The First Days

The kids just went crazy in awe when we got them home. They loved their rooms. After breakfast we took a drive out to my sister's house as they were not able to meet us when we came home yesterday (Sunday night). It was too late for their kids. The kids swam at their house for a little while. Michelle (an "aunt") made finger foods for the kids for lunch. Then it was off to the beach. They were so funny....Maria ran down to the water and was not afraid of the waves. J.P. on the other hand didn't really want to and only got his feet wet. They both loved digging in the sand and loved how it felt between their toes. We met Aunt Trish and Uncle Joe and cousin Taylor for Pizza at Bizzarro's for pizza. The kids love pizza. After pizza we went over to Taylor's house and the kids went swimming. Maria wanted to stay and play for a little while and it was time for J.P.'s nap. We took J.P. home to take his nap. Later when he woke up we went to pick up Maria at Joe & Trish's. (Trish is bilingual and has been a big help translating and teaching good manners & how toos.) When we got to Joe and Trish's however, Maria wanted to ride in the car with Taylor to go get ice cream. After icecream it was home for bed. We'll write more later.

The Canuels are Home!

Sorry it took so long to get this posted as you can imagine it has been busy these past couple of days. Sunday we were picked up from the residence (Betty's Place) at 6:15AM and wisped off to the airport. We made it there the 3 hours in advance as we were suppose to. It is a good thing though because it took us 2 hours to get checked in and through to the gate. We were only sitting about 25 minutes and they started boarding the plane. The flight left at 9:50AM and was aprox. 3 hours and 20 minutes. The kids did great on the flight. No screaming, crying or anything of the sort. I had packed them backpacks with stuff to do and it kept them content. We landed in Ft. Lauderdale about 2:30PM. There were about 3 other flights that landed the same time as ours so the "people traffic" was incredible. My mom was great helping me through everything with the kids...I do not think I could have made the travel without her. She was a blessing. (Thanks to God I was able to get to travel back with her on return date like we had been praying for.) After getting through customs (about 1 1/2 hours) we were escorted to immigration where we waited another 2 hours. All this time our family was waiting for us downstairs. We understand that an escort from our airlines should have taken us through to the front of all the lines because of the adoption but, they did not. Finally, we were able to leave immigration and we were escorted to the family. Maria saw Taylor and she ran and gave her a big hug. My dad, Arlene (Steve's mom), Joe & Trish (Steve's brother and wife), Taylor (my niece) and of course Meem all came down to meet us at the airport. It was really cool. We didn't get home until about 9:30PM. Our friends Donna & Tony had a huge welcome banner and some decorations out on the front entrance. Taylor put up some balloons and signs for J.P. and Maria to welcome them. It was nice. The kids came in and saw the house and their rooms and were totally floored. I got video and will try to put it up as soon as I can. All said good night and I put the kids to bed. They were use to sleeping in their own beds but in the same room at Betty's Place. I left them at night to go over to the next room (with a baby monitor on in case they needed me) to get them use to being seperated from me while we watched a movie at night and I did laundry. They did well! They both have night lights in their rooms and there are some more through out the house also. They have a big day the following day: To my sisters, the beach and over to Taylor's to play then out for ice cream. More details to come. Please continue to pray for Christina....she is still at Betty's and not sure when she will get sentencia. Thanks W

Going Home!

This morning I had to get up really early as Tia Betty set me up with an appintment to get my hair done (Cut n Colored). Noberto of Noberto's is a very well known stylist and has a huge business. He is very feminine but, super nice and did a great job. He has everyone that comes in there treated like a princess. There were always at least 2 girls working on me at the same time. It was really neat! There are several different sections in his salon. The building alone takes up a whole corner of a block and is about 3 stories high. He lives on the top floor (making it 4 stories in a place that sort of looks like a pent house). Christina gave us the scoop. Later that afternoon I took the kids back to get their hair done in the "kids salon" as I wanted to do something special for them for the trip home. They had so much fun. This salon for kids is utterly a disneyland fantasy complete with a ball pool, a slide and a little play area for this kids. J.P. was taken and seated in a "car" chair and the grin on his face was worth a million dollars. At first I was just going to take Maria but, I am so glad that I took him, too. Maria was next with braids and ribbons. She had a finishing touch of a flower, glitter then lip gloss and stickers for her face. They had a blast. We walked back home then it was time for siestas while I packed most of our suitcases. Mom went with Christina to a art show at the convention center which had all handmade things from Colombians. When they got back we sat down for dinner. After dinner it was off to bed. I wanted to get the kids to bed early because we have to get up at 5:00AM to be picked up at 6:15AM. Our flight leaves at 9:50AM but, we have to get there 3 hours early. The kids didn't go to sleep right away as we were doing the finishing touches on the suitcases and I think they were probably a little excited. Later I updated the blog and now it's time for bed. I can not believe the time has come for us to come home. I can not wait to see and hug all the family. I know that several are coming to meet us at the airport. We will see everyone soon! Please pray for a safe trip with no hick ups. Luv to all. W See you soon, Honey! XXXOOO

Panaca - The Farm

We got up and got dressed and went for breakfast. Patricia picked us up about 11:00AM. We all piled in the green car and headed for Panaca. Panaca is a place where the kids can see and touch animals: cows, pet goats and sheep, watch a dog show, catch rabbits and hold them, see chickens/roosters (some other birds too) and horses. It was pretty cool. We were able to spend about 6 hours there so it killed a lot of the day. The kids had a blast. They got to sit on a bull, milk a cow, pet some dogs and hold some rabbits. We had just gotten to the horses and it started to rain so we had to book it to the car. On the way home it rained really hard but, we made it home OK. When we got home we had to shower the kids. They got absolutely filthy chasing the rabbits. After showers it was into PJs and over to dinner. They wanted to watch a little TV after dinner which was fine because it gave them a chance to settle down. At about 8:00AM I put them into bed. They didn't get naps again today so guess they should sleep really good tonight. Tomorrow we plan to take the kids to get their hair done (at least me and Maria - we will see how JP handles it). Then maybe take them bowling or go to a market that is near here. I also thought about taking them to Crepes N Waffles for icecream. We'll see. One more day.

