Hope Not Deferred

Alex loses tooth w/basketball

2009-07-26T06:14:00.001-05:00

7/25/09

MOV02770

2009-03-01T14:05:00.001-06:00

When God Made You

2008-11-11T07:37:00.001-06:00

2008-07-29T20:52:00.003-05:00

With the Woods

2008-07-26T14:40:00.007-05:00

2008-05-17T22:44:00.004-05:00

2008-04-23T16:58:00.002-05:00

Mind-blowing Gorgeous

2008-03-30T20:22:00.003-05:00

Doesn't Erika favor Granny?

2008-03-26T19:38:00.003-05:00

2008-03-15T09:13:00.004-05:00

Beatin' the winter blahs

2008-03-09T14:44:00.009-05:00

2008-03-09T14:29:00.002-05:00

PAAAPPPPIIIII!!!!!

2008-03-06T20:08:00.000-06:00

2008-03-04T01:33:00.003-06:00

2008-02-24T18:44:00.004-06:00

2008-02-24T16:25:00.013-06:00

The following was submitted to CHI for their March Noticiero.

I think it happened inside of five seconds. Rena and I saw their picture for the first time and they went from being total strangers to being the most beautiful children in the world! They immediately stole our hearts. We were hooked for life. We were theirs and they were ours. What seemed like countless hours of preparation and years of prayer became flesh and fabric.

Then when we met them we were drop-jaw astonished at their beauty, blown away at God's grace on us.

The kids are integrating into our home quite nicely. After four months into our relationship, each new day seems more and more like we have always been together. We feel like the transition has been very smooth from going to a house of two to a house of six. There really hasn't been much change around the casa from before the adoption with maybe the exception of:

~decibel level going from that of a whisper of an angel to the roar of a jet engine

~necessity of watching each step for fear of stubbing toes on toys in every thoroughfare

~finding hidden treasure in every nook and cranny (although we still haven't found Mami's new birthday watch).

Other changes would include:

~hearing from the general public how gorgeous our kids are (I just tell them they take after their Papi)

~hearing "You've got your hands full" one zillion times

~having a new found enlightenment on the word "consumer"

~paradigm shift of new perspective from 17 years of tending to our own desires to having the kids best interest as our main desire - not to spoil them but to help them find true and lasting happiness and also to lead them into how they can best help the world around them and build God's kingdom

~pretty much resigning to the fact that we no longer have a life of our own...but relishing every moment.

We have been astounded at the generosity of people. This journey has definitely shown us the brighter side of life. It's got something to do with adoption/children...it brings out the best in people. We have seen people who are normally calloused just light up when they hear our story. In a world with a lot of ugliness, it is so refreshing to experience God's joyfulness in people. We have found that mankind still has many kind men (and women).

We are so proud of our family taking in our children as their own. Their help and support has been nothing short of awesome. The kids are so enamored with the family that they often ask to call Abuelo, Abuela, Granny or Papa, or they ask to go and play with the primos.

The holidays were so much fun. Kansas City has had a very white winter this year so the kids have had much play in the snow. At first, the boys were not convinced that coats, hats and gloves were necessary, but they quickly changed their minds as they were running back into the garage yelling, "Fria! Fria!"

The boys are doing very well in school through the ESL program. We just had our first parent/ teacher conference. Both boys were noted as "extremely bright" so we were "extremely pleased". The girls are using complete sentences and adding new vocabulary all of the time.

By God's mucho grande provision, in our hearts and minds we know and feel that we are truly and richly blessed!

2008-02-18T20:11:00.001-06:00

2008-02-17T14:28:00.002-06:00

2008-02-17T08:21:00.003-06:00

2008-02-02T21:39:00.000-06:00

2008-01-29T19:02:00.000-06:00

2008-01-28T21:48:00.000-06:00

Because of time restraints, I will not go into detail but our adopting these kids is the best thing that we have ever done as a couple. It has completely been a God-thing. We are completely on cloud 9 and everyday gets even better. The boys are doing well in school and the girls do well at home.

I could go on and on but I am really tired right now. Thank you all for your awesome support!

