Adoption Update: Pursuing Foster to Adopt

The other day I looked at our blog to see when we last posted something, and realized it's been almost two months. Oops. Then, I had the thought to see when we last posted an update on the adoption process, and was shocked to find it has been over a year. Double oops. So Mackenzie and I agreed it was way past time to give a little update.

But to be honest there isn't a whole lot to share. When people ask where we're at in the process or how things are going, I usually reply with "We're in the hurry-up-and-wait phase." There have been a few possibilities along the way (phone calls and emails about potential leads) that haven't moved forward or worked out for one reason or another, but by in large we've been continuing to wait and pray for the child or children God has planned for us.

Last February (almost a year after we started the process) was the closest we came to having a child placed in our home (literally twenty-four hours away before the birth mom decided to continue raising her eight-month-old son). It was by far one of the hardest and lowest points in this journey, but also one where we experienced God's comfort and peace most evidently through the people he's placed in our lives.

After that experience we struggled to be as excited about the process, and started to feel like a child being placed in our home was never going to happen. We discussed whether we should consider other possibilities, like international adoption, but agreed to wait until the end of this year to make any changes.

Well, about a month or so ago, we both started to sense God calling us to consider getting our foster to adopt license, even though we had both been resistant to that option from the very beginning (be careful what you tell God you won't do). We're on an email chain that periodically sends out info on kids in need of a family and home. Oftentimes, the kids are older than what we've been hoping and praying for (usually five and up), but in the last month or so there have been a couple of kids in the age range we're considering.

In both cases it initially seemed as if the kids were legally free (i.e. ready for adoption), but turned out they were still in foster care and pursuing the possibility of adoption. Because we don't have our foster license, we weren't eligible to have those kids placed with us (plus they were so darn cute there were several families interested). But this led to us having a serious conversation about getting our license. 

So we contacted the social worker in our area of King County who oversees the foster to adopt program, got another packet of paperwork to complete (oh joy!), went to an info meeting last week, and are now planning to do another round of home visits in January. It's still possible that an opportunity for a private adoption could come along, but God continues to challenge our notion of what this whole thing is going to look like.

Foster to adopt would mean that any child or children placed in our home would technically be in foster care, which means the State's ultimate goal would be reunification with their biological parents (most often the mother). But at that point the state would have determined that adoption is a viable option to pursue, often because biological parents haven't met the requirements for their child/children to be returned to them. As you can imagine, this means there's a greater "risk" for us as the potential adoptive family, but we believe God is calling us to love any child in our home for a long as he has them there. As our friend, Michele, explained at our initial adoption info meeting, none of us is guaranteed any amount of time with our children, regardless of whether they're biological kids or not.

So I guess there's more "update" to share in our adoption journey than I initially realized. We appreciate your continued prayers and support, and hope to do a better job this coming year sharing periodic updates. Specifically, please pray that the licensing process moves quickly (we got fingerprinted this morning), so that we can be considered for possible placements soon. And as always, please pray for patience and faith as we continue to wait. 

Sheet Mulching

I can't quite believe it's been over two months since our last blog post. With the start of Mackenzie's school year in September and all that comes with the fall church rhythms, it's been a busy two months for us. But during that time, we've managed to spend a few spare hours in our yard, finishing up our summer growing season, and preparing our yard for fall and winter.

The two biggest projects on the docket were trimming our overgrown apple tree, which Mackenzie's dad, Jim, and I tackled a few weeks ago, and expanding our garden area for next spring.

For the latter we decided to try our hand at sheet mulching rather than renting a tiller and fighting with the grass and weeds. First off, we made a trip to Bed, Bath & Beyond and Pier 1 to collect cardboard boxes to cover the area. Fortunately, Pier 1 had just received their Christmas shipment (already!?!), so they were more than happy to give us all the boxes we wanted.

 

We then visited our local landscape supply store, West Seattle Landscape & Stone Supply, to purchase 3 1/2 yards of cedar grove compost--enough to cover a 26 by 14 foot area 3 inches deep, bringing our total garden area to 26 by 26 feet.

