I'm at work right now - I'm the only one here - it's my lunchtime. I thought about you a lot yesterday, Mr. Edison, you know with it being Christmas day and all. Paul, the girls and I, had a wonderful Christmas and we all talked about how fun it will be for you to be there next year!
I remember asking an adoptive parent several years ago - how differently do you feel toward your biological child and your adopted child? The answer was - there is no difference - I love them both very much and can't imagine my life without either of them. I'm starting to completely understand that. Even though I had Emily and Kensley with me on Christmas Day, I knew something was missing! I wondered if your foster family celebrated Christmas and if you received any gifts. We bought you a few things - you have a pillow that is shaped like Diego and he will be taller than you when you get here. I think you will like him alot! We got you a hat and mittens that are camoflauge. Kensley made something for you and wrapped it and I'm not sure it got opened yesterday. I also ordered you some books and they were delivered on Christmas Eve! I cannot wait to read them to you - for practice - Kensley and I read them :-)
We've made it our own family tradition to stay home on Christmas day. Everyone just rests and plays with their new toys. I read an entire book yesterday and started one that Emily wanted me to read! Kensley got a Nintendo DS for her birthday and Santa brought a "Learn to speak Spanish" game. I played it and my Spanish speaking ability is now at a "toddler" level! Maybe that will be a little better by the time we meet you! Emily spent most of the day playing Guitar Hero III on the PlayStation. Kensley is addicted to movies and spent most of the day watching DVDs - Harry Potter, Pirates of the Carribbean, Bring It On and Underdog! Paul and the girls went to ride the horses at one point in the day. I stayed home and took a nap!
So, here it is the day after Christmas and I sit here at work - all alone! It's almost time to get back to work. Meme has taken Kensley to the movies to see "Enchanted." Emily wanted to stay home so I'm sure if she is awake yet, she is either on MySpace or playing Guitar Hero. She said she doesn't like the movies????? Paul is hunting.
It will be so fun to introduce you to your new family. They are all going to fall so in love with you.
Merry Christmas Edison Alejandro (soon to be Underwood)! I love you. Mommy
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Kensley's x-ray
Kensley had a little incident at the barn on Monday evening. She was climbing the fence and her feet slipped. She fell and her shirt got hung on the fence and jerked her arm up. She hung there until she could get her feet back on the rail. Paul said she was in a lot of pain and she continued to complain even at bedtime. The next morning she could barely move. We told her to take a warm shower to see how she felt. I decided to take her to the doctor because she told me she thought her shoulder was broken because she heard it pop two times. She was also very tender on her collarbone.
When the doctor looked, she thought it was broken too because there was an indention, bruising and tenderness on the collarbone. They took an x-ray and it was normal - thank goodness. Doctor's orders are to take it easy for a few days and take Ibuprofen. If she is still having pain next week, they will repeat the x-ray to make sure it is not broken. They told her she has a really bad sprain and what may have happened is that the shoulder was pulled out of joint and then popped back in itself.
She is bruised and sore but feeling much better. The soreness is more in the bicep and tricep area now. I have always heard that a sprain can be worse than a break but at least she is not in a brace right here at Christmastime, her birthday and winter break.
When the doctor looked, she thought it was broken too because there was an indention, bruising and tenderness on the collarbone. They took an x-ray and it was normal - thank goodness. Doctor's orders are to take it easy for a few days and take Ibuprofen. If she is still having pain next week, they will repeat the x-ray to make sure it is not broken. They told her she has a really bad sprain and what may have happened is that the shoulder was pulled out of joint and then popped back in itself.
She is bruised and sore but feeling much better. The soreness is more in the bicep and tricep area now. I have always heard that a sprain can be worse than a break but at least she is not in a brace right here at Christmastime, her birthday and winter break.
Paper is on its way!
What a wonderful day it has been! We received Edison's 7 month photos and medical update. He now weighs 17 pounds and 14 ounces - that is an excellent size for a Guatemalan baby. He has obviously had a haircut from the 5 month old pictures and he is already beginning to look like a little boy instead of a lump of baby. He actually has a neck now! Oh yeah, he is definitely meant to be ours because it still appears he is going to need glasses. That's okay! I just hope we can get him home soon to take him to the ophthalmologist who has treated Emily since she was 2 years old. The sooner we can get treatment, the better it will be for his vision.
