Hollis Adoption - Colombia South America

Fall/Winter 2010

2011-01-04T19:34:00.026-05:00

In short, life is Fine and Dandy, everyone is doing well and all are happy, busy and content. Our fall was full of running around with all 4 in demanding sports and getting in routine of 2nd, 3rd, 8th and 9th grade. Now the school year is half over and I can hardly believe it. The holidays have come and gone. We had a great Christmas and have started off 2011 on the right foot. I can't wait to see what 2011 has in store for all of us.

Daddy and his girls

Eric Emi and Nate went to a race

The fall in review:

Jess has just grown by leaps and bounds the last 2 1/2 years and is a beautiful girl. She spent the fall starting out in cheerleading again, but soon decided she would much rather keep up on the swim team. Jess isn't into the sports as much, but she does love to swim. She thought about taking piano, but then changed her mind. She did join Spanish club and Craft club at school and loves every minute of her clubs. Jess loves fashion, being creative and doing for others. She is a social girl and has a HUGE heart. She has just blossomed into a very fun kid who has finally found herself and is comfortable in who she is. Although I don't want her to grow too fast, I am anxious to see where life takes her. Jess is a pleasure to watch grow.

She made a gingerbread house and carved a pumpkin

Mom, Jess and I got to go to see the Nutcracker! We had a great time making memories and having time with Just Jess!

Big Bro Nate showing Jess how to use her new phone Santa brought her

Joaquin has come amazingly far and we are so proud of him. He controls his behavior and is doing awesome in school. He played football this fall and had a blast. He was one of the 2 smallest kids on the team, but that didn't bother him at all. I was thrilled that he made some new friends and went to a birthday party for a friend, which was another first! I was still leery in the fall that he wasn't ready, socially, for sports, but by the end of the season I couldn't believe how much he matured. The last few months he has just grown in so many ways. He is going to play soccer in the spring and we KNOW he is going to love it. He still adores his big brother and is so full of personality. I really can't express how proud we are of him. He is just doing AWESOME!

#78 our "little man"

A typical day in the life of Joaquin includes things like...
Making yourself a super hero out of tissue paper from Emilee's birthday gifts...

And a popcorn bucket for a hat...always making us laugh

Trampoline shoes...life doesn't get much better

Nate again played football and is currently doing wrestling. Wrestling is a first for me, not sure I liked it at first, but Nate loves it and is doing great. Wrestling was one of Eric's prime sports growing up, so it's been fun to watch Nate learn from Eric. Nate a real ladies man and maturing quickly! Nate also took a test to try and get into an elite high school, St Xavier High School. He came to us requesting that we allow him to take the entrance exam. We are quite proud of him for his efforts. There were 1200 test takers and the school only accepts 400 freshman. He should have his results in about 1 week. We are praying that if he is accepted God will show us whether or not to send him. It is quite expensive, but we know if this is God's will for Nate, that He will provide the way. Nate is showing a great desire to mature as a Godly respectable man, and we love that about him and are praying about how God would have us parent that desire.

Go #33!!!

Taking care of the family...filling the freezer for the winter

And a typical day for Nate always includes a little time cozied up with one of the dogs

Look at those muscles!

Emi suffered a major knee injury at cheer camp over the summer and had quite a time with her recovery. So cheering all thru football season was a struggle but she is all better and cheering for basketball and doing a few cheer competitions. She has decided this will be her last year to cheer. She has decided to work out at the gym and do zumba and other aerobic activities to stay fit instead of sports, so she can free up more time to work with the Special Olympians, be involved in her youth group and to do community service work. A few months ago Emilee decided to start looking for some part time work so she can save money to put towards a car, she will get her temp license in a year, and she also wants to go to Barcelona in two summers with Spanish club. We are proud of her for working hard for things that she wants and not expecting to have things handed to her freely. She is a hostess at the favorite Mexican restaurant in our town. We couldn't ask for a better teenager and example for her siblings.

Emilee getting the spirit to go to Cheer Camp as a camp coach...no wonder she has knee trouble

Emi and her GodSon...her favorite boy in the whole world

And the day after Christmas Emi and I got to go see Wicked on Broadway which was AWESOME!!

Time for an Update

2010-07-24T19:36:00.021-04:00

School came to an end, Baseball is over, vacation and our trip to visit the
Calderaro's is over. Now it's time to dive in head first to football and
cheerleading and start looking towards a new school year beginning.

So let's see, let me try to catch us up...
Joaquin and Jess finished the school year and swim season doing awesome. They
have both grown by leaps in bounds in so many ways. Jess is becoming a BEAUTIFUL
young lady with so much personality. She is happy and loving and a caretaker at
heart. She has started cheerleading again this season and loves the social
aspect of the team. She is so creative and LOVES to help cook and do project
type of things. Jess has a huge heart. Here is a typical Jess story. The last
day of school at recess she picks out the girl in her class that no one plays
with and Jess plays with her. Jess just wanted to make this little girl happy.
Typical Jess.

Joaquin is working hard at keeping himself in check and is so smart. Joaquin
has decided he wants to try football instead of playing soccer this fall...so
we'll see how this goes. He always keeps us laughing and LOVES is big brother.
Just the other day he says, "hey mom, can brothers be friends?", "yep Joaquin,
brothers can be friends, brothers should be friends, it's the best way to be." I
say. Then he marches himself over to Nate and says, "hey buddy!" It's so cute to
watch him with Nate. But as much as he outwardly adores Nate, we have learned he
is quite bonded with Emi too. Emi, back in May, went on a trip to DC with her
school. Emi went by plane and was not allowed to take her cell phone, so there
was not much communication. We sent her with a calling card in hopes she could
call once or twice. The day after she left Joaquin woke up searching for Emi. He
was not at all happy that she wasn't home yet. I explained how many more
"sleeps" it would be till she came home. Over the next several days this is what
I heard over and over and over again... "Are you sure Emilee is coming home?"
"Why did she have to go on a plane without us?" "Is Emi coming home now?" "When
is Emilee gonna get here?" The poor little guy was beside himself, he just
couldn't convince himself that she really would be back. He cried himself to
sleep at night begging for her. Needless to say he was super excited to see her
when she came home and everything went right back to normal.

Nate had a great baseball season. His team came in first in the league. He is
maturing gracefully becoming a young man and learning just what responsibilities
go along with this "growing up" bit. He has started football conditioning with
the 8th grade team, which is a new experience. These are kids he has never
played sports with. But so far so good! He has had a lot of changes and new
experiences this year and we have watched him grow as a result.

Emi finished out her middle school year with the 8th grade dance. She looked
beautiful. It was a delight to dress shop, take her to get her hair fixed and
plan for the big day. I feel like time is slipping thru my hands like the sand
washing back out to sea. She is growing up so fast, she is going into high
school in the fall and it just doesn't seem possible. I feel myself letting the
strings go one at at time and before we know it she will be driving, then soon
after off to college. It seems like no so long ago we were deciding on what to
name her.

So, we went to the beach and J and J had a ball. The look on their faces the
first time setting foot on the beach was priceless. They again experienced some
firsts...first time to the beach, first time playing putt putt (first time
watching Nate nail 6 hole in 1), first time on a really long car ride...all lots
of fun.

We also took a trip to Chicago and had a chance to visit with the Calderaro's.
Remember Sofia who met her forever family the same day we met J and J? We hung
out with Peggi, Ed and Sofia while in Colombia and it was great to hang out with
them again at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago for the day and then go to dinner.
We were super excited to get to see them again. Sofia is just so darn cute and
so full of personality. I just adore the Calderaro's and feel like they I have
known them forever.

So, we have had lots of fun this summer! Now we are in full swing with all four playing fall sports, getting ready for Emi and Nate's birthdays, and preparing to go back to school in just a few short weeks. I always have a mini melt down in August...I hate to see another school year begin, they go by so quickly. I will have a 2nd, 3rd, 8th and 9th grader...sniff sniff.

I tell ya, I am quite spoiled with 4 AMAZING kids. I get comments all the time
from people on how great our kids are. Enough said! :)

2010-05-11T16:49:00.006-04:00

Sometimes you just have to speak your mind...

Can I just brag on Emilee? Can I tell you just how cool she is and how proud of her I am? I am proud of all 4 kids and could write a page on each of them, but today Emilee gets the spotlight!

I am kind of overwhelmed with "mama feelings" as she continues to impress me as a young lady. She makes good decisions daily, she is a responsibility, caring, mature, protective and fun example for her younger siblings. The oldest child has a lot of responsible and Emilee fits the bill of what the "oldest child" should be. Don't get me wrong she has her moments and they have their spats, but as a whole, she is a dang good kid!

Here are just a few things that make her so special and how she makes my life
easier. How many teenagers do you know that get up at 5:10am every weekday morning on her own without a fuss, without being crabby? Emilee! She always completes her school work on time and is awarded all A grades for her hard work. She takes her academics seriously but still has fun. She understands that 6 of us in a house means everyone has to pitch in and help out. She never complains when I ask her to watch J and J. She ALWAYS finds ways to challenge herself and to meet the challenge. She truly cares about others and has a heart for orphans and children and hurting people.

How many teenagers, at 13, do you know that have career goals and very specific ideas of who they want to become? Emilee has done research and is preparing herself to become a nurse. She knows she wants to attend the University of Cincinnati Nursing Program. She knows what she needs to complete in High School in order to pre-qualify and be accepted as a Freshman in college and what she needs to avoid the waiting list. She knows she wants to work in a Children's Hospital, possibly in a cancer unit for kids. She wants to be able to give each child something to smile and laugh about each day. She realizes it will be difficult to watch the suffering,
but she also wants to do a job with the rewards of making a difference in the
lives she works with each day. Give them something to smile about
or a hug if they need it. She also wants to work in a NIC Unit with the infants and their families. How hard is it to leave your baby in the NIC unit while you go take care of your other kids or run errands? Emilee wants to be the nurse that mamas feel comfortable leaving their baby with. Knowing their baby is loved and cared for in the tender way a mother would be caring for them. Tell me...what teenager, at 13, do you know who thinks so deeply? Emilee!

Are you getting the flavor? Do you see why she is so special?

This year she has spent some time working with the Special Olympic athletes in our town. She has enjoyed every moment of her time with them and can't wait for the next time she gets to see and work with them. When she is with them, they make HER day. We just went to the Special Olympics track and field events last weekend and she had a ton of fun volunteering.

This weekend she is running her first 5K "Run for Their Lives". All proceeds go to feeding hungry children in Haiti. What a simple thing to do, take 1 hour from your Sunday to walk/run (she is going to run) and and think about and pray for the children/people of Haiti. To Emilee, it's just simply the "right" thing to do, so she does it!

She is a leader and not afraid to go the extra mile. She is fun and has a lot of friends. She is an achiever and she loves God.

Emilee is simply beautiful thru and thru. God has taken a piece of himself and put it right in Emilee's heart and it shows!

This reminds me of Emilee…
"What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men. That is what love looks like." -Saint Augustine

Spring Time

2010-04-25T15:47:00.019-04:00

(I have no idea why the spacing on this post is so messed up...I can't seem to fix it)
I can't believe it's spring and we have just completed our 2nd anniversary
Gotcha Day. It's been so amazing to watch our family mesh together. Jess and
Joaquin fit ever so perfectly in every way...right down to them loving to sing
along to the radio in the car like the rest of us. Adoption is truly a miracle.
We have discussed the option of adopting from Africa and as much as it is on my
heart, it's not financially right for us at the moment. HOWEVER, Emi has assured
us that she WILL be adopting from Africa someday and not to worry! The vision
ingrained on my heart may not be for my own child, but oh how lives in me daily.

Emilee, Nate, Jess and Joaquin are thriving and lovers of life. They are soul
mates as siblings, which again reveals the miracle of adoption to me. With the
ages of Jess and Joaquin when we adopted them they have a lot of memories from
their home country. We speak openly of adoption, Colombia and and how we came to
meet them. Jess still often brings up things she remembers and is comfortable
asking questions. They openly tell us they are happy and glad Jesus put our
family together. Our social worker even commented on how easy things have been
for them as far as adjusting. Resilient little survivors, full of life,
accepting of love, and confident in who God made them. Are we Blessed?...You
bet, and we count our blessings every day!

At the Circus

Jess learning to walk the tight rope

So what have we been up to?
Well...Basketball season came to and end. Emi Cheered for the 8th grade school
team and Nate made the 7th grade team for the school. Jess and Joaquin took a
session of karate and have been involved in a swim clinic with the Cincinnati
Marlins. They love love love to swim. Jess is doing a fabulous job. And Joaquin
is not far behind her. they can swim the length of the Marlins pool freestyle,
and backstroke. They are working on butterfly and some other strokes. Emilee is
running track again this spring and doing great on her 400 meter runs and relay.
Emi has tried out for high school cheerleading and she made the Junior Varsity
team for the football season and the freshman team for basketball; we are very
proud of her hard work. Nate is now full swing into his select baseball, playing
catcher and left field. So as you can see, all we do is RUN RUN RUN. But the
kids grades are good and they love their activities.

Emi and Nate were both inducted into the National Honor Society. We had
wonderful weather for Easter, so painting eggs and hunting them was lots of fun.
Our cat hat kittens and Joaquin wants to keep them all. He is going to be upset
when they all go to their new homes, even though we told him we can't keep them
all.

And Emilee was asked to be Hunter's God Mother

Joaquin had his 7th Birthday. When we asked him what he would like to do he said
he wanted to have a "game day" with the whole family and eat hot dogs. So we got
some of his favorite games and went to Mimi and Papa's house to celebrate.

Other than that...Jess has been begging to go to the beach and find sea shells.
So for vacation this year we are going to Myrtle Beach with my parents, brother,
sister, nieces and nephews. Should be a good time.

I can't believe school is almost over and summer is just around the corner.
Time flies when you're having fun!

Winter Events

2010-02-14T12:57:00.020-05:00

Here are some pics to do a review of our last few months.

In November baby Hunter was born. A new nephew to love on. Emi was in the room while Aunt Jeanie gave birth to Baby Hunter. She completely enjoyed the experience and found herself in tears and in awe of the process. She adores Hunter and was asked to be his God Mother. VERY COOL!

Nate's football team won his 5th Superbowl in a row and Emi and Jess were in several cheer competitions. Also, Nate made the Junior High Basketball team!

We went to the zoo and saw all the Christmas lights and made gingerbread houses.

The boys got Tennessee gear for Christmas from Grandma Starla and Papaw Ronnie...GO VOLS!

We made it to the international food store and got lots of items from Colombia and the things to make empenadas. YUM!!! When we stayed at Zuetana, one day they had a cooking session. We learned how to make empenadas and brought home the recipe!

And we've gotten lots of snow lately to play in!

And Jess turned 9 years old this week.
Here is a pic from just after her birthday 2 years ago while we were in Colombia and then one from this week. I can't believe how much she has grown! Little Jess isn't so little anymore. She has grown in every way imaginable. She is very concerned for others and is making good friends. She is terribly concerned for the people in Haiti right now and speaks of things we can do to help, like send toothbrushes, soap, and clothes (which we have done). She loves art and being crafty. She loves music and her iPod. Jess is very sweet and a big time Daddy's Girl!

Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-26T20:23:00.014-04:00

My jewels

My little clown

I love this pic...big bro, little bro

These two get such a kick out of each other. Hard telling what Nate was doing, or what they were up to.

Jess won't carve her pumpkin...she doesn't want it to die (lol)

Jess and her Uncle Brian...isn't she pretty?

Emilee cheer competition #2. This is the first year the Junior High has gone to competition. They have been offered a bid to attend the National Comp...big honor!

Just Some Pics

2009-10-22T21:33:00.009-04:00

My gang!

Nate tending the fire so it's good and ready for the camp out later that evening.

Jess at her first cheer competition ever. She did AWESOME! The girls wore pink ribbons for breast cancer awareness month.

Heading off to Cheer Competition number one of the season.

Poor little guy got stung by a bee right under his eye

Aren't they cute!

"Hollisisms"

2009-08-08T20:38:00.002-04:00

Yeah Yeah, I know…I never blog and now I post 3 times in a week…what’s up with that?

So, I have recently started my own “Happiness Project” and one of my resolutions for August is to pay attention to the funny things the kids say. That was an easy one, cuz they do keep me laughing. Anyway, through the year as Jess and Joaquin have been learning English they have come up with some pretty funny stuff. Sometimes just in the way they pronounce things or the accent on certain words. Well, we have two things that J and J came up with that the rest of us thought was very creative and funny. Both of which Emi and Nate also starting using. And now even I say these two things. So they have now become “Hollisisms” that make me smile every time we say them.

Before J and J…we always called pajamas either PJs or Pajamas. J and J combined the two and now we call them “P.Jams”

Before J and J…girls had panties and boys had underware. Thanks to J and J we are now not gender specific cuz we all wear “Pantywares”

Hollisisms:
Pantywares (panties and underware)
&
P.jams (PJs or Pajamas)

So maybe you don’t find these funny, but for me these Hollisisms make me smile and remind me to laugh and enjoy the little things that come about thanks to my kiddos. Hope they made you smile too!

Oh, in case you are wondering what a “Happiness Project” is…check out this blog:
www.happiness-project.com
It is not a biblically based site, but I find a lot of great info as gentle reminders of everyday situations.

She's a Teenager

2009-08-08T10:44:00.010-04:00

Ready or not, today I became and official mother of a Teenager. We love you Em and are VERY VERY Proud of you!!!

Some of her best friends came over at midnight to decorate our garage for her. What good friends!!!

Emilee lives life to it's fullest. Proud to be who she is as a young lady and Christian, loves having lots of friends, enjoys helping others and gives 110% at everything she does!
At cheer camp she won Most Spirited! Imagine that!

She'll try anything at least once...You GO GIRL!

And one of Nate, Just for Fun!

Time Flies!!

2009-08-04T18:23:00.015-04:00

I am a terrible blogger...when I pulled up the blog to check my last update I couldn't believe it had been so long. Aye aye aye!
It's been so long it's almost hard to put it all in a nut shell...

The kids are all doing so well and are starting to get things ready for the new school year to begin. Football and cheerleading are in full swing and so far Jess is enjoying learning all the cheers. Joaquin is not playing any sports yet, however he has made some friends (siblings of kids who play with Nate) and loves going to practices and games to play with his "buddies".

We went to Disney and had a WONDERFUL time! It was super hot but not terribly crowded. The kids had such a good time they didn't want to come home. I have spent some time thinking about how much they have grown in the past year and it blows my mind. The summer has been so busy I almost don't know where all the time has gone.

I have been able to work minimum hours this summer so I have had lots of time with the kids. Once school starts I will be working a more regular schedule, but will be able to get the kids on the bus in the morning and be home every day by the time the kids get off the bus. I have to give thanks for my job and the flexibility I have.

We also had a chance to visit with The Uhlenbrock family.Their girls and J and J lived in the same house at the orphanage in Colombia. Jessica spoke of their girls often.It was so nice to get to visit with them. What a sweet family and they have the most adorable girls!

And lots of kid pics for ya!

Now those are some good looking kiddos...hee hee

Goofy...a perfect fit!

Always smiling, always having fun

Emilee's favorite princess

Papa and his girls

In the News

2009-06-03T21:41:00.002-04:00

The article about the adoption is in the paper this week...Front page, top story.

www.theharrison-press.com

May in Review

2009-05-26T01:33:00.012-04:00

I am not doing too well with keeping up with the blog…geez…where does the time go?

Here is just a quick update on the happenings of the Hollis household…Oldest to youngest.

Emilee – Number one, she is growing up WAY TOO FAST! Seriously, how does this happen, they grow up right in front of our eyes and we don’t even realize it. Anyway, she is doing awesome. She ran track and did a great job and loved meeting new people and the exercise. And I have to say I was quite impressed with her running. She tried out for 8th grade cheerleading and made the team again. But this year they will build and go to competitions, so it will be an exciting year. She is planning some time to volunteer around the community, which she has to do for National Honor Society. I went with her to Cedar Point for a chorus trip, where her chorus competed and had some fun at the park. It was nice to have some time with just her. She is now thinking ahead for fundraising ideas so she can attend the 8th grade Washington DC trip next May. She’s a thinker, a planner, and an all around darn good kid.

Nate – Soccer is over and baseball is in full swing. He is doing an awesome job. I LOVE to watch him play sports. He always gives 110% and loves every minute of his sports. His papa, my dad, is one of his coaches, which Nate loves and thinks is really really cool. My dad has coached for many years and knows baseball inside and out. Eric is enjoying being a spectator and hanging with the other dads. He is really excited to be out of Elementary School and into the Junior High next year. They have 2 weeks left of school and one of those days he gets to take a limo to a big pizza joint for having straight A all year. Nice treat from the school! Nate is such a big hearted kid and watching him mature is such a pleasure.

Jessica – Oh miss Jess. She is getting prettier and prettier everyday and her hair is so long. She has never been able to let her hair grow so she thinks it’s awesome to have long hair. She was chosen to be Miss Poppy in the parade today for Memorial Day. She got to sit in the back of a convertible and wave like a princess. Then she had to lay poppy flowers on the graves at 2 memorial services with the American Legion. She was in the news paper, picture and all, and she thought she was famous. She talks about Disney every day and loves going to gymnastics. She will start cheerleading practice the end of July. She has done an amazing job in school this year. I could not be happier and more proud of her hard work and accomplishments. She loves to help me around the house and is very thoughtful. She and Nate get along so well, they have the same sense of humor and love to tease each other. She will laugh at Nate from deep in her belly and always makes me smile. Her artistic ability is amazing for her age, I love the items she makes at school and brings home and am anxious to watch this aspect of her life develop. It’s an area that we encourage her to be proud of herself in and show off to the family. She is a very sweet and affectionate kid and is a real daddy’s girl!

Joaquin – My little man is just as funny and energetic as ever. He has made some friends, brothers of Nate’s baseball buddies, which he thinks is cool. He too is doing a super job in school and has come such a long way academically. His karate session is over for now, but I am anxious to get him involved in something soon. I am hoping maybe a soccer program in the fall. I am realizing as I write this that my daily alone time with him will be over in just 2 short weeks. Everyday he comes home and makes me smile. His eyes, his smile, his accent, his mannerisms, his funny oh so witty self keep me laughing and appreciating what he has to offer in life. We have kept an extremely tight leash on him for the last year, and I am feeling like it’s time to start letting it go a bit and let him prove himself. We have worked on so many things this year, about making good choices. He is so young in his maturity and has an awful lot of bad habits to break but has made great strides in the past year. He is coming around, but still has a way to go. He is so darn cute and full of life that I can’t wait to see where his life path takes him!

The local news paper asked to do a story on our adoption and will be printed in two weeks. Hopefully it will inspire other families in our community to pursue adoption. The lady from the paper was very intrigued by our story. Her final question to us was “So are you finished adopting?” There was an awkward pause as Eric and I looked at each other not knowing how to answer. Instinctively, I would have said no, I want one more, and he would have said yes, this is all we can afford. So Emilee broke the silence with “Maybe a little one from Ethiopia,” And I agreed that we would love to have a little one from Africa, but nothing is in the works. And Eric chimed in with “Maybe we will just run a Children’s Home or orphanage, our work here is not yet finished!”

