Well, it has been an extremely busy month . Sorry I haven't updated in quite a while. We had a great time with Gertrude, but now she's back in Latvia and at camp. We can't even call her. Camp is very boring according to the kids, and they have to walk 3 miles to get to s wim, and that's all they do. They can play games if they brought some. So, quite different than camp here! Anyway, I'll just recap here some of Gertrude's cute phrases and antics, and some of the talks we had together.
One of Gertrude’s signature phrases is a sarcastic “thank you.” If you don’t give her something she wants, or if you make a sharp turn in the car, or anything that makes her unhappy with you, she’ll give you that little “thank you.” We usually just say “you’re welcome” and that’s the end of it!
Gertrude really likes Scott’s car. Whenever we would ride in his car, she’d say, “I like this car, or I like Pop’s car.” I’d ask her which she liked better, mine or his, and she would give me the politically correct answer, “both.”
Gertrude made pancakes one morning. She did everything, I just told her what to do. Later that day in the car she was talking about how she wants an ipod. I told her once she lives here she can work and make money to save for it, like Christina did. She says, “what work Mom, how I work?” Later she says, “mom, work, make pancakes, you give me money?” Another day we were talking and she wants to take care of the crabs as one of her “jobs.” I heard her and Tena talking one day in the car and she said “I watch crabs, mom give me money money money.” Boy, she is ready to get her hands on some cash and get that ipod!
Scott and I went out for our anniversary to dinner while Gertrude spent a couple hours at Christina's. Tena spent the night at a friends. We originally had Gertrude spending the night at Christina’s till we found out the hosted kids have to be with their host parents overnight. So, after our anniversary dinner, we brought them both here. They had a blast just speaking in Latvian, giggling. Then we all watched a movie together. The next day Christina told me “Gertrude will say yes.” Gertrude looked at her like she didn’t want her to say anything and she was embarrassed. She was talking about "yes" to being adopted..Yeah, that's what we like to hear!
Before we went out that night, Gertrude helped me pick out my clothes, voiced her disapproval with some of the shirts I put on with my pants, till finally she conceded that one outfit was ok (not great however!)
Gertrude does have her eye on a lot of things she wants. After swimming at Seven Hills we drove around there and looked at some houses. She would say “I like this, I like” at many of the larger homes. Then we walked through one and she and Tena decided which room was each of theirs. A couple days later Gertrude mentioned to Scott that she liked those houses. Boy, she has expensive taste! She has her eye on my jewelry (she says she only has one pair of earrings) and one night she showed me in Tena’s room what she wants for her room. She points to Tena’s hamper and waste basket that are white and says “my room white (meaning furniture), Tena no, this in my room. I want this, this, this (pointing to ceiling fan, shelf, knick knacks), musica (Tena’s stereo). I tried to tell her she’ll get some things a little at a time. We’ll buy one thing, then later, another, not all at once.
I started having some talks with Gertrude about living here and being adopted. First, I told her that when you live here, you will miss Agnese, and your parents? She agreed and I told her she can call, write, e-mail, and she added “inbox” an online communication tool they use over there. I told her I know she loves her sister and parents, friends there, but she can love sister, parents friends here too. It’s ok to love lots of people. She seemed to understand and accept this idea. Then, as we passed the elementary school, I explained that Tena used to go there and that she will go there. She gave a little pouty face and I told her I worked there a lot and would be there too sometimes. She asked me, “you see me?” and I told her yes and I would say “Hi Gertrude.” She responded, "and I say, that’s my mom.” Another conversation about school, Tena told her she can take the bus and it’s really fun. She responded that "mom and I go home together, I wait for her.” So, we are getting her in the mindset of living here. Our last conversation, the day before she went back, I told her, “you know we are trying to adopt you, we love you very very much. We’re waiting, waiting for Latvia to say it’s ok to come and when they so, we’ll come. I explained that many things about America are good for her because she’ll have lots of love, good schools and can get a good job, which is all hard to do in Latvia. She talks often of things that she'll do or what she wants, and when she comes back.
One night, Gertrude had her arm over me laying on her bed and she says, “I love my mom.” I wanted to clarify and said “me, mom?” to which she answered yes. She is so much more expressive this year. I think it’s because she really knows us and knows for sure we love her. I think she knew it last year but probably wasn't absolutely sure, and it was probably a little more like fantasyland than reality in some ways to her.
Gertrude likes to tease a lot. She’ll have my keys and ask me where my keys are, or where my purse is. Once I left the keys in the car at a neighbors for a few minutes and when we started to leave, she tells me the car is gone. One day she was counting coins and I was relating it to lats, the Latvian money, and she kept asking me, “what’s lats?” She is lots of fun. She loves to play Go Fish, which she learned this trip, and she is pretty competitive in her game playing!
Last year, if I caught Gertrude starting to dance to a song or anything like that, she immediately would stop. Now, she’ll move to her Game Boy making sound, or the radio, etc. almost showing me her little dances. I just have so many glimpses of her being so much more confident and comfortable than she was before. It’s really a wonderful thing to see her like this. She also likes to get her picture taken, where last year she usually balked about it. In fact, she wanted me to take a picture of her with the camera phone, and she fixes her hair and says, “pretty” and I took her picture. This was near the end of her visit. Normally, Gertrude will NOT say she is pretty. In fact we tell her to say “I’m pretty” and she’ll say “I’m no pretty.” She will tell me I’m pretty, her sister Agnese, Tena, but not her.” So, when I heard her say this I thought it was a great breakthrough. These kids generally have a low self-esteem and we are trying to get it through her head that she is pretty and smart. Scott was playing with her in the pool one day and told her she has to say “I’m pretty” and he’ll throw her in the air some more. But, she would say, “I’m no pretty” so Scott would give her a “toilet flush” where he pushes her under. It became a fun game and just a couple times she would say she was pretty. Last year, I finally got it through her head that God loves her, (not just everyone else but her, as she liked to imply) and she still believes that this time, so I think it stuck. Now we just have to work on the rest of it!
It was an incredible month, and we can see how truly beautifully Gertrude does fit in with our family. We can't wait till she is here permanently. Speaking of which, on June 26 was hearing for her dad's rights, and he didn't show. Next hearing is Aug. 22. If he doesn't show, his rights will be terminated. If he does, I'm not sure. His rights will probably still be terminated but guess it depends on the judge and what transpires in court. If they decide to terminate, we THINK we may be able to travel again by October and have the adoption completed by Christmas. That's if nothing else goes wrong of course! We have to redo all our paperwork, because it will expire before then, but we'll do what we have to do. Maybe 2007 will be the year we finally have our second!!
Friday, July 13, 2007
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Through Day 18
We're having a great time with Gertrude. She is much happier, content and comfortable than even last year.
One evening, as Gertrude was taking her jacuzzi (she loves those!) she wanted me to wash her hair. Another thing she did not let me do last year. I told her mom loves Gertrude, she says “I love Mom, and I love Pop.” I told her pop loves her, and she says “yes.” She said “I baby” and acted like a baby while I washed her. I think she missed that part of her life, being babyied. It was a sweet time.
Gertude is calling Tena “my seester” a lot. She’ll say “my seester and me hungry” and stuff like that.
Gertrude can get mad easily and she’ll storm off and slam the door then say some things in Latvian for a few seconds. I don’t know if she’s cussing me out or what! She gets over it pretty quick though and we don’t let her get away with it, although she does willingly apologize.
FLORIDA
June 20, 2007
We left for Orlando, spending a few days at Sea World then to Siesta Key. Gertrude with bad cold and fever but left anyway. She got over it pretty quickly once in Florida. Think that Florida sun healed her up. We only spent a couple hours at Sea World the first day, skipped the second, then went the 3rd. She loved Shamu and all the shows but she complained about it being too hot and looked miserable after about an hour each day. She doesn’t have this kind of heat in Latvia and I think it really took it’s toll in FL.
