BABY

This week Jon and I got a couple phone calls from people checking in to see how we're doing. I think it was something to do with the last post.

I have three things to say. 1. Exaggeration of the truth is one of the keys to comedy. 2. Exaggeration doesn't always come across well in writing 3. Maybe pending parenthood is nothing to joke about.

My sudden realization of panic was along the lines of we're going to China to adopt a BABY. Up until now we've been so focused on we're going to CHINA to adopt a baby and we're going to China to ADOPT a baby. I just finally got around to being nervous about the BABY part of the whole thing. Much of our reading and education up to this point has been about the traveling and the special issues related to parenting adopted children - bonding, discipline, explaining our situation without harming our child's ego etc.

I also continued checking things off the packing list: thermometer, nasal syringe (eew), sippy cups, onesies, socks, hooded bath towels, binkies, small board books, a sweater, footed pjs, Baby wash, shampoo, Desatin, Orajel, etc etc.

To any department store suppliers who might stumble into this page of random spewings, I would like to say that there are FAR TOO MANY pink and purple things for baby girls in this world, and I think I speak for my generation saying that boldly colored stripes and polka dots are much cuter than little-lamby-Princess-ballet-foo-foo-Barbie-shortcake. I find it unlikely a 9 mo. old really understands the concept of ballet, and I don't particularly want any little girl to believe she is a princess simply because the clothes she wears on a daily basis say so. We can have a talk about Barbie some other time.

It's not that I'm against play pretending about princesses or ballerinas, imaginitive play is good for children, especially creative ones. And it's not that I'm against pink and purple, I've certainly been wearing quite a bit of those tints myself lately. My point is more that it would be entirely possible to have a closet and dresser filled with nothing but pink items that say Princess on them by the time spring rolls around, judging from what I've found available. I'm all about the orange Addidas track suits and bold stripey leggings, personally.

Where was I? Oh, also this week, I read through the first year in Dr. Spock (no it's not the same old stuff, ML, it's been updated by a perfectly reasonable and calm sounding doctor and now includes info about baby monitors, car seats, and things into the modern era, but it still tells you how not to raise whining spoiled children and what to do about colic and when to call a doctor.)

Also, the house is making progress. The drywall guys are done and the spackling guy is almost done - says he'll be out by the end of the day tomorrow most likely. Then it's on to the texturing of the walls and ceiling. We're within a few weeks of cabinets and counter arriving. An optimistic person might think things would be livable by the end of December.

We sowed a covercrop of annual rye grass in the slopey side yard yesterday to prevent erosion this winter in the place the machinery dug up. Good idea? It's nitrogen fixing so at least when we plant the lawn-type grass and the garden in the spring the soil will be improved. The other cool things - the birds don't like to eat the seed and it grows really quickly. We'll see.

Jon thinks it's unlikely we're actually on deck for getting a referral - since we've heard nothing from Monique at GOL and it's now October 2.

In other big news, Jon's boss quit - the second one to do that in the not-quite-two-years he's been with Nationwide - and they've promoted Jon into the position. If nothing else, the new position has an office with walls so he can hang up his diplomas. Say goodbye to the doublewide cubicle, say hello to a door that shuts.

C