Just a Little Peek at My Last Week

This has been a crazy busy week. Here are some of the things I've worked on to get the orphanage ready for my departure and myself ready for a fundraising tour and my son ready for the U.S.

• I wrote out meal ideas for the kids and Tom to follow while I'm away. They gave me their input on what they thought they could do and then I typed out the recipes and put them in a folder with plastic sleeves.

• The master shopping list has been updated and reviewed for accuracy--it now follows the aisles of the store exactly. This is so important because we can't just dash out to the store again if we forget something.

• I inventoried each of my kids' closets. This meant having them try things on. Since they don't have walk in closets (actually, they don't have closets at all), we had to just do the thing in their room. My kids are extremely conservative and so hated the whole process. "Don't look, Mom!! Keep your head turned!!!" Good fun!

• Because I can't take the kids to a store to try on clothes I have to take measurements, look at existing clothes that fit somewhat and then go online to sort out what size they might wear. When they were younger it was much more straightforward but now....I have no idea! Timothy is six foot and so I think the 33 inch length will be good for him but the waist is gonna be hard to do. 30 and 31 are both tight on him but 32 is such a jump from 30. I'm worried about bringing clothes home and him not being able to wear them. Jasmine is now in adult sizes but a child size 16 still fits her. According to her measurements she should be a four or six but then sizes vary so much store by store.....I think I may be able to take her sisters with me to check on sizes. She's taller than one and curvier than the other but we'll figure it out.

• Tom and I have been working on our promo video. You know the feeling when you have a picture taken of you that you're not exactly fond of? Well, imagine that photo with added sound and movement and then imagine seeing it a gillion times as you edit and tweak and edit and tweak and then show it over and over and over again to crowds of people and have to stand up and speak afterward. Oh yeah. That is my life.

• I'm actually feeling quite good about the video. It's an interesting look at the orphanage. The kids are adorable and Tom is doing a fantastic job, as always, on the editing.

• We took our family portrait. I'll be sharing that with you a bit later on. Thank you for all your input on what to do about the emptier nest aspect. I'm happy with how we worked it out.

• We had to update our promotional brochure as well. This meant searching for/taking new photos and doing research to make sure the statistics were all correct.

• I'm also filing all my paperwork and making sure that things are where they are supposed to me. When Tom calls me in the States a few weeks from now looking for a piece of paper I can't tell him it's in the shorter left hand stack under the desk. 

• All the schedules for the orphanage are being reworked and reprinted so that it is very clear who is supposed to be where at what time. I've printed up a calendar that says when to pay each bill and any other recurring appointments that come up.

• In the midst of all this I've been decluttering and tidying as well. Mainly so I can find my things and pack them. LOL

The only thing that has slowed me down this week has been baby Peter. Last weekend he came down with malaria and has had a bad cough for a couple weeks. I had him with me all week and he slept in our room so I could keep an eye (ear, actually) on his breathing. He is a happy baby but has started being a bit more clingy and needy. I would have him playing on a blanket on the floor and if he began fussing I would try to distract him with a toy but as I walked up to him he would grin and lift his little arms. Who can resist that?? Needless to say, I spent a good portion of this week cuddling this little guy.