Up For Air

Well howdy everyone. It has been a very long few months. The dance group has grown up some more and it is requiring a lot of attention. I really enjoy what I do so I am glad about that, but I am pretty tired and ready for some down time.
I am looking forward to the next 2 weeks to do very little in the way of mental work. By then hopefully I'll be rejuvenated and ready to go once again.

Alas summer is almost over.

I have a lot of pictures and news but no time to write. So........ I do promise to sit down and begin catching up as soon as we get a not so nice day.
Hope everyone is staying safe and doing well.

Finally Up for Air!

Well, the air has reached disgustingly uncomfortable. Something like the deep south. We are to be in the 90's all week and of course it is muggy too. We got a lot of drama and theatrics this afternoon , but just a few dribbles of rain....so it was pretty much a non event. Hopefully it watered the trees enough so that I don't have to water until at least tomorrow.
I am slowly but surely settling into my summer groove and I really like it a lot. I have 3 tutored kids and 9 horse camp kids. It is keeping me busy but I really love what I do. The horses LOVE it. They aren't getting their weekly trail rides right now because Jeni has been so busy, but the are getting handled by the kids every day. It is working out great!
All is well in the chicken coop. The lazy silkies finally began laying.
After a lot of budgeting, it was decided that it was much more economical to get busy on the barn than it was to add on to the current studio again so.....we are deep into construction on the barn.
While my mom is home for the summer we are working on scanning and cataloging family photos. It is a project I have been working on for many years, but now with my new hard drive it is making it a joy.
Everything is fine with all the daughters. Lots of nice memories and opportunities. My tutored kids are enjoying Mrs. Cyndy's home-school of hard knocks and I love seeing their academic challenges melt away. Mrs. Cyndy's driving school has gotten 2 students street legal this summer. 1-2 more to go and then I may be retiring for a bit. Things in Africa are going well. A little more illness than normal, but I think everybody is on the road to recovery. Thankfully Rakieta is as healthy as a horse.
Yes, all in life is good at the Kalinowski Ranch!
Now, about the multitudes of cats produced by one "Mama" alias "Fertile Myrtle".............
(By the way, she is now fixed.)

Don't Know Whether I am Coming or Going!

I do have a lot to share. i just have no time to sit and write. I'll be back soon. Promise!

Long Absence

Long time no post. I will catch everyone up later. Things are good, just hectic and busy as usual.

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Today I will gripe about the rain! The studio has had rain seep in twice. Tonight looks like it will be the 3rd. I just can't take it anymore. The barnyard is under water. It is never under water. The temps are warm but we put the critters in anyway just to give them a break from the sogginess.
Upside, all the trees I planted are blooming up a storm. Downside, we will NEVER get cought up on the mowing.
Hopefully it will be a good hay year.
Well, I am tired of sulking and complaining so I guess I will close the post for now and watch Magnum while getting ready for bed.
Adios!

Milemarker!

Well good morning everyone.
Most of the eastern US appears to be under water. A lot of water. I am dreading going out to the studio because of the mess I have to deal with. But I will gripe about the large quantities of water and the huge sewing load later.
Today I want to briefly say how happy I am to report that ALL of our orphan girls are checked in and accounted for.
Our relationship with Rakieta and ever growing family continues to be stable. The only crisis there is that Rakieta complains when I do not call enough.
All of our host daughters but one have checked in and are in regular contact. The only one left out there is Chikako who is in Japan. I assume that she too will check in when she finds her way to facebook.
The reason I started this blog was to help those on the other side of the ocean feel connected to those of us on this side of the ocean. I originally wrote of one Russian daughter. I am happy to report that the little gal, Natasha, who started our whole orphan adventures has also made her way back to us. It has been a long and difficult struggle for her but she is back with us once again and over the last 6 months has begun the long journey of trying to get her life and her daughter's where she would like things to be.
Also, today one of the 3 African girls, who had moved to Benin, Delilah, checked in on facebook finally. It is a huge relief to have contact once again. And an added bonus is that she now has a good working English vocabulary.
Lastly, all the American girls we helped parent over the years have all checked back in over the last year and 1/2 or so.
Of course Merry and Jeni are doing well. Things are pretty status quo for them at the moment.
It truly makes my heart sing to have so much love in our lives and to see the blossoming as a result of our efforts when it mattered so much.
Looking back I wouldn't change a thing. In some situations, we actually had to make huge sacrifices and went through a lot of agony, but it has all been worth it!
I have always said "There is always ENOUGH love. No matter how short everything else may be, there is always enough LOVE. " I think we have proven that that statement is very true.

