Tuesday, April 21, 2009
JENAFER COMES TO TEXAS....
We had a lot of fun while Dave's sister, Jenafer visited us for almost a week. We picked her up in Oklahoma City and it was cold! The kids got to spend their first night in a hotel room and we had dinner at "Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill". We also spent time in the indoor pool at the hotel. The next day after a great breakfast we headed off to Canton, OK. Never heard of it? Neither had we but Jenafer's friend Perlie White and her husband opened a restaurant there. We had a great lunch and the kids got to play with the couples cute little dog. After that we headed back to Oklahoma City and took a boat ride on Bricktown river. We visited with Jen's friends in Norman, OK and then headed home. Jen had fun the next 5 days visiting the Fort Worth Stockyards, Liz's parents and family,swimming at the City of Allen Natatorium and just spending a lot of time with the kids. We spoiled her with lunch at Bar-b-cutie, Rudy's, Babe's and Freebird's. Jenafer made breakfast on Sunday morning and I made her my famous London Broil steak. We invited the Goode's, the Garvin's and the van der Upwiches to dinner. The last night Jen made a great dinner for us and we finished it off with ice cream at Braum's. We were glad that Jen came out to Texas to visit and the kids were sad to see her go. They wanted her to stay here forever and we had to explain that Uncle David would miss her!
Nia Vardalos Adoption
It's late January.
Usually around this time of year, there's a pulsing coming from my purse. I don't pay attention to it, but like a heart beating in a horror movie, it won't be ignored.
It's my New Year's Resolution List.
If I open my purse to root out a dusty M&M, the list smugly stares up, "didn't you break up with blue food?"
My New Year's Resolution List usually starts with the desire to lose between ten and three thousand pounds. In the middle, I list career goals and coveted shoes. Somewhere near the end I'll add something about donating more often to charity and reducing my carbon footprint.
I start out with good intentions but by mid-January, the list will be stuck to my cheek because I napped on it as I watched fit people exercise on cable TV.
By the end of January I detest the list and avoid it, all crunched up at the bottom of my purse. By February I've bought a new purse.
This year, I got to put something different on my list. I wrote just one thing: I resolved to be a good mother.
So, this is the first year I don't loathe my list. In fact, I laminated it. I'm thinking to make it into a brooch. Too much?
I got to write this first time-resolution because early last year, my husband Ian Gomez and I adopted a little girl.
...not because an adopted child seems to be the latest Hollywood must-have accessory. But because, after ten years of banging my head against the brick wall of infertility, I accepted there was another plan for me. And (cue music swell) motherhood turned out to be the most meaningful thing I've ever done with my life. Really.
It wasn't easy to adopt an American child. Actually it's quite simple, but finding out how to do it was the hard part.
I tried many routes that fell through or didn't work out. Then I waited on many lists. The phone didn't ring.
Later, I was put in touch with a lawyer who works with, how shall I put this daintily... known people in my industry, and was informed I could be put at the top of The List and "have an infant within three days." But didn't that mean I would be moving someone down the list? Someone who had waited? Yeah, wrong.
I didn't know what to do. So, I kept asking questions.
A common misconception is that to get a kid you just have to go to another country and be as pretty as Angelina Jolie. As studio executives and movie reviewers have informed me again and again -- I'm not.
So I asked -- don't we have orphanages in the States? I found out no, we don't. But we do have 500,000 kids in foster care. 129,000 are legally free for adoption and waiting for a family. I was stunned.
I realized there was simply no reason to not adopt an "older child." Why not? 129,000 legally free children with no home? In a white hot moment, I knew this was what I had been waiting for.
And now I want to write that it was really easy. But, no. No, it wasn't.
The next phase took a while because the information on how to adopt from foster care just isn't out there. Not sure who to approach, I went directly to the State and said I was open to any sex, age and ethnic background.
Oh goodie, they exclaimed, because then they could place an at-risk multiple sibling-set in my house on a trial basis, and an adoption might come out of it after the parental rights were terminated in court in a few years.
My mouth went dry. Like, just-licked-a-pumice-stone dry. That sounded complicated. But, I really, really wanted to be a parent. So, I said "okay!"
