Tomorrow school?

Vlado has been asking this every day since Christmas break began. I am beginning to think that I bore him because he would much rather be at school with the other kids. Now, if I could only figure out how to keep his hands off the other kids because he spends way too much time in time out because he can't keep his hands to himself. UGH!

So I don't lose it

I tried this recipe about 5 months ago and then lost it. When I found it today, I decided to blog it so I would have it the next time I want it.

Chicken enchiladas with green chili cream cheese sauce

*These are seriously so so good*

10 soft taco shells

2 cups cooked, shredded chicken (this works with leftover pork roast too)

2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend

3 Tbsp. butter

3 Tbsp. flour

2 cups chicken broth

8 ounces cream cheese

1 (4 oz) can diced green chillies

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan

2. Mix chicken and 1 cup cheese. Roll up in tortillas and place in pan.

3. In a sauce pan, melt butter, stir in flour and cook 1 minute. Add broth and whisk until smooth. Heat over medium heat until thick and bubbly.

4. Stir in cream cheese and chilies. Do not bring to boil. You just want to melt the cream cheese.

5. Pour over enchiladas and top with remaining cheese.

6. Bake 22 min and then under high broil for 3 min to brown the cheese.

Happy 2012

I am happy that it is 2012 although I'm not saying that I'm glad that 2011 is gone. 2011 is the first year that I was a Mama all year long! :)

It was also the year that we began the process to bring home a sibling for our Vlado. We still aren't sure where that process is leading and, to be honest, I'm not sure I will be sharing that information until it is 100%. I feel ashamed that the other adoption did not happen and I'm not sure that I am prepared to open myself up to people (many of which who do not really know me) until I know that the path we are on is GOD'S PLAN and not mine. Because if I try to go on my own path....I know that being hurt is a big possibility. :(

Resolutions and me are not usually good. I have HUGE fits of enthusiasm at first and then, a little later, just give up. I am going to try to be better about blogging and sharing Vlado's accomplishments with all of you. He is a little guy who has surpassed many people's expectations and still continues to do so.

As a little end to this somewhat disjointed post, I will leave you with this.

We are in the throws of the terrible 2's at our house!

Another month gone

Once again, a month has passed. It's amazing to me that this year has become just that....one month gone, then another. Being a mom intensifies that "time flying" thing.

I can't believe that I missed the obligatory one year gotcha day post and all that stuff. Let's see, we have so many different "one year since" days around here. :)

Nov 15th - the day that we met him
Nov 19th - this was the day that we took custody of our boy...even though the adoption wasn't final yet.
Nov 25th - it was Thanksgiving last year when we had our adoption ceremony so we celebrated "Adoption Day" on Thanksgiving this year even though it was the 24th....and we will probably celebrate adoption day every Thanksgiving (We celebrated a little on the 25th too)
Dec 2nd - the day that we landed on US soil making Vlado an American citizen.

We did have a good time on Thanksgiving. To make our day different, I cooked a duck instead of a turkey and it was pretty yummy! I also made lepinja (a Serbian bread) and Honey said that it took him back to Serbia. :) I'm not sure that Vlado truly understood the importance of the day, but he will in time.

He has been super clingy for a little while. He is in my lap almost all the time, and he doesn't just sit there. He lays back and rests his head on my shoulder and just cuddles in. He lets me wrap my arms around him without fighting it and giggles when I kiss his head. The other night we were all at the mall and he lost sight of me (I was trying to shop for some clothes...my least favorite thing to do...and I just wanted to find something and leave) He was with Honey, but I could hear him wandering around calling, "Mama? Mama?" It was very cool that he was searching for me. Funny thing is that he would probably have done something similar if he lost sight of Honey. The way he says, "Daddy?" is just too adorable.

School is going well for him. He had issues at the beginning of the year with touching and/or kissing the other kids but thankfully that is starting to resolve itself (we hope) He is still working on reading comprehension, but he can pick up almost any kids book and read the whole thing. He is pretty good at sounding out words, but he has the most amazing memory so most of his reading is memorized words. He knows his 1's and 2's for addition and subtraction. His ELL teacher is working him overtime trying to get him up to speed.

