Almost Home

Yipeee!!!!!!!!! We bought a new laptop and so now can do everything from the hotel room that we could from our desktop at home. That means pictures people....I know how you have been missing the sight of my cute little men. We are signing the paperwork on Tuesday and so by Thursday at the latest should be in our house. Of course we need to get it all set up and move in our stuff...fun stuff.....but we will have an actual refrige and microwave and stove.....things which we miss so much. We will miss the hotel though, but after today....not as much as I thought we would.

Here's the situation....My parents went away on a weeks vacation, left the keys (oh wait....that is the Fresh Prince...not my story)....
So, we go to our usual complementary hotel breakfast. As I am making one of my many trips to get the boys more juice etc. I hear a guy talking to his wife saying how immigrants need to stay in their respective countries and how it is crazy to have Filipino nurses and doctors come to the US for work. I feel bad for the lady since she is a young Filipina wife to an old white man with such views, but it wasn't my conversation so I went to the table to eat.

When I get to the table, I see that my wonderful husband is very angry. I thought perhaps it is because he is Filipino and a doctor and even though he is US born, his family and parents are not. I told him to settle down, but if you know my husband, you know that he has quite the temper and will speak to things people say in a not so nice manner. Okay, not only that, but in an 8th grade school yard way. It was my turn to be embarrassed on this beautiful Easter morning. He started loudly commenting to the man. For example, (as I turned red) he exclaimed, "At least my kids won't grow up to be an ignorant white man who looks like Ben Franklin." He kept calling this clown Ben Franklin and I have to admit, he looked like a lumberjack version of our fore father. As the kids and I are headed to the elevator, my husband pokes his head back and says, "So, it isn't okay to have immigrant workers in this country, or to adopt children from abroad, but old lonely ugly white men can get mail order brides with no problems!"
So, we get in the elevator and I ask what the problem was. I was more than a little annoyed with him...given the day and the fact that the kids were there to witness their dad getting mad. I mean he is entitled to be upset by the anti-filipino message but that was over the top. Then he tells me that I missed the first part of the conversation. The speaking about the filipino invasion was the second part of a conversation /comments directed in a round about way toward our family about how unwanted, undesirable children don't need to be shipped in from abroad because there are plenty right here in America who don't spread disease and whose higher IQs will make this country a better place in the future. I don't think it would bother him so much if it was a domestic v. international flavor, but it was the way international was blasted. Like our kids were unwanted and dirty and just the scum of the earth. I am glad that he said something....but not in the manner he did. But, that is my husband. That is his way of expressing himself. I told him we better catch two Easter Sunday services today. It is hard to believe the things people will say....but we wouldn't let us keep us from enjoying the holiday.
I am just glad that the boys were too young to understand the conversation. They won't be that young for much longer. Hopefully we can raise them to be strong in this world that has so many ill informed ignorant people. I hope that they find a way to respond that doesn't lessen who they are. That doesn't bring them down to the level of the other person. Although......I guess there is worse language than bringing Benjamin Franklin into the mix. Just not the most educated eloquent way of responding. At least we were profanity free.
Here is to a big backyard in a matter of days. Here is to the boys wearing themselves out exploring and playing and soaking up the sun so that they still take a nap. I can't wait to get to work setting up home.

I will leave you with these smiling faces and will keep you posted as to our progress. Fingers crossed we will see some more language development as we approach their second birthday. I think that international adoption and being a twin set is slowing us down a bit. Not that they don't say some words, mostly understandable by us. It is just so hard not to compare. I hear what others, even in our adoption arena, have to say development wise and it starts to get to me a little. Something to work on.
Oh, and P.S. Do you like Ben's new style? Daddy isn't too keen on it, especially coupled with the numorous people who think Ben is a girl. I can't stop this kid from the off the shoulder look.
But, hey, he is happy and that is all that matters!!!!!

Take care all!

The Honeymoon is Over

Sorry, still no pictures with this combo of slow wi-fi and an archaic laptop. Bare with me and I will make it up to you all.

First and for most, I want to acknowledge our one year referralversary on 3/6. Again....I will have to post photos of the referral pics to now when I can....what a difference a year makes. We had come back from Vegas after my baby sis's wedding and for the first time in five months waiting, I was not waiting to hear the phone ring. I was playing my new baseball game on the 360 and "the call" came. It was Kritina asking if I had time. I knew then, but....the surprise of my life....twins. I couldn't get ahold of my dh, so I called my mom and all I said was "twins" at first. Then "boys". "Both boys". Then I tried dh again. He was on his way home....with his cell off. Dude, in a 4-6 month wait quote....five months and three days in....you gotta have that stuff on. So, I couldn't contain myself. I called Heather B. Then I looked at the email info for the first time. I read it again and again and looked at the pictures until I heard dh pull into the alley. I ran out like a mad woman, in sock feet and in the middle of the road wrapping crazily on his windows. He rolled down the window startled and asked, "What Happened?" He thought some tradgedy had occured with his wild eyed wife losing it on the side of the road. "We're parents.....to......TWINS!!!!"....."Now, why wasn't your phone on jerk????" We looked at the info for the rest of the day. Officially accepted the following day. Made up 8x10 photos and hung them on the wall. And waited for a travel date.......which would come with 1.5 weeks notice for the end of April.

