Christmas songs...

Finally, an update...

It has been awhile...since my last post, there's been continued adjusting and changes happening in our family. More bumps, some tears, but also a lot of joy, smiles, and laughter! Leo is doing well. Better than expected. With all that's happened in his past, Marv and I are continually amazed at how resilient and emotionally grounded he seems. He is doing better in school and has made a lot of friends. Maile has been excelling in school! Recently, we had our parent/teacher conferences for both kids, and we were very relieved! Maile also got a Soaring Spirit Award for being such a harmonious student. Her teacher talked of how she has such a loving heart and positive attitude! God is good!

Leo celebrated his 13th birthday on Nov 3rd. We had a big welcome/bday party for him on the 8th and we all had a wonderful time! One of Leo's social workers from the Philippines, Ate MyMy, who is here as an escort for the 8 orphans currently here for ICA's Welcome Home Program, was able to make it to the party as well. It was emotional seeing her again.

Life has been good to us. Maile and Leo have their struggles here and there but they also have their loving moments, which I cherish. It has been over 2 months since Leo has arrived. The month of October was a trying month for all of us but we've come out of it stronger and continue to build our family on a strong foundation of God's Word. I am impressed everyday by Marvin's example of prayer and Godly upbringing for the kids and I see how his influence is rubbing off on Leo. The other day when I wasn't feeling well, Leo took it upon himself to pray with me in the car. It was touching and yet so normal. I thank God.

Special treasures...

Maile was chosen as the "Star Student of the Week" in her class and as part of her special week, she was asked to bring in 3 special treasures to share with the class. She chose Leo as one of her special treasures. I thought that was adorable. Leo was a little embarassed about it. The two of them were pretty shy during the actual share time, but they did good. Maile's teacher asked Maile, "Can you tell us something that makes your brother so special?" She said, "He helps my mom." Cute. That, he does. It is nice to have someone helping with the dishes, vacuuming, and stuff around the house.

Maile also chose to share her basketball trophy and swimming bracelets (she gets a bracelet every time she moves up a level in her swimming classes) as her special treasures. We are so proud of our baby!

Adjusting...

It has been 3 weeks since we have been home from the Philippines. It feels like months have gone by. Leo continues to do well, as far as his adjustment and transition into our family. He started school on the 21st and had a rough first day, getting lost between 3rd and 4th period and having some issues with his combination lock for PE. His first day of school, I was with him for the New Student orientation and tour of his school (Leo was one of 4 new students that day). By the time we were done, his 2nd period class had already begun so I went with him to drop him off there. It was such a comfort to see that Macy, our next door neighbor, was in Leo's 2nd period art class! She greeted us as soon as we walked in. It was hard to say goodbye to him. I could see he was scared. It felt like the first day we brought Maile to daycare! Leo and I both had tears welling up in our eyes.

When Maile and I picked Leo up from school, he had a smile on his face. Praise the Lord! He said that Macy introduced him to a lot of people and he made a friend in one of his classes. Apparently, many of the Filipino kids at the school were excited about his arrival...Macy had been telling her friends about Leo for awhile. She's a great kid with a good heart:o)

Four out of Leo's seven classes are part of the ELL (English Language Learner) program which include Language Arts, Social Studies, English and a free period. His art, PE, and math classes are with the mainstream 7th graders. At this point, Leo is doing okay in school considering the language barrier...still learning English and he's having major issues in Pre-Algebra, so we're probably going to take him down to an easier math class. Overall, Leo has a wonderful, positive attitude about school with the motivation to do well...I know he'll be okay.

The biggest hurdle we've been tackling with Leo is his speed, especially when he's getting ready for school. I guess this doesn't sound like a big deal and is probably pretty normal for a 12 year-old. But when you're trying to get to school, work, or anywhere in time, it's frustrating to see someone doing everything in slow motion. Work in progress. He is getting better...much much better.

Maile is also getting better about her "Little Mommy" syndrome when it comes to Leo. They have their moments...good and bad...but overall they're really such good kids.

