Pack Rat

Last week I did the seasonal cull of Isa's clothes. Now I have yet another large plastic storage box full of outgrown clothes to put in the basement. There is very little space in the basement, yet virtually every item got packed up rather than bagged to be given away. As I packed it up, I remembered when she wore all the various items and it made me a little sad.

You see, I'm keeping all these clothes because deep in my heart I'm hoping that Isa won't be my one and only. I want another little girl to wear those dresses someday. I want to get to do this wonderful Mommy-thing again and I want Isa to experience the joy of sisterhood.

But the reality is that I'm single and not in a career that pays a lot. I live in Seattle, which has a high cost of living and my mortgage payment eats away at least half of the income I bring in each month. Add in all the other bills and I'm lucky if I have anything left over. I am actually pretty far in the hole after being down one contract for several months last fall. I certainly can't work 70 hour weeks the way I did pre-Isa in order to speed up the debt repayment and grow my savings.

We also don't have the space for another family member. We live in a teeny 1000 sq ft house with 2 small bedrooms. Sometimes I feel we are literally busting at the seams in here. There's no way that two children could share the room Isa is currently in. And having the money to either buy another house or- ideally, since I LOVE my neighborhood- add onto this house may never happen (see the previous paragraph).

Honestly, another adoption is not something that I plan to pursue in next several years, even if there were no material obstacles in my way. And life could take a million different turns in the coming years opening up all sorts of new doors. I guess I'm just a little sad when I think that everytime Isa does something for the first time, it may the only one of those "firsts" that I get to experience.

In the meantime, I'm going to continue my pack rat ways because you just never know. Those dresses may come in handy some day.......

Ahhhhhh..... sleep.....

I love it. I miss it. I am jealous of my old self who occasionally took a 4 hour nap on the weekend to recharge. But I must admit that lately things on the sleep front have been decidedly good.

Ever since the Daylight Savings time change, Isa has been sleeping from 7-6:30 (or sometimes even 7!!!). Rarely a peep during the night and if she does wake up, all I have to do is re-tuck her in, whisper "Night-night" and head out. I've found that not closing the door entirely at that point works wonders.

Daytimes are also peachy-keen at the moment. Naps are rarely less than 2 hours and this week, they've been 2 1/2-3 hours. As I type this, she's 5 minutes away from 3 hours. The house is mostly clean, I've paid bills, read a magazine, and now I'm blogging. How wonderful is that? Yesterday I got a 2 hour nap in which might account for at least part of my extra-good mood today.

Oh, and I do realize that I am likely jinxing myself by writing all of this. Should I come back next week lamenting the loss of all sleep decorum, you can all tell me "I told you so."

And here's a bit of Isa B-liciousness. A few pics from last month, since I didn't get many up:

You can never have too many books (nor apparently too much hair)

Say "Cheese!"

The "Look" (aka, What You Talkin' 'Bout Mama?)

Visit recap

So, we're back and settled from our lovely, lovely weekend away. *sigh* Back to work.....

Isa actually slept for much of the flight home, which was a welcome relief. She did okay on the flight down, but it was so much more relaxing to not have to keep her entertained for the entire time.

We had amazing weather our entire time down in CA- sunny, high 60s or low 70s. Not so up here in Seattle. About 3 minutes before landing- BAM!- all the rooftops are covered in snow and it's swirling everywhere. Blech. Luckily, it was very localized and we didn't have any in our actual neighborhood.

Isa had her (late) 18 month appointment yesterday. Our MD forgot to give me the sheet with her actual measurements, so I'll give you those once the paper arrives, but she did jump up over the 25th percentile for height for the first time and remained steady around the 50th percentile for weight. Perfectly on track for all her developmental milestones and, as usual, she charmed the pants off everyone in the office! And, as usual, the trauma of the visit meant she took a 3 hour nap, which I appreciated.

Here are some more photos from our time in CA. I can't even express how much we love Porter and Elsa. It's so wonderful to find a kindred soul during the crazy adoption process and to then get the opportunity to visit them post-adoption, keeping the girls in touch, is priceless. I just wish we weren't a 2 hour plane ride away!

As promised....

....well, sort of. I'm being incredibly lazy and making you go to Porter's blog to see the hysterical video of our little darlings. They were the exact videos I was going to post anyhow. Seems silly to do the work twice!

Enjoy. :)

Visit to Elsa and Porter

This weekend we braved the folly known as airplane travel with a toddler to see two of our favorite people- Elsa and Porter. Mommy needed a little vacation, we (of course) were desperate to see them since it had been about 6 months since the last visit, and it was a good trial run for the much longer flight we'll taken in April to Kansas City. (Note to self: Isa no longer zonks out for the entire flight. Bummer.)

To recap for those of you who don't know, Elsa and Isa are just about a week apart in age and were roommates at Toukoul. So (as Porter told me just now) the girls have had a relationship for longer than we Mamas have. Elsa came home a month or so after Isa and we got the great pleasure of seeing her at Toukoul to take some additional photos and video for Porter.

We saw them twice last summer and the girls got along fine, although at that point in time they didn't really interact. Now they're both 18 months and very, very, very chatty as well as mobile. Suffice to say, this visit has been MUCH more interactive. The girls are a total riot together. Porter has a large metal umbrella stand that makes quite a bit of noise when rocked back and forth. Apparently, this is the height of comedy in the toddler set because both girls practically fall over with laughter when doing this.

Today I got to watch the girls while Porter rowed in the wee hours. Excellent pajama time. After Porter got home, we all played at the park for a bit. Much fun was had although Isa experienced her first cut lip injury and Elsa managed to face plant directly onto a step, resulting in some immediate swelling. After the park and lunch, it was off to a birthday party for an Ethiopian friend. Amazing homemade Ethiopian food and lots of other habesha kiddos to play with. Elsa and Isa had a great time (as did the Mamas).

Tonight's bath was hysterical. Last night, not so much, as Elsa decided she wanted nothing to do with having her hair combed out. Tonight, however, it was all fun and games- and LOTS of splashing. Isa seems to think that most anything Elsa does is cause for laughter and Elsa enjoys the receptive audience.

Honestly, they get along better than I had hoped for. I thought they would enjoy each other's company but still do a lot of parallel playing. Instead, they are constantly laughing at each other and really acting like buddies. It is such a thrill to see them together and to know that we can keep their special bond going strong.

There will be plenty of videos and photos tomorrow. I forgot to bring my camera-to-computer cord and Porter's is in the room where Isa is now asleep. So, no downloading from the camera tonight! Prepare yourself now for the extreme cuteness........