Going to State!

Hi all!

Today was a super exciting day for Case!  All day today, his elementary school Lego League team competed in their regional competition.  They competed against other elementary schools, middle schools, private Christian schools, and even a group of homeschoolers. 

As you may have read in my post last week, Case and his team (the Mr. Nicer Nisins) have been working for about 3-4 months on their project and the accompanying robotic challenge where you use legos to build the obstacles etc.  In fact, he has stayed after school until at least 5pm every night for the past two weeks working on this.  Well, it obviously paid off because they came in FIRST PLACE today in the project presentation and scored very high on both the core values and the robotic challenge. 

Here is a great picture one of our parents got at their moment of victory in a robotic heat (Case is the one with both hands raised on the right)!

Holy cow, we could not be more proud of this team and especially of our little man's contributions!  It was his research and understanding of the composition of a fairly complex biochemical bacteriocide (for 4th grade!) and its actions and use that helped them beat everyone!  The look of pure pride, absolute joy, and total accomplishment was the best!

The challenge this year is called Food Factor, and focuses on our food chain and how to get food safely from "field to fork".  Teams have to choose some aspect that is problematic, research it, and then come up with a viable solution and again research to back up their ideas.  It's a theoretical application, but they learn so much.  This fall, after the cantaloupe scare and Listeria outbreak in Colorado, they decided to look at how they could make this fruit- its crop, harvest, and storage- safer.  The idea they developed is so cool, utilizes an naturally occurring, organic compound that has been proven safe for humans, and is totally cost effective.  I won't go into it, but suffice to say, its a great concept and the judges were blown away today!  They were awarded first place and that vaulted them on to the State competition in Columbia, SC!  We are thrilled for him and grateful he has these types of experiences at his elementary school.  The downside is, I'll probably never eat cantaloupe again, but that's ok  :)

Here are the Mr. Nicer Nisins (complete with their cool hats, beads, and buttons they made and traded with other teams):

Until next time,
-L  :)


PS:
I posted videos in the last post about what FIRST is, of which Lego League is the first step.  If you didn't watch them, please do- they are really interesting!  Its for boys AND girls (there was an all-girl team that moved on to State as well today) and I highly encourage you to get your kids involved if there you have a local team!

New year but nothing new on the adoption front

Hey all!

Although I said it before, HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!  As you can tell from the post title, still nothing new on the adoption front.  But its encouraging that we hear Poland had few working days in December due to religious and other holidays (gotta love us Catholics!) so maybe we'll hear something soon.

Meanwhile, we had a great holiday season and have been concentrating on getting back into the swing of school these past few weeks.  Case had a super short vacation (only 12 days!) so we tried to make the most of it.  The weather was basically great for Christmas (in the 60s) and Case had a blast playing one of the three wise men for the children's Christmas eve mass.  Good thing he showed up too because he was the ONLY one of the three kings to remember or show up.  What in the world?  I guess we are some of the only parents that believe that if you sign up your child to participate in something, you need to follow through.  Regardless, it was cute and he rocked his costume and was a great magus (singular of magi and yes, I had to google it to check, lol!).  Christmas itself was great and the playroom still looks like a Lego store, lol.  New Year's was uneventful- just my boys and me- but we did celebrate Lucky's 3rd birthday on Jan. 1.  He's the stray we rescued and we love him to pieces. 

Case started back to school January 2 (I told you it was a short break!) but since it just didn't seem fair the kids had to go on a day everyone else had off (including Brian), we were naughty and picked him up at 1pm so he could come home.  He loves college football and wanted to watch the bowl games real bad and we thought why not!  We had toyed with the idea of going to the Sugar Bowl to watch Michigan (my alma mater) on January 3 or the Orange Bowl to watch Clemson (our local team and who Brian takes care of) on January 4, but both New Orleans and Miami just didn't seem the most child friendly cities and he had school.   Instead, we opted to watch them all on tv and enjoy our time here.  There will be plenty of other bowls  :)  Of course, if it had been the Rose Bowl, we would totally have been there!  I marched in 3 Rose Parades and performed at 3 Rose Bowls in the Michigan Marching Band and its a fabulous trip!  Best. Bowl. Ever!  And we were very happy that Michigan won an exciting Sugar Bowl and that Clemson....well...got to the Orange Bowl (the final score was u-g-l-y!).

