Hodge Podge

First of all, Eliot is grinding his teeth and it's driving me crazy!! Someone help! My aunts will laugh when they read this because I used to do it when I was a kid and one of them even used to hit me over the head w/ a pillow at night while I was sleeping to make me stop! I guess this is one of those things that comes full circle!

Secondly, I did it. I took the plunge. I, Katie Mohr, made baby food. Yes, Eliot's been eating it for a while but I've been so unsatisfied w/ the selection and the standards of baby food here that I finally just did it. So far, it's a big hit. I may just be in the running for Mother of the Year yet! (Don't tell anyone, but it's really not that hard and I'm kind of embarrassed that I didn't do it sooner...)

Speaking of Mother's Day (was I?)...Guatemala has their Mother's Day on Thursday. It's not on Sunday like everyone else’s. Just another feather in the cap of quirky Guatemalteca! Going along the same lines...they chose not to do Daylight Savings time this year. They did it last year but decided not to this year. Hmmm. Just like that.

Our suitemates, Sharon and Bella, have had an amazing week. Their story is one that takes some time, feel free to read their blog that I have a link to on my blogspot page.Their week started w/ finding out that an anonymous donor paid their rent for the next 4 months! Then an anonymous donor left "a package" at the front gate for her (see pictures...). The kids helped us bring it to the house as you can see! They now have over 800 diapers and 20 cans of formula! Then Bella celebrated her first birthday. She enjoyed a specially made cake all to herself (and all over herself, I might add)! All that and its only Tuesday! They definitely had this coming after all they've been through! Needless to say, there's been lots of praising God's name going on!





For some reason, Eliot has something against group pictures at birthday parties. Not sure if it's all the pressure to be cute or what. Here's pictures from the last two birthday parties that we've gone to...yikes. I mean...really.



Eliot has moved on from a nasty cold to teething yet again. Pretty soon, he'll have a mouth full! He's officially crawling now (yes, it's about time!) and can pull himself up w/ very little effort now. He's also "cruising" quite a bit, trying to keep up w/ Bella. Out of nowhere tonight he hugged me really tightly and gave me a very sweet kiss while we were walking to our room after dinner. It's really the first time he's hugged me just to hug. Makes all the mess we've been through feel pretty stinkin' worth it.

Normal 2.0

OK, time for another update from my side of the table. Things on the home front have been OK. It's a bit surreal and actually quite disturbing to realize that "life goes on." On one hand, it's certainly impossible to navigate life right now and act like things are normal. On the other hand, the harsh reality is that for 6 months now, life as I've known it at home alone is the new version of normal (hence the name of the blog entry). And it's not that I'm just used to Katie being gone and I don't miss her as much as I used to. It's more like... missing her has become a way of life. It's hard to describe.

Anyway, the real reason I wanted to add another blog entry is because the Lord has shown 2 really cool things to me in the past couple months, and I wanted to share both:

1. I was having a conversation with Bob and Margie Seibel at their house one night and we had one of those rare moments where someone shares a thought that just may has well come directly from the mouth of God himself. Margie basically asked what I thought would be our response if Eliot were old enough to ask why he couldn't go home yet. She said she thought our response would be very similar to what God might say to us right now. It was clear what was being taught to me/us in that moment by the Holy Spirit. What if Eliot could ask that question? What would we say? Probably something like, "I know you don't understand everything right now, and but it's going to be OK. Mommy and Daddy love you and are gonna get you home as soon as we can. We wish it didn't have to be this way either, but Mommy's here in Guatemala and she is not going to leave you. She's gonna be right here with you until this is finished and we will all be together at home soon." Wow. Chew on that for a few minutes.

