David with grandpa, grandma, auntie and mommy
David trying to eat a piece of b-day cake
This was David's b-day cake, a fabulous presentation and design by auntie Brenda (here) and grandpa Knowles.
David's b-day pictures
David and grandpa in a loud moment.
David with grandpa, grandma, auntie and mommy
David trying to eat a piece of b-day cake
David with grandpa, grandma, auntie and mommy
David trying to eat a piece of b-day cakeUpdates
Grandpa Knowles was asking Brian if David had learned some new words, and Brian answered” Oh yes, he knows how to say carro, ya va, sucio, avion ..” to what grandpa Knowles said “What?”
My kids are learning Spanish faster than English! I speak to them in both languages since my mother and our helper only speak Spanish.
Last week untie Brenda came to visit just for the weekend and it was a blessing to have her here. Brenda helped us with the blood tests. This was our first time at the lab for blood tests and I was soooo nervous, Julia screamed and cried and she was just frustrated that we would hold her and she could not get away from my arms while they took the 5 tubes! of blood.
The nurses had to do both arms!!! When they did the second arm, I just closed my eyes and started praying on her ear … for me and for her. David experience was less traumatic, he cried but he was more cooperative with the whole process. The blood test results were back and the doctor says they are healthy! Praise the Lord!
We also translated the vaccination history for our children and took them to our pediatrician last week. We went to the doctor’s office on Thursday to give our kids the shots they were missing: 3 shots each! They screamed at the doctor’s office but they will not need any more shots until they are 4 years old. Because of the shots they had a little of a temperature and David’s leg got a little inflammation trough the weekend.
David and Julia love music! We turn the radio with some Salsa or meringue music on and they start dancing, it is so much fun to watch them and to dance with them. David uses his shoulders and his feet and Julia moves her head back and forth.
Yesterday after church, we stayed in the lobby for a while talking to my brother, niece, nephew, and sister in law and soon it was 1 PM; the Spanish service started. As soon as David heard the worship music he ran inside the sanctuary and just lost it dancing! He was happy and laughing as he danced … I had to pick him up and dance with him as I exited. My brother saw how David was so much into dancing and moving his shoulders at the rhythm of the music and he said “What a difference!”
David is still a little fearful, it seems that every week there is something that scares him, The first week we had him with us he was terrified of taking baths and of riding in a car, last week was the guys mowing the lawn and their machines. Julia seems a very confident and independent little girl, she is such a charmer. Whenever we get to a place she waves to everyone and says “hi” then she plays the shy game while she gives you the most intoxicating smile. They both are so ticklish, it is so much fun!
Looking at the written medical history I got translated this week, I just wonder if I should follow the advice there … they advise for a speech therapy’s for him and massages for Julia? Ok, so I know Julia does not need massages, but I am looking for suggestions on books for children exercise or stimulation: any ideas? Please let me know.
My kids are learning Spanish faster than English! I speak to them in both languages since my mother and our helper only speak Spanish.
Last week untie Brenda came to visit just for the weekend and it was a blessing to have her here. Brenda helped us with the blood tests. This was our first time at the lab for blood tests and I was soooo nervous, Julia screamed and cried and she was just frustrated that we would hold her and she could not get away from my arms while they took the 5 tubes! of blood.
The nurses had to do both arms!!! When they did the second arm, I just closed my eyes and started praying on her ear … for me and for her. David experience was less traumatic, he cried but he was more cooperative with the whole process. The blood test results were back and the doctor says they are healthy! Praise the Lord!
We also translated the vaccination history for our children and took them to our pediatrician last week. We went to the doctor’s office on Thursday to give our kids the shots they were missing: 3 shots each! They screamed at the doctor’s office but they will not need any more shots until they are 4 years old. Because of the shots they had a little of a temperature and David’s leg got a little inflammation trough the weekend.
David and Julia love music! We turn the radio with some Salsa or meringue music on and they start dancing, it is so much fun to watch them and to dance with them. David uses his shoulders and his feet and Julia moves her head back and forth.
Yesterday after church, we stayed in the lobby for a while talking to my brother, niece, nephew, and sister in law and soon it was 1 PM; the Spanish service started. As soon as David heard the worship music he ran inside the sanctuary and just lost it dancing! He was happy and laughing as he danced … I had to pick him up and dance with him as I exited. My brother saw how David was so much into dancing and moving his shoulders at the rhythm of the music and he said “What a difference!”
David is still a little fearful, it seems that every week there is something that scares him, The first week we had him with us he was terrified of taking baths and of riding in a car, last week was the guys mowing the lawn and their machines. Julia seems a very confident and independent little girl, she is such a charmer. Whenever we get to a place she waves to everyone and says “hi” then she plays the shy game while she gives you the most intoxicating smile. They both are so ticklish, it is so much fun!
