Monday, May 12, 2008
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Azbuka
FYI
Azbuka
Dear CA Momma,
I am the editor of the only literary magazine for Russian-speaking children and their families living in the US. The magazine called "Malenkaya Kompaniya" (ISSN 1933-6020) is printed in NY and mailed to subscribers all over the country (and to some other countries, too). It encourages young kids and teens to read, both in Russian and English, and helps families that are interested in keeping the heritage language. We publish creative works of our readers (poems, stories, translations and drawings). Each issue is dedicated to a children's writer/genre and has a bilingual section where we publish English poems with Russian translations or Russian poems with English translations.
The magazine is done on volunteer basis, without any financial support from anybody, except for my family. That is why we need more subscribers. I would greatly appreciate if you could include a link to our website http://azbuka.universitet.us/ in your blog and pass the info to everybody who might be interested.
Thanks for your support,
Sincerely,
Alla.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Clarity
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Of Fees and Disgusting Events
Barnes & Noble.com - Books: Gotcha Capitalism, by Bob Sullivan, Paperback
So after my fiasco at the bank - yeesh, I noticed this book in the newly arrived display. Grabbed it and while paying a late fee (ahem) my daughter looks at the receipt and laughs as it has the words fee/call smashed together as her friend's doctor father had just told the girls something re: a dog's fecal matter blah blah...... now it is the constant word of the hour, thanks a lot guy. Anyway, we move on to the neighboring park where we had just had a little pic nic the other day.
EB comes running up with his nice new Lands End coat we had bought him for Christmas. We had been looking for it everywhere. Somehow by some miracle no one had touched it for several days. He was so happy as he basically is OCD about keeping his clothing and possessions near and in perfect shape. In the breeze is a most horrible smell, I stop him before he pushes the coat into my arms. My daughter screams "there is fecal matter in EB's coat!!!!!!!!!!"
Someone had used my beautiful boy's coat as a toilet (and it WASN'T a child). EB immediately drops it, Little K steps in it with her brand new shoes and EB starts to vomit and cry hysterically. Oldest son runs for the car and brings wipes and a plastic bag to put all offending shoes, coat etc in.
Yet another sign of some serious sins in my past life or a series of bad luck?
Even though we have all completely scrubbed ourselves and all clothing etc etc the smell is everywhere, I can't stop detecting ghostly whiff of seriously disgusting activity.
Did I say there are public toilets not 10 feet away?
Needless to say, I KNOW why no one took the coat now.
Happy day guys, and remember, when you take your children to the park, watch the cast off clothes, they may contain a surprise.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
ps
It pisses me off that I can't make the children on my Yahoo Avatar a different race than I am. Is anyone aware of how to do that if it IS possible?
Bad Karma
We found out that the builder of our addition did not caulk the widows when it rained the other night. Hubby was NOT happy. When calling his "buddy" re: this, he said, "Well, you left me alone!"
This is a man with a contractor's license. You would think that he would know better. Since we were paying him you would think he wouldn't need DH there babysitting him the whole time. As it was, we lost a WHOLE lot of money while DH WAS babysitting him. He did a " half-assed" job as my father would say.
Makes me so upset! This guy is so self important he was telling the neighbors that DH was going to go work for him as it was hard to "find good help" around here. Ummmmm, k.
I have just survived two weeks of my Mom decorating the addition and repainting the girls' room as I did not do it right. Today she stopped by to tell me that a bath towel isn't dirty when you only dry off with it once. That I should make sure that all children know this. That I should know this. It would cut down on electricity, water and time you know. AHhhhh! YES, I KNOW!
Got our first check from the adoption agency for the girls. I signed it, DH signed it and I put it in our account. The money was there for two days. I went grocery shopping, I bought paint for my mother's project, I bought socks, shoes and underwear. I got gas.
