First off, thank you to everyone who has responded with suggestions to our doggie-dilema! We know that this situation will work itself out. Hopefully we will be able to find a house sitter. From what we are hearing that seems to be the ideal solution.
Now, for a little bit of news. We got an email from Sarah (our caseworker) today. She wanted to give us what little news they have, and that news is that according to our program director, ICBF (Colombian child services) is waiting for a specific sibling group to be legally released for adoption to match them with us. Our agency doesn't have any information on them and won't have any until an actual referral is made.
Please pray for us. Troy and I are used to getting our hopes up and then having huge disappointments follow soon after. We have grown so accustomed to believing that parenthood is this very unattainable state of life for us. Most importantly though, please pray for these children. Every day that the legal process delays their release to be adopted it also prevents them from being in the care of parents who love them--those parents are hopefully us! Also, as these children wait to be released for adoption they are either in an orphanage or in foster care. Please keep them in your prayers as they go through major life changes that they can't possibly understand at such young ages.
We will keep all of you posted as we find out more information!
Monday, April 21, 2008
Friday, April 18, 2008
Calling All Dog Lovers...
Look at these sweet faces?
Sylvia, 2 years, 3 months
Baxter, 10 months
As we prepare our house and continue to fundraise, one detail about our impending trip becomes more and more abundantly clear... We desperately need some one (or a couple of some ones) to watch our dogs while we are in Colombia. The good news: they are really cool dogs, sweet, full of personality, completely house broken, crate trained, entertaining, and really cuddly. The less good news: we will be gone for about 4-5 weeks and they both weigh between 50-60 lbs. We aren't really sure that we can afford to board them for a month or more in addition to all of the other costs we are are incurring during that time, and we don't want to hire a pet sitting service because they will only come in and walk them a couple of times a day (anyone who knows our dogs knows that this will make them stir CRAZY). Any suggestions?
Sylvia, 2 years, 3 months
Baxter, 10 months
As we prepare our house and continue to fundraise, one detail about our impending trip becomes more and more abundantly clear... We desperately need some one (or a couple of some ones) to watch our dogs while we are in Colombia. The good news: they are really cool dogs, sweet, full of personality, completely house broken, crate trained, entertaining, and really cuddly. The less good news: we will be gone for about 4-5 weeks and they both weigh between 50-60 lbs. We aren't really sure that we can afford to board them for a month or more in addition to all of the other costs we are are incurring during that time, and we don't want to hire a pet sitting service because they will only come in and walk them a couple of times a day (anyone who knows our dogs knows that this will make them stir CRAZY). Any suggestions?
Friday, April 11, 2008
Milestones
Well, the month has come and gone and we have no referral yet. It was a busy month though. We had an appointment at the USCIS office to get our fingerprints updated. We went to the Sheriff's office to get another set of fingerprints taken to send to the FBI for background checks. We each had a physical so we could have our medical letters updated, and we had our supervisors update our employment letters. We still have to get some of this information back so we can get it apostilled and sent off to our agency and then on to Colombia. I am hopeful that we will have this done by the end of next week. At that point we will be caught up until the next round of paperwork expires (let's hope for a referral before that happens).
On March 29, Troy and I celebrated our 5th anniversary. We were so excited to be celebrating what we consider a big milestone. We went to Columbia, SC (pun intended) to go to the Riverbanks Zoo. It was amazing. They have gorillas, penguins, koalas, flamingos, and a herd of four elephants (my favorite) just to name a few of the animals. The only hitch was that I had some sort of virus that had me all stuffed up and coughing my head off for most of the trip. Needless to say, what was supposed to be a romantic weekend getaway ended up with Troy nursing me while I was doped up on Robitussin. We are planning a “make-up” day at a time yet to be determined.
Another milestone that is rapidly approaching is the one year anniversary of the day our dossier was sent to Colombia. This just amazes me because time just simply flies by and I am not sure where it all goes. It seems like it wasn’t that long ago that we were just starting this process. Then again, sometimes it seems like this is the longest road I have ever been on.
Finally, we really need prayer. I don’t know that we have used the BHB blog as a forum for prayer requests much, but it may be time to start. Please pray that our referral would come soon. Please pray too for those we have met through this process who are also waiting or are getting ready to travel to meet their children (check out the links at the right). Pray that we would find the motivation we need to do the work around the house that needs to be done to make room for 3 more Eisenbergers. Pray that we would be able to raise the last $5000 that we need to raise. We continue to be amazed by how much God has provided for us in all of the various ways we have needed it throughout this process—it only confirms that we are doing exactly what we are supposed to be doing.