Looking at the written medical history I got translated this week, I just wonder if I should follow the advice there … they advise for a speech therapy’s for him and massages for Julia? Ok, so I know Julia does not need massages, but I am looking for suggestions on books for children exercise or stimulation: any ideas? Please let me know.
Edméia faleceu - my good friend died last night
Let's pray for her husband and her little baby girl Maria Eduarda.
Lord we remember Edméia with gladness of heart and thankful for her life and the moments we had together. We thank you for your salvation for we know that there is Hope for us your children even after death. We pray for Brazil, her husband and Maria Eduarda, her daughther, that your Holy Spirit would confort them in these dificult moments. In the name of Jesus we pray, Amen.
This is the last email message I got from Edméia:
"Hoje de manhã tentei falar contigo Rebeca, no skype e não deu certo. Mas quero dizer que estou por aqui! Torcendo por vocês... sei que são momentos especiais de preparativos para a chegada dos bebês, e estou tão feliz! Quero dizer para vocês aproveitarem esse momento com muita alegria para que fique registrado em seu coração o presente que Deus está dando para vocês. Que esses preparativos sejam momentos de satisfação, alegria, sorrisos e muita, muita paz!"
Eo agradezco a Deus por la oportunidad que tuve de falar con Edméia cuarta feira, ella estaba muito feliz. Estou com muita tristeza y saudades.
His Love rules
I have lived moments of doubt, but found the knowledge of what was missing inside to believe.
I have discovered through pain the wisdom of living a humble life.I have experienced fear and found the strength to move on anyways.I have learned these all are but opportunities for growing, when we allow God to work on and through it all.
Doubt is sooooo much versus trust. I want to be always trusting of God’s love and goodness; I have experienced His love and goodness enough times already to not have even the word doubt in my vocabulary, but, it seems the problem is inside somewhere; I have found myself sometimes suspicious of His love and goodness …
Pain and suffering are very humbling tools, mostly when it is out of our control, and most of the time it is; I can’t thing of an occasion where I would not try to run away from pain and suffering if I could … but somehow the experience brings me back to the reminder of my frail humanity and that is humbling.
Fear is the most paralyzing experience I have had … it always try to sell me a way out even thought I feel I can not move anyways … still, knowing what God’s will is for me at the moment always gives me the strength to move towards it.
All through our adoption process we experienced all this emotions, doubt: will God really bring forward this miracle for us? Pain and suffering: we came to this journey through the pain of infertility but we also “lost” an adoption in Brazil. Fear: what if one of the 8 planes we have to take just crashes and we die trying to adopt … I know, there are so many other fear factors in this process that those some 8 or 10 plane rides are just normally ignored when writing our own adoption “fear list”
Today, I see God’s hand all over our adoption journey: His love, goodness, favor and grace. I have learned to see salvation as the ultimate adoption story and that is just wonderful … I am so glad that somehow doubt, pain and fear did not rule our decision when adopting our children and so thankful for the strength that God gave us through knowing that adoption is His will for our lives as a family.
Edmeia is much better and at Home - Thanks for your prayers!
Thanks so much for praying for Edmeia, Brazila and family ... Brazil worte to us and said that a miracle happened ... she was 50% better!!! Today, Edmeia is at Home with her family! What a miracle!
The doctors were talking abour death! and there was no hope ...
Thanks for your prayers!
The doctors were talking abour death! and there was no hope ...
Thanks for your prayers!
We had a dedication service at our house with close friends and family.Dick Linder, Brian's godfather, a retired missionary from Brazil and very good friends of grandpa and grandma Knowles, directed the wonderful service. I added these pictures here so you get an idea of the importance of this moment.
Very specials thanks to Tia Maria for Julia’s beautiful dress and also the cow that was specially branded for her … yes, Julia got a cow back in Colombia thanks to Tia Maria and a piece of beach land in a very isolated island in Brazil, thanks to grandpa and grandma Knowles: how to get Julia and David to see these two sites …. Well that we will have to figure out later …
Please, please, continue praying for our friends Brazil and Edmeia as I wrote in my last post(Please, read the post before this one, Thnaks!!!) Vicky, Suz and Caroline, if you could have your churches praying for our friends would be a great blessing!! Thanks in advance.
Prayer request in behalf of good friends
Prayer request in behalf of good friends
I have not blogged in a while and I have so much good stuff to write about. I told myself I have to write about our children’s first 4th of July (POW!!! Was David’s expression for the celebration) and the blessing of having grandpa, grandma and untie Brenda with us for a week bringing soooooo many good gifts: how wonderful it feels to be part of the Knowles family!; I did not understand until now, that David and Julia did not just got a mom and dad that love them dearly but a whoooooole, big and wonderful family that are just as excited with their arrival as we are. We also had a dedication service at our house with close friends and family and Dick Linder, Brian's godfather, a retired missionary from brazil, directed the wonderful service. I will add some pictures on a separate blog so you get an idea of the importance of this moment and will blog about it as soon as I can.
