Keyla is back in the US!

Just a quick update to let everyone know that Keyla made it safely back to the US, with Ethan of course!

They are currently in the DC airport, and will be boarding a plane in just a couple of hours for Orlando! I can't wait to see them at the airport this afternoon.

Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers during her 6 weeks in Ethiopia. God has been so good to us, and it's amazing to think this journey is almost over, and our lifetime together with Ethan can finally begin!

Once we get him settled in at home we will get some more photos and videos posted of our amazing little guy.

Love to all, Jeremy

Keyla and Ethan are coming home!

I received official word at 5 a.m. today: Keyla finally has a visa interview date at the US embassy! It looks to be this Thursday, which means she and Ethan can begin the long flight home on Saturday night. Thanks to everyone for your continued thoughts and prayers.

Last prayer request for this part of the journey: pray for her sanity during the flight! It's a 17 hour trek from Addis to DC, followed by a 7 hour layover, and then over 2 hours to Orlando. So Ethan and I will be becoming best of friends again while Keyla gets some recup time in next week.

I can't wait to have them home, and so glad it will be in less than a week!

Love to all, Jeremy

Update

Internet has been snail slow over here. It is very difficult to get into any website, but even worse on this blogger website. Unfortunately, the best times are at 3 and 4 in the mornings. Those of you who know me well, know I am possibly the least morning person in the universe. But I've had to learn to be one while in Ethiopia in order to communicate with my husband.

Anyways, as you know we passed court on March 10th! Yay! And now we are waiting to have our paperwork submitted to the US Embassy here in Ethiopia which should take place on Wednesday. Please, please, please pray that we get a quick appointment so we can get Ethan's visa and go HOME!!!  The trend right now looks very promising with families getting cleared to travel as short as one day from having their paperwork submitted. SO we are optimistic but honestly in Ethiopia you never know. But God is more powerful than any government or trend or problem and we trust in Him and His perfect timing.

It's been a little challenging to be a single mom to Ethan during this adjustment period. Did I mention, I miss my husband very much??? He is such a wonderful help to me. But I pray for wisdom and patience during this time alone with Ethan (so we can both survive it! hehe)  Ethan has been having an ear infection and it looks like really bad teething. But God always meets our needs no matter where we are. I have met some amazing women here at the guest house where I am staying at and they have given me such fantastic advice and are even willing to take Ethan when mommy needs a quick break! God is good, ya'll!! :-)  Right now I am listening to the soft breathing of my baby sleeping - Ahh...nap time, God's gift to mommies!!!

Hope everyone's having a great Sabbath day!
Love you all!
Keyla

Photos and Videos of Ethan!

Hello Everyone,

Keyla is still in Ethiopia and I am back in the USA now. Had quite a long flight back this weekend, and so glad to be home. But I sure am missing her and Ethan very much!

Just in case you haven't seen photos or videos on our Facebook pages, here are the links.

Keyla has uploaded some videos of Ethan on her YouTube page.
http://www.youtube.com/user/keylavazquez

And in case you haven’t seen Ethan's photos yet, you can check them out at this link:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=283624&id=716808563&l=dc6952c839

Thanks for your continued prayers for a soon Embassy date, which means Keyla and Ethan can then come home!

Love to all - Jeremy

Basically...a miracle!

Wow…where to begin. How about with the words, “God is good. So, So, Good!”

I know it sounds cliché, but I can’t help my ‘giddiness.’ Not after what I’ve seen and experienced these past few weeks. Actually, I could go back as early as September 2008 when we first decided to enter the journey to adopt from Ethiopia. But, why don’t I just focus on the past few weeks for now. :)

So let me back up for a second and give you all a little background.

The weeks before we arrived in Ethiopia, there were many rumors that MOWA (Ministry of Women’s Affairs in Ethiopia) were at odds with the court system and were threatening to write 90% LESS letters of recommendations each DAY for the adoption cases they see each week.