One night Gertrude was crying and we didn’t know why. I asked if she was sad and she said yes. She wouldn’t (or couldn’t) tell me why. It is hard not to be able to talk through some of these things with her and help her through them. Don’t know what is going on in her little head sometimes.
Gertrude's English is getting so good. When we were in Siesta Key, after dinner one night, Gertrude said one of her best sentences yet, correct grammar and all, “I’m not too full for ice cream.” Wow, does she fit in with our family or what??!! Her English is incredible, speaking many sentences and communication is pretty easy.
The girls passed many hours, literally, shelling on the beach. They collected a huge grocery bag full each of shells. They just walked together for hours, then would sit down and dig, then walk some more. They did great, stayed together, showed each other what they found.
On the way home, both girls got very angry with me because I wouldn’t let them get candy at the gas station. Now, of course, they had already gotten some earlier in the trip. Gertrude was relentless saying “please Mom, candy, then today no more candy.” Tena was just as relentless till they finally both got mad. Gertrude in her classic style, just tells me “I’m mad!!” She tells me no chocolate for me. (She says I like chocolate, she’ll say, “mom, chocolate, chocolate, chocolate." Anyway, after she sulked for a couple minutes, she apologized to me and to Scott then told Tena to say I’m sorry, which Tena would not. Finally Gertrude says “and Tena sorry.” She is a little peacemaker just like her dad (Scott) who was the peacemaker in his family.
Tonight, Hope spent the night, (one of Tena’s best friends and friends of Gertrude from last year). They did great and you’d never know Gertrude was pretty new here and didn’t speak the language like they do. They communicated, played, watched a movie. It’s amazing to see how Gertrude just fits right in this year, like she has been here forever. I ask her occasionally if she wants to go back to Latvia. I get an emphatic no. I ask if she wants to stay in America and get an emphatic yes. I told her we want her to stay and that we love her very much. We will probably try to have a little more serious talk with her later before she leaves about adopting her and try to see how she really is feeling. Hard to have any deep conversations though. Even though communication is good, it’s more on a surface level because of the language barrier.
Gertrude loves her "pop." She gets so excited when Scott is home. We pulled up today after being at a friend’s and she sees Scott’s car. She says, “Pop’s home, yeah!!!!!!” all excited. There is a special bond that Tena has with her dad that she doesn't have with me, and I think I see that same kind of thing happening with Gertrude. All in all, having a great time. I can't believe we only have a week and a half left.
Today is a hosting activity, a magic show, then we are taking Ineta the chaperone and the kids and Gertrude's sister to one of those Japanese Hibachi restaurants. Should be a good time.
One evening, as Gertrude was taking her jacuzzi (she loves those!) she wanted me to wash her hair. Another thing she did not let me do last year. I told her mom loves Gertrude, she says “I love Mom, and I love Pop.” I told her pop loves her, and she says “yes.” She said “I baby” and acted like a baby while I washed her. I think she missed that part of her life, being babyied. It was a sweet time.
Gertude is calling Tena “my seester” a lot. She’ll say “my seester and me hungry” and stuff like that.
Gertrude can get mad easily and she’ll storm off and slam the door then say some things in Latvian for a few seconds. I don’t know if she’s cussing me out or what! She gets over it pretty quick though and we don’t let her get away with it, although she does willingly apologize.
FLORIDA
June 20, 2007
We left for Orlando, spending a few days at Sea World then to Siesta Key. Gertrude with bad cold and fever but left anyway. She got over it pretty quickly once in Florida. Think that Florida sun healed her up. We only spent a couple hours at Sea World the first day, skipped the second, then went the 3rd. She loved Shamu and all the shows but she complained about it being too hot and looked miserable after about an hour each day. She doesn’t have this kind of heat in Latvia and I think it really took it’s toll in FL.
One night Gertrude was crying and we didn’t know why. I asked if she was sad and she said yes. She wouldn’t (or couldn’t) tell me why. It is hard not to be able to talk through some of these things with her and help her through them. Don’t know what is going on in her little head sometimes.
Gertrude's English is getting so good. When we were in Siesta Key, after dinner one night, Gertrude said one of her best sentences yet, correct grammar and all, “I’m not too full for ice cream.” Wow, does she fit in with our family or what??!! Her English is incredible, speaking many sentences and communication is pretty easy.
The girls passed many hours, literally, shelling on the beach. They collected a huge grocery bag full each of shells. They just walked together for hours, then would sit down and dig, then walk some more. They did great, stayed together, showed each other what they found.
On the way home, both girls got very angry with me because I wouldn’t let them get candy at the gas station. Now, of course, they had already gotten some earlier in the trip. Gertrude was relentless saying “please Mom, candy, then today no more candy.” Tena was just as relentless till they finally both got mad. Gertrude in her classic style, just tells me “I’m mad!!” She tells me no chocolate for me. (She says I like chocolate, she’ll say, “mom, chocolate, chocolate, chocolate." Anyway, after she sulked for a couple minutes, she apologized to me and to Scott then told Tena to say I’m sorry, which Tena would not. Finally Gertrude says “and Tena sorry.” She is a little peacemaker just like her dad (Scott) who was the peacemaker in his family.
Tonight, Hope spent the night, (one of Tena’s best friends and friends of Gertrude from last year). They did great and you’d never know Gertrude was pretty new here and didn’t speak the language like they do. They communicated, played, watched a movie. It’s amazing to see how Gertrude just fits right in this year, like she has been here forever. I ask her occasionally if she wants to go back to Latvia. I get an emphatic no. I ask if she wants to stay in America and get an emphatic yes. I told her we want her to stay and that we love her very much. We will probably try to have a little more serious talk with her later before she leaves about adopting her and try to see how she really is feeling. Hard to have any deep conversations though. Even though communication is good, it’s more on a surface level because of the language barrier.
Gertrude loves her "pop." She gets so excited when Scott is home. We pulled up today after being at a friend’s and she sees Scott’s car. She says, “Pop’s home, yeah!!!!!!” all excited. There is a special bond that Tena has with her dad that she doesn't have with me, and I think I see that same kind of thing happening with Gertrude. All in all, having a great time. I can't believe we only have a week and a half left.
Today is a hosting activity, a magic show, then we are taking Ineta the chaperone and the kids and Gertrude's sister to one of those Japanese Hibachi restaurants. Should be a good time.
Latest on Dad's rights
There was another court date scheduled for June 26. Gertrude's dad did not show. However, they did not terminate rights yet. They will put an ad in the paper there, then have another court date of Aug. 22. As I understand it, if he doesn't show again, that will be the end of his rights and our adoption process will move on. More waiting.
Monday, June 18, 2007
Going on a Week
Hard to believe but it's been almost a week since Gertrude got here. It has been super-busy, non-stop activity. It's amazing to hear Gertrude use short sentences and phrases so early on and being so comfortable here, like she never left.
On Friday night, our friend Jennifer had a birthday party for her daughter and we went to that. She is hosting Gertrude's sister Agnese, so the two girls spent a lot of time together in the pool, almost inseparable. It's hard to know what to make of them. We are told they are not recommended to be together, but here they get along great and every couple days Gertrude wants to give her a call and talk for a minute or two.
Gertrude is getting very attached to Scott, her "Pop," early on also. While he was working out in the basement Gertrude just hung out with him for about 20 minutes by herself. She would come upstairs for a minute to get water or something, and I asked her if she needed something, and she says, "no, pop" and goes back downstairs! The day after she got here she was playing ball in the pool with Pop. At one point I went after the ball and she yells, "Mom, no!! POP!!!" So, I was kicked out of participating in the game..this one was for just those two. She is disappointed when he is not home from work and so happy to see him when he gets here.