I would love to talk about the way Julia nd David just laugh and get so excited to see us when we come back home after a two hour errands, how they overcame their fear to baths, how well they eat, sleep all night long, and how busy life is these days, etc, etc, etc. but .....
we are just so overwhelmed with really bad news from our good friends in Brazil: As some of you know, Brian and I lead a group of couples in Brazil and one of our leader couples, Brazil and Edmeia, are going through a lot of pain. Edmeia and Brazil have a 6 month old girl that is just a blessing! But two days ago, Edmeia was taken to the hospital: her heart can not pump properly and her lungs got in trouble too. It seems that it all gets back to the pregnancy and the delivery: Her heart got a seizure during delivery and she has very few chances to live according to the doctors. I really wish I could be there right now …. We are so sad, we cry, we pray and we wish and hope that this sickness and health trouble has the purpose to glorify God by a miraculous healing … So I am writing this blog today to ask for prayer for my dear friends: Brazil , Edmeia, Maria Eduarda and their extended families.
We believe that God is a God of miracles .... we have seen it and taste it!!!! and we would love to see a miracle again in the lives of Brazil, Edmeia and Maria Eduarda ...
Please, join me in praying!!!!
Lord, we are trusting in your power, your love and your grace, amen.
I have not blogged in a while and I have so much good stuff to write about. I told myself I have to write about our children’s first 4th of July (POW!!! Was David’s expression for the celebration) and the blessing of having grandpa, grandma and untie Brenda with us for a week bringing soooooo many good gifts: how wonderful it feels to be part of the Knowles family!; I did not understand until now, that David and Julia did not just got a mom and dad that love them dearly but a whoooooole, big and wonderful family that are just as excited with their arrival as we are. We also had a dedication service at our house with close friends and family and Dick Linder, Brian's godfather, a retired missionary from brazil, directed the wonderful service. I will add some pictures on a separate blog so you get an idea of the importance of this moment and will blog about it as soon as I can.
I would love to talk about the way Julia nd David just laugh and get so excited to see us when we come back home after a two hour errands, how they overcame their fear to baths, how well they eat, sleep all night long, and how busy life is these days, etc, etc, etc. but .....
we are just so overwhelmed with really bad news from our good friends in Brazil: As some of you know, Brian and I lead a group of couples in Brazil and one of our leader couples, Brazil and Edmeia, are going through a lot of pain. Edmeia and Brazil have a 6 month old girl that is just a blessing! But two days ago, Edmeia was taken to the hospital: her heart can not pump properly and her lungs got in trouble too. It seems that it all gets back to the pregnancy and the delivery: Her heart got a seizure during delivery and she has very few chances to live according to the doctors. I really wish I could be there right now …. We are so sad, we cry, we pray and we wish and hope that this sickness and health trouble has the purpose to glorify God by a miraculous healing … So I am writing this blog today to ask for prayer for my dear friends: Brazil , Edmeia, Maria Eduarda and their extended families.
We believe that God is a God of miracles .... we have seen it and taste it!!!! and we would love to see a miracle again in the lives of Brazil, Edmeia and Maria Eduarda ...
Please, join me in praying!!!!
Lord, we are trusting in your power, your love and your grace, amen.
Picture of the kids
I just added 2 posts one with Julia’s pictures and one with David – just scroll down from this post and you will see the two other posts. P.s. this is just an explanation so Grampa Knowles gets it :) Don’t feel bad Grampa, I just figured out how to add more than one picture at a time here! Oops!
Here we are all sharing a mango! Lola loves mangoes, so do I and the kids discovered the goodness of it just here! what a great family moment.
This picture shows the boys very patriotic watching the game while David finishes a banana.
Feeding David ... from a bottle!
It is not the best picture of me, but … what am I saying? It is the best picture I got.
My boy let me feed him a bottle of oatmeal (Granma “abue” Carmen’s recepie)
He is wearing the official Brazil Soccer jersey and dad is proud.
We got home Last Tuesday
We got home Last Tuesday. Now the fun really starts!
We actually woke up at 4 am to take our first plane to Frankfurt (around 3 hours), the ride was great and the kids behave just fine, then, we had to take our flight from Frankfort to Miami (9 hours and 10 minutes): we hardly ate at all in the whole trip, David went to sleep in papi’s lap and Brian did not wanted to move, we did not wanted David awake and wanting to play during the plane ride. Julia was with me, slept 1 hour and the rest of the time we played, sang, etc. A flight attendant actually came over and told us that our kids behave very well, “there are so many kids crying and you can hardly hear yours” she added.
