Seriously...

So, maybe instead of praying for compassion, we should be praying for integrity. That people who say they're going to do something actually follow through and DO IT! Truly, I knew that there was a chance that the nice gentleman in the MP office was being just that...NICE. However, after grilling our translator and our attorney, I had hope that maybe he was being honest. Now, it would seem, our case is stuck again. Waiting the clarification on some things, but it appears our attorney has been told to come back and check again on Sept. 4th. Sometimes is feels like you mark those dates on your calendar only to watch them pass by and have nothing happen.

One of my friends remarked that it seems like your case only moves when you are there to push it along. Another family is currently doing just that. They have 6 weeks to get their case done, or their children age out of the system. Once a child reaches a certain age, they are no longer adoptable. Crazy, but true. They are currently in Guatemala, daily appealing to people who have their case, trying desperately to accomplish what some people think is impossible. I am praying that they are successful, that the children they have come to love as their own will be able to join them. We are also praying for wisdom. Should this family be successful, it may change how we approach Geovany's adoption process.

So much to think about and pray about. How thankful I am to know that God has not forgotten us. He is still in control. He does hear us. He does guide us. He does love us.

Blessings,

I cried out, "I'm slipping!" and your unfailing love, O LORD, supported me. When doubts filled my mind, your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer. --Psalm 94:18-19

Our Visit

It was a beautiful way to end our trip. I'm still processing much of what we learned and experienced this time. Still not sure of all the reasons why we went. Don't know that I need to know. Maybe someday God will reveal it to me, but for now, my heart is truly at peace.

We arrived at the orphanage just before lunch time. We went upstairs to the room where all the little kids were. As we walked in, Adrian - who is Geovany's sweet friend - looked up and began to yell "Papa de Geovany! Papa de Geovany!" He ran over, grabbed Rob's hand and pulled him to the sofa where Geovany was sitting. He kept repeating over and over "Papa de Geovany." It brought tears to my eyes, as it was obvious Adrian knew exactly who Rob was and who he belonged to. Adrian is the sweetest little boy, as outgoing as Geovany is shy, and a perfect companion for our son. Upon seeing us, Geovany began to cry. I held him in my lap, read him books, nothing worked. He just sobbed. Lunch time was announced, so we took him downstairs with the rest of the kids. I tried feeding him, but he wouldn't have anything to do with that! Through our friend Tommy, we asked the house mother if we should go outside in hopes that Geovany would calm down and eat. She thought that would be best. Not ten minutes after we left, Geovany came out, smiling a little bit. He had eaten all his lunch. We were allowed to take him into a private room where he opened right up. We colored and read books. We built block towers and knocked them down. We counted and laughed for about an hour. It was a wonderful way to end our week.

There are still many hurdles that must be overcome before we get to bring Geovany home, but this visit gave me the renewed courage to keep fighting. It's an uphill battle, but we aren't fighting alone or in our own strength. The week didn't end the way I wanted it to, we weren't allowed to bring our son home, or meet with all the people we wanted to met with, but I can rest in knowing it's all in God's hands. Just because He didn't work the way I wanted Him to, doesn't mean He wasn't at work.

I've updated the prayer requests on the sidebar. There are some specific people you can be praying for and we hope that you will join us in doing so. Thanks again for sticking with us and for carrying our requests to the Father. The love of so many for our little boy continues to amaze and humble and overwhelm.

Many Blessings,

Today

We met with our attorney this morning. He is cautiously optimistic about what we've seen this week. It sounds like, if the criminal judge who is getting our case will approve it, then it's just a matter of time. With her signature on it, MP will release it and sign off. With their signature on it, PGN will feel safer and release it and sign off. With the criminal judge's signature, MP's signature and PGN's signature, family court will feel safer and sign off and we'll be bringing him home. We've asked for the name of our criminal judge so we can let you know and we can all be praying specifically for her by name. In some ways, it reminds me of one of my favorite Dr. Seuss books, "All Because a Little Bug went KACHOO!"