1 Year Anniversary - Gotcha Day

2009-04-14T14:39:00.014-04:00

It’s been a year already…I can hardly believe it. Time has flown by, but at the same time it’s as if J and J have been here forever. It is truly amazing how God places just the right kiddos with just the right family. I watch over and over again, family’s adoption stories unfold and continue to be amazed at how the pieces fit so perfectly. On Easter I wore the same outfit I had on when we met J and J. Jess immediately said, “Mom, that’s the same clothes you had on when you came and got us!” It’s an emotional experience to talk to Jess about things. She is old enough and mature enough to understand the whole process and she doesn’t forget anything. She and I sat one afternoon and she was telling me how scared but happy they were on the day the met us. She said she was happy to have a family but scared because they didn’t know us. I think the grieving of their past started for me a few months ago. The first several months were bonding, training, etc. But I find myself easy to tears the last few months and I think a lot is due to grieving for them and their past. I began translating their protection file and got about half way thru the 200 ish pages. I had to take a mental break. It can be overwhelming. God has blessed us with 4 absolutely amazing and wonderful children, and I fall short as a mother so often and pray for God’s grace and guidance with our precious jewels.

So, what’s been up with us??? Jessica was in her first school play and was SOOOO excited. She spoke of the play every day for 2 months. She got the part of a gypsy moth. She had to dress as a gypsy with wings. She fit the part…smile. She practiced her lines and knew them well. She was nervous to get on stage, which was cute. She knew every move and word to every song and was sure to wave to all of the family in the audience. My mom cried when she saw her on stage…but she also cried when she saw Emi in a track race passing up 3 girls and putting her relay team in first…proud grandma!

Joaquin got to celebrate his 6th birthday on Saturday with family and friends. We went to an inflatable bouncer place, which was perfect for kindergartners and for Joaquin’s energy. His birthday is on Friday…my baby will be 6!

Emilee was inducted to the National Honor Society. She has had straight A on her report card all year. Once in 7th grade you can be asked to join the National Honor Society.

Easter was a lot of fun too. They had never colored eggs and thought it was a bunch of fun to color eggs, have an egg hunt and celebrate Jesus with the family.

Nate had 4 permanent teeth pulled this morning, so no big plans for today, our Gotcha Day. But yesterday, Eric took off at lunch and met us at the Children’s Museum. It’s not as much fun for Emi and Nate, they are getting kind of old for it, but Jess and Joaquin had a blast and Emi and Nate were super sports. They helped and played with the J and J and enjoyed themselves too. We went for ice cream after several hours of playing. It was a great day just the 6 of us staying close to home and just enjoying each other.

A year ago today, a major chapter in our lives began, a chapter filled with lots of memories and an unforgettable time, an amazing journey.

One year ago today...

2009-03-12T19:39:00.002-04:00

One year ago today, March 12 2008, we received the much awaited call for our official referral. I remember waking up thinking “Today is the Day!” And sure enough we got THE CALL. I could hardly wait to show the family the photos and start the process of packing and preparing to travel. Wow…one year ago…and next month will make a year since we met Jess and Joaquin. Where has the time gone?

Everyone is doing just great. Emilee has started running track. She just started this week and is a bit sore, but enjoying the challenge and meeting new people. Nate is still in soccer and baseball is starting. Jessica is taking Gymnastics along with Emilee now and Joaquin is in karate. So busy we stay and wouldn’t have it any other way.

All 4 are doing so well in school, we couldn’t be more blessed. Jessica and Joaquin are doing great progressing with their reading and English skills. I am amazed at how much they learn and take it all in stride. Emilee is doing so well in Language Arts that next year in 8th grade she is going to get to take Freshman Spanish. She had to do a speech not too long ago and spoke on Colombia. She put a power point together with lots of pictures to show the culture. It was nice to reminisce and look back over all of our pictures.

We got to celebrate a birthday with Jessica for the first time in February. She wanted to go rollerskating. So the family gathered and she had 3 friends come along from school. She had a great time and thought having a day all for her was the best ever. After rollerskating she got to go to build a bear and make a bear. So it was a very good day. Joaquin has his big day coming up in April. Last year we only had them for 3 days when we celebrated his in Colombia, he was still in a bit of shock, so this will be a new experience for him too. But he was great on Jessica’s birthday, letting the day be all about her.

Other than staying busy with sports and activities, we are all looking very forward to our big Disney trip in June. With that being said, I am realizing that the end of the school year will be here before we know it…how can that be!!!

Time is just zooming by and I think about blogging often, just can’t seem to find the time to get to it.

Jess and her American Girl in matching PJs

Joaquin and my nieces with Ronald McDonald

It Finally Snowed!

2009-01-28T18:55:00.011-05:00

It snowed, it snowed! Okay, so most people think I'm crazy but Jessica and Joaquin have not seen a real snow storm ever...and finally it snowed enough to get off of school for a few days and to be snowed in. They expected to have snow at Christmas, because in all of the Christmas movies there is always snow on the ground. So when I put away the Christmas stuff they kept saying, "But it hasn't snowed yet!" I promised them it would snow, really snow soon enough and FINALLY it came! So needless to say we spent some time sledding and playing in the many inches that accumulated between yesterday and today.

You can't really see him, but poor Nate is on the bottom.

Jess said "Mom look, Popsicles are hanging on the trampoline" And of course they had to each eat a few. Gross I know.

We had some ice over night and then several more inches of snow, which caused for some beautiful scenery. So Jess went outside today and said, "Look MOM IT'S NARNIA!"

Big Milestone for Joaquin

2009-01-13T14:14:00.007-05:00

It's below 30 degrees today and he was running around bare foot and shirtless, but then put on a winter cap...crazy kid! I had to finally make him put his shirt back on.

My little man, Joaquin, has to know where I am at all times. As he is eating lunch, I often do laundry and a other chores while he is sitting still. However, ever since we have been home, I have to tell him when I leave the room or he starts calling for me in a bit of panic. If I go to the bathroom, I have to tell him. “hey little man, I am going potty.” After about 3 seconds, I hear him outside bathroom door. If I go to the laundry room, same thing, in about 3 seconds he will be at the door. I noticed about a month and a half ago that this starting getting better. It still happens on occasion, but without panic. Only about half of the time would he follow me, and I didn’t have to announce where I was going in order for him not to have slight panic.

But going to the mailbox was a different story. Walking out of the house to get the mail without him was pretty much forbidden. Even if I told him where I was going and told him he could watch me from the window, he still had to walk out the door with me. It broke my heart at first, but I knew he would eventually become comfortable. It kind of became a sort of routine, announce where I was going etc. But about a two weeks ago, I noticed that he was no longer following me to the mailbox. He was okay staying in the house playing while I made the quick trip down the driveway and back. So today, I thought I would test the waters. I told him I was going to take out some garbage, and would be right back. He can’t see me from the window when we go to the garbage cans on the side of the house. He didn’t even bat an eye. He just kept eating lunch and was perfectly fine when I came back. A few min later I went out to grab the mail and again, I came back to a perfectly happy little boy. Way to go Joaquin!

He will still on occasion yell “Mom?” when I am in another room, and I answer “I’m right here little man” and he just goes on playing. He does it unconsciously, but I think he is starting to heal a bit. And he is even finally growing. Once we got rid of the parasites he started showing signs of some growth!

My little man is growing and learning by leaps and bounds.

He loves his pups! Pretty soon I'm gonna have to not let him sit on them anymore, but they sure don't mind. He sits and lays on them all the time, and sometimes he falls asleep like that.

He loves to ask Jazz for kisses and then to be smothered in doggie kisses. (Gross...I know)

2009 Really?

2009-01-06T01:22:00.010-05:00

Yes, I know it’s been a while…again. I just have the hardest time finding time to sit down and post.

So…our holiday was awesome! We had our re adoption hearing on Dec 22, so that was a nice gift for us. It feels good to have it all complete.

Jessica ended up being Jessica Ann. She writes her name, Jessica Ann, on all her school papers, it’s so cute. When the hearing was over the judge asked the kids if they had anything to say. Jessica spoke right up with a big “Thank You!” On the way there Joaquin asked if they had to go back to La Maria now, and we told them again they were with us forever and no more court stuff. On our last photo pages I made for our adoption reports for Colombia, I explained that Colombia wanted to see how they are doing and growing. I think they are finally really letting it sink in that they are here forever. Even though we tell them, they are just young enough and just old enough at the same time for it to be confusing. Now they comfortably talk about wanting to see their friends at La Maria and want to go back to visit. I tell them we have to pray for their friends to be put with forever families like us.

Anyway, the kids all had a great time spending time with all of the family. We got to see everyone and didn’t even have to travel, they all came to us! The kids got way too much stuff, but let me tell ya, Jess and Joaquin play with everything they received and they love it all.

Today was back to school and I’m kind of looking forward to the routine again and getting the house back to normal. I love love love the holidays and this year was sure a lot of fun, but I’m ready for 2009, for Spring and for our big Disney trip this summer! But I can hardly believe in just a few weeks it will mark a year since we got the referral call about J and J. Wow, 2008 flew by! And Jessica’s birthday is coming up and we haven’t gotten to celebrate her birth yet so that will be a great day. My mom and dad got them each baby rings. Joaquin’s has his initials on it and Jessica’s has her birthstone in the middle, Eric’s birthstone on one side and mine on the other. Very Cool!

I could go on and on, but really all I need to say is we have had an amazing 2008 and feel so very blessed by our friends and family who have offered so much support this last year.

2008 in a few words…A year of miracles, inspiration…humbling!

A Little Bit of Snow

2008-12-06T10:57:00.010-05:00

We woke up to just a little bit of snow. Jess and Joaquin talk about wanting to play in the snow all the time, but we haven't had any yet. Even though it was very little they couldn't wait to get out and play this morning. So I thought I would post a few pics of our morning fun.

This looks to me like sisters up to no good!

Here is the reason Nate isn't in any of the snow pics, he is out hunting with my dad and Eric this morning. Dad and Nate went out yesterday and they got a buck. When Nate called me he said, "Mom we got a buck!" Dad actually shot it, but Nate took some claim to it since they were in the stand together. They have had such a great hunting season together. Some great time just bonding and my dad teaching Nate so much about how to hunt and use a gun. Nate and my dad have an awesome kind of relationship/bond anyway and tears me up to think of how much time my dad spends with Nate. Nate thinks the world of my dad and would be totally lost in life without him. He is one reason Nate is turning out to be such a great kid.

My Girls

2008-12-06T01:04:00.006-05:00

Here is a conversation had with Jessica this evening. Most of the time the conversations consist of me listening while Jess talks, so keep that in mind. Smile. She doesn’t give you too much time to get your thoughts in.

We were getting out of the van to go into the grocery store and Jess says (in her very best English), “Mom you teach me how to look for cars and I be careful. I know how to be careful. You don’t make me hold hands now because you teach me how be careful. But, pause, Dad makes me hold hands. I know why he does. Because he love me too much.”

“That’s exactly right Jess, Daddy loves you very much and doesn’t want anything bad to happen to you,” I reply.

“I already know that he loves me too much. And you too mom. I already know this.”
I smile at her and before I can reply she looks at me and says, “it’s because we’re a family.” Then off she went to pick the perfect cart for us to use.

I love these kind of moments and don’t ever want to take them for granted. We are so very blessed with great kids, willing to love and to learn. Jess is going to be my kid that we are going to have to use some creative parenting with. And I don’t mean that in a bad way. She is just so adaptable and smart that we have to be sure we are teaching her to use her skills in a positive way. She has a great artsy creative side that I want to continue to tap into. I learn more about her everyday as her English is progressing and she can put more thoughts into words. There is so much to adore.

Then there is Emi. I have seen such a transformation in her this year. It’s really hard to believe what a young woman she is fairly gracefully becoming. She is growing and learning in so many areas of her life and I feel very blessed she is willing to share with me. See I was the kid who never spoke of my own feelings or thoughts, not even to my friends. I was the listener, the, I will get close to you but you will never get too close to me, kind of girl. Emi on the other hand is very willing to share her thoughts, feelings and life experiences with me. This is a very different kind of personality than I had. I was the learn it the hard way cuz I won’t ask for help kid. Emi, although not always willingly, will accept advise and apply it as she sees fit in her relationships and life. I see strong traits in her that are going to allow her to go far in life. She is going to take some hits for some of these traits, but in the long run will be highly respected.

Just tonight after everyone was in bed she just wanted to lay by me and chat. She talked about the dance she went to, about kids who are making bad choices and why, about silly things and girly things and life in general. You know parenting a teen is tough. Be a mom not a friend, and just where is that line. Don’t ask too many questions, but ask enough to be informed and not over step your boundaries of making them uncomfortable and not willing to talk. It’s tough I tell ya. You listen and subtly guide them while at the same time building them up and helping them to define who they are and who they want to become. It’s really mentally exhausting but serves me great pleasure when I see Emilee heed to my words and use them to help herself grow.

I have tried to teach her to consciously analyze behavior in herself and in others. If you have a day you feel like crying, cry, but why do you cry. Too tired? Feeling the pain of a friend? Stressed? If you have a day you just have no patience, what do you do. You rise above it but give yourself space and time to change your mind set. When you feel like laughing, bring someone along with you, spread the cheer. But what is it that makes you happy today? Christmas lights? The laughter of little kids? A good experience between friends? When we analyze, we seek God, He speaks, and we grow. It’s just that simple, but yet so complex. But Emi really seems to understand this idea and at a young 12 years olds. I watch her seek for more love, more laughter, more fun, more maturity, and a greater purpose in life. She will be a person who makes a difference in many peoples’ lives, a vessel that God will use.

My girls…wow…parenting is not easy and I have many shortcomings when it comes to being a good mom. Lord never let me forget how blessed I am, never let me cease to seek your face in becoming a better parent to my kids, and don’t let me fall too short as a paretn for the sake of the jewels you gave me.

Just a few pics

2008-11-23T00:54:00.008-05:00

My mom, sister and I took the kids to Disney on Ice. I've never seen Joaquin sit so still for so long, he was memorized. They are having so much fun and we are having fun watching them grow.

Halloween for Jess and Joaquin was a treat. They had a ball.

Eric and Nate on the bus before Nate took off to his Superbowl game. His team won again, what an exciting day. Nate played the entire game, offense and defense. His team has won 4 years in a row against the same team. And once again he was one of the 4 captains for the final game.

My family are big hunters. We love deer meat, but Eric doesn't have a chance to hunt. So I always have to hope my dad, brother and sister get enough deer to share each year. Nate has gone hunting for several years with my dad, but was never old enough to hunt on his own, shoot with his own gun. So this year we took him and my nephew to the hunter safety classes and they got their hunting permits. Nate was so excited to go in the woods with his gun. It's youth week in Ohio this week, so my Dad took Nate out and my brother took my nephew to the woods.

Remember that gun Nate got in a pic a few posts ago? Well he put it to good use today. Nate's first deer. He told me before the went hunting "Mom, I want to fill your freezer!" Well, he's off to a good start!

Time flies when you're having fun!

2008-10-30T18:33:00.002-04:00

I can’t believe how long it’s been since I have posted. I have had several complaints and emails from folks wanting to know what’s going on in the Hollis home. Yes, we are still here and all is well, busy, very busy, but all is well. But because it’s been so long I don’t even know where to begin. Since my last post I am back to work 25 hours a week and in full swing with football and fall activities. The fall is my busiest time, I love it, but I can really feel a difference when football season is over.

So let’s start with Jess. A day or two after my last post we decided to put her back in 1st grade. She was doing well but very behind the other children in 2nd grade. They had only been in school a week or two, so the change was not a big deal. She is doing wonderfully in 1st grade and instead of struggling and feeling behind, she is on top of the game and doing well with reading and making friends. She is also coming along wonderfully with her English.

Jessica has recently been coming out with a lot of interesting stories about her life in Colombia. We have struggled with knowing if some of them are made up or true, some of them are definitely true, but some just don’t make sense compared to the info we have been given. I can’t imagine she remembers as much as she claims. She was a young 3 ½ when taken to the orphanage. She claims she remembers the day the police came and how she was taken to La Maria. She also talks about wanting to change her name. One day she wants it to be Molly and the next it’s Tatiana. Her middle name at one time was Tatiana. Her name was changed a few times before she came to us. We keep telling her we love her name as Jessica and so she says, “Ok, but call me Jess or Jessie” Normally we call her Jess, but she is so funny about this name thing. We will have our re adoption hearing in November and we can make changes to her name at that time. Right now she does not have a middle name, and we planned to make it Jessica Ann. Ann is my middle name. I love the name Tatiana for her middle name, but the family really wants to keep Ann. So we’ll see.

Jessica’s new thing is to call Emilee “my sister” and the boys, “my brother. It’s really very cute. She will say things like, “Can I stay at home with my sister when you go to the store?” She is very proud of her family. I remember a time when they called everyone Mom, so it’s great to see they have bonded so well and are proud of being part of a family! Every night Eric says bed time prayers with the kids. He is trying to teach them how to not recite prayers but to make their prayers from their own hearts. So the other night Jessica was saying her prayers and just before Eric turned out the light she said, “oh wait Daddy, I have one more prayer!” then goes on with “and thank you Jesus for the best Mommy and Daddy you could give me” Doesn’t that just melt your heart?!

I have also had the privilege of being able to help out at the kid’s school once a week. The first day I came in I was helping in Jessica’s gym class. She was sure to tell the whole class “That’s my Mom!” Just innocently proud to have a Mama!

Little Miss Jessica has kept the tooth fairy busy. She lost two teeth in one week. After she lost the second one she said, "please no more picutres Mommy!"

As for Joaquin, what can I say, he is just Joaquin, a heart melter, a comedian, a love bug, and a very smart boy! He is doing great in school, and learning everything he can. He already knows almost all of his letters and their sounds and can come up with two to three words that start with each letter. He loves school and his teachers. I think he will be reading by the end of the school year. He is always trying to come up with words that rhyme, so that’s our big game. He is no longer afraid to go to bed in his room by himself, which shows me he is feeling very comfortable in his home. He does well with his chores and is finally gaining a little bit of weight since we got rid of the parasites. His English is awesome and he loves to play karate with Emilee. He has a great imagination that I love to watch in action. He can play with cars, action figures, or just about anything and can play for a good long time.

One of Joaquin's favorite places...on the couch with Jazz

The other day I was asking the kids what they would like for Christmas, and Joaquin thought for a minute then tells me he wants a picture of Nate when Nate was a baby. So Jess chimes in with “Joaquin, we are in the United States now and we will get lots of stuff, so think harder!” they are so excited about the holidays. It’s definitely going to be a Christmas to remember.

Emi and Nate are just staying busy with friends, sports, homework and tween life. Emi has just grown up so much in this last year it’s really hard to believe. And she got all As on her report card for the first quarter of Junior High. I am jus so proud of her. She is a beautiful young woman making wise decisions in her daily life and with her friends. Nate’s football team took 1st place in their league again, so we will start playoffs next weekend. The last 3 years his team has won the superbowl, so it’s a big deal, they are trying to keep their title.

We have our second post adoption meeting with our social worker on Monday. In just two weeks it will be 7 months since the kids have been with us. I remember this time last year we were playing the waiting game, just waiting for any ounce of news Colombia would have for us.

What a ride!

A normal day in the living room when Nate's willing to give up Sports Center on TV and get on the floor to play.

Emi and Jess at their Pajama party in the living room

Boys...what can I say!

Life doesn’t get any sweeter!

2008-09-10T22:04:00.005-04:00

One year ago this week our paperwork landed in Colombia, time has flown by so here are a few things I want to remember and things to remember to not take for granted:

Jess and Joaquin can light up an entire room with a smile. Their energy for life is contagious. They are fighters, they are survivors, they are strong on the outside but fragile on the inside.

The process of adoption is a pure miracle that happens right in front of you.

One thing I never want to forget, Jessica and Joaquin had a certain smell about them when we first met them, but the smell was gone within the fist week.

You know you are one’s mother when you can lick your child’s suckers or share an ice cream and think nothing of it.

I never want to forget how excited and sweet Emi and Nate were to meet their brother and sister. Nate was shy and soaked it all in while Emi jumped right into wanting to be a big sister. Now the girls pick out each others clothes, help each other with their hair, and dance around the room to music while getting ready in the mornings. Nate and Joaquin love to chase each other thru the house hiding around corners to bomb each other with their clean rolled up socks then laugh from the bottom of their bellies when they nail each other.

The laughter that comes thru the doors and walls from the kids bedrooms is like medicine to ones soul.

The great big hug I get every morning when Joaquin wakes up melts my heart.

Jessica tries to be sneaky but has a look in her eye that gives her away every time.

Jessica and Joaquin do NOT like sleeping in a room alone, as a matter of fact it’s just down right scary to them.

Jessica is so smart, she is a true survivor and I admire that in her. She has amazing coping skills in every area. Our goal is to teach her how to use those skills for the good of others and to herself. She really is an amazing, child. Beautiful inside and out!

To watch Joaquin play and imagine always makes me smile, and sometimes tear up. I think of the time before we had him and how he had to take care of himself. He is so sensitive and fragile at times, who was there to rock him, comfort him…no one but himself and his big sister. Survivors I tell you! I wish I could put into words how incredible I think they are considering their background and what they have come through.

They speak of Colombia and La Maria almost daily. They talk about their favorite caretakers, Maribel and Patricia. They sing children’s songs in Spanish all the time, while they are playing, riding in the car, or just walking down the halls in the house.

Emi and Nate would not change a thing about our family and have fallen in love with the family as a family of 6. Nate talks about someday adopting on his own and Jess wishes for a little sister to be adopted. Nate says if we adopt again he wants it to be from Ethiopia.

Jess loves to watch TV but when instructed to go play, she can do so with joy and plays well alone or with others. She loves to play with polly pockets, her American girl doll, loves to fix hair and do anything girly, but is shy in front of others. She particularly loves the men of the family, uncles, grandpas and her daddy, but still says Tia Jeanie is her favorite.

Joaquin loves his Mimi and riding the motorcycle with papa. He likes to tease Emi, he adores Nate, he likes to sit on daddy’s lap to watch TV, but is really a mama’s boy. He is funny and witty and can make anyone laugh. He has a bit of trouble at times playing with bigger kids, he tends to bite or kick as a form of playing. Again, survival skills from the orphanage, but boy has that been a tough one to break.

Emi has become such a young lady through this process, but still loves being on the floor playing with her little sister. They tell secrets and have a language all their own, which I love. I have a great relationship with my sister and I desire the same for Emi and Jess.

Nate just rolls with the flow. He is a loving kid with a deep heart and a fun loving attitude, but is very sensitive and wants to please. He is a joy to be around and would be lost without the excitement of his siblings.