The Fall Duewel Family Fix

2007-12-16T17:11:00.000-06:00

WOW!!! What a time we have had. Our children are amazing and we love all of them so dearly. They are learning things so quickly and then again, old habits die hard. Alex, our oldest son is so handsome and loves his Mami and Papi so much. He is Papi's buddy and it thrills my heart to see Alex just soak up everything that Papi teaches him. He will start school in January and is very excited to do so. Sebastian, is our charmer. He bats his eyes at everyone and they melt. He also teases his sisters until they have had enough. He is our little mimic, so we have to be extremely careful with everything that he sees and hears. He sings his own songs in the car so we can't wait until he begins to sing in English and sing songs that we all know. Erika is most definitely a 3 year old. She is absolutely beautiful and laughs often. She cracks herself up and it is so cute. She has picked up the most English and corrects her little sister when she uses a word in Spanish that she knows in English. Erika loves to eat and is willing to try everything at least once. She loves to dress up and has the "spinning in the dress" move down pat. Luisa, who is now attached to Mami's hip, is such a good girl. She also likes to scream at the top of her lungs when her brothers act like lions around her. I don't really think that she is scared, I just think that they are in her space. She is such a serious little girl so it will be quite exciting to watch her personality bloom.

The kids love snow. They use the word for ice, in Spanish. The boys have been out a few times with Papi to go sledding. This past Saturday, they went sledding with their boy cousins. My younger sister and her husband also have 4 children. So between the 2 families, we have 8 that range from 1-5 years of age. So there were 5 boys and 2 daddies playing in the snow while the 2 mommies shopped with 3 little girls.

Nate and I had our first night out without the kiddos, a few nights ago. I believe that it was harder on me than Luisa. Abuela and Abuelo were with them so that helped calm my nerves.

We are looking forward to Christmas and are praying that the kids will very soon, begin to understand the true meaning and life of Jesus.

Thank you to those who encouraged us to post. We will try to update more often.

Merry Christmas and Blessings for an amazing new year.

2007-11-19T20:17:00.000-06:00

As we are very busy with our new life, we probably will not be posting much. Things are going very well.

Thank you all for tuning in to our momentous occasion of adoption and for all your prayer/support!

2007-11-15T10:15:00.000-06:00

Things are really going great. We have been showing the kids off to scores of family and friends. They are worth the price of admission, I guarantee.

We are now in Branson with the kids and Rena's parents. Later we will go to Silver Dollar City.

2007-11-10T13:58:00.000-06:00

Just a quick note to say that we are home. We got a quicker flight in (got in at 7:30). Everything was great. No drama and we owe it all to everyone's prayers. Thanks again.

It has been so fun to watch the kids go crazy with all their new toys in their new house. They give tons of hugs and yell, "Thank you, Papi...thank you, Mami!"

2007-11-08T22:08:00.000-06:00

Today was our last hoorah. We visited the Botanical Gardens, ate lunch at The Hard Rock Cafe, then picked up the visas, then ate supper with about 30 people who were adopting or being adopted. We ate at this super cool pizza place. The kids made their own pizzas. They put on chef outfits, kneaded the dough and put all their own toppings on. Then they got to throw flour on each others faces. Tons-o-fun. Have pictures but to tired to upload them.

Still packing. Waking up at 4:45 to leave for airport. Suppose to be in K.C. at 11:17 P.M. Long day, huh?

Lauren - No fall colors because in Bogota they have the same season year round.

Kaitlynn - Hey girlfriend...Your new cousins go to bed around 9 P.M. Bogota is one hour ahead of KC now with the time change. We were the same but Bogota doesn't do daylight savings time change.

2007-11-07T16:03:00.000-06:00

News flash...We will be home Friday night! Everything got done this morning and we pick up the visas tomorrow afternoon. Flights booked and everything. The CHI team down here is out of this world awesome. They have all the hook ups and pushed us thru in record speed. We had heard of horror stories at the embassy...it was a breeze for us.

2007-11-07T02:45:00.000-06:00

I can't sleep. Erika woke up a couple of hours ago cuz she was hot and now I am wide awake.

We visited the Dr. yesterday afternoon. It went well. Pray for Alex because the Dr. said he still has a heart murmur.

It is conceivable that we could go home Thursday if everything goes perfect and flights are available. Hopefully, we will be home no later than Saturday. If we could get Erika's birth certificate early in the morning, get her passport, get the Dr. to sign off, get to the embassy by late morning; then we could pick up the visas in the late afternoon and then we would be done.

Everyone please pray for my sister-in-love Dru. She has gone thru and is going thru much big time physical ailment. She has been SO awesome to us and she needs the blessing of your prayer. Thanks!

