Training for Tomorrow

When I returned from Ethiopia, I wrote a post, Fridays in Ethiopia, about our experience visiting three orphanages. It was an incredibly difficult day but it's been memories of that day and the faces of the children we met that have partly been the impetus and inspiration for the volunteer work I am doing for Studio Samuel, a non-profit started by my friend and fellow adoptive mom Tamara Horton. There are nights when I am in bed and I can't fall asleep and my mind wanders to Ethiopia. I think of the kids we met and their living conditions. I think of the older girls getting ready to age out of the orphanage with no support system or skills and that sadly many of them will end up as prostitutes. I tear up as I think of them and the heart ache can be unbearable. But that heart ache is not enough. My tears are not sufficient. 

Of course, my mind also wanders to LB's family. What are they doing? Do they have enough food? The loss that they sustained is enough to bring you to your knees. My love for LB and his Ethiopian family is the other big piece driving me to work past my tears. There have been countless times when I have gone over the details of his story and what led to his arrival at an orphanage in Southern Ethiopia. I know his story is not unique in Ethiopia. So what could have been done to prevent it? Was there a way to keep more children with their families? I couldn't shake these thoughts. The underlying answer always went back to women and mothers. Better education for women. Less child brides. Access to pre-natal care and birth control. I read statistics and quotes like:

The number one cause of death for girls 15-19 is childbirth. - World Health Organization

Educated mothers are more than twice as likely to send their children to school. - UNICEF

and

"When you educate a girl you educate a nation." - UNICEF

"If we are going to see real development in the world, then our best investment is women." - Desmond Tutu

I also felt strongly that I didn't want to be part of something that felt like a handout. The Ethiopian people are smart, capable and proud and I think all of us who have been there see that they are on the rise. It's amazing what one can do with education, resources and opportunity. In 2012, Tamara launched Studio Samuel with the mission of providing life skills to vulnerable young women with the mantra Empowerment Without Pity. I knew I had found my place. I was so excited when Tamara asked me to join the board. Studio Samuel has accomplished a lot but we have more we want to do.

Our newest program, Training for Tomorrow, is quite the endeavor but we are committed and believe it will make a huge difference. 

Training for Tomorrow is a  two year sponsorship program that will provide 40 young girls with:

Occupational Training

Life Skills Training

Healthcare Courses

Counseling & Mentoring

Karate Classes

We have partnered with Children's Heaven, an organization on the ground in Addis Ababa that provides programs for vulnerable young girls. Most of them have lost one or both of parents to AIDS. 

The sponsorship fee is $30/month. That is less than $10/week and about a $1/day. 

You will receive a photo of the girl you are sponsoring along with her name, age and her goals. You will continue to receive updates on her progress and will have the opportunity to exchange letters. You will be making a difference in the life of a girl. And if all the data and research is true then you are impacting a family and a community as well. This project is so important!

Will you join me?

You can sign up now to sponsor one of these precious girls. Thank you so much, friends!

Christmas 2013

Let's see if I can wrap up 2013 before it's February 2014!

Tulsa and Kansas Christmas:

Christmas this year was so much fun! Since driving went fairly well last year we decided that was the way to go again this year. Unfortunately, we were faced with a bit of crummy weather in the form of sleet and freezing rain but thankfully it didn't slow us down too much and the road conditions were fairly good. LB did amazing on the drive thanks to one of my best parenting decisions yet. Drumroll please. I put an end to the Ipad right after Halloween. I felt like it was getting out of control and was more of a pain than a help. Every time I told LB it was time to turn it off he would try and negotiate "five more minutes" or would just plain throw a fit. I love some of the educational games and puzzles we had for him on the Ipad but the netflix and movies would just suck him away from actual play. So I told him the Ipad was going bye bye until our drive to Tulsa. He shockingly handled it pretty well and didn't really bring it up that much. However, we hadn't even pulled out of the driveway and he asked for it. HA! But I didn't even care because it kept him so entertained. He did play with some of the other stuff we brought for the drive and did a little sleeping and snacking but mostly he was content to play with the Ipad and that was fine with us!