Well we were so tired, by the time we got to Miami it was some insane hour for us I think around 10 or 11 pm for our clocks. I thought we were going through immigration and they were going to look at my kids passports, hand a flag to us and say “Welcome David and Julia to the United States” but it was not like that, they took us to this room full of people, to wait for our turn … I started to get really tired and frustrated … there were at least 40 people before us there … you see anyone that comes in an is asking for political asylum, or have a green card process to finish at entrance, or any one that just look fishy to them, goes to this room!!
We prayed God would give us favor, and He did, we were out of there within an hour … then we did the walk towards the baggage claim area, I had Julia in a Hip Hammock, a back pack and David in a stroller while Brian took care of our luggage .. we got through the custom and I saw my sister Debbie and her husband Richard … and I cried like a little girl … I just could not believe we were finally home with our kids and that I did not have to worry so much anymore about some paper work missing that could hinder the adoption process … I just let it all out in a big, big cry and I am so glad Debbie was there she is so sweet and helpful.
Then the car seats .. first time in a car seat .. they behaved like .. “I knew it! This people are not as nice as they pretended for this last week” finally they calmed with cherrios! Thank God for Cherrios!!!
Then we got home, I was so glad to see my mother and my Lola; by the way, we taught David to say Lola when we were in the plane! It was so good to be home.
The last wee was hard; so many people had said to us “Life changes forever when you have kids” and I just could not believe how much!!!
We are in the adapting phase still, I got really sick with a cold and then I ate something and got a bad stomach problem, did not feel good at all for some 3 days. Today I am feeling better, have some more strength.
All my family cried when they met our children, they all see God’s miracle of adoption and I think it really paints a wonderful picture of all of us, and how God adopted us as children …
My mother has been a great help! She helps me with the meals, the naps, etc. but most of all her company and her prayers.
David’s 2nd birthday is tomorrow; and tomorrow also, will be two years my father passed away …. That still amazes me … David was born the day my father died.
Grandma and Grandpa Knowles are just counting the days .. they will be visiting for a week starting this Saturday, we are all waiting anxiously, they say they are coming by land since their van is full of gifts (Oh my!) Auntie Brenda will be here also, it will be great to have the family together for the 4th of July celebration; but most of all, we will be presenting our kids to the Lord this weekend .. just an official ceremony with family and very closed friends.
The kids are very happy, they smile a lot. Julia was the one that in the orphanage visits, the only emotion she showed was through tears .. she cried so much with me I was concerned!
Now, she is just Mommy’s girl, she wants me all the time, I am teaching her to stay some time by herself so I can get to do the ordinary things … but it feels so good that she loves to be with me … David learned to run to me while I open my arms and say in Spanish “David, come, run, run to mami” and he opens his arms and runs to me and hugs me … I think they are as happy as we are to be home!
We actually woke up at 4 am to take our first plane to Frankfurt (around 3 hours), the ride was great and the kids behave just fine, then, we had to take our flight from Frankfort to Miami (9 hours and 10 minutes): we hardly ate at all in the whole trip, David went to sleep in papi’s lap and Brian did not wanted to move, we did not wanted David awake and wanting to play during the plane ride. Julia was with me, slept 1 hour and the rest of the time we played, sang, etc. A flight attendant actually came over and told us that our kids behave very well, “there are so many kids crying and you can hardly hear yours” she added.
Well we were so tired, by the time we got to Miami it was some insane hour for us I think around 10 or 11 pm for our clocks. I thought we were going through immigration and they were going to look at my kids passports, hand a flag to us and say “Welcome David and Julia to the United States” but it was not like that, they took us to this room full of people, to wait for our turn … I started to get really tired and frustrated … there were at least 40 people before us there … you see anyone that comes in an is asking for political asylum, or have a green card process to finish at entrance, or any one that just look fishy to them, goes to this room!!
We prayed God would give us favor, and He did, we were out of there within an hour … then we did the walk towards the baggage claim area, I had Julia in a Hip Hammock, a back pack and David in a stroller while Brian took care of our luggage .. we got through the custom and I saw my sister Debbie and her husband Richard … and I cried like a little girl … I just could not believe we were finally home with our kids and that I did not have to worry so much anymore about some paper work missing that could hinder the adoption process … I just let it all out in a big, big cry and I am so glad Debbie was there she is so sweet and helpful.
Then the car seats .. first time in a car seat .. they behaved like .. “I knew it! This people are not as nice as they pretended for this last week” finally they calmed with cherrios! Thank God for Cherrios!!!
Then we got home, I was so glad to see my mother and my Lola; by the way, we taught David to say Lola when we were in the plane! It was so good to be home.
The last wee was hard; so many people had said to us “Life changes forever when you have kids” and I just could not believe how much!!!
We are in the adapting phase still, I got really sick with a cold and then I ate something and got a bad stomach problem, did not feel good at all for some 3 days. Today I am feeling better, have some more strength.