In the last couple of weeks, Case has been extremely busy with Lego League and getting ready for their upcoming competition in mid January.  They are doing a Food Challenge this year and have to devise a new, innovative way to enhance or ensure food safety.  Their team is called the Mr. Nice Nisins and if you don't know what nisin is, google it.  Ok, I'll save you time- nisin is produced naturally from lactococcus bacteria and was discovered in the 1920's.  Its used as a food preservative and is completely safe to humans and our digestive track (unlike other pesticides or preservatives). Case's team decided to take that idea and develop a theoretical usage for it.  They want to help make cantaloupe safer using nisin-enriched fertilizer and/or a nisin wash during growing and harvest.  This is especially important after the most recent Listeria outbreak this fall (nisin kills Listeria which can be deadly for humans).  The team came up with the ideas on their own (with their coach's guidance) and it is a seriously cool idea using a natural substance.  And although theoretical in nature, it has real possibilities in food science research.  I can't believe this came from 4th and 5th graders, but that is what FIRST Lego League encourages, outside-the-box thinking for modern-day problems.

If you don't know anything about FIRST Lego League, you should check it out.  I was kinda skeptical about the whole thing, until I saw the CNN report abut what participating in this program can do for kids and why it is important for the future of our country.  And most importantly, FIRST is geared for boys AND girls, so anyone can compete.  Here are the links:  parts 1-6.  It'll take a little while to watch, but you'll be sooo happy you did.
  

 

 

After seeing this special and Case going to a Lego League camp this summer, I was totally sold and it has been a very, very good experience so far.   It may seem dorky at first, but when you see the calculations, academic requirements, and time this kids put in in this video, it will change your perception.  And if you are still skeptical, there was recently a report of a FIRST high school robotics student that came up with an idea for a medical innovation that has earned her $100,000 towards college!   Now there's incentive!

So we continue on and await news of a referral for our son on the adoption front.  Please pray for us and we continue to pray for all of you waiting or in the midst of completing your first or second trips.  Special shout out to Heidi, David, and Molly who have welcomed Alex and Amelia officially to there family!  They are still in Poland but in the home stretch now and we're so happy for them! 

Until next time peeps!  Take care and God Bless!

Give me an L...for being so lame in posting! lol

Hi everyone!  First of all I must admit that I have been woefully LAME-O about posting on the blog this fall (and now winter, omg...).  I am our elementary school PTO president this year and must admit, it has been way more work and time than I ever imagined.  Man, parents are insane!  lol  Coupled with the fact I like to do a good job and worked freakishly to bring in lots of external donations from major companies for our annual silent auction this fall and well, I just didn't have the energy or brain cells to blog.  But I swear I will do better!

Besides all that, this fall was rather eventful in a variety of ways.  First, it saw Brian tearing his Achilles tendon playing soccer with the dads from Case's soccer club.  He's fine and its been repaired (luckily he has excellent partners) but it definitely slowed him down a bit and bummed him out.  I told him at least he did it playing sports and not walking in the yard!  Yea, that didn't really help, lol.  Anyway, he is no longer using a crutch, a cane, and has started PT so things are getting back to normal.  Maybe not getting a referral was a blessing in disguise since he would have been miserable traveling with all that.  As it was, we did get back for another Michigan game (Michigan-Nebraska) and although he had the cane, he weathered it all like a trooper.  But they scanned the crap out of that cane in Detroit, lol!  Even though it was made of wood they were not gonna trust that one bit.  As you can guess, the cane passed and so did we.  :) 

Next, Case continued playing club soccer and got his first goal finally!  This was a big deal because although he has played a while, he was always the younger kid and then got moved to defense.  Now, he loves defense and rocks at the position, but its hard to get a goal when you are dropped back.  But he got a sweet breakaway and blasted the thing so hard it went right between the goalie's outstretched hands.  He was over the moon!   Case has continued to do just awesome in 4th grade and basically leads the pack in about everything he does- all with great humility and acknowledgement to both his teachers and other classmates.  He is our angel and we love him to pieces.  But let's face it, the kid needs a little brother  :)

So what has been up with us on the adoption front?  Well, unfortunately not a lot.  While we have seen other families get referrals and take their trips, our phone has still been silent.  Based on some info I gleaned (great word, eh?) recently, there does seem to have been a 4-5 month slow down in Poland for referrals; but, it seems that things have started to pick up again. 

We have been counting the days until we would need to renew all our stuff and it looks like the end of January will be the target.  Hopefully, if we can get and accept a referral before that, Lina thinks we should be good to go.  We'll do whatever we need to, but it would kinda stink if we have to re-do items.  What really burns my toast is that the re-do would be for the US and not for Poland!  I mean, seriously??  I understand getting updated fingerprints, but the home study?  Even when the adoptive country doesn't need an updated one?  Whatever.  Thanks US bureaucracy. Ugh.

