Baby: Round 2

It's official!  The Thompson clan is growing!  Belle is going to be a big sister!  The big due date is November 9, and we couldn't be more excited!

With the excitement comes some fear too!  How in the world am I going to go grocery shopping with two little munchkins?  Will I ever see sleep in the first couple of months of this peanut's life?  When Paul is at work, how do I take care of 2 children all by myself?  Will I be capable??  All in all, I know things will be fine and it will be another life adjustment.   I will be okay and I will figure it out...right?

The pregnancy is still early, so prayers for everything to progress healthy and safe is much appreciated.  We definitely don't take this little blessing for granted and we hope to hear a strong heartbeat in a few weeks. :-)

Looks like I have another little head to crochet some goodies for!  It is always so much fun when it is for one of my own munchkins!

Home Stretch!

I am in the home stretch!  Finally!  I have 8 more days of my internship left!  This means that I have four days next week, Spring break, and then four more days and I will officially have completed 700 hours of internship experience!

I honestly feel like this has been the longest haul!  I chose to go to grad school now, even though I don't plan on going back to work until I finish having babies, because I want to be able to go back to work (not school) when I get back into the work world. 

Many things have suffered or have had to make changes due to my decision to get my masters degree.

1. My Tuesday nights.  Since August of 2008 I have devoted almost EVERY Tuesday night to class (6-10pm) and a few of my weekends.  I think that Tuesdays will be my new favorite day after I complete my classes.
2. 3-4 of my weekdays.  My internship has taken up 25-30 hours of my life during the week since August 2010.
3. My loving mother, sisters, and sister-in-law have graciously babysat Belle during the week, so I can go to my internship. Nothing beats free childcare by family.  NOTHING.
4. My stress level has sky rocketed. I hate deadlines, busy-ness, and staying organized.  I am not the poster child for having everything in my life together.  I am easily overwhelmed and I have definitely suffered from anxiety.  The thought of never having to write another paper, take another test, or head off to my internship while trying to make sure Belle has dipes, wipes, clothes, a sippy, a paci, her blankey (blah, blah, blah) is so refreshing!
5. My poor husband.  He has been a saint through all of this.  He has dealt with my anxiety attacks over piled up laundry, my exhaustion from running around like a crazy person, and supporting me through the past  3 years (most days :-)  I think he secretly CANNOT wait for this all to be over).
6. My crochet time!  I have had a hard time completing orders in a timely manner and trying some new patterns.  I have had papers to write and books to read, so the crochet hooks have taken a bit of a backseat.  I have kept up as best a can, but my patient customers have been SO fabulous and understanding.

So, by April 14 I will be done with my internship hours, April 26 is my last day of class (ever!), and May 14 is the official graduation date.  Doesn't this look pretty (although, I have no where to write this)?

Success!

I wanted to post to thank everyone for the success of the blog auction for my sister and her husband's adoption of a little boy in Ethiopia. This is a late thank-you, but I figured late was better than never!

By the end of everything we ended up at $2173! Such a HUGE success and a great addition to their other donations. They are getting closer to bringing this guy home!

Please keep praying for them as they wait for their referral. Ethiopia is changing their adoption process and makes things a bit scary. We are hoping that by this time next year they will have their little guy home!

LAST DAY!

I know that I have been a bit overkill on promoting the auction through this blog and Facebook, but I am really praying that we can reach our goal of $2000 by midnight tonight.  We are just $150 short of this goal and I know we can get there!  If any of you are thinking about bidding make sure you do it today before midnight, or if you would rather donate than bid, click on the "donate" button on the side of the blog and you can make a donation.

$2000 would allow Jill and Jason to buy one plane ticket (they need to buy 4 overall because they have to fly to Ethiopia twice).  We are so appreciative of all of the donations and the bids we already have!  I am so blessed by the outpouring of generosity we have seen from people we don't even know!

