Cammie just left and it went smashingly.

I don’t know if her attitude has changed or mine has but now we are like BFF.

Makes for a less exciting blog though.

Although I probably will change my mind next week.

I’m now officially a foster parent again.

For girls 12 and younger and boys 6 and younger.

She loved the BDH.

Oh get this! There is a class I can take on behavior training. Then I will be licensed as a behavioral foster parent. I said, “Well what qualifies as a behavioral foster child?” and she said that Bug would definitely qualify. And if I had taken the training prior to adopting Bug, my adoption subsidy would be 400 dollars a month more!! Of course, it’s not retroactive, but I’m going to take the class anyway. First, because I think it would be helpful, but second because if I get another “Bug” then a larger subsidy would certainly be nice!

My homestudy is going in on a sibling group.

And Cammie said that she would try to get Bug some kids to play with soon.

So here we go again…

P.S. I didn’t even have to hide my dirty dishes this time.

Technorati Tags: parenting, foster care, adoption, kids, homestudy

Jenny Ryan tagged me awhile ago for a meme and I never did it. So here I go.

The Rules:

Each player of this game starts with the “6 weird things about you”. People who get tagged need to write a blog of their own 6 weird things as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave a comment that says “you are tagged” in their comments and tell them to read your blog.

Ok, six weird things about me.

1. I love the smell of office/school supplies. Office Depot smells great to me.

2. I think raw tomatoes are OK, but I don’t liked cooked tomatoes..like spaghetti sauce or pizza sauce. I eat my pizza without sauce.

3. I can’t stand it when something is on top of the TV.

4. I can speed read. I’ve been able to for as long as I can remember. I read books over and over because I can finish them so quickly.

5. My colon is attached to my uterus.

6. I met Bill and Chelsea Clinton. Bill Clinton smelled really good. Chelsea Clinton was really pretty in person. My friend, Trish, took three rolls of film and two of them were of the Secret Service agents because she thought they were cute. President Bush came to my town, but I went to a Cubs game instead.

OK..I hate tagging people, but since it is the rules I’ll tag:

1. My mom

2. Atlasien from Upside Down Adoption

3. Margaret from The Open Window

4. FosterMama (Yay, a new blogger!)

5. Cluttergirl

6. Yondalla

and anyone else who wants to play along.

[tags] weird, meme, blogging, blogs [/tag]

THURSDAY THIRTEEN

Thirteen reasons why I did not post yesterday, blowing my Holidailies on the 27th day.

1. I got up early to meet with my landlord to get my deposit back.

2. But he didn’t show up.

3. And then I had a big work project to finish.

4. And a bunch of laundry.

5. And a kitchen that looked like crap.

6. I made chili cheese dogs out of the RR cookbook.

7. They were good, but I liked the Suddenly Salad more.

8. Bug threw a temper tantrum.

9. We tried to take trash to the dumpster, but it was full.

10. So we drove to another one.

11. And then Geo wanted to go to the store to buy slippers for the old lady who works with him, except they didn’t have them at Kmart so we had to go to Walmart.

12. And then Geo and I stayed up until 2 am watching “Little Miss Sunshine.”

13. And by then it was too late. Damn it all to hell.

 

Oh boy. Bug seems to go through phases. She’ll be really good for awhile, then rotten for awhile. She’s in a rotten phase now. I’m not sure if it is Christmas-related, because she didn’t have the same problem last year. But she’s just running around like a crazy person. Being rude, throwing tantrums, saying she hates me over a game, asking for food and when I say no, taking it anyway. Last night, Geo got fed up with her for pretty much the first time ever. I mean, he was FED UP. It was kind of nice, because for once I was the good guy instead of always being evil Mommy who makes her do what she is supposed to.

About Geo’s Christmas gifts..he got me several things, including some bedroom furniture. He got Bug and I authentic licensed Cubs jerseys. On the back, it says our respective nicknames, and then 11 on mine and 8 on hers, for 11/8..our adoption day. Isn’t that sweet? He was really proud of himself.

Now I’m just trying to get back in the swing of things. This is the first time in a long time that I haven’t held a full time job, or been going to college full time. I’ll be working at home, and I’m nervous about it. I’ve been working at home for awhile, but just as a way to bring in extra cash. Luckily, I have my disability compensation and Bug’s adoption subsidy (which is only $275) so I’ve got a good head start.

I’m hoping 2007 is a kick ass year.

Oh, speaking of 2007, do you know Walmart has already replaced all the Christmas stuff with Valentine’s day stuff? Isn’t that slightly ridiculous?

Also, I’m going to be blogging about my attempt to do the Flylady program over on my other blog. I’m looking for people to join me. Come join me!

