slowly coming around...every year I celebrate tulip week - when they all open and wave in the wind, like colorful bling for my house! We are almost there!!! The oranges started already and the reds are not far behind. When we moved into this house (closing in on 10 years) I planted like 60+ tulips all over. Just the walkway from the sidewalk up to the house easily has that many now! How can a person (well, me, anyway) be grumpy when they are surrounded by their favorite flower??
We just bought a book titled 101 Places to See Before You Are 12 and have plans to visit many of them over the summer! Moses and I are also going to the library to find books on Lewis and Clark - did you know they started their expedition in May? He sounded very interested in what they did and he was excited to learn that they started in St. Louis - "We've been there!" Maybe when he's older we can go and trace their route. Another thing we are looking forward to is getting our bikes back. We had them in the shop for a tune-up and it's time to get riding! Can't believe we are almost half-way through May already....
In other news...I've been pretty busy w/end of the school year stuff, laundry (it's finally stopped raining a little so I can hang stuff outside!) and a few other around the house projects. I've been plotting a lot of things for summer - garden, camping adventures, a few changes to our food/eating habits...I've also been on the hunt for summer clothes for Colleen. We don't have girl clothes stashed away in the basement like we do boy clothes! Nothing from last summer fits her, praise God!, so that means I'm visiting the consignment shops and thrift stores. So far, so good...I keep thinking that if I just put her in sun dresses every day, I won't need to find both shirts and shorts! I'm all about the one piece outfits...=) Let's hope she is too! She likes wearing dresses to school, so I think she'll have fun w/it.
It seems like it has taken forever, but spring is slowly coming around...every year I celebrate tulip week - when they all open and wave in the wind, like colorful bling for my house! We are almost there!!! The oranges started already and the reds are not far behind. When we moved into this house (closing in on 10 years) I planted like 60+ tulips all over. Just the walkway from the sidewalk up to the house easily has that many now! How can a person (well, me, anyway) be grumpy when they are surrounded by their favorite flower??
We just bought a book titled 101 Places to See Before You Are 12 and have plans to visit many of them over the summer! Moses and I are also going to the library to find books on Lewis and Clark - did you know they started their expedition in May? He sounded very interested in what they did and he was excited to learn that they started in St. Louis - "We've been there!" Maybe when he's older we can go and trace their route. Another thing we are looking forward to is getting our bikes back. We had them in the shop for a tune-up and it's time to get riding! Can't believe we are almost half-way through May already....
Sunday, May 1, 2011
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