One night, Gertrude, Tena, and I did Mary Kay facials on ourselves, the cleanser, freshener, mask and moisturizer. The mask was purple and we left it on for about 10 minutes. She and Tena thought it was pretty funny how they could barely move their lips! Anyway, we finished and Gertrude kept taking my hand and putting it on her face to feel how soft it was. Then, a couple days later she was going to bed and says, "mom, maska!" like Oh, no we forgot to mask! I told her that masking was for one time a week and she gave me a disappointed "oh" and went to sleep.
Tena is being a great big sister. She is very loving, understanding and generous with Gertrude. She gave her her Game Boy and a bunch of Barbies for her to keep. Gertrude lines her Barbies up at night on the floor next to her bed (on a pillow) and covers them up to go to sleep. She sleeps with her polar bear we gave her last year.
On Saturday we went to US Play for bowling with all the hosting families. Some other families that adopted last year were there and there was more interesting stories to be heard. The kids had a great time. Our friends, Lori and her daughter Hope came and enjoyed meeting all the families. US Play gave us free bowling, pizza and drinks, and $15.00 on a card for all the kids to play the games. Very generous and there were about 50 people! Gertrude wouldn't bowl at first but then she did after a while. She hung out with a lot of her Latvian friends and her sister, but then it was nice to see her spending some time with Tena and Hope too, not with any of her Latvian friends. After bowling, we took Ineta, the chaperone, and Gertrude's sister home with us to spend some time. Ineta speaks VERY LITTLE English but Agnese helped us with some translation and we tried to keep busy playing Uno Attack and jumping on the trampoline...less need to talk that way! She was very nice and we had a nice time. Tena and the two girls had a lot of fun jumping together and Tena and Agnese got along very well.
Father's Day was nice but Scott was a little under the weather so we didn't do much. Now Gertrude is not feeling well and has a temperature of 101. During the day today, we had her and Tena's friend Christina over. The girls had a blast together, sometimes all three playing sometimes Christina and Gertrude playing and talking in Latvian. But, Christina was so sweet and sensitive to Tena and asked if it was ok if they spoke Latvian because we don't want Tena to think we "forget her." She asked once if it is ok if she and Gertrude play for a few minutes then they all play together...(she and Gertrude needed some time to talk since they haven't seen each other since Christina has been adopted). Tena was fine with it and I was so proud of her. When Christina asked if it was ok if she and Gertrude played for a few minutes, then the 3 of them play, I told Christina how sweet she was to always think of other people. Tena agreed and said to me, "I think Christina is the best friend I've ever had." She said no one ever thinks about her like that (meaning being that thoughtful of her feelings). I thought that was great. Christina is such a great kid and I'm glad they are good friends. We ate dinner at our friend Emilia's house in the neighborhood then brought Christina back. It was a nice day for all the girls but now Gertrude is completely run down and running this fever. We are leaving in two days for Sea World. Hope we don't have a sick child for the trip. I told her tomorrow no swimming, no trampoline, just rest.
On Friday night, our friend Jennifer had a birthday party for her daughter and we went to that. She is hosting Gertrude's sister Agnese, so the two girls spent a lot of time together in the pool, almost inseparable. It's hard to know what to make of them. We are told they are not recommended to be together, but here they get along great and every couple days Gertrude wants to give her a call and talk for a minute or two.
Gertrude is getting very attached to Scott, her "Pop," early on also. While he was working out in the basement Gertrude just hung out with him for about 20 minutes by herself. She would come upstairs for a minute to get water or something, and I asked her if she needed something, and she says, "no, pop" and goes back downstairs! The day after she got here she was playing ball in the pool with Pop. At one point I went after the ball and she yells, "Mom, no!! POP!!!" So, I was kicked out of participating in the game..this one was for just those two. She is disappointed when he is not home from work and so happy to see him when he gets here.
One night, Gertrude, Tena, and I did Mary Kay facials on ourselves, the cleanser, freshener, mask and moisturizer. The mask was purple and we left it on for about 10 minutes. She and Tena thought it was pretty funny how they could barely move their lips! Anyway, we finished and Gertrude kept taking my hand and putting it on her face to feel how soft it was. Then, a couple days later she was going to bed and says, "mom, maska!" like Oh, no we forgot to mask! I told her that masking was for one time a week and she gave me a disappointed "oh" and went to sleep.
Tena is being a great big sister. She is very loving, understanding and generous with Gertrude. She gave her her Game Boy and a bunch of Barbies for her to keep. Gertrude lines her Barbies up at night on the floor next to her bed (on a pillow) and covers them up to go to sleep. She sleeps with her polar bear we gave her last year.
On Saturday we went to US Play for bowling with all the hosting families. Some other families that adopted last year were there and there was more interesting stories to be heard. The kids had a great time. Our friends, Lori and her daughter Hope came and enjoyed meeting all the families. US Play gave us free bowling, pizza and drinks, and $15.00 on a card for all the kids to play the games. Very generous and there were about 50 people! Gertrude wouldn't bowl at first but then she did after a while. She hung out with a lot of her Latvian friends and her sister, but then it was nice to see her spending some time with Tena and Hope too, not with any of her Latvian friends. After bowling, we took Ineta, the chaperone, and Gertrude's sister home with us to spend some time. Ineta speaks VERY LITTLE English but Agnese helped us with some translation and we tried to keep busy playing Uno Attack and jumping on the trampoline...less need to talk that way! She was very nice and we had a nice time. Tena and the two girls had a lot of fun jumping together and Tena and Agnese got along very well.
Father's Day was nice but Scott was a little under the weather so we didn't do much. Now Gertrude is not feeling well and has a temperature of 101. During the day today, we had her and Tena's friend Christina over. The girls had a blast together, sometimes all three playing sometimes Christina and Gertrude playing and talking in Latvian. But, Christina was so sweet and sensitive to Tena and asked if it was ok if they spoke Latvian because we don't want Tena to think we "forget her." She asked once if it is ok if she and Gertrude play for a few minutes then they all play together...(she and Gertrude needed some time to talk since they haven't seen each other since Christina has been adopted). Tena was fine with it and I was so proud of her. When Christina asked if it was ok if she and Gertrude played for a few minutes, then the 3 of them play, I told Christina how sweet she was to always think of other people. Tena agreed and said to me, "I think Christina is the best friend I've ever had." She said no one ever thinks about her like that (meaning being that thoughtful of her feelings). I thought that was great. Christina is such a great kid and I'm glad they are good friends. We ate dinner at our friend Emilia's house in the neighborhood then brought Christina back. It was a nice day for all the girls but now Gertrude is completely run down and running this fever. We are leaving in two days for Sea World. Hope we don't have a sick child for the trip. I told her tomorrow no swimming, no trampoline, just rest.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
She's Back!
Yesterday we picked Gertrude up at the airport. Plane on time (unlike last year!) It was a great homecoming. A few of the families that hosted last summer and have since adopted those kids were there, along with the current host families, so we all had a nice time together sharing stories about our hostings/adoptions while waiting. Also, Gertrude got to see lots of familiar faces when she got here. As soon as I saw Gertrude, I ran to her and hugged her. She hugged me back and I picked her up. She kept holding on to me and just squeezing me over and over. What a wonderful greeting! Then, I hear Tena say, "uh, Mom, some OTHER people would like to say hi." meaning of course herself and Dad. So, they got some good hugs then Gertrude visited with some of her friends that were there. Next, we greeted Gertrude's sister, Agnese, and told her we would see her soon and how happy we are that she is here. After a while of everyone visiting, Gertrude grabbed my hand and started pulling me away. She wanted to go home. So, off we went. On the way home she asked, "you like my sister?" and of course we answered with an emphatic "yes!" So, since then she has been non-stop. She picked up right where she left off last summer, happy and confident, using lots of English and calling us Mom and Pop. Gertrude started unpacking (right after she gave us our wonderful gift of chocolate, a beautiful journal, and decorative towel). Then she jumped on the trampoline with Tena (and me, a little) and then she wanted to swim. She did the same last year, tons of energy, not acting tired at all. She went to bed about 9:00 and she was up at 7:30 a.m. Just like last year, she is immediately on Eastern Standard Time. Amazing...she is a natural for adapting!! She and Tena are best buds again. Also, I was talking with my mom and asked Gertrude if she could say "hi grandma" which she did, then hid behind me. Last year, it wasn't till near the end of her visit when she would finally say a little hello to my mom. She also got to talk to her friend on the phone, Veronika, who is here being hosted from Gertrude's Children's Home.
