tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36394937969393959002024-02-18T21:50:31.164-08:00Taste and SeeThe T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.comBlogger236125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-74336763497200788922011-09-17T15:13:00.000-07:002011-09-17T15:18:51.686-07:00<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRlYwyhVBrzEZLu4OyfB0zGzR9HU4Xpjz7zigNLSIgNswlVR5VnrJIvdWCedPYiEIqwMl-ay_6jyJxxVt_WVvNmgXHFNkYW4MJUboBXZyuiHlItqIBT8D0M3lxYyOTD9sqB7K7Xv-DMVc/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+297.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRlYwyhVBrzEZLu4OyfB0zGzR9HU4Xpjz7zigNLSIgNswlVR5VnrJIvdWCedPYiEIqwMl-ay_6jyJxxVt_WVvNmgXHFNkYW4MJUboBXZyuiHlItqIBT8D0M3lxYyOTD9sqB7K7Xv-DMVc/s400/Summer+2011+Iphone+297.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We have loved taking hikes on the trail near our house. I love this picture!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhknWGl4_pTwAjmgVATS2OmOhUv2aDvDH7W4VP-pAUA5bpt_ShAidbGaRE9EoLgPBfqZAvnAIfrLDXiCHRJc-GfV2l-aQL4ki9uaotzLsBsk6pYhQPL5YFSoUZjQpUiCt2aM3_ket813LU/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+308.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhknWGl4_pTwAjmgVATS2OmOhUv2aDvDH7W4VP-pAUA5bpt_ShAidbGaRE9EoLgPBfqZAvnAIfrLDXiCHRJc-GfV2l-aQL4ki9uaotzLsBsk6pYhQPL5YFSoUZjQpUiCt2aM3_ket813LU/s400/Summer+2011+Iphone+308.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After one of our hikes it was warm so we let the kids get in the river. So fun!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcDeUVc-eAJd3cBJyvfLyIvL1IxxkCipfHKIwu6hveJgHR7CD8FOTD6PWLuXPWsCOGCMoInNfoOfCBCPR3WHhQiFNjjIQL0IarXnxetkl9cUx4nn8BNXjvi_GekEEUX02Y8X2AgyKcfDw/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+383.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcDeUVc-eAJd3cBJyvfLyIvL1IxxkCipfHKIwu6hveJgHR7CD8FOTD6PWLuXPWsCOGCMoInNfoOfCBCPR3WHhQiFNjjIQL0IarXnxetkl9cUx4nn8BNXjvi_GekEEUX02Y8X2AgyKcfDw/s400/Summer+2011+Iphone+383.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">For Cindy's birthday, Grant and Jake make her a princess litter- like in the old days! They are so creative! She loved all the attention and bossed them around just like royalty! LOL!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-62234574943560971152011-09-17T15:08:00.000-07:002011-09-17T15:19:40.864-07:00<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLRT7yCgStOYFlhkL-ClGWXEzt6x2K0iHLwQz6EsZ3HfvMtIqCg5QADnkf4dkQ4gsi_VZQ3npKlKjyliOX2S_nx05FNFKsYy8H7tC3r7-7sTfeZQDq21u225OKQFt7OgmG9M38YrvAY04/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+378.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLRT7yCgStOYFlhkL-ClGWXEzt6x2K0iHLwQz6EsZ3HfvMtIqCg5QADnkf4dkQ4gsi_VZQ3npKlKjyliOX2S_nx05FNFKsYy8H7tC3r7-7sTfeZQDq21u225OKQFt7OgmG9M38YrvAY04/s400/Summer+2011+Iphone+378.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All Cindy wanted for her 4th birthday was a Cinderella dress. She was so excited to get that and a lot of other homemade presents from her brothers.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKVEGEqxrYcgpAcXj-HYI-lTTOKRngzIIUEmXwvvIFoJzn3t5rEaxeuw93U6K42GWK1bFzeJzTQbQmR2r7jXVtDdgIGkMij3ffKv9X9ATAYaDtIJthgAuMeHGhGILiuW4Xva7n_x2QF34/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+290.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKVEGEqxrYcgpAcXj-HYI-lTTOKRngzIIUEmXwvvIFoJzn3t5rEaxeuw93U6K42GWK1bFzeJzTQbQmR2r7jXVtDdgIGkMij3ffKv9X9ATAYaDtIJthgAuMeHGhGILiuW4Xva7n_x2QF34/s400/Summer+2011+Iphone+290.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jonathan was so excited to get his own nerf gun like his big brothers. Oh, the battles that ensued!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEmnGL-jKhmPFgDZWa-T7dkaaQTRGaZ6LU2NMxkiGQy7LvKlCUOj46fMEwIeLLNiB6ZH2wGVRUrOpUR2szA397gkixph2mDE_nlia3gViUgTr8o3CqjF2eS3O-BMNNXuv4YqVtv5aFmn4/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+284.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEmnGL-jKhmPFgDZWa-T7dkaaQTRGaZ6LU2NMxkiGQy7LvKlCUOj46fMEwIeLLNiB6ZH2wGVRUrOpUR2szA397gkixph2mDE_nlia3gViUgTr8o3CqjF2eS3O-BMNNXuv4YqVtv5aFmn4/s640/Summer+2011+Iphone+284.JPG" width="478" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Since Jonathan's birthday was the month before we became a family, we told him we would celebrate a belated birthday. He HAD to partake of the Colombian tradition of the mom smashing the child's face in the cake after they sing. He loved it! The girls decided they didn't want to continue that tradition! Ha!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ1VOI6ji24jVXq6xp-ON3cgZoLWDEmNSo9xhlQ_x6rbOZqmjb2NPSlTVwlTyD-mmlXD4zkAA3X0d9LU9fk895p0tLURiKGc-D1x0otSczzcSO7FLPLik0DSJ0Xdirqb7Q3BT3tWX9NYM/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+277.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ1VOI6ji24jVXq6xp-ON3cgZoLWDEmNSo9xhlQ_x6rbOZqmjb2NPSlTVwlTyD-mmlXD4zkAA3X0d9LU9fk895p0tLURiKGc-D1x0otSczzcSO7FLPLik0DSJ0Xdirqb7Q3BT3tWX9NYM/s640/Summer+2011+Iphone+277.JPG" width="478" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><ul><li>At the Harford County Farm Fair, Luisa told us that her foster family had a cow just like this. It was her favorite.</li>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN-rpMAIdisvWkGoSn7Rw1lzTeOHojAJhK3jJaITRhVLbsYcKVqtn-UljjXyYOWvAJuiVjT7w1CwDbkzWmT8gdC1-lbJOOTjFDmRvIlLVPCUopuf4Of5Xsto_ZMhb5YHm9wyMfmnPqQtg/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+274.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN-rpMAIdisvWkGoSn7Rw1lzTeOHojAJhK3jJaITRhVLbsYcKVqtn-UljjXyYOWvAJuiVjT7w1CwDbkzWmT8gdC1-lbJOOTjFDmRvIlLVPCUopuf4Of5Xsto_ZMhb5YHm9wyMfmnPqQtg/s640/Summer+2011+Iphone+274.JPG" width="478" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playing dress-ups is the little kids' favorite pastime!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguKS8xVHpAI32_n5W0zF7AarAtsQT2XNLyGMiIIN93p10tPAlCYIeEqVtM0fSSbHNiJyGqB-k-XIuLAAQ2HdZXaEuSenD2RQRaZQGg-EASKCd2b0GhWrwd7qwP3jIj22uTAIKRTW2AG_E/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+270.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguKS8xVHpAI32_n5W0zF7AarAtsQT2XNLyGMiIIN93p10tPAlCYIeEqVtM0fSSbHNiJyGqB-k-XIuLAAQ2HdZXaEuSenD2RQRaZQGg-EASKCd2b0GhWrwd7qwP3jIj22uTAIKRTW2AG_E/s640/Summer+2011+Iphone+270.JPG" width="478" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cait was moral support for her friend, Gwen, as she got her ears pierced. Then they had fun trying on very high heels in the shoe store!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijmyw0ME9k8QJyuRxJLujd42tYzVMh7N0ihr2izp1AyyhOjJA6eBfqRU7kNwnR3OA72VoiuInq17T1yLn7UTVeMBYLlUYfPLPwwiFKvU950I3LNlupulV05LQ_jpw5nuFj-6VzIFhaC4c/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+388.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijmyw0ME9k8QJyuRxJLujd42tYzVMh7N0ihr2izp1AyyhOjJA6eBfqRU7kNwnR3OA72VoiuInq17T1yLn7UTVeMBYLlUYfPLPwwiFKvU950I3LNlupulV05LQ_jpw5nuFj-6VzIFhaC4c/s400/Summer+2011+Iphone+388.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cindy loved meeting her newest cousin Tirzah- A REAL BABYDOLL!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-68333075057906236382011-09-17T14:40:00.000-07:002011-09-17T14:40:37.798-07:00<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"></td><td style="text-align: center;"></td><td style="text-align: center;"></td><td style="text-align: center;"></td><td style="text-align: center;"></td><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0tIfqbSf2G2DCKSErRA02OVxr2zQbT-_CBRVPmLVKg6hxJ5ET4txw4pRucky-6ddhVPuNLmO1w87pySyL950MEtIWVLZzzzICnNTKmnMgH6d3iC5XeAcoieugRJLg7lBuZctKhTThJZ8/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+263.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0tIfqbSf2G2DCKSErRA02OVxr2zQbT-_CBRVPmLVKg6hxJ5ET4txw4pRucky-6ddhVPuNLmO1w87pySyL950MEtIWVLZzzzICnNTKmnMgH6d3iC5XeAcoieugRJLg7lBuZctKhTThJZ8/s320/Summer+2011+Iphone+263.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quinn's box was a fighter plane..</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDXqr7Pem-78ibZYHHZWn-d4IaQULMjuyDkBVPQISyg8NM9MXjNpLindMZn586ezA2SxvGnaS7xdY60GtdC-_hKbCqcVpe3o4E-YGHdbJH3AYJqcz6zNZbObvESXsOCbEwnOeYIULSylc/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+256.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDXqr7Pem-78ibZYHHZWn-d4IaQULMjuyDkBVPQISyg8NM9MXjNpLindMZn586ezA2SxvGnaS7xdY60GtdC-_hKbCqcVpe3o4E-YGHdbJH3AYJqcz6zNZbObvESXsOCbEwnOeYIULSylc/s320/Summer+2011+Iphone+256.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">So, I found this huge stash of big boxes along the side of the road. The kids LOVED making all kinds of vehicles and houses out of them. Entertained them for quite a while this summer!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRb3iStF2ZzJFqPQHVAqLXyEfqid-SV_a6ocGxQLnrw32Dm-Mo1ATvEmDP9-QtfJT4XE4gs257s2WWxyW-m_-caO80-CQNn7sc5HH8G1j2PS9NjCgosWV3hGdbJXB1mZ_m8S_66siLW0I/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+238.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRb3iStF2ZzJFqPQHVAqLXyEfqid-SV_a6ocGxQLnrw32Dm-Mo1ATvEmDP9-QtfJT4XE4gs257s2WWxyW-m_-caO80-CQNn7sc5HH8G1j2PS9NjCgosWV3hGdbJXB1mZ_m8S_66siLW0I/s320/Summer+2011+Iphone+238.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Almost all the cousins on the Trautman side- a few babies were sleeping...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOAYZHRqt2d41L0vRW9jPknJnC_YxaDm8q7qpfvw7yc1YXKGjjchVhwcD3gxItbA6GpVPpUSM2Glx6Fusw-l0ksRXNM5McClgq-EOfv7JHe5h-Wi6nCwoM-W9qrUfJDScl4MS7iHHjrGw/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+222.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOAYZHRqt2d41L0vRW9jPknJnC_YxaDm8q7qpfvw7yc1YXKGjjchVhwcD3gxItbA6GpVPpUSM2Glx6Fusw-l0ksRXNM5McClgq-EOfv7JHe5h-Wi6nCwoM-W9qrUfJDScl4MS7iHHjrGw/s320/Summer+2011+Iphone+222.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">4th of July- we finally got the sparklers to light!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGMw27v9Gi6KbvEIoCYlXkZKxRKAuyMktmtB1-0m8yzprEqd8rpXTA_R3XLujUK8DLg2bbVvxVUW5ePoHItSL0Hh6J-bEhqsinuRWHjtx2fcn3GxdLng6kuAK2TBDVmQwQr7K9o66VEjY/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+185.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGMw27v9Gi6KbvEIoCYlXkZKxRKAuyMktmtB1-0m8yzprEqd8rpXTA_R3XLujUK8DLg2bbVvxVUW5ePoHItSL0Hh6J-bEhqsinuRWHjtx2fcn3GxdLng6kuAK2TBDVmQwQr7K9o66VEjY/s320/Summer+2011+Iphone+185.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The boys and their cousin Andrew all decked out with marshmallow guns Uncle Dave brought over..umm..yeah..thanks soo much Dave... still finding marshmallows all over the place! Just kidding!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJdPAlq_z_CD9gUEb50Q0RyAAILd7i_Gh85DSytfjjhEMX97wZEM5C7Q2gHe8Qe2shPPc_wfE72LpYtE_ehAM_-0o0pAaNsXZNKNVN_cFTcPzZsgyeeQJ0oeOkrFODRgZWJrLObRXpf_M/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+081.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJdPAlq_z_CD9gUEb50Q0RyAAILd7i_Gh85DSytfjjhEMX97wZEM5C7Q2gHe8Qe2shPPc_wfE72LpYtE_ehAM_-0o0pAaNsXZNKNVN_cFTcPzZsgyeeQJ0oeOkrFODRgZWJrLObRXpf_M/s320/Summer+2011+Iphone+081.JPG" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cindy had a great time riding the miniature horse at Abuelita Muzzy's house</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMHQ6GB-sg-Pep9BwPPYsz6M4Bj6AsM4IkCJn2ag1BnbDe0fMwBH_nY_cTUswitvugusXxAKQs2NLs_fR2RM6r8vcYpioMcNGFQJ4E5qnB33kHkM81VZy_UQWqDzg-FCP_9ojdIWh2rQQ/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+063.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMHQ6GB-sg-Pep9BwPPYsz6M4Bj6AsM4IkCJn2ag1BnbDe0fMwBH_nY_cTUswitvugusXxAKQs2NLs_fR2RM6r8vcYpioMcNGFQJ4E5qnB33kHkM81VZy_UQWqDzg-FCP_9ojdIWh2rQQ/s320/Summer+2011+Iphone+063.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jonathan and Muzzy (abuelita!)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIOthQcKaIcKSivMX1j9jk2TPRt-kF1wDEmik3y89HYprn0itcSnndaCWZNKEtXIHpSLeKNIGDTI2qAHvVFnhRo4Sq1KicIOjHmuIsMbTs8rGWWPHazJjFPBVm1gqUI1XI3mxktwa2hk0/s1600/Summer+2011+Iphone+014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIOthQcKaIcKSivMX1j9jk2TPRt-kF1wDEmik3y89HYprn0itcSnndaCWZNKEtXIHpSLeKNIGDTI2qAHvVFnhRo4Sq1KicIOjHmuIsMbTs8rGWWPHazJjFPBVm1gqUI1XI3mxktwa2hk0/s320/Summer+2011+Iphone+014.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Luisa finishing the top of her very first birthday cake! Pink cake, Pink icing, and pastel sprinkles! She was in heaven!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</tbody></table>The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-37816146473558865702011-09-17T14:08:00.000-07:002011-09-17T14:09:49.143-07:00So, I have become a horrible blogger. Unfortunately I only find myself blogging when something big is happening in our life. I find myself not feeling like it when life is good and mundane. Well, I guess that it is a good thing everything is going good here, right?<br />
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And things <u>have</u> been wonderful. We have been one big (9 people) happy family since May 6th and home in the US since June 2nd- 3 months home!!! In so many ways it seems like they just arrived and yet at the same time it feels like the kids have always been a part of our family. We are all learning and growing and figuring out what our "new normal" looks like. Frankly, Brent and I are continually in awe of how well things are going. We had prepared for attachment issues, tantrums, controlling behaviors, and a long transition time since we were adopting older kids with lots of trauma in their past. But God has been so good. He has graciously given us blessing after blessing which we don't deserve. He has healed brokenness in ways that I never imagined possible. <br />
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The children we received in Colombia are completely different than the children we have here today. We RARELY have to deal with temper tantrums and the food issues are no more challenging than with our bio kids. Though we have found that they like Mexican food more than Colombian food! HA!<br />
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About a month and a half after we got home we experienced one week of a setback with difficult behaviors. It really drained me emotionally, I think, because I was unprepared for it. In Colombia we were all psyched up for all the drama that comes with older child adoption, but then the first month or so home was so easy that I let down my guard. When things got difficult again I started to wonder if the new honeymoon at home was really over and this was our new normal- yuck. I felt really discouraged and sad. BUT, thankfully, we think they were just testing the boundaries and seeing if anything had changed. It only lasted about a week or so and since then things have been wonderful.<br />
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We had a wonderful summer full of "firsts". First cookout, first amusement park, first 4th of July, first time hiking, first time visiting grandparent's houses, first trips to the library, first doctor/dentist appointments, first Sunday School classes, and so many more. We swam in the pool a LOT, ate more watermelons than we can count (surely Jonathan is going to turn into a watermelon!), and have learned that hot dogs need to be on the dinner menu at least once a week. <br />
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We have loved learning more of their personalities and habits though I feel like we still have a long way to go. I think once English is the primary language we will understand a lot more. Right now we are hearing a lot of Spanglish! The kids understand almost everything we are saying in English, but they are still speaking Spanish (or Spanglish) 90% of the time. This season of language acquisition is so fun. We get a lot of laughs throughout the day as we hear "muy hot" or "You I like?" (translation: do you like??) Cindy and Jonathan are definitely picking it up the fastest being younger, however Luisa can read so she can often figure out English words by sounding them out. <br />
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In the midst of all of the language transition, I think we lost Quinn. Because of age, he ends up having the most interaction/play time with the chicos and has almost completely gone to speaking in Spanish since there are 3 of them speaking Spanish and only him speaking English! In fact, we have had multiple instances where he has forgotten a word or two in ENGLISH! LOL! He pretty much only speaks Spanish around the house and even on his narration for school the other day, he was saying it all in Spanish until I reminded him that I couldn't understand what he was saying! He is so far beyond Brent and I!<br />
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The thing that really cracks me up, though, is to hear them bicker or argue in Spanish! And this is with all 7 of them! They have totally accepted each other as typical siblings; they love each other but fight like normal too. Except it really is hard to keep a straight face when I hear my English speaking kids fussing at their siblings in Spanish! <br />
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The kids are very open and honest about their past for which I am thankful. They are pretty matter of fact about things and don't dwell on it. It saddens me to hear so many of the stories of the abuse they experienced, but there are many happy memories entwined in the midst. I am so thankful that Luisa can remember so many details so well. It has been a gift to know little things like when Cindy was potty trained, how each of them got different scars on their body, the color of one of their favorite dresses, which foods they loved or hated in Colombia, songs they remember singing in school, silly traditions they had, friends names, stories of aunts, uncles and cousins they had in their foster families, the story of how Cindy climbed out of her crib and fell, and other little things like those. I am choosing not to dwell on all the lost time we have missed with them but be grateful for the bits that we do know. Those will be the stories we tell and retell through their lives. <br />
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Two weeks ago we started back to school. I am homeschooling all 7 so my day is pretty long so far. We are still working out the scheduling kinks as I figure out how to meet everyone's needs appropriately. I took the chicos all the way back to the beginning and started with preschool type work just to solidify what they knew and to figure out where the gaps were. So far, Luisa is flying with reading but we needed to really back up with Math. Jonathan is sooo anxious to read and is faithful to practice his letter sounds. He always is disappointed when I say school time is over! He is picking up learning very easily because he is so motivated! Cindy is starting to learn some letter sounds and recognize numbers, but mostly she is just happy to do school like the big kids.<br />
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Yesterday we started with our first day of homeschool co-op. It ends up being a long day and we are all tired, but they love the classes. The older kids are doing World Geography, Nature Study Sketching, a serious Drawing and Painting class, drama, and Grant is taking intermediate guitar. The little guys are doing World geography, Art, Science Experiments and a Lego Club. Cindy has all kinds of preschool classes during the day which she enjoyed.<br />
