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Lots of dreams come true....

My husband, Willie, and I have been
married for 18 years. Our dream when we got married was to
have many children, preferably all boys. We tried many years
to have a baby and due to infertility, we were unable to have a baby
biologically.
For the past 8 years we thought about
adoption. There were many times when we said that we were
going to do it and out of fear we decided not to. Believe me,
when you have been very happily married for many years, you become
comfortable with your life and there is a resistance to change.
Although we were extremely happy, the cup was never all the way
full. We bought all kinds of “toys” to try to fill that cup,
but the cup never got full.
In May of last year, at 41 and 42
years old, we decided that we were no longer going to make our
decisions based on fear. We started making our decisions based
completely out of love. We decided that we were going to adopt
internationally. When we told our family, they did not believe
us. Of course they wouldn’t. We had told them that many
times before.
In June of 2004 we attended the
introductory meeting at the Chicago Children’s Hope office and
decided that Colombia was the program that best fit what we wanted.
We had decided that since we were older, the desire to have a baby
had gone away. We also wanted to adopt a sibling group.
We always wanted to have more than one child. Colombia had
many older sibling groups available.
I have always felt that when you are
doing what God wants you to do, without resistance; everything works
out the way it is supposed to. Once we signed up with the
Colombia program, we started receiving the Colombia Update from
Julie. The first one that we got was the July, 2004 update.
It showed 2 little boys, ages 6 and 8. They looked so sweet.
I showed Willie and he said, “It’s too soon. We haven’t even
started the homestudy.” The brothers were in the
August Update, too. Jhon and Juan were their names. They
were on my mind all the time. I could not understand why
someone had not requested them. I even printed their pictures
and took them with me on vacation to visit my mom and dad.
Willie even expressed his concern that he felt like I was getting
too attached. It was too soon. We had just started the
home study and there was so much more paperwork to do.
After we got home from our vacation, I got an email from CHI
asking us if we were interested in Jhon and Juan.
We wrote a letter to the Family
Welfare in Colombia and that started a whirlwind of paperwork.
I was forced to get organized real quick. The remote hope was
to get the boys home before Christmas. We had the Dossier
ready by the first week in November. Chances were pretty slim
that this would happen before Christmas. God works pretty fast
when He has something to accomplish. We got referral the day
after Thanksgiving and if we traveled to Colombia on or before
December 2nd, we would be able to complete the adoption
and get the boys home before Christmas. We were able to get
the Visas and leave on December 2nd.
The day we met the boys was the
happiest day of our lives. They came to us with open arms.
We were immediately Mami and Papi to them. In our eyes, they
were (and still are) perfect. It was amazing how quickly we
have adjusted to being a family.
Jhon and Juan love being in America.
They are in a bilingual program at school and are doing fantastic.
When we enrolled them in school we put Jhon in 2nd grade
because that is where he was in Colombia. By noon the
first day he had already graduated to 3rd grade.
Juan is in first grade and his teacher adores him. They are
confident and have absolutely no fear. Everyone that meets
them immediately loves them. They are very charming and
affectionate. They get along with each other so well.
They play great together (most of the time). They are both
very athletic, which is Willie’s dream come true. We have so
much fun with them. They have adapted well to the Chicago
winter and love the snow. We have spent many hours sledding in
the park next to our house.
Jhon and Juan now realize that they
are loved and that this is forever. Last week in school, Juan
was learning about Martin Luther King and his “I have a Dream”
speech. They were asked to write down their dreams. Juan
wrote that his dream already came true, because he now has a forever
family in America.
Adopting Jhon and Juan has been a
dream come true for Willie and me. The glass is now completely
full, so full that it runs over most of the time.
Willie and Sonja Payne
Elgin, Illinois
WOW - What a
blessing!!!!

Since the day we brought him
home, I have been “composing” in my head how to best tell the story
of our incredible adoption of our son Justin Yury.
Although it seems like we’ve had him for more than just a year, on
June 28, 2004, this little Russian orphan became “our son.”
Wow, what a year of changes
for not only, Justin who once was called “Yura”, but for two people
whom so longed to hear the voice of a little one saying “mommy” and
“ daddy.”
