Still No News

Well, I emailed the orphanage a week ago and I still have not heard anything. We had hoped that Michael's passport would be ready by now and we could be working on getting his visa. My body aches at the thought of continuing to wait. But I don't have a choice but to continue to wait. As I read about Tricia possibly getting new lungs and then finding out that the lungs were "no good", I tried to imagine how much more difficult it would be to be waiting for new lungs as oppose to a new son. I don't think the two can be compared, but I do know that the God that we serve knows where each of us are. He knows when we are weak. He loves us and He IS in control. Please continue to pray for my family and for Tricia and Nate's family. Please also pray for my friends Amy and Nancy as they are also waiting on getting their children home from Haiti.

Isaiah 40:27-31 (New International Version)

27 Why do you say, O Jacob,
and complain, O Israel,
"My way is hidden from the LORD;
my cause is disregarded by my God"?

28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.

29 He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.

30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;

31 but those who hope in the LORD
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.

One Half

One half a year that is. Kevin is 6 months old today. The time has flown by. He is such a happy baby. He sits up by himself now and loves playing with his toys. He smiles and laughs at us alot. And you have to love the hair that sticks straight up in the center. I just want to thank the Lord for this wonderful miracle that He allowed us to have. We had come to the conclusion that we were probably not going to be able to have any more biological children. I had gone to what I thought was my last fertility doctor appointment. He told me that there was not really any possibility that I was pregnant as things had not developed enough. But God is bigger than even the kindest and most wonderful doctors. God is in control of every part of our lives. Now if only He would use some of that control to help get Michael home to meet his baby brother.

Waiting

I don't know of many people that like waiting. People complain about waiting for their food, waiting in line, waiting for their tax return, etc. Yet, for some reason God has continued to ask us to wait. 25 months plus and our son still isn't home. It might be a little easier if we knew when it was going to end or knew what is going on down there, but we don't. I know some people check to see if we have heard anything. I emailed the orphanage director on Sunday and I still haven't hear anything. If I hear anything, I will post an update. In the meantime, anytime you have to wait for something (i.e. - wait for your food, wait in line, etc.) please take a moment to pray for us and for other families that are waiting to be united. Those families include other adoptive families and other families that may be waiting for a loved one to return home from a long trip, a tour of duty overseas, etc. Thanks for your concern and your prayers.

Another new niece!

My sister-in-law gave birth to their third little girl today. Natalie Grace arrived 5 weeks ahead of schedule but is doing fine. She weighed in at 6 lbs. 2 oz. and was 17 in. long. So now I have nieces that are only 10 days apart. How cool is that. I just wish we lived in the same state so all our babies could be together. Our family has really grown. I have 6 nieces, 1 nephew, 1 daughter, and 3 sons. Prayerfully we can get all 11 kids together this summer when my brother and his family come to visit. I sure hope Michael is here by then.

Happy Easter! He is Risen!

He is Risen!

He is Risen indeed! Praise God! The most wonderful thing that has ever happened is when God willingly gave up His only Son to die and pay the penalty for our sins. Jesus died for us and then rose again victorious over death and the grave. Only Jesus could have paid the price of all of our sins because only He was perfectly sinless and Holy. Thank the Lord for loving us enough when we did not deserve to be loved at all. Please take time this weekend to focus on Christ's death and ressurrection. Spend time appreciating the family and friends that you have around you.
I am hoping to have Easter dinner with my parents, husband, three of my kids, sister, nephew, and three nieces (and possibly my brother-in-law - not sure of his work schedule). The Lord has blessed our family with two new little ones in the past six months. Kevin, my son, will be six months next friday and Emma, my niece, who is one week old today. Please keep praying for Michael to be able to come home.

My son?

My brother would say that these pictures prove that Kevin is my son. When I was very young, I had a bad habbit of biting my toenails after I took a bath. I didn't think it was any different than those that bite their fingernails, but my brother always brings it up.

Pictures

The God of Hope

“Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.” (Romans 15:13)

How refreshing to know that we serve a "God of hope". Sometimes when you have waited over two years for your son to come home it is very hard to hope that he will ever actually come home. I feel trapped in a sea of emotions and sometimes that sea of emotions seems to be drowning me. But I need to try to focus on the God I serve, the "God of hope".

We got to talk to our little man

Well, we got to talk to Michael briefly this afternoon. The connection was horrible. We could see him, but the audio was very broken up. He could not see us and the audio was very broken up. So I guess we wait for two weeks and hope for a better connection next time. He is getting so big. It breaks my heart to see how big he is and how much of his life we are missing. I also keep thinking about how hard it is going to be for him when he has to leave everything and everybody that he knows to come live with us. Please pray that the Lord would prepare him for this huge transition in his life.