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Shortly after we came home everyone (except for Cindy and I) started up Karate again. The older kids were glad to be back to the routine and friends. Luisa and Jonathan are doing surprisingly well even though they don't understand a lot. Luisa is one tough little girl with strong muscles and a determined will. When Jonathan first came to us, his fine motor skills were severely delayed. He couldn't hold a pencil, couldn't open our front door- basically had no strength to speak of. Swimming in the pool, some strategic toy options to strengthen fine motor skills, riding bikes, and karate have all helped him to improve dramatically.The difference now is amazing. He is most proud of being able to hold a pencil and write like the big kids!<br />
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So, there you have it. The past three months of boring mundaneness all summarized! Hopefully it won't be another 3 months before I get around to remembering to do another post! I'll try to upload some photos in the next post. <br />
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-The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-61121739544871575642011-06-28T19:02:00.000-07:002011-06-28T19:02:51.245-07:003 (and a half) week Update!Ok, so my lofty goal of doing a weekly update on this blog has turned out to be pretty laughable! I have hardly any time to sit down, much less think through what to type on a blog post!<br />
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Everything on the home-front is going amazingly well. After all the drama and tantrums in Colombia I fully expected coming home to be even worse but it has been just the opposite. Yes, we have still had a few tantrums but they are short lived and FAR apart! We are so thankful for that! The kids are doing a great job catching on to our lifestyle and habits. I have been trying to be vigilant about starting off with the manners and rules that I have fallen lax with our bio kids through the years. It's been good for them, too!<br />
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In an attempt to not paint an unrealistic picture, we have struggled trying to make our family not feel like two separate sets of kids. Our bio kids have not had the greatest patience with their new siblings and the first week or two we had LOTS of discussions about being inclusive and not exclusive. Although we haven't fully arrived at the goal, I am beginning to see glimpses of compassion and acts of graciousness. It is a good growing process for them all. The bio kids are learning how to love people when the other person is not easy to love. They are learning what it looks like to "die to the flesh". They are becoming more aware of the idolatry of self that is bound up in each of our hearts. So, although, it is emotionally draining continually dealing with correction and discussion discipline, the Lord is giving me an eternal perspective in the midst of all the drama. He is using this time to smooth off the rough edges of their character and mold them into His children who look and behave like Him. For that I am thankful.<br />
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We've had a full 3 weeks so far. Lots of visitors that have welcomed us home with loving arms. Lots of meals- so many we can't fit more in our freezer! I have been so blessed by seeing how in each step of this adoption process, the body of Christ has stepped in and collectively helped bring these children to their forever family. We love each of you!<br />
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In addition to lots of visitors, we celebrated Luisa's 8th birthday. We chose to keep it very low key. The kids had received lots of gifts from family and friends in the week or so previous so we tried to keep the celebration muted (just our immediate family) to decrease the sensory overload. She chose hamburgers and hot dogs for dinner and then she helped me bake a PINK cake with PINK icing and lots of pastel decorations for the top. She got an art supplies kit and several blank journal books from us- which is right up her alley. If you could see the massive amounts of paper and markers, crayons and play doh this child has stashed in bags and boxes all around her bed you would be amazed! She is going to be so fun to buy school supplies with! LOL!<br />
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The kids have been doing well attending children's church each Sunday. Caitlin has gone back with them the past two weeks so Brent and I could hear the sermon, which is so nice of her. Jonathan is even starting to participate by answering questions (not sure how he's understanding the story, though! LOL). Cindy has been going to the toddlers class alone and is doing great, although everyone says she doesn't talk! Not the Cindy we have at home! This kid is hysterical. She already has quite the sense of humor. And she is still her Daddy's girl. They have a unique bond, which is so awesome! I love to see Daddy's girls!<br />
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We've visited the park, took walks by the river, gone to our Sunday School picnic, had a campfire with marshmallows (they'd never seen them before) and gone to my mom's house to see their miniature horses. <br />
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Yesterday we took our first long road trip to a little amusement park in Pennsylvania called Knoebles. You pay by ride so it is cheaper for us to do as a big family! We prepped the kids ahead of time that they were not allowed to ask for any food or games or they would have to sit on a bench and not ride on the rides. (We had a picnic lunch and plenty of snacks so they didn't starve!) They didn't ask a single time!! So we surprised them with a treat of popcorn at the end of the day. They loved the rides and especially the one where you get totally soaked. That was quite the hit!<br />
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English is coming slowly, but it is coming. They are very interested in learning and often ask us to quiz them on the English that they know. The doctor suggested that Cindy (and possibly Jonathan) see a speech therapist so we will check into that soon.<br />
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Overall, everything is busy, but good. I am just trying to keep up with everyone and all the cooking, laundry and cleaning. Brent is back to work full time now, so we are starting to fall into a routine- albeit a loose one! At least everyone is doing their morning chores before breakfast with no problems! That makes life much easier on me! I'm still a little panicky about how in the world we are going to fit homeschooling into our day, but hopefully once that time comes life will be a little less chaotic and I will have a firmer grasp on how to best manage things.The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-40878348225910604662011-06-07T19:58:00.000-07:002011-06-07T19:58:12.495-07:00Home Update!We've had a bunch of people begging for an update now that we're home! So I'll try to fill everyone in!<br />
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Travel on Thursday was very uneventful, thankfully. The taxi driver was so wonderful and stayed with us as we checked in the airport and all the way up to immigration where he wasn't allowed further. He was extremely kind and even got teary-eyed when we said goodbye. I was so thankful for him as it took a LONG time to get through check in. I guess 9 people, with a bunch of legal paperwork and 11 bags to check is a lot to get done. I was glad we allowed the full 3 hours ahead of time.<br />
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For families awaiting travel from the Bogota airport here's how it happened for us. We flew Avianca, so I don't know how other airlines are...<br />
We got a Porter to help us carry all our luggage in on a cart and then while Brent and the taxi driver waited in line with the kids, the Porter took me to a window to get an exit tax-exempt stamp since we had been there less than a month. It was not for the chicos, but the rest of us. Then I got back in line with the rest of the group! <br />
First you get into the Avianca line that says to go to the US. (There is another line for Europe and South American Countries.) When we got to the first set of people who were checking us in, I had to give all our passports and show (not give) a copy of each of their new birth certificates and sentencia. Our attorney had already prepared an envelope with those things for us, so I wasn't scrambling to find them. They gave us baggage tickets to stick to our luggage with our address- so filling out 11 of them took a while. Then we were sent to the real check in desk where we again showed the passports, birth certs, and sentencia. Keep them handy! LOL! The lady asked for the "permissions" and I didnt' know what she wanted but thankfully the taxi driver explained that they needed our documents. We left all our checked baggage with her and got our boarding passes.<br />
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The taxi driver then took us up the escalators (to the right of the check in desk). Upstairs we went to the left toward immigration. It is smack in the middle of the huge corridor so you can't miss it. First you go through security and then wait in line for immigration. We didn't have to wait for more than 5 minutes in line before we got to the immigration officer. There are about 10 counters set up and there was someone directing us to which one to go to. I think we had to go to the one specifically for people traveling with minors. This was a good 20 minute procedure. He had to look at each person and compare it to the passport (actually both times before they did that too, so don't send someone to the bathroom!). Then I gave him the copy of the birth certificate and sentencia (authenticated!) to keep. He was doing some kind of paperwork on his side of the counter so I'm not sure what that was all about. We were quite the spectacle with 7 kids sprawled all over the floor listening to music on their Mp3's or resting their heads on their backpacks! We got quite a lot of stares and a few of the other immigration officers just couldn't resist asking about all our details! LOL<br />
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Once you are through immigration, you head toward your gate. There are lots of stores for shopping or restaurants. There is security again at the actual gate. There are NO bathrooms or drinks allowed past the security. We asked about taking water in for the children and they allowed us to if it was unopened water. But I would check first before doing so. We were allowed snacks also. Thankfully we only had a short 15 minute wait before boarding the plane, but if your wait is going to be longer, you might consider delaying going through the gate security until just before boarding so you still have food/drink/bathroom facilities!<br />
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Flying home was easy with the on board entertainment system. I don't even think they had to get in their bags for toys!<br />
Once in Washington DC, we followed the masses of people to a shuttle that took us to immigration where we waited in another long line. It moved pretty quickly though. Our immigration officer took our big, fat Top Secret Envelopes and opened them. I was so curious about what was in them! It is only just photocopies of all the documents that were given at the Embassy! How anticlimactic! I had a handful of the same things in my backpack! LOL!<br />
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After going through another security for agricultural products (apparently coffee beans count!) with a grumpy officer, we were finally free! As soon as we passed through the doors we heard the screams and clapping of all our family and friends there to welcome us home! The kids clung to us for the first 20 minutes or so, but then the ice got broken when someone pulled out an uno game and crayons and coloring books. All the cousins crowded around and played! We stayed there for a while and since the kids were doing so well, we decided to all drive to a McDonalds with a playground for dinner. Gotta introduce these kids to the most American food, right! LOL! <br />
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The playground at McD's was perfect and it really allowed the chicos to get comfortable with their cousins and new family members. By the end of the evening they were hugging and kissing on everyone! I'm so glad we did it even though we ended up getting home late.<br />
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At home they were so excited to see everything! They went from room to room squealing and oohing and ahhing over each little thing. Then, we introduced them to the playroom in the basement. Oh, boy! You'd have thought they were in heaven. Dress ups were the ultimate hit! We told them they could either have a bath or play- and they chose to play! Of course! Finally around 12:30am everyone headed to bed.<br />
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The first two days home were like another honeymoon. The kids were doing amazingly well. Luisa and Jonathan both learned to ride a bike by the 2nd day!<br />
On Sunday we felt confident to brave going back to church. They did well, although it was totally overwhelming for them. So many people chattering in English and wanting to touch and hug them. Cindy wouldn't leave Brent's arms but Luisa and Jonathan did a good job saying Hola to people. I stayed with them in Children's Church and I think one of us will have to alternate each week until they get comfortable.<br />
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The next few days have proven to be a little more challenging as they try to figure out if the rules in the US are the same as in Colombia. A few more tantrums, but NOTHING as bad as they were in Col. Ultimately the kids are doing phenomenal. When I step back and consider what they have gone through I am absolutely floored at the progress they have made.<br />
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I am definitely finding that we need to speak more English. Believe it or not, but we've gotten pretty good at getting our point across in Spanish but I feel like it might be holding us back from progressing with them. So for now we are trying to say every phrase in both Spanish and English. They are very interested in learning, thankfully. They especially love it when a word in Spanish is the same or very similar in English! LOL!<br />
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They love Sadie, our dog. She is loving life with all their attention and with how often they spill their food! LOL! Brent and I are completely exhausted at the end of each day (thus the delay in posting on the blog!). It is mentally draining to keep up with their activity and be 100% on top of everything all day long. I'm sure that will slow down once we get into a better routine, but for now we are crashing into bed each day!<br />
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Ok, that's enough for now! Thank you all again for all the wonderful support you have been and the encouragement you have given. We have been humbled by how greatly you all have loved on us. You have blessed us immeasurably. We love you. Thank you for being on this journey with us.The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-29364455421843739892011-06-01T21:31:00.000-07:002011-06-01T21:31:42.518-07:00Day 26It was a quiet day today (well as quiet as it can be with 12 kids under age 13) at Hotel Paris. Everyone played together fairly well. No major tantrums. Yay!<br />
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In the morning we were finally able to get in touch with a Pastor of a church here in Bogota. Brent had been emailing him and we had hoped to attend church with them, but it never worked out. Thankfully he was available to visit for an hour or so this morning. He was super friendly (everyone is!) and was a huge blessing for us to meet. <br />
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At 2:30 Sylvia picked me up to go to the Embassy to pick up the visas. I needed the receipt I had been given (fyi) in order to get in the embassy. It was a quick and painless visit and the man was super friendly. I received 3 fat manilla envelopes that are taped shut with a special signature over it. These are the super important papers that everyone says DON'T OPEN! Otherwise it voids the entire adoption- or so I'm told.<br />
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Then we drove to the translation office. We had the sentencia and new birth certificates translated in Colombia since it is cheaper to do it here. These are needed for the readoption in the state of Maryland. That was a little crazy. First they didn't have the documents ready and we had to wait half an hour. Then I found mistakes on 4 different documents. Names were spelled wrong and Brent's passport number was wrong twice. Thankfully, they were able to fix them on the spot. It was supposed to be a 10 minute trip and it took almost 2 hours!<br />
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Back at the hotel, I finished packing the bulk of the suitcases. Cindy has been on a "Papi Only" strike so he ended up entertaining her most of the time so I could get stuff done! We said our goodbyes to the staff who have been so sweet. The main cook is hysterical and jokes around with us (mostly Brent) a lot. We left them all some salt water taffy from Ocean City. Then we took photos with them and the other family. Our kids are going to miss their new friends so much. I can't explain how much of a blessing it has been to be with the other families both in Medellin and here in Bogota. It forges a bond that is irreplaceable- especially as we commiserate and help each other through the daily tantrums and parenting issues! LOL!<br />
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Tomorrow we leave the hotel around 5:30am and arrive at the airport at 6:30, but our flight doesn't leave until 9:30ish. So hopefully we will be able to entertain everyone for that long of a time! I am so excited that this day is finally here! I'm counting down the hours! So are the kids! I can't tell you how many times I answered Jonathan's question about how many more hours until we leave! LOL!<br />
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Even though the title says Day 26, that is only how many days we've had our chicos. We've been in country 28 days....<br />
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Tonight is the end of the beginning and tomorrow is the beginning of the end! <br />
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As I sit here thinking about our past month in Colombia, I am so overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support of our family and friends. We truly couldn't have survived this time without all your emails and FB comments filled with encouragement. Sometimes they were words of excitement, empathy, scriptures to uplift, stories from home to distract- everything! And each one was sent at the perfect moment. Just in the minute it was needed. I love it when God does that!<br />
