Moving Right Along

Mr. and Mrs. Claus stopped by for cookies.

What a great week (and it’s only Tuesday!) The Sunday market went amazingly well. I sold lots of recipe books, handed out dozens of networking cards and heard many great adoption stories from all different types of people. Santa told me I was on the nice list for adopting.

I also got lucky and found another freelance gig, thanks to a random turn of events in my brother’s office. The company has provided me with the programs I need to do the work, and I didn’t even have to buy the $129 Macbook upgrade I thought I’d need. To top it off, I sold an old iPod on eBay for big bucks, even though the battery doesn’t work. The Apple gods are smiling on me!

Now I’m gearing up for the 6 parties I’ve been invited to between now and Christmas. I feel very loved and I’m looking forward to trying a couple of new recipes. Chocolate eggnog pie, anyone?

We’re still anxiously awaiting the arrival of my nephew. He’s due in one week and I have personally asked him to be born on the 15th or 19th. That just works best with my schedule. :)

Agency Response to Home Study Issue

I shouldn't be surprised that the agency has denied my first request for a partial refund. The executive director's official response said that the information they provided me was "not in any way misleading" and "it is in no way our responsibility to keep up with policy changes of other adoption agencies". 

Naturally I disagree. It's bad enough to make assumptions about something; using those assumptions as selling points for the agency shouldn't be allowed by any program director. 

Keep in mind there are only 2 agencies in the entire state of Idaho (not counting LDS services). Keeping up on the other agency's policies would have required one simple phone call. And, the resolution I'm proposing is very reasonable as it would split the cost of the error between the agency and myself. 

I need to do some research and take some time to decide what my next steps will be...next week. I'm not going to let it ruin my weekend. :)

Busy Time of Year!

Nothing much to report on the adoption front. I've made some finishing touches to this version of my parent profile and the attorney has signed off, so that's good. I'm also waiting to hear back from an agency in New Orleans that may be able to network for me. So far there are no catches, no crazy fees and no problems - they can even accept my home study. They've come highly recommended by a couple of local adoptive families.

This weekend is Natalya's birthday party, a downtown event Saturday night and I'm watching a friend's daughter pretty much all day Saturday. Sunday is the holiday market, so I'll spend most of the day setting up, selling, then tearing down my recipe book booth. Work has been crazy as we rush to meet big January 1st deadlines, and we're also moving to new offices next week. I'm out of the office for a seminar Friday, and to keep life interesting, my sister-in-law is due pretty much any day now with my nephew!

One thing that's really nice about being more "mature" is the number of real holiday parties I'm invited to this time of year. Instead of BYOB and showing up whenever, people are actually organizing, planning and hosting nice get-togethers. I've already been to one, hosted one, and have 4 more on my calendar. Naturally this means I've been baking every spare minute!

January is going to feel like a real snoozer after this month. Good thing, because I might need it to recover.

Open House and Grant News

I got to try Funfetti cookies for the first time.

This week I attended an open house at A New Beginning, the agency I’d like to work with. Everyone was really friendly and all the case workers knew my home study story. They all agreed that I should network on my own till next fall and only do a new home study if I haven’t been matched with a baby by then. One woman also put me in touch with Spokane Consultants, an agency I might be able to work with in Northern Idaho. A couple recently adopted through them and it only cost $6,000.

I got to meet two women who had previously placed babies for adoption – one 2 years ago, and the other 14 years ago. The latter recently married for the first time and was there with her 2 week old baby girl. It was neat meeting them and hearing where their lives have gone since the adoptions.

I also met a 46 year old woman hoping to adopt for the first time, but quickly realizing she’s too old for most programs. (Again with the double standards! Bio parents have undergone in vitro as old as age 60.) And I overheard a couple just starting the process asking all their questions: “How long will it take? How do we start a home study? How much does it cost?” So glad I’m out of that phase!

