Three Weeks Home

Three weeks ago today...right about the time I am typing this.....the girls, grandparents, friends and I headed for the airport and anxiously watched this.

The status of a plane had never been watched so intently before by me...as I checked repeatedly to see if the status had changed. 

Questions were running through my head....
Was the plane on time?
How was my husband holding up, flying with a 2 year old boy?
Would my son remember me (as I flew out 2 days before he did)?

And so....given that we arrived early (wouldn't want them coming off the plane without a proper welcoming committee, would we?), we waited....

 

Finally, after what seemed a gazillion years (because wouldn't you know they were the L-A-S-T ones off the plane), I saw this...

And....for the first time in 28 days, we had all 5 of us in the same place...at the same time.  It was like having a little piece of heaven on earth for just those few seconds.

To all of those who came out and waited with us, thank you.
To all of those who have prayed for us while on our journey, thank you.
To all of those who continue to pray for us on this next phase of our life, thank you.

Three weeks home...
And it's been
Long.
Exhausting.
Wonderful.
Tiring.
Fun.
Fabulous.
Yawn...did I mention exhausting?

We've had rough times...good times...funny times...and family time.  Some of those times will be shared soon.

I also can't wait to share a few of the things that God has done throughout this entire journey...and some of the evidence of His hand intervening on our behalf.

And, once I completely process my time over in the Democratic Republic of Congo, I hope to share some of that experience as well.

God bless!
Lauren

Our Trip So Far

First of all, I apologize for the delay in posting...but am saving a big ol' chunk of posts for when we return home.

But until then, here is a little fun from our experience to date.  :)

We have spent 21 days in Africa...when we had only planned on and packed for 6 days.

Here is what we have gleaned from our planning and packing to date:

• Bug spray is not perfume (though after so many days, it is easy to confuse). It smells...and not in a good way. I'm thinking I may never want to use bug spray again (but please don't tell the mosquitoes that here in Kansas).
• Having three outfits to wear, over and over and over, is completely un-cool. I am debating on having a clothing torch party when I get home and roasting marshmallows...and then I'll make some s'mores (yummy!).
• Being able to brush your teeth with water from the faucet is completely under-rated. I mean, who talks about that at home...but let me tell you how totally awesome it is.
• Toilet paper is GOLD...and I mean yellow-plated GOLD. It is guarded with a ferocity that is stronger than my Doberman's bark...and the toilet paper is monitored to ensure you don't go over your usage allotment. If you plan on coming, bring your own supply.
• I will never complain about laundry again (remind me of that in a year, please). And if you think I'm off my rocker and should go to the loony-bin, you try washing your clothes in the bathroom sink for three weeks.
• American portions and African portions are not equivalent...they are not even on the same scale. I must confess that I can't wait to make myself sick over-eating an American-sized portion as soon as I get home.
• I will never complain about American road construction again. Here there are six lanes of traffic trying to cross a two-lane bridge...and then, add to that, the traffic only goes one way. Here's a tip: tune in to the radio to find out which way the traffic is going.
• A trip here will make you reconsider littering.
• Seeing people piled into cars here always makes me think of the clown car in the circus...as I am always wondering how many are actually inside (and then once I count and find out, I then wonder how they managed to do that).
• Pepsi, Starbucks and mexican food are sorely missed. They will be my first stops when I get back home.

Hope you enjoyed our funnies!  :)
Lauren

Preparing to Travel

We leave in 8 days.

8 days...seems impossible.
Unbelievable.
And wow-amazing!

It seems like just yesterday we were talking how the travel day seemed so far away.
And now here it is...
In just 8 days.

We mailed off our binder over the weekend.
The binder became my life for a couple of weeks.
Shipping it made me feel sick to my stomach.
There was so much work and sweat and information in that binder...let me tell you.

The all important binder...
For the oh-so important U.S. Embassy appointment....
So we can get the oh-oh-so-so important Visa to bring home our son.

Let me tell you...
I stressed over that binder.
And then stressed some more.
And almost made myself sick.

I am so fabulously excited it is done.
Woot!  Woot!

And now on to more paperwork preparation
For the African part of the process...

The only bright side...
They want the same docs as we needed for the binder.

Scratch that - two bright sides...
We are one step closer to our son.

Lauren

The Prayer of Faith

Last night, we had visitors.

