The events leading up to my trip to Africa and the trip itself where frustrating in so many ways. It is a LONG story that I won't go into here, but we found out right before the trip I wouldn't be able to file her immigration papers in country again. This time the issues were with US immigration. EVERY fluke thing that could happen with our case has happened. I will give one example. We needed to renew our fingerprints before I could file over there. So we went to the immigration office in fort smith where everyone does this-1.5 hrs away. We walked in early - everyone has previously been able to without any problems for several years- because our actual appointment would be while I was in Africa. We go and it turns out that they are swamped that day. They said come back tomorrow afternoon, and we should be able to fit you in. So we go again the next day. When we get there they pulled us aside to talk to us. Turns out they had just received an official notice from the headquarters that they (all offices around the country) are no longer able to do walk-ins. They felt horrible for us...especially when I burst into tears. I can't even tell you how many freak things like this have happened!!
I have asked myself why is it that we have had so many setbacks? Is God trying to tell us something? What I have decided is that maybe God is allowing these setbacks to happen to protect us from ourselves. There have been several families (as in supposedly hundreds) that have snuck their children out. It has been over a year and a half since the suspension started and families are desperate to get their kids home. Some of these kids have had a US visa for 2 years now and all that stands in the way is an exit letter (permission from government to leave the country). I had no intention of doing that (can't speak for Zac ;o) ), but I wonder if God knows that the temptation may have been too great to try and sneak her home therefore, we are hitting every road block imaginable to get her US visa. (Once she has that US will accept her even though she has been snuck out of the DRC).
Despite our frustrations God has made it very clear that he is still working. Some pretty cool things happened. Turns out there was a different purpose for my trip. When I got there A was only 17 lbs (at 22 months). She was very sick and underweight. It can only be described as divine intervention that we got her set up with a new family that has been wonderful. I'll explain...
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| This swim suit is 12 months and we couldn't keep the bottoms from falling off her! |
Before the trip I texted an adoptive parent friend whose child is still over there if she would like me to take some things to her daughter. She said yes and also asked if I could take a couple things over to the missionaries her daughter is staying with. The day after A is dropped off to stay with us the missionary lady, we will call her Jan, came by to pick up the items. She saw how sickly A was and said we should take her to the doctor. She checked on us the next day. When I told her what the doctor said -one being that she was very malnourished- Jan said that she knew another family that could take her in if we wanted. Needless to say we did move her, and it was the best decision! We have been able to Skype, talk on the phone, and more importantly A is getting the care she needs. Plus the monthly foster care fee is quite a bit less because I'm paying the family direct (instead of my paying our lawyer and having him take his cut before paying the family). She gained about 10 lbs in about 2 months. All this came about because God put it in my heart to ask this family to take some items to their daughter. Not to mention what a blessing Jan has been to help us and so many other families get set up with good foster care families. I will say that I do believe A was loved by her old foster family, and on my last trip she was healthy and a decent weight. But some things had changed over the past year with that family that caused a decline in A's health, and we couldn't keep her there. I was thankful that I was able to visit with her in depth my last day there.
I am so thankful though because she got strongly attached to me again on this trip. She knew I was mama and was content to have me hold her all day long if I could! You would think she would prefer to go to women who speak and look like her, but she didn't! We spent much of our time either bonding ourselves or acclimating A to her new foster family...since she does not like new people. I pray that she will remember our bond until we go back and pick her up.
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| Here we are with the missionary and the new family she will be staying with. The mama is on the floor and then her youngest of 4 children is sitting in the chair. A's expression cracks me up! She's saying with her eyes...don't make me play with them! She eventually warmed up to them and is now currently being spoiled rotten. ;) |
We have heard word from the US embassy in Kinshasa that the government has decided he will start letting these kids come home. Right now they are having meetings to look over all the cases and come up with some kind of order and system to get them home. There are 15 countries who have adopted from the DRC and about 1300 children who are waiting to go to their new families. We are hopeful that kids will start coming home this summer, but no specific timeline has been given. There is a big cultural difference in time here vs African time. Update from today: the suspension hasn't officially ended because they are not allowing new adoptions to begin. They are just going to let those who are through court come home. Rumor has it that the first wave of kids will come home in the next week or two.
I am missing that girl something fierce but it is reassuring to know she is in good care! We got to Skype with A for 30 minutes early this morning, and they told us some funny stories about her. She is a big talker! You can tell they love having her around. One thing that cracked me up was every time Mama Charlotte leaves the house A will call out to her "When you come back bring me bananas, candies, and mangos!" Also every single day when she wakes up she will walk into each person's room and bid them good morning (Bonjour Mama, Bonjour Papa, etc). We sent her a recordable photo album with pictures of all of us and each of us saying different things on each page. Apparently she has listened to it so much that she has it memorized! She will quote the whole book by herself from memory. Right now we anxiously await for the first wave of kids that get to come home because then I will know it is finally really going to happen!
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| Congolese breakfast of champs. Most hotels just give you toast but here they give the adults eggs and 3 or 4 pieces of white bread every morning. I did not expect the abundance of white bread in Africa!! Pretty sure I came back heavier. |
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| They did not provide a complementary breakfast for A so she shared with us plus I had brought a lot of food from home. Well she would throw quite a fit when she got finished with her half of the eggs, and I wouldn't give her mine! She wanted all mine and Britt's! :) We learned to scarf our eggs down before she got done with hers. I had heard and read that a lot of adoptive children experience food issues because they have grown up food deprived. It was true for us. Just about the only fits she had were over food or because she wanted me to carry her instead of walk. Thankfully the new foster family is able to work through a lot of the food issues since obviously there is no language barrier for them. |
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| Sweet girl is so full of life, spirit, and joy! |
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| Painting our nails together! |
Mandy! I love this post and the way God has been working in such awesome ways. Thankful sweet A is in a loving foster family and getting the care she needs!! I'm praying she is home very soon!!!!!
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