Mom to Four

We have been waiting and waiting for this day!

Welcome to the Sneath clan, Nebiyou!

Here he is with his sister, Tsion (Zion), about 9 months before we adopted her.


And, here he is today. We are really looking forward spending time with him in Ethiopia, and bringing him home!

indoor seedlings

Remember how I was telling you I was growing tomato seedlings in the front windows? Well, I love how one neighbor put it the other day, "What you got there ain't no tomatoes, them's become a WEED."

World Aids Orphans Day

I bet there are some of you who read my blog that have room in your home and heart for a child orphaned by AIDS.

Some people ask, "why does God allow all these kids to lose their parents?"

Maybe we should ask instead, "why do I allow a child to live without parents?"

Let me know if you feel that tug and I'll help you any way I can.

Another way to help is to sponsor one of Hanna's girls from Children's Heaven - these girls lost moms and dads, mostly to aids, and Hanna is mom to them now, but she needs sponsors to help her parent these girls.

Thanks!!

Neuro Reorganization Update

We are in week seven of our neuro reorganization journey. The kids are getting a lot of therapy done each day without complaint.

I fall short on the amount of sensory stimulation I need to do with each of them, and am brainstorming ways to accomplish more (like having the dog help oversee patterns). The challenge is that sensory stimulation can't be done at once, it must be done throughout the day, or at least with blocks of time between each "session."

I found the book, What To Do About Your Brain Injured Child, quite helpful in understanding the methodology behind the various activities.

Hanna Update - bad news

Children's Heaven was broken into, and the laptops stolen, and the desktop vandalized. All of Hanna's records are gone. I will post updates as I receive them.

Arriving in Style

Subtitle: Does this mean we're rednecks?


If your wife was up the street hiding eggs in a park, and you had to take three kids to meet her when she called, how would you get there?

Another day at the office

Shooting during a forty minute flight on a B 25 bomber was no shabby job. It was especially meaningful to me because my aunt Eleanor (Mary Martin) flew these planes in WWII.


I was priveleged last night to shoot an interview with a Doolittle Raider, who was captured by the Japanese following the raid. I'll post the interview soon, or you can view it at The State newspaper's site.

Junior Master Gardener

I love that the kids are involved with 4-H. Specifically, the Junior Master Gardener program at Riverbanks Zoo and Garden. Sarah is always a week ahead on her assignments, but Alden and I struggle to keep up with his homework, and are generally up late getting it done - and still manage to stay about a week behind. Tonight (around 10pm), he and Zion worked together on an assignment that was right up his alley.

Edible bugs.

The idea was to show the symetrical nature of bugs. Did you know that bugs on earth, if gathered into a pile, would weigh MUCH more than all the people on earth?

Alden loves arranging his food into visual masterpieces anyway, so this was pure bliss. And, I managed to get Zion to eat peanut butter! Guess it helped that we forgot to eat dinner, so maybe she was just really hungry.

Before you think I'm a horrible mom to forget dinner, we ate lunch at 4pm. I wanted to try and cook Indian food from scratch, and it just took longer than I expected for the frozen sour cream to thaw.

Sarah said it wasn't bad, but it wasn't like the food we had in India, either. I think the rice was not dry enough and it could use just a bit more spice. The instructions were all in metric weights, like "soak 110 grams of black lentils and 30 grams of kidney beans, add 120 grams of tomato puree." So, I just guessed on most of it. Here they are, praying it will be edible.

Seedlings

One of my new hobbies, besides selling wigs on ebay to raise money for the adoption, is gardening. I started it when I realized the kids haven't had the experiences I did growing up with a mom with green thumbs, fingers and toes, who knows all the scientific names of every plant and has grown food organically since before I was born. I tried last year, and as you may recall, the garden was almost a complete failure. This year, I decided to start inside, with tomato seeds.

The only issue now is that I'm scared to take them outside. So, they are sortof past the "seedling" stage.


