March 31, 2013

Life out of the office is so much more fun!

Yesterday, we went to Boston.

The Prudential Center is one of my favorite places.

When I was a child, I was fascinated with Architectural Digest.  I would leaf through it over and over again.

I am going to go back today to the time when we first moved to Boston.

When we were engaged, Thanasi lost his job.  He started searching right away, and within two months he had two offers.  One offer would keep us in the suburbs of Chicago, but the job was demanding, there was uncertainty, and the people there were not the best.  The other job was in New Hampshire.  We talked and talked and I encouraged him to go with his gut and take the job in New Hampshire and that I would follow behind shortly.

That is how it went.  One fine August, I came to visit.  This was his opportunity to sell me to the idea.  What better place to visit than Boston on a sunny day.

I fell in love.  The architecture was a dream.  There was old and there was new.  There were beautiful brownstones and row houses.  We walked around the city for four hours.  We parked our car in the Financial District, walked through Feneuil Hall.

We walked past all of the historic squares.  Each one had a story to tell.  We ran into Ben Franklin outside of an old historic tavern.  We crossed over to Government Center and followed the Freedom Trail into Downtown Crossing passing many historic churches, meeting houses, and cemetaries along the way.  We went to Beacon Hill, which was absolutely beautiful.  The North End, where the mob movies were filmed, was full of life and ethnic color.  We went down to the Wharfs.  We went to the Boston Common and crossed over the Gardens through the gate below.

We walked down Commonwealth Ave (the most beautiful homes) and crossed over to Newbury Street.  We went to the Prudential Center and visited the Christian Science Center across the street.

We crossed the river on Mass Ave.  The students were practicing rowing and sailing in the river.  We went to MIT where Thanasi went to school and walked to Harvard.  I never tire to walk through Boston.  I never tire of the architecture.  It is the most therapeutic for me to admire all of this creativity and craftmanship.



March 29, 2013

Today I went to Boston. 

The Armenian dossier is in need of updating.  I have been begging my doctor's office for months to write me a letter.  I finally collected it this week.  She wrote that my health is "fair".  I disagree, but took it because there were no other derogatory comments in the report.  I am just going to have to prove her wrong.

I ran to Boston to have my paperwork apostilled and only one of the three documents were approved.  Good thing there is a workaround, I am going to attach Certificates of True Copy to the documents with my own signature, go to a New Hampshire bank have them properly notarized and Thanasi will run them to Concord, NH for an apostille.

We learned all the tricks.  We are the paperwork masters by now.

There is no stopping us now!!!!!

I also made an apppointment for a consultant to help us do our parent profile.  This project is going to be exciting; it will give us an opportunity to show a birth mother who we are.  The right one will select us :)

I will end with this very positive note, and the weekend has finally arrived again.

March 28, 2013

It seems that I do a lot of thinking and writing around Easter time.  Although the Greek Orthodox Church has just recently started lent and we will not celebrate Easter until May this year, most other Christian Denominations will be celebrating Easter on Sunday.  Passover is also observed this weekend through April 2nd. The differences that separate all the cultures are so minor.  There are more consistencies in history than inconsistencies, yet we tend to focus on what is different and we point our fingers and judge.

Why not observe another point of view?  Will we be more enriched if we stopped broadcasting opinions and started to really listen to and understand our neighbors? 

The more different someone is from us, the more we can learn from that person. 

What if we accepted both who we are and who they are and there was no right way or wrong way.

This week there have been many controversies in the media.  The economic downfall of the Cyprus banking system.  The gay marriage rights are being challenged.  News stories of shootings and legislation on gun control.  Stealth bombers over S. Korea.

Will we ever learn to accept and care for each other?  Or will we continue to kill, judge, restrict, accuse, persecute, offend, discriminate? 

What have we learned from the above religious practices that we celebrate every year over a period of thousands of years?  It doesn't seem that we have given it much thought other than to classify ourselves under a specific group.

I say these things and I myself need to be reminded of them.  It is human nature to fall.  It takes a lot of discipline to pick yourself up and try again.

Let us make it a practice to be more accepting of the world around us.  If we show love, it may become contagious.

March 28, 2013

I meant to write two days ago.  Lately, I have been tired and in need of lots of sleep.  My brain is working hard.  There is lots to do.



I have to prepare our tax paperwork to bring to the accountant.  I am running very late.  I have yet to do my father's taxes.  I finally got my doctor to write the letter for the Armenian adoption.  Now, I have to complete the rest of the documents, have them notarized and run to Boston tomorrow afternoon for an apostille, provided that I pushed out a lot of work out of guilt for leaving work early.  It is 5 am.  If I do not do the laundry now, I will have nothing to wear.  Meanwhile, I have to watch my health.  Diet, exercise, meditation, or the doctor will no longer recommend me. 

I have tried to fill my week with workout appointments. 

That is all.  Today's post was about whining.  The next one will be more positive as the weekend is approaching fast.

March 25, 2013

We spoke to the agency today.

We are thoroughly confused.  What is the right thing to do?  Which path do we take?  What is the road to our family?

Eventually, we will figure it out, but we have a lot of information to digest over the next few days.

It is between securing the agency to search, or the lawyer in New Hampshire or both.  

Then we have to update the home study again, take more classes and make a portfolio.

We want to do the best job ever with all of this.  You deserve it.  We want to make you happy and bring you home.

That is all.

March 24, 2013

What a difference from a few days ago where we were absolutely buried in snow!

Today was a sunny day!  We went to Whole Foods, had lunch there, and then went to the Y to exercise.  I try to walk within my heart rate until I build up to a higher speed.  You father walk/runs on the track.  It is a beautiful quiet day.  We went to Hannaford to get a better price on our produce, stocked up the fridge with mostly healthy foods for the week and settled into our computers.