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And for all the family and friends who have blessed us so much by driving us to and from the airport, shopping for us, cleaning our house, fixing us meals, watching our dog, donating money, giving us hand-me-down clothes or furniture- you are the hands and feet of Christ. You have shown the love of Christ to us and to our family in bountiful ways. It has brought us so much joy to watch the body of Christ in action. Each of your deeds have been in obedience to the prompting of the Spirit and it has brought glory to Him.<br />
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This whole adoption has been all about Him from the beginning. He has set the example of a tender loving Father who rescues us- sinners who are lost and in despair. He has been our guide as we set out on this journey. At times it has been difficult to be patient and I'm sure the future will hold MANY more times where we are on our knees praying for help. But it is a comfort to know He IS and HAS BEEN and ALWAYS WILL BE in control of it all.<br />
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I hope that keeping up with the posting while in country has been helpful not only for our close family and friends, but also for the adoption community at large. I am so grateful for the other families who have chronicled their time in country. I feel like it made our time here more predictable. And I've gotten a ton of ideas and help. If anyone reading this is going through the Colombia adoption process and has questions, please email me. I'd be happy to help as much as I am able! steppingstonemomma@gmail.com<br />
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***Even though the title says Day 26, that is only how many days we've had our chicos. We've been in country 28 days....Adoptive families are always searching the timelines of other people so I wanted to clarify!The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-89214288440436031752011-05-31T20:47:00.000-07:002011-05-31T20:47:00.182-07:00Day 25After a few rough days, today was back on the upswing! We only had a few short issues of disobedience, but nothing long and major! Progress, again! At dinner I even said to Luisa that she hadn't had any grande pelea's today! (big fights) And that I was so proud of her! Her eyes got really big and she grabbed my hands and squealed "baile!!" (let's dance!) Then tonight at bedtime I was mentioning to Brent (in English) about our conversation and she understood enough of the words and she said, "Manana, yo tengo no grande peleas!" (Tomorrow I won't have any big fights!) I told her "THANK YOU!" and she replied (in English) quite emphatically, "YOUR WELCOME!" We all cracked up at the whole thing! Hopefully she is right and we will have another good day tomorrow!<br />
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This morning Sylvia, our Bogota agency rep, picked up the chicos and I and took us via crazy cab driver to the Bogota ICBF office. It was pretty busy, so I didn't end up meeting with any ICBF people. We just sat outside the office door and checked the accuracy of names and birthdates in order to get the super special ICBF letter that is required for HAGUE. Then I filled out a survey asking how our adoption process had been. It all took about 10 minutes.<br />
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Then we were off in a cab to the US Embassy. I showed the kids the US flag for the first time. They were excited to see it! There was a LONG line of people waiting to get into the embassy, but Sylvia marched right up to the front and talked to the embassy worker and in we went. We dropped off the visa photos, application, and their passports at a front window and then sat to wait. It was a very long wait! The kids immediately had spotted the little concession stand when we came in, so I let them each pick out some chips and juice to pass the time. I had brought some little new toys and that entertained them most of the wait. I ended up running into the same family that we had met in the Colombian Consulate in Washington DC when we went to get our visas. What are the odds of that! They had their two new children (12 and 11yo) and were there dropping off their paperwork too!<br />
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Finally after about 3 hours of waiting, we were called up to the front window to turn in the last bit of paperwork- the copies of their old and new birth certificates, sentencia and legal proceedings. Of course, at this moment the kids had had enough of waiting and started fighting with each other. They also decided they wanted to play with all the office equipment at the front window. It was a little stressful trying to talk to them about not touching or fighting, but not push them into a tantrum, and also try to answer the questions the embassy worker had while using a phone on the wall to speak through the window! LOL!<br />
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We went to a second window to pay the bill (yes, adoptive families, you can use a credit card!) and to a third window for a short "interview" which really wasn't an interview at all. All I had to do was sign my name and the kids names a few times. The kids were at their breaking point and, of course at one point Luisa whined "No quiero el nombre Trautman! Yo soy Luisa Fernanda Tangarife!" (I don't want the name Trautman, I am Luisa Fernanda Tangarife!)<br />
Oh, boy. I thought for sure I'd be interrogated and hassled at that point, but the worker only laughed and asked if I knew Spanish. (I guess she was wondering if I understood what Luisa had just said.) I told her "a little". She just laughed again. LOL! I guess she wasn't too worried about what Luisa wanted! Then she said that tomorrow only I needed to come pick up the visas. No need to bring the kids because they don't like it here! HA! She totally understood! She must have been a mom too.<br />
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We got home just in time for some lunch and then I headed back out to the Avianca office with Sylvia to try to change our flights. What a fiasco. We had been told on the phone that if we went to an actual office that they would change our flight code to an adoption fare and we wouldn't be charged a change date fee. So we explained that to the girl in the office and she agreed to change the fare. I was so excited! It was going to save us about $3000! Then she happened to get a phone call from the main office in Unicentro and she was told by someone there that they are only allowed to offer adoption fares if we were residents of Spain! WHAT? That's crazy! But she wouldn't budge. So after 3 hours in the office, back to the hotel, and then back to the office, we ended up having to pay the whole amount. What a ripoff. But it was cheaper to do that then buy new tickets. That would have cost us over $10,000 (which we wouldn't have done...). Oh, well. It's just money, right? God has no problem supplying all our needs, so I'm trusting that we won't need that $3000 once we get home.<br />
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Since Brent had been with the kids for several hours, they all needed a break so we and the other family took a walk before dinner. The kids had so much fun. We played little games the whole way to keep their attention and taught them all the hokey pokey. I'm really going to miss this family! They are awesome!<br />
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Once we got back, we heard some sad news. There was a husband and wife who arrived two days ago to adopt a 5month old baby boy. They got him yesterday, but he has been sick and on oxygen. They were told he was doing better, but when they gave him his meds today, he turned blue and almost stopped breathing. They rushed him to the hospital where he is now on a ventilator and may possible need surgery to remove scare tissue in his trachea that is impeding his breathing. We are so sad for them. They are an emotional mess. He is their first child and they've been waiting for 3 years for him. I would ask that everyone at home please pray for his healing and their comfort during this time. It is so scary for them.<br />
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The evening ended well. It is nice to have a bit of relief from the intensity of the past few days. I'm still pretty sure that our homecoming will be a challenge again, but it looks like we just need some time to reestablish boundaries each time there is a change.<br />
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I will go with Sylvia tomorrow at 3:30 to pick up the Visas. Then we'll pack everything up and on Thursday morning we will head to the airport for our flight home! We should arrive at Dulles airport around 3:30pm, but who knows how long immigration will take. (Thankfully, we were able to get a direct flight so we don't need to worry about trying to fit immigration into a layover! That sounded stressful to me! Too easy to miss a flight if immigration takes a long time!) But, it is exciting to think that they will become US citizens right then! <br />
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Several people have asked if it is ok to meet us at the airport. YES!!! We miss you all so much and we can't wait to see everyone! And we can't wait for you all to meet the newest additions to the Trautman family!<br />
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Even though I'm excited to be home, I'm going to miss Colombia. Actually, I'm not going to miss Bogota, but I will miss Medellin. I haven't cared for Bogota as much. So much pollution and smog and the people haven't seemed as friendly. Of course, we haven't been here as long, so it might be different if we were here for 3 weeks, but I could go back to Medellin in a heartbeat. I loved it there!The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-45188577634983029762011-05-30T20:06:00.000-07:002011-05-30T20:06:53.814-07:00Day 24Oh, boy.... this stomach bug is nasty. Poor Quinn was sick until just before lunchtime. He felt better and played for a few hours and then it hit again. Then after lunch it hit Jake. Both of them look horrible. I'm feeling pretty worried about it going through everyone just as we are trying to pack up and fly home. That is going to make travel very interesting...especially if Brent or I get it. The boys are totally zonked out. I don't know how we could do it...<br />
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This morning was another LONG battle with Luisa. She woke up still mad from yesterday, looking for a fight. We told her that she was not allowed to come down for breakfast if she was still acting angry. Well, that didn't go so well. She totally missed breakfast and only finished her tantrum at noon. She screamed so much that she has lost her voice completely. BUT, we didn't have any other issues the rest of the day even though we had a zero tolerance policy with her.<br />
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Jonathan had a great day. He loves to antagonize so he gets scolded or disciplined frequently for annoying other people, but thankfully no tantrums.<br />
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Cindy was a total Papi's girl today. Since I spent the morning with Luisa, Cindy and Papi had tons of fun together. She loves it when he sneaks up behind her and scares her. She screams bloody murder and than yells, "otra vez"!!! (again!!) She didn't even want to sit with me at mealtimes. She begged us to move her highchair next to papi! I love it! So adorable!<br />
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Today was little challenging trying to keep the bulk of the kids in the whole casa engaged and entertained (some of the parents are sick now too), but trying to stay with the sickies upstairs in the bedroom. I feel like Brent and I floated back and forth all day. We kept trying to change activities to keep them from getting bored. In the afternoon we brought out the punching balloons and they loved those. I think the cook and housekeeper had never seen one before either? They asked if they were American balloons! LOL! They both asked to have one and they both laughed hysterically trying to blow them up!<br />
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We are a little frustrated with the paperwork end of things here. Ever since the several staff members of Gladney got fired, there is now no communication between them and our guide here in Bogota. In Medellin, we felt so taken care of and that the guides/attorney were on top of everything. Now, here, we feel totally left alone and unsure of what is going on. Before, our guide or attorney called us every night to check on us. Since we have been here we haven't heard from our guide unless I called her- finally this morning. And then, she didn't even want to talk to me- only to someone here at the hotel since I guess she felt more comfortable with the language barrier. So really there is little to no communication happening. Apparently, the guide is saying that the letter that we need to get from ICBF is either not done yet, or she didn't feel like going to get it today. We're not sure. That means we only have a two hour window to go to ICBF and the US Embassy to drop off paperwork. I have a horrible feeling that we aren't going to get both done tomorrow and it will push us back from traveling another day. <br />
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We are really ready to come home. We need some stability in our life and this bed and breakfast is NOT conducive to older child adoption. There are waaaay too many distractions and limitations on parenting. I'm thankful for not having to cook or do laundry, but right now, even those are things I wish I was doing in my home! Hey, I'd even like to have my own puke buckets instead of having to ration the two trash cans out to nine people! LOL!The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-75767492427438917382011-05-30T09:31:00.000-07:002011-05-30T09:31:32.149-07:00Day 23I'm writing this the day after because I just didn't have enough mental energy to write last night. Yesterday was rough. The bulk of the day was tantrums, broken up by a few bright spots. Brent took most of the tantrums during the day and I took the evening. I must admit that by the end of the day both of us were feeling pretty discouraged and down. Thankfully, God, in His perfect timing, allowed grace to pour over us in the form of encouragement from our new found friends here. They have been here with their 3 new children for 7 weeks so they were able to offer us refreshment and words of strength last night. Once the kids were in bed (both families had a rough bed time! So thankful we're not the only ones!) the four of us sat on the sofa and talked until late at night. I am so grateful for God giving us another solid Christian family to bounce ideas off of and just to empathize. He knew we needed it.<br />
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Well, on to the bright spot of the day! Both families walked to the parque grande (big park) after lunch. They all had a super fun time even though it was full of big puddles and mud. Of course, they couldn't help getting totally wet and filthy, and we just let them go. We figured we'd just pay for the laundry service afterward. It was worth it because they all played hard and were tired by the end of the trip.<br />
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The driving here in Bogota is even worse than in Medellin. The cars do not yield to pedestrians. In fact I think they try to see how close they can get to you! It was a little crazy to try to cross the streets with 11 kids, but we made it in the end!<br />
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In the evening it was pizza night. Luisa missed out on it due to another tantrum, but the rest loved the delicious homemade pizza. Afterward they turned the salsa music up loud and the cook and waitresses and the kids all danced and fooled around! I missed it but Brent said he got some of it on video. It sounded like it was so fun!<br />
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In the middle of the night, Quinn woke up vomiting. Poor guy. He stayed in bed with us but none of us got much rest. Lori, the other mom, is also sick, so we don't know if it is a bug that is going to travel through all of us or something food related. I REALLY am praying we don't have to do the stomach bug right now! Tomorrow we have to go to the Embassy and we hoped to travel home on Wednesday night or Thursday morning. But that is all going to be challenging if we are all sick. Please pray for us that we all won't get it!The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-62239947510833443892011-05-28T20:29:00.000-07:002011-05-28T20:29:20.254-07:00Day 20 & 21 &22Ok, here is the post I started last night trying desperately to stay awake, but it didn't work...As you'll see, two hours of sleep isn't enough for me!! I fell asleep in the middle of typing and woke up in the middle of the night drooling on my laptop! LOL!<br />
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I am so bummed that I couldn't blog last night! But it has been a whirlwind two days!<br />
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Yesterday morning (it feels like a week ago, really!) I got a phone call from Gloria, our translator, that an appointment for Luisa's ID card was set up for us. We had 10 minutes to get dressed, gather all the documents and be outside the gate to wait since the appointment was in a half an hour and we were a 45 minute drive! Brent stayed home with the 6 others.<br />
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Apparently, there are elections getting ready to happen for their congress (their equivalent) so this office was super busy and wasn't going to allow us to come. Thankfully, she pulled a few strings and got us in to the office. We met Nora in a parking lot to get the new Birth Certificates with "Trautman" written on them. She also gave me some precious 8X10 photos of the kids from about a year ago that she snagged from their file at ICBF. Boy, I can't tell you how much of a treasure they are! What a gift!<br />
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We raced over to the ID office (not sure what it really is called!) and after waiting for a while, Luisa was able to get fingerprinted and a new card. She was a little grumpy because she had started running a low fever and didn't feel good.<br />
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Then, we raced back to the apartment where Brent had Cindy and Jonathan waiting by the gate so we could go get their new Colombian passports. We met Nora and her assistant Edwin at the passport office (right next to the court) and they walked us through all the details of getting new passports. The man was so sweet. He even let all the kids get fingerprinted after they saw me do it!<br />
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Then it was off to the Notaria office (notary) so that I could sign a document (I think it might be another power of attorney) so that Nora can be the one to request the children's file from ICBF. Problem was, they needed Brent to sign and he was still back at the apartment with the bio kids. So the other Gloria raced over to pick them up and brought him to the Notaria. While we were sitting there, Gloria called to the other contact person in Bogota and she set up our kids Embassy Doctor appointment for the next day- in Bogota!!That meant we were leaving ASAP!<br />