Our story is like others, we
went through intense fertility treatments all to no avail.
John and I being under the ages of 30 when starting our treatments,
were always told by doctors and others to continue fertility
treatments, because something will eventually work, or not to think
about adoption just yet, since we are so young, and that you have
plenty of time!” Well, during the last 2 years of fertility
treatments, and still no success, I was drawn to international
adoption, and the dream of adopting a Russian baby. Children’s
Hope kept on pulling on my heartstrings with their mailings of their
newsletters. And they always seemed to arrive in my mailbox a day or
two after a negative pregnancy test! My husband and I attended
CHI’s informational meetings and had many positive heartfelt
conversations with Mary House in the Chicago office. She and Marina
(our Novosibirsk Representative) were truly instrumental in bringing
Justin home to us.
During the process of deciding
on adopting through Children’s Hope Int’l, I would read the
inspiring adoption stories from the newsletter, and think to myself,
how amazing the stories were, and wonder if ever we would be so
blessed with a child that seemed so right for our family…and if the
miracle of adoption could happen to us. And yes, although the
journey to Russia was stressful, exhausting, but so incredibly
amazing we too were blessed, with a son that we truly feel in
our hearts we could have never “made” so perfect! He is
smart, witty, talented, lovable, humorous, and the list goes on!
We think that some day he will be a gymnast, dancer, baseball
player, computer programmer, engineer, artist, or singer! Thus
illustrating his many talents he has already shown us in one year!!!
Justin loves to hear his
story. I’ve recently started telling him the story of his adoption.
He is 2 and ½ years old now. Every time we lay him down to
sleep at night, he likes to hear “twinkle, twinkle little star”,
“itsy, bitsy spider”, and then after those two nursery rhymes, he
says “Russian boy, mama.” His favorite parts are when we
took him home on the plane, and when everyone was waiting for him at
home, including his two little doggies that now he pets and kisses
throughout the day! (These are two little doggies that when
Justin, upon meeting cried no, no! in Russian!)
At a recent visit to a family
member’s home, the person I was talking to commented on how she
couldn’t believe how many times he would run over to me, kiss me on
my leg, and say “love you mommy” and then go back to playing with
the other children. I commented, “Oh yes, he says love you
mommy at least 10x a day! And that is no exaggeration!”
She looked at me and said, “It’s as if he has been sent to you from
God” and then I thought to myself, (although I always new God
somehow played a role in this) she’s right, he is our gift from God.
He was brought to us to fulfill our dreams of parenthood; something
those 4 years of fertility treatments never gave us, because this
was the happy ending that was waiting for us. This little
Russian “orphan” was our destiny, and WOW what a blessing!!!!
John & Helen Ellis Adopted
Justin Yury from Novosibirsk, Russia on June 28, 2004.
____________________________________
From the Hynes Family. . .
Hello everyone,
Just a note to let you all know that we've
returned from China and are doing just great. Kara is adjusting
better than we'd hoped.
We had a wonderful time in China. We spent
the first few days in Beijing. We toured the Great Wall of
China, Tian'an Men Square and the Forbidden City. We also
visited the Children's Hope International office and ate Peking
duck.
Then we flew to Guangzhou were we stayed
at a five star hotel called the White Swan. It was very pretty
and were glad we had a nice hotel for the next 11 days. Some
families had to travel to other Provinces for 5 days were their
children were waiting. We were fortunate enough that Kara was
from an Orphanage in the Guangdong Province.
We met Kara on May 23rd and were
overwhelmed with how wonderful she is. She cried at first but
she had just woke up and there were lots of loud cheers in the
room. We gave her a bottle in the quiet lobby and she's been
happy ever since.
We toured the Guangzhou Zoo, the Xue ??
park and took a dinner cruise. It was very interesting to learn
about the culture in the south and how it differs from the
north--just like here. Our tour guide in Beijing did not like
the food in Guangzhou because in Guangzhou they eat everything
in the air except the plane, everthing in the sea except the
boat, and everything on land except the train. We ate at the
hotel or Danny's Bagel. Danny's bagel is supposed to be American
and is for the most part.
