It's Been a While

Wow - well, it's been a while... No, we didn't drop off the face of the earth. It's been more like running around crazy all the time I feel like. Let's see if I can fill in some of what's happened since my last post. There are many posts that I started and just never got finished, and in 6+ months they can really pile up. So, maybe someday I'll get some of that stuff posted but for now I'll do what I can.

The Adoption: Still a no go. And we're at peace with that - the issue of starting again hasn't really come up. It is certainly not that we don't want a child - we still do very much. Just with everything that happened when it finally became clear that it wasn't going to work - last time we talked about it we wanted to let it go for now, and maybe forever. Someday maybe I'll post what I started writing back in Feb to post on here as to why it didn't work. But maybe not - I'm not sure that it matters. One thing is certain: following our experiences I have strongly considered becoming an adoption activist on some sort of political level. Don't know where that's going either for right now...

At the end of February we celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary.

In March we went to Florida with my family, which was fun. While there we rented a Harley for a day and drove a couple hundred miles on the open road.

April was quiet - a sort of calm before the storm that has described our summer...

In May we went to Fiji for a week. We had a blast - it is beautiful there! We did it sort-of as a celebration of our 5th anniversary, and sort-of as something to take our mind off the failed adoption. Narasimha had saved up most of his vacation in the case we could go to India to pick up our child early in the summer, and when that fell through we decided to use it to kick up our heels. It was fantastic to get away and reconnect. I couldn't have asked for a better relaxing vacation. I really would like to post something about the trip sometime - timeline and pics and stuff. We'll have to see. But I can say now that it's been like 5 months since we've been there I can still remember like every small detail - it truly was the trip of a lifetime.

In June we took a trip to the Creation Museum and to Mammoth Caves in Kentucky with our Youth Group (which we co-lead with another couple from our church). We were gone for 4 days and had a really good (but exhausting) time. I would like to also have a post dedicated to that trip at some point. That trip used up the rest of Narasimha's saved adoption vacation days.

In June and July we got new appliances for our kitchen, which we have loved, but took up a lot of my time since the fridge didn't fit exactly in the space for it, so we had to do some modifications to our cabinets. Dust got EVERYWHERE and I am still (literally) cleaning up from that.

In July I spent 1 week as a junior high camp counselor at our Regular Baptist Camp here in Iowa, with my friend Kris as a co-counselor and 4 girls from our youth group. We also had 4 girls from other churches. That is the same camp I went to several times as a kid. It was an experience. I came home exhausted but changed and more aware of my responsibility to the kids I interact with in my position as a youth leader.

I also got a random call for a volleyball coaching job I had applied for months before and never heard anything about. In the course of just a few days I had landed myself a freshman volleyball coaching job at the public school here in town. I then had to rush through getting certified by the state and through all the other little requirements.

We also went with my family to Colorado for a few days for the wedding of a family friend. We got to do some hiking in the Rockies while there which was a blast.

In August I started my coaching job. Starting the season is a pretty intense time commitment. The first week is camp - so 10 or so hours a day for a week. Then for the next week and a half there are 2-a-day practices until school starts. Since the first day of school in August we have either had practice after school or a game all but maybe 2 days. And a few all-day Saturday tournaments.

I also started the second class working toward my Masters' in Nouthetic (Christian) Counseling, and now I am trying to get the homework for that class done. Homework and all the reading is due in just a few weeks. (YIKES!)

Also in August Narasimha acted on a dream he's had for a while now and became the proud owner of a brand new Harley Davidson. Someday maybe I'll post pics - it's a nice bike and we've had some fun riding around. We haven't gone on any super long trips yet because we haven't had the time, but we're looking forward to logging some miles in the warm weather months of years to come.

At the beginning of the month we also went on a family camping trip to Lanesboro, MN, and floated down the river on intertubes for several hours. The whole family went, including both Kyndra and Kyra's boyfriends. It was fun and relaxing, and something we're considering making into some sort of annual thing.

We also started taking apart our deck so we can build a new one. We want a new one partially to upgrade and make it a little nicer than the one that was there. But the real reason for doing the remake is because the deck we had wasn't built correctly and it would constantly cause our breezeway to flood anytime it rained hard - which is just getting old. The deck is now totally down and we have plans for the new deck - now we just have to build it.

September came and went and I don't know how it all happened so fast. I of course kept coaching. Narasimha took Step II of his Psychiatry boards. Nothing too special happened but time flew by.

Now we're into October: looking forward to a busy month ahead. Narasimha's brother and sis-in-law will be visiting for a long weekend from the East Coast. The regular season of volleyball will end close to the end of the month. We have a few youth group activities planned at church. There are a few other obligations we have at church and with family.

