Could it be???

Well, after speaking with an attorney from Adoption Supervisors, he said that our file has basically just been sitting there and has not been looked at for 6 weeks!!! I was in shock. The guy at the civil registery wouldn't tell him why it hasn't been looked at. Again, I was in shock. So they said they would start working on it today, and for the attorney from AS to call back on Monday. Ok, great. They are starting to sound like our agency. Then......we get an email from our agency. It said that the registrar actually called our facilitator and said it's been approved by the mayor. He was just waiting to get the file back so he could make up the new birth certificate. This all sounds wonderful, but I'm trying not to get my hopes up because I've been crushed so many times with this issue. So on Monday, we will see if we have it. Then we can start moving forward again, get submitted to the Embassy, and start working towards coming home. Oh, that sounds so great. Thanks for the prayers. They are so appreciated!!!! And most importantly, THANK YOU GOD!!!!!

One month ago today

I arrived in Guatemala and picked up my beautiful baby girl from her foster mom knowing that I never had to give her back. Thinking back on that day, I never imagined that one month later I would be in Antigua with still no birth certificate. I am happy to say that at least I am able to still be here with her. She is an amazing child, and I feel like God has blessed me to allow me to be her Mommy. Izzie and I have gone through a lot trying to get adjusted to each other, but I feel like we are getting closer. She is such a sweet baby. Thank you, God, for letting me be her Mommy. Now, can we please, please, pretty please come home?????

Pray for today

I finally did it and made the call to Adoption Supervisors. For those that don't know who they are, it's a group of attorneys here in Guatemala that will help if you have problems with your adoption. I spoke with an attorney yesterday. He is supposed to send someone to Chinautla (the village where Izzie was born) and check on the status of the birth certificate. At that point he will know if he can help us any further. He will call me back today to let me know. Please, please pray that it is good news. I would love for them to be able to help us or tell us a way that we may get it faster. Izzie and I are so ready to come home!!! I also wanted to say that we had very minimal effects from Hurricane Dean. I think the only real thing was it was cloudy and colder here than usual. We got no rain or anything, which is even unusual because this is rainy season here. Thanks for all your prayers and support. I'll let you know what happens today!!!

Brandon is home, and we are ok

Brandon made it home yesterday, all in one piece. After he left yesterday, Izzie and I did a tour of some of the historical sites of Antigua. We learned all kinds of things. Izzie did great on the tour, except at the beginning. She wanted to talk while our guide, Elizabeth Bell, was talking. I had to take her out of the stroller and walk around with her. Since Brandon's been gone, she's looked for him. She's been really clingy to me again, I guess making sure I'm not going anywhere. We've just kind of hung around today. We went to eat at Pollo Campero for lunch. Izzie had a great time throwing bread. I've also been emailing the doctor at the International Adoption Clinic at UAB regarding her formula. I'm worried since she's not on a true formula she might not be getting all of the nutrients she needs. The doctor said that we are doing good by feeding her more solid food and made some recommendations as far as formula goes. For those of you who read this and are in the Birmingham and surrounding area, I really recommend them. The doctor is so helpful. Well, I'm going to try to post some pics from the past week. Enjoy!!!!

Look, Mommy. I unpacked my suitcase right after you packed it!!!
How many suitcases does one Izzie take?
Bye bye Guatemala City.
Mommy and me.
We got blankie, so we can leave now.
Hanging out at our new hotel Thursday morning with the dogs.
I'm in the stroller enjoying breakfast.
I'm eating/playing with my bread for lunch.

I'll try to post some of the pictures from yesterday later after I get them uploaded. Have a great day!!!

Brandon is heading home

Well, Brandon is leaving today to head back home. Please pray that he gets home safely. I'm going to miss him so much, but he really needs to get back to the kids. Just letting everyone know!!! We miss you, Daddy!!!!

Still no news

As frustrated as I should be, amazingly I'm not. We're really doing ok. It's going to be tough when Brandon leaves, but he needs to head home for awhile. We are both missing the kids terribly. I can't wait to see them again. It feels like it's been forever. It's getting more and more natural to answer questions in Spanish than in English. I may not remember English when I get home. Hopefully it will be soon. We miss everyone, and I can't wait for everyone to meet Izzie. She's so great. We put her in the Snugli and went walking today. She had the best time. She just sang and laughed. It was great. I've got tons of pictures to post, but I have a hard time on the internet here. I will post them as soon as I can. We'll keep you posted as best we can. Thanks for all the prayers!!!

The volcano erupted

No big deal, right? You see it a lot in Antigua. Volcano erupts, take a tour to the magma river, fun, fun. Well last night we watched it. Apparently the eruption was bigger than normal because CNN had an article about it today. Here are the pics from the eruption. Brandon took these on the terrace at our hotel. Enjoy.

Ok. I have several pictures of Izzie to post, but I'm on Brandon's laptop so I'll have to wait. Apparently I don't get a good wireless signal in our room, so we have to come sit out in the little square area. Izzie is enjoying herself, except for her schedule is terribly off. But she's not as board as she was in the other hotel because we can get out and see a lot of sights.

And a side note here. My grandmother told me she wanted pictures where Izzie and I are standing in front of whatever it is that Brandon is taking a picture of. I just want to say sorry, we were not standing in front of the volcano while Brandon was taking pictures:) I'll keep everyone posted as soon as we hear something about the birth certificate, and I'll try to post more pictures soon!!!!