April 26, 2007 7:56 PM
Samantha's Guatemala adoption journey
I've been keeping you posted on Kip and Samantha's adoption journey. For those new to MommyLife, Samantha is my oldest daughter. She and her husband Kip have five children and are in the process of adopting a baby girl from Guatemala.
They are working with a Christian organization that allows birth mothers to choose the homes for their babies - babies which for one reason or another they feel they cannot raise.
In November, when they received word that there was a mother who'd chosen them, they went to Guatemala to meet her and the baby. The entire family was prepared to welcome this little blessing into our lives. K&S returned home knowing that it would be another five months or so before they could fly back to Guatemala to bring their new daughter home. That's how much time it takes for the bureaucratic wheels to turn.
But the unforeseen happened. The day after Christmas, the baby died. We grieved.
In February, K&S went down again to meet another mom and baby. A month after they returned home, they received a call saying the mom had changed her mind and decided to raise the baby herself - a happy outcome, really. And actually, the night before the call their family had been praying and one of the children had specifically prayed that the mother would decide to keep her baby.
Last week, they went a third time. Of course, Tripp and I are blessed by these frequent trips because we've gotten to spend so much time with our grandkids. But it's been hard on Samantha emotionally and she wondered if she would be more stand-offish and self-protective emotionally. We had talked before about her mission - that God was probably using her to accomplish some specific things other than just adopting a baby.
Just received this update which she sent to everyone who's been praying, and Sam's insights led me to ask her if I could share it with you. Samantha doesn't blog or read blogs herself - she's too busy right now.
Here is what she wrote:
Hello there,We are back (again)! Thank you for all your prayers. This was another amazing trip. We were pretty well known there by all the staff. Everyone was very kind and encouraging with us. They could not believe we were there again. When Kip and I set out to do this, we just wanted to be available for a child that needed a home. It has become apparent to me that we are being available for a mother who needs a family to give her child a better life. After meeting the birthmother this time, I was overwhelmed with the feeling of what amazing faith these mothers have. I was reminded of Moses’ mother and what faith she practiced when she placed little Moses in a basket to spare him from death and trusted that God would provide for him. And we know the end of that story!
People continue to ask me if I have any feelings this time. As many of you know, God had prepared me for the birthmother of the last child to change her heart. I am not feeling those same reservations this time (but of course I don’t completely trust my own feelings :). The birthmother this time was very broken about giving up her baby, but she was so thankful. She continued to bless us with the words that “God would bless us for helping her.” How humbling!
Now, we wait and see! Guatemala has really slowed down in the adoption process because they are “being scrupulous” over the paperwork. They are attempting to cut down on the corruption going on. This is good; however, I am afraid they may be cutting out the good along with the bad. We can see what happens in other countries that close their doors to foreign adoptions (very filled orphanages).
We can expect at least a 7 month wait for little ____ to come home. That is not to say we do not deny that God can make it happen sooner!
I sent some pictures including a couple of some other children in the orphanage. There are over a hundred children now, but all have families waiting for them!
Love,
Samantha
Posted in Adoption, Family | Permalink
Comments
Your daughter and her family remain in my prayers, Barbara.
Posted by: KatieButler | April 27, 2007 8:07 AM
How wonderful that you are documenting this time for your daughter! My husband and I are working to bring our son home from Guatemala; your daughter is certainly correct about the delays in the country, but I must make it known that the U.S. is causing delays, as well. Under the guise of "stricter security," requests for pre-approval of visas sit on someone's desk for an unreasonably lengthy period of time. This document is required before entering the last phase of court, known as the dreaded PGN, and at this point, my husband and I have been waiting 55 days. I could understand if they were actually investigating to ensure the safety of adoptive children and families, but in reality, it's just time--time lost. We accepted our son at 16 days old, and he is now four months. NOTHING has happened in our case for 55 days because we have been waiting for the USCIS to issue this document.
This is probably not the forum for venting, but I happened to run across your site and thought maybe you could help broadcast this issue since it's one close to your heart, as well.
Thanks for listening,
Sabrina in WV
Waiting for Brayden
Posted by: Sabrina | May 6, 2007 12:14 AM
