Hi All,
I'm not quite sure where to begin! It's been a whirlwind! Things have been so crazy and exhausting and awesome all at the same time! We arrived late Tuesday night in Uganda, got our visas, picked up our luggage (all of them arrived, yay!!), and then drove 2 hours to where we were staying. It was a long haul (almost 24 hours in total), but we were so happy to have finally arrived. We went to bed around 3am and were up by 7 to get ready and meet the boys. We were definitely running on pure adrenaline, but we were so excited we could hardly stand it :)
The boys came to our guest house around 9:30am and another family was able to video our meeting. While I can't post it on here, I look forward to sharing it with all of you when we're home! The boys did so well meeting us, and they walked right up to us once they got out of the car! They let us hold them and pick them up, but they were definitely intrigued by us and everything new in their surroundings. Here's a picture a few minutes after we first met them :)
From there we went to the orphanage to speak with the in-country director and got the low down of the week's events. After that, we took the boys with us to go see the palace in Jinja (the town we're staying in) and then brought them back for their lunch and nap. Paul and I and another couple here went to lunch then went to look at some apartments for us to move into. The original guest house we had booked was fine, but we had mice, bats and cockroaches in the first 2 days and we soon realized it wouldn't be conducive for months of living. Thankfully we found a beautiful little apartment just a couple blocks away that is owned by a sweet Italian lady named Alba. Our apartment has a small "kitchen", a good sized bathroom and a large bedroom with 2 beds for us and the boys. Not to mention it is significantly cleaner than where we were before. It's been a welcome change.
Everyday we head to the orphanage around 9am and play with the boys until noon. We've taken then out a handful of times to stay with us and spend time with us outside, but we're still so exhausted from little sleep and travel that we are trying to respect our own limits, as well as make sure they feel comfortable with us the whole time. During the break from 12-3 they eat lunch and nap, to which we often walk downtown to get some food and then run errands (getting pictures developed that we need for court, buying fans and power strips, getting our phone minutes and internet set-up, etc.). Around 3:30 we typically head back to the orphanage and stay until 6:15 when they go for dinner and bedtime. They have overall been SO good with us and are already learning and adapting so much.
Ever since the second day we met them, when we arrive at the orphanage they come running like tiny torpedos into our arms. It's been wonderful!! Both boys are just so sweet and loving, and Paul and I have been blown away by them! L is SO smart! He picks up on everything and his English is very good! I can tell him something once and every time he remembers it. He is definitely a mischievous one though and I know it will take him a little time to fully trust us. J definitely has some developmental (not cognitive) delays, including a need for some speech therapy, but he also picks on everything and has learned so much just in a few days! It's been so incredible to see the light in their eyes and the joy in their hearts. We're pretty much melting with love! Nevertheless, there is so much orphan mentality in them and it's been challenging for us to navigate their needs and expectations when we take them out of the orphanage to do something with us. It is often a lot of calm disciplining and reminders to not take/eat/grab everything in sight! One of the saddest things is that they give them shoes at the orphanage when we are there (or taking them with us), which is a VERY special thing. Unless you're being adopted, you don't get shoes. So when we're with our boys, all of the kids try to rip the shoes off their feet and our boys immediately start crying. It's heartbreaking to see their deep wounds that come from having nothing to their name and knowing nothing else, but we are already so encouraged by their gains in just a week! We are trying to teach them that they will have things and this is not just a one time deal. It's been so hard! Paul and I are quickly learning how to be parents, but trying to give ourselves some grace at the same time. We're realizing we will never be perfect at this ;)
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| J on the left and L on the right |
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| Super dad pushing the double stroller! They LOVED it! |
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| Snuggling J |
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| Snuggling L |
Besides spending days with them, we've been all over the place trying to get our affairs in order for court. On Saturday we had to make the 3 hour drive (one way) to the capital city of Kampala to see the palace and parliament per our judge's request. We also had to meet with our lawyer for a de-briefing before court, and he was able to answer any questions we may have as well. It was a long day, but one step closer to the goal. The best part of going to Kampala was that we got to see our Ugandan friends, Emmanuel and Clare. They were who we spent all of our time with when we came to Uganda last year, and it was such a treat for us to spend some of the afternoon with them.
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| King's Palace in Kampala |
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| Idi Amin's torture chambers at the Palace |
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| Sweet Clare |
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| Paul and Emmanuel |
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| Near downtown Jinja! Say what?! |
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| Part of our walk home :) |
This morning we went to church at Arise Africa which was also wonderful. It was so nice to see these beautiful people worship and Paul and I were both humbled by their hearts. We hope to try a couple more churches in the area before we make a decision on our "home church" while we're here :)
On Tuesday this week we have court for J and on Wednesday court for L. Our judge is supposed to see us at 11am, but it's not uncommon to wait until 4, 5, 6, or 7pm before he will see us. We are praying he will come quickly and that our time in his chambers will also be short. I am SO nervous about him questioning me, and have been continually praying for peace. Our lawyer again confirmed that I will most likely get the brunt of his questions, but I am believing he will be kind and that I will be eloquent and concise in my answers...but that doesn't mean I'm not still freaking out :) Both days we will leave for Kampala (3 hours) at around 7:30am and may not be home until 9 or 10pm. If you think of us on Tuesday or Wednesday please be praying for us!! Prayer requests include:
1) That the judge will see us quickly and not make us wait all day
2) That both J and L will be calm and peaceful...that they will play quietly and not be nervous or scared at these new surroundings...that they will be able to endure the long day without their normal routine in place
3) That I will be calm and peaceful and will be able to answer and understand all the questions he asks me
4) That we will be able to be a blessing to the families of J and L, and that anything that needs to come out will happen before they are questioned by the judge (any living biological relatives of our boys will need to appear in court and testify that the adoption release they signed was not via a bribe or that they were not under duress. Additionally, the judge needs to make sure they understand that the boys will not be coming back. For us it is mainly grandparents, but I would still love to bless them in some way).
5) That we would have endurance and energy throughout the day to make it through the 6+ hours in the car, court and all the newness of having a toddler with us :)
Thank you in advance!
Ever since we arrived we have felt so much peace at God's hand on our adoption, and we can't wait to see His plan unfold. We are consistently reminding ourselves to be patient and kind, and to simply trust God every step of the way. We know each step is a huge hurdle, but we are confident of this path and we are excited for the journey.
We hope you are all doing well and we miss seeing your faces! We so look forward to being able to share more of our boys when we can, and we can't wait to have them finally home to share in person!
We will be updating as often as we can, but probably not more than once a week. We can't thank you all enough for your love and support and we hope you continue to follow along on this journey.
We love you!
