Here is L playing with Mom and her pacifier. This is still one of her favorite games! Erik and I loved hearing her giggle. It is infectious!
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Friday, March 27, 2009
beyond prayer
Sometimes…while prayer remains for its part, the intellect is taken away from it as if into heaven, and tears fall like fountains of waters, involuntarily soaking the whole face. All this time such a person is serene, still and filled with a wonder-filled vision. Very often he will not be allowed even to pray: this in truth is the state of cessation above prayer when he remains continually in amazement at God’s work of creation - like people who are crazed by wine, for this is ‘the wine which causes the person’s heart to rejoice’…. Blessed is the person who has entered this door in the experience of his own soul, for all the power of ink, letters and phrases is too feeble to indicate the delight of this mystery.
Bp. Hilarion Alfeyev in The Spiritual World of Isaac the Syrian from the blog Glory to God for All Things.
Bp. Hilarion Alfeyev in The Spiritual World of Isaac the Syrian from the blog Glory to God for All Things.
First Week Home
As you can probably imagine, time for blogging has become pretty scarce. So, no long-winded posts for now!
It has been nearly one week since L was introduced to her entire family and her new home. Here are some things I've noticed in our first week:
* She has gained 4 lbs since we had her weighed at the health clinic in Accra. FOUR POUNDS! I think I need to post before and after photos, don't you?
* The stare factor at JFK was just as noticeable as it was in Accra. That shocked me a little. The stares weren't quite as obvious, but there were still a lot of head-turning going on.
* There are times I've avoided going places this week just due to the attention and distraction I'll create with her. She is cute and it is a curiosity to see a very white lady with a very black baby. So, far it has all been positive attention, but for me it is a bit much even so. Something I'll have to get used to.
* I absolutely adore her dark skin. And her hair has really softened up now that I've gotten some good conditioner products for it. I'm saving up for some Carol's Daughter products - I hear these are the best.
* Yesterday, I did school with one child and got to talk "shop" (ie. homeschool stuff) with Dear Neighbor. Wow. Did it feel good to do something normal and have a conversation about something other than visas, the embassy, adoption, Ghana, etc! I feel like life is getting started again after being on hold.
* My upstairs is a WRECK! Luckily, we've managed to keep the downstairs in relatively good shape, but the upstairs (particularly E's room, the playroom, and our master closet) is a disaster. Erik and the kids are going to try to put it to rights this weekend. I'll feel better to have a somewhat organized home...organized chaos, yes, but organized nonetheless!
* As much as I hate to admit it, our six weeks together with no other distractions really seems to have helped her with the transition into family life. She's done great with a new climate, surroundings, dogs/cats, siblings, and even being introduced to new people. I'm really surprised by how quickly she seems to be assimilating. I am trying to keep a close eye on her for any signs of shutting down or getting stressed due to all these changes. She has moments where only Mom will do, but for the most part she seems to be really taking it all in stride.
Please keep praying for our friends, Ben and Aimee, who are still in Ghana. Their DNA has arrived at the Fairfax Identity Lab in Richmond, VA and should be done in a week to ten days. Then it will be sent directly to the US Embassy in Accra. Pray that the processing goes very quickly (maybe even quicker than a week) and has positive and conclusive results. Pray also that the embassy then speedily processes their visa.
It has been nearly one week since L was introduced to her entire family and her new home. Here are some things I've noticed in our first week:
* She has gained 4 lbs since we had her weighed at the health clinic in Accra. FOUR POUNDS! I think I need to post before and after photos, don't you?
* The stare factor at JFK was just as noticeable as it was in Accra. That shocked me a little. The stares weren't quite as obvious, but there were still a lot of head-turning going on.
* There are times I've avoided going places this week just due to the attention and distraction I'll create with her. She is cute and it is a curiosity to see a very white lady with a very black baby. So, far it has all been positive attention, but for me it is a bit much even so. Something I'll have to get used to.
* I absolutely adore her dark skin. And her hair has really softened up now that I've gotten some good conditioner products for it. I'm saving up for some Carol's Daughter products - I hear these are the best.
