Preparations!

We are getting ready to have our 26-month-old daughter come home! We've been to the travel clinic -- and somehow, I was the only one who required vaccinations.  (How did that happen?)  The booster chair is in place at our kitchen table, bins of girl clothes are being sorted in the family room, and there is a suitcase for Kavya in the living room.  We've put the child-proof locks on the kitchen and bathroom cabinets, and I bought diapers and wipes for the first time in years.  Kavya, you are one joyfully anticipated little girl!

We also did a family game/experiment on Saturday to help our older kids understand a little bit how confusing things will seem for Kavya when she first arrives.  This is something I thought up in the early morning hours.  I don't know about other soon-to-travel moms, but I have woken up at 4:30 or 5:00 a.m. a few times in the past week, thinking of many trip-related, daughter-related things.

So here is the game I dreamed up: we had the kids do a chore, but all of the parental instructions/talking was in gibberish.  When I told Peter about it, he was a great sport, but I could tell he kind of thought I was losing my mind!  :) 

We have talked a lot with the kids about how confusing and scary everything will likely seem to Kavya, but we wanted to bring the discussions a little closer to home.  We wanted them to feel confused, and be able to empathize with how strange it would be to not understand anything we were saying.  We also wanted them to see how much our tone of voice will speak to Kavya -- that how we sound can really help her feel safer.

The chore we did was taking the old felt chair pads off our kitchen chairs, and replacing them with new ones.  Then we filled a bucket and scrubbed the floor (full disclosure -- the chair pads took a while, and so Peter ended up doing the scrubbing to save time, and to save my back).

It was HILARIOUS.  Peter was awesome at improvising and speaking gibberish, and I ended up using lots of (very bad) French because I'm not quite as silly and creative on the fly as Peter is.  We explained the basic idea to our kids, but they didn't know what the chore would be -- so they really had to work hard at first to understand what we were asking them to do.  And when the kids banged a knee or scraped a finger, they could see how our consoling tone and kind touches conveyed love and concern . . . mission accomplished!

After the game was over, we debriefed a little with them, and talked about how they felt throughout the game.  It was a fun way to make all the discussion about Kavya's first days with us much more tangible for our kids.

In other travel preparations, I'm going to the chiropractor again today.  Although I continue to have painful days, I am on a slow but steady path toward healing.  I continue to have trouble sitting in chairs -- unless it's in my straight-back wooden chairs at home, or on the edge of a firm chair.  Thank you, everyone, for praying for me . . . and please keep on praying for continued healing.

A bump in the road -- please pray

Last week, I injured my back.  It's not a new thing for me -- I have lots of back issues, including  scoliosis, a separated pelvis during my second pregnancy, an SI joint that doesn't stay how it's supposed to, etc.

Usually, working out faithfully at Strength Class keeps my back healthy, but every couple of years it gets tweaked just the wrong way, resulting in excruciating pain.  As in, worse-than-either-of-my-unmedicated-labors kind of pain.

So for the past week, I've been icing my lower back, going to the chiropractor, etc. I am slowly seeing some improvement, but the thought of those upcoming flights to India fills me with dread.  And even more -- the thought that I might not be able to pick up or carry Kavya?  That is my worst fear.

In the midst of it, Peter has been wonderful, taking on many extra "mom" duties.  And family and friends have pitched in and brought meals, or stayed with me in case I got "stuck" again and couldn't move.  I've been so, so grateful for them.

But that travel deadline (the one we are SO looking forward to!) is looming large for me.  Would you please pray for me?  Please pray that my back would be healed, and that I will be able to tolerate the flights, and hold my daughter.

Her name, and her lovely face!

Late last week, we received the news that our written court order has been signed by the judge!  We are now officially K's parents! 

The signed court order means that many things can now happen.  Our adoption has been officially registered in-country, and our orphanage can apply for her passport.  We've been told that her application will be sent in this week, and we will be waiting 4-8 weeks for for it to be completed.

Then when her passport is finished, we can book our flights to India!  After 4 1/2 years, I can't believe we are just weeks away from traveling to meet her!

That court order also means that we can share more details about her, and post her photo online! 

First, we are happy to announce that K's name is Kavya.  We plan to name her Kavya Monika Ann.  Like we did with our daughter Anya, we chose an Indian name and a family name for her, and kept the first name she was given.  "Kavya" means "poem."  "Monika" means "wise counselor," and I know two moms named Monika.  "Ann" is part of Peter's mom's name, and he has a sister named Anne, which means "gracious." 

Second, we are thrilled to finally share her lovely face with you!  This is the first photo we saw of her, taken when she was 10 months old.  As you can imagine, we fell in love with those huge, expressive eyes . . .

