Looking Back...

I was doing what I do after every visit with the boys...thinking what in God's name can speed this thing up?!?! And wondering if we need to request an extension for any of our paperwork. (This is a good thing to keep on top of b/c once your paperwork expires you have to re-file which means paying the fees again. Something we are trying to avoid.) This ended up in a mad goose chase. I was searching through 100's of copies of documents looking for one lil piece of paper. No luck! So, next i turned to my old "sent" email. I vaguely remember scanning the document b/c we had a problem with it. As i began looking through my email i came across this...

This was the first picture we received of the boys. To my surprise we received it on May 2, 2008. We had spent the next week in prayer before the Lord trying to "figure out" if these were our sons. You see we had referrals from two different orphanages and it was "up to us" b/c we had been approved by both.

On May 4, 2008 I made this and sent it in an email to Tim at the Fire station...

In an email sent on May 7, 2008 I had this to say...

"To be quite honest, we feel confident that Gino and Sammy are the children God intended for our family."

By May 11, 2008 we had given our official "YES" to Marantha Children's Home and we were "matched" with our sons.

It never occurred to me that our last visit coincided with that very special day that we saw our sons for the first time. We bought our tickets based on the dates offered for one of Spirit airlines ridiculously low ticket rates. But there is something sweet about the fact that looking back we spent these days with our sons. May 2nd a year ago we saw them and loved them. May 2nd this year we held them and loved them! What a difference a year has made!

We are more confident then ever "that Sammy and Gino are the children God intended for our family." We are so grateful to God for bringing them into our lives and hopeful that He will bring the boys home to us soon. I'm trying not to be be angry or complain about how long this process is taking but rather I'm trying to see the journey God has had us on this last year. A year ago i celebrated Mother's Day as a mother of two. This year i celebrate it as a mother of four!!! I am a blessed women indeed!

So, what started as a mad goose chase turned into a stroll down memory lane! I can't wait for next Mother's Day...hopefully I will be celebrating with us all together for good!

Oh, If you are wondering if I found the document...not a chance! I think it's safe in Haiti with John. I did end up calling USCIS office to double check the expiration date. It only makes sense to avoid any unnecessary reprocessing fee, right!?!?

To all who have joined us on this crazy wonderful journey, I am eternally grateful.


-J