* Yesterday, I did school with one child and got to talk "shop" (ie. homeschool stuff) with Dear Neighbor. Wow. Did it feel good to do something normal and have a conversation about something other than visas, the embassy, adoption, Ghana, etc! I feel like life is getting started again after being on hold.
* My upstairs is a WRECK! Luckily, we've managed to keep the downstairs in relatively good shape, but the upstairs (particularly E's room, the playroom, and our master closet) is a disaster. Erik and the kids are going to try to put it to rights this weekend. I'll feel better to have a somewhat organized home...organized chaos, yes, but organized nonetheless!
* As much as I hate to admit it, our six weeks together with no other distractions really seems to have helped her with the transition into family life. She's done great with a new climate, surroundings, dogs/cats, siblings, and even being introduced to new people. I'm really surprised by how quickly she seems to be assimilating. I am trying to keep a close eye on her for any signs of shutting down or getting stressed due to all these changes. She has moments where only Mom will do, but for the most part she seems to be really taking it all in stride.
Please keep praying for our friends, Ben and Aimee, who are still in Ghana. Their DNA has arrived at the Fairfax Identity Lab in Richmond, VA and should be done in a week to ten days. Then it will be sent directly to the US Embassy in Accra. Pray that the processing goes very quickly (maybe even quicker than a week) and has positive and conclusive results. Pray also that the embassy then speedily processes their visa.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
The Family is Whole Again
Yes, we are finally home! Baby L and I arrived home late last Friday night (March 20th) to adoring siblings and relieved hubby. You can check out our homecoming story and photos, as well as some notes and photos from our first week home.
It is good to be home!
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It is good to be home!
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First Week Photos
Some photos from L's first week!
The highchair has a pretty cool view!
Ahh - the "Johnny-Jump-Up" - this is one of her favorite pasttimes right now.
A little family time.
H gets to feed littlest sister.
S shares a snuggle with L.
E, H and L having a little floor playtime.
The highchair has a pretty cool view!
Ahh - the "Johnny-Jump-Up" - this is one of her favorite pasttimes right now.
A little family time.
H gets to feed littlest sister.
S shares a snuggle with L.
E, H and L having a little floor playtime.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Finally HOME
Finally, and finally, HOME!
Here is L in her bassinet.
Had many people who helped along the way - kind flight attendants and gate personnel, passengers who helped with overhead bins, Dan who carried my second carry-on bag all the way to immigration at JFK, the immigration officer who helped me fill out my form and moved me up to an open window, another passenger who helped me with my bag onto the second flight, and Dan, again, who carried my extra bag off the plane in Charlotte and all the way to baggage claim! (HI, DAN!)
Packing was fun
On our way to the airport!
Our facilitator's brother helped us through the check-in process at the airport (facilitator parked the car). I was very thankful he was there to help with the luggage! The check-in process is quite complicated. There is the initial customs check, two ticket/passport checks prior to the actual Delta desk, a checked-luggage search (manual and mandatory), immigration (and if you've overstayed your expected stay, as I did, you get to go visit the Immigration officers and pay a "fee"), then the first and most complete security check (x-ray, liquids, metal detector), then a ticket/passport/visa check, a carry-on luggage search (manual and mandatory - and sometimes a gender-specific body pat down), and, at last, the long walk out the tarmac to the airplane steps.
I had a few problems along the way (was an hour late due to the US time change...flight was leaving an hour earlier...ooops! and had to pay the immigration "fee", but the officer had mercy and accepted my 17 cedi rather than the "required" 40 cedi) and a few blessings (was allowed to take my thermos of hot water for baby bottles and one of the ticket/passport/visa checkers called me out of line to sit down while he did my check).
We were able (another huge blessing on a PACKED flight) to get a bulkhead seat with an empty chair between me and another lady with a child. I also was able to use the bassinet - which was a huge help! L was really so good on the flight. She had a few fussy periods, but for the most part she was really happy. We played and walked for the majority of the flight. She did sleep just a little bit -2 half hour naps...that is IT! So, I didn't sleep at all. It was tiring being in baby play mode for all that time!
Here is L in her bassinet.
