All week I've replied to the many loving texts and emails asking me about news or info. If only I knew! So many things are hinged on which country we get. Everything we do has been affected by the hideous wait and the want of this information. Little things, normal things take on a new dimension. It goes something like this-
Kid: "Mom, check it out. The jacket I want is on sale!"
Me: "Well, if we end up living in Jakarta it will be hot all the time. You won't need a jacket. Let's wait and see what we learn on flag day. We don't really know what we need to buy just yet- plus it will add to the weight of all our stuff here. Seriously, please try to hold off on that until Flag Day."
See what I mean? Normal things that have little to do with flag day somehow become all about it and dig the hole deeper. You can take that same conversation/template and swap out the word "jacket" and replace it with "eggs" or "karate lessons", or "cool socks from Urban Outfitters"... and there you have it! Our life over the last few months.
I've had to seriously re-employ the "wait and see" muscles we developed during our adoption a few years ago. Adoptive parents understand what I'm talking about...the wait. The unbelievable truck loads of hope. The red tape and constant changes to the game plan. The brain battle of trying your best not to get shaken up over the worst possible outcome scenarios. These are important skills to have when you are no longer in control. Flag day and adoption- it is so much the same feeling!
Speaking of feelings... I keep going over my mental "where-o-meter" and trying to catch any vibe in my gut about which country we will be going to -but I keep coming up flat! Therefore, I am nearly completely convinced that we will be posted in DC for a year. My dream machine must be completely out of juice right now because I just can't seem to imagine us anywhere else for the time being.
No matter what tomorrow's big reveal holds, I will know that we are where we are supposed to be- which pretty much sums up the most important thing in Sean's and my life- our belief that God is very present in the details and that He is enjoying the fact we are ready and waiting for our biggest ride yet on the crazy bus.
It is now Friday, August 17th- just after midnight and 3pm seems like forever away. I am awake- which is nothing new- especially this week. My original plan was to try my very best to sleep in on Friday, thus reducing my awake time and making 3 pm come faster. However, it seems me and the kid (previously mentioned) are getting up early to go shopping. I hear there is a big sale on jackets.
-L
Waiting does suck. Fingers crossed for someplace AWESOME!!
ReplyDeleteFingers crossed you get somewhere great. I find that question incredibly daunting also. We are heading to the September 10 class in just a couple of weeks. Family of 5 plus 2 cats, coming from Texas:) Maybe we'll cross paths at some point....
ReplyDeleteErin, wish I could find your email so that I could write you. I would love to know where you are going to be living.
DeleteI can also share a few "pack out" tips, such as pack a couple of your favorite cookbook in your air freight! Please DO Bring all important papers with you in the car/plane- you'll be glad you did for school enrollment.
But my biggest advice is be ready for the pack out. The packing/moving people will attempt to control the whole thing, boss you around. Have a good idea of what 800 lbs (that was my family's allowance) of clothes and whatever you want to be with you in the apartment looks like. Our WII fit had a scale that worked well.
I told my kids we would be here for a few months and actually we'll be here a year! So- it can be quite tricky to pack all the clothes, toys, electronics (computer/printer/video game) into boxes that are meant to last you for your time here. It's impossible actually. We didn't pack many books- which is painful for my family! Unfortunately, we ended up packing a lot of clothes we could care less about. I was quite angry the day my UAE arrived and I discovered that at least 30 lbs of clothes were items that had been set aside for Goodwill but were instead packed up as part of my 800 lb limit. So please, learn from me on that one.
All of this -even though I had already attempted to separate it all out beforehand. I was woefully unprepared. I had tried having three sets: UAE/air freight, long term storage and HHE/house hold effects- but the packers reorganized our stuff into two piles - UAE and long term.
*** YOUR FAMILY WILL ONLY RECEIVE THE AIR FREIGHT (800 lbs for our family) WHILE YOU ARE HERE FOR TRAINING, no matter how long that is.
Good luck!
Our moving crew of two men from the Dallas area showed up a DAY EARLY.
Next time I'll be in charge and my piles or bags will be better labeled.