After we get home from Haiti, we'd like everyone to have a chance to meet R.J., but Charlie will need time first to get to know his big brother since he's not accompanying Phil and me to Haiti. So, we're reserving our first week home just for our immediate family of four to get to know one another; then we're headed to Iowa for a week to introduce R.J. to our extended family. So, we're planning to have a Welcome Home Potluck Picnic in honor of R.J. on Saturday, July 14th, and you're all invited!
If you think you'd like to attend, send me an email at angia_e@yahoo.com so I know to send you more details when the time gets close.
6.15.2007
6.14.2007
R.J., Here we come!!!
Much to my surprise, we got word today that the U.S. Consulate is done reviewing our file and that we have the go-ahead to travel to Haiti to bring R.J. home!!!!
Phil and I will leave home in 63 hours (Sunday noon, June 17) on Father's Day!
We will meet R.J. for the very first time in 87 hours (Monday noon, June 18).
We will spend 72 hours at GLA.
We will be back home 7 days from today (Thursday night, June 21).
Wow! My head is spinning with all that there is to do, even though I checked the last thing off my shopping list this afternoon. Speaking for all three of us, we are ecstatic! We can hardly believe this day has come at last! Charlie has just 7 sleeps until R.J. is home, and on the 8th sleep, both boys will be sawing twigs (we hope) together in the same room! :)
Gotta go pack!
6.12.2007
Good news and Bad news!
Well, the good news is that -- after a week of repeated phone calls & emails and intervention from our Congressman's office -- Phil received his U.S. passport renewal in the mail yesterday "just" 13 weeks after we sent it in! I had alerted the local newspaper about our situation last week, and a front-page story and photo ran in this morning’s paper.
The bad news is that -- a mere two hours after the long-awaited passport arrived -- we got an email from our orphanage director saying there was yet another unforeseen delay. The visa-granting official at the U.S. Consulate in Haiti has now decided he wants to review each family's completed dossier (over 200 pages’ worth!) before he will approve the child's visa. No one knows how long this could take, but obviously we all hope it won't take long … although I've been saying that since Christmas! So, we won’t be traveling by the end of this week as we all (including the orphanage staff) had anticipated.
So, we're still waiting for our son’s arrival 15½ months after we submitted our paperwork. I have never been pregnant (nor do I ever want to be), but I truly believe that what I’m feeling right now is what it would be like to be 15½ months pregnant. Don’t ever think that adoption is easier than pregnancy! You have no guarantee that it won’t last months beyond the “due date;” you can’t induce an adopted child’s homecoming; and there is no epidural to help ease the pain of labor. On top of that, in adoption, BOTH parents experience the same turmoil and labor pains. So please keep praying! Phil and I both know that, no matter how discouraged we feel now, all the ups and downs of this journey will have been worth it once R.J. is home! :)
The bad news is that -- a mere two hours after the long-awaited passport arrived -- we got an email from our orphanage director saying there was yet another unforeseen delay. The visa-granting official at the U.S. Consulate in Haiti has now decided he wants to review each family's completed dossier (over 200 pages’ worth!) before he will approve the child's visa. No one knows how long this could take, but obviously we all hope it won't take long … although I've been saying that since Christmas! So, we won’t be traveling by the end of this week as we all (including the orphanage staff) had anticipated.
So, we're still waiting for our son’s arrival 15½ months after we submitted our paperwork. I have never been pregnant (nor do I ever want to be), but I truly believe that what I’m feeling right now is what it would be like to be 15½ months pregnant. Don’t ever think that adoption is easier than pregnancy! You have no guarantee that it won’t last months beyond the “due date;” you can’t induce an adopted child’s homecoming; and there is no epidural to help ease the pain of labor. On top of that, in adoption, BOTH parents experience the same turmoil and labor pains. So please keep praying! Phil and I both know that, no matter how discouraged we feel now, all the ups and downs of this journey will have been worth it once R.J. is home! :)
~ Romans 8:26-28 from The Message ~
Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our expectant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.
Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our expectant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.
6.04.2007
We have R.J.'s passport, but we can't travel until we have Phil's
From: LaDawn - GLA Adoptions
Sent: Mon 6/4/07 10:05 PM
To: Macomber, Angia
Subject: GREAT NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am VERY, VERY, VERY happy to inform you that we got Ronaldo's passport today!!!!! It usually takes a week or two from the date of the orphan investigation until INS sends the necessary paperwork to the US Consulate; however, we will be in regular contact with the US Consulate to find out when they have received it. I'm just curious, how much notice do you need before you can come? As soon as we find out that the US Consulate has everything they need, we will make an appointment for you to pick up Ronaldo's visa, and so it would be helpful if you could give me just a bit of an indication as to how soon you can come to get him. I would guess that it could be by the end of next week!!!!! Very, very soon!!!!!!!
