June photo update

We just received our June photos! Too cute!!!

Happy Birthday Sarah!!!

Hi everyone, Well tomorrow my baby turns FOUR years old!! Seems impossible, but she is! I cannot even believe that it was four years ago that she entered our world. Amazing how the days can go so slowly at times, but the years pass so quickly.
This weekend we had a birthday party for her and she had a wonderful time. The theme was princesses, which for anyone who knows Sarah this is NOT a surprise. We had princess everything; cake, pinata, moonbouncer, ect. The above pics are Sarah with her friends. She is the one in the blue and white dress.

I cannot even begin to tell you all what a wonderful child she is. John and I are blessed with the brightest, funniest and smartest (not to mention adorable) girl. I thank God every single day (yes, even on those days when she is driving me nuts) for giving me such a miracle. HAPPY BIRTHDAY SARAH!!!!!!! WE LOVE YOU!
MOMMY AND DADDY

HOLY MOLY...THEY SIGNED THE CEDULA

Well our visit trip must have done some good because Tuesday am we were notified that the Civil Registery office had signed the birthmothers cedula (ID card) thereby rectifiying the document!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I just stared at the monitor in disbelief! We are now back in PGN for the first time in over three monthes. This information has been confirmed by the adoption supervisors. I think that this is the most excited I have been in a long time, I was really starting to feel hopeless!!! Thank you to each one of you who called us to offer support and prayed for us. Keep it up...seems you have some pull (smile). Now that we are back in PGN it should be another 6-8 weeks, unless we get kicked out again! Then another 2-3 weeks after that until we could travel for pick up. I will keep you posted, but hopefully my next post is that we are OUT!
Love,
Lee Anne

We're back!!

Hello, Well John and I are exhausted, but home! We left Guatemala yesterday at 4am and pulled into the driveway at almost 10pm!! What a day! But enough about yesterday we want to tell you about the rest of our trip. We had a wonderful time and both agreed that we were glad we decided to come. It was SO good to see Joey and spend some quality time together. He recognized us immediately and came to us willingly, but I know that the real attachment will take awhile once we have him. The weekend was full of firsts for us. First time feeding him cereal and bananas, first time helping him to walk, his first haircut (given by ME, scary huh). We had a wonderful time!!

On Sunday night we had to meet up with Yoli and Karla in the lobby to give him back and it was so impossible. John put it best...it just feels wrong! Why do we have to keep giving him back?! We wish that the PGN officials would have to sit in the lobby of the Marriot and witness the toture of handing these babies over to the foster families. I cannot even describe to you how sad it is to sit there and watch what happens. The longer it drags out the worse off everyone is, including the foster families who love these children so deeply. We are hoping for some positive news this week (just as we have every week for 10 mo now), I will keep you posted.
here are some pics from the week.
love
lee anne

Hola from Guatemala!!

Hi everyone! Well we made it here and are having a wonderful time! I'll start from the beginning. We left for the airport on Friday am at 3:30!! We had un-eventful flights to Houston and then to Guatemala City. For those readers who have been to the GC airport I can report that they have made NO progress, the place is such a mess! We arrived to the hotel about two hours before they were to bring Joey so we had time to eat and get washed up. When we walked off the elevator at 3p. to meet with Yoli (foster mom), Joey and Karla (facilitator/translator) I knew his voice right away! He was dressed in an adorable outfit we had sent down mo. ago and looked wonderful. He was genuinely happy to see us and shockingly came right to us all smiles. John and I had talked about the possibilty of stranger anxiety, but it was non-existant. He was smiling, laughing and showing off his newly acquired walking with help skills. The rest of the day was fun, just the three of us playing with his new toys and taking lots of pics. Bedtime however was NOT too fun! I think it hit him around 9pm that he was in a strange place with people that he is not too familiar with and he was pretty upset. But after some walking and back rubs finally went to sleep.

