Beyond Blessed

This is what Russian orphans look like once they are home. We are nothing too special, but what we are is a family. I am mortified at the thought that someone else in the USA won't be able to post this kind of "happy kid" picture..Pray for those families who have just had their dream of a family shattered today. I am beyond blessed, and I know it. I hope for peace tonight for those broken hearted families...

Blame is All Around

Who can I blame for this crime against the littlest of souls?

Let's start with OUR government. So why choose Sergie Magnitsky to rally around. Why him? There is a load of money behind what he discovered, and more than likely it falls on our side to have had this guy's information...I mean come on, why didn't we step up when any number of high profile murders have occurred in Russia over the last decade..
So the Sergei Magnitsky Act denies visas to Russian officials involved in the prosecution and death of a Russian lawyer and whistle blower who called attention to alleged official corruption. Really? That is what the Russians are mad about? Unless they fear their entire government is somehow involved, (WHICH THEY ARE) why worry? Their pride and nationalism is really becoming extensive isn't it?
When Anna Politkovskaya was murdered for writing about Chechnya, why didn't we act?
And when the editor of Forbes Magazine, Russia was killed, why didn't move? Why? I will tell you. Because it didn't serve us at all. And why? Because although most people whisper that they know PutiPoot is behind many of these murders, most people aren't brave enough to say it loudly..And in America, we act only when it makes us money..So now, thank you very much to the committee that decided NOW is the time to act..You just stood up to Putipoot, and ya pissed him off. So now, he's going to cut his own nose to spite his face...And that happens by hurting his own orphans and the few families who are willing to pay the enormous fees to adopt them...


BUT,
 if I can't blame our government, I move on to the guy in my very own part of the world who was soo unaffected by the adoption of his child that he put the infant in the car and went to work.. And yes, the child died of heat exposure. The law that is currently in play is called the Magnitsky-retaliation law in response to the case of  Miles Harrison of Purcellville, Va who was aquitted for leaving his poor baby in the car to die..I bet his fat ass didn't forget his breakfast that day. So what you are remorseful. So what you are sorry..Dumbass. So thank you very much for putting America on the map for being bad parents...

But maybe I will throw a little blame to the woman, Torry Ann Hansen, who acted with her own mother to put her adopted child on a plane alone to Moscow. TO RETURN HIM...Yes, there wasn't enough love there, so she sent him back. Thank you very much dumb ass. I would like to add a little giggle that she has to pay 150K for his child support..AS IF ANY ORPHAN in Russia is getting 150K worth of care from birth to 18..I giggle again because she is paying for her mistakes, literally..

I have to throw some blame at the agencies, and "regional coordinators" who have made millions on the backs of people like me..I personally name Aleksandr Smuckler and Aleksandr Melnikov for screwing over so many families that those families refused to do Post Placement Reports..And because of this, adoptions went unchecked for way too long..But guess what? Smukler is living in a FAT HOUSE in Jersey and sent his 3 sons to the best private schools..He is the current president of the NCSJ and has forgotten his horribly unethical ways of strong arming adoptive families..But I haven't forgotten. And because I am a super stealth Internet user, I know as much about him as he USED to know about me..I am not afraid anymore to call him out. He is was a real dick to more families than you can imagine, and this kind of 'tomfoolery' has played a huge role in the Russian government frowning at Americans adopting.. Check him out, his friends call him Sasha..
http://www.ncsj.org/

So on our side of the pond, I blame idiot government decisions, and idiot individuals, and the Russian Mafia right here in the good ole USA..Any adoptive family relies on the success of the families who adopt before us..And there are some real gems out there..
I have to wonder what families are thinking when they adopt children..Are they wanting to create a family or are they just feeding their ego? Sadly, there are a lot of egos on the blogger world..Just look around at all the heroes out there..

