Road trips will never be the same :)

We traveled to Minneapolis to visit our oldest son and his wife. He works for a professional lacrosse team's sales department and had gotten us tickets to a game at the Excel Center. The first 90 minutes of our trip we had stopped all three small towns along the highway: one car sick child, two bathroom stops for upset stomachs, and one dime store stop for cortisone cream for some mosquito bite drama. It took us over 5 hours! BUT, no pouting, no fighting, no begging....just a regular traveling medical clinic. :)

We never get enough time with extended family in Pierre and Ange-Laurette's minds. We can tell what a significant role extended family played for the kids in Haitian culture. They expect them to be nearby and part of all of our activities. They ask about them and pray for each one at night...grandparents, especially. So much has changed in American families, with siblings and grandparents living so far apart. The relationships are just different. Even with all the technology to stay in touch, it just isn't the same as gathering together for meals and celebrations on a weekly basis. So, if you are one of the lucky ones who has your grandkids and extended family nearby...cherish that!

Third Grade Wax Museum

As part of their social studies unit, Pierre and Ange-Laurette had to pick an important person from history to depict. They wrote and memorized 6-7 facts on their person to share at a special night at the Redlin Art Museum. Pierre was my grandma's all-time favorite, Kirby Puckett. Ange-Laurette chose Mother Teresa, the name our older son calls me to be funny! It was fun to watch the faces of other parents as they pushed the kids' "buttons" to hear their lines. I think both kids impressed everyone with their improving English and poise. :)

First visit to Gma and Gpa's farm

We pointed out the white fence along the highway and then turned down the drive to Bruce's parents farm. We explained that their Grandpa Royal, who died just two years ago, had made that fence and loved this farm so much. Pierre and Ange-Laurette just kept looking past the white fence on both sides of the road as we crossed the bridge over a small creek. They said, "This is theirs? On both sides?" It was one of those 65 degree sunny days with hardly a breeze. They were beaming all day! They loved the tire swing, the playhouse, the 4-wheeler wagon ride, and searching the field for golfballs from the course across the highway. I so wished I could have been inside their minds for the day.

FUTBOL!!

18 months ago, Pierre was interviewed as he awaited a forever family in Haiti. Our adoption coordinator asked him what he wanted in a family. He answered that he wanted a family who would let him go to school, who would let him play soccer, and who would cook meat. So, last night was a dream come true for Pierre. He had his first soccer game. Pierre is a great ball handler but has never seen a game or learned the rules or positions. His coaches and teammates just let him go and treated him like any other player. At one point when Pierre was on defense but running the whole field, a teammate nicely called out, "Hey Pierre. Maybe try to stay behind the white line, ok?" Pierre played his heart out, kept his hands down, and made his very first goal! It was like watching his first steps.

Father-Daughter Dance

Soon after Ange-Laurette's arrival, she spotted this pinkest of pink dress. The sequins called to her from the aisle in the store! I remembered that our church has a Purity Ball for the fathers and daughters each spring. So, we have been waiting to wear this special dress for a long time! It was a precious thing....to unbead her hair and put it up into the tiara...and then to watch her face when she looked into the mirror. It was just like the first trip to Haiti when she saw a mirror for the first time on the hotel elevator. Priceless!

The way she and Bruce looked at each other was the next teary moment. We know that Ange-Laurette has grieved for years over her father's untimely death. He was a good father and loved her like any other father, tickling her and playing with her outside. Those are her memories. Now, she gets to be loved and protected by a new father who loves her at least as much! When she got home late that night, she simply said, "That was very, very good. It was very nice."

Back to work for Mom...

Where did those 12 weeks go?! It was just the right amount of time to make sure everyone was in the routine and ready for the next step. The kids love the after school program on the days I work, but they also love walking home and extra "outside" time on the days I don't. ANY time outside they love! They all pitched in to help Bruce assemble the trampoline. You could have heard the squeals and laughter blocks away when Ange-Laurette tried it out for the first time. It is one of the few things all three of them can do together, without one feeling left out. Every weekend we've got a few extra friends here, shooting hoops, playing foosball, riding bike, or jumping out back. Both Pierre and Ange-Laurette are riding bike now. The freedom they must feel to hop on and just ride!

I was sharing our story with a women's group at a friend's house. I was careful to emphasize two things: that God gets all credit and had his hand on every step...and that everyone has SOME "calling" that leads to HUGE blessing. After this much time, it was very emotional to recall the past year and a half. How it all began...how hard the waiting was...how devastating the news of the earthquake was...and now how amazingly well they are adjusting...and how much this just seems like the family we always had!

The gift of optometry

We had Ange-Laurette and Pierre's vision and hearing screened at school. Both passed the hearing but Ange-Laurette had 20/50 vision in one of her eyes. That night I told her that the nurse had called and said she could not see very well out of her right eye. Ange-Laurette said matter-of-factly, "Yes, this eye does not work." We told her that there are eye doctors that can prescribe glasses to help her see. You should have seen her face. She said, "Sunglasses?" She had no idea that the glasses people wear are not strictly for fashion or that there was a way to improve vision. Now that I think about it, I don't remember seeing anyone in glasses on the streets in Haiti. There are so many things we take for granted, especially related to our healthcare.

Yesterday, she had a thorough eye exam. When the doctor showed her what her vision would be like with glasses, Ange-Laurette yelled with a smile, "I can see! It is clean!" Even though Bruce encouraged me to have them remove all pink glasses from the shelves before Ange-Laurette started to try some on....she found a pink, glittery pair that is definitely "her." When she looked in the mirror she said, "I am beautiful." THAT she is!

The same morning she lost her first tooth here. At dinner, she and Pierre explained to us that, in Haiti, you throw your tooth over the house when you lose it. If you do this, a new white tooth will grow in its place. If you just throw the tooth on the ground, you will never grow in a new tooth there! (And they think OUR tooth fairy stories are silly!) I asked Ange-Laurette if she wanted to throw her tooth over the roof. She said, "No, me want the money." Beautiful....AND smart!