So here we sit as Christmas approaches in a few days, still waiting for that call.  We have high hopes for the end of 2011 and definitely for 2012 that we will receive a referral and meet our son.  Still, we are absolutely thrilled to pieces for our fellow adoptive families that have completed or are the process of completing their adoptions!  Once our journeys are complete, we definitely need to get together to celebrate at Polish Fest!  I treasure all the friendships I have developed with many of you over the social media and blog sphere and am proud to be here to support you all, like you have supported us.    

And to our son....who is still waiting...somewhere in Poland...in either an orphanage or foster home....please know that we love you and we are doing everything we can to find you and bring you into our family.  Trust in God and His grace and mercy for He will untie us soon.  We pray for you everyday to have peace, to be warm, to have someone to comfort you and give you love, and to know down deep in your heart that God is bringing your mama, daddy, and big brother to you very, very soon. 

We wish you all the Merriest of Christmases and the Happiest of New Years in 2012! 

New look for the blog, same old news

So recently I updated our blog with a cool picture which essentially mimics the Blue Ridge mountains- which we see out our window every day.  It was easy and didn't take much time, which I was very thankful for....unlike this whole adoption situation.

I have to admit, I am officially getting frustrated yet am still generally conflicted about the timetable for our referral (if it ever will come).  Let me explain:  Although I am glad the agency we work with has sorted out the bogus claims and situation with COA, I am increasingly annoyed that Poland and SMIA have been moving at a snail's pace lately.  Supposedly this whole thing had no implications on the Poland side so I do NOT understand why there are families awaiting their second trips to get their children that are being kept on hold.   I know the court dates are not SMIA's fault, but Poland has been so painstakingly slow that SMIA can't get these families squared away and hence, can't or won't advocate for others that are waiting to get a proper referral (ie one that fits what they requested).

And I know I shouldn't complain because this is absolutely and utterly unfair, but I have to vent:  Our dossier is squeaky clean.  I mean, freakishly clean.  My husband is of Polish heritage (we even know where his family comes from!), we are both stable, educated professionals that are already established parents of a fantastic child, we are financially able to proceed with any adoption, and we are requesting an older aged child(ren) that most people aren't interested in and who are supposedly busting at the seams over there.  So what is the hold up, I ask?  We call and talk to the agency and are told "you just have to wait".  Sorry, but that ain't cutting it lately.  I am impatient to meet our child that God has chosen.  Everyone says we have to wait for it to happen in "God's time", but these delays seem more secular that divine and I'm ready for some divine intervention to grease the wheels a bit.

At the same time, I am glad the whole travel thing didn't come down during October.  I have had to be major peacemaker and deal broker on behalf of our elementary school PTO, of which I am president this year.  I have had to calm nerves, provide encouragement, give direction (sometimes sternly), and act as intermediary for various stupid arguments between adults.  Our school's major fundraiser is upcoming in early November and honestly, I'm not sure I could be absent during that time anyway.  I've tried really hard to get everything in place and have secured so serious donations from national companies and Clemson University for our silent auction in the event we miraculously receive a good referral and travel, but I can't see that happening until after the event and definitely not until after the other families receive their second travel dates.  Plus, the longer Case is in school the better for him.  But we have reservations for Disneyworld in the spring that we thought we would be taking with 2 kids, and while it doesn't affect the room etc, there is no way we are losing that!

So here we sit- everything done right and looking great according to our agency yet no referral.  I have to continually explain to my child that we are still patiently waiting and see the look him losing faith every day that it will happen.  Plus, add in the possible anxiety, expense, and complete hassle of updating home studies and getting fingerprints redone should they expire after the new year and, well, I'm getting a bit ticked.

Wish this could be a happier post but that's where I am right now.  Not looking for sympathy necessarily- just venting.  I am praying that Kara and Tom, Heidi and David, Leigh and Greg, and Tracy and Scott all get their dates soon because they have been separated from their children WAY too long already and these families need to be reunited.  So I call upon you, Almighty Father and Lord, and ask you to deliver these families and join them together at last.  I also ask for the intercession of Holy Mary, Mother of God on behalf of all of us waiting for our children to come to us.  Please help us and keep us strong during this trying time.   Amen.

Yea, so, this has been me for the last month or so.  To be more accurate though, it should be holding a cell phone, computer, car keys, PTO president folder, football tickets, dog leashes, and 2 others things I can't even remember right now.  Needless to say, that picture alone should let you know why I have not posted for a while. 

