We Got a Bill of Sale Right Here!

So as budget talks loom, much of the nation is taking sides about what to do about our economy and so forth. By the time Madison reads and understands all this, it'll probably be just a footnote in history, but it's a pretty big foot note right now: things are tough for many people right now.

Fortunately, God's grace has been on our family - pure and simple. We take no credit, but we're not going to complain either!

Related to the economy: our taxes. Sure, tax season was like a few months ago. So we submitted everything with a big national tax preparation service that you've probably heard of before. This year will be the final year we get our adoption tax credit, so we should get some money back. Eventually.

You see, IN ORDER to get our REFUND, we had to go through a few more hurdles. We recently got a letter from our government asking us to prove that we spent money adopting Madison. Well... duh?

"We got a bill of sale right here that says she belongs to us! We bought her fair and square last year and we own that little cuss!"

Fortunately, Daddy kept good records and Mommy has been working hard to assemble everything from a few years ago. It's been a lot of work, but she sent that off - and hopefully we'll be getting our refund soon. Personally, I think this is all part of a larger plan to stall and not send our money back so soon, which is a topic that ties neatly to how this whole blog entry started: our budget. Hopefully OUR budget will be affected positively when we get back that refund we're supposed to get!

Madison had no classes today, so she spent much of the day assisting Mommy in straightening up the house: we're having visitors this weekend! On Sunday, Nana and Ba-Ba are on their way up here for a few weeks of fun together. Daddy has a few days built that he can take off of work, so hopefully we can all go out together and do something fun!

In the meantime, the house is getting cleaned up. Today's big accomplishment: the garage. While not completely empty, it can now actually fit cars in it! We've been so busy with everything that we haven't been able to properly move things in yet, so this was a big deal. Of course, a lot of the "stuff" is downstairs right now, waiting to be organized. But at least it is out of the way! We'll get to that soon enough - we're doing well getting things in order. Soon, we'll be hanging stuff on the walls and it'll look more and more like the home we dream it will be. Soon!

The rain fell today - and so did the temperature: dramatically! We're talking as much as thirty degrees! It was so pleasant that we had the windows open as well. One of Daddy's favorite sounds is that of the rain pitter-pattering on the leaves of trees outside on a summer afternoon, accompanied by the quiet rumbles of thunder off overhead the birds as they chirp to each other about a beautiful day. It was one of those sorts of days outside - although some may call it "gloomy," I think everyone can agree we need the rain, and also the cool of the day.

Madison and Daddy attempted something we should try again later: Darth Vader. It was a lego Darth Vader, and Daddy thought that with his help, we could put this thing together within a couple hours. Of course, the problem was that Daddy himself couldn't quite do it right (in my defense, the instructions were not exactly perfect). SO, we have half of a Darth Vader currently. With a few pieces out of line. Daddy put it back in the box - we'll try again in a few years when Madison is an degree in engineering.

MADISON'S BOOK CLUB

While we were busy attempting to build Darth Vader, Mommy found plenty of her old books in the garage. Tonight, Daddy read one to Madison: "The Little Ballerina."

This is a book that Mommy actually had when she was Madison's age (which, of course, was only a few years ago!). It is a very sweet book, and as Daddy read the entire thing to Madison, she was completely focused and riveted. She was so into the theme, and waited patiently for Daddy to read the pages in their entirety. She loved the pictures, and Daddy did too. It was a really sweet moment reading this booklet to Madison, made even more special knowing Mommy used to have this book as a child too. It is dated, but that's what makes it wonderful. Most importantly, Madison enjoyed it just as much as any movie or video game. For a just a bit tonight, she herself was the little ballerina.