When we started the adoption process for the twins, I knew next to no Spanish.  My brother Steven  came home from Guatemala just 2 weeks shy of my senior year of college, so it was a little late to switch from French at that point.

So I began learning Spanish in the Fall of 2006 with the initial goal of obtaining enough vocabulary to be able to communicate the basics with the two little boys we knew were coming (food/animal/vehicle names, “it’s bedtime,” … “because I said so, and I’m the mom, that’s why!” … just kidding on the last one… although …). 

Three and a half years later, with many interruptions in learning (homeschooling those aforementioned twins), I’m becoming conversant - but have a far greater understanding of Spanish than I can speak.  Still working.  Just waiting for a “language burst” to hit me.

But I know I’ll need it even more with this second adoption.  The kid(s) will be older than the twins were, so he/she/they may well be nearly fluent in Spanish.  There’s so much else to adjust to in an adoption that I’d like the language-barrier reduced as much as possible.

 So for those just starting out on your own like I was, consider stocking yourself with: Read the rest of this entry

Last week, I got an email with a much-anticipated photo I asked Kurt to send me from the last day I was at CIPI.  I mentioned in that day’s post that I took pictures while Kurt passed out new shoes to the “Medium Boys” – aged 9-12 or so – who needed them.  Kurt’s sister’s church back her in the U.S. had sent the money to pay for them, so I took a couple dozen pictures of him slipping shoes onto the boys’ feet, so he could send them back to the donors.

But he had me hop into the last picture with a bunch of the boys and their new sneakers.

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On March 26, 2009, El Salvador’s Legislature passed this comprehensive law, formally to recognize and protect the  rights of children and adolescents living in that country.  It was signed by then-President of the Republic Elias Antonio Saca Gonzalez and entered into the legal record on April 16, 2009.

The Ley de Protección Integral de la Niñez y la Adolescencia (Law of Integral Protection of Childhood and Adolescence) will take effect on April 16, 2010.  The delay in enforcement was due to all the infrastructure set-up required actually to practice all the measures prescribed therein.

As future-parents of Salvadoran kids, we were interested in what this “New Child’s Law” actually said.  Especially since it will impact our adoption process, and we kept hearing about it in adoption and missions circles.  Read the rest of this entry

Our copy of the U.S. Census 2010 arrived today, and true to claim, it took me less than 10 minutes to fill out.  For any of you who haven’t received yours yet and are curious, you can see all the questions on the form on the U.S. Census website.

The most interesting thing (and it’s pretty straightforward, so nothing really enthralling) was that there are two separate Race/People Group questions – #8 and #9. I guess I didn’t pay attention to that last time, just checked “White,” “White” (oh so very pale) and moved on.  Hadn’t even met Fred yet, last time.

But this time, answering for our whole family, I actually had to stop and think how I wanted to fill out the latter question.  Read the rest of this entry

About 20 years ago a young girl who was determined to compete with all the boys in every sport or outdoor activity asked her parents for a set of hockey sticks.  A few years and a good number of street-games later, she made the varsity field hockey team.  Time passed and she gave away most of the other toys she had outgrown, but somehow the sticks kept landing in “Keep” pile.  Maybe she’d have kids who would like them as much as she had, one day. 

They moved with her 4 times and finally leaned against a wall in the garage.

There they stood, untouched.

Until this week, a silly little tomboy-dream came true… Read the rest of this entry

Haven’t posted a Tiny Talk Tuesday in a while, but not for lack of chatter in our household, BELIEVE ME.  I’ve just been a little behind in general lately!

And so my first TT is from just before my trip last month:

[Explaining to his co-op teacher that they would be absent during the week of my trip]

Heriberto [loud and clear for all the families to hear]:  Mama’s going to El Salvador, and we won’t be here because Papa’s too shy to bring us!

[Thus sealing forever that Fred will not set foot in that classroom... even though, no, he's not!]  Read the rest of this entry

I’ve been assured that it’s “normal for boys” – though I have certainly met a few exceptions to that stereotype.  But my two HATE to color.  And just in case I was starting to think it might be time to reintroduce the concept, I got two great reminders, this past week, of what happens when they’re “made” to.

Our Russia-study wrap-up party was last Thursday. (Every time we study a country, we get together with four other families and have a party.) And one of the Russia-party activities was to color (shudder) a set of matryoshka (nesting) dolls.  While I watched my friend’s same-aged daughter not only neatly color in the lines but also embellish the front of her dolls dresses with a hand-drawn flower on each (and yes, she matched all her dolls), here’s what one of my guys came up with.  (Apparently, in addition to a general ignoring of lines, he also believes women should be seen and not heard?  Where’d their mouths go?)

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