1st Post-Placement Assessment...

A post-placement assessment is when your social worker (or case worker) from the adoption agency comes to assess how your adopted child is adjusting to his new family, along with how the adopted family is adjusting to the child. The assessments are done by the first month of the child's placement, then another one by the third month of placement, and the last one is done by the sixth month of placement. These assessments are sent to the Intercountry Adoption Board in the Philippines as well. We had our first assessment on Friday, September 25th.

Our social workers, Cherie and Lorean, came by and grilled us a little bit. But, overall, it was pretty relaxed. Leo did well answering all the questions, and Maile even helped us answer some of the questions they asked Marvin and I about Leo. The kids showed off their bedrooms and we all had dinner together then took pictures. It was a nice time.

One of the things we discussed privately with Cherie was Leo's sensitivity level. Leo is sensitive. Although he doesn't say so much in words to express his feelings, there have been a couple incidents where he has cried. So we talked about that. But overall, Leo appears to be very happy. He doesn't seem to long for the Philippines or his foster family at all. Perhaps he thinks we'll assume he doesn't like us if he admits that he misses anything from the Philippines. So I told him that it's okay to miss his foster family, friends, and social workers...it's normal, I said. Yesterday, he finally said that he misses them a little. That was good to hear.

All in all, I am pretty amazed at the transition that we have ALL made into our new family. Marvin is awesome. And, Maile treats Leo like a "real" brother (which can be good and bad)...I haven't heard her mention him being adopted in a while. I have no doubts that Leo is happy about being a part of our family now. It's all a work in progress, but although there have been a few rough spots here and there...as there should be...there's no denying how happy and complete we feel as a family. To God be the glory!!!

Reunited...

Congratulations to the Ireland Family! Andrea and Jeremy Ireland are a couple who have been going through the adoption journey with us. They adopted a set of three siblings from the Philippines...Reggie (13 years old), Lalaine (11 years old), and Inggo (8 years old). They brought their kids home a week before we left to pick Leo up in the Philippines. The wonderful thing is that Leo and Reggie are great buddies. Andrea and Jeremy have been a blessing to us in supporting us, encouraging us, and praying with us throughout these last months. Not many people can understand the trials this adoption journey takes you through and it's been great to turn to people who really, really know...

We were finally able to see the new and improved Ireland family this past weekend, on September 26th, at their Welcome Reception for their children. What a beautiful ceremony! When Reggie and Leo saw each other again, their smiles were so big! When they hugged...tears filled my eyes! God is so awesome!

The Patterson family also recently arrived home (safe and sound, Thank the Lord!) from the Philippines with their newly adopted son, Julius, who is friends of Leo and the Ireland kids (they were all a part of the same Welcome Home Program that initially brought the children here back in November 2008). We are excited to see all these kids reunited again.

We are also praying for Wes and Lynette Imayanagita, who are in the process of adopting a set of 3 siblings (sisters)...Maribel, Marimar and Angelica...also from the Philippines. With the terrible floods that recently hit the Philippines, we are praying that their children are safe and sound. They are expecting to pick up their kids by Christmas, if all the paperwork moves smoothly. We're hoping for sooner!

Finally home...

It has been a couple days since we came home from the Philippines...God is good! Leo and Maile are doing well. So is Koa! Maile goes back to school tomorrow. Leo will start next week. Leo has met a lot of people in the last two days. He's been holding up good. Maile is adjusting...she is the little "Big Sister" right now...bossing Leo around. But, he doesn't seem to mind so much. Maile has been phenomenol throughout this whole journey...it surprises me how mature she is, spiritually and intellectually. Still dramatic but she's holding up good, too. Right now, we're all very happy...adjusting, tired, and jet-lagged but our home is filled with joy! Praise God!

ICAB...

