Stark Adoption

Finally...Posting from Home!!

2010-09-13T08:56:00.000-07:00

We made it!! We're home! And how nice to be here. We arrived at our house on Saturday, September 4th, at about 8:45 p.m. After being awake for nearly 36 hours with only dozing on the planes and a 3-hour nap during our layover, we were so happy to get home to our nice, comfy beds. The bumpy landing in LA, combined with being very tired, challenged our tummies to maintain!! It's nice to be back on the ground.

We've been home for about a week now, and I think we are starting to get ourselves figured out a little bit. Geof is working part days so he can be home more. He will ease back into full-time soon. It's so nice to have him around while we are trying to get used to a new normal. Our new normal includes using google translate to communicate important ideas and instructions. But when Geof is around he's our translator! Our goal right now is to help Yamile learn English, and we accomplish that in many different ways. We say as much as we can in both English and Spanish. She watches a show that teaches language, and we read bilingual books to her. Of course, total immersion helps! And there are lots of little girls that want to come over and play with her, so we are trying to include playdates as often as we can. Yesterday, Emma came over for a rousing game of Uno, and today Kate is here for some of the same.

Considering all the huge, life-altering changes Yamile has just been through, and is still going through, she has been a real trooper. It's not easy to change ALL that is familiar to you and still have a huge smile on your face, but somehow she is managing to do that most of the time. She is an amazing girl, and we love her!!

Thank you so much to all of you who have read our blog and cared about our story. Your prayers, posts, and encouragements have been a huge blessing. We look forward with eagerness to this new chapter in our lives. Our love to you all....Geof, Lenna, Annalisa, Rebecca, and Yamile!

Update on French Family

2010-09-03T18:35:00.000-07:00

I wanted to update everyone about the French family's baby which I told you about earlier. The baby is still in the hospital and there is a chance he will lose both his feet and parts of his fingers. He had something that I think is called "purpurea" which interfered with the blood supply to his feet and hands. At first they expected him to lose his hands entirely, but they have managed to save them all the way down to most of the fingers. They are hoping to save his feet as well, but right now it doesn't look all that promising. He is out of a coma now (I believe they induced the coma), but he is still on a respirator.

It looks like the French embassy is working with the family to bring a French doctor here to Bogota. The hope is that they can stabilize the baby well enough to get him home to France. I think the doctor will travel with him. If they can, they will travel in about a week. Again, thank you for your prayers for this family.

Last Blog from Colombia

2010-09-03T16:06:00.000-07:00

Well folks, all our bags are packed and we're ready to go. Amazingly, we won't need any additional suitcases for the trip home - 6 suitcases and 6 carry-ons is enough, I think!

Today we went to lunch with Martha and helped her out by donating a scanner/printer so she can more effectively continue to help adoptive families. We also needed to pick up Yamile's passport with her visa at the U.S. Embassy. We were told to be there at 3:30. We ended up getting there at about 3:40 and the place looked kind of deserted. We came to the main entrance and had to knock on the window to get someone's attention. They let us in and then we went to the window where we'd applied for the visa yesterday. There was no one at any of the windows and we had to keep banging on the bullet-proof glass to get someone's attention. The man who assisted us already had all of Yamile's information ready. He handed it over to us and we were done in about 5 minutes. What a relief! We were starting to sweat it out a bit, thinking we'd arrived too late.

We leave the hotel at 10 PM tonight (8 PM Pacific Time) so we can be at the airport three hours before our flight. This should allow time in case there are any unforeseen delays at the airport (and, with Bogota's traffic, you never know how much time you'll need to get there). We board the plane for our 7-hour voyage at 1:35 AM and we'll be at LAX at 6:30 AM Pacific Time. We look forward to seeing Gus and Melissa Pidal and their boys during our lengthy layover in L.A.

See y'all soon!

Go Zags

2010-09-03T15:55:00.000-07:00

I forgot to post something from last Sunday (August 29th) that I didn't want to forget, especially for Mike, Jill, and other interested parties. When we went to the soccer game and were waiting for tickets, I saw someone walking toward the stadium with a red Gonzaga sweatshirt! Judging solely by this guy's outward appearance, my guess is that he had no clue what (or who) Gonzaga was. I thought immediately of the Zag fans back home. Go Zags!

We're Coming Home

2010-09-02T20:25:00.000-07:00

Today's whirlwind just kept on going after we arrived back at the hotel. I interrupted my lunch to call our U.S. travel agent and see if we could rearrange our travel plans to return on September 4th or 5th. He emailed me back soon after and said that, because we were adopting, we could change our flight plans on Avianca (the Colombian airline flying from Bogota to LAX) with no fee for the change. To do it, however, we had to go to an Avianca office here in Bogota.

We called Martha and she directed us to an Avianca office located in the mall that is a 10-minute walk from our hotel. Martha offered to serve as a translator over the phone if we needed her help. We walked into the Avianca office and almost immediately it was our turn at the window. I feel sorry for the poor gal who helped us because my Spanish sounds like a three-year old trying to talk - tenses are wrong; nouns, adjectives, and verbs are all used incorrectly; vocabulary is limited. Fortunately, she understood what I was trying to get across - we wanted to leave on September 4th rather than September 9th.

Unfortunately, we ran into a sticky problem - Avianca had seats to offer us, but our flight from LAX to Reno did not (that flight was on Alaska Airlines, not Avianca). To top it off, they could only make the change with no fee if the new flight had seats available that were the same "class" as ours, and they only had three seats in the same class (we needed five). While the agent spent a lot of time on the phone, we were trying to plan how we would do this. Maybe three of us could go on the 4th with the other two following on the 5th. Maybe we'd have to stay until the 9th. Maybe we'd just fly to LA and try to figure out how to get home from there. We didn't much like any of the alternatves.

After a long while, the agent said they found a flight from LAX to Reno that had seats for us in the same class. It would mean a 12-hour layover in LAX, but they could make the change for us. Alaska Airlines would charge us for the change, but it was still much less than five more nights in Bogota. The agent made the arrangements for us and we will be on our way home on the 4th, arriving in Reno at 7:15 PM.

As to what happened to allow the five of us to change our Avianca flights (even though there were only three available seats in the same class) I do not know. But I think that the long phone call by the agent may have had something to do with it. I didn't get her name, but I am so thankful for her patience and her help in dealing with us. Once again, the Lord has blessed us and we are praising Him.

Tonight I told Yamile we were traveling at 1:30 AM on the 4th (meaning we're leaving the hotel at 10 PM tomorrow night). She was very excited to hear the news, flashed her heart-warming smile, and gave me a big hug. Even twelve hours in LAX did not dim her spirits. We're coming home.

God is Amazing and Awesome!

2010-09-02T12:18:00.001-07:00

God is definitely amazing, awesome, and sovereign. Thanks to God's sovereign hand (and the prayers of the saints), he used our adoption coordinator (Martha) to get everything completed today and we're working on coming home this weekend.

Today we embarked on a task that seemed virtually impossible - obtaining all the paperwork we needed and arriving at the US Embassy by 11:30 AM, in time to apply for a visa. We were supposed to receive (via courier service) new birth certificates for Yamile yesterday and begin the final paperwork process so we could apply for the visa today. It turns out that there was an error in the mailing address so the papers were not delivered like they should have been. This left us distraught, because if we didn't apply for the visa today, we would not be able to travel until next Tuesday evening at the earliest. At this point, however, Martha began working the phones and doing all she could to help us.