I tear up thinking about not having pictures of Jess and Joaquin as babies, and not being with them from the beginning, but am so thankful and more complete having them with us. Even the family, grandparents, aunts and uncles tear up thinking about the time before they were with us and realizing that even before they met Jess and Joaquin they were fully in love and attached.

And there is so much more…

So what’s going on at the Hollis’?

2008-09-10T21:56:00.006-04:00

Everyone is doing well in school. Emi is loving the Jr High, the boys keep telling her friends that she is pretty and they like her. She just laughs at the boys...for now.

Nate, well, he is just Nate. Doing well, but everything comes so easy to him that he isn't finding school a challenge and then gets sloppy. He is just glad to have outside recess to play football.

Jessica and Joaquin are doing really well. Joaquin is speaking almost all English, I am amazed. He had to do a project about himself and one of the questions was “Who is your hero and why?” Joaquin said his brother Nate was his hero. Which made me cry. (He thinks Nate is famous when he puts on his sports uniforms) Joaquin said “Nate is big and strong and has lots of friends. And he teaches me how to do flips on the trampoline.”

Jessica is doing better with English and is loving school. She is like a commodity there. All the kids want to play with her, even the older kids. She just got an invitation to a 10 yr olds birthday party. You worry they may be made fun of, but it's been just the opposite. I ran into her tutor/ESL Teacher today who told me how awesome Jess is doing. Then her regular teacher emailed me with this message, “Also, I am speaking with Jessica's tutor almost everyday and we are both amazed at the progress she is making. She is a really hard worker and picks up on things quickly. She has a great strategy for adding and subtracting by using her crayons! She is very helpful and even helped me pass graded papers back to mailboxes today. I know I shouldn't be surprised. After all she is a Hollis!“ It was very nice to hear from Mrs. George, she is so sweet! Jessica has a long way to go, but is doing fine trying to catch up to the others.

Emi cheered at her fist JR High Game and looked so grown up. She has been mistaken as a freshman by the bus driver and some of her peers...not sure I like that.

Nate had his first football game on Saturday. They played the team they always face in the superbowl each year and they beat the team 30 to nothing. The first defensive play, Nate made the tackle and caused a fumble. He is also the punter this year. On one punt, he punted the ball, broke through the line and also made the tackle. He was wound up and had a great game. He constantly talks about playing college ball...I hope his dream comes true.

I am back to work and am liking getting everyone into routine. I have every afternoon with Joaquin, just the two of us and we are loving it.

The kids all come home little jabber boxes, so I have to give them each 5 minutes to tell me about their days so they don’t talk over each other. I’m just glad they want to share.

So all in all things are really good. We are blessed beyond what we could have imagined.

School has started!

2008-08-27T22:31:00.011-04:00

Today was the second day of school and they are all loving it!

Emi started in Junior High, so big adjustment for her. The first day she was pretty stressed, finding 7 classes and working a locker combination etc. But she got all of her classes organized and feeling in control and is going to love Junior High life.

Nate well, as smart as he is (My Talented and Gifted Child), was only concerned about being able to take his football so the boys could play at recess.

Jess was a bit nervous but so excited to go. She came home the first day kind of quiet and said she was very tired. But today she came home and was so excited. She has made some friends and loves the interpreter/ESL teacher. She is most concerned about what she is going to wear…a true girl.

Joaquin attended Kindergarten camp last week and feels like a pro as far as going to school is concerned. The bus was the biggest thing for him. He couldn’t wait to ride and this evening he was sure to tell me how good he was on the bus sitting still looking at all the houses on the way home. Last week at Kindergarten camp he gave his teacher a kiss and hug, twice. Oh my little Latino! So now I just have Joaquin in the afternoon, just the two of us. I am going to eat it up.

Nate has been a great big brother. He is at the same school as Jess and Joaquin and was able to help out a little with the Spanish with some of the teachers. At the end of the day Jessica’s teacher asked Nate if Jessica really liked octopus’, Nate told the teacher when Jess says AutoBus sounds like octopus, and that Jessica was talking about the school bus. He thought it was pretty funny. He checked on her at lunch and reported to me that she ate everything on her tray and told me who she played with at recess. He was very proud of himself for helping to take care of his little sis. He is used to being taken care of by Emi and now the table has turned.

The funny story from the first two days is about Emi. You know it’s a big deal what to wear on the first day of Jr High. Emi thought that being a cheerleader she would wear school colors, Green, Black and White. She looked cute in her spirit wear, but apparently not to the first teacher she saw as she entered the building. She was wearing two tank tops, not spaghetti straps (see pic below) and this teacher told her to call her mom and get a different shirt to wear. You can imagine my heart pounding when the school called me at 7:30 in the morning about Emi, who has NEVER gotten in trouble, not once ever. We’re talking about the child who is teacher’s pet every year! I took her a new shirt right away, thinking she was probably in tears. When I went in the school and saw Emi she thought it was pretty funny that she was sent to the principals office on the first day of school. Her homeroom teacher thought it was ridiculous that she was made to change, but “live and learn”. So anyway you can imagine what a hard time the family is giving Emi, our goodie two shoes.

So the new routine begins and so far so good.

Here they are watching down the road for the bus. We have a lot of big trucks that go down our road, so in the meantime Nate taught them how to get the trucks to honk. The trucks today were good sports, every single one of them honked at the kids. And of course a few fun pictures too!

Just for fun

2008-08-12T14:34:00.013-04:00

I had some pics taken of the kids at a local park, just some candid shots by Mandy Niehause www.mandypaige.com so I thought I would share.

Other than taking pics, we've been doing stool samples and taking medicine to try and get rid of 2 kinds of intestinal parasites the kiddos have and going for a skeletal survey. With the abuse that was noted in the paperwork, the International Adoption Clinic suggested we do this skeletal survey to note any trauma they have had to their skeletal system. That way if they ever get hurt while with us, we will have documentation of any trauma that happened before they were with us. Pretty smart acutally. Apparently a family here in Cincinnati had adopted, then went to the ER for a broken bone and it was found that there were other injuries that were never documented. The kids were taken from them immediately. You can imagine what a mess that was. The trauma had happened before the adoption, but the couple had no proof.

Everyone is ready for school to start and they all have their backpacks ready and by the door. I started back to work, just a few hours a week until Sept. Kind of trying to ease into things a bit.

Okay, well enough of that, here's the pics!

Is July Really Over?

2008-07-30T22:54:00.006-04:00

At this point it feels like forever since we were in Colombia. I look back at some of the experiences we had and can hardly believe it was just a few months ago.

A few weeks ago Eric was out with Jessica and Joaquin for a few hours while I was out running with Emi and Nate. Once we returned home, just the 3 of us, it didn’t take long before we realized how quiet the house was, it seemed there was no movement, no life. Emi and Nate very quickly noted the change and asked each other if they remembered what life was like before J and J. A few days later Nate came to me and said “Mom, remember when we were talking the other day about how it was without J and J here when they were with Dad? Well, I didn’t like the feeling.” Of course it brought a big smile to my face. Then Emi and I were working the nursery at church and I was listening to a conversation Emi was having with a little 3 yr old about favorite colors. I heard her say something so simple that practically brought tears to my eyes. She said “My little sister likes purple and pink.” Seems like nothing right? But hearing Emi say “MY Little Sister” and it was such a cool thing to hear. Sisters! And they are bonding just like sisters should!

The dreaded “back to work” phrase has come up, I am loving the time with the kids and the freedom of time to take care of things at home. I am trying now to set my mind on working again, just part time for now. At least until Joaquin is in school full time. Mid August will be here before you know it and a new routine will begin.

We had our first post adoption meeting this week, which went well. Our first of 4 or 5 check ups and reports to go back to Colombia. We are still waiting on Jessica’s citizenship certificate so we can’t proceed with finalizing the re adoption until that comes. We have had Joaquin’s for weeks and weeks. They have met with the infectious disease clinic at Children’s Hospital and are being tested and immunized. Joaquin was in pretty good shape with immunizations, but Jessica only ever had 3 immunizations, so she needed like 15 or 18 shots. The doctor wanted to test her for several things and do a battery of blood tests before having to give her so many shots. They feel like she may have had more shots than recorded and are testing to see. Children’s is great, they asked me if I wanted an interpreter for the kids, I didn’t even have to ask. I thought with needles involved they may feel more comfortable if everything could be explained clearly to them and they could ask questions, all of this in hopes to put them at ease.

Other side notes…Joaquin is using a ton of English and understands almost all of what we say. Jess, well she understands alright, but just recently started using more English. I guess she feels like “Hey the family understands what I say, so why convert”. It will come, especially when school starts.

Jess is begging to go to Disney World. She saw the scrap book from when we took Emi and Nate a few years ago. So we are planning our summer vacation next year to Disney. My sister, brother and their families are going to go along with my folks, grandpa and aunt and uncle! It should be a great time. My nieces will be 3 ½ and 4 ½, and Jess is in love with the princesses so it will be magical. I was looking into tickets and for all 6 of us for 5 day hopper tickets will be like $1500! That’s why we aren’t going till next year! Smile! But it will give the kids something to look forward to. Time flies and the Disney vacation will be here before you know it.

Eric’s brother and his family came up to visit a few weekends ago and his mom just spent the week with us, which the kids loved. It was nice for her to be able to spend some time with them here at the house and just enjoy them. And of course they all loved the attention and time with Mamaw Starla!

I am so proud of all of the kids, it’s hard to know just want to blog about because everything is going so well. I know school will be a big adjustment, but I imagine after the first two weeks they will be in full swing and handling it just fine. We went to the school again today and Emi took Jess and Joaquin to their rooms to show them around again. The teachers already have much of the rooms set up and it’s been good for the kids to have stepped foot in the school and classrooms a few times before school begins, and to see the familiar face of Miss Margie, the sooooo sweet secretary that we love and adore.

The funny story for today…we were at Old Navy finding shirts to wear for an upcoming photo appointment. I’ve mentioned before that my little latino is Mr Sticky Fingers. He has to touch everything, I mean everything. So most of the time he has to hold my hand while in a store. But sometimes I get brave and let him go after giving instructions to stay with me. Well, he had been so good all day and I got brave. One of his favorite things to say is “what’s this?” I hear it a million times while in a store. So I was checking out a shirt for the girls, he was next to me, no problem. Then all the sudden I hear, “What’s this Mom?” and as I turn my head I hear this awful alarm and see him pushing the handle to the emergency exit door. Jessica and Emi take off hand in hand away from us, neither one of them wanted anyone to know they were with us. Then Joaquin says, “No Touch????” Well I couldn’t help but laugh, what could I do. I apologized to the folks around me, who luckily also found it funny, I’m sure it was just because he is so darn cute. Once they turned the alarm off and the girls decided it was okay to be seen with us again, Jess was sure to give Joaquin the evil eye and say “that’s why mom says don’t touch!”

Never a dull moment…I wouldn’t have it any other way!

That's my girl, bare feet on the ball field

All ready to watch Hannah Montana in 3D

June in Review

2008-06-30T11:31:00.016-04:00

I can’t hardly believe June is over…where does the time go. We are doing wonderfully here and enjoying every moment as family of 6. I am realizing that in the next few weeks we will need to start doing school shopping and preparing for the fall. Time really does fly and I’m not so sure I want the next phase to come. Actually I am ready, I think that they will love school and will have much to be proud of themselves for. Jessica enjoys learning and will succeed, Joaquin gets frustrated easily when he can’t get a concept or doesn’t understand, but is always so proud of himself when he does something well and strives to do well.

So what has been going on with the Hollis’ in June. Well, we do a lot of running and playing, but making sure we have some down time too. The kids have adjusted (all 4 of them) extremely well, I can’t imagine it having gone any smoother. Jess and Emi have bonded so well and the boys, well, they are just boys, all “boy”. I have some pics to help dictate how we have spent some of our time.

Joaquin and Jess are doing well with English. They understand a lot more than they use, but Joaquin is using quite a bit more English the last two weeks and is catching on. Jess wants to learn so badly but is reluctant to use it, but understands a great deal. Joaquin’s pronunciation is really clear, but Jess is so cute, she can’t make the “th” sound and her “r” sound is always trilled even on her English words. I understand her, but it’s like a baby when only the mother understands what they are saying and has to translate for others. It will all come together in time, they have only been in the states for a month and a half.

They walk around the house dancing and singing as if they have always been here. Jess knows the rules how to behave with no problems. We can take her anywhere and she knows what we expect from her and has no trouble following along. Joaquin is learning and is making great strides, but is just so silly and care free that he sometimes forgets. The love the pool and all the running around. As a matter of fact yesterday we didn’t have to go out, we stayed at home all day. And near bed time they questioned why we stayed home all day and why we couldn’t go out. I had to giggle. I remember when being out for 10 minutes was a big deal and they begged to go home. Now they love to get in the car and see what the next adventure is. However, the running, even for fun stuff, wears on them. They are always falling asleep in the car when we’ve been out. Ten minute power naps do them good.

We have visited the school a few times and we ran into Jessica’s teacher at the park a few weeks ago. Nate had this teacher in first grade and we loved her. She will be a perfect fit for Jessica in second grade. Joaquin’s teacher we have never had before, but always hear wonderful things about her. He will be attending a kindergarten camp the week before school starts so he can meet his teacher and friends before the first day of school. She is the only teacher in the district who offers such a camp, but it’s a wonderful idea. They will find their way around the school and playground by way of scavenger hunts etc, so Joaquin should have a real good time.

Baseball is now over and Nate has a few weeks of a break before football starts. Emi has started cheer practice at the Junior High and is having a ball. She will be in the community parade on the 4th. Joaquin loves playing with Emi and Nate’s friends. We are finding that Jessica is shy and doesn’t like to be in front of people much, where Joaquin is pretty much the opposite. This tells me that Jess may have some self confidence issues, not major, but enough to help us in knowing how to help her handle things she may face. I thought for sure that after she saw Emi in her dance recital that she would want to dance next year, but she is not interested. She love to dance around the house, but she said dancing in front of all those people is not at all what she wants to do. We are finding new things out about them each week.

They speak of Colombia an La Maria everyday. They don’t want to go back, but would love to call La Maria and say Hi to their friends. Jessica has shared some info with us on things she remembers of her biological family. I am not sure what she actually remembers or what she remembers being told. We did receive a packet of 277 pages of their file from Colombia and found out some interesting info we had not known. We have lots of info for them someday if/when they want to know.

Also, often times when the phone rings, Joaquin will ask “Is that Colombia?”. They tell us they are happy here and love ALL of the family. The majority of my family lives within a 15 minutes of each other, so they are always asking to go and see everyone. It amazes me how they love everyone so much already, like they’ve been part of us since they were born.

Our lives have all been changed and as much as I should not be surprised, I can’t imagine two more perfect children for God to have chosen for us.

So here are a few things June held for us…
Cooled off in the back yard in the little pool (it's really for the dogs to cool off, but Joaquin thinks when we first fill it, it's for him)

Stayed over night with Mimi at Mimi, Papa and Great Grandpa Ross' house

All the little cousins got together so we could go to the zoo

It's great having big sister to pull them around while they rest their feet from the lots of walking at the z00

Took a break with Great Grandpa Ross at the Zoo

On hot days we spend time at Tia Jo's pool!

Had a few sibling moments

Walked the excercise trail at the park

We've played in the creek

More sibling moments at the park

We also enjoyed another first...cotton candy...a treat from Mimi and Papa. They thought it was very cool, but Joaquin wanted to eat it like an ice cream cone off of the stick.

Merrily We Roll Along

2008-06-07T20:44:00.009-04:00

I don’t even know where to start. We are a happy family of 6 and loving the time we have to spend together at home for the summer. I am hoping to not go back to work until the fall when the kids are in school. Jessica and Joaquin are doing wonderfully. I really couldn’t ask for better. It’s as if they have been with us forever and are learning more and more every day. We are having a blast now that we are home and I am able to not go back to work just yet.

A few things we’ve noticed. They ask for ice in their drinks…remember when they wanted everything warmed up? They do well helping with chores, and even seem to like it. Except the clean your room part. They’ve asked to see the houses of every family member so we are taking them a little at a time to check out everyone’s places. We had a grill out at my brothers 2 weekends ago and the kids had a ball. We went to my mom and dad’s this weekend and they got to take their first motorcycle ride with Abuelo Papa. He just took them down a side street, subdivision type road, and they thought they were big stuff. We will take them to my aunt and uncles later this week to swim and will need to visit Aunt Jeanie’s when she gets back from her work trip in Germany.

The are getting used to our busy schedule with lots of running to sports and activities and are doing great. Nate’s baseball team has taken them in and made them feel special, the ball players play with Jess and Joaquin like they are buddies and according to Jess and Joaquin, “it’s really cool!” They love Emi and Nate’s friends and are adapting so well.

Joaquin is slowly learning how to control himself when asked and Jessica has been a gem since we have been home. Last night she even apologized, out of the blue, on her own, to Emi for being so mean to her in Colombia. And Joaquin saw a plane fly overhead as he was jumping on the trampoline and said, “No don’t come get me, I like my family and we are having a lot of fun!” However a few days ago he did ask me to call La Maria so he could talk to his girlfriend. I cracked up. He talks about Lilly, his novia, all the time. Jessica talks about La Maria constantly, telling us stories and things here that remind her of things at the orphanage. They both tell us they are so happy and love their family, they can’t get enough of all the grandparents and aunts and uncles, and they haven’t even met Eric’s family yet. They are doing well eating and trying new foods.

I don’t know what else to say, things are going so well and we are having a ball. I would do this all over again in a heartbeat!!!

A few pics for the record...things we've enjoyed since we've been home.

We had a grill out at my brother's and had a great time. Tio Brian and Tia Sonya got Jessica and Joaquin crosses on a chain that are engraved with April 08, our gotcha month and year! The kids love to wear them, so I had to put them up so we can save them for special occasions and not lose them!

Joaquin loves to help with chores

Emilee graduated from the 6th grade and she tried out for the Junior High cheerleading squad...and she MADE IT!!!

Joaquin likes to water the flowers and himself

Played in the spinkler in the yard (with me not working we are going with out AC this summer, so lots of time will be spent cooling off in the water)

We played in the water area at the park

And we've been to Tia Jo and Tio Bud's to swim a few times too.

All is Well…Sorry for the Delay

2008-05-19T21:24:00.006-04:00

Yes, we made it safe and sound and all is well. I will try to update at least once month.

So to pick up where we left off, the kids went to bed well the night before we left and were up bright and early without any trouble ready to get on an airplane. I think the anticipation of getting on an airplane was more fun than the actual ride. On our flight out of Bogota Joaquin and I sat together and then Jessica sat in our same row but on the other side between two ladies. The two ladies on either side of Jessica were awesome. I felt horrible not being next to her, but the Lord gave us great folks to sit with on the plane. The one lady held Jessica’s hand as they took of and was able to explain and answer all of Jessica’s questions. She helped Jess with her breakfast and was oh so sweet. I thanked her several times for her kindness. Joaquin and I sat with an older lady who reminded me of my grandmother. She fell in love with the kids and asked me to send her photos and to call her on occasion with updates. The kids were awesome and the flight was a breeze to Atlanta. Once we arrive in Atlanta we ran to our next flight after immigration and customs. The flight was boarding by the time we got there. We did clear stand by status but our seats were not close at all. Jesscia sat in row 10 and a kind lady switched me seats so I could sit with Joaquin in row 27. I explained to Jess what had to happen with our seats and she was great about it all. She sat in front in the aisle and I rows back in the aisle. I told her to turn around and she could see me. I told the flight attendant that Jess only spoke Spanish and today was her first day of flying. It was a short flight so all went well and we were in Cincinnati ready to see the rest of the family. When we landed in Cinti I told Joaquin that we didn’t have to get on any more flights and that much of the family was there waiting on them. He lit up like wild fire and was ready to get off the plane and meet the family. Tons of family were there and Jess and Joaquin met them with open arms, hugs and kisses. They were smothered with love and loved every minute of it. You would have thought they had known the family that was there forever, they were so excited to see everyone.

From the airport we went to get quick bite to eat and then to our house. Joaquin kept pointing to different things and asking “Is this the United States?” It was so cute. Jess kept saying to him, “Everything here is the United States!” They went to bed well and have done awesome since they have been home. Jessica is so proud of having her own room, she shares with Emi, but is still so excited. Joaquin has walked through the entire house asking “Is this for me?”

The first several days back were filled with exhaustion and staying busy teaching the ropes of the house. I am thrilled at how well Jessica and Joaquin have done. It’s a lot for them to take in and they take it all in stride. The biggest issue is going to be getting them used to all the flavor in our food. The first taste of everything gets a frownie face, but they are pretty good about trying things and letting me work with them to help them like it.

They were scared to death of the dogs, but after just a few days they trade kisses and are doing great. Yesterday Jessica told me “Tomorrow I want to learn English!” They have been asking a lot how to say various things in English, they are eager to learn and I am so proud of them. Emi and Nate are just glad to have us all home and get back in the swing of things. Jessica and Joaquin went to their first baseball game to watch Nate. They weren’t thrilled about being out so long, but thought Nate was famous when he put his uniform on. They thought it was cool.

Their most favorite item is the trampoline, they would jump on it 24/7 and they are infatuated with the animals even though they are still a little shy with them, but getting better. The family is loving having them here and we are anxious to introduce them to Eric’s family and to my dad’s side of the family. Everyone falls in love with Jessica and Joaquin when they meet them, they are so full of personality. Colombian’s have been described this way “Colombians wring out every bit of life, when they are happy, their whole body is happy, when they are sad, their whole body is sad.” And I couldn’t agree more! I love my little latinos and combined with my two red heads, life couldn’t get any better.

Jess putting on a concert after playing with sidewalk chalk (they had never seen side walk chalk before)

Ready or Not Here We Come!

2008-05-13T21:24:00.007-04:00

Today was our final day in Bogota. We picked up the VISAs and have everything we need to fly out tomorrow. Andres will be picking us up at 6 am tomorrow and we fly out at 9:30. The kids are very ready to get on that plane, or at least they think they are. We went through a book I got for kids about going on a plane. They have been looking at it, but I talked about what tomorrow will be like and that we will get on 2 planes etc. I just think the more they know the better it is for them. Then they wanted to go through the picture book and see the “todo familia” and I told them who all would be at the airport when we got home. I am taking both books on the plane to go over again.

I thought the kids would be wound up today and they weren’t. They talked about going on the plane tomorrow a lot, but they were pretty calm all day. I knew it was going to be a good day when Joaquin put on his camo pants this morning. Yesterday he said, I want to take these to the US, but then this morning he put them right on, I was shocked. He’s conforming already; it must be going well. And I realized this morning I lost like 15 lbs while I was here. Not that anyone could tell, but I was happy. Now if I can just keep loosing when I get home I will be doing good. Also today Joaquin asked to fill his water bottle and asked for ice in it. My mouth about hit the floor! What’s up with this boy? I had to laugh at him when he asked. After about an hour he went back to his water bottle and looked for the ice, he was all concerned that it was gone. I told him it melted, that happens!

