Prayer for Chapman Family

We were all blown away by the news of the death of Maria Chapman yesterday. As many of you know, she was the youngest daughter (5 years old) of Steven Curtis Chapman. The Chapman's adoption organization, Shaohannah's Hope, provided us a grant that helped our adoption journey tremendously. Our hearts ache with them during this great time of loss. Please join us in praying for them.

http://www.stevencurtischapman.com/

Paperwork Has Been Completed!

It's official...well, almost. While Jett is not a US citizen yet (that takes 6-12 months for all of the paperwork to go through), he does have his new Social Security card and US passport. He will be making his first trip out of the country to South Africa and Swaziland this summer!

The kids are all doing well. We are busy gearing up for our "go" season full of mission trips. We are traveling to AZ at the end of this week and then return home for 4 days. We go to a wedding in Georgia and return for another 4 days. Then, it's off to Arizona for 3 1/2 weeks, Indiana for a week and then home again for 6 days. Then, we leave for Africa for 2 weeks...whew! What a whirlwind...it's exciting and scary all at the same time.

We will try and update the blog as we can but it may be "iffy" for a while depending on internet service. Please continue to pray for the adoptions in Guatemala right now....we are heart-broken over the situation there and pray that all of you will have your babies home soon!

Friends....

The bride and groom to be - Beth and Brady!
Our friends, David and Michelle from Georgia.
Our great friend Natalie in her usual stance at our house....braiding the girls' hair.
David likes to dance to entertain us all!
Jett decided to lead a puppet show and gave Michelle instructions to hold up the baby blanket as his stage.

Our great friends David and Michelle came over this weekend along with their daughter Beth, her fiance Brady, and Natalie. Beth and Brady are getting married in June, and JT is officiating. So, they spent some more time in marriage counseling this weekend. We totally enjoyed our time together immensely.

Jett adores Brady and we all find him pretty funny too! It was a great time to enjoy their company, laugh and laugh some more.

Jett is finally recovering from his surgery. All of the paperwork for his re-adoption is complete meaning we have sent away for his passport, changed his name on his social security card and completed all of the citizenship requirements. Whew....what a relief!

Lifeline Picnic

Today was a big day for our family, as we were finally able to meet other Lifeline families who have followed via the web but never met in person. While Jett was naturally wary of other children from Guatemala in the beginning, he warmed up quickly. He made quick friends of A and J. And, the adults had a great time talking. It feels like we've known them forever as we journeyed through the adoption process for a similar time period. Those who have walked that journey have a unique story that only others on the path can fully understand.

We met several families who we won't name for their privacy. We've learned that the web can be a dangerous place to post names, so you know who you are. What a joy to see all of the children playing together in Alabama!

Jett is recovering well from his surgery, and has even prayed for his healing. Okay, I'll spare you the details of his prayers, but let's just say that the family has been laughing lately during the blessing and prayer times. Blessed are those who have to sit near us in public when Jett prays.....

We officially sent in all the paperwork for the citizenship documents today and sent off for Jett's passport. Only one more item to tackle....a trip to the Social Security Office tomorrow should take care of that. And, then it's OFFICIAL...no more paperwork for the adoption!!! I'll be SO relieved!

What a blessed day...thank you all for your support and encouragement along this journey. Please pray for those who are still waiting. Our hearts ache for you...we've been where you are, and we are here for you if you need anything!

Surgery Today

Today was Jett's surgery (a circumcision) at Children's South, and he is handling it just fine. Of course, he was in some pain and said he cried a little with the nurse (while we weren't with him), but he's being such a trooper. No more pokes, shots, etc. for a while!

I know that you come for the pictures so here's a few more of our favorite Jettster in Arizona. He loves our friend Morgan from KY and wanted to constantly play with her. He also enjoyed the inflatable barrel from a past VBS curriculum...he called it John. Poor John had an accident and couldn't be repaired later in the week......

