A Birthday Wish

Happy 30th birthday today to a dear friend I miss very much.

Gobble, Gobble

We had a nice Thanksgiving. Keith’s mom came up for several days, and for the first time in too many years to count, my sister was here for the holiday. My 91 year old Grammi also joined us, but was having a little bit of an “off” day. My mom did a great job hosting. We also made a little visit to my Dad’s side of the family at my Grandma’s house (who passed away this summer. It was nice to see that side of the family, as I rarely do.

Koen especially enjoyed olives, a new discovery, and “helping” with the puzzle. He also learned to sign to a song for the first time, and could flap his wings like a turkey to “Gobble, Gobble, Gobble….”

Things are back to normal this week, until Monday when Keith leaves for Asia. He will be 16 hours ahead of our time, and closer to our daughter! That’s kind of a fun way of looking at it!

Tomorrow (Wednesday) is the day of the summit meeting between Vietnamese Adoption officials, and the US. Please pray that all goes smoothly, and it will improve the state of adoption in the country. Pray for protection over our relationship with Vietnam. Thank you. I’ll let you know when I hear how it went.


Koen "gobble, gobbling"

Helping Mama with the puzzle (note the missing border pieces by his hand - we never found them)

Loving Olives!
Lovin Olives!

Baby Quynh

While reading a blog I follow, I came upon another baby from Vietnam that needs our help. I copied the the latest entry on Quynh below. I am so thankful there are people helping her. Please pray and even consider helping cover some of her astronomical medical costs.

“Here is an update on little Quynh. She has made it to the U.S. on a medical visa! There is currently a herculean effort being made to save her life. I received this email from a friend of a friend. :) Quynh was abandoned when she was about one month old. She has Klippell-Trenaunay Syndrome, a severe vascular condition. Three out of four babies born with her condition do not survive the first month. Many more die by the third month. While in Vietnam, one of the many blood vessels on the surface of her skin broke and bled profusely, saturating a blanket and my jeans 18" in diameter right through to my skin. The clinic was able to stop the bleeding and save her life. With the Lord's care she has defied the odds and is now 4 1/2 months old. She is now in Arkansas and has had an MRI and a laser treatment for the blood vessels on her legs. The MRI showed that all of her organs are functioning. The hospital required $15,000.00 up front to do the MRI and the first laser treatment. The MRI alone was $12,000.00 and the adoption agency is now $5,000.00 in arrears with the hospital. The hospital is requiring more money up front before agreeing to continue her treatment. The couple from the adoption agency that have taken baby Quynh into their care have exhausted their reserves in hopes that more funding will come in to continue her needed treatment. She needs more laser treatments to help prevent the blood vessels on the surface of her skin from bleeding and, even worse, being susceptible to infection. Should she get staph, or some other infection, she could die in a matter of hours without proper treatment at a hospital very experienced with her condition. She also needs surgery to help her to walk when she is able. A condition of granting her visa to come to the states is that she will not become dependant on the government, hence no government assistance is available for her. This is a team effort to take care of this baby who has no parents to help her. Right now the needed players are those with a kind heart of mercy for her and the ability to give financially. Donations for her are tax deductible made out to Ventures For Children International (VCI). She has defied the odds of survival to this point, received the visa to come here, has housing and care, five top specialists to treat her, and her MRI shows a good chance of survival. Now she needs big hearted donors to see her through to a bright future. By the way, she also needs a family to adopt her as their very own. AND ONE OTHER EMAIL FROM ANOTHER FRIEND: My church did something unusual this year. They gave out envelopes of money(in increments of $10-$500) to every adult in their services a couple of weeks ago. We were entrusted with the task to multiply and invest in God's kingdom. We must comply with four rules: we can't spend it on ourselves, we can't give it back to our church, we must distribute the money by Christmas 2007, and we need to e-mail our church to tell them what we did with our "Mina" so that the church body might share in the stories of encouragement, hope, and faithfulness. My church is calling this "The Mina Project". My "Mina" is in the amount of ten dollars. This friend has decided to try to help Quynh with her "Mina" and has asked others to match the $10 Mina amount. If you would like to help with Quynh's medical bills, please consider matching the $10 "Mina" for little Quynh. Please put "Quynh's Mina" in the memo section so that VCI will know what the money is for. Together, I know that we can help this little girl who has no parents to help her. At Thanksgiving, I kept thinking of all my blessings--and the fact that I live in a country that is a paradise compared to most. After I read about the Mina project, I knew that I had to tell you about it--and that you would want to help. Ten dollars is a small enough amount that even children can participate--or a Sunday School class--or a small group of any type. The opportunities are endless! I know that God has brought Quynh to our attention so that we can help this tiny, parentless child to have the care she needs and deserves. Please feel free to forward this to anyone you know and let's see what God will do with our "Mina!" The address for VCI is: Adoption Agency: Ventures for Children Int. Address: 1621 Starr Drive, Fayetteville, Arkansas, 72701 Phone: 479-582-0305 Website: www.venturesforchildren.org E-Mail: info@venturesforchildren.org”

