Saturday, April 9, 2011

Plans are in the Works

Now that our adoption is finalized, I can finally mobilize all of the plans (large and small) that I have noted on my lists of for the longest time.  Other than purchasing a very few pieces of clothing, and indulging in a girly Pottery Barn duvet cover when we were in San Diego over Christmas, I refused to do let myself get ready for additional children until we made it through court.

I'm finding it such a joy to finally be able to dig in and get things going.  For example:
  • I am now officially on the hunt for beds for the boys' room...in fact, I plan to order two twin beds on Monday.  Matthew is dying to share his room with his brother, and I think the plan for their room is coming together.  We'll also need to buy mattresses, duvets, duvet covers (my mom has volunteered to make these), sheets, etc etc. 
  • I've begun to clean and clear out the guest-room-soon-to-be-daughter's-room, so that we're ready for a painter to come in just over a week from now.  Yay.  Her new duvet cover is in a tiny pink and white check gingham pattern (and I have little throw pillows in pinks, greens and yellows).  I'm going to order a bright green area rug, and plan to have the walls painted in a very soft pink colour.  I'm not very good at this decorating stuff, so when you see the results in a few weeks, be gentle with me!!
  • Geoff and my Dad just tonight measured both kids' closets, with the goal of fitting them with shelving that will be more useful than the current configuration.  Hopefully the shelves are installed in the next seven days, before the painter arrives. (Dad, Geoff, are you reading this??!!!
  • I'm also, with fear and trepidation, beginning to look into what I'll need for hair care...as you may recall from previous posts, hair is my single biggest fear in all of this.  I know, I know, it should be attachment or developmental stuff that I spend my time worrying about...but it's hair that I wake up about in the middle of the night.  I told my seven-year-old niece just a few days ago, when I was making a sad attempt to 'do' her hair, that I'm way out of my league just putting in one little pony tail on top of her head...she giggled (as she always does on this topic) and said she'd try to help me.  Seriously, I felt like a fish out of water just doing her straight, fine, hair; how on earth am I going to manage Lizzie Senait's hair??!!  Anyway, I'm trying to figure out which basic products I'll need to comb and care for their hair and am happy to hear from any BTDT parents.  I don't think the kids have the tightest kinds of coiled hair (though I could be wrong)...to me it looks just slightly looser than the super tight and kinky curls that kids sometimes sport.  But if this is true, I don't know if this actually makes their hair easier or harder to care for and style.
  • We're going to need one more car seat.  Lizzie Senait will use Matthew's outgrown one, which is still in great condition, but we'll buy another booster seat for Seth Asrat which is exactly the same style that Matthew currently uses...the Britax Frontier.
  • I need to organize a whole whack of stuff in the basement storage area, the office, and the dressers and closets in the kids' rooms (and heck, maybe Geoff's and my walk-in, too, while I'm at it!).
  • I want to try my hand (for the first time) at some Ethiopian cooking...perhaps a little late in the game to be starting, but hopefully better late then never.  I've collected a few recipes over the past year, and I'd love to try!  If it's edible, I'd like to get some into my freezer before we travel, just to have something available for the kids when we get home.  Can one freeze injera (that I'd buy at a restaurant, whose owner offered to sell me her injera in small quantities)?
There is a lot to get done around here, but I'm so excited to be moving ahead with our plans.  This is  awesome!

11 comments:

  1. WOWA-that's a list Ruth! I hope you have fun, and enjoy the process of getting ready!
    I must admit, I'm not worried about hair-though I have a baby boy, and I'm hoping that I'll be able to ease into that-buzz till I'm ready-hahaha! I am freaked out about the plane ride--I have a strong dislike for planes in that I find them extremely uncomfortable-This causes me panic for sure!--I wake up stressing more about flights than becoming a first time Mom-HAHAHA!!--oh dear!

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  2. I like your list! It sounds like fun, all that planning. I want to be planning!!!!!!!

    I am trying to get a Vancouver cooking school to do an Ethiopian class. I went to a lesson last weekend and found out that the chef had spent time in Ethiopia, traveling with a photographer to create a book about tribal cooking. I am trying to set something up for a large group lesson. I'll send you the info if I hear anything...maybe you could come down for a weekend??

    Also, you know I love the pink and green theme! Can't wait to see your room photos! I just picked up a super cute doll house at Winners that's all light pinks/light greens/lavender. It matches beautifully! Your kids are going to love their new spaces, I am sure!

    Gotta run! Happy planning, Ruth!!!!

