Adoption Update: The Binder

The state of Oregon has deemed us worthy to be parents.

Obviously, that shows you the integrity and trustworthiness of the government.

(*COUGH*)

So a week or so ago, UPS dropped off a a honkin' three-ring binder to our house. In it were 109 pages of kids, each page representing one child or a sibling set of kids.

This marked the beginning of the next stage of our adoption journey--picking out our next kid (fourth. and. final.) from a list.

"What a breeze," I thought.

So Hubs and I flipped through the binder separately, made our lists of possibilities, and then sat down to compare.

AND NOT A NAME ON OUR LISTS DID MATCH.

Obviously we are on the same page with this matter.

So after a quick round of "Dear, You Have No Taste In Children So Let's Just Rid Ourselves Of YOUR List And Simply Work From MINE," we moved on to "Pick A Kid Poker."

It was such a beautiful experience, not unlike pregnancy and childbirth.

(*NOT!* *SO!* *MUCH!*)

We finally half-heartedly agreed on two little girls--who we soon found out were already on the road to adoption.

(Good news.)

And now.

Each Friday I get five or so new pages ("kids," let's call them) sent to me through the e-mail for Hubs and I to thumb-wrestle over and discuss.

What we do know is that the rules have changed just a bit--in that previously, potential adoptive parents had roughly a month to apply for a child, and then that list of parents (of likely 50, for the younger kids) was narrowed down to three for a committee to choose from.

Now? Once the committee sees three "good" families (whatever that means), the doors are closed to any more parents wanting to apply. That's good news for the kids--it means they are getting into their forever families more quickly. However, what it means for us is that when we see The One, we will have approximately 35.6 minutes to make a decision and pick up the phone to apply.

So, you know. Pray that when Our Child pops up in the e-mail, all the other potential parents lose their internet connection as well as their phone lines we are able to move and groove in a rational, peaceful manner.

Fully knowing that "rational" and "peaceful" will require nothing less than a miracle.

Meanwhile, I'll be looking forward to Fridays and to what our future family will become.


If you're new around here and would like more of the back story, check out these posts (listed in reverse chronological order):

The PS To That Humiliating Update

Adoption Update: Alternately Titled, Just Humiliate Me And Get It Over With

An Adoption Update: Subtitled, The Most Unflattering Picture You'll See Today

The Vote Is In: Did You Choose X Or Y?

It's Like That Baby Shower Game, Only Different

An Adoption Update. Because You Asked.

Books I'm Hogging From The Library: The April 25, 2009 Edition

I spent three of the past seven days out of town on "vacation." And by using the word "vacation," I really mean "a trip that involves even more work than staying at home." But still. Everything in my life, including my library list, was saying to me: TAKE A STINKIN' BREAK, YOU DORK.

So I did.

Best Hikes with Kids: Oregon :: I hiked to see four waterfalls during my "days off" (don't even argue with me about the necessity of those quotes!) and would have missed all of them if it wasn't for this book. It's such a great resource; I might just have to buy it. (*eyes bugging*)

Live Your Road Trip Dream: Travel for a Year for the Cost of Staying Home :: Part of my homeschooling dream is to travel-school with the kids at least once back and forth across the country. This book is the start of making that happen.

Pacific Coast Highway: Traveler's Guide :: I'm still trying to talk Hubs into a trip to San Francisco, at the very least. I've got to break him down, little by little.

Pacific Coast Highway: 2,066 Miles from Olympic to Tijuana :: More of the same. With lots of pictures.

Oregon: Portrait of a State :: This is an awesome picture book of Oregon. We've been in the Pacific Northwest 1 1/2 years now, and as we see more of what there is to see, the pictures in this book remind us why we love our new home. And it acts as sort of a scrapbook, since that little hobby of mine seemed to go into hibernation right around the time that we moved. (Which, coincidentally, was right around the same time we added a third child. Mmm-hmmm.)

You might have noticed I like my state. Go ahead, let's have two people everyone give a shout-out and say what state they're from. You can do it. I promise I won't stalk you on my road trip across the country.

