Let me introduce you to our new daughter Emily!!!

Well, it is official! We got a call from Tamara (A Family Journey agency director) yesterday and she was holding in her hand the official letter from PGN stating that Emily is our daughter; recognized everywhere that she is the daughter of Russell and Anne Loeffler. Can you believe it?!! The last things to happen are the birth certificate, passport and embassy stuff that have to be completed and we can go and bring our little girl home. It should be about 8 weeks for that to complete. Let's pray for 6 weeks. I could not hold back the tears when I found out yesterday. It still seems like a dream.

I want to thank you all so much for your continued prayer and support throughout this. Please do not stop praying. There are still many orphans around the world that need forever homes. Emily is one that now has a forever home. Also please pray for Lily (the foster mother) as she has been caring for Emily since birth except for the 10 months she was in the orphanage. Lily is a very sweet lady and has a wonderful family. This will be hard for her to see Emily leave Guatemala but she also told me herself that she knows this is best. Another prayer request is for the transition time and that little Emily will feel comfort and peace with us. I am sure that it will not be easy for her but then again, God is awesome and merciful.

I will update you all more when there is more. Praise God for this incredible thing that He has done.

Sincerely and in His grace,
Russell and Anne

Ok, I know it has been a while since I updated, but here goes.

I was in Guatemala last month to see our little Emily, to bring her some new clothes and to deliver over 100 lbs. of donations to the San Jeronimo Emiliani orphanage. She is doing well but was a little shy and scared. She is not used to being out and about like that and riding in a car. However she did warm up to me and we had some wonderful time together.

There is really not much to report as to the process of the adoption or where we are in it or how much longer. I do know that the case has been reviewed by PGN (something like our attorney general from what I am told) and is waiting for the "final signature". I do not know how long that will take or how fast they write or how long the name is that has to be signed. After that, the birth certificate and passport order process and then off to the US Embassy. Her birthday is July 10 and we hope to have her here by then. I know that when she gets here, we will need some family privacy and settling in time. We are really asking for prayer in this and specifically that God would be preparing Emily's heart for joining our family and give here peace about this. This will be a huge change for her. We are currently trying to lears some Spanish through the Rosetta Stone software.

This entire experience has been one emotional roller coaster and if you have ever been to an amusement park, sometimes it seems like you wait an eternity to get on, ride for 3 minutes and then off, wait another incredibly long time ride for 3 minutes and on and on. I have had people ask me what adoption is like because they may be interested. I have to be truthful and sometimes the truth can be discouraging. This is not easy, quick or cheap but is extremely rewarding. I have seen so many rewards so far and our little girl is still in Guatemala.

First of all, this is something that God has place in our hearts. He set this in motion. We are simply trying to follow His will and His plan. The tricky part is for me to make sure to keep my own modifications to His plan out of the way. God has been faithful and I know He will continue to be.

When Anne and I started this over three years ago, we knew that we didn't have the money to complete this and I know that sounds like poor planning to some, but you see, we serve a God who's resources are infinite (Psm 50:10, Phlp 4:19). We knew we didn't have it but know that He does. I am going to give only a few examples. First let me say that from personal experience, God answers all the prayers of His children. They are however not always the answer we are looking for. There was a time earlier in the process that we needed to pay one of the fees that was around $650. In the mail that very week was an unexpected rebate check for $652. We were going to have a yard sale to raise money and friends gave of their time and things they wanted to get rid of and after 3 fundraiser sales we raised over $5,000. We asked the agency if there were any ways to have tax deductible gifts to help with the fees and there was and that raised another $7,000 or so. We have seen the needs met time and time again. This adoption process will end up costing over $30,000. I know there are many that would say we are crazy to try such a thing on my salary and at our age, but this is a child we are talking about. Not a boat, jet ski, mountain cabin or you fill in the blank. This is a child and a child that has a purpose. We still have our paper work in China and if the time comes and we have a match and God is willing to see this child into our home, so be it.

We had hoped this process would go quickly and our little girl would be able to come home with us before her 1st birthday which was last July. God, however, had other plans and after the last trip to Guatemala, I started to see some of His plan. Had this gone as quickly as we had hoped, we would not have been introduced to the children at the San Jeronimo Emiliani orphanage in downtown Guatemala City and would not have had the chance to deliver many generous donations to them. I would not have had the opportunity to play with so many of them in their little play area and give hugs and toys to them. I would not have seen the joy of kids receiving new shoes and clothing. I would not have had the opportunity of seeing some real needs in this country. I would not have met so many new friends in a different country and culture and I would not have seen the changes that God has done in my heart.

In closing for now, I want to thank all of you so very much for your prayers, support and encouragement. Many of you had made financial contributions to the agency on our behalf to help offset the cost. We thank you and though for the most part, we have no idea who did what but God does. We have prayed for you in that God will bless you for your work in His kingdom.

Until next time, thank you and Dios los bendiga a todos (God bless you all).

Headed to Guatemala Again!

Hey everyone,

Once again there isn't really any new news. The latest is that we are supposed to be done with the reviewers in PGN and now waiting for final signature. "Should" take a couple weeks, but I have learned to not take that too seriously. Russell is headed down again to check on Emily and spend the day with her and her foster mom. And then to take over 100 lbs. of donated items to the orphanage where she was before the court hearing last January. Thank you to all who gave so generously for the kids at the orphanage!! They will be so excited for all the new stuff they will be getting and especially new toys.
Please pray for safety for Russell as he travels and for the contact people once he gets there. He will have a driver/translator that we had before, who is great. He will help with all the driving around and delivering to the orphanage and also translating for Russell when they spend the day with Emily and her foster mom.
Look for new pictures after next week!