All my family cried when they met our children, they all see God’s miracle of adoption and I think it really paints a wonderful picture of all of us, and how God adopted us as children …
My mother has been a great help! She helps me with the meals, the naps, etc. but most of all her company and her prayers.
David’s 2nd birthday is tomorrow; and tomorrow also, will be two years my father passed away …. That still amazes me … David was born the day my father died.
Grandma and Grandpa Knowles are just counting the days .. they will be visiting for a week starting this Saturday, we are all waiting anxiously, they say they are coming by land since their van is full of gifts (Oh my!) Auntie Brenda will be here also, it will be great to have the family together for the 4th of July celebration; but most of all, we will be presenting our kids to the Lord this weekend .. just an official ceremony with family and very closed friends.
The kids are very happy, they smile a lot. Julia was the one that in the orphanage visits, the only emotion she showed was through tears .. she cried so much with me I was concerned!
Now, she is just Mommy’s girl, she wants me all the time, I am teaching her to stay some time by herself so I can get to do the ordinary things … but it feels so good that she loves to be with me … David learned to run to me while I open my arms and say in Spanish “David, come, run, run to mami” and he opens his arms and runs to me and hugs me … I think they are as happy as we are to be home!
Happy father’s day!!
Praise God from whom all blessings flow!!!
This is Brian’s first father’s day and what a beautiful and blessed moment for all of us. Both children say Papa! David also tries to say “Gooool” and raises his arms with papi when watching the world cup games … We think he actually tried to say “Shuta” (Portuguese word for kicking a ball)
Here is a picture of the kids in bed with Papi Brian. I won’t be able to post pictures today, may be tomorrow since they charge by the hour here at the hotel and Brian was looking at his business email so I just got some few minutes .. and then is getting ready for lunch again.
Thanks a lot for all your comments they are welcome and appreciated!
Dear Heavenly father, we thank you for all your blessings, thank you for David and Julia, thank you for you provided for all of us a family. I am so overwhelmed with your goodness and I think I just have not yet comprehend the fullness of it. Thanks, in the name of Jesus, Amen.
David and Julia could have not chosen a better daddy! Brian you are wonderful and I thank God for bringing us together.
Our children
We are proud to present to you our children: David Mark Knowles and Julia Amanda Knowles. In this picture you will see them in their favorite activity: eating.Hi Vicky, is funny that you are concerned Brian and I will be trying to go to fancy restaurants in Moscow with our two kids! you know us well! Yes, I know, it sounds just like something we would do, but surprisingly, we hardly get out of the hotel these days. My family will have a hard time to believe this also.
I keep saying it, but I am just not very talented at finding a different way to say it: thank you, thank you, thank you … thanks so much for your prayers and support … the best gift to give to a family in our process is just that: prayer and words of encouragement!
Good news: we are leaving Tuesday morning instead of Wednesday, Yes, What a miracle!!!
We are keeping the kids on their "old" schedule so that there are not too many changes for them: Brian and I get up at 7 am turn the lights on, take showers, get ready, pray together and then we open all the curtains and say good morning! Then, we change the diapers and get ready to go down for breakfast. We eat breakfast at the hotel – I still don’t know if I am feeding them right, I know David is overfed since we had already 3 very messy accidents that required an immediate bath and washing of clothes .. if you know what I mean. I told Brian today at breakfast: “thanks so much for your help” and he almost got upset! He said what do you mean by help? We are a team!!! I am blessed; and he is right this process requires a team.
Right now, Julia is taking her morning nap and Brian and David went downstairs for a little walk. We are having lunch and dinner at the hotel and we all take a nap around 2pm. The hotel has a play area were we take the kids after breakfast and after the naps. It sounds like just normal and easy when I write it, but, it is just our planned schedule, there is always a surprise and a little challenge to the experience.
David and Julia are a blessing and we are actually happy to stay a little longer to bound together in His Love and Provision.
p.s. I will post pictures on a different site and will let you know the address on the next post.
What’s making news around the world these days?
According to the weekly Moscow newspaper Element, the main people in the news were: The biggest star of the world cup, Brazilian soccer player Ronaldinho, is the poster boy for the Nike’s campaign “Jugo Bonito”; The Colombian singer Shakira will be singing at the closing ceremonies of the 2006 World Cup, her song “Hips don’t lie” became the “most played song in pop history” 9657 spins in one week; The American actors, Brad and Angelina, just released the photos of their baby girl Shiloh Nouvel Jolie –Pitt.Cool news, right! Well in our world, there are also breaking news: As of Wednesday Brian and I are proud parents to two blessed children: David Mark Knowles and Julia Amanda Knowles!!!!
We are family ……. I got David n Julia with me!
We are family …….. come on everybody … Sing (with me)!
I will post photos on my next posts and will tell more details on the events for this week.