The second great thing that happened today was that our I-797C left the office via Federal Express to travel to Guatemala overnight! How exciting is that? Soon, they will ask for our credit card information so we can pay for the DNA testing. I have never been so anxious to receive a bill!
I have purchased a few little gifts for Edison for Christmas. One I plan to take to him when we go visit in February. It is a little bitty blue blanket that is fleece on one side and silk on the other. It has a little brown toy horse head attached to it with a cute floppy mane. Two sides of the blanket have teething toys attached. The fleece side is monogrammed with the word "Neigh". Since we all love horses, we are introducing Edison early so hopefully he will enjoy them as much as the rest of us. If not, he is going to be pretty miserable because we spend a lot of time at the barn!
The other gift is a camoflauge hat and matching mittens trimmed with bright orange thread. They are adorable and should fit him next winter. I knew Paul would want him to have some camo as quickly as possible. Poor child - I hope he likes the outdoors because if he wants to spend time with his daddy, he is going to have to learn to hunt. Not really - Paul took a break from hunting while the girls were little. I am sure if need be, he will do the same for Eddy.
So these are my happy thoughts for the day - watch out - you never know what can happen from one day to the next when you are in the middle of an adoption!
The second great thing that happened today was that our I-797C left the office via Federal Express to travel to Guatemala overnight! How exciting is that? Soon, they will ask for our credit card information so we can pay for the DNA testing. I have never been so anxious to receive a bill!
I have purchased a few little gifts for Edison for Christmas. One I plan to take to him when we go visit in February. It is a little bitty blue blanket that is fleece on one side and silk on the other. It has a little brown toy horse head attached to it with a cute floppy mane. Two sides of the blanket have teething toys attached. The fleece side is monogrammed with the word "Neigh". Since we all love horses, we are introducing Edison early so hopefully he will enjoy them as much as the rest of us. If not, he is going to be pretty miserable because we spend a lot of time at the barn!
The other gift is a camoflauge hat and matching mittens trimmed with bright orange thread. They are adorable and should fit him next winter. I knew Paul would want him to have some camo as quickly as possible. Poor child - I hope he likes the outdoors because if he wants to spend time with his daddy, he is going to have to learn to hunt. Not really - Paul took a break from hunting while the girls were little. I am sure if need be, he will do the same for Eddy.
So these are my happy thoughts for the day - watch out - you never know what can happen from one day to the next when you are in the middle of an adoption!
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
We got approval from USA!!!
I am so excited! Paul just went to the mailbox and came back with a letter from the United States Citizenship & Immigration Service. We are approved for: "one healthy male child between the ages of birth to twelve(12) months at time of referral. Minor medically correctable problems, prematurely or low birth weight may be acceptable on a case-by-case basis." This is an answer to a prayer I have been praying for multiple times each day.
What does that mean, you ask? This means that the US government will request that a DNA match be done on both Edison and his biological mother to make sure she is his mother. This is a scary time for adoptive parents because this also means that his bio mom will see him for the first time since he was born. I know she loves him and I can't imagine how hard that will be for her. I know that the process is very "mechanical". They will bring the mom in, sit her in a chair, bring Eddy in and sit him in her lap, snap their picture, swab the insides of both of their mouths and then take the baby away. Of course, if she wants to visit with him, they will let her do so. Paul and I will receive a copy of this picture when we go to pick him up. This will be the only picture we (and he) will have of his biological mom. Pray for his mother (Jemmy). I know she needs them!
On a happy note - I was able to meet our Guatemala attorney, Cinthya, yesterday. I also met our Notary, Arabella. Notaries are more prominent in Guatemala than they are in the states. Their notaries are "higher up" than attorneys. You can't just pay $20.00, swear you have never fought in a dual and have someone post a bond in your name like we can do over here. You actually go to law school and then have additional training and are appointed as a notary. Anyway, Cinthya and Arabella came to our adoption agency to sign Power of Attorney's for families that want to have their POA filed before the end of the year. On December 11th, the Guatemalan congress passed a law with a grandfather clause indicating that all adoptions with POAs filed before 12/30/2007 can proceed as is and will not have to start the process again to meet Hague Standards concerning International Adoption! That is wonderful news for our family, as ours was filed sometime in September.