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Brent took the kids back to the apartment to swim and I went with Gloria #1 to the Avianca Airline office to buy our Medellin to Bogota tickets. Unfortunately we had to take a flight that left 5:50am or else the prices were double! We ran through Exito to pick up snacks for the plane and made it home around 4pm. I knew I had SO MUCH to do. So Brent kept the kids in the pool so I could start packing.<br />
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I was totally disorganized. We had planned to travel Sat or Sunday so I wasn't prepared. I started throwing things in the suitcases just to get going. We had several people stop over to tie up last minute issues...The apartment person to collect our rent, Gloria our translator who was able to take most of our food, and then Nora and Blanca came over for an hour or so to give us the copies of all the birth certificates, sentencia and legal proceedings.<br />
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Cait and Grant were gracious enough to stay up until around midnight to help us pack but they are exhausted today! Luisa was sooo anxious and excited that she couldn't stay asleep. Finally we had to put her on the floor in our room so she'd go to sleep. I think we ended up getting 2 1/2 hours sleep!<br />
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In the morning, Gloria and a rental van came to the apartment around 4am and we were off to the airport. kkdkm<br />
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ok... this is where I fell asleep last night!...LOL!<br />
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We made it through the airport in Medellin easily and quickly. Said our goodbyes to Gloria! We'll miss her! She is a hoot!<br />
The kids LOVED the airplane! It is such a short flight (half hour) that they barely got to do any of the fun stuff I'd packed in their bags. Between a graham cracker snack and a drink, that was about all they had time for!<br />
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Sylvia and Jaime (her husband) picked us up in their van plus a rental van. We drove to the adoption hotel we are staying at- called Hotel Paris. MANY other families have stayed here and loved it. And we were very excited because some friends I'd been communicating with via email were staying here with their three newest additions to the family! They have been here 7 weeks (Bogota courts are SLOW!) and they've been anxious to have some English speaking people staying here! It has been so fun meeting them and discussing the process and adoption transition issues.<br />
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We arrived at around 8am, so we had breakfast here at the hotel/bed &breakfast. We have two bedrooms and then there are common living rooms, common dining room, a swingset out back and an additional little casita (small house) that is full of toys for the kids to play with. The kids loved all the toys and so far are getting along well with the other children. There is another family that is visiting with their previously adopted kids that are from Finland and another family with a new daughter but I can't remember where they are from...<br />
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Yesterday, the kids played in the morning with all the toys. Then around 1:30, Brent took the chicos to the Embassy Medical Visit. I was worried that they might possibly need some vaccinations and there was no way I was going to be able to restrain them for multiple vacs. Last time was a traumatic experience- for me! LOL!<br />
Thankfully, they didn't need any vaccines and everything went well. <br />
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There is a document that the Medellin ICBF has to send to the National Bogota ICBF before we can go to the Embassy. It was supposed to be delivered via fax to the Bogota ICBF yesterday (Friday) but when Sylvia called, it was not ready. So that means that we can't get it until Monday. Only problem is that the US Embassy is closed for Memorial day, so even though we can get the paper from ICBF, we can't take it to the Embassy until Tuesday. Bummer. It puts us a day behind. We were all psyched to go home on Wednesday, but now we are thinking we'll have to leave on Thursday (unless we take a late Wed. flight...which we'll see...)<br />
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Today, we had hoped to go to Monserrate, but it was pouring when we woke up. Also Quinn had been still running a fever and I wasn't sure if he'd be ok. So we hung out while the kids played all morning. After lunch the other family took us to Unicentro Mall. (It looks exactly like one of our malls at home. Just all in Spanish.) Our guys had never been to a large shopping center before, so they did surprisingly well. I think having the other children there (who have been LOTS of times in the past 7 weeks) helped them to know what to do. Or what not to do!<br />
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We went to a bookstore and I got more coloring books. The kids go through them like crazy! The other family is planning to homeschool so it has been fun talking about education and other homeschool stuff! Then we went to Whopper King (kinda like Burger King!) for ice cream. It was mass chaos to get everyone the flavor they wanted (11 kids were there! Our 7, their 3 and an extra girl who lives at the hotel) but I think under the circumstances we did pretty good! At least we didn't lose anyone! <br />
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Since we've been here, I feel like we are seeing some regression with the chicos. I don't know if it would have happened even if we were in Medellin or if it is due to the upheaval with a new location and new rules and new everything, or what. We have had multiple tantrums since we got here. Some short, some long- though not like the 3 hour one in the first week we had them! Praise the Lord! I anticipate that coming home is going to be full of more regression. It is going to make things challenging, to say the least... at least here, we don't have to cook or clean and we can easily take the time to see the tantrum to the end without feeling like everything else is falling apart. I am really looking forward to being home, but dreading it at the same time...<br />
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It is much colder here than in Medellin. I think today was a high of 63 degrees and in the low 50's at night. I miss Medellin! LOL! Oh, well, we'll be back to spring/summer weather in a few days! <br />
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The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-66529645037576012862011-05-25T20:08:00.000-07:002011-05-25T20:08:56.193-07:00Day 19What a sweet, pleasant day!<br />
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We didn't have to go anywhere, so we literally spent the greater part of the day at the pool. It was good weather so we didn't get run out by the thunder and rain. The kids played pretty well for the most part. A few sibling squabbles, but no major tantrums.<br />
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We had found that any time Luisa gets frustrated, hurt or disappointed, she deals with it by getting angry. She doesn't even let us take the time to figure out what is the matter so it usually spirals down into an immediate tantrum. Well, today we had a few breakthroughs that we were pretty happy about. Simple, little things, but important.<br />
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Cindy had been demanding all the cups and plates that they were playing with in the pool and Luisa had finally had enough. She started screaming at her and swam off in a huff and ignored us when we called her. Brent had to pull her out of the pool and make her sit out. BUT, the awesome thing is that a little bit later I had her come sit with me and was finally able to ask what was the problem. She explained,( rationally!) that Cindy wanted ALL the toys. I told her I understood that wasn't nice, but she couldn't get angry. She needed to be gentle with her words. If she was having a problem she was to ask for help from mami or papi and not just get angry right away. (All this was done in my most limited spanish, but she got the point!) She actually responded well to the conversation and the tantrum ended there! AND, a few minutes later two of the boys were pulling on her inner tube and she hollared, "Ayudame, mami"! I was soooo proud of her remembering to get help from me instead of getting angry!! Score for Luisa! and us!<br />
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After some quiet time in the apartment (play food, playdoh and broken phones are a hit right now!) they all headed out for some futbol with the Mason family. Every five minutes (or less) Luisa melted down because she either got hurt (not really, but lots of drama) or someone made her mad. She had several time outs on the log with me. Finally, the fake crying was driving me (and everyone else) crazy. So I told her she couldn't play futbol unless she was strong and stopped crying. Well, I guess she got the message because she didn't have any more issues. Even when she got hit pretty hard a few times she toughed it out and said she was ok. A few times I knew it really hurt, (small field and strong, competitive kids!) but she hung in there and was a Colombiana fuerte (strong Colombian woman!). Whew. Glad that worked! She is our little drama queen! LOL!<br />
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I don't mean to harp on the issues with Luisa, but I am just so excited to see the little bits of progress here and there with her. She definitely sets the tone with the other two so having the oldest learn and obey trickles down to the other two.<br />
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Caitlin got invited by the Masons to go to dinner at the Tesoro Mall. Their 2 kids still in Colombia are both close in age to Cait so it was fun for her to go! I didn't think she would since she's never done something like that before, but she did! And she had a great time! Brent sent her with money and a cell phone and I think she was a little worried about all the responsibility! So cute! I think she has needed a little break with all the chaos, so thank you, Amanda for inviting her!<br />
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Cindy was so tired tonight that she only wanted Brent to carry her around or else she'd whine. So, while I was on the phone with our attorney, Brent fixed most of the dinner with her in his arms! He is total mush with toddlers... I love it! <br />
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Nora, our attorney, called tonight and said they got all the birth certificates and some other paperwork we had requested. Yay! Because the kids' file is so huge, we aren't sure if we will get all the copies before we have to go to Bogota, but if not, it will be mailed to us. They wanted to know if we wanted anything translated, but it is $10 a page and there are 350 pages of essential documents! Uh,.... no. I'm disappointed because I thought that was included in our fees with Gladney, but I guess not. So, does anyone at home that knows spanish want to translate for us? LOL!<br />
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Tomorrow, Luisa will need to sign her new name for her identification card so just she and I will go for that appointment. Then hopefully in the afternoon we can take all three kids for their passports. Then we have to start packing and purchase airfare for Bogota!<br />
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So far it looks like we will not be able to get our change date fee waived. It is going to be soooo expensive for us to change the date, but a whole week early is a big deal right now! Several people have suggested not changing the date, but just purchasing new tickets might be cheaper... I'll have to see...<br />
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Right now we are looking at coming home next week, sometime between Wednesday and Friday if all goes as planned. We are all very anxious and can't wait to get home. The chicos ask us several times each day how many more days until we fly to the United States. It's funny, because Jonathan will try to bargain with us. We'll say, 2 more weeks and he'll say 1 more week. I'll say 5 days until Bogota and he'll say 4 days! So funny!<br />
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Note to self: at home, buy lots of bandaids, tape, ketchup, and paper....LOL!The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-33422390181462913352011-05-24T20:36:00.000-07:002011-05-24T20:36:32.461-07:00Day 18 SENTENCIA!!!I have always wanted to be a wife and mom. Even as a child, it was the only thing I ever wanted to do. Get married and have babies. God has blessed me so abundantly by allowing me to be wife to the best hubby in the world and mommy to 4 precious children that I carried in my body. But today He has overflowed my cup by giving me the privilege of being mami to 3 more precious children that I carried in my heart. Today the judge signed our final legal paperwork, called Sentencia (sentencing), stating that Luisa, Jhonatan, and Cindy are ours- forever.<br />
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So many people have made comments about how we are "doing such a good thing" by adopting the kids. But, truthfully, we feel so honored and humbled by this privilege. It has nothing to do with us at all. Our lives are not our own, but they belong to Christ. Every single part of this journey has been ALL GOD. He is the One who is allowing us to have this precious gift. He orchestrated each minute detail. So all the glory today goes to HIM, not us. Every ounce of joy we feel today is because of His goodness and sovereignty. <br />
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It was an eventful day, so let me start at the beginning...<br />
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First thing this morning I was able to get in contact with our attorney, Nora, and learned that we shouldn't have any trouble with the name issue. The Minor Defender wouldn't allow us to change the kids middle names like we had planned, which is fine. We can do it in the States. But, I was worried because their visas for the US are listed as their new names. She said everything will be fine...praying she is correct!<br />
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The kids played around the apartment until 11am. The girls found 2 phones in a drawer and have had a blast pretending they are calling each other. They really like pretending, which I love to watch!<br />
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At 11am both Glorias picked us up to go to Parque Explora. It is like an aquarium and science center in one. Frankly, after you've been to the Baltimore Aquarium and the Maryland Science Center, these were pretty lame, but the chicos had never been to either before so they absolutely LOVED all of it. They ooo'd and ahh'd over every single fish and reptile! There were some unusual animals that I'd never seen before. My favorite was a starfish that was white with bright red outlining from the Mediterranean Sea. The chicos loved the turtles the most, I think. They said they had a turtle in their first foster home as a pet. And then they loved the frogs, which must be plentiful in the country area of their second foster home. It is kind of weird to see a bunch of animals from the Amazon region and know that they are only about a 2-3 hour drive south of us and we could see them in person! I would have loved to go to the Amazon, but it is not safe, we are told. Too many guerrillas along the roads.<br />
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They also have some science center type exhibits, which entertained the kids for a long time. It is all interactive so they were running from station to station. These outings are soooo completely foreign to the chicos that they go a little crazy experiencing them. It is like they can't focus and it is all too much stimulation. It's seems like they feel the need to experience everything all at the same second or they will never be able to again- which makes sense knowing their past. Going home to the States should be very interesting...oh, boy! Lots of NEW experiences!<br />
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We knew we didn't want to have a crazy cafeteria lunch experience again, so we opted to not get lunch at the Parque Explora, but instead drove to Ovieda mall for Archie's Pizza. I'd heard about this place before on other blogs. They give the kids their own piece of dough for them to form into a pizza and then they bake it right then for them. Sounds fun!<br />
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At Archie's Pizza we were right in the middle of trying to order with the waitress (and find tables to fit all of us-a little chaos!) when Brent got a phone call from Nora! We had been hoping for a call all day! He handed the phone to Gloria to work out the details. They wanted both parents to come and sign, but NO KIDS! How they expected that to happen, I have no idea, but I have to say I am soooo thankful for our guide, Gloria who said she would stay with all the kids! She kept them ALL at the pizza restaurant while we raced to the courthouse! I was so worried that the kids would misbehave for her, but she said, other than logistics of taking kids to the bathroom, all went fine! Whew! They made their pizzas and then the waitress entertained them with balloons and coloring.<br />
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Unfortunately, we had not remembered to carry around all the cash we needed with us (for LOTS of copies of birth certificates, and other documents) so we had to race back to the apartment to grab the money, then park at the Exito, grab a taxi (parking is difficult a the courthouse) to the courthouse. Of course, traffic was horrible since everyone was heading back into work from their siesta (hour long lunch break).<br />
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Once there, we found Nora where she explained all the details again. She is phenomenal. She is the most thorough and organized person I've ever met. AND she talks SLOW so we can understand her! LOL! We had thought that since they requested both parents (often they just ask for one) that the judge would be talking to us. But when we arrived we just walked up to a counter and signed our names on one piece of paper. That's it! SO ANTICLIMACTIC! She had explained that the last section of the document is the most important where it says that for now and forever the children will belong to us. Well, I lost it again. Tears... Poor Nora! I think I've cried every time I've met with her! Thankfully she is so understanding and each time says it is good to cry and go ahead! LOL! Love her!<br />
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We sat and discussed some other legal issues and asked some questions about their history and then we were off again- in a taxi to Gloria's car and back to the apartment. Gloria brought all the kids home (brave woman!) in her car. Once inside, I poured juice (drinkable yogurt- a treat) for the kids and we all celebrated. I google translated... "Today is a very special day for all of us. Today the judge said that you are our children forever!" Then we all clanged glasses and squealed!<br />