The bank rejected the check. My last name is hyphenated. My name on the check had only my maiden name. All those shopping trips- all the checks I wrote bounced. Including my house payment after all the overdraft and service fees were taken out, over seven hundred dollars worth. They took over a week getting the check back to me. The day I called customer service they insisted they mail it back to the "rightful depositer" the next day which, according to them, was my husband. Why? because he has a penis?
Anyway, they didn't put enough postage on the envelope and it was sent back to them, then they used the same envelope and put more postage on it. So, I deposited the check on the 4th, they took the money back out on the 7th. Mailed it back on the 9th with not enough postage, they tried again on the 11th, I got the check on the 14th. On that day I had to take my marriage certificate and MY HUSBAND to the bank, so that he could "approve" of my depositing the check. What is this 1608?
I must have been some extremely shitty person in my previous life.
No, they will NOT reverse any of the fees because it was NOT a bank error. And I need to speak more respectfully to them thank you very much
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Finally, A Post
So, its been 20 days since I last posted. I am so TIRED!! Next week N (I can't think of a cute little name for her right now) the oldest sister turns 4. For some odd reason I found that I was thinking by some miracle that particular day would help me with her behavior. K the younger one is even more set on testing me EVERY SINGLE MOMENT of the day.
I am keeping K in a sling with me. Things go a lot easier that way.
Without it she is hitting and kicking all the animals and other children. The other morning she called me a bitch and told me she was going to kick my ass for not putting ice cream in her bowl for breakfast. A 2 year old.
To tell the truth, it was all I could do not to laugh in her raging little face. She was just livid, her feet braced apart, hands in fists, one shaking at me the other at her hip. The older children are giving her a wide berth, except for C the oldest and most patient. He still thinks she is cute and when I let her out of the sling, she toddles after him as fast as her little legs can go. For a while anyway, until she can find the nearest thing to hit as hard as she can. That includes the neighbor girls that have had the audacity to take "her N" away to play. N can only play with her evidently.
N actually lets K boss her around and man handle her quite a bit. She is two times as big as her little sister, yet K really does try to "kick her ass". The swearing has started to subside. The total fear of the outdoors is receding and they ARE starting to open up.
They are opening up about things I thought I was prepared for. Yet you are NEVER prepared for the confidences of an abused toddler. The SWs were unaware of the extent of the abuse but I am documenting their statements and keeping all SW's informed. The latest was at their Dr's appt. when the Dr. was writing a prescription for a powdered laxative b/c I told her it is basically a scream fest when she tries to have a bm. I've tried prunes etc but she just holds it forever. It hurts her to have me button her pants. Her little tummy gets SO big. Anyway, little K disclosed something at that point that made me want to cry and the doctor turned to me to say "That is why she is holding her bms." So matter of fact.
I better go..... its too quiet.
To answer a question:
The age and number of my children:
CG is 9- a boy. Bio
CR is 7- a girl. Bio
I is a newly turned 6 yr old son adopted from Russia in 04.
Now there is N who will be 4 this month- a girl. Fos Adopt
and K who is 2 and turns 3 this summer. Fos Adopt.
Monday, March 03, 2008
Home Upside Down
Thank You for the concern my friends. I still have a cough, especially in the cold air but am MUCH better thank you.
The girls have been here for a week and are soaking up so much love and attention that we have little time for anything else. The pile of unfolded laundry on the couch is getting higher and higher.
Tomorrow I have to drive 3 hours to see the girls' SW and get their Medi Cal cards because the Foster Mom didn't give them to me. She just forgot I guess. She also only gave me enough clothes for two days and nights. I dug around the storage containers in the garage and found some of my oldest daughter's (feels kind of funny to say that- "oldest" daughter) clothes. She has been a big help to me.
The little one has regressed a bit and I think I am going to have to buy pull ups.
My SW is coming over on Wednesday.
My DH is having a great time with all the kids but is still stressed out as the plumber that was supposed to come and do a few last things has not shown up. So.... the house is a wreck, we are exhausted and crowded but happy.