And he is just as cute as can be. This is my favorite pic of him! But this was taken in September. He has lost his two front teeth. One of my facebook friends said he can sing "All I want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth" this year. LOL! This is his truly happy smile.

Not the post I wanted to make

This definitely wasn't what I thought I would be posting for my 200th post. Hubby and I have decided to release "Kamdyn." There are sure to be many questions. Have you ever been doing something for all the right reasons only to realize that what you were doing just wasn't right? This beautiful child was an example of this. That is all I am prepared to share at this time. Please pray for our family to heal this loss. And PLEASE PRAY that Kamdyn finds her true family quickly. She does not deserve to wait. If you feel the need to comment, please be kind. We do not need negativity at this moment. And know, I WILL delete any unkind words. You cannot judge someone without having been in their place.

Making progress

After months and months of paper chasing and waiting, it looks like our completed homestudy is within reach. We have been waiting for a long time for the background checks from the state we live in. We found out just a few days before the hurricane (Irene) that our first request for the background check was never received. So, we sent in the 2nd request.....and then the hurricane hit. The office that does the checks was in one of the hardest hit towns in our state. The office was shut down (and actually hasn't even opened back up yet). So, we waited and waited. We were told that no other office could handle the request. So, more waiting. I am not sure how, but we got our background checks back last week!! Woohoo!!! Our SW emailed me yesterday and told me that she is going to finish the homestudy this week and get us copy to make sure it is ok. When we adopted Vlado, the whole adoption never really felt real, at least during the paperwork process. When we got to the point of getting USCIS approval, it started feeling a little more real. This time, it has been the same. The thought that we should have our completed homestudy in our hands so soon just feels weird. It feels like our angel girl is just a dream, but we are moving closer to when we will actually get to hold her. Then we will do the rest of the paperwork needed to BRING HER HOME! I am sad to think that the earliest we will probably travel is February. We were in Serbia on Honey's birthday last year. Do I dare hope that we will be in Baby Sister's country on my birthday.....my birthday is in early February. :)

Almost 2 months?

Has it really been that long since I posted anything? I am so very sorry! To be totally honest, I have just been too tired to do much on the internet lately. I am only supposed to be part time at work but lately, the hours have been available so I have worked all that is possible for me to work. I can work full days on Honey's days off, and on week days when he works, I can work 9-2 while Vlado is in school. So, I have had way more full time weeks lately and it has left me exhausted. I'm not sure how moms who work full time do it! Working that much and then taking care of my little man wipes me out!

Now for a Vlado update. He is doing really well! He is learning so much and seems to be soaking so much in so fast. School is, um, interesting this year. He only has an aid for actual learning stuff, ie math, reading ,writing. He does have an ELL teacher regularly which is so much better than last year. But a problem we are having is that when he doesn't have an aid with him, he has a problem understanding what is appropriate and what is not. There are a few children who find it funny to teach him things that he shouldn't know. When he does/says things he shouldn't and the teacher tells him no (but the kids laugh), who do think he listens to? He has lost so much play time and even had to sit out during a science time (outside) because he kept sticking his tongue out and trying to touch the other kids with his tongue. UGH! We think a big problem is that when he doesn't understand exactly what is going on (like during science) he gets bored and then finds things to entertain himself. He doesn't try any of the stuff they tell me about when he is with us...that's why I think the other kids are a big part of the problem. They think it is funny to get him to.....run after another child trying to kiss them, call other kids names (psycho seems to be a favorite of one of the kids), and the tongue thing was probably suggested to him too. I am very frustrated because as soon as we get to understand that one thing isn't acceptable, we are told about yet another behavior. He has a list of about 10 things that we go through every morning of things not to do. "We don't kiss at school. We don't stick our tongue out. We don't hit. We don't kick." And on and on. I am almost ready to pull him out of school and homeschool him until he is 100% communicative in English and can understand that he needs to listen to teachers and not the other kids. I just am not sure if the social interaction is worth him constantly getting into trouble. I am trying to prepare myself for the day when another parent complains because my child did something to their child. It is bound to happen if other kids keep teaching him bad stuff. :( I do realize that several of these things are normal kid behavior, but the teacher has actually told me that she has seen/heard other kids telling him to do the behaviors. So, I don't think he is doing them to be naughty....he just doesn't understand that the kids aren't his boss (so to speak).