Without that letter no family can ever pass court and in essence that would mean many years before you can take your kids home. In one word, disaster. Orphanages would fill up and the adoption cases would be backed up for years.

The group of families having court on the same day as us would be the very first group to experience the new changes in court. To say that we were all “freaked-out” is the biggest understatement of the year. I belong to an amazing Yahoo Group part of the agency we are utilizing for our adoption (AWAA.org) and these amazing individuals began to take turn to pray every hour for weeks. I haven’t met or talked to any other adoption group more devoted than these people. They were on their knees CONSTANTLY!

The day of our court appointment, the in-country director for our agency basically sat us down and told us, “don’t expect to pass court today. Maybe one or two families at the very most will pass today.” There were six of us, from our agency, and at least 30 other families from other agencies around the world having their court appointment on the same day as us, and waiting anxiously to pass. As we waited to be called in to see the judge, the anxiety was almost too much to handle.

The first family from our group that went in to see the judge came out with a lot of excitement so we knew they had passed. Although we were thrilled for them, we immediately thought, “there goes our letter!” hehe We knew the odds of any of us getting another letter and passing court that day were as probable as me waking up one day and speaking Amharic fluently. Basically…impossible. We all sort of resigned to the fact that we were going to hear negative news on that day and we would just deal with it and trust in God for His perfect timing.

Long story short…not just one family but 5 families from our group eventually passed that same day and the other family received great news that it won’t take long for their son to be legally theirs forever. Did we experience a miracle on that day? You bet we did. The hand of God was SO evident, and I wish I could give you a great explanation as to why I think that happened but all I can think of is, He is “a Father to the fatherless,” and “sets the lonely in families.”

I could write so much more about the many ways we have seen God move in the tiniest details of this whole process, but the bottom line is God will ALWAYS make a way when we open up our hearts to those in need. When we follow after God’s own heart and take care of the widows, the poor, and the orphans for HIS honor and glory. To say that this whole journey has been exhausting, stressful, and at times almost something more than I can handle is the second biggest understatement of the year. But if you ask me if it was all worth it…boy, is it worth it!

Not just worth it, when I hold my baby’s tiny fingers or snuggle up for a sweet afternoon nap. But when I see complete strangers become a family in an instant and without reservations or when I see an 11-year-old kid counting down the days until he gets to go to his forever home in a place he has never seen or been to. I am grateful, SO grateful to have a front seat, enjoying seeing God’s hand in action defending the fatherless. Did I mention? - God is SO good!

P.S. I should probably mention that although our group was the recipient of an amazing miracle on that day, there are still a lot of families waiting to pass court and embassy. Also, the situation between MOWA and court is not completely resolved yet and I would encourage you all to keep this situation in prayer. I know in my heart God is pro-adoption. In fact, He adopted ALL of us. If that’s not prove enough, I don’t know what is! So please join me in praying for the families who are waiting to bring their kids home, for those wondering right now whether adoption is the right choice for them or if they should financially support a family who is adopting. Let’s also pray that one day Christians from every nation can stand united against poverty, hunger and we cannot rest until every mouth is fed and every orphanage is empty! That would be a great day!

Day 2 in Ethiopia - my best day yet as a dad!

Hello everyone!

Keyla is normally the blogger, but today I'm giving the update, because it was a very special day for me. :o)

We started off Monday by touring Emperor Haile Selassie's former palace, which has now been turned into a museum on the history of Ethiopia. We learned so much about the country, and even learned more about the region where Ethan is from. Very cool! Check out Keyla in front of the palace.

Then we headed to lunch (great pizza!) and then back to the transition home! It was day 2 with Ethan, and it was all about time with daddy today. We spent 15 minutes getting re-acquainted, and then he decided it was time for a nap. He just snuggled right up to me, and feel asleep in about 10 seconds! For almost 2 hours I lay there with him on my chest, just listening to him breathe. I love this little guy so much!