Update at last

It has been a little while..........
The snow never seemed to stop, the mud never dried up, the rains began and made the mud worse, Burkina began to have civil unrest, show season began to take over and now my house is being overrun by an 18month old. Natasha and Abby have taken up at least part time residence. The adjustment has been pretty good, but definitely exhausting some days. Good thing we haven't had too much time to get used to life without Grandpa. At least she is shorter than he was and can't open doors. On the other hand she needs her diapers changed and throws her food. Oh well, such is life.
In other news, all the trees did get planted, the driveways have been restoned and so we are not drowning anymore, I have more kids than I know what to do with for horse camp, and costumes are clicking along. The chicks were finally able to move out to the nursery pen, Thank Goodness.
Rakieta is graduating sewing school this spring and her sister Gemilia got married this weekend.
Merry has a new beau, Jeni had to get a new car and Natasha thinks boys are stupid.
Matt is FINALLY able to ride his motorcycle to work.

I really LOVE my life. Every hectic, zany, messy, loud minute of it.

Mother's Day was absolutely awesome here. I hope all of you had a great one too.
Well, I am off to do laundry before we all pile on the couch for Desperate Housewives. (Or as Natasha puts it: Desperate Wife's House)

Stardate 8:25 am Wednesday

I am sitting in the den. The sun is up and out, the chickies are starting to ask for breakfast, I am sitting on the computer listening to Fox News and the rest of the house is starting to wake.
The news is startling to say the least these days, but under Obama, there have been a lot of shocking news days. I try to stay up to date but I can not let myself lose sleep over all this stuff.
Show season is ramping up which means the percentage of time I spend on costumes is growing. that is ok. I LOVE sewing season! I get a little stressed over the long days and hours, but the amount of creativity that flows is very good for the soul!
The snow is almost gone, Thank God. Mud is still prevalent, but it isn't as bad as a couple of weeks ago. If we hadn't had the ice storm we would have no mud at this point.
I can't wait to have the driveways done. I really have spring fever.
Things are clicking along with all the girls. Jeni is still car shopping, Rakieta is getting ready to graduate, otherwise everyone is status quo.

March, what a month!

The weather this month has been interesting to say the least. We had one day in the 60's and yet it is a low of 7* tonight. This is one March I will not miss.

Personally I am very tired of the slop, wet and cold. Thankfully we are on day 3 of a long sunny streak. I don't know how much more of the dreary cloudy days I could have taken.

This has been a very busy but rewarding weekend. Bridal shower, driving lessons, dinner out with family and lastly, the "Before Easter Easter".

There has been some demonstration trouble in Burkina but I think things are quieting once again. Olga has discovered how great facebook is for keeping in touch. It is great to have day to day contact with her finally. Now to just get Rakieta to get things figured out.
Olga is our Chevosh region Russian girl. We have had an extra twist in this story. Natasha, the girl we actually hosted who went on to be adopted has been reunited with us. It has been great to have a conversation with both girls together.
Having all these girls sure does keep life interesting.

Saturday!

I am sitting in my den where I like to do my morning stuff. It is quiet for the rest of the house and I get to see the sun moving around. Today I am looking at NO SNOW. And no soggy ground...for the most part. Spring has officially commenced and this year it is very welcome. We just finished quite a winter.
So I am about to call Rakieta, do chores, head out to run errands and then begin working like a fiend on costumes for the spring show.
The kitchen is full of chicks. I need to find a larger container since it is still to cool to move them even to an out building.
Continue to pray for Japan and their people and we all need prayers regarding the situation in the middle east.

The World in Crisis

It is amazing how much things can change in a week. Last week I was so full of peace. Life seemed good and carefree. Then in a period of days.........The earthquake in Japan, the impending nuclear meltdown, the escalation of trouble in the middle east.......then there are the problems at home: Jeni's car blew up, my mom made a visit to the hospital, one of our "adopted" girls was not on top of things fast enough and she may be paying dearly in a life changing way. There is just a lot going on.
Hopefully, we have seen the worst of this wave of catastrophe.
On the upside, the weather hit the 60's today. It is beautiful!

It has been a busy week. It doesn't help any that we had freezing rain/sleet all week. It makes all chores that much harder to get done. My baby chicks are doing very well. The chickens are now laying up a storm. I found a new drake for Mrs. Duck so all is pretty well in the barnyard.
I will be spending the day getting my textbooks in order once again.
I already tutor 3 days per week. It is time to make Rakieta work harder on academics once again and I have another girl who was once a host child of ours who was adopted by someone else whose educational experience in America has been less than successful. So what I thought was part of my past I am finding is very much part of my present. That is ok, because I really love teaching.
In other educational news, Michigan is beginning massive educational reform and I am very glad. I will be watching closely to make sure that the cure isn't worse than the problem. What the public schools are doing with Granholm's standards, at least in the rural schools is atrocious and will ruin a generation of kids if it is not cleaned up ASAP!
Family news is all good. we are just all really sick of winter, but other wise, both birth and adopted family is all doing very well.