On another note, we had a wonderful time with our friends last night. Throughout this entire week, as I've read your comments and been reminded in so many ways of the people who are praying for us and for Geovany and for his case, I've been brought to tears. It's truly humbling and amazing to me that so many of you continue to care about the fate of one little child. Last night, as we shared about Geovany's case with our friends, Evelyn said that she believes in miracles. Her church believes in fasting and praying and she will be asking them to do so for Geovany. I completely lost it. Across language barriers and cultural differences and 1,000 of miles, people are coming together to intercede on behalf of our precious son. And maybe that it what this week was all about.

Thanks for being part of our journey. Looking forward to tomorrow!

Blessings,

Today's Update

Well, not much good news today. The judge who will be receiving the case has refused to meet with us. She says she'll deal with our attorney, but not us. Don't want to make her angry, so we'll let that go.

PGN doesn't want to meet with us because they don't have our file. Which, I suppose, makes sense. Until the file is actually released from the MP and is back in their hands, what can they really tell us? They were "kind" enough to give us an appointment though, for next Weds. Guess we'll be canceling that one since we go home on Saturday, a fact they knew when they gave us the appointment.

Tomorrow, we'll meet again with our attorney. We need to sign some paperwork, as our previous power of attorney was missing a page. Then, we'll discuss what's next and go from there. It would appear, that for now, the meetings are over. If nothing else, we got some good news yesterday, so will hold on to that for now. We have lots more questions for the attorney, so hopefully, he'll have more answers.

Still plan to go to REMAR on Friday. Looking forward to seeing our boy and playing with all the kids there. Will try to get pictures of as many of our friends' children as we can. We know how important those little things are!

Thanks for praying. I still believe that we witnessed a miracle this week.

Blessings,

Our Meeting with the Ministerio Publico (MP)

The gentleman overseeing our case was very gracious and kind. He met with us right away and discussed the case in detail with our translator. He told her that they are finished with the case and plan to release it next week to a judge. They find nothing wrong with it and are willing to sign it off! Our attorney was not present for the meeting, but was pleased to hear this and will meet with MP this afternoon to confirm what we've been told. After leaving the meeting, I asked our translator, if he was just being nice and saying he would release it, or if he REALLY planned to release the case. Her response was that she believed he was sincere. That he said he was preparing the paperwork to release it and she had no reason to believe that he wasn't.

Once the judge receives it, she will decide if it goes through PGN - the old system - or through CNA - the new system. Our translator is continuing to pursue a meeting with PGN, as of right now, they are very hesitant to receive us. However, with the new news that MP is signing off, maybe they will be more open. She is also working with our attorney to get a meeting with the judge who will be receiving the case. Rob commented that he was pleased it was a female judge. Maybe she will have greater compassion and a "Mother's heart".

Our translator was very encouraged by the meeting today. It would seem that God is beginning to open the floodgates and allow our case to move forward.

Blessings,

Ministerio Publico

Tomorrow we head to the Ministerio Publico at 9:30AM. They don't make appointments, so we will hope and pray that they will see us. Currently, this is one of the places where our case is "frozen". They are currently reinvestigating the abandonment decree for Geovany. If we find a compassionate heart here, it could go a long way in moving our case forward. We have pictures of us with Geovany and a DVD comparing our time with him and footage from the orphanage. There's a pretty noticeable difference. So, we're praying that someone will take the time to talk with us, look at what we have to share and hear our hearts as we discuss what can be done to get our son home.

The meeting with our attorney went well. We have a better understanding of what is holding up our case. It's not hopeless, but may take a long time. While we don't mind waiting, we hate that Geovany must wait.

We'll let you know how the day goes.

Blessings,

Moments

We had a great day in Antigua, reminiscing and wandering through the town. It's full of memories for us. It's strange though, we can tell that we're not quite "here". Rob didn't bring a map or our Guatemala guide book. I think he only took three or four pictures the whole time we were there. We forgot where the shuttle dropped us off and had them looking for us because we were in the wrong place to go home! Things that just aren't typical for us.

There have been moments today that have been challenging...going in the elevator and not worrying about whose turn it is to push the button; breakfast buffet with no kids and no high chairs. Little things that bring back lots of wonderful memories. All in all, a good, relaxing day. Something we needed before beginning a very busy, emotional week. Looking forward to talking to the kids tonight via Skype. It's amazing that we can be so far away and still be able to see their little faces via the computer.