Flash forward to current updates:
The positives first-
1.WE ARE IN ESCROW - set to close on or before 3/28- hoping everything works out so we can bring some closure to the hotel chapter of our lives.

2.WE HAVEN'T KILLED EACHOTHER - In such close quarters (and with only one bathroom) we are as much in love and a family as ever!!!! I will kind of miss the atmosphere of closeness we are forced into here. There is no watching TV or playing the 360 in separate rooms.....it is like Little House on the Prarie with a Pa and Ma and kids all enjoying eachothers company (okay, except for the HBO, maids, buffett breakfast and other crazy...and that is putting it nicely.....guests)

3. WE ARE REMINDED OF HOW LITTLE YOU NEED TO BE HAPPY - I am not saying we are in a shanty or anything and don't want to imply that this hotel is "roughing it" in any comparison around the world, but compared to the rat chase of American living my comment is aimed. Don't concentrate on number of bedrooms and bathrooms in a house, they distract you from spending time with eachother. Don't fret when you can't tape your favorite show because you have to do something for the family unit, we watch too much TV and are missing our real lives. Don't long for prime rib when you are on a hamburger budget, you can get by on much less (namely cup of noodle and pb and j, haha). This stay has really been a great opportunity to reflect. We can be happy without the extravagance we get caught up in achieving. I have always known what was important. Our family, our boys, have always been priority number one. But, it is funny to think how much more time we can be dedicating to that family. As I watched October Road last night....and was missing Medium because of no VCR....it was the first time in a long time I didn't lament it. That will be one more hour to spend with the boys today or with Michael tonight. I just hope I can hold onto these perspectives once we are in our new house and beginning real life again. Not to say I won't tape my shows or cook prime rib or tell Michael to watch Tokyo Drift in another room for the millionth time. I will just try to remember what is important and how we can all be happy with a little less indulgence. We will be stronger for it.

Now for the scary incident which made us want to be out of this hotel as soon as possible. It was 2:30 am as I had awoken from a nightmare and went for a drink of water and bathroom break. I just settle in and there is a big thumping on our adjoining door. It gets louder and louder and I know that someone is trying to come in and in a not too subtle fashion. I wake up Michael as with him sleeping through the last eight years of my night terrors and screams....he will sleep through anything. I get him up and he is scared too. I tell him to put a chair under the doorknob....it isn't tall enough, but at least it is a barrier. The pounding continues and my heart is pounding just as hard. Michael is calling the front desk and I am surprised that the babies were never awakened. They must be used to hearing my antics at night too. Finally, I roar,"Hey!" in a very deep authoritative voice and the bashing, thumping ceases. The front desk comes up to question the couple next door. They don't open their door. They tell us, there is nothing they can do....who knows what was happening. We couldn't get back to sleep for another couple of hours...it didn't help that Michael reminded me that it was similar to the movie "Vacancy" which was an okay slasher flick, but not one I would particularly want to live. We don't know why the dude was trying to come in, but he was slamming doors and banging toilet seats all night. Whether they didn't know we were there and wanted an extra room or if dude was so drunk he didn't understand why the bathroom door wouldn't open and was trying to force his way in....we don't know. But, that was scary. Then he smoked all night and day on our "no smoking" floor. I go with the drunk theory as we ran into him later in the day. He was in the hallway on the cell phone, no shirt, no shoes, pajama pants, door wide open to a thrashed room. Thank goodness he was moving through town and gone by the next night. Just a little flavor to add to our whole experience.

Sorry I haven't had much to share about the twins. This has really been a me, me, me post. The boys are doing well. They love walking the hotel and meeting new people. Sebastian still stops to greet each and every person. The server at breakfast has to retreat into the kitchen often as Seb will keep waving and jabbering until he leaves. For the most part people have been very accomodating. There are a few sour puss RR workers who are not into the toddler thing. But, surprisingly enough, I have seen Seb even melt many a gruff face. Well, not melt....there is still a grim frown, but a hand comes up for an obligatory wave. It makes us smile at least. Sebby is our little Cindy Lou Who, converting Grinches one heart at a time.
Soon my babies will be in their very own house with a big backyard. In the next couple of months we have their second birthday, will tackle potty training (fingers crossed on that one) and will try losing the corral. Needless to say....adventure awaits us.
Take care all....hopefully the next post will be all good news.....in my own house, with my nice fast picture full computer and with superfast internet speed.