A Special Day at Church

We were able to go to church this morning, and it was so wonderful to be back and see everyone!  The kids got all dressed up in their new clothes, and they were so excited.  They did a great job greeting everyone and sitting quietly through the service.  We were very proud of them!  Our pastor introduced our new family to the congregation, and we greatly appreciate everyone's prayers while we were away.

Birthday Celebrations

 

We have now been home for a little more than a week and have celebrated three birthdays since we got home.  Lori's birthday, which was July 1st, and Ingrid's birthday, which was July 10th, were celebrated in both Colombia and at home.  Ingrid just turned nine and had a princess birthday last week when we got home. 

Juan just celebrated his 7th birthday yesterday.  His birthday was a sports theme.  We were so glad we could be home for his birthday!

Ingrid celebrated her birthday in Colombia with lunch at McDonalds so Juan wanted to do the same thing here.  We have had a lot of cake, presents, and McDonalds over the past month!


McDonald's in Colombia for Ingrid's birthday



McDonald's here for Juan's birthday



Our First Week Home

We have now been home for a week, and it has been very busy unpacking and showing the kids all of their things in their new home.  The kids are doing really well as they adjust to their new home and we get settled back in after being gone so long.  We love watching them play with all of the new things we bought for them.  Everyone is doing a good job at taking turns and sharing with each other.  After 15 weeks in a hotel, it is so wonderful to be back in an environment that we can control and add structure. Thank you for all of your prayers and e-mails!

Our First Day Home

We had a great first day home!  The first thing the kids asked when we got up was when can we go swimming.  They loved the pool!  After swimming, they enjoyed the afternoon playing with all of their new toys.  They went to bed very tired but happy, after their first day in their new home.

We Are Home!

We made it home safely late last night and are so excited to finally be here.  The kids did great and were so excited.  We had to get up at 4 AM in order to get to the airport, and they popped right up.   They did a great job at the airport, and it was a long day.  We took a plane from Bogota to Atlanta, had to clear customs in Atlanta, and then the kids had to go to the Immigration office in the airport.  They are now US citizens! It was sad to say good-bye to the hotel staff and the new friends we made, and it will be a transition for the kids, but they are very happy.  My parents met us at the arport with big bears for the kids.

WE ARE COMING HOME!!!

Thank you so much for all of your support and prayers during our adoption journey and long stay here in Colombia!  After a busy week, we are ready to come home.  In the past week, we got the kids' old birth certificates, got new ones issued in our last name, got new identification cards, got passports made, went to an Embassy doctor for a medical check, had our Visas issued, and got all packed up.   God has blessed us with three precious children, and we are very thankful.

Gifts for the hotel staff

The kids helped us put together gifts for the hotel staff.  They have been so helpful to our family and really helped us with the transition for our kids.  We put together gift bags with angels and candy.  The kids also made pictures to give to the hotel.  We will passed them out and had a party with cake last night.  We can't wait to come home! 

Creative Times

We brought a lot of activities for the kids, and we are so glad we did.  Some are educational activities, puzzles, games, and art project materials.  The kids have started getting very creative.  We brought these foam blocks you can use on pattern cards, but the kids started making their own pictures.  Both Juan and Ingrid made pictures of our family.  Juan even included our dog Lucky!

Visas and Celebration!

We got our Visas today and are so excited!  We are all done and now we just have to work on packing throughout the weekend.  We had a celebration of ice cream and play one last time at Jenno's Pizza, and the kids had a great time playing with new friends from the hotel.  We have met so many nice families while we have been here. 

We Got The Passports!!

Dainis and our agency representative went and got the kids' old and new birth certificates on Monday.  However, they said it would take until Tuesday to process them.  It was a two hour drive, so yesterday was a busy morning.  We then went and got the kids' identification cards with their new last name and their passports.  They are so excited!!  Right now, we plan to fly home on Tuesday, and the kids keep asking what time our flight will be!  We also went to the Embassy doctor yesterday and applied for their Visas this morning.  We can pick them up on tomorrow afternoon.  It has been a whirl wind of activity, but we are all so excited to finally be at this place!

Sentencia!!! We Are Almost Home!!!

We received Sentencia today!!  This means that the judge signed all of our adoption paperwork!  We are officially a family and are so blessed by our three precious children!  We now need to get the kids' old birth certificates, get new birth certifications issued, get passports and Visas made, and have a final appointment with the US Embassy doctor.  Then we will be on our way home!  Thank you so much for all of your prayers and sharing this amazing journey with us!  Your friendship means so much, and it is a priveledge to share our family with you.

Ingrid's Birthday!

Today was Ingrid's 9th birthday, and it was such a great day.  It is so special that we could be together for our daughter's birthday.  It was a day packed with lots of fun.  We continued the tradition of picking a box of sugar cereal for your birthday so Dainis took Ingrid to the grocery store.  She picked Lucky Charms.  The funniest part is she actually didn't love the cereal but ate all of the marshmallos!

Ingrid loves Barbie so we surprised her with a Barbie purse and coloring book.  All of her presents are waiting for her at home.  Her birthday celebration at home is a princess theme so my parents showed her everything via Skype.  She is so excited to go and keeps saying she wants the regalo (present) of Sentencia for her birthday.

When we asked what she wanted to do for lunch, she said she wanted to go to McDonalds and have fries, a coke, and chocolate ice cream.  The kids don't usually get soft drinks so this was a special lunch.  They enjoyed lunch and playing with some new friends.

We had a small celebration of cake tonight and polishing nails.  There will be a big birthday party at the hotel tomorrow night!

Time to Dress Up

We had a meeting at Ayudame, the orphanage, and the kids love to dress up.  The girls had the chance to wear new dresses and Juan had a new suit.  It reminds us how excited they get for the little things.

A Colombian Guitar

Dainis purchased a guitar that was made from wood in Colombia.  He use to have one and is very excited to have another one to learn to play with the kids.  The kids love music and are very excited to take piano lessons when we get home.  It was very affordable since it was made here in Colombia and another opportunity for us to be together as a family.