It was nice to take one last drive here in Colombia today. When Andres picked us up he had another family with him too. We made a first stop to drop off this family at an ICBF office and then made several more stops at various places on the way to the VISA office. It took all of 10 minutes to run in and pick up the VISAs and then we were off again. As we were waiting for the taxi a security guard was talking to Andres about who we were. Andres was explaining I was adopting the children and we would be leaving for the US tomorrow. Jessica was sure to tell them about my lack of Spanish. But this time instead of telling them that I only speak English, she told them I speak a little Spanish. I felt like I had graduated! I went from and English speaker to a little bit of Spanish speaker. Again, I had to chuckle. By the time we had gotten back from all the running around Andres had to do it was like 2 ½ hours later, which made the afternoon fly by. Andres is so good with the kids…oh and he sings to the radio in the taxi, which cracks me up.

In the car today Jessica asked if we could go to La Maria and visit. Fine time to bring that up. We would have loved to have gone earlier in the trip but today was a little late. We didn’t want to just ask her outright if she wanted to visit, we wanted them to bring it up on their own if they wanted to go. She definitely wasn’t ready the first few weeks, and I hated to go without Eric, but knew she would have been fine going anytime within the last two weeks. We sent our items for La Maria with Lucia with a card attached saying it was from Jessica and Joaquin. Maybe someday we will come back to Colombia and go for a visit when they are older.

Also when we got back, James the beloved guy who works our front desk most days, stopped by. I was bummed when we went to breakfast and he wasn’t here. He worked at one of the other houses and when he got off work he stopped by just to see Joaquin and Jessica. He actually had tears in his eyes when he left, he said, “I just love those two.” Joaquin and James especially bonded, Joaquin loved to give James a hard time. James gave Joaquin several hugs and I think would have stayed to play. Joaquin was focused on a game when James was here and about 10 minutes after James left, Joaquin went looking for him. I think it sunk in for Jaoquin that he was saying good bye to Colombia. I had to explain that we wouldn’t see James anymore that we are leaving for the US and all new people, places and things. No tears, just a deep look in Joaquin’s eyes helped me to realize that he was thinking beyond what he had thought before. He already said some good byes to his friends at La Maria, and now he says good bye again. It’s all so much for these kids to go through, but they do so well with it all. I feel very fortunate to have had some wonderful people around us here at Zuetana. It may be expensive and the food may not be wonderful, but the people here make up for it. At the end of the day Lucrecia came into our room. She came with a gift. I cried when I opened it, it was a Bible, in Spanish, and she wrote a note inside. How very special, maybe one of the most treasured things we will bring home. Then Lucia called to wish us well and said to be sure to tell Eric hello and all the kids.

So this is it from Bogota a beautiful city with beautiful people. We are so grateful to the people here who have welcomed us with open arms and helped us along the way. We will surely miss Colombia, but I have a feeling we will be back…for a shorter visit…smile.

Okay, well don’t expect a post for a few days. It will take a day or two to settle in and find time to get back on the computer. We jump right back into a full schedule once we get home, but this time with two more little ones. My dad took off work on Thursday so we plan to spend some time just us and my folks on Thursday while Emi and Nate are at school. Plus I expect Jessica and Joaquin will end up a little emotional after a few days when it all sinks in that this new world is theirs forever. A new chapter in our journey begins tomorrow. The chapter that has just been scripted has been quite a story, full of joy, tears, grief, learning, new experiences and bonding. It is with joy and sadness that this chapter ends, but the chapter to follow is sure to be just as exciting.

And finally, one last water balloon fight

And one last jump from the top bunk to the bed. I know this is terrible, but we couldn't keep them from jumping. I can't believe we didn't end up at the hospital while we were here. You had to be really careful if you were sitting on the bed, because they would jump right at you.

Day 32 in Bogota

2008-05-12T21:47:00.004-04:00

First off…My friend Peggy that I mentioned received Sentencia today!!! Thanks for your prayers, she and Sofia will come home Friday!

Today we completed our applications for Jessica and Joaquin’s VISAs. We left the hotel at 9 am and didn’t get back until 12:30. We were told to plan for 2 to 4 hours at the VISA office and it was a good thing we had been warned. There was a line just to get in the front enterance, which Lucia took us straight to the front of the line. I love these people. Once inside there were two families ahead of us in the adoption line. The place was packed with people and it was open on all sides. There was a roof but it was open, which was nice because you didn’t feel enclosed with all those people. For folks with older kids, take them something to do. I took them each a backpack with some snacks and things to do. I did take their DS games, but I wasn’t able to take them in. I had to check them at the counter and pick them up when we left. The kids weren’t too happy about that, but they lived. We go back to pick them up at 3:30 tomorrow afternoon. Then we are all set to come home on Wed morning. Missy emailed me today and said the flights all still look good, so hopefully we get through immigration quickly in Atlanta so we make our next flight. We have less than 2 hours in Atlanta.

About every hour this morning Joaquin said “Are we going to the US now?” It was so cute. Jessica kept telling him “NO, we go on the plane on Wednesday!”

Then this afternoon just after lunch there was a party for the families in celebration of Mother’s Day. They had a person come who does puppets and such with kids. So Jessica and Joaquin were asked to help decorate and had a fun time. The lady who came with the puppets did a great job. She brought a special book that talks about a little bird who had no mother and was adopted by a bear who had adopted other animals too, like a frog, a mouse and one other animal. It was so great to watch the faces of the kids as the story went on. After the story she let the kids come up and put on their own show, which they all really enjoyed. Several of the families from the other Zuetana came over so it was nice to see them all. Peggy came and we said our goodbyes, but plan to keep in touch. Another family that has been here for 5 weeks also came, she found out today she will not be going home until the end of the month…I have much to be thankful for. (She is not with our agency, CHI)

Well, Emi and Nate went back to school today and were so glad to see all of their friends and teachers. Thank you Margie for the comment about Nate this morning, it made me cry. Smile. My mind has been spinning all day about all that has to be done when we get home. I have to figure out English tutoring for the summer, have Jessica tested to see which grade she should be in and really work on academics with them before the fall. It will be so good to get home and get into a routine and start acclimating Jessica and Joaquin to the States. They are going to do great, even today Lucia spoke of how intelligent they were. They were a bit wound up at times at the VISA office but were very intrigued at how and why things work as far as getting to the US. Lucia is awesome, she is very sweet and cares a great deal about the children here.

So many people have asked about Eric and commented on how they enjoyed Emi and Nate while they were here.

Jessica and Joaquin love one of the front desk workers who works during the day, James. They call him “something” and I had no idea what they were saying. I have told them several times to call him Senor James, but they always just laugh at me and James doesn’t seem to mind so I let it go. So today I asked James what it is that they call him. He laughed and said it means Big Head. I apologized but he just laughed. I really need to know more Spanish. So now I will really have to get on them to show some respect. James has been a great sport with him. I tell him everyday when he leaves that it’s time for him to go take a nap. My kids wear him out, they don’t leave him alone all day.

With all that went on here today, it went pretty quick; I guess that’s good. Tomorrow I will just do some laundry so I don’t have to travel with dirty clothes, and finish packing. I have to pay our lawyer and Zuetana and hand out a few thank you gifts. We are almost home! Look out!!

Okay, that’s all I have in me tonight. I have fought a nasty headache all day, it’s more sinus related, but it’s fried my brain. See you all soon!

Sorry this is kind of all over the place, it’s all I’ve got. Love you all!

Happy Mother's Day

2008-05-11T21:04:00.026-04:00

Thank you for all of your prayers, I was able to go to bed with no tears and great peace. It was wonderful to be able to see the family at our house on the webcam with Emi and Nate. Jessica and Joaquin were happy to see them and to see Tia Jeanie too. And thank you again for all the wonderful comments.

All evening yesterday Joaquin gave the sweetest kisses and hugs. Normally he loves on you but he is so rough. But last evening he was so gentle and loving and just kept looking at me. I think he started realizing that we are not leaving him, and if finding out what “love” is. I think he is feeling things he hasn’t felt before, and although not old enough to realize it, he is starting to fall in love with his family.

Jessica spent some time yesterday afternoon showing me and Lucrecia the book La Maria gave to us. There are several photos and Jessica has seen me look at it several times, but never showed any interest in telling me who folks were, and I didn’t ask. But yesterday I think after everything sinking in that we are leaving soon, she was excited to tell me all of her friends names and a little about each picture. I pulled out the items we have for La Maria and told her it was all from her and Joaquin to their amigos at La Maria. We are sending almost all of the toys we brought, Bingo, Bi-Lingual Memory, Beach Balls, UNO, etc. Along with the candy Tia Jeanie and Tia Jo bought for them to give their friends.

Today we all slept in a bit, which was a great gift to me. I didn’t get out of bed till 7:45 which felt great. It was a beautiful day, sunny and blue skies. When we went to breakfast Zuetana had a card made for each the moms. Jessica and Joaquin are the only ones old enough here understand what Mother’s Day is, so they explained why today was special and had them give me a kiss and a hug. After breakfast I went ahead and packed everything I could and got things organized while the kids played. It feels good seeing things packed and ready to go. I also go the kids backpacks loaded and ready for the visit to the embassy tomorrow. Lucia called this evening and said she would pick us up at 8:30 or 9:00 tomorrow.

This is Joaquin the morning as I was telling him to get dressed so we could go eat. He loves to salute me and say "Si senora mama!"

Joaquin thought it would be fun to race me to the door today. When he beat me he hurried and put the chain on, peaked his head out and said "HA HA!". Luckily he let me right in after I took his pic

These are just the flowers in our room, Jessica wanted a pic with them

After lunch we took a long walk. Not exactly what the kids wanted to do, but they survived. Near the end I took them to McDonalds for a sundae, which they thought was really cool. There is a play land there so I let them play a bit. Just about the time we were going to leave, a McDonald’s employee came in with face paint and painted the kids faces. We stayed out for a good 2 hours, so it helped to break up the day. I decided to go through Jessica’s hair and look for eggs. The stuff we used kills the eggs and we we used 4 of them, so surely none were alive, but it feels better to have all eggs out of her hair. She sat still playing her DS for about an hour while I searched her head. She is clean of all lice and eggs at this point, shew!

So last night I was getting onto myself for having rough day and began to remind myself of all I have to be thankful for. I have 4 wonderful children each with so much to offer. God has trusted us and given us 4 jewels to care for and to raise. It is with great responsibility that we have accepted parenthood. We have tried with Emi and Nate and will do so with Jess and Joaquin to find their strengths and to help them to identify their strenghts and to use their talents as God would have them to be used. To teach them to be good at heart and to yearn to help and show love to others. It is our job to help them realize their weaknesses and build on them and work with others to make themselves better people. It is our responsibility to teach them the importance of education and the ways of society. To help them in their walk with God and to be able to let their light shine in their everyday lives to those around them. To be proud of who God made them, to understand love and to enjoy being loved are all a part of what we must help them to learn. I am so thankful that God has given me great children willing and able to learn and grow and love with great depth. He has made our job easy as parents by giving us such shining jewels to work with. But even so I must pray daily that He helps me to help my children, to understand their hurts and to rejoice with them in their joy and accomplishments. Becoming a parent is so much more than just loving a child, it’s watching their moves and helping them to build on their personalities. It’s the job of a psychologist, a nurse, a counselor, a pastor, a friend, a teacher, a discipliner, and so much more. But most of all God gives you this special gift as a mother to love unconditionally. It happens naturally when you give birth, but I tell you, when God has ordained your children to be yours through adoption He gives you the same abundance of love and in unconditional form.

"We witness a miracle every time a child enters into life. But those who make their journey home across time & miles, growing within the hearts of those who wait to love them, are carried on the wings of destiny and placed among us by God's very own hands." ~Kristi Larson I love this and know first hand how true it is. I’ve said it before, but I will say it again. I can’t imagine my life without Jessica and Joaquin just as I can’t imagine my life without my biological children Emilee and Nate.

Jessica and Joaquin are just as amazing as Emi and Nate, just as lively as all the Hollis’ boys, just as sweet and fun as Maddie and Annslee, and just as beautiful and sensitive as Bailey and Brandon. I know you have fallen in love with them as you have watched our journey unfold here in Colombia, but I tell you to bring Kleenex to the airport. When you meet them in person and get your hands on them you are going to melt. Just ask Tia Jeanie. I really think that part of my problem yesterday, other than being home sick, is to think about two great kid who have lived 5 and 7 years without a mother’s love and without someone to tell them how great they are and to help them to see within themselves just how much they have to offer to everyone around them. I absolutely can’t wait for you to meet them. At this point in the day, I think I am more excited about you all meeting them than I am excited to get back home. They are just that great!

Oh and Dad, warm up the motorcycle. They are already arguing over who gets to ride first. Actually, when I showed them the video of your house, I got the motorcycle too. As soon as they saw it they began to argue over who the motorcycle belonged to. Jessica said it was hers, but Joaquin was pretty sure it was his. I told them it was Abuelo Papa’s but that you would share.

Okay so I thought I would take the camera to lunch today and give you a photo sequence of what meal time is like with Joaquin. From the way I was sitting not all the pics are great, but it’s enough to give you an idea of what I deal with at meal time. He’s a hoot, I’m warning ya!

Ok, here we go...So first you have to swim to the table!

"Is this how you use this thing Mama?" Once he makes it to the table he has to find some way to be silly.

He loves knives. Normally as soon as we sit down I take his. Today I forgot, but don't worry, I got it from him before his head started to bleed.

Yes, he's upside down on the chair. At least 5 times each meal he drops something so he has to pick it up. This is one of his favorite meal time positions, then he asks for help to get up because he knows he is not allowed out of his seat.

"So if I don't use my hands and I take a bite, this will fall on the floor and I can go upside down again to pick it up."

In the middle of each meal he asks to give hugs and kisses. When he's done he laughs. He knows...who can resist a kiss from that face. Just another successful tactic to procrastinate and get out of taking a bite.

One of his favorites. "Maybe if I hide my face under the table cloth she won't make me eat.

At every meal the boy asks to go to the bathroom. We make him go just before we sit down, but it never fails, he asks to go again. I would say no, but the people around me would probably think I was awful not letting my kid go to the potty. So here is his "i really gotta go" face. So what do you think...does he have to go number one or number two?

There are bad guys at every meal too, so you have to keep your dukes up and be ready

A little creativity...who knew a fork could double as a straw

And of course it wouldn't be a complete meal experience if you don't have a spill. I guess that's what happens when you try to use a fork as a straw.

Finally Lucrecia came over to help me try to get him to eat, and this is what she got from him.

Lucrecia and I both gave up when he started pretending like he didn't have arms and ate his rice.

We always end our lunch with fruit, his favorite part. Joaquin loves papaya (not sure if i spelled that right), but it is the most horrible tasting fruit ever. We call it the sink cleaner fruit, I won't tell you what it really smells like.

And when he is all finished, he rubs his tummy and usually says Muy Gordo (very fat) then asks for permission to leave the table.

Now doesn't that make you wish you were here??? Smile

Emi, Nate and Tia Jeanie are home

2008-05-10T22:39:00.005-04:00

One more post with just a few pics of the homecoming.

Just the 3 of us

2008-05-10T21:14:00.006-04:00

Jeanie, Emi and Nate were picked up promptly at 6 this morning and made their flight here in Colombia and in Atlanta, so they are home. It was a beautiful morning with blue skies and few puffy clouds. So they should have had a great view of the city when they took off. I cried when they left and had a pretty tough day. It took me some time to pull it together this morning to go to breakfast. I miss Emi and Nate already, not to mention Eric and the rest of the family.

Joaquin woke up and the first thing he said is “Donde mi todo familia” (where is everyone). I reminded him that Tia Jeanie took Emi and Nate on the airplane and that we would be going on Wednesday. He quickly ran to Jessica’s bed to see if she was still there, then he was fine and gave me a big hug. A little later he saw I was logging on the computer and put on the webcam, he came running over and asked to talk to Nate. Of course it made me cry.

I let them watch a TV this morning while I went through all of our paperwork to be sure it was all organized and together for Monday. There are a few things you can’t fill in until you get their passports, so I went through each line to be sure I had everything filled in. The kids were really good this morning while I was going through everything. Shew!

Here they are dancing on the bed this morning.

Then we took some time to look at the videos of home again. They really enjoyed seeing the animals and the house. We hadn’t showed them Mimi and Papa’s house yet, so I showed them today. They kept saying “Muy Grande!”, implying they had a big house.

Joaquin couldn't get his fingers working to show the I love you sign, but Jess has it down.

After lunch we took of to the grocery store to pick up a few items, munchies, for the plane ride. We don’t have much time in Atlanta, if we make our connection flight, so we may not get lunch. The munchies may be a need not a want. Jess and Joaquin were great and very well behaved the whole trip, which really wasn’t that long, but it reminds me of how far they have come.

When Emi and Nate were here every time we would go out and come back Emilee was in charge of ringing the buzzer for the front desk to let us in. Jessica was so excited when we got back from the store that she could be the one to ring the buzzer. She deliberated for an entire block if she should say the “Hollis Familia” or Jessica, Joaquin and Mama.” Joaquin was more into saying hello to everyone we passed, so he could have cared less that he wasn’t the one pushing the buzzer.

I was off and on in tears today, I’m not really sure why. I should really be enjoying my time with just Jess and Joaquin, which I am, but for some reason I am terribly lonely and just ready to come home. I feel horrible for being in tears, but there’s nothing I can do. I hope a good night sleep kicks me in the butt and I am better tomorrow.

I had a chance to talk to Eric for a good 45 minutes today and the kids were excellent. He was getting himself ready to go pick up Emi and Nate from the airport so it was nice to be a little part of home. He even asked me which shoes he should wear. I know he knew, but was trying to make me feel like I was back home and get me to stop crying. Whenever we talk to Eric in the evenings the kids hog the webcam until it’s time to get them to bed, so I haven’t really had a chance to talk to him since he’s been home. He showed me the flowers outside and around the house. It was nice to see what is in reach and after talking to him the tears finally stopped, at least until now. For some reason I am dreading going to bed. I don’t know what my problem is.

Anyway…

Our home is going to be so different when I get home with my little latinos. I absolutely can’t wait for our families to meet them in person, they are in for such a treat. I can only imagine how much they are going to thrive with all the love they have waiting on them in the states.

As soon as Lucrecia came to work today she came into see if I was doing okay. I love this woman. Then around 5 she came in to see if Jeanie, Emi and Nate had made it home okay. She saw I was talking to Eric on the webcam and I had her say hello. She was glad to hear they made their flights. She knew they were on stand by.

Joaquin and Jessica were so good today, we had a lot of fun together. I think they like all the attention and for Jessica she didn’t feel she had to compete with Emilee. I did let her do a few things today that normally Emi would do, like pour our water in our glasses at meal time. She thought she was big stuff.

Joaquin took a nap today, on accident. He fell asleep while watching TV this evening while I was on the webcam with Eric. Hopefully he goes to sleep tonight. But when he woke up he was calm and sleepy and sat on my lap for a long time. He never sits still long enough to sit on your lap for long, so I ate it up.

Okay, one last note. Jeanie, THANK YOU SO MUCH. Just for being here for that week was so nice and to be able to send Emi and Nate home with you was a relief. It’s great to have such a wonderful family willing be there when you need them and to be able to send off my kids with my sister without any worries at all is something not everyone can have. Jeanie thinks of my kids like they are her own. I appreciate you more than you know.

Happy Mother’s Day to all of you moms reading. For those of you who this is your first Mother’s Day, Congratulations, Motherhood is a beautiful thing as you all have learned. To those of you who are mothers at heart and waiting for your referral, enjoy your day too because your lives will be turned upside down once you have your little one(s) with you. One of the best things here is watching the first time parents with their little one(s), they are beaming and loving every moment…your day is coming.

Jess wanted to take my pic saying I Love You. So here it is, Happy Mother's Day, I Love and Miss You All!

Oh and one last prayer request. My friend Peggy who has adopted Sofia is here in Colombia with me. She met Sofia the same day we met Jess and Joaquin, so she has been here for 4 weeks. She has still not recieved sentencia. Her court has a new judge and he still has not signed off on her paperwork. She is missing her two boys at home terribly, she has been away from them for 4 weeks. She is going to miss not only mother's day with them but also her son's 16th birthday. You can imagine how hard it has been for her. Please pray she gets word first thing Monday and can get home ASAP!!

Today marks week 4

2008-05-09T23:30:00.004-04:00

I can’t believe we have been here for a month. In some ways it seems like a short 4 weeks, but in some ways it feels like forever. It’s very exciting to finally know we are going home next week and will start a new journey in Ohio.

Emilee woke up this morning and couldn’t wait to start packing. She was almost completely packed before breakfast. She and Nate can hardly wait to get on the plane tomorrow.

We spent part of the morning packing up Jeanie, Nate and Emi. We got the call that both birth certificates were in and David would be over to pick us up to take us to the passport office. When David came we all piled in his car and off we went with David and Andres. Andres drove and parked the car, while David worked his magic and interpreted for us. First of all wherever I got the info from that the passport office was closed on Fridays, it was wrong. The place was packed out. We went in and David went straight to the front of the line at the first desk and filled out the papers we needed to proceed. Then he sent us to a short line off to the side to pay. After that he marched us right to the front of the line in front of about 80 people and whispered, “I’m about to tick off about 70 or 80 people, but don’t worry.” He is so funny, but boy do they have connections. So instead of waiting for hours, we were in and out in a half hour. He went to the front of the line and then told the people behind us that “I” needed to go next, then he marched right to an open window and motioned for me to come with him. I was cracking up inside, he is a hoot. I’m sure the people who had been waiting forever were not too happy, but no one was going to questions David, he knew just what he was doing.

Jessica and Joaquin were very proud of their Colombian Passports!

On the way back to the house, David confirmed with Lucia a time to take us to the Embassy Doctor. He said Andres would pick us up at 2:30 and our appt would be at 3. Note to those of you getting ready to travel. Andres is always on time and David is always about 15 minutes late, but both are awesome!! So I got our paperwork together so we would be ready to go when Andres arrived. Emi and Nate stayed at Zuetana while we went to the doctor. We had to go in a taxi with Andres, and they wouldn’t take all of us. We were told it could take hours at the doctor but we were in and out in an hour. When we got there Andres checked us in and they called our name in less than 5 minutes. The doctor was a very nice gentleman, but the physical check took about 2 min per kid. It took him a lot longer to type all the info in the system and print our out paperwork. Jessica and Joaquin are not shy at all and the doc was getting a kick out of them. He told us we had our hands full. Jessica was interrogating him, our favorite question she asked him was “who is your boss?” He started laughing and said “Uncle Sam, but I probably shouldn’t say that.” It is so funny to watch Jessica and Joaquin, they are so inquisitive about everything. Every place we go is a new experience to them. The grocery store has been their biggest awe yet. I don’t think they had ever seen a scanner and cash register in person. So I digress…anyway, the doc was getting all the paperwork together and then asked me for a passport size photo. I totally missed that in our travel guide and left them in the safe at the house. CRAP! He was so very nice and said to just bring them back and he would finish everything for us. So we left, told Andres, who was also very kind. I apologized for him having to run us home and then back to the doc, but he was so sweet about it. Once we took the photos back, the doc finished the paperwork in less than 5 min and put it all in a sealed envelope that we have to give to the visa office, still sealed. I then paid him. The funny part about this was that when I paid him, he pulled out his wallet and put it right in. I wanted to laugh, but obviously I didn’t.