Ruth brought me some tulips from the Netherlands when she visited a few weeks ago. I though they seemed very odd when they began to poke out of the dirt, and now I realize why. I have this great crop of mushrooms in the tulip pot. Go figure. Need to find out if they are edible then cook um up!

Eggs, in color

There is no end to my friend Lori Cook's creativity. This week it was dying eggs, but with stuff we had around the house, like wine and red onions, tumaric and yellow onions, tea and coffee (tea works better) and spinach (needed some food color).

Workouts

Exciting meet for Sarah this past weekend. State meet, so the competition was really tough, but she did very well and we're super proud of her.

Alden is preparing for his new rank test at the karate dojo, and practicing with his sword, called a bokken.




Zion stays busy with a combination of gymnastics, karate and running like a crazy person.

Homeschool . . . or child labor?

Yes, your eyes are not deceiving you. This is Sarah, entering transactions into Quicken. April 15 is a mere week away, so David is pulling in all the help he can recruit.

Wade's New Film

So, Wade has been hard at work constructing a rooftop in the studio at George Fulton's place, where he has his new office.

My lighting class lit it and then Wade wanted to try it out, so he made this short, which is worth watching, especially if you like Mr. Softie.

If you think it's funny, hit the funny meter!

Thanks to Van Kornegay from USC for this photo.

Who needs the zoo?

I'm kidding of course. Our local zoo, Riverbanks Zoo and Garden is the BEST. But, we are getting quite a bit of wildlife here at home. Like the oppossom, the raccoon and now, the brown snake. It eats worms, so Alden has a pet - well, for awhile. Zion actually found it, and calls it the "awwww cute worm." I had to keep her away from it for while we figured out what type of "worm" it was.

Apparently it's time to clean out the pool.

Arri at work

Arri is getting older. He gets upset when I watch LOST on "his" couch. And, he doesn't like to move out of the sun at work, which makes it challenging for customers to enter the shop.

Neuro Reorg update

Today was day 7. We're getting into a groove and I'm learning SO much about my sweet kids. I didn't think I would enjoy this at all, but I am. We've done morning activities outside the past two days, and I liked it.

Neuro Reorganization

Today was our second day doing Neuro Reorganization therapy with the kiddos. It's supposed help their brains work out things they probably missed when they were young, so it entails all sorts of fun stuff like creeping and crawling around the house, spinning in office chairs, doing these things called "patterns," as well as breathing and sensory exercises.

We're looking at about a two year stint, so we are all adapting to the new schedule. Actually, just the fact that it has to be done EVERY single day is a big part of it. I'm sure this will shock you, but I'm not a "schedule" person. About the only thing I do every day without fail is brush my teeth. So, this is big.

We may need some cheerleaders.

I'll update with progress reports, but I really don't expect much before around four months in.

Progress so far for the youngest:

I took her to karate and the teacher said after wards, "she was much more focused today than usual."

Second day I noticed her reverting to a LOT of baby behaviors - baby talk and so on.

Should be interesting to see what happens over the next two weeks.

Mommy! Where my wings?

Some things you just can't leave home without.

IKEA Grand Opening

It's almost 8pm and I'm getting ready to head to Charlotte to camp out for the GRAND OPENING of the new IKEA store.

This is a first for me, and I'm excited.

David is making fun of me, mostly because I hate cold. It goes something like this, "So, you're going to drive two hours to stand in the freezing cold all night for a store opening, yet if someone offered to PAY you to work outside, you would turn them down, right?"

"of course, I don't like working in the cold."


UPDATE:
Right before we arrived, we decided against making one last rest stop. Boy was it a good thing! The first 100 in line got a free $89 chair. We went to one end of the store and a guy with a clipboard told us the line was at the other end, and it was almost to 100. We took off running. This is the largest IKEA in the WORLD, so it took a few minutes. I dropped our stuff at the end of the line, behind #98, who told us we needed to find "a guy with a clipboard" and sign in. So, we raced back to the other end and found, you guessed it, the SAME guy. But, we got signed in.