Thankful

It has been such a busy week – Keith has been up into the early morning hours the last two nights working on the computer, and I’m missing him. This is Keith’s “week off”, but so far it has been more stressful than usual. We haven’t had much time together, which makes me even more hesitant to send him across the globe in a week and a half. Koen has been a bit more demanding and grumpy lately as well. So, we’re all a little on edge.

And, tomorrow is Thanksgiving. I haven’t been focusing on what I’m thankful for much, so I decided to sit down and focus a little – and you get to see the fruits of my journaling.

I am thankful for (in no particular order):

Salvation through Jesus Christ
God’s grace to get me through
My husband – loving, faithful, and fun to be with
Koen – he brings me so much joy
My mom – for all the babysitting, care, support, encouragement, and her perseverance
My sister- that she is doing so well, loving her job, and is fun to be around
Keith’s family – for being so supportive of us, and for sharing our love for Koen
My dad – he’s done everything to provide for us
Our care group – so many great friends that we love like family
Our home – it is home and I love to be here
Hope – that though times are hard now, God has given me hope and a future
Adoption – God adopted me as His child, and now we get to adopt a child of our own
Provision – God has always met our financial needs, even when we worry
Harley Bub (Cat) – So soft and sweet, I love his loud purr and early morning snuggles
Luby Cakes (Cat)– A good companion, she keeps me warm at night, and is so good with Koen
Luby and Koen (11 mo here)
Our supporters – so many faithful people giving to our ministry
Holy Spirit- that we aren’t left alone with such a huge task
That I know my Grandma Beth and Father-In-Law Bill are in Heaven with their Savior
Adoption Blogs – I love to read the amazing stories and see the adorable pictures
Health – we have minor issues, but we are going strong
Food – I love to eat
Great Friends – our care group, people in our church, our neighbors, friends in Oregon, school and swimming friends….. we do feel so loved
Our pellet stove – so cold without it!
Coaching – it’s a pleasure to be in the girls’ lives and see them develop
Sunshine – today was beautiful and we got to go to a park and feed the ducks
My Grammi – she’s still ticking and still shows so much love for me at 91
Secret Santas- who surprise us by covering pizza, etc costs for us
Great Bargains – love my children’s consignment shop
My mantle – Keith finally put it up on Sunday. It’s not done, but I’m thankful it’s there
Our president – for his faithful leadership and endurance
Microwaves, dishwashers, vacuums….everything that helps make keeping house easier
Hugs – Koen has really mastered this lately, and I love them
Our church – supportive, welcoming, encouraging, challenging
Email – so easy to keep in touch with loved ones
Our Troops- for the men and women risking their lives to protect us and others
Our Trials – I don’t feel it, but by faith I am thankful, knowing God will use them for good

I hope and pray you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. God bless you.

*Some News, Could be bad?

Below is an email I received today from our agency. They sent it to all their families in the Vietnam program. I'm not sure what to think, but it is leading me to pray more.