Kara turned one on June 1st and we flew
home on June 2nd. She did very well on the plane considering she
had a residual ear infection. She was afraid of the animals at
first but is over it and doing just great now. Anyway, I have
few pictures that I would like to share.
We hope all of you are doing well
and will talk to you soon.
Jennifer, Terry and Kara
____________________________________
The Lucky One
by April Lanning (age 12)
People often say how lucky my little brother is. See he was an
orphan in the Russian Federation until my parents adopted him. Imagine
a five year old little boy who didn't know how to play with the simplest
toys, couldn't eat with silverware, wasn't able to color a picture, and
had never even seen the moon or stars. Even though he grew up in
the middle of Russia he had never touched snow. He wasn't
even able to talk very much. My brother had never ridden in a car,
seen a horse or a cow, eaten ice cream, or been to the park.
Even worse he did not have enough to eat or adequate clothes to wear.
He had spent the majority of his five years cold and hungry. Not
because no one cared but because there were too many to care for.
He had never been held or rocked to sleep. This little boy
had no mommy to wipe his tears, or pick him up when he fell down.
No one was there to read him bedtime stories or hold him when he was
sick or afraid. There was never even any praise for a job well
done. No one put his pictures on the refrigerator and gazed at
them proudly everyday. Worst of all, he had never been loved.
So when people tell me that my brother is lucky, I say no I'm the lucky
one. I am the one who's mom and dad held me when I cried and
kissed and hugged me everyday. They watched me blow out my
birthday candles year after year. My parents fed me and made sure
I had the clothes and education that I needed. Most of all, my mom
and dad loved me every minute of every hour of every day. I am the
lucky one not because I got out of the orphanage when so many never do,
but because I was never there. Certainly, I am even luckier now because
this little Russian boy who was so unlucky in life is now my precious
little brother.
_________________________________________
". . . these are the children I
have for you."

by Wanda Geist - Aurora, Illinois
Dan and I had been thinking about adoption for 3-4 years and
actually began pursuing adoption about a year ago. We settled on
Colombia, S.A. for several reasons. We have been sponsoring a child
there through Compassion International for about 3 years and we have
learned much about the country - it’s beauty, culture and it’s
problems; in addition, there are many older sibling groups there
which are available for adoption; and, although we were not
bilingual ourselves, our community in Aurora is very Hispanic and
the school my biological children attend has bilingual classes
available. So, we began our journey in January 2004 by sending an
application to Children’s Hope International Adoption Agency.
The following months brought much frustration as we put documents
together which included everything from our FBI clearances to our
dog’s shot records. In the meantime, we were given information on
many sibling groups which were awaiting adoption. “How do we
decide?” was the big question. All of them were adorable and all of
them needed a mom and dad! We had already decided to go with older
children - I was done with changing diapers and baby bottles! And,
since we both work for the FAA, we wanted children who were already
school age so they wouldn’t have to be in daycare. We also have
three biological children, Teresa, 18 , Kathryn, 13, and Chris, 9
and we wanted them to fit somewhere close to the age range. Also,
Chris wanted to be a big brother and he wanted boys and Kathryn
wanted a little sister. Teresa, who is planning to be a missionary
and had just returned from the Dominican Republic on a mission trip,
wanted all of them! We decided on a number first – three! Why?
Because we thought four would be too many! Then we looked at boys
and girls and decided we wanted the youngest to be a boy and the
oldest a girl - but Kathryn didn’t want her to be older than she
was! We finally narrowed it down to a sibling group – Miguel,
8,Laura, 9, and Luz, 10. They had been in foster care but were now
in an orphanage.