WE HAVE VISAS!!!

Today we slept in until 9:00AM!!! I couldn't believe how late it was! The kids must have been tired too because they didn't really get up either. After breakfast (about 10:30aM) we all walked over to the "Park Line" (A line of about 5 small parks that the kids love to play at. Each one is mor like a "Station"). Christina and little Mira walked with us - She has still not heard anything about her sentencia so please continue to pray for her. There was a man with an ice cream cart that came and sat next to the last station where we were playing with the kids. He rang the bell only once to let us know he was coming then he sat quietly and watched us. He was amazing in that he did not sit there and continue to "ring the bell" to taunt the kids. Nor did the kids pester me for ice cream. There was only once toward the time we got ready to leave Maria asked for ice cream...at first I told her later that we would go to "Crepes and Waffles" where they had the really cool ice cream deserts once before. Then I got to thinking about how nice this guy was sitting there so quietly. I decided that it would be better to buy icecream from him. So, we did! He appreciated it. About 1:00PM or so it started to poor so we decided to boogie on home. We got soaked! After changing out of our wet clothes we had lunch then I put the kids down for their nap. Jaime and Silvia were to pick me up at 2:45PM to go get the visas. They were on time. Another 45 minutes ride in traffic and in we went. When we got to the window the guy handed me the papers in sealed envelopes and the kids visas. He told me to check the info on the outside of the envelope to make sure it was correct (basic info: name, address, mother's name, father's name, etc.). Well on Maria's info sheet they had her name in the spot where my name should have been. Good thing I checked it well. The man changed it for me and said "have a nice trip home"! I told thim thanks with the biggest smile I have ever had...then we walked back to the van. We had to make one more stop before home - I had some paperwork translated from Spanish into English which we will need once we get back into the states. I understand this can get very costly in the states so I had it done here. Then it was home. I immediately called my hubby (hi honey) and told him that we have visas! We are done and we are officially clearred to come home! After talking with Steve I called my other Mom - Hi Mom- to tell her the good news. She has been great helping Steve to get the house ready for me...cleaning and all. Thanks Mom! The kids were up when I got home. They watched a little TV then we had empanadas in the living room with everyone before dinner. After dinner Marie Antwenette and OKellys made that awesome pineapple cobbler pie desert they had made once before! It was soooooo good! We played with the kids a little more then put them down to bed. Tomorrow its off to a place called Palanka which is about 30 minutes outside of Bogota. It is a little farm which the kids can see and touch farm animals. They are excited. Guess that's all the excitement for the day! We miss everyone and can not wait to see you all. Until tomorrow. W

Visa Application Process

Hey Everyone....sorry I got tired last night and didn't get the post up from yesterday. Taking the kids to the park then will get you all caught up on yesterday. Luv to all 3 more days!

Silvia and Jaime picked us up at 8:00AM to go to the Embassy. We piled into the van and off we went. It took about 45 minutes to get there due to the traffic. It was totally different than I expected. I expected to see something like you would see on TV where you go through these large iron gates into this huge open courtyard-like area where there are huge beautiful buildings on both sides and many American flags flying. NOT...The embassy is gated but, mostly with a large white block wall. On a back road there is one wall where a gold seal that says "United States Embassy". Jaime droped us off then we walked down this long sidewalk where there were several lines of people outside the walls. We walked right up to the front of the line as because of the adoption we have special privelages. Through security we go (similar to that at the airport) then through another area and to another block wall. This opens up into an area which reminded me of an outdoor train station. There is a truss covered area where there are hundreds of chairs/benches, 21 window "stations" which have bullet proof glass and look like those at a drive through bank teller for one person. There are telephones outside each window which are similar to those used in a prison where a prisoner talks to a visitor. There were no flags and no flashy buildings. You give your paperwork to a "teller" then sit and wait for your name to be called. At about 9:45AM we were called to a window. The "Teller" told me that one of the forms was filled out incorrectly (it was 5 pages). I had filled it out in my name and it should have been filled out one for Maria and one for Juan. Then she asked me for our new I171H form (this is the one that I ran around like a chicken with her head cut off to get finished before we left). I did not know that I would need that form and did not have it with me it was over in my book which my mom had. Then the lady asked me for proof of the update from the FBI!!! I didn't have any copies of anything from them as the information is not permitted to be returned to me it goes only to the adoption agency. I paniced! I had to leave the window to fill out the new forms and find proof of the FBI stuff. We were talking to the adoption agency - they pointed out that the new I171H (which I had a copy of with me) had a statement right on it at the bottom that the background check was valid until 2009!! It was a whole hour before our name got called again to provide the newly completed forms and copies of the I171H. It was only then that the lady said "Great...all your paperwork looks like it is in order...please have a seat and we will call you". WHEW!! Talk about an hour of stress! After that I paid for the visas as the windows were closing for lunch..and we waited more. Finally they called our name and I went through a brief "interview" where I answered a couple of questions, signed a statement that all is true to the best of my knowledge and then was handed an appointment card for tomorrow to pick up the visas! The kids were excellent! J.P. sat in his stroller with 2 hotwheels cars for 3 hours without complaining. Maria was great, too! My mom was fantastic with the kids (no surprise to me) so I could concentrate on what I needed to get done. Then it was home. It was about 6:00PM and we still needed to eat. We decided to take the kids out for dinner since they were sooooooooo good. We took them out to Jenos for pizza and the "indoor" park. (Family ask me about that experience...this is too long to write details). Afterwards it was back home, showers and off to bed. My mom, Christina and I watched a movie and then went right to bed! I was so tired after getting up so early that I crashed hard. Tomorrow we don't need to get up early so we planned to sleep in. The main attraction - PICKING UP THE VISAS.