Had many people who helped along the way - kind flight attendants and gate personnel, passengers who helped with overhead bins, Dan who carried my second carry-on bag all the way to immigration at JFK, the immigration officer who helped me fill out my form and moved me up to an open window, another passenger who helped me with my bag onto the second flight, and Dan, again, who carried my extra bag off the plane in Charlotte and all the way to baggage claim! (HI, DAN!)
It was SO GOOD to see the kids - but they looked HUGE! I swear they got bigger while I was gone. L was sound asleep in the wrap, so they were as quiet with their "Hello"s as they could be.
She got a little upset on the ride home, so I squished between the seats and sat beside her. Not at all safe, but after six weeks of riding without a seatbelt it didn't seem so bad.
Here we are coming in the front door.
It was nearly midnight by the time we'd all gotten in and had some snuggle time. L was practically loopy, but she seemed to enjoy the goofy faces all the kids made.
L surrounded by siblings
Trying out a "yoga" pose inspired by L.
All snuggled up!
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Leaving on a jet plane...
Yes! I have L's visa in my hands! We will be leaving early tomorrow morning (10am) and expect to pull into Charlotte at a little before 10pm (that is 2am Ghana time). It will be a very long day! I'm finishing my packing tonight and trying to get L to sleep so I can have a bath before the morning. Our flight is at 10:20, but we have to arrive 3 hours early for the various security checks.
While I am very happy about heading home, my joy is tempered. Our traveling companions, Aimee and Ben, are not going to be traveling with us. Due to some complications with the interview of the birthmom, the embassy has requested DNA testing to confirm parentage. There is no question in anyone's minds (Aimee and Bed, our facilitator, our agency, me) that she is the biomom...but the embassy needs more proof because of some misstatements made.
It is really too bad the embassy can't just judge by their appearances because A (their daughter) and her biomother look strikingly alike.
The DNA will be sent to a lab in Richmond, VA and will then be sent directly back to the embassy. When they recieve the positive results, a visa will automatically be issued. No further interviews or paperwork. The DNA process takes 3-4 weeks.
It nearly broke my spirit when Ben turned away from the interview window and shook his head. He was very upset, but kept it together so he could do the work needed to be done today. Aimee is so upset, of course. She doesn't understand why this is happening...and I'm right there with her. All they want is to bring their daughter home!
We started this trip together and we've been together every step of the way. I HATE leaving without them. I HATE even more that they are having to stay longer. Please pray for them and for the DNA process. They need a miracle!
Having been here 6 weeks already, I can tell you another month really seems like an eternity. This whole trip has been entirely emotionally draining. International adoption is a bit of an emotional minefield
Please pray for them!
While I am very happy about heading home, my joy is tempered. Our traveling companions, Aimee and Ben, are not going to be traveling with us. Due to some complications with the interview of the birthmom, the embassy has requested DNA testing to confirm parentage. There is no question in anyone's minds (Aimee and Bed, our facilitator, our agency, me) that she is the biomom...but the embassy needs more proof because of some misstatements made.
It is really too bad the embassy can't just judge by their appearances because A (their daughter) and her biomother look strikingly alike.
The DNA will be sent to a lab in Richmond, VA and will then be sent directly back to the embassy. When they recieve the positive results, a visa will automatically be issued. No further interviews or paperwork. The DNA process takes 3-4 weeks.
It nearly broke my spirit when Ben turned away from the interview window and shook his head. He was very upset, but kept it together so he could do the work needed to be done today. Aimee is so upset, of course. She doesn't understand why this is happening...and I'm right there with her. All they want is to bring their daughter home!
We started this trip together and we've been together every step of the way. I HATE leaving without them. I HATE even more that they are having to stay longer. Please pray for them and for the DNA process. They need a miracle!
Having been here 6 weeks already, I can tell you another month really seems like an eternity. This whole trip has been entirely emotionally draining. International adoption is a bit of an emotional minefield
Please pray for them!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Finally - GOOD NEWS!
I had this whole email typed out about how we didn't get the passports today and we'd just see how it went tomorrow...when guess what...
WE GOT THE PASSPORTS!