So day 2 she is going strong still, playing and laughing all the time, getting bored and frustrated running errands, like any typical kid. We did our English lesson and Bible study today which she gladly did, just like she did last summer.
Off to a great start!
So day 2 she is going strong still, playing and laughing all the time, getting bored and frustrated running errands, like any typical kid. We did our English lesson and Bible study today which she gladly did, just like she did last summer.
Off to a great start!
Friday, June 08, 2007
Gertrude will be here soon!
Only three more days and Gertrude will be here! It is finally hitting home that we will see our girl in just a matter of days. Tena made a beautiful poster yesterday to welcome her back and she is giving her one of her new purses filled with candy and a couple cute things from the Target $1.00 section. We had a hosting meeting tonight and it made things so much more real and exciting! Everyone is excited and a little nervous. Most had never hosted before so I felt like a real "seasoned" host!
Tena is beside herself with excitement. Every couple days she'll let a little scream out, just randomly at any given time, and exclaim, "____ days till we get Gertrude!" and say the number of days left. She cannot wait and I have to say we are just as excited. Tena thinks she will want to jump on the trampoline first thing when she gets here. We just got it recently so it wasn't here last time Gertrude visited.
I am so glad we are hosting Gertrude, especially in light of all the delays with the adoption. Still no word on when they will hold the hearing regarding the father's rights.
Tena is beside herself with excitement. Every couple days she'll let a little scream out, just randomly at any given time, and exclaim, "____ days till we get Gertrude!" and say the number of days left. She cannot wait and I have to say we are just as excited. Tena thinks she will want to jump on the trampoline first thing when she gets here. We just got it recently so it wasn't here last time Gertrude visited.
I am so glad we are hosting Gertrude, especially in light of all the delays with the adoption. Still no word on when they will hold the hearing regarding the father's rights.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
More Delays
Well, the anticipation of finding out if our adoption would be underway ended last Thursday when we got an e-mail entitiled "bad news" from our attorney. The hearing never happened, to determine the father's rights, because the judge was sick. I was relieved because after reading "bad news" I thought they let the dad's rights stand. So, after a few seconds of relief and thinking that in the next day or so they would hear the case, I read on and it says " they think it may be about 3 months." So, since the judge was sick, the case wasn't heard and it's back to the back of the line. We are praying for a miracle, because this is SO unfair to Gertrude, to have to wait another 3 months after it has already been 6 months since this whole delay began. I am hoping to hear from the attorney next week that they will make an exception and do it this coming week. I don't know how we'll wait that long, or how she will. I'm just so glad we are getting her in a couple weeks for a visit. It will make the wait easier.
Yesterday, we had her friend and her new adoptive mom over to swim. Christina is good friends with Gertrude. She asked me a couple times if we like Gertrude. I told her we LOVE Gertrude and she got a big smile! I think she is anxious for Gertrude to get here. Christina is doing great so far, she has been here two weeks now. She, Tena, and Bethany (our "almost" daughter from Christian City) got along famously and spent hours in the pool and on the trampoline, and ate about 3 pounds of sugar in ice cream and popsicles!
Anyway, Tena asked me the other day, that if we don't end up getting Gertrude, will she still be able to come visit. She wants her sister so bad, and I think all these delays are causing her to wonder if we'll ever get her. I reassured her that I'm almost positive we will get her, it's just going to take some time. Hopefully it will be soon.
Yesterday, we had her friend and her new adoptive mom over to swim. Christina is good friends with Gertrude. She asked me a couple times if we like Gertrude. I told her we LOVE Gertrude and she got a big smile! I think she is anxious for Gertrude to get here. Christina is doing great so far, she has been here two weeks now. She, Tena, and Bethany (our "almost" daughter from Christian City) got along famously and spent hours in the pool and on the trampoline, and ate about 3 pounds of sugar in ice cream and popsicles!
Anyway, Tena asked me the other day, that if we don't end up getting Gertrude, will she still be able to come visit. She wants her sister so bad, and I think all these delays are causing her to wonder if we'll ever get her. I reassured her that I'm almost positive we will get her, it's just going to take some time. Hopefully it will be soon.
Monday, May 21, 2007
Court Date For "Dad"
We got the good news today that this Thursday, May 24, is the district court hearing to decide on Gertrude's father's rights. Agnese thinks the only "reasonable" verdict is to terminate rights. Of course, one never knows what might happen in some of these foreign countries. We hope to know the decision by this Friday. What a great day that will be, if we hear good news. It is Tena's last day of school (and we are ALL so happy about that!) and we may find out that our adoption is finally moving forward. Please pray all goes well on Thursday.
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Visit with Gertrude
Today we got an e-mail from our friend Kathleen, who is in Riga, Latvia right now on her last trip to pick up her daughter Christina. Christina lives in the same Children's Home as Gertrude. She said she saw Gertrude and she was all smiles and seems very happy. We spoke with Gertrude just one day earlier and she sounded very happy. I think she finally gets it that she is coming here! Kathleen said she gave Gertrude a big hug from us. We are so grateful, but we can't wait to give her a hug ourselves.
We just found out that there are six children coming from Gertrude's home. This is wonderful news for Gertrude, because we believe it will help her to be so much more comfortable with the adoption. Between having her sister here, her friends here, her friend Christina here, and the prospect of her children's home director coming at Christmas or next summer (she is studying her English and hopes to chaperone on a hosting), Gertrude should start to understand that she will still be able to have some of her friends, and maybe even see some of her family after she is here permanently.
So, as you can see, God's hand is in this whole process, and the timing is perfect, even though we wish we had Gertrude now. It's exciting to watch this all unfold in a way we never would have imagined!
We just found out that there are six children coming from Gertrude's home. This is wonderful news for Gertrude, because we believe it will help her to be so much more comfortable with the adoption. Between having her sister here, her friends here, her friend Christina here, and the prospect of her children's home director coming at Christmas or next summer (she is studying her English and hopes to chaperone on a hosting), Gertrude should start to understand that she will still be able to have some of her friends, and maybe even see some of her family after she is here permanently.
So, as you can see, God's hand is in this whole process, and the timing is perfect, even though we wish we had Gertrude now. It's exciting to watch this all unfold in a way we never would have imagined!
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Gertrude's Sister May Be Coming!
We received some great news yesterday, that the directors of the hosting program that we are going through to host Gertrude, are going to try and host Gertrude's 16 year old sister! They just have to wait for approval from the orphanage director. Gertrude's sister is Agnese and she is 16 years old. She has been "struggling" for the last several months, although I am not sure yet in what respect. We know she may not be supportive of Gertrude's adoption, although we are not sure of that either. We had really prayed that Agnese would be hosted, but once they chose all the children and Agnese wasn't chosen, we just let it go and decided it must not be the right time. However, yesterday I heard from Jennifer of Simple Obedience. She said that Agnese had been on her and her husband's heart very heavily for the last couple of weeks. They began to pray about what God wanted them to do and recently have felt very strongly led to host her themselves. This is great news, because first, this will give Agnese some hope and happiness in her life, that hopefully will carry her through now and through the difficult life she may be facing in the future once she leaves the orphanage. Also, we will be able to get to know her, and hopefully she will become more supportive of Gertrude's adoption and not worry about what kind of country or people she will be with. It is a great opportunity for all of us, both of the host families of Gertrude and Agnese and both girls. Also, Gertrude can see that even though she may be living 6,000 miles away from her sister, that doesn't necessarily mean she will never see her again! She will have living proof that her sister is can actually come here too. They will both also see that we accept Agnese and that we want the girls to stay in contact after the adoption. So, this is awesome news for us and we just pray all will work out for Agnese to come. We hope to be able to develop a good relationship with her, since she will be part of our family through Gertrude.
