Stolen from a friend's blog (see more here)
KIDS
"...could i be having more fun? seriously. i LOVE watching them. learn, play, fight, grow. i love how much they’re teaching me. about love. love - watching my honey with them… could i be more in love with him? love - learning what unconditional means. love - seeing how discipline and love go hand in hand. i love the questions they ask. i love watching them sleep. i love nursing my babies. i love being pregnant. i love knowing God is growing a baby in there. that He’s knitting the details where i can’t see. i love the surprise of their birth. i love their smell. i love even the big-kids-playing-outside-top-of-their-head smell. i love how they interact with each other. i love how they love playing with their daddy. i love how they look packed like sardines across the back of the corolla. i love pick-ups, and hands-in-the-air-please-hold-me-mama looks. i love when they learn that first joke. and they realize the world is funny and they can create some that. i love the pictures they make and asking, “tell me all about it” because i can’t tell anything about it. i love their eyes when you tell them you got ‘em a surprise. i love seeing who they are and waiting to see who God made them to be. i love when they hold my hand and the softness of that hold. i love when they say, “i wuv wu mama” i love that they are as excited as me to get another brother or sister. i love how they make up games like catch the bouncy ball with the upside down bucket. i love when they discovered crisco while i wasn’t looking. i love how they take care of each other and then beat each other to a pulp the next second. i love the fingerprints all over everything."
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Update on Adoption status
So, I have not been writing much at all, let alone updating the status on the adoption process. Sorry about that. I wish that I could report that we are finished with the certification process and just waiting for kids. I WISH!!
No, I am instead reporting that we are having to start the WHOLE process over again!!!
Yeah, you heard me right. We received a letter from Koinonia on Saturday that basically conveyed that Koinonia is no longer interested in us as a foster or adoptive family. But no other explanation. So.... for the last few days I have been on the phone leaving countless messages with supervisors of social workers who will not tell me why we are being discontinued in this process after all this time. Apparently it is a common procedure for a company like Koinonia to make it policy that no matter of the rejection decision is to be divulged to ANYBODY! (Not very helpful)
Let me tell you.... It has been a frustrated couple of days.
But today I was able to speak with a man who, though he knows he is not permitted to tell me why we were rejected, he also understands the predicament that this decision places us in and he was so kind as to let me guess what the problem is, and tell me "No, that is not an issue" or "well, let me tell you what you would be able to read on our web site" and once, even so much as "ok, now we are on the fringe of what I am not permitted to speak about, so let's redirect this conversation".
So.... as far as I can tell, the reason we are not able to adopt children through Koinonia is because we have four children already. It is Koinonia policy that a family not have more than 6 children TOTAL (including biological children) The strange thing about that is I remember reading that when we were first deciding whether to use Koinonia or another agency and asking a man (who I thought was) upper level management if this would be a problem. He said that it wouldn't because foster placement agencies are more interested in the best interest of the children (in this case siblings) than in an arbitrary number (a total of 6 kids) and bendable rule. (both of those words were HIS not MINE). Oh well, at least I know now what the problem was and that it is not something that will prevent us from adopting from another agency.
I cannot tell you how irritating it is to be told "No" and not be told why. Anyhow.... The good news is that there are other agencies that do not have a problem with that, so we will just have to start over again. Not stop indefinitely.
So... here we go again.....
No, I am instead reporting that we are having to start the WHOLE process over again!!!
Yeah, you heard me right. We received a letter from Koinonia on Saturday that basically conveyed that Koinonia is no longer interested in us as a foster or adoptive family. But no other explanation. So.... for the last few days I have been on the phone leaving countless messages with supervisors of social workers who will not tell me why we are being discontinued in this process after all this time. Apparently it is a common procedure for a company like Koinonia to make it policy that no matter of the rejection decision is to be divulged to ANYBODY! (Not very helpful)
Let me tell you.... It has been a frustrated couple of days.
But today I was able to speak with a man who, though he knows he is not permitted to tell me why we were rejected, he also understands the predicament that this decision places us in and he was so kind as to let me guess what the problem is, and tell me "No, that is not an issue" or "well, let me tell you what you would be able to read on our web site" and once, even so much as "ok, now we are on the fringe of what I am not permitted to speak about, so let's redirect this conversation".
So.... as far as I can tell, the reason we are not able to adopt children through Koinonia is because we have four children already. It is Koinonia policy that a family not have more than 6 children TOTAL (including biological children) The strange thing about that is I remember reading that when we were first deciding whether to use Koinonia or another agency and asking a man (who I thought was) upper level management if this would be a problem. He said that it wouldn't because foster placement agencies are more interested in the best interest of the children (in this case siblings) than in an arbitrary number (a total of 6 kids) and bendable rule. (both of those words were HIS not MINE). Oh well, at least I know now what the problem was and that it is not something that will prevent us from adopting from another agency.