Our facilitator asked the passport director's secretary (with whom he'd become friends after spending so much time there the past two days) to call him if the director came back in this evening. Apparently, that is how he works, meetings all day and then in for some desk work in the evening and the secretary has to be there for all of it. (I'm just guessing here.)
Tomorrow early morning (like 4am) our facilitator will go out to Kasoa where the birthmoms are staying and bring them in to town. We'll meet at the embassy as early as possible - maybe even by 7:30 (when they open). The embassy will review the birthmoms' passports (to be sure they are who they say they are), possibly reinterview them, possibly reinterview us, and then we will be done. We should know before we leave if we are approved to get the visas. The embassy can turn around visas in 24 hours...and they have for the other family here (going home tomorrow - Yea, Faubles!). So we hope/expect to get them Thursday and fly on Friday.
Again, glitches could still happen, but it looks really good that we'll be HOME on Friday!
WE GOT THE PASSPORTS!
Our facilitator asked the passport director's secretary (with whom he'd become friends after spending so much time there the past two days) to call him if the director came back in this evening. Apparently, that is how he works, meetings all day and then in for some desk work in the evening and the secretary has to be there for all of it. (I'm just guessing here.)
Tomorrow early morning (like 4am) our facilitator will go out to Kasoa where the birthmoms are staying and bring them in to town. We'll meet at the embassy as early as possible - maybe even by 7:30 (when they open). The embassy will review the birthmoms' passports (to be sure they are who they say they are), possibly reinterview them, possibly reinterview us, and then we will be done. We should know before we leave if we are approved to get the visas. The embassy can turn around visas in 24 hours...and they have for the other family here (going home tomorrow - Yea, Faubles!). So we hope/expect to get them Thursday and fly on Friday.
Again, glitches could still happen, but it looks really good that we'll be HOME on Friday!
I'm going to be HOME!!!
having a good appetite
....when a child is little and he learns a lot of history, fairy tales, Bible stories, great music, good dances, etc. he will have that in his soul’s storehouse. Then, when he is a teenager and the meaningless garbage of kitsch culture draws him, he’ll at least have alternatives. He’ll have an appetite for things that taste much better.
- Andrew Kern, Quiddity blog, Jan 13, 2009
- Andrew Kern, Quiddity blog, Jan 13, 2009
Monday, March 16, 2009
No News is not Good News
Well, the title says it all. The passports for the birthmoms (their required photo idea for the US Embassy-an additional requirement) are waiting to be signed. We were told that they were done and ready for pick up, but this was not the entire truth. Unfortunately, the passport office director was out of the office in meetings all day today, so we had no chance of getting them signed today and thus, no embassy visit.
I wish we'd been given a true assessment of the situation instead of being told the "rosey" picture. It is like having the rug pulled out from under you and has been, unfortunately, par for the course at each hurdle during this in-country process. It isn't really any one person's fault but rather a "perfect storm" situation.
I'd love to say that "maybe tomorrow", but I really can't say that. All I can say is, "We'll see."
If ANYONE has any contacts with the Ghana Passport Office director, we sure could use a small favor! We just need to catch him at the office and get those passports signed. (If you have such a contact, would you leave a comment? Or contact my hubby, if you know him personally.)
We distracted ourselves today with blog posting and a walk to a batik store (closed, we'll go back tomorrow). Please pray for our disappointed hearts....and for a miracle tomorrow. We really, really, really need a miracle.
I wish we'd been given a true assessment of the situation instead of being told the "rosey" picture. It is like having the rug pulled out from under you and has been, unfortunately, par for the course at each hurdle during this in-country process. It isn't really any one person's fault but rather a "perfect storm" situation.
I'd love to say that "maybe tomorrow", but I really can't say that. All I can say is, "We'll see."
If ANYONE has any contacts with the Ghana Passport Office director, we sure could use a small favor! We just need to catch him at the office and get those passports signed. (If you have such a contact, would you leave a comment? Or contact my hubby, if you know him personally.)
We distracted ourselves today with blog posting and a walk to a batik store (closed, we'll go back tomorrow). Please pray for our disappointed hearts....and for a miracle tomorrow. We really, really, really need a miracle.
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