    Claire

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  3. You can freeze injera, but it tends to dry out and the texture changes. If you are going to freeze it, the best way is to roll each piece up, cut it in 3 or 4 pieces (the way it is served in restaurants) and wrap each roll tightly before freezing. Keep it covered when you are thawing or warming it up or it will dry out too much.

    Another suggestion is to give a friend or relative the specific job of buying injera for you the day you come home - tell them where to get it, and have them drop it off at your house or hand it over at the airport if you are having people meet you.

    The easiest dish to make, hands down, is mesir wat - red lentil stew. And if you're worried about your cooking you could always buy a few dishes to go at one of the restaurants and package those up for the freezer. Any of the meat or legume dishes freeze well - vegetable ones, not so much.

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  4. Hi Ruth!

    So great that you get to start preparing for your children! I think pink, white and green wil look great in Lizzie Senait`s room! Enjoy every minute! Oh, I have frozen restaurant made injera. It holds up really well!
    Take Care!
    Tracey
    (yep, still waiting for a court date!)

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  5. Hi Ruth! You can freeze injera. Just let it thaw at room temp. I made the mistake of "warming" them in the oven and they came out toasty and hard. It's pretty fun to start all this decorating and planning. I hope you enjoy every minute of it!
    ~Liesl

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  6. We have a wonderful stylist for D. She's from Cameroon and does a GREAT job with his hair. Let me know if you want the info.

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  7. Hey Ruth,

    I am just going to touch on this subject here - it may be something you want to bring up on the group - as it may be something you haven't considered.
    My daughter waited years for her siblings. She couldn't wait ot get to Ethiopia and meet them, she spent many hours helping me set up their bedroom, buy clothes and toys. The day we met them, she was so excited and couldn't wait for them to come back to the Weygoss with us. When they did, it ending up being quite a disappointment to her, as the boys were very tightly bonded and although they quickly accepted my husband and me, they weren't sure they wanted another sibling. I think they saw her as a threat to their relationship. They were not all interested in Molly. They did play and interact with her, when she initiated it, but they certainly didn't want the intense connection she was seeking. They didn't want to sit by her on the plane or in the restaurants. And, on the night we arrrived home and Molly crawled into the top bunk, above her new brother, he made it very clear he didn't want her in his room, but wanted his brother there. Molly found this pretty upsetting, and I had failed to prepare her for this possibility. When I read how you are planning a boys room, I thought I should mention to you that Lizzie Senait and Seth Asrat may actually want to be sharing a room for the first while. It has taken a long time for the boys to fully accept Molly - I just wanted to mention this so you can prepare Matthew for this possibility, as I wish I had better prepared Molly.

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  8. Hi all -
    Thanks so much for your comments - about food, hair, decorating and sibling issues.

    My mouth is watering at this very moment and I have such a serious craving for ET food - I need to start learning to cook it this week.

    Re: decorating, I THINK I'm going to go with a pale pink, though I'm picking up a few samples tomorrow. AAHH!!

    Colleen, yes, I'd like the hair stylist info - thanks, what a relief. Maybe they can train me a little, too.

    June, such helpful advice, as always (and thanks for the email, too). And I LOVE the idea of some family/friend picking up fresh ET food the day we come home - that might be a real comfort for the kids in such a strange environment.

    And Shauna, wow - you've given me a lot to think about re: sibling issues. I'd not really given that much thought, and clearly need to prepare Matthew for this possibility. I may have more questions for you about this. THank you.

    OK, best go. Thanks so much for the comments everyone!

    BLessings,

    Ruth

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  9. Hint: go to Salem for injera- that's our fav. and where where stop on our city trips. And do get someone to bring you fresh injera when you get home! We had fresh injera and 2 different wats from friends when we got to the airport.
    And don't free too much about the hair. I worried too much and then we had have both kids shaved while in Ethiopia and got to have their hair grow in while we learned. I wish we lived closer to give you a hand at easy styles. You will catch on! And practicing on straight hair is no real practice becasue it just slips out whereas I can let go of M's braid and it stays! You'll have tome to practice.
    I'm hoping to blog a bit of what it was like when we came home in the next week or so including the perspective from our other 2 kids.
    I'm so happy you are in this stress of the wait- common visas!!

    Ramona

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  10. I love that you have the delightful problem of having to figure out Lizzie Senait's hair. Have a blast working through all the issues!

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  11. That is a fabulous and exciting list, Ruth... enjoy the honeymoon. A

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