You Can No Longer Say...

...you don't know the most fickle woman in the world! I drove through the neighborhood on this BEAUTIFUL, sunny day....and changed my mind - AGAIN! I am thinking I might just be doing people a "favor" by offering to take what doesn't sell after this weekend off their hands. I also figured, since there are very few weekends in the summer, I might as well have the Fundraiser Yard Sale on a weekend when ALL my kids are not around to do SOMETHING ELSE that would be MUCH more fun than this "task."

I think a catscan would consistenly show thoughts and plans bouncing wildly off the sides of my brain! My kids have friends who come over and cannot comprehend my passion for CHANGE...I freak them out whenever I move the furniture around...which is often! The current boyfriend has just resigned himself to it...and he even helps out. (Not without at least one comment tho!! :)

So, anyway....here's my new plan:

• Neighborhood yard sale is THIS weekend - get flyers to everyone by Saturday (Hoping to paint small river rocks with HEARTS and a simple message to hold the paper down on the porch or driveway! Ah - grand plans...in such little time! Same as always...)
• Have people drop off donations from June 7-13
• My kids will be in VBS for 21/2 hours everyday the week of June 15-19...time alone to PURGE & PRICE!
• Have the yard sale on June 19 & 20!!! I will have only 3 out of 5 kids around to whine about what is out there for sale. Having the older kids around would not reduce the amount of protesting I know I will get from the little people. (My older kids will be THRILLED to not have to do all the work that goes into a regular yard sale - much less a hopefully HUGE event!)

I could use your prayers.....I HATE, HATE, HATE to do yard sales....I usually just donate it to the Goodwill or local thrift store. (Or - truth be told, throw it away! wince...) I am going to try to VISUALIZE the child I am doing this for....whether he be in a foster home somewhere here in the USA or running around in Ethiopia.....OR BOTH!?! (Oh - now there is a thought that might scare Pete....not that it would SURPRISE him at all....he knows me too well.)

Update of a Couple Previous Posts

Just to keep the facts of MY life in order. Here's an update....

We are not having the Adoption Yard Sale Fundraiser anytime soon. My big kids are flying to NH this weekend and will be gone for two full weeks. There is no way I can pull that off without them to help out....even if it is just keeping the younger ones out of my hair. Hopefully, sometime before the summer is over.

I sent half of the Ethiopian scarves to Carolyn at ProjectHOPEFUL. I sold three just the other day at work because I have a co-worker who is completely sweet and encouraging and just wanted to support us. Two others took an interest and now I have cash and checks to start the official Adoption Savings Account. If we adopt internationally, this is the first drop in the bucket. If we adopt domestically through the foster care system, it should not cost much and we will take whatever we do not need and send it to ProjectHOPEFUL and Kingdom Vision International to help facilitate the adoptions of OTHER children.

Jolica Invitations

This is what I am mailing out today (since it is after midnight already!)....I only need SIX people to commit to hosting a party for me in order to qualify to become a Gift Consultant without paying a large start up fee. This costs them NOTHING - but I am still nervous that someone might get offended and think I am trying to SELL them something. I guess I would LOVE it if they saw something they just HAD to have....but they are really just doing me a huge favor in opening their home and giving me a couple hours of their time. I actually think it might be fun and I am SO hoping to connect with some old friends.

"You can't take a stand if you're sitting on the fence." I read those words of wisdom off the cardboard 6-pack holder of Mike's Hard Lemonade. (yes...it's MINE!) Okay...it's not an actual biblical quote....but I really like it! I am not going to worry or apologize for my efforts to make a difference in the lives of my children and in the lives of OTHER children. I am just gonna hand it off to God and see what He wants to do with it.

Okay...was it just too weird that I wracked my brain for WHO to send these invites to, I addressed all the envelopes and had EXACTLY the number of stamps here in the house at this late hour for each and every envelope - not one more, not one less. If you are checking in here because you received an invitation to host a start-up Jolica party for me, I guess you can consider yourself "chosen!"

What a GREAT Day!

...came home to all 5 kids hangin' out - laughing and talking in the living room (no electronics on!), played dice games with them, went for a long walk, got a $300 annual discount on meds, picked up a very part-time sitting job for 50 bucks a week (school year only - woo hoo!)...and just found the invite on FB to VBS at our wonderful old church! AND! The only class that was already closed was not one that MY kids would be in. I was thrilled to see it is the week my older 2 will be in NH and we have NOTHING on the calendar.

I used to prep for those VBS weeks when I attended and worked at our old church. WOW - memories. Sometimes, I miss those days.....but, if I had to give up all that God has done for and in us since....I would not go back in time. Bittersweet. Maybe that is precisely WHY God does not allow us to "time travel!?"

Hope Offered!

Spoke to a Social Worker today....who is not at all shocked by anything I told her AND she is more than willing to work with us. I was honest about telling her we are interested in fostering - BUT - even more interested in adopting. AAAAANNNNNDDDD....she has experience with interstate adoptions!

Could this be an open(ing) door?!

Interstate "Options"

Okay....my mom always used to tease me for not going the easy route and just following the recipe. Here I go again....

We are considering INTERSTATE ADOPTION of a waiting child in the foster care system. Why? Well, because there are children waiting for families in the foster care system. (Kind of a no brainer)

You would think this would be pretty simple since it is all in the good ole US of A. Not the case. It is complicated. So much so that it makes me want to do two things:

1. Slap the next person who quotes me the statistics of how many kids are in the US foster care system;

2. Do something to change the fact that it is SOOOO complicated I am sure there are many people who look into it and then do not even bother.

Of course, we would be open to adopting from the lovely, communist state of IL - however - we are planning to stay in birth order and hope to adopt a child younger than our youngest who is 2 weeks shy of 5. I have been told on more than one occasion we will never find a child that young in the foster system to adopt...they are all placed with foster families and adopted by them OR they are returned to their families OR (I am guessing this is the most common) they bounce around the foster care system until they are much older than 4 or 5.

High School, Kindergarten & Preschool GRADUATIONS!

Who would plan it this way? Not me.....GOD! Made it through our first high school graduation. Ali cried a little on the way in....admitting it was just a totally weird mix of opposing emotions. The teachers/faculty kept it short and sweet. (Thankfully!) And Ali's boyfriend, Mat, added such a fun, positive tone. I am excited for her.....she has her whole life ahead of her and she seems to be thoroughly enjoying it!

We gave Ali a "purse laptop" for graduation since she has a desktop in her room. She is loving it....and says it is where all her friends "live!" I guess she does not have to lose touch with them after all....thanks to Facebook. Pete gave her a check for $100 that she is supposed to put in the bank for 40 years! WOW....check out Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University for an explanation. I told Pete this is his simple way of providing for his kids and grandkids!

I gave her a necklace from Ten Thousand Villages she has been admiring for MONTHS. We joked about having expensive taste - BUT - it went down by 50%! I think she was surprised by it and she has worn it since I gave it to her.

I will post pictures of the Kindergarten and Preschool graduates soon. Brogan told another lil kid the other day that, "Yea, I'm going to Kindergarten....but I have to do that 'graduate thing' to get outta preschool first." He is SUCH a nut.