Balance

Ol' man winter needs some of that, balance. We have been all over the map temperature wise, we are finally getting into the right temp range for March, BUT our nights are still very cold some days. Weird. We woke up to rain, and now it is snowing AGAIN. The rest of the week seems more tame. Thank the Holy Lord.

In spite of the wretched winter we are finishing, seeds are sitting in bags waiting to be planted, trees have been ordered, chicks too, and I will be ready to incubate my own in a few weeks. It feels good to be thinking spring.

The costumes and show preparations are coming along swell. I can't say enough how much I love that barn.

All of our girls, here, there and everywhere, are doing well. Being a parent of adult children takes some getting used to, but honestly, I am just as busy now as ever. And I am definitely not lonely. I always say: Girls never really leave you, they just keep bringing more people home. Very true.

So, lets see: farm on track-check
dance program on track-check
daughters all doing well-check
"stuff" getting reigned in-check

All this =balance. It feels good and I love it!

Rain , part 2

On top of our not all melted snow, we are now to get heavy rain today and tonight. I am grateful for a few things:
1. That we have concrete near the barn now. Otherwise it is just treacherous doing barn chores.
2. That we have no dance classes this weekend. The driveway needs a rest.
3. That rain always means above freezing. I can't take any more snow and cold.
That about covers it. Otherwise the weather sucks. Again.

Upside, I am beginning to work on spring activities and that ALWAYS cheers me up.
Today I am megacoupon shopping. That means lots of supplies like pasta and farmy stuff. I am also winning the battle with the "stuff" that was supposed to go to Burkina on the trip I just took. The "extra room" aka the den will be clutter free by Sunday. Yippee!

Can't Warm Up!

Today started out sunny and calm. Unfortunately, the sun gave way to clouds by lunchtime. The temps are mild-35*, but the humidity must be way up. We can't seem to stay warm. I am not looking forward to the weird weather we will be getting over the next 24 hours. Rain, sleet, more rain and then some snow. It should be a disgusting mess by Monday.
Well, I am off to tutor. I will finish this a little later.

Finally Cooperative Weather!

Well, the sun is shining, the temps are supposed to be in the high 30's and the majority of the snow is melted. Finally manageable outside working conditions. So I shall be a very busy girl today. I am looking forward to it. Over to the barn I go to work on costume and fabric issues. Have a great day all.

And it was a wonderful day! The barn was about 50* and working with the fabrics and costumes was very therapeutic. I love my barn and I missed my fabrics....a lot. I didn't think that was even possible but it was.

Rain, Well I Guess it is an Improvement

Yes, today after a week straight of snow, we are getting rain. You know what that means?! Yup, MUD! Lots of it and around here we have to take the mud seriously because of the clay. I grew up up north where it is a sandy loam mix. I had no idea what a mud room was or the need for it when I first got here. I just thought it was a cute name for a coat room. Wrong!!!
Mud room means exactly what it says. You keep a mud room so the muddy clothes and boots can come off before you get to the rest of the house that you want to save from the disgusting filth and sticking that the mud in the thumb of Michigan brings to anybody trying to transport themselves around outside on any area that is not covered in concrete. If you aren't sure what I am talking about, let me say this. In the spring time or after a heavy rain, if you walk on bare dirt, you are likely to get your shoes or boots sucked off. In addition, this stuff leaves a caking on your shoes that can be quite thick. As it dries, it comes off the shoes both in chunks and in a powder that seems to get on everything. This applies to coats, gloves and pants too. Hence mudroom.
It is going to be an interesting week for dance class and parking.
Well, time for laundry and correspondence.

SNOW!?*&% Part 2

This time we are getting the smaller amount, south of us is getting 4-6 inches. This isn't Alaska or even the Keweenaw peninsula. What is the deal? Global warming my tusche.
I have to try to run errands in this stuff, Everyone has to go to work. Going to be an interesting day.
Even the animals are begging for relief. They usually don't have that much of an opinion, but they seem to this time.
I need to get into the barn to start working on costumes, but everything is buried in the SNOW! I don't mind the cold, although it has been very unusually cold at night, I just hate this SNOW!!!!
I know I need an attitude adjustment. I'll try to be better next post.