 

(We have two more pictures from last December, but are having trouble converting them to a format that this blog template will allow.  We may try to post those on F*cebook.)

 

We have a few more details about her that we will share here:  she was 5 pounds, 10 ounces when she was born, and weighed 14 pounds, 10 ounces when this picture was taken.  That is smaller than any of our other children at the same age.  Since we don't have a current weight or height, we will be guessing about what size clothing and diapers to bring.  But we don't even care about that -- we are just so excited that it's time to think about packing things for her!

 

We are thrilled to have Kavya make her "debut" here, and even more thrilled to be so close to seeing her in person! Every night finds us praying that God will prepare her heart and mind for the enormous change coming her way, and that He will keep her safe and well during these last few weeks.  We are coming soon, dear Kavya!



Aloo tikki for Rakhi Day

First, a bit of good news -- Anya's travel visa is finished and in our hands!

Second, this Wednesday is Rakhi Day (also called Raksha Bandhan), our favorite Indian holiday!  It celebrates the bonds of love between brothers and sisters.  Our kids exchange and wear string bracelets to symbolize the ties between siblings, and give each other candy to symbolize the sweetness of their love for each other.

Anya helps by mashing the potatoes.

This spring, when Sunil was visiting, I tried a new recipe that I'll be making again for Rakhi Day.  It's a type of flavorful potato patty served with tamarind or mint chutney.  You can make it as spicy as you wish by adding more chopped peppers.  We received this recipe when we attended Dillon International's India Heritage Camp last summer -- which is open to any India-adoptive families, by the way, not just those who have worked with Dillon!

ALOO TIKKI

6 medium potatoes, baked, peeled and mashed
1/2 cup peas
1 Tbsp oil
2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 Tbsp. cumin
2 Tbsp. finely chopped ginger (or 1 tsp. ground ginger)
2 Tbsp. chopped coriander leaves (or 1/2 tsp. ground coriander)
2 Tbsp. chopped green chilies
     (anaheim peppers or poblano peppers are a good substitute if you can't find fresh green chilies)
1/2 Tbsp. red chili powder
1 Tbsp. chaat masala*
1 1/2 tsp. garam masala
2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro

In a large bowl, mash the baked potatoes.  Add oil, peas, salt, cumin, ginger, coriander, chilies, chili powder, chaat masala, garam masala, and cilantro.  Make tikkis (patties) about 3 " in diameter. Brush the tikkis with oil, and place in a single layer on a cookie sheet or baking pan.  Broil for 10 minutes, then turn over and broil for another 5 minutes.  Serve with tamarind chutney and mint chutney.

*If you don't live near an Indian grocery store, you can G*ogle "chaat masala" to find recipes for the chaat spice combination.  Penzey's sells garam masala.

Yummy!  An easy, tasty side dish to replace mashed potatoes or french fries . . . Enjoy!!

Limbo

Spices at a market during our trip to bring Anya home -- gorgeous and fragrant.

We are officially in court limbo.  Since hearing that our case was verbally approved, we have heard nothing about whether the judge has signed the written court order.  And that precious piece of paper is what will allow the orphanage staff to apply for K's passport! 

Also, we have no idea whether they will notify us when they send in the application for her passport.  The orphanage uses a computer that is off-site, about an hour away.  They are very prompt about e-mailing when they have news, but we aren't sure if they will consider each of the above steps "news."  (Although we sure do!)

Can't wait to be surrounded by beautiful faces in India again.

And Anya's travel visa is also in limbo . . . Would you all please pray about that?  We have been exchanging a frustrating series of e-mails and Fed*Ex packages with the visa office. 

E-mail from visa office:  "Please send us color photocopies of Anya Rashi's U.S. passport."
Us: Wha . . .?   Her passport is currently in your possession, in the first package we mailed. 

Another e-mail from visa office: Please send us an additional fee of $---.00
Us: Umm . . . the check for that amount is also currently in your office in the second package we mailed.

Muy frustrato.  (Not really a Spanish speaker, as you can tell.)

This week, we will be calling them to attempt to speak to a human being, and/or driving 4 hours each way to try and straighten things out.  Argh. Times like these are when I really appreciate the luxury of doing this as a team -- when I am frustrated, Peter has a calm head, and vice versa (most of the time!).  It really makes me admire my single friends who have waded through adoption paperwork on their own . . . you ladies are amazing!

Visas, balloons, golf & bike skills

In the two weeks since our verbal court approval, so much has happened!  We applied for travel visas . . . and discovered we had never renounced Anya's Indian passport.  Oops. 

So we had a little form-filling-out to do, and we're back in business.  So FYI . . . if you've/ already welcomed your child home and hope to make a return trip to India in the future, you're supposed to do that within 3 years of their arrival. 