Friday, April 20, 2007
We're Hosting Gertrude!!!
We have decided to host Gertrude this summer. We don't know when we'll be traveling for the adoption, and we don't want her to miss another opportunity to come to the U.S. Below is a letter we sent to many of our friends and family, giving some background on hosting and our experiences with Gertrude. If you are interested in supporting us either financially (to help us with the expenses to bring her here) or prayer support, please read the letter below and respond to Simple Obedience Ministries. Thanks. We can't wait to see our little girl!
April 20, 2007
Dear Friends and Family,
We are very excited to tell you about an incredible mission project that we are participating in this summer with a ministry called Simply For Latvia, a missions project of Simple Obedience Ministries, Inc.
In many countries around the world, there are thousands of children who live in orphanages. Many families, including ours, are hosting one of these orphans in their homes for four weeks this summer. Many of these children have never experienced unconditional love or learned about God, and these are two of the main focuses of the hosting. Some of these children are available for adoption, and we pray these children will find their forever families. Some are not adoptable but through their experience will prayerfully have a new hope and confidence that they can take back to Latvia. Our greatest prayer is that all of these children will one day have a relationship with Christ.
As some of you know, last summer we hosted a beautiful nine year old girl from Latvia. Latvia is a very small country in the Baltic States, just west of Russia. The girl we hosted was Gertrude Liepina (Kivlina). Gertrude (pronounced “Gare-trude-a, with a rolling “r”) turned 10 on September 21st, 2006. Three weeks into our hosting, we decided we loved this child and wanted her to be a permanent member of our family. We pursued adoption and all was going well until we took our first trip to Latvia for a court date. Gertrude’s birth father showed up to court 4 hours after we got temporary custody of Gertrude, saying that she was his daughter and he wanted to take care of her. Long story short, the Latvian courts are in the process of terminating his parental rights, but we don’t know how long it will be so we decided to host her again this summer. This will give her another opportunity to live with our family here and to know that we still love and care about her. It may also help her to feel more comfortable with the prospect of being adopted, as she is torn about what she wants since she has family in Latvia. If for some reason the adoption does not work out, Gertrude will have had the opportunity to experience the love of a family at least one more time, and to get to know her Heavenly Father better.
We’re sending you this letter because we want to give you an opportunity to be involved in this mission. Two things are needed: financial support and prayer support.
It will cost about $1450.00 to bring Gertrude here. We are responsible for the full amount. It is a significant amount of money, mainly because airfare is so high, and we need to pay for her visa and medical insurance for the month. Also, while she is here we will have to buy her some clothes and a few toys and games.
If you would like to make a financial contribution, please write a check to:
Simple Obedience Ministries
6110 Cedarcrest Rd Suite 350, #165
Acworth, GA 30101
Please write "Murphy hosting" in the memo portion of your check and include the slip at the bottom of this letter.
Simple Obedience Ministries is in the process of filing for 501c3 status. Once approved, your donation will be tax deductible and at year’s end you will receive a receipt for tax purposes. Please remember that no donation is too small. If 20 people sponsored us with $5.00 each, we would have $100!! Donations for the hosting must be in by May 10, since airfare will be purchased soon thereafter. Most of the donations are needed by this date.
Any monies donated after this date will be used for clothing and toys that we will purchase for Gertrude while she is here. If you would like to sign up to be a prayer partner, please e-mail us at kstmurf@bellsouth.net and let us know so we can send you prayer requests and updates. As a prayer partner, we will ask you to pray for the specific requests that we will send you via e-mail. Prayer support is a vital part of this mission and is every bit as valuable as financial support.
You can learn more about Simply For Latvia and their mission projects by visiting their website at http://www.simplyforlatvia.org/. There you will find information about the hostings, mission trips, and easy ways to help the children and missions in Latvia. Simply For Latvia is a non-profit organization in the process of filing for 501c3/charitable status. They simply want to obey God and help children and their families in Latvia. Simply For Latvia (mission project of Simple Obedience) is completely non-profit and receives no money for the hostings. No fees are added to the hosting costs. Because of their charitable status, all donations are non-refundable. If you have any questions or would like more information, contact Jennifer@SimplyForLatvia.org.
We hope you can sense our excitement, and we pray it has spread to you as well. We will be sure to send updates and pictures of Gertrude’s visit with our family. We appreciate your support so very much.
Blessings,
Scott, Karen, and Tena Murphy
cut here____________________________________________________________________
Simple Obedience Ministries, Inc. – Simply for Latvia
FOR: MURPHY FAMILY HOSTING OF GERTRUDE LIEPIENA (KIVLINA)
I would like to participate as a support and/or prayer partner for the Simply For Latvia Summer 2007 Hosting, project # H0607-KM.
o I would like to give ___________ and have enclosed a check made payable to Simple Obedience Ministries, 6110 Cedarcrest Rd., Ste 350 #165,
Acworth, GA, 30101.
o I would like to sign up as a prayer partner for the Murphy family.
o Please send more information on Simple Obedience Ministries, Inc. and Simply For Latvia.
April 20, 2007
Dear Friends and Family,
We are very excited to tell you about an incredible mission project that we are participating in this summer with a ministry called Simply For Latvia, a missions project of Simple Obedience Ministries, Inc.
In many countries around the world, there are thousands of children who live in orphanages. Many families, including ours, are hosting one of these orphans in their homes for four weeks this summer. Many of these children have never experienced unconditional love or learned about God, and these are two of the main focuses of the hosting. Some of these children are available for adoption, and we pray these children will find their forever families. Some are not adoptable but through their experience will prayerfully have a new hope and confidence that they can take back to Latvia. Our greatest prayer is that all of these children will one day have a relationship with Christ.
As some of you know, last summer we hosted a beautiful nine year old girl from Latvia. Latvia is a very small country in the Baltic States, just west of Russia. The girl we hosted was Gertrude Liepina (Kivlina). Gertrude (pronounced “Gare-trude-a, with a rolling “r”) turned 10 on September 21st, 2006. Three weeks into our hosting, we decided we loved this child and wanted her to be a permanent member of our family. We pursued adoption and all was going well until we took our first trip to Latvia for a court date. Gertrude’s birth father showed up to court 4 hours after we got temporary custody of Gertrude, saying that she was his daughter and he wanted to take care of her. Long story short, the Latvian courts are in the process of terminating his parental rights, but we don’t know how long it will be so we decided to host her again this summer. This will give her another opportunity to live with our family here and to know that we still love and care about her. It may also help her to feel more comfortable with the prospect of being adopted, as she is torn about what she wants since she has family in Latvia. If for some reason the adoption does not work out, Gertrude will have had the opportunity to experience the love of a family at least one more time, and to get to know her Heavenly Father better.
We’re sending you this letter because we want to give you an opportunity to be involved in this mission. Two things are needed: financial support and prayer support.
It will cost about $1450.00 to bring Gertrude here. We are responsible for the full amount. It is a significant amount of money, mainly because airfare is so high, and we need to pay for her visa and medical insurance for the month. Also, while she is here we will have to buy her some clothes and a few toys and games.
