Amazing News

Today, President Obama has lifted the travel ban for HIV/AIDS people. See here. I am just in shock, in awe, I am so overwhelmed with happiness and joy. I only wished my little ones could understand what a significant day this is. I will make this a holiday for my family. Its suppose to be in effect starting in the New Year. For those who don't understand, what I mean is that when we go to ET to pick up our children, we have to wait for approximately 2-3 weeks (and that's fast), sometimes longer to get the waiver to travel. In addition, it cost an additional $545.00 for the waiver and the additional hotel money for the extra days. Finally these precious families adopting positive children get treated just like all the other families. What a glorious day!!!!

Spending the day with Danica

Today I met up with Danica in the big city. She is in her third year of college and actually had to move out of her dorm to get her own house. She is sharing the house with 5 other girls and its really nice. She got her own room and bathroom. I am a bad mommy though after realizing today how bare her room was. So we went and bought some decorations for her room and her bathroom and got it all set up. Well we still need to hang up decorations and curtains. She has been there for nearly a month but it took us this long to set it up. Anyways, it was awesome. Danica and I have a very deep and intense relationship and the older she gets the more it freaks me out just how much we are alike. She has even inherited my bad parts such as irritations and short temper. I often have to hear from Kevin, you and your daughter are just alike because she calls Kevin as much as she calls me when frustrated. But she has many great aspects of her daddy. She is very, very outgoing and her best feature truly is that she doesn't give a care what people think about her. Its extremely important to her that people judge her from the inside, not the outside and that is probably why she goes to school mostly in sweats with her hair up in a pony tail. That is why I put the picture below because I love when Danica gets dressed up sometimes than her outside beauty comes out too.

She is turning 21 just a week after me and its right around the corner. What is really weird to her is that many of her friends, right and left, are getting married. So she often wonders where her Mr. Future husband is. I keep telling her that God has the perfect man already picked for her with Danica written all over him and one day he will reveal himself. Danica goes to a Christian college and her University is known for producing many marriages at the college. She hasn't found anyone just yet but to be truthful I think my Danica has shutters on also from her previous person she was seeing. Anyways, she only has one more year and a quarter and than she will be done (if she doesn't decide to go to grad school) so she really needs to study hard this last year. It was just good spending the day with her.

I like to add one thing and that is for her not being raised under biblical expectations for the first 16 years of her life, she turned out amazing. To top it all off she really wants to follow God the way I do. That is why I know God will protect her and the right spouse will be waiting for her that desires God even more than she does. Gosh, I love this girl.

Danica was going to a wedding

Amira's Princess Party

Amira has truly earned this by not wetting in school for 3 straight weeks. That's all she had to do but on top of that her attitude has really improved at school, which I reported before. At first I wanted her to have a Belle Princess gown but they were still too expensive so we just did with what we had. She still had the princess dress from her cousin Dara and it was fine. It really wasn't about the gown, it was about her feeling special for one night on all the hard work she did.

We ended up going to Dairy Queen and it was so cute. I realized that my kids are so unspoiled with many things but especially fast food. I kept asking her "what do you want" over and over and she kept saying Ice cream until I finally realized that she had never been to DQ nor Baskin Robbins or any ice cream place. So we ended up ordering a Blizzard and slushy and shared it and the leftovers she wanted to share with Biruk. We had some awesome girl talk. Amira can talk and talk and talk if she is happy and comfortable and she can spike up some conversations with me.

Now my Biruk is working on a sticker system. Its about his attitude at home but he is trying really hard also. After three weeks he will have a date with daddy. His man date! I'll keep you posted.

Kids practing their 10 commendmants

5K Race AGAINST HIV/AIDS

Today was truly an unforgettable day. All good things happened. The main reason we went to this event was to participate in the 5K Run against HIV/AIDS. We had nearly 300 runners (including kids:). At least I believe that is how many signed up. Much of the money will go to my beloved REACH ministry who puts on the most amazing camp once a year for children with HIV.
But to make it so much better, Biruk and Amira got the surprise of their life this morning when we got to the race to be surprised by their friend Tekalegn (Tek). The sad thing was I wasn't there when they met face to face but Kevin said it was amazing and heartwarming. Tek was the last one out of their little cool gang from the orphanage that was left there and it seemed like forever for him and his brother to come home. He just came home 3 weeks ago. My heart just like really dropped when I saw both of them. The whole gang is now in the USA. They have actually two friends named Zene and Zeri who were not able to make it when we have functions because she lives on the other side of the coast but they are always included in their hearts. Courtney and Jessy are the two amazing parents to these two boys and I was so blessed to spend time with them today also. They live the closest to us, about 2 hours.

The gang of 5. Zene and Zeri are not included. They were the first ones to leave to the US. They left just a few weeks before I arrived to pick up my kiddos. T. is on the far right. Nes and Eden are on the far left.

The one thing I truly love about older child adoptions v. infant adoptions is that they never forget their roots and friends. Depending on their age it only gets deeper. I think all of us 7 parents in this group of friends have the kids' best interest and want to make sure our kids can stay in touch as much as they can.

Also today I got to see one of my favorite friends Lisa who came with her 4 smallest girls and her friend Michelle. We were able to spend some nice quality time together. After the run, all of us packed up our kids and went to the Ethiopia restaurant up in Seattle. This has only been the second time my kids went. After we left the restaurant there was a store right across the street selling injera so I grabbed some. The kids were just in injera heaven today. Biruk really missed his Nes today and I missed my Sig. Hopefully next time.