In May, we sent a letter and our ‘dossier’ to Colombia requesting
these children. Over the next months, as we waited we prepared our
homes, our children, and our hearts for the big change that was to
come. Finally, in late August word came that we had been approved to
adopt Miguel, Laura, and Luz and to get ready to travel – it could
be within the month. We asked when they would be told and was
informed they would know the following week. Then – heartbreak! On
Monday I received a phone call from our very compassionate adoption
representative Julie. Julie informed me that the two girls had run
away from the orphanage – just days before they were going to be
told of their new Mom and Dad. I wanted to get on a plane and go
look for them – but in a city of 3 million people (Bogota) I knew it
would be futile. We were told that even if they came back to the
orphanage it could be years before they would be eligible for
adoption again (if ever) because they would have to go through
counseling, etc. We were advised to move forward and look at other
sibling groups if we wanted to proceed. This was the hardest part of
the process – I wanted to protest – “it’s not like picking out
puppies or something! “ We had already begun to love these three
children in the photo. Laura did return to the orphanage on her own
but to my knowledge, Luz has never been found. Today, we still pray
for their safety and happiness and hope they find their forever
family soon.
After some time to grieve, we finally decided to move forward and
began looking at other sibling groups. It was even harder this time
. Then the decision was taken out of our hands. Julie called and
said that Colombia was offering us a different sibling group of
three - Diana, 11, Johana, 10, and Jeison, 9. They needed to know
within the next 48 hours if we wanted them. We believe that God
deliberately took the choice out of our hands and said – “Here,
these are the children I have for you.” Our answer was inevitable –
“of course we do”! By now it was late October and we thought we
might get to travel by Thanksgiving to get our children. A call from
Julie, another delay, there was a new director of social services
for the region and he had put international adoptions on standby
while he was brought up to speed. In the meantime, we prepared to
travel, hoping to get in by Christmas. As the days ticked by we
realized our family would be apart for Christmas. We were able to
send letters, pictures, and presents to them, but it was a huge
disappointment. Finally, we received a travel date – January 10th.
! We scrambled to make final preparations, contacting schools and
work and getting my oldest registered for college before we headed
off. Kathryn and Chris would travel with us but Teresa would start
college at a new school before we would return.
Finally, it was the day! At O’Hare by 5:30AM, we began the trip
that would change our lives forever. We were delayed in Atlanta
(blamed on ATC of course!) but finally arrived in Bogotá at 9:00PM
that night. We were whisked to the bed and breakfast where we would
stay for the next three weeks! The next day we would meet our
children!
My night was exhausting and sleepless. I’m sure some sleep
occurred, but all I remembered was the being-awake parts. The next
morning, we went to the social services office and met with the
attorney, director and social worker and we waited and waited (I
guess government offices are the same worldwide!) and finally at
about 11:00AM, they were there. Jeison came in first with a big
smile on his face and gave hugs and kisses all around, Diana
followed with a bouquet of flowers which she shyly handed me. She
then turned, went back out the door and dragged her sister, Johana
into the room. There were hugs and kisses all around and then a
small voice piped up (in Spanish, of course!) “Can I call you Mami
and Papi?” With tears in our eyes, we assured Jeison that we would
love it if he called us Mami and Papi. And, as I watched Kath and
Chris show them how to play their new gameboys, I knew that this was
meant to be, and that my family was now whole.
We spent another 2 ½ weeks in Bogotá, finalizing the adoption and
getting to know each other. It is a beautiful country and there were
many interesting things to see and do. Finally, we arrived back in
the states. There were many firsts for our children during that
time- the first trip to McDonalds, the first time they had seen
snow, the first airplane ride, the first vaccinations for school (6
in one day!). As for us, we were trying desperately to improve our
Spanish. We learned more Spanish in the first 6 weeks we had them
than we had during the past year of attempting to learn it – but I
quickly realized that explaining how to do square roots in Spanish
was above my capabilities! Now, in our house you will hear what we
call “Spanglish” as we learn to communicate – and often very loudly!
The children are very, very affectionate, - much more so than we are
used to in the States. Our adoption agency says it is a cultural
thing - they always want hugs and kisses and to sit on your lap and
to hear the words, “Te quiero mucho!” It seems appropriate that
their first english words were…”I love you!” On the other hand,
Chris’s first Spanish words were “NO Toca!” (Don’t touch me!), which
he learned when he’d had one too many kisses from his older sisters!
We have started back to work now and the kids are in school. A new
life is unfolding in the Geist household. We are sure it will bring
trying times, frustration, and tears…but it has also brought and
will continue to bring love and happiness that is immeasurable! I am
reminded of this daily as I pick up my kids from school and they
literally come running out of the building and jump into my arms
with a “Te quiero Mami!”