We are delayed on our immigration process because Monday was a holiday here and the court did not wanted to count Monday as part as the 10 mandatory wait period … and since today is Friday, and there is still some more paper work to do for the embassy, we will have to stay longer and will probably leave on Wednesday.
Thanks so much for your prayers and support!!
Brian and Rebeca K.
I went Bananas Over D on Friday
D knows we are here to take him home. The kids say ¨”Mama … D …”
They all are vocal about it (mostly the girls) except D, he just cries when he sees us come to the orphanage … he first smiles with great happiness and then it seems as if he remembers the car ride to the photo place and then he cries…
We asked his doctor if he has a favourite food, he said …. He eats it all! “what about bananas?” I asked, oh yes, he said, bananas, apples, everything. We took him outside and he stopped crying. Outside the orphanage as I hold him on my lap facing my heart, holding his Elmo book on one hand and his blue and white teddy bear on the other, I rocked him back and forth and sang a new song:
(Very slowly)
Quien es este ninno
De ojos tan tiernos
Quien es este ninno
Que me dio el Sennor
(Picking up pace)
Su nombre es:
David Mark Knowles
Si le dan una banana
Se la come en un sentar
Saborea una manzana
Se la come y pide mas.
On our way to the orphanage 3, the radio Jazz station was playing a Samba/rock “misturo Chiclets con bananas y Miami con Copacabana” the name of the song is “confusion”.
On Thursday when I sat next to D to have lunch, he gave me 2 kisses …Just had to say that!!! Brian is jealous … he is not the only cool boy with pretty eyes that get to kiss me anymore. Oh and yesterday, the girls at the orphanage gave little gifts, they came by with flowers they picked from the ground, D was kind of puzzled … so once he sat on the grass, he found the biggest branch and he handed it to me…isn’t that sweet!!!
I am in love!!!!!
They all are vocal about it (mostly the girls) except D, he just cries when he sees us come to the orphanage … he first smiles with great happiness and then it seems as if he remembers the car ride to the photo place and then he cries…
We asked his doctor if he has a favourite food, he said …. He eats it all! “what about bananas?” I asked, oh yes, he said, bananas, apples, everything. We took him outside and he stopped crying. Outside the orphanage as I hold him on my lap facing my heart, holding his Elmo book on one hand and his blue and white teddy bear on the other, I rocked him back and forth and sang a new song:
(Very slowly)
Quien es este ninno
De ojos tan tiernos
Quien es este ninno
Que me dio el Sennor
(Picking up pace)
Su nombre es:
David Mark Knowles
Si le dan una banana
Se la come en un sentar
Saborea una manzana
Se la come y pide mas.
On our way to the orphanage 3, the radio Jazz station was playing a Samba/rock “misturo Chiclets con bananas y Miami con Copacabana” the name of the song is “confusion”.
On Thursday when I sat next to D to have lunch, he gave me 2 kisses …Just had to say that!!! Brian is jealous … he is not the only cool boy with pretty eyes that get to kiss me anymore. Oh and yesterday, the girls at the orphanage gave little gifts, they came by with flowers they picked from the ground, D was kind of puzzled … so once he sat on the grass, he found the biggest branch and he handed it to me…isn’t that sweet!!!
I am in love!!!!!
Everything cleared up yesterday
Everything cleared up yesterday.
Thanks so much for your prayers!
We went to court on Tuesday and the judge did not rule. That is the most unsatisfying experience in this whole process. She said we had to wait for one paper, Brian and I could not figure out what this paper was … we left it in God’s hands and just did all the facilitator told us to do. Yesterday we got the confirmation that our papers are all in and that the Judge granted us favorably … This means we are not delayed in the process and we will probably be keep the schedule. We have the 10 day wait period for both of our kids which we will spend in Barcelona with our adoptive friends.
We will be back here on the 12th to do all the rest of the paper work.
Special thanks to Mom and dad Knowles and everybody at their department at Billy Graham for their Prayers. Thanks to mami for taking care of the house and Lola. Thanks to all our friends praying at church back home (Vicky and Craig, we know you are God sent) thanks to our blogger friends for your support and prayers.
D is terrified of cars, we took him to do the passport picture (2 minute drive) he almost dies of an anxiety attach, let’s see how he does in an airplane … for 16 hours!.
By the way, our luggage got in just fine!!!
Thanks so much for your prayers!
We went to court on Tuesday and the judge did not rule. That is the most unsatisfying experience in this whole process. She said we had to wait for one paper, Brian and I could not figure out what this paper was … we left it in God’s hands and just did all the facilitator told us to do. Yesterday we got the confirmation that our papers are all in and that the Judge granted us favorably … This means we are not delayed in the process and we will probably be keep the schedule. We have the 10 day wait period for both of our kids which we will spend in Barcelona with our adoptive friends.
We will be back here on the 12th to do all the rest of the paper work.