As of July, I assumed the presidency of our PTO.  Its a very strong group and definitely has high expectations of anyone serving in the office.  While that doesn't bother me- I mean, I was my sorority's president twice in college, was a rank leader in the Michigan Marching Band, and am a professional nurse, so I get multi-tasking- I have been absolutely swamped/overwhelmed with the work the last 2 months.  Being the head honcho, main (wo)man, and most easily found target for people to complain about anything from the school to whether we should do Halloween treats bags (ludicrous), can really get under even the most-hardened skin after a while.  Add onto that starting our new BooHoo/WooHoo Breakfast for Kindergarten parents, trying to coax/persuade/bribe (not really) parents into the role of room parents, and apply for mini-grants and charitable donations from companies all over the country to support our children and school whose budget continues to be sliced up year after year and...well, you see the stress.  And the worst part?  Its only September!  I have to serve until June and am not fully convinced my VP will be able to handle the job.  Oy!

So anyway on the adoption front- as most, if not all of you know by now, St Mary's got slapped with one of the most ridiculous suspensions in September.  This is based on what appears completely bogus reasons and because the head of the COA (Council on Accreditation) is...well... apparently a tool.  As a result of one family's selfish claims, everything got put on hold.   Cue the pouty voice: "We didn't get anyone good, and that other couple did- no fair! And why didn't SMIA help us to decipher medical information more (even thought that isn't their job and we should have checked ourselves independently) and even though we had turned down 5 referrals and Poland was the one that removed the kids from consideration, its ALL THEIR FAULT"  WAHHHHH!  This complete lack of rational thinking on this couple's part and vindictive behavior caused tremors that were felt by adoptive families working with St. Mary's all over.  Just as important, it threatened Lina's livelihood and sterling reputation.  Over 10 years with no complaints and one triggers a landslide?  Ridiculous.  Smells like the head of the COA trying to make his job seem important and therefore, save it?  Maybe rabbit, maybe.....

Soooo, when all was said and done and after a lawsuit was filed in federal court by SMIA, the COA agreed to let them resume adoptions, fully accredited.   And most important of all, Poland NEVER had a problem with Lina or St Mary's.  Just some piddly, little pseudo-government agency here.  *Shocking*.  Gee, can you tell I'm still fairly annoyed about all this?  Anyway, it seems from others posting that the wheels are in motion again over there.  Once they complete their trips, we are hopeful we too will be receiving a quality referral and can start planning our trip as well.  We hoped to be there with many of those families we've gotten to know well via the blogs and (old) Facebook- don't even get me started on the changes- but that was on our timeline and not God's.  His is perfect and ours is, well, probably a total wreck (lol) so we'll go with God's. 

Case continues to do great in school and stated club soccer again this season.  I guess its been a little bit of a weird relief to not have to worry about taking him out to travel yet and letting him get as much of 4th grade under his belt as possible.  Ideally, we would love to travel 1st trip by Christmas.  We actually made plans for Disney again this year because it was so far in the future we thought no biggie.  Now, we'll have to make sure we can arrange our second trip to accommodate that and Case's state assessment testing.  Hopefully it won't be an issue and Poland will work with us should the time get close.  We're hoping its done by then and not even a concern, but we'll see how fast they get up and running after this setback to SMIA. 

Well, that's it for now campers.  I'm sure there is some other PTO-related fire I have to put out or that is smoldering and I just haven't smelt it yet.  I'll keep posting though as things come up!  Take care everyone!

-Laura

Posting from my new techno toy!

Today I decided to try out my anniversary gift Brian got me last week- a new Samsung Galaxy 10.1 tablet.  I actually wanted this instead of an iPad since, well, we already have on.  The biggest thing for me though was that I wanted something to run Flash.  Although we are definitely an Apple family with Macs, iPods, iTouches, and iPads,  Apple do not use Flash (for
reasons too long to type here).  Its not that I do alot of things that use Flash.  I just wanted the option of something that did- especially if and when we go to Poland since I fear I will need to feel connected and it would tick me of if I couldn't watch something because it couldn't run Flash.

So far, I have found the Galaxy tab very cool and even like some if its features better than the iPad (I know! Sacrilege! lol).  Its a little lighter, the keyboard has great action, and the screen color and clarity is amazing.  Basically, its as close to an iPad as you can get and most of the geek world mag reviews I checked said likewise.

So I'm having fun today checking it out but I might as well fess up, I also got this so when we travel I can watch my own movie or read my own book through the Kindle app, instead of having it monopolized by 2 boys- one almost 10 and one ALOT older, lol-  playing
 Angry Birds.  Plus, if they think I am really reading a book, I can work on my own Angry Birds levels in peace, without unsolicited advice about where, and at what angle I should fling the red, yellow, or blue birds to get the green pig.   ;)

Heat wave 2011

Like the old song says- "We're having a heat wave, a tropical heat wave...."  For so many days now I have been tolerant of these extremes but this last week, I finally broke.  I have had it!  Since the end of May, we have officially had 2 days under 90 degrees- yep, you read that right...2!  And just last week with the temperature climbing into the 100-110 range consistently, it has officially become unbearable.  The pool water is warm, the lake is warm, you can't get a breeze without going at least 10miles an hour in the boat- overall it is just oppressive.  Add in humidity, which is a constant in SC, and its definitely stunk.