If you would like to make a financial contribution, please write a check to:
Simple Obedience Ministries
6110 Cedarcrest Rd Suite 350, #165
Acworth, GA 30101
Please write "Murphy hosting" in the memo portion of your check and include the slip at the bottom of this letter.
Simple Obedience Ministries is in the process of filing for 501c3 status. Once approved, your donation will be tax deductible and at year’s end you will receive a receipt for tax purposes. Please remember that no donation is too small. If 20 people sponsored us with $5.00 each, we would have $100!! Donations for the hosting must be in by May 10, since airfare will be purchased soon thereafter. Most of the donations are needed by this date.
Any monies donated after this date will be used for clothing and toys that we will purchase for Gertrude while she is here. If you would like to sign up to be a prayer partner, please e-mail us at kstmurf@bellsouth.net and let us know so we can send you prayer requests and updates. As a prayer partner, we will ask you to pray for the specific requests that we will send you via e-mail. Prayer support is a vital part of this mission and is every bit as valuable as financial support.
You can learn more about Simply For Latvia and their mission projects by visiting their website at http://www.simplyforlatvia.org/. There you will find information about the hostings, mission trips, and easy ways to help the children and missions in Latvia. Simply For Latvia is a non-profit organization in the process of filing for 501c3/charitable status. They simply want to obey God and help children and their families in Latvia. Simply For Latvia (mission project of Simple Obedience) is completely non-profit and receives no money for the hostings. No fees are added to the hosting costs. Because of their charitable status, all donations are non-refundable. If you have any questions or would like more information, contact Jennifer@SimplyForLatvia.org.
We hope you can sense our excitement, and we pray it has spread to you as well. We will be sure to send updates and pictures of Gertrude’s visit with our family. We appreciate your support so very much.
Blessings,
Scott, Karen, and Tena Murphy
cut here____________________________________________________________________
Simple Obedience Ministries, Inc. – Simply for Latvia
FOR: MURPHY FAMILY HOSTING OF GERTRUDE LIEPIENA (KIVLINA)
I would like to participate as a support and/or prayer partner for the Simply For Latvia Summer 2007 Hosting, project # H0607-KM.
o I would like to give ___________ and have enclosed a check made payable to Simple Obedience Ministries, 6110 Cedarcrest Rd., Ste 350 #165,
Acworth, GA, 30101.
o I would like to sign up as a prayer partner for the Murphy family.
o Please send more information on Simple Obedience Ministries, Inc. and Simply For Latvia.
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Interested in Hosting?
Have you ever thought about hosting a child from Latvia yourself? Or, do you know of someone who might be interested? The hosting program is continuing to look for families to host this summer, and soon will be working on getting children hosted over Christmas. Please think and pray about your involvement in the program. You can host a child, or if that is not for your family at this time, you can be a prayer and/or financial partner of a family that is hosting. When one of these orphans spends a few weeks in a loving, Christian home, it makes an incredible difference in their lives. It makes an incredible difference in the lives of the hosting family as well. Also, you don't have to be interested in adoption to host. If you would like more information, please check into this website:
Simple Obedience Ministries
Simple Obedience Ministries
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Live and In Person
Today we got to talk to Gertrude, her sister, and her friend Christina (who will be here early May as an adopted American citizen). Our friend Helen Vipase, Director of
Hope for Children in Latvia, had the girls come to her office today and call us on Skype, the computer call equipped with a camera so we could all see each other. It was so great! We did this once before with Gertrude and she didn't say a word, looked pretty intimidated but today she did much better. I think next time she'll be an old pro! She still didn't say a lot. Her sister asked if we were going to host Gertrude this summer. We told her we have to wait and see what is happening with the adoption, if we are going to be going to Latvia this summer. Gertrude said she wants to come here for hosting. Guess that's no surprise! I told her sister Agnese that I hope she can come one day and be hosted in America. She smiled then buried her head in Gertrude's shoulder like she was embarrased or something. Who knows what in the world goes through these kids' heads! I told Gertrude Tena got a new Game Boy and wants to give Gertrude her other one. She received that news with a very big smile. She looked great, she smiled a lot. Scott told her we went to Helen, GA this past weekend and that we had a jacuzzi on the porch in our cabin. She smiled and told Helen she remembers our jacuzzi (she loved to take baths in our jetted tub---she would say "Mom, jacuzzi, please!!) It was wonderful to get to see her while talking with her. Helen said we will try to do this again on a weekend when Tena can be there. We did put Allie in front of the camera so she could see her puppy dog..she seemed to really like that. She loved Allie. Even though her little bio said she likes cats, Allie promptly won her over!
A little update on the court. We were told on Feb. 7 that the Orphancourt notified the higher court that Gertrude's dad is unfit. This was incorrect information, and that did not acutally happen until March 21. So, the stellar communication with Latvia continues!! Well, at least it's done, now we just have to keep on waiting. Stay tuned...sorry updates come so few and far between but as soon as there's anything, I'll post it!
Hope for Children in Latvia, had the girls come to her office today and call us on Skype, the computer call equipped with a camera so we could all see each other. It was so great! We did this once before with Gertrude and she didn't say a word, looked pretty intimidated but today she did much better. I think next time she'll be an old pro! She still didn't say a lot. Her sister asked if we were going to host Gertrude this summer. We told her we have to wait and see what is happening with the adoption, if we are going to be going to Latvia this summer. Gertrude said she wants to come here for hosting. Guess that's no surprise! I told her sister Agnese that I hope she can come one day and be hosted in America. She smiled then buried her head in Gertrude's shoulder like she was embarrased or something. Who knows what in the world goes through these kids' heads! I told Gertrude Tena got a new Game Boy and wants to give Gertrude her other one. She received that news with a very big smile. She looked great, she smiled a lot. Scott told her we went to Helen, GA this past weekend and that we had a jacuzzi on the porch in our cabin. She smiled and told Helen she remembers our jacuzzi (she loved to take baths in our jetted tub---she would say "Mom, jacuzzi, please!!) It was wonderful to get to see her while talking with her. Helen said we will try to do this again on a weekend when Tena can be there. We did put Allie in front of the camera so she could see her puppy dog..she seemed to really like that. She loved Allie. Even though her little bio said she likes cats, Allie promptly won her over!
A little update on the court. We were told on Feb. 7 that the Orphancourt notified the higher court that Gertrude's dad is unfit. This was incorrect information, and that did not acutally happen until March 21. So, the stellar communication with Latvia continues!! Well, at least it's done, now we just have to keep on waiting. Stay tuned...sorry updates come so few and far between but as soon as there's anything, I'll post it!
Monday, March 05, 2007
A Letter from Latvia!
Well, we are still waiting, no news yet. However, today we received a letter from Gertrude, actually signed "Gertrude and Agnese," which is Gertrude's sister. The letter was addressed to all three of us and reads:
Hi Mom and Pop! How are you? You have lots of fun in Latvia? Agnese and I miss you! Do you like Lido? I miss all this family. (then something I can't read..looks like "I have on lots time!" By By love you! Agnese and Gertrude. there were 5 little hearts drawn on the paper. It was on this really cute stationary with puppies on it, some that even looked like they were part beagle! (like our little pooch, Allie) It was so wonderful to get this letter. We have been sending Gertrude's sister some things too for Christmas, her name day, we sent some things for both of them with our friends who went to Latvia last month. We wanted Agnese to feel part of our family too and for Gertrude to understand that we are not trying to take her from her sister, but we want to be in contact with her sister. I think maybe we have succeeded in that. Hopefully she doesn't expect to be coming home with us though! We plan only to adopt ONE and supposedly Agnese is not available to be adopted anyway.