The Embassy Dr. & Passports

Jaime had picked up our papers that the attorney had flown to us from Valledupar at 6:00AM. This means we could go forward with the passports and the embassy Dr. visit. This morning after breakfast we took a quick walk up to Unicentral Mall to get the kids out a little bit before the long day we had ahead of us. We made it back in just enough time (12:00PM) to meet Silvia and Jaime who were our guides for the day. First it was off to get the kids passports. We had not taken passport pictures yet so...we needed to do that first. No worries though because just outside the building where you get the passports was a small office that takes pictures and makes copies. After pictures we waited in line which was short for us because we get special privelage due to adoptions. At the first window the guy was reviewing everything and said that we would need to go find a lady to sign off on Steve's visa. The copy we had cut off the bottom part of the visa and she would need to OK it. We found her then rushed back to the window. 2 minutes later Silvia comes running over and said hurry we need to come over to the next window - when we got there she said they were closing for lunch...we just made it - this is where you pay for the passports. Then we waited in another short line for the next window which prepares the paperwork for the passports. Maria signed off on hers...and I signed for J.P. Now we just have to wait for them to "put them together". Shortly thereafter the lady calls the kids names and we have passports!! We check everything to make sure names and numbers are OK. Next we walk over to a translaters office as there are some documents we need to get translated from Spanish to English for the children when we get back to the states. We leave there and then get to the Embassy Dr.'s office (which is not on embassy property by the way) about 2:30-2:45PM. The children's appointment is not until 4:00PM and the Dr. is not in yet. Silvia says sometimes that the Dr. is there and you can go early however the was not there yet so we had to wait for him. Finally, we go in to see him - he is very nice and speaks both Spanish and English (Silvia did not go in with us due to this). He checks their weight and height (Maria is 51" tall and weighs about 55 pounds, J.P. is 39 1/2" tall and weighs about 30 pounds). Asks us and the children a few questions and then we are done! We get home just in enough time to eat dinner and then Tia Betty had a special treat for the residents (especially J.P. & Maria). She knows a Vallenato band who is a good friend and are from Valledupar. They came and played for about an hour for us. I think this wore the kids out especially since they had no nap today. Showers and then into bed. Tomorrow its up and going super early. Jaime and Silvia will be here at 8:00AM to pick us up to apply for the kids Visas. My mom was a great help as the kids had to sit for so long at times. It would have been really hard for me to do all that I had to do and keep an eye on them, too. (Mom Arlene, I know that you wish you could be here, also. I know that you would if you could but, you are helping us out there with the office. We could not get through these last several weeks without you so, Thank you!) We will see all soon! Only 5 more days to go! [D&T ] :)

Papers Miss the Flight! Still on Track! :)

We woke up today with anticipation of the paperwork that was to be flown to us from Valledupar. After breakfast we called the guys (my dad and Steve) to check in then we had to wait for Jaime to call us. He was to go to the airport this morning to pick up the papers then call us to go to do passports and embassy Dr. visits today. About 11:30AM I received a call from Nora who explained that the papers did not make the morning flight. The plane left earlier than it was suppose to and they missed the morning flight however, they were to be on the evening flight. While we were waiting all this information we were trying to keep the kids occupied with crafts and stuff. I didn't want to wander off as we were going to have to leave the residence when we got the call from Jaime. So, when Nora told me that we wouldn't hear about the paperwork until the early evening we decided to take the kids out. They get wound up tighter than a top then they have all this energy they need to "run" out. We walked over to the parks for a couple hours where the kids could play. I chased them around for a couple of hours and we all had a good time. There was another little boy about the same age as Maria that was there playing with us. As it turns out he was being adopted along with another boy who may have been his brother. The family was from Italy. We chatted with his mom for a brief moment then they left and so did we. We went from the parks to grab a bite to eat at the empanada place. They were good as usual. After empanadas we came back to the residence and the kids took a nap. When they got up we had some time to kill before dinner. We grabbed the playdo and tried to be as creative as possible. One of the families staying here (the dad, Jim) had a birthday today so Tia Betty got a cake for him and we celebrated his birthday. After dinner we lounged around watching George of the Jungle on Tv (Disney Channel) and then put the kids to bed. Mom and I came back over to the kitchen for tea and another piece of this pineapple cobbler that was out of this world. We didn't watch a movie tonight. Just sort of hung out. I received a call from Nora at dinner to advise that the papers arrived in Bogota this evening however the office is closed. Jaime is suppose to go get them at 6:00AM in the morning and then call us at around 12:00PM to start the process of passports and embassy Dr. visits. Guess that is pretty much what we will be doing tomorrow. We only have about 6 more days to go!