Later that night, I met #1 and #2, and they introduced themselves, "hi, I'm 1." "And I'm 2!" Couldn't help thinking I'd fallen into a Dr. Seuss story . . . .


I probably should have checked the weather. I guess cold rain never occurred to me. Some nice people hooked us up with a tarp and here we are, IKEA refugees.



Things kicked into high gear around 7am with donuts, coffee and swag. I nabbed an IKEA toilet seat and a squishy chair and three beach balls.

Home Study Approval!

Our home study was approved by the State of SC today! That means we've been officially cleared for parenthood yet again.

Yeah!

Book for Hanna, update!

Book sales for the book I put together to help Children's Heaven have netted over $1200 for Hanna's health care. I'm thrilled. Shouting out a huge THANK YOU to Ethiopian Orphan Relief for sponsoring this fundraiser! And, sending love and appreciation to all the adoptive families and friends who purchased a book. I hope you get some good cuddle time with your children while you read and look at the photos together.

MORE PETS????

The kids built a multi-layered home for our newest family members. Now, these are not really pets. Think more like in the old days, when animals had to work for a living. These babies are in charge of soil enrichment. We started with about 100 or so, and within three months, we hope they'll be doing big business in compost.


Zion adores them, and says, they are "sooooo cuuuute!" Sarah's already been transplanting some of them into other experiements, like her new "biosphere in a jar" sitting on the kitchen counter. I have to make sure David doesn't pitch it, because it looks more like a "mud in a jar get me off your counter quick before it's contaminated" science project.

This had to hurt.

Are we closer to the nuclear plant than I thought? At any rate, I feel sorry for my little hen!

books before bed

Zion and Alden have been increasing their reading each night - to the point that it is almost dangerous to roll over in what the kids dubbed, "the big bed."

Other blogs

I've been updating my class blogs lately, and haven't taken time to work on this one. But, here is a photo update of our latest activities.


Jonathan Gaynor, sound man extraordinaire, stopped by just in time to help the kids retrieve their bow from the top of a tree. You might be thinking, "why was the BOW in the tree, and not an arrow in the tree?" I was thinking the same thing, but have long ago learned it is often better not to ask.

In other kid news, we had a great time at the Myrtle Beach hotel that boasted an indoor water park and personalized taxi service back to the room. We met up with my friend Jen and her crew, including Nate, who is from the same area in Ethiopia as Zion. It was a perfect match up since her three are close in age to our three and enjoyed each other's company immensely. Cute kid pic by Jenn.

Move over 'possom!

There's a new kid in town. And, he's bigger. And he likes chocolate icing from the free grocery bakery buckets we neglected to wash out.

Haven't seen my "little buddy" in awhile. I do miss him. He was getting plump and his coat was sleek. He'd hang out in the back yard and catch apple cores I'd toss to him. I think he'll be back around after awhile, once he starts jonesen' for Phydeaux's yummy cat food.

Meanwhile, out back all is well (and productive). Photo compliments of Jonathan Gaynor.


And, in the kitchen, Alden's ants, a gift from his Aunt Judy, are thriving. Well, maybe not thriving, but certainly existing. At least those that haven't been smashed when they tried to get out, or knocked unconcious when people accidentally slam their home on the table.

Today is History!

It was beautiful seeing Obama take office today. My children watched with me as history unfolded.

Then, Alden announced he wanted to be president someday.

I don't have the heart to tell him yet that he can't.

We have to change that so foreign born adopted kids can dream, too!

My book for Hanna

The book I created for Hanna Fanta of Children's Heaven is currently for sale on the Ethiopian Orphan Relief site. All proceeds go directly to Hanna.

I'm just blown away by the support that has been shown by the people who have ordered already.

Thank you!

I put a short video about her work below.

Children's Heaven Addis Ababa

Happy Birthday Zion

Today is December 21st. Zion's fifth birthday, according to her birth mom, not her "official" paperwork.

She wanted a lemon cake, so (at 4:30 pm) we're waiting for her Daddy to get out of bed (he has a migrane) so we she can blow out some candles and we can EAT IT.