God bless,

Anne.

Latest test results

Just a quick update on my latest test results. The doctor said there is something there, but doesn't look like a problem so to come back and have another mammo in six months. I am taking that as good news and pray it isn't anything and either goes away or doesn't change when they take the next pictures in six months. Thanks so much for your prayers. Anne.

Look how big I am!

Hi Friends and Family,

I wanted to show you the new pictures we received of Emily. She had a check up last week and they took pictures to send to us. The doctor reports that she is doing well and is 27 pounds and 33 inches tall. She looks so grown up to me.

Still no word on when our case will be officially signed off, making us Emily's legal parents. It is not advisable to dig for answers in the PGN. Tends to make them go slower. However, if you just wait and don't ask about your case, it goes slow too. Go figure. I just talked to a lady who wants to start an international adoption and she wanted to hear our story. Yikes! I just said, it is a wonderful thing and if you have the heart and desire to give an orphan a home, go for it, just be prepared it may(probably will) be a long bumpy, road. Of course I wish this would have gone smoother and certainly shorter, but I know it will be so worth it when Emily is home with us finally.If they don't hurry up we might be sending her to college when she gets here:)

Please be praying for our family as the months go on. We have had lots thrown at us lately and could use a large helping of God's peace and joy. I had my first mammogram and it showed some area that needs a closer look. Not the news I wanted to hear. I pray it is nothing, I will be doing the further tests next week. On a lighter note, I have found my first gray hairs, not a happy day. I guess I could always make myself a blond. That would be interesting.

If you ever need a really good laugh, check out Tim Hawkins, a Christian comedian that we saw last weekend. He is hysterical. It was great to laugh for over an hour straight. Abby has memorized a lot of his material from his website. So to see him in person was a huge bonus, we have pictures to prove it.

Enjoy the new pictures of little Emily. She's pretty cute huh?

Blessings,

Anne.

Hi Everyone,

It has been nearly one month since our court hearing in Guatemala. There has been no word yet as to what is happening with our case and still no news as to when we might be going again to bring Emily home. I get really frustrated with the waiting game. There are documents and fingerprints etc... that have to continue to be renewed. One in particular that expires in July but we have to refile in April. It is going to cost a bunch of money and if we knew we would be picking her up before July we wouldn't have to submit the new paperwork for the extension. But we can't afford to not file the paperwork in case this wouldn't be finalized by July. Anyway, please be praying that we would be able to bring Emily home before we need to refile these forms.

I'll post as soon as we get any new information.

Thanks so much for checking in!!

Anne.

A different, really different day..

Well yesterday was quite different than we had expected. We got to the court place after getting the directions and correct address (it is quite different driving around here looking for an address). We parked and went in. We saw Andrea (Emily), her birth mother and one of the nuns from the orphanage outside the meeting room. Andrea was dressed in a really pretty maroon dress and had her hair tied with two of the little ponytail holders that were in the supplies that we brought to the orphanage the day before. It just so happened that they were Abby´s old ones and out of all they had to pick from, well that was really neat to see.
We didn´t get to talk to them right away, we just kind of stood there while others coordinated and discussed things that we couldn´t understand (I think they were complaining about my socks personally). Anyway, after a few minutes or so, we were introduced to the birth mother. She is very sweet. After a couple of sincere hugs, Anne presented here with a gift we brought for her. We were then told that we could visit with Andrea there in the hallway. The sister that brought her there was a very kind and very young nun from the orphanage. We sat with her for a while and I am just thinking and trying to process all this.
Then they invited us into the meeting room. There was the judge lady, the PGN lady, a social worker, our attorney, a man that is kind of a witness guy (sort of like a notary), the nun, the nun´s helper to watch the baby, the birth mom, Lilly (our translator, friend, guide and Tamara´s co-worker like friend) Anne and myself. Well off they went reading things and discussing things (I still think they didn´t like my socks) and reviewing photos and other documents. Our file was about 1 inch thick. The PGN lady seemed to keep telling the birth mother that she still has the right to keep her baby and the mom kept telling here that she wants her to be adopted. They even brought up the thing about the unknown baby picture that got in the file by mistake. Well to shorten this up, the judge over ruled the PGN and said that not only could the baby return to the original foster mother Lilly (a different Lilly than our translator) but she could go back to the hotel with us for a day or so. That was a shocker. We were not at all prepared for that.
Outside in the hallway, we stood there for another 20 minutes or so while they finalized some things and I held Andrea and then she walked around a bit and then off we went. It was really hard to say goodbye to the birth mom, a very emotional moment for all.
We stopped on the way to pick up some diapers and things and then to the hotel. Little Andrea was not very happy at that time and I could only imagine what was going through her head. She went from the orphanage where there were other children and everyone spoke Spanish to a hotel room where there were 2 adults that spoke a different language. At first she only wanted me to hold her then only Anne. I know that one day soon we will be able to look back at this and after Andrea has been with us, adjusted she will see the love of a family that she doesn´t really have right now. But for now, she must be wondering what is going on.
We all decided that she needed to go to Lilly the foster mom that night so that there would be as few transitions times for Andrea as possible and that there would be Spanish speaking people around her and other children nearby. We arranged that and at 8PM last night, Lilly got to the hotel. It is about 30 to 40 minutes away from her house. She was there with the attorney´s assistant and the assistant´s 16 year old son. That too was an emotional time for Lilly as it had been about 10 months since she had seen her and Andrea seemed to double in size. Lilly really loves this child. We visited a bit and off they went and left Anne and I to sit and ponder this day.