Grandma's First Day In Colombia

This morning we woke up and my mom to Sonya's pancakes! They are so awesome! I do not know if it is the atmospheric pressure or what that makes them so fluffy but, they just are. After breakfast we decided to try to get to the parks (there are about 5 little ones in a row about a block from here). When we got to the second one which I think the kids love the most because it is like a merry go round mom decided to take a ride with them. After about 5 minutes or so we started to hear constant gun shots in the far distance. Many of them at one time and for about 15 minutes this went on. I had not heard that before and it made me just a little uneasy so we decided to book it back home. I wasn't extremely concerned about it as every Sunday they close off one side of the main streets in the city for people to ride bikes, rollerblade, run, etc and everybody was still doing it. There was even a mom and her 4 year old on a tricycle. At any rate I asked Ms. Betty about it and she said there is a military base out that direction and they were probably having shooting practice or something. We decided to take the kids to the mall where they have bowling and the movies. We started in the bowling alley but, they were having tournaments all day. There was a man and 2 children standing at the counter in the bowling alley and over heard the man tell us we could not bowl in Spanish then heard me reply "no habla espanol". The man was nice enought to translate...both to me and to Maria (to explain why we could not stay after we told her what we were going to do). Then we decided to go see a movie - Walle. They were going to do the same so they walked us to the theatre, helped us to get our tickets then find our seats. It was OK. The kids did pretty good through it. We had lunch at McDonalds again as it was right there. Then we walked home and put the kids down for siesta. After siesta we took them to Jenos for pizza and "the park". They played until about 8:30PM then we came home and got the kids ready for bed. Mom and I went to the next room to watch a movie with Christina after calling my dad and Steve to say good night. Tomorrow we go to get passports. The final process begins. :) Finally.

Tickets for Two

After breakfast this morning the kids and I went to Avianca to get their tickets to come home next Sunday. I tried to explain to them what I was doing but, was easier once our dirver got there and could explain as he speaks Spanish. They asked if we were going home to Florida today and we told them no but, in eight days we will be going home. After we returned home from the tickets Christina and I took them to McDonalds for lunch and to play for a little while. The weather was a little cool and it kept looking like it was going to rain on and off so I figured it would be safer (due to the weather) to go to an indoor park. Especially with Mira going with us. Then it was back to the house and siesta. The kids laid down but, did not nap. I have a monitor which I can hear them in the next room and maybe they were too excited about grandma coming I do not know. Afer a little while I let them get up and watch some TV before dinner. We visited a little while with Jim, Linda and Jordan (an 18 year old Colombian child who was adopted at 4 months. He was back in Colombia for the first time as he did a birth search and was seeking his birth mother. They had found her and he came back to meet her.) They were really neat people. After dinner I got the kids ready for bed and they watched a little more TV. I put them into bed and Jaime picked me up to go get my mom from the airport. (The girls were listening for them via the monitors as they were going to sleep for the evening). When we got the the airport my mom's flight had been delayed for about 20 minutes so Jaime and I went for a cup of coffee. We talked a bit and after a short time we went back down to watch for my mom. I see her and she sees me and I point to the exit where she is to meet me. When I get to her she gave me big hugs...I think they were not only from her but, from everyone! She told me that after a few times of changing seats she ended up next to a cournal and his daughter. They got to talking and she told them the reason for her visit to their country. She told them she was a little nervous about getting off the plane and going through customs. They told her no worries just walk with us. When they got off the plane (and the bus) to the terminal there were 2 soldiers waiting for them. They told my mom to walk ahead for a minute and they would catch up with her. When they met up with her they walked her to the front of all the lines and right through customs to me! I told her that God was with her the whole way and arranged for all those people to change seats with her to seat her next to the cournal and his daughter. He handed her to me safely and securely! How cool is that. When we got to the residence we called our spouses to let them know we were home OK. The kids were already in bed sleeping so their greeting would have to wait for the morning. Then it was off to sleep.

Maria Gets Her Shots

Today was great! Today was the last day for Maria's tutor as we will be busy next week with Embassy stuff. The instructor said she did pretty good. Afterwards we played in the garden here at the residence until lunch. Christina made quesadias. Then it was off to McDonalds to play in the "resteraunte parke" as the kids call it. We were only there for about a half and hour and J.P. had an accident (he wet his pants). So...it was back to the residence to get him dry pants. We had promised them ice cream so I went over to the grocery store to get some. I found some ice cream sandwiches which they weren't sure of at first. They wanted to know where the ice cream was. It was cute. It had started to rain so we couldn't go back out to the parks as everything would have been wet. So they played around in the room for a little bit then down for a siesta. I woke them up about a half hour before the Dr. came to give Maria her shots. She did very well and did not even flinch! She is so tough! We tried to keep it pretty low key afterwards so TV was pretty much it. After dinner they watched a little more TV then it was off to bed. I had called the airlines to get my ticket changed and tomorrow we go to their ticket office and get the kids tickets. You have to go there because they are the only ones who can help with adoption rates. Our attorney went to Aguachica today to get the birth certificates (the new ones with our last names on them). We should get them on Monday - we will be running around all next week getting all their paperwork done, passports & visas. Looks like we will just come home on Sunday. Less stress and just in case. I'm OK with that because I know I have a ticket now to come home. Now...it's a piece of cake. My mom comes tomorrow night so please pray for a safe flight. Also, continue to pray for us that everything at the Embassy and such goes smoothly. Christina and Nick still need prayers for their sentencia - she is here alone now as Nick went back to the states yesterday. I know that feeling all to well - Let's show them how God can move mountains by prayers as I am not sure they know him, yet. :) I have explained that my mom has 5 churches praying for all of us, of course all of our family and friends and their churches, too. I have also told her that I have put a "prayer request" on our blog for them. I am trying to "shine" for her so that God can be seen (in me). I love that song "shine" by the newsboys....haven't heard them in forever as I have no way of playing my ipod over speakers here. Maybe I'll grab my headphones sometime soon. Guess that was pretty much it for today.
Tomorrow is just a trip to Avianca, probably the park and daddy suggested getting a Domino's pizza for lunch to see how they like it. We'll see. Luv to all and SEE YOU SOON.

HE SIGNED! WE'RE COMING HOME!

