Adventure - Adrenaline - AMAZING

Kind of a cheesy title, but what do you expect from a guy who makes up the four thumbs riddle?

We set off for Haiti Sunday night on our adventure with a stop over in Miami.We got to our hotel about 10 PM and had a 4 AM wake up call. I am fairly certain that I didn't get any sleep at all. Our flight into Port Au Prince was effortless and it didn't take much work to find our ride after we cleared customs. I was running on adrenaline

We had about an hour ride from the airport up to the Orphanage. It was a ride like I remember from the last trip, windy, bumpy, narrow and dusty. Port Au Prince was much cleaner and in much better shape compared to my last trip in Sept of 2010.

Once we got settled at the guest house, we had a chance to head to the Toddler house and meet Joracin. He was there waiting for us. It was a warm greeting with very little trepidation on his part. It also didn't take long for him to flash us that smile. We were able to be with him in a room by ourselves. We played blocks. We colored. We gave him his goody bag and we showed him photos of Katie and Eli, the house and other things around town.

On Tuesday we left early for a trip back to Port Au Prince for an appointment at the Embassy and then one at Civil court. It was my first trip to an Embassy and we lost power while at the Civil Court. Quite the eventful day filled with a lot of hurry up and wait. Everything has gone smoothly and we have one more appointment with a local judge. Tomorrow will be a lot of time with Joracin.

Our time with him on Tuesday was great as well. More coloring, more blocks and more toys. He has been very quiet, but started to talk a little more as our time on Tues day went on. We can't wait for Wednesday.

We fly out on Thursday mid-day, so we will have some time with him then as well. Every minute is precious.

A riddle

What has four thumbs and is taking a trip to Haiti?
.
.
.

Yep, that's right. IT'S US.

We found out Wednesday mid-day that our appointment with the US Embassy is set for Tuesday October 9th. So ... we are in full scramble mode to get everything ready for our trip, because it is coming up FAST.

We are flying to Miami late Sunday and then have a very early flight into Port Au Prince on Monday morning. We will have three full days to be in country. Our flight home leaves mid day on Thursday.

We have three "legal" appointments next week. One with the Embassy, one with a local judge, and one with the civil court. We will also get to spend lots and lots of time with our son.

Katie and Eli are super excited. We got hugs and hi fives from them when we told them the news after school yesterday. Katie did think the riddle and photo of us with our thumbs out was "cheesy". I said, "Sweetheart, get used to it cause your Dad is really cheesy". Eli on the other hand loved it.

One theme of this whole journey has been hurry up and wait. We are certainly in the "hurry up" stage right now.

Lot's of people have also asked what the timing is after this step. We have two trips to Haiti. The first trip is the one we are taking next week. The second trip is of similar length, but that is the trip where we get to bring him home. They estimate that the wait time between the two trips is 6-8 months. So, we a hoping and praying that he is home around the start of next summer.

I am hopeful that we can blog and update everyone via this format how things are going next week. If we can't do it "live". We will have lots of photos when we get back.

What an exciting step in our adventure.

Getting ready to start school

Big Step Forward

We got the news we have been waiting the past few months for today. We found out that our adoption application has been APPROVED by Haitian Social Services (IBESR). Here is what the orphanage sent to us.

"Your adoption has just been approved by IBESR. We are so happy that you have reached this important milestone in the Haitian adoption process. At this time, we will require you to make your first trip to Haiti to see the judges, file your I-600, and of course, meet your son!"

This means that our next step is to travel to Haiti and complete some legal work in country and meet Little Mister. We need to get an appointment with the US Embassy in Haiti to file our I-600 paperwork. The date of that appointment to determine when we travel. We hope to know travel dates in the next few weeks and perhaps even travel in October.

Super Exciting News!

Happy Birthday Little Mister

Happy Birthday to you

Happy Birthday to you

Happy Birthday, Little Mister

Happy Birthday to you

Today (Aug 11th) is his birthday. He turns 5 today. We are going to have a birthday celebration tonight at dinner with cake. We sure wish he was home and could celebrate with us, but that will come soon enough.

There are no real updates on his adoption. It has been a very quiet summer. I have to admit that the patient nature I've been able to hold onto in this process is really getting tested. It seems that enough time has passed that we should have received our dispensation from the office of the Haitian President and that we could have our case move forward. The next big step for us is to travel to Haiti to meet him and start our legal steps there. It will happen soon, but this waiting is getting very challenging.

Our monthly update from the orphanage focused on the women in His life. We received photos of him with the three primary nannies that care for him.

We also learned that they are getting ready to start their summer break. Little Mister likes school so much that he is nervous for summer break and no school. Here is what they said about his anticipation for summer break.

For the past few weeks he is waiting each morning to ask if there would still be school. With the response of “yes school today” he jumps and cheers yelling to his fellow classmates that school is on.

He continues to be a joy to have in class and is working very hard. We also get reports that he loves to help out with chores around the orphanage. He seems to live his life with a tremendous amount of joy and excitement. We can't wait to meet him and get a infusion of that joy for ourselves.

Thank you all for your continued thoughts, prayers and questions about the process. Knowing that we have such a beautiful support network is quite calming. 

June Adoption Update

Lots and lots has happened at the orphanage and in Haiti since the last update to the blog. The thing that is somewhat frustrating for us is that we are still in a holding pattern with our adoption. We have no new news on our process and application with Little Mister.

There still is a lot to be thankful and joyful for. We did get updated photos and those are included at the end of the post.

