This Saturday morning, Tracy sits in her pajamas on the living room couch putting the finishing touches on a sermon she'll preach this evening. Meanwhile Shahra is highlighting important verses in her father's third-grade sunday school Bible (don't worry folks, it's a fake pen and doesn't leave a mark).Later, Jeff will comment on students' writing assignments, returning them electronically, so that his pupils can glean from his teacherly wisdom and work this weekend on a major draft due Tuesday. He's proud of his paperless classroom and tech savy students.
This is how you might find us spending our Saturdays. It's the one day of the week we can lounge, grab breakfast and catch up on sleep. After noon, we'll get active. Maybe go shopping, do some reading, clean. It's a time to stop and rest a bit.
On the adoption front:
We're still waiting, hoping for a referral in May or June. We'll see how things go this spring. The good news is that the Ethiopia program has become much more popular. More kids are finding homes, but that means wait times have increased slightly. In addition, our agency and the Ethiopia government are being much more stringent on rules and regulations. This means time between referral and travel have also increased. As a result, we're hoping to travel by October?? We know that this will all happen in God's time and hope that things continue to move forward smoothly, though a bit slower than we hope.
Shahra's life:
Shahra's language skills have continued to increase greatly. She is putting together short sentences and asking us independently thought out questions. So, instead of just asking us questions about concrete things in the room, she is now asking about events in the future that we were not talking about as a family. Also, Shahra is just about potty trained at daycare, but is being quite stubborn about the process at home. For those interested in Shahra's feelings about the 2008 presidential race, check out this link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfBU80KRIUc
Tracy's changes:
In addition to my work at St. Vincent, I have also taken on a part time position at our church, Holy Trinity in Muncie, IN. My work includes regular preaching, assisting during worship services, adult education and leading in ministry programs. This position came as a surprise, and we are moving forward with cautious optimisim.
Jeff's life:
Jeff is focusing on technology and language in his program. In short, how is technology impacting writing, the ways in which people interact with each other and how they see the world. This is a specialization in the English department, and Jeff is hopeful that learning about these things will help him connect to students and become a better teacher.
In our spare time:
We're following the elections closely and enjoying the excitment it is bringing across the country. We can't wait until Super Tuesday and plan to have a party as we watch the returns well into the night. We're also planning to attend a Super Bowl party with some St. Vincent friends. Finally, we've discovered the amazing abilities of Google and IGoogle. For those who are looking to learn new internet skills, go to google.com, then igoogle (top right corner). You can create your own homepage, use an online calander/planner and use many other functions you never knew you needed.
That's all for now. Hope this finds you well and warm.
Tracy, Jeff, and Shahra
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