These kids are kids. They are not perfect but I am so proud of them after all they have been thru. I absolutely can not wait to show them off to everyone at home. Again, we have been blown away from the support of our family and friends. By the grace of God, mankind still has many kind men (and women). That last sentence could only be thunk up from me at 4 in the morning!

2007-11-06T10:31:00.000-06:00

This morning we found out that we will not get the last birth certificate today so we are off at least one more day.

All these answers are subject to negation cuz Rena is at the store with the girls and I am prone to chronic wrongness.

Steph - I think we still plan on Alex going to Rising Star in January.

GRR - No, Rena and I have not had our date. The closest thing to it is that we ventured out for a 45 minute walk when the kids were napping 3 days ago. It felt really weird. 17 years of it just being Rena and I and then 2 weeks with our kids and all of a sudden it feels wrong to be without them. Huh. It must be love.

p.s. Rena and I find ways to snuggle (if you know what I mean). My family calls it...going to Wal Mart.

Packing for outings is no big thing for Rena (dtr. of a Silver Beaver Boy Scout leader).

I don't know what to register more for other than high chairs, kid's videos, more books and thousands of dollars in college tuition.

What is Love and Logic? Sounds like bunk to me. Ha ha.

KS - Yes, that is Nataly. She is so stinkin' cute. The boys are smitten with her.

Beth - Mamacita is loosely translated...hot mama.

2007-11-05T17:50:00.000-06:00

Today we went to the top of a mountain and we were able to see all of Bogota. What a spectacular view.

Linda - We will start Alex in ESL after the new year.

Parks and Playdates

2007-11-04T17:04:00.000-06:00

Hello All. Rena, here.

We have been to parks, met new families, been to parks, reunited with families that we have known, and been to even bigger parks.

Yesterday, the kids witnessed an amazingly huge hail storm that made a special TV channel break-in. They kept using the word for ice in Spanish instead of the the word for hail. We took video of it.

We also went to a toy/game store that had some great buys for the kids. We found fun bath toys, and cool Colombian things to decorate their rooms with, at home.

They have started to ask us about their house in the United States. The boys are excited that they get to have their own bedroom, their own bed and that the girls are not in there with them. They also were excited that there was a room that had books and toys for them.

One of the families that we flew in to Bogota at the same time with, is now at El Refugio. Jen, her mom and her beautiful daughter Nataly are here. Our boys were giddy at the sight of Nataly. It was quite interesting to watch. They were embarrassed, but were able to give hugs when she came in. Of course, Jen and I squealed and hugged each other. For those who do not know, Jen and I met one time before, in person, at the airport in Bogota. Yet, previous to traveling to get our kids, we have been talking through the great CHI yahoo site.

Today we spent most of the day at an enormous park. It was a zoo, amusement park, museum, and pony riding place all in one. The kids were wiped out as were the parents, but it really was fun. The boys loved the lions and tigers, but the girls climbed Papi like a tree to get as far away as possible. We met another family in Bogota, who happens to live in Atchison, Kansas, who is adopting a sibling group of three. They are great. We are all to go eat pizza this week. They already have two boys. That means that 13 of us will converge on this pizza place like a pack of Kansas wolves. It will be great!!!

We have the kids on a basic routine. Now they sleep until around 7:00 to 7:15 in the morning. We eat breakfast here around 8:00 and then it is time to take our pseudo bath/shower. This is one area that our tag-teaming is great. Papi washes hair and then hands the kids out to me. The ledge that is at the opening of the shower is too tall for the kids to cross. We usually try to go for a walk, go to the store or a nearby park, until lunch at 1:00. After lunch, all of the kids take a nap. There are some days that either Sebastian or Alejandro just rests, but the girls always sleep. Since dinner is not until 7:00 at night, the kids eat fruit or crackers around 5:30.

I have tried to do school with Alex, but with other kids here, doing school is hard. He is learning to count to 10 in English. I think that that it good since he can't count correctly to 5 in Spanish. Papi bought the boys cards that have colors, numbers and shapes on them. We played with some of them today. They liked it. Turning learning into a game may be the key. We will see.

Our kids are great eaters. They eat everything. They will fit right in to their new home. We really don't know what their favorites are, yet. Luisa loves anything sweet.

Tomorrow is a holiday, again, in Colombia. So that means that we will hit the ground running on Tuesday to get everything completed. We will let you all know when we get the flight go ahead. Keep praying. We are clicking our heels and waiting for our hot air balloon to take off.