Have a great night knowing this great news!!!!!
LaDawn - GLA Haiti
---------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Macomber, Angia
Sent: Mon 6/4/07 10:38 PM
To: LaDawn - GLA Adoptions
Subject: RE: GREAT NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WOW, LaDawn! I actually can't believe it's true!
We can come almost immediately, HOWEVER we need Phil's passport! It expired June 1, 2007. We sent it in March 13 for renewal by regular mail. We were told it would take no more than 10 weeks. It will be 12 weeks tomorrow. We read in the USA Today newspaper on Saturday that, because of the new U.S. requirement that everyone must have a passport to leave the country, the passport office is swamped and it is taking much longer than 12 weeks. We were just getting ready to contact our Congressional rep. to see if they can help get Phil's passport ASAP. We will keep you posted, but we certainly want to come as soon as we possibly can! Nevertheless, we can't buy plane tickets until we actually have Phil's passport in hand. Surely the Lord won't let us down now and keep us waiting even longer because of a delay on THIS end!!! We'll all pray for Phil's passport to arrive THIS WEEK!
Thanks again and again and again for such wonderful news! Our boys' birthdays are just 8 days (and 2 years) apart, and it looks like their Homecoming Days will be about as close also. Charlie came home 3 years ago today. :)
See you SOON!!!
Angie
Sent: Mon 6/4/07 10:05 PM
To: Macomber, Angia
Subject: GREAT NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am VERY, VERY, VERY happy to inform you that we got Ronaldo's passport today!!!!! It usually takes a week or two from the date of the orphan investigation until INS sends the necessary paperwork to the US Consulate; however, we will be in regular contact with the US Consulate to find out when they have received it. I'm just curious, how much notice do you need before you can come? As soon as we find out that the US Consulate has everything they need, we will make an appointment for you to pick up Ronaldo's visa, and so it would be helpful if you could give me just a bit of an indication as to how soon you can come to get him. I would guess that it could be by the end of next week!!!!! Very, very soon!!!!!!!
Have a great night knowing this great news!!!!!
LaDawn - GLA Haiti
---------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Macomber, Angia
Sent: Mon 6/4/07 10:38 PM
To: LaDawn - GLA Adoptions
Subject: RE: GREAT NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WOW, LaDawn! I actually can't believe it's true!
We can come almost immediately, HOWEVER we need Phil's passport! It expired June 1, 2007. We sent it in March 13 for renewal by regular mail. We were told it would take no more than 10 weeks. It will be 12 weeks tomorrow. We read in the USA Today newspaper on Saturday that, because of the new U.S. requirement that everyone must have a passport to leave the country, the passport office is swamped and it is taking much longer than 12 weeks. We were just getting ready to contact our Congressional rep. to see if they can help get Phil's passport ASAP. We will keep you posted, but we certainly want to come as soon as we possibly can! Nevertheless, we can't buy plane tickets until we actually have Phil's passport in hand. Surely the Lord won't let us down now and keep us waiting even longer because of a delay on THIS end!!! We'll all pray for Phil's passport to arrive THIS WEEK!
Thanks again and again and again for such wonderful news! Our boys' birthdays are just 8 days (and 2 years) apart, and it looks like their Homecoming Days will be about as close also. Charlie came home 3 years ago today. :)
See you SOON!!!
Angie
6.01.2007
Heartwarming message from Molly (Warning: Have tissues ready!)
From: Angie
Sent: Wednesday, May 09, 2007 12:15 AM
Subject: Thinking about R.J.
Dear Molly,
I've been thinking a lot about R.J. this past week. I realize he probably doesn't know how close we are to bringing him home, and I do wonder what his thoughts are about the matter these days. I pray for him every day that the transition will be smooth and without a lot of heartache for him, although I realize it will be a tremendous adjustment for R.J. to leave the country, the language, the weather, the food, the music, the customs, and everything else he's known all his life. And I have no doubt that he will miss you, Joyce, and his friends at GLA terribly, and I can only hope that we can comfort him as he grieves the loss. I also hope that he will understand just how thrilled we are to welcome him into our family! And we are so pleased that we will have the entire summer to spend together getting to know him, letting him get to know us, and enjoying lots of fun things as a family! Since my teaching responsibilities end May 19, Charlie will be home full-time, and Phil has two extra weeks of vacation time saved up (four altogether). We are hoping that -- even though R.J. will be homesick for Haiti -- he will be excited about the new life he will have with us!
