A Mother's Day Weekend Get-a-Way

A couple of months ago I signed up for a yoga retreat without realizing that it was Mother's Day weekend.  But what a wonderful treat for Mother's Day especially since I went with my Mother.  The retreat was in Honeymoon Bay which was only 40 minutes from my Mother's but seemed like it was a world away.  The room was lovey and the beds had huge big cosy quilts.  The food was fantastic and all vegetarian.

We started with a Yoga class at four on Friday followed by a great dinner and then Relaxation Yoga (my favourite on a Friday Night).  There were two more classes on Saturday with free time in the afternoon which my Mother and I spent in the hot tub and sleeping.  I never get to sleep in the middle of the day so this was a real treat.  Sunday we had walking mediation to the lake and more yoga.  I got home in time to spend the afternoon with Ali. Ali brought me this statue which was very appriopriate.

Surprisingly, I was not that stiff after spending 10 hours doing in Yoga in one weekend.  I am lucky if I get to do 10 hours of yoga in one month.  The classes were well paced and still provided fun and challenging poses.  And we went to bed so early that I was well rested.  It was a wonderful weekend. 

What to do when you need money

Sometimes a girl just needs some cash.  Especially when you have your heart set on purchasing an ip*d and you only have 2 dollars.  So, my suggestion was simple.  Save your allowance and earn some extra money by doing some jobs around the house.  I was not about to spend over $200 on an item for a seven year old that would probably be lost in the first week. 

Yesterday, Ali came home and decided that she was going to start a business picking up dog dirt from other people's yards.  I think she got this idea from my parents who pay someone to do this dirty deed.  The problem with this plan, besides the fact that I didn't want her hands near any dog dirt, was that I would have to go with her from house to house and I would be the one who ended up doing the work.  And since I don't like picking up in my own yard, I wasn't about to do it in someone else's.

Today, Ali decided we needed to have a garage sale.  I explained that Saturday would be a good day and that we could advertise and gather together some items to sell.  Ali did not want to wait until Saturday and half hour after our conversation, I looked out of the window to see this.....

Ali's garage sale.  Just after six on Wednesday evening.  She is holding a sign that says "Garage Sale.  All items $5.99 each".  Unfortunately, she didn't have any sales.  Maybe she will go back to saving her allowance instead.

Taking care of the Dog

Ali has been really helpful lately taking care of our dog Daisy.  He has been bathing the dog with the hose and combing her out everyday even though the dog is perfectly clean. 

And she has been walking the dog up and down the street.  Today she took her for a bike ride which was a bit difficult because Daisy wants to run faster then the bike.  It was a good effort though but Ali decided that walking is easier. 

Happy Easter

I love Easter.  First there is the fun for the kids with Easter Egg hunts.  And second, I get a four day weekend.:)

Ali and I had a good Easter Weekend.  Friday we spent around the house enjoying the garden and getting the vegetable patch ready.  Saturday was spent enjoying Easter events.  We started at Milner Gardens for the Bunny Hunt.  At the entrance kids get a map and they have to find 10 or so ceramic rabbits hidden in the gardens.  The gardens were in flower with spring bulbs and rhododendrons so it is enjoyable for both adults and kids.  Ali found the rabbits easily.  What we didn't find was one of five hand blowen glass eggs.  Those who found them got to keep them.  We can always try again next year. 

After the hunt in the gardens, we headed to a local park for a community egg hunt.  We enjoyed a bit of sun before Ali lined up at the front of the rope to get her eggs.  It was fun watching the kids scrambling to get the most eggs they could.  Ali got quite a few so she was happy plus she got a free hula hoop. 

Lining up for the Hunt



Searching for Eggs



Found One

Sunday night we spent at my parents and Ali got up bright and early to see what the Easter Bunny had brought.  She was not disappointed.  The afternoon we went to the show with friends to see the an Easter movie which the kids enjoyed. All in all it was a good weekend. 