(*crossing fingers behind back*)

Strawberry Fling Smoothie

I've already shared my love for cheese, but I thought I'd give you one more recipe from the Tillamook Cheese Cookbook that I told y'all about last week.

There's no cheese in this smoothie, in case you're wondering. But there is yogurt, and I'll have to say--the vanilla bean yogurt is what makes this smoothie so good. I tried regular vanilla yogurt but NO DICE. So, for those of you who can't get the specific item this recipe calls for, well, I guess you'll have to move to Oregon where there is some. Problem solved.


Strawberry Fling Smoothie

1 cup Tillamook vanilla bean yogurt
3/4 cup milk
10 ounces frozen sweetened strawberries

Place all the ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. 1 large serving.

Recipe notes: I've used frozen raspberries with equal success. Also, since I have a wimpy blender and no super-shiny vita-mix, I have to thaw the strawberries in the microwave for one minute, and then add a little ice to the mix when blending.

For more kitchen treats, check out Ann's Food on Fridays and the Grocery Cart Challenge's Recipe Swap.

Or see three more of my smoothie recipes (and bonus! get ideas for hosting your own summer smoothie party!)

Best Hikes With Kids

You know what? I like exercise. Especially when it doesn't hurt--or even better--is done by someone else.

But walking doesn't feel like exercise to me, especially walking and looking at nice scenery.

A non-example of nice scenery would be the mall, but nevertheless! A recent trip through that concrete jungle got me to stumble across a series of books titled "Best Hikes With Kids." And I'd have to agree, the best hikes are with kids. Mostly because they're short.

Not the kids. The hikes.

Blessed motherhood!

Now, pardon me while I say something completely sweet and non-snarky:

America is a beautiful place, and I feel fortunate to have state parks and paved trails throughout our land.

[Ugh! That's enough of that!]

I happen to live in Oregon, which is the most fabulous state of them all (obviously!), but the other 49 states might have some lovely scenery to offer as well.

Might.

There are a handful of other books in the "best hikes with kids" series besides the one I was using:

• Colorado
  
  
• Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island
  
  
• Michigan
  
  
• New Jersey
  
  
• New Mexico
  
  
• Oregon (woot!)
  
  
• Pennsylvania
  
  
• Utah
  
  
• Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine
  
  
• Western Washington and the Cascades

And if your state has yet to have a book in that series; never fear. You can search a trail finder online which helps you locate trails in a specific geographic area.

So while you're planning your spring and summer outings, add a hike or seven to your list. It will make you so genuinely happy you'll break out in song.

I promise.

"This land is your land..."

(Dad, that Johnny Cash version is for you.)

(And for my Oregonian friends--that picture is from our recent hike at Silver Falls State Park.)

Recycling Is The Gift That Keeps On Giving

As you know, it's Earth Day.

Oh, you didn't?

Well, shame on you, you Earth Hater.

Never fear. I've spent seconds hours surfing the net looking for ways to make Earth Day an educational and meaningful holiday for you. My extensive research has found what it's always found in the past--lots of ideas for making crafts out of junk.

Now I don't know about you, but whenever *I* do crafts with *my* kids, I can pretty much count on "anger" and "hate" being part of the memories we've made on that day.

So here's the deal. The Magic School Bus has an episode on recycling that will provide your kids with 23 minutes of edutainment, and give you a much-needed break.

How wonderfully LAZY is that?

Happy--Earth--Day--To--Us!

What's even better is that the episode is a holiday one, which means your kids can start thinking about Christmas in April.

BONUS.

And now to quote the character voiced by the always-overflowing-in-generosity Dolly Parton: "Recycling is the gift that keeps on giving."

And those video links are my gift to you.

Happy Earth Day. Live it up.

How Walkable Is Your Neighborhood?

As summer approaches, along with the threat of exposing my thighs, I'm giving more thought to walking. Walking to the van, walking to the movie rental box, walking to the store to stock up on bars of Ghirardelli Espresso Escape.

I see nothing wrong with my logic.

While doing one of my favorite non-walking activities the other day, I ran across a website that scores any address for its walkability factor: walkscore.com.