With all of that said, I'm writing to let you know about a blog I made full of photos and videos of our family activities (mostly featuring Charlie) over the past several months:
http://themacomberfamily.blogspot.com
I'm hoping that you might be able to find some opportunities to let R.J. look at it with you so that he can see the kind of things we like to do and what he'll be doing with us when he comes home. I'm hoping that -- while it won't prevent the sadness he will feel to leave GLA -- it will help him look forward with happy anticipation to joining our family.
We are also praying daily that the backlog in the passport office will get resolved quickly so that we can bring R.J. home very soon. We hate the thought of summer ticking away while we continue awaiting his homecoming. I'm fine waiting until the end of May so that I have my school responsibilities finished, but once June gets here I think I'll go crazy if we're still waiting!
So I hope this finds everyone at GLA doing GREAT! I thank you SO MUCH for the LONG update you sent a week ago! We hang on every word and live for every photo. I hope you realize just how much you are helping forever families bond and fall in love with their adopted kids long before they ever get home! Those monthly updates are a vital part of the adoption process, and we appreciate it more than you can know. We actually appreciate all that you do, including the numerous things we have no idea that you do, but those updates are at the top of our list! :)
Have a wonderful Wednesday!
Hugs and kisses for Ronaldo,
Angie
-------------------------------------------------
From: Molly
Sent: Fri, 1 Jun 2007 18:14:08
Subject: RE: Thinking about R.J.
Hi Angie,
I read and sympathized with your email. However I must say it is the first like it I have ever gotten before... this is one child that though we are going to miss him I CANNOT WAIT until he is home with you. I am so thankful that God provided your family as RJ's family. I always give Joyce the rundown on everything you write about, or share you emails with her, and she feels just the same. Ronaldo is a VERY special little boy here, there will never be another like him, and to know that YOU GUYS are his family is the best feeling!!! God sure is good, and His plan is ALWAYS perfect! He confirms that to us day in and day out:) Anyway, I guess I have diverged from the intent of my email, but I certainly just wanted to let you know that Joyce and I both are just overjoyed at the family that Ronaldo will call his!
RJ and I spent several hours watching and re-watching the videos on your blog, reviewing all the photos, and reading about Charlie's activities. RJ was just aglow! He loved every bit of it, and after one time through the videos, I asked him if he wanted to watch again, and he did, after twice through the videos, I asked him if he wanted to watch again, he did.... and the cycle would have gone on until he got too hungry and had to go eat, but I cut him short. I promised him we'll look again this weekend, so he reminds me:) A LOT! What a treat for him! Charlie, he thinks that you are an amazing soccer player! He was very impressed and clapped at some or your shots. He can't wait to play with you. He can't wait to be your big brother, and he talks about all the things that you two will do together continuously. He brags to the other kids about his brother Charlie with such pride in his voice! I can't wait for you to be together! It sounds like you are going to have a great summer!
RJ wants his mommy and daddy to know that he loves you both very much! He wants to see you as soon as he can!! Tomorrow would be good, or the next day, or next week? But he is very happy to wait until that day is possible. He nods his head and tries to be very understanding. He is a patient boy. He loves his friends very much, and he loves Joyce very VERY much, but we will write and send some photos off and on, so that he knows we still love him and will not forget him. I don't think he'll have too much homesickness, I think that you'll find you are all that he's been waiting for and he's not going to look back once he gets you! All of his friends leave, it's what happens at "Kay B" ["House B" a/k/a the Toddler House]... one by one, and it's a very special time when it's your turn to go... so much fuss is made, and then the day comes when mommy or mommy and daddy arrive.... and all that you've been waiting for since the day you arrived to "Kay B" comes true. RJ has been waiting for you since that first afternoon that I sat and talked with him. I remember it very well. You are his dream come true:) RJ can't wait to show you off to all of us!
It sounds like your prayers are being answered! I know we've gotten a couple of passports out, and it sounds like things have started moving! So maybe RJ is next? Every time I mention Ronaldo leaving to Joyce she gets a little quiet, and I think that I'm going to be the one helping her grieve the loss from this end! I already have the tissues and chocolate stocked up though, so we're ready for the day you guys fly out.... :) Take care! I pray that we'll see you soon!
Blessings,
Molly
GLA - Haiti
Sent: Wednesday, May 09, 2007 12:15 AM
Subject: Thinking about R.J.
Dear Molly,
I've been thinking a lot about R.J. this past week. I realize he probably doesn't know how close we are to bringing him home, and I do wonder what his thoughts are about the matter these days. I pray for him every day that the transition will be smooth and without a lot of heartache for him, although I realize it will be a tremendous adjustment for R.J. to leave the country, the language, the weather, the food, the music, the customs, and everything else he's known all his life. And I have no doubt that he will miss you, Joyce, and his friends at GLA terribly, and I can only hope that we can comfort him as he grieves the loss. I also hope that he will understand just how thrilled we are to welcome him into our family! And we are so pleased that we will have the entire summer to spend together getting to know him, letting him get to know us, and enjoying lots of fun things as a family! Since my teaching responsibilities end May 19, Charlie will be home full-time, and Phil has two extra weeks of vacation time saved up (four altogether). We are hoping that -- even though R.J. will be homesick for Haiti -- he will be excited about the new life he will have with us!