Last night she sent a driver across Bogota (think of sending a driver across Los Angeles or New York City) to pick up the birth certificates at the courier's office. She also spent much of the day yesterday making phone calls to set up arrangements for today.

The first item on our agenda was to obtain a new Colombian identification card for Yamile. We needed that to be able to get a new passport for her. The ID card office opened at 8 AM, but Martha arranged for someone to stand in line on our behalf. Martha and our driver for the day (Miguel) arrived at the hotel at 7:25 and we were off to the ID card office. (Martha also arranged for the driver to wait for us throughout the day, so we would not have to flag down a taxi every time we completed a task.) At the ID card office, our "place holder" was third in line. The office opened at 8 AM at the public servant arrived at his station at about 8:10 or so. Like I said, we were third in line, but Martha knew that every minute would count. She quietly spoke to the two mothers in front of us and they allowed us to move ahead of them in line. What a blessing to start the day. We were done by 8:20 and on our way to our next stop.

Miguel took us to the passport office next (or at least took us close - we had to jump out of the cab, run across the street between the cars in rush-hour traffic, and run into the office). Martha led us quickly into a store where Yamile's passport photo could be taken. After the snapshot, Lenna waited in the store while Martha took me and Yamile into the actual passport office, giving Lenna instructions to come in as soon as she had the photos and tell the guards she was there for adoption and they would let her in. Martha wisked Yamile and me around the passport office from one station to the next, taking care of everything. She briefly stopped a woman and spoke with her. It turns out this woman was the director of the office and Martha explained the situation. Martha told me that as soon as we paid the passport fee, we would be expedited to the front of the line. At this time, Lenna arrived with the photos, after being asked something by the guard on the way in. I don't know if she knows what she was asked, but somehow she was able to enter. Martha paid the fee, Yamile and Lenna accompanied her to the window and, not long after, we had Yamile's new Colombian passport (with her new name!).

The next step in the process was for Yamile to be seen by a physician to make sure she was healthy enough to enter the U.S. Of course, this meant driving to some other area of the city. This doctor usually will not see children in the morning for these physicals after 9 AM. Martha had called previously and spoken with the doctor and he said he would see Yamile as long as she arrived by 9:30. At precisely 9:28 we showed up at the receptionist desk in the doctor's office! (Can you imagine the fix we would have been in if we hadn't had someone standing in line for us, if the two women had not let us go first, if Martha had not expedited the passport procedure? We would have been unable to proceed any further and our day would be done.) The doctor reviewed the vaccination and medical records and we chatted with him a bit (all the time knowing that the clock was ticking on us). After a brief examination and conversation with Yamile, he had some more items to let us know. Finally, he approved everything and we were out of his office by 10 AM.

Now, we had to get to the ICBF office to pick up more paperwork. Every time we got back in the car, Martha immediately began collecting and organizing all the documents we would need for our next stop. (And I am so glad for Lenna's organizational skills that made sure we had every document we needed! She has kept everything so well organized and complete from the beginning, and it has been a tremendous blessing throughout the one-year adoption process.) At ICBF, Martha led us into one office, where she talked to some people and got the paperwork she needed. Once we were done there, we had to run (and I literally mean "run") to another office in the same building. This office did not appear to be heavily staffed and Martha began asking for the paperwork we needed. Martha actually looked around the office a bit and found the paperwork she was looking for. We were introduced to several people who had helped Yamile at ICBF and it appeared they wanted to chat with us and Martha for a bit. Martha politely let them know of our predicament and we charged out the door on the way to our next venue.

The next destination was the U.S. Embassy to apply for the visa for Yamile to travel to the U.S. as our adopted daughter. Normally, you must be at the Embassy by 11 AM in order to put in your visa request. Martha called them yesterday and explained the situation to them. She was told that we could have until 11:30. We arrived at 11:05 and went past the long lines of Colombian citizens seeking visas right to the front. We were let in right away and submitted the paperwork. From this point forward, it was just a waiting game. While waiting, we encountered two other KidSave families. One family was adopting a 16-year old boy. The other family was adopting 16- and 17-year old sisters. It was neat to hear a bit of their stories and see the excitement on the faces. Finally, at about 1 PM, we were called to the window, answered a few quick questions, and were told that everything was approved. We get to pick up the visa tomorrow (September 3rd) at 3:30 - which means we get to come home ASAP.

The morning was a whirlwind, and Martha mentioned how stressed she felt throughout the morning. The driver commented (joked?) that he had a sore neck because of the stress from driving us from location to location in the maze of Bogota's streets and traffic.

What seemed impossible to us yesterday was completed in an amazing fashion today. And none of it would have happened without God sovereignly causing everything to fall into place. We praise Him for His great work (Martha was joining us in admiring what God was doing). We know that God could have chosen to cause us to wait, and we would have had to be patient with God's plan and His timing, but we are rejoicing that He is allowing us to return home now. Thank you again for your prayers, and we look forward to being home in Fallon again soon.

Mas fotografias

2010-09-01T12:21:00.000-07:00

Okay, folks are asking for more pictures, so we'll post some for you. The first three are when we were still in Neiva. The photo of Yamile, Rebecca and Geof was taken right after we had our integracion meeting. We went out for a special dinner and everybody got to order some special Colombian fruit drinks. The last photo was taken in one of our rooms at Hotel Paris, where we are right now.

Waiting...............

2010-09-01T09:41:00.000-07:00

Tall man Geof trying not to crack his head on the doorway of the bathroom!!

So here we sit waiting for paperwork to arrive by courier so we can go somewhere to fill out more forms. We were told our papers should be here between 10 and 11 am. Well it's now 11:45 and our representative just called to tell us that she is also waiting for the papers to arrive. They should have been here by now so someone is apparently trying to track them to see where they are. The Lord knows where they are and what His plan for us is, so we have taken our request to Him and we are trusting Him to work it all out exactly the way He means for it to happen.

There is another family here from France who is adopting twin boys who are about one year old. One of the twins ended up in the hospital in critical condition a couple of weeks ago. It appears he had some kind of allergic reaction to something and nearly died. He has had a cardiac arrest, a diabetic reaction, nearly lost his fingers to a strange sort of infection, and is currently on life support and in a coma. They believe he will live, but that family has been through a lot. The adoptive father is 55 years old and a very angry person. Everyone here walks on eggshells around him. One of the adoptive moms here from the U.S. is currently working on finding another place to stay because this dad has shown an open dislike of her 4 year old daughter. He scared us yesterday by yelling and slamming things around in the dining area while we were eating. We think we can wait it out in this hotel because we are hoping we don't have to be here much longer, but if it gets any worse we may decide to look for another place ourselves. We have been praying for them, the dad in particular, but it is hard to offer hope when we can't speak the same language. Please take the time to pray for this family.

Yesterday Rebecca and I had fun helping Juanita, the cook, in the kitchen. She gave us a cooking lesson, teaching us how to make the meal she was preparing for dinner. It was a super rich chicken and parmesan cheese casserole served in individual bread bowls. We also had a fresh green salad (my personal favorite). To top it off, there were two separate occasions for celebration which each required a cake. (Can't celebrate without cake, right?) One cake was needed to send off an adoptive mom who was finally getting to go home today. The other was required for a birthday. That is the third birthday we have celebrated here so far--the other two were Yamile's and Geof's. So the "going home" cake was a sort of tort with about 1000 super thin layers of crispy wafer with cream between layers (it really does work out to be about 1000 layers). The birthday cake was a rich, creamy chocolate. We had a little of each. Both were delicious. I really hope all our clothes still fit us when we leave this place!