So, just biding our time, praying this goes quickly. Gertrude now has a new birth certificate with her new last name, and they will soon apply for a new passport for her. Hoping it doesn't take long so it won't end up interfering with us bringing her home in the early stages of the adoption, or hosting her if the adoption moves slower than we think. Things sure are uncertain in this arena. We just have to close our eyes and let go of the control (not that we have any control anyway!) Hope to have some real news on the adoption front soon.
Hi Mom and Pop! How are you? You have lots of fun in Latvia? Agnese and I miss you! Do you like Lido? I miss all this family. (then something I can't read..looks like "I have on lots time!" By By love you! Agnese and Gertrude. there were 5 little hearts drawn on the paper. It was on this really cute stationary with puppies on it, some that even looked like they were part beagle! (like our little pooch, Allie) It was so wonderful to get this letter. We have been sending Gertrude's sister some things too for Christmas, her name day, we sent some things for both of them with our friends who went to Latvia last month. We wanted Agnese to feel part of our family too and for Gertrude to understand that we are not trying to take her from her sister, but we want to be in contact with her sister. I think maybe we have succeeded in that. Hopefully she doesn't expect to be coming home with us though! We plan only to adopt ONE and supposedly Agnese is not available to be adopted anyway.
So, just biding our time, praying this goes quickly. Gertrude now has a new birth certificate with her new last name, and they will soon apply for a new passport for her. Hoping it doesn't take long so it won't end up interfering with us bringing her home in the early stages of the adoption, or hosting her if the adoption moves slower than we think. Things sure are uncertain in this arena. We just have to close our eyes and let go of the control (not that we have any control anyway!) Hope to have some real news on the adoption front soon.
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Finally --- Some News!
We have received some news on Gertrude's case. The Orphancourt has filed a formal claim with the higher court, recommending that Gertrude's dad's rights be terminated. Since the day her dad came to court that day we got temporary custody, he has not been seen or heard from again. He did not show up to the Orphancourt when they ruled if he could have her in his custody or not, and he has not seen, nor attempted to contact Gertrude since. Therefore, our attorney is about 100% sure his rights will be terminated. The process will take some time, however, and after they are terminted she will have to be cleared for adoption again by the Orphancourt. Agnese thinks we will be able to travel by summer. Unfortunately, this will be our second trip but technically only our first. We will have to travel three times. Parts of our dossier will be expiring in early August so we hope the process will be completed by then so we do not have to expend more time and money for that part of the process. But, who knows??!! We will just have to wait and see....
Gertrude will be out of the sanitorium on Feb. 16. There is no way to contact her there so we haven't spoken to her in a while. She is not real sick, just susceptible to colds and flu so she and 3 other kids from her home are there, while they try to heal them from their current illness and strengthen their immune systems. Not sure how they do it over there, but hopefully it will help!
Gertrude will be out of the sanitorium on Feb. 16. There is no way to contact her there so we haven't spoken to her in a while. She is not real sick, just susceptible to colds and flu so she and 3 other kids from her home are there, while they try to heal them from their current illness and strengthen their immune systems. Not sure how they do it over there, but hopefully it will help!
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
No News
Thanks to all of you who have been checking in and I'm sorry I haven't updated in so long. There has been no news, so wasn't sure what to update. We still talk to Gertrude, although this last week we just found out she has been in a sanitorium, which is for kids with a bad cold or cough. When we called they said she was in "sanitary" and we thought maybe that meant she was in the bathroom! Anyway, our friends who are in Latvia right now for their first adoption trip told us that she is in the "sanitorium." They are adopting Kristine, who lives in the same home as Gertrude. We sent some gifts with them to give to Gertrude and to Gertrude's sister, but unfortunately Gertrude didn't get hers yet since she isn't there. It's hard to know exactly what is going on. Hopefully she isn't too ill and I'm not sure how to find out. Anyway, regarding the adoption, we are just waiting. Nothing can be done until her dad's rights are terminated, and the case isn't even on the docket yet. Gertrude sounds ok when we do talk to her and hope this hasn't taken too much of a toll. She is a real trooper! Please pray for her situation and that all will work out in the best interest of Gertrude.
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Talked with Gertrude
Today is the day seven children are coming to Georgia for the Christmas hosting. As you know, we were unable to get Gertrude this time around. I asked her if Kristine and Olegs (her friend from the home) left today for America and she answered "yes" in a really sad voice. When I asked if she was sad she couldn't come, she answered again, a sad "yes." Poor baby! It must be hard to see her friends go, the same ones that came over the summer, and have to stay there. Especially at Christmas. It would be so special for her to be here and I know she would have such a great time.
Still no news. No news is good news?? I don't know! Maybe in Latvia no news is just no news.
Anyway, I have e-mailed with some of the families receiving their kids today. They are SO excited! We are going to get together with Ilga, the chaperone, and will spend some time with Gertrude's friends, Kristine and Olegs. Kristine's hosting parents have a court date on Jan. 29 for their first trip to Latvia to adopt Kristine. They are really happy..they had some delays as well and the whole thing was set back a few months. So, things are finally rolling for them. We pray Kristine will soon be here permanently and that Gertrude won't be too far behind!
Still no news. No news is good news?? I don't know! Maybe in Latvia no news is just no news.
Anyway, I have e-mailed with some of the families receiving their kids today. They are SO excited! We are going to get together with Ilga, the chaperone, and will spend some time with Gertrude's friends, Kristine and Olegs. Kristine's hosting parents have a court date on Jan. 29 for their first trip to Latvia to adopt Kristine. They are really happy..they had some delays as well and the whole thing was set back a few months. So, things are finally rolling for them. We pray Kristine will soon be here permanently and that Gertrude won't be too far behind!
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Could Be a While
We received an e-mail from attorney, Agnese, that the next step will be for the case to go to District Court to terminate Gertrude's dad's rights. After that, she said "if the judgment will be effected on" then the Ministry will be involved again and work toward getting Gertrude cleared. I am not sure why she said "if" the judgement....I don't know why there would be any question. This is difficult when you don't even know what's supposed to happen, let alone how long it will take! I told Agnese we will try to be patient and not contact her too often. She did say it will not happen very quickly but she doesn't know how long. We are hopeful it will all be done and we can pursue and complete the adoption before our dossier expires. If not, that will be more work and expense for us to have that redone. Also, the sooner we can have Gertrude home, the better for all of us.
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Court Decision on Dad
On December 5, 2006, the Orphancourt made a decision to deny rights to Gertrude's father. This is what we were hoping for! Not to say of course, that we are happy to keep a father from his daughter, but from what we have heard about the dad, life with him would be a bad and possibly dangerous place for Gertrude to be. Now we have to wait for the rest of the legal process, which we believe is to have another court date to officially terminate his rights, check out his side of the family to see if anyone wants to care for Gertrude, then if nothing comes of that, clear her again for adoption. We are not sure how long this will take, but we are learning patience through this whole ordeal! We just hope Gertrude is ok. She is probably very confused, as her dad has filled her head with fantasies of her coming to live with him, sharing the family name, and now that isn't going to happen. This has to be hard on Gertrude, even if he is not someone that is healthy for her. He is still her dad and I'm sure she loves him no matter what has happened in the past. Now, I say that, not really knowing what has happened in the past! We just have to guess based on bits and pieces of information we get. This information seems to add up to an unhealthy and potentially dangerous situation for Gertrude so this decision is probably for the best.