On March 29, Troy and I celebrated our 5th anniversary. We were so excited to be celebrating what we consider a big milestone. We went to Columbia, SC (pun intended) to go to the Riverbanks Zoo. It was amazing. They have gorillas, penguins, koalas, flamingos, and a herd of four elephants (my favorite) just to name a few of the animals. The only hitch was that I had some sort of virus that had me all stuffed up and coughing my head off for most of the trip. Needless to say, what was supposed to be a romantic weekend getaway ended up with Troy nursing me while I was doped up on Robitussin. We are planning a “make-up” day at a time yet to be determined.
Another milestone that is rapidly approaching is the one year anniversary of the day our dossier was sent to Colombia. This just amazes me because time just simply flies by and I am not sure where it all goes. It seems like it wasn’t that long ago that we were just starting this process. Then again, sometimes it seems like this is the longest road I have ever been on.
Finally, we really need prayer. I don’t know that we have used the BHB blog as a forum for prayer requests much, but it may be time to start. Please pray that our referral would come soon. Please pray too for those we have met through this process who are also waiting or are getting ready to travel to meet their children (check out the links at the right). Pray that we would find the motivation we need to do the work around the house that needs to be done to make room for 3 more Eisenbergers. Pray that we would be able to raise the last $5000 that we need to raise. We continue to be amazed by how much God has provided for us in all of the various ways we have needed it throughout this process—it only confirms that we are doing exactly what we are supposed to be doing.
Saturday, March 08, 2008
Big news...
Yesterday afternoon we received the best possible news short of actually receiving our referral (for those not familiar with the lingo yet, a referral is the assignment of children to a family). As I was preparing to leave work, I came across an email from our case worker Sarah. She was giving us the long-awaited update on our paperwork which has been hanging out in the city of Pereira since mid-November. Here is what the email said:
"Great news :) Just spoke with Raul [our agency's Colombian program director] and he thinks you will be getting a referral VERY soon (within the month) from Pereira. SO....he is asking you to look at your documents to see if any need to be redone."
This is not in any way an official promise of children, but it is cause for us to hope big. It may take longer than a month, but it sounds like the powers that be in Pereira may have children in mind for us. In the meantime, we are doing what they are asking of us and getting our paperwork updated. I had already sent off a request letter to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to get our fingerprints updated (they expire in May). Our next steps include updating our medical and employment letters, as well as our FBI clearances (yes we have to have two separate sets of fingerprints updated). Other than that, we just keep hoping and praying that our official referral will come anyday now!
"Great news :) Just spoke with Raul [our agency's Colombian program director] and he thinks you will be getting a referral VERY soon (within the month) from Pereira. SO....he is asking you to look at your documents to see if any need to be redone."
This is not in any way an official promise of children, but it is cause for us to hope big. It may take longer than a month, but it sounds like the powers that be in Pereira may have children in mind for us. In the meantime, we are doing what they are asking of us and getting our paperwork updated. I had already sent off a request letter to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to get our fingerprints updated (they expire in May). Our next steps include updating our medical and employment letters, as well as our FBI clearances (yes we have to have two separate sets of fingerprints updated). Other than that, we just keep hoping and praying that our official referral will come anyday now!
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
People Never Cease To Dumbfound Me
I am sitting at a café that I like to frequent for their yummy sandwiches and free wi-fi. I have some freelance files that I need to upload to an FTP site so this seemed like a perfect fit for me today. Sadly, at lunch time the place is packed out and I the only seat I could find close to an outlet is way in the back where all of the Mommies have gathered for adult conversation while their kids run around and mash play dough on the table next to me. I actually didn't even really notice them until one of the moms pointed out that her child was being wild. I am just thankful to be able to plug my computer in so I can do what I need to do. I was making good progress too until a blog worthy event happened.
There is a toddler at the play dough table. He kept throwing stuff on the floor off of his table. (Isn't this what toddlers do? My beloved nephew Ethan - my only real measuring stick for toddler behavior - throws stuff all the time.) Then the future MLB pitcher's mother comes from another table and picks the items up, tells him not to do it again and apologizes to me. I tell her "no worries." And the dialogue proceeds like this:
Mommy: Well I guess you did sit in the kid section.
Andrea: Yeah I needed the outlet.
M: I am surprised the kids aren't on top of you mashing their fingers into your keyboard.
A: Ah, I am used to it, I have a niece and nephew. I wouldn't have noticed anyway.
M: Well, you should try having them in your house.
The next sound you hear is my jaw hitting the floor. How do you say to someone in an eloquent, non-yelling manner that you have in fact been trying to have a bundle of chaos of your own for four years? Also, not that it is any of her business, but I have lived with my niece and nephew, and I thought it was awesome (I know being Auntie is different from being mommy, but Liana and Ethan are still loads of fun).
The moral of the story here folks is don't express your "stages of life" opinions to strangers. You never know what other people have been through or are currently dealing with.
