not really an update

I know, bad blogger.  It took me visiting some blogs to realize that I have been really bad about keeping up with my own.  So much for tracking the progress of this next adoption.

Short version, my country is good with me adopting again, has offered an option, but it's getting the ministry to sign off on it that is slowing me down.  Hitting that roadblock while I was knee deep in papers and finals made me throw in the towel, temporarily. 

Besides, we had some fun things to keep us occupied.  E turned 9.  We threw a magic birthday party, replete with our homespun performance.  It was such a good time; magic is a new hobby in this house.  E has a knack for it.  So much so, I have her signed up for a week of magic camp so she can really harness her skills.

Speaking of camps, they are all set! 

E did her first ever sleepaway camp a month ago with her brownie unit.  It was only 2 days.  She loved it.  To give my girl the best summer ever, knowing full well that I will miss her something awful, I have signed her up for not one, not two, but 3 weeks of sleepaway camp! One week at the local pioneer village and two weeks at a bilingual girls camp up north.

Here's the summer schedule:
week 1: E and me doing our thing
week 2: Spanish day camp
week 3: Time Traveler camp
week 4: magic day camp
week 5 & 6: sleepaway camp in the Laurentians
week 7: city farm day camp
week 8 & 9: E and me doing our thing

I have been lucky at my job.  My boss is the best boss ever and not just because she lets me work whatever I want.  I mostly work 3-5 hours a day leaving me plenty of time for school and E.  It's a cut in pay, but worth more than anything money can buy. 

E is at an age that I really like.  She is so smart and interesting.  She does a whole lot of regular 9 year old things like reaching through stuff to pull out what she wants, knocking everything else over.  Like getting toothpaste on the bathroom light switch.  But those are things that remind me she is 9.  Discussing what she thinks about her life and the world she lives in give me insight into her state of mind that just wasn't possible a year ago.  She expresses herself better now.  It's not really a vocabulary thing.  It comes down to being able to grasp what her affect is on her world.  She helps without being asked.  She anticipates which blows me away, maybe not about things like toothpaste on the loose, but concepts like how to keep her 8 month old primo safe when he pulls himself up and reaches for a toy.  She is so tender and loving with him.  I am so lucky to have such a caring soul.

Now, this doesn't mean we haven't been without the usual gowing pains.  Because we have.  We weathered some lying, overly assertive behaviour, etc.  All par for the course.  Children are the biggest social experiment.  Mine is no different.  I am also lucky she can learn.

All in all, we are gearing up to restart this adoption process.  E is heading in to summer in less than 2 weeks.  While she is away, I will renew the paperchase...