SNOW!?*&%

Yes, it snowed again. All the progress we made last week with our warm up is now for naught. I can safely speak for all of southeast Michigan when I say we are sick of this rot! Getting around is rough. We are not set up to store lots of snow like the northern folks.
I am back in paperwork mode. Needless to say I am not a cheerful person. Please Mother Nature, give us a break anytime, pretty please.
In the meantime I am planning and plotting the springtime activities.

Babble

I am sitting at my dining room table with a bit of writer's block. I have a lot in my head but some of it is hard to articulate, some is stuff that should not be on public display and some is still unorganized clutter. I am sure all of you can relate to that.

I put up new curtains in the living room and dining room this weekend and they are snowy white. Due to our Sunday to Monday storm the ground is also snowy white. there is a lot of white to look at. Grandma K. used to yell for me to fix the white spots. That resulted in me placing a pillow over the window. I never did quite understand what her complaint was, but the pillow always settled her down. While I don't miss her unpleasant demandingness, I can laugh about that stuff now. I would say we have all healed from the ordeal pretty well. As soon as I finish up with the income taxes, their paper work and consequently their business affairs will be pretty much completed. That is an accomplishment I am happy to be done with. It was hard, definitely not in my natural element, but very worth the education. I have a saying "You can't unride A bike" and I have to say that most definitely applies in this case. I am very much looking forward to just coasting along in 2011. No big new projects for this lady this year.

All is going well for everyone here. Pretty status quo for everyone and that is a good thing. Our lives have been very blessed and it is nice to see everything come full circle.
It's funny how events or situations that seemed so complicated and painful 10 or 15 years ago have resolved themselves through tenacity, hard work and commitment and it is very nice to know the biggest worries are so tiny compared to what they once were.

For example, the boxes I diligently send to Burkina have lightened the load on the families to a point where Rakieta is actually thinking in terms of special or particular accessories for her graduation. Before it was send anything just to keep them going. Now they are more knowledgeable and quite frankly healthier physically and emotionally. They are a long way from western living, but things are a LOT easier than they once were.

That seems to describe many aspects of our life. It is a good feeling.

Have a good day all.

Crazy Full Moon?

Well, we survived the storm ok last night. Our little piece of heaven got about 6 inches of snow I think.
But, the road is plowed already and actually we can survive with the driveway as is if necessary. So on the scale of megastorms, this is not one. However, Jeni said the roads were so bad this morning she would have turned around but there was no place to turn around. I would guess the people on dirt roads will be stuck for for a while.
I gave my post title it's name for 2 reasons: the first being we had a really neat moon on Saturday night. It was huge, full and had a reddish glow. I guess it is called a supermoon. The second reason is that in typical fashion the moon is bringing out the crazies. Yippee skippee. I have enough excitement in my life. I do not need all the drama that seems to erupt periodically from unstable or even normally stable people. And it always seems to happen when the moon is full.
So the next several days probably will be very active.
Good thing I have nerves of steel.

Well, I guess I stand corrected. In looking for a picture of the moon to post, I see that we are actually a little past the full moon. Either way, intensity is in the air.
I always thought it would be neat to study the moon phases. I just never had the time. Thank God for Google.
Well, I am off to call Rakieta and make dinner for Matt.

Cold, Warm, Hurricane Winds. It's Michigan!

Good morning everyone!
Well, since last Sunday we have gone from below normal temperatures (aka deep freeze) to the 50's, lost all our snow, enjoyed sunshine and spring weather, had 40 mile an hour sustained winds which wreaked havoc and destruction all over the yard....again, and now this morning we are at freezing temps again. They are threatening a nasty storm Sunday and Monday again. 7 inches worth. Go figure.
This weekend I am being blessed with a LOT of alone time. At first I wasn't too crazy about the idea. But now I think I will really enjoy it. I don't have to share anything for 24 hours. I can live with that. Of course it means all the chores are my responsibility but I can work with that.
I am not someone who needs a lot of solitude, so I will get my little sabbatical and then I will be very ready for all the noise and sharing that will ensue beginning tomorrow morning.
Well I am off to begin my "me-cation".
Talk to you soon.

Thawing Out Finally!

