Yep, I'm Wearing A Cape!

You know that only super heroes wear capes, right? Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman! Well, count me in that selected group!!! Oh yeah!!!

Let me take a few steps backward and explain my journey into hero-dom!!!

Although I don't work full time in the Deaf Education program at MSU any more I do still teach a course on Friday afternoons. I love to teach in the program, it keeps me fresh in the field and I love to be on campus! CAMPUS...a place where I know there is some degree of crime, but in all of my undergrad, grad and working years, I've never been a part of it. Until my last class of the semester, Spring 2010!

I teach a class in a technology enabled classroom in the tech center of the education building on campus. It's a pretty bitchin' room, if I do say so myself! And it's connected to a main center with some really bitchin' tech! We're blessed! My class is made-up of 9 young women. We sat in this glassed-in tech room, with our laptops open and making their final presentations and all of a sudden......BBBBBBUUUUUUUUUUUUZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ! The fire alarm is buzzing at a decibel I cannot begin to describe!

We all begin to run out thinking that it's after building hours, so either it's a bomb threat or a real fire and one of my students says, "Take all of your things! 2 years ago this very thing happened and it was fake and my purse was stolen!" So we rushed to pack our bags, computers and purses to head out to the courtyard behind the building. SHHHHOOOOO-WWEEEEE, we were all out safely with all of our things...my students were safe and I did my job!

Then, strangely enough, as we are huddled together outside wondering if we will be able to return to class (which I was so not wanting to at that point) a man went wandering down the hall INSIDE toward our tech room and made EYE CONTACT with two of our students. Can you say creepy? We didn't think much of this until the police who arrive said, "Hey, if someone runs out these doors, can you call 9-1-1?" What the eff? Are you kidding me?!?! 10 chicks all on their cells calling as a big dude comes out with computers and tech in his hands...aaaah, no! Yep, that very dude that made eye contact with my students pulled the fire alarm to clear the building so he could go into the tech center and take what he wanted. I have NO DOUBT that if we didn't take our laptops those would have been easy pickin' first and foremost. I guess he's been doing this all over campus for a long time.

So, nevertheless, in the end, the bad guy was caught. He wouldn't admit to doing anything so they were going to dust for prints...sooooo cool! We had to ID him. I had to show the police our room and how he got into the tech center...I saw the damage he did to the tech center. Why the hell do people dig through the trash when their main point is to steal a computer? That part STILL confuses me?! And the other thing I don't like was that our class, full of women was being watched by this guy. CREEPY and not OKAY!

But, I came home, had a drink (a fruity, yummy one) and have a great crime stopper story to tell! And my students ended their undergrad program like heroes!!!!

Yeah...It All Gets Away From Me

Yeah, the laundry, the floors, the toy pick-up, keeping up with friends that live less than 10 minutes away, blogging...it all gets away from me! I seem to fill my time with so many other things these days! Like going outside with the girls, working this new job (it ain't my dream job, but the people are waaaay fun!), teaching at MSU and grading all of their freakin' assignments! But I do enjoy blogging...and I have a sneaky suspicion that many of you like to know our ups and downs!

So, let's get to it...since I'm here!

Well, the girls are great! The Easter Bunny brought a new tea set and big-girl bikes. Not to mention a whole bunch of candy! They got a total kick out of the egg hunts...yes, huntS...PLURAL! They couldn't get enough of the goodies inside of the little colored buggers that we had to keep hiding the plastic jobs! Cripe!

Easter Sunday was a great day though! We had my family over and we had Josh's ribs and chicken. I joked that these were Jesus' fav's! Whatev! We flew kites, ate yummy food and listened to Dad and Ken III snore in the living room. It ain't a holiday until... One thing that was missed was the pitter-pat of Grandma Kohls' scuttling feet and her saying, "Isn't that great?" when referring to the girls and cousins hunting for eggs or the beautiful kites in the sky.

Man, I miss that lady! I've been having dreams about her almost nightly. Really awkward dreams...but she's there, with me, and I'm with her. I think I need her, in some way yet. It's so hard to let go of a person that was so profound in my life!!!! Anyway, she's watching every move now....uh-oh!