He would pat me gently on the arm as he slept, and then he would reach up and grab my adam's apple, to feel my voice. He would wake up every so often to turn his head, and then would go right back to sleep. Priceless! Even after he woke up, he just lay in my arms, watching everyone around us. I can't wait to do this full-time.... hehe. He finally decided he was hungry, so polished off a bottle and a bowl of food. He's definitely not shy about eating!

The afternoon ended all too soon, but as we handed him back off to the nanny, we knew that Tuesday we would be seeing him in the morning! We get a chance to talk with his care team on Tuesday, and thank them for their work. Btw, what a dedicated and amazing care team in the transition home! I am truly amazed at the love and devotion each of the nannies give to all the children there. They are truly extending Christ's ministry in all they do.

Thanks for your continued prayers. We meet with the doctor on Wednesday to discuss his health, and then Thursday is court day! If it's God's will and in His time, we could get approved same day, and he could be living with us by Friday! Until next post...

Love to all - Jeremy

First day with Ethan!!

Hello everyone! Checking in from Addis Ababa.
We got in this morning at about 8:15 after a long 13 hour flight. No sleep at all...in case you were wondering! :)

We got a chance to meet our little guy for the very first time today. There were MANY tears...mainly from him. I don't think he was too fond of us. But that's ok. We will be back tomorrow, to try again.

I got a chance to have him fall asleep in my arms for an hour and enjoyed listening to his contented sighs. Then he woke up and teased us with a few giggles! It's so much fun to see how he begins to trust us little by little and how we fall in love with him each day more and more!



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Final check-in from DC!!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:Dulles Airport

Headed to the airport...

Click on the link to see a short video of our ride to the airport!
More to come later...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sty8az7wNOU&feature=youtube_gdata_player


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Room update #1

(remember to stop the music from the playlist at the bottom of this page in order to enjoy the video)

Room update #2

packing, packing....

and more packing! That seems to be the story of my life, these days.
I know it's been a while since I've updated you all on our journey, so I'd like to take this time to give you a quick overview of what the Robinsons have been up to lately.

1) Showers of blessings!
Our church family was so kind and gracious to give us a baby shower a couple of weeks ago.
We cannot say enough how incredibly blessed we are to have such loving and caring church family. They have completely embraced our adoption journey and at times it's almost as if they themselves are going through the process. They've cried, rejoiced, prayed and walked hand-in-hand with us. We truly love our church!!
So here are a few photos from the shower:

2) Needles, needles and more needles!

That just about summarizes our past Wednesday. Jeremy and I finally decided to face our fears head on! (ok, we don't really have a "fear" of needles...but we're not crazy about them either). We were so glad to discover we had our full series of hepatitis done with our employer and didn't need to re-do it! AH....the simple joys in life!! :)  Anyways, we are now fully immunized for: polio (boy, does that vaccine hurt for days...), menactra meningitis (apparently quite popular in Ethiopia), typhoid and tetanus. 

Here is a picture of my boo boos :-(

3) Let the packing begin!

So I can pretty much sum up my life lately with something like this: laundry, folding, packing...repeat steps one through three...    

I can't complain (too much) because this means we are just one suitcase closer to seeing our baby boy!! 

As you all know, I am planning on staying in Ethiopia between court and embassy, so I have LOTS of food items, baby items (300 diapers to be exact) and not too mention all of my junk to carry with me to Ethiopia. So here is a picture of the suitcases carrying the food. (yes, I love black beans!!)

Never did I know how many microwavable items exist in this world!!! But, apparently quite a few - and they are probably all in my suitcase!

Well, that is it for now. Once I finish organizing Ethan's room and putting away all of the gifts, I will share a picture with ya'll.

xoxo,
Keyla

calling all prayer warriors...again

this time not for me but for some families who are facing some issues with embassy.
They have passed court recently, so legally the kids are theirs, but the embassy is refusing to give them a visa for the kids to come home.  I can't get into too many details about these cases but we need to get on our knees and intercede on behalf of these couples and boldly come before the throne of God and ask Him to remove all mountains and obstacles so these children can forever unite with their loving families.

