One thing I really like about this town we live in is that it can afford to have an ice cream truck that is actually in tune. Listening to Pop Goes the Weasel all day is bad, but listening to Pop Goes the Weasel 20 cents flat, like in our old neighborhood, is akin to torture.
Not only that, but the Brookline ice cream truck splurged and went ahead and bought the extra octave for its organ. So now, when it plays Turkey in the Straw, when it gets to the "on down the road" part, it plays the low notes instead of faking it with the same notes an octave up.
When you're working at home with the windows down all day, this can make a real difference in your quality of life.
O'Donnell Olio
olio
\ˈō-lē-ˌō\
- Olla Podrida
- a miscellaneous mixture : hodgepodge
- a miscellaneous collection (as of literary or musical selections)
Friday, July 14, 2006
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Second Interviews
Yesterday morning we had our individual interviews with Pam. They were about an hour and a half each. Basically we talked about things we had discussed in our autobiographies. Pam was particularly impressed with the quality of Jim's autobiography: apparently husbands don't generally measure up to his standards, but we always knew he was exceptional.
We're still finishing up our reading and some small bits of homework, but soon we'll be scheduling another meeting with Pam, this one an educational meeting, and then she'll come to our apartment for the final meeting of the homestudy. Then we'll be busy for a while gathering documents for our dossier.
Before our niece was born, my sister and her husband struck upon the great idea of coming up with a placeholder name for her to use instead of the baby. The placeholder name was obnoxious enough that they would never be tempted to use it for real, and it had the added benefit of putting strange looks on the faces of nosy strangers. We thought this was a great idea. Therefore, we will be referring to our kid as Ronald, because Ronald O'Donnell is just terrible. Not to worry, friends and family, it won't stick.
We're still finishing up our reading and some small bits of homework, but soon we'll be scheduling another meeting with Pam, this one an educational meeting, and then she'll come to our apartment for the final meeting of the homestudy. Then we'll be busy for a while gathering documents for our dossier.
Before our niece was born, my sister and her husband struck upon the great idea of coming up with a placeholder name for her to use instead of the baby. The placeholder name was obnoxious enough that they would never be tempted to use it for real, and it had the added benefit of putting strange looks on the faces of nosy strangers. We thought this was a great idea. Therefore, we will be referring to our kid as Ronald, because Ronald O'Donnell is just terrible. Not to worry, friends and family, it won't stick.
Sunday, July 2, 2006
Reading List
By this point my husband has observed that I was born to be an adoptive mom. I love the background reading, the time scheduling, and the lists (yay, lists!). So Pam gave us a recommended reading list, which I have now finished and have whittled down for anyone else who is interested (although if you live in Boston, you may need to wait until Jim returns them to the library).
A primary theme running through these books is that although birth and adopted children are loved the same, they are not the same. The joy of an adoptive family is by necessity preceded by great loss for the adopted child, and acceptance of the child's grief about that loss by the family is very important.
So here's Reb's list of recommended reading:
"Twenty things adopted kids wish their adoptive parents knew" by Sherrie Eldridge;
"Communicating with the adopted child" by Miriam Komar;
and the classic in the field,
"Toddler adoption: the weaver's craft" by Mary Hopkins-Best
If you're interested in a bit more depth, "Talking with young children about adoption" by Mary Watkins and Susan Fisher also has a review of the historical research about adoptive families and some great discussions about how adoptive parents can handle difficult questions or situations with their kids.
Our next meeting with Pam is Thursday, July 6. In anticipation of that meeting we have now finished our Bethany-requested autobiographies (10 pages each). I'll check them off the list!
A primary theme running through these books is that although birth and adopted children are loved the same, they are not the same. The joy of an adoptive family is by necessity preceded by great loss for the adopted child, and acceptance of the child's grief about that loss by the family is very important.
So here's Reb's list of recommended reading:
"Twenty things adopted kids wish their adoptive parents knew" by Sherrie Eldridge;
"Communicating with the adopted child" by Miriam Komar;
and the classic in the field,
"Toddler adoption: the weaver's craft" by Mary Hopkins-Best
If you're interested in a bit more depth, "Talking with young children about adoption" by Mary Watkins and Susan Fisher also has a review of the historical research about adoptive families and some great discussions about how adoptive parents can handle difficult questions or situations with their kids.
Our next meeting with Pam is Thursday, July 6. In anticipation of that meeting we have now finished our Bethany-requested autobiographies (10 pages each). I'll check them off the list!
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