Muchos Besos to all.

2007-11-03T12:43:00.000-05:00

This morning we got the kids haircuts. Each one was so good in the chair.

I posted more videos on You Tube.

Answering ?'s:

Tia Chito - Without going into details, the Colombian government said the kid's biological parents were not good parents. We believe God had Rena and I in mind when He created these beautiful children. We are the ones who get the blessing.

Ellie - Rena does well with speaking to the kids but there is still alot we don't understand. We keep the Spanish dictionary handy. My computer also has a cool widget where you just type the sentence in in English and it immediately translates it to Spanish. The dialect is mostly the same as Mexican Spanish.

Sherrie - We were told to pack light. We packed too light. We have purchased some clothes for ourselves down here. They told us not to where jewelry or watches. I should have brought a watch. I can't stand having to reach in my pocket to look at my cell phone. I am mucho lazy sometimes. I personally would be lost without my laptop (Mac) and the Internet. I wish we would have brought more videos. The kids love anything (even in English).

Passing time is no problem. Between eating, naps/sleeping at night, playing, sightseeing and doing adoption paperwork the time goes quickly.

Everything is mostly comparably priced. Junk food is cheaper. Clothes are about the same. Going out to eat is a little cheaper. Today's haircuts were $6 as was Rena's French manicure...that's cheap!

The coffee here is perfect for me. They make it strong at El Refugio. Juan Valdez Cafe is just like our Starbucks/Caribou Coffee(Caribou is the best - Turtle Mocha).

Katie - Regarding attachment...I feel we are strongly bonded already. I believe all the prayer going up has been answered. Every day feels more and more like we have been together forever.

The Woods - Alex is still trying to find out who he is. Is he the leader of his siblings or is he the follower of his new parents? Sebastian is a cuddle bug. He hates letting go of us at bedtime and he climbs in bed first thing in the morning to love on us. Erika has fits all the time. She tests us to see if we mean business. Even though she has turned 3, developmentally I think she is in the terrible 2 stage. Luisa is the only one who is not extremely active. She is more phlegmatic. The other 3 are sanguine in nature. All 4 get very, very fidgety 15 minutes before thet go to sleep. They don't go down voluntarily. We have to make them lay down and stay still/quiet. They all have dreams all night long. They laugh/cry in their sleep.

The Colombians spoil their kids. They give them anything they want and expect us to do the same. We don't agree.

2007-11-02T20:02:00.000-05:00

ks-Deanna is a fun worker here at El Refugio. Every morning she styles the boys hair and they have a blast and are so proud of their doo.

Speaking of hair, I have a bit of tragic, personal news. Colombia is making me loose mine like crazy. Yikes! On the other foot, I have had no heart pains down here. Unfortunately, I would rather choose the latter.

2007-11-02T18:14:00.000-05:00

Today we got news that the court we need won't be open till next Tuesday so we probably won't be home till Saturday. That would still be less than a full month so that is o.k.

We posted more videos on You Tube. Type in nd4367.

To answer GRR's ?: The kids are in hog heaven because all they do is eat, sleep and play. We talk to them about their new house, pool, toys, school, family/friends. I don't know how much they comprehend.

I pretty much have exhausted new things to talk about and we don't get many comments so it is hard for me to want to post. Please ask questions if you have any. It will give me something to say.

Splish-Splash

2007-11-01T06:38:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was more of the same. We are in a good place so we are not terribly anxious to get home. On the other foot, home is home and we are ready to move on with our new life.

In the above picture: I found out that if I sit on the drain, the shower becomes a mini-pool/piscina. It made the kids extremely contento/feliz!

2007-10-31T07:36:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, Oscar the attorney and I traipsed all over town getting 2 birth certificates during the morning. Then we spent the afternoon at this huge park/playground and then at this very upscale mall. Last night there was a big party at the B&B celebrating adoption. VIP's from FANA were there. We partook in delicacies from a French connoisseur including quiche and many fancy gourmet desserts. The kids behaved for the most part. All in all, yesterday wuz a ton-o-fun.

2007-10-29T21:16:00.001-05:00

2007-10-29T19:22:00.000-05:00

This morning Jaun guided us thru the Salt Cathedral. It was an hour outside of Bogota. We saw salt mines and the Cathedral was underground and everything was made of salt. It was really neato.

