Welcome Home

Sorry, I have not kept the blog updated over the last couple of days. We made it home late Friday afternoon. We want to thank everyone who has followed the journey, prayed for us, and who has just been there for us; there are too many to mention names, please know we love you and thank you.

When we pulled into the driveway, Parker was out riding his bike and did not care that mom/dad was home only baby sister. Parker could not take his eyes off of her on Friday night. Yesterday, it seems we started having a little bit of I miss mom/dad's full attention. Stacy spent the day with him yesterday watching movies and playing cars; today will be a guys day as he and I are going to play golf. As I mentioned in my earlier posts that Iszabella had a cold/cough. We took her to an urgent care center yesterday morning and she has strep throat and an ear infection. We cannot believe how calm she has been when she has to be in pain. After one dose of medicine she is so much more active.

Both sets of grandparents have been at the house since we landed on Friday. Iszabella has taken to them and loved on all of them; it has been great to see the love that she has been shown. Iszabella has taken to all of them so well and they have been great to have at the house.

Thanks for following along with us as we have been through the trip this week, however, please follow along as the real journey begins. Thanks

Guatemala - Day Three

It is hard to believe that today is our last full day in Guatemala. We are ready to get home to see Parker and introduce him to Iszabella. He has talked to her each day by phone and is viewing the blog. Stacy`s parents said that when Parker saw the picture of Stacy, Iszabella, and I that he smiled the biggest smile and said "I love you baby sister," he is going to be a great big brother. Yesterday also was a milestone day. Iszabella woke up saw Stacy and said Mama, not sure how long the tears flowed from that moment.

Iszabella is still sick with a cough and cold. Please pray for her and for the plane ride home tomorrow. We leave Guatemala tomorrow at 8:42 am and arrive in Oklahoma City at ¨5:20 pm.

Several cool things about the trip is getting to learn about the country. From our hotel room we can see a live volcano, when the sky is clear you can see the smoke and steam raising from the top. We met a couple from Sioux City, SD last night and they hiked the volcano yesterday with a tour guide. They said that some places were too hot to walk, he said in one area they placed a stick and in about 5 - 10 seconds it ignited. He said that there is five active volcanoes close to Guatemala City. We also witnessed a large protest about a block or two from the hotel; this was visible from our hotel room. The country does not seem to have a middle class only wealthy and poor; both are easy to distinguish.

Another different feature was to have a driver. I have heard stories about how people drive in central America, I do not think the stories were accurate in our experience; I have a new understanding for the saying the world is made up of inches. We were glad for a couple of inches on several occasions yesterday as we navigated the streets of Guatemala City.

Guatemala - Day Two

The day started very early, our wake up call was for 5:30 am as our Embassy appointment was for 7:15 this morning. Iszabella has been a great child, she cried a little last night (she has cried for a total of about 10 minutes since yesterday) for mom and she has started running a low grade fever with a cough. The climate here is very much like Seattle and the rainy season has started, so the kids are dealing with a change in season. Please pray that she gets over her cough and cold before we travel on Friday.

As I mentioned, our appointment was this morning. The interview process went well and everything is going according to plan. The Embassy approved the adoption and the visa will be issued by 3:30 pm tomorrow afternoon. We are then free to leave the country on Friday; we are scheduled to land in Oklahoma City at 5:20 on Friday afternoon. The one bad thing that happened at the Embassy interview was the interviewer noticed we were from Oklahoma and he asked about the upcoming football season; the bad question was "so do you think OU will get beat by any more mid-major teams this year," a reference to our Boise State loss and remember I was under oath.

The hardest thing about today was walking past all of the Guatemalan citizens who were at the Embassy seeking a visa to the United States, we were escorted past about 500 people. At the airport yesterday, there were about 1,000 people seeking any gift from those arriving. The country has striking beauty but also such poverty.

We have found out some information about Iszabella, she was born in a town about 18 miles outside of Guatemala City in a town with a lake. On our arriving flight yesterday we noticed this area and it appeared to be a beautiful area, there were mountains around the lake. We have also met several different families at the hotel from TX, MO, NC, CA, MI, WI, MN, and FL. All have been on the same journey to bring their children home.

Guatemala - Day One

We arrived in Guatemala City today around 1 pm. At 3 pm we received Iszabella, for those of you who were betting Dad cried like a baby. For the record, she had me first -I had ran down to the lobby to get a key reprogrammed and guess who walked in, you guessed it Iszabella. From that moment, she had me. We have had her for about 2 hours and she has yet to cry. We were very lucky to get to spend time with the foster mom, two of her children, and her neighbor. Please pray for her and her family, they cried for our daughter and have been very kind to us and to her. They presented us with gifts and more importantly a photo album of several pictures.

I have added a couple of the close to 100 pictures we have taken in the last two hours. We will keep you updated as the day and week progresses. Our embassy appointment is tomorrow at 7:15 am. Thank you for everything and for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers.

The Journey Begins

Today is the day. We leave OKC about noon today and travel to Miami, we will spend the night in Miami before traveling on to Guatemala City in the morning. Our church is in the process of a "100 days of prayer" campaign and I thought today's was important.

"Do you realize today that God is thinking about you? Can you count the grains of sand on the volleyball court today? Of course not, yet that is the illustration God uses to describe how often He thinks of you. Praise Him today for His great love for your. Live today like you know He loves you."

This is important because God's hand is clearly at work in our adoption process, from providing the resources to make the adoption financially possible to His protection of our daughter. As Col 1:16 says, we have value, meaning, and purpose because God is the Creator; he also made us in His image. That does not only apply to those in Edmond, America, or people of our own skin color; this applies to all of God's children across the world. Thank you for following our journey and for keeping us in your prayers.

Big Brother Gets Ready

Today has been a wild day! We went to church this morning, we put in our number to get Parker's security code and Iszabella's name was also listed. It is hard to believe that this time next week we will have our daughter home and she will be crawling throughout the house.

Parker is getting very excited. We had some friends come by yesterday and they brought over gifts for Parker and Iszabella (a big pink Mickey Mouse, some clothes, and a pink elephant). Parker put the elephant into Iszabella's chair and sang it lullaby's yesterday. Today, he has helped in getting the car seat ready and he is very busy in planning her "surprise party." He said he does not want to come to the airport, due to the party he is planning.

At church today, he learned about Daniel and how God provided for Daniel. On the way home he said that the God that provided for Daniel is the same God providing his baby sister. It is awesome that a 4 1/2 year old understands that EVERYTHING comes from God and that the God that created the universe still provides for us today.

5 Days & Counting

Well it is Thursday evening, July 5th and we are at 5 days and counting down until we leave for Guatemala to finalize the adoption and bring our daughter, Iszabella home! I can not believe that this moment is finally here and that in a matter of days-week, she will be in our home with Brent, Parker and I! I would like to ask that everyone that is reading this blog to please pray a specific prayer for our safety there and back and that the transition from the foster family to us will go smoothly and that Iszabella experiences as little stress as possible. Thank you to all that have helped us through this journey through prayers, thoughts and encouraging words.

Stacy