Ahhhh...Sweet Freedom

For the first time in days, I saw the outside of El Cortijo! It also happens to be the "20 de Julio" which is Colombia's independence day - coincidence, I think not!

The 20th of July is a historic day which celebrates Colombia's independence from Spain in 1810 and The Eisenberger's independence from El Cortijo in 2008.

We went to La Finca again to let the boys splash in "la piscina" and let Mama rest and soak up the sun a bit. It was fantastic to be out and let them work off as much energy as they possibly can. I really wanted to be able to swim, the pool was beautiful, the sun was very hot, but my lungs still aren't 100% healthy so I mostly sat on the veranda with my book (Annie Lamott's Traveling Mercies) and just read. Again, it was great to be out and about. The boys had a blast.

Some of the highlights of the day included:
*Luis picking a flower for me (Andrea)
*Daniel ate it really hard on the tile (yes he falls down a lot) and first hit his bottom then his head. Needless to say, he was a mess. Luis kept picking up rocks and bringing them to him to cheer him up.
*ALL of the boys were beyond brave in the water and each pushed/explored beyond what they have done before in the pool.
*Grilled plantain is one of the best foods in the world.

The real highlight of the day though was just hanging out and actually feeling like a family. We are starting to find our rhythm a little bit, the communication is getting a little bit easier, the boys are definitely opening up to us more. I know that it probably won't ever be truly easy, but for now it is at least a little bit easier.

Please continue to pray for my health and that none of the boys (Troy included) will get sick. Also, pray that the boys will be obedient (as much as possible), that Sentencia will come quickly, and that we will continue to bond. And, please pray for friends in our "adoptive community", Brian and Penny, who meet their daughters at 8:30 AM tomorrow morning in Bogotá. Praise God for their safe arrival yesterday!


There were flags all over the city today in honor of the holiday. This is a view of the apartment building across from El Cortijo. On our way to the farm, we saw tons of people wearing white and walking with flags to various celebrations. It was very exciting. The boys kept shouting "colombia" (or something that sounded sort of like that) every time they saw a flag. We must have heard this over 100 times or more...


The hacienda at the finca. This house is so beautiful.


Daniel would not let me take a photo of him all day. He kept saying "no!" and giggling and turning away. He is such a goofball.


Luis was so brave in the water and did not cry at all. He has become so comfortable with us both and his trust of Troy in the water is really fun to watch. He has also started to ham it up for the camera more!


Samuel is just so much fun at the pool. He especially loved the water spout today.


Papa y Samuel playing in the water spout.


All the boys.


I usually have to wait for the boys to stand close enough together to catch all three of them in one photo, but...


...today I actually got them to cooperate just long enough for them to let me take this picture. Aren't they so adorable?! I just love this picture!!!


This is just a bonus pic. Samuel said that he made it in school and it is supposed to be us. Cute!