I happen to live in an area where houses are approximately three inches apart from one another, which leaves just enough space for the noise of the baying dogs to spread for miles on end. Fortunately, it also means that I live within walking distance of every possible need I could ever imagine. Movie rentals and chocolate top that list.

Henceforth, the walkability score for my home address is an amazing 89/100.

Eat my urban dust, you lawn-owning folk!

So, for kicks you can check out your own home address, or an address you'd like to move to, or the address of your local ice cream shop.

Because we all know that what this summer needs is a double-scoop of ice cream.

And a nice walk around the block.

Books I'm Hogging From The Library: The April 18, 2009 Edition

These five books, along with roughly 100 more, are currently cluttering up my house. In a good way. I guess.

13 Is the New 18: And Other Things My Children Taught Me--While I Was Having a Nervous Breakdown Being Their Mother :: This is just the kind of book *I'd* write. If I had time. Meanwhile, I'll laugh at other people's antics.

The Northwest Nature Guide: Where to Go and What to See Month by Month in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia :: I live in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, and this summer I hope to see some of it. I mean, my living room walls are nice and all, but hey. So is the outdoors.

7 Steps to Raising a Bilingual Child :: One thing I regret about my *own* life is that I'm not bilingual. Well, unless you count "snark" as a second language--one in which I'm quite fluent. But anyway. I'm turning my scars into stars and making my *kids* learn a second language. Or six.

On That Day, Everybody Ate: One Woman's Story of Hope and Possibility in Haiti :: You know how I love a heart-wrenching, yet hopeful, story. This book will enhance my already over-developed Savior Complex.

Betty Crocker Soups & Stews: 100 Recipes for the Way You Really Cook :: Just in time for summer. Snark, snark.

Reading anything good these days?

Eggs Florentine

If you look at that picture and think, "My...what a big MOUTH she has," then I'll reply, "All the better to eat cheese with, my dear."

And that's what I do.

I eat cheese, I act like cheese, and I cut the cheese.

(Oh, that was uncalled for.)

I like cheese so much I even made sure we stopped at Tillamook Cheese on our trip to the Oregon (OR-uh-gun) coast last year. The factory tour looked like school, smelled like school, but most importantly:

OFFERED FREE SAMPLES.

A mighty powerful motivator, indeed.

I later got my hands on the Tillamook Cheese Cookbook which includes over 100 recipes all containing, made up of, or drowning in cheese.

Magnificent.

I might even share one of my favorites with you. It's simple, and sneaks some greens in amongst the cheese. Mmmm.


Eggs Florentine

4 cups freshly chopped spinach, cooked, drained
4 eggs
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup bread crumbs
2 Tbsp Tillamook butter, melted
1 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup shredded Tillamook Vintage White Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese
1 Tbsp grated white onion

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread the spinach in the bottom of a shallow baking dish. With a fork, form 4 nests in the spinach, and drop an egg into each nest. Season the eggs to taste with salt and pepper. Toss the bread crumbs with the melted butter. Reserve. Meanwhile, heat the milk and cheese over a double boiler, stirring constantly, until the cheese melts. Stir in the onion. Pour the cheese sauce over the eggs and spinach. Sprinkle with the buttered breadcrumbs. Bake for 25 minutes. Serve on toasted English muffins. 4 servings.

Notes: I substituted drained, frozen spinach for the fresh, and used skim milk instead of the evaporated milk. I was able to find the extra sharp white cheddar, but any cheddar will do.

More recipes over at Ann's Food on Fridays and the Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap.

It Is Finished.

Because I like to do things that both fulfill me and drive me crazy, I agreed to head up this year's Easter egg hunt in our neighborhood.

That photo is of me after the whole thing was over. Amen and amen.

Actually, it was a lot of fun being swarmed by 300 kids bossing people around and handling pound upon pound of my favorite Easter commodity: chocolate.

In addition to the egg hunt, we had door prizes for the adults, coffee and cookies for everyone, a small paper egg for the kids to color, and an Easter Bunny parading the grounds.