I did ask about the 129,000 children who were already legally free and was told there was a process and I had to be patient through the legal system. I explained I thought I would be connected with a child who was waiting for a home. Again, they explained I had to trust their procedures. I now felt apprehensive, thinking I might get lost in yet another situation that wouldn't resolve in a positive way.
At this point, it had been years of trying so many routes, of waiting on so many lists. I kept thinking about those statistics of how many kids were in foster care. Then, I remembered... when I was in the cast at The Second City, we used to improvise in front of an audience. That's a trapeze without a net. In this same way, I felt...I just had to jump. So I repeated, "okay!"
I was sent away with a thick packet of fingerprinting forms and a daunting Home Study kit. As I sorted through the mounds of paperwork, I found out about... (cue lightbulb click) FFA's.
That's when things finally accelerated.
An FFA -- Foster Family Agency -- helps individuals navigate the state system. The people (I like to call them super-pretty angels) at the FFA we worked with were helpful, compassionate and organized. They assisted with the paperwork, explained and set up the Home Study and did a nationwide search for a legally free child they felt we could be good parents to. Nine months later through their various connections, we were "matched" with our daughter. Working with a private lawyer, our adoption was finalized within a year.
And yes, she is perfect. She is a toddler, under the age of five, and to say she's adapted well would be a huge understatement. The experience of transitioning this child was astonishing and well, just too personal to go into now. We kept it quiet for almost a year to protect her privacy and give her time to adjust.
Last November as the holidays approached, my husband and I thought about the 129,000 kids waiting for a family and decided to announce our daughter's adoption to raise awareness of National Adoption Month.
This is why I'm writing about this now. Maybe there are other people out there who want to adopt a child through FosAdopt.
I will tell you this much: you will meet amazing people who will reaffirm your belief in the goodness of the human spirit. These people are committed to helping children achieve a fresh start in life.
One of these groups, The Alliance For Children's Rights invited me to be part of a fantastic event called National Adoption Day.
On November 15th, 2008, in over 300 cities, 4,000 children were adopted in one day. All this paperwork is processed in one day, because several hundred lawyers and judges work pro bono to assist in the finalization of these applications so parents who may not be able to afford lawyers and court fees, can adopt a child.
I met amazing people that day -- single mothers who adopted older children, gay couples who were adopting again, families who had biological children and adopted more, older couples who fulfilled children's dreams of finding a family.
I even got to go into the courtroom and assist in the adoption of two children. I was actually allowed to ask two women the Oath Questions I myself had answered. Like me, they promised to be good mothers to their children.
Usually around this time of year, there's a pulsing coming from my purse. I don't pay attention to it, but like a heart beating in a horror movie, it won't be ignored.
It's my New Year's Resolution List.
If I open my purse to root out a dusty M&M, the list smugly stares up, "didn't you break up with blue food?"
My New Year's Resolution List usually starts with the desire to lose between ten and three thousand pounds. In the middle, I list career goals and coveted shoes. Somewhere near the end I'll add something about donating more often to charity and reducing my carbon footprint.
I start out with good intentions but by mid-January, the list will be stuck to my cheek because I napped on it as I watched fit people exercise on cable TV.
By the end of January I detest the list and avoid it, all crunched up at the bottom of my purse. By February I've bought a new purse.
This year, I got to put something different on my list. I wrote just one thing: I resolved to be a good mother.
So, this is the first year I don't loathe my list. In fact, I laminated it. I'm thinking to make it into a brooch. Too much?
I got to write this first time-resolution because early last year, my husband Ian Gomez and I adopted a little girl.
...not because an adopted child seems to be the latest Hollywood must-have accessory. But because, after ten years of banging my head against the brick wall of infertility, I accepted there was another plan for me. And (cue music swell) motherhood turned out to be the most meaningful thing I've ever done with my life. Really.
It wasn't easy to adopt an American child. Actually it's quite simple, but finding out how to do it was the hard part.
I tried many routes that fell through or didn't work out. Then I waited on many lists. The phone didn't ring.