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Jonathan and Cindy were super excited. When we asked Luisa if she was excited she got a solemn look on her face and said No. Uh, oh. We braced for the worst. I gently asked why she was not happy. She said she didn't want a family. But then as soon as she said it, she burst out laughing and screamed, "SI! MUY EMOTIONADA!" (Yes! I'm very excited!) She was totally playing us! She is such the drama queen! Silly girl! She about gave me a heart attack! I tickled her to the ground and told her I was her mami forever and she couldn't have another one! She giggled and giggled. She loves the attention.<br />
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Before anyone got restless, we headed to the pool for a little while. We were able to meet our friends, the Masons, and share our great news! Hopefully they will only be a day or two behind us with their Sentencia. Once the thunder started we headed home and had pizza and a movie to relax. It had been a long day and everyone needed to chill! After baths, we all had a treat that Brent had picked up at the store. It is a container of sweet caramel called Arequipe, that you can spread on crackers or Queso Blanco. Or just eat off the spoon like some of them did!<br />
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So, that ends our very special day when our family became whole!<br />
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The one question everyone is emailing me is... When are you coming home???<br />
LOL!<br />
Well, we're still not sure, BUT it will be sooner than we had planned! <br />
Tomorrow, Nora is going to ICBF to get a copy of the kids' file and her associate is going to each of the three notary offices to try to get their new birth certificates with our last name on it. We are hoping all that paperwork can be done in one day.<br />
In Colombia, everyone over the age of 7 has to have an identification card. So Luisa has one, but she now has to go to the ID office and get a new one with her new last name. She has to sign the new name so hopefully she'll do ok! She's been practicing! She'll either do that tomorrow afternoon or Thursday morning. Then hopefully, Thursday we will be able to get them their Colombian passports with their new name. It is supposed to only take an hour or two!<br />
THEN, we are free to book our airfare to fly to Bogota. So we'll fly sometime over the weekend, I guess.<br />
Once in Bogota, we will still have to do all the National ICBF paperwork, and US Embassy doctor visit and Visa issuance before we come home. Some say it only takes 3 days, others say it takes 5 days. So we'll see...<br />
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Since the chicos are legally ours, it is fine for us to open our Picassa photo album to the public! Finally, you can see pics of them if you haven't already! Blogger is super frustrating to load pics to, so I'm putting the link here so you can see them. Enjoy!<br />
<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/107760821871854398097/AdoptionJourney2011#">https://picasaweb.google.com/107760821871854398097/AdoptionJourney2011#</a>The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-9891535115513273192011-05-23T20:26:00.000-07:002011-05-23T20:26:03.684-07:00Day 17Today started rough, but ended beautifully.<br />
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We barely got through breakfast when we had a major meltdown with Luisa. She is so much more challenging because she is so tall and strong. I definitely can't handle her alone. So it ends up being a two person effort. But, this time it wasn't as long- only 45 minutes. And surprisingly, she was a bit more tranquil. I think this time we actually got closer to true repentance. All the other times it is hard to discern whether she is fully finished with her tantrum because she stays sulky and grumpy until she gets something that makes her happy again. This time I didn't allow her to have anything nice afterward and had to say no to her several times right after and she still responded well. She even had to deal with not getting to wear the dress that she wanted since it was covered in ketchup still. So even though it was another tantrum, it was still profitable!<br />
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Around 11am we headed out to see the Metrocable (pronounced may-trow-cob-lay) that is famous in Medellin. The river that runs through the middle of the city (Rio de Medellin, I think) separates the two halves of the city. Almost all the people on the north side of the city are extremely poor and it would take hours to get to any form of work on the other side of the river where things are a bit wealthier. So the government of Medellin built an elaborate metro system that is very cheap for people to ride. It has allowed the people on the North side to find work easier by getting there more quickly and efficiently and inexpensively.<br />
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Because Medellin is literally built into the valley and up the sides of the mountain, they also built a cable car system as part of the metro. It has gondola type cars that take you straight up the side of the mountain and over the top!<br />
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We knew this was one of the main things we wanted to do here because our chicos were born in one of the slums that is underneath the cable system. It is much to dangerous to ever drive by car to their neighborhood, so seeing it safely from above was perfect.<br />
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First we had to ride the regular metro train. The chicos had never been on one before so they were a bit nervous. It was TOTALLY PACKED, and our guide said this was a light time of day! Oh, my! I can't imagine what rush hour is like! We were tossed back and forth around the metro since we couldn't get close to the holding bars.<br />
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Then we had to transfer to the cable car system. We had to take two since we had such a large group. So one guide went with all the guys and one with all the girls! You can take the cable car ride 3/4 way up the mountain in about 30 minutes or less. Or you can go all the way up and over, but that takes hours! We had only planned to go the shorter route since we got a later start in the day, but it turns out we wouldn't have been able to go all the way up anyway since it was closed due to cleaning.<br />
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It was a super interesting ride. You can really tell how the areas get progressively poorer the further up the mountain you go. Near the metro it looks like a slum in the US, but the further up you go the more depressing it is. It reminded me a lot of our travels to the Tarahumaran communities in Mexico, with scattered boards and pieces of metal for roofs with bricks holding the pieces on so the wind didn't blow it off. Only, instead of them being one story houses, they stack them up as high as they can. So there might be 3 or 4 floors- extremely uneven and dangerous to even live in. The higher we went, the more feeble the houses looked and we didn't even go as high as the poorest of poor areas.<br />
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I am so thankful we had the opportunity to go and see these areas. It made me more fully appreciate what the chicos lived through and gave me a tender heart for the multitude of desperate people in that place. My heart breaks for the many who live in such horrible conditions. Yet, what was interesting was that there were tons of people milling about and children playing and music blaring. They were still enjoying life as much as they were able to in their situation. <br />
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On the ride, Luisa talked openly about her memories of living with her birth mother. I'm not going to give the details here because it is her private story and memories, but it was interesting to hear the tidbits that she remembers even as a toddler. I'm writing all of her comments down so one day when she is grown and has forgotten these memories, she'll at least have a record of what she said to us. It is such a precious gift to us that she is talking so freely. I think she feels safe in our relationship for her to do this.<br />
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On the way back in the regular metro, we had a bit of an adventure. The train was even more crowded this time and our big group had to cross from one side of the train to the other door to get out at our station. We had formulated a plan of which adult had which child and what our escape route was, but boy, they don't allow much time for people to get off and on! Like 10 seconds! Only half of us got off in time before the doors shut! Thankfully, a guide ended up being with each of the stranded groups. I had a few kids and was able to get off, but Brent had a few of the rest of the kids and got stuck on! Poor kids were a bit panicked! It was scary! I'm just glad it was Brent stranded and not me! LOL! He's much better about those kinds of situations than me! They ended up getting off at the next stop and taking a taxi back to where we had parked. Whew!<br />
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We ate lunch in the cafeteria at Exito (a Walmart type store). That was chaotic with trying to get 9 people all the right food without any meltdowns due to low blood sugar levels! But we finally survived with only two juice spills and one bout of tears.<br />
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We headed back to the apartment to chill for a bit. After a bit we headed out for some fubol and met the other adoptive family. The kids had a great time playing futbol together but there were a bunch of bruised shins and a few other injuries! Luisa and the other family's Jonathan are very competitive so they were intense in their play! LOL! They all had fun though! Then both families walked down to the food place down the road to have dinner together. They kids are all feeling super comfortable with each other now and therefore they were all super silly and wound up! This only adds to the spectacle that we already are! LOL! They still needed to burn up some energy so we finished the night at the playground.<br />
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Once back at the apartment, Brent got a phone call from Nora, our attorney. Apparently, the Defensora won't allow us to change the kids' names like we had planned. In Colombia, the law says you can only change a child's name up until they are three unless there are extenuating circumstances. And I guess the Defensora didn't feel like being adopted was sufficient reason. That's fine because we can get their names changed once we do the readoption in the US. My only concern now (which I have to talk to Nora about tomorrow) is that the new names are listed on our airfare tickets and their US Visas. So I'm praying that this won't be an issue....we'll see...<br />
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Ok, heading to bed. It's been a full day! Pray for Sentencia tomorrow!The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-84713673940963500492011-05-22T20:19:00.000-07:002011-05-22T20:19:39.541-07:00Day 16Today was a more challenging day. After a week of good days, we were due for a fun day of tantrums! LOL!<br />
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It started off good... Daddy walked down and bought bunuelos for breakfast. (I am glad this apartment doesn't have a scale. I'll deal with the consequences when we go home!) We tidied the house and then headed to the pool. We enjoyed catching up with Amanda and the two kids who ended up staying with her in Colombia for the rest of their adoption process. We hadn't seen her for a few days, so it was nice to sit and chat and share stories. A bunch of the kids went on a bug hunt for a while! They came back with a bunch of pool toys filled with critters! Then it started to thunder so we all headed back to the apartment for lunch.<br />
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After lunch we could tell that Luisa was heading downhill. I can't put my finger on what the issue was, but she was just itching for a fight. Finally around 5pm it hit. She spiraled down and ended up with an hour long tantrum. Much shorter than last Saturday, but still exhausting. Jonathan must have been heading that direction too, because he decided to throw a tantrum at the same time, but his only lasted a few minutes. He ended up with several more throughout the evening. It seems Luisa has them less frequently, but when they come they are doosies! Jonathan has them more often but they are not as bad or as long. Brent and I talked and we are actually relieved that it happened today. The past week was a nice reprieve, but I think they needed to test the boundaries again and learn that they haven't moved since last week.<br />
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Cindy was so adorable today. She only wanted Cait for the greater part of the day, which was so cute. Cait loved it, but I think that might have fed into Luisa's frustration today. I think jealousy played a part even though Cait did a good job including Luisa.<br />
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We brought out the UNO game this afternoon during the rainy time. I think they loved it! I lost track of how many rounds we played! A perfect game for their ages! And it helps with learning numbers and colors in English!<br />
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Then the boys and Cindy decided to put every single hair accessory that we brought into my hair and Cait's hair! Oh, you should see the pictures! Our heads were sore at the end because they just rip the hair accessory out of our hair instead of unclipping! <br />
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The chicos are very interested in learning English. It is so cute to hear them repeat words and phrases. Luisa copies when I say Okee-dokie! So funny! <br />
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Brent made a delicious traditional Colombian meal tonight. It was a honey lime chicken glaze. He is much more daring and ambitious in the kitchen! I love when he cooks, though! This is one of our favorite times together when we cook together in the kitchen. Luisa helped out for a while. Brent told her that he was making his specialty meal. So she had to make her specialty too! She made a delicious lime drink. I think it was only water, fresh squeezed limes and sugar, but it was very refreshing!<br />
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I'm glad the weekend is over. I was really missing being in church today. Missing fellowship and the teaching. I know I can listen online, but it is so chaotic and loud here that I wouldn't hear it anyway. Tomorrow the court is open so hopefully we will get Sentencia sometime this week. I'm ready to come home! (I feel bad saying that when we've only been here over two weeks and there are other families that have been here 6 weeks! Sorry, Lori! Praying for sentencia for you guys tomorrow!)The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-22170856521513045642011-05-21T21:13:00.000-07:002011-05-21T21:13:41.357-07:00Day 15I feel like our days are just repeating the same thing over and over this week! I feel so thankful for how well things are going this week. I am just in awe that so early in this process we are having such success!<br />
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After breakfast, Brent walked to the grocery store with Grant, Jake and Jonathan. It was Jonathan's first time in a grocery store (as we know it)- EVER. Brent said he did pretty well, considering he had to be told no to a lot of things he asked for. I know Brent was glad he had all his helpers because it was a bunch of bags to carry back- UPHILL! You know, at home when I think of uphill, it is nothing like what uphill is here! It is so steep! The city is literally built into the side of the mountain so there is not one single level road in the whole place. I can't imagine how often people need to replace their brakes here!<br />
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They brought home some mangos to try and Luisa was super excited. We had never had one, so she showed us how she just slices it like a tomato and eats it. I think she almost ate the whole thing herself! Can't believe she didn't get a stomachache afterward! It turns out it is her all time favorite fruit. <br />
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While Brent was at the store, the little girls dressed up in their pretty dresses complete with tights, dress shoes, and hair bows. They were so cute even though they didn't fully match! I had brought some cloth play food, so I got that out along with some kitchen dishes I had bought for the pool. They had a blast playing with the food and dishes and lots of water at the coffee table.<br />
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After lunch, we headed to the pool. It was on the cool side so Quinn and Jonathan decided to go bug catching in the bushes behind the pool. They found some big bugs/beetles in the leaves (not leaves like at home! Big waxy Amazonish-type leaves!) and made them their pets! They fed them bits of chips and made a little home for them in the play dishes! I love watching little boys play with bugs! I can't explain it, but it just makes me happy- like all is right with the world! Boys enjoying the creation God made, not needing to be entertained by worldly distractions....so precious!<br />
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After an hour or so it started thundering so we packed up and headed back to the apartment. I decided that the US kids needed to do some schoolwork. The chicos were sorely disappointed that I had not brought them school books, though the older kids would have gladly given them theirs! I tried to pass off coloring books as sufficient but they saw through my lame attempt. LOL! So they decided to play school on their own back in the bedroom. They packed up books and paper in their backpacks and pretended to go to sleep in the beds and then wake up and do school! They were really using their imagination! So often, children who watch a lot of tv lose the ability to do imaginary play for long periods of time. We had been told that they watched hours and hours of tv each day. So when their play lasted almost 2 hours, I was amazed! No one asked for a movie or food or anything. They were completely engrossed! At one point, they asked Quinn to play too and even though he didn't understand what they were playing, he got along fine. I found him and Luisa doing math problems together! Though, Luisa is more advanced than Quinn! It is funny to watch her do addition. She writes the plus sign on the opposite side and forms her letters and numbers different than we do. I'm enjoying watching her! As a teacher I find it interesting to see and interpret how she has learned.<br />