Hope you all are doing well. Thank you so much for those of you who have taken the time to post your comments. It's wonderful to hear from you and it helps with the feelings of isolation that try to take over. Our love to you all.

Sentencia is done!

2010-08-30T15:39:00.000-07:00

Geof left our hotel around 4:15 this morning to fly to Neiva so he could sign the sentencia papers. He accomplished that around 8a.m. His return flight was scheduled for 2:30 in the afternoon, but it is now 5:30 and he just called me to say they had boarded and were getting ready to take off. So he sat around in Neiva all day waiting for his flight! That's okay. We sat around our hotel all day waiting for him to return!! We will be so glad to have him back.

Yesterday, our representative called to ask us if we had looked at Geof's flight reservation for Neiva. She had taken a close look and noticed that it had him departing on August 30th, and returning on September 30th! Oops. So she had to do some fast leg work this morning in order to get him on a return flight for August 30th. We are soooo thankful she was on the ball! It would have been a bummer for him to try boarding a plane only to find he had no ticket!

So today we have eaten breakfast, read our bibles, taken a two-hour Spanish lesson, eaten lunch, painted with water color paints, played in the playroom, taken a walk to the park, walked to the store for some "pitahaya" fruit, and now we are waiting for dinner and Daddy's return. Walking to the park--in fact, walking anywhere around here--is a very interesting experience. It only gets more interesting when you have to cross the steet. In Colombia, the cars have the right of way and if you are a pedestrian you are on your own. So to cross the street, you have to be very sure there are no cars coming from any direction before you set your foot in the street. It can be challenging. It seems like there are never-ending cars everywhere you look!!

So now we are beginning the process to finish up here and get on our way back home. As I said before, if everything goes impossibly smooth, we could leave here this weekend. But you will all need to pray for that to happen, because there are many things that have to come together in order for us to get it all done. It does seem impossible, but if the Lord wills it, it will happen.

Divercity

2010-08-28T15:06:00.000-07:00

Okay, we made it back from the kid's center called "Divercity." It was really quite amazing. Divercity is a huge kid's "city", where children get to interact in over 60 different activities. All the activities involve either spending "money" or earning "money". Interestingly, the spending activities usually cost three thousand "divis", while the earning activities usually paid two thousand "divis". So I think the lesson there is that you have to work more than you get to play. Every single activity required a significant waiting period before the children could participate because they observed a strict ratio of children to adults per activity. So there was always a line outside each activity with a clock counting down the wait time for each line. Oh, and did I mention that adults were not allowed to stand in any of the lines or participate in any of the activities? We weren't even allowed into the activity rooms, but we could watch everything through huge windows. So kids could get a driver's license; drive a car; put out fires; make yogurt, pasta, and chocolate; have their faces painted; sing with a rock band; go to the bank and open an account; shop in the grocery store; ride in a firetruck, ambulance, or bus; make jewelry; "work" on cars; etc., etc. Like I said, it was really amazing. We got there at 9 in the morning and left after 2pm. And we didn't even do half of the activities!

There was a very strict security system for the children. We had to use our passports to enter, and everyone had to have a non-removable bracelet (only the security staff could take them off of us) with a readable device on it for tracking purposes. In other words, whenever a person entered a new "station" or area of the "city", they had to pass their bracelet past a device that recorded where they were. That way, if we lost track of our child they could immediately tell us what activity she was currently involved in. And if our older daughters wanted to leave Divercity to wander the mall, Geof had to appear personally to give his permission to let them leave. The staff would then remove Annalisa's and Rebecca's bracelets and place them on Geof's arms. (I should have gotten a picture of Geof with multiple bulky bracelets on his arms. )Then in order for them to reenter, Geof had to be paged and appear again to approve their reentry. I tried leaving with them at one point and was told that the "head of our group" had to give his permission. So even though I am their mother, I couldn't leave with them unless Geof showed up to "free" us! Hey, at least our kid sure wasn't going to disappear in there!! It was like trying to get onto the military base! Quite impressive!

This amazing place was in a huge mall, so Annalisa and Rebecca wandered the mall for two hours of that time, getting up their courage to use the little bit of Spanish they know. They did great. Now we are back at our "home away from home", just hanging out until dinnertime.

Tomorrow is Geof's birthday and guess what we get to do? We are going to a professional soccer game in Bogota!! And since soccer is Geof's favorite sport, it will be a very special memory for him to have actually gone to a game here in Colombia on his birthday. We have to take our taxi driver with us, as it is very difficult to find a driver after the game is over. So we will pay for his ticket to the game as well as pay him for his time while he is at the game. But it will be fine. This particular driver is very nice (although he doesn't speak English) and it will be helpful to have someone who can help us navigate at the game.

On Monday Geof has a flight to Neiva at 5:40 in the morning, with a return flight at 2:30. Pray that all goes well and there are no hitches to this trip. We have to be sure he has every document with him that he might need, as he will not be able to just run back to the hotel if there is something else the judge requires.

Blessings to you all.

Buenos dias!

2010-08-28T05:33:00.000-07:00

Good morning to all. We are off to a chilren's play place called "Divercity" today. We tried to go yesterday, spent $7 on a taxi (he overcharged us), and went inside only to find they were full and we couldn't go. So this morning we are leaving 1 1/2 hours before they open in hopes that we will get in before they fill up. I hope to be able to tell you all this evening that we had a great time there!

Sentencia!

2010-08-27T18:29:00.000-07:00

We received word today that our sentencia is ready! Geof will fly back to Neiva on Monday morning to sign the papers, and then Yamile will be legally and finally adopted!! Yesterday we had been told sentencia would be ready on Tuesday, but our representative called us today to tell us it is already done. She said it's the fastest she's ever seen it happen. Our papers were submitted on Tuesday and were ready by Friday. It is pretty amazing, as the families adopting from Bogota sometimes wait for many weeks to get sentencia. We are adopting from Neiva, so for us it is faster.

Anyway, it is late and we are all headed to bed, but we wanted to let you all know that things are moving along. It is conceivable that if everything falls exactly into place and we get everything done we need to do, we might actually be able to come home in a little over a week. We would appreciate your prayers to that effect. We are anxious to get home, but we also know God's timing is absolutely perfect.

By the way, thank you Flisa for spreading the word about our desire to hear more comments from all of you back home. And so many thanks to those of you who have taken the time to post comments. We are encouraged by them!! Please keep them coming!

Our love to you all.

August 26

2010-08-26T18:46:00.000-07:00

"Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is the Lord. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; but its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought nor cease to yield fruit." Jeremiah 17:7-8

"Nor cease to yield fruit"..............what an amazing promise. God's word is a never ending source of strength to those who trust in Him. I am so grateful that He is always teaching me how to do that. He constantly reminds me that the one who trusts in Him will never be ashamed. And how true that is. In all this long journey of pursuing adoption, of filling out endless paperwork, undergoing the scrutiny of people who need to know everything in the world about your personal life, filling out more paperwork, waiting... and waiting... and waiting..., only to find out you have to wait some more.......and did I mention filling out paperwork...?...God has been faithfully fulfilling His promises. Promises to teach me patience, to teach me contentment, to teach me to constantly give my worries over to Him, and promises to teach me not to fear. So now, as the parenting challenges come, He is once again reminding me of His promises. His promise is that if I make the Lord my trust, I will not cease to yield fruit (such as patience, joy, goodness, faithfulness, etc.). I can't do this in my own strength, but He has promised me I don't have to. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13.

