Gifts and Christmas

I just stumbled across two new sites. Of course I am taking advantage of both of them. First is the ornament...

They have a red heart around the shape of the country of Guatemala (colored the blue of the Guatemalan flag), and they say "Celebrating Our Life Together" in red. They have a silver ribbon and come in a silver gift box. 100% of the proceeds go towards building a playground at New Dawning Christian School in San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala.

The second site is:

which is a gift delivery site in Guatemala. The links are on the side of my blog! Can't wait to send Auri a new little toy!

Waiting for another Tuesday!

Brent called PGN on his lunch break and they said the file would be discharged and ready for pick up next week, so he was like Tuesday of course they said yes as Monday is another Holiday.

Let's hope the file is ready and it is an O-U-T!!! I guess last week they did just say the file would be at the window...one would have thought if it was at the window then it would be ready for pick up...I guess our reasoning and logic in the US is a bit different than theirs.

So here we go into another very long weekend ... we are running out of things to keep ourselves occupied!

Still at the window.

Our agency emailed and advised the file is at the window but not discharged for pick up. Seriously this is beyond ridiculous. This is a life and a family waiting to be together and you are just going to hold the file for weeks and then send it to the window to be held again until discharge? Of course no one knows if it is approved or has previos. So lets hurry up and wait some more. :-(

at the WINDOW!?!?!?!

Brent called PGN today and they said they thought our file was at the window but they wanted to double check. Unfortunately when the lady came back the connection was bad and she kept repeating hello and then just hung up. We haven't received an email from our agency yet...and of course I emailed them to let them know our file is ready for pick up (at least we hope!).

TUESDAY

I called back and talked with Headquarters at PGN and they said call back Tuesday it would be signed then...still holding out hope that they sign and release it today!

1 month...who would have ever thought...

that so late in the game with no new adoptions our case would be stuck in PGN??? Of course I just got off the phone with them. System is still down. Then I talked with headquarters and understood very little...sounded as though the girl I talked to signs off on the files but the person who inputs them a "he" was not there so she asked that I call tomorrow morning...oh if it will only prove to be that easy to get our file to be one of the ones they sign off on and release tomorrow it will truly be a miracle! SO PLEASE PLEASE PRAY that we get OUT and they get that computer UP and running!

On a happy note we talked to Auri the other night and she was very talkative...not sure what she was saying other than mama and pappa and hello since the rest was in spanish! Still we love to talk with her. Oh ya she must have been telling us about Abner and Marcos too cause I made that out at the beginning of the conversation!

Well I may fly out to Guatemala in the morning....I know I say that a lot but we need to decide in the next few hours...however I am trying to get our agency to contact our attorney to see if he can go to PGN with me. Its a very expensive decision we need to make and if I go now and she can't make it home until a lot later I will be unable to return to visit...choices choices choices!

UPDATE: I am not flying out tomorrow. I am hoping PGN will give me some good news as I hear they are scheduled to release 15 files tomorrow...please let us be one of the 15!!!

WHY?

Why must our wait be so long? Why does PGN continue to tell us they have computer issues? I feel like they know they are out of a job soo so they say lets drag our feet as long as we can so we can continue to get paid. I am so angry! I should be happy Auri will come home sometime and she will bless us with so much but we want her here now! Does PGN not realize the impact on the child, the foster family, orphanages and waiting families...seriously they need to get it together and QUICK. Once again we toss around the idea of me flying out next Thursday to go to PGN in person to see what if anything I can get done. No we don't have the money, no its done a good financial decision, but yes in the end if we can get Auri home faster it will be worth it. I can't even function anymore I just want to know why why why and why us? Have we not been screwed enough in this or or first adoption process? I guess I will never understand but I am not about to HURRY UP AND WAIT!!!

Sorry i needed to vent and will delete this later!

About to hit rock bottom...

and then I open my email! After three weeks of waiting on a signature and broken databases this is what I needed! Our foster mom is wonderful...we will never be able to thank her enough!

Oh how she has grown...

These pictures are from a year ago when we first sent our little girl a care package. Notice they got a picture of her first glimpse of her mama! I really hope this process doesn't take much longer...we can't stand being away from her!