Well, it hovered at 32* almost all night. This week will be in the high 30's-40's. So our deep freeze is over. Thank God. It was getting to a point where everyone was ready to lose it.
Unfortunately I either got a bug...or...I didn't win the war on the Burkina Faso bacteria that I thought I did.
Even during cold weather, the temps in Burkina are like a Midwest summer which is hot a lot of the time. Hot enough to have bacterias just breeding up a storm. Even my very descriptive stories couldn't get most Americans to understand what I mean by Burkina being a bacteria breeding ground. Their culture is very communal and they do not understand sanitation so basic things that even the most lazy westerners take for granted are not a part of their mindset yet.
Anyway, I was doing ok after getting back but then the deep freeze of this week combined with me having a little too wet of hair even though I was in hats (Yes, that is correct. plural) just sent me over into "feeling like crap" mode again.
I am still not sure if it is a virus or the bacteria mess but at this point I just don't dare to chance it anymore. So I am loading up on the full arsenal of herbs and I finally broke out the antibiotic.
I am feeling better but not so remarkably so that I wouldn't rule out one of the plethora of flu bugs torturing the thumb of Michigan this season.
Either way, I am just grateful that we will be solidly back on the brown earth matter in a few days. Snow was meant to fall and melt a few days later. Not stay on for the season and continue to accumulate. One of the reasons I left northern Michigan was I do not enjoy lots of snow.
So enjoy your mild weather everyone! Now let's hope we aren't breaking out the canoes in a few days.

Procrastination Sunday

I have a lot to do today, including making Lasagna for Matt. However, I sit here surfing. Not so aimlessly........I read a bunch on the liturgical/missal changes to the western Catholic church and looked up my favorite tree nursery's website. But the reality is I am no where near as efficient as I should be. I think I have spring/cabin fever.
So......I will post some aimless musings and then I need to get my butt off here and get busy with paperwork so that tomorrow I can hit the ground running.
1. Sacred Heart in Imlay City seems to be coming along very nicely. We even had coffee and donuts this morning. It was a rough one, but it is a good start for a parish that was virtually lifeless 6 months ago.
2. I am not a big snow fan so anytime now......we can get on with with the arrival of spring.
3. My ear is officially healed and I was able to do it anti biotic free. An important detail if I am to go over there yearly or so for the rest of my life.


Looks like the rest of the household plans to spend their Sunday afternoon napping so at least I will have peace and quiet and no one asking for me to do something. Maybe I will get my paperwork and other jobs done after all.

Ear Pain

Once again I am having ear trouble. The flight over was the culprit. There were decent turbulents as we were heading into Paris. I was able to keep the beast tamed all week, but on Tuesday of this week after I arrived home I started to feel like YUCH. I am still trying to avoid antibiotics, but if I am not tip top by tonight I will finally give in.
So far the herbs seem to be improving the situation.
The flight is 20 hours more or less and there is always a several hour lay over in Paris. You are about 40,000 feet up. I was pretty sure the flight path went right over Imlay City and the house and sure enough, I found I-69 on the way back home this time.

I Am Home!

Mam'e, me and Stephanie

Seetah, me and Rakieta

I am back. It was wonderful! I am not sure you can use the word wonderful combined with visit to Burkina Faso often, but this time I could. The weather was great for a Michigander. 78-85* each day with pleasant breezes and cool evenings. They, on the other hand, were freezing. Winter coats and hats were a plenty and they thought I was absolutely nuts for putting on the ceiling fan.
I took things in very small bites and really didn't try to do or see too much and it was just right. Burkina is STILL very far from a tourist destination so for now the average American is better off learning of the place through pictures, but things are modernizing relatively quickly. They love westerners and are a happy go lucky, peaceful people so eventually it will be a nice place to go. I think and actually hope it will always be a lot like the places Americans go for family vacations or the RVing crowd likes. An atmosphere like Vegas or Disney would not be good for them.
I will post a little each day so as not to overwhelm. The worst part of my journey was the Paris airport (not a surprise). Flying becomes more stressful and difficult with each journey. I have decided that as big of a pain and as expensive as mailing is, it is the lesser of the 2 evils for shipping things.

Preparing for Africa Trip 2

I am in a BAD Place. The suitcase conundrum. So please enjoy the old posts while I get my life under control. I'll be back soon.

Merry Christmas part 2

Natasha and Abby

Family photo minus Natasha the photographer

The house is bubbling over with the smells of turkey and all the fixins, the tree is overflowing with presents once again and the house is alive with quiet chatter. Today is our "After Christmas Christmas". This time though in addition to all the regular attenders, we have a house guest who is 2 feet tall and is busy concentrating on trying to balance herself unassisted. While she is very entertaining and charming, it is good that she still takes long naps. Her name is Abby and she is Natasha's little girl. Natasha is a long story so I'll give a very short version. Natasha was a young orphan girl we hosted many years ago from Russia. We were unable to adopt her but she was adopted by another family. Now all these years later, she and her daughter have come to spend the weekend with our family and celebrate Christmas with us.
We couldn't be more pleased.
Now it is time to call Rakieta because if she can't be with us, she insists we call.