And finally, I signed up for a free Financing Adoption course on January 24th. The guy who offers the class is a financial advisor who was adopted himself, so the class is his way of giving back. The timing was good, considering today I heard that I haven’t been awarded the biggest of the 3 grants I applied for. I’m really bummed, but they received 400 applications and only had $60k to award. I’ll apply again in April for June awards. I know they try to reward people who have been working hard on their own, so hopefully all my fundraising efforts will make an even more impressive list next time around.

UPDATE: The Spokane agency called back and informed me they only work with married couples. Boo.

Parent profile done! This version, anyway.

I met with my attorney last week and she had some feedback for my parent profile. Basically I needed to rearrange the whole thing. 

At first, it was fun gathering pictures and writing about myself and my family. But after working on a slow-ish PC  so many weekends and evenings, it got old pretty fast. Even Natalya lost interest in the "family book". (I don't have Photoshop on my Mac, too expensive.) 

I still need to add at least one photo page with pics of the Wisconsin side of the family, but I'm glad the new profile is officially live. Check it out of you'd like: http://chryssareadytoadopt.blogspot.com. (This is the web address listed on my pass along cards.)

In other news, I crafted my strongly-worded letter to CASI over the weekend and decided to request a partial refund of $600 for the home study misinformation, the difference between renewing my home study next fall and getting a new one. I think this is a fair compromise, and it would allow me to pursue a new home study on a schedule that suits me. 

Jayda and the Big Girl Bed

As much as I resisted for more than a year, mostly for the sake of the cats, my dog now sleeps on my bed. (She used to sleep in a kennel in the living room.) It all started one Friday evening a few weeks ago when I discovered the sliding glass door to my room ajar, and I couldn’t recall having used that door in days. It freaked me out, so I let Jayda sleep with me in case anyone tried to get in.

I started to realize that in order to put up a Christmas tree or add a Pack N Play eventually, I’d have to put at least one chair in storage, thanks to my “cozy” living room. Or, I could let Jayda outgrow her kennel.

Jayda still considers the bed cat territory
and is slightly sheepish every time she hops up.

Long story short, Jayda is now a regular bed sleeper. She wakes up early every morning but quietly goes downstairs and sits on the couch until I’m up. She and the cats call a time-out at bedtime, so everyone sleeps nicely without chasing or swatting. (The other night I actually woke to discover one of the cats sleeping ON her. I think the cat was as surprised as anyone.)

So this weekend the kennel went into the garage and the Christmas tree went up in the living room. It’s nice to not have to look at a giant metal cage anymore, and nice to know that I’ve transitioned the pets into a longer-term sleeping arrangement. Of course, they may decide to move into the second bedroom once a crying infant is next to my bed.

Where Will You Be Next Thanksgiving?

Me, Will, Julia, Coler, Brandon and Jennifer.

I've only hosted one Thanksgiving Day, and it was in Mexico in 2002. I invited my fellow orphaned American friends and cooked a turkey for the first time (before I was a vegetarian.) Turkeys were hard to find and expensive, but it was worth it. I only made $30 a week waiting tables before tips, the the turkey was $15 if memory serves. Half a week's salary!

My friends planned ahead well and visited Internet cafes in order to get recipes from their parents via email. I remember Julia made stuffing, and Brandon (who hadn't learned Spanish yet) accidentally bought a thick, syrupy Vino para Consagrar - consecration wine - thinking he was being the classy guy showing up with a nice white and some crusty bread. We laughed and improvised what was probably a sacrilegious communion.

Coler was the only one brave enough to carve the turkey, and the truth is, I don't remember Coler. Thankfully I wrote his name and a few details on the back of this picture in 2002. If anyone knows this guy, tell him to look me up.

When we sat down to eat, instead of asking everyone what they were thankful for, I asked everyone to say where they thought they'd be in a year - Thanksgiving 2003. I don't think any of us knew! We all had so many options and were open to whatever life threw at us.

Of course, this year is different for me. I like where I live, I like my job, I have lots of friends and family is nearby. So I know exactly where I hope to be next Thanksgiving - right here, plus one.

What about you? How would you like Thanksgiving 2012 to look?