I woke up early this morning to get dressed for my trip. I had laid everything out for the children and had a schedule all written out for Tia Betty and Ms. Alicia (the nurse). I left for the airport at about 7:15AM this morning. Jaime picked me up and walked me as far as he could to the gate. He was very nice. My seat was all the way to the back of the plane and there was an empty seat next to me. After a few minutes a really super lady, Isabel, sat down next to me. We spoke very breifly at first and gratefully she spoke some english! Speaking I told her that I would be returning this evening and she said ME TOO! I said that maybe I can look for her on the return flight and we could sit together. She agreed. Upon landing she walked me through until I could see Luci waiting for me. I said good bye and would see her later. Luci and I went to her home where we called our attorney. We immediately left to meet her to sign the sentencia. After sentencia the three of us went to have a soda. She said that she would see us later...we could call her at 4:30PM to see if the pro qurador had signed. We went back to Luci's where we had lunch and looked at the pictures from Aguachica so she could tell me the kids story. Manuel came home for lunch and I got to say goodbye to Jeffrey, Luci's cousin. (Hey Roberts family....they all say hello!). Later we went to make copies of our passports as the attorney would need them to get the new birthcertificates. We walked them to the attorney's office where she told us that the Pro Qurador had signed. I jump up and ran around to the other side of the desk with tears in my eyes and thanked her. Then it was back to the airport. Our flight was delayed by an hour due to a thunderstorm. I saw Isabel and I shouted for her. She came over and sat by me. I turned to the window where Lucina was standing and introduced her to Isabel. After knowing that I would have company and a guide returning to Bogota she and Manuel returned home. Our flight was late by an hour due to a thunder/lightening storm which even killed the lights for a minute. They immediately came back on. God answered our prayers!! He is such an awesome God! Thank you for praying...and God thank you for answering our prayers and for the angels you sent to watch over me today (i.s. Lucina, Our attorney & Ms. Isabel). Tomorrow the attorney will travel to Aguachica to get the new birthcertificates and will overnight them to me for Saturday delivery. Silvia from the agency will help me with everything when I receive them. Maria gets her shots tomorrow as well. Other than that....Oh happy day! I am exhausted so..buenos noches. By the way can you guys also pray for Christina and Nick who are still waiting for the judge to sign off. Nick left this morning to return to the states and she is here alone now. I know that feeling... good night W.

WE HAVE SENTENCIA! Now back to Valledupar!

Today started just like any other day. We knew that the paperwork went to the judge on Monday, 7/7 and we were not sure when he was going to sign off on our case. I took the kids to the park after Maria's class this morning. We were there for about 20 minutes and my Colombian phone rang. It was Nora who told us we had sentencia!! I rushed with the kids back to the residence as I wanted to call Steve. He needed to get my ticket for Valledupar booked so I could leave in the morning (returning in the evening). I arranged for Luci our guide to meet me at the airport and also to take me back. I had to call the Dr. back and reschedule Maria's shots for Friday afternoon as I had made her appointment for Thursday - and I will be traveling now so I do not want her to have them with me not there. Jaimez/Silvia will be here at 7:15AM to pick me up and take me to the airport. That's pretty much how I spent the morning...preparing for my trip to Valledupar. The blessing is that the children do not have to travel with me. EVERYONE THAT HAS BEEN PRAYING THANKS! THEY ARE WORKING SO FAR! We are not out of the woods yet....the Pro Curador has still not been signed and he has 3 days to sign it. As of today he has not signed it. I will speak with our attorney tomorrow to see where we are with that. If he signs it tomorrow then, it is possible that I will be able to fly back with my mom on next Sunday. That would be sooooooooo cooooooooool! Please pray for the ProCurador to be signed off. (And of course for safe travel for me back to Valledupar and return to Bogota). The children will be in the very capable hands of "Tia Betty" and Alicia (a nurse who has been working with adoptive families/children for over 15 years and has been in the residence every day watching children). This morning while I was "working" Tia Betty explained to the children that they needed to watch TV so Mommy could get all this stuff done. They were excellent and I think in most part because they understood what I was doing and how important it was. When all was done I took them to McDonalds to play on the playground and to eat a McFlurrys. Afterwards we came back - it was too late to take siestas so they just horsed around a little before dinner. After dinner they watched a movie and then I got them ready for bed. They didn't have a nap today so they should sleep very well. Please pray for ProCurador signature and safe travel. More tomorrow! Buenos Noches!

Bye Bye Again Daddy

Steve had to get up this morning at about 5:30AM and left at about 6:30AM. His flight left at about 9:50AM and reached Ft. Lauderdale at about 1:30PM. We all miss him terribly all ready but, I promis not to make everyone cry this time. I was of course as last time Steve left a mess. I appreciate the pep talks from my mom, Arlene (mom#2) and my sister. They helped a lot. So thanks guys. I also receive an email almost daily now from my cousin Angie which is really nice. She is affiliated with a ladies prayer group one of which is a patient so keeps each other informed plus they all pray for us. We didn't do too much today...the children & I played in the garden (Tag, Monster and Hot/Cold), we popped over to the park for a few then it was back for a nap. Mommy even took a nap. After I woke up I felt recharged and stronger. I had been praying for strength because this morning I didn't know if I could handle too much more. I know everyone has been praying for me (Steve and the kids) and I feel it. So thanks and please, keep praying. While you are praying we need lots of prayers for the judge and the "D.A." to sign quickly (maybe tomorrow) :). I should hear something from our Agency rep tomorrow is she is suppose to call our attorney to see where we are in process. Nick & Christina got good news today...they are also in the same stage as us which is great because they were way behind us as of yesterday. I will keep everyone posted. After naping the kids watched "Shrek" until dinner. After dinner we went back to the room and I got the kids showered and ready for bed. Especially Maria which had been difficult because of her cast. We didn't get her shots yesterday as the Dr. called and was sick. She had referred us to a local clinic but, I think I am just going to call her back tomorrow and reschedule her home visit. Tomorrow will probably just be a day for the park as Maria has class in the morning and also I need to make some calls. I also want to stay close to the house and wait for Nora's call. I was given a local Colombian phone that belongs to the residence so I can receive calls. Guess that is it for tonight. Buenos Noches.

