Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Last Day of Summer Break

Tomorrow I go back to school, which means "summer break" will be over... however "family leave" begins the next day!  I have attempted to commemorate this awesome summer of 2010 with the following photo montage. 

Went back to the golf course for the first time in at least 12 years.  Thanks to Michael for inviting me to play with Twin Lakes Yacht Club's Scramble.

My caddy was pretty handy... and handsome too!

It was great having Kerbie and Mike complete our foursome.  Lots of laughter and fun, despite the rain.

I LOVED driving the golf cart.  Did you know they do go in reverse?  And you really shouldn't go in reverse when someone is teeing off.

Had a fun trip to Chicago, once again in spite of some inclement weather!

We enjoyed an indoor play about the 3 Little Pigs.  Then really got to town making hats, masks, puppets and block cities.
Mehandis and his Grandma keep up with one another :)


Saw elephants, dinosaurs, animal poop and many buttons to push at the Field Museum.

Had to find some money to pay for all of these events... thank goodness for Craig's List ;)  Finally got our 40 pound second microwave out of the house and off the porch.  Lots of other odds and ends made there way out to make room for our newest family member!

Although Michael and Mehandis did not get to travel with me to meet Abera last month, they are still key members of the team... as the bumpers proudly state.

Loved the get togethers that we had with Tizita and her family too!  This summer we enjoyed kayaking, swimming, hiking, zoo time, train riding, and dancing together.

Who is this character covered cutie-pie cartoon loving child?  Mehandis is such a proud and confident 3 year old.  He absolutely adores anything for "Cars" and "Thomas".  He has the accessories to prove it!
We have had quite a few fun celebrations with friends.  Below Mehandis is cleaning his picnic table for the 4th of July party at the lake.  This job kept him busy for about 45 minutes by the way.
 

We were enthusiastic guests at other friends' lake houses too.  Here is Mehandis helping his friend Ella celebrate her 3rd birthday.

Some of the friends who joined Mehandis in "re-organizing" the basement toys on the 4th.


Onto some more of the adult fun...
My long-time friends, Maira and Sarah, and I had a ladies night out in Chicago.  First with appetizers and conversation at a Mexican restaurant.   

Then on to see Jon... Bon Jovi!!!  What a fun and perfect night.


Below is the more typical events of my summer days...
Watching great friends and neighbors play together.  Lots of train talk, car swapping, bike racing and crab walking!  Love it.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Packing!

We are going back to Ethiopia in 3 days!!!  Michael is joining me for this trip... and Abera will be joining us on return flights home.  Hooray!

I have been quite busy the past month between the first trip, prepping for the second and figuring out coverage for the time I am away at work.  Oh, and a bit of baby proofing, reorganizing and room readying for our newest family member!  Will have to post pics of Abera's room too.

So far I have my/Michael's/Abera's clothes packed (should point out that Michael did pack his own), all meds stocked and available, diapers/wipes/ointments organized and baby sling re-slung to fit a tinier body (Abera's that is... not sure if mine is tinier from 2 years ago or not!).  Doctor's appointment is made for Abera's return home, credit card company notified about upcoming unusual charges and all papers notarized and filed.

Now just have to organize my class list, school schedule, IEP goals, and so on.  But that can wait until Thursday, right?

Monday, August 16, 2010

Thoughts on Recent Readings

I know... it has been TOO long since my last update.   But I promise to share more when we actually get confirmation of our upcoming homecoming date!  For now I will share "my" response to recent postings I have read on the ethics of international adoption.  It is a hard subject... but I very much believe in the perspective that Elizabeth Barholet writes from in the following article:
Focus on the Child’s Human Rights

Elizabeth Bartholet, a professor of law and the faculty director of the Child Advocacy Program at Harvard Law School, is the author of “Family Bonds” and “Nobody’s Children.”

The news media often distorts some aspects of international adoption, but can at the same time bring needed attention to important realities.

International Adoption: Thoughts on the Human Rights Issues

"The biggest problem in international adoption is that many who call themselves advocates for children’s human rights press for legal restrictions that limit the ability to provide homes to children in need. Thus Save the Children calls for denying Madonna’s second adoption based on interpreting a residence requirement so as to prevent virtually all international adoption. Some 67 children’s rights organizations went into court to oppose her first adoption. Unicef calls regularly for restrictions limiting international adoption to at best last-resort status. Romania was forced by similar pressures to outlaw such adoption as a condition of joining the European Union.

To fix this problem we need to focus policymakers on the real human rights issues for children. The judge who granted Madonna’s first adoption got it right in ruling that Malawi’s residence requirement must be read in light of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and that required allowing the child David to grow up in the nurturing home that only international adoption would provide.


Angelina Jolie and her adopted son Maddox.Many millions of children worldwide are living and dying in orphanages or on the streets, with no possibility of finding homes in their own country. Unicef argues for the creation of foster care and social welfare programs, but these things will not happen overnight, and foster care generally doesn’t work nearly as well for children as adoption.

International adoption provides good homes for the children lucky enough to be placed, and brings significant new resources into countries to improve orphanage conditions and help build welfare programs for the future. Celebrities like Madonna and Angelina Jolie have provided many millions of dollars for such efforts. While few individual adopters have their resources, many develop comparable interest as a result of their own adoptions in contributing what they can to help those children left behind.