We have already seen small miracles happen in the past few days so we know God is preparing the way.

I'll keep you posted as I hear more updates.

God bless!!

oh, the memories...

As we get closer to our trip to Ethiopia (T minus 16 days, in case anyone was wondering...hehe) I've been thinking of what I should give Ethan's family (as we have asked to meet them during our court). I decided to create a small photo album with photos of Jeremy and I, our home, friends, families and photos of Ethan. To be honest, I never expect it to be such an emotional process. I guess just knowing that his family will look at it from time to time and will have completely different emotions than mine is a bit overwhelming. The more I think about that, the more respectful and almost spiritual I would like this album to come across to them. I pray they always know how much I cherish the priceless gift they have given me and how much I respect them and want to honor their memory and heritage.

Remember our courier angels?

well, we are rejoicing with them tonight as they have recently heard back from the courts in Ethiopia that their precious Jameson is legally and forever their son! One less orphan in the world! Praise GOD!!

Here's the video they posted of the day they met their sweet baby boy for the first time.
Can't wait until the day I can post pictures of our precious Ethan!!

court update

Hey ya'll!

I apologize for my lack of blogging...hehe I've been on tour in Puerto Rico this week and very busy traveling from city to city. It's been a lot of fun, although I miss my hubby terribly!!

Just wanted to log in for a few minutes and let everyone know that we just received confirmation from our agency that the judge declined our appeal for an earlier court date. Although, a bit disappointed, we are trusting in God that He knows the best timing and He sees ALL things. So we are reassured in the promise that He works all things for our good.

We thank you so much for your prayers and please continue to keep us in your prayers as we prepare to travel to Ethiopia on March 4th and our court date on March 10th.

Please pray that ALL of the documents needed are in order and ready for court on that day and consequently, for a prompt embassy date/visa appointment shortly after.

I'll keep you posted as more news come in.

God bless you all!
Keyla

calling all prayer warriors!!

We just received a wonderful email from our agency travel coordinator asking us if we would be interested in appealing the Ethiopian courts for an earlier court date....hmmmm....YES, WE WOULD!!! :-)

This is not a for sure thing but we have begun the process and we'll wait to hear back from the courts.
I call upon you all my prayer warriors to PLEASE keep this in your prayers as we implore God to move within HIS will.

I will keep you all posted as I hear any news.

Blessings,
Keyla

Why Ethiopia?

The question we get asked most frequently by people is, "why Ethiopia?" My first thought usually is, "why not Ethiopia?" but instead I try to explain the horribly poor conditions found in this beautiful country and how many children are in need of love, food and families to take care of them. Sometimes it is hard to do that with words, so I am showing a short video that in my opinion does a fantastic job of conveying the reasons why we should all be concerned about the children of Ethiopia. Please watch!

(feel free to pause the playlist at the bottom of the page to hear the video)

Our courier angels met their son TODAY!

Our courier angels met their son today in Ethiopia!! She's been able to communicate via Facebook and her blog and this is how she described her experience today. Not long until it is our turn!! :)

--

http://www.amomentcherished.blogspot.com/

How do I put into words....

the emotions of this moment, this culmination of so much prayer, anticipation.

I am inadequate. It was everything and nothing like I had imagined.

As our van bumped down the street that held the Transition Home,

that held my son, my heart beat out of sync, clapping against my chest manicly.

Tears spilled at my lids, as the America World sign came into view.

Then those gates, oh those gates that I had seen in countless other

adopting family's photos and videos. Only this time they were real....there....

before me. As the gates opened my heart began to thrash even more wildly.

My eyes blurred, my throat burned. We were the first family alphabetically to

meet our child. This was it. No more waiting. No more wondering.