He was asleep when we pulled into the garage at my parents' house and I wish I could have captured his face when he woke up and saw my mom standing next to him! My parents and my sister doted on him the whole time we were there and LB was just as happy as can be.

The morning of Christmas Eve, my dad and LB were playing a fun game of hide and seek. My dad decided to hide in the closet where LB's gifts from Santa were hidden. (In my dad's defense, he was not aware that was the designated hiding place and was just being a good grandpa indulging LB in one of his fave games.) Well, LB found my dad and since he has excellent plane radar he spotted the planes right away! My dad felt badly but in the end it worked out. We told LB that Santa delivered some of his gifts early and LB played happily with his new planes until it was time to go to church. He didn't spot his drum that was also in there so he still got to be surprised by a Santa gift on Christmas morning.

LB continued his tradition of doing a great job at the Christmas Eve church service. He got a little antsy at times but I just gave him a snack and he was fine. He loves all the singing and that helps keep him happy. We sat next to my friend's family and her daughter and LB kept each other happy prior to the service.

At one point, the minister said "King of Jews" but all LB heard was juice, which he then exclaimed quite loudly. I hope I never forget that. Too funny. My mom got a nice shot of D and me as well.

Last year during the candle lighting, I got a really sweet picture of my mom and Ezra with their candles and this year it was D's turn to be with LB. All I can think of when I look at this picture is the line "Wonders of His Love" from the song "Joy to the World." Two of my loves.

Christmas morning was a lot of fun. LB got his drum and my parents spoiled the rest of us as well. We had a yummy breakfast and LB spent the entire day in his PJs. Perfection!

Before LB was in the picture, our family would make the trip to Kansas City to spend time with my mom's side of my family. Several of my Christmas memories from childhood are from time in Kansas City with my cousins and grandma. When LB came home, my aunt, uncle and cousins offered to come to Tulsa instead so we could limit our travel with the little one. We appreciated that so much but found after a few years we wanted to get back to Kansas. So this was the year. The day after Christmas we said goodbye to Tulsa and drove to KC. LB adores my cousins and aunt and uncle and includes them in his nightly prayers even though we usually only see them about once a year. They go all out and play with him from morning until night and it makes such a big impression on LB. Gathering around the table for a post Christmas meal with my family is always a little bittersweet for me. I think we all feel the loss of my Grandma Virginia and Uncle David but we bring up their names often as we happily look back and reminisce and that helps greatly. They would have both loved LB so much. I wish I would have taken more pictures but many memories were made and that's what matters.

Christmas in Yellow Springs:

We celebrated Christmas with D's side of the family the first weekend in January. D's cousins had already opened most of their gifts from Nana and Poppy on Christmas Day and they were very patient while LB opened most of his gifts. D's parents held back a few and we gave them gifts but it was mostly LB opening gifts. He got some great loot, including a scooter, and the kids had a fun afternoon playing together.

I love that the three cousins are so close in age. They are tight and watching them play brings me a lot of joy. I know that D's parents feel the same way. 

Christmas 2013 will be tough to top. This stage is so magical and I hope we have several more years of it.

End of 2013 Recap

So it appears any attempt to thoroughly recap 2013 is a lost cause. This will be my lame attempt and then it's time to move on to 2014.

Halloween 

In the months leading up to Halloween, I was pretty sure LB was going to be a pilot. I had this super cute costume picked out and thought he would love it. As we got closer and started talking about it, he was not enthused about the pilot idea. I didn't get it. He's Mr. Plane. Right around that time we discovered the TV show "Jake and the Neverland Pirates." It's on the Disney Channel, which we don't have, but we found it on Netflix. This was also around the time that LB discovered the movie, Peter Pan, which he fell in love with. I did not remember all the sexist and racist comments in Peter Pan so I cringed through the first viewing and thought maybe LB wouldn't like it. WRONG. He's obsessed. He started to say that he wanted to be a pirate for Halloween. It was a tad confusing because his "r" sound still very much sounds likes a "l." So I kept clarifying by asking him, "You want to be a pirate like arrrghhh matey or a pilot that flies planes." He would always answer back "argghhh matey." I found a Jake costume online and showed it to him and we had a winner! As soon as we got it, he had to put it on right away and we also got him a little Jake kit from Tar.get that had a sword, spy glass, gold coins and a map. He was pumped.

