Lost teeth and lost fur

Finally! On Wednesday evening we all sat with baited breath at the dinner table for 15 minutes while Jack twisted, bended, bled, twisted, and bended some more (and bled) until he was just like Henry and had lost a tooth. Well, Henry's lost two teeth, but Jack's on his way now and we've confirmed that his teeth do fall out like everyone else's.

School continues to go well. Grace came home with a flyer advertising voice lessons, art lessons, or violin lessons, and wouldn't you know it, she picks the one for which I have to buy an instrument! Violin begins a week from Thursday and I can't wait to see what this brings about.

George loves taking his brothers and sister to school each day, but he wants to be more like them. So he fills his suitcase with all the things he believes one should take to school each day (you know, cars, extra shoes, a toothbrush...) and pulls it behind him all the way to their classrooms and back to the car again --- even when we pick them up in the afternoon. It's hysterical.

I think it's already pretty clear what at least two of our kids will ask for for Christmas this year. I feel fairly certain that George wants one of the Lowe's carts that's like a car, and last night Jack asked for a mohawk. Neither will be transpiring.

Humphrey finally got a much-needed haircut. We hated to do it, but it had gotten really matted so it was a necessity. Now he looks like a glorified poodle, but I've been assured that it will grow back and, if we comb him regularly, we don't have to do something this drastic next time.


Finally, a bit of adoption-related news. In an effort to further thwart those who are attempting to remove children from Guatemala in an unethical manner, the U.S. Embassy is now requiring (as of August 1st) a second DNA test on the children before they are given their pink slip to leave the country with their adoptive parents. All in all, this is a good thing. It ensures that the child getting the pink slip is the same child who was DNA tested against his or her birth mother umpteen months prior and referred to a particular adoptive family. In cases where adoptive parents don't see the child except in pictures for many months in between the referral day and adoption day (we will fit into this category), it ensures that the child isn't "switched" in between. On this 2nd DNA test, they only compare the child's DNA to that from the first test; they don't retest the child against his or her mother. It may add an extra week or two to the process, but it's a good thing. It will take one step further in making everyone comfortable that the child leaving the country is the child who has been approved to leave the country with a specific set of parents.

Other than that, still waiting for the referral of a baby, and we'll likely be waiting a while. But we'll try to be patient!