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We played a few games- checkers and Blink. By that time, it was dinnertime- tacos! After dinner the kids played more games and cut and colored! Every day the coffee table and carpet look like a paper factory exploded! They are getting pretty creative, though! Luisa had made probably hundreds of paper coins and bills! Jonathan copies anything Quinn does. Today Quinn made himself a paper policeman costume and Jonathan had to have an exact replica too! Oh, when Brent explained to Cindy that he was a policman, she didn't like that idea! She said, "NO!" HA! I guess she doesn't have a good association with police!<br />
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Somehow all our older kids ended up on our bed to watch a Dora movie and Luisa and Jonathan ended up in the living room to watch Princess Bride again. It is their favorite movie!<br />
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After dinner, Brent and Luisa made brownies. In Colombia there is this thick liquid cream that they put on desserts or ice cream. Brent had bought some to put on top of the brownies and you'd have thought the kids had died and gone to heaven! I didn't think it had much flavor but they loved it!<br />
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The rest of the evening was very quiet, even though we had a short issue with Jonathan getting upset. The tantrums aren't even what I would consider a tantrum anymore. Honestly, I probably had to scold our bio kids more today than the Colombian kids! Brent and I keep saying how we are totally amazed at how well this week is going. We are so thankful to the Lord for allowing the kids to progress so quickly. Last week we were not so hopeful, so this week we are just in awe.<br />
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Yesterday we did get some difficult news from our agency. We learned that our program manager, his wife who is also employed by Gladney, our attorneys Nora and Blanca have all lost their jobs. Gladney is cutting expenses and as of yesterday, their jobs are terminated. We are so, so sad for them. It was a total shock for them so they are hurt and still reeling from the news. We have been reassured by both Gladney and each of them personally that they will finish our case to the end, for which we are extremely thankful. I don't know what we would do if we were suddenly left on our own at this point! We are praying that they find work quickly and can continue to do what they do best- find families for children! In our experience they have each been phenomenal to work with and we are sad to know that we are their last family. Our hearts go out to them, especially for Raul because I am sure this affects his visa situation since he is a Colombian living in the US because of his job.<br />
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Ok, heading off to bed now. The bird in the apartment balcony above us starts screaming early in the morning and I don't want to miss it! (said with much sarcasm!)The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-53331378222731506342011-05-20T19:51:00.000-07:002011-05-20T19:51:35.765-07:00Day 14What an interesting day!<br />
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We went straight to the pool after breakfast since we had plans for the rest of the day and we knew the kids would be disappointed if we couldn't go! <br />
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We have been needing to get organized with all our upcoming expenses for rent, document copies, birth certificates, passports, visas, etc. But, we can only make 4 withdrawls per day from the atm, and only a certain amount. This calls for lots of preplanning! So, while the kids swam, Brent and I sat at a table at the pool and counted and organized all our cash in to baggies for each expense! It is so funny because it looked like we were organizing a drug deal with all the stacks of money, right by the pool! LOL! Thank goodness we are in a gated community with tall bushes all around. Otherwise it might not have been the smartest thing to do in public! LOL!<br />
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After the pool, Gloria #2 picked us up and took us to Barefoot Park. This is a small park area that is set up to be peaceful and tranquil. It has 2 small wading pools to soak your feet, an area with crushed pebbles to walk on for therapy, a few interesting posts for kids to climb on, and a bamboo garden for sitting in the shade- or sleeping, as some were doing. The kids enjoyed it for a few minutes and then they just wanted lunch! So we ordered traditional Colombian meals for Brent and I and mega-huge hot dogs for the kids. During the meal, Jonathan had a short tantrum because he wanted to drink something other than water. This was our first "in public" tantrum, and it went pretty well! It didn't last too long. He ended up not being allowed to have juice the rest of the day because of it, though.<br />
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After the park, we drove about 20 minutes outside of Medellin to a small store with authentic Colombian artisan items. Each child was able to pick out one thing that would help them to remember Colombia and we also picked up a few presents to bring home and a few to save for gifts for the chicos to have on special occasions as they get older. It was a bit chaotic to take the chicos into the store because they had never been in a store before. Amazing to me! The things I take for granted! They used to pass this store on the way to their foster home in the country, so they were super excited to be allowed to go in. <br />
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Luisa was totally stressed trying to figure out what to get. There were WAY too many choices. She was frantically running from one end of the store to the other for about a half hour not knowing what to do with herself. The poor shop worker followed us around the whole time probably scared to death she'd break something!She ended up with a wooden box that you can store paper in. If you know her personality, you would understand that it is perfect for her! Any little container or bag that she can shove her treasures into is perfect! And the fact that it stores paper is the icing on the cake! This girl loves papers! It is a cute painted pink box that we are told was made in the country region- although to me, the quality looks like something from the dollar store. I'm just praying it will last the rest of our time here!<br />
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Jonathan took about 2 minutes to decide on a wooden spinning top. I had hoped he would find a figurine of a cow since he loves them so much, but nope, a top it had to be. At least it was an easy decision! As soon as Cindy saw a baby doll, she was hooked and didn't want anything else. Although, on the ride home she through a humdinger of a tantrum because she decided she didn't like her doll and she wanted Luisa's box. When we said No, she said the doll was fea- ugly! LOL!<br />
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The rest of the kids easily found some little treasures to take home. I am sure we were quite the sight with all our bunches of items piled up on the counter with each person coming from the car to the store one by one. No way I was taking all 7 kids in there at one time!<br />
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It started downpouring so we headed home for quiet-time with a movie and crafts at the coffee table. Seems like that is our standard quiet hour activity. The kids have had such a great time creating all kinds of things out of paper and tape! Earlier in the week it was knight costumes, lately it is paper sling bags complete with cell phone cases and paper money!<br />
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Later we walked down to the end of the road for some dinner. I think I am addicted to the empanadas, bunuelos and palito de quesos. But I know I'm going to end up with clogged arteries because of so much fried food. <br />
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The girls discovered the shower tonight. We have no way of plugging up the tub, so up until now they have been just sitting under the faucet to do their hair. It is mass chaos the whole time. But somehow they figured out that if you pull the lever, the shower comes on. I haven't heard so much screaming and squealing in my life! I can't figure out if they have never seen a shower before or if they knew what it was and were happy to be able to use it!<br />
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Today, through our translator, we learned a lot more information about the kids' past from Luisa. Some of it is funny- like Jonathan is in love with his foster sister. But a lot of it is so sad. My heart breaks when I hear some of the things she says. She is matter-of-fact about it, but inside I feel sick to know how my babies spent their early years. I am so thankful that God saw fit to remove them from those circumstances. And, although their foster families weren't perfect, I am thankful that at least their basic needs were met and they were loved.The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-44350810735591350642011-05-19T20:21:00.000-07:002011-05-19T20:21:11.115-07:00Day 13Another good day! This just keeps getting more fun!<br />
We seem to be falling into a "slow moving morning" routine. I love slow mornings, but it might be hard to break the habit once we get home! Oh, well. I'll deal with that then. There will be so many changes that will just be one of many.<br />
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Since this morning it was kind of cool, Brent took the kids to play soccer. They love it. I especially enjoy seeing Cait get in the game and play too. She is starting to really bond with Jonathan in a cute way. He loves sitting near her and will often slip his hand in hers as they walk. I didn't expect this, so it is very special!<br />
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Luisa, I'm noticing, is more of a homebody. She will most always prefer to stay at the apartment- unless we are going to the pool or for bunelos! Today she didn't want to play soccer so I stayed in the apartment with her. She enjoyed listening to Spanish kids songs while she colored. I was hanging up laundry, but when I came back to check on her, she was in the boys' bedroom cleaning the room! She is super organized (poor child- she doesn't yet know how messy her mom is) and was disgusted by the sloppiness of her brothers. She folded all the blankets and clothes that were on the floor. I'm so impressed by her skills! Earlier she asked if she could make something in the kitchen. I couldn't understand what she was saying so I told her to show me. She starts cutting up a bunch of different kinds of fruit in a bowl! Ensalada fruta! Fruit salad!<br />
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We spent many hours at the pool, even skipping lunch because they didn't want to stop swimming. I got the chance to sit and talk with the other adoptive family for a while. This past week we hadn't seen them too much due to our different schedules. It is so nice to sit and connect with other people going through the process. They are an awesome family!<br />
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When we came back, we heard from Nora, our attorney. She said that our case was admitted to the judge! That means that all the administrative paperwork/review was done and now the judge can sign! He has between 1 and 10 days to sign for sentencia. This is wonderful news! If the court was going to ask for any additional clarifications or paperwork it would have happened during this time, so it is wonderful that they didn't ask for any additional info and slow down the time! <br />
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We are hoping for a quick Sentencia so we can get home faster! I'm ready! I am looking forward to starting real life together with our kids in the US! I am LOVING Colombia, but it is just not home. Though, as much as I am ready to go, I think about the chicos and how each day closer we get to the US, the closer they get to losing their homeland and culture. That makes me sad, too. Everything in adoption has its bittersweetness. Gaining a family can only come through loss. Healing only comes through grief. Joy in a family replaces untold pain in early childhood. So it is only fitting that my anticipation of going home is mixed with sadness in ripping them away from theirs. <br />
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We decided to take a walk UP the hill (we'd only been downhill before) and around the big loop. It is an interesting mix of super fancy apartment complexes like ours and run down buildings across the street. Still this area is the wealthiest of the city. I learned today that we are in a small pocket of wealthy citizens. Most of Medellin is slums of the worst kind. I hope to get a chance to see some of that area because that is where our kids were born.<br />
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We had ice cream at the end of the walk. Jonathan ended up with some gross kind of mango-y type icecream. Some of the flavors here are really weird! Cait and I also walked down to the Panderia. It is a bread bakery that is popular here. Oh, my goodness! The bread was amazing! I could get addicted! I got it to have with Baked Ziti that I fixed later. It is our first "American" meal that I have made that they have never had. At first Luisa practically spit it out of her mouth at the first bite! Cindy didn't want it, but I told her to Pruebua- try it! So she did! And she liked it! She didn't want me to put any on her plate, but if I put little pieces on mine, she would eat off my plate! When Luisa saw Cindy eating it, she couldn't be outdone. So she ate some too! I don't think she liked it very much, but she still ate it! Jonathan ended up spending most of the dinner time in his room- can't even remember now why, but it was low key and he ended well.<br />
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Grant, Jake and Luisa have this WILD silliness going on. They get completely out of control when the three of them sit together. At dinner, Luisa started imitating Jonathan's crying and she was hysterical! She loved the audience so it kept getting more and more dramatic. I think Brent got some of it on video so if you want to see it, let me know and I'll send you our picassa picture link.<br />
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The rest of the night was quiet and wonderful! Everyone was happy and went to bed wonderfully! Thank you Lord!The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-54926610039430291412011-05-18T19:46:00.000-07:002011-05-18T19:46:16.192-07:00Day 12Today we had a slow start with a big breakfast and lots of coloring. The kids finally hit the bottom of the ream of paper I brought- or so they think! Luckily when I saw how fast we were going through paper, I reserved half the ream in the closet. I'm putting the call out now for anyone reading this, that we would appreciate ANY donations of scrap paper!!! We are going to be using a lot, for sure!<br />
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At 10am Gloria#1 picked up me and the chicos to go for their last vaccination they needed before their embassy doctor visit. We didn't tell them about it until just before she got there, and right away we heard the whining about not wanting a "vacuna"! Luisa whimpered in the back seat the whole way to the clinic, but Cindy chatted cheerfully the whole time. Once we arrived, Luisa tried to not enter the office, so I had to half drag her in. She started crying and I started wondering how in the world I was going to manage getting her to sit still for a shot. She is tall and strong. No way for me to hold her still by myself!<br />
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Since Luisa was upset the nurse decided to take Cindy first. Well, look out! Miss Cheerful turned into Little Monster as soon as I picked her up. I had to sit on the table with her on my lap and hold her tight. But the worst part was after it was over! She had a royal tantrum on the floor, kicking, screaming, taking her shoes and socks off and trying to run out the door! She must have been saying "Get me outta here" because one nurse (God bless the woman!) told her "Ok, lets go!" and she took her hand and let her walk around the building (no shoes and one sock!) until she calmed down!<br />
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All this time, the other nurse was trying to get Jonathan to sit up at the table and I was trying to pull him from between the chairs on the floor unsuccessfully! Thankfully, the nurse and Gloria were able to talk to Luisa and took her in the room first. I think they said something about acting like a strong Colombiana (Colombian woman!)! LOL! They told her to just hold her breath. She did it and NOT A WHIMPER! I was so proud of her! She had been so scared and acted so brave! I think she was proud of herself too. She had a great smile on her face. <br />
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She told Jonathan that it was easy and didn't hurt. That made him let his guard down so I could pick him up and sit with him on the table. It took me, two nurses, Luisa and Gloria (in her late 70's!) to hold him still! LOL! I had brought Double Bubble Gum as a treat for afterwards so he was anxious to get that.<br />
Thankfully, it is all over and next time they need shots, Brent is going to come too! I was sweating by the time we finished!<br />
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While I had the kids at the appointment, Brent and the bio kids had Daddy time! They walked around the area, bought soda and had a fun time talking. It was very timely and I think they really needed the decompression time.<br />
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Once everyone was together again, we all headed to the pool, of course! It was kind of cool, so it didn't last too long. Back to the apartment for snacks and craft time and a movie. This seems to be our afternoon schedule! We decided to fix an early dinner of carne (thin beef steak), potatoes and fresas (strawberries) that I bought off a street vendor. After dinner we headed back to the pool because the sun came out and the kids weren't worn out enough!<br />
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Luisa is definitely our fish! She could swim all day! She has progressed so much in 12 days! Actually all of them have! I am so impressed!<br />
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We were all set to walk down the road to get an evening snack of bunelos, when the heavens opened and it started POURING! Out of the blue- no clouds at all! Crazy! But, Brent, Jake, Grant, and Luisa still decided to walk down in the rain to get some bunelos and bring them back to the rest of us.<br />
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The past two times, Brent has gotten a few extra for our apartment manager. He is always stationed at the gate and is so sweet. He speaks a little English and goes out of his way to help us out or chat with the kids. The other day when we had to leave the soccer field with Jonathan crying, the manager just smiled. Today he asked Jonathan if he was ready to be a good listener to mami and papi and if he was calm now! LOL! Often times we have wondered what the other people in this complex think about this crazy group of gringos. But there have been many other adoptive families in these apartments so I am sure it isn't too strange. Though I am sure we are still quite the spectacle! The other moms with their kids just smile and stare! LOL!<br />
