Day 26: Small Idea Turns into Big Fun

When Claudia suggested taking her grandmother's housekeeper and daughter to an amusement park, she had no idea how plans would evolve into something bigger.

We had lunch at Claudia's grandmother's house earlier in the week. During our conversation, Claudia invited her grandmother's housekeeper Francia and her one-and-a-half-year-old daughter to Jaime Duke amusement park on Saturday. Neither had been there before.

The next day when Lucia called to give us an update on Sentencia, she also mentioned there were two American families in Bogota. Claudia asked if they would be interested in visiting the park also. Of course Lucia thought the idea was great and offered to coordinate getting a large bus to take everyone.

And so Claudia's small idea evolved into something bigger than us.

In fact, by the time the bus had arrived Saturday to pick us up, there were 20 people including parents and children on the bus. The group included two families from the United States and one from France. One of the American families was adopting five siblings and the other family was adopting three siblings. The French family had an 8-month-old girl.

Jaime Duke Park is near Panaca, which we visited a couple of weeks ago. Jaime Duke is a huge amusement park that also features a zoo with exotic animals like lions, various types of monkeys and panthers to name a few.

The children had a blast on the various rides and the zoo. Daniel even had his first amusement rides with Daddy. Mommy rarely rides anything. Daniel's face almost split open with his huge smile! You could tell he had a great time. He is an active baby and enjoys thrills. I'd put money on him giving us a heart attack at some point for doing something outrageous!

The American families were very friendly and it was awesome to hear their stories. It's great to recognize the similarities and differences between our experiences.

The family adopting five sibling girls already has another six or seven children at home (sorry guys, I lost count but think you're amazing!). Their hearts and love is an amazing gift from God. They were finishing their first week together and needed a break. Jaime Duke was the perfect answer.

The couple adopting three children (two girls and one boy) was from Arizona and had been in Bogota for two months. They are ready to be home! The kids have seen videos and pictures of their new house and also are ready to be in the states!

Claudia played a special role during the day as the group leader of sorts. She and I both acted as interpreter for the parents and children at various times. After seeing the gratitude from the parents, we realized how huge a blessing it is for us to be bilingual. I've rarely been more proud of Claudia than I was when watching her connecting with the children and helping them understand the opportunities they'll have in the United States.

Claudia couldn’t compete with Daniel or his cuteness though. He was the main attraction at Jaime Duke. Many of the girls held his hand. Rarely did time go by when he wasn't escorted by a girl in each hand. Needless to say, he was in heaven.

After reflecting on the day's events, Claudia and I both agreed it was one of our favorite days in Colombia. Claudia was able to teach the parents a few key Spanish phrases and explain to the children what they're trip in a plane going home would be like among other things. It's amazing how God works through us sometimes!

Day 25: Visiting Old-time Friends

On Friday we visited two of Claudia's college friends and did a little shopping at Gran Estacion, or Grand Station Mal.

It was good to visit with Javier, Carolina and their two boys. We were able to catch up with them and later had lunch at Crepes and Waffles.

After lunch, we walked around Gran Estacion Mall. It was built about three years ago and features a small ice rink. There is a large outdoor area at one of the main entrances that features a fountain around a giant chess board.

By the time we returned home, it was time to give Daniel dinner and start our bedtime routine. Daniel is feeling much better. His congestion is almost gone. Yea!

Day 24: The End In Sight and Father's Day with Bisabuelo

Thursday morning our liaison, Lucia, called with potential good news regarding our return home.

Our airline tickets to go home are for the 23rd of June, i.e. next Thursday. It appears as if we will need to change those flights. Wednesday we asked for a suggestion regarding when we should plan on returning home; which prompted Lucia's call Thursday morning.

Lucia believes we will be able to have our Sentencia sometime next week. Sentencia is one of the most significant events during the adoption process. It's when Colombia recognizes Daniel is officially our son. Once the country does that we can begin the process of obtaining his Colombian passport and American visa.

This is great news for us because we would love to be in Nashville for Daniel's first birthday on July 1.

Hopefully we'll know something Monday, but as of now we don't have much more news than our Sentencia is imminent.

Daneil Celebrates Father's Day with Bisabuelo

For lunch we invited Abuelo Hernando to lunch at Santa Fe to celebrate Father’s Day. The mall is a short walk from the apartment. Abuelo couldn’t walk too far outside because he is still battling the funk, although he feels much better than a few days ago.

We decided to eat in the mall food court because it has a variety of options to choose from for lunch. Claudia, Abuelo and Daniel enjoyed Bandeja Paisa and I had a hamburger from El Corral.

Bandeja Paisa (click here to learn more: Bandeja Paisa) is a fusion dish typical in Colombia and a favorite among its people. The dish includes rice, beans, chorizo, ground meat, arepa, plantain, avocado slice, fried egg and a few other meats. The dish is a combination of influences from Colombia’s past; including Spanish, African and indigenous Colombians. There was even a campaign in 2005 to make Bandeja Paisa a national dish recognized by the Colombian government.

It was great to see Daniel enjoying the beans and rice from Claudia’s plate. Well, actually he was eating the sauce from the beans rather than the beans themselves. He also ate some of the ground beef.