We made two trips to the doc and were still back home by 4:45, so not so shabby. I was really glad to have both the passport and the doctor visit complete in one day and while Jeanie was with me. It’s not that I couldn’t do it by myself, but it was very nice to have her with me. Just less stress over all.

So now on Monday I will go the VISA office to apply for the visas. They say you will be at the visa office 2 to 4 hours. So I will be packing a backpack for each of the kids to keep them busy. But, you can no longer get them the same day, you have to pick them up the following day. I will pick up the visas on Tuesday. So we will be returning to the states on Wed evening. If we make all our flights we will be in at 6:45 on Wed evening.

Jeanie and I wanted to make one more trip to Maku, so off we all went before dinner. This may have been the fastest day I’ve had here yet. We also stopped at Juan Valdez to see if they had gift cards. We wanted to get Lucrecia one. It was funny when Jeanie asked the workers at Juan Valdez about gift cards, they looked at her like she had 2 heads. As common as gift cards are in the US, it was odd they had never heard of such a thing.

After dinner Lucrecia came in our room to give Emi and Nate a hug and a kiss on the forehead, she started crying and was quite surprised at herself. She hugged Jeanie and had us all crying. She brought Jeanie and the kids some apples and bananas for the flight and long day ahead of them for their carry on luggage.

We finalized all the packing and Jeanie insisted she leave me with only two suitcases. Everything we have left here will fit pretty easily in 2 suitcases, but that leaves Jeanie with 6. She is worried about me with too much luggage and trying to hang onto 2 little latinos, who are not at all shy or afraid of strangers in the airports. We ended up being able to put one suitcase in another for her, and Emi and Nate will be a big help with luggage, but I still feel awful sending her with so much.

Joaquin and Jessica are really excited to be coming home and it’s nice to be able to finally tell them what day they will be flying. We can actually start counting down. They have been good but at times a little trying. I know they understand but yet there is so much unknown for them that you have to expect they will act up a little. But over all they are doing great!

Okay, well it’s late and we will be getting up early. Andres will be here at 6 to pick up part of the gang here. Thanks again for everyone’s love and prayers.

Oh and dad, you are going to love watching Jess and Joaquin eating hot wings (they probably will not want them hot…but). We have had chicken legs here a few times and that’s what we had tonight. I wish I had my camera on. They eat everything down to the bone. Tonight Jessica even started to eat the bone, I had to make her stop and hand it to me.

I didn’t have my camera on today at all, so these are the only pics we got, which we took this evening.

Are we there yet?

2008-05-08T22:58:00.005-04:00

Not much going on today. It rained off and on all morning. Both Jessica and Joaquin tried to see what would happen if they don’t listen to Mami today on a few occasions, they just needed a reminder I guess, but it was nothing big.

Here is Joaquin in time out on his bed, this is his pouty face.

Last night when we put the kids to bed Jessica asked to sleep with Joaquin. We told her no, that she still needed to sleep in her own bed. I set her in her bed and covered her up. She began to cry, not a fit, just crying. I don’t even know if there were tears. Anyway she fussed for a good 30 to 45 minutes and then all of the sudden stopped and very calmly said, “Ya (ja), Listo.” Then rolled over and went right to sleep. An English translation would basically be, “I’m sick of hearing myself and will now go to sleep,” or “Ok, enough of that, I’m ready to go to sleep now.” Jeanie and I just looked at each other and started laughing. Just proof that she was crying just to cry, nothing wrong really, she just wanted/needed to cry.

I don’t have many pics today either. The kids had a pillow fight and a new family arrived today and met their son, so there was a small party to welcome them. Other than that, we watched movies and just hung out. This morning I lost one of my contacts, it popped right out of my eye, so I will be in glasses the rest of my time here. And, well, I think that’s it really. Sorry. I think my brain was tired today, not much processing and not a lot of creativity.

We had Carmen explain to Jessica and Joaquin that we are still waiting on a few papers in order to take them to the US. Also, that Jeanie, Nate and Emi would be flying home on Saturday and we would go home a few days later. The both understood and didn’t have any questions really. Joaquin put on a frown for a few minutes but quickly popped out of it and is fine.

Then around 8:30 tonight Lucia called. She said she had one of the birth certificates in hand and the other is scheduled to arrive tomorrow (Friday). She said if she gets it by 10 as she expects, that she will call us and David will take us to the passport office to process the passports. But it has to all happen by noon or the passport office can’t help us until Monday. If all the cards fall right we will be home no later than Wednesday. There is a slight possibility of us coming home on Tuesday, but Lucia said to plan for Wed. We will just have to see how things go.

Emilee and Nate are so excited they are coming home. They should arrive at 6:45 pm Saturday in Cincinnati if they get on all the flights without any trouble. Then back to school on Monday. Emilee has dance on Tuesday, Nate has baseball practice Tuesday and Thursday and a baseball game on Wednesday. Coming home to “full speed ahead!”

Thank you all for your prayers and encouragement!

So good night from Bogota, just a few posts left from South America.

Sorry mom, Jeanie took a pic of me with the kids, but it was not so good. But here they are with Lucrecia.

News...Hope to be home NEXT Thursday

2008-05-07T21:50:00.008-04:00

Well, I don’t know what to say, we are just sitting and waiting. The morning was long and frustrating. Every time the phone rang our ears perked up in hopes it was for us. I have the rest of the story at the end.

I think everyone is starting to get a bit board with the same old stuff here at the house, the same park, ice cream and my creativity has run out. I feel really sorry for the families who are not with CHI that stay 6 to 8 weeks with school age kids. We went to the park again today with the beach balls. We decided to go to the sand pit first to change it up a bit. Then the kids and Tia Jeanie played with the beach balls for a while which was fun. On the way back we stopped at Juan Valdez so Tia Jeanie and Nate could get a coffee. It’s been great to see the real personality of Jessica coming out, she is a stinker.

So here is our funny Joaquin story of the day. Joaquin loves to stick his hind end out at us and so today we were at the park and Jeanie and I were sitting on the ground next to each other watching the kids. Joaquin comes over, turns his back to us, sticks his hind end to us and just stands there for a few seconds. Then he turns his head towards us, puts up his finger and says, “Espere!” (in English, Wait!) Once he tooted he took off running and giggling.

Then Nate was pulling Joaquin like a dead body by his feet. All the sudden Joaquin’s shoes popped off and Nate didn’t realize it, so he kept walking and apparently Nate had a hold of Joaquin’s pants too because he pulled them right off of the little guy. Joaquin thought it was so funny he wanted Nate to do it again. I told you he wasn’t shy. Imagine my little latino in the park in his tighty whities. Luckily I had the camera on and got a photo. At least we have lots of laughs with all this waiting.

Yesterday Jessica was talking about my favorite words. She said Mami’s favorite is “Knock it off!” and “No”, hmmm, not sure what that says about me. It started because we were teasing her that her favorite words were ahora (now) and Ya, sounds like ja (not sure of the spelling, but it means whatever she wants it to mean, like now, no more, already etc) Joaquin loves to say “todo la familia” (all of the family). It’s funny to hear their accent when they say words in English , I love it.

Also, Jessica tells everyone that tries to speak to us in Spanish that we speak English. Jessica and Joaquin are not shy at all with strangers, so it’s kind of funny when she announces to the world that we don’t speak Spanish. Pretty soon the shoe will be on the other foot and it won’t be so funny to her.

Instead of saying shoot or something similar, Jessica and Joaquin say “ah shhh” (or at least that’s what it sounds like). And when Joaquin toots he says, “ oof” and waves his hand in front of his nose and laughs. So today Uncle Brian sent word to Nate to teach Joaquin how to do an arm pit fart. So THANK YOU Tio Brian, Joaquin is learning the skill and thinks its hilarious. Also, Brian they call you Tio Braujan (spelled as it sounds) and Jeanie won’t let us fix the pronunciation because she thinks it’s funny.

Well there’s nothing else to do but laugh and make the best of what we have.

About 5:45 we couldn’t stand it anymore and I decided to all Lucia. The news was not good. She still doesn’t have the birth certificates and is hoping to get them tomorrow afternoon. So the best case scenario at this point according to Lucia is to fly home next Thursday. Yep that’s right, one more week, which will put us here for 5 weeks. Yes, I cried, then pulled it together. I think we are going to send Jeanie back with Emilee and Nate this weekend, Saturday. Then Jess, Joaquin and I will be home as soon as we can.

So here is the breakdown of what has to happen for us to come home. First we wait on the birth certificates. Once we have them in hand we go to the passport office to apply for the passport. But the passport office is closed on Friday. We will apply for the passports one day and go and pick them up the next morning. Once we have the passport in hand we will go for the VISAs which we will apply for in the morning and pick up later the same afternoon. The following day we will go to the Embassy doctor. Then we are free to come home. The only flight out of here for us is 9:30 in the morning each day. So if we get the birth certificates on Thursday or Friday our days will look like the following.
Saturday - Send Jeanie, Emi and Nate off with kisses and hugs
Sunday - Spend Mother’s Day with Jess and Joaquin by ourselves
Monday - Apply for Passport
Tuesday - Pick up passport and apply for the VISAs. Go back in the afternoon and pick
up the VISAs.
Wednesday - Go to the Embassy Doctor
Thursday - Fly home

Jeanie is believing for a miracle tomorrow morning, but it’s all in God’s hands. I don’t know what His plan is, but He has it under control. I will just keep believing and will know we will be home soon. It was just tough having our hopes up for coming home this weekend and now knowing we will be here another week, well, that was a tough pill to swallow.

Don’t worry, we’re keeping our chins up. We’ll be home soon!

Just Another Day in Paradise

2008-05-06T23:55:00.018-04:00

(Lots of pics at the end…smile)

The lice adventure last night was just that, an adventure. Jeanie started looking at the instructions on the box, which were in Spanish, and got on the computer to translate them so after dinner we could get started with treatment. Then at dinner we asked Lucrecia if we needed fresh pillows etc. After a few minute of us talking about how to treat poor Jessica, she said she would be in at 8:30 to come help us. Lice is so common here, it’s crazy. As it ended up Lucrecia actually worked on Jessica’s hair for us and explained everything. Jeanie and I worked really hard at trying to understand as much as we could. Jessica was as good as gold through the whole thing. Jeanie and I both noted that Jessica had obviously been through lice treatments more than once, she knew the routine.

Lucrecia told Jessica of the importance of her sleeping in one bed only and being careful to not pass the lice to us. Jessica totally understood. Jessica has not slept one night in her own bed. It was a fight at the beginning for various reasons. So she slept with Emilee at the beginning, then on the sofa, then with Joaquin. (Eric are you ready for this?) Last night she slept in her bed without a fuss and tonight too. Lucrecia had told her she needs to sleep in her bed because of the lice, then a few minutes before we went to bed Jeanie reminded her and Jessica seemed fine with it. So after we gave kisses and hugs she crawled right into her bed with no problem!!! I’m telling you we have a different child. Even just today a few things came up that normally would have been a fight, tears or a fit, and none of the above happened. She shot a few dirty looks and then got over “it.” I am so very proud of her! She is such a different kid than 2 weeks ago, or even a week ago. We will have to continue to check Jessica’s head, I did a comb through again this morning, just to check and will do so several times a day for the next little bit. We found another bug today so I treated her again tonight and will do so again the next two nights I think. She has been so good about it all. Tonight she was telling me what to do, as if she has done this a thousand times before. Poor thing.

On a brighter note, we woke up to beautiful sunshine! Finally! So after breakfast when Jessica and Jaoquin went to English with Carmen, Jeanie, Nate and Emi took off for Maku. Jeanie was sure to enjoy her shopping experience much more with out J and J anyway, it’s tough to keep their fingers off of everything. Nate probably should have stayed with me too, but he only broke on thing, they made Aunt Jeanie pay for it. But it gave Emi and Nate some time with Tia Jeanie. Tia Jeanie had a few words for Emi about sisterhood. Jeanie has been observing the sister relationship between Jessica and Emilee and analyzing just what’s going on. Both Jessica and Emilee like to be in charge and are used to being the oldest and the one with the responsibility. Even though Emi and Jessica get along great at times, they have great difficulty at other times. For Emilee it’s been really hard to fully understand the depth of Jessica and we have put a lot on her in our expectations of her being able to go above and beyond to help Jessica. As you can imagine it’s been tough for her, in a different country for weeks, becoming a young lady, and all the emotional pieces that just come along with adoption in general. Sometimes I am totally glad Emi and Nate were here for all of this, but at other times I think it would have been easier on them if we hadn’t brought them. However, it would have been more difficult for me. I guess that’s selfish. It’s been good for them to experience it all, but at the same time they have experienced a lot of “parenting” on our part for Jessica and Joaquin, which has not been easy for Emi and Nate. But again I have to say, I couldn’t be more proud of them, this has been a draining experience but yet so wonderful for them. They are true troopers and once we get home it will make it all a bit easier for Emi and Nate to handle. They will have their friends, their activities and everything familiar which will help off set some of the attention we have to give Jessica and Joaquin in their education, learning English and social behavior.

I was so anxious all day for a call from Lucia. I wanted to get out but was afraid she would call. We want the next few days to go quickly so we can travel by Friday. I don’t want to all try and get on a plane via standby on the weekend. But we’ll see. Lucia didn’t call today and it was silly for us to sit here all day, on a beautiful day, waiting for her to call. So we would go out for a bit and then come check in to see if we had any news, but nothing…all day.

After lunch we went to the park for a bit, then went to Crepes and Waffles. We were in and out all afternoon, so the afternoon went by quickly. It was so nice to enjoy some sunshine. Jeanie has been awesome to have here. She is helping me a lot with things with the kids. Just reiterating to the kids the importance of having each other as siblings, giving us stuff to laugh at and being a great help to me in general. I feel bad she is not with her girls but am loving having her here with us. Jessica and Joaquin have bonded to her already so well that I can’t wait to see them at home with the rest of the family. Joaquin and Nate had us rolling all day, they are so funny it makes our stomachs hurt.

I can’t resist telling this story about Joaquin from last night. It was a bit stressful dealing with lice, so he was a good stress relief. He came out of the shower with the towel around him and stood right in front of Tia Jeanie and said (in Spanish) “Now presenting, pause, ME!” and he drops his towel and starts cracking up. We doubled over in laugher, the boy doesn’t have a shy bone in his body. The staff here call him loco or Hurricane Joaquin, you can’t help but laugh at him, he’s a mess!

So our fingers are crossed to get the birth certificates tomorrow!

Tia Jeanie and Nate scrap'n over water balloons

A typical Joaquin hand gesture...thumbs up

Here is Nate with Joaquin on his shoulders, but Joaquin kept leaning over to give Nate kisses

Here is Joaquin checking out a bug on a tree. He has a "thing" with bugs, lights, napkins, and bananas...just to name a few

Another tree pic, they love to climb trees

Emi was sitting in the shade at the park and this dog came over to join her. Dogs, unleashed, are in the park, lots of them. They are always well groomed and well behaved.

Joaquin decorating Tia Jeanie with flowers

A little time in the sandbox

Cinco De Mayo

2008-05-05T18:46:00.009-04:00

Well things were pretty calm on the streets in our section of Bogota today. I expected lots of people, music and parties, but everything is closed and the streets are empty. It’s rainy so maybe everyone is just inside, but I expected the city to look much different. I imagine downtown is different.

So this morning we decided to take the girls to get their hair fixed at the same place I had taken the boys last week. As soon as we walked in it seemed they were fighting for who got to do Emilee’s hair, they just love the redheads. The girls looked at some pics to decide just how they wanted their hair done. They also asked if the girls wanted their hair cut and Emi said no but Jessica said she wanted her bangs cut. We double checked to be sure we all were understanding right and sure enough she wanted them cut. I was kind of glad. As they started to do Jessica’s hair they told me she had lice. We noticed she had been scratching but she doesn’t rinse her hair well so we thought it was the shampoo. I had checked her head a few times looking for the white eggs, but never saw anything. Apparently it’s not too bad, but she has started with lice. They were still willing to do her hair, which I was surprised. As soon as we left we went to the drug store to buy some treatments. I bought enough for all of us. Lice is so common here so every drug store has treatment kits that are very potent and you only need to apply it once. We came back and told the staff at Zuetana so they could be aware and change our sheets and pillows etc. We are waiting until tonight to treat our heads, we hated to take the girls hair down so soon after just having it done. Aunt Jeanie treated the girls to the hair adventure. It was only about 12 for each of them, not bad at all.

The sparkles are glitter not lice...smile

We came back and Tia Jeanie played puzzles with Joaquin and Nate while Jessica and Emilee played on the computer before we ate lunch. Lunch was pretty good and so was dinner last night. Jeanie made a comment that so far so good as far as the food goes here at Zuetana. Nate’s told her “You just have beginner’s luck!”

It’s sprinkled off and on all morning so we grabbed some umbrellas and took off to make a few stops and get out of the house for a bit. Any little bit out helps to break up the long afternoons here. So we stopped at the Juan Valdez shop just around the corner, but it was closed, I didn’t even think about the possibility of Juan Valdez being closed. Then we walked down to Maku and it too was closed. Shucks! We definitely didn’t want to go back to the casa yet so we decided to walk to a different Juan Valdez to see if it was open. Luckily it was, so we got a few drinks and looked around the shop to kill some time. We then took the long way home just to stay out and get some fresh air. Almost everything was closed so there wasn’t much else to do. Plus they cleaned the carpets in the main house at Zuetana so we had to keep the kids in out all afternoon. It’s tough to keep the kids in our casa for any length of time, so when we got back we put a movie in. to help pacify them.

We saw a lady who had built herself a shelter on her cart out of cardboard, and a little boy begging for money as well as a family outside of a store with her kids begging, as well as the garbage pickers. It breaks your heart, especially to know that Jessica and Joaquin came from that very situation. Every time I see kids on the streets I envision Jessica and Joaquin at a young age doing the same thing, it kills me.

Poor Jeanie has had to deal with the rainy weather here. It’s been more rainy the last few days than it has been our whole trip. She’s been a good sport, she’s just glad to be here with the kids and I, but I want her to be able to experience some of the life and culture here.

Jessica has been great for the last 3 days, no being ugly, no fussing, no whining. So she earned her DS and has had fun figuring it out.

I am sending this post early because tonight is going to be hectic treating everyone’s heads before they get a shower and trying to visit everyone on the webcams.

Love to all of you! Pray we get the birth certificates back tmw so we can get things going and get home!!! Today marks day 25.

These were balloons on sticks that Joaquin put together to make weights. So here he is lifting his balloon weights.

Day 1 with Tia Jeanie

2008-05-04T22:44:00.007-04:00

Aunt Jeanie is here the kids are in love with her! She was here by 10 last night. I wasn’t expecting her until about 10:30 or so we were really excited to see her earlier than we thought. Jessica and Joaquin were already asleep and Emi and I were waiting in the lobby. Jeanie and I had talked about how Emi and Nate would be ready for a piece of home by now. I thought Nate would tackle her with a hug he would be so excited, but actually when she walked through the gate it was me who snuck the first hug from home. Emi and Nate got a little wound up and showed Tia Jeanie around the place.

We hit the sack and caught so me zzzzzs. So this morning Jessica woke up first and it took about 1 minute for her to snuggle up to Tia Jeanie with hugs and kisses, she has been by Jeanie’s side ever since. Joaquin woke up not long after and he too warmed right up to Tia Jeanie. They were so cute this morning. I wasn’t sure if they would be shy at first or just plain excited. You would have thought they had known Tia Jeanie forever. But, to the family, beware, Jeanie already has them brainwashed, they call her their favorite.

Anyone at home feeling a little jealous?

I heard it start raining about 4 am and was hoping it would stop by the time we got up. It did slow up and even stop a bit after breakfast so we called Peggy and Sofia to see if they wanted to go to the market. We got the strollers together and off we went. Just about the time we got to the market it started raining again. We got an ice cream, I know, big surprise, and stood under some shelter until it slowed up again.

So we took back off and again it started to rain. We didn’t bring enough umbrellas so Jeanie and I got soaked, really soaked. Peggy, Emi and Sofia tried to stay some dry by standing under a small tent. Jeanie and I stuck it out, it was the only chance Jeanie would have go to the market. The kids were such great sports, because we were very wet and cold. We decided to get a taxi to go back, because I don’t think we would have made it otherwise, the rain just wouldn’t quit. Peggy, Sofia, Emi and Nate went in one, back to Peggy’s Zuetana. Jeanie, Jessica, Joaquin and myself found another taxi and went to our place. We changed clothes, dried our hair, and then went over to get Emi and Nate from Peggy. Peggy then treated us to pizza from Dominos. Thank you Peggy, you are so sweet!!

By the time we got back, around 3, I would say Aunt Jeanie had been given at least about 20 hugs and kisses, so look out family, I told you they were affectionate. They obviously feel the love and are thriving on it. Wait till they get with the rest of you…oh boy! Joaquin showed his funny self to Jeanie today, and Jessica was just as sweet as could be. Jeanie said she felt like she was well prepared in knowing what to expect in who they were, so I feel good that you all will also be well prepared when you meet them. They are doing great and have been just as good as can be.

Aunt Jeanie brought some more videos, so Emi and Nate spent some quiet time with a movie in English up in the loft while Jeanie and I caught up on email and Jessica and Joaquin watches Spirit and Kids Spanish music videos, from Tia Jeanie. Also a lady Jeanie works with sent the kids each a gift. All of them were so excited. Joaquin had to carry his truck with him today and Jessica put on her necklace to match her outfit.

The weather here is high fifties to the upper sixties. Jessica and Joaquin always think they need a jacket but the rest of us are okay in short sleeves. Native Colombians walk around on cloudy days in heavy coats, scarves, hats and gloves. They think babies need to be completely bundled up and will tell you your baby is cold if they aren’t totally covered. We just wear short sleeves and take a jacket on cloudy days.

Tonight we were putting the kids to sleep and Jeanie was just ending a webcam call with Matt and Maddie. Joaquin was turning on and off the lights. So when Jeanie got off of the computer, Jessica was trying to tell us something that neither of us understood. When we don’t understand, Jessica breaks into Charades. So we told her we didn’t understand and she went right into Charades. It took us a minute but then Jeanie and I looked at each other and said at the same time, “Oh Tia Jeanie needs the light on to talk on the webcam!” And Jessica got a big smile and said “Si, Si”, like she knew what we were saying in English. Another good laugh.