I cannot tell you how irritating it is to be told "No" and not be told why. Anyhow.... The good news is that there are other agencies that do not have a problem with that, so we will just have to start over again. Not stop indefinitely.
So... here we go again.....
A responce to a blog I read
I read this blog today and I just LOVED it! I thought I would link it and maybe bless someone else today too.
Here was my reply to her:
I KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ohhh I am so glad to have read this post! We have had the SAME experience. Our oldest started school last year (07-08 School year) and we started her in Kindergarten. Within 3 days we had a parent/teacher/principal/academic advisory meeting. Our little girl was TOO bright! Now, all of the reasons we imagined needing to have a conference with all of the important people in her school, that was NOT on the list! They were recommending bumping her up into the 1st grade. So we did.... Only to find that we missed her TERRIBLY! she LOVED going to school, but it tore my heart out each day when we had to walk home without her. And EVERY day when she came home, she treated the rest of us like we were beneath her because she was the smart one who not only got to go to school, but also bumped to the next grade, AND still the top of her class.... It got to the point where we would pick her up from school and come home to take naps, she would wake up in time to do her homework, eat dinner, take a bath, and go to bed.... I did not get to see her very much at all, and when I did, we were fighting about her bad attitude or the way that she treated her siblings or that even though everyone at school thought she was an angel, mommy and daddy still are in charge.... It was TERRIBLE! So, we did not put her back into school. We decided to homeschool. And I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I AM DOING!!!! I am building character. That is all I know for sure. I do not have a daily routine (I have 3 other smaller children), I do not have a set curriculum (though I really like five in a row) and I do NOT know were we are going next. BUT..... I DO know that we are doing what we are SUPPOSED to be doing! I have wondered (at least weekly if not daily) if she is learning as much as teh kids in the public school. If I am teaching her (and the other kids) what really matters in life. If I am preparing her to be an independent, functional adult. I do not know. BUT, I love my little ones, and there is not a person on this rock who could doubt it. Thank you for your story. It has benefited me greatly today.
Here was my reply to her:
I KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ohhh I am so glad to have read this post! We have had the SAME experience. Our oldest started school last year (07-08 School year) and we started her in Kindergarten. Within 3 days we had a parent/teacher/principal/academic advisory meeting. Our little girl was TOO bright! Now, all of the reasons we imagined needing to have a conference with all of the important people in her school, that was NOT on the list! They were recommending bumping her up into the 1st grade. So we did.... Only to find that we missed her TERRIBLY! she LOVED going to school, but it tore my heart out each day when we had to walk home without her. And EVERY day when she came home, she treated the rest of us like we were beneath her because she was the smart one who not only got to go to school, but also bumped to the next grade, AND still the top of her class.... It got to the point where we would pick her up from school and come home to take naps, she would wake up in time to do her homework, eat dinner, take a bath, and go to bed.... I did not get to see her very much at all, and when I did, we were fighting about her bad attitude or the way that she treated her siblings or that even though everyone at school thought she was an angel, mommy and daddy still are in charge.... It was TERRIBLE! So, we did not put her back into school. We decided to homeschool. And I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I AM DOING!!!! I am building character. That is all I know for sure. I do not have a daily routine (I have 3 other smaller children), I do not have a set curriculum (though I really like five in a row) and I do NOT know were we are going next. BUT..... I DO know that we are doing what we are SUPPOSED to be doing! I have wondered (at least weekly if not daily) if she is learning as much as teh kids in the public school. If I am teaching her (and the other kids) what really matters in life. If I am preparing her to be an independent, functional adult. I do not know. BUT, I love my little ones, and there is not a person on this rock who could doubt it. Thank you for your story. It has benefited me greatly today.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
I am a silly girl!!
So a few days ago I decided that I should make a ham for dinner, but it took THREE days to thaw! It was FINALLY thawed yesterday and I decided to cook it in the crock pot so I did not have to worry about it throughout the day. I put it in at 11:00 and turned it on low. I have learned that setting it to high just doesn't work as well as I would like. So..... two hours later as I was walking by I decided to check the progress.......
I HAD FORGOTTEN TO PLUG THE SILLY THING IN!!!!!!!!!!!!
That was frustrating... So it was not ready to eat for dinner and I whipped up some noodles with tomato/olive/garlic/mushroom (and anything else I could find in my house) sauce. it was pretty yummy, but now we have left over ham and didn't get the chance to eat it fresh.... urrg... If only I had payed attention...
So the moral of this story....?
Your appliances will not run all by themselves! You have to plug them in silly!
I HAD FORGOTTEN TO PLUG THE SILLY THING IN!!!!!!!!!!!!
That was frustrating... So it was not ready to eat for dinner and I whipped up some noodles with tomato/olive/garlic/mushroom (and anything else I could find in my house) sauce. it was pretty yummy, but now we have left over ham and didn't get the chance to eat it fresh.... urrg... If only I had payed attention...
So the moral of this story....?
Your appliances will not run all by themselves! You have to plug them in silly!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)