A Few More Pictures From the Last Day

Day 4 Visit 4

Daddy and Bella after breakfast on Sunday

Thank you, Nana, for my new outfit!

View of the volcano, De Agua, from our hotel

Well, just a few more hours left before we leave. I HATE "give back" day! It doesn't get any easier for me the more trips we make. I always get a stomach ache on the last day. I guess it's just where my stress or sadness likes to go. It helps a lot knowing that we'll be back maybe in six weeks or something like that- hopefully. Right now Isabella is asleep on Daddy's chest. We are soaking up this time with her. We are praying and praying that PGN will be good to us. It will take a real, live miracle because we did not have an agency help us prepare our documents. I just had to pray and research things as best I could. We'll see what the Lord has in store! Well, I'd better go. Bella is waking up for her bottle. I love this girl!!!

Six Months Old Today!

Happy 6 month birthday, Isabella! It is such a blessing to get to be with you today. Today also marks one week and one day that your adoption file has been in PGN. We are praying and praying that you will be home soon!

Love,
Mom & Dad

Visit 4 Day 2

What a treat to dote on Bella! She has our full undivided attention all day long, and she's just soakin' it up!
I'm feeling so grateful to be here tonight. Kirk and I are having dinner in our room, Isabella is playing on the bed and we're listening to Frank Sonatra playing on the computer. It just feels so good to relax- really relax.
I often wonder if God cares about these details. I've always hoped that He does, but wasn't sure. This morning, Kirk handed me his Bible and told me to read Psalm 37:23 & 24. It seems to me He DOES care about the details.

The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail
of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord
holds them by the hand.

We're Back for Another Visit!!!

We are so thankful to be back with Isabella in Guatemala. Yea! I got her all dressed up in her Christmas dress and took some pictures. Only one shoe lasted for pictures. Ha! Ha!

Pre-Approval!!!!!!!!!!!

The U.S. Embassy in Guatemala just called. WE HAVE VISA PRE-APPROVAL!!!!!! Thank you, God!!! We are celebrating already!!! Woooohooooo!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you all for praying for us. Every single prayer has helped and lifted us up. We are so grateful for each one of you! Praise the Lord for answered prayer!!!

Here's a verse that my husband read right before the Embassy called. The timing was amazing! It's from Psalm 30:11-12.

You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever.

Friday is the Day!

Early Friday morning (December 21st), our attorney has a special appointment with an investigator at the Embassy. Together they will go over all the copies we FedEx'd and the papers that our attorney had time to gather. At that point, they will either issue our pre-approval or put it off indefinitely. Please pray that the Lord will cause our investigator to find favor with us, accept our copies and issue our pre-approval. I am feeling anxious, excited, peaceful, scared, joyful and hopeful all at the same time. Yikes!

Your Prayers Are Being Heard!

Update...
Our papers arrived to Guatemala in UNDER 24 hours! They told us it would take our package no less that two days because it's holiday crunch time, but they were wrong! I am starting to see God's fingerprints on all of this.

Prayer points:
*Pray that we sent the right stuff.
*Pray that the Embassy will accept our paperwork.
*Pray for our facilitator that he will find all of the documents that he needs within 24 hours.
*Pray for PRE-APPROVAL!!!

This step in the adoption process was supposed to be the easy part, right?

Thank you for praying! Thank you for posting comments and prayers. Every single one has been an UNBELIEVABLE encouragement!

Keep Praying

Please pray that our new paperwork for the Embassy gets to Guatemala by Thursday. Only God can pull this off! This is so much bigger than we can handle.

~Stacy

PRAYERS!!!

We got the official word today that Isabella's file is "officially" lost at the US Embassy in Guatemala. They have given up looking. They think it accidentally got stuck to another file and is lost somewhere in the building. We spent 8 hours today re-creating our dossier. At one point, we had two cell phones and our home phone going at the same time trying to track down documents and figuring out exactly what the USE needs. Please, please pray that somehow God will see us through this very quickly. Only HE can make this come together!