______________________________________________________

I have a son!!!!
As I prepare for Aidan's 1st
birthday I take a minute to reflect on the last 2 years. It was Feb
2003 when I embarked on this journey. I was nervous about starting
it, and nervous about not starting it. After all, I had wanted a
child ever since I was about 5 years old but I was now single after
a divorce and wondered if I could do this alone. It took me almost 1
year to get my mountain of paperwork completed and sent to Russia
and only 5 short months later I received a call from Pam, my
coordinator, telling me they had a 6 mo. old boy for me. I said
aloud, I have a son!!!! The reality of it all didn’t hit me until I
was landing in Kaliningrad knowing I would meet my future son in
only a few hours. That day seems surreal at this point. Our first
meeting was scary for both Aidan and me. He was a shy, scared and
withdrawn baby. I was a nervous, skeptical mom afraid to get too
close too soon until I was sure he was going to be my son. Over our
next few days in the orphanage he seemed to magically come alive. By
day 5, he was vocal, happy, playful and very responsive but what was
most amazing was the connection we had with each other, for such a
young child to bond so quickly was amazing and quite touching. He
would actually cry when I left the orphanage and would react when he
heard my voice outside of his sleeping area. Sue, my friend who came
along on this trip commented that there was definitely a time when
she saw the change in me, that I accepted him and loved him." I
can't tell you when that was or what happened but I too could feel
it." On the second, 7 weeks later , I was afraid he wouldn't
remember me, but he did and our bond was instantly strong again.
Here we are 4 months later and our bond and our love for each other
has only gotten stronger. Aidan is truly a dream come true!!! People
constantly say to me "He is very lucky to have you." I counter that
by saying "No, I am blessed to have him". He is extremely healthy,
happy, and growing by leaps and bounds and greets each day with a
big smile. He is learning to walk, completely fearless, becoming
very talkative, incredibly sweet and loving and most of all happy. I
can not ask for more in this lifetime!!!!!!! It has been an
amazing journey!!!! I am fortunate to have wonderful friends
and family to support me with Aidan and they have all accepted him
as their own. He will be 1 on the 23rd of Feb. and I will thank his
birth mom on that day for being courageous enough to give him a
better life. I am eternally grateful to her. I can't wait to
continue to show Aidan the world and watch him grow into a big
(literally) strong man and live a long happy life.
Suzanne Denison
Chicago, Illinois
_______________________________________________________

Meeting Talia the
Ticklish
Once we fed her and brought her
to our room, we discovered that she is a very curious, social, happy
baby - in no time, she was crawling around, investigating her
surroundings, banging on the formula tin, "talking" to us - we even
managed to get a belly laugh when I was changing her diaper and
found out that she is VERY ticklish! We had to take off a snow suit,
shoes, sweater, pants, shirt, long underwear, and a onesie to find
her tummy. We feel like we got a winner in terms of personality and
intelligence, so we are very happy! Here's a photo of her
giggling during our first diaper change.
Nikkola Carmichael, Oak Park,
Illinios
_______________________________________________________
mail from Chelyabinsk from
Matt and Anne McIntee, Chicago, Illinois
"Wow!"
"It is about 9 pm and he is sleeping soundly. We
all had quite a day. It started at 8 am down at the office
of the registrar to retrieve his adoption certificate. Then
off to another similar office in another district to retrieve his
birth certificate. Then to the passport agency to submit the
documents for his passport. Then back to the hotel for a quick
lunch and to retrieve some final documents.
"At 3:00 pm they
picked us up for our last trip to the orphanage. The drive was
quiet yet memorable, just absorbing the sights and sounds one last
time. We were met by the orphanage director and they brought Patrick
down bundled in only his blanket. He was so cute. We
dressed him and then celebrated with champagne and chocolate
provided by Dr. Nalalya Gorlo the orphanage director. There
were so many tears . . . of joy. . of thanks . . . of
departing. It was some kind of powerful emotion. The entire
process has been some kind of powerful emotion.
"Before
leaving we went upstairs and fed cookies to the older children.
They were all so excited to see us and and OF COURSE the cookies.