Several visitors, in fact.
Welcomed visitors.
And oh, we were so thankful for these visitors.

Our church pastor and the church elders came last night.

We talked about our adoption...
How it began.
Where we are now.
When we travel.
Any concerns.
And safety.

And after we had talked for a few minutes, the elders and our pastor joined around my husband and I.

They laid their hands on us...and each one prayed over us, one at a time.
They prayed for our adoption.
And our travel safety.
And our little boy.
And our two girls.

And, oh, do I feel so much better.
I feel peace...and calm...and I can remember that this is in His hands.
He's got this.
And there is no one else I'd rather have this.

James 5....
¹³ Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. ¹⁴ Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵ And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. ¹⁶ Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

13 days....

Lauren

Twenty Days

20 days.
480 hours.
28,800 minutes.

And we'll be on a plane. 
Headed for Africa.
To meet our son.

Feelings of
excitement
fear
joy
love
and impatience
are all mixed together.

I've imagined our first meeting a thousand different times...and soon, it will be a reality.

I've been told he gives great high-fives...
And I can't wait to give him one myself.
And a hug.
And a kiss.
And to hold him.
And let him know we are family.

Family.
A mom and dad.
Two sisters.
Grandmas and papas.
Uncles, an aunt and some crazy cousins.
Lots of family.
Church family.
And friends.

He has no idea what he is getting into.
And how much he is already loved.
And how many people have prayed for this day.

But soon he'll know.

20 days.

Lauren

The State Fair

The state fair.
Food.
Food.
Animals
And rides.

For some reason (I obviously was out of my mind), I thought it'd be great fun to go with the girls and grandparents to the state fair on my birthday.  Seriously - no idea what I was thinking.  Remind me next year to go to the spa or get my hair done or such.

First, we started with the animals.
Petting zoo - check.

The rabbits - half check.

The poor bunnies only received a quick walk-through.  P-U is what Jenna had to say about that...

 She quickly grew tired of holding her nose and made it clear that it was time to GO.

And just like that, it was time to go on the rides.  The girls had a one-track mind....rides, rides and more rides.

They started with the carousel - a safe first choice.

Then it was time to visit the roller coaster...once and then once more. 
Followed by walking around to see what else looked fun and exciting.
A water ride captured their attention...four times.  They did not even mind waiting in line because it was so fab-u-lous.

After that, it was time to go on a slow ride...and they both decided to share a ticket with Papa and Mommy.

The ride chosen - the ferris wheel.

And just like that, it was time for lunch.


Fried green tomatoes.
Corn dogs.
Chips.
Pizza.
Sausage with peppers.
Cheeseburger.
Funnel cake.

Seriously, fair food - nothing like it.  Worth the trip every time.

The girls had seen the slides while in the ferris wheel....so the next stop had already been decided.

Watching their faces...their joy...their glee - priceless.

The girls went back to the roller coaster to use the remainder of their tickets.  By the end of the afternoon, they were putting their hands up in the air like roller coaster professionals.

And what is the state fair without visiting a booth for a chance at a prize.  We stopped at the floating ducky booth....guaranteed prize every time. 

We ended up with a stuffed puppy dog and penguin to keep us company on the way home.

All in all...a great day.
Perfect day.
Spending the day with the girls.

Think I might do it next year...

Lauren

P-R-E-S-C-H-O-O-L

SO....big sister had her first day of pics shared last month....and this last week, it was lil sis' turn for her first day of school. 

Surprisingly, she was excited. 
She even wanted me to take pictures of her.
And even more so, she wanted her first day of school card which contained money.

Money is important to a four year old.
Very important.
Money is important to a mommy, too.
Very important.
Guess that runs in the family.

Anywho, she posed for me in the rocking chair....rocking her big grin with the missing tooth.

She picked out her own clothes for the first day.
Actually she picks her clothes out for every day.
But she had to be especially fancy for the first day of preschool...
It's a BIG DAY you know.

So after we had taken enough pictures per J, it was time to go to school.
While she did not think a picture by her cubby would be "cute enough", she did decide to take a picture by the windows...she's a fan of natural lighting. 

Have I mentioned my girl has a mind of her own? 

She knows what she wants...
And she never leaves you guessing as to what she's thinking...
Nope, she'll tell you whatever is on her mind.

So what do you think of the fancy outfit?

She's a pretty fancy fabulous four-year old, huh?

Lauren