O.K........BIG news! The kiddos are officially ours. This afternoon we were surprised that I was asked to immediately get in a taxi with Andres (our adoption escort) and go downtown to sign papers to take the kids for good. There is a big name for it but I don't remember it. Now starts a bunch of formalities but we were told that we will probably be able to catch a plane home next Wednesday.

Please pray for all the paperwork to go thru properly and for us to be able to catch a flight at a good time for no extra $. Thanks.

2007-10-28T16:03:00.000-05:00

We got to video conference with both Rena's parents and one of my brothers and his family yesterday. We have already done this with my sister and her family in Hawaii a few times. It is so much fun to watch the kids react to family elsewhere. They say Hola, Te amo mucho, and give kisses. Oh, and I can't forget that they show off their all too famous "Mamacita" dance. Technology is just crazy these days. The picture when we webcam is so clear! Thank the Lord that He shares some of His brains with us so we can do amazing things.

I posted a cute little video of Erika on You Tube. Look it up under nd4367.

Funny moment: Luisa pulled a "Caddyshack" pool scene in the bathtub this morning. Erika, who shares the tub, was extremely disgusted and dissatisfied.

Erika's birthday party

2007-10-27T09:32:00.000-05:00

Princess Erika turned 3 yesterday and boy did she have a big day. The El Refugio threw her a HUGE shebang. Lucia our contact, Oscar our attorney, Andres our driver were all there. All the other families were there. Everyone showered her with many wonderful gifts. She was sung Happy Birthday in English, then Spanish, then in French. The staff dressed up in costumes. Carmen also suggested the kids be in costumes. Erika had a Dora pinata. It was a smashing success. The Colombians REALLY know how to fiesta/party!

In a few hours we will take the kids for their passport pictures. The adoption process is moving along quickly and we should be home in less than 2 weeks as per Lucia/Oscar.

2007-10-25T16:58:00.000-05:00

Today the priorities finally got straight. I got a Harley Davidson t-shirt from the Bogota HD store. I was upset that they didn't have any shirts for Rena or the kids. I really wanted a picture of us all in HD shirts.

We hired a tour guide/driver named Juan who was just excellent. He showed us all around Bogota and shared all kinds of historical information about it. We visited the huge square where you see the pigeons. We visited an art gallery that had all kinds of famous artists from all around the world. They featured a Colombian artist who only draws fat people. I felt quite at home.

The kids are up now. See ya.

Seeing the town

2007-10-25T15:37:00.000-05:00

Tonite's log

2007-10-24T19:04:00.000-05:00

My brain is so tired. I had things to say but I can't remember anything. The El Refugio remains a great place to stay. The help here is very nice and likes to horseplay. The food is kinda like our food except better. We hope to incorporate Colombian cuisine in our home.

Even though we were family from the start, each day it feels like more and more like we were never without each other. The boys are extremely affectionate and the girls are warming up nicely. It is difficult to love and discipline, all in the same breath, children you've only known a week that don't speak your language. God gives us strength and we count on the prayers of our friends and family. We have been told amazing stories of how some have lifted us up in prayer. We feel it and are tremendously blessed! Thank God He never closes His ears.

More footage

2007-10-24T13:06:00.000-05:00

Here are links to posts on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyVp8vDliBO &

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SY_zLwQ9J8

Sebastian laugh

2007-10-23T19:58:00.000-05:00

Mamacita

2007-10-23T19:16:00.000-05:00

Out and about

2007-10-23T14:01:00.000-05:00

Today has been a good day. We went out shopping at a local artist store with two other American families. There were 7 children that ranged in age from 4 months to 10 years. The children were very good. We then continued on and played at the park.

Yesterday, we met with the psychologist from the Colombian government and she asked very few questions, but it was good for her to see us and the children. It was just one more hurdle for us to leap across. We have already found out that we are in court #7. We know that it is not a slow court, and that we SHOULD be home in a month (total time in Colombia). Nate and I actually slept last night fairly well. He has been fighting insomnia so the 6 good hours that he slept was welcomed.

He is so very excellent at multi-tasking. He can add to the blog, flip children over, reward a job well done and get the attention of the children when necessary. One of his daily sacrifices is to actually be in the shower with the children to wash their hair and rinse them off. He is in there, somewhat dressed, and then hands them out one by one. I am the dryer. While he is washing, I am laying out clothes and getting ready for the tag-team.