On Sept 10, 2009 we had our appointment with ICAB (which is the governing adoption board in the PI) to pick up Leo's travel documents. What an overwhelming day...in a good way! Before heading to the ICAB office, we went to the Parenting Foundation (where we picked Leo up) again to meet with the director and again with Leo's social workers. During our visit there, Marvin had the social workers translate some things that we wanted to say to Leo before we went back home. It was very emotional. We cried. The social workers fought tears as they translated some of it. Leo and Maile were mostly quiet. They asked Leo how he felt about coming home with us. He said he was happy. Afterwards, I felt such peace...our family was sealed. I thank God for our family. I thank God for the wonderful husband and father that Marvin is.


Driving to Quezon City to the ICAB office was so not fun. Traffic. Traffic. More traffic. Rough ride for the kids. At the ICAB office, we saw some familiar faces. Bernadette (the ICAB director) and Rutchelle (social worker) were both people that came to California while Leo was here back in November 2008. Happy to see them. We met with Dr. Sotto for awhile, the ICAB psychologist, then signed some papers...one was a form where we had to write a statement to Leo for his file (in case he chose to look through it in the future)....that was a little emotional. Leo got fingerprinted for that form. Then, Imelda (the ICAB social worker) went over all the documents that we would have to show the customs' officials at the PI airport and at LAX. The ICAB people gave Leo a small Filipino flag, a toy jeepney, and a book entitled "Philippines: The land that I came from." It was sweet of them to also give Maile a little doll wearing a Filipino dress. We took a lot of pictures...

From then on, Leo has been in our legal custody...
God is so good!

Reunited...

It has been 3 days since we were reunited with Leo. It feels like a few weeks have gone by! We are still in the Philippines and it seems we've managed to squeeze a month's worth of stuff into just the last 3 days. I will do my best not to be overly verbose and summarize the events...

The day we picked up Leo...Sept 7, 2009. Could hardly sleep the night before and Maile woke up at 3:00 am and started counting the minutes to our 10:00 appointment to meet Leo (didn't help). We were so excited! It was raining. When we finally saw Leo, it was very emotional. Leo's foster mother, foster brother (6 years old), his best friend from school, social worker, two other social workers, and a friend of Leo's foster mother were there to greet us. We met in an upstairs office. Leo was very shy, so was Maile. He opened a couple gifts we brought for him (an ID bracelet, and a framed drawing Maile made of her with Leo infront of our house). Leo's foster mother cried several times as she talked about Leo. I cried. Talked with the social workers about how Leo has been, his school, etc. They said lots of girls at Leo's school cried when they found out he was leaving. Seeing Leo say goodbye to his foster family and best friend was hard. Overall, Leo handled it all well. Despite the goodbyes, he was clearly happy to be going with us. He is excited to see our new dog, Koa.

We went back to Marvin's parents house in Las Pinas...hung out, ate lunch, went swimming, went to the mall (Leo forgot to pack all of his underwear!) where the kids played video games and we ate dinner.

The next day...went to the mall(Marv drove...so proud!) and Leo, Marv and Maile bought new shoes, went to visit my parents in Cavite for a couple days. Raining hard! Leo met my parents and "my side" of the family (Leo loved playing with my 7 month old niece, Mayumi), we did some shopping and ate out, had a breakfast party, hung out, walked in the rain to the Mini-Stop convenience store for ice cream...yummy:o) The kids love looking at all the stray dogs.

Today we have two meetings...going back to the Parenting Foundation office (where we picked up Leo) to meet with the director and psychologist, then will be going to the Intercountry Adoption Board office to meet with the board where they will hand over all of Leo's travel documents.


So far, everything has been better than expected! God is so good! I think Leo was a little overwhelmed at my parent's place having to meet so many people so early on but he did good. We've managed to have some quality 'down time' together as a family where we'll sit around the bedroom and hang out. Leo is most comfortable around Maile...they seem to have picked up right where they left off. He is so good with her. I thank God when I look at them together...what beautiful children I have! Have not heard Leo call Marv or I, "Mom" or "Dad" yet...that will come. Mostly, Leo is just as I remembered...sweet, sensitive, still loves the video games, affectionate...but his appetite is so much better than I remember! Hallelujah!