Now as for Putipoot, he seems like the spawn of Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney. Yes he is that evil. Throw a little FSB training in there and you have one badass M-Effer. He is willing to level Chechnya in order to gain access to that sweet oil spot. He is willing to put on Mock criminal trials for people such as Russian oil billionaire Mikhail Khodorkovsky just to scare the shit out of the original oligarchs, and to set the tone for any future money makers.."Don't eff with the government, and we won't kill you."

So blame is all around.
And tonight, I am just pissed that somewhere out there, a single woman is terrified that she won't be adopting from Russia. I am pissed that a truly deserving family is going to be without the child they met..I am sad that so many Russian orphans will be in the DetskyDom another night without any hope that a family will come along to adopt them, at least not an American one..
I am pissed at all those HEROES who adopted children they knew they couldn't parent..

So, when someone says to you,"What's the big deal, it's not our country, they are not our orphans." You can tell them, "No they aren't, but it is important to someone I know.."

The Day After..

It all fell into place. Nowhere to go, family in the house, food on the table, toys ALL OVER THE PLACE! Now my finely tuned home looks like a finely tuned Mess..But we let it stay that way.. The girlz loved all of their treats. And I loved not having to stop and go anywhere.


      We didn't go to the Gaylord this year. It just didn't come together and quite honestly, we have gone every year so I wasn't looking forward to seeing the same characters, the same ICE show, and ice skating in the same tiny rink..It is fun, but we have done it enough to know it all by heart.. My dad and sister cooked Christmas Lunch and I got to sit outside with the dogs and the girlz while August tried out her new scooter. It was a total pajama day.

     Our family has really come full circle. After years of struggle to enjoy the events that each of us plans, we have finally found a way to focus on just being together. I have a tendency to over plan events. (Church, Gaylord, Ice Skating, Eve Dinner) And then, have trouble keeping everyone "in the moment" and enjoying those rituals..The girlz love whatever. Honestly. We found a funky version of the YULE LOG on tv and that seemed to make our time around the tree all the more special..

    Now today in the afterglow of Christmas, we are straightening up, going to ToysRUs for yet more Christmas buying, and then heading over to my sister's house for the night. She is having foot surgery and has to be in Maryland at 7 AM, so we are going to stay there to have less of a drive. My dad will stay here and pack up his stuff. He will visit my sis once she is home and then he is heading back to Florida. He has several job opportunities to prepare for..His retirement is the busiest I have ever heard of. He has moved everything from the beach house to his storage, but needs to get it more organized if he is going to be in Lebanon for any length of time.. So I sit here on my bed with our little baby Perrywinkle. She is so tiny, but very smart. She already tinkles on her pee-pee pad, and I am guessing she will be easy to transition to going outside more once she gets a little bigger. (The fact that she is 2 pounds means I am worried to let her out in the weather too much) The girlz have had ear buds in their ears since yesterday. AugustRose LOVES her IpodTouch. And Anna loves her Iphone. I knew they would. Music, videos, and games all within the touch of their little hands..They sit side by side and just giggle at videos they have found. I worried that they may go off on their own, but oddly enough they sit side by side. AugustRose trusts Anna to help her navigate her way around her IpodTouch, and Anna loves being the helper. I took all of 1 picture on Eve and Christmas Day. I just get into the moment and forget. My sister took a few, so I am borrowing hers. We now have tons of videos but with this new blogger format means I have forgotten how to get them up..But I will try.. For now, I leave you with a video of our little girl..

Happy Holiday! 

simple bliss... The girlz stayed at my sister's house last night. (my dad did too) I got all of my last minute details finished up and the house cleaned. Yeah! This morning, I went to get the puppy. And Oh My Lord...She is 2 pounds. YES, 2 pounds. Her coat/jacket is way too big, but an extra small. Her pajamas fit thank goodness. My house tends to be drafty, so we keep them in it all the time. I presented the puppy by: bringing her down in our Bitty Baby crib, and I told the girlz I wanted to get rid of the crib. The girlz both said, "Nooo, let's keep it." Then I just put the crib down. The puppy is so small that they didn't notice her at first. Then they both noticed her and Anna burst into tears. (As I predicted, and told my mom ahead of time.) And I have heard a million times, that how happy the girlz are for their Christmas puppy. Her name is: Perrywinkle Mistletoe Green.................... Perry for short! Hope you all are having a great Eve. We are in our jammies and finished making cookies. And the truest Christmas miracle is that I have cooked all day. We will be in bed shortly and then mommy gets busy with playing Mrs. Santa.. Happy Eve and Happier Christmas!