They were able to deliver it the same day, so I got right to work, trying to avoid the coming rainy weather. It took about two hours to move and spread most of the compost, and then I finished the job a few days later. It was fun watching our garden expand, and picturing what we will plant next spring. (We definitely want to try growing a few pumpkins next year.) Now we wait for the cardboard and compost to work their magic. Bye-bye grass and weeds!

Can't wait for spring!

 

Potato Harvest

One of the things we tried in our garden this year was growing potatoes in an old metal trash can. The theory behind this method is that as the potato stems sprout, you can add more dirt and compost to the trash can, and trick the potatoes into thinking they're still trying to reach the surface. As they continue to grow up, they produce more tubers (the part of the plant we eat) along the way. Once the stems sprout and then eventually die, you know it's time to harvest your potatoes. 

This week, we decided to see what we had produced. We laid out a tarp and dumped the dirt and potatoes plants onto it. We then sifted through the dirt in search of a bountiful harvest.

Unfortunately, the bounty was lacking. There were a few good size spuds, but most were bite-sized at best. We hadn't been terribly consistent about adding dirt to the trash can, which might have impacted our results. But the lousy summer weather certainly could have been a factor.

We'll definitely give it another go next year!

Compost Bin

As part of expanding our gardening efforts, I decided to build an additional composting bin that would allow us to store more composting materials and be more intentional about layering "brown" materials (high amounts of carbon) and "green" materials (high amounts of nitrogen). The suggested ratio between the two is 30:1, which is good because our chickens eat most of our "green" materials anyway.

Thankfully, this project didn't take nearly as long as the chicken coop (and only required one Home Depot trip), but it was still fun to break out the ol' power saw.  

The front of the bin is made of cedar slats to make it easier to turn and remove the compost.

"Cooking" the compost.

Dairy Adventure: Cheese

Another one of my goals this summer was to make cheese. Mozzarella is a cheese I pretty much always have in our fridge and enjoy pretty frequently. I thought it would be interesting to learn how to make it.

Just as it was helpful when I made butter, the book Home Dairy with Ashley English was an amazing resource when making cheese. The author lists lots of different cheeses and provides step by step visuals to guide you. Mozzarella is considered an easy cheese to make at home because it doesn't require any aging. I was shocked at how easy it was.

The key with mozzarella and any cheese in general is beginning with high quality milk.
The challenge with mozzarella is the milk can't be pasteurized. Because we live in Seattle, I was able to find local, raw milk at a market near our home and used that. You can't make mozzarella with the milk you buy from the grocery store...it simply won't work. (Unless your grocery store sells raw or minimally pasteurized milk.)

You need a few special ingredients and tools to transform your milk - rennet, citric acid powder, and a thermometer. You bring your milk and citric acid to about 86 degrees, add the rennet and some water and bring that to 104 degrees. Almost instantly when I added the rennet, the milk began forming curds and whey. Then I separated the curds into a bowl, warmed them a bit in the microwave, and kneaded the cheese. After a few minutes, it was ready.

I enjoyed a sliver and put the rest in our fridge. Tonight we're having grilled pizzas with homemade mozzarella and roasted veggies. I'm looking forward to that!

I probably won't regularly make my cheese. I enjoyed learning how to do it and was pretty amazed with how the cheese turned out. The challenge is the cost. Raw milk is not cheap ($6.99 per half gallon) and the amount of mozzarella I made with a 1/2 gallon of milk was not considerable. I may make it again if the mozzarella was the highlight of the meal, but for day to day eating and enjoying, I'll stick to the great and inexpensive mozzarella I get from my trusty Costco. The taste is very similar.

I'm hoping to try homemade ricotta next. Supposedly that is very simple to make and tastes dramatically different than anything you can buy at a store. I'll let you know when and if I try it!

Dairy Adventure: Butter

This summer I added to my list of goals that I wanted to try making my butter. I'm not sure exactly why...I'd read a few blog posts about people making their own and to be honest, I was intrigued. I've made yogurt a few times now and it is so easy and much more delicious than anything you can buy in a store. I hoped butter would be equally as wonderful!