Want to say a special thank you to our wonderful friends, Dojo and the Aguilar family for handling our flight arrangements and for driving us (and picking us up) from the airport. Also, a heartfelt thanks to Kristen and John Winder for taking care of our dog, Koa, while we are out of town. Our hearts are so full from the love, support, and prayers we've received during our journey...

We are enjoying are stay here. A little muggy and rainy, yes...but not overly hot. Thank the Lord! But....I can't wait to bring our Leo home!

Sinking in...

Today I went to Leo's new school to talk to his school counselor. The plan is to start him in the 7th grade on Sept 21st. I can't believe I am now the mother to a middle-schooler. Walking into the school 5 minutes before school started brought back my own memories of being the new-kid-in-school at 7th grade...not fun. How I feel for my boy. His counselor is great and she walked me through the ELL (English Language Learner) program Leo will be in and how the transitioning works. We talked about Leo's history and decided on a class program that might work best for him. It sounded like a good program. And, how caring she was. I was relieved. After months of praying whether to put Leo in a charter school vs. public school vs. homeschooling vs. alternative schooling; the decision that brought Marvin and I the most peace was to start Leo in public school...see how he does...and take it from there. I keep praying...

We also had our travel orientation at our adoption agency. This is where our case worker sits down with us and discusses our schedule in the Philippines and what will happen during our appointments and when Leo is transferred over to us.

So, it is finally all sinking in now.

This past week we've been celebrating our church's 25th anniversary...the theme for the week has been "Honoring our Past but Celebrating our Future." We sang a new song at church called, "Moving Forward"...and that has been in my heart this whole month. I praise God for always speaking to me where I'm at.

I've got still a lot of stuff to organize and pack. Plus, I've got a messy house to clean...nothing sucks more than coming back jet-lagged from a trip to a messy house...ugh! Maile is so excited...so excited she lost ANOTHER tooth yesterday!

No longer living in limbo...

After a frustrating few days, we finally got "the call" to travel to the PI and pick up our adopted son, Leo! Big sigh of relief...it's funny when you get news you've been waiting months to hear, you think you'll be jumping up and down. I was numb with a few tears. These past few months have been trying, but with all the distractions of life, I thought I was handling it all in stride. Until last night, anyway...

I was at Costco for a last minute errand and ran into some friends, Kristen and John Winder...such dear friends who helped us out while Leo was here and who've been so supportive throughout the past few months. Well, as soon as I saw them, I just busted out crying...in the middle of Costco! I guess God new I needed that...they were so uplifting! Bumping into them reassured me of how good our God is:o)

I'm now scrambling for tickets to leave next week....so it begins!

Adoption update...

So we've been waiting for Leo's visa to be issued. Apparently the norm for visa issuance is somewhere between 24 hrs to 7 days after the visa interview, and once the visa is issued...voila, we supposedly get 'the call' to travel. Well, it's been a month since Leo's visa interview and no word. So I called our Congresswoman's office yesterday for help. Within 24 hrs, they confirmed that Leo's visa had been issued! Good news...frustrating part is that it was issued on July 31st...almost a month ago!

A week, three weeks, a month doesn't seem like a long time to wait...I know. But, every day that goes by feeling like your family isn't complete is...well, it is what it is. Anyway, our agency has contacted ICAB (the governing adoption board in the PI) and perhaps we'll get word on when we can travel tomorrow. Although Leo's visa has been issued, we still have to wait for a formal invitation to travel from ICAB as they are the ones who meet with us to hand over all of Leo's paperwork.

To note, I do have a few distractions (both good and bad) that have been keeping me occupied...

1) Our new dog, Koa, is sick (poor baby!)...and I'm getting ready to get swindled at the vet tomorrow.
2) Had an awesome weekend at the GMD Benefit Concert for International Christian Adoptions!

3) Kicked off the week-long celebration for our church's 25th Anniversary!

4) Maile:o)
5) Oh yeah, work...plus all the regular wife and mommy stuff
6) And of course, the intermittent packing for our unbooked trip...