While talking to Cinthya yesterday, she told me that Edison is a very sweet boy and always happy - she said he is giggling and smiling everytime she sees him. She also told me that his foster mother is a very special lady. Her name is Teresa. She is divorced and is the sole provider for her family. She works as a foster mom but also works with Cinthya's sister in a shoe store. I don't know how many children Teresa has - I was so excited to talk to Cinthya I forgot to ask. Cinthya said that Teresa loves Eddy very much and that it will be very hard on her when he has to leave but she understands that he is being adopted and knows he will be leaving. Next prayer request -please pray for Teresa because she has cared for Edison since he came home from the hospital. I can't imagine what she will feel - and I know Edison loves her too because she is all he has known. Children are resilient and I have faith we will all adjust very well.
Cinthya is also very excited for Paul and I and the girls to come to Guatemala in February. She is going to try to bring him to the house where we are staying when we arrive because she knows we will be so anxious to see him. I told her we planned to stay in a hotel the last part of the week so we could have him all to ourselves! She will help us make arrangements to get from the mission house. She said we were very close to Guatemala City and that will be good!
Great things are happening for us! God is so good ...
What does that mean, you ask? This means that the US government will request that a DNA match be done on both Edison and his biological mother to make sure she is his mother. This is a scary time for adoptive parents because this also means that his bio mom will see him for the first time since he was born. I know she loves him and I can't imagine how hard that will be for her. I know that the process is very "mechanical". They will bring the mom in, sit her in a chair, bring Eddy in and sit him in her lap, snap their picture, swab the insides of both of their mouths and then take the baby away. Of course, if she wants to visit with him, they will let her do so. Paul and I will receive a copy of this picture when we go to pick him up. This will be the only picture we (and he) will have of his biological mom. Pray for his mother (Jemmy). I know she needs them!
On a happy note - I was able to meet our Guatemala attorney, Cinthya, yesterday. I also met our Notary, Arabella. Notaries are more prominent in Guatemala than they are in the states. Their notaries are "higher up" than attorneys. You can't just pay $20.00, swear you have never fought in a dual and have someone post a bond in your name like we can do over here. You actually go to law school and then have additional training and are appointed as a notary. Anyway, Cinthya and Arabella came to our adoption agency to sign Power of Attorney's for families that want to have their POA filed before the end of the year. On December 11th, the Guatemalan congress passed a law with a grandfather clause indicating that all adoptions with POAs filed before 12/30/2007 can proceed as is and will not have to start the process again to meet Hague Standards concerning International Adoption! That is wonderful news for our family, as ours was filed sometime in September.
While talking to Cinthya yesterday, she told me that Edison is a very sweet boy and always happy - she said he is giggling and smiling everytime she sees him. She also told me that his foster mother is a very special lady. Her name is Teresa. She is divorced and is the sole provider for her family. She works as a foster mom but also works with Cinthya's sister in a shoe store. I don't know how many children Teresa has - I was so excited to talk to Cinthya I forgot to ask. Cinthya said that Teresa loves Eddy very much and that it will be very hard on her when he has to leave but she understands that he is being adopted and knows he will be leaving. Next prayer request -please pray for Teresa because she has cared for Edison since he came home from the hospital. I can't imagine what she will feel - and I know Edison loves her too because she is all he has known. Children are resilient and I have faith we will all adjust very well.
Cinthya is also very excited for Paul and I and the girls to come to Guatemala in February. She is going to try to bring him to the house where we are staying when we arrive because she knows we will be so anxious to see him. I told her we planned to stay in a hotel the last part of the week so we could have him all to ourselves! She will help us make arrangements to get from the mission house. She said we were very close to Guatemala City and that will be good!
Great things are happening for us! God is so good ...
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Thanksgiving Day, 2007
The home study has been completed, all the documents have been signed, notarized, certified by the county clerk, certified by the Kentucky Secretary of State, certified by the U.S. Department of State and authenticated by the Guatemalan consulate - whew!!! Our completed Dossier was hand-delivered to Guatemala a few weeks ago and should be filed in Guatemalan Family Court by now. We are still waiting on the wonderful United States of America to issue our I-171H. This is the approval from our government giving us permission to bring an orphaned child from another country into our country as a U.S. as a citizen. Paul drove to Louisville to check the status of the form the other day and they told him it had been approved and was sent to "outgoing" a few days before. We were hoping to receive it Tuesday, but it was not in the mailbox. I prayed it would be there on Wednesday, but alas, it was not. Today is Thanksgiving so there is no chance for today. I would be very pleased to see it arrive on Friday or Saturday. As soon as we receive it, we will overnight it to our attorney in Guatemala.