Time to eat chocolate...RENAP

Yes I just checked and we are part of the dreaded RENAP process for issuing our birth certificate. We were hoping we could make it out of PGN before Auri's municipality turned the process over to RENAP that way the estimated arrival of Auri to the US was about 4 -6 weeks later. Now it may take an additional 6-8 weeks and that may mean she won't make it home until 2009. okay insert SCREAM here!

small glimmer of HOPE...

just posted on guatadopt:

The news that the system is down is true, they have been without internet in the second floor for 20 days!!! Lightning struck and burned the internet antenna and they are waiting for the parts to get to Guate. They tried using another service and are in the process of seeing if they can transfer all the files through this service. It would probably take another few days to get it running...Sad.

HOWEVER...They have continued working on the physical files so the OUTS are ready (as well as the previos), so PAPs should expect an avalanche of news once the PGN internet system is up. The PGN secretary's words are that "the stacks of files are ready and people can find out their status in person but the system is not up so we cannot transfer the information downstairs".

New pics of Auri

Wow it is so hard to get a package to Guatemala these days! With less adoptions, there are less people traveling. Then trying to find a way to get your package to your foster family becomes the next challenge! Well thankfully Chris Wheeler had room when he went down to pick up his girls last week. Then Emily Armstrong is a spanish teacher back in the US so she was able to communicate with Marta since she only speaks spanish. Well Auri, Marta and her son Abner came out to pick up the goodies....and Emily snapped some pics for us...THANKS so much Emily!

Only in Guatemala do you go backwards in a process...

2 weeks ago I was waiting on a signature with the person who kicks you out or approves you. Last week I was with the 2nd review... todays email:

the file is at 1st review with Lawyer Azurdia.


AMAZING...or would that be GNIZAMA (in the backwards world of Guatemala!)

This is not the information I wanted to hear!

Edited: Some offices in PGN back up and running!

Well just learned only some computers are back up and running. I re-sent my email. Hoping hoping hoping for good news!!!

No update but lots of Auri in the mail!

We didn't receive any updates yesterday but have someone checking on our file today.

Yesterday when I got home from work there were lots of packages on the porch...of course filled with pictures of Auri! I also got the cutest little stickers of Auri made. Not sure exactly what I will do with them other than put them on our work key tags and use them to seal the tissue paper in packages. We also made our weekly call to Auri. My computer hung up on her twice. It is getting harder and harder to talk with her. I think she gets annoyed with hearing us and not being able to see us. As for making a trip this weekend I think we may hold off. Brent did say however if I wanted I could go and visit. I really want to but I want him to be able to go too but he can't take the time off work because he needs at least 4 days for when we go for her pick up trip. So unless we feel the need to go to PGN we are going to hold off until she comes home or Thanksgiving rolls around...whichever comes first!

Hope you all are shopping for those super cute Halloween costumes...my favorite holiday! Of course I will be down at the parade in Freeport in a few weeks watching all the kiddos parading around for that free Hershey bar and hoping to win a prize!

Praying...

This is our week!!! We will keep you posted!

Hoping Auri is home for the holidays

Well we set Auri's baptism up for the Sunday before Christmas...and her dress for the big day just came. Now all we need is Auri. I get a bit freaked out when I read posts on guatadopt.com saying their agencies told them to expect 3-4 months from the OUT of PGN to pick up. That just will not work for us! (Our agency has not told us that though...so we are still holding out hope!)

I am trying to hold of until Monday to call PGN again. I have decided if our case is not OUT next week I am flying down the following weekend to see what I can do. I know it is a pricey little trip but in the end if we can get her home sooner...it will all be worth it.

Our agency said they call as well as our attorney and his secretary every few days so I am hoping they are getting bothered enough and will say okay okay come and pick the file up! Of course she said the system is still down so we are hoping they get it all fixed for Monday!

And then there was all but one left...

Dear God,

Please see the picture above. I'm Auri the one in my mama's hands on the left. All the other babies are home with the mommies and I want to go home too. I have been very good and prayed very hard...please please ask PGN to let us OUT!

XOXOXO~Auri

PS~ THE WHEELER'S ARE FINALLY FLYING HOME TODAY!!!

(Lindsey and Eliana are second from the right!)