Travel Update

I received an e-mail from our coordinator at Hand in Hand Adoptions.  She wanted to let us know that we would not be traveling our first time until September or October.  In the region where Anna lives, all the orphanages close down for the summer.  The kids are taken to "datchas" or summer homes.  Most of the orphanage officials go on vacations during the summer months and need to be there when we are there, to observe us with our child, etc. 

So...September or October.  Then it's anywhere from 2-4 months after that to get our court date.  We just hope we can get her home by the end of the year for financial reasons.  We need that adoption tax refund ASAP!  We know it will happen according to the Lord's plan, though.  Trust, trust.

Dear Anna,

We've been thinking about you a lot the past month.  We know that this month, you have turned five years old! 

It was five years ago that your mother learned that you weren't the same  as most babies; that you had an extra chormosome which made you a little different.  Five years ago, you entered this big world, unfortunately in a place where mommies and daddies who  have children who are extra special like you, are not accepted or supported by society. Your mother was scared.  I'm sure she felt she had no choice but to give you up. I imagine this was a very sad time for her.  I'm sure she has thought about you a lot this month, too.  I'm sure her heart aches for you.  She has no idea that you have a family in America who is SOOOOO excited to have you join them soon.  I wish I could tell her.

We wish we could be there to hug and kiss you and make you feel extra special on your birthday.  To celebrate the fact that you WERE born, and that you are not only valued, but perfect in God's eyes.  We wish we could be there to give you presents and watch your face light up with excitement when you find out what's inside.  We wish we could watch you blow out the #5 candle on your birthday cake.  Not this time, precious girl.  But we just want you to know that even though you're not yet here with us, we celebrated anyway. 

Daddy lit the candle, we all made one big wish (I'll bet you can't guess what that was...) and we blew out your candle.  Bennett was so excited he just sat there and smiled for you.  We'll be lighting this same candle in just four months, when HE turns five like you!

We talked about how fast a year goes.  Before we know it, we'll have a pretty cake all lit up with the number six and who will be sitting at that table, ready to blow out the flame?  YOU!  We can't wait to celebrate your life with you. 

As you can see, the lemon cream cake and vanilla ice cream recieved great reviews!  You are going to love birthday parties, Anna girl.  And we are going to love you.  We can't believe how much we do already.

See you soon! 

With Love,

Your Forever Family

Quote of the Week

I stole this from my sister's blog.  Love it.

"Sometime I would like to ask God why He allows so much poverty, famine, suffering and injustice in the world when He could do something about it, but I am afraid He might ask me the same question." - Anonymous

Reece's Rainbow 4th Anniversary Video

Thank you to Andrea Roberts and her mission to bring love and life to so many children with Down Syndrome throughout the world.  We feel so blessed to be a part of her vision. 

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Making Progress!

Our home study is finished!  So as soon as we receive those all-important notarized copies from our homestudy agency in a few days, we can send everything (the registration dossier and the homestudy) off to the state to be legalized, or "apostilled."  It takes 3-5 business days to do this, then when we recieve that big stack of certificates, we will send it all to our placing agency and they will forward them on to Anna's country to be translated and entered into the system. That should take a few weeks.  Then we should receive our first travel date which will be a couple weeks later.  In the meantime, we'll file our petition to adopt a foreign orphan, or "I-600A" with the US Government, and we will continue to work on the court dossier which we'll need to have done before we travel.  It's a busy summer!  I feel like I have two full-time jobs right now.  One of managing a household that includes 5 children and one of compiling a dossier.  This, too shall pass!  It will all be worth it.

Conversations with Jen

A few days after we discovered Tatiana and knew she was ours, I called my good friend, Jen who lives in Boise.  She and her husband Dave have four children.  Their third son, James was born with Down Syndrome.  He happens to be one week younger than Tatiana.  I told her what had transpired in our lives recently.  The first thing she said was, "Whoa."  Understandable.  I think she was a bit shocked.  But Jen has known us for 16 years.  She knows that we wouldn't choose to bring challenges into our lives without having first spent many hours on our knees and receiving a clear answer from Lord that he wanted us to do so. 

(The photo above is of Jen and I sporting our pregnant tummies on New Years Eve 2008-2009.  We had our babies twenty minutes apart from each other the following April!)