Jett is progressing well and he is learning so much every day. This Thursday will be a family picnic with Lifeline here in Birmingham. We are looking forward to meeting other adoptive parents and seeing Jett interact with new friends!

Slacker!!!

Loving on Daddy in Arizona - April 10th was the final readoption day!

Madison got a hold of the camera while painting at a local house...this is one of her masterpieces!

Poppa and Jett at the rehearsal dinner of our good friends, Jay and Donna Juan!

Jett demonstrating how to use a Hula Hoop at the nursing home in Arizona...do you think he's used to being the center of attention?

Okay, I'm a slacker and I admit it. I have definitely not been blogging lately, and I'm sorry for all of you who are keeping us with us online!!! Please forgive me.



We have all just returned from a mission trip to Arizona. This was Jett's first mission trip, and he did fairly well. We kept saying "stay close to Momma and Poppa because you're not a US citizen yet"...he didn't seem to understand that. We minister in Sells, AZ which is the heart of the Tohono O'odham Indian reservation (and also the heart of the immigration battle in our country). So, Border Patrol is everywhere, and with Jett's Guatemalan heritage, I'd rather him stick close to me and not be confused with an illegal immigrant!!! I think this battle flew right over his head and we were often yelling for him to come closer to us.....Overall, he had a great time and fell in love with Pastor Jay. He can even say "Hi" in O'odham....



Jett's readoption was finalized on Friday here in Alabama. Now, I have several things to do before we get geared up for the summer:

• Receive copies of birth certificates (necessary to begin the following items)


• Change name on the Social Security Card (requires another trip downtown but I can make an appointment so it won't be difficult).


• Change name on insurance plan (piece of cake).


• Complete Citizenship paperwork and mail in (got the paperwork finished now, just waiting to attach the birth certificate).


• Get a US passport (this will be needed for our flight to Africa this summer).

Ah, the joys of more paperwork. At least it will all be handled. I'm so thankful that we had the experience of all the adoption paperwork (did I really just say that?) to help us during this time. And, we are forever grateful to Lauren, our social worker, who has so graciously walked us through this all!

Oh yes, Jett did a photo shoot this week for a brochure for Children's Hospital. He'll be the kid eating his vegetables! There was no food for him to eat so he just had to pretend to eat and look out a window (of course, he didn't understand that he didn't need to "ham" it up for the camera). After a while of doing the same thing, he declared "Jett's full"...he was done! How funny is that!

Jesus Waked Up!

Kelly King enjoying her time in Africa with some new friends!
JT and our great friend, Bo Hardy, in South Africa.
Easter morning with the children...Kaitlyn, Madison and Jett.
The kids counting down the days until Poppa returns home!

When you ask Jett what Easter is about, this is a snippit of what he says....Jesus died on the cross and then He waked up! While it may be in 4 year old terms, he gets the basic idea. He loves to look through His Bible and find the picture of Jesus on the cross. He makes his sad face and then pretends to be asleep. He peeks out of one eye and tries to find the resurrection without looking too much. When he finds it, he miraculously wakes up..makes sense to me!

We had a great Easter celebration this weekend. Yesterday, we celebrated the resurrection at church and then went to the home of John and Mary Crisp. We ate like it was Thanksgiving....what a treat for us when JT was out of town.

Speaking of JT, we can talk to each other while he's in Africa but the rates are still high. So, we have little communication time. I did get some pictures from our friend Bo who just returned yesterday. So, I'm posting a few of Easter and Africa. In one of the photos, the kids are holding a calendar. My friend Angelia gave me a calendar as a visual way of helping Jett understand how long Poppa would be gone. This time will be a total of 19 days...so, as we mark each day off, Jett gets so excited...he counts how many days are left and talks about getting Poppa at the airport. Oh, what a joyous reunion that will be!

Please pray for those mommas still waiting on their babies as well a special unspoken prayer request for someone close to me today.