Special thanks to Mom and dad Knowles and everybody at their department at Billy Graham for their Prayers. Thanks to mami for taking care of the house and Lola. Thanks to all our friends praying at church back home (Vicky and Craig, we know you are God sent) thanks to our blogger friends for your support and prayers.
D is terrified of cars, we took him to do the passport picture (2 minute drive) he almost dies of an anxiety attach, let’s see how he does in an airplane … for 16 hours!.
By the way, our luggage got in just fine!!!
We are in Moscow – Trip #2
We traveled afar and we find familiar faces and voices in the places you least expect.
We almost lost our connection in Frankfurt to go to Moscow and as Brian and I ran like crazy from one terminal to the other, I got to say hi and good bye to a coworker on his way to India!! We made it …just the last people to enter the plane but our suitcases did not make it!
We got to Moscow and we ran again to the passport control, last time we were more than an hour waiting in line. This time there was only two people in front of us … great!!! Except … that there was a problem with my visa … they took me aside, and after ½ hour they fixed the problem: I was given a business visa as a male instead of a female !!!
Oh, well, it was nice to be out of there and see Vlad waiting for us. It is the end of May and it should be nice outside but no, it is cold and it is raining. So, we waited for Vlad to bring the car and as we are looking for his car to come pick us up we saw an Italian couple we had met on our first trip adopting from the same orphanage as Y and the only people that shared Y birth day party back on May 1st, they were running with their child towards the airport so we ran after them and say hi and goodbye!!! Then ran to Vlad’s car in the rain…
We got to our Hotel and as we sat to drink a cappuccino, the radio was playing “tengo la camisa negra” de Juanes!!! (Colombian singer)
The world is so small these days.
Thanks for your prayers, Thanks Flamingo Road Church for your prayers and comments in our blog. I don’t know how to say this …. But really … all we need and what we need the most right now is Prayer. Thanks a lot!
We have a delay in one of our papers; our kids are extremely anxious when left alone with us; I am not feeling very well in terms of emotions/hour difference; and even though we saw familiar faces and voices, we still feel like strangers in a different world.
Our adoption friends are arriving today from Arizona to do their 2nd trip adventure: that is a blessing for both of us.
We almost lost our connection in Frankfurt to go to Moscow and as Brian and I ran like crazy from one terminal to the other, I got to say hi and good bye to a coworker on his way to India!! We made it …just the last people to enter the plane but our suitcases did not make it!
We got to Moscow and we ran again to the passport control, last time we were more than an hour waiting in line. This time there was only two people in front of us … great!!! Except … that there was a problem with my visa … they took me aside, and after ½ hour they fixed the problem: I was given a business visa as a male instead of a female !!!
Oh, well, it was nice to be out of there and see Vlad waiting for us. It is the end of May and it should be nice outside but no, it is cold and it is raining. So, we waited for Vlad to bring the car and as we are looking for his car to come pick us up we saw an Italian couple we had met on our first trip adopting from the same orphanage as Y and the only people that shared Y birth day party back on May 1st, they were running with their child towards the airport so we ran after them and say hi and goodbye!!! Then ran to Vlad’s car in the rain…
We got to our Hotel and as we sat to drink a cappuccino, the radio was playing “tengo la camisa negra” de Juanes!!! (Colombian singer)
The world is so small these days.
Thanks for your prayers, Thanks Flamingo Road Church for your prayers and comments in our blog. I don’t know how to say this …. But really … all we need and what we need the most right now is Prayer. Thanks a lot!
We have a delay in one of our papers; our kids are extremely anxious when left alone with us; I am not feeling very well in terms of emotions/hour difference; and even though we saw familiar faces and voices, we still feel like strangers in a different world.
Our adoption friends are arriving today from Arizona to do their 2nd trip adventure: that is a blessing for both of us.
Baby Shower and other good news
Lola and my niece both enjoyed the Euro Tub we got from my sister Debbie. Then my niece G actually used it and gave the two thumbs up!We are so excited! as well as … so many other feelings. This is like any other experience I ever experienced before. We are leaving Sunday!!!!!!
Shopping has helped me to keep my mind busy: gifts for two orphanages, two kids and two sets of directors and doctors. I love to buy gifts so I am having some fun.
We also got a lot of gifts on our shower. Actually after returning some gifts that were repeats and the gift cards, we were actually able to buy most everything we had in our list!! That was pretty good! Thanks to my sister, her husband and their little G that behave so well and allowed them to do some planning for the shower.
Thanks for all the messages you have left on my last post … I feel I have so many good friends out there … we really need it. Thanks.
Hey, I did my first attempt to scrap booking for the baby shower.
Our good friends from Sarasota drove all the way here to be with us. Thanks D, C, V and J.