In an effort to better prepare us for the change Anna will bring to our family, at least on the Down Syndrome side of things, I asked Jen if she could e-mail me some of her thoughts on what it's like having a child/sibling with an "extra chromosome."  Here is what she sent me:

Heather,

You have been on my mind sooo much since I heard about your journey toward Tatiana. Every day since you called and expressed your concerns, I have observed James in another light, in a more questioning way... would I CHOOSE to have James this way if I could? Would I want to adopt a child with Downs Syndrome? As I have him and thought about the things that I and my family have learned since we have had James in our lives, the answer is simple... I would do it all over again and again! He has been such a blessing to our family. We would be missing out on so many blessings by NOT having him in our family.

How is raising James different than raising my other kids? I always tell people that it's just like my other kids, except he is in slow motion.  You get to enjoy all the milestones because they don't pass right before your eyes. As you know, your baby learns things so quickly. You look back and think, "How and when did he learn to do all that?"  With James, I get to watch him learn it all. On the flip side, these kids have to try so much harder than typical kids. But the feeling of accomplishment is so much more rewarding. I am so proud of how hard he works.

James requires more patience from our family when it comes to his speech. For example, if we are all in the van driving somewhere and the kids are watching a show, all the sudden James will start yelling like something is wrong. He's unable to tell us exactly what is wrong. It's then that I ask my boys, "Why is James upset?" they then admit that they fast forwarded through a part on the movie that James wanted to watch. Since he is strapped in his car seat, he can't show us what is troubling him the way he normally does.. by showing us with sign language, gesturing, etc.

It's funny, even though James requires more patience, he is the most patient child we have.  He'll patiently wait outside under the basketball hoop for me to finish what I'm doing inside... just to shoot a few hoops with me. When he has a need, he will wait WAY longer than any of my other kids do... whether it's reading a book together, being served dinner, playing blocks, etc. He's just so grateful that I came out to play or fulfill his need. He would never get mad at me for "taking so long", unlike my other kids. What an example!!!

James is like a magnet wherever we go. Just last week, I was at my 1st graders class. I was showing off my baby girl while James was with his brother. I started to take a picture of my little girl who had found a cozy cubby spot to hang out in. It was then that a lady came up to me and said, "um.. you should be taking a picture of THAT instead". I looked over and sure enough, there was James at the front of the classroom with probably 15 1st graders surrounding him. He was making them laugh and they in turn would gesture a facial expression. James would copy them and they would laugh again. This went on and on, as they went through various animal sounds and actions. I didn't even think any thing about it because this is normal. But the lady who said this to me just had a little DS girl and so she of course, was observing him. DS children are usually VERY social and lovable!

James does everything our family does. If my big boys are out playing football, there's James as well. When Dave comes home from work and we all run to greet him, James runs to him as well. When it's time to bless dinner, he demands that he gets a turn. He just does everything the way a 3 year old would, instead of an almost 5 year old. He totally understands right from wrong, as a 3 year old does. Right- share, touch softly, etc. Wrong - grab something from your baby sister, push something off the counter top. He gets time-out accordingly or has to make it right.

I do think about the fact that James could very well live with us forever. I imagine it would be like having an 8 or 9 year with you all the time. Can you think of a better age? As I look at all my 9 year old is doing, he's very capable and hardly needs me for anything, yet he loves to do what we are doing. My girlfriend who has a 33-year-old DS brother living with her, says it is awesome! In fact, his sisters all fight about who he gets to live with next. He goes to programs all day each day, has family jobs, is her hardest worker, and speaks very well. Your kids will love her so much, they will always have a special place in their hearts for her. My kids do for James.

Just the other day I was at my sons school presentation. His teacher pulled me aside and said, "I wanted to tell you what Sam said the other day as we were discussing the special needs kids that attend our school. We were discussing their differences and Sam raised his hand and so sure of himself said, 'My brother James is handicapped and he has Down Syndrome. He is so special to me and my family. He makes our family feel special and because of him, each day is special.' I could have cried as a mother, and I just wanted you to know how well rounded your son is."

So... Heather, with tears in my eyes, I AM so grateful that James is in our family and yes, I definitely would choose to have him the way he is. We are so lucky.

I love you, and I'll keep you in my prayers,

Jen

Home Study Status

Our home study is ready, but our social worker can't send it to us to review until we provide him with our "pychological evaluation letter" and some forms that our doctor has to fill out.  Anna's country requires some blood tests that we didn't have to do before.  So as soon as we get that done, and our neighbor who is a psychologist writes our letter for us, we'll send them to Tom so he can add that required info. Looks like it'll be next week some time.  Patience, patience...