Later, I was put in touch with a lawyer who works with, how shall I put this daintily... known people in my industry, and was informed I could be put at the top of The List and "have an infant within three days." But didn't that mean I would be moving someone down the list? Someone who had waited? Yeah, wrong.
I didn't know what to do. So, I kept asking questions.
A common misconception is that to get a kid you just have to go to another country and be as pretty as Angelina Jolie. As studio executives and movie reviewers have informed me again and again -- I'm not.
So I asked -- don't we have orphanages in the States? I found out no, we don't. But we do have 500,000 kids in foster care. 129,000 are legally free for adoption and waiting for a family. I was stunned.
I realized there was simply no reason to not adopt an "older child." Why not? 129,000 legally free children with no home? In a white hot moment, I knew this was what I had been waiting for.
And now I want to write that it was really easy. But, no. No, it wasn't.
The next phase took a while because the information on how to adopt from foster care just isn't out there. Not sure who to approach, I went directly to the State and said I was open to any sex, age and ethnic background.
Oh goodie, they exclaimed, because then they could place an at-risk multiple sibling-set in my house on a trial basis, and an adoption might come out of it after the parental rights were terminated in court in a few years.
My mouth went dry. Like, just-licked-a-pumice-stone dry. That sounded complicated. But, I really, really wanted to be a parent. So, I said "okay!"
I did ask about the 129,000 children who were already legally free and was told there was a process and I had to be patient through the legal system. I explained I thought I would be connected with a child who was waiting for a home. Again, they explained I had to trust their procedures. I now felt apprehensive, thinking I might get lost in yet another situation that wouldn't resolve in a positive way.
At this point, it had been years of trying so many routes, of waiting on so many lists. I kept thinking about those statistics of how many kids were in foster care. Then, I remembered... when I was in the cast at The Second City, we used to improvise in front of an audience. That's a trapeze without a net. In this same way, I felt...I just had to jump. So I repeated, "okay!"
I was sent away with a thick packet of fingerprinting forms and a daunting Home Study kit. As I sorted through the mounds of paperwork, I found out about... (cue lightbulb click) FFA's.
That's when things finally accelerated.
An FFA -- Foster Family Agency -- helps individuals navigate the state system. The people (I like to call them super-pretty angels) at the FFA we worked with were helpful, compassionate and organized. They assisted with the paperwork, explained and set up the Home Study and did a nationwide search for a legally free child they felt we could be good parents to. Nine months later through their various connections, we were "matched" with our daughter. Working with a private lawyer, our adoption was finalized within a year.
And yes, she is perfect. She is a toddler, under the age of five, and to say she's adapted well would be a huge understatement. The experience of transitioning this child was astonishing and well, just too personal to go into now. We kept it quiet for almost a year to protect her privacy and give her time to adjust.
Last November as the holidays approached, my husband and I thought about the 129,000 kids waiting for a family and decided to announce our daughter's adoption to raise awareness of National Adoption Month.
This is why I'm writing about this now. Maybe there are other people out there who want to adopt a child through FosAdopt.
I will tell you this much: you will meet amazing people who will reaffirm your belief in the goodness of the human spirit. These people are committed to helping children achieve a fresh start in life.
One of these groups, The Alliance For Children's Rights invited me to be part of a fantastic event called National Adoption Day.
On November 15th, 2008, in over 300 cities, 4,000 children were adopted in one day. All this paperwork is processed in one day, because several hundred lawyers and judges work pro bono to assist in the finalization of these applications so parents who may not be able to afford lawyers and court fees, can adopt a child.
I met amazing people that day -- single mothers who adopted older children, gay couples who were adopting again, families who had biological children and adopted more, older couples who fulfilled children's dreams of finding a family.
I even got to go into the courtroom and assist in the adoption of two children. I was actually allowed to ask two women the Oath Questions I myself had answered. Like me, they promised to be good mothers to their children.
It was a day so filled with love and joy I felt like there were cartoon bluebirds chirping above those kids' heads. I cried like someone's crazy aunt at a graduation.