We are still waiting for news of our written approval from the judge, then our orphanage can apply for K's passport . . . And when we have the written order, we can share her picture online!

* * * * * *

In other family news, my brother Matt, my sister Alicia and I had given our parents a hot air balloon ride for Mother's and Father's Day and their summer birthdays, and it was finally time for their ride.  The kids, Peter and I got to help the crew set up the balloon, and we "chased" it and helped pack up the balloon at the end.  It was just magical to see it take off into the sky!

And my sporty Mom -- that lady has a lot of gumption!  She is on a committee for a fundraiser/golf outing at her church, and had the idea to write to Wisconsin pro golfer Steve Stricker and ask if he would join them for the golf outing.  Well, he was a little busy this weekend playing in a tournament, so he couldn't come . . . but he sent an autographed baseball cap for the outing, and he signed a baseball cap just for my Mom too!  What a great guy -- and what a fun surprise for my Mom!

* * * * * *

And my former kindergartener is now officially a two-wheel bike rider!  During previous summers, Anya has ridden on longer bike rides in a trailer behind me -- but that screeched to a halt this year.  I was huffing and puffing during our first two rides of the summer, thinking, "Man, am I out of shape or what??!" 

Well, we've been able to see how tall she grew over the past year -- she's wearing size 7 and 8 clothes (how did that happen?). But we didn't realize that she's also about 10 pounds heavier than last summer.  No wonder it felt a little different for me as I pedaled!  That's a little salve for my fitness ego, too . . .  :o) 

She did an amazing job finding her balance quickly -- it took only two tries for her to ride away from her Daddy's balancing hands.  I loved watching her face change from tentative and fearful, to surprise that she was riding on her own, to gleeful victory. 

Our court news: the rest of the story

Anya made a stand-in for K, until she can join us at the table in person!
She drew a face and wrote, "To K_____" and added 8 lines of XOXOs.

Our spirits are still soaring from hearing our great court news on Sunday! We are still in shock that it took only 3 months -- we had been expecting a 4-6 month wait at a minimum.  After 4 years of being in process, we are ecstatic when anything happens quickly!

I wanted to write down one other part of the story, though -- to remember God's kindness to us throughout this whole process.  As we followed other families' stories during Anya's adoption, we would often see strange or inexplicable things happen to them.  Our first adoption took two years and one month, and followed the expected timelines -- and we were overjoyed to finally meet Anya Rashi and welcome her into our family.  But none of those extraordinary or dramatic things happened as we waited.

This time, however, over and over again, there have been amazing and overwhelming things that have happened as we've waited for K.  I think God, in his loving kindness, knew that our 4 1/2 year journey would be difficult, and chose to remind us that He hadn't forgotten about K or us. 

First, He provided financially in unexpected ways, through people's generous gifts toward Peter's marathon, through receiving a grant from Show Hope, and most recently, through an unexpected donation from a family we only know a little bit.  We have been blown away by those things.

On a more personal level, He let us see how He is acting on our behalf in ways that are so loving and intimate.  The story of K's referral was one of those times -- God chose to "show off" a little bit, and demonstrate that He indeed heard the desires of this mama's heart.

Then, earlier this summer, He graciously showed us what happened to another little girl we'd received information about two years ago. She has the same name as our K, but we weren't home-study-approved to accept a child her age.  God orchestrated connections so we would know that she found her family, and is thriving -- and we even got to see recent pictures of her!

And now, He gave another gift to us.  Last Friday morning, I woke up from an incredibly vivid dream.  I don't dream regularly about K, and this was only the second time in 4+ years I had ever dreamt about her or our adoption process.  In the dream, we heard that her case had been presented and approved in court.  I dreamed that I was jumping up and down and shouting for joy at the good news. 

When I woke up, Peter had already left for an early meeting, so I told the kids about the dream.  It was so vivid and real, that I actually recorded the date on our calendar.  I was wondering if someday, we would look back and discover that something significant had happened on that date, Friday, July 19, 2013.

And then came the unexpected e-mail on Sunday, saying that very thing -- K's court case had been heard!  Of course, we don't yet know which day her court case was . . . but I have a strange feeling that, when we receive all of her paperwork, we will find out it was heard on Friday, July 19.

I hope that our daughter, when she has questions about her purpose and destiny, or the reasons why her birth family couldn't take care of her, will find reassurance in these details.  While it is never God's "plan A" that children would be torn away from their first families, he can bring something good from a painful situation. 

His eye is on you, little sparrow K . . . He sees you, He rejoices over you, and He has a plan and purpose for your life.  And we are so humbled and overwhelmed that He's chosen to include us in that.  We love you, dear one, and we can't wait to meet you.

Anya with a balloon animal made by yours truly --
I never thought that part of motherhood would be learning to make balloon animals!