Adoption Trees

I have been running under these trees on my lunch for the last few years and everytime I am running under them I am thinking of one thing: adoption.  And whenever they have been in flower they have brought some relief to me and help me feel hope when sometimes there has been none.  Each year I think to myself, "When these trees flower next year I will be home with my son."

The first time I ran under these trees in flower I was in total frustration because my agency was taking so long to get my dossier to Nepal.  I would come home for lunch, check the computer for an email from my agency and head out the door frustrated over a lack of email or continued stalling.  Still I had hope that the next time these trees flowered I would be home with my son.

The second time these trees were in flower I was fighting with the government to allow the 2009 families to complete their adoptions from Nepal.  I hoped that we could move forward and by the time the trees flowered in 2011 I hoped that I would have my son.

This year, the trees have flowered again but I still don't have my son.  Each time during the last few weeks that I have run under the trees I have prayed that by next year my son will be home and this adoption journey completed.  I also picked one blossom each time to bring me luck. 

I pray that by this time next year I am home with my son.

Happy Nepali New Year 2068

Happy New Year! 

Ali and I attended the Nepali New Years celebration in Victoria last weekend and we had a good time.  Ali really enjoyed it because of the other Nepali kids.  There was dancing and music and food, Nepali of course.  I got to catch up with friends and met some new ones.  I really miss living close to the group of other adoptive parents and I feel that Ali is missing out since the other families do alot together.  To compensate, I am going to attend more weekend events this year even if I have to travel a few hours to do it.  We have already planned an event in June and there is also the annual camp out in August.  Some of the kids< including Maya, are learning Punjabi dance (there are no Nepali dance lessons so this is the next best thing).  They performed some of their dances and did an excellent job!

Maya, Linda and Ali

We stayed the night at a friend's, MaryEllen and Maya, and Ali did not get much sleep.  The girls went to bed late and were up early.  The morning was spent playing and singing.

Free morning concert!

A highlight for Ali was going to the pool.  We have been to the pool before but this time Ali and Maya got to go in ALL BY THEMSELVES.  MaryEllen and I sat at the side of the pool.  Both girls are very good swimmers so there was no problem letting them swim on their own.  The part they need to work on is getting themselves showered and dressed after the swim. It took them over half an hour in the change room and the only reason they weren't longer is that we kept going in to move them along. 

So, after only five hours sleep and over two hours of swimming, Ali was a sleep within five minutes on the drive home. 

Waiting....waiting.....waiting.....

And more waiting.  I was thinking about waiting all day yesterday and was feeling a bit (a lot) tired of waiting.  Really, the adoption journey is mostly just sitting and waiting.  You always seem to be waiting for something that never seems to happen.  When I started out on this journey Nepal closed just as I was starting my homestudy.  So I waited.  Month by month.  For a new law.  New election.  Some other thing.  Until it finally opened.  Then I was sure I would have a referral by the end of 2009.  I even told my boss that I would be off at the end of 2009.  Never happened.  But I thought for sure that it would happen in 2010 especially after the rumors said that all files would be matched by April.  Ya Right.  Now I seem to be in the same situation.  I am waiting for something that is going to happen at the next meeting.  The problem is that the next meeting keeps getting cancelled.  So I wait. 

What is difficult about waiting, especially for something that is supposed to happen in the next few months, is that you put your life on hold.  You don't take holidays.  You don't take new jobs.  You don't sign up for something.  You don't do these things because you think you will get a referral and you will have to rush off to bring your child home. 

I decided when I started this new adoption that I wasn't going to do that any more.  Life was passing me by as I waited.  So I went on the big holiday to Nepal.  I have signed up for Yoga retreats months in advance.  And I am considering other things as well (which I will post about later).  And after getting the news on Monday that the meeting was cancelled again, I am glad that I am taking this approach.  I am tried of passing up on life experience, like trips to India (missed because I thought I would be in Nepal completing my adoption) for something that never happens.  Now I am just moving forward.  And if the news finally comes and I have something else planned, well then I will work around it.  I am no longer just going to sit and wait.  I have done that long enough.