With all of that said, I'm writing to let you know about a blog I made full of photos and videos of our family activities (mostly featuring Charlie) over the past several months:
http://themacomberfamily.blogspot.com
I'm hoping that you might be able to find some opportunities to let R.J. look at it with you so that he can see the kind of things we like to do and what he'll be doing with us when he comes home. I'm hoping that -- while it won't prevent the sadness he will feel to leave GLA -- it will help him look forward with happy anticipation to joining our family.
We are also praying daily that the backlog in the passport office will get resolved quickly so that we can bring R.J. home very soon. We hate the thought of summer ticking away while we continue awaiting his homecoming. I'm fine waiting until the end of May so that I have my school responsibilities finished, but once June gets here I think I'll go crazy if we're still waiting!
So I hope this finds everyone at GLA doing GREAT! I thank you SO MUCH for the LONG update you sent a week ago! We hang on every word and live for every photo. I hope you realize just how much you are helping forever families bond and fall in love with their adopted kids long before they ever get home! Those monthly updates are a vital part of the adoption process, and we appreciate it more than you can know. We actually appreciate all that you do, including the numerous things we have no idea that you do, but those updates are at the top of our list! :)
Have a wonderful Wednesday!
Hugs and kisses for Ronaldo,
Angie
-------------------------------------------------
From: Molly
Sent: Fri, 1 Jun 2007 18:14:08
Subject: RE: Thinking about R.J.
Hi Angie,
I read and sympathized with your email. However I must say it is the first like it I have ever gotten before... this is one child that though we are going to miss him I CANNOT WAIT until he is home with you. I am so thankful that God provided your family as RJ's family. I always give Joyce the rundown on everything you write about, or share you emails with her, and she feels just the same. Ronaldo is a VERY special little boy here, there will never be another like him, and to know that YOU GUYS are his family is the best feeling!!! God sure is good, and His plan is ALWAYS perfect! He confirms that to us day in and day out:) Anyway, I guess I have diverged from the intent of my email, but I certainly just wanted to let you know that Joyce and I both are just overjoyed at the family that Ronaldo will call his!
RJ and I spent several hours watching and re-watching the videos on your blog, reviewing all the photos, and reading about Charlie's activities. RJ was just aglow! He loved every bit of it, and after one time through the videos, I asked him if he wanted to watch again, and he did, after twice through the videos, I asked him if he wanted to watch again, he did.... and the cycle would have gone on until he got too hungry and had to go eat, but I cut him short. I promised him we'll look again this weekend, so he reminds me:) A LOT! What a treat for him! Charlie, he thinks that you are an amazing soccer player! He was very impressed and clapped at some or your shots. He can't wait to play with you. He can't wait to be your big brother, and he talks about all the things that you two will do together continuously. He brags to the other kids about his brother Charlie with such pride in his voice! I can't wait for you to be together! It sounds like you are going to have a great summer!
RJ wants his mommy and daddy to know that he loves you both very much! He wants to see you as soon as he can!! Tomorrow would be good, or the next day, or next week? But he is very happy to wait until that day is possible. He nods his head and tries to be very understanding. He is a patient boy. He loves his friends very much, and he loves Joyce very VERY much, but we will write and send some photos off and on, so that he knows we still love him and will not forget him. I don't think he'll have too much homesickness, I think that you'll find you are all that he's been waiting for and he's not going to look back once he gets you! All of his friends leave, it's what happens at "Kay B" ["House B" a/k/a the Toddler House]... one by one, and it's a very special time when it's your turn to go... so much fuss is made, and then the day comes when mommy or mommy and daddy arrive.... and all that you've been waiting for since the day you arrived to "Kay B" comes true. RJ has been waiting for you since that first afternoon that I sat and talked with him. I remember it very well. You are his dream come true:) RJ can't wait to show you off to all of us!
It sounds like your prayers are being answered! I know we've gotten a couple of passports out, and it sounds like things have started moving! So maybe RJ is next? Every time I mention Ronaldo leaving to Joyce she gets a little quiet, and I think that I'm going to be the one helping her grieve the loss from this end! I already have the tissues and chocolate stocked up though, so we're ready for the day you guys fly out.... :) Take care! I pray that we'll see you soon!
Blessings,
Molly
GLA - Haiti
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