Please Pray

I'm not sure who all is actually reading my blog, but if you know Jesus Christ as your personal Savior please pray for us. We started Michael's adoption about 25 months ago. We were told that he would be home within 12-18 months from the time our paperwork arrived in Haiti. Our paperwork arrived in Haiti on May 2, 2006. We have been approved by the Haitian social services department for over a year. We are approaching the one year mark of Michael legally being our son. My emotions are shot. We get told that we should be getting a passport soon and then we get told that it was a mistake and then we get told that we should be getting a passport soon and then they tell us that we are missing a signature and now we have been told that our file has really gone to get the passport printed. Now we sit and wait and wait and wait. We don't get much information so sometimes my mind lets me hope that maybe something has happened and we just don't know it yet and then sometimes I feel like curling up in bed and just crying. There are times when my mind starts to question whether we are ever going to see our son again. Then I fight those thoughts with all I have because they make me feel guilty, like I am abandoning my son. It is soooo hard. Then people wonder why there are so many orphans that never get adopted. Why do governments have to make it so difficult to process an adoption. Why does the US require a Haitian passport for my son, who is legally my son, to come home to me. Why?
Lord, please protect my son and allow him to come home to us. Amen.

A New Niece

Emma Elizabeth was born this morning around 8:40ish am. She was 8 lbs. 12 oz. and 21 in. long. Her middle name is after me, so I share a middle name with my niece. Isn't that cool! She is just precious. She looks a lot like her brother and sisters but she has more hair.
Isn't Ashley cute trying to get near her baby sister? Ashley is my little sweet baby girl. It will be interesting to see what type of personality Emma will have. I'll try to upload my pictures tomorrow. I tried to get one of the four girl cousins together (the ones that live nearby, because there are almost three more in another state). Man I wish my little brother and his family lived nearby.

Matthew is so Cool

Sometimes you really wonder what all your kids are learning. Are they really listening to everything that you are trying to teach them? Well obviously Matthew is learning some of what we are trying to teach him. His class is having a multicultural day at school tomorrow. So his teacher sent home some worksheets to fill out the stars and make a poster about his family's culture. So we filled one about languages we speak (i.e. none other than the fact that Michael speaks Kreyol-but he's not home yet), what traditions we have, what holidays we celebrate, and then some blank. So when we had one blank one left, I asked Matthew what the most important thing about our family is. Without hesitation, Matthew replied "that we pray." How awesome is that. My almost 6 year old thinks that our family praying is the most important thing about our family. How awesome that he is taking that testimony before his kindergarten class tomorrow. Praise God for His unfailing love.

We have an artist in the family

We just got a notice today that out of Matthew's whole elementary school they chose 50 students to display artwork in the district's art show. Matthew was one of those kids. He is going to have a butterfly picture in the art show next Wednesday. I am so proud of him. Maybe I can scan in his picture after the show. I haven't seen it yet, so I can't wait to go. Praise God for his many gifts to each of us. I can't draw a straight line, so Matthew definitely is more talented than me in art.

Kid Pics

Here is Matthew at his school assembly when he was named student of the month (February 2008). Notice the look he is giving his "girlfriend" as she comes up next to him because she was also student of the month.










This is a picture my dad took of Alisha. He did some type of enhancement on it. Aren't her eyes beautiful?
















This is Kevin sitting in the high chair at my parents house. He is 5.5 months old now. It truly is amazing how quickly they change during the first year or so. He definately has my family's red cheeks.

Gwyneth Update

You have to check out the picture of Baby Gwyneth on Nate's blog. She is breathing completely on her own. You can see her beautiful little face. Praise God for His love and care for this precious child. Please continue to pray for her to grow strong and for her mommy to get a new set of lungs.

Adoption Update

I received some clarification from the orphanage director on our son's file. This is what she had to say: " What it means is that you are past needing a lawyer to do anything. After we talked, the next day your file was moved from Parquet to MOI, then was taken to the director by the man you paid to expedite it, then it was supposed to be transferred from MOI into the Passport office on Fri. Will find out this week if that happened. I know that all of these steps are confusing, but this is really very good news for you! You are finished with Parquet and MOI according to the reports that we got, and now you will be waiting for Immigration to prepare your passport. YEA!!! Will keep you posted as I learn more..."

Welcome Joel Douglas Makaio Vegter

My good friend, Alisha, gave birth to her first baby this week. Joel Douglas Makaio was born on Wednesday, March 5th. He was an awesome blessing and miracle from God. Thank you Lord for bringing Joel into this world. You can check out her blog. It is listed in blogs I read (Vegter News). Congratulations Jeremy & Alisha on the birth of your son.

Adoption/orphan Ministry

“Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

I think this verse supports an orphan ministry having an adoption aspect to it. I think that those that have been through asoptions are great mentors for those going through an adoption. It means a lot when people tell you that they are praying for you, but there is a different sense of comfort when someone that has adopted tells you that they are praying for you. There is more of a connection because they understand some of the emotions that you are feeling. It is easier to be open with them and tell them where you are struggling because they have been there and may have some suggestions. Please be open and willing to listen to and pray with people that are going through trials that you have faced in the past (whether that be adoption, a sick child, or anything).

Why?