I spoke to Jill yesterday and was laughing about how my original goal was $500 and we have far exceeded that.  Jill said "that is what happens when we put God in a box."  So true!  He has completely taken this auction and exceeded our goals and expectations!  He sure is good!

Shell Stitch Beanie Help

I have had more than a few emails and comments regarding my free Shell Stitch Beanie pattern. People tend to struggle with the same row, therefore I assume that I wrote it confusing and it needs a bit of clarification, so this post is dedicated to answering the question about the pattern row on this hat.

Sometimes I feel I should have named this hat the Double V-Stitch Beanie.  The pattern itself looks like a V with each side doubled.  So, once you end the rounds of single crochets you begin the row of the pattern stitch.  This means chaining 3 (this is the first dc) and then making a dc into the same stitch.  This forms the first side of your "V."  You then ch1.  This is the space between the sides of the V.  Then to make the other side you make two more dcs.  You will then skip the designated spaces and then make another double V. (2dc, ch1, 2dc).

Okay, once done with the first pattern row you will slip stitch into the top of the first dc made.  You will then slip stitch into the ch1-space.  This will mean you begin to make your next V into the middle of the V of the previous row.  You will then chain 3 (this is the first dc) and then make a dc into the same stitch. This forms the first side of your "V." You then ch1. This is the space between the sides of the V. Then to make the other side you make two more dcs. You will then skip to the middle of the next V and (2dc, ch1, 2dc).

In the end the pattern looks like this:

\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//

\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//\\//



Each line represents one dc.  Each double crochet is made into the space of the previous V.  Hopefully this helps with some of the confusion!

Please Help and Take Action!!

Currently I am raising money for my sister and her husband to adopt from Ethiopia through a blog auction.  My sister texted me today to sign this petition due to the changes Ethiopia is talking about for adoption.  Please take the time to sign this petition with me and pass it along for others to sign.

Statement on the Pending Reduction of Intercountry Adoption in Ethiopia

Last week the Ethiopian Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs announced their intention to reduce intercountry adoptions by 90% beginning March 10, 2011. The Ministry’s plan for a dramatic reduction is apparently based on two primary issues; 1) the assumption that corruption in intercountry adoption is systemic and rampant and 2) the Ministry’s resources should be focused on the children for whom intercountry adoption is not an option. Without further announcements by the Government of Ethiopia, it is our understanding that the Ministry’s plan will be initiated this week.

The Ministry’s plan is a tragic, unnecessary and disproportionate reaction to concerns of isolated abuses in the adoption process and fails to reflect the overwhelmingly positive, ethical and legal services provided to children and families through intercountry adoption. Rather than eliminate the right of Ethiopian children to a permanent family, we encourage the Ministry to accept the partnerships offered by governments, NGOs, and foundations. Such partnerships could increase the Ministry’s capacity to regulate service providers and further ensure ethical adoptions.

The Ministry’s plan, which calls for the processing of only five adoption cases per work day, will result not only in systemic and lasting damage to a large sector of social services, but will have an immediate impact on the lives and futures of children. Moving from over 4,000 adoptions per year to less than 500 will result in thousands of children languishing in under-regulated and poorly resourced institutions for years. For those children who are currently institutionalized and legally available for adoption, the Ministry’s plan will increase their time languishing in institutions for up to 7-years.
Joint Council respectfully urges the Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs to reconsider their plan and to partner with governments, NGOs and foundations to achieve their goals and avoid the coming tragedy for children and families.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

Go to this website http://www.gopetition.com/petition/43714.html and encourage anyone you know to sign this petition.

GET BIDDING!

The auction to raise money for my nephew's adoption is up and running! Bidding has begun and I am so excited about the bids already out there!  Come check it out.  Maybe you want to bid on this:

or how about these adorable handmade notecards?

I can't decide if I want the baby more or the hat?

Or, maybe you want a photography package from these amazing photographers?

There is also concert tickets, Red Wings tickets, gift baskets and SO much more.  What are you waiting for?  GET BIDDING!