Sunday, September 27, 2009

Garage Sale!

One of the many ideas that I've gotten about raising money for the adoption is to have a garage sale.  The only problem is that I had one last year and I just don't have that much stuff to sell.  I do however have a yard to sell stuff in and, as you know, will do anything for money (well anything legal).  So here's the deal.  I know a LOT of you have lots of stuff that you'd like to get rid of/take to Goodwill/burn/whatever.  How about instead of all that, you give it to me?

I'm going to be collecting stuff to sell in a garage sale over the next several weeks.  If you are local, have stuff to get rid of, and are willing to donate it to my sale please let me know.  I'll even come pick up anything that I can fit into my car. You know what they say...one man's trash is another woman's Bulgarian Adoption Fund!

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Stuck in a moment you can't get out of

No this post isn't a tribute to U2 (although I love them) it just seemed like an appropriate title for what transpired in my backyard earlier this evening. 

As I was bringing in the trash can I noticed something strange out of the  corner of my eye.  At the bottom of the gate there was something that just wasn't right.  Upon further inspection I found a turtle, a little turtle, a little cute turtle that had wedged itself between 2 parts of the fence.  It was completly vertical and absolutly stuck.  In fact, I thought it was dead at first and almost didn't bend down for a closer look (I've had dead turtles in the yard before...gross).  I felt so bad thinking about the little guy that I had to look and, to my relief, the turtle moved.  I tried to pull it out but it kept making a strange squeaking noise.  Did you know turtles can squeak?  Yeah, neither did I, I was afraid I was going to smash it (double gross).  Well it took some work, and some garden tools (covered in gloves so I didn't pierce anything) but I did manage to make a lever and make enough space between the two pieces of wood to get the little guy out!  I put him in the flower bed and he promptly burrowed himself under the mulch!   I'm taking this as a win for turtle-kind.

This story is so much better with pictures, but alas, while I was able to snap some shots of the incident I can't upload them.  My camera is experiencing an epic fail, the result of landing in the sand while on a trip to Lake Erie.  But on the bright side a new camera seems like a great gift for the mom-to-be (hint hint)!

p.s. I can't find the spell check button on this new version of blogger....what's up with that?  Also, I suck at spelling, sorry!

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Questions and Answers

Well, now that the initial shock of being accepted by the adoption agency (AGCI) has worn off, it's time to get down to the business of answering lots of questions. I've had a lot of the same questions over the past few days so I figured this was the best place to answer most of them!

Why Bulgaria, why now? I have been looking at adoption programs since last year. Every time I would get interested in a program something would happen and I'd decide that it wasn't the right one for me. Then this summer I got the latest edition of the Wittenberg Magazine and found this article on the last page. It was about a documentary that a fellow alumnus made about Bulgarian adoption. As they say, one thing led to another and I found myself looking at a slide show of children who had been adopted from Bulgaria...as I watched it became very clear to me that this was the program for me! And so it began.......

So why the heck didn't you tell me this in person you jerk! I started this process at the end of July and at that point I didn't know if I would even be a eligible to adopt from Bulgaria. In fact, after submitting my pre-application I was asked to submit further information about my medical history. Until I got that phone call last week I honestly didn't know if this would ever happen. Not telling people was hard! But, telling people and then having it fall through would have been even harder!!

So when are you coming home with a baby? Bulgaria only recently reopened to international adoption and their government, and the Minister of Justice in particular, have been doing a wonderful job of improving and stream-lining the process. All that being said, the current time line from application to coming home is 18-24 months. My agency is very quick to say that this is only an estimate, there is always a chance that it could take more or less time. I have plenty of time to get ready and figure out how to pay for it all.

Speaking of money, how are you going to pay for this? The short answer to that question is that I have NO idea! Seriously folks we're talking beg, borrow, and steal (well maybe not steal). I have several grants I can apply for once my home study is done, and am going through Financial Peace University to help me manage my money better! I am going to have to get a loan for part of it, and I'm just going to work my rear off. I've already let the word out that I'm back in the painting/house sitting/babysitting/whatever business. And, I'm going to be doing a lot of praying. While the money part of this is probably the scariest and most overwhelming, I am confident that it'll all work out!

I am sure there are lots more questions out there, and I'm happy to answer all of them. Thanks to everyone for all of their good wishes already. This is a crazy journey I'm embarking on and I'll take all the love and prayers I can get!!!

Thursday, September 17, 2009

My Big HUGE Announcement!!

I've been trying to figure out a way to start this post but can't seem to get the words out so I guess I'll just come out and say it.....I've started the process to adopt a little girl from Bulgaria!

What?

Yeah, that's right. I started looking at this program in July and had to get some information together about my RA and from my Doctor before I was even allowed to apply, then I had to wait for the agency to approve my application before I could officially start the paperwork. Well, the agency just called about 30 minutes ago! I can hardly believe it, you see the only thing I've ever known that I wanted to be when I grew up was a Mom. Sure I had dreams of being an author, Broadway star, and world traveller, but even in all of those I was still a mom. And right now just seems like the perfect time. I know there are about a million logical reasons why I shouldn't be doing this right now (mainly the state of my bank account), but overwhelming all of those reasons is the simple fact that I am absolutely certain that this is the best decision I've ever made in my entire life. Do I think it's going to be easy? No! Do I think it's going to be amazing? Without a doubt! Now I'm sure that I'll have LOTS to say about this in the coming days and weeks but right now I'm just to excited to type!

p.s. This is a long process, the estimated time from application to coming home with a child is 18-24 months.

p.p.s. Don't be mad if I didn't tell you in person. There are very few people who even knew I was thinking about doing this, let alone actually doing it!