Thanksgiving Early

Instead of complaining about the interminable adoption wait anymore, I have decided to concentrate on being thankful for a few things.

1) I am thankful that we were not traveling during the first weeks of Kindergarten and Preschool. Between adjusting to the earlier to bed and earlier to rise routine, new schools, separation anxieties, car pool, etc., I am so very, very glad that I was around to do this instead of leaving such an overwhelming task to Grandma (although I am sure she could have handled it).

2) I am thankful that Natalie is maturing so much, and she is starting to be helpful and fun. I can actually picture her as a wonderful big sister now, whereas a year or so ago I could only picture her being a very cranky sibling.

3) I am thankful that we are more settled in our new home and neighborhood, and have as good a support system here as we had in Ohio. I think this is due in large part to me staying home with the kids, and this neighborhood having so many moms at home, with very organized playgroups, etc. For about 6 months after we moved, it would have been a very unstable time for a new baby.

4) I am thankful that I've had a year now to adjust to staying at home. It was a HUGE adjustment. At 6 months I was still in shock. At 9 months I was getting the hang of it. At 12 months, I was able to fully enjoy a summer at home with both kids. I am so glad we had that before adding on.

I could go on, but the point is that I am glad we've had some time for us all to mature and grow a bit (at least the kids :-) ). So I am going to try not to complain about wait times. Meanwhile, I have started up my Russian lessons CD again (car pool lane waits are perfect for this), have started scrapbooking Natalie's pictures (shame, shame, shame it has taken this long). And look what I found at the library on sale for ten cents!! It caught my eye as I walked by the other day. Ten cents!! It is a March 1990 issue of National Geographic that is all about Siberia & the Soviet Union! Very interesting. It even has a huge pull-out map of Russia/Soviet Union from 1990. Yes, I know things have changed. Still, how great to have this little snapshot in time to provide some history. It does not necessarily make me want to visit in the middle of winter...but I will put that thought out of my head as I concentrate on the positive. I love National Geographic photographs, too.