2. Katie described to me the night she got an email about our most recent previo. She found herself lying on the floor weeping. After crying for a while she was distracted by a banging sound. Looking up and wiping her tears away, she saw Eliot sitting up on the floor across the room, banging one of his toys on the floor, giggling and playing. Their eyes met and he smiled, laughed, and went back to playing. In that moment, as heartbroken as she was, Katie smiled. She was overwhelmed, and said to me, "Russ, he's just so perfect. I love him SO MUCH."
And that, my friends gives you a perfect picture of what we're going through. This is without a doubt the most difficult thing we've ever faced in our lives. We are overwhelmed, frustrated, confused, to the point of lying on the floor weeping. And yet every time she sees him giggling, every time I turn on the computer and see their picture on the desktop, it is totally worth it. It's a powerful picture... a picture of the gospel, really. Right here in the midst of the worst circumstances we've ever faced, we find ourselves encountering the greatest blessing we've ever known. Wait until you meet him. You won't even believe it. He is totally worth it.

Keep us in your prayers. This is a big week for us as we work to move ahead with the adoption, finances, etc. It's quite overwhelming. Thank you all for your love and support!!!!

A regular day in Guate?

It started that way, at least. Changed a few diapers, made breakfast, put Eliot down for a nap, took a shower, worked on my scrapbook, listened to some music, played w/ Eliot, made lunch, picked up toys, and went w/ a friend to run an errand. So far, so normal.

After our errand was accomplished, we decided to grab some coffee and sit in the park. Two other moms and their babies joined us. Then a group of people, French people pretty much straight off the plane from France, swooped upon our group in the park. First of all, they kept asking us questions in French and when we would look at them with uncertainty the blond woman would start to speak English. We got the usual battery of questions, each in French first and then English: Are we adopting, when do we take our kiddos home, how long have we lived here, where do we live in the states, etc. Then the blond leaned in very close to me (personal space an option in France, maybe?) and asked in broken English if Eliot was Mayan. I replied yes to which she got very excited and asked to see his Mongolian spots (dark birthmark-type spots that look like bruises that a lot of Latinos have). For most of you, this wouldn't be a question that would've popped out of your mouth upon hearing that he's Mayan. For me, this was a first from a non-adopter. If you know about Mongolian spots you know that the majority of them are located directly above the child's butt, so to ask to see it is somewhat...odd. Awkward pause. So there I sat, processing, while my four new French friends awaited my response. They looked so excited that I gave in and exposed my son's little bottom to the whole park. They were delighted to see a real Mongolian spot, lots of ooohs and ahhhs and I think I even saw one of them clap w/ glee. Poor Eliot, at least no one took any pictures.

After the park we headed to the street market to buy produce. Back to normal. However, when I was looking through items on one of the tables, someone stole my wallet. Errrrrr. I thought I was being so careful but they must have been watching enough to see where I'd been keeping it because I was touching the stroller the whole time and they didn't take the whole backpack, just the wallet. Lesson learned I guess? Can I at least pray that they get sick off of whatever they buy w/ my stolen money? Is that a prayer that the Lord would honor? He probably has a better idea, I'll leave it to Him.

Another story I've been meaning to share happened to a couple of the other moms that I spend a lot of time with. Some background: most 'locals' are happy to have us fostering moms around and are supportive of what we're doing. I've had several people that have asked if I was adopting and have said a heartfelt thank you upon hearing that I was. The other side to this is usually low key. There is a general dissatisfaction w/ some ways that we raise our children compared to the Guatemalan way. The obvious one is the lack of layer upon layer of clothing that they keep their infants in. We often get comments from locals that are babies are "frio!!!" However, this story was unique. A couple of the moms were in the park at dusk. The temperature drops at dusk, of course. One mom had her baby being watched by the other as she went to take a quick picture of something. A Guatemalan man wearing a nice suit walked up to the mom watching both babies and said, "That baby needs a sweater." My friend replied that this baby wasn't actually hers but that her daughter did have a sweater on. To which he replied, "You mean, your MERCHANDISE has a sweater on" in perfect English. My friend handled it much better than I would have, she simply replied that she was sorry he felt that way.

Oh, Guatemala.



