THE BIG DAY IS ALMOST UPON US!

Wow, a few months ago weeks would go by without a word to report, so I really didn't need to be very attentive at keeping up my blog, but just in the past couple of weeks things have really moved along. I haven't been keeping up not because there isn't anything to write about but because things are moving so fast I haven't had a minute to write it all down. As it is, I'm writing this on my BlackBerry on the train on the way to work... which is about the most multitasking that I do.

The big news is that everything is proceeding quickly with Caesar and we are now on the fast track to having him move in on Friday, December 4. For anyone who hasn't read my last few blog posts, Caesar is the 16-year-old boy we have been getting to know and who we are bringing into our family with the ultimate goal being adoption. In my last post I wrote about how we had spent our first day together with his social worker there to help ease the transition. Since then we have spent a lot of time alone with Caesar and he has had the chance to stay over several times and see what our daily life is like. It's not all dining out and taking day trips to walk around the city. Chris has taken him grocery shopping, he's been helping us with taking out the garbage and other chores and we've spent Sunday mornings reading the paper and watching videos. Of course, once in a while we do get to do fun things. He knows we like to travel and he's excited to think about where we might go for our first trip together.

GETTING TO KNOW CAESAR
Caesar is a very special and wonderful kid. He seems to really enjoy just hanging out with us talking, playing board games, cooking or whatever. Unlike most 16-year-olds I know, which is admittedly not many, he seems to thrive on attention from adults, which is great for us because we said from the beginning that we want someone who wants to participate and be part of the family. He's very much into music, and Chris and I have been getting a crash course in all the popular singers and songs on the charts these days. As someone who hasn't bought a top 40 album in years (is it ok to still call them albums?) and who is only familiar with names of popular singers based on reading in the news about who dissed whom at the XYZ Awards Show, I've been surprised at how much I enjoy the music he listens to. Here we were thinking we were going to turn him onto show tunes (which could still happen) and now I'm ready to get tickets to see Lady Gaga when she comes to San Francisco!

We can tell that Caesar is starting to feel more comfortable with us because he is able to share more parts of his personality. We've seen the quiet pensive side of him as well as the goofy fun side. Sometimes he'll behave very maturely and responsibly and sometimes we're reminded that it wasn't so long ago that he was a child and that he's still learning how to be a young adult.

We are fortunate to live in a district with great schools, but considering all the changes with home and family, we assumed that Caesar would want to continue at the same school he's been going to so that at least he could stay with his friends there. We were surprised and a little glad to learn that he is actually looking forward to transferring to the local high school, hopefully for next semester. I think this will help us stay more involved and connected to what's going on with school, which will be helpful. As it is, I think he's going to be receiving more attention and support regarding academics now than he has been getting in foster care, so that is definitely a good thing.

We are thrilled that Caesar has chosen to spend Thanksgiving with us and that he will get a chance to meet much of Chris's side of the family then. Our family is pretty big though so it will probably take several visits to meet eveyone! For now we're just thankful that Caesar is excited about joining our family and will be spending Thanksgiving with us in his new home.

More updates soon!