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So far, we have had no other issues or tantrums, so I shall declare today a success! (Can't count the vaccination issues. That's different!) <br />
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I must say that I am so excited for the Bynions to bring home Maddie Lidong Bynion! I'm sad we won't get to welcome them home, but glad that they can start their new lives together in the US this weekend! I miss them all so much! Emails and the occasional skype to China are good, but face to face is best! Can't wait to meet the little sweetie! I am praying that Cindy and Maddie will be friends! It is mind boggling to think we have been on this adoption journey together for so long and now it is coming to a close. Well really, it is just the beginning! God is so good.<br />
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I am so grateful for all the emails and facebook messages that all of you have been sending. They are such a wonderful encouragement for us. To know that other people care and are loving us from afar is one of the greatest blessings to us. So thank you again from the bottom of our hearts. <br />
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I have also appreciated the emails from several adoptive families that are in the trenches right now (Hi Lori!) or have walked this road of older sibling group adoption. It is such a relief to know that the things we are living through are normal and WILL GET BETTER! It is a huge encouragement to see their blogs or hear their testimonies of how their families have grown and blossomed into something beautiful even if they had rough beginnings. This gives me such great hope. God really does redeem the time that they lost when they didn't have their family. Already we have seen tremendous progress and change in just 12 days. When we keep our eyes looking to the future it keeps us from being dragged down in discouragement in the middle of a crisis. I pray I can always keep the biblical eternal view instead of wallowing in a temporal mindset.The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-84381171945495024232011-05-17T21:18:00.000-07:002011-05-17T21:18:47.720-07:00Day 11Today started with three back to back tantrums. Poor Brent! I was in the shower and came out to three screaming kids! We must be terrible parents to not allow potato chips for breakfast! LOL!<br />
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But I think it was wonderful that we got them out of the way first thing! Once the tantrum is over we give the kids several different instructions- sit here, stand there, pick up this toy and put it here... This helps to reinforce their obedience and our authority. It shows us if it is truly "over" and also gives them an opportunity to be praised for obeying successfully.<br />
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The kids were so cute this morning. They all built a tent over the dining room table with tons of blankets and sheets! We let them leave it up all day and they were in and out frequently! <br />
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The rest of the day went fairly well! I went grocery shopping and Brent took the kids to the pool. They ended up spending over 4 hours there. I even brought home lunch and we ate at the pool! That worked well because usually they are hungry so we head back to the apartment, but they aren't fully exhausted yet. I think we'll do that more frequently! <br />
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Around 2:30, Nora and Blanca (attorneys) came to meet with us to review the new stage of the process now that our documents are in Court. I love them! They both are so super sweet and Nora is extremely organized and thorough.<br />
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Later in the afternoon we went up to the futbol field and the kids had a blast playing again. Unfortunately, it ended on a bad note when Jonathan didn't like being told we were leaving in 5 minutes. So it ended up being that we left in 0 minutes. But the tantrum was short lived. He is catching on!<br />
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We had a yummy dinner of chicken pieces and rice (with lots of salsa de tomate!) and strawberries that I bought from a street vendor. They were the sweetest I've ever had.. It was probably 4 pounds of them and they ate them ALL at dinner! Oh, well! At least they are eating something healthy and not potato chips!<br />
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The kids are all getting into the habit of taking their plate into the kitchen and washing it themselves. Tonight we started working on asking to be excused from the table instead of just leaving! Baby steps, y'all!<br />
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Oh, and it is so cute because they are all starting to remember what "I love you" means! I don't have to repeat it in Spanish anymore! And they know Chicken, and "do you like?" in English too! I love their accents! "I love you" comes out as "Eyeeee lub jew!" Awww!<br />
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After dinner, Brent, Cait and Luisa went down to the bank to get out cash and picked up Bunelos for a treat. Yum!<br />
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I think our bio kids are feeling a little homesick and tired of the drama. They each needed some extra lovin' tonight so I snuggled with each of them individually after everyone else was in bed. There were some tears and feeling like this is too hard, but we talked a lot about learning to love people that are hard to love. And how we can show forgiveness since we have been forgiven so much by the Lord. We all need truth spoken to us when we get discouraged so I hope I was able to give that to them tonight. This stage of adoption is stretching each of us beyond what we are able, so we are each learning to cling to the Lord for strength to endure and show grace instead of judgementalism. I think it is so hard for our bio kids who have been raised in a Christian home and in a fairly sheltered environment to deal with a lot of the behavior they are seeing. It is shocking them. But it is good because it reveals the hidden sin in their own hearts to them that wouldn't be seen unless tested. Who am I kidding? It is TOTALLY revealing MY ugly sin to me! I have much to confess to Him. I am so thankful for grace!The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-42313913346328508192011-05-16T20:21:00.000-07:002011-05-16T20:21:19.001-07:00Day 10We started the day by going to a photo place to get the kids' passport and visa photos. They will need them after Sentencia when we get new birth certificates and then new passports with our last name on them. The Colombian government is super strict on how you must look in the photos. They had to wear a black shirt and have their hair totally pulled back out of their faces so the ears are fully visible in the photo. For Luisa it wasn't too hard with a few bobby pins, but poor Cindy, her hair is layered and very fine so we ended up with half a pack of bobby pins in her hair! Then they even put little squares of foam behind her ears so they would stick out more! Too funny! She looked very uncomfortable in the photo!<br />
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After that, we spent the morning at the Zoo. It is a very old place but it had a decent amount of animals. Unfortunately several of them looked in pretty rough condition- especially the ostriches' wings. But it was neat to see some animals that are specific to the Amazon region in Colombia. The Condor- the world's largest flying bird, toucans, some kind of Colombian bear that looks like it is wearing glasses, and several rodent animals were fun since we'd never seen them before.<br />
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The kids were fairly well behaved while we walked around. A few little issues, but nothing major.<br />
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Cait was still feeling pretty miserable since her ibuprofen was wearing off so we headed home for lunch and a short rest. The pool is closed for cleaning on Mondays so we had to find other things to wear them out. We spent a while at the futbol field. Instead of trying to play a game, Brent had them line up and do drills trying to kick the ball into the goal. That kept them occupied for a long while! I was bored watching, but they loved it.<br />
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Then we strolled over to the playground where the kids played in the sandpit with cars and made a train of people on the slide. Unfortunately Jonathan pushed Cindy off the swing so he could get on and then wouldn't get back off so he ended up in the apartment with Brent for the rest of playtime.<br />
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We made quesadillas for dinner, but none of the chicos liked them. Gonna have to work on that since that is a weekly meal in our house! Thankfully I had lots of chicken pieces left over so they ate them with rice- and ketchup, of course!<br />
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After dinner and baths, the kids had a blast wrestling on the floor with Brent. I don't know if they'd ever done that, but they were hysterical and WILD! How he has so much energy, I have no idea. He's such an awesome papi!<br />
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We really thought the night was going to end nicely, but Luisa decided she needed to test the authority structure when she was told to get in bed. Thankfully it was only a 20 minute ordeal this time. As of this moment, everyone is in bed and at least quiet. Pray it lasts!<br />
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Oh, while we were at the pool today, Gloria heard from Nora that she had submitted all our documents to the court. We are assigned court number 7. That meant nothing to us, but apparently it is a good thing. The judge is adoption friendly and tends to do things quickly (although everyone is quick to say that is never something for us to count on). In our case it could take longer because of the sheer amount of paperwork the judge has to read through. And they read ALL OF IT! The stack of paperwork is over a foot high! We should just plan on being here for another 3 months!! LOL!<br />
Everyone was super thankful that we didn't get court #9. That judge is not adoption friendly and often asks for additional paperwork to slow things down. So we are grateful that we didn't get that one!<br />
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So, we are finally in the official legal adoption process here in Colombia! Feels kind of anticlimactic after all the past months of paperwork we filed back home! We didn't hardly do anything here, except sign our name to 4 papers!<br />
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A few of you were wondering what comes next...<br />
We wait (of course!) for the judge to read all the documents. This could take 1-3 weeks.<br />
After he is finished, our attorney will call us to immediately come to the courthouse to sign the final "Sentencia" (sentencing). This is the final document that will make the chicos our kids!<br />
Then there is a flurry of activity to get new birth certificates for the kids that have our last name on them!<br />
Then we can apply for new passports.<br />
Then we will buy airline tickets, pack up, and fly to Bogota, the Capital.<br />
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Then there is more activity, but I'm a little cloudy on the details right now. I have it all written down, but I'd need to find my notebook! <br />
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Please continue praying for everyone's health down here. Even though I have been on an antibiotic for 3 days, I still am not feeling better. I still cannot hear out of my right ear at all and each morning I wake up with my eyes swollen shut. I have no idea what is going on. Some weird virus or something...so I am asking for continued prayer.<br />
Also, Cait is coming down with the same thing. I am praying it doesn't land in her ear (that's miserable). So far she is running a fever and has a sore throat and cough.<br />
I am praying that Brent doesn't get it. I don't know what we'd do if he gets sick!<br />
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Miss you all and can't wait to get home!The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-71879860832769644682011-05-15T19:24:00.000-07:002011-05-15T19:24:28.882-07:00Day 9Altogether a wonderful day! No tantrums, not even any "almost" tantrums. Granted, we did all fun stuff and rarely had to tell anyone No, but it's all still good in my book!<br />
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One neat thing with Jonathan...We have been trying to wean him off his addictive need for sugar, but it has been difficult because if he isn't allowed to have a sugary drink, he just refuses to drink. So yesterday Brent instituted the rule that he has to drink half a glass of water before he is allowed to have any juice, etc. Well, today, Brent didn't even have to remind him. Jonathan came up to Brent and said (in my translated version), "Can I have juice after I drink some water?" We were so proud of him for remembering and asking so sweetly! And another time, at dinner he wanted seconds of his yogurt drink (popular here) and Brent said he could but Jonathan poured himself water before he drank the yogurt! LOL! I am so thankful for the little glimpses of progress!<br />
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We spent most of the morning in the pool which wore them out pretty good! Then we walked down the road to the food court area and ordered Patitos con queso (kind of like a mozzerella stick the size of an egg roll), empanadas con carne (empanadas with beef), and bunelos (like a giant doughnut). All of them are very Colombian foods and all are fried! It was all yummy, the chicos ate very well. Jake was the only one who didn't care for any of it. He came home and had peanut butter and jelly. This is definitely a cheap meal. All 9 of us were fed for about $20.<br />
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We chilled out at the house with coloring and watching a movie, then headed to the soccer field for a short game of futbol. It was so cute seeing all of the kids playing together. The chicos definitely are Trautmans though. They have no concept of how to play the game! LOL!<br />
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The other adoptive family was at the pool (with their new son!) so since everyone was hot and sweaty, we all changed clothes and went back to the pool for a while longer. We thoroughly wore them out! At one point, Jonathan was begging Brent to take him back to the apartment! It has been sooooo wonderful to be here with the other family. All the kids get along wonderfully. It is A LOT of kids in the pool though! Both couples are constantly on the lookout for potentially drowning kids! <br />
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Fried chicken for dinner (at hit with everyone) is another cheap meal here. I only cost us $17 for all of us. We have found that any traditional food places are pretty inexpensive, but if we go to Dominos Pizza we can plan on paying double what we pay in the US.<br />
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It is interesting trying to grocery shop and cook here. I am learning that I can't shop for more than 2 days ahead of time. There are no preservatives in the food so everything goes bad by the third day. Makes things a little challenging! Also, so many food items are sold in bags- like milk, ketchup, mayo, jelly, etc. It saves space and is cheaper to package, but it is a pain to get them to stand up straight in the fridge! The kids LOVE any kind of condiments. Just letting everyone know to buy stock in makers of ketchup, because they put it on EVERYTHING! It is gross to watch. The worst was ketchup and strawberry jelly mixed together on a ham sandwich. Ugh. <br />
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We are finding some things that we like here better than in the US. One example is the Queso Crema. It is their version of cream cheese, but oh, so much better. I don't know how I'm going to go back to the bland cream cheese at home! They also have a yogurt drink (actually I think they do make it back home, but I'm too cheap to buy it) that is sold in a bag. The kids all love it and it doesn't have much sugar and it is cheap. The apple juice is nothing like the watery stuff at home. It is thick and syrupy. I like it better here, though not everyone agrees with me.<br />
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The children are starting to remember to take their plates to the kitchen, scrape them and wash them each meal. I'm hoping this will continue once we get home. The girls keep their bedroom fairly neat. Luisa is an organizer. The other day she pulled all three girls' clothes out of the closet and refolded and organized everyone's stuff. I'm going to take full advantage of this! Hope it lasts! The boys, on the other hand, are total slobs. I don't even like walking into the room! LOL! Who knows what i'll find! So, we need some work in this area. <br />
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Everyone went to bed well tonight so I'd say it was a fully good day! Thank you Lord!The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-42508969545677311662011-05-14T19:28:00.000-07:002011-05-14T19:48:22.740-07:00Day 8Two steps forward, one step back. That's our saying for the day.<br />
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It was a doozy. Luisa woke up on the wrong side of the bed to start with and we could see the day going downhill from there. First, she refused to go to the park with everyone else, which I didn't mind too much since I still don't feel good. Then, late in the morning she had a three hour tantrum. Brent took the first two hour shift. I had taken some benadryl because my eyes were swelling shut so I had actually fallen asleep when it started and surprisingly slept through the bulk of the drama. When I finally woke up, the other natives were restless waiting for their time at the pool. So I stayed in the bedroom with Luisa and Brent took the other kids to the pool.<br />
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Each time she has tantrumed before, once she submits and obeys us, it is over and there is no further discipline. But today, she brightened up as soon as she saw the other kids getting ready to go to the pool. Total manipulation. So I told her that even though she was happy, she still wasn't going to the pool today. Oh, boy. Then the last hour of the tantrum occurred. But, hopefully she learned that we mean what we say and tantruming is never going to result in blessing.<br />
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It rained through the afternoon so we spent the afternoon watching movies and crafting. Thank the Lord for crayons, paper, tape and Dora movies!<br />
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Tonight is not done yet. Luisa is having difficulty going to bed and Cindy is laying on our bedroom floor screaming because she doesn't want to go to bed. Thankfully Jonathan isn't giving us trouble. Poor boys, they keep asking for the door to be shut so they can go to sleep and not listen to the screaming.<br />