Halloween morning they were having a parade at school and the kids were encouraged to wear costumes. I got his out and was super excited. LB decided he wanted nothing to do with it. I was all of a sudden devastated. He flat out refused to wear his Jake costume. My mom had come to town for the week (which was great since D was out of town) and she had brought with her a Pilot shirt from the new movie, Planes. She convinced him to be a pilot for the parade at school. Although he refused to even put the pilot shirt on until we got to school. In hindsight, I think he was overwhelmed by the idea of the parade and kids and teachers wearing costumes. But once he got to school and realized none of the costumes were scary he relaxed and seemed to enjoy it. I would also say that I set my expectations WAY too high for the day and didn't act with a whole lot of compassion towards his refusal to be Jake at school. Expectations always get me in trouble.
Here are a few pics from school:

Yes, his best bud was also Jake and they would have been SO CUTE together but oh well. He's a cute pilot too.

Thankfully, he totally embraced being Jake for trick or treat and he had such a blast that night. My mom is the most amazing grandma and dressed up like the Cat in the Hat. LB has the coolest grandma ever. We have a tradition of trick or treating at our friend's house with another family and they have the perfect street for the kids. Lots of street lights and friendly neighbors. It was such a fun evening! Oh and D made it back in time for trick or treat, which was nice!

November

I tried to do some cute Thanksgiving crafts with LB in the week leading up to the big day and I would say our favorite one was his thankful turkey that we made out of a paper plate. I cut out the feathers and asked him to list 5 things he was thankful for and I wrote them on the feathers. I also cut out the other parts to the turkey and then LB glued everything together. He was really proud of it and we had it displayed in the living room through Christmas.

The weekend before Thanksgiving we met LB's cousins at the zoo for the holiday light show. It was freezing but we endured the cold and had a fun night. The kids also got to see Santa, which ended up being a nice reprieve from the cold, and since not too many people were brave (or stupid) enough to be out in the cold we didn't have to wait in a long line. LB asked Santa for "a plane and a drum." I didn't realize you could ask Santa for two things but I guess LB decided it was okay. He stayed consistent with those requests all through December. (Confession: We ended up seeing Santa 4 times before the big day. LB is a fan.)

Actual Thanksgiving day was a bit of a bust. D's parents were hosting Thanksgiving but not until Friday to accommodate every one's schedules. So our plan was to chill at home on Thursday and put up all our Christmas decorations. It was a good plan but LB woke up in a foul mood and I think I was in a bad mood too. I was missing my family and just felt blah about the whole thing. So the tree got put up and we did some fun Christmas crafts but overall it was just an okay today. Not what I hoped. Thankfully, Friday was fun and we stuffed our faces and LB played with his cousins. Somehow I managed to take zero photos. I must have been too busy eating and drinking.

December

We got a fair amount of snow in early December and LB had more stamina this year in terms of being willing to play in the snow. And he has learned to put his gloves on all by himself which meant I cursed much less this year. Is there anything more annoying than trying to get gloves on a toddler? I think not. 

We had several fun playdates with old friends and new friends. I have loved watching LB develop good friendships at preschool this year and to see him seek out his special friends.

LB had his Christmas program and party at school. I was in love with the shirt I bought him for it. I'm biased but he was so darn cute.

Okay, so I lied. I have rambled enough and I still need to recap our trip to Tulsa for Christmas. That will have to come later. 

Until then..... I hope January is treating you well, friends!