The shower was more like an open house .. come whenever you can and …well as often in our house people stayed until late. Brian made fresh pasta every time a group came by … always delicious. We did not have shower games except for one questionnaire people filled out about our kids .. We also had men and children in our shower so it was not the traditional type but we had so much fun meeting with all of family and friends in our house just before we travel.
The gift that came through the pain of infertility
My sister Raquel is planning an adoption baby shower for us this weekend. Thanks Raque!My good friend from work asked me today at lunch if there was a possibility at this stage of our adoption process for it to fall through. I know what she was trying to say, for she cares for Brian and I and she has seen me cry before.
You see, working on IT you always have to think of all possible scenarios and be prepared for it just in case. I answered: “If I have to write the test cases for this “project”, I would have to have some scenarios that would handle that possibility.” I also know that being an IT person, I should then be cautious and ask my sister to have the baby shower when we come back … Just in case! When the “project” is finished and “successful”
Infertility taught me a great lesson: I am not in control. It is a hard pain to go through but I feel I have the gift today to know for a fact, with no doubts that I am not in control. I know that some people think they got pregnant because they …. were relaxed, did not drink as much coffee as I do, maybe did better research, were brave to go through more invasive treatments, etc, etc, etc. the truth is, they are not in control either.
So, why do I consider the simple act of realizing that I am not in control an actual gift for my life? Because it takes me closer to the conclusion that God is in control and that He can be trusted! For He is good. If I believe that God has control over my life … that changes everything! Every possible scenario has to vent to the place He finally wants.
So, I am praying for the best outcome and I know many of you are, for what we are SOOO thankful; we really don’t know what the future holds … but we know Who holds the future!!!
I also have Hope … (another precious gift) “To hope is to anticipate. It is more than dreaming, however. It is possessing within ourselves an expectation that someday there will be the fulfillment of that desire. It will become a reality. Hope always looks to the future, it’s always on tiptoes. It keeps us going. It makes a dismal today bearable because it promises a brighter tomorrow” Charles Swindoll
So, I will celebrate this weekend together with my family and friends the gift of communion and fellowship in the Hope and the prayers that Y and D will be soon our children.
I thank you Lord for the pain of infertility, for it is hard and hurts but really has taken me closer to you, it has taught me You are in control, it has kept me in this humble place of needing You and your provision and I just don’t want to leave that place for you are my real treasure.
Meeting our Kids (part 2)
Remember my picture after meeting our kids? Well, I was not the only one needing a hug (as Suz suggested) We met that night late with our friends in Moscow and they also had their first time meeting their baby girl! We were supposed to meet at the lobby at 7pm and somehow we got all confused, they were waiting for us at Moo Moo’s and by the time we went to Moo Moo’s they were gone, but at the end we met for a glass of wine and beer at the hotel.I was still worried because Y cried the whole time and they were worried because their girl did not cry at all and just behave very nice!! Can you believe that! So we started talking about our worries and encouraging each other … it was great and needed! (Thank you guys!) .. to have someone to talk to and let it all out and that the person actually understands the situation .. it is just great! I remember the time that one of them was explaining an issue I never heard of concerning adoption and my response was: “What was is it that you worry about so I can worry about” that was it! We just started laughing at ourselves.
I believe we all need to pray for God to bring people around us at the time of our adoptions that we can relate to and socialize with. God provided for us 2 wonderful couples that stayed very close to us and still are today and also God provided some other couples that were just great people to be with at breakfast with whom we had some quick, but somehow deep conversations.
So we survived Thursday! And Friday came. We went to visit D first, since we did not actually get to interact with him on Thursday for he was napping.
Ok, so here we go, my two kids cried when they met us!!! Yes, he cried too! Like a boy, just for a little bit, but he cried and actually just waited for a door to open and he just ran out of the meeting room to the kids room; and because of that, again, we were able to see our son interacting with the other kids and once in his environment he was pretty cool!!
We took pictures and he was very interested in both of our cameras – he likes electronics – and music! His favorite toy in the room was a drum! I know, good-bye to our quite home.
We played and laugh together for a while. Brian got to play with him since he is used to see men he was equally comfortable with both of us; the orphanage director is a man. Ok! So I was not going to say anything, but … I will. Here we go:
So, I was really intrigued why D’s orphanage was considered the best and “richest” orphanage in Moscow and why Y’s orphanage was considered the “poorest” (I really could not see the difference)
Well, we had a different driver this time on Friday and he actually told us that D’s orphanage is the best orphanage in Moscow because it is the only orphanage in Moscow that is run by a MAN!!!! Ok, so I said it! I did not enjoy that comment! May be I am just silly and/or you have to be there. Anyhow, let it go …
So was time to go to Y orphanage. I handed him to the caretaker and as I was leaving I looked back and blew a kiss at him … he smile and blew a kiss back to me!! It just makes me cry even as I write this!!
(To be continued)
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