(Photos are of good friends that we spend a lot of our time with!! These pics came from a day we went to a local park. Pray for these women and their babies, as they are also here because 'someone' won't let them go home.)

Good news!!

We heard from our Coordinator today that the U.S. Embassy (which was closed for a guatemalan holiday on Tuesday, hmmm...) was cooperative yesterday and our lawyer got the paperwork he needed. Then he re-submitted us into PGN today!! Hurray!!! Thanks for all the prayers! I'll keep you updated as we hear anything else! (Keep in mind, it could take 4-8 weeks before we hear anything!)

Not only have I been overwhelmed (in a good way) w/ prayers and emails of encouragement through this hard time, but Russ has gotten invitation after invitation to ball games, golf, movies, and meals. I was also blessed to have a friend come to visit for the weekend to help lift my spirits!! On top of that, I found out last night that two more of my St. Louis 'family' is coming down soon! How fun! While I would obviously rather be home, I'm blessed to have so many willing friends and family be able to make the trip. It has helped distract me during the waiting time and has also taken care of some of the homesickness.

Eliot is scooting everywhere and pulling himself up every chance he can get. He even had his first major 'accident' as a toddling little man. Yesterday morning as I was cooking breakfast, he scooted/crawled into the dining room and pulled himself up using a dining room chair. So far, everything is normal. Then as he "walked" to the back of the chair, he started to lose his balance and grabbed the back of the chair which wasn't such a good idea. He fell backwards onto the tile and brought the chair on top of him. His nose has a major scratch and his forehead has a bump, but it would have been a lot worse had it not been for his little belly to block everything!

Specific Prayer Request

Tomorrow (Wednesday) our lawyer is going into the US Embassy to get our Previo (kick-out) fixed. There's a chance they could fix it tomorrow and we would be able to get back into PGN by the end of the week. There's also a chance that they won't fix it in one day. The sooner we get back into PGN, the sooner we can get out and come home! So, tomorrow, pray that we find favor in the US embassy!!!

Also, I found "Trader Joes" mac and cheese at a little tiny grocery store today. Oddly comforting.

Thanks!

Just wanted to thank everyone for the wonderful emails and comments. As usual, we are surrounded and overwhelmed by everyone's support. There are a few options out there right now of ways to get help w/ our case, so please pray that the Lord guides us to which option is the best. Also, there's more information to come on how you can directly help us. Again, thank you for all your words of encouragement!

red shoes

Well, yesterday I got a chance to go into the city w/ a couple of other moms. We went to PriceSmart, a guatemalan chain owned by Sams/Walmart. Strangely, it was the most I've felt like home since I've been here. It was so encouraging to see Eliot sitting in a shopping cart as I tool through the store looking at brands from home. Then just outside the store, there was a Payless. I happen to be in that odd place in life where seeing a Payless Shoe Store is like having coffee w/ an old friend from high school. To celebrate feeling normal, I bought a pair of bright red flats.

Upon coming home, I got the news that our case got another previo. A quick review: previo means kick-out. This is bad, very bad. It means the Guatemalan government finds something unsatisfiying about our paperwork. This brings our total to 7. Most cases receive 1-2 if any at all. We're pretty sure we now hold the record. Russ and I are asking a million questions of our agency and our lawyer but there's only so much that will do. They are hoping to be able to get us back into PGN early next week but after that the average wait to hear anything is 4-8 weeks. Our hope of getting Eliot home before his birthday seems like a joke.

So, how do people deal w/ devasting news when there's a baby to take care of? Can I lay in bed all day and mope? Yeah right. Can I grasp at retail therapy? Not when there's formula and diapers to buy and a limited budget. Can I yell and throw things? Not when there's a sleeping baby in the same room. Oddly, I put on my red shoes and cry. A lot. Can I at least pretend this isn't happening and that I'll be putting Eliot in a shopping cart at the Sam's behind my house like it's a day of running errands?

