Stress Levels @ Red Alert!

Friends, I could really use some prayer right now, on a lot of levels. School starts in 36 hours, where I will be teaching preschool (which I haven't done before) in the mornings, then switch to P.E. each afternoon. Although the first two days of preschool are basically ready, I haven't even started making decisions on PE yet. Add to that the fact that all of my PE equipment is in a new place and I haven't laid eyes on it yet, nor do I have the key to my new office.

Additionally, it looks like Arwyn (18 mos) who has been with me for about 4 1/2 weeks now will be staying for a while. Unfortunately, I do not have child care lined up and need to find something for the many hours I will be gone teaching each day! There is a plan, but we have yet to find a caregiver who will work out for me and the other family that will be sharing her.

Also, I do not have a housemate and the expenses of daily life are starting to weigh heavily on me as well. Not having a housemate for a few months was do-able, but looking ahead to the entire school year without someone to share expenses seems a bit tough.

Finally, the idea of being a full-time teacher and part-time parent is heavy on my heart as well, especially now with Arwyn in the picture (Daniel will actually be in preschool each morning with me). The physical side of things, like wondering if I will have enough energy at the end of each school day to be a mom that my kids want to be with, is a struggle too.

All of these are problems that can be solved easily by our very big God, so I ask that you join with me in prayer for the following:

• A good start to the school year. Both Thursday & Friday are "first" days for me -  I will teach 4 year olds, kinder, and grades 1 & 5 on Thursday; 3 year olds, kinder & grade 2 on Friday.
• A suitable, competent, loving househelper/nanny. We have an interview tomorrow afternoon - our fourth interview this month.
• Finances - for someone (even short-term) to share expenses and/or new supporters to come alongside to partner with me financially in what I am doing here in the Philippines.
• Physical strength for each day - I'm already a bit weary in the preparations and the school year hasn't actually started yet.

Thanks for praying!
~Kim

Summer, Babies, and More!

Yeah, ok, it's been nearly a year since I updated. Sigh...I'm SOOOO terrible at this stuff! Lots of things happen of course, in the day to day, and over the span of a year, but aside from facebook updates, I can't ever get my behind in gear to publish anywhere else. Seriously though, people, WHO is going to keep me accountable to at least monthly updates?!?!?

Hmm, so, what do you need to know...

First of all, let's start with the future. Not typical, I know, but perhaps it's what you want to know about most...the "what is she doing now" type of info. On August 2, 2012, the new school year at Faith Academy will begin, and I will be joining the ranks in PRESCHOOL!!! Yes, you heard/read correctly. From 5th grade all the way down to the wee-est ones! See, the deal is that with Daniel starting preschool this year, I can teach and be with him in the mornings (preschool classes are 7-11am), then continue teaching elementary PE in the afternoons (while Daniel goes to child care). And although his "class" only meets two mornings a week, I get a perk, as his teacher, that he gets to come to school with the 4-year old class the other three mornings too! It's totally win-win...aside from the fact that I don't really know how to teach preschool. But eh, I'll learn, right?

My super hero-adventurer!

Captain"Cook"

Last school year (which this blog skipped entirely - good one, Kim), I was full-time staff, teaching PE in the afternoons, but also coordinating all the volunteers. This meant processing applications of all volunteers around the school, as well as finding a substitute teacher anytime someone needed one. It was actually super stressful, and although I am very thankful for a job that I could do mostly from home which allowed me to spend time with Daniel, I am ALSO very thankful that I won't be doing it again next year!

Well, that's the future and the past (in the briefest version ever), so what's the present? Well, school ended on June 1, and that Sunday I picked up Baby C from Gentle Hands. She is (was?) 11 months old and the tiniest, cutest little thing! 

 

 Daniel was totally in love, calling her "my baby" and being totally protective.  We did a short 2-week foster, just to give her a different environment for a while, some special attention, and to give GH a little break. 

Week 3 of summer was spent baby-less, but at the start of week 4, we brought home Baby A. She is 17 months old, and WAAAY different than I thought she was going to be! See, she's not a big fan of people in general, and particularly white ones. Although I've known her since she was about a month old, and play with her weekly, she still cries when I (or any white person) come into the nursery. So it was time for "baby boot camp". Well, not really, but she also had been screaming pretty much for 2 weeks straight for whatever reason, so everyone at Gentle Hands kinda needed a break from her. I took her home with us on Sunday night, expecting to last maybe two days.

Serious face

Silly smiles!

But to my surprise, she has been so awesome! She toddles around, singing "Twinkle Twinkle" and other songs, chases Daniel around the house while shrieking in laughter, eats super well, signs lots of words, and even does some talking. She is so very happy most of the time when we are home, although new situations when we go out make her nervous. She is no extrovert like Daniel, but definitely has her own little personality! No idea how long I'll keep this one...

In Daniel-adoption news, we were officially "matched" in May, but have yet to get a court date. Currently, I need to get some papers to my lawyer, but that should be done next week. I'm praying (and you can pray too!) to be done by Christmas. Pray too, for "trial by commissioner". It's too much to explain here how the court process works, but if we got that, things would go MUCH more quickly.

Daniel is doing great - growing, learning, and having lots of fun. He's learning to recognize some sight words, with about 20 that he can identify most of the time. I love watching him grow up, but can't believe how little "baby" is left in him already! He's such a big boy (though still not quite tipping the scales at 30 pounds) and my little toddler has turned into a full-fledged 31/2 year old preschooler!

Ok, I could go on forever (this is the problem of not blogging for over a year), but I'll stop here. Maybe I'll write again soon...someone make me do this!

Love,

Kim 

(& Daniel too!)