I like to spend some time on Facebook.  I like to see what my friends are up to and to also share my thoughts and feelings.  Your father likes to know what is going on in the world.  He is listening to the Greek news.  When he is not listening to the Greek news he is surfing the net for information or watching the History channel.

Last night we played Monopoly.  Your father challenged me:  "If you are going to be nice and play like a girl do not sit down and play with me; I want you to play to win!"  OK.. needless to say we bankrupted the bank.  I insisted that we keep on playing until one of us goes broke and sells all of our property.  He had concerns that we would not make it to work on Monday morning.  So I let him win (my version)... but I made him sweat.  I wouldn't give up until the bank ran out of singles.

We are looking forward to the spring.  We sometimes have visitors when the weather is warm.  I have more games to play with friends - I am very young at heart.  I don't like to be serious. 

Sundays are pleasant in our home.  We get plenty of sunshine in from the windows and it is the only day of the week that I feel clean and organized.  As the sun sets, I will start preparing for the work week.  There is lots to do.

I am going to set my alarm to start going in to the office earlier so that I can get our earlier to live a better lifestyle.  Tomorrow night I am going to enjoy a pedicure with my good friend.  Tuesday night is stress management.  Wednesday night is Zumba.  Thursday night, I exercise at the work gym with a co-worker and Friday afternoon with another co-worker.  Then it is the weekend again.

Tomorrow will be a particularly eventful day as we will move forward with the domestic adoption.  We have  a phone interview during the day and we will proceed from there.  I am so excited to start planning for this :)

Tomorrow is also a major Greek holiday. "Evaggelismos".  We have many relatives that celebrate their names day tomorrow, including my mother, sister, two brother-in-laws and my uncle Angelo.  It is also the day that Greece declared independence against the Ottoman Empire.  In the Greek community the children will dress up in traditional Greek clothing.  They will have plays and recite poems at the Greek schools for the parents to attend.  In many areas of the country there are also Greek parades, if the weather permits.




 Most importantly, it is the day we celebrate the Annunciation of the Holy Virgin Mary.  Because this holiday, typically will take place during lent, it is customary to have fried Cod Fish with Garlic Mashed Potatoes for dinner.  The Greek traditions are very unique but also quite homogenous.  In the sense, that any Greek household at any given time, will most likely exhibit the same traditions.  We hope you choose to learn some of them.  It is up to you.

I will stop here because your father is out there and is about to make a crazy mistake with a ladder.  I need to keep an eye on him.

March 23, 2013

Although it is still wintery outside spring is around the corner.

Spring and "springtime" refer to the season, and also to ideas of rebirth, rejuvenation, renewal, resurrection, and regrowth.

As such, we have decided to pursue a second adoption!  We are so excited about it.  Just in time, too.  We have sorted out all other things in our lives and we are ready.

We attended a meeting at the agency that did our home study and we are able to do so with limited red tape.

It is going to be nice not to have to chase papers around and focus just on being selected by the right birth mother.  The one that will see us and know that we will love this baby and care for it.

On Monday, we will start the conversations with the director of domestic adoptions and take it from there.

The wait period will not be long.  Meanwhile, we are pushing forward with the Armenian adoption as we are looking forward to and patiently waiting for our Armenian baby.

Two babies :)

March 19, 2013

Dear baby,

I have not written in over a year.  I wanted to keep things positive.  We are still waiting.

Today is the day before spring; the photo above was taken today.

I ran into a good old friend and she reminded me of my blog.

As I write on this blog my hope for you grows, you become more real to me.  It is only a matter of time.

I have not written this last year.  Almost as if I wanted to erase it from history. 

What you must know about me is that I am highly sensitive.  I see all the bad and wrong in this world.

It makes me sad.  I see all of the good in this world and it makes me overly happy. Hard to understand.

I hope that you feel your senses like I do.  This earth has much beauty, but also many trappings.

Lust, greed, pride, envy.  It makes people mistreat each other.  That saddens me.

You will join this world and I will be responsible for your well-being.  I must first take care of my own.

Last year I wrote that I would focus on health.  I have allowed the above emotions to get in the way.

Please learn from my lesson.  It is OK to feel emotion, but you have to control it.  This is what I learned.

Every day I battle this inner battle with myself.  I look for the courage to get up and keep moving.

I look for opportunities to produce.  I look for opportunities to give.  We are here to give more; take less.

Exercise is vital for life.  I have to repeat this to myself every minute of the day.  Water is vital for life.

God intended for us to eat from the earth.  Fresh, whole fruits and vegetables, grains and legumes.

Why do I punish myself when people hurt my feelings?  This is not a good behavior and I will try to change.

There is still hope for me and you are my motivation.  I want to be a good role model for you.

I want to teach you right; I want to treat you right; you will look to me for direction as to how to behave.

This past year, I have been wrongly judged and accused.  It hurts so much that I cannot cope with it.

I must learn.  I must learn to assert my needs even if it means that I hurt another person.  I cannot carry it all.

I know many people will read this.  It is honest. My truth.  I may be judged for it; I must accept it.

Many teachers and good people have been put in my path.  I have guardian angels; they are at my job.

I appreciate them, they may not know it, but I really do.  I have friends that are guardian angels.

These friends are not in my life everyday.  Every once in a while, I am in need of wisdom and they are there.

These are not coincidences.  Your words and actions mold other peoples lives.  What you say and do.

Please choose wisely.  These are my ramblings for today.  Some experiences; some advice.  Some hope.

Love you very much.