I am so glad for our faithful God!! And for all those of you who love us and are praying for us!! As you continue to pray, God continues to answer.

Bogota - Day 2

2010-08-26T14:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we completed our first "official" tourist act since we arrived in Colombia. While we are in a waiting mode, we decided to occupy some of our time. We had a driver take us to a "small" community that is near Bogota. I say small, because that was his term - the actual population is 120,000. He was amazed when I told him the population of our local community was 25,000.

In this town there "The Salt Cathedral". It is located in a salt mine and is considered the first great wonder of Colombia. In essence, in 1958 part of the mine was turned into a large cathedral underground, with things carved out of the rock. They have the Stations of the Cross, a dome room, a choir loft, a chapel area, and the main sanctuary, which has a large cross carved out of the wall that is lit up. The cross is probably at least 70 feet high.

It was an interesting diversion for a few hours. When we returned to Hotel Paris in Bogota, we saw someone in the dining area who looked like a woman we met in Neiva named Kate. When we originally met her, she was in the process of receiving sentencia (the paperwork we are awaiting) and she spent a good part of the day with us. It turned out the woman we saw in the dining room WAS Kate - we had told her about Hotel Paris while we were in Neiva. They decided to move from their previous location to this one until they can catch a flight back to Denmark. We were able to meet her husband and children this time and now we all sit together at a big table for our meals. They are a neat and interesting couple - they are both Americans who decided to live in Denmark. He is a computer programmer and she is an English teacher. They have a four-year old girl and are adopting an 11-month old blind boy. Yamile has taken a liking to their daughter and they have been spending a lot of time playing together, despite the fact that their daughter only speaks English and Danish, and Yamile only speaks Spanish.

Another woman has been here for six weeks now. She and her husband are adopting in Bogota, where the process moves very slowly. Her husband had to leave after three weeks and she's been here, alone with her daughter, since then (although her father has been visiting for the last week). The judge in her court was asking for a piece of paper that did not exist and he refused to budge. After five weeks, they pulled the adoption out of that court and re-submitted it to another court. This could potentially mean starting over again. Amazingly, though, she received sentencia today (only a week later), and she should be able to leave within the next week. So far, we've not run into any similar obstacles. Our adoption coordinator in Bogota called me yesterday to let me know the adoption was submitted to the court and the judge did not ask for any additional paperwork. We just need to wait.

For another family, the wife had to say goodbye to her husband today as he returned to the States to get back to work. As you can imagine, it was a bit of a tearful farewell as she knows she will be here for a few weeks without him. Lenna gave her a big hug, let her know we would be praying for her, and reminded her that it will all be worth it. (She is the person who told me about Hotel Paris on the internet and now, here we are, together with her.)

Each family has a story to tell and it is very heart-warming to be with these people who are giving of themselves to adopt these precious ones who are in need.

Hotel Paris

2010-08-24T18:29:00.000-07:00

Well, we are back in Bogota. Our flight went off without a hitch. There had been a concern that we would not be allowed to use the original ticket we had purchased for Yamile since it was purchased using her new name, and we are currently traveling with her before her name has been legally changed. They are extremely picky about such things here, and we were told we might have to buy a new ticket using her Colombian name. But our lawyer and our translator were both at the airport with us to advocate for us, and we had lots of documentation to show them, and they let us through. Yay!! Praise the Lord! That is one more complication we have been spared.

So, we have returned to Hotel Paris. What a blessing! There are lots of adoptive families here, many of whom are from the U.S. We spend time together, go walking together, and play with each other's kids. We also eat together in the family-style dining room where the food is always amazing. It really is quite a relief to be here again, as we were feeling pretty closed in by the time we left Neiva. There's only so many times you can visit the pool, or go for a walk when you have no idea how to get anywhere.

Today is Yamile's 10th birthday and the hotel owner, Katya, planned a party for her. They decorated, made an amazing chocolate cake, and all the families and workers joined in the singing and the fun. It was so special. Yamile gets very shy around new people, but she seemed to enjoy the celebration. The women who arranged the party are also very good at bringing these kids out of their shells. They did that very thing with Yamile and she was quite a little chatterbox by the end of it all. She also loves the little kids and babies that seem to be everywhere here. And they love her.

Tomorrow we plan to take a day trip to the Salt Cathedral. Apparently it is a church made entirely of salt. I intend to take lots of pictures so I can share them with you all.

So, it is time for me to say goodnight. We are all pretty tired. It's been a long day. Right now, we are split up between two rooms, one upstairs and one downstairs. Annalisa, Yamile and I are downstairs and Geof and Rebecca are upstairs. In a couple of days we will probably be able to move into a large room together. It is currently occupied by another family.

(I just had to include a photo of the iguana we found meandering down the sidewalk in Neiva.)

Buenas noches and blessings to you all!

Integracion is done - Goodbye to Neiva

2010-08-23T19:21:00.000-07:00

Today at 5 PM we had our integracion meeting, where we meet with the social worker to determine if we are integrating well as a family. It becomes a somewhat tense affair, not because they make it a high-pressure investigation or anything, it's just because it feels like there is so much on the line. If they think things are not proceeding well, they can stop the adoption or prolong the integration period. There is also the chance that the child can say they do not want to be adopted.

The social worker met with us as a family, Sorany, and Olga Elena (our attorney). She asked us how we were doing and what we were up to, how the family was bonding, if there were any concerns, etc. They also tried to talk with Yamile but she became very timid and quiet, not responding much, even in Spanish. She clung close to me (which I didn't mind at all). We were given opportunities to ask questions and then we were done. They said they were satisfied and congratulated us. We thanked them for taking such good care of Yamile over the past few years (which almost made me cry as I said it - I already have such a strong love for her). And that was that! It was over and done in about 45 minutes.

So ... tomorrow morning we leave the hotel at 6:15 AM for our 7:30 AM flight to Bogota. We should be in Bogota by 8:30 AM. While we are there we will wait for sentencia, where a judge in Neiva will process the adoption and I will have to return to sign the paperwork. That will pretty much finalize everything for the Colombian side of the adoption process. Sentencia could be done in as quick as a couple days, but we've been told not to expect anything this week. It could also take up to a couple weeks - we're hopeful it's somewhere in between.

We are all excited to leave for Bogota in the morning (Yamile included)! Please pray that we will have patience for the Lord's timing in the whole process. It has moved very quickly and smoothly so far - we just want to be faithful to wait on Him. Pray for safe travels and that we will frutifully occupy our time while we await sentencia. "Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to the Father."

Neiva is not New York

2010-08-23T13:18:00.000-07:00

You know the song "New York, New York" where Frank Sinatra talks about wanting to wake up in the city that never sleeps? Well, he's definitely not talking about Neiva. Sunday is the day when the whole city seems to sleep, at least in our neck of the woods. We went out for a walk yesterday and there was virtually no traffic - vehicular, pedestrian, or otherwise. We planned to eat dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant, Tijuana, last night and it wasn't even open, nor were any of the other open-air restaurants in our neighborhood. We ended up eating in the cafeteria upstairs at the local hipermercado.

