Walk to Cure Diabetes

In a few weeks there will be a walk to raise funds for a Cure for Diabetes. My daughter Tasha asked me to post about a friend of hers who will be walking for her daughter. Her daughter Alissa is 9 years old. She is trying to find sponsors for her walk. If you are interested in finding a cure for diabetes and supporting her please visit her donation site.

http://www2.jdrf.org/site/TR/Walk/Chapter-CentralFlorida4134?px=1221035&pg=personal&fr_id=1256

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Childhood diabetes has not been an issue I have personally had to deal with. Anyone coming here have any experiences to share?

2 Hours

Two hours a month....that is how much visitation my foster babies get. I know that I complain about the disruption that visitation can have for the kids, but really visitation is important. It is important for the kids to form an attachment with their parents. For the parents to attach with their children.
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But, seriously, how much of that is going on in a small crowded room in 2 hours a month? How would you feel seeing your baby for only 2 hours a month? How much do you miss?
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I know that the kids are in care for a reason. I know that they need protected. I know that the parents have things they need to work through.
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However, the ones hurt by the months of little contact time are the kids. How well does my 12 month old know her parents? Surely not very well.
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In our state the kids go home the same day the courts determine they can go. There is no period of transition. We find out at court that they are going home and then we go home and pack them up and take them to DSS that same day.
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So, a baby who has seen their parents for two hours a month for almost a year is suddenly taken from the home they know and placed with their parents who they don't know.
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This concerns me. I have two little ones who do not understand what is going on. Two little ones who are used to our routine, our home and are attached to us.
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I am pretty confident that these kids will go home. I am pretty sure that at some point these kids will go back home and they will not understand. I am concerned about their attachment to us. They do have an attachment to us. We have an attachment to them. However, we understand what is happening. We know that they will be leaving. The biggest pain for me is knowing that they do not understand. Will they think we have abandoned them?
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So, what can be done about it?
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We have asked for and received permission to meet with the parents of our foster kids. We can do extra visitations on our time. We have done this before when we knew kids were going home.
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Today we spent two hours at McDonald's. A local McDonald's with a play space. They got to hold their babies, feed them, play with them for two hours. It isn't much in the big picture but it is something. It is more time for the babies to attach with their parents. We will not meet next weekend because I have drill. However, we will meet again the next weekend.
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Ultimately, it feels like the right thing to do for my babies.

Making a Terrarium

Long ago, in my youth, I was into cool things like macrame and making terrariums. I actually learned how to do macrame in the public schools in California. Fifth grade to be exact, hmmm, so we lived in Walnut Creek that year. We lived in several different cities while in California: Moss Beach, Union City, Visalia and Walnut Creek.
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So, when I saw this huge glass thingy at Hobby Lobby for 80% off my mind instantly thought of a terrarium.

Since I did buy the glass thingy, I bought the rest of the necessary items today. Pebbles, charcoal, moss, dirt and plants. Finding small plants was a challenge. I found some at Lowe's that I thought would work if I separated them. (Larissa is hiding in this picture because she didn't want to be in it and no, I never let her sit on the table.)

I learned long ago to not fill the terrarium with plants...they will grow. If I had more glass jars I could have made more.

I put the spare plants in other pots that I had. I normally don't have extra pots sitting around. However, I have been rooting some ivy so I bought them a few weeks ago.

I wonder if I could still do macrame.

I while ago I was awarded The Versatile Blogger and I procrastinated on replying. Yea, I am good at doing that!


I received this from http://myendometriosisandinfertilityjourney.blogspot.com/

I am supposed to award it to blogs that I read. However, I am just going to list some of my favorite blogs. These are not in any specific order and it is not a complete list. I had a hard drive crash and am still trying to find all my favorite spots.

http://casselcrew.blogspot.com/ - A woman I really relate to. Previous military family, adoptive and previous foster family. I wish she lived closer! I do think I will pop into FL one day to meet her and her family.

http://www.nogreaterjoymom.com/ - I love watching her children grow. She writes such beautiful posts with so much faith that I wish I had.

http://khadijateri.blogspot.com/ - An American married to a man from Libya, currently living in Libya. They have 6 children. Reading this blog has made me realize that momma's everywhere share a lot of the same struggles. She is currently in Libya so pop over and offer her some encouragement.

http://mom2countrykids.blogspot.com/ - A Texas family who is living beyond the boonies. I love watching their lifestyle while knowing that it is not for me. I am so spoiled! We actually got to meet while we were living in Texas.

http://foster2forever.com/ - A foster mom. I enjoy reading her challenges and can relate to so much.

http://iammommahearmeroar.blogspot.com/ - A craft site a really enjoy.

http://happyhappyhousewife.blogspot.com/ - Another craft type of site I check out frequently.

http://ourplacecalledhome.blogspot.com/ - I have followed them since they went and pick up their daughter Teresa. Visit and pray for her, the doctors have told them that they can't correct her heart defect.

http://16blessingsmom.blogspot.com/ - Ha, a mom to many kids who struggles like I do to keep up with the clutter. Love her realness.

http://ourchinastarfish.blogspot.com/ - An adoptive family site I enjoy.

http://beadsbraidsbeyond.blogspot.com/ - A great site for hairstyles for Larissa.

Bad Momma Moments

Ever forget your kid?
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Tonight I dropped Larissa off at dance class and decided to run to Walmart to get a few items.
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Totally doable in our tiny town.
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I shopped quickly and left Walmart with plenty of time to get to the dance studio before class finished.
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I promptly drove home.....and realized as I was driving up the driveway that I forgot Larissa at dance.
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I got to turn around and head to dance.
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Thankfully it is a very small town and I got there just as class let out.
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Note to self......don't do a Walmart run when you are very tired.

Signs of Spring

We have had several days of beautiful weather so I got my new camera out and played with it. I also tried out some photo software.

We planted some new trees last year and they survived their first winter. I thought for sure that at least one of them had perished in the snow.
First flower in my yard of the year.

Ugh, a sign of a yard begging for a gardener. I have a lot of work to do in the yard but I am planning on taking summer classes so I am not sure when it will get done.

So, how are things looking in your neck of the woods?

I was Crazy

I was crazy when I decided to sign up for four classes this semester. I have a test tomorrow and a paper due. I am supposed to be well in to a project in that class and haven't even found a child to do it on yet. Finding kids for projects is the hardest thing.
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Next week I have a major test and then volunteered to give my analysis of a paper with a research design. The more I look at the paper I chose the more messed up it looks. Well, it should be interesting to say the least.
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In yet another class I was supposed to start visiting classes last week yet I only received the contact information today. That puts me behind in getting in the required 25 hours in 4 weeks. I am enjoying this class since it gets me into the schools in different settings. My last 4 weeks were spent in the middle school. I really enjoyed those kids. Actually, it made me wonder if I am in the right specialty.
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Sometimes I think I may not end up teaching. There seem to be more possibilities then I realized when I started down this road. Ugh, growing up is so hard. How am I supposed to decide what I want to be when I grow up?
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Thankfully the week after next is spring break for my school and I plan on using that time to catch up on my reading. I am so far behind.
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So, I am off to either read or fall asleep reading. Have a great night.