We wish he was here for his first birthday but are happy he has no idea what he's missing:) And yes, the little stinker is walking already!!!
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
PUBS 5
Once again thanks for the prayers! (I'm thinking when we have these two little boys dedicated we will give out knee pads as favors:) Everything went pretty successful. He was a little bit of a stinker and had his eye right behind the umbilical cord where the needle needed to go. It wasn't really a risk but the fellow doing the procedure wasn't crazy about having his eye right there! After about 15 minutes of "aversion" (attempts to move the baby's position) she was able to get his face and head away from the cord and start the procedure. From there, everything went great!
We are also very close to having a name for him! We reserve the right to change our name up until he's born but clues may be soon in coming!!!!!
We are also very close to having a name for him! We reserve the right to change our name up until he's born but clues may be soon in coming!!!!!
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Nairobi
It's never simple with us is it? That email we were hoping to get from the US Embassy won't be coming. Today we received an email from them informing us that they could not process our case and are sending it to Nairobi. Obviously, when things don't make sense clearly the place to have them sorted out is in another African country right? Actually it has more to do with American policy. In Ethiopia we had the US Embassy evaluating our case. In order to issue a visa they must be 100% certain that a child is an orphan according to US law. At first this seems totally reasonable. We certainly wouldn't want to bring home a child who is not an orphan!!!! Here's the problem: logic, common sense, and discretion. Very few things in life are 100% certain. The Embassy looks at a case like ours and says, "Everything seems to be in order. We have no reason to to deny that this child is an orphan. We are 99.9% sure" Unfortunately 99.9% is not enough. So the case gets sent to the USCIS (United States Citizen Immigration and there my mind blanks and I can't remember what the last "S" stands for). The closest branch that deals with adoption is in Nairobi. The USCIS only needs to be 51% sure (big jump right?!?!?!) that a child is a legal orphan.
So what happens now? Well, the case is on it's way "express". I was relieved to hear that "express" means DHL not fastest mule in the continent and our file should get there in 3-5 business days (so sometime next week) Once it gets there we will get an email from them letting us know they have it and will review it within 30 days. They review cases in the order they are received so hopefully they don't have many cases and it won't take the full 30 days. After review the process is similar to the Embassy. We will either get a request for more information or clearance. If we are cleared we (George) can head back to Ethiopia and finally get our son!!! If not, we continue to wait until they have conducted an investigation and clear us.
All in all we are looking at 4 or more weeks. We are hopeful we will bring Ezekiel home in February. We're pretty bummed that he missed his first Christmas and now we will miss his first birthday. We're trying to trust that God's plan is perfect!
So what happens now? Well, the case is on it's way "express". I was relieved to hear that "express" means DHL not fastest mule in the continent and our file should get there in 3-5 business days (so sometime next week) Once it gets there we will get an email from them letting us know they have it and will review it within 30 days. They review cases in the order they are received so hopefully they don't have many cases and it won't take the full 30 days. After review the process is similar to the Embassy. We will either get a request for more information or clearance. If we are cleared we (George) can head back to Ethiopia and finally get our son!!! If not, we continue to wait until they have conducted an investigation and clear us.
All in all we are looking at 4 or more weeks. We are hopeful we will bring Ezekiel home in February. We're pretty bummed that he missed his first Christmas and now we will miss his first birthday. We're trying to trust that God's plan is perfect!
Sunday, January 1, 2012
2011 A Year of !!!!!!!!!
I usually LOVE New Years. I relish the idea of a clean, new starting place. I like blank slates, blank pages, blank calendars. I like life unmarred by my mistakes. The chance to start over. The dream that this year I will be the wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend that I've always dreamed of being. I know that by weeks end, at best, those dreams will be faced with the harsh reality of being me but for a short time it's fun to dream.
Assessing the year is also a fun part of New Years for me. I like to look back and say, "2007 was a GREAT year! Weddings, babies, etc." Or "2009 sucked!!!! So glad that's over!" My problem with 2011 is that I can't seem to categorize it!!!! I'm not sure if it fits in the "Great Year" category or the "Crummy Year" category. It certainly has no place in boring!!!! The whole year was a series of really high highs and low lows. I guess if I had to pick one word for the year it would be patience, or maybe trust. The year was a series of trusting God that He really is working all things together for good and that His timing really is perfect (even when it just seems really slow or, frankly, just off:)
So I guess 2011 was the Year of Growth (not at all referring to my current girth:). We grew as individuals, as a family, and as a couple.
This year my only resolutions are to have two sweet boys in my family and to somehow finish second grade with Christin!
Assessing the year is also a fun part of New Years for me. I like to look back and say, "2007 was a GREAT year! Weddings, babies, etc." Or "2009 sucked!!!! So glad that's over!" My problem with 2011 is that I can't seem to categorize it!!!! I'm not sure if it fits in the "Great Year" category or the "Crummy Year" category. It certainly has no place in boring!!!! The whole year was a series of really high highs and low lows. I guess if I had to pick one word for the year it would be patience, or maybe trust. The year was a series of trusting God that He really is working all things together for good and that His timing really is perfect (even when it just seems really slow or, frankly, just off:)
So I guess 2011 was the Year of Growth (not at all referring to my current girth:). We grew as individuals, as a family, and as a couple.
This year my only resolutions are to have two sweet boys in my family and to somehow finish second grade with Christin!
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