If you have not already figured it out, Nate is AWESOME!!!!!!!!!

The kids beg and push to get into line to play with Papi. They say "A mi Papi, a mi." (to me Papi, to me). He makes sure that each one gets many turns.

Lucia, our representative here, told us that she will come and take care of the kids so that we can go out to eat. That is very nice of her, but I am not so sure that I want to go. I do know that we need to go on a date, so it should be very nice.

Keep the comments coming!!!

Nate here. We have not posted as much because we have been quite busy. Rena was herself (graciously nice) in the above comments of me......I'm not so bad sometimes. Rena's better! Sunday we were invited to a fiesta for Lucia's grandchildren's school. It had many fun things for kids including a rock climbing wall that both boy's conquered (with the help of the rope guy pulling them up). It was an hour away in a small town in the country. It was very beautiful with clean air. The mountains reminded us of Hawaii by the way they were green and jagged. The town was having a massive celebration in honor of some election. We got caught in a traffic jam where everyone was honking their horns, shooting big fireworks, music and dancing. It was very interesting. I am so bummed out that I forgot to video it.

I hope to get Sebastian's laugh on the blog somehow. It is hysterically funny! I am having much trouble getting video to post. I posted a video on You Tube called "The Renate kiddos". Watch the antics of Alex. He is crazy (in a good way)! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-Tqqr-N0qE

Please pray

2007-10-22T06:51:00.000-05:00

We meet with the Colombian government officials today at 1:30 to see if we can get full custody of the kids and start the adoption process. Please pray!

More pictures

2007-10-21T05:41:00.000-05:00

Did you know?

2007-10-20T18:23:00.001-05:00

Did you know that it is not a good idea to wear white when your children are eating chocolate ice cream? Or...did you know that, when all of your children have a balloon, and one breaks in the middle of the mall, you go and get another one, so that there is continuous flapping of 4 balloons? Did you know that you can actually do a few loads of laundry every day and that children rarely wear the same article of clothing without a washing in between?

We went out to eat for the first time, and our kids were excellent! Everyone was just watching, ok staring, to see what they would do. They made us very proud! Of course when we returned to El Refugio, they returned their ACTIVE selves. I know what you are all thinking, and yes, I would rather them behave in public and be loud at home then visa-versa.

Papi does have the favor of the girls. They went shopping and they were so good. In the meantime, the boys and I solved the worlds problems through the use of balloon talk.

More pictures

2007-10-19T22:19:00.001-05:00

It was the best of times...

2007-10-19T15:14:00.000-05:00

It is so interesting how all in the same day we can feel like there is no wrong in the world and an hour later it is crashing down. Then repeat 4 to 6 more times for the day.

Alex is mucho inteligente with his school work. He thrives on positive confirmations of his abilities. He cares for, loves and protects his sisters.

Sebastian is a fun machine. He needs mucho work on obeying. Rena and I will "movie kiss" each other in front of the kids all the time and they get the biggest kick out of it. Sebastian then runs to Mami and begs for kisses. It's cuter than cute. He is gonna slay the women folk!

Sharing is our biggest hurdle. They go loco if they don't get treated equally, down to the smallest details. I wish so badly that I spoke more Spanish. I get by and Rena does very well but they talk so fast and probably use slang. They are learning please and thank you and some other words I can't think of right now.

I am SO proud of Rena. It is as if she has been a mom forever. The children adore her.

The amazement continues

2007-10-18T11:42:00.000-05:00

Even though there are many moments of stress, we wouldn't trade this for anything. This sure beats work a hundred times over (and we love our work). Each day gets better with both more bonding and less meltdowns. Man, by next week our kids will be perfect. Rena is doing schoolwork with Alex now.

Earlier, we went to a nice park. The kids had a great time on all the playground equipment less one jolt to the headbone of Erika from a brother on the swing. Before I was parenting, I was so critical of parents that weren't right there with their kids all the time. I have new found knowledge that a person can't be in four places at the same time. Go figure.

You can ask Rena, I am the youngest of six and I have never grown out of being spoiled. Poor Rena, somebody told her a while back that she will now have five kids to take care of. I'm gonna brag a little...I am learning to serve thru this process. There have been several occasions where there wasn't much left of something and I deferred it to my children. Knowing they had something they wanted is much better than me having it. Sometimes it takes 40 years to get things thru thick skulls.