This is my sister's million pound dog Oliver playing ever so gently with Perrywinkle1

Keeping It Simple at New Hope Church

Some of you may remember I got my feelings hurt last year at Church. This year, my Church isn't having services on Christmas Eve. I am so glad about it. The staff works so hard already, and the fact that Christmas Eve falls so close to Sunday services, it was decided not to have an additional Eve service. It was a relief for many. This will be the first year that the Pastor, The SCHLEYER crew, and all of the Volunteers can wake up at a reasonable hour and spend the day with their families. The message was to Keep It Simple! Normally, we have one Saturday service but yesterday we had two. I was the children's helper in the 7:30 service. All of the children were invited up to sing along with the band and then sit at the base of the stage for most of the service. There wasn't a children's service, so all the children were in the auditorium. And the message of Keeping It Simple really hit home. Although I go way overboard with the decorations, and maybe even the gifts, I am keeping it more simple this year. In a lot of other ways. I eliminated the fried who drained our emotional resources, and now I don't allow myself to worry about all of that drama. And that is huge. Only having my own family to focus on makes life more simple. I still end up hearing about it second hand, but only in a counselor sort of way. And that is not too much. THe girlz and my dad are over at my sister's house for today and I am going to get the last minute details taken cared of... I am getting the puppy in a bit so look for a puppy post later!!!

My Big Fat Swirly Whirly Christmas...

This year I started early. I had purchased most of my gifts in September and October because this girl's gotta budget. You know how little teachers make so, .... With early prep, We took our tree out in Mid-November and started decking the hall's after we got back from New York City. The decorations change my overall feeling. The lights and the memories of each of the ornaments fills my heart, and I begin to get those butterflies. I haven't really wanted anything for years, it is honestly about finding the perfect gifts for my family, my girlz, and my coworkers.. My team at school started the tradition a few years ago to get together on New Year's Eve, Eve. We exchange gifts and eat and visit, and just generally enjoy each other. This year I am having the "do" at my house. One gal who no longer teaches kindie had a baby a couple of months ago, and it is just easier meet at someone's home. My other teammate's daughter loves the creek behind my house, so her hubby will take the girlz on an epic nature quest. Yes it is freezing outside, but the kids around here are used to it. I have actually planned a menu. Yes, I am cooking. I can do it, if I have a plan and a purpose. And this will be fun. The girlz will help me, because there should be about 15 people.. I have all my gifts except one. Shhshshshsh, I have to run out and get Anna's iphone. I am ready for her to have a phone, and she loves my sister's phone so that is the one we are going with. It will be from my sister, but I want it on my plan, so I can control the features. She will only be allowed to have the numbers of family and a few emergency numbers. After she has it for a month or so, I will let her put 1 or 2 friends on it. She will have very strict rules about when she can use it, and where she can take it. There have been several times when I wish she had a phone and now this is one more area of safety and communication that I want in place. I am still trying to figure out how to give the puppy to my girlz. There are so many ideas, it just all needs to fall into place. I love the girlz trees in their rooms. I wish I had a better camera, but here are some fun shots of their Merry Goodness!

FRIDAY~!

It is Friday, and I have just a few hours until I am free to be with my girlz.. I actually have butterflies, as this year with the pup coming, I am tickled, blue..Perriwinkle blue..Hee heee~! My dad is here, my sister is coming for a visit. And mom is of course donw the street. All is well. Now, just let this day go by quickly!!!!!!!!