"As many of you are already aware, there have been many rumors and speculations circling regarding the current tension between the Vietnamese Authorities and the U.S. Embassy. Following the implementation of the new I-600 initiative Joint Council for Children's Services (JCICS) has called a Vietnam Summit meeting to be held in Washington DC on November 28, 2007 to discuss current matters regarding international adoption in Vietnam. The U.S. Department of State and USICS representatives will also be represented at this meeting. Faith International plans to attend this meeting.

Until this meeting takes place and we are able to gather first hand information, we can not predict what will happen with adoptions from Vietnam. Although we remain confident that international adoptions will prevail, we must be flexible and patient during this process. We do know that the new initiative has brought about tension between the U.S. and the Vietnamese government. The Vietnamese officials are concerned about the new initiative's time frame. Currently with the new initiative, the U.S. Embassy is requiring families to wait up to 60 days after filing their I-600 petition. We are hoping to find resolutions to this issue and others at the JCICS Summit meeting.

There have also been speculation regarding the re-signing of an international contract between the U.S. and the Vietnam. The original contract, signed just prior to the re-opening of Vietnamese adoptions, will expire in March of 2008. We have not yet heard when or how this contract will be renegotiated or re-signed. Once again we are hopeful that the meeting on November 28th will shed some light on this issue. We are asking families to understand that any information that does not come directly from the U.S. Embassy or the Vietnamese government is simply speculation. No one will know how the new I-600 initiative or the re-signing of the contract will play out until we are able to see the process through.

Despite all of this, our Vietnam program remains very active! We have had 12 families travel to bring home their children in the month of October and beginning of November. Five of these families are currently in Hanoi waiting for the last stage of the process to be completed before they can return home. We have also had 6 new referrals since the beginning of October, 4 girls and 2 boys.... We are very hopeful that our Vietnam program will continue to be this active in the following months."

I especially don't like the line "we can not predict what will happen with adoptions from Vietnam." I have not control, and reality is that our agency has no control either. In the past, Vietnam and other countries have closed temporarily or permanently to international adoption. In the recent past it has been Nepal and Guatemala. I am so scared that Vietnam will close before we get our little girl. If so, where do we turn? Our agency doesn't have programs elsewhere that we are interested in. We have to trust the Lord is in control of this, and as our agency recommended, be flexible.

I guess I should focus on the good news - that so many families traveled last month, and that there were 6 new referrals!

*A Time for Everything

"There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven..." Ecclesiastes 3:1

So, is it time for me to prepare for the arrival of my little girl?
As I have searched other blogs, I've found many that post pictures of their future child's stuff - baby supplies, clothing, toys, bedroom, etc. Right now Liv's bedroom is also our sons, and that is how it's going to stay until some day we may be able to afford a bigger place. Koen's room is great though - it is pretty big, and we painted it light green and blue striped before he arrived. I'm not sure how to make it a little more girly, or if I need to for Liv. I'm also not sure what to do about crib bedding. I love the froggy set I have for Koen, and it is lt. green and lt. blue as well. I thought that if I add a splash of pink or something that it would work, but I do want my little girl to have the cute little bed of a little girl. I might have to make something. I was also thinking of perhaps painting over the blue stripes on the wall with brown stripes, and have a green and brown room. Doesn't sound pretty, but I think it would look nice.

The Nursery - Koen and Liv's room, not usually this clean but this is the picture we took for our paperwork (The blue isn't really this bright in normal light).

It's hard to know when we should be physically preparing for her arrival. Realistically the soonest the agency has said we could have her if all moves as predicted would be about a year from now, and the longest it could take (according to their current time-line) is June of 2009, which is very, very far away! However, like I said before, there is a little hope in my heart that God will surprise us and she could come home sooner. And if so, I want to be ready.

There is a great second hand kid's clothing store near me that has a major sale once a month, where I can get lots of things for super cheap. Here's a few of my finds that I hope Liv can use and enjoy:

*People do What?!