This was the verse today that one of my students asked me to help him memorize. He highlighted it in bright yellow and brought it to me. The minute I read it I knew the Lord was trying to comfort me about our bad news with the Embassy~ and the fact that they may or may not approve her right now. The verse is from Deuteronomy 31:6. I am typing it from memory...

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them,
For the Lord your God is with you; he will never leave you or forsake you.

OK, I Opened it!!!

Ok, I opened it! I opened up a can of w.a.! After waiting 24 hours from my last conversation with G.F and P.H. at the Department of State in Washington D.C., I called them back and politely asked for an update. They had no update for me and were not pressuring the US Embassy for a response. That's when I had to do it... I opened up a can... and let them have it! This is TOTALLY not my personality, but the mama bear inside of me just had to take care of Isabella.

Guess what?

Thirty minutes later I got a call on my cell from A.C. at the US Embassy in Guatemala! The good news is that they have our DNA and we are in the system. The very BAD news is that our file is LOST. They couldn't find our file under the first letter of our last name. They think it is misfiled somewhere within the 3,500 files at the embassy! A.C. said she'd call us on Monday with an update. Please pray she calls us back with good news! If she doesn't find our file, I'm flying down there... and I'LL FIND IT MYSELF!!!

Jesus, we ask you to please bring our file to the top as A.C. or the other embassy employees look for Isabella's file.. Please open there eyes and help them, Father.

Lord Jesus,... mercy!

Prepared to Open Up a Can of...

My newest part time job now consists of trying to find out why Isabella is not being issued her visa pre-approval by our US Embassy in Guatemala. I called G.F., the adoptions sections chief, at the US Department of State. He got me in contact with P.H. (Thanks, Frances!), who got me in contact with B.S. (Ha! That's funny!) who is going to call Homeland Security to figure out what the heck is going on with our PA. It's been 63 days since DNA, and they have long passed up our date.


Help me out here someone, or I'm prepared to open up a can of . . .

New Adoption Law Passed

Yes, the new adoption law (Ortega Law) was passed today in a special session of the Guatemala Congress. What does this mean for Isabella? We're not sure yet. One confusing part is that we must be registered with the non-existent Central Authority by Jan. 30th in order to proceed under the current laws.

We are still waiting for PA, by the way. Our Congressman's office has sent three inquiries, and today I called the National Visa Center and the US State Dept Visa Center...still no PA... No one will help us).

Are you out there, Lord??

GET YOUR PRAYER ON!!!

Get praying, friends...

Tuesday, December 11th, the Guatemalan Congress is voting on what to do with the future of adoptions, including our in-process case.

Also, December 11th, marks 60 days since Isabella's DNA was taken~ and still no pre-approval. We are on the slow path to nowhere.

I'll post more info as it comes in.

Get your prayer on,
Stacy

Merry Christmas to You!

45 Days...and counting...

No word on pre-approval. Today is 45 days and counting. I have to constantly give this back to the Lord lately, or I feel pretty defeated. Isabella is growing up without me...in an orphanage. Our Senator's office sent a third inquiry (one each month) to the US Embassy in Guatemala. The Embassy will not respond.

This. Is. So. Hard!

Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
They are brought to their knees and fall,
but we rise up and stand firm.

Psalm 20:7-8

Lord, give me strength, peace and joy in the wait that can only come from you. We wait for you patiently.

God Cares

Well, today marks 43 days waiting for visa pre-approval from our US Embassy in Guatemala. Our DNA arrived to Guatemala on 10/22. I feel like I only have a little strength left for this particular leg of the process.

My mom sent me this Youtube video. I want you to watch it. It reminded me that God really cares about what is happening in our lives, whether in good times or in tough times. He wants to comfort our hurts, and there is a PURPOSE for it all. He ALWAYS understands.