May updates

We haven't made any adoption progress, per se.  Mostly, we're getting the word out that we're looking for a baby girl / fundraising / and trying to figure out (still) the direction that we're going to pursue:
1 -Will we be lucky enough to find a private adoption?   
2 - Will we use the same adoption consultant we used previously who has all of the opportunities across the country?   
3 - Will we go the traditional route and apply at ONE adoption agency and wait?

We don't have the answers, so we just keep pushing the word-of-mouth while fundraising... so if option 1 doesn't pan out, we can afford option 2 (preferable) or 3.  I'll be honest... it's tough.  Because we've been putting ourselves "out there" & letting people know what we're hoping to do... lots of people ask about progress made.   No "major" progress to report, unfortunately. 

We had another sale to raise funds towards the adoption.  We don't really have enough stuff to hold a yard sale, so we sold plants from the yard, baked goods, & fresh-squeezed lemonade.  It was a lot of work for me (several weekends of prep digging up / thinning out plants) + Todd (squeezing 8 lbs of lemons).   Most of the "customers" were neighbors and friends.  There were a few people who stopped by because of the signs at the top of the street.  There was even someone who stopped by because she was lost and bought a cup of lemonade for directions (we would've given her directions without buying lemonade, though)!  My favorite memory of the day was two 12-year-old girls from the neighborhood who were laying in a shady spot under our tree "hanging out" while they were waiting on a new batch of lemonade to be made.  They were talking to two 6 year-old-girls who were laying - both propped on their elbows hanging on every word the older girls were saying.  The younger girls were on cloud nine hanging out with the older girls ~ it was priceless.
Mercer "pushed" lemonade on ANYONE who came up to the sale... if someone stopped because they were interested in plants -- he would bring them some even if they didn't ask for it. We had borrowed a dispenser - which M could use - so he would get a cup, put in a little dribble of lemonade in it, and bring it over.  It wouldn't be enough to quench a thirst, but how could you turn that down??  Oh yeah -- and for the record -- fresh lemonade is very labor-intensive, but oh-so-good & worth every penny that the seller asks!!

We're going to hold another pancake breakfast soon - now that Mercer's Soccer Skills class has ended.

He really did improve quite a bit from that first lesson he took where he "gave up" before the end of the class.  Yes - he's only 4 - so it's understandable that he thought the first class was hard.  But we are especially proud that he stuck with it each weekend and even played in the rain on his last class.  He remembered some of the things that his coach taught about how to kick the ball with the top of your foot or inside of the foot instead of with the toe.  He also can "dribble" (kicking the ball lightly -- passing between feet) while running.   The league in which he played also handed out some very nice medals of completion.   All-in-all, we are happy that he finished and completed the class.  He learned some skills on listening and practice and the kids even played as a team a few times too.  We were thinking about trying T-ball this fall to see how it goes, but maybe pick up soccer again next spring?  Who knows?

Another nice thing that happened this month:  we were hanging out in a neighbor's front yard one evening.  This neighbor has some raised beds there and while we were standing around / talking, she tugged on some leaves that were standing up out of the dirt.  Out came a carrot from seed she had sprinkled in during the winter.  She asked Mercer to help and he was elated and would even squeal - look what I got!!  This generous neighbor grabbed a handful of these leaves and sent us home with a bunch of carrots.  After we washed them up, Mercer happily ate one as a snack (and we ended up cooking with the rest).  But - he kept talking about how he got the carrot from Mrs Barbara's yard!  This, after all, is why we are participating in the community garden & why we raise tomatoes / herbs in our back yard.  It was the perfect example of how kids will eat something they grew and harvested!  ~yay~ 

Speaking of which - we also picked strawberries and harvested mulberries from the tree in the back.  I've been making jam with the two, as it makes a nice blend.

I'll write about Mother's Day in the next post & will try to get it out much sooner! 
Have a great week, Candice