On the Mountain

Maria has class this morning and afterwards we are going up to a place Monserrate. It is like an overlook which has a cathedral on it. They have mass and a priest lives on site. From there you can see the entire city of Bogota. It is really pretty. I will try to get some pictures up. Maria was suppose to get her shots yesterday but, the doctor was sick. Ms. Nora was here this afternoon and she said that our case just went to the judge. We now have to pray that they sign off on it quickly (they have up to 10 working days). After the jusge signs off on it then it has to go back to the guy (Pro Curador) who has to sign off on it AGAIN (he has 3 days to do so). Once he signs off on it we will have Sentencia. I will then fly to Valledupar in the morning, sign and fly back. They said that the judge may or may not want to see the children. If he does then they will have to fly back with me. After Sentencia then our attorney has to drive to the city where the children were born and get new birth certificates in the Canuel name. She will then overnight them to me here in Bogota. Then we start the Embassy process. After dinner we all came back to the room and watched TV. Steve and I made some arrangements - my mom is going to come out on Saturday and stay for eight days. That will help pass some of the time.
Guess that is it for now. Steve leaves in the morning to go back to the states. I will miss him and I am sure the children will, too. Until tomorrow. W

Science & Pizza

This morning we got up a little later than usual. We got dressed and headed over to eat breakfast with Larry and Andreas (Nick & Christina had already eaten). Then Steve and & tried to figure out what we wanted to do with the kids today. We decided to take them to the Science Center here in Bogota. It was only about a 15 minute taxi ride there. When we got there the security guard and a lady standing there arranged for an English speaking person to come and be our guide. Her name was Paula and she said that she has only been working there for about 3 weeks. She was very nice. She walked us to get our tickets, helped us with which ones to buy (the prices included different things) and then walked us around the place. We went to the 180 degree round I Max theatre first. They had a pretty interesting movie (it appeared to be about roller coasters and such - it was all in Spanish so that's the best I could guess). Judging from how the movie went I think Maria will be on every one of them at the parks. J.P. wasn't so sure. Afterwards she walked us down to get our lunch and came back in 20 minutes. Then she took us down to the main level where we just let the kids play with this and that. We thought the Science Center would be good for them because there are a lot of times where we are telling them "do not touch" this is one place that they can TOUCH ALL YOU WANT! They loved it. Paula's shift ended at 2:30PM so considering the fact that she spoke English we thought it was best to have her help us get a taxi back to Betty's Place. She walked us across the street to a large mall and then helped us to get a taxi from "the loop". We thanked her, gave her a tip and into the taxi we went. We returned back to Betty's about 3:30PM. Our agency representative had called while we were out & we attempted to return the call. We think she was just checking in as she is suppose to stop in and say hello tomorrow. She is from Medilline but, will be in Bogota tomorrow. Maybe she will have good news...we shall see. We put the kids down for a nap and they slept until about 5:00PM. We let them watch some TV until 6:00PM and then we were off to Jeno's Pizza. They have the huge large indoor playground for the kids which they love. We had to laugh at JP as he hooked up with these 2 young girls who thought he was just the cutest thing! He hung with them on slide for about 20 minutes or so. We had to peel him away to come eat the banana split we got to eat between the 4 of us. You should have seen his face...in fact, watch the pictures we took - you'll see it! He's a little disappointed. Afterwards, we let them play for a little longer. All of a sudden I found myself talking to these 2 young boys about Maria's age. In speaking with them I find out that they are cousins and that one of them is from MELBOURNE, FLORIDA!!! His father is American (a missionary) and his mother is Colombian (who speaks English) and was here visiting her mother. It was sooooo cool! Turns out they live in Suntree. We exchanged phone numbers, invited them to Calvary - they mentioned that they had been wanting to go there - we told them to call us and we would love to go with them. Imagine - God works in mysterious ways...all this way to bump into more christians from our home town. She would like to get together when we get back as it may help Maria and J.P. adjust. They will probably feel homesick and may help them...sort of like Betty's place did for us. Afterwards we headed back to Betty's, called family and put the kids to bed. We are tired so we are going to bed. Talk to all later.

The Salt Cathederal

Today we slept in a little later than usual. We had breakfast with everyone and then about the time that we were done our driver arrived to take us to the Salt Cathederal. The kids were excited that they were going. We piled in the car and off we went. Patricia was good at pointing out some cool stuff as we went along. She showed us the refining plant where they take the raw salt and process it for exporting. She also explained that Colombia is the 2nd largest exporter of flowers, especially ROSES. You will see pictures of all in the album marked "Salt Cathedral". We passed a government castle and a bridge that were over 600 years old. The Andes mountains surrounded us on both sides. There were portions of the trip where you could see houses on the mountain side. Most of the these areas she said were where the least fortunate people live. There were some homes on the mountain side that were large homes with multi-levels and were where the wealthy people lived. The Salt Cathederal is the first tourist attraction. It was very cool (not literally - It was not as cool as the caves we went into when we lived in St. Louis). Maria and J.P. had a great time touching and tasting the salt which was everywhere. By the end of the tour little J.P. was ready to sit for a while....I think he was tired. The tour took about an hour. We were with some other English speaking families on the tour - our guide also spoke English. After the tour we had a small cup of coffe at the bottom of the mine then we made the hike back up to the entrance/exit. We let the kids play on a playground for about 10 minutes and then we were off to find some lunch. Patricia took us to theis really cool place. Steve had chicken, beef and sausage with french fries, an arepa and a piece of banna bread. I had the same except the beef and chicken. The kids both had what else but CARNE, their favorite. The rain started to come in about the time we got ready to leave. I thought the kids would sleep on the way home but, they were too wound up. We got back into Bogota around 5:00PM and piled in the room for a quick siesta before dinner. Dinner was a simple red beans, rice, carne, plantains and guak. Just enough after the late lunch we had. The kids didn't really get a good siesta so after dinner they were ready for bed. We got them in their jammies and they fell off to sleep. We watched a movie and then we went off to bed. Tomorrow we'll catch up with Paster Mark at Calvary Chapel Melbourne (ccmmelbourne.com) on the web then probably go up to one of the local flea markets. It will be an easy day. Don't forget to check back for the pics. We'll try to get them up ASAP. Hasta Luego

Barbeque

Here is our room from both angles.