We handed off cameras, and stood on the porch.

What to expect?

What to expect? My heart beat out.

The moments seemed to slow to an eternity, and then he was there before us,

being brought to us. He was woken from a nap for our moment, and terrified.

He cried huge crocodile tears, and as I held him to my thumping chest his chest

beat out a similar rhythm as mine. Wild. Flesh, blood, hearts. My son. The one that

God sewed into my heart the very first time I learned of Ethiopia and her orphans.

My hands were so hungry to know him, his curls- soft and springy, his skin- chocolate

satin, his cheeks and neck begged to be kissed, and my lips found them over and over,

as his tears splashed me wet and warm. He smells of Africa. I smell of another world,

and it frightened him. He would bury his head in my neck and nuzzle in my shoulders,

and then quickly withdraw from the foreigness of my scent, my shape. Jim reached out

to him. Daddy, son, they were perfect as their tears mingled.

I wondered if it would feel anything like real love. And it did. It does. He settled.

He slept in our arms for hours, we began to bond over a bottle, and rice, and songs

and dance. Giggles, little hands exploring my face, my hair, and my hands mimicing

back.

He is my son. Heart of my heart.

The dance has begun.

Courier angels...

This week we are so grateful to a family in New York adopting through the same agency as ours, whom we haven't met in person and probably never will, who are making their first trip to Ethiopia tomorrow and have graciously offered to take our sweet Ethan a care package from us. As I have posted before, Jeremy and I recorded our voices reading the lovely book, "Guess How Much I Love You" so the caregivers at the transition home can show it to him every night before he goes to sleep - that way he can start recognizing our voices! We also sent him a warm outfit since it can get a little chilly there at night.

We pray for all of the families, including our courier angels, who are traveling this week for their court date. May God bless them and keep them safe. We also pray they can pass court on the very first try!

Here's a picture of our care package goodies.

random thoughts...

It is almost the weekend...Yea!!

This week my mom came over for a quick visit and after I gave her the latest on Ethan's room preparations, we sat down at the dining table and started going through some old photos. It was so much fun! One of the photos reminded her of a funny story about me. She said that when I was in the 2nd grade I came home with a very serious look on my face. Apparently I took her by the hand and told her, "mom, you need to sit down because I have something very important to tell you." So we both sat down on the cold floor, indian style, and I grabbed her by the hand and told her, "mom, I am in love with Luis (we're still trying to figure out who this Luis is...) and I am going to marry him when I turn 19-years-old." She said, "ok, you do that." We both laughed so hard until our sides hurt.

It made me think of all the funny little stories Ethan and I will share in the near future. I look forward to the day when we sit at a table going through old photos and I get to tell him all of the funny things he used to say when he was in 2nd grade!

The battle of the mind

All,

I know most of my blogs are lighthearted and fun but brace yourself, I'm about to get REAL serious on you.  As Jeremy and I prepare to become parents, we have been taking inventory on the things in our lives that need tweaking in order to be a better example to our baby boy. Everything from the things we watch on tv, the things we say around the house to how we spend our free time has all gone under the microscope in the past few weeks all with one goal - to better serve our child.

I came across this blog about an amazing family who's mission in life is to bring awareness of the 147 million orphans in the world who need loving families who will take them in. She recently posted on her blog about the effect the movies we watch have on our minds. It was so inspiring to read her thoughts because I have been thinking about the same thing for a few weeks now. I know it is long, but I invite you to not only read it in its entirety but also to meditate on it as we aspire to be an example to our children and to the world.

--

Taken from: http://joiningthejourney.blogspot.com/

My children absolutely LOVE the "25 Days til' Christmas" movies on the family channel starting December 1. The whole month of November they speak of building a fire, pulling out the blankets and snuggling up on the couch together. As our family has grown, the couch snuggling has spread to the floor with masses of pillows and blankets...we LOVE it!

