A Day We'll Never Forget ~

I can say that for the first time in my life, I was truly speechless. We could scarcely take in the sights and sounds and smells! So much was new, and all we'd read and seen in pictures came to life. Our driver ranked right up there with the best of NASCAR: swerving to avoid potholes, slamming on his brakes to miss motorcycle drivers, inching ahead to discourage children begging at our window, and edging his way between cars to take a turn. The colors of the produce and artwork and clothing were vivid. The heat in the van with 6 others and the smell of exhaust in the city were overwhelming. One second we'd be saddened by a scary looking dog rummaging through the ever-present trash next to a child on the street. The next second we'd smile at a dad holding his young daugher's hand on the way home from school. We were mesmerized and didn't want to forget a single image. We pray we never forget.

So forty five minutes later, we turn off the busy streets and down a quiet alley where he stops. The other parents get out and knock on this gate with a rock. It is the door to the orphanage, where about 50 kids are eagerly awaiting our arrival. We are told that they will be instructed to stay seated at their lunch table and sing us a song as we arrive. Then, the nannies will introduce our children to us. Bruce had the videocamera, and I had the camera all ready to go!

There they were....Ange-Laurette in light blue and Pierre to her right. We could not contain ourselves and waved at them, only to see huge smiles and waves back at us! Without permission, they ran over to us with long, tight hugs. We just kept telling them we loved them and squealed with delight. After a couple minutes, Pierre disappeared and returned with his birthmother, who we knew was the cook at the orphanage. Without an interpreter, we spoke it all through our eyes and different languages. I said, "He's beautiful. Thank you. Are you ok? Are you happy?" She was beautiful and her bittersweet joy in this moment was real. We felt so grateful and so at peace. Again, the evidence of God was that we felt like we had known them forever....and the bond was immediate.

The flight from Miami to Port-au-Prince

So, March 13, 2009, a two hour delay waiting on the plane with about 200+ Haitians gave me extra time to pray and extra time to soak in this new culture and people. It didn't take long for us to realize that our Creole would not get us far. The beautiful woman in the seat behind us spoke a very quick and loud version of Creole the entire two hour trip. She also sang and hummed to herself when she was nervous about the take off and landings. :) It was a sunny day with islands seen periodically below. The time went by quickly, as we imagined over and over what the day would hold!

As we circled around the bay, we got a full view of the capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince. It was beautiful from the air, with white sandy shores and mountains in the distance. Although, most of the hills were barren and sandy erosion was evident everywhere. Soon we would see the city up close. When we had left South Dakota two days before, it was a frigid 2 degrees and the airplane required de-icing. As we stepped off the plane in Haiti, it was a windy 91 degrees...a welcome change for these South Dakotans!

We rushed to get through customs only to find a long delay in retrieving our luggage. We were more patient with the process when we realized that the delay was due to 100 bins of medical supplies being unloaded for a mission group just arriving. We followed our guide's directions to stay close to our luggage and to expect to be mobbed by hundreds as we exited the airport. Since many in Haiti make only a few dollars a day on average, they hope to earn a tip by helping with your luggage. Two men out of the shouting crowd quickly claimed ours, and Bruce gave their tip to our driver to work it out with the men. While we waited in the van, one man kept begging to Bruce through the window for money. Bruce found it hard to look away from this man's desperation and his genuine words of blessing. After a few quiet but assertive words to the bystanders by our driver, we were off to the orphanage.

Planning our first trip

Even thinking about meeting Pierre and Ange-Laurette for the first time kept us up many nights. We would watch youtube videos of other families meeting their children for the first time, and we tried to picture what it would be like. Would they know who we were right away? Would we recognize them? Would they be happy? How would we communicate?

And then the enormity of me even traveling (over water!) to Haiti was a whole other thing to lay awake at night about. :) First of all, I do not like to be away from Bailey and Nate here at home for more than a couple days at a time. There would be a lot of juggling with grandparents and friends to coordinate their activities and care. We would not be able to communicate by phone with them once in Haiti. I was nervous about the food and climate and safety as well.

We kept reminding ourselves that this whole thing was out of our comfort zone. That is how God works! The situation itself demanded that we relied solely on Him for safety and protection. He wanted those children with us, and he would protect us. More than that, we knew there would be an immediate connection with the kids. We had heard otherwise from other parents who had adopted, but we just already felt so much for them...and we had no doubt that they would sense that.

A very generous family from California answered Diana's request and offered to travel with us for our first trip. They arranged the driver and were so very helpful every step of the way. This would be their 7th trip, and another family would be on their 4th trip. They shared tips on what to pack, gave advice on medication/food, and walked us through each eye-opening experience at the airports. We emailed other parents with kids about our kids' ages to ask things like sizes of shoes and types of snacks they would like etc. We would have been so lost without them! We wouldn't have remembered their favorite, Cheetos. And we would not have known to pack double the quantity of underwear since they insist on wearing them under swimsuits. :) One person mentioned hooded sweatshirts since they are not used to being cold after swimming. These were all big hits!