One little boy sang us a song while all the children clapped, and
they wished
us goodbye. Talk about heartbreaking !
Back to the
hotel for dinner and a bath. We were all exhausted from the
day . . . and little Patrick crashed without much more than a
squeak. We have only been in to check him (or just look at
him) about a million times.
"We can't believe this day has
finally arrived. To have your dreams come true is more than a
gift . . . Wow!"
_______________________________________________________
The
baby who is now my son . . .
What an
experience! After graduating from college with a double major
in May 2002, I was still feeling so strong about adoption that I
decided to follow through, knowing that another son was in the
Lord’s plan for me and my family.
I adopted
Brandon in August, 2004 when he was 18 months old. I am
a single parent. A girlfriend went with me for the first trip.
Seeing Brandon for the first time was so emotional for me. Of
course, he was scared and stayed pretty close to one of his
caregivers in the Baby Home. Our luggage was lost and didn’t
reach us until the day before we came home. Marina and CHI
took very good care of us. At the end of the week, it was very
hard to come home without my baby. He didn’t know the
difference.
My Mom (Baba –
short for Grandma in Russian) traveled with me for the second trip.
I wanted her to experience Russia and seeing my baby before going
back to the states. What a trip of a lifetime for both of us.
For two people that haven’t traveled too much, we went half way
around the world for my new son and Grandma’s newest grandchild. By
the second visit, he started warming up and seemed happy to be the
center of attention. He was stacking 8 cups (different colors
and sizes), and playing with a truck, rings and the noisy toy that I
bought at the “Pink Store” in Novosibirsk.
Court was a
little scary, but when they told me that my baby was officially
mine, I was very emotional. We went to the Baby Home and they
let me change him into his American clothes. After saying
good-bye to the caregivers and the doctor at the Baby Home, we got
into the car, which was very scary to Brandon. I know how
difficult it must’ve been for Brandon’s caregivers and the doctor at
the Baby Home, to say good-bye. They took such good care of
all of the children and I am grateful that he was happy and well
taken care of. Our first night in the hotel was exciting for
all of us. We played with the toys that I bought at the “Pink
Store” – I wanted the toys to be familiar to him, so bought ones
that he’d played with at the Baby Home. Departing Novosibirsk
was emotional for us. We hugged and thanked Marina and Oleyssa
for Brandon and everything they did for us.
By the time we
left Novosibirsk, Brandon was adjusting very well to us, calling me
MaMa, and my Mom BaBa. Brandon didn’t know what to think about
the plane ride.The flight attendant asked to hold him when he
starting crying a lot, and he calmed down right away when she
started speaking to him in Russian.
Moscow was very
enjoyable for us. We stayed in the Baby Suite at the hotel in
Moscow, which was wonderful for Brandon with everything “Baby”.
We walked (Brandon in a stroller) to the Kremlin and Red Square,
walked around the hotel and had most of our meals in the hotel.
Valery
Nikoleyovich became Brandon Clay Trumbo (my maiden name) on November
4, 2004, in Wisconsin. My Dad passed away 3 years ago and was
so happy that I was continuing with my education and totally
supporting (both of my parents) my decision to adopt a baby, and a
brother for my biological son. Brandon’s middle name “Clay” is
my Dad’s first name and I gave Brandon my maiden name for his last
name. I know that my Dad is happy for us and would’ve loved
Brandon as much as we all do.
We just
celebrated Brandon’s 2nd birthday. I was thinking
of his birth mother, especially on his birthday wondering how she
was doing. She gave me such a great gift. Brandon is
thriving in Wisconsin. He can count to ten, knows his colors
and parts of his body, knows the difference between right and left,
identifies many things, and is very well adjusted. He has lots
of little friends at the daycare and a “big” brother who loves to
introduce him to his friends and show him off. It seems like a
dream to have gone to Russia to adopt my little boy. I’m very
happy that feeling so strongly about adoption for 4 years (while
going to school at night), became more than a dream. I cannot
imagine what it would be like without Brandon in my life or my
family and friends lives. He is such a happy, good-natured
little boy.
