Overwhelmed

I've been feeling a bit overwhelmed recently, so I haven't been on here much. There's no one big thing, just a lot of little things. My car broke as soon as I left work on Monday, so I pulled in to the next driveway (I'm so glad I wasn't on the highway!) and waited for a tow truck. My 45 minute ride home ended up being closer to 4 hours, and Mark had to come and get me. The dealership we took it to was closing right as we got there, so we had to leave it for them to look at the next morning. We knew what was wrong but was hoping it could be repaired instead of replaced. No such luck. Plus it took a full day to get the part, so I was without a car until Wednesday night.

In the meantime, we went on the dealership's website and found a Honda Odyssey that we liked and that was a great price. Mark checked it out on Tuesday and was undecided since it had just arrived and hadn't been detailed yet. I was excited about the possibility, so when we picked up the car on Wednesday, we planned on looking at it again. I loved it, but someone had put down and over-the-phone deposit on it an hour before we got there :( We're waiting to see if the deal actually goes through since the buyer hasn't gotten financing yet (and we already do), and we should find out on Monday. We weren't looking at buying a van this soon, but we had someone offer to buy our car when we were ready to sell it, and we definitely need the extra space. It also would be almost an even exchange, so our payments wouldn't go up much at all. I'm praying we get it! (If we don't, we won't actively look for a van until next year.)

I don't think that I ever mentioned it on here, but Auntie E's sister was pregnant and due this winter. She was considering adoption, and of course, I thought it would be great to keep the kids together with their cousin. However, when I talked to Auntie E earlier this week, she told me that her sister aborted the baby last week. That was hard to hear, and Auntie E was very upset over it. (She is very much against abortion.) I just don't understand how someone can do that to her child.

Another thing we talked about was getting together just the two of us, which I've been wanting to do for a long time. We spent every Thursday together when she was pregnant with Michelle, but we haven't had any one-on-one time since then. One thing we're going to do is go to the courthouse (or wherever it is that you go) to get copies of Michelle's birth certificate. Only birthparents can request original birthcertificates (or the kids once they're 18), and they can only do so before the adoption is finalized. Auntie E wants a copy, so she's more than willing to do it for me. I'm getting two--one for us and one for her. I can't believe how cheap it is to get a regular birthcertificate. It's close at least $45 for the post-adoption one! I wish we could get Steven's, but once the adoption is finalized, the original is sealed and it takes a court order to get it. We have to hurry, though, because we have our final home study soon, and the adoption will be finalized shortly after that.

Steven's been is very much in a "no" stage. I hear "no" non-stop every day. Occasionally he tells himself no, but he's usually telling me no. He's also into possessions right now. He likes to tell me what is "Steven's," which is almost everything in the house. Every once in a while, he lets me know that something is "Mommy's." I think that Michelle has been "given" a toy or two. Crazy kid! He's had a hard week too, though, because his yeast infection is back and getting worse instead of better. Tonight his blisters were raw again and almost looked like they had been bleeding. Poor kid! I'm going to call the doctor on Monday, but since I work that day, I probably won't be able to take him in until Tuesday.

He's also picking up so many new words and is getting too smart for his own good. The other day he opened the refrigerator, crouched down, and said, "let's see" while checking out the contents. :) He also steals remotes, and when he was trying to turn on the tv with the wrong remote, he handed it to me and told me that it was broken. He's into basketball and loves to play outside. He still loves baths and is now interested in the potty. I pulled up the potty chair that we were given, and he knew what it was and how it worked. He lifted up the lid and plopped down on it (fully clothed!). Before his bath, I put him on it (naked this time), and it was hard to get him off. I had to entice him with bubbles in the bathtub to get him off!

Michelle's doing great too. She's working on sitting up and loves playing with her toys and anything else she can get her hands on. She loves to eat but spits up constantly. It's bad enough that my sisters don't even want to hold her (and I really don't blame them!).

This has gotten way too long, but I'm posting it anyway :) Mark leaves on a three day/night business trip tomorrow, so I don't know if I'll get around to posting any pictures, but I'll try not to wait over a week to post again!