It was amazing, uplifting and a better Slurpee head-rush than I've had on any red carpet. (Except for the time I didn't wear undies. Cue my mom's phone call "why would you tell them thaaaat?") But I digress.
So if you're interested...let's discuss adoption.
There seems to be the impression that it's difficult to adopt in the U.S. Having been through the system, I want to tell people how to do it: just find an FFA (Foster Family Agency.)
An FFA will help you navigate the system -- they will walk you through the paperwork, the necessary and thorough background screening process, and the procedure of adopting from foster care in the U.S.
I would never disparage anyone who goes outside their own country to adopt -- every child deserves a home. I am Canadian with U.S. citizenship, and I would have adopted from any country -- I signed up on many waiting lists. I do want to point out the U.S. FosAdopt route includes a child's full medical and health record. In terms of your child's lifelong medical care, full disclosure can help. (Again, it's not necessary so if you want to adopt from anywhere -- any country, any planet -- do it.)
U.S. FosAdopt welcomes families of all income levels, and unlike private adoption is virtually cost-free. The FosAdopt system doesn't discriminate -- single parents, older couples, all may apply. A family is a family, and there are 129,000 kids waiting for one. Our daughter came to live with us, and turned our house into a home.
Nia Vardalos is an Academy Award and Golden Globe nominated screenwriter and actress. Her next films are the romantic comedies My Life In Ruins, and I Hate Valentine's Day, which she wrote and directed.To learn more go to:
hnationaladoptionday.org
kids-alliance.org
adoptuskids.org
To find your local FFA, go to: childwelfare.gov/nfcad
Canada
Happiness
It was amazing, uplifting and a better Slurpee head-rush than I've had on any red carpet. (Except for the time I didn't wear undies. Cue my mom's phone call "why would you tell them thaaaat?") But I digress.
So if you're interested...let's discuss adoption.
There seems to be the impression that it's difficult to adopt in the U.S. Having been through the system, I want to tell people how to do it: just find an FFA (Foster Family Agency.)
An FFA will help you navigate the system -- they will walk you through the paperwork, the necessary and thorough background screening process, and the procedure of adopting from foster care in the U.S.
I would never disparage anyone who goes outside their own country to adopt -- every child deserves a home. I am Canadian with U.S. citizenship, and I would have adopted from any country -- I signed up on many waiting lists. I do want to point out the U.S. FosAdopt route includes a child's full medical and health record. In terms of your child's lifelong medical care, full disclosure can help. (Again, it's not necessary so if you want to adopt from anywhere -- any country, any planet -- do it.)
U.S. FosAdopt welcomes families of all income levels, and unlike private adoption is virtually cost-free. The FosAdopt system doesn't discriminate -- single parents, older couples, all may apply. A family is a family, and there are 129,000 kids waiting for one. Our daughter came to live with us, and turned our house into a home.
Nia Vardalos is an Academy Award and Golden Globe nominated screenwriter and actress. Her next films are the romantic comedies My Life In Ruins, and I Hate Valentine's Day, which she wrote and directed.To learn more go to:
hnationaladoptionday.org
kids-alliance.org
adoptuskids.org
To find your local FFA, go to: childwelfare.gov/nfcad
Canada
Happiness
Friday, April 17, 2009
FORT WORTH STOCK YARDS
While Auntie Jen was visiting we went to the Fort Worth Stock Yards. Dallas is very "city" while Fort worth is very "country". We saw cows and horses and lots of people. It seems that with it being NASCAR weekend everyone visited the stockyards on that Saturday! We had fun shopping and looking at fun stuff. We also spent way too much money on candy at the candy store! We even saw a guy who looked like a old short Elvis! Mostly we were grateful that our camera was lost ...and found in a matter of minutes!
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
DINNER WITH AUNTIE JEN!
The night before Aunt Jen returned to Las Vegas she cooked a wonderful meal for all of us! The kids helped out too! Afterwards we all went to Braum's for ice cream!
EASTER FUN WITH THE COUSINS
The day before Easter we went to Aunt Diane's (and Joe's) house for a fun family Easter get together. We had a lot of food and the kids had fun doing a Easter egg hut. Joe and Diane had all 4 of there kids in town plus all 16 grandkids so there were lots of kids for our kids to play with! Everyone had a good time our kids went home very tired!
