The diapers keep me sane.

Actual life has been happening at our house even though it has been very quiet here for a bit. There has been drama and heartbreak but we plow through it. What else is there to do? I sometimes feel like my heart will implode but then...there are diapers to change. ha!

My son Richard had knee surgery last week. Poor boy has had nothing but trouble with his legs since he started running. If only his legs could match the literal and figurative strength and endurance of his heart. It was pretty fun, though, chatting with him as he came out of the anesthesia. I got to hear all about what a great girl Heather is. Over and over again. Don't get me wrong, I love Heather, but he was so dopey and dreamy that I had a good giggle!

Parent teacher conferences were fun. All my children are gifted geniuses, don't you know? I'm a recovering homeschooler, so having them in public schools is sometimes difficult for me to handle. I'm thankful that we have a great district and the teachers are all on the same page as me. They are doing a better job than I could do at this point in time. Someday, maybe...

My computer is broken. I kill them (computers) you know. Thankfully, it is under warranty so the repair will be covered, but I'm preparing to speak at the local Down Syndrome Society on Saturday and now I have no way to do my presentation. I'll scheme and scrape something together. It's not like I haven't known about this meeting for the past four months. I just work my best under intense pressure, I guess.

I'll let you know how it turns out. :)

Masha.

She still doesn't have a family. How can this be happening? I'm not the only one who is desperate for her. The speech therapist at the orphanage has twice dropped her off to play with two different American families this week. She wants them to help find her a family quickly.

This just NEVER happens. The staff would actually prefer if you don't even LOOK at another child. But, even last summer the therapist would often "show up" with Masha when I was playing outside with my boys. Now I'm beginning to understand...

She loves her, too.

And she knows where Masha is headed. Not a good place.

Pray!!

Well, since my regular computer is being shipped to the repair shop for the next week or so, I'm working on "old reliable." My 1999 model desktop. She still runs pretty good considering her advanced age.

Just for reading this far, I thought I would reward you with a random photo off of "old reliable." Since she doesn't show me thumbnails and I didn't rename my photos back then, it really is random. Here is what I picked today...a classic "tub shot" of Hammy and Fred!




Look at those baby faces!! Those are two of the sweetest boys on the earth. Hammy always reminds me to pray for Masha. When I told him that she would be moved to a new orphanage and not be able to go to school like him, the first thing he asked me was, "Can she still be adopted from that place?"

At the age of 5 (going on 6!), Hammy "gets it."