Eat, Wait, Love

Waiting is hard and even though this summer has been extremely busy for us, the thought of our children somewhere on the other side of the world preoccupies our minds every day. Pondering the matter incessantly, it’s easy to get bogged down by the uncertainty of adoption, by frustrations about bureaucracy, and by the length of this process. So, this past week, I attempted to channel my waiting energy into some extra cooking, baking, and canning. Some items were old favorites while others resulted from trying out new recipes that have been piling up on my counter.

I started off my culinary extravaganza with a summery fruit cake which I took to a picnic. It had three layers: pound cake, vanilla cream and fresh berries.


Next, I made almond tea cookies which got a big thumbs up from everyone who tasted them. They may be contenders for our annual Christmas treat packages this year. Then, I made pitas from scratch and was fascinated by their baking process. I squatted in front of the oven door like a little kid watching the air spread through the dough, making it rise and puff. When Craig came home and saw the pitas on the dinner table, he said, “You made those? They look real!” Thanks, honey.

Then I made a lemon sponge pie which is absolutely delicious, especially for a lover of lemony things like me. I also prepared a vegetable frittata which turned out well, but is probably not something I couldn’t replicate or even improve upon without the recipe. On Wednesday, I pickled some cucumbers and shared with the neighbors and on Saturday, I turned part of our wonderful tomato harvest into canned salsa. Last but not least, today I made and froze pesto from homegrown basil as well as finished a no knead everything bread. It rises overnight and then bakes. So yummy.

Did cooking and baking and canning beyond the normal daily meals help with the wait? I would say it did. It gave me a couple of hours each day to focus my mind on a pleasant task and then enjoy and share the fruits of my labor with those I love. I’ll probably use this strategy again sometime when it feels like the wait is about to overwhelm me.

Art Auction Success

As promised, I wanted to let everyone know about the outcome of our orphanage fundraiser. The art auction was a great success and raised a total of $360 which will go a long way in buying supplies and gifts for our children’s orphanage(s). I will provide a detailed account of everything that was purchased with these funds at a later time. Our sincerest thanks go to everyone who looked, passed on the information, or bid so generously to help the children who have to stay behind.

And the winners are:

Photographs - Ben M. of Indianapolis, IN
Vase – Bryan and Maria W. of Richmond, VA
Painting 1 - Jessica S. of Sunman, IN
Painting 2 – Mary Ann P. of Oswego, NY (please see previous blog entry)
Cards - Sue S. of Birmingham, AL

Of course, we would be amiss if we did not express our heartfelt gratitude again to the wonderful artists in our life who were kind enough to donate their works to this cause. Josie, Yuri, Isabelle – you are the best!

Art Auction Addendum

In a turn of events that I did not anticipate, there were two people really interested in my sister’s painting and I felt sad that only one could win it. So I offered one of these bidders this two-panel painting which my sister had also given me for orphanage fundraising:

I am happy to say that this item received a generous offer from the bidder and has found a new home. I just love it when things can work out for everyone involved.

Orphanage Art Auction

After many months of planning, here is our first adoption-related fundraiser. This fundraiser would not have been possible without the generosity of the artists in our life who kindly contributed their original works to this cause. Thank you so much!

This fundraiser is not intended to alleviate or supplement the costs of our adoption. None of the money raised will be used to cover any of our personal adoption expenses. All proceeds will be donated to our children’s orphanage(s) either in the form of items purchased by us in the U.S. and then delivered personally or in cash as facilitated through our placing agency. Every dollar raised will benefit in some way the children who, sadly, have to stay behind.

If you like any of the items up for auction, please send me an email (viviane8 @ yahoo.com) with your bid. Please put Art Auction in the subject line. I will be monitoring my inbox diligently and let you know if you’ve been outbid. The auction will end on August 6, 2010 at 7:00 pm EST and winners will be announced over the weekend. I will also post the amount of money raised and later add a detailed entry about everything that was purchased with these funds. The pieces of art will be mailed to the winners on August 14, 2010.

Now, happy bidding, everyone, on these beautiful items:

My best friend from college, Josie Virgin-Crowe, is a photographer in Indianapolis. She contributed two black and white photographs to be auctioned off together: A Place in Pueblo, Texas (11.5x8 in) and The Grazing Herd (16x5 in). Each photograph is in a 20x16 inch mat. If you would like to see more of Josie’s work, please visit: www.croweseyephotography.com.

My friend Yuri Okamoto is a glass-blower and glass-blowing teacher in Indianapolis. She donated this white and violet vase which is 6.5 inches high and has an opening at the top of 2.5 inches in diameter. If you’d like to learn more about Yuri and her artistry, please visit: http://www.yuriglass.com/.

My sister Isabelle Seumel is an artist in Vienna, Austria. She just completed her Master’s Degree in Art and plans to earn her Ph.D. in the field next. She contributed this set of abstract paintings to be auctioned off together. Each canvas panel measures 7.75x15.75 inches. To get in touch with my sister about her work, please email: atelier @ lichtkind. at.

Lastly, this is a set of twelve handmade greeting cards (5.5in x 4in), one corresponding to each month of the year either through a holiday or the season. Each one-of-a-kind card contains a quote from a work of literature on the front and is blank inside. This is my own handiwork, so if you’d like to learn more, please visit: www.litbitgreetings.com.