Ahh yes, and in all of this, I'm realizing that when Leo arrives, life will again be changing so I'm trying to savor these last moments, especially with Marvin and Maile, before we move forward to our new family.

The offer...

Marvin recently got offered partnership and ownership at the physical therapy clinic he's been working at for the last eight months. He was presented the offer on his birthday, of all days, Aug 17th! Anyway, he and his potential partner are still discussing all the details but I pray it works out...

Partnership + Profit-sharing = Sherill doesn't have to work anymore!

How selfish of me...I know:o) We'll see if this is part of our new beginning, too.

Moving Forward...

After the death of our dog, I've been very sensitive to all the changes happening around me. My 6 year old daughter, Maile, lost her first tooth and started 1st grade last week...nothing says "moving forward" like looking at your once baby and now 1st grader (minus one tooth) and realizing that she's growing up. Another big part of what "IS" coming...sigh.

I picked her up the other day and realized how tall and heavy she's getting...carrying her around is starting to look "not-so-normal" anymore. Instead of just playing with her or correcting her, I am now feeling the hints of serious conversations and the need for "mature" parenting coming upon me...yikes!

The Adoption...

We are adopting a child...Leo. Here he is with Maile...don't they look happy? We'll be picking him up in the Philippines soon...very soon (I hope). Perhaps in the next couple of weeks. The PI requires that both parents come to the PI to pick up their adopted children and we'll be taking Maile with us. Lately, our travel plans have been up in the air with typhoons, the death of the former PI president and the shutting down of government offices... beauracratic stuff. Sigh...I'm continually finding that God's perfect timing doesn't always line up with my schedule.

Anyway, the good news is our paperwork is done and the adoption fees are paid...miraculously! Praise God. Leo has completed his visa medical exam and interview, which are the final steps in the process before his visa is issued and we get "the call" to travel.

The adoption journey has been an 8 month process (so far) for us...full of every kind of emotion, feeling, surprise, disappointment, joy, and uncertainty you can imagine. A journey of faith and pure reliance on God. Enough said. I have a blog I started last year that documents part of what led us to Leo (http://www.markanthonyfund.blogspot.com) and I'm now continuing our story with this new and more personal blogsite. Leo is a big part of what "IS" coming...part of our new beginning.

Losing Kaipo...

I woke up at 3am this morning and couldn't sleep and decided I wanted to start a blog. Wierd. Writing this now, I'm skeptical that I can keep up with this thing...but inspired by wanting to document some memories in an organized and impromptu way, here I am. Mostly for myself, I must admit:o) With all that's going on in life right now, I just need an outlet...

We lost our dog...our dog of 12 years. His name was Kaipo and we laid him to rest on August 4th. When we got home from the shelter after putting Kaipo down, I sat down in our kitchen and said to my husband, "So it's a new life for us now." Life felt so different at that moment. How I loved that dog. Having had Kaipo in our lives since before Marvin and I married, before we started our family, and before we bought our home; the loss of Kaipo's constant, comfortable, and loving presence marked (to me) the end of what once "WAS" and the beginning of what "IS" coming...it was a sorrowful day, but one full of hope and trust in whatever God is bringing us.

We adopted a new dog...Koa. A dog I would've never pictured our family getting. After spending time with three dogs at the shelter, Maile's heart (and I have to surprisingly admit, my heart too) sat on a two year old playful, but skiddish chihuahua mutt. Much different than what we were use to. Marvin came by the shelter to take a look at this dog and I warned him by saying, "It's not what you're expecting." After spending some time with him, Marvin gave his blessing.

It seemed like we all knew...we needed change. Anyway, it felt right. It's been a week later since the day we brought Koa home. Turns out, he's a really good dog...playful but calm, affectionate, a little snippy and nervous, but loving. Our home feels very different now.

So, a new story is beginning. It's funny how a family pet can signify such change...and motivate the introduction to a blogsite:o) Anyway, I believe in change. I believe in pets! Dogs are such beautiful creations. How healing they can be...