We also asked each family to bring three canned goods (or more) for our local food bank as a way to give back to the community. We filled at least three barrels full with food, and that fact alone made the day feel like a big "win" to me. (*patting self on back*)

Oh! The other thing we did (*grinning smugly*) was ask the kids to keep the treats but return the plastic eggs for use in the egg hunt the next year. We've done this two years in a row and have ended up with at least two-thirds of them returned.

HELLO, SUSTAINABLE LIVING.

(*pat pat pat*)

And as for the thieves and kleptomaniacs--the Easter Bunny has GOT YER NUMBER.

As you might imagine, I personally am being sustained by the sheer power of Reese's peanut butter cups and Dove dark chocolate eggs and itty bitty Kit Kats and miniature Snicker bars alone, but I wanted to take a minute to hear from you:

What went on at the egg hunts you went to this weekend?

(In case I'm crazy enough to head up the gig again next year. And need ideas.)

Tell me whatever you want, but I'd like to hear about the kinds of things you liked and didn't like!

Meanwhile, enjoy your candy-induced coma.

Sounds A Little Fishy

I started flipping through the book Your Body's Many Cries for Water: You're Not Sick; You're Thirsty :: Don't Treat Thirst With Medication, because the title made a lot of sense to me.

Plus, I wanted to prove to my kids that my "take a drink of water" advice was spot-on in solving their every conceivable problem.

But I got to page two and read this as the rationale of why water is the wonder-drug:

When the human body developed from the species that were given life in water, the same dependence on the life-giving properties of water was inherited. The role of water in the body of living species, mankind included, has not changed since the first creation of life in salt water and its subsequent adaptation to fresh water.

Well, that settles it.

I once was a hermit crab.

Cooking Ham In The Crock Pot

Remember when I wowed y'all by explaining how to cook a turkey breast in a crock pot?

No?

Well, gear yourselves up for my latest entry into food TV:

COOKING A HAM IN THE CROCK POT

And really, you don't need to cook the ham with any other ingredients, except maybe a little bit of water.

Wouldn't that make for a captivating show?

No?

Well, in the real world, we all have better things to do on Easter than slave over a 27-course meal. This ham recipe gets you out of the kitchen and focused back on the reason for the season:

Chocolate.

(Back AWAY from the unsubscribe button. I'm warning you. Back. Away.)

(That goes for you too, Mom.)

Oh, y'all know I love me some Jesus, and I have no doubt he'd love my recipe for ham. Seeing as he was Jewish, and all.

(Back. Away.)

Now, if you've a mind to impress a big faincee crowd of people with your impressive hunk-o-meat, this isn't the route to go. But if you like making a little room in the oven and are cooking for a small crowd, throwing some ham in the crock pot will make your day.


Crock Pot Ham

Ham, sliced
Can of chunk or sliced pineapple (undrained)
Brown sugar

In a lightly greased crock pot, layer slices of ham with pineapple (juice included) and sprinkles of brown sugar. Cover and cook on HIGH for 2-4 hours or LOW for 6-8 hours.

Note: I wouldn't recommend cooking an unsliced ham in the crock. Seems I tried that once and the center remained cool. Also, thin slices of ham will dry out much faster than thicker slices, and ham that's still a little frozen will obviously take a little longer to cook than ham that's completely thawed. Use your best judgment when determining cooking time based on many of these factors.

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And I Know How You LOVE News

Many of you are blissfully unaware that I do a little freelancing on the side for our local ABC affiliate. And by "on the side" I mean "when I'm not rambling and blathering over at this here blog."

So, if you find yourself with nothing to do but taxes or taxidermy, you can head on over to KATU's website to check out even more of my well-written nonsense.

One of the perks of writing for the KATU website is that my family was offered a tour of the TV station, complete with the viewing of a live news broadcast.

Cha-ching!

Of course, I had to wait until just the right time to schedule the exclusive, behind-the-scenes tour. Mainly, I needed a 147:1 ratio of adults to kids, just to keep the noise level to something a few decibels quieter than a war zone.

So, while my folks were in town, they got to help wrestle the loose cannons and apply duct tape to small mouths as needed.