So friends and grandparents kindly jumped in to help with Nate and Bailey, and we had our first trip planned for mid-March!

Sharing the news ~

We prayed daily that they would have a peace about us when they saw our photos and heard the news.

It was not until January 26th, on Diana's next trip to Haiti, that the kids found out about their forever family. She brought them our backpacks full of toys/treats/clothes...and then shared the photo albums with our pictures. This is how they looked moments later!

Ange-Laurette had just lost her first tooth; hence the quiet grin. We got a kick out of the comb Pierre was holding in his hand for the photo. :) Diana shared that they were as immediately excited as any kids she'd told before. We were quick to explain that THAT had been our prayer.

Four days later, we had our first phonecall where we tried out our few phrases in Creole...and found out quickly how little we knew! They spoke fast and with energy. As soon as they heard us speak in their language, they went on and on. The only recognizable response was when I asked Ange-Laurettte, "Ou kontan?" (are you happy)....to which she answered a definitive "Wi!"

The other referral...meant to be!

We had been so excited when Diana mentioned Ange-Laurette that we didn't listen closely as she described another very special boy. She had previously warned us that older boys may be too rough by nature to our younger, mild-mannered son at home. So we simply missed God's other plan in that call.

But, as we know, God persists. :) About 10 days later, we received photos from Diana's trip which included this one. I said to Bailey, "Well, he sure looks nice. Maybe not all the older boys are rough." When we clicked on the header, we saw the name Pierre Cardin. Then, I remembered...that was the name Diana had mentioned in her referral phonecall. I paged through my notebook to find the notes I had taken from that phonecall. There it said: Pierre Cardin, about 10 years old, very caring and kind to younger children.

I forwarded the picture to Bruce at work, saying "What do you think? Please!" We called Diana with more questions and details: how would he and Ange-Laurette be as siblings, how are they together, what are his interests, etc. Soon, we found out that Pierre was also meant to call us his forever family. That bright, beaming smile only got bigger over the months ahead!

There she was!

So, this was the photo we had first seen when we searched for a child to merely sponsor through monthly donations. We actually happened upon it twice within the same search that afternoon.

Her name was Ange-Laurette. The short excerpt explained that her home had been destroyed in a hurricane. Her father was deceased. She and her mother had chosen adoption, after a temporary stay at the orphanage. She was described as intelligent, with a buoyant spirit.

I printed out her photo and set it in a frame, as a face to picture as we dreamed about the children that might eventually be matched specifically to our family. Still, this face stuck with me. I prayed for this girl and her future, even as I prayed for God to direct each step of our own adoption process. I even asked Diana about her once and was told that she did not yet have a forever family. The connection to her and all that she spoke through her eyes was undeniable.

So, on December 3, 2008, when Diana called with exciting news about a match for our family we were thrilled, yet not surprised, that God had chosen us for Ange-Laurette's forever family. We had to cover up the phone to hide our squeals...and we did not need a moment longer to accept.

A dream in a package ~

As we completed the dossier, with the endless paperwork and costly copies, etc, we put together two identical mini photo albums for Diana to share with our future referrals. We tried to make sure we had the same number of photos of our 3 kids here and then of the school, yard, bedrooms, sports, and all. We added short headings or notes like: You will like it here! Bruce is a good dad! We're just missing you! Our excitement boxing them up to mail could hardly be contained.

Why adopt TWO children?

As quickly as we had decided to adopt ONE child in the first place...is how quickly we realized that adopting TWO was the best decision. We were concerned about how a child from Haiti would feel about being taken from their country, culture, and only home they had ever known...into this frozen tundra. :) We wondered how they would adapt without anyone who spoke their native language or anyone who understood their unique history. In a town in eastern South Dakota with so little diversity, we knew that it would be tough for any child of a different race. Yet, we knew that they could have a profound impact on our family, our friends, our school, our church, and our community.

At the same time, we realized that this step toward adoption would be a HUGE change to our home and everyday from that point on. As Bruce looked into the fees associated with adoption, he saw that so much of the cost is related to the paperwork and processing. Those fees are not doubled with an additional child...only the childcare fees and the visa costs. (The real costs occur when the kids arrive HOME!!)

About that time, our 6-year-old son expressed his adament desire to adopt a boy, so he would not be left out with two girls here. It was settled. We would talk to Diana about the possibility of adopting a boy and girl, whether they were biologically related or not. Each would have the opportunity to bond with one of our children in our home....we had two empty bedrooms...and we had at least that much love to go around!