Biruk, Tekalegn., Amira and his brother Sammy in the back.
Goodness, it looks like Biruk is about to make his friend Tek fall. MY MOST FAVORITE PICTURE. THIS ONE WILL BE BLOWN UP!!

Biruk and T. Below and above

Biruk and Dimples

Biruk and Lisa's girls.

Oh these kids love their injera.

Video of Kids Fun Run - Beginning And End

Parent Teacher Conferences

I have met with both of the teacher and both of the kids are doing extremely well. Biruk's teacher is still so in love with him and just loves him and can talk more about him. He is truly her golden child in the classroom. He is obedient, helpful, always finishes his work, and sits right by her side when reading to the kids. Doesn't have any problems making friends and the other kids adore him too. On the home front, things are good too for the moment. I think I will get a sticker system going with Biruk like I am doing with Amira. He still has his days often but Kevin and I are trying hard to work together and he is starting to see that. Smart kid.

Amira's teacher has grown quiet fond of her. I have been in touch with her non stop telling her about Amira's hard life and told her about the orphanage which lead her I think to have huge sympathy for Amira's behavior at times. But for a while now I have reminded Amira every morning that her teacher has her longer than I do each day (unfortunately) and she deserve a heck of a lot respect and that she has to be the teacher to 24 kids and not just Amira. She has really taken it to heart I think and has made huge progress. Teacher also said she is really, really smart. Couldn't believe she has only been here for 8 months and mainly talking just baby talk before coming. She was talking alright but people had a hard time understanding her in ET.

This Friday, Amira will have finished her 3 weeks of stickers (no wetting in school). Since we can't do it on Friday, we will have our princess party this Sunday because we have to leave the house early Saturday morning for our 5K run fundraiser for REACH and need to go to bed early Friday night.

Saturday, October 17, 2009 DONT MISS THIS DATE

Would you please, please put this on your calendar and shop on October 17 at Macy's?? AHOPE is very dear to me even though I haven't adopted my children from AHOPE but hope to one day. If you are not aware of AHOPE, you can find it to the right of my blog. Here is what came in my email below directly from AHOPE:

********************************

Since 2006, Macy's Shop for a Cause event has partnered with non-profit organizations nationwide to raise more than $28 million for their ongoing charitable efforts. This is your chance to be part of this monumental event on Saturday, October 17, 2009.

Shop for a Cause gives you the opportunity to help AHOPE for Children by purchasing a $5 savings pass* for exclusive savings and special offers in every Macy's store. As a participating charity, AHOPE for Children keeps 100% of the proceeds from the sale of each pass. Plus, you can enter to win a $500 Macy's Gift Card (each store will have their own drawing)!

Update on the Kids/Raising Boys

I have to say, school is going well and the kids like it a lot. We have parent-teacher conferences next week; I will find out how the kids are doing.

From when I posted the last time, Amira started wetting her clothes almost every day in school. After I couldn't take much more, I thought of a fabulous idea my friend Amy posted on her blog some time ago. I pretty much copied Amy's idea to the T. Thank you Amy! I told Amira that for every day she wouldn't wet her pants in school she would get a sticker and after so many days of not wetting she and I will have a princess party. We are into our second week and she had no more accidents. Every day she comes running home ready to put her sticker on the calendar. Really all I am doing is when she is done she gets to wear her princess dress and crown, and we will go have ice cream and 2 hours of special mommy daughter time. As to her behavior in school, I haven't heard much from the teacher but I guess I will find out next week.

Now my Biruk has been more than a handful. He and I had our run-ins almost on a daily basis and it hasn't been fun. He has become extremely mouthy, disrespectful, and rude to say the least. I am not getting much more into this as this blog is public and too many people just come here being ..... I'd rather leave that with some trusted friends. I thing the biggest part has been that his English is becoming nearly flawless and he is getting really good with having the right words at the right time that are not very honoring to his parents. I am sure I can fault some of this on mine and Kevin's parenting as Biruk only has these bad behaviors when Kevin and I are home together. He is perfect for me when its just me and the kiddos. Kevin and I just need to pull together strong and do the same at all times. Kevin is more easy and let's him get away with murder until he can't take anymore where I just don't tolerate many things. I often hear boys will be boys and even though Kevin is a boy, he hasn't raised a boy. Biruk is a smart little cookie and has already figured out how to play us. I do think that these kids who have lived at orphanages need structure and not wishy washy.

On the school front he is picture perfect and every time I talk to the teacher she tells me she want to take my son home. I guess if I had the choice I'd rather have him act up at home vs. outside the home. Kevin and I have never raised boys so I bought a book by James Dobson called "Bringing up Boys" and it has helped me tremendous understanding what boys are all about. But the one thing he says is that disrespect is not ever acceptable and I feel the same. Unfortunately this book doesn't talk much about disciplining but we will get there. I am sure this is a phase we will overcome eventually.

Abortion?

This video is so true of what "THE WORLD" thinks. Can't afford, me, me, me. How Do I love Voddie B. ministries and what this amazing man stands for. He has got to by my most favorite advocate and preacher ever!!

http://www.voddiebaucham.org/vbm/Blog/Entries/2009/9/29_Shocking_Abortion_Video.html

Its a bit graphic so watch it alone first.