Oh, I kid.

It was packing tape.

Oh, but we loved the tour. It was exciting and educational for us all, and my kids now get a real kick out of turning on the 6:00 news to watch their "friends."

And, while watching the anchors do their shtick, I was reminded once again of this solid fact:

I've got a face made for blogging.


**Bonus points for whoever can name the movie that the title of this post is quoting.

Goodwill Does It Again!

**This is one of my favorite posts from last year. Not only am I buried in plastic Easter eggs, kept up all night with feverish, coughing kids, but also this: I hurt my back. FROM CARRYING TOO MANY LIBRARY BOOKS.

See, folks. This is why I DON'T play sports. I can't even be a geek without getting an injury.

Carry on, now. Read about plates.

Everything on my dining room table screams, "the 90s." It starts with the hunter green plates and goes downhill from there. And my plates! They are round!

Oh, how out of fashion I am, and always will be. This doesn't mean that I don't like the latest styles, au contraire. But I'm cheap, and I'm green. "Hunter" green, in fact.

We've had this set of dishes for a good ten years. Slowly but surely, they've cracked and chipped to the point we no longer have a large enough set to invite a couple of friends over for dinner.

This is all under the assumption that we "have friends" and would "invite them over."

So I sent The Mister out to buy us a new set of plates. Eighteen hours later, he came home with a truckload of pictures of plates, complete with shots of the price tags.

(You might find this mode of shopping a bit odd, but well, we are odd, and he's a shutterbug. And we have three kids who enjoy shopping for plates about as much as they enjoy eating the broccoli that sits atop them.)

Do you know it costs about 200 gazillion dollars to buy a new set of plates? Because it isn't just the plates you're replacing. It's the trendy and matching place mats, cups, saucers, bowls, and napkins. And once all that is replaced, the dining room table just plain Looks Bad too.

So I quickly grew an even closer attachment to hunter green. And when praying before lunch one day, I blasted out a request for some plates to match the ones we already had.

Because sometimes I like to give God a little "Pop Quiz."

Just to see if he's listening.

(Because sometimes I wonder.)

I headed out to Goodwill that afternoon, taking my six-year-old along with me. That move was just my way of being even more obnoxious, pointing my Mama Finger heavenward and shouting, "Prove it! Prove that you care! Prove you will provide!"

So we sauntered through the secondhand store, and wouldn't you know, in the mismatched hodge podge dishes aisle was a stack of plates. Our plates. Hunter green plates. And just to throw a cherry on top, sitting nearby were a few matching coffee cups as well.

I knelt down, looked my son in the eye and said, "See? See who God is? See what he has done for us? He is good. Good."

Then we shared a smile--and with thankful hearts--paid a pittance for our plates.

And on the ride home, instead of chanting "Goodwill does it again," we had changed our tune.

"God has done it again."

And it felt good to be green. Hunter green.


**Update: Since that day, we have yet to find another plate to match. But we always look.

Books I'm Hogging From The Library: The April 4, 2009 Edition

I'm knee-deep in planning a big neighborhood Easter egg hunt, so these books are buried under exactly 1849 plastic eggs.

I should know; I counted them.

Yes. Yes I did.

But I made my seven-year-old count right alongside me and called it "math."

So. Here's what's collecting dust on my table:


Toilets of the World :: Come on, is this not the best topic, or what?

The Rough Guide to San Francisco and Bay Area :: I'm dreaming of a trip down the coast. I've never been to Cali and San Fran is top on my list. (Look at me, talking like a West Coaster.)

Your Body's Many Cries for Water :: Is this why I'm so crotchety? I'm just thirsty?

The Great Big Book of Classroom Songs, Rhymes & Cheers (Grades PreK-1) :: I'm back in Teacher Mode, picking out resources for the 09-10 school year.

What's So Wrong with Being Absolutely Right: The Dangerous Nature of Dogmatic Belief :: 579 pages of text. But is the writing dogmatic about not being dogmatic? Oh, this read will be tough.


Anyone reading something they'd like to share with the class?