Good night, Westley. Good work. Sleep well. I'll most likely kill you in the morning.

So I have a new job.

I'm settling in.

It's a contract position, which is what we used to call a temp position. What happens though is that after six months if I want a job in the company I can start looking.

I want a job in the company. I want a job in my department as they are filled with really nice people.  Or at least that is how it seems so far. But that's not what this is about.

Today I got a call from my liaison at the temp agency. I swear when I realized it was her, I thought that I was going to be let go. I had a minor freak out.

It was a "just to see how things are going" call.
All is fine.
I freaked out for nothing.

It occurred to me that as she gets older, this is what my daughter will be feeling on a regular basis. She already gives us these amazing hugs saying "You Came Back!"  I hate like hell that she worries about this.

I mentioned this to my husband, who is also adopted. He says that yes, no matter what, there's this little wonder if you really get to stay with these parents.

I thought of the Princess Bride-- and the above quote.

I don't know what to do about this. I don't know how to make it better and I want to make it better. All I can do is try to be there for her and give her lots of hugs and make her laugh a lot.

And let her know that I love her. And let her know when she wants me to be there--I only have one answer. "As you wish."

Microblog Mondays: Do you know how to be a neighbor?

In most every bible class you learn the sayings.

Love thy neighbor as yourself.

That which is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor.

My question is, does anyone, in this day and age know how to be a good neighbor?
Where can we learn that.

I'm writing about the incident where a neighbor called CPS because an 11 year old boy played in his own yard for an hour and a half.

Here is my question--if you're really that concerned about the child, why not invite the child into your home? Worried he doesn't have enough food or water--give him a snack or something to drink?

Be a good neighbor.

If you don't know how--go to PBS and watch Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood with a toddler. Then you'll learn.

Microblog Mondays - When to push to be brave

Yesterday Lotus, D,  myself and our cousins A and her daughter--also adopted from china-- R went to a big amusement park. (Not Disney, but in the same vein.)

Since it was hot we confined ourselves to the water part of the park which was a lot of fun. There was a big raft ride and since we could all go on the ride together we waited on the line. R started saying she didn't want to go on the ride about halfway up the line. It looked too fast and some of the people screaming did not seem happy to her.  R is six and is noted for changing her mind--a lot. She wasn't certain of it though so she went up up up on the line.

When the time came to get in the raft, R had made her decision. She DID NOT want to go. It was too fast.

L on the other hand wanted to go with all her three year old heart. She looks up to R and adores her.  Why didn't she want to go?

The person helping us get in the raft convinced R to get in and try it.

It was a great ride. A great ride for me, Lotus, D, and my cousin A.

R hated it and started to cry all the way down. Lotus was loving it--well until the end when a wall of water splooshed over her head and she inhaled half of it. She did not like that and started to wail. We shook our finger at the water and gave it a time out and Lotus was fine.

R was not. She was really really upset and wanted her mom to know it. I felt bad. A felt bad that we had pushed her to do it.

I felt bad about it until I got home and told my friend about it.

He was astonished--not that she hated it, but that we felt bad for making her. He said that there will be times where she must go forward in spite of fear and instead of apologizing we should have praised how she got through it--crying and all. Sometimes the option to back out won't be there.

Now I don't know which was right.

I felt terrible when she was sobbing--but maybe I should have handled it differently. Would I if it were L?

Microblog Mondays--Strawberries

We went strawberry picking yesterday.

We didn't pick that much--or as much as we could but we still picked a lot.

Lotus LOVES strawberries. I really didn't know this, nor do I know who introduced them to her. I discovered it when we got a strawberry cheesecake and she just wanted the strawberries and didn't care for the cheesecake.

In this she is like my father. So much so you could be forgiven for thinking there is a genetic connection.

But there isn't.

There is so much that she likes that is similar to what we like with Lotus it astounds us. Some of it is the fact that both she and D are adopted. Mostly though, those people in the rooms in China--they know their stuff.

Now I have to figure out what to do with all the strawberries.

So sorry I dinged your car

Once I read an article in the the New York Times said that the worst drivers in Manhattan had one of three things.

1. They had New Jersey license plates
2. They were SUVs
3. They were SUVs with New Jersey license plates

Today when I got home from my job, I got off the train and went to the parking lot. 

There, next to my car, was an SUV with New Jersey license plates. As I live in New Jersey, I wasn't too surprised, but what really pissed me off is that the SUV was parked so close to my car that I couldn't open my car door. 

I had to climb in the passenger side and jump over the hump in the middle.  Not fun.

I considered leaving a note telling the driver that I was so sorry that I dinged your car, but since you parked so close to my car I'm not sorry enough to leave my name. I enjoyed the thought of the driver trying to find where I dinged the car--when I didn't. 

I didn't do it--but that helped me get through the drive home without hating humanity--well, at least until I got out of the parking lot into the New Jersey traffic--but that's another story.