Pictures

Here are a couple of pictures from Bogata.

July 4th in Bogota

Today the weather was perfect. The sun was out and it was cool. We walked down to the Unicentral mall with JP while Maria was with her tutor. When we returned we went out for empanadas and went to the park. We returned home about 2pm and the kids took a nap. About 4pm we started the grill and had our 4th of July barbeque. Nick, cooked hamburgers & hotdogs, corn (with the largest kernells I've ever seen) and the girls made potato salad with bacon. We had all the chips and veggies as well. For dessert the kids roasted marshmellows over the coals on the grill then they had brownies and ice cream. We sat for a while afterwards, had coffee and talked. The kids were having fun dancing to some vallenato we put in on the computer. Betty's husband, Ralfa, came over and played with the kids for a while. Even though there were no sparklers or fireworks we had fun.

Another family came in late Thursday night after me. It was a dad (Larry) and his son (Andreas). He was adopted a couple of years ago. I believe he is now 14 years old. They have returned to Bogata for a visit and to meet with Andreas foster parents. They were gone all day yesterday although returnd last night about 10pm. We had just finished watching a movie so we talked for a while.

Tomorrow we are going to the Salt Cathedral. It's suppose to be spetacular. It's a salt mine that has a church in it. The cathedral holds 2000 people and has services on Sunday. There are many tunnels and biblical sculptures carved out of the salt. They have tours (in english). Everyone says it's one of those things you have to experience once.

Talk to you all soon. Steve

Daddy's on a Plane

Today was very exciting as we knew that daddy was coming back to Bogota today. Everyone was up and through the morning routine like clockwork. After breakfast I sat down with Maria and went over some homework with her. She is studing the alphabet, vowels, numbers, colors and shapes. We got through some of it and she said she would work on the rest later in the afternoon. We were pretty much killing some time because we were suppose to walk with Christina and Nick to a large park they found about 15 minutes walking distance from here. After they were all dressed and ready baby Mira included, we piled in the strollers and off we went to the park. The kids had fun playing for a while and it started to rain so we had to book it back to the residence. After some lunch I let the kids stay up instead of putting them down for a nap as the Dr. was to be here at 3:00PM to review their shot records. I didn't know if she would want to see the kids so, I didn't want them sleeping just yet. When she arrived the girls brought us some afternoon coffe and we sat down at the dining room table. After reviewing what was given to me by the social worker from Aguachica we came to the conclusion that Maria needed all her shots (Tuberculocious, Polio and Hep B she already had MMR) except chickenpox which we can give to her in the states (it is required by the Embassy but, we understand that they have been a little more lax about making the kids get it here in Colombia). J.P. has had everything except chickenpox and it is the same for him - he can get it in the states. The Dr. was going to double check about the chicken pox vax to make sure that the Embssy will allow it later. After the Dr. left I put the kids down for a nap. They both fell asleep and slept for about 2 hours. We had a half an hour to kill before dinner so I put in the movie "Free Willy". There was a part where they were showing a skateboard park and I told J.P. his daddy used to do that (Ms. Betty was in the room at the time and she translated for me) J.P. responded back to her "I can do that!". It was too cute. It really is a shame that we don't know more Spanish because I am sure there are so many more little cute things that they say that we do not know about. Dinner is Chicken, rice and delicious carrots and green beans. After dinner it was back to the room and I got the kids ready for bed. Daddy was gonna come in late and I didn't think it would be good for them to wait up for him. Well it's time....Daddy is coming now. Until tomorrow....Hasta Luego

I'm Back In Bogota

I flew back to Colombia. I had a good flight although it was a long day. I treated 10 pateints from 9am-11am, changed at the office, grabbed some quick food and hit the road by 11:30. I needed t0 be at the airport in Miami by 2:30 and it is a 3 hour drive. After some rain and construction slow downs I arrived ay 3pm. It tok about 1.5 hours to check in and get through security. My plane was scheduled to leave at 5:30 and was only a few minutes late. We landed in Bogata at 8:05. We deplaned on the Tarmac and took a bus to the terminal. Immigration was very busy and had taken about an hour to clear. Wendy was waiting outside. Long day but very glad to see Wendy and the kids.

