whew.

Tonight is going to be a really good night.  In about an hour I'm going with my kiddos to Chuck E. Cheese for a birthday party.  This inaugural trip to the big Cheese will be memorable for sure.  I've heard the stories on some of your blogs about the infamous pizza-hawking rat.  Good times are ahead, my friends.  


But actually, that is not why tonight will be so great.  Tonight my man K gets back from two weeks away on a work trip.  Aah.  Mom will get a well-deserved break.  ...and I should have the perfect opportunity thanks to this long weekend.  We've had a really blessed two weeks and the Lord has sweetly taken care of us, but it's always tough to have Daddy gone for that long.  I am always renewed in my appreciation for all K does for us!


No real news on the adoption front, but I thought I would take a minute to explain what we are waiting on currently in the timeline:

• Sweet P's file and our dossier is presented to the Adoption Board for approval (this may have already happened!)
• Her medical history and birth certificate are sent to our adoption agency
• The I-800 form is filed with INS to approve her for us to adopt
• Once approved from both fronts, we will get an appointment to meet with the Adoption Board in her country
• About a month later we will fly over to finalize paperwork and be interviewed by the Adoption Board and then bring her home -- this trip is usually 14 days since there is much to complete in country 

While K has been away I've been occupying myself with projects.  I have searched the web to find things I could make with supplies I already have on hand, and here's what I came up with:


Not worth the mess it makes in your muffin pan, but the kids had fun watching them melt...

new crayons from old pieces

a cute pin cushion 

(are you happy, mom?  I've graduated to using one instead of having a zillion pins in a tiny case!)

LOVE this one:  an I Spy game!  

My kiddos love I Spy books, so I knew they'd love this one.  Collect a bunch of tiny objects from around the house and in the toybox...

... mix up some rice (I only have brown in my pantry, but white rice would probably look best) and beads for a little more color...

...then add the objects and pour into a clear jar.  I have yet to print up and laminate a list of items to search for, but that will go on a rubber band around the jar cap.  

Confession:  this is a huge plastic parsley jar from Costco but I ran it through the dishwasher to clean it out first.  Not the smartest thing I've ever done.  It warped up from the heat, as a smart person might likely imagine before pushing start on the dishwasher.  Anyhow, I like to think it makes the game more challenging.  :) 

I'm also 75% done with a little dress for Peanut and may or may not post a picture when I'm done.  We'll see after she tries on the final product.  Blessings, angela