One year ago

It was one year ago that I started this blog and man what a year it has been! Highs, lows and waiting have peppered the last 365 days, but that waiting time is dwindling at a rapid pace and there is so much to be done. This would explain why my posts have been few and far between!

But I can't miss the opportunity to look back and see how far this process has brought me and what this journey has given me.

Here are just a few of the most precious:

• A Daughter - need I say more?
• A Renewed Appreciation for My Family - they have been so loving and supportive through it all and I count myself incredibly blessed to have them.
• A Deeper Bond with My BFF- I honestly wasn't sure it was possible, but I know now that Aimee and I are more than friends, we're family.
• Patience - all that waiting, not-knowing and the unknown brought me to my breaking point a few times, but I persevered with God's help.
• New friends - Renee, Celeste and Kathleen...need I say more? You all are awesome!
• Increased Empathy for Others - in my darkest hours I learned that even the kindest words sometimes sound hollow to a hurting person. This is a lesson I don't ever want to forget and I hope that it will make me a better friend, listener and someone who doesn't always have to talk to give comfort!
• A New Less is More Mentality - as I have cleaned out Jaci's room and freecycled so much stuff, I have realized that too much stuff doesn't do anything but take up space, it feels good to de-clutter.
• A Burning Desire to Do More - Sorry for this one, you will have to wait on the explanation!

Ugh!

If I could get my hands on the person in charge of packaging for children's toys, I would have a thing or two to say to her or him.
I mean come on, do dolls really need to be cable tied into packages, taped, secured with plastic disks that require a butter knife, flat-head screw driver and/or quarter to unlock, have their hair sewn into transparent strips that take a professional hairstylist to figure out how to maneuver without giving Nikki a bob????
I think not! And my mom wanted to know why I was opening Jaci's toys before she gets home. Call me crazy, but I am pretty sure she will enjoy checking them out more than she would seeing her new momma red-faced and holding her tongue wrestlying with her new Cabbage Patch Doll.
With that said, I am off to soak my red, aching fingertips in some cool water.

One month from today!

I will be leaving for Ethiopia one month from today!!!

In honor of that I packed Miss Jaci B's wardrobe ensemble last night. Check it out...and to think all of this fits nicely in a compact little space bag, so there is still plenty of room for donations and care packages from other adoptive parents for their kiddos!

Warp Speed!

I have been feeling incredible for the past week! At times I have to pinch myself to make sure that it is all real and then I realize I don't have time for silly things like pinching myself...there's too much to do!!!!

I am a planner, so feeling like a procrastinator is not a comfortable feeling for me. I am slowly realizing that my self-imposed ban on creating a room for Jaci B may have set me behind since there were about a gazillion things that couldn't be done until we passed court. But there is no time for regrets, I've decided just to move myself into warp speed mode.

I have lists upon lists, and just when I started to feel like I had a handle on that...everything else in my life has started picking up. My non-traveling job suddenly is requiring me to travel. The premier event for the Autism board I serve on is just around the corner and requires tons of PR work. But in spite of all the chaos and many, many things to do...I am filled with joy and peace. Things will get done. Plans will get made. I will get on the plane. And best of all my daughter will come home.

So now I am off to change the cat litter, finish folding clothes and then I am hitting the road...again!

WE PASSED!!!

"I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him"
I Samuel 1:27

INTRODUCING...

Miss Jacinda Hope Bizunesh

Killing Time (Part 1)

Bold the ones you have done.
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii (packed and started for the plane, but never made it.)
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disney
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped (This will be unbolded FOREVER)
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child (Dear Lord, please let me be able to BOLD this one tomorrow)
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Sold something door-to-door
27. Run a Marathon
28. Swam in the ocean
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Been a witness to an accident
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa (See #15 - although this one would be in about six weeks)
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted (Does the art by the people at Storybook Forrest count?)
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Driven through a covered bridge
50. Walked through a cemetery at night
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Been published
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone's life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

Just figured out...

It's already tomorrow in Ethiopia!!!!

Please excuse me, I am suffering from ICD Syndrome

For the past two days I have felt awful, just awful. I have been ready to cry at the drop of a hat. Everyday annoyances and people's quirks have me moments from rage eruption that takes everything I have to control. Then there are the sleepless nights and the urge to jump out of my skin.
Tonight while I was pondering what the heck was wrong with me the diagnosis became very clear. I have ICD Syndrome. Have you ever heard of it...it's "commonly" known as Irritable Court Date Syndrome.
So to all of my friends, family and co-workers who think I am a little "off" this week. Please cut me some slack. My emotions are a little on edge, even if it is on the subconscious level. Hopefully a cure will come in the form of a successful court date on April 7th.
Until then, I am trying to treat my ICD Syndrome with prayer, busyness and some retail therapy. It's OK if you don't completely understand, you don't have to. But you can help in my recovery by being sympathetic and forgiving.
I am confident that I will make a full recovery soon.