A DAY AT THE TEMPLE
Last Saturday our ward primary kids had a special day at the temple where they learned how families can be together forever. "Families Are Forever" is also the theme this year in Primary and are our kids have had fun learning about the temple. We met at the church and then went down to the Dallas Temple were we sang primary songs, toured the temple grounds and the temple president talked to the kids about the temple. Our kids got to wear their new church clothes that Grandma Kathy got the kids for Easter. We thought that they looked way too grown up and we are in no hurry for them to grow up! We cannot wait to be sealed together as a family at the Dallas Temple on September 5th, 2009!
Monday, April 13, 2009
EASTER
Easter 2009 was the first Easter for the new Anderson clan. The kids woke up to find Easter baskets from the Easter bunny that had balls to play with outside and toy horses. They also got Easter candy but the Easter bunny did not give them too much! We topped off the day with a wonderful Easter dinner with a ham that Dad smoked!
Sunday, April 12, 2009
TOY HORSES
Last Friday we spent over 3 hours at JC Penny's/Stonebrier Mall looking for church/Easter clothes for the kids. Thanks to Grandma Kathy we were able to afford to buy our son a new suit with a tie and belt and our daughter a nice dress. I was seeing things to come because both Liz and I liked other dresses but our little girl had her heart set on the one that we did not like as much. It seems that both our kids are picky when it comes to clothes which I can completely understand but it is still no fun when you have a different opinion. So after that I was on a quest to find toy horses for Easter. It seems that all the kids wanted was the toy horse. Y'know the kind with the stick that kids played with in the 1800's. We had seen them at Walgreens while Jenafer was in town so off I went to Walgreens. The first Walgreens in Plano did not have them so I went to the second. No luck there so I bought the kids a Disney Prinness and Disney Cars toy balls for the back yard. So I decided to stop off at the Walgreens in Allen and they had a pink toy horse! Oh my! What do I do? OK, I took a chance a bought it hoping that the Walgreens where we had originally seen the toy horse would have it! So I drove to the last Walgreens, went in and searched the entire store for this one stupid black horse with the stick on it! My quest was getting tire some. I had to stop for a Diet Pepsi! And then there it was! Hiding! I heard angels singing and saw a bright light! The black horse with the stick on it was there in front of me! Now both my kids could go galloping on Easter morning!
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
BEATLES FOR SALE
Beatles to release re-mastered versions of entire catalog
By Tjames Madison LiveDaily Contributor
The Beatles [ tickets ] will release their entire catalog in digitally re-mastered and expanded versions in September, the first time such an effort has been undertaken.
The re-releases were announced by Apple Corps Ltd. and EMI Music for Sept. 9, which coincides with the worldwide release of "The Beatles: Rock Band" for the Playstation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii video game consoles.
The re-mastered albums, which were produced over a four-year period by a team of engineers at EMI's Abbey Road Studios in London, will all feature the original UK album art, along with expanded insert booklets featuring new liner notes and rare photos. For a limited time, each CD will also include a short documentary about the album.
The collection includes all of the Beatles albums in stereo, including the band's first four full-length records, which had previously only been available on compact disc in their original mono versions. Another reissue will combine two archival collections--"Past Masters Vol. I" and "Past Masters Vol. II"--into one volume, simply titled "Past Masters."
All 14 albums will be made available as a single boxed set, which will also include a DVD featuring all of the mini-documentaries included on the individual discs. A complete list of re-mastered albums is included below.
In addition to the digitally re-mastered CDs in stereo, a second box set, "The Beatles in Mono," will contain 10 of the band's albums with their original mono mixes intact. As a bonus, the set's versions of "Help!" and "Rubber Soul" will also include the original 1965 stereo mixes for each album. The mono box set will also be released Sept. 9.
