Happy Birthday, Hunter!

Today is Hunter's 45th birthday. He spoke to his parents this morning and his mother recalled the day he was born like this.

On a very snowy morning January 30, 1965, Hunter's parents went to their local doctor for a checkup. The doctor turned to them and asked, "Do you have good snow tires on your car?". They said they did and the doctor announced that they should make the 85 mile trip to the hospital in Richmond that very minute. They arrived at the hospital at 11am and Hunter was born at 1:10pm.

We have about 6 inches of snow on the ground today. This is the third snowstorm for us this winter. This is almost unheard of in the eastern part of Virginia. A light dusting of snow, maybe. But the way it is snowing today, we will probably have a foot of snow after it's done. We can't help but laugh at the irony. Hunter's parents said the snow on the day he was born was just like today. What are the odds of it happening exactly 45 years later? Even more ironic? Hunter hates snow! I took this picure today at about 1:10pm. Happy Birthday, H-Bear!!!

The word on Haitian adoption plans

I received an email from a friend this week checking on how our adoption was going. She also wanted to know if we were going to look into adopting a child from Haiti. Here's what I know about possible Haitian adoption plans. It is from the "AdoptUsKids" website.


Adopting Orphaned Haitian Children
AdoptUsKids has received a number of inquiries from families that are interested in adopting Haitian Earthquake Orphans. At this time, the first priority of government and disaster recovery officials is to address the immediate medical and physical needs of the people affected by the earthquake and assist in the reunion of family members who have been displaced or separated by the disaster. Therefore, it may take a long time before children affected by the disaster may be available for adoption. The U.S. Department of State provides information on the adoption of children affected by natural disasters and conflict on their website at: http://adoption.state.gov/news/Haiti.html. You also can locate contact information for adoption agencies that place children from Haiti through our resource list of U.S. Adoption Agencies That Place Children From Abroad at: http://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/country_resource_lists.cfm


I remember after the Tsunami all our friends thought we should try to adopt a child from Thailand. I did look into it and was shocked to be told something very similar as above. I was just beginning research about adoptions and it just didn't make sense. Those children needed homes and there were plenty of willing people to take them into their families. But now, armed with much more knowledge, it makes more sense.

Yes they will need homes. But should they really be yanked away from their own country and everything familiar? Haiti is a poor country for sure. But it has its own culture and national identity like any other country. I think it is important to do all that is possible to keep those recently orphaned children safe and find a way to keep them in their own country. They are, after all, the future of that nation. I have been reading up on the Holt International Blog about their efforts on the ground on behalf of the children and it is truly inspiring.

The Year of Giving-continued

I decided to give to Oxfam America for the Haiti earthquake relief. Oxfam was one of the organizations I had considered giving to during Christmas. I never did get around to it. So now I am righting that wrong.

If you would like to donate, please go to Oxfam America's website.

Haiti

What a horrible, horrible tragedy. I haven't had time to watch much of the news coverage of the devastation for the earthquake. But I have been amazed at finding so many ways to give to the earthquake relief. It's unbelievable. You can just text an organization like the American Red Cross and your donation is added to your next cell phone bill. What a fantastic idea!

While looking at NOLA.com, I found a link to a great list of responding agencies and how to donate to them. It includes organizations like the Red Cross, Unicef and Care. But also a variety of religious organizations as well. Here is the link http://www.interaction.org/crisis-list/earthquake-haiti.

So I'm going to put my money where my mouth is with regards to this year's challenge to give and I am going donate to one of these organizations.

The Year of Giving

Every year I swear I'm going to adopt a Salvation Army Angel Tree child and then I get swept up the holiday frenzy and I forget. Then I feel guilty. Well, this Christmas, I made sure it was the first thing I did. The day after Thanksgiving, I went online and fulfilled an Angel Tree request. I bought a winter coat and an outfit with shoes for a 2 year old living in Southern Maryland. JC Penney had it set up so the purchases would go straight to that Salvation Army location. After that I felt compelled to do one charitable thing every week until Christmas. But, I fell back into my old habits. At least it was a baby step.

For Lent last year, my mom decided instead of giving something up, that she would do something charitable each week until Easter. I thought that was a great idea and it has inspired me in the New Year. While other folks decide to go on a diet or to get a better job or to get organized, I have decided to look outward and not on myself. I have decided that this is the year of giving. I pledge to do a different charitable act every month.

In thinking about the last few years of going through infertility and then the limbo of not knowing what to do next, I realized this has made me focus too much on myself and our problems. Well now I think it is time to adjust my attitude.

So here it goes. For this month I have decided to sign up for Disney's "Give a Day, Get a Day". The closest opportunity to us is for volunteering at a local archaeological excavation site. In college, I came very close to majoring in either history or archaeology, so I thought this was perfect. Hunter likes the idea too. So we're going to do it together. Of course, the other side to this is that we will both receive free tickets to Disney World. This is very nice because my brother and his family are going to Orlando in May to celebrate their 10th anniversary and their son's 6th birthday. And they want me and Hunter and my parents to join them.

So, in giving we will receive. And that is kind of my motivation behind this idea of giving. Maybe through giving, I can refocus on what is important in life and stop being self-obsessed. And maybe, just maybe, I can create some good karma and right the balance in my life. Here's to the Year of Giving!

Baby, it's cold outside

How cold is it? Well, my husband offered to take me out to dinner tonight and I declined and decided to heat up leftovers instead. Right now it is 25 degrees and the wind is blowing about 25-30mph. 2010 has literally blown in like a lion.

We had a great day with my brother's family. My niece and nephew are just the best kids ever. Really. They were so excited. It was the first time they came to our house since my nephew was a year old. (We usually go to them or meet up at my parents' house.)

My niece found a gag gift I had gotten from a Chinese Christmas get together. It was a singing lobster (Jingle Bell Rock). Well, she decided it was the best thing she ever saw. Even better than the Tinker Bell outfit I got her. Needless to say I made sure it made it in the car with all the other gifts for the ride home. I'm pretty sure my brother and sister-in-law were cussing me all the way home. One of these days they will be able to reciprocate. And all I can say is, after so many years of gift giving as an Auntie, Karma/Payback is gonna be hell!