Thank you so much
to CHI Chicago, St. Louis, Moscow and Novosibirsk for everything
they did bringing me together with my little boy. I didn’t
have to worry about a thing. Flights, hotels, schedules,
interpreter and transportation were all scheduled ahead of time.
If I had the chance to say something to Brandon’s birthmother, I
would tell her how grateful I am to her for the baby she gave birth
too, who is now my son.
Kris Lundquist, Kenosha, Wisconsin
_________________________

Miracles Waiting to Happen
Kevin Ladley of Trenton Michigan was the absolute king at his
December birthday party. Kevin was a "waiting child" - a
lttle boy with a cleft lip and palate who was waiting for someone to
love him enough to see him through his medical problems.
Gloria Ladley adopted Kevin and brought him home in August of 2004.
Kevin had corrective surgery this January so his lip and palate can
grow just the way they are supposed to. Gloria and her son
were both part of a miracle just waiting to happen. You can be part
of a miracle too. Call Tina Qualls at our St Louis office to
see if a child is waiting for you.
_________________________
. . . this beautiful little blessing
known as Samuel
The Lord has blessed us beyond
measure in the past year. I’m sure that all of you are aware by now
of the arrival of the newest member of our household. Samuel
Sebastian Vishnesky was born in Bogotá, Colombia on October 2, 2003
and placed in our arms forever on October 5, 2004.

On September 13, Dan got “The Call”
at work. “You have a son!” They knew only that his name was Juan
Sebastian and he was from Bogotá. We found out his birthday later
that night, and the rest of the information followed the next
afternoon.
October 5, 2004. the day our lives
changed forever. We met Samuel at 10AM. He was very afraid and cried
whenever I stopped pacing with him. For the next 2 days he screamed
pretty much non-stop. He wouldn’t eat or sleep and we were beginning
to wonder if he knew how to smile at all! God blessed us again
through Samuel’s foster mother, who had provided us with a scrapbook
dating from the time she received “Juanchito” at 1 month of age,
right up to his first birthday party only 3 days before we met him.
We had solid proof, this child really did have it in him to smile,
laugh and play, we just had to wait for him to be ready! On the
third day, he was. He sat on our bed playing with a cardboard box,
in favor of the new toys that had come in the box, and low and
behold, there appeared the most beautiful smile we’d ever seen!
Since arriving home Samuel has
adjusted wonderfully. The child we were told was terrified of all
animals now has to be scolded for trying to kiss the doggies on the
mouth. The child we were told hated to eat yells “MMMM” whenever he
sees something he likes (and has actually renamed Grandpa Hiatt to
“MMMM” since he usually has the best goodies!) He smiles, he
giggles, and he points and yells and sings and dances. He says mama,
dada, doggy, num num, baba, and some other things we’re not sure how
to translate. He can tell the Wiggles are on TV from clear across
the house and he loves the ABC song. He plays hide and seek with
mama all day and laughs himself silly when daddy comes home and
tosses him in the air. We have one very happy little blessing in our
midst, and that makes us very happy, thankful and tired parents!
As we celebrate this wonderful
blessing, I’d like to remind you of something that has been made
very clear to me as I sit here reflecting on the year gone by. God
did not do any of these things for a nameless, faceless group of
people. He did these things for you, and for me. He knows our names,
our faces, our wants and our needs. He knows the things that are
best for us, and the exact moment that is best to give them to us.
Each and every day He is there with us, in good times and bad. I
thank Him now for the years of pain that led up to this very blessed
year. Had we become pregnant, had our car not died, had we begun the
adoption process sooner, we surely wouldn’t have had this beautiful
little blessing known as Samuel, this exact child, born at an exact
moment in time, meant for us before creation, and given to us in
God’s perfect timing. As you begin the next year, remember that He
will be with you, every step of the way, and He loves you, come what
may.
Brandy, Dan and
Samuel Vishnesky
Chicago, Illinois
_________________________________
. . . such a wonderful little
guy . . .

I wanted to let you know how it all
went with Miguel and how he is doing today. We’ve been home
for 8 weeks now!
