In the Meantime

Well, just five more days, and we will know if Baby Opia is ours. After our first failed court attempt, we are trusting God is going before us and making the way for this next step. I don't have any reservations about this appearance. We know all of the appropriate steps have been taken, relinquishment occurred, and all of our paperwork is prepared! However, our updated prints have yet to arrive at the embassy in ET? Apparently, they are transmitted electronically to them and snail mailed to us. This means they should have them before we receive them. Then our caseworker, who knows to check with them daily for the sake of the neurotic mom on this end, notifies us. We can't get an embassy appt. without the prints. I'm sure they are on their way...somewhere.

In the meantime, I'm busying myself with trip planning and coordinating humanitarian aide for our trip. It's proven much more difficult to get a list of approved item to distribute (at orphanages and care centers apart from our agency) than expected. We had resolved to travel a week + before placement to see the country and serve the people. In my mind, this just fell into place. I could see that someone on the other side of the world would have a spreadsheet of organizations and needs just waiting to match the traveling couples. *Note to self, when you begin your next adoption start orchestrating this portion immediately.* Actually, God must be trying to impress on me the need to rest and wait and relationship and trust, in lieu of striving...again. I know there's nothing I can take to distribute, which would replace the love and interaction of a mother and father for children wishing for their own. BUT, Martha keeps jumping out and taking Mary's spot no matter how hard I try to beat her into her assigned place. Oh, the joys of being a spiritually-schizophrenic woman.

I'm still looking at the accommodation options while in country. With such a big party there aren't near as many (which is nice). We will stay at one of the guest houses, once we take placement of our son. Prior to placement, we are traveling to outlying areas. We will see the city in which he was born and travel from there. We are also hoping to see the natural beauty of the country side, the amazing history, and national park in the southern region. I think we might need a month to accomplish what we'd like. In any case, we will know more of the land of our son's birth, take pics of the place he was born, and the center where he was placed by his wonderful birth-mother.

We'll keep you posted! Pray for court and prints...we are ready!