We decided, however, to take a morning stroll to the river called Rio Magdelena, where there is a park that follows along the river. It's probably 6-8 blocks from our hotel and Sorany met us at 9 AM to lead the way. (Sorany has been a great guide, making herself available at our beck and call, when she's not teaching English at her own English Institute.) As we approached the river, we noticed they had shut down one half of the street, opening it up to pedestrians and bicycles. It reminded me of Nava (in Spain), where the pasttime on Sundays was to walk up and down the main street of the town and stop and talk to your friends and neighbors.

Sorany took us to a "restaurant" that overlooks the river. This restaurant was a large area that looked more like a campground, with bridges leading past the cooking areas. Chickens, roosters, birds, wild cats, and even a goat wandered around. The eating area was a very large, open space with wood planks for flooring and thatching for a roof. There were no walls--it was all entirely open. The trees surrounding us were really amazing. The restaurant was not open for business yet but we were allowed to enter and watch them prepare the meal for the day. You can see by the pictures that we were up above the food prep areas, looking down at the workers. The ovens and stoves were heated with wood; there was a humungous pot of something brewing; rather than cover their food with foil or saran wrap, they used palm leaves; a woman was placing food into a large clay oven, there were mounds of produce everywhere. Yamile loved taking pictures of all the food. Everything was quite different from what we'd see in America.

The river itself was a swift-moving churn of brown water (and there was quite a bit of trash washed up along the shore). As we meandered down the sidewalk, we passed some people who were selling fresh fish, although I would be a bit leary to try any of it. They also had quite a few shops along the way that reminded me a bit of booths at flea markets, 95% of them were empty. Sorany explained that, during holidays, all of these shops would be open to cater to the folks who travel to Neiva for holidays. We were able to find a couple vendors selling their wares and bought a few souvenirs from Neiva.

Eventually, we came to some playground equipment, and Yamile immediately wanted to go play. She had to accept a "no" from Daddy at first while we found a little bit better place to play. She wasn't all that thrilled with my answer but didn't throw a fit or anything - she just got quiet. That was soon resolved when we came to some more playground equipment where she could swing and play on the teeter-totter. (Unfortunately, Daddy's 45-year-old, surgically repaired knee couldn't tolerate the deep squats for too long on the teeter-totter.)

We finally decided to return to our hotel and walked back along the park. When we arrived at the park's main square we heard music and someone calling out instructions into a microphone. There was a large group of people who appeared from a distance to be doing some sort of dance. When we got closer we realized this was an aerobics class where anyone could join in at any time. We chose not to join and just watched. These people seemed to be having a blast working out in the 95-degree heat. (Something tells me Chatta would jump right in and join the party!) The music made us want to dance.

We finished the walk back "home" and took a dip in the pool and ate a lunch of tortillas and beans on the patio of our room. Ahhh ... delicioso!

Ahhh...Colombian Food!

2010-08-22T15:27:00.000-07:00

What an amazing lunch we had yesterday. We found out that our hotel restaurant serves a traditional Colombian main meal at lunch time, so we opted to give it a try. We then found out why they serve it at lunch and not dinner. There's no way a person could even sleep at night if they had that much food for dinner. You need the whole day to digest it! It was so delicious, and so very different. The meal is called Sanisocho de Gallina. It began with a chicken broth type of soup called "Caldo", then quickly moved on to the main dish. This consisted of a chicken leg & thigh sauteed in oil seasoned with onion, cilantro, tomato, salt and pepper (you all know how much I love oil!), boiled potato (papa), fried banana (platano), 1/8 of a cob of corn (maiz), yucca (I have no idea), and yama (squash). On the side was a plate of rice (arroz) with an enormous chunk of avocado (aquacate). The avocados here are enormous! (See the photo of me holding one I've cut open? I ate off of it for about 3 or 4 days.) Along with all this, we were served a drink called "Cholupa", which is made from a tiny fruit that grows in the region of Huila, where Neiva is. It was delicious. We were determined to eat the entire meal, since this was our opportunity to experience this amazing traditional Colombian food. We managed to consume most of it, but I think we rolled out of the restaurant. The meal was served at 12:30, and I don't recall feeling remotely hungry for most of the remaining day.

We have learned that Colombians like their food very bland. Surprisingly, there are very few seasonings in most of the traditional dishes we have been served. Meats, starches, and sweetened fruit juices are common. It's been a challege to find ways to eat high fiber types of foods, but our best way to do that has been to consume lots of fruits. We go to the "Hipermercado" every day to pick out our fruit. It breaks up our day, which can tend to drag as we don't have much to do. One of the more interesting fruits here is called "pitahaya". It reminds me of kiwi in its texture, but it is softer and even sweeter. It is also nearly a clear, whitish color on the inside, and full of tiny black seeds. Quite tasty.

Late in the afternoon, after swimming, we took the girls out to ice cream. Yamile likes strawberry flavor....I like chocolate! Annalisa, Geof and Rebecca got something that I can't remember, but it tasted like butterscotch. (Yes...I ate ice cream Jessica!)

The Streets of Neiva

2010-08-21T15:12:00.000-07:00

The white building with bars directly in front is the entrance to Hotel Pacande, where we are staying.

Most stores here open out directly onto the street, you can't really go "inside" because the sidewalk puts you nearly at the cashier's counter. You basically shop from the sidewalk. There are taxis, motorcycles and bicycles everywhere.

God's Faithfulness

2010-08-21T07:57:00.000-07:00

"If you give yourself to the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then your light will rise in darkness and your gloom will become like midday. And the Lord will continually guide you, and satisfy your desire in scorched places, and give strength to your bones; and you will be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water whose waters do not fail." Isaiah 58:10-11.

This verse has been an encouragment and an exhortation to me as we have prepared to travel to Colombia, and also as we are now here. As many of you may know, I have certain physical limitations which make travel fairly challenging. Over this past year, I have had to consider what it would cost me personally to make this trip. As I have spent time considering, I have prayed often and sought to trust the Lord, knowing how absolutely faithful He is. Many a day I have felt angst, and many a day I have given it over to the Lord. So when I found this verse in the book of Isaiah I was greatly encouraged as God spoke to me again about His trustworthiness and goodness.

I just want to share with you all that God has indeed continually guided us, satisfied our desires, and given strength to our (MY!) bones. There are numerous reasons that I should be struggling a lot more (physically) than I actually am. I really didn't expect to be doing so well, but the Lord has seen fit to grant me relief and I am grateful. I know that your prayers on our behalf are being heard--"The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and His ears are open to their cry." Ps 34. So thank you all for your prayers and encouragement. And never forget that "the hope of the righteous is GLADNESS!!!"Pro 10:28.

My love to you all.

Lazy(?) Day

2010-08-20T17:39:00.000-07:00

Today was our first full day, practically, without a translator. She didn't join us until 5:30p.m. or so. The morning was somewhat of a lazy day. Yamile continued to read her children's bible voraciously and she has discovered the "joys" of an i-Pod, as she was able to watch a bit of a movie on Lenna's ipod and listen to music.

When the staff came to clean our room, we took a short walk to the pool patio, where we played a game of Skip-Bo. This was a new game for Yamile (and Lenna) - while Yamile did not show much interest, she was very patient and willing to learn (and patronize us). Since one of our favorite family past-times is playing games, we hope Yamile will learn to enjoy them as well.

We ate lunch on the patio outside our room - cold pizza from the night before. This time, we bought a jar of pasta sauce and were able to dip our pizza while we ate it. It was nice to have the tomato flavor, although I opted to eat most of it without the sauce. That was Yamile's preference as well.