Thanks for the continued prayers. Emotionally, we're pretty wrung out already and the week hasn't even begun. I usually feel this way toward the end of a trip, but not usually at the beginning. I told Rob I'll be a puddle of mush by the time the week's over! =)

Blessings,

Happy 3rd Birthday, Sweet Boy

Well, we didn't get to celebrate together, but we're in the same country. Happy Birthday, sweet boy. May you always know how much we love you and how much we long to celebrate life's milestones with you. Mommy and Daddy are working as hard as we can to bring you home and praying that maybe next year, we'll all celebrate your birthday together, as a family, in your new home. We love you and hope to see you later this week!

All our love,

Daddy y Mommy

Here

We made it safely. No delayed flights, no lost luggage. Enjoyed catching up with a friend over dinner. Hoping to head to Antigua tomorrow. We'll be speaking with our translator tomorrow evening to go over the schedule for the week. As of right now, we only know of one meeting, set for Monday morning with our attorney. It's good to be back in Guatemala. We really do love it.

Reports from Grandparents are good. Samantha did well this morning. Kayla made monster cinnamon rolls and cinnamon bread for breakfast. Looking forward to seeing pictures of those! All in all, we're witnessing God's grace in action not only in our lives, but in the lives of our kids. His grace is sufficient for each of us as we follow in faith.

Blessings,

Grace Alone

Tuesday, Mantha decided to empty all the music out of the piano bench and the organ bench. It was spread everywhere. After stepping over it for a day, I finally got around to picking it up and putting it away. As I did so, I came across a little half sheet of paper entitled "Grace Alone" by Scott Wesley Brown. My Grandmother used to own the organ and would copy little songs like this and hold on to them. She must have done that with this song. Reading the words, I was overcome with tears. This journey has been so much more challenging than I ever would have imagined. Yet, in everything, God has been there. As Saturday approaches, I find myself struggling more and more with what we've been asked to do. I wonder how I'll ever be able to hold that sweet boy in my lap and then let him go one more time. I beg God to deliver our son and let us bring him home. I cry and I hope and I pack, knowing that we go forth in grace alone. Isn't it wonderful how God uses even the "messes" in our lives to speak to our hearts?

Blessings,

Traveling Again

It's been too long since I've posted. A lot has happened and yet nothing has happened. We've been told that there's a very slim chance of our case finishing and that if it does, it will be at least another year. After much prayer, we have scheduled a trip to Guatemala to meet with officials and see what can be done to resurrect our case. We leave this coming Saturday, and will be in-country for a week. Your prayers are greatly appreciated as we take yet another step of faith and follow God's leading, out of our comfort zone once again. I promise to do a better job of blogging while we're there.

We won't be taking Geovany out of the orphanage this time. Returning him to REMAR was too hard on him last time, and we're blessed to be given permission to even visit, as the judge says he doesn't want to raise our hopes or Geovany's. We hope to get to REMAR at least one day, maybe Sunday, to just spend some time with our son and the other kids. I've purchased some of our favorite children's books in Spanish and have been working on learning to read them. Geovany turns 3 the day we fly to Guatemala, so we'll leave the books as his birthday present. Not exactly how I expected to spend his 3rd birthday, but at least we get to be together.

As we've prayed, both Rob and I believe that God is asking us to take this trip. In so many ways, He continues to confirm that this is part of His plan for our family. We don't know what to expect, but we know that God is going with us. In many ways, it's reminiscent of a trip we made almost 2 years ago that started this entire journey. We don't think God is done yet. We have no peace in quitting now. Some may say we're foolish, some may say we're naive, some may think we're just throwing away money. I guess we're past caring what "some" may say and walking in faith, trusting what God is saying. Crazy? Maybe. Comfortable? Not at all. Exciting? Definitely!

Specific prayer requests include:

• Successfully scheduled appointments
• Hearts softened towards our case - PGN officials, minor's court officials and the judge over our case
• Safety for our kids who are staying home with grandparents and strength for Grandma and Grandpa and they care for their four wonderful, energetic grandkids
• Good visit with Geovany, I'm not even sure what that would entail!
• Peace while we're there and as we come home, trusting that we've done what we've been asked to do

Blessings,