Oh and Jessica is fascinated with Jeanie’s long hair. And we got to see the dogs on the webcam tonight. I can’t wait to get my hands on them, they were happy to be home. Eric said the dogs kept going to the kids rooms looking for them.

We are all exhausted tonight, I think it’s the gloomy weather the last few days, so off to sleep we go. I think Jeanie is exhausted more from laughing at the kids than from the traveling. It was a good day, and very nice to have Tia Jeanie with us. Tia Jeanie makes us laugh as much as the kids, so it was nice to have a fresh perspective and a reminder to us to enjoy the little things.

Our Last Saturday in Bogota?

2008-05-03T18:49:00.007-04:00

Last night I was running a slight fever again and Sweet Lucrecia was sure to take care of me. She saw at dinner that I must not have been feeling well and questioned what was wrong. I was coughing some and so it wasn´t so hard to figure out. Then just about time to go to be we hear a knock on the door. It was sweet Lucrecia with a hot cup of something for me. At dinner she ordered me to zip up my sweater to keep my chest warm. Then she told me what the concoction was she made, I have no idea what it was, and told me to drink it hot just before I laid down to sleep. Then she corded me to wear socks to bed and cover everything but my face and let myself sweat. She went on for a minute or two, it was so sweet. So just before I laid down I drank down what she gave me, put some socks on and started to lay down. Then Jessica comes over to be sure I have followed all orders from Lucrecia. She checked to see if I had socks on and retold me what Lucrecia had said. It was so very cute. Sure enough this morning I was feeling better. My cough is less but productive, Thanks Lucrecia!

When the kids woke up this morning they were all so excited. Joaquin went straight to the picture book and said Tia Jeanie and pointed to her picture. He asked me if she was on the plane. Then Jessica counted the days we have with Tia Jeanie here. When she gets to Thursday she crosses her fingers and then whispers Friday or won´t say Friday at all. We told them we hope to fly home Friday, but she has it in her mind that we may have a change for Thursday.

We just played around this morning. Jessica became a Doctor and checked us all out.

Then we played restaurant. Jessica was the server and Emi was the cook. She came around and took all of our orders then turned them into Emi. The boys ordered pizza, so Jessica played like we were at Archie's Pizza and went thru the motions with the boys. It was nice to see them all play together and have a good time.

I told them we could have movie time in the upstairs room on the big TV. So we watched Lilo and Stitch, and everyone was still and quiet for the whole movie. Nice break for Mami!
Emi and Joaquin intent on the movie

Then Emi hung some signs around the room to welcome Tia Jeanie and then we went to lunch.

At lunch Joaquin decided to test the waters a bit. I knew he would when Eric left and today was the day. It wasn’t major, but he knows mom is serious and he has to listen to me. We had food that he has had before, but he refused to eat and cried because the Senora gave him soup. Then he put a few pieces of meat in his mouth and spit it on the floor. So I asked him to pick it up and he refused. I told him he would have 5 min on his bed if he didn’t pick it up. He still refused, after several times of trying to get him to oblige. He still refused to eat and so I told him he would not be able to play the whole time at the park if he didn’t eat. He gave me this infamous shoulder shrug of his to say he didn’t care. So needless to say he did his time on his bed, then we loaded up to the park and he had to sit for the first 15 minutes, which turned into 20 because he wouldn’t stop crying and had to stop crying before he could play. Once she stopped I gave him a kiss and asked him if he understood. He said, “yes, I have to listen to mami.” Then we had a great time at the park, all the kids played well together, better than I have seen yet.

Each time Jess would see an airplane this afternoon she stopped in her tracks and asked about Tia Jeanie. After the park we went back to Mimo’s for ice cream and some play time in the balls and on the slides. Of course Joaquin was starved and wolfed his down. They had a great time playing. It was just about time to go and Joaquin and Jessica went down a tube that goes to the bottom floor that leads to outside. I was standing at the loft where the larger play are is and was watching them. Jessica went all the way down and straight to the steps to come back up stairs. Joaquin put on his latino strut and started out the door. I called his name and he didn’t turn around. He was going slow, just being silly, he didn’t understand the danger. After Jessica and I called his name a few times, I flew down the steps and snatched him up. I called for all the kids to get their shoes on, it was time to go anyway. Jessica said “Ah Joaquin, you need to listen to Mami!” Joaquin didn’t fuss much, he knew.

On the way out of Mimo’s we ran into another Chi family. I hadn’t seen their baby yet so I was great to see them for a few min. Too bad I have a cough, I didn’t want to get too close to her.

We headed home and realized we had been out for over 3 hours. A nice afternoon out of the house.

Also, Lucia called and said she was heading up a trip to the park we had already been to. I told her we would have to pass, because we had already been there. Plus I think Jeanie will like going to the market anyway.

Jeanie made all of her flights on stand by and is flying first class to Bogota! What a treat!

This evening should be pretty uneventful, just dinner, baths, put the little ones to bed and Emi, Nate and I will wait up to see Tia Jeanie. She is to land around 8:45 so I expect to see her some time between 10 or 11. Lucia just called to double check the time for Andres to pick her up.

Tomorrow if the weather is good we are off to the market.
From Bogota…we are really counting down now!

3 Weeks and Counting Down

2008-05-02T21:43:00.004-04:00

Happy Friday, hopefully just one week left for us!

All is well here, just a normal day. Jessica and Joaquin had English this morning and were so excited to go. They go upstairs which is a loft kind of place, so I stood down in the open lobby area for a minute so I could hear them. They asked a lot of questions and it sounded like Jessica was a bossy tail with Joaquin. My feeling was right, because when it was over, Carmen said that next week she would rather have them separately because Jessica just wants to tell Joaquin what to do the whole time. She said they were doing well but have trouble sitting still and listening. This was good and bad news. Good in that I know it’s not just us, but bad that they need to learn this skill. Carmen said, I don’t want to be “rude” and tell them to stay seated. See what I mean about no discipline here. She thinks it’s rude to tell them to sit down. Ohhhh, they are in for a rude awakening when they get to the US. I have a time trying to keep Joaquin seated at meal time, but Jessica caught on pretty quickly.

A family from the other house came over today for their English lesson too. The girl and her mom fly out tmw, they are from Columbus. So when the lesson was over we got together for a few min to say good bye and Carmen interpreted some questions the little girl had for her mom about the flight and leaving etc. Jessica sat very intently, listening to every word that was being said. I think it was good for her and might have answered some of her own questions.

Everyone is excited about Aunt Jeanie coming tmw night. I told Jessica and Joaquin that she would arrive after they went to sleep and she would be here in the morning when they woke up. So they wanted to know just where she would sleep and pulled out our picture book to show me her picture. And Uncle Brian’s pic, but the say Brian really weird, it’s funny. They really enjoy looking at the book having me repeat everyone’s names. They wanted me to cut out a pic of them to add to the book. Something I haven’t thought about. I told them all our pics are on the computer and I don’t have one on paper of them. Then they remembered we had passport and visa pics of them in the safe and wanted to use those. I told them we needed those pics for them to be able to go to the US, so they dropped that idea real quick.

After lunch we took off for Crepes and Waffles to meet a few families from the other house. The little girl who is leaving with her mom wanted Todo Taco for lunch and then Crepes and Waffles one more time, so Peggy called to see if I wanted to go with them. Thanks Peggy! It was nice to see some friendly faces and of course to get some incredible ice cream. I forgot my camera…shucks. In my ice cream I got a little paper umbrella and gave it to Joaquin, because Jessica’s ice cream had one too. On the way back it started to rain and Joaquin asked Nate to pick him up so they could use his little umbrella. They were being silly, I wish I had my camera.

I was so proud of Jessica and Joaquin. The are starting to understand how to behave in a restaurant. They knew the routine today and we so well behaved you would have thought they had been with us forever. When we left the house they both grabbed my hand, knowing the routine. At the restaurant as I was paying, they told the waitress they were going to the US in an airplane in just one week. She looked at me and said, she knew it had to be adoption with our red hair, we didn’t look anything alike. So we giggled. Then on the way back Joaquin was willing to hold Nate’s hand. I had planned to go to the park, in spite of the mud, but it was raining a little so we came back “home.” One the way back, as we were crossing the street, almost completely across, a car started to turn toward us. So fearless Joaquin puts his hand up to the car and shouts (in Spanish) “Stop Senor!” Nate was dragging him the rest of the way across the road. Oh boy, they keep me laughing. I turned to look at the guy in the car and even he was laughing.

Jessica tested the waters just a little today, just to see if I would enforce rules like daddy did, but nothing major at all. I am amazed at how far they have come. I know I have said it before, but it’s so true. If you could see first hand at how they were 3 weeks ago and see them now, they are really different kids. I can’t even fathom what they have been through and how they have coped for all this time and then to be put in a family and to learn the ins and outs of how a family works and to figure out what is okay and what is not…I really can’t fathom it all. Jessica called me Senora a few times yesterday on accident and caught herself, then called Carmen Mami today on accident. She catches herself so I know she is learning, but I feel sorry for her really, it’s hard to figure out. So what is a Mami anyway? She has no idea, but I think she is starting to catch on. Joaquin is doing better now with calling only me Mami, I haven’t heard him call anyone Mami for a long time now.

A few tidbits about Jessica, Joaquin, Emi and Nate…
Joaquin does not like to be woke up at all, he like to wake up on his own. Jess gets right up and gets to business. Jessica, if you can get her to try something (food) she generally likes it. Joaquin could live on fruit I think, especially bananas and apples, but loves all kinds of melon too. He will eat a banana an hour if we would let him. Jessica loves television, and Joaquin seems to love music. Jessica likes her clothes comfy and doesn’t care if they match. Joaquin loves to use his imagination and Jessica likes games. Jessica is going to be a major Daddy’s girl and is going to give Emi a run for her money. Joaquin is going to look up to Nate and want to be just like him, they will be great buds at some point. Both are smart and like to learn and both have a true beauty about them when they let it shine. Oh and they love to aggravate each other. I most certainly can’t imagine our lives with out them after only 3 weeks. It’s amazing to me how that happens. Emi is doing well but has moments where she doesn’t understand why Jessica doesn’t have to follow all the rules like she and Nate. We’ve tried to explain we can’t fix everything at once, it takes time, but I don’t think she gets it totally. You know she had this fantasy idea of being a big sister, she had no idea, no matter how much we thought we prepped her, how difficult it would be at first. But it’s not even been a month. Nate takes everything as a grain of salt and just minds himself. He is a very good boy and does as he is asked without moaning. Emi does too, she just gets aggravated if things don’t always go well. They will both be glad to get home and on their own turf, but have been real troopers here. I couldn’t be any prouder of both of them, and I mean that 100%!

Why am I thankful today? Because our flight to Atlanta is only 4 hours and 45 minutes, then just 1 hour and 45 min to Cinti. The Germans left and their flight is 11 hours to Spain then another 2 to Germany…Oh I am glad I live in the US. Joaquin had to give his little friend a kiss and then asked if he could give his motorcycle to Diaro for the plane ride. Then when the taxi came Jaoquin wanted to help them with their bags and had to stand on the sidewalk to see them off. I laid my hand on Jaoquin’s chest when I was talking to him while they were loading up and his heart was pumping out of his chest. His friend gave him one big hug just before he got in the taxi and we had to stand there until the taxi was completely out of sight. I can only imagine what was going through Joaquin’s little mind.

Thanks Margie for the idea about making some welcoming things for Aunt Jeanie. Emi got board this afternoon and took you up on your idea. A little paper and some crayons can go a long way. You have some great comments for us and I love the yearbook idea. you’re the best!!

Well that’s about it for today. Thanks for the emails letting me know mom is okay.

We plan to hit the park tmw for a while, hopefully the weather is okay, if not we may get ice cream at McDonalds so the kids can play in play land or something. It’s nice to even get out for an hour or so, just to break up the day a bit. Or maybe if it rains we will make water balloons and get real wet, just for fun.

Sorry, this is it for photots. We only took 5 pics today...oops

Another Day in Bogota

2008-05-01T21:28:00.017-04:00

So today starts a new wait, the wait for the birth certificates to be changed and sent back to Bogota so we can complete the rest of the process and get home. Nate and I had a bit of homesickness last night. I think just knowing Eric was home in our own bed got us thinking. I really haven’t longed to be home to much really, I think we have been to focused here to think about it. But knowing Eric was home got our brains churning. No tears last night, we were just kind of jealous he was home. However, I can’t say there weren’t any tears today, from me. Maybe it was homesickness, maybe it’s just that you have to let the stress out some times, but all is back to normal now. Feeling much better now that we are settling in for the night. Sorry mom for crying on you the day before surgery and to Eric on his first day home. Just a small melt down, but really, I am all better now.

Joaquin got his DS lite today and thinks it's very cool. The DS was the gift we promised if they were well behaved for Emi yesterday. The afternoon was hectic, but we promised Joaquin just after breakfast today that he could have it. Once again Jessica knew exactly what was going on, mostly because Joaquin reminded her she was muy mal (very bad) yesterday for Emi. She didn’t even make a fuss about it. We also told her that if she could be well behaved today and nice to her siblings that tmw morning she could have her regalo (gift). Then we played bingo and worked on colors, animals and shapes. It’s a leap frog game that’s really cool. We hadn't pulled that game out yet, so it was new for them, they really liked it.

Nate has been begging for a haircut, and I felt very confident in being able to go out with them. The place is just a block or two away. Once I told Joaquin we were going to get Nate's hair cut, he wanted his done too. The place down the road is awesome, they have a whole separate place for kids, it's unreal. Someone should steal this idea for the states, it was awesome. The boys thought they looked really hot, and had green hairspray in their hair. Joaquin's is kind of spiked. I didn't take enough money for Emi and Jess but they could have gotten their hair braided and fixed, I may take the girls tomorrow. Take a look at these photos, I know so many hair stylists, one of you should really think about this, it was only 8 bucks for each of the boys!

I love this pic!

It rained all afternoon with a few rumbles of thunder so we were stuck inside. Just playing around and getting our daily Shrek fix, ok not a fix for all of us but for Jess and Joaquin. It did stop for just a bit, long enough to get on the webcam out on the patio. But at dinner it started pouring it was a real hard peaceful rain, I loved it.

This is how Jessica and Joaquin like to play memory. The coffee table has a glass top, so Joaquin looks from underneath to show us where the matches are

Nate's last day with his friend Jan (Yan)

Our last day with Diro, we did lots of puzzles

Emi and Jessica being creative on a rainy afternoon. The spelled their names with pipe cleaners

I promise, Joaquin did this to himself

Sweet Lucricia saw I was not having a very good day emotionally and made us a very special yummy treat a little before dinner. She then got onto the kiddos and told them all they better be good and give me lots of hugs and kisses. She even gave me several hugs and would just come check on me from time to time. I love her.

Okay, now for a few odds and ends.

Mom, Jessica does have beautiful hair. She is trying to let her bangs grow out and wants it long, so it’s kind of a mess because she always wants in in a ponytail but her bangs don’t go back, but it is so pretty when she leaves it down. Also, Mom, we will be praying for your surgery tmw and a quick recovery. And thank you to you, Aunt Jo and Uncle Bud for going after Eric at the airport in the middle of the night.

The Germans leave tomorrow afternoon so we are anxious to see what family will be coming. I hope it’s not another French family, they have been kind of rude to our kids and are not friendly at all. They only talk to each other and make it known they don’t really like us or the Germans. Oh well.

And last but certainly not least a note from Eric:
I wanted to take a minute an say some very important “Thank you” ‘s today. I will not remember everyone on this post, so please forgive me.
Thank you…
· For Missy Bitner for the tickets to fly and keeping everyone informed as I was boarding the airplanes.

· For Pam (Mom) Aunt Jo and Uncle Bud for waiting for me as a welcoming committee at the Airport at 1:00 in the morning, and taking me home.

· For Uncle Matt, Uncle Brian and all the others who have been mowing and weed eating.

· For Grandpa Ross, Donn (Dad), Pam (Mom), Uncle Matt and all the Balzer’s who re-worked the sidewalks, the mulch, the bushes, the flowers, and the statues of children and the birdbath.

· For Uncle Matt and Pam (Mom) for keeping an eye on the house each day, bringing in the mail, feeding the fish and cat, and watering the plants.

· For Pam (Mom) and Grandpa Ross for the great job on the cleaning the house and rearranging the Florida Room. It looks great!

· For Uncle Bud and Aunt Jo for watching our dogs at there house (and letting our dogs swim in their pool.)

· For Colleen Lutts who allowed me to rearrange part of her day today, so I could get a haircut right after Uncle Matt and I went out for American Fast Food at Lunch today. Thank you Colleen, You are the BEST HAIRSTYLIST… and even though it is one day late… “Happy National HairStylist Day!”

· For all friends and family who have prayed, talked, emailed, commented on the blog, called, and encouraged in so many ways. You are all the best…

And I thank God for each and everyone of you,
With much Love,
Eric

Jessica and Joaquin offically Hollis'

2008-04-30T21:12:00.007-04:00

I promise there are a few pics after this windy journal...

I got up bright and early this morning, just about 15 min after Eric left. I wanted to be ready by the time the kids got up, because there is no confining them to the room while I am in the shower. They slept in a bit which was nice. It was great to sit in a room with 4 peaceful sleepers. Just the peace on their faces while they sleep shows me that they are doing well and feel safe and comfortable with us. Plus it was nice to have a few quiet minutes to myself. I have no idea how they sleep with me coughing and sniffling all night long, but they all sleep right through it. Everyone woke up in a really good mood and every time they heard a plane this morning they said “Papi” then counted the days we think we have left. The first plane Joaquin heard he ran out the door in his pajamas and watched the plane. He came back in and said “I see Papa in avion”. Nate replied with “That was really good Spanglish!” At 9:35 Emi gathered up Jessica and Joaquin to go outside and watch for Papi’s plane. Joaquin was in the bathroom but as soon as he heard the plane he came running outside with his pants down and toilet paper in hand. Everyone around cracked up at him, Joaquin could have cared less that we were laughing at him.

We knew Eric made his flight on standby status because at 9:30 Andres the driver showed up with Eric’s luggage. He said Eric got on his flight, but they held his luggage and didn’t send it because he was on standby. Not sure why standby status has anything to do with his luggage, but we will have to be sure and take care of that glitch before the rest of us travel home. Yikes, so that means we have two more suitcases to lug when we travel home. Luckily I don’t think there is anything in the luggage Eric can’t live without. One of them is full of souvenirs and the other is half souvenirs and half clothes. We are going to look real cute with all this luggage and me and Jeanie trying to lug it all. We have to check it in Colombia then claim it in Atlanta for customs and re check it again. So the two of us with 4 kids and 8 suitcases plus Jeanie’s one and all of our carry on bags is going to be a riot. If this is the worst thing that happens we are in good shape.

I told Jessica she could play on the computer after breakfast. I have Emilee log her on to girly games and then she goes from there. Well this morning she asked Emi to sit in the chair with her and said “mi turno, Emilee turno, mi turno, Emilee turno” In other words, let’s take turns, or for Emilee it meant I am willing to play with you nicely. She then reached over and gave Emi a big kiss and hug. Emilee hasn’t been more excited this whole trip. She looked and me and said “I think we’ve had a break through!” I about cried.

We lost internet connection here at the house today for a while. I was starting to worry a bit because I needed to email Eric’s phone to let him know not to hunt for his luggage in Atlanta for customs. We finally got internet back so I did email him, but it looks like his phone is full and may not be getting messages. My mom tried to call him but it didn’t seem to work either. We finally got a hold of him and he already knew about the luggage. I guess the plane was full that they couldn’t get his luggage on due to the weight limit on the plane. So that’s why we ended up with the luggage here.

Lucia called this morning at 10:40 and said David our interpreter would be here in 10 minutes to pick me up to go sign the paperwork. We were so anxious to take the next step and sign the final decree. The final decree makes Jessica and Joaquin real Hollis’, so today is very a very exciting day. Their birth certificates will officially be changed to Joaquin Alexander Hollis Balzer and Jessica Hollis Balzer. It’s law here to tack on the mother’s maiden name at the end, but once in America that will go away. We plan to give Jessica my middle name when we return to the states. So she will be Jessica Ann Hollis.

This part may be a bit lengthy. So stay with me…hee hee. I knew I couldn’t take the kids with me to sign the papers, and so because we had such a good morning I felt pretty good about leaving them with Emilee. Zuetana offers babysitting for thinks like this, so I told the front desk that Emi knows the rules and hopefully they are all okay, but to keep an eye the situation and not to hesitate to intervene. I laid down the ground rules, no computer, but TV and a movie are fine, we blew up the beach balls to play with and pulled out a bilingual memory game. The plan was to be gone for about an hour. I told the Jessica and Joaquin that Emilee was in charge and that if they were good they could have pop with lunch and a very special gift this afternoon. They both told me they understood and off I went.

So David and I loaded in a taxi and off to downtown Bogota. I knew immediately why no kids could go. The streets are packed with people and you have to try and weave in and out of people. Plus the court area is cramped and small, not a good place for kids. We saw Oscar just outside of the building and he waved us in. He said at this time of day we would have to wait 20 minutes for the elevator and would have to take the steps to the 7th floor. I started praying right away. I am used to doing 4 flights, from working at the college, but 7!!! Well needless to say you can see I am still alive. So we went to this little cove in a hallway with two windows, court 22 and court something else, I forget which number. So all these lawyers are waiting in line for their turn and Oscar goes right through the door into the office behind the window and waves me in with him. He grabs our paperwork and looks over everything before I sign. Well, he found two names misspelled and so we had to redo two pieces of paper. Oscar just told me to sit tight and he and David took off back down the steps. They came back a few minutes later, via the 7 flights of stairs and back into the office. I was so thankful he told me to sit tight. Then off again they went down the steps. Again 5 minutes later they came tracking back up the steps a sweaty mess. David was about to pass out. I felt kind of bad just sitting there, but they had it under control. We waited for another good 45 minutes before we were ready to leave. So all in all our trip ended up being 3 hours instead of 1 hour.

The whole time I was worried about how the kids were doing with Emi and Nate. When I got out of the taxi at the door I didn’t even have to ring the bell, the lady working the front desk was looking out the peephole and opened the door pronto, before I was even out of the taxi. I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Joaquin and Jessica came running at me and hanging on so I could barely walk. I told them it would only be an hour, so 3 hours was a bit of a surprise for everyone. As I entered the door the entire house was waiting for me telling me how bad Jessica had been for everyone. Oh how embarrassing. Emilee was quite tattered, but still standing. Apparently Joaquin checked the peephole every 5 minutes for the last hour and half. He asked the frond desk lady if I decided to get on a plane and go with Eric. She explained that I was working on the paperwork and that it’s just taking longer than we expected. Jessica however thought the entire 3 hours would be a time to see how bad she could be and even rebelled against all the adults at Zuetana. She screamed, not crying, just screamed every word she said, turned up full blast everything that had a volume button, crawled thru windows to other peoples rooms, broke a glass on purpose, hit and smacked Emilee and Nate, She ran wildly through the place, refused to eat her lunch and basically just refused to listen and obey. So knew she was in big trouble when she saw all the adults telling on her. Even Joaquin gave me a funny face, shook his head, pointed to Jessica and gave me a big thumbs down. Then he went on to tell me just how good he was for Emilee and gave me a big thumbs up. He pranced around for a long time like a proud peacock and even went over and gave Emi a great big kiss.