The language issue continues to be a little bit of a challenge, although Annalisa said Yamile tried a bit more English while at the pool this afternoon. She is now proficient with such important phrases as "cannon ball", "piggy back", "monkey", and "my turn". I'm sure cannon ball and piggy back will be heavily utilized while we continue to use the pool. And ... I'm sure they will prove useful in everyday American life, too. We are very encouraged that she is willing to try and speak a new language, especially with virtual strangers.

Today she spent at least three hours in the pool. Rebecca and Annalisa took her out there and they were having a raucous good time by the time Lenna and I arrived. After a little while, she also made friends with a couple of little Colombian girls who were playing in the pool. She was able to work her way into their games and it was neat to see her play and talk with them. I am sure that she deals with some loneliness because she cannot fully communicate with us. But she had no trouble carrying on conversations with Marguerita and Maria Jose.

Yamile enjoys being carried around by me, to the extent that I've called her my little monkey ("mi mono pequeno"). She wraps her arms around my neck, wraps her legs around my waist, kisses my face over and over, and just holds on. It now appears we have a little bit of a ritual when we go out of the hotel. She reaches for my neck so that I can carry her out the door. Once on the sidewalk, she's ready to get down and immediately reaches for Lenna's hand, and we walk down the street with she and Lenna side by side, hand in hand.

I don't think we've mentioned that Yamile had a bit of a cold when we received her. She's had a runny nose and has been coughing quite a bit as well. We're not able to attack the thing with great nutrition, like we usually would, so it's been a bit frustrating that way. And we think today she may have overdone it with all the activity in the pool. She fell asleep just before dinner and while at dinner we could tell that she was kind of out of it. Eventually, we found out she had a pretty bad headache and just didn't feel well. She didn't eat any dinner, which is quite unusual for her. I carried her the whole way back to the hotel (about two blocks) and we tucked her in to bed. We hope she will be feeling better in the morning and that she will get over this cold pretty soon.

For the third night we ate at the Mexican restaurant called Tijuana. As Lenna mentioned, most of the restaurants here are in the open air, and this one is no different. The thing that makes this one a bit stranger than others is that cars drive right through the middle of it. It turns out this restaurant is located in the "driveway" of a new car dealership. So, you see new cars being driven into and out of the building. They just move the tables aside to make room for the cars. The picture to the right shows a car being pulled in.

Well, I think we'll be turning in for the evening. We continue to covet your prayers. Praise God that we were able to change our return flights to Bogota without any additional charge - we were thinking that would cost us about $500. Martha, who is our adoption coordinator here in Colombia, was able to work that out for us. Pray that Yamile recovers quickly from her cold. And pray for wisdom for us as we try to communicate our love to Yamile when words are not able to carry the message. We love you all and look forward to being home again.

Lenna's Turn

2010-08-20T07:58:00.000-07:00

Buenos dias amigos,

It's Friday morning and we have finished breakfast, consisting of scrambled eggs "con tomates y cebollas" - with tomatoes and onions. Everywhere we eat, it is customary to be served some kind of fresh fruit juice. It is thicker than the juice we are used to in the states, and it does have sugar added, but it sure is delicioso! The hotel we are at in Neiva only includes breakfast for us, so we have to go out for lunch and dinner. We are having a great time trying out different places to eat, which are very different from what we are used to. There's no air conditioning and many of them are outside. But the food is great. Believe it or not, there is a Mexican restaurant (Colombian food is quite different from Mexican food) about a block away and they serve amazing food. We have been there for at least two meals so far. Last night we went out for pizza because we wanted to know how they eat it here in Neiva. Well, it was quite good, but they do not use any tomato sauce on it. What they did have on it was fresh cheese. Apparently, there is a cheese factory right here in Neiva. Mmmmm....!

Okay, enough about food. We are constantly amazed at the politeness of the people here. They love to serve and it shows. The hotel we are at (Hotel Pacande) is often used by adoptive families and the staff clearly enjoy playing a part in the adoptions taking place. When Yamile arrived, they congratulated her and talked to her about her new family, giving her special attention. It was very dear. There is another family here with an adorable little Colombian boy who is 27 months old. They are Italian, so we sort of use Spanish mixed with their Italian to try to communicate. Muy interesante! (Very interesting!)

The hotel we are staying in here in Neiva is quite comfortable. We have a suite with a queen sized bed, another "small" queen sleeper couch, and a twin bed. There is an outside patio with table and chairs. The bathroom is enormous, with both a spa-style tub with jets (big enough to swim in!) and a shower with lots of interesting gadgets. We can adjust the water to come out from about four different directions, and we can add steam if we feel like using it for a sauna. The water can come out from directly overhead- like a rainshower; it can come out of a regular shower nozzle; it can come out on your entire torso, so you can use it for a back massage; or it comes out in something we aren't quite sure what it is, but you can remove it from the wall and put it at your feet. There is a built in remote in this amazing shower that we haven't even completely figured out, but we know we can use it to light up the shower stall, or even pipe in music. So...not to worry. We're all keeping very clean!! :)

Before we traveled, I managed to get ahold of a couple of bilingual children's books and a Children's Spanish picture Bible. I am so wishing we had brought a whole pile of books, as we have discovered that Yamile is a lot like her big sister, Rebecca. She absolutely loves to read, and she is good at it. She picked up her children's Bible and started at the beginning. I think she is about 3/4 of the way through it already!

Again, like her big sisters, Yamile appears to be capable of handling electronics very well....at least....my ipod! She's getting familiar with the game of Tetris. And she gets a kick out of the Spanish kid's music we downloaded for her.

Much to my surprise and delight, Yamile's foster mother prepared a little photo album for us and Yamile. I could harldly believe my eyes when I discovered a photo of our daughter when she was only two!! It's the only one of her when she was little, but it is one we will treasure. It's clear to us that Yamile has been cared for and loved by the people who have been involved in her young life. We are so thankful to the Lord for this. He is so faithful!

Geof and I want you all to know we love reading your comments. Keep them coming! It helps us feel connected. Our love to you all.

Together at last

2010-08-19T07:28:00.000-07:00

Well, yesterday was the big day!! We were reunited with Yamile and, this time, we got to take her with us!!! She is now, "provisionally", part of our family. It won't be final until our integracion meeting next Monday and until we receive the sentencia a week or two after that.

We took two taxis (there is no way to fit five people, including our translator, into one taxi here in Colombia) to the ICBF (family well-being department) offices and arrived there about 15 minutes early. While we waited in the parking lot for our attorney we saw a vehicle enter and Lenna and Rebecca were quick to note that they saw Yamile inside. We quickly scurried away to another area where we couldn't be seen, but we could watch her enter the building with her defender (basically, her case worker who has handled her case and made sure she has been cared for appropriately). I was so excited just to see her that I got goose bumps.

The ICBF building was an interesting structure, a two-story brick building that has large openings to allow the breeze to pass through. (The receptionist was seated at a desk that was, essentially, out in the open with a roof over her.) We headed upstairs and were brought into a large conference room with our attorney (Olga Elena), our translator (Sorany), an ICBF attorney, and the ICBF psychologist. The ICBF attorney explained the process to us and prepared us for the introduction.