Worse of all though, it has driven us inside, into the comfort of air conditioning, but still inside.  I don't even think about how much electricity our air conditioners use.  Its just so frustrating and now that we're in the dog days, I don't see much end in sight for a few weeks.   We have all been more stir crazy than ever before and until recently I realized why.  Was it the heat?  Last week, I realized the answer was no.  The real reason for the extreme boredom and antsy-ness (is that a word? lol) is something entirely different and very unexpected.  Its because this summer we didn't go to our ranch in Wyoming we have visited for the last 3 years.

We decided to not go because we thought we might be in or looking forward to Poland to meet our son.  Obviously, we're still waiting patiently.  I thought we would all be fine with foregoing the trip in lieu of the more involved adventure to come.  I thought, "Its not a big deal.  We'll be fine without going. We've only been a few years in a row".  I even thought Case might be bored if we went again.  I was wrong on all counts.   I didn't expect was how much we would all miss it and it had become a family tradition, even in such a short time.   The heat has definitely made it worse too since I know its cooler and more comfortable there.  Still, it is totally cathartic and we are have missed the beauty, simplicity, and pure relaxation it offers.

So bear with me as I share some pics and memories.  I need to for my soul's well-being.  :)

The entrance to the HF Bar Ranch!

Heaven!

Usually we head out to HF Bar Ranch, the 2nd oldest dude ranch in country, in Saddlestring, WY in mid-July.  We spend 7-10 days there at 5500ft in the Big Horn Mountains, riding horses, fly-fishing, skeet shooting (Brian, not us), going to rodeos, and just enjoying the fresh air and outdoors.

Our family in 2010 with our horses Miller, Russia, and Scotty (L->R)

Running the horses in from the pasture

China Wall- beautiful and you can ride on trails that weave through it!

This about says it all!  Coming down from Castle Rock ride

Natural sound soother, the creek that runs right between the cabins. Bliss.

Rope 'em!

Hanging with the wranglers at the corral.

On Big Mesa looking back at the ranch

Curious little antelope

Ranch pool!

Brian and Case fly-fishing

Brian and some of the other daddies skeet shooting with the professionals.

 Driving the ice wagon! Case got to help deliver ice blocks to each cabin.

The cabins are rustic, have indoor plumbing, but no TV or phones.  The technological detox we are able to experience is so needed.  The food is fabulous and we have met people from all over the world- pretty famous people too, which makes it exciting too.

The best part is, we are all guests relaxing and all treated the same, and we all treat each other the same.  The people, famous and non-famous, are there on vacation and have deep roots that run to this ranch.  Still, even though we might ride with them, sit at the table with them each night, or share a post-evening ride drink in the fishing shack, its still kinda cool when you discover who they are.

For example, one year we met Elizabeth Peale Allen, the chairwoman of the board for Guideposts magazine, and the daughter of Norman Vincent Peale ("The Power of Positive Thinking").  A lovely woman whose husband is buried on the ranch and the family  journeys there often.  She stepped on something in the river and Brian looked at her leg (she was fine), and she was so gracious.

Another year, we met Josh McLagen when Case was playing with his daughter.  So who is he, you ask?  Wait for it....  They had played for a couple of days, we had rode out with them, and Case even ate at their table a few times in the ranch house.  Nice guy and were we surprised when we found out what he did!  While we had no idea he was famous before, we started to realize when he brought "his personal copy" of a movie that he "worked on".   We thought it was a DVD or something until it had his name on it....in the movie credits and literally on the bottom in a security mark.  It was Night at the Museum 2.  He was the 1st director.   He also told us about a "little" movie he had coming out that December that we would like.  It was called Avatar.  Add to that, he worked on films like Titanic, and you get the picture.  The best part?  You would never know he was that famous- he was just another guest who had come there often.  We watched on a screen set up outside, under the stars, in chairs under blankets.  It was heaven.

So, I am posting these memories and great experiences to remind myself that while we swelter away in the heat, nirvana is just on the other side of the country.  We plan to take our new son with us next summer (fingers crossed!) and hope he'll fall in love with it like we have.  But make no mistake, next summer, we are going!

Yeeehaw!