One last thing, some may read this and discount it for bunk but anyway...thruout the last ten or so years of my life, many times when there was either a great revelation of beauty or marked pain, God sent me sparrows. There is a verse in the Bible that says, "His eyes are on the sparrow, and I know He watches me." There have been probably a half a dozen times that just at the exact moment my thoughts were heavy on either the beauty or the pain, sparrows appear. Today as we were leaving the pretty park, Rena pointed out some sparrows to me. I just had to cry. I didn't think to count, but I bet ya there were six of them.

Fun day

2007-10-17T14:42:00.000-05:00

Today we got up and took a bath which the kids really like. We ate breakfast and then went shopping at the mall. We had chocolate icecream, bought more diapers, bought tennis shoes and just had tons of fun walking around. The older generation just ooo's and ah's over the kiddos. When we got back the kids were so proud of their new shoes just showing them off to everyone.

A few anticdotal notes. The boys have endeared themselves to me. I passed some gas in the bedroom and they yelled with laughter, "Papi pao....guacomole!!! Pao means fart in Spanish. That's my boys! Then later they saw me in just my tighty whiteys and said, "Papi ninyo" and then pointed to my belly. Ninyo means baby. It's a good thing I'm humble. Speaking of which, I was hoping to lose some weight on this trip but the food they feed us is incredible.

Our social worker at home warned us about melt downs. Boy was she on the money. Last night Luisa refused to sleep alone so she got to sleep with big brother. She has been much, much better today. She ate pretty good for both breakfast and lunch.

Thanks for tuning in.

p.s. I know anticdotal is spelled wrong, I couldn't find it in my dictionary but I had to keep it in cuz I wanted to sound smart.

p.s.s. It took me about 30 minutes to type this cuz I did it with one finger because I am holding Luisa and she is fast asleep. I COULD NOT BE HAPPIER.

Some pictures

2007-10-16T18:27:00.000-05:00

Well..........It's a new life!

2007-10-16T14:52:00.000-05:00

Let's just start out by saying that the pictures don't start to give them any justice. They are very gorgeous and very small. Everything went like clockwork. We are feeling the gamet of emotions. I (Nate) went to the bathroom after we got back and just balled. We already know each one's personality(in part). Each one has happy moments but each has had sad moments. The power struggle has already begun with the boys. They are EXTREMELY active. The girls are absolutely precious. Erika (3) is suppose to be potty trained but the wet spot on my jeans says different!

Alex is definitely the leader and just bounces off the walls. He seems very intelligent. Sebastian mimics his brother and is very affectionate. Poor Luisa is having a rough go of it. She has been weepy all day and hardly ate anything at lunch. On the other hand she gives big besos(kisses) and she has the prettiest smile.

Great bonding has already happened. Within 30 minutes of us being in the B&B they were already yelling Papi and Mami. My heart is bursting! We played in the play ground and just had a whale of a time.

It is siesta time. More blogging to come. I am exhausted after just a few hours of this gig. I totally have a new appreciation for all the parents out there doing it 24/7!!!

One...Happy Family

2007-10-15T19:00:00.000-05:00

Today we ate our last meals as a family of two, how bizarre, how bizarre. We will leave El Refugio tomorrow at 7:45 am to meet our children at 8:30 am. We can´t wait!!! We packed their backpacks with the gifts that we will be giving them. We will also try to take lots of pictures and have someone video the BIG event.

Today we went to the mall and it was jam packed because today is a holiday. We are not quite sure which holiday, but alot of the smaller stores were closed. It is about the size of Oak Park Mall ( in KC), with a Target like store called Exito. Nate purchased a pair of shorts because we were told that people don´t really wear shorts here, and that is true; but in the B&B all the guys wear them.

Did we say that we are so excited for tomorrow?

Once again, we truly enjoy reading the comments to the blogs and emails, because it is our lifeline to the USA.

Two...families to become one by God's design

2007-10-14T13:08:00.000-05:00

Nate and I have been taken very good care of. Andres and Luis made sure that all of our luggage was received and that we arrived at El Refugio in style. The two wonderful ladies in the picture are Rocia and Rosita. WOW!!!! They are extremely gracious and patient. They cook up amazing meals and desire to make our stay very comfortable.

I had a fever earlier, but took a siesta and am ready to roll now. We are going to venture out in a little bit. Today, a lot of the streets are closed so that families can walk, play and visit without traffic and less smog to breathe in.