Stroller Success & a Bright Student

Maria had her second English lesson today. They went over colors and shapes. Unfortunately I did not get a chance to speak with the instructor, Mario, before he left as I was in our room with J.P.. By the time I was getting ready to go over to where they were studying she walked in the door and the instructor had already left. I assume that she did OK. I spent about an hour today creating homework for her to do tomorrow. I want her to do it on the days that she is not with the instructor. After "class" the three of us walked over to the store and got J.P. his stroller. You should have seen his face. I do not think I have seen him smile so big. He likes it a lot. We came back to the residence and had lunch then back out to a couple of the parks for a little while. They were small but, enough for them to play on. They at least had swings on this one which Maria loves. We came back to the residence and it was time for siesta. After siesta I had gotten some foam shapes and 8x10 foam sheets so they could do a craft and glue them on. It was simple but, something to do. They said they were making them for their papi who was coming tomorrow. We still had a little time before dinner so we took a walk to the baby store around the corner with Nick, Christina and Joe. On the way home we stopped back by another park and let the kids play for about 15 minutes. Dinner was carne, plantains with quak, and rice. Very good. After dinner the kids came back to the room and watched a little TV then down for bed. The day was pretty simple, really. Tomorrow we are gonna take a walk to a different park with Nick and Christina. I understand the walk is about 15 minutes. Maria has the homework I prepared for her today to do. And the Dr. is gonna be here at about 3PM to look at their shot records to see what they still need. It is much cheaper to try to get their shots done ahead of time rather than wait for the embassy Dr. to do them. Besides we want to break the shot dossage up a little if they need a lot of them anyway. Don't want to put all that stuff in their little bodies all at once. I spoke to Nora (our agency rep here in Bogota) today and she said that our paperwork is still in Phase 3 person's hands. He was suppose to have a maximum of 5 business days to sign it and supposedly he has not yet. She said that it will go to the courts on Monday. Originally, we were told that we should expect sentencia (the paper we need to come home)on June 7th or 8th. Monday is the 7th so I am not sure what this all means. Please continue to pray for us. I will know more on Monday. Steve comes in tomorrow night so please pray for safe travels for him. Also, please pray for Melissa's little girl, Ariana (I don't know if I spelled it right but, I think she is only about 3 years old or so). She just found out that she is very ill with Mersa. I believe that she is back in the hospital/emergency room today and is not doing well. Poor little thing. Melissa, please know that our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family. I would also like to give a shout out to Dr. Cooper's office. He has so generously allowed one of his girls to come over and lend a hand with some billing issues. Thanks for your help. Guess that is it for tonight. Buenos Noches.

An Easy Day

Today was sort of uneventful. After breakfast I had Maria do the homework I had written out for her the day before. I want her to review it every day. She has lesson again tomorrow at 10:00AM. (I want to thank everyone who has been praying for the practice. Steve told me this morning that we got 3 new patients in the office today. Very important for us. I thought it would be good to share as God is answering, prayers are working so please keep praying.) After homework we headed down to the mall so see about hunting for a stroller for J.P. I can't believe how expensive they are here! You have to get one with "huffy" wheels or the sidewalks and walkways here eat them for lunch. It was challenging looking for one without someone with me who speaks Spanish as I could ask how much but, not: do you have one in a box, do I have to take the floor model. do I have to put it together?? I thought I would have someone come back with me to get it. On the way home the crazy weather started blowing in- sprinkles then cool breeze then sprinkles again. We managed to make it home pretty dry. After returning the kids played for a little bit and then Ms. Betty told me of another place near by that I could look for a stroller. They did have some but, I wasn't sure how much I wanted to spend on one here they range from about $60 - $260. Isn't that a little expensive?? I don't know I've never had to buy a stroller before. I didn't want to do anything without talking with Steve first so I didn't get one yet. In the morning one of the locals is gonna be here to take the other family out and he knows where all the cheaper stores are so he is gonna give me some ideas as to where else to look first. Just thought it would be easier to get one here rather than have Steve try to drag one on the plane. (Besides there are luggage restrictions. ) We stopped at a little restraunt next door and got some empenadas to bring home for lunch. I also introduced the kids to apples and peanut butter (hey sis, they like it too! Teaching them the same crazy thing I taught Blake! :)) While they were eating Silvia and Jamier our agency people here in Bogata stopped in for a second. They brought me some forms that I needed for us to sign when Steve comes for the Embassy. They didn't stay long. Afterwards it reminded me that I still needed to check on the kids shot records to make sure that they had everything that they were required to have to "check out" of the embassy. As it turns out it looks like J.P. has had everything required but, Maria needs a lot of stuff I think. The Dr. provided to us by our agency is going to stop by on Thursday at 3:00PM to take a look at the records, give me her address, schedule the appointment for the visit and let me know how much everything is going to be. I plan to make the appointment for the office visit for one day that Steve is here in case one of them have a reaction to the shots. I received an email from Luci today that said that she will email me when she speaks to Dollys our attorney this afternoon. I have not received the email as of yet. I may try to call Luci tomorrow. Tomorrow is the last official day of phase 3. Then it is suppose to go to phase 4 where the judge gives his final approval called sentencia. He has up to 10 days to do so. I understand that the average timeframe for this part of the process is 3 to 4 days. Please pray for 1 or 2 days. Steve will be here the day after tomorrow and it would be neat if we can get it quick. It's about an hour or so before dinner and the kids were getting wild so I decided to take them to the indoor McDonalds "playground" as it was still raining on and off to let them play out some of this energy they had bottled up inside them. Dinner consisted of J.P.s favorite, soup (I think it was celery), CARNE, rice, potato/onion/cheese caserole and brochlii/cheese caserole. It was delious as usual. After dinner we came back to the room and it was our usual routine. Jammies, a little TV, we have implimented prayers then bed. I usually get my emailing and catching up with family done about this time as well. My mom and dad got to talk to the kids a little tonight. They stayed still for a couple of minutes in order to do so. Very unusual. Tomorrow, Maria has her lesson so I think we will skip the the mountain tour we were invited to go with the other family here. Will probably wait for Steve to do something if we decide we are gonna do any tours at all while we are here. While Maria has lesson maybe J.P. and I will go get his stroller. He absolutely loves it!! Maybe it is because he has never had one? He thinks it is a car or something! I think most children his age don't want to be in them about now but, luckely he does. If we get the stroller I may try to take them either to the other parks again or if it is raining maybe just to movies. I guess we will wait to see what tomorrow brings. By the way go to 6/21's date (I think there are 2 posts) as I have just added a video clip of J.P. and Maria dancing one of the last nights we were with Luci and Manuel. It's awesome. Good night all. Lots of Luv. W