And then ... the moment we were waiting for. Yamile came in wearing a beautiful, new, yellow dress and came over to us and we were able to give her big hugs and tell her how beautiful she was. She was introduced to her new mama and papa and hermanas (sisters) and she sat with us on our side of the table. We brought a cake for a little celebration and we all shared in it together. During the whole time, Yamile was very quiet because she was nervous (and who could blame her? - her whole life was being turned upside down). We were very thankful for the ICBF staff, who had been ensuring her care for the last four years. She and her defender shared a big hug as they said goodbye and her defender held Yamile's face in her hands as she said something to her. We signed some legal documents giving us permission to have custody of Yamile. This way, if anyone questioned us, we were to show these papers. Then we were done.

After a bit of frustration trying to find two taxis in the middle of heavy traffic, we headed back to the hotel. Sorany was still with us and was able to help us with some translation with Yamile. We gave Yamile the suitcase we'd brought for her, which included a wardrobe that we'd picked for her (so far, thankfully, everything is the right size). We went on a quick shopping trip to buy a couple pairs of shoes and some socks for her and headed out to lunch. Through it all, Yamile was still prety quiet and, truth be known, so were we. The uncertainty of it all, along with the language barrier, contributed to the silence.

We then decided it was time for a little "play therapy" and headed to the hotel pool. There, we had a blast. We found out we've adopted a fish, as Yamile immediately took to the water and was all over the place. I was able to talk with her a little bit and she talked with us more. She climbed all over us and laughed and we generally had a ball. So far, our observation is that Yamile has a very quick wit and quite a sense of humor. We love it! And her!

Neiva

2010-08-18T06:18:00.000-07:00

Well, I had planned on posting yesterday and had entered everything but then accidentally deleted it all. Suffice it to say, we made it to Neiva yesterday and checked in to our hotel. I will give you the details later, but the flight to Neiva was "interesting" (in the 50-seat plane and the turbulence) and we ended up with a nice suite at the hotel (thanks to our attorney's negotiation skills).

Neiva is the capital of the Huila region (the region where Yamile lives), with a population of about 300,000. As I've told people, though - don't think of Neiva as a small city, think of it as a large town - Fallon on steroids. Everyone warned us about how hot it is in Neiva, especially the folks in Bogota, but it's not much different than Fallon in the summer. The temperatures are in the mid-90s, but there is more humidity.

We notice eyes following us wherever we walk in Neiva. It is primarily because of Annalisa's and Rebecca's blonde hair. They are the only blonde-haired people we've seen. We also stand head and shoulders above everyone else around.

Not counting the hotel, it appears the prices in Neiva are very reasonable. Yesterday, we had lunch at a local panaderia - lunch for five (including our translator) cost us 12,600 Colombian pesos (about $7). Dinner last night was a little pricier as we went to a Mexican restaurant and paid about $30 (57,000 pesos) for a dinner for four.

Today isa very exiting day, as we get to meet Yamile at 11 AM at the "Entregada". More on that to follow.

We're in Bogota!

2010-08-16T12:16:00.000-07:00

Can't even believe it. After over a year of thinking about it and planning for it, we're here! Let me (Lenna) recap our day of travel. Up at 2 in the morning so we can leave Fallon at 3, so we can get to Reno by 4:15, so we can go through the lines, so we can take a 6:15 flight to Los Angeles. That all went beautifully. (Thank you Amiee for the ride, the encouragement, the hugs and the prayers and thank you Jessica A. for the big fat hugs at 2:30 in the morning!) Our 4 hour layover in LA went "quickly", as we had more lines to get through and breakfast to eat. Then we boarded the plane for Bogota and settled in for a 7 hour flight straight through to Bogota.

The flight went just fine. Not surprisingly it was frequently bumpy, but nothing more than I guess is normal. We got a little tired of sitting, and I myself felt completely drowsy and mildly nauseated the entire flight and just wanted to sleep. Thankfully, the nausea went away as soon as we were on the ground. We got off the plane (8:30 p.m. Colombian time, 6:30 PST) and found ourselves in a huge line to get through immigration. Apparently, six other planes had come in at the same time as ours and everyone was in that line! The line took us an hour. Then we stood at the immigration booth for awhile waiting to get our visas stamped. Apparently, my visa had not gotten through to their system yet and they couldn't find me in it. But they figured it out eventually and we were allowed to go.

We headed toward the luggage area and found all but one suitcase. It was beginning to look like we would have to go without it until someone came along and helped us. Actually, I think it was Geof who ended up locating it. Then we wandered around looking for the driver who was supposed to take us to our hotel. We were told to look for someone with a sign saying "STARK" on it. Well, two hours after we landed we were finally through all the lines and looking for our driver, but there was no sign of him. Our concern was that he gave up on us. We didn't know if he was inside the airport or outside, but if we went outside to look they wouldn't let us in again. And of course we needed to go to the bathroom, but the only indoor bathroom was closed for cleaning. And we were all soooooo thirsty!! And soooo tired. And completely out of our element with only Spanish speakers around.

So we just stood around looking forlorn and confused, which seemed to work because an airport worker approached us and tried to figure out how to help us. Geof was able to communicate that we had a driver and needed to know if he was outside. The man went out and found him and came back in to let us know. Yay!! Now we could go!! Or so we thought. We got in the line that was going out the door only to find when we got to the front that there were more forms to fill out. This time it was customs forms and there was only one per person. That took another 20 minutes. Back into the line, it moved quickly and we were out! What a relief. At 10:30 at night, we were really lost as to what to do if we were stranded in the airport. There really wasn't anywhere to just hang out.

Our escort spoke pretty good English so we had fun talking as we headed to the hotel. He got us there in about 25 minutes, rang the security guy, and got us unloaded and in the door in no time. The security guy brought all our luggage upstairs, opened our door, showed us in, and said goodnight. That was it. Now we just had to arrange ourselves and get some sleep.

So that was yesterday. We all slept well. I think we'd have slept well if we'd had to do it on a pile of rocks, we were that exhausted. We went downstairs for breakfast (they serve all 3 meals at the hotel) and found a bunch of families eating and no table for us, different languages being spoken, and no one in the office to tell us what we were supposed to do. Again, we stood around wondering what to do next. Finally, Geof bravely went back into the dining room (you know that feeling of being a new kid in a new school and everyone is looking at you...?) and found someone to ask. So they set a table for us and we had an amazing breakfast, not the least of which was freshly made raspberry juice!

We have now made our acquaintance with three families in the hotel who are American. Each one has a unique adoption story to tell, and they are all so helpful and friendly. We have been given a walking tour of the neighborhood and the mall (where they have the equivalent of Burger King called Whopper King!). And we have eaten a delicious lunch, made by the cook at the hotel. The food is a big hit!

So tomorrow morning we will board yet another airplane and head to Neiva. That is where we expect to be most of the time we are in Colombia. Hopefully, tomorrow we can post again! Our love to you all.

We're Packed!

2010-08-14T14:39:00.000-07:00

As you can see, all our bags are packed - 11 pieces of luggage and counting - I think only six will need to be checked. I don't think there is such a thing as "traveling light" when you're going to another country to adopt a child. You feel like you have to be prepared for every eventuality.

The excitement is building as we prepare to meet our youngest daughter again. We'll be heading out of town at 3 AM tomorrow - thank you, Amiee, for your early-morning dedication to get us to the airport bright and early. By 7 PM Pacific time (9 PM in Bogota) on the 15th, we'll be on the ground in Colombia. Hopefully we'll get a good night's sleep tonight so we'll be well-rested for our travel day. Or ... maybe we'll get some sleep on the plane.