Our visit to Colombia went well. Just
as CHI mentioned, everyone at the bed and breakfast and with the
agency were just wonderful. I went with my mother and we
were in Colombia during the Thanksgiving Holiday and were quite
surprised when the owner of the bed & breakfast surprised us with a
complete turkey dinner. There was a variety of families in the
bed & breakfast at the time we were there, from Sweden and Norway.
When I first picked Miguel up from
the ICBF, he was quiet and shy. I knew he was brought up well,
as he put his toys away without being told, sat at the dinner table
nicely, and was behaving for the most part. I thought I was very
lucky to have this well behaved child. This lasted for about 4 days
and then he started to act differently. In reading the
material that CHI had supplied, I knew temper tantrums were a
possibility, but thought that maybe they weren’t going to happen
with Miguel. But they did. He would be going along just
fine and happy, and something would happen, usually when I was
saying no to something or trying to get him to stop doing what he
was doing. I had read that these were going to be a part of
the transition, that it was his way of testing me. My regret,
however, was that I didn’t take the learning of Spanish seriously
enough. I feel if I knew more Spanish, rather than the very basic, I
would have done better with Miguel when he was angry. I wasn’t
able to comfort him with words and I realized how much better off we
would have been if I knew his language. But when he wasn’t upset,
he was great. I knew he was happy, but I also knew he was going to
test me. I eventually turned to the employees at the bed &
breakfast to say to Miguel what I wish I could be saying in Spanish.
They were great in helping out. I didn’t use them to discipline
Miguel, just to tell him what I wanted them to say. But
we did fine. Miguel was full of hugs and laughter, which made
me realize what a wonderful kid I had, just that this was all new to
him and he probably really didn’t realize what was happening to him.
We came home on December 7th.
We had spent 2 ½ weeks together already in Colombia, and even
though I didn’t know Spanish all that well, Miguel and I had learned
how to communicate with body language. We were actually
becoming quite good at it. If he wanted something, he would
take me by the hand and show me. But there was still a
lot we could not communicate to each other. And I’m sure this
frustrated Miguel. He still had his temper tantrums the first
2 ½ weeks home. I was walking on eggshells because I never knew what
was going to set him off. The difference now though, it was
just us. There was no one to help me say things to Miguel. But
then I read in one of CHI’s newsletters, about the Spanish
Translator on the internet. I sat Miguel down one afternoon
and for an hour, I typed in everything I wanted to say to him and I
knew he was understanding because he would smile, or shake his head.
I could see the difference in him when I was talking to him in
Spanish. And after that day, we haven’t had one temper tantrum. I
explained to him how I felt about him and that this was his home,
etc. Things just went so smoothly after that. So if I had to
do it over again, I would definitely learn more Spanish and I think
it would have made a world of difference.
Now, people ask me if I’m going to
learn Spanish. After only 4 weeks, I was amazed at how much English
Miguel was speaking and now after 8 weeks, it’s amazing. He
still has a way to go but I know he understands everything I’m
saying, I just don’t understand everything he is saying. So I tell
everyone by the time I learn Spanish, Miguel will be speaking
nothing but English. He had been in school since January 3rd
(started him in first grade) and he loves it. Everyone there
loves him too because Miguel is a charmer. He loves to hug
everyone good morning and has to hug them all at the end of the day.
Miguel has an older brother, Shawn, who is 14. The two of them
get along wonderfully. They do have their moments, but it’s
just the big brother, little brother syndrome. Shawn has his
moments where he wants to be alone, but he is very protective of
Miguel. They are both very affectionate toward each other.
Miguel is such a wonderful child.
He has adapted so well and so quickly, that it’s amazing. When
he was having those tantrums, you start to think that that is who he
is, but so far from it. I was prepared for them to last so much
longer, but 2 ½ weeks was it. He’s so happy now and listens to the
rules at home and at school and I’m amazed how far along he’s come
in such a little bit of time. He’s repeating his favorite songs
from the radio and he has his favorite TV shows. At first he
tended to be a loner at school, but now that he is understanding
English more, he’s playing with the other kids and participating so
much more.
So – the first 8 weeks – we are doing
great. He’s such a wonderful little guy and I feel very lucky
to have him in our lives.
Denise S. Szydlowski
St. Clair Shores, Michigan
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