Still Waiting...Day 27

If there is one thing we are learning on this trip it is PATIENCE.  We went in to our lawyers today and we still did not have the pass ports, court rulings, and death certificates we needed.  We were told to come back tomorrow to get them and we are hoping that they will be there.

The children are more than ready to be in America.  Fyzel lies in bed at night and tells Michelle and Cindy what he misses in America.  He lists things like Trevor, Brandi, Kyle, his bicycle, and his cat.  Kahluna says that he is missing his bottom bunk and a huge piece of pig. (Ham...Michelle said it was waiting for him at home.)  Rachel cries to sleep at night missing Bethany and Destiny.  Tony is constantly wanting to look at pictures of his room and wants to see his Daddy.

Our days are spent finding ways to entertain ourselves.  Here are some highlights of our entertainment:

1.  Kahluna teaching Tony and Cindy the Worm- 

Kahluna knows how to do the worm and he is trying to teach Tony and Cindy (Michelle's mom.)  Tony looks like an upside down cockroach when he does the worm.  Cindy at least moves forward when she attempts.  Tony does not make any progress. 

2.  Come Up with Fabulous African Recipes-

Everyday the question is asked, "What is for Dinner?"  This is where we get creative and pull ALL of our resources together.  There are only so many ingredients that can be found in Africa that are safe for us to eat.  We have come up with many different ways to fix the same food.  Here are the ingredients we have available to us:

-Rice

-Noodles

-Blue Band- (Butter that does not have to be refrigerated)

-Tomato Paste

-Garlic

-Eggs

-Bananas

-Salt

-Fanta

-Onions

-Tomatoes

-Pineapple

-Peanut Butter

-Cabbage

We are holding a contest on Xanga for who can come up with the most creative recipe.  The prize you win is that we will make it for you when we get home!  Yum!

3.  Michelle is STILL enjoying her Equadorian Soap Operas

We are concerned that when we leave....Michelle is going to be left in suspense.  Michelle is very into a show called Camilla.  It is extra special because the actors speak Spanish...but it is dubbed over in English.  Keep in mind that Michelle does not watch any soap operas in America.  We are getting desperate.

4.  Amy, Kahluna, and Fyzel go running in the morning

Amy has noticed that her running partners often come down with many different injuries or illnesses that temporarily keep them from running.  Amy will go in the room in the morning and ask them if they are ready to run.  Fyzel will grab his leg or his stomach and say something is "paining him."  Kahluna complains of shin pains and covers up his head.

5.  We all make fun of Rachel when she is "hungry"

Everyone needs to keep in mind that her clothes no longer fit her because she has gained some weight.  We took the kids to a movie and Rachel ate a whole tub of popcorn and a pot pie.  We had been home for 10 minutes and she went to every person in the room and had a pitiful look on her face and would say, "I am hungry."  Her mom finally said, "You are not hungry, go play!"

6.  Predicting when our documents will be in and discussing conspiracy theories against mzungus (white people)

To be honest, this is really what we do with 95% of our time.  We all like to make predictions on when we think we will be on the plane. Here are our updated dates:

Michelle- July 17, 2007

Cindy- July 19, 2007

Fyzel- July 12, 2007

Rachel- July 15, 2007

Amy- 2008 ?????

Linda- Has withdrawn from the game due to emotional damages!

Feel free to make your own predictions! The correct person can meet us at the air port.

Please continue to comment on our site!  Hope to have good news soon.  Please continue to keep us in your prayers!

Then You Stand!

‘Cause when push comes to shove 
You taste what you’re made of 
You might bend ‘til you break 
‘Cause it’s all you can take 
On your knees you look up 
Decide you’ve had enough 
You get mad, you get strong 
Wipe your hands, shake it off 
Then you stand, then you stand 

We are going to break this song down for you and compare it to what we are experiencing in Uganda.

When push comes to shove-  This is everyday.  If we are not on top of what everyone is doing, then the process will not happen.  Sometimes the push or shove might come from a simple sit-in at the lawyers office.  
Other times it is calling the lawyers office multiple times in an hour.  

‘ Cause it’s all you can take- Just when we think that everything is working out, something else happens. It comes to
the point that we think we can't take any more, but we really can!

On your knees you look up-  We are learning more than ever what it means to rely on God for all our needs.  We 
know these children will not come home unless God performs miracles.  Sometimes the miracles can be as small as
a guardian showing up, death certificates, or a change of heart by a judge.  All these small miracles add up to one big 
miracle which is four children having loving homes in America. 

Decide you’ve had enough - When the plane took of July 3rd without us...we all decided we had enough.  Then we
went home and played with the children and we realized that in the end, it would all be worth it. 

You get mad-  This has happened a lot.  A perfect example was when Henry became the victim of this anger.  Henry is a
man that works at our lawyers office.  Every task he has done has been wrong and he alone has cost us over $300 USD.  
We have to constantly remind him to listen to us and that he is on our team.  The day before we had insisted that we send 
someone with one of our guardians to get a paper signed.  She is not capable of doing it by herself.  Our dear friend Henry
thought otherwise.  Then, the next day we show up with the paper and he says it is fine.  We send our guardian home.  Then, at
5:30 pm Henry calls and says that the paper work is wrong.  Keep in mind that we were sitting there all day doing nothing.  We went
back to the lawyers office and Amy was not very happy with Henry.  Today, Amy went back to the office and Henry had a smile on 
his face.  Must not have phased him too much.

You get strong-  We have no doubt in our minds that we that going through these things will make us stronger.  We are 
excited to see all that God has in store for us because we know that with each trial we face we are being made more into
the women that God wants us to be.

Wipe your hands-  Well....when you wipe your hands in Uganda....you are always left with LOTS of dirt and deet on the towel

Shake it off- This is what we have to do when we are over charged for the 15th time of the day.  Or when we are asked
to pay for things that we do not use.  We have learned that "shaking it off" is the best approach.  That is the way we avoid
the verse "we get mad" happening too often. 

Then you stand, then you stand-  We are still standing, and at the end of this trip we will be standing with four children in
America.  Even though this is a tough experience, we are learning a lot about what it means to stand for Christ even when
things don't go the way we want them to.  We are excited to share the message that God has brought to us this trip.  That message 
is that true faith comes when you believe in God even when you do not get the answer you wanted.  True faith is when everything about
you wants to give up, but something inside of you tells you to keep going.  

We are inviting all of you to STAND with us through this time of trials and the unknown.  Please STAND for us by praying.

Thanks for the comments!  We will update you soon! 

We Got the Papers!!!!