I checked out Home Dairy with Ashley English from our local library. It is an amazing resource and a book I definitely have on my list to add to my personal collection. In this book, Ashley carefully walks you through each step of the butter making process with careful notes and very helpful pictures.

Butter is made from heavy cream. Basically, you whip it at a very high speed for about 9 minutes and all of a sudden you have butter! My Kitchen Aid mixer did all the work! One tip I read online was to drape a kitchen towel around your mixer as you whip the cream, otherwise you have quite a mess. After a few minutes, the cream separates and you have butter and buttermilk. I poured my buttermilk into a Mason jar and will use it to make pancakes. All you do next is rinse your butter, mix it with a bit of salt and store it.

The taste is unrivaled. We did a taste comparison with the butter we had in our fridge and the fresh butter I made - Cliff was shocked at how he could really tell the difference. I hope to never buy butter again!

 Stay tuned...I'll share about my mozzarella adventures soon!

New Job

Two years ago, I left Woodridge Elementary to become an Elementary Technology Curriculum Coach (ETCC). I was ready for a change and new experiences. As an ETCC, I had responsibilities at Stevenson Elementary and Spiritridge Elementary Schools supporting teachers on the implementation of curriculum, instructional technology, and providing professional development. I also had responsibilities as a member of the district curriculum department working to develop the K-5 curriculum. I learned so much in this role and am thankful for the work my team was able to accomplish and the many people I was able to meet and learn from; however, this spring I decided I needed a change. I missed working with students. I missed working with one group of professionals. I missed going to one location for work. I missed having a schedule. I missed teaching.

In light of all that and after much prayer and discussions with Cliff, I explored the possibility of returning to Woodridge. It is a wonderful school community and an amazing staff and principal. Thankfully, it was possible and next year I will be teaching 2nd grade at Woodridge. Having taught special education, 4th grade, and 5th grade at Woodridge, I'm excited to be back to with a community I love and working with younger students.

While I'm loving every minute of my summer vacation, I am looking forward to all that the next school year will bring.

Repurposing

In the last few weeks, Cliff and I have really tried to take a hard look at our home and consider if the space we have is being utilized well. One of the areas that has bothered me for awhile now is our front entry. It had two hooks available for coats, jackets, purses, etc. but it lacked personality.

While garage "sailing" a few weeks ago, I found three old windows for $1 each! It was SUCH an amazing bargain. I bought one and then Cliff and I went back for the other two. We were thrilled. We ended up putting one outside on our fence and were so happy with how it turned out. I had a vision for how to use one of the others inside to spruce up our boring entry.

I took the old window and attached four hooks that I bought at Target very inexpensively. Then I found some cork squares at Staples and trimmed those down to fit inside the window panes. Then Cliff attached it to the wall for me!

Now, as we come and go from our home, we see faces of our favorite people - family and friends who love and care for us, yet still have hooks there for all the items that must be hung. I think this was a successful project!

We still have one more window - any ideas for us?

Garden Update

We have lots growing in our garden now, but the Seattle "spring" was overly cool and wet this year. Some of our little seeds have boycotted growing altogether, but thankfully in the last few weeks, as the sun has been peeking out a bit more, they've begun to actually grow!

Here's a few pictures to give you an idea of how things are coming along. We're hoping July brings some warmer, sunnier days so our tomatoes, peppers, and zucchini get the sun they need to produce a lot of goodies!

Berry patch - raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries!

red cabbage

collard greens

lettuce and kale

potatoes

zucchini

sugar snap peas

tomato plants

Rooster in the Hen House

Turns out, we don't have four hens, but three hens and a rooster! Bethula Jo turned out to be a boy.

We've had our suspicions all along, but as Cliff was mowing the lawn on Monday night, he heard three distinct "cock-a-doodle-dos" coming from the coop. He knew instantly that Bethula's days were numbered.