Isn't this the most annoying question when you are asked it repeatedly by a preschool age child? But isn't it the question that we ask so many times. Why can't the Haitian government just sign the stupid paper saying it is okay for Michael to have a passport? Why can't the US just fix the immigration laws so that My Son would be allowed to come home on a US passport? Aren't both of his parents US citizens? So, shouldn't he be one also? Why is it that landing on US soil is the determining factor for making him a US citizen? Why doesn't God say yes when we are asking for something that will benefit all that are involved? Why does it have to hurt so bad? Why do some people take their kids for granted and some even hurt or kill them or some never even give their children the chance to live outside of the womb because they think it is their choice to kill ("abort") them? Why do some people have to get so angry about stupid things? Why is it so hard to ask for help? Etc. etc. etc.

Why is race such an issue? My oldest son is in kindergarten. He come home today with a paper in his bag saying that they started a drug resistance program called "paper people". I didn't get to read much of the paper yet, but I saw that the first lesson was on everyone being special. So as we drove home from my in-laws this evening, I asked Matthew about if he learned something about "paper people" today. He said yes. I continued to pry, and asked what he learned. He said that he learned that people are different. Some people have light skin like him, his brother, and me, and some people have dark skin like his sister. I asked him what he learned about that. He said that people have different light or darker skin so that their mommy's and daddy's can tell which baby is theirs. I said that didn't really work with our family. We then went on to discuss how God is the one that made our skin lighter or darker and that the lightness or darkness of our skin didn't make us any better or worse. Skin doesn't make us good or bad. But I can't get it out of my head that they would tell the kids that the skin tone is so the parents can tell which kid is theirs. I saw my daughter when she was three days old. Her skin tone at that point would have matched her to a set of Hispanic parents. Now her skin tone would obviously match her to parents of African descent. But what about kids from interracial relationships. My cousin is white and her husband is black. Their boys skin tone is between theirs. Maybe I am way off, but even my white sons have different skin tones than me. What in the world does skin tone have to do with a parent being able to tell which kid is supposed to be theirs. I guess I will have to finish reading the paper that was sent home and follow up with the teacher if necessary. I wish I would have known about this lesson ahead of time.
Well, I guess I have ranted about that enough. Maybe I made sense and maybe not, but I feel better getting it off my chest.
Praise God for His wonderful love. God created each one of us to be unique and special in our own ways. My family is very special. Matthew is very smart and loves making new friends. Alisha is very energetic and learns songs very easily. Kevin is full of smiles and is very easy going. Michael has beautiful eyes and seems to be very easy going as well (of course, I'll be able to tell you more about him when he finally comes home). Praise God for giving us the opportunity to raise four very wonderful children.

One Year Today

Today marks one whole year since we received our IBESR approval for Michael's adoption. IBESR is like the Haitian social services and they are responsible for approving families for adoption.

Snow Day!

Here are some pictures of the snow that kept Matthew and I home from school today. What a wonderful day with my kids (and my mom). I was very thankful that my mom walked over to stay in the house with the baby so that I could go out and play in the snow with the other two. Plus the rottweilers got to play with us in the snow.











I didn't get any pictures of Anya but I did get a picture of Bailey (the mutt) and Basko (my beautiful boy rottweiler). Alisha didn't last very long out in the cold but she seemed to enjoy playing in the snow for a little while.


Matthew had a blast. He doesn't seem to notice the cold very much.















We tried to get Anya to pull him in the sled. She looked at me like I was crazy. So we had her pull it empty to get used to the idea. Then Matthew got on... and she turned around and jumped on the sled behind him. So we gave up on that idea. Basko enjoyed catching and eating snowballs.






























Here is Matthew's snowman. I only helped him get the snowballs started and he did the rest.

Tricia Got to hold baby Gwyneth

What an awesome praise. I have watched this amazing couple in their journey of faith over the past few months. If you haven't followed this story then you have to take some time to check out Nate's blog. God truly is awesome and I am thankful for what he is doing in Nate, Tricia, and Gwyneth's lives.

New Pictures

Alisha's room is so small that there was no room for her to keep her toys. So we bought her a "loft bed". She was very excited to have a "big bed" with a ladder.


This is Alisha's play "house" under her new bed. It is nice that she will actually have room to play in her room now.
Here are two of my boys. Won't it be nice when I can take a picture of all three of my boys together.
Here is one of the precious baby smiles from Mr. Kevin. He is really a sweet baby. I love his smiles, kisses, and laughs.

“Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” (Joshua 1:9)

Let's Pray this is True

I got an email from the orphanage this morning telling us that our file has moved back into MOI for the final passport stage. If this is true, we could have his passport in hand within the next two weeks and then we will just need to get the visa.

Some prayer requests regarding the visa:
1) that the orphanage will be able to get Michael's physical done quickly and be able to get a visa appointment soon after the passport is in hand
2) that Michael's birthmother will be cooperative in coming to meet with the people at the US Consulate to verify that Michael is her son and that the consulate will not require DNA testing (that would add several hundred dollars and several more weeks onto our wait)
3) that his visa would be processed quickly
4) that we would be able to get an economical escort to bring him at least to FL and that we would be able to find deals on the necessary plane tickets