There is a toddler at the play dough table. He kept throwing stuff on the floor off of his table. (Isn't this what toddlers do? My beloved nephew Ethan - my only real measuring stick for toddler behavior - throws stuff all the time.) Then the future MLB pitcher's mother comes from another table and picks the items up, tells him not to do it again and apologizes to me. I tell her "no worries." And the dialogue proceeds like this:
Mommy: Well I guess you did sit in the kid section.
Andrea: Yeah I needed the outlet.
M: I am surprised the kids aren't on top of you mashing their fingers into your keyboard.
A: Ah, I am used to it, I have a niece and nephew. I wouldn't have noticed anyway.
M: Well, you should try having them in your house.
The next sound you hear is my jaw hitting the floor. How do you say to someone in an eloquent, non-yelling manner that you have in fact been trying to have a bundle of chaos of your own for four years? Also, not that it is any of her business, but I have lived with my niece and nephew, and I thought it was awesome (I know being Auntie is different from being mommy, but Liana and Ethan are still loads of fun).
The moral of the story here folks is don't express your "stages of life" opinions to strangers. You never know what other people have been through or are currently dealing with.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Expecting...
This has been a strange week so far. Two significant things happened that really got me thinking.
The first thing happened on Sunday at church. I saw this beautiful young couple standing together with their adorable daughter who looked like she must be less than one year old. The sadness and envy hit me like a lightning bolt. No matter how hard I try, I am never prepared for when this feeling will hit. It is more than a longing for something that I don't yet have. It is mourning for something that will never be. Our path is different.
The second thing happened yesterday at work. I was at an orientation for new full-time employees and as we went around the room introducing ourselves one of the women added that she and her husband recently found out that they are expecting. This is the point when I usually tear up and want to run out of the room so I can have a good cry. Unexpectedly, the opposite happened. I found myself genuinely joyful for her and cheering her on. Afterall, we are expecting too.
This is the constant state of flux that I live in from day-to-day. It is so hard to explain, and even harder for others who have not been in our situation to understand. We don't get the excitement of watching my belly grow, going to ultrasounds, and feeling the baby kick. We get to update our FBI clearances and wait on pins and needles for good news from our caseworker. I think that I have really been stuck on the waiting aspect of this whole process. In reality, Troy and I are truly expecting. We may have the gestational period of an elephant, but each day brings us closer to our children.
The first thing happened on Sunday at church. I saw this beautiful young couple standing together with their adorable daughter who looked like she must be less than one year old. The sadness and envy hit me like a lightning bolt. No matter how hard I try, I am never prepared for when this feeling will hit. It is more than a longing for something that I don't yet have. It is mourning for something that will never be. Our path is different.
The second thing happened yesterday at work. I was at an orientation for new full-time employees and as we went around the room introducing ourselves one of the women added that she and her husband recently found out that they are expecting. This is the point when I usually tear up and want to run out of the room so I can have a good cry. Unexpectedly, the opposite happened. I found myself genuinely joyful for her and cheering her on. Afterall, we are expecting too.
This is the constant state of flux that I live in from day-to-day. It is so hard to explain, and even harder for others who have not been in our situation to understand. We don't get the excitement of watching my belly grow, going to ultrasounds, and feeling the baby kick. We get to update our FBI clearances and wait on pins and needles for good news from our caseworker. I think that I have really been stuck on the waiting aspect of this whole process. In reality, Troy and I are truly expecting. We may have the gestational period of an elephant, but each day brings us closer to our children.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Still just waiting...
I think that knowing that we are closer to getting a referral makes waiting that much harder. Though we have no real timeline or deadline, it is the not knowing that's driving me crazy. It is nearly impossible to have a balanced life in the midst of waiting for something so big. I feel like I have allowed myself to get lost in my work more because it makes the days go by so fast. If there weren't a writer's strike going on, I would be camped out with my DVR much more often. Although I greatly appreciate all of the encouragement about how we should enjoy this time to ourselves, Troy and I have had nearly five years of sleeping in, eating out, enjoying the freedom of travelling whenever we choose, and date nights without worrying about finding a sitter. But with that five years also comes the comfort of routine and the constant longing for something more...We are ready for our world to be flipped upside down. We are ready (so to speak) for diapers and feedings and getting less sleep (in all fairness Baxter wakes us up at 3:30 AM every morning--when he is awake, everyone else should be too). We are ready for our house to be filled to the brim with kids and dogs. I look forward to having toys everywhere and little kids clothes to wash. I look forward to going to the park and cooking meals for five. I know that our becoming parents will in no way complete us or make us whole, but it will catapult us into the next phase of life that we have been preparing for since we took our vows. So, for all of the nay-sayers who think we are crazy to bring three children into our home all at once, please keep in mind that this is what we were created for.
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