Yesterday marked the first day of Keith's one week vacation. It's not really going to feel like a vacation because he has a house project to complete, some Christmas gifts to help me make, a project for work to finish..... but hopefully we can have a day or two together as a family to enjoy.

The other day I surprised myself. When the phone rang I jumped up and immediately hoped it would be our agency. It has officially started - and way too early. We're supposed to have at least another 10 months before they said we could expect a referral. I guess it is good that my heart is hopeful it can happen before that, but it is going to make every time the phone rings a little more disappointing!

I have read some blogs lately of families who got their referrals very quickly. They were decorating the rooms, buying the baby supplies, and getting their shots to travel when they were still finishing up their paperwork. One of these families was with one of the agencies that has been suspected for unethical stuff (poetically put!), but I did find myself getting a little jealous. They only had to wait 3 months, and then one month to travel. That would put us at getting a referral in a few weeks. But, thankfully I know that our agency is doing all they can to do things right, and that is why they are not guaranteeing short wait times.

Another blogger that I have really enjoyed following adopted a child from Vietnam years ago. After having their child home for several years, they discovered that the person who arranged their adoption was arrested for bad adoption stuff (poetic again). She said it was heartbreaking to even have the thought that the birth mother had not wanted to give her child up. And that will be so devastating for her child when they learn about it as they grow up.

Apparently it is also a practice in some areas of Vietnam, with the help of some bad people, to refer a family a healthy child, and then switch the healthy baby for an unhealthy baby when the family arrives to pick them up. Medical records from Vietnam will show the baby is Hep B negative for example, and then when the baby comes home, gets very sick, and is tested again, the baby is positive. This can be bad testing in Vietnam, but it has happened many times, and in a few cases, the a child of a different gender is even switched out for the healthy one!!!

Please pray that the situation will improve in Vietnam. I know officials are working to clean things up, and more reorganization is taking place currently to have more people monitoring individual provinces.

You in the adoption world that are more educated in these things than me, please don't use me as a source. I have not done a lot of research, but have read several blogs that have addressed these issues. I want to share what I am learning with family and friends.

Fears

It’s been awhile since I checked in here, mostly because I have no adoption news. The wait has been fine so far – although every now and then I get a wave of anxiety over it. I’m mostly keeping busy, and that should help the next year or so go by quicker.

Last weekend I left Keith and Koen for 3 days to go to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado to learn coaching techniques for synchronized swimming. The club I coach for sent me, and I had a good time learning so much. I wish I had more time to devote to coaching. I did have a hard time being away from my guys that long though. Keith said that Koen was clingy and whiny some of the time, but if he kept him busy, or out of the house it was better. Koen also got to spend some good time with his Grammi while I was gone.

Koen enjoying a motorcycle ride
In about 3 weeks Keith is going to a large country in Asia (not Vietnam) for 10 days. I’m finding I have quite a bit of anxiety over him being gone that long. I think the most we’ve been apart since getting married is 3-4 days, and I don’t like being a single mom. I get enough of a taste of not having his help during the days! Please pray that God would provide the finances we need for Keith’s trip, and that He would give me peace over it all. Thanks.

As I’ve been following some blogs lately, I have learned of some adoption issues out of two provinces in Vietnam. Our agency is not involved in these provinces, but I have learned that a few agencies out of these provinces are being reviewed for possible unethical adoptions. There are higher rates of children being given up for adoption there, implying that someone may be paying the Vietnamese birth families to give up their children, and adoptions are moving along very, very quickly – about 1/4th the time as elsewhere. Vietnam has temporarily closed these provinces the get it cleaned up. Even though we have no relation to these agencies or provinces, every adoption in Vietnam affects ours, and the fear is that Vietnam may have to close or slow down adoptions as a whole. This is probably not likely, but it is still a fear. I’m not real educated on what’s happening, and I don’t want to perpetuate rumors, but I must admit that the rumors are raising my fear level.

Keep praying for baby Sinh – I have no new info on her.

Thanks and God bless.