The reason we are so anxious to receive the I-171H is because it triggers DNA testing for Edison and his mother. Our U.S. government requires that all children be DNA tested twice. The first time is to make sure the child that was given up belongs to the woman who claims to be his biological mother. The second DNA is to make sure the child we were referred in the beginning is the same child at the end of the adoption process. The U.S. does this because their has been some corruption in the adoption process in Guatemala with people stealing babies from their mothers to make money by selling them. I do not have a problem with this in the world - I'm just ready for the good ole' US of A to get their paperwork done so we can get this rolling!!
Happy Thanksgiving Edison! I know it's not a holiday in Guatemala; however, if you were here, you would just be enjoying your usual meals of formula and rice cereal (you're probably eating some veggies and fruits by now). Your soon to be mom (me) is not eating Thanksgiving dinner this year! I've come too far losing 30 pounds to let one day of turkey, dressing, dumplings and mashed potatoes undo what I've worked so hard toward. That is what I keep telling myself anyway! My health educator tells me I cannot eat "out of the box" this year - so I'm going to do what she says.
That's okay buddy, because you and I will put away a Thanksgiving feast next year - together!!
The reason we are so anxious to receive the I-171H is because it triggers DNA testing for Edison and his mother. Our U.S. government requires that all children be DNA tested twice. The first time is to make sure the child that was given up belongs to the woman who claims to be his biological mother. The second DNA is to make sure the child we were referred in the beginning is the same child at the end of the adoption process. The U.S. does this because their has been some corruption in the adoption process in Guatemala with people stealing babies from their mothers to make money by selling them. I do not have a problem with this in the world - I'm just ready for the good ole' US of A to get their paperwork done so we can get this rolling!!
Happy Thanksgiving Edison! I know it's not a holiday in Guatemala; however, if you were here, you would just be enjoying your usual meals of formula and rice cereal (you're probably eating some veggies and fruits by now). Your soon to be mom (me) is not eating Thanksgiving dinner this year! I've come too far losing 30 pounds to let one day of turkey, dressing, dumplings and mashed potatoes undo what I've worked so hard toward. That is what I keep telling myself anyway! My health educator tells me I cannot eat "out of the box" this year - so I'm going to do what she says.
That's okay buddy, because you and I will put away a Thanksgiving feast next year - together!!
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Anxieties
"Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you."— I Peter 5:7 (NIV) —
It is so hard to have a picture of a little boy you have already hopelessly fallen in love with and then be told, by people who have so much power over you, that you may never bring him into your home. That is where we are, along with approximately 5000 other U.S. families waiting to adopt a child from Guatemala.
I showed our son's photo to my husband one day and asked, "Can you walk away from this?" and he said, "No." Neither can I. We could lose money, but more than that, we could lose our son!
Why do we keep moving forward some ask? Because we have total faith in God that Edison will become a part of our family. The process may take a few more months than we planned, but I know he is meant to be ours.
We're taking a leap of faith, just as we did when we filled out the first paper to begin this journey.
It is so hard to have a picture of a little boy you have already hopelessly fallen in love with and then be told, by people who have so much power over you, that you may never bring him into your home. That is where we are, along with approximately 5000 other U.S. families waiting to adopt a child from Guatemala.
I showed our son's photo to my husband one day and asked, "Can you walk away from this?" and he said, "No." Neither can I. We could lose money, but more than that, we could lose our son!
Why do we keep moving forward some ask? Because we have total faith in God that Edison will become a part of our family. The process may take a few more months than we planned, but I know he is meant to be ours.
We're taking a leap of faith, just as we did when we filled out the first paper to begin this journey.
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We've been waiting how long ? ? ?
From the day we filled out our application for adoption (9/11/2007) to the day we picked up Edison's visa to come to the United States (9/11/2008) took exactly one year! Of my three pregnancies - this paper pregnancy was the longest and most stressful.
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