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Cait started running a fever today so I have a feeling whatever this virus is is going to run its course through everyone. At least we have Benadryl and that will knock them out!<br />
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Oh, one nice thing I found: everyone likes Baked Oatmeal! I bought all the ingredients to make since it is a staple in our house in the US. It is filling and healthy and easy. It was a little tricky since there are no measuring cups or teaspoons in the house. I just had to eyeball it. It turned out fine. <br />
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Ok, Brent went in to check Cindy because it was quiet suddenly. She had fallen asleep under our bed. He was able to pull her out with only a few whimpers and she went back to sleep in bed. Hopefully we are finished for the night. I'm pooped.The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-32002508334558653642011-05-13T22:00:00.000-07:002011-05-13T22:00:03.778-07:00Day 7 Integration Day!!!Remember yesterday where I said yesterday was our best day? Well, I was wrong. Today was!!!!<br />
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Today was our Integration Day. For the past week we have been in a "probation" period called Integracion. It is a time for us to get to know the kids and vice versa and to decide if we need more time before making our final decision to say "yes" to the kids. So today is kind of special since it is the day when we say we want the kids for sure, they want us, and ICBF is happy with the match. It is also a time for the kids to give their goodbye gift to their foster family and for ICBF to sign off on the paperwork so it can be submitted to the courts.<br />
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We knew today might be filled with mixed emotions so we planned a tight schedule with no down time before the meeting at 2pm.<br />
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After breakfast, and laying out everyone's clothing for the meeting, we headed to the pool for several hours. We have hardly ever had any problems when we are at the pool, so it is the place we like to be to keep tantrums at a minimum. Around noon, I headed back to the apartment with Cindy, Jonathan Jake and Quinn since they were tired. Fortunately they were doing some construction on the parking lot and had a front end loader on a trailer that mesmerized the kids out on the balcony for about 45 minutes.<br />
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Lunch went surprisingly well without any food problems to speak of. We put on a Dora video to avoid wandering children while Brent and I got ready and had the kids dress one by one to avoid mayhem. I had Luisa all dressed in the adorable outfit that I had brought specifically for today when she decided she didn't want to wear that. Instead she wanted to wear a white skirt and pink top. NOT what I preferred but I realized that was my problem with having an expectation. I also had a cute headband with a flower clip that Melanie made to go with the other outfit and she wanted nothing to do with it. She started pulling her hair back in a half pony tail which she never wears her hair like that! Cait walked into the bathroom with us and it was then that I realized she wanted to look like her big sister Cait. Matching white skirts, pink tops and pulled back hair! So precious!<br />
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Once we were at the ICBF office things went very well. We were asked to tell what we were feeling after a week with the kids, how the week had gone, how each child was responding and ask any questions we had. Also they asked the bio kids for what they thought of their new siblings. We hadn't prepped them ahead of time but surprisingly they each said the same thing even though they didn't hear each other's answers. (The chicos were playing in another room for a while so the bio kids had been back and forth between them and us.) At the end of the meeting the ICBF worker talked to the chicos about their thoughts. They were super happy and positive about wanting to go to the US and be part of our family. In the course of the conversation, some new information came out about their past that we and the social workers had never heard before so that was interesting and heartbreaking too. Makes me want to hold them closer with knowing the difficulties they have lived through. They also explained to Luisa and Jonathan that they couldn't go back to their old foster family even if they wanted to because they already have new children at their home. Apparently, Luisa had already been told this by her foster mom. ICBF is sure to explain this to the kids as it helps them to stop looking backward and start looking forward. And surprisingly it does seem like their attitudes changed during that conversation. It seems like they needed the finality of the meeting for them to relax and know that their place in our family is permanent and not up for discussion. A sense of relief washed over their faces when the ICBF person commented that everything is final and we are all a family now.<br />
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As soon as the cars arrived back at the apartment, Brent and the kids went back to the apartment and I went to the hospital with Gloria to try to get my ear checked out. They ended up giving me an IV of antibiotics with a prescription for another 10 days of pills. The hospital was very modern and the doctor actually spoke a fair amount of English. Getting home was an adventure, though. It had been raining hard all afternoon so several of the main roads had been blocked off due to flooding and, as Gloria says, "because of the mountain coming down"- ie. mudslides. Traffic was insane and Gloria#1's driving was even more insane. She is a precious, darling woman, but I don't think she can see very well in the dark and rain and slams on her breaks every 5 seconds. I know God was protecting us because after about 15 near death experiences, we are here still! We drove around for almost an hour to get to a pharmacy that was well lit and had many people around (since we were out after dark) but when we finally got there, they were closed! Another 20 minutes and she found another pharmacy which happened to be only a block from our apartment! HA! They didn't have the antibiotic I needed so we headed down the strip mall to a second pharmacy and they finally were able to find it! Whew! Only problem is, during the time in the hospital and driving around, my left eye kept getting more and more sore. I am praying it is just from the ear infection and is not Pink Eye!<br />
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While Brent was here at the apartment, he said that the kids were wonderful. A few NORMAL kid issues, but no real tantrums. In fact he had a very positive discipline time with Jonathan. He had asked Brent for Jugo (juice- that's the only thing he'll drink other than Coke!) but Brent told him that before he had jugo he had to drink a small amount of water. He whined and complained but Brent put the glass down in front of him. Brent said that if he dumped the water out, Brent would make him drink the whole glass of water. I think there was some gagging and spitting out of the water and a short trip to the bedroom, but he finally obeyed and drank the water and then cheerfully had his juice! Success! Sounds like such a stupid thing to go toe to toe about, but it is a huge issue for him and we are trying to wean him off his sugar addiction slowly.<br />
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Brent said that Cindy and Jonathan were in rare form of silliness tonight. I'm sure, since it was a daddy night. Those are always fun and crazy for the kids.<br />
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So, if you've made it through this far, you will realize that we had NO TANTRUMS TODAY! NONE! ZILCH! NADA! Everything was all normal kids stuff! Amazing- especially on a day where we were fully expecting some regression. God is good. He gives us peace in the midst of the storm. Even if tomorrow is horrible, I am grateful for the grace that was evident today.<br />
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Today marks the start of the beginning of the second part of our process. On Monday, all our paperwork will be submitted to one of the courts in Medellin. We will find out which court and then we just wait until the judge reviews all the information and calls us to sign the final documents! It still could be a few weeks though.<br />
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I can't help but get the Steve Green Hide 'em in Your Heart Kids song out of my head...straight from scripture...<br />
Let us not grow weary<br />
In doing good.<br />
In due season we shall reap. (repeat)<br />
If we don't lose heart (If we don't lose heart)<br />
If we don't lose heart (If we don't lose heart)<br />
In due season we shall reap!!The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3639493796939395900.post-52569213154183437862011-05-13T20:59:00.001-07:002011-05-13T21:04:37.244-07:00Day 6<div class="MsoNormal">Day 6</div><div class="MsoNormal">*****Posted a day late because blogger was being tempermental….sorry for the delay!******</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal">I think today has been our best day yet! Not perfect, but so much more pleasant than before.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Our morning started slowly with the kids coloring around the coffee table and eating cereal as they felt like it. Brent and I were trying to get showered and dressed to go to court to sign power of attorney. I felt like I was holding my breath waiting for the first tantrum that would delay us, but nothing happened. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Oh, wait. That’s not true. While I was in the shower, Brent found Luisa trying to call her foster mom on the phone again. He was able to secretively unplug the phone all while he was telling her he understood how sad she was that she couldn’t call. She was a little moody after that, but never had a tantrum. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Gloria #2 came over to babysit while we went to the court. I’m bummed that we couldn’t bring any camera in the building because it would have been neat to get a photo of us signing papers. It was fairly quick- only 4 pages- but we stood and talked to Nora our attorney and ICBF liason about some of our issues and questions. Then we made a short trip with Gloria #1 to Exito for a few fruits (ha! How’d we end up with half a cart full of stuff again?). </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">When we came back to the apartment Gloria took a photo of all of us to give as a gift to the foster family. The kids had worked on cards for them while we were gone. I just need to write a card to the foster mom and we’ll be done with their gift.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">We figured that with all the talk about the foster family that the kids might easily melt down, so we decided to head to the pool as soon as we could get out the door. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Then the most crazy awesome thing happened! A total God-thing! As soon as we arrived at the pool I heard my name being shouted. I looked around and saw <a href="http://theperfectsummerforamiracle.blogspot.com/">Amanda</a> and her girls standing on the balcony on the other side of our apartment complex! So amazing! Amanda and her family are adopting an 11 year old boy, Jonathan, that they met through Kidsave. We have been emailing back and forth for months supporting and encouraging each other. They live in Maryland also and have 4 beautiful girls near our kids ages. We knew we’d be in Medellin the same time, but they had an apartment in a different section of town. Turns out, they needed to find a new apartment… IT ENDED UP BEING IN THE SAME APARTMENT COMPLEX AS US!!!!! What are the odds??? It is only God who could have orchestrated such an amazing “coincidence”! </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">A few minutes later they all came down to the pool. Their family is wonderful and sweet and already the kids are getting along well. We were able to exchange bits of conversation in between dealings with the children, but it will be wonderful to have other friends nearby. They receive Jonathan first thing tomorrow morning, so please keep them in prayer that all will go well and the transition will be smooth. We can’t wait to meet him. He sounds like such a cool kid!</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">At one point Luisa was getting a little hyper and I still don’t know if she was angry about something or just unable to control the excitement, but she roughly jumped on top of one of Amanda’s girls. I thought for sure that me making her get out of the pool would be melt down material, but she quickly went back and apologized.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">We decided to head back to the apartment for a late lunch just in time for the rain to start. We had hot dogs (a favorite) and then they played quietly with markers and crayons while we watched a movie. I felt miserable- I think I have an ear infection- so I was lying down on the couch most of the time. I am continually amazed by their long attention span when it comes to craft/coloring time. It was so cute because Jake and Quinn were making themselves paper Knight armor to tape to their bodies and Jonathan wanted some too, so Luisa, Jake and Quinn all worked together to make him paper armor. He was happy! Sometimes he will find a towel or sheet and tie it around his neck as a cape. He’s so adorable! I am thinking he is trying to be superman. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">After the movie, the rain had stopped so we decided to head down to the playground. They did well playing, but partway through Luisa started to throw a tantrum when I asked her to give back a toy she had stolen. Back to the apartment for the two of us! In the process, a 3 foot sheet of glass covering the desk in the room was broken into three huge pieces. She wasn’t trying to break it, it was accidental. However, when she finished her tantrum, she willingly helped clean up. We had a second tantrum shortly after the first, but it was much shorter and we were able to practice saying “Si, mami” a bunch of times afterwards. After hearts were restored, we headed back to the playground where everyone else was. Amanda’s family was there too and the kids had an awesome time in the sand/dirt pit. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Cindy didn’t want to hold my hand in the street/parking lot and melted down when I insisted. That little girl</div><div class="MsoNormal">has a set of lungs! BUT, it was much shorter than last time AND we went outside to practice walking the sidewalk holding mami’s hand. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Because of the rain, the kids were filthy. They all got baths as soon as we came in. Thankfully, Brent was able to get dinner started while I bathed the kids. Dinner was peaceful and I learned that Luisa and Jonathan like carrots! Score! Another food they like that I’ll be able to find at home!</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">A little more coloring and then devotions as a family. Cindy fell asleep during devos and Jonathan went to bed without any trouble, as usual. We decided to let Luisa have some special one on one time with us and stay up later. With all the foster family talk this morning and knowing we have a meeting tomorrow, we thought she needed some extra special lovin’. We google translated our conversation and again asked if she liked our family. Thankfully she is still saying yes, (earlier in the afternoon when we asked she wasn’t so thrilled!LOL!) and she wants to go to the US. She fixed herself hot water to drink- gross- so we offered for her to squeeze some lime and add some sugar. Yum! Very good! After snuggles and songs, she went to bed with no problems. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">So, even though we had a little bit of drama, overall it was a good day. Tomorrow I expect to not have such a great one since we will all head to the ICBF office for interviews with the psychologist and staff and that might dredge up some of the ugliness of the past week. That’s ok. We are bracing ourselves! LOL!</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Random Comments to remember:</div><div class="MsoNormal">-Luisa likes to talk to herself. It is so cute when I am blow drying her hair, she’ll stand and talk to herself in voices to the mirror. I have no clue what she’s talking about but it is adorable. Cait does…er…um…did this (LOL!) too and I love it!</div><div class="MsoNormal">-Cindy is doing great with telling me when she needs the potty. She says she has to go “chi, chi”. So cute!</div><div class="MsoNormal">-I keep finding Jonathan trying to do a kata when he is in his room, but he won’t do it in the living room with all of us. I think he feels insecure since everyone else can do it but he can’t.</div><div class="MsoNormal">-Jake and Cindy are meshing very well together- they are both as silly as you can get!</div><div class="MsoNormal">-On the dot at 6:15am a child in the apartment complex starts crying and yelling for mami. It lasts for a good 45 minutes. Heaven help me!</div><div class="MsoNormal">-I’m done with boiling water to drink. We’re going to drink from the faucet. If it is good enough for the people of Medellin, it is good enough for me.</div><div class="MsoNormal">- I am so extremely thankful for my dryer at home (even though it pooped out on me the 3 days before we were leaving and took 3 cycles to dry one load). Most people in Medellin don’t use dryers and they just hang their clothing. That’s fine, but it takes a full 24 hours to dry them! And I’ve had some jeans take 2-3 days to dry. With the climate and the rain, it never feels fully dry! This can be tricky for us since we have limited clothing. Nine people’s clothing and a small drying line.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal">*****Note for friends and family…I am sooo sorry that we are not skyping more frequently. We are extremely busy for the whole day. 6:30 am to 11:30pm we are on the go. We are also noticing that skyping puts the kids in a bad mood. I think it is because we are chattering away in English and they feel left out. It is a cool thing to do, but they can’t participate. Also, they don’t understand skype fully and aren’t yet interested in talking to “strangers”. Thank you for understanding. It isn’t that they don’t want to talk to you. They just can only deal with new people in small doses and we are it for now. We miss you all a ton and would love to skype as often as possible, but for now, the kids’ hearts are our main concern. That, and avoiding tantrums! We love you guys so please be patient as we wait until we are at a point where skyping is a healthy thing to do with them.********</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div>The T famhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15490080885816865813noreply@blogger.com2