In the city of Seattle, you can have up to eight hens; however, city ordinance does not allow for any roosters. That makes perfect sense considering they are LOUD and we have neighbors! "Bethula" was just beginning to find his voice, but he was pretty disruptive.

Not knowing exactly what to do with him, I called my chicken friend Sarah for her advice. When I couldn't get a hold of her, I called a local feed store. They've been so helpful all along in answering questions, I was sure they'd know what to do. The suggestions from the feed store were simple - eat him or find someone who will. Not wanting to butcher a chicken this week, I posted him on Craigslist and a couple picked him up on Wednesday morning.

Our flock is down to three. Blanche, Amelia, and Delaney are holding strong and are doing great. I am sad that Bethula isn't around anymore and I am definitely going to miss the beautiful eggs that Ameraucana chickens lay, but Cliff has assured me that I we can try for another Ameraucana hen next year.

Chicken Update

The chickens look a little different these days. They are getting so big! They have been out in their coop for over a month now and they are doing quite well. They love chasing each other to get the best worms or snag the best of the scraps we deliver to them. They're pretty entertaining to watch. I'll admit there have been a couple of nights where Cliff and I have gone out just to see them running around and interacting with each other.

Since they do look so different, I thought I'd share a few pictures of them so you can see their progress. We're excited for their first eggs, which should arrive towards the end of August or the beginning of September.

Living Garbage Disposals

Our four chickens are getting so big! It is hard to believe they were once the snugly little peepers that they were. I'm sure my parents say the same thing about me.

Having chickens has been even easier than we thought it would be, and we'd heard it was pretty easy. One of the things I love most about having chickens is the fact that they eat all of our table scraps. Just about anything we eat - they eat! Some of their favorites these days...cream cheese, edamame, carrot peels, and apple cores.

We've been very diligent about saving our compost to give to the chickens and not only does it benefit them to eat a variety of foods (their eggs will taste better), but it also reduces the amount of chicken feed they will eat.  I just love the idea of not wasting anything.

7 Years

June 12, 2004

Today, Cliff and I celebrate 7 years of marriage! In some ways, it feels like we've been together much longer. Sometimes it is hard to imagine life before knowing him. We met each other as juniors in high school and started dating at the end of our senior year. It is amazing how quickly time flies!

In other ways, it feels as though we've only just begun this journey of marriage. By God's grace, we hope to live a long life together. At community group yesterday, a good friend's mom and dad were there and they mentioned they'd just celebrated their 39th anniversary! It got me thinking about what it will be like to spend that many years loving one another and serving God together. It is exciting to think about.

I am overwhelmed today at the way we've both grown and changed by God's grace and work in our lives. I am immensely thankful for a husband who leads in repentance, pursues me, and desires to know me more than the day he married me. I do not question whether Cliff loves me, I know he does. What I'm thankful for is to know that Cliff loves Jesus more than he loves me.

Since Cliff is at church working all day on Sundays, we had our anniversary celebration on Friday night. We had a lovely meal at a local restaurant called Avalon, walked on Alki, grabbed Dairy Queen blizzards on the way home and watched True Grit. Tonight, on our actual anniversary, we're planning to pick up Thai take-out from our favorite Thai restaurant on the planet and watch our wedding video. It should be a good time!

Love to all of our friends and family who have spoken into our relationship, prayed for us, challenged us, and continue to walk this road with us.

New Niece!

On May 17, our family got a bit bigger. Auburn Mackenzie Luettel was born, and I instantly fell in love with her. My sweet sister and brother-in-law welcomed their beautiful daughter into the world near their home in Kansas. My mom and I got on a plane the day Katie was admitted to the hospital to be there as soon as we could. Amazingly after a long day of flights, we arrived at the hospital and actually saw Auburn on her birthday!

It was such an amazing blessing to be there with Katie, Brent, and Auburn. To care for them, snuggle that baby girl, and spend time with them. Truly, it was a precious week. Cliff and I are excited to head back to Kansas for ten days with them at the beginning of July. Cliff has only met his newest niece through Skype, so he's anxious to have some snuggle time with her.

Miss Auburn with her eyes open!