This seems to be a never ending cycle. Kickout, followed by a fixed file returned to PGN, the reviewer on our case is hopeful and pushes it through, the lawer and facilitator get hopeful and tell us that things look good, I send home half of my things in anticipation that I won't need them because I'm coming home, I buy a huge pack of diapers thinking that this will probably be the last pack I buy in Guatemala, I dress cute each morning assuming that I'll get a special call today and pictures will be taken, and then the unthinkable happens.

This one seems to especially sting for the fact that major milestones are in line for Eliot. The milestones will still happen, just in Guatemala and probably w/o Russ. How do people do this?

On that note, by the way, those of you around Russ, please allow him some space at this time. It's easy for me to take space being that I live in Central America but Russ doesn't have that. He is busy w/ his band right now, which is a blessing. However, he will be back in STL soon.

One comfort is my suite mate, Sharon. Her case is still worse than mine, surprisingly. To hear her story go to http://txparamedic.spaces.live.com/. While the majority of our friends will be gone within the month, Sharon and Bella will still be here. Chances are high that they'll be here when we leave, even. Please send encouragments her way if you stop by her site. She thinks I'm having a Dorothy complex w/ the red shoes but she made me french toast for breakfast anyway.

"What can we do?" is the question asked the most at this point. We'll let you know soon, after we gather our thoughts and finish processing what this means for our lives.

No news yet

I guess I'm just posting to give you something to read that confirms your suspicions. We haven't heard any news yet but are expecting it any day now. We're more than ready for the day that we don't wake up asking the question, "Is today the day?!" To be honest, each day that passes makes the next one harder. It seems that the closer you get to what you want, the further it feels. It also doesn't help that today marks 5 months being in Guatemala!

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...(do people still say that? did they ever?) Eliot is almost over his chicken pox! He is such a good baby when it comes to being sick. He's as silly as ever and actually popped out two more teeth in the past week! He's pulling himself up as much as allowed around the house and is obsessed with trying to stand on his own.


Again, thank you for the emails of encouragement and your prayers! I'll update again as soon as we hear anything!

One more thing...

Oh, and ... Eliot woke up with chicken pox! Oh, the adventures never stop!

Iceberg?

No, this blog entry isn't about lettuce. Although, I can't wait to eat salads w/o praying for safety...

Okay, so in the last couple days I've been talking w/ my Guatemalan adoption facilitator about our case quite a bit. She has been very encouraging that we should here good news about PGN VERY SOON! I've been trying to hold out on blogging until then, but that could be awhile still. She has also been a little more up front w/ me about our case. Here's where the Iceberg part comes into play.

During this whole process I've not had a moment where we weren't bathed in prayer, and yet, from my perspective it seemed as though the process just kept getting worse. That created quite an uncomfortable amount of dissonance for me. For example, if God hears the prayers of his people then he must be either ignoring the hundreds of pleas or he's doing this on purpose/allowing it happen and get worse. Again, that's a tricky place to sit and wait. Well, the new perspective that I've come to after the past few conversations w/ our facilitator have aligned some of these festering questions. Apparently up until a few weeks ago, there was a very large chance that our case could have gone into 'investigation' here in Guatemala. The minimum amount of time a case stays in investigation is 6 months. It's one of the worst things that can happen to a case. Even after the six months, there's an undetermined amount of time before you are allowed to take your child home. So, here's my point. While I thought God was being passive, he was actually aggressively keeping us from a significantly worse situation. It's the Iceberg thing, where our perspective of it from the top of the water isn't even close to the enormity of the actual size. I don't think I've ever been so thankful for anything before in my life.

So, all that to say: Keep praying!! It's working!!! Hopefully w/in the next week I'll be blogging away about getting out of PGN and getting passports, etc. !!! Eliot's first birthday is May 16th and I would LOVE to be home to celebrate that!

(This picture was taken at a friend's first birthday party yesterday! Eliot was about 3 minutes away from his naptime!)