As for the adoption of our little one...NO MOVEMENT! And I'm getting...well...for lack of a better word...pissed! (Whoops, did I say that?) Things have been stagnant for 2 months now. I have went from checking in with the adoption agency on a monthly basis or so, to every 2 weeks to now checking in every Monday morning. Too effing bad consultants...I hate to bug you, but I need peace of mind that you know I'm here and we want a baby to be part of our family! PERIOD! **Walking off of soapbox**

So, sorry for the lack of pictures too. We got a new, fan-dangled camera. I have no CLUE how to upload from this big-daddy yet. When I do, you're gonna see some amazing pictures! Yeah, that's a, "when..."! :)

So, I'll be in touch. Hopefully with news of a referral...soon!

March Update

It's officially spring in Michigan...and there is a fresh layer of snow on the ground. This, after nearly a week of 50's and 60's and coatless weather. How is this fair? Oh yeah, life isn't fair, as Logan AND Leah reminded me this morning in the bathroom (as they poured a bucket full of water on the edge of the marble tub). *sigh*

You all deserve an update...and I need to get some things off my shoulders! Shoo!

So, Gotcha Day was a huge success! Logan is beginning to really connect with her Birth Country, which is so very exciting to me! She loves the fact that she has a day to celebrate Guatemala. She doesn't understand WHY exactly, but we keep talking about this!!!! She keeps relating it to her birthday, which in reality, it is a form of a birthday...a birth of a FAMILY! So, maybe she's on to something!!!

So, after Gotcha Day...life has went on! We've been waiting INTENTLY for the phone to ring from our Adoption Agency to hear on a referral!!!! But nothing! Yes, we are still #1 on the wait list for a little girl 12-18 months of age. And as far as we know, we are still #5 for an infant 0-12 months of age. And who knows on the twin list, either #1 or #2...twins are rare...but we've heard that story before!!! :) One big announcement that we did hear from Ethiopia's government was that they may require adoptive families to make another trip to Ethiopia for court, which happens soon after the referral. This mandate is in response to many adoptive families "abandoning" their already adopted children in Ethiopia after the court process is completed. Who would ever?!?!?! UGH! So, in response to this tragedy, the government has said parents must come to the country and see the child, state in front of the Court that they will take this child as their own. The problem that I have with this is that we are then asked to return the child to the orphanage and return to the States. NOT ME!! We visited the girls in Guatemala for a week, then returned to MI for 5 1/2 months and waited for the paperwork to be finished. This mommy will never again leave her child in another country. Josh and I have decided, if approved by the authorities, that I will stay in Ethiopia with the baby while the paperwork is approved and Josh can return to the States. A huge deal, but the emotional bonding that we lose by leaving this child could be devastating. I won't do it again!

On a happier note...my niece was in the West Michigan Youth Ballet production of Cinderella yesterday. She was sooooooo beautiful and it was a great day!

We also celebrated her mom's, Shannon's, birthday! But to top off the two events, there was a raffle drawing for all of the little girls who came to the ballet. Each little girl got a ticket with a number on it. At the end, they drew two tickets, each to come up on stage to get crowned by the prince as well as by either Cinderella or the Fairy Godmother. Well, by george, Logan's ticket number was called! And by golly, she walked up in front of the entire hall of patrons to be crowned "princess of the day" by the Fairy Godmother! She was a ham...totally cut out for the part! Waving to the crowd...elbow, elbow, wrist, wrist, wrist!!!!!!

We now move on into Spring, hoping to enjoy more and more of those coatless days and fewer of these white snowy days! But we are certainly finding joy in being a family of four, while this still lasts!!!

Gotcha Ya, L and L!!!

It's that WONDERFUL time of year again... the time that we celebrate our Forever Family status!!! The time of year that we celebrate the girls' Gotcha Days!!! The girls have now been home for 4 years!!!

In honor of this AWESOME event, I put together a short montage to help me remember the amazing times we've had together, particularly all those years ago in Guatemala!

We'll be having a few people over on Saturday to celebrate the dates...I'll be sure to post more later. But in the meantime, enjoy the montage...don't shed any tears!

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

#1

We're NUMBER 1!!!!

OH MY GOODNESS...we are number one on the wait list for a little girl 12-18 months old. We are thrilled. We said we would accept a little girl 0-18 months and they break it down 0-12 months and 12-18 months...well, we haven't moved on the 0-12 month list but we're numeral uno on the 12-18 month listing...HOLY COW!!!

This means it could be any day now for a referral or it could be several more weeks or even months...naturally I'm hoping for any day!!!!

Say a prayer!