Snuggling with her daddy

She's already a Chiefs fan!

Coop Complete

Like any good do-it-yourself project, the coop construction took longer and cost more than originally expected, but I'm happy to announce that it's finally complete. It turned out to be a lot of fun--even the seemingly endless trips to Home Depot--and I'm pleased with the results.

Doors to the nesting boxes (above) and storage (below).

Checking out their new home.

In the next few days the chicks will move in complete, but for now, they're just spending the day in the coop, and continuing to sleep in our guestroom/barn at night.

Extreme Couponing?

In the past few months, I've started reading a few blogs that teach you how to grocery shop using coupons. It doesn't seem like something that would be that hard, but it does take some strategy!

My desire in using coupons is to steward our resources well and be thoughtful about how we spend our money. I am by no means incredibly skilled at using coupons, and I read some blogs where the women are AMAZING! They go to the grocery store and get most of their groceries for free. One of the blogs has a writer whose grocery budget for a family of five is $100 a month. That is impressive.

There is a new show on TLC that is all about extreme couponing...multiple transactions, buying many of the items on sale, clearing the shelves of all 50 jars of mustard, etc. I am not interested in that.

I have a few things I think about as I go to the store:

• What is on sale? I make my meal plan based on what I already have or what is on sale that week.
• Do not buy any item just because I have a coupon for it.
• Don't buy more of any one item than we could use before the expiration date.
• One rule I almost always break is...only buy what can fit in the freezer. Usually what happens is we have to do the "freezer puzzle" once I get home from the store. Good thing Cliff is so good at it!

Today, without much planning, I grabbed my coupon envelope and the weekly store ad and headed to Safeway. I bought everything pictured below for a little more than $9. I saved 67%! It was my most successful shopping trip yet! It was actually fun!

My $9.50 Safeway purchase today!

Field Trip

Yesterday the sun was shining and the weather was the nicest it has been in months, so I decided to let the girls experience the great outdoors for the first time.

At first, they were quite reticent to leave the cardboard box I brought them out in, but after I put Blanche in the grass, the rest followed suit. They were nervous to be sure, and understandably so as all they've experienced is our guest bedroom! Apparently, they found me to be comforting, which means we've "bonded" and they saw me as a safe place. They all sat in my lap for quite a few minutes until I forced them out into the wild.

Once they realized they could eat the grass, dig in the dirt, and run around, they were off. They chose a small garden to scamper about in, but did not stray from one another or from me.

They are going to LOVE being outside. Once the temperatures will allow, we'll move them out to the coop. We have probably about 3 weeks until that can happen.

Struggling to leave the safety of the cardboard box...

Seeking safety on my lap...my jeans were a bit of a mess after this "snuggle time."

Outside for the first time!

Happy Birthday!

Today is Cliff's birthday! I am so thankful that I have been able to spend the last 10 birthdays with this amazing man. I am immensely grateful that I get to be his wife. We celebrated today with a breakfast on Alki and then worked in the yard for a few hours. 

Happy Birthday! I love you, babe!

Cliff and his new drill

Chick Update: Week 4

We're nearly a month into chicken ownership...can you believe that?! It has been really fun and completely amazing to watch them grow and change. Considering how big they already are, it is hard to imagine them living in our guest room for another month. Maybe by some miraculous turn of events, we'll have consistently warm weather and they can go out earlier...a girl can dream.

Check out their growth progress:



Blanche Katherine



Amelia Estelle



Bethula Jo

Delaney Elizabeth

All the girls!

Coop Update

At this point the coop is about 90% complete. I just need to install the doors on the far side where the nesting boxes are, as well as the storage space beneath them. It looks like we might actually have a few sunny days in a row this week (finally!), so hopefully I'll get a chance to finish the coop this week. The chicks are getting big so fast, they might need to move in ahead of schedule.

(side weather note: We've yet to break 60 degrees this month and if that remains the case, it'll be the first time in history for the month of April.)

added cedar siding

faithful "helper"

side view (Can you spot Gunner's friend in the pic?)

one more side to complete

nearly complete