After lunch we invited Abuelo to go shopping for his Father’s Day present. Daniel enjoyed looking at the people while we shopped. He is very social and loves to be around activity!

We headed home afterwards and called it a day. The great thing is we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Sentencia is approaching; but as has been the case during the entire process, we don’t know exactly when and probably will get short notice when the date is set.

Day Nineteen: Daniel Gets His First Needle

Apparently it is not easy watching your child have blood drawn.

At least it wasn't easy for us to restrain Daniel for two nurses to take blood to test for various tests this morning. It was hard to hear our baby crying as a nurse stuck the needle into his arm. Claudia cried with Daniel, and I watched from the rear as his small legs kicked in my hands.

We went to a clinic to run a battery of tests on Daniel and consult with a pediatrician regarding his persistant "gripa" or cough and runny nose/congestion, diet and other questions. Needless to say, Daniel was a trooper during the entire process.

The good news is all results were normal and he doesn't have any parasites. Our doctor at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital always recommends testing for intestinal parasites in recently adopted children.

We bought additional medicine to help with his gripa and some different powdered milk packed with every nutrient possible to help him continue growing. The price tag wasn't cheap either; but so it is in Colombia. Prices here are between two to three times higher than in the United States.

Thankfully, Daniel appears to be in a better mood today. We've learned to give him his space rather than smother him with attention. He enjoys playing by himself. From a distance, we hear him babbling and laughing.

We're also learning there are some things I can do with him easily and some things that are better left to Claudia. Day by day, we're dividing the responsibilities to take care of him. The good news, at least for today, is when Claudia and I show affection toward each other Daniel wants to be a part of it rather than bite my arm. I take that as a good sign. We'll see if he has the same attitude tomorrow.

If the weather is good Saturday, we plan to visit an animal theme park named Panaca. We hope we can go since we've really not done very much besides stay in the condo and make short trips outside for the past couple of weeks.

Adios!

Day Eighteen: Integration Meeting Successful and Our Case Moves Forward

Today was a big day for us in the adoption process and the first significant step after Gotcha Day toward heading home.

We had our Integration Meeting today at the Bienestar Familiar office (where we had our Gotcha Day on 5/30/11). The purpose of the meeting is to understand how things have gone during the first week and is typically held eight days after Gotcha Day. Our Integration meeting was scheduled 10 days after Gotcha day because of the national holiday Monday.

We picked up our liaison, Lucia, at Casa Lanthana and headed toward Bienestar Familiar. En route, Daniel fell asleep. Thankfully, he was in better spirits than yesterday! We are taking him to a pediatrician on 6/10.

At Bienestar Familiar's office, we needed to wait in the room where we first met Daniel. The biggest difference was I had Daniel sleeping in my arms when we went in the room. Otherwise, the room was decorated the same. Baby blue balloons; some of which had either popped or otherwise disappeared.

After a short wait, we were directed into a small office where a family advocate attorney for Daniel interviewed us. It was a little intimidating considering we didn't know what to expect.

She asked us a range of questions. How did Daniel react on Gotcha Day? How did our families react? How much is he sleeping? What activities have we done with him? What is he eating? How much and when is he eating? When told three bottles and alpina (a fruit flavored food similar to yogurt), the lady responded with, "He was eating just two bottles with his foster mother and I only gave my child Alpina once a month!"

After we told her he is gaining weight and we are happy about that, she responded, "We're trying to fight childhood obesity."

Really? Daniel is either average or slightly below average in weight for his age. He's 11 months and not 20 lbs.

Otherwise, the interview went well and within 20 minutes we were shaking hands and saying thank you. While leaving, Lucia told us our attorney Oscar was able to change the court our case had been assigned to because the first court had a reputation for being slow. It isn't easy to make a change like this so it helps when your liaison and attorney have connections!

When we were in the parking lot, we invited Lucia to lunch. She recommended Brisas Marina , a seafood restaurant located about 10 blocks from Bienestar Familiar. The prices were reasonable and the food was good. Decor was slightly upscale and many of the customers were dressed business casual. Our blue jeans and golf t-shirts stuck out a little bit.

Lunch was a great opportunity to get to know Lucia better. She plays an extremely important role on our behalf during the adoption. If needed, she is an advocate for the family and knows how to work the overly complicated system.

Short in stature and always very well dressed and formal, she brings four decades of experience to the table. She knows not only the decision makers, but also their secretaries. She buys treats for the office staff to share while garnering influence to pull strings or ask favors when needed. Over the years, she has become proficient at working the system on behalf of families and children alike.

Her heart is in her work. To her, the adopted children are like grandchildren. Every time she sees Daniel, she asks for "un besito" or "un abrazito" (a small kiss or hug). She represents two agencies in the United States and four in France. She periodically travels to each country to reconnect with some of her previous clients.

When we returned to the condo, Claudia, Daniel and I finished the day with a walk around the neighborhood. Bogota is a great place for people watching. There is always so much activity going on at any given time.

When the sun set, Daniel was in a better mood and we were officially starting the adoption process and closer toward returning home.

Adios!