P.S. If I owe you a Christmas card because we participated in an exchange or because you sent me one, I KNOW. I SUCK. Between graduation and the move and all, I did not get them sent out. But they are going tomorrow. I know. It’s dumb. But better late than never right?? Also, I’m having difficulty with my Outlook Express, so if you email me through the site and I don’t write back right away, I’m working on it.

Technorati Tags: adoption, Cubs, Valentine’s Day, Walmart, Christmas, Flylady

Hope all who celebrated had a great Christmas today, and those who didn’t..hope you had uh..a good day off work!

Our Christmas was a whirlwind of excitement which included botched hand signals during Operation “Santa,” a bunch of really thoughtful sweet presents from Geo which I’ll talk about tomorrow, a stuffed monkey named Larry who Geo carries around like a baby, a nice collection of presents for all of us, Chinese food, and an incident in which Bug said, “I hate Mommy!” during a game of Deal or No Deal. Loads of fun, that was.

But my fortune cookie said:

Your troubles will cease and fortune will smile upon you

And that, my friends, is some really good news.

Merry Christmas!  

Are you tracking Santa?? We are.

Bug: Oh my God! He’s in South Africa! That means he’s almost here.

Geo: Actually, no. That is not almost here.

Bug is being a pain in the butt, but I’m finally done with the shopping. On a sad note, my video camera died a premature death and the store is all out of anything under $1000 bucks so I am video camera-less for Christmas. Darn you Walmart!

Geo: You’re doing such a good job! What are these cookies called again?

Me: Uhh…sugar cookies.

(Duh!)

Have a great Christmas Eve if you are celebrating! Bug says to tell you that Santa is running an hour ahead, so make sure you are in bed by EIGHT.

Technorati Tags: Santa tracker, Norad, Christmas

No time to write a real post today. Just got back from four stores (all the stores in town) and about broke my back trying to load a bike in the back of my van. And of course, people stopped to make comments, “Looks like someone is getting a bike for Christmas!!” but didn’t offer to stop my cart from rolling across town.

At our house Santa wraps presents in special Santa wrapping paper. I think that while unpacking, Bug saw the Santa paper. Geo said it was OK, but I got nervous and I unwrapped all the Santa presents I had wrapped and am rewrapping them. Ugh. I’m an idiot.

Technorati Tags: Christmas, Santa, presents

One of my readers, Fostermama, left an outstanding comment on my From Where post. It was so good I had to make it its own post so you all could read. Thanks fostermama!

How to help foster kids when you can’t be a foster parent.

1. Help a foster care program in your state. Your contribution to these agencies will mean brighter and safer tomorrows for children and youth in your state and across America.

Check with the Child Welfare League of America to find out how to help your state program. http://www.cwla.org/

2. Mentor a young person. Research shows that children and youth with mentors earn higher grades and improve their relationships with friends and families.

The National Mentoring Partnership http://www.mentoring.org/index.php and In My Shoes http://www.inmyshoesinc.org/ are two places that will help you get started3. Learn more about how policy, legislative and budget priorities affect children and youth in foster care. check with the Children’s Defense Fund http://www.childrensdefense.org/join/default.aspx to see how you can help now.4. Donate goods such as suitcases, books, games, computers, sports equipment, musical instruments, clothing, and school supplies to young people in foster care. Check with the National Foster Parent Association

http://www.nfpainc.org/index.cfm to see what the local chapter in your area is in need of.5. Send care packages to foster care alumni attending college. Many youth who have aged out of the system still need some support when trying to further their education. The Orphan Foundation of America has a way to send packages right now! http://www.orphan.org/

6. Help young people in foster care organize a youth leadership or support group. The Foster club is a national nextwork for kids in foster care to connect with others going through the same experience. https://www.fosterclub.org/grownups/index.cfm

7. Become a virtual mentor for a young person in college. Expand the circle of support for a youth in foster care as an email/online pen pal. The OFA will connect you with someone who needs someone to talk to online! http://www.orphan.org/

8. Become a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteer. In an overburdened system, abused and neglected kids often slip through the cracks among hundreds of cases. CASA volunteers can change that. CASA volunteers typically handle just one case at a time—and commit to staying on that case until the child is placed in a safe, permanent home. While others may come and go, CASA volunteers provide that one constant that children need in order to thrive. http://www.nationalcasa.org/volunteer/index.html

9. Shop online and grant a wish for a child in foster care right now. Little Wishes is a program in my area, St. Louis MO, that grants wishes for kids during the holidays. The wishes vary from action figures, art supplies, popcorn parties, sweaters, a class ring, and art lessons. http://www.foster-adopt.org/default2.asp?action=article&ID=3