The Beatles "The Stereo Albums" box set:
Please Please Me
With The BeatlesA Hard Day's Night
Beatles For Sale
Help!Rubber Soul
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Magical Mystery Tour
The Beatles
Yellow Submarine
Abbey Road
Let It Be
Past Masters
The Beatles "The Beatles in Mono" box set:
Please Please Me
With The Beatles
A Hard Day's Night
Beatles For Sale
Help! (CD also includes original 1965 stereo mix)
Rubber Soul (CD also include original 1965 stereo mix)
Revolver
Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Magical Mystery Tour
The Beatles
Mono Masters
Caption gaffe: Apostates, instead of Apostles 'worst possible mistake'
Caption gaffe: Apostates, instead of Apostles 'worst possible mistake'
Newspaper » BYU reprints issues of The Daily Universe due to front page typo.
By Donald W. Meyers
The Salt Lake TribuneSalt Lake Tribune
Posted:04/06/2009 10:03:01 PM MDT
Provo » The phone call Rich Evans got Monday morning wasn't good news.
It was an employee at Brigham Young University's The Daily Universe , where Evans is the editorial manager. There was a typo on the front page.
"It was the worst possible mistake," Evans recalled.
The error? A caption on a photo from this weekend's LDS General Conference stated that "Members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostates and other general authorities raise their hands in a sustaining vote Saturday morning. ..."
The newspaper staff retrieved as many of the 18,500 copies of the paper as possible and reprinted them with the correction. And it issued an apology to the apostles. The staff also explained how it happened: an error in spell-checking.
It started when a student misspelled the word "apostle" when writing the photo caption. When the caption was put through the editing software's spell checker, it was flagged, and the editor accidentally clicked the first word that came up on the correct list: "apostate." The mistake made it past two proofreaders before being sent off to the printing press.
"It would have been worse if it were done intentionally, as some have thought," Evans said. "But after talking to the people, we found it was an innocent mistake." He said one of the students involved was in tears over it.
A story on the Universe's Web site stated this was the first time in more than 30 years that the paper had to trash an edition. Evans said the staff will be implementing efforts to prevent a recurrence.
"This appears to have been an honest mistake," said BYU spokeswoman Carri P. Jenkins. A church spokesman declined to comment.
Student journalists aren't the only ones to make mistakes in print. Last week, The Salt Lake Tribune misidentified LDS Church President Thomas S. Monson in a headline. It identified the LDS leader as "Gordon Monson," the same name as a Tribune sports columnist.
dmeyers@sltrib.com
Newspaper » BYU reprints issues of The Daily Universe due to front page typo.
By Donald W. Meyers
The Salt Lake TribuneSalt Lake Tribune
Posted:04/06/2009 10:03:01 PM MDT
Provo » The phone call Rich Evans got Monday morning wasn't good news.
It was an employee at Brigham Young University's The Daily Universe , where Evans is the editorial manager. There was a typo on the front page.
"It was the worst possible mistake," Evans recalled.
The error? A caption on a photo from this weekend's LDS General Conference stated that "Members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostates and other general authorities raise their hands in a sustaining vote Saturday morning. ..."
The newspaper staff retrieved as many of the 18,500 copies of the paper as possible and reprinted them with the correction. And it issued an apology to the apostles. The staff also explained how it happened: an error in spell-checking.
It started when a student misspelled the word "apostle" when writing the photo caption. When the caption was put through the editing software's spell checker, it was flagged, and the editor accidentally clicked the first word that came up on the correct list: "apostate." The mistake made it past two proofreaders before being sent off to the printing press.
"It would have been worse if it were done intentionally, as some have thought," Evans said. "But after talking to the people, we found it was an innocent mistake." He said one of the students involved was in tears over it.
A story on the Universe's Web site stated this was the first time in more than 30 years that the paper had to trash an edition. Evans said the staff will be implementing efforts to prevent a recurrence.
"This appears to have been an honest mistake," said BYU spokeswoman Carri P. Jenkins. A church spokesman declined to comment.
Student journalists aren't the only ones to make mistakes in print. Last week, The Salt Lake Tribune misidentified LDS Church President Thomas S. Monson in a headline. It identified the LDS leader as "Gordon Monson," the same name as a Tribune sports columnist.
dmeyers@sltrib.com
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