It was past lunch time, but they saved me some food, so I told Jessica I was not happy with her and she knew it. I told her she had to sit with me while I ate and no computer, no TV, and no movies for the rest of the day. Joaquin asked for his afternoon candy and I told him how proud I was of him and that he could pick out a piece of candy, he gave me a high five. Jessica watched the whole deal and didn’t even budge, not once asking for a piece for herself. She knew she was in for it if she acted up with me. She has been an angel ever since and hasn’t asked for anything special. She had to sit with me for a good long time on the couch, drawing, looking at books, etc, but no funny business. Holy cow! There will be an early bed time tonight, Emi and Nate deserve some alone time on the computer or watching a movie or whatever they want. Nate’s only comment was “I know one thing for sure, I will never be a babysitter. She was worse than we have ever seen.” They both said Joaquin could not have been any better, and I believe them, he was so proud of himself.

Later Joaquin asked for pop, and I had to say yes, he was sure to tell Jessica she couldn’t have any because she didn’t behave and gave her a thumbs down. I had to tell him to hush and let me take care of Jessica. But really Jesscia already knew and it didn’t bother her at all that we all had pop and not her. She’s a smart cookie, I think she figured out the pecking order today. Emi is the oldest and is boss when mom says she’s boss. But my real concern was that she wouldn’t listen to any of the adults in the house. Aye Aye Aye…smile.

It’s really kind of funny now that I am looking back on the day, but at the moment I was utterly embarrassed.

Okay, enough of that.

Today there was a big soccer game between Colombia and Venezuela. It was to reiterate the peace between the countries. It was all over the news for the Colombian people to be extra polite and on their best behavior today, which I thought was funny. The Colombian people are very competitive when it comes to soccer, so you can imagine how on edge the city was. Needless to say we didn’t venture out today, just in case of trouble. There is another big match coming up against a huge rival, Brazil, so the city will be one big party that day. We were offered to go to a match last week and we thought about sending the boys, but the tickets were $60 each and we decided against it. We would have loved to have gone, but no one else from the Zuetana houses were going, and we didn’t want to go alone. Brian, we did get you and Brandon jerseys, they are not just like the National team, but nice, but it’s the best we could do without going today to the game and buying an original from a vendor. Can you imagine me trying to buy a jersey from a vendor in the midst of chaos with 4 kids and little Spanish, plus we would have had to take a taxi…no thanks.

Okay, one last tid bit regarding our time line. Oscar our lawyer has friends all over the place. He was going to fax our paperwork to the two birth cities so his lawyer friends could get started on the birth certificates. He will then overnight the official paperwork today to them. Once they cities have received the official paperwork they will send us the revised birth certificates. Ocscar said his friends in both cities work fast and should be able to get things done by Friday, which means with the holidays, we hope to be ready for the next step sometime on Tuesday. Our goal is to be home on Friday, 4 weeks exactly. We will not have a definite idea until we get the birth certificates. We will let you all know for sure early next week.

Tia Jeanie will be coming down soon and Nate especially is really looking forward to that. Looks like Saturday or Sunday she will be here.

Also, Eric has been stuck in Atlanta. He hopes to get on 9:45 pm flight to Cincinnati, hopefully that works out.

Tomorrow should be a lot less exciting…I hope! …again I smile!

Jessica and Joaquin building what they think their house looks like in the US with popcicle sticks

Emilee winding down with a hot cup of tea after dinner

What a sister, after a long day Emilee is still willing to share with her sister

This explains Joaquin...see what we are dealing with???

And last but not least, here is Nate pretending to "toot" out popcicle sticks to make us all laugh. Jessica and Joaquin thought it was the funniest thing ever.

SENTENCIA!!!

2008-04-29T22:48:00.003-04:00

Yes, it’s true, we are supposed to sign our final decree papers tomorrow afternoon if all goes well. Lucia is going to call in the morning to confirm a time. Eric leaves early in the morning for the airport and my sister is making plans to come in the next few days. We still don’t plan to be home until next Friday, but we’ll see. Because the kids were not born in Bogota we will have to wait a few extra days for their birth certificates to be changed in their birth cities and then be sent to Bogota. Jessica and Joaquin were born in two different cities, but were found in Bogota when the government took them in, so that’s why the adoption process actually happens here. BUT we also have two holidays, Thursday and Monday, so we basically have 5 days of nothing happening. We will see what Lucia says about the turn around time in the birth cities, apparently they have connections and we hope for a quick turn around. I tell you CHI has connections. Today when we went to the notary with David for Eric to sign his last paper, there was a line out the door and David took Eric right to the front of the line like he owned the place. Now that’s service!

We spent the morning hanging out around the casa. The kids had an English lesson at 11 and had a great time. Joaquin came down the steps giving me a thumbs up and a big grin when it was over. They will meet again at 9 am on Friday.

After lunch we met David to go to the notary and to get the passport and visa photos of the kids. We explained what the photos were for and Joaquin happily complied to have his pic taken. Once it was over he said can we go to the US now? Then we stopped at Maku to pick up a few last minute items so I don’t have to really do any shopping after Eric leaves tmw. They kept asking if what we were buying was for our house in the US or for our family in the US. They're getting just a little excited.

Then we had another cooking lesson here at Zuetana. It was some kind of soup that I can’t spell, but I have the recipe. And the kids made something too, I have no idea what it was, but it was very yummy, kind of sweet and easy to make. A new family came to the other Zuetana so they had a small party for her and her family at our house, since that’s were everyone was for the cooking lesson. Several families have gotten Sentencia so they kind of celebrated that too. We are hoping Peggy and Sofia get Sentencia by the end of the week, then maybe we will be on the same flight to Atlanta. That would be really cool.

Before we went to bed we explained to the kids that daddy would be getting up really early to fly home to the US and that we would have to stay for about one more week. I was really proud of all of the kids, no tears, no fits just lots of I love You. I am going to make the kids a count down after I talk to Lucia tmw and get a more clear idea of what she thinks the turn around time is with the holidays and all. I think it will help them to have a visual of how many days we think are left. They are so excited to go. Tonight, when we were giving kisses, Joaquin said, very clearly in English, I Love You! Then Jessica chimed in and wanted to count in English too. They are proud of themselves for the little bit of English they have learned, and very well should be. I am truly amazed at what they have learned so far and am astonished at how far they have come. I am expecting tomorrow they will be a bit whiney and there may be some tears, but we will just take it easy and see how it goes. They may surprise me. The last few days I have thought about the plane ride and dreaded it, but today I changed my mind. They are really looking forward to going and in watching their behavior I have a peace about it all. I really can’t explain it, but they are amazing, very smart little kiddos.

The owners stopped buy about 9 tonight just to tell Eric goodbye. They really like him and made sure he had their email address and told him to remember he will always have friends in Colombia. This place really goes out of thier way to take care of you, I guess that's why we pay what we do to stay here.

Joaquin and Emi got along fine today, woohoo, and Jessica and Emi are doing better everyday.

Oh and tonight Joaquin said he wanted to go to college to be a doctor…very impressive.

Sorry, not so many pics today.
And I felt a great deal better, thanks for your prayers.

Lucia is with us on this pic. We are wearing our shirts Uncle Brian had made. On the back of each shirt it says, “A Family is Made with Love”

The American Grill Out

2008-04-28T22:48:00.007-04:00

Can you believe it’s been 2 weeks since we have met the kids. It feels like forever but at the same time it feels like just yesterday. I spent some time today thinking about how far they have come and I am really amazed at the progress. We have been around some kids who came from foster care and can’t believe the difference in general behaviors. But Jessica and Joaquin have learned so much that we can’t help but to be proud of them.

I woke this morning not feeling the greatest. A slight fever and a nasty head cold. It’s really okay, it could be a lot worse. I just hope I don’t pass it to any of the kids.

We took off for the park not long after breakfast, it was a beautiful morning so we took advantage of it. On our way there a guy, looked like Americian, asked us if we were in Colombia to adopt. I said “it’s kind of obvious, isn’t it?“ He laughed and said he sees a lot of gringos in Colombia for the same reason. We thought it was funny he called us gringos, he was so sunburned and was in shorts, so obviously not a native Colombian. He must come here on business a lot. Anyway, of course we had to get an ice cream while we were there, it wouldn’t be a trip to a park without an ice cream. I thought about our first trip and how different it was coming this time with Jessica, she had fun and stayed with us with no problem. Joaquin was still trying to figure out the ins and outs of us and thought it would be cool to walk the opposite way as us and refuse to hold our hand when we were leaving. Luckily the walk is not too far, so the fussing was no big deal.

Jessica's I'm concentrating look

Nate Chilln'

About the time we got back the chef was starting up the grill for an American Grill Out in honor of Eric going home on Wed. They love him here and we so excited to have a grill out, which isn’t the norm here. The Frenchies ate their hotdogs and hamburgers with forks…ah, come on, use your hands for goodness sake. The Germans were just glad it wasn’t chicken and love the change. We of course ate it up. The chef was very proud and the owners acted like they had never had hotdogs and burgers on a grill. They were all exited and went back for seconds and thanked Eric for the idea. It was the perfect day for a grill out and almost felt like home for a few minutes. Anther couple came from a different Zuetana, they have been here for 5 weeks and are in the slowest court possible. They expect to be here for 3 more weeks, but their daughter, a baby, is beautiful. They are from Nashville TN so we hope to hook up again sometime back in the states, they are Vols fans, so we became immediate friends…smile!

Just before lunch Joaquin had one of his moments with Emilee, a not so good moment. He is awful to her, I haven’t quite figured out why, but will only be nice to her when it’s his idea to play and it’s always rough housing. So I made him sit on his bed for 2 minutes, like time out, which he hated. He also has a hard time listening to Mami. So I explained to him, while he was crying, that we all love him very much, and I named all of our names. I told him it was very important to listen to Mami and to be nice to Emilee. I asked him if he understood and if he would answer me he could get up and play. Well, this ended up going on for more than 30 minutes. He was mad at me but I couldn’t let him up until he could tell me he understood that we love him very much and that he understood my wishes to be nice to Emi and to listen to me. I knew he understood but was just being stubborn, refusing to simply say “Si”. (yes). Then Emi came in and grabbed a bottle of pop and said that daddy is allowing them to have gasiosa (pop) with the special lunch. Jouaquin loves pop, so about 15 seconds later he looked at me and said “Si!” I asked him for a hug and told him again how much we love him. Well, he has been a different child ever since. He listened to me all afternoon and was very pleasant with Emilee. He even let her put socks on him. Normally he would have kicked at her. He was very loving and affectionate and sat on my lap several times, just to be with me. I think something may have clicked today! Today we will chalk one up for Joaquin.

After lunch we packed Eric up so we don’t have to mess with it tomorrow. We did most of the banking so I won’t have to be going to the ATM a bunch. As we were packing we came across 3 things of candy that my sister and aunt bought for La Maria from Jessica and Joaquin. Of course when hey saw the candy their eyes were as big as half dollars. We told them it was for their friends at La Maria and that Aunt Jeanie and Aunt Jo got the goods for them to pass on. They were very excited and didn’t ask for one piece themselves. I thought it may spark some conversation about them wanting to go back and visit, but they didn’t say a word, they were just excited to go thru the rest of our stuff and ask if they could give anything else. They talked a lot about going to the US today, they were really excited. We again explained Eric was leaving in 2 days and they totally understood. We counted how many days we thought it would be before we get to fly and that daddy would be waiting for us. They are so excited to get home, which makes me happy.

We decided to stick it out here at Zuetana. We really feel too much change would not be good. If it looks like we are going to be here more than 2 more weeks, we probably will make the change for financial reasons. I just found out that not only is this Thursday a holiday but so is next Monday. Yikes, that’s two holidays, two days the offices are closed and no movement in paperwork. But it’s all in God’s hands, we’ll be home when He sees fit. Emi and Nate are ready to stick it out, they are doing great. Nate said the first thing he wants when we get home is El Mariachi…how funny is that. Emi wants Skyline, but said a soft taco sounds real good too. Nate said he is ready to pig out, we’ve all lost weight. They are learning what it’s like to not have a full pantry to help themselves to.

(Traci, the Zuetana outings and events are at an extra charge. Julie will try to get you in El Refugio first, which is a lot cheaper so don’t freak. El Refugio does not plan outings. However Lucia will try to plan at least one thing for you (as a group) while you are here. You are welcome to do more on your own, but don’t have to. We have enjoyed the outings but are paying the “price”)

An interesting note regarding eating habits with Jessica and Joaquin. Jessica will at least try things, and generally likes it if she tries. Joaquin has gotten better about trying things but sometimes you just can’t coax him. But before they are allowed to leave the table they have to ask permission. It’s just our way of adding some structure for them. So if they ask to be finished, and they really haven’t eaten well, we may say 3 more bite of chicken…or something like that. Both of them will shove however much we tell them they have to eat in their mouths, all of it. Sometimes they can hardly chew it up their mouths are so full. So we have been working on that. I have a feeling they had to clean their plates at the orphanage before they could play and so they got in the habit of shoving it in so they could be done.

Okay, well I better get some rest, time to hit the sack.
Love to all of you and again thanks for all the comments.

The Frenchies are on the far end, the Germans in the middle and then us. This is all of the folks staying at our house. The Frenchies are not so friendly and don’t appreciate Joaquin and his humor, only one of them speaks a little English. The Germans have been great and speak pretty good English, we enjoy them.

Here we are playing Jessica's new favorite game UNO!

Trip to Guatavita

2008-04-27T22:20:00.010-04:00

Today we went on a trip to Guatavita. It was a small village about an hour outside of Bogota. The drive was beautiful in a cultural way and the view of the Andes was beautiful. Guatavita is a circular lake surrounded by the Andes Mountains. Lake Guatavita was one of the sacred lakes of the Muisca Indians. It is also one of the origins of the legend of El Dorado. The drive was as worth it as the village and lake itself. I love the culture of the Colombia and to see the various life styles is very cool, for me anyway.

Jess and Joaquin refused to get in the pic

We told the Jessica and Joaquin after breakfast that we were going to get on a bus. Joaquin very excitedly said “to go to the United States?” We said no, but shortly after a plane went over us and he pointed and asked Nate if we were going on a plane to the US.

I woke up with a nasty cold, I felt it coming on last night and didn’t sleep much, not able to breathe. Joaquin started back with a runny nose yesterday too and I don’t think he felt real well today. He had a bit of a rough day, he definitely did not enjoy the trip as much as the rest of us. However, he and Jessica liked the bus ride, they both wanted window seats, they took a nap on the way and on the way back. We got to meet a few more families from CHI, that was pretty cool. Joaquin has had a few moments the last few days just testing the waters. He does well, no real fits like Jessica had. They are in bed early tonight, the trips wear them out.

I so wish we understood more Spanish. It kills us to not know everything they are saying to each other and to other Spanish speakers. I say that because tonight Joaquin asked one of the other boys here why his mom doesn’t buy more games for them. The little boy responded by saying my mom doesn’t have much money left. Joaquin then said, “my dad has a lot of money!” We cracked up, but there are so many more conversations that we don’t understand. They are a crack up. If only he knew how far the money “doesn’t” go.

We talked some more about switching to a different B&B, El Refugio would be about half what we are spending here at Zuetana. We have to call Lucia tmw anyway and may see what she says about the availability of the big room at the other place. We are kind of torn as to what to do. We’ll see. Eric leaves on Wednesday and if we switch it will before he leaves. We are comfortable here, but the price is, well, a bit pricey.

Emilee and Nate are still doing well. Peggy and Sofia were on the trip with us, so Emi got her baby fix again today. Nate desires to have conversation with people like Uncle Brian, Papa, Uncle Matt, Uncle Tim, Papaw Ronnie etc. So he gravitated to one of the other CHI new Dads, a young, fun looking guy. I had to keep telling Nate to leave him alone, he is trying to work with his kids and be a dad. It appeared they guy had no interest in Nate and Nate didn’t understand why I kept telling him to come with us and leave well enough alone with the other families. But Andres our driver loves talking to Nate, I think he really just likes to rub his head. Andres is great. And thanks to Peggy, Nate and Emi got some conversations in with someone other than Eric and I.

This was Andres just after rubbing Nate's head...shucks, I missed the shot

Tomorrow starts a new week, a week with the possibility of Sentencia. Thursday is a holiday here, Labor Day, so all offices will be closed. Wow, if we get Sentencia this week, we will be coming home the just a few days later. That’s pretty exciting to think about.

Well we tried to get another family photo of all 6 of us and one of the 4 kids, but Joaquin just won’t cooperate. Finally this evening he did sit still after I begged and pleaded, so I guess this is as good as it gets. We have a picture frame we bought and wanted a really good photo of all of us, or one with just the 4 kids, but it has been a nightmare trying to get Joaquin to not act silly or to just sit still. So here’s what we got today, not too shabby.

Saturday Right?

2008-04-26T20:55:00.005-04:00

I keep losing track of what day it is. I wake up every morning and rack my brain as to what day it is.

Today we just relaxed a bit again around the house. Nate slept in and missed the made to order breakfast. We picked him up some fruit and he made oats once he got up and about. Emilee and Nate spent some time with their cousins on the webcam after breakfast, which they both enjoyed.

Here is Nate talking to Brandon on the webcam.

Jessica got into a bit of trouble for back-talking Mami last night and was told she could not have the TV or Shrek this morning. I was surprised it wasn’t a fight this morning. But when she got up and got ready, she asked her dad if she could turn on the TV. Obviously remembering what we had told her. He told her if no but if she was good all morning to mami that she could watch it this afternoon. She shook her head yes and with out a fuss, complied. Chalk one up for Jess!

Eric and Emi went back to Maku to pick up a few things we wanted while Nate and I stayed back with the little ones.

Here are a few things we did before lunch.

We taught Jessica how to log onto coloring.com to color pics on line. She loved it!

Joaquin did some exercises

The brothers played with cars

The girls played on the swing

We also taught them how to play UNO. Once they have the rules down we thought it would be a good way to work on numbers and colors in English, as well as turn taking.

We watered the plants, but then it rained all afternoon, so I don’t think they really needed it. Also it stormed here last night. The thunder was so loud, we forget how much higher we are, it’s really much louder when it thunders here.

After lunch we watched Shrek, AGAIN! Then we went to Crepes and Waffles just for ice cream. The ice cream is really pretty cheap and the selections are a lot of fun and it’s not too far. It started raining again when we got ready to leave, so we got a bit wet on the way back. It was too wet to go to the park so we chose ice cream instead.

The kids are really doing well figuring out who we are and how we work. Emi and Nate are still doing great being away from home and are ready to stay for the duration of our trip. Jessica and Emilee seem to be bonding, which makes me really happy. They have a way to go, but have come so far.

Joaquin finally says his name as Joaquin Hollis. At the beginning Jessica would say her name as Jessica Sanchez Hollis. But Joaquin would only say Joaquin Alexander Sanchez. We have not pushed the name at all, or even mentioned it anymore for that matter, and then out of the blue yesterday or the day before, he said “my name is Joaquin “something” Hollis.” He has given himself a different middle name that none of us can figure out, but he has been saying his name a lot the last few days, with Hollis on the end.

Here at Zuetana you can put your family photo in a book and leave a written message, the book sits on a table in the lobby. So today Joaquin wanted to look at the book with me and pointed to each family telling me who was the mami, papi, nina and ninos. I think he is starting to figure out this idea of what makes up a family. He has been giving lots of kisses and likes being held. But he does not like to have his picture taken unless he is being really silly. That’s why we still don’t have a really good pic of just the 4 kids or of the 6 of us.

This was an attempt to try and get a pic of the 4 of them.

Tomorrow we are going out with a group of folks, still not sure where. Someone told us they thought we were going just outside of Bogota to a village of some sort. I guess we’ll see. I’ll just get the camera ready. We were told we would be gone all day. Should be fun.

Thanks to the folks who emailed about the price of our weekly stay. Zuetana is more expensive than El Refugio and we thought about requesting to move, but really we don’t think the change will be good for the kids, so we decided to stick it out here. We also wanted to try and visit their orphanage, but don’t think it would be a good emotionally for Jessica and Jaoquin. We have some candy that my sister and aunt got for J and J to give their friends but I think we are just going to print a picture and send a card along with the goodies. But before we make a final decision, we are going to wait a few more days and see what we think.

Good night from Bogota!

One last pic...
This is Emilee taking care of the "little man"

Today Marks Week 2

2008-04-25T19:26:00.002-04:00

Today makes two weeks since we left the states. However in adoption time line its been 11 days. Lucia our program rep here in Colombia stopped by today to check on us and said that we are in a good court, court 22. Here is what we were told “But please don't read that to mean that you'll be home before the designated time. Bogota adoptions take 3 1/2 to 4 weeks and because your case fell into a good court, you are right on track for that time frame.” I know our families are so very anxious for us to come home, but just like we planned, we are planning to be here till about May 10th. Hoping for a few days sooner, but ultimately it could be until May 10thish. Eric is still planning to fly out on April 30th, next Wednesday.

We stayed up late last night watching a movie, in English and Jessica and Joaquin enjoyed watching it too. So because we got in be late, we slept in a bit. The morning was nice, we just took it easy until we went out for lunch to Crepes and Waffles. They are finally catching onto the fact that we have to wait for a check before we can leave. But it was tough when they ordered and it didn’t come out as expected. Jessica wanted a hamburger, so I said hamburgesa and it came out tasting like spaghetti. Joaquin asked for pollo, chicken, and it came out like chicken and dumplings. Both were very tasty, but because it wasn’t what they were expecting, they wouldn’t eat it. Finally when it was time for us to order ice cream they realized they weren’t getting any until they ate some of their lunch. It went okay, it will just take a while for us to figure out their likes and dislikes with food and for them to realize they eat what they are served. Emi and Nate are not picky eaters and will eat what you give them for the most part. I realize I am spoiled that way, but Eric and I both feel you make the best of what you have, even if it’s not what you expect. It will be easier when we are in the states and can actually read the menu.