10. View the Heart Galleries and put a face to the nameless kids in the system. The Heart Gallery™ was founded by the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD) in 2001 as an innovative way to help waiting children connect with adoptive families. Photographers volunteer their time to capture the personalities of kids in the foster care system. If you’re not able to help in any other way please take a few moments just take a look at these beautiful photographs and look into the eyes of some wonderful kids!

www.heartgallerynj.com/

http://www.childrenshome.org/subpage.asp?navid=0&id=42

http://www.heartgallerywi.org/

http://www.heartgallerytampabay.org/about2.html

http://www1.dshs.wa.gov/heartgallery/

http://www.heartgallerytexas.com

http://www.heartgallerynm.org/

http://www.heartgalleryalabama.com/home/default.asp

Like I mentioned before, two things I know that could help where I live is car seats and gift cards. Every time I have taken a placement, I’ve had to run right out to the store to get clothes, clean underwear, etc. It would be so nice to have a gift card to get some of those things. The kids will get a clothing allowance, but it is small and it is paid a month after you turn in your receipts.

If anyone else has any good ideas, please leave them on this post.

First, to answer Aurelia’s question..I’m not 100% sure that it is Galinda’s turn, but just making a good guess. I’ve been having alternating pain directly over my ovaries. Last month, it was on the right side (the good Elphaba side), this month it is on the left side, and it very painful. That is my rather unscientific conclusion.

I just got back from my old house. I’ve finished up moving everything out and getting it all cleaned. Of course, now the kitchen and living room of the BDH is a gigantic pile of everything I own.

Bug seems unphased by it, asking if we can bake cookies and go shopping. I told her we could bake cookies once we found the kitchen table. It has to be under that pile somewhere.

Speaking of the BDH, yesterday the phone company came out to check the lines to see why my dialup is so slow. I’m running a dialup accelerator, so it shouldn’t be THAT slow. The guy came to the door, and it was like I was on a cartoon. He looked like the host of a Saturday morning kids show. He said, “HI!! Do YOU have a problem with your PHONE?” and then made a sad face. Bug poked her head from around the corner to gawk at him. Right then, this other guy came barreling through the woods where there is a truck path. He pulled right up, and stopped. “You rentin’ this house?” “Um.yes?” “I’m your neighbor.” “Oh hi.” And then he just sat there. And then he left. It was very weird and Little Mr. Sunshine told me that he had come right up behind him at like 100 mph. Maybe Little Mr. Sunshine slept with my neighbor’s wife or something. I don’t know.

But then Bug told me that while she was getting things out of the van, another guy pulled up, asked if she was moving in, and then asked her if her parents were home. When she said yes, he said, “Well, I’m your new neighbor, so tell them I said hi.”

After I gave Bug a stern talking to about running inside if strange men pull into your driveway, I called Geo, a little freaked out. I think he’s running out of patience for my freaking out because that is all I have been doing for the past 24 hours. First there was the, “Well YOU HAVE TO LET ME KNOW IF YOU ARE BUYING STUFF FOR MY STOCKING BECAUSE MY STOCKING CAN NOT BE EMPTY GEO!” fit, followed by the sobbing I did over my internet. “It’s so SLOW. You don’t understand. All I want to do is post on my god damn blog. But it is SO SLOW.” “Well, it is ok, hon, we’ll get it fixed up for..” “Nooo…I want it fixed nooowwwwwww!”

And then I tucked myself into bed so I wouldn’t act like an idiot anymore.

Geo told me that my neighbors were probably just being nosy because that is what people do in a country town. Which is true, because not only do people ask you a bunch of questions, but they tell you about themselves. Everytime I check out of Walmart, I hear a story about the girl’s boyfriend who slept with her cousin but that is OK, because they are getting married because she needs the insurance money. Or something.

So now the one house is empty and everything I own is in a pile, and Bug keeps knocking on the door asking if she can start working on it, because she has 60 more points to earn in order to get Christmas. And she heard on the radio that Santa is making his final preparations before leaving and now she is freaked out. “I’m through with being bad,” she said. “Look where it has gotten me!” she sighed.

(P.S. Don’t forget to enter into the drawing to win a free copy of Cycle Savvy! See below)

I almost forgot to post my Holidailies today. I guess it would have counted because I did post earlier, but I’ve been trying to do a dedicated Holidailies post.

Except I have no motivation to write. I hate dialup. HATE IT. It is so slow. I can’t get anything to work. My own blog takes 45 minutes to come up. It takes six years for a lonelygirl video to load.

I want to kill dial up.

In other news, I’m ovulating out of the Galinda side, which means that this month would have been worthless in terms of baby making anyway. So guess that means the BDH was good choice.

Except for the dialup.

HATE DIALUP.

Technorati Tags: internet