As I said in an e-mail to many of our supporters, we have received information that Gertrude and her half-sister have been visiting her parents regularly and there is an emotional attachment there. We hope that Gertrude will be with us one day but are not sure what is best for her. Possibly being adopted in country would be best, so she could more easily maintain a relationship with her family. However, an adoption within her country is unlikely. So, we just continue to pray that whatever is best for her is what will eventually be the outcome. Gertrude is a precious little girl that deserves a happy life and however that can be attained is how it needs to be. I would like to share a response I got to this e-mail from a friend who led a Bible study I was in recently. I just met her at the Bible study and we don't know each other that well, but she has been such an encouragement to us. Here is what she wrote:
Your prayer for the outcome that is best for Gertrude reminds me of the story in 1King 3:16-27, where the king had to decide which of two women was the "real" mother. When the king commanded that the child be cut in two, the true mother "was filled with compassion for her son" and she pleaded with the king to give her son to the other woman. I believe God will do what is best for Gertrude. I pray that the eventual ruling will be the same as this story... 27 Then the king gave his ruling: "Give the living baby to the first woman. ....she is his mother." I know how much you love Gertrude and I believe God will honor your love for her. I'm praying!
This last statement is reminiscent of another comment I received just before we got Gertrude for the hosting. Another hosting parent, that now has their adopted daughter with them, told me she "knows I am Gertrude's mother." She didn't know exactly why but she felt very strongly about this before any of us had even met Gertrude. This gives us hope that one day this will be true in the full sense of the word. However, if we are not her parents legally for some reason, in our hearts she is ours. We will continue to pray for her, call her, write and send gifts to her, and be her "American family" for as long as she will have us!
As I said in an e-mail to many of our supporters, we have received information that Gertrude and her half-sister have been visiting her parents regularly and there is an emotional attachment there. We hope that Gertrude will be with us one day but are not sure what is best for her. Possibly being adopted in country would be best, so she could more easily maintain a relationship with her family. However, an adoption within her country is unlikely. So, we just continue to pray that whatever is best for her is what will eventually be the outcome. Gertrude is a precious little girl that deserves a happy life and however that can be attained is how it needs to be. I would like to share a response I got to this e-mail from a friend who led a Bible study I was in recently. I just met her at the Bible study and we don't know each other that well, but she has been such an encouragement to us. Here is what she wrote:
Your prayer for the outcome that is best for Gertrude reminds me of the story in 1King 3:16-27, where the king had to decide which of two women was the "real" mother. When the king commanded that the child be cut in two, the true mother "was filled with compassion for her son" and she pleaded with the king to give her son to the other woman. I believe God will do what is best for Gertrude. I pray that the eventual ruling will be the same as this story... 27 Then the king gave his ruling: "Give the living baby to the first woman. ....she is his mother." I know how much you love Gertrude and I believe God will honor your love for her. I'm praying!
This last statement is reminiscent of another comment I received just before we got Gertrude for the hosting. Another hosting parent, that now has their adopted daughter with them, told me she "knows I am Gertrude's mother." She didn't know exactly why but she felt very strongly about this before any of us had even met Gertrude. This gives us hope that one day this will be true in the full sense of the word. However, if we are not her parents legally for some reason, in our hearts she is ours. We will continue to pray for her, call her, write and send gifts to her, and be her "American family" for as long as she will have us!
Friday, November 24, 2006
Screeeeching Halt
Well, we had a great trip to Latvia for a short time, but had an abrupt end to our visit. I have included some pictures here so you can see our precious girls and that we did go to Latvia, even though we are farther behind in the adoption than we were when we left. Please ignore the dates on some of them. Our digital camera has a bit of a problem keeping track of the date! So, about our setback... four hours after going to court with Gertrude and gaining temporary custody of her for the 2 weeks, her biological dad showed up to the Orphan Court with a birth certificate naming him as father. He claimed he wants to take her out of the children's home to live with him. Apparently, two weeks before we got there, Gertrude's mom and this man (maybe dad) went to the records office, told them this was dad, and had a new birth certificate issued. Once they had this "father" they said we cannot retain custody for the two weeks, and the following day we went back to court and gave custody back to the children's home. No more need for us to stay in Latvia, so we came home a week early. It was pretty devastating, as we thought we'd have her the whole time and we'd be halfway through having her permanently when the 2 weeks were over. But, on Tuesday after court, Gertrude went back to her home, and received a new last name, "Kivlina." Now the court is investigating her dad, and on Dec. 5 is a hearing to decide if he should have rights. From what we hear, he lives in a drug house, he drinks, and obviously has not taken care of his daughter for the last 10 years. It looks like they will probably rule against him, but we won't know for sure until Dec. 5 is over. We are praying for whatever is best for her, which from what we think we know, terminating his rights would be best.
While we were with Gertrude, we had a great time. We got her Friday right after we got to Latvia so we had her for 3 almost 4 days. At the children's home we got to meet her sister, who is a beautiful girl and she was very sweet. We planned to take her sister, Agnese, with us the following weekend to stay with us and go to the water park, but unfortunately that next weekend never happened...we were on a plane to Atlanta instead. Ok, back to Gertrude...the Friday before we left she spent the day with us until about 8:30 that evening. We had a great time in Latvia, and many of our friends that were here over the summer, as well as some other great people, took us under their wings, showed us around and transported us here and there. Latvia is definitely a different kind of place, but it was a great experience. We stayed in a really nice apartment with most of the modern conveniences.
Gertrude had a great time but she is very confused as to what she wants to do. She feels a loyalty to her parents and sister, to stay in Latvia. She also loves us and America and wants to be adopted. She is easily influenced by those around her, and seems to want for herself whatever those that she is with at the time tell her. It makes us a little nervous because if we are able to pursue adoption, she may waver as to what her decision is. Supposedly the Orphan Court gives them the right to decide, but at such a young age they largely make the decision for them. However, it still could cause problems and delays if she is unsure. We plan to bring her home after our next 2 week visit, so she is with us between court dates. Many of the families that have adopted recently have been able to do that, and we plan to do so as well if they will give us that permission. We think this will help her to be more comfortable with the adoption and to be away from negative influences during the adoption process.
We pray we will have her with us one day soon. She is such a precious little girl, and so deserving of a better life. Also, she and Tena get along so well, they are like best friends and sisters. Tena took the bad news of our adoption obstacles very well, and she is optimistic that this will all work out. We sure hope she is right!!
Probably won't be back to update the blog until after Dec. 5 when the court makes its decision regarding her dad. Hopefully will have good news!
While we were with Gertrude, we had a great time. We got her Friday right after we got to Latvia so we had her for 3 almost 4 days. At the children's home we got to meet her sister, who is a beautiful girl and she was very sweet. We planned to take her sister, Agnese, with us the following weekend to stay with us and go to the water park, but unfortunately that next weekend never happened...we were on a plane to Atlanta instead. Ok, back to Gertrude...the Friday before we left she spent the day with us until about 8:30 that evening. We had a great time in Latvia, and many of our friends that were here over the summer, as well as some other great people, took us under their wings, showed us around and transported us here and there. Latvia is definitely a different kind of place, but it was a great experience. We stayed in a really nice apartment with most of the modern conveniences.
Gertrude had a great time but she is very confused as to what she wants to do. She feels a loyalty to her parents and sister, to stay in Latvia. She also loves us and America and wants to be adopted. She is easily influenced by those around her, and seems to want for herself whatever those that she is with at the time tell her. It makes us a little nervous because if we are able to pursue adoption, she may waver as to what her decision is. Supposedly the Orphan Court gives them the right to decide, but at such a young age they largely make the decision for them. However, it still could cause problems and delays if she is unsure. We plan to bring her home after our next 2 week visit, so she is with us between court dates. Many of the families that have adopted recently have been able to do that, and we plan to do so as well if they will give us that permission. We think this will help her to be more comfortable with the adoption and to be away from negative influences during the adoption process.
We pray we will have her with us one day soon. She is such a precious little girl, and so deserving of a better life. Also, she and Tena get along so well, they are like best friends and sisters. Tena took the bad news of our adoption obstacles very well, and she is optimistic that this will all work out. We sure hope she is right!!
Probably won't be back to update the blog until after Dec. 5 when the court makes its decision regarding her dad. Hopefully will have good news!
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