Saving Private Cryin'

Sorry I didn't get a chance to update yesterday. I have come to the conclusion that my life is one long episode of The Amazing Race (and I'm in last place). And after a day of carpooling, shopping, buying, wrapping, baking, phone calling, cleaning, blood-pressure checking (just kidding, I don't even want to know my numbers right now), I was up most of the night with my sick son.

Brady has a respiratory thing made worse with his asthma. Unfortunately the treatment is giving him meds that make him deliriously sleepy followed with steroids that help open his airways and enable him to climb walls like Spiderman. The combo makes a normally delightful child seem like he has rabies. Our bedtime story was about Old Yeller. Not a typical cautionary tale, yet I wanted to send the message that I have a Nerf gun and I'm not afraid to use it.

Yesterday was quite a day on our adoption adventure, but never have I been so proud to have a husband who loves with his whole heart and isn't afraid to fight for his children. Brad makes his living in sales and yesterday he had what may have been the biggest pitch of his life.

I think where I left off was telling you that after the Branch Renap folks (kind of like our county level) said we had to go through the Central Renap (kind of like our state level) to get our birth certificate, we were so disappointed. Central Renap only takes files on Tuesdays and it was Wednesday. We also only have a couple days left to get this birth certificate and passport and do our final documents to have any chance for Brad and Daniel to be home by Christmas.

But we had a huge answer to prayer Wednesday when Brad, Daniel, and our paralegal pleaded our case and a very nice lady at the Central Renap said she would accept our file anyway and try to get the approval for our birth certificate by 3:00 p.m. Thursday. Well, our paralegal stopped by yesterday to see if it was ready only to get more bad news. The person who reviews files and gives these approvals would not be able to even touch our file till next Tuesday. Our attorney called and pleaded, our paralegal stood there and pleaded, but to no avail. But Brad had to ask himself. Any chance of Christmas at home was going quickly.

So he and Daniel walked down there and asked to have a minute to speak with the kind lady who had helped him the day before. There he again explained the situation. That we have a little boy almost 10 years old who has been waiting to finally have Christmas with a family. That our family has been trying for 2 1/2 years to get him home. That Brad and I have been switching off living in a hotel for a month trying to complete the adoption and we've hit one wall after another but are so close to being finished. That if we can just get the birth certificate by Friday, we can get our final documents to the US Embassy by Monday, and we will still have a chance of making it home for Christmas.

The sweet lady just said, "I'm so sorry. Please don't tell me this. It breaks my heart but there's nothing I can do."

Then Brad and Daniel broke down in tears, standing in a hallway with hundreds of people watching the crazy American with his little boy begging for her to just ask her boss one more time if there was any way he could review our file before Tuesday. He said if he and Daniel spend the Christmas season alone in a hotel room in Guatemala, he will feel like he has failed Daniel and his family at home. He pleaded, "If you will just ask one more time, then I will know that I've done all I can."

She went into her office. Brad and Daniel waited nervously for an hour. She returned smiling to say that, even though they were scheduled to be working away from the office on Friday, he would come first to the office and look at our file. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!!! Brad gave her my blog address (perhaps so she could see how many people are praying us home), so "Ms. G" (I don't want to give your name without permission) if you are reading, THANK YOU SO MUCH!

So pray, pray, pray (as Daniel says) that we get that approval this morning, that they are able to get the birth certificate at the branch Renap next and that there's still time to get our passport today. We need to submit our final documents first thing on Monday at the US Embassy for any chance at getting our Visa appointments before Christmas.

Thanks for your continued prayers. I'll try to update tonight.

Much Love,
Kathie