Thanks to everyone who replies to our posts. We love reading them and checking them often throughout the day. Thank you also for all of the prayers. We know that it is making a difference. We markedly feel God's favor.

Nate here. Today, we walked around the neighborhood and stopped at the bank and the grocery store. It poured down rain while we were in the grocery store and the roof leaked in many places getting much of the merchandise wet. Bummer.

After we came back, our new friends from Boston (adopting a 3 month old boy) made Chicken Cattiatore for us. It was marvelous. There are 3 French families here. They have all adopted from Colombia before and are back for a second go around. It's kinda bizarre seeing their Colombian children speak French with the accent and all. It's super cute.

Three...three boys and three girls in this new family

2007-10-13T22:57:00.001-05:00

We are here!!! The trip was just great. No problemo. I noticed that Colombians look you in the eye when they talk to you. It's different but I like it. It keeps you honest. Both Rena and I have sniffles, sneezes, and coughs but we feel great otherwise. I like Rena's sexy, raspy voice. We got to have breakfast with my mom and dad, my sister Debbie, and Dan and Lila (bro and sis-in-love). We only got to have breakfast with them because our flight from K.C. was delayed one and a half hours, so that was an unexpected blessing. We had to run to our connecting flight to Bogota but that was better than a big layover.

El Refugio is already great! So far the Colombians have been very nice. I am so happy that the wireless internet fired right up. Rena and I have been kind of giddy all day. It's either the altitude or we are in a very happy season of our life. God is soooo good to us!

We met Jennifer from Nashville and Don and Erin from Colorado Springs today. They are with our same adoption agency and getting there kids Tuesday also. They were all very nice and excited also.

Four...Precious Children!

2007-10-12T15:54:00.000-05:00

Hey, we got the advice to share our prayer requests on our blog. What a great idea! So, here goes: Rena and I have developed colds/strong coughs in the last couple of days. Rena also said that strep throat is going around her school. We really don't need any of this. Thanks for your prayers!

Five...What would go good here? I dunno.

2007-10-11T22:39:00.000-05:00

Where in the world has the last few days/months gone? Record speed! Too tired to write much more. Our excitement is peaked!

Six...The new number of our family

2007-10-10T20:30:00.000-05:00

We have been so busy that we missed our opportunity to blog yesterday. This adoption gig keeps us a hoofin'. Yesterday we went to a shower given to us from Rena's side of the family. They pulled out all the stops and they done blessed us reeeeeal gooooood. We are completely blown away at the generosity of people. This journey has definitely shown us the brighter side of life. Its got something to do with children/adoption...it brings out the best in people. We have seen people who are normally calloused just light up when they hear our story/see pictures of the kids. In a world with alot of ugliness, it is so refreshing to experience God's beauty/joyfulness in people!

Rena and I had a great time shopping this evening. We used some of our gift cards to purchase some really cute clothes for the little tikes.

Eight...More Hands in the Family

2007-10-08T15:20:00.000-05:00

Tonight is our night! We get to be one of the families who will present pictures of their children to the rest of the families at our monthly CHI meeting. Of course, ours will be the most spectacular by far. Some of our friends, who are also adopting, will be there to video our presentation. That will be the first installment on our video tape. The little things are even exciting.

Nine...Days to Destiny

2007-10-07T23:37:00.000-05:00

Today was furniture moving day. We have had great help from our sister-in-love, Dru and sister, Tamara. We have so much more work to do to get ready for our kiddos, but our excitement helps make the work seem light.

TEN...The countdown is on.

2007-10-06T20:24:00.000-05:00

Ten days till we meet the little ones and only a week till we leave for Bogota. Excitement builds.

We will be meeting another family in Houston, who are from Colorado, and then fly on to Bogota together. We will also meet two other gals in Bogota. The super-cool part about our meeting up with everyone, is that we have been chatting and praying for each other for months now, and we will all get to meet each other. All of us, as well as our children, will all have the same "Gotcha Day".

God speaks

2007-10-05T16:07:00.000-05:00

Earlier today I was driving down an unfamiliar road and I was just thanking God for our children and praying for His will for them. I really got kinda emotional about the deal and was in a state of amazement over God's grace and favor over Rena and I. Right then I looked up and I passed a Columbia Bank. I know it wasn't spelled the same (Colombia), but I still know that was God smiling down on me in that moment!

2007-10-04T15:59:00.000-05:00

2007-10-04T15:46:00.000-05:00