Updated Photo

2010-08-14T14:35:00.000-07:00

Here is a more recent photo we received of Yamile in July. She already looks so much older. We can't wait to be with her! (Aurora and Gonzalo, can you believe how grown up she looks?!!)

We're going to Colombia!!

2010-08-06T20:43:00.001-07:00

For those of you who haven't heard, we've got a travel date to go to Colombia! We will be united as a family on August 18th, almost a full week before Yamile's birthday. We appreciate your prayers on our behalf. In fact, the day we found out when we'd get to be with Yamile, Lenna and I had just prayed that the Lord would allow us to travel on or before August 20th. The Lord answered our prayer in an amazing way!

We have now made our travel reservations - we'll be leaving the US on August 15th and arriving in Bogota that evening. After two nights in Bogota we'll fly to Neiva and then get Yamile the next day.

Our year-long process, which has felt like a slow but determined march toward a final destination, now feels like a mad dash to the finish. So little time and so many loose ends to tie up. Stay tuned for more details as our adventure continues.

I-800 Application Going in today!

2010-07-09T07:17:00.000-07:00

Just this morning, via email, we received our referral documents translated to English, which allows us to send in our I-800 application. This is the last major bureaucratic step before we can plan to travel to pick up Yamile. This approval can take anywhere from two to four weeks; we've been told it's taking about three weeks right now. (We can pray that it goes faster!)

Once the approval comes, we could travel as soon as two weeks after that. That would get us to Colombia before Yamile's tenth birthday - a goal we've been shooting for.

Heading up to this translation of documents, this week we received copies the referral materials in Spanish. They included a couple more recent photos of Yamile - she is so pretty! (Of course, I'm not biased or anything.) And she looks older (imagine that!). Sometimes you get caught up in a "time warp" kind of thing and keep imagining she is the same as she was when we met her last August. But she keeps growing up. All the more reason for us to get to Colombia ASAP and have her in her forever family here in Fallon.

Another Step in the Process

2010-07-04T20:02:00.000-07:00

We found out on July 2nd that our "contact" on the ground in Colombia has now received Yamile's referral paperwork so she can begin translating it into English now. This information is critical - until we have it we can't apply for our I800. And we know the I800 takes probably four weeks to process. We're hoping the translation will be done by July 9th so we can keep moving forward. Yamile's birthday is August 24th and we'd sure like to be there to celebrate it with her!

We are now pulling items together for a care package for Yamile. We've been given the go-ahead to get the package ready. We'll be putting together a DVD that she can view about her new home and family. Lenna's already made a photo album for her as well. We'll probably send her a couple small stuffed animals and some clothes. And Rebecca (and the rest of us) is getting her room set up to be shared with a sister.

Every little thing we do now makes the adoption that much more tangible as the "Gotcha" day comes closer.

Learning Spanish

2010-07-04T19:52:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been a month since I wrote anything. During that time we've been extremely busy. We decided that the four of us would take a semester of college Spanish in a five-week period during the summer. That meant driving to Reno four nights a week, sitting in class for two and a half hours, and driving home. Tack that on to whatever else we were doing each day, and it doesn't leave much time for anything else.

The class only had eleven students, so we got pretty comfortable with each other during the class. Believe it or not, our instructor was adopted from Colombia when she was 16 months old. She was a great encouragement to us throughout the class and we appreciated her work in helping us pick up the language.

Spanish class ended on July 1st - and it appears that all the Starks received A's for the class. I think it's provided us a great foundation for talking with Yamile and for our time in Colombia.

Because of where we are in the adoption process, we think we're going to "pass" on the second semester (and another five weeks of busy life) of Spanish. We'll continue to work on the language on our own and our girls are very motivated to continue on officially and receive more college credit. We need to use our time to continue our adoption preparation.

Already? - APPROVAL!!!!

2010-06-04T19:53:00.000-07:00

We got the call today from our adoption agency while I was home for lunch with Lenna. Only 15 days after receiving our completed and translated dossier, ICBF (the government agency in Colombia that oversees the protection of children) approved us for the adoption of Yamile! We were told this approval could take 1-3 months! Needless to say, we were excited to receive the call - I had goosebumps all over.

Lenna and I were able to hear the news together and had wide smiles on our faces. We immediately told Rebecca, and then the three of us proceeded to Subway to tell Annalisa while she was working. We had a mini-celebration right there in the restaurant, even splurging for some warm cookies.

Now it feels like things may actually start rolling along. The next step is to await the official referral from ICBF. We've been told that may take 2-3 weeks. Once we receive it, we will need to apply with U.S. Immigration (USCIS) for an I800. This takes about 3-4 weeks to process. Following that, we will then establish a travel date, go to the Colombian embassy in San Francisco for a visa that allows us to conduct business in Colombia, and prepare for our trip. If it all goes quickly, we may be traveling as soon as early August. With Yamile's birthday on August 24th, we have a strong chance to celebrate her 10th birthday with her. The Lord has great timing!

So ... the countdown begins (continues?).

New Friends in Atlanta

2010-06-04T19:44:00.000-07:00

Well, it's certainly been a while since we posted anything. We've had the pleasure of making some new friends in Atlanta. A couple weeks ago we contacted a couple who had adopted from the same region (Huila) in Colombia where we will be adopting from. Furthermore, the girl they adopted actually is from the same city (La Plata) as Yamile.

We thought we'd give them a quick call, knowing it was 8:30 in the evening where they live. We ended up hanging up the phone nearly 4 hours later. Thank you, Leon and Jan, for giving us your time that way and sharing your adoption stories with us. It has helped to paint the picture of what Neiva will be like and has given us an understanding of some of the challenges, surprises, and celebrations we will encounter once we're home with our daughter.

As it turns out, their daughter looked at the picture of Yamile on the blog and says she remembers her! It's a small world, which is under God's sovereignty.

Dossier Update

2010-05-07T11:15:00.000-07:00

I should have posted this before, but didn't get around to it. Several weeks ago we submitted the majority of the dossier to our contact person in Colombia for translation. It could not be turned in to ICBF (Colombia's equivalent to child protective services) until it was complete.

Last week, at last, we received our final paperwork for the dossier. We sent it directly to Colombia and they received it on Tuesday (May 4th). We've now been told it will probably be about two weeks before the dossier is completely translated and turned in. So now we wait, and trust in the Lord's timing.

Rough Translation of Email

2010-05-07T11:10:00.000-07:00

Here is our first communication in 9 months from Yamile:

Good Day, Dear Geof and Lenna,

I am excited to have the opportunity to communicate with you. I have always hoped in my heart that this day would come. I am receiving good grades at my school.

I hope that you are well, that you continue to enjoy your beautiful home, and that we can continue our new communication soon.

I also enjoyed very much the chance to get to know you and enjoyed the days we shared each other's company.

A BIG HUG.

Attentively,

Yamile

Email from Yamile!

2010-05-07T10:45:00.000-07:00

We were recently given permission to send an email to Yamile reminding her of our time together last August. With the help of a friend, we were able to send her a message along with some pictures of our family and our time with her. We sent that email yesterday. Well, today we received a response already! My rudimentary Spanish skills have allowed me to try to translate, and we are excited about what we've been able to figure out. Now, we are asking a friend for a more reliable translation. In any case, we are excited to be communicating with our potential daughter!

Our Adoption Blog

2010-04-19T20:47:00.000-07:00

As we have been going through the adoption process, we realized we needed to start writing stuff down. We want to be able to remember it and to share it with our friends and family. So ... we hope you enjoy reading our story.