News at the orphanage

At the beginning of June, the orphanage took in 23 new children from a different orphanage in the region. The kids they took in were severely under nourished and in bad physical shape. The fact that Haiti feels comfortable dropping 23 kids at Little Mister's home, speaks volumes for the kind of place it is. They are well funded, have a good relationship with Haitian social services and are equipped to take in a big influx of new kids. For this we are very thankful. If you are the praying sorts, please pray for the orphanage and the kids. They need funding and patience as they work these new kids into the daily routine.


The orphanage accepts sponsorship for specific kids. They try to get 3 sponsors for each child that is not referred to a family in the adoption process. Sponsoring a child is not too expensive. If the idea of sponsoring a child at the orphanage has some interest for you, let us know and we can supply more details.

News from Haiti

On June 11th, Haiti ratified the Hague convention on international adoption. The Hague is a set of rules and procedures designed to eliminate fraud and child trafficking in international adoptions. Both countries involved in an international adoption need to follow the Hague rules and when they do, it is good for the children and adoptive parents. Here are some of the procedures that need to be followed with the Hague. The agencies and orphanages involved must be accredited. All fees for adoption must be disclosed  up front. These are all good things.

The big unknown for us and our adoption is what effect the Hague will have on us. Haiti needs to pass a new law and implement the new procedures outlined in the Hague. In addition our agency and orphanage need to get accredited. All of this needs to happen in 3-4 months at which time the US State Dept will evaluate Haiti in terms of how they are following the Hague procedures. If they feel Haiti is not following the Hague, they can shut down adoptions.

There are multiple questions and no answers at this point about how this will affect us and Little Mister. Our adoption could proceed as it has been with not changes, or it could get suspended (temporarily or permanently). Or it could be something in between. Neither us nor the orphanage nor the agency we work with have answers.

Is it frustrating having so many unknowns? At times, it is frustrating beyond words. There are other times when we reflect on this path that God has put us on and know that all of these twists and turns are part of His plan. Whatever "the end" looks like, we know that it is God's path we are following. It is much easier to type those words than to live them each day. So continued prayers for patience for us are always appreciated.

Double Dog Dare You

The update on Little Mister this month had the them of "Imagination". For their photos the kids got to pick their own dress up clothes. He picked the shoes and hat and lei. And he had a huge smile on his face as he walked in to get his photo taken.

So, as I told a few people who got a sneak peak of the photos, we Double Dog Dare you not to smile when you see these photos.

May Adoption Update

Well, we are still in a waiting pattern. No specific news out of Haiti concerning our adoption. We continue to hear that the temporary suspension of new applications for adoption in Haiti is a good thing. Good for us and good for other families like us in that it will speed things along. And also good for all the kids in Haiti waiting to be adopted. The government of Haiti is moving to only work with accredited orphanages or creches. The orphanage we are working with is in this category and continues to be top notch.

Our May update on Little Mister was extra special. They celebrate Flag Day and Mother's Day in the month of May. Our contact at the orphanage wrote the update as if Little Mister was writing to us. Here it is, plus some photos with the beautiful Haitian countryside in the background.

Hi Mom and Dad!

I have had a fun month here at GLA.

We had a parade on Haitian Flag Day.  It was so much fun.  We knew that it was flag day when we saw Molly getting all the red and blue flags and t-shirts out.  I got to choose if I wanted to wear a red or a blue shirt and then waited to be called to the yard. I chose to wear a blue shirt. Once we were called to the yard we lined up in two lines and got a flag to hang onto. Next we started singing and making music as we marched down the street we live on. We walked all the way down to the end of the street before we turned around.  It sure was fun to wave my flag and sing along to “Mon Drapo” as we walked around.  After we returned to our big blue gate and made our way back into the yard where there was a balloon drop!  The visitors had blown up balloons and dropped them from the balcony above us.  I watched as the balloons fell down and then ran as fast as I could to get one to play with before all the bigger kids got to them first. It was so much fun to have so many colorful balloons drop down from the sky! It was a very busy day and I slept really well all night.

I really like living at the Toddler House with all the bigger kids.  They teach me so much and I like to play in the yard with the slide, swings, and plastic playplace. I can’t wait for you to see how big I am and how many things I can do now.

I am so excited to meet you some day soon but I hope you know that I am doing well here at GLA.  I get lots of love from my nannies, my teachers, and Molly and Joyce.  I am enjoying my life here while dreaming of what it will be like to come and live with you.  

I love you.
Your little boy

Update on Adoptions in Haiti

We got word today that IBESR (Haitian Social Services) has suspended new applications for adoption. This will not affect our application and in fact, we believe it will help speed things along

Here is the text from the press release.

Haiti's adoption authority, l'Institut du Bien Être Social et de Recherches (IBESR), informed U.S. Embassy Port-au-Prince that it will suspend processing of new adoption cases effective May 7, 2012. IBESR indicated that the suspension will enable it to expedite processing on its backlog of pending cases and begin internal restructuring to bring it closer to international standards. The U.S. Embassy has been assured the suspension is temporary and that IBESR will continue to process all cases that are filed before May 7.

If you have questions about the status of your adoption case, please work closely with your adoption agency or facilitator. Please refer to our website at adoption.state.gov for updates on the temporary suspension.

Leslie and I view this as a very positive development. Anything that "expedites the backlog of pending cases", is something that we are in favor of.

Now let's all pray that the timing of expediting the application is on U.S. time and not Haiti time.