Learning about Pereira

The last couple of days we have been learning as much as we can about the region we'll traveling to in Colombia. I love the fact that orchids and lots of other flowers are found there. We've also read that there are many natural springs you can visit. The city is in the Andes mountains and has a tropical climate - very exciting! Another CHI family traveled to this area earlier this year, so we have been scouring their site for info. We were able to get pictures of the places they stayed and the places they visited. It's good to know that there is a zoo, parks, lots of pools & springs and a coffee plantation. They also said that the architecture is just as unique and beautiful as the landscape. I'm afraid I won't want to leave once we get down there, I cannot wait to see all of the beautiful flowers that we don't really have here.

I'm much more at ease knowing that we will not have to stay in the hotel the entire time we are in Colombia. We can take our children out and get pictures of their native country. What a relief and blessing. We will probably be staying in Bogata the last few days of trip (while things are finalized in the courts, etc.) We are really hoping that we get to spend some time with our friends from church who traveling to Bogata to meet their children. I'm really hoping and praying that we have a few days for our children to get to know each other a little.

Tonight was a real treat. We got to have a video call with some of our friends who left last week to get their children. We just talked to them last Sunday, but so much has happened since then that it seems like it's been a month. In the last week they have flown to a different country, met their children for the first time and are learning all about their new family. While we here, have learned about a regional assignment (that is a really BIG deal!) They are staying about 100 miles North of where we will be. They said they went 45 miles or so South today to a water park and that the sun was really intense - don't forget sunscreen. I know I need to take some, but think it's funny that I'll be taking it for me, not the children. I'm sure the children will be just fine without it :)

Picture of us and the Bonds, who just traveled earlier this week to meet their children.

Regional Assignment

We got some news today!! Julie (CHI Colombia program director) e-mailed us today to let us know we were assigned to Pereira Colombia! It was kind of weird and unexpected, in a way. She was e-mailing because she thought she had already told us what our regional assignment was, and that it was for a different region. She was actually e-mailing to correct herself and notify us that our region was Pereira instead. The problem was that she had never told us any of that until we received her e-mail today. So to say the least, we were quite confused. Good thing I didn't get the e-mail until the end of the day, because I didn't get much work done after that. So I (Paul) e-mailed Julie right away and Chris called her to try to confirm what the e-mail said. Julie e-mailed back to us quickly and talked to us about our assignment and confirmed that we are assigned to Pereira.
For those who don't understand what a regional assignment is, I will explain.
When you first start the adoption process you have to fill out tons of paperwork including, psychological evaluations, physicals, FBI background checks, child abuse and neglect, social worker interviews.........pokes....prods.......you name it they do it. After you are done filling out the mountain of paperwork, you send it all the Colombia to be approved. All the paperwork that you send to Colombia is referred to as your dossier (dos-eee-ay). Once you are approved by Colombia's social welfare program (ICBF) then you are put on a waiting list (Baby list, sibling list, older child list, etc.) Once you name reaches the top of the list, the next step is to be assigned to a specific region of the country. After you are assigned to a specific region, the only thing left is to be assigned to your children. In the past, rule of thumb has been, once you are assigned to a region, you usually get assigned to your children within a month (remember this is just a rule of thumb). Throw in the mix of the holidays (Not much happens in Colombia in December) and I'm guessing we will be assigned sometime in early January. Although I hope I am wrong, because we would love to have pictures of our children before Christmas. So...... just something to pray about.
I have no doubt that God has picked out a specific set a children for us, so I'm not too worried about it. I do not know their names yet, but Chris and I pray for their safety and comfort every night. God knows their names, God knows where they are, God will give them comfort, safety, and peace. So if anyone who reads this would like to pray for them too, I would encourage you to do so. One of these days, when it's not so late, I will put my testimony on here about how the Lord softened my heart towards adoption. It is a very cool testimony about how God can work in your life if you allow Him to do so. If anyone has questions about anything with our adoption, please feel free to ask. Just type it in the comments and we will respond.

Spaghetti Dinner Fundraiser

We are happy to report that we had a very successful fundraiser dinner on November 11th. We are thankful that we have so many friends and family that have been so supportive during this adoption process. We were able to raise $2500 towards our adoption fund. With time getting short before we travel, this was quite a relief. We could not have done this without the help of friends and family who gave at least one night to come greet people, seat people, cook food, serve drinks & spaghetti & dessert, and to stay late to help us get the dishes done and the church cleaned. We had a great time serving everyone spaghetti and listening to the brass band play Christmas music. Again, thank you to evereyone who gave of thier time, talent and financial contributions.