We had our family English/Spanish lesson today with Carmen the program director. Joaquin was pretty much totally uninterested. Jessica will work with us some but I don’t know how much is sticking. We have set up English tutoring for them twice a week until we leave, just one on one with the tutor. Hopefully that will help a bit. Joaquin can’t write his name yet, so we will be working hard over the summer. They are just so excited about all the change that it’s been difficult. We also learned some much needed Spanish phrases to help us along in every day life while we are here with them. Like “share” and “use a quiet voice.” I think the most important thing we learned was about what orphanage life is like from where they come from. One of the owners volunteers at a local orphanage and we were able to get some insight. See the kids scream even when they are just talking, they run wild like they own the place and talk back to adults all the time. Obviously these behaviors will not go over well in the US or in our home. But we have not addressed these too much because we had other battles to fight. We just have tried to control these behaviors as best we could with out getting in too deep. So get this. Apparently at La Maria the kids basically take care of themselves except for some instruction to eat, bathe and sleep. The kids yell all the time because it’s the only way to be heard and to keep hold of what they are playing with. They could watch TV as much as they want, basically, which explains Jessica’s fascination with the TV and soap operas. It also explains why they don’t stay seated while eating and think they are the boss and don’t have to listen and can talk back to adults. So as you can see, we have our work cut out for us. Aye Aye Aye! However, they are both extremely intelligent and once in the US we hope they begin to catch on quickly. The plane ride should prove to be very interesting. They don’t like to be confined for long, so a 5 hour plane ride, with airline food, well…actually I don’t want to think about it right now. smile

We also had a native explain to them that daddy would be coming home next Wednesday because he had to go to work. They had a few questions which was good to have Carmen there to interpret. She is fluent is Spanish and English. We were able to tell them we would talk to daddy on the computer every day and that Tia Jeanie would be coming to help us and fly home with us. They understood. We will be reminding them from time to time before he leaves. Joaquin asked if we could stay here forever so daddy didn’t have to work. To his 5 yr old mind we are not working now and doing fine. Carmen explained that daddy has to work and will go back to work so we can all go home to the US.

We paid for our second week her at Zuetana. $1650 a week for 6 and a trip to the zoo and a bowling isn’t too bad right???? Wow. It cost me $12 to do 1 load of laundry, wash and dry. You get one load free a week and I had to do 2 this week. Also we have told them days in advance that we would not be eating lunch yesterday and today here, but they charged us for it anyway. At the other Zuetana they can give 24 hrs notice and then not be charged for a meal that they do not attend. We did complain and they said they would look into it for us. If this continues to be the case we won’t be eating out any more. It’s just nice to get out once in a while, but we’ll see.

Joaquin said he loved us on his own, with out us saying it first last night. I thought that was pretty great. Jessica has been drawing pictures of her house in the US. The staff here have said they can see a difference in Jessica and Joaquin since we first go them, but follow it by saying we still have our hands full. I agree, but wouldn’t change it for the world. You will get to see just what we are talking about when we get home, but we will work hard till then, then you all (family) get to pitch in and help us. It really will take a village to raise these two…smile.

Joaquin always looks at these cross figures when we are out and so finally yesterday Eric bought him one. He had to have the one with La Maria on it. So last night he when we were watching a movie on the compter Joaquin had to put his figurine on the computer. We were making jokes that Jesus had the best seat in the house.

A cultural note. We were told that Colombian people are willing to adopt sometimes but request only the lighter skinned children. We have noticed that most business folks here, folks in restaurants and in stores are all more light skinned too. The darker skinned folks we have seen as street vendors, in town in the not as nice places etc. Very interesting. Also people don’t take their kids out to restaurants like we do. Our kids were the only children in Archie’s. In Crepes and Waffles we saw one older child about 12, but no other children at all. It’s just different than what we are used to. Yes, I know it’s during the week, but it’s just been odd to not see kids out and about too much.

It was another rainy day, so I didn’t get many pics. We have no plans for tmw, maybe just hit the supermarket and Nate and Emi have some school work. If it’s not raining maybe we will go to the park again. But I have to say it feels good to know we are ½ way home, plus or minus a day or two.

Again, we love you all and covet your prayers. We are doing well.

How would you like this job? I guess you would stay in shape...

This is a garbage truck.

I guess the pro to being a garbage man here is that you get to garbage pick for anything you can use or eat. We have seen this guy and girl collecting garbage around our B&B several times and then they sort through each bag by hand. When they need a break they just take a nap right on the grass by their truck. Guess they’re not to worried about people stealing their garbage.

Making the best of a rainy day

2008-04-24T19:50:00.015-04:00

We woke up to rain today. The first rainy day since we have been here, not to bad for this to be the rainy month. Our activities director asked us if we still wanted to make the trip to Monserrate and we decided to go for it. The weather can change on a dime so we hoped it may quit raining, but it didn’t. The drive to and from was great, it was interesting to see the various types of housing and buildings, I didn’t get any pics because all you could see through the camera were the raindrops on the windows in the taxi. But I definitely recommend anyone coming to Bogota to go to Monserrate. The train going up was out of order. Originally we planned to take a train up the mountain and the cable car back down. Now, I like roller coasters, I’m not afraid of heights, I love to fly, but the trek up the mountian got to me a bit. I had a few butterflies, but Jessica loved it. Coming down I was fine, but the going straight up to the hightest point in Bogota was a bit, well, scary. Yes, Monserrate is the highest point in Bogota, at least that’s what our taxi driver told us. There is a beautiful church there, a small market, a few restaurants, beautiful gardens and an awesome view of the whole city. Because of the rain our pics of the city didn’t turn out as good as I would have liked, but it was still worth the trip.

Once we left the mountain top we asked the taxi driver to take us to Archie’s Pizza. On the way Joaquin fell asleep. As he was starting to wake up he mumbled something and then clearly said “United States?” (In Spanish of course). We have no idea what he said, but obviously he was dreaming about something in the US.

I highly recommend Archie’s too. It was great fun for the kids and the food was awesome. You can let the kids make their very own pizza. They let the kids kneed the dough and did some fun stuff with them. They let the kids put all the toppings on and then bake it and bring it to the table. It’s really a lot of fun. Jessica and Joaquin had a ball. Most decent restaurants have a security guard. We were sitting near the door by the guard and Joaquin asked the guy if he would show us his gun. Oh boy! Luckily the guard didn’t show us.

I was telling Emilee at the restaurant that Jessica and Joaquin have no idea how a restaurant works. We just take so much for granted. Kids who come from foster families understand but kids from an orphanage, well every experience is so new. I guess restaurant behavior wasn’t something I had thought about. It’s not a big deal, just something I hadn’t thought about. They didn’t understand why we had to wait around when we were finished eating. We had to explain they had to bring the check and we had to wait so we could pay, then we could leave. And also you can’t have more of something when you eat it all, you only get what’s on your plate, not like at home.

Emi and Nate had a good time today bowling with dad and the group of folks from the Zuetana houses.

Jessica and Joaquin are doing wonderful, we are all gelling just fine and are feeling like a family. It a wonderful feeling. Today Joaquin fell off the bed, he didn’t cry, but I picked him up and put him on my lap and he just cuddled up. My heart melted and about that time Jessica looked at me and held up her hand with the I Love You sign and said te queiro (I love you). Ahh…A perfect mami moment.

Another suggestion for those of you preparing to travel, it’s worked well for us so far, is to pull out new toys every so many days. It helps to give them something new to do because you kind of get in a rut with the same ol’ stuff at the B&Bs. Balloons have been great, a beach ball, color wonder, silly putty, and other light weight things. They think it’s great to have something new every so often. And they definitely love the videos of the house, animals at home and other things we taped.

Oh I forgot to mention that we got a new French family here. Guess who? The little boy from their orphanage we spoke of the other day that they saw during our interrogation. As soon as he got here Jessica and Joaquin had to come in the cabin and grab several of their new things and show Johan, the little boy. They were really excited to see him and play with him. Very Cute.

Dad, Jeanie, Brian and Brandon, I am sorry to say that Joaquin refuses to wear his camo pants I brought him. His is not picky with his clothes, but he refuses to wear his camo pants. I am not sure why. I don’t know if it’s because they see military people in camo all the time here or what. People here don’t wear camo like we do in Harrison, so Joaquin will have to learn. I don’t think there is any thing cuter than a little guy in camo. I’ll have to work on that one when we get back to the states, it’s not a battle I want to fight here.

One more note, Jessica asked to watch Shrek in English today. Nate was so excited! She has it memorized in Spanish, I guess she needs a challenge…smile.

A few folks at the other Zuetana have lice, glad we are at this one!!

More tomorrow, again thanks for all the comments and prayers, we love you all!

Nate and Jess playing with Color Wonder

Of course the boys had to potty while we were out. This time it was 800 pesos a flush, here they are coming out of the pay to pee bathroom

And if you are a boy and you don't want to pay to pee, well you could always use the urinals out in the open for all to see...

A day of rest and recuperation

2008-04-23T22:18:00.013-04:00

Today everyone slept in a bit. I think it was much needed sleep for Jessica and Joaquin. We spent the morning just playing around Zuetana and taking it easy. It was much needed day of recuperation for me. A little more school time then a little more playing. There is a room we hadn’t showed Jessica and Joaquin here yet because it’s an upstairs room and we didn’t want to be chasing them up and down the steps. So we decided to make that our room where we will have “school”. But today the activities director was using it for English lessons for some older kids from the other Zuetana. Our school time is really more of a time for us to start introducing them to the idea of getting on a plane and about everything in the United States, as well as some English vocab, letters, numbers etc. We don’t spend a lot of time, but enough to help them get used to the idea and it helps as being part of a routine. Today was the first day we really started talking about their house in the US and getting on a plane. Joaquin was very interested at first but had a short attention span. Jessica however, couldn’t wait to work with some books with daddy and then watch videos of the house, animals, her room etc. They both said they were ready to go on a plane to their new casa, seeing the videos made them pretty excited. We also introduced the idea of daddy leaving a few days earlier but that they would be getting on a plane with me and meet daddy in the US. They were very receptive and excited.

Nate and Eric went back to Maku together and I stayed with sticky fingers and Jessica here at the casa, along with Emilee. Tomorrow in the morning we are going to Monserrate which is a mountain top you can go to and see a view overtop of Bogota. We have been wanting to go, I hear you can get some great photos. We will have lunch out, then in the afternoon Emi, Nate and Eric are going bowling with a group of people from the Zuetana houses. I think I will stay back with Jessica and Joaquin, I think two trips in one day will be too much, but we’ll see.

This evening we had everyone from the Zuetana houses, that wanted to come, to sit by the fire and roast marshmallows over the fire in our fire place. Yesterday the activates director was telling us of her plan and we told her how to make smores. She loved the idea and said she may try it tonight. The Colombian people seemed as if they had never roasted marshmallows, how odd is that. The Colombians were all excited.

Just a few other things to mention. One of the German families left today and the other went for sentencia today. Another family from the other house also heard of their sentencia today. It’s great to celebrate with them. It’s such a big deal, you get to go home just a few days after sentencia. The family that left today had a little girl, adorable, and all morning before she left she would come up to all of us, over and over again and say “Ciao” and every time she heard an airplane she would run outside and point to it. She was only about 2 - 2 ½ yrs old.

Nate has become a coffee drinker. He now has coffee after every meal. Not sure how healthy this is, but hey, we’re in Colombia right? Also after racking our brains on gifts to bring back we realized we hadn’t bought any Joan Valdez Coffee. So sis and bros, guess what your getting? We’ll bring some back for our parents too and of course for us. We’ll see what else we can find.

This is what a real man looks like while drinking coffee

Jessica is doing much better. She has been very good and when she starts to get upset about silly stuff, she catches herself and straightens right up on her own. She has been a happy little girl for two days now. Last night was tough for a bit but she was sooo tired. We’ll see how tonight goes.

For anyone preparing to travel, one of my biggest suggestions is to buy a webcam and have your family members get one too. We get on the webcams everyday and talk to our families back home. It’s been great for us in feeling not so far away and a wonderful tool for Emi and Nate. We just use Yahoo Messenger to call computer to computer and then use the webcams to see each other. Oh and it’s free! It’s wonderful. Emi and Nate know they can call back home any time they want to their grandparents or aunts and uncles. We call and IM all the time, and it’s great for Jessica and Joaquin to see our families faces and tell them who is waiting for them in the United States. It was so funny today when we showed them the videos on the computer of home and the dogs. They kept talking to the dogs as if they could hear each other. They think if they see something moving on the computer it’s the webcam. Very cute.

One funny story about Joaquin. Remember Nate is in charge at bath time with Joaquin. So the other night we hear this “Bang” in the bathroom when the boys were taking a shower. Eric peeks his head in and sees Joaquin hanging from the hand sprayer flying all over the shower like Tarzan. Nate just looks at Eric and says “What am I supposed to do about him?” Oh my my…we have our hands full..smile!

Also Jessica and Joaquin are quite the schemers. We have two little windows to for our cabin and Joaquin realized he can fit through. Sometimes when we are out of the cabin in the yard or in the main house we will close the door so they don’t keep running in and out of the cabin. Well the windows don’t lock so it’s no use to shut the door because Joaquin will just crawl through the window and help himself. Jessica has even talked him into climbing in and opening the door for her so she can get in too. I’ll have to keep a close eye on them. Smile

Ahhh, sneaking through the window? Busted by mom with the camera

And finally…Last night Nate and I were up blogging and everyone else was asleep. All the sudden Emilee started talking in her sleep. She said, in Spanish, Uno mas o dos mas? Nate and I thought it was pretty funny, mostly just that she was talking in Spanish.

So what do we do on a day that we don't leave the casa?

We jump rope

We watch Joaquin show off his moves

We watch Shrek for the 10,000th time since we've been here with our amigos

we do puzzles

We ride horses

We play with polly pockets

And we play with monkeys

Just Hanging Out

2008-04-22T23:04:00.011-04:00

Let me start by saying THANK YOU to all of you who have left comments and emails letting us know of your own experiences. It helps to know others have been thru this and are doing well and managing. I wasn’t so sure I wanted to get out of the shower this morning and face another day like yesterday. I stayed up for a good long time last night being reminded that this was a plan God had for us and that He would not put more on us than we could handle. I was hopin He hadn’t underestimated my strength…smile. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me! Thanks to all of you who have sent up prayers on our behalf.

All in all it was a good day. Small fit this morning and many hours of fun. After breakfast we had Emi and Nate do some reading and Math while we did a little bit of English with Jessica and Joaquin. Jessica ended up being pretty interested but we really just were having fun with it today. Hopefully we can get somewhere with the English, but I am really more concerned trying to prepare them for getting on a plane and going to the United States. We hope to work on things a little everyday until we come home. We didn’t hear word to day as to which court our paperwork is in. Hopefully someone will tell us, if not we may make a call by the end of the week to ask. It’s pretty known that some courts are slower than others. You can never be promised an actual date to hear of Sentencia, the day we sign the final decree and make plans to come home, but sometimes you can be given an approximation.

We spent the day around Zuetana. We did end up going to Maku, a store with authentic Colombian items, but Joaquin has sticky fingers and there are lots of breakables. So we got out of there pretty quick. I’m having a terrible time finding things to bring home for family. And the kids want to bring something back for teachers and friends, but it’s really tough, especially with two kids who aren’t used to shopping. They are great sports, but it’s a little tricky to concentrate to get anything done.

Zuetana had planned an outing in the kitchen on how to make empanadas, a Colombian food. Emilee and Jessica enjoyed the session and we have a recipe to bring back home. Empenadas are a stuffed flour of sorts, they were good. As we were finishing up Jessica taught Daddy how to make them. It was kind of nice to just let them play around the house today, a little breather. Jessica had a great day until time to take a shower and go to bed, so much better than yesterday.

Joaquin eating what his sisters made

Everyone’s encouragement is much appreciated. It will be great to look back in time and remember how far they have come and to give God the glory for a work in their hearts. Poor Joaquin had a bit of a rough day. He cried at the littlest things and had a lot of nervous energy today. He even cried at bed time, which he has never done. It was a very sad, pitiful cry. He did let me hold him until he was ready to crawl into bed on his own, then fell quick to sleep. I think he was over tired plus it’s all just caught up to him. I imagine he will be better tomorrow, but he was a tyrant today at times. It seems the only way he knows how to display his emotions is to be wild/silly.

No big plans for tomorrow. Just hang out again then maybe hit the park. We’ll see.

Take a close look at the kids shirts. Shirts compliments of Mami's friend Joanna. Thanks Joanna! Joaquin didn't want his pic taken so he was being a bit of a squirt.

Yesterday at Mimo's, just having some fun

The little Latino showing off his muscles

Interrogation a Success

2008-04-21T23:43:00.005-04:00

We woke this morning with wonder in how the day would go. Jessica didn’t want to get out of bed, which is unusual. I think she was just afraid. Once we finally got her to get up she refused to wear her dress. So we let her put on whatever clothes she wanted so she could come to breakfast and eat before we had to leave. She was perfectly happy through breakfast and Eric reiterated to them what today would hold and just what it meant. After breakfast she finally did put on her dress to be dressed up with the rest of us. Joaquin, my little Latino, decided he looked awful handsome in just his white undershirt and slacks. So we took his dress shirt with us in hopes he would get cold and want it on.

When we pulled up to ICBF Jessica was very excited to get out of the car and into the building. Joaquin agreed to put on his shirt, but it only lasted about 2 minutes. He took it back off and gave a little strut to show off his “bad” self. When we walked thru the hallways they both ran straight to the room we met them in, which was not where we were supposed to go. We told them we had to go to a different room, but at that point something caught their eye. We had to pry them away from the window. As it turns out there was a family in that room meeting their little boy, the little boy they knew from La Maria, their orphanage. They were calling his name and wanting to see him. Once the family was finished in the room Jessica and Joaquin called the little boys name and played with him for a few minutes. He was only a little over a year old.

We had to wait our turn for almost an hour, it was a long wait because Jessica and especially Joaquin were WOUND UP!!! I have never seen them so wound up, it was just nervous energy. However during that time Joaquin did pick me a very lovely pink flower (oops, not supposed to pick the ICBF flowers) and said, this is for you, my Mami, and gave me a big kiss. Look out girls, my little Latino has the moves. I have started calling him my little Latino (not to him, but in my mind) he has some jigs and moves only a Latino could have.

So when it was our turn we all gathered around the table. Of course Joaquin had to chi chi (pee pee) so we sat around the table in a little file room waiting for the potty boy to come back. When he came back he was still wound tight, climbing on the table, under the table, Jessica unloading and reloading her purse and counting every item. Just simply nervous energy. The ICBF social worker ended up not taking the kids into another room. My personal opinion is that the social worker was afraid she couldn’t handle them by herself and was thinking if this crazy family can put up with this, well, just let them have them. In the end we were just laughing at the kids, and the social worker noted she knew it was just nervousness coming out in them.

They did ask Emilee and Nate how things have been, and they both said not so fun in the beginning but it’s much better now. When they asked Joaquin if he was happy and how it was going here is what he said, “A few nights ago a monster came in the room and the whole family was scared, but dad did “something’ and now it’s all okay.” I about lost it. When they asked Jessica if she was happy she said, “No,” but had a big smile on her face and started giggling, then quickly said “Yes, Yes, Yes.” That little stinker. I think it was pretty obvious that everyone was happy, but they did ask us if we had any questions and if we wanted to continue with the process. We went around the table and each person said “yes.” Of Course.

When we finally got in the car to leave, Joaquin was sitting in the back with Emi and Nate. He asked if he could come up and sit on my lap…can I hear an “ahhhhh.” Jessica was so exhausted from the whole ordeal that she zonked for about 5 minutes on Papi’s lap. Oh I forgot to mention that on the way there Jessica was quizzing the cab driver and Andres if they were going to be part of the family too or if they were just friends. It was cute. Anyway, once we pulled on our street where Zuetana is, Joaquin started yelling at Andres, who was driving, “right here, stop, it’s right here.” He recognized where we are staying and was glad to be back “home.”

Andres, our driver, he's the best

When we got back they started playing, different than they have this whole week. They played soccer with the other kids, which they haven’t done before. They were laughing and having a great time. It was like they finally felt at home. It was different I tell you, something was different. I think it’s finally starting to sink in and they are making themselves at home. This may sound awful, but for the first time since we got them, this morning I finally felt in my heart the sense of all 6 of us as family. I’ve read about others who say it takes some time for that to click, and I think it clicked in all of us, just this morning. Even Emilee said she could see something different in their eyes.

We ate lunch, well we tried to eat. You couldn’t even cut the meat, let alone chew it. How much are we paying to eat here anyway??? We did get soup with lunch and Joaquin said he didn’t like it. Jessica was sure to tell him they have had this soup at La Maria and to eat it. This was the first time they have mentioned La Maria all week. So they mentioned it once when they saw the little boy at ICBF and once at lunch. Then after lunch was time for a siesta. Joaquin really does need a nap, not Jessica, but defiantly Joaquin. Jessica knows she doesn’t have to sleep, but she has to lay down in her bed and quietly play. This has been no problem really, until today when she decided to be stubborn and pitch a fit about it. Of course Eric took care of it, he is much more stubborn than her if needed, and she knows it. Eric said he felt like some of this was spiritual, and I agree. It lasted for a bit and then she decided it was time to be her sweet self again. Hopefully she gets over this before Eric has to come home. I can analyze the issue and behavior but he is better at dealing with it. By the end of the night she had about 4 good fits today. I am too tired, mentally and physically to re live it by journaling. I do want to remember everything, but this behavior is really wearing on us, all of us, even Joaquin. The last fit just ended and she is now asleep, but she screamed so loudly at the top of her lungs that it woke Joaquin up and he was holding his ears.

It's not all fun and games

Anyway, so after nap time we went to Mimo’s for ice cream before dinner. We were starved after not eating a good lunch. There was a small play area there, so they played a bit then we hit the grocery store for some snacks. We got back in time to play a bit before dinner and deal with a fit or two. It’s taxing, it really is, you do what you can to stand your ground and analyze the root of the situation, but in the end you have to be sure they know you love them and it’s all going to be okay.

General note, just so I don’t forget. It seems that brothers and sisters here call each other mi hermano or mi hermana (my brother, my sister), then sometimes tag the specific name on the end. For example, Joaquin says mi hermana Jessica all the time, when he is referring to her. I’ve heard of other kids from here doing that too. Nothing major, just kind of interesting and I don’t want to forget it.

Okay, now let me end with a funny Joaquin story. Here at Zuetana at the front desk they keep candy, wrapped mints to give people to welcome them etc. Well they keep a refill stash behind the counter where the front desk person sits. The kids can’t really reach the top of the counter, but have figured out where the stash is. Any time someone is at the gate and needs in the push a button which rings inside 3 times. You can hear it throughout the little complex. So Joaquin has figured out that when the bell rings 3 times, the front desk person leaves their station to open the gate and if he hurries he can run behind the counter and get a few pieces of candy in his hand before the person comes back to their post. It doesn’t matter what he is doing, the bell will break his concentration and he takes off running for the front desk. Sneaky little latino!

Ok, I can’t resist, just one more story. The other night at dinner Joaquin burped and without thinking, in less than a split second, he points across the table at Nate and says “Nate!“ to blame Nate. It may not be as funny in print, but in person, we all cracked up. So now every time he burps he blames it on someone and laughs. It’s the look on his face that makes us laugh.

I have pics from Mimo’s but I am just to tired to do any more.
Good night.