Court was bumped!

Hey all,

Thanks for all of your emails and prayers!  I wanted to let you know that our lawyer bumped our court date to Monday because of needing more time to get correct paperwork. 

This came after a much emotional morning for me, as I was beginning to get worried and burdened for "M" during court and all that his little heart might be feeling.  I couldn't stop the tears from flowing the moment I got myself ready. Brian, our sweet friend & driver, had me read Psalm 101 as we drove to court, as well as sing some traditional Luganda songs to calm my nerves.

When we arrived at court, I was completely surprised to see what the court house looked like (actually I wasn't surprised).  It was basically empty, no air conditioning, tons of people sitting everywhere on broken seats, and a whole lot of chaos. Before we know it, our lawyer has us come and speak with us, letting us know that we had to bump the case to Monday due to some much need information.  I saw this not as a disappointment, but a moment of truth for us. Chris and I have been praying that our case will be ethical and that all darkness be uncovered...so this was a good thing.

After we figured out what we needed to do, we left with our driver Brian and the boys for some traditional Ugandan lunch...good ole' rice & beans.  It is the cutest thing ever to watch "A" eat food. You would never believe how much food this little man can pack in that belly!  He ate his whole plate!  But we have had to watch him because he doesn't know when to stop himself.  Food is very important to adopted children from impoverished backgrounds. They don't always know when their next meal will be.  This just breaks my heart as I see them want more and more food, and I just want to remind them that they are safe, that they will have food, that there is nothing to worry about.

We asked our agency if the boys could finally stay with us even though we didn't have court, so they said as long as we thought it was okay.  So we asked the boys and they very happily said that they wanted to stay with us. 

Ummmm...I didn't know what I was getting myself into!  Within hours, we were a mommy & a daddy to these boys. We bathed them, brushed their teeth, read them a book, prayed with them, sang a song, and then I sat next to their bed, just praying to God that they would know that they are safe and loved with us.  "M" kept getting out of bed and just seemed not settled in a new place.  But I continued to pray that God would allow them to get a good night's rest. 

Then this morning...M woke up at 6:00 AM!!!  I know all you moms are smiling right now, and saying "Yup..that's what motherhood is all about!" But I wasn't prepared for this!  Well, I thought I prepared myself, but not really.  I made him lay back down until the sun came up and then I made sure there were things for him to do quietly on the floor so we didn't wake anyone else up in the house (we are at a Bed & Breakfast with other adoptive families from the U.S.). 

So...needless to say, we both felt overwhelmed and in over our heads.  But as the day went on, we had fun with the boys. "A" was sick so I had to give him medicine for the first time, we went to the store to buy underwear for "M" because someone stole all 12 pairs that I packed, "M" got locked in the downstairs bathroom which was a crazy, but funny ordeal, went for walk to a local French pastry place with another adoptive mommy & her daughter, ate dinner & played with the other adopted kids at the house.  Overall the day went well. 

Please pray that God continues to equip us both! We both feel so overwhelmed, but feel that we just need to take each day as it comes.  I'm sure all of you who've had children know that feeling when you bring them home from the hospital or when you adopted them, that life was changing...and maybe in that moment, you realized that it is no longer about yourself, but little beings that need nurturing and love. I am just praying that God gives me the strength to raise these boys. And yes, Kerri, they are monkeys!  These boys love to jump off ledges, ride scooters, make up crazy daredevil stunts, play with the dirt (all in their barefeet). We've got our work cut out for us!