I can't seem to convince my children that December is a COLD month. I even hid all the shorts and short sleeved shirts in Zion's room. But, somehow, she found some, enough that every single day I wonder if it's worth fighting over clothing.


Photo update, Daddy got up!

Blog Break

As you may have noticed, I'm not posting right now.

Today is an exception because I want to announce that:

We're adopting yet again!

I don't yet know what I can share and can't, so things will continue to be quiet here at the Sneathspot until I find out more.

Stoned to death, in November 2008

I've read three articles now about the 13 year old girl who was stoned to death in Somalia recently. Her crime? She was raped by three armed men.

This article in the Scotland Sunday Herald was the most graphic. I hesitated to include it on my blog, but really, we can't ignore what is reality for many women in our world today. The bigger question is, what can we DO about it?

The 13-year-old girl from the Somali port city of Kismayo was taken to the police station by her aunt to report the crime. Asha was the one who was arrested. After being held for three days and tried in secret by an Islamic court, Asha was sentenced to be stoned to death for adultery.

Kismayo's rulers encouraged people to come to the football stadium to watch the execution. A lorry load of stones was laid out. Asha, dragged kicking and screaming into the stadium, was buried in the ground. With around 1000 people watching, 50 men stepped forward and started hurling the stones at Asha's head. After a few moments, the stoning was stopped.

Two nurses were asked to step forward and check if she was still alive. She was, they said, so the stoning continued.

I say we speak out against extremism. All forms of extremism carry with them the capacity to justify killing the innocent.

Have you ever thought about which form of extremism you'd prefer living under? I wonder if I'd prefer communism over religious extremism. Tough choice. I hope we are wise enough, strong enough and vocal enough to prevent either from gaining a foothold here.

End of the Day

This is a scene that often greets me after a long day away from home. I really should give up on feather comforters and feather pillows - or - perhaps I should give in to the PediPaws ads (the canine nail cutting tool) that litter my inbox every day.

Graft and Greed in America?

No, not Africa. Here.

This is taken from a letter our governor sent to Henry Paulson (US Treasury Secretary). Does it make your blood boil, too? How long before greed destroys us?

· Carolina First CEO Mack Whittle retired sooner than expected. Some have surmised that Whittle’s retirement date was moved up so that his bank could apply for federal bailout money while Whittle retained his “golden parachute.” The estimated value of Whittle’s retirement package is $18 million; the deal would have been compromised if the bank had asked for a taxpayer bailout before Whittle left.

· The Federal Reserve is putting $150 billion, $27 billion more than previously extended, into AIG after an initial bailout attempt failed to stem massive losses. After the initial bailout in September, AIG treated some staff members to spa retreats in California ($440,000) and a hunting trip in England ($500,000).

· The Wall Street Journal reported last week that some $40 billion is being paid to executives of banking giants that are getting bailout payments. On top of that, Bloomberg reported that the Federal Reserve is refusing to identify who is getting $2 trillion in emergency loans.

Maybe we should slow down. We're trusting Congress to regulate, right? I'm not feeling too confident . . . .

Only 12 days late

Okay, so I'm a bit behind on the blogging. I do have excuses, a great trip to Denver, a not-so-fun trip to the ER . . . But, I will try to catch up this week. Here we are before going to my friend Lori's Hallowingding, which I highly recommend! Check out the invite below, featuring art by her husband Trahern.

This Historic Day

It's great to have watched history unfold last night.

Sarah said it so well today:

"Mom, do you think when you go to heaven you still see what is happening here?"

"Maybe honey, if you're still interested in what's going on here."

"Well, I bet Martin Luther King must be very proud today if he can see what's happening down here."

I agree.

Our Newest Pet

No, I did not ask for this.

And Zion can't say opossum (who really can?), so she calls him "AWW, cute mouse."

David is not thrilled. He hates rats, and the tail just does him in. Sarah wrote me a note, telling me (with lots of hearts) to look up the National Opposum Society. Doing that now.

Turns out that opposums are not related at all to rats. They are North America's only marsupial.