Time flies - I don't think it matters if you're having fun or not (which we are - I'm just sayin'...). Busy 3 months left of 2009 and already have quite a bit on the calendar for the 1st half of 2010. Hope this finds all of you well - somehow even after not posting forever my traffic counter down in the corner says I have the occasional visitor. So thanks for stopping by! Leave a note, and I'll try to be a little more regular with my posts. Happy Monday :)

27 Things About Me In No Particular Order

Note: This idea was stolen from the blog of a friend. Betsy did this first and I'm copying it now - hope that's ok Betsy! :)

1. I play the trumpet, and I started in the 5th grade.
2. I have been to India 3 times and Mexico once.
3. I love to paint my nails but have never had a professional mani/pedi. And I don't want one - I'd rather do it myself.
4. I cried the day the last original Friends was aired. And I'll probably cry during the last ER.
5. I love my family more than I can articulate, though I don't tell them nearly enough.
6. Though sometimes we want to beat each other over the head, I love my husband more than I ever could have hoped for and I can't imagine navigating life with any other person. I am so blessed to be married to my best friend.
7. I love volleyball. I would play it all the time if I could. But I'm truly not that good at it. I am a better coach than I am a player.
8. I don't pray nearly enough.
9. I would rather have a few close friends than a million blah acquaintances. I am so thankful for the people I can truly call friends (you know who you are).
10. I like to scrapbook but am waaaaay behind.
11. I am a perfectionist - 100%. Sometimes it's annoying.
12. I have a hard time admitting fault, and an even harder time apologizing.
13. I have somewhat of a weakness for designer handbags.
14. I am a Christian. Every thing I learn about Jesus makes me realize how little I actually know.
15. I did not grow up with inside pets, but now have 3 inside doggies, and can't imagine my life without them.
16. I cannot have a baby. I have known this for over 2 years now and sometimes it still devastates me more than I can describe.
17. I love children. No matter to age, gender, personality - every single child is a special little person in their own way. They make me smile.
18. It is my plan to get a Master's in Nouthetic (Christian) Counseling someday. I have only taken one class, but truly feel it's my calling in life.
19. I enjoy formulating intelligent answers and arguments.
20. I like the taste of nearly every food on the planet except sauerkraut. If I don't like a food, it's generally because I don't like its texture. And I might even like sauerkraut - I haven't had it since I was like 6.
21. I like to read just about anything, and I'm a fairly fast reader.
22. I have names for my future children picked out. And I have bought a ton of baby/toddler clothes.
23. I wish I had a clean house. I could organize anything (including a pile of garbage), but if you saw my house, you'd never know it.
24. I like to write. And I like to blog. Maybe I'll write a book someday.
25. I believe God has the adoption of children in our family plan. We hope to adopt a child from an orphanage in India sometime next year.
26. I've always had a tough persona, and I think it surprises people who have known me for a long time to find out how sensitive and spiritual I really am. I could cry at the drop of a hat these days, but still have a hard time letting myself cry in front of others (even my husband).
27. Today is my birthday :)

Note #2: This is my 100th blog post :)

I'm Back :)

Hello, nice to talk to you all again :) It's been a while... I'm still here, and still kickin'. We had a fairly busy November, and December doesn't seem to be coming at us any slower (yikes!). But I have had a few things I have been meaning to post about for what seems like FOREVER! So I am going to see if I can make some progress in the next few weeks here.

A bit of an update, for those who are interested, on the last 2 posts I wrote (in November): I posted them on another site as well, and received quite a bit of feedback on that site. Especially on the second one I wrote (posted here on Nov 5). Quite a bit of feedback from people who aren't Christians, and who strongly disagreed with me and were even offended by what I said. So, I took the opportunity to respond to their responses to my original note(s). I wrote a VERY LONG response, addressing a few of them individually. I didn't post that response on here - partially because you who read on here would not be able to read what I was responding to, so it might not make a whole lot of sense. Also, it was very long - very, very long. So - if any of you did not have a chance to read what I wrote, and would like to, let me know. I'd be more than happy to send you my response (or tell you how to access it yourself). I also got quite a bit of feedback on this final response. Some people even deleted what they said - as some of my "commenters" were commenting on what others had commented (sounds confusing doesn't it). Anyways, all this writing any commenting kinda burned me out for a bit - which is why I haven't written in a while.

Also, Narasimha and I went to New Jersey last week, so I will plan to post trip highlights in the next few days.

And, I am excited: There have been a few answers to prayer regarding some friends - see sidebar on right.

I Failed :(

Well, I did not reach my goal to get 100 posts in the 1st year of my blog :( But, happy birthday to my blog :) It's today. And I think this is something like my 94th post. So close... I'm really not that broken up about it - just kidding ;)

Hope everyone has a good weekend - I'm planning on posting about how our marathon went early next week - it's on Sunday :)

My Goal

Ok, I have been seriously slacking on tending to this site lately. I've been crazy busy. I just noticed, however, that the one year birthday of this blog is approaching in about another month here, and I am also getting close to my 100th post. So that will be my goal. 100 posts in a year. I have wanted to post about many different things over the last few months, and have been procrastinating. So I won't really have to think about things to talk about - I'll just have to find the time to put my thoughts into words (which I tend to be very slow at). So stay tuned - maybe there will actually be new stuff up here in the next few weeks (although I can't offer any promises) :) And, surprise-wrecker here, there might actually be an update about the adoption one of these days. Thanks to you who visit my site - I don't know who all of you are, but I know you're stopping by cuz my little counter down in the corner tells me there's traffic :)