Today was wonderful. We had a leisurely breakfast, the buffet here is amazing and it was a lot of fun to feed Joey his cereal with mashed bananas. John and I then headed back to the room to stock up on the supplies we would need during the day out by the pool. I left breakfast before he did and when he made it up he told me that he met a Payton Manning look-alike! Boy did he ever, we met up with "Payton" (Marc and Emily) down at the pool and spent the day with them and their beautiful little girl, Adeline. John and I just cannot believe the incredible people that we have been blessed to meet on this adoption journey and they were no exception. We had a great time with them, what sweethearts!! We also met lots of other Adoptive moms and dads, everyone is just so great and supportive. One woman even approached me by the pool and asked me what my babies name was. When I responded Joey she said "yes, I thought that was him, I would know that baby anywhere". She recoginzed him from Cheri's blog previo prayer baby section! I thought that was great. Well tomorrow is the last day, we are giving him back to Yoli at 6pm :(
More from Guat. later on!!!!!!!!!! This mama has to get to bed!
Love,
Lee

We're going to visit! Oh...and there was an earthquake!

Hi everyone, First John and I want to thank you for the amazing amount of love and support that have been shown to us over the last week. I am overwhelmed by the amount of emails and hugs that I have received, thank you. We have decided, after much deliberation, to go on our visit trip. We know that this is the last opportunity that we will have to see Joey as a baby since he is growing so fast; so we are going to seize that chance. We will be in Guatemala City from June 15-18th at the Marriot and will be posting lots of pics so stay tuned.

Some of you may have seen today on the news that a "strong 6.8" earthquake occurred in Guatemala today 70 miles from the capital, Guatemala City (yup, where we are staying). This region is prone to earthquakes and thank God no one was injured or killed and there seems to be minimal damage. I spoke to one of my friends in Guatemala this afternoon and she said that it was the strongest that she has experienced, but that she was fine. As someone who is TERRIFIED of earthquakes, volcanos, tornadoes, ect. and has lived her entire life in the northeast I just pray nothing shakes from June 15th-18th!!!

Well off to pack all of the goodies I bought for little Joey and practice huddling in doorways!
Hugs,
Lee Anne

Some of our blogger friends are STUCK IN GUATEMALA!!!

I wanted to take a few moments to share with you some of my fellow Guatemamas that are stuck in the same damn cedula disaster as we are; only they are fostering in Guatemala and cannot leave until the problem is resolved.

There are two women stuck with their daughters in Guatemala. They have been fostering for several months and their cases, along with several others with the same issue, have taken a turn for the worse. As it stands, there is no way for the problem to be corrected and, therefore, no way for them to bring their children home.

Please check out the following links and do what you can to help.

Cheri's blog site: Click Here

Erins's blog site: Click Here
Check out the website, if interested!
Lee Anne

UPDATE

We have been notified that this week that after 11 weeks our case left the PGN rectification department and is back at the civil registry office for signature. Here lies the problem, our attorney does not believe that they will sign it. PGN made a decision this week that they will NOT render a decision on cedula retifications. Bottom line (for those that are completely lost on this stupid process)...There is a very big possiblity that Joey will NEVER come home if we cannot obtain a signature for the cedula and no one currently will sign it. My nerves are frayed and my hope for a positive ending of this is shattered in peices. I cannot stay cheerful and optomistic anymore.

Our trip next week has been infinitely postphoned, we will not disrupt his life and continue to bond with a child that may never come home. Please pray hard for us, although I think he has been ignoring my pleas lately. In the next few weeks we should find out if they will sign it or not and if they do not we start over again at square one on a process that may or may not work.

The news is...there is NO news!!

I know you all must be thinking that I have completely forgotten about the blog and have left out so many wonderful things that have been happening on our case, but the sad news is NOPE!! Our file is still kicked out of PGN because of the ever problematic cedula (unsigned birth certificate). Every week we receive an email from the hired help telling us "this is the week, the cedula issue will be rectified this week". But, as every week passes nothing seems to happen. Meanwhile I read the forums daily and hear about people flying through PGN in four weeks with NO kickouts...I am bitter. The process is unjust and mind blowing, there is just no consistancy. How can my file be such a mess and others just breeze through. Don't get me wrong I am happy for those people...I just want it to be our turn.

We leave in 12 days for Guatemala and I cannot wait to see our little man. I will keep you posted...I promise!

Love,
Lee Anne