Last weekend (the entire weekend) the movies were the Harry Potter series. NOW, I know that this is a VERY controversial subject, but since this is MY blog, I am going to share my heart about this issue. I have heard ALL of the reviews about this series in the literary world. I know that all of the experts and critics believe that this series of books/movies are extraordinary. The issue that I have, not only with Harry Potter but also sex filled movies, is that AS BELIEVERS we HAVE to be aware of the war that is going on in the spiritual realm all around us.

There have been times through out my life where I have come face to face with demonic oppression. IT IS REAL. The spells that are cast, the lives that satan has taken over and ruined is REAL. The things that you see on Harry Potter (while we think of it as entertainment and "imaginary"...IT HAPPENS!) If you do not believe me, ask a few people who live in third world countries that deal with witch doctors and I guarantee you that they don't watch it for entertainment. People are ALIVE on this earth, casting spells, sacrificing children, killing people on a daily basis to bring satan glory and we are watching or reading the same type of "witchcraft" here in the US as entertainment. If you have had a spell cast on your or your children and you had to rely on our sweet Savior to heal your body and free your children from the bondage that accompanies it....you would NEVER desire to read about it or watch it as entertainment. If you are a believer you believe that satan is real OR NOT. If you believe he is real...then why subject yourself to his lies? Now, I know that Harry Potter is not sacrificing children but what YOU need to know is that what goes on in the Harry Potter series is the SAME witch craft that leads to all of the other. That they would show witchcraft during the season of Christ birth angers me to no end. Just another little jab from satan...easing his way in on such a precious season to celebrate our Savior.

My friend Katie is surrounded by children who have pierced their ears, pulled permanent teeth, or have marked their skin permanently so that they will not be used as child sacrifice. IT IS real....it is SAD....and as believers we HAVE to educate ourselves on this matter. The real question is...."is it worth it for us to just ignore it for our entertainment?"

The same holds true with movies that open our minds and hearts to sexual lust. When we sit and watch a couple having sex on a big screen, (and I KNOW that they do not show EVERYTHING just enough to leave the brain to wonder...which is actually worse at times) we are opening our minds and hearts to the source of 70% of broken marriages today. SEVENTY PERCENT..... All for the sake of entertainment...don't you wonder if God wonders if we even have a brain in our heads? Why on earth would we subject our minds and hearts to the very thing that is breaking up our God ordained relationship?????

47% percent of families said pornography is a problem in their home
Pornography a significant factor in 2 out of 3 divorces

9 out of 10 children aged between the ages of 8 and 16 have viewed pornography on the Internet, in most cases unintentionally

Average age of first Internet exposure to pornography: 11 years old

Largest consumer of Internet pornography: 12 - 17 year-old age group

Every second - $3,075.64 is being spent on pornography

Every second - 28,258 Internet users are viewing pornography

Every second - 372 Internet users are typing adult search terms into search engines

Every 39 minutes: a new pornographic video is being created in the United States

The bible is full of scripture speaking of the heavenly hosts raging war against the evil one. There is a war going on DAILY. Events may seem to occur randomly, with little or NO meaning. People who view the world this way have overlooked one basic fact: the limitations of human understanding. If we only knew how our Savior's heavenly army is fighting on our behalf each and every day. We would never doubt how much He cares for us. This is why we must walk by faith and not by sight. Trusting in HIM moment by moment.

The birth of a tree!

Happy Monday everyone!

I don't know why but Mondays are simply not my favorite day of the week. I have a feeling I am not alone in this sentiment. For about a week and a half I've had the pleasure of hosting a great friend of mine, Camille, and unfortunately she had to leave today. We've known each other since we were in 4th grade and it is funny to see how quickly we can go back to being silly kids again with just a re-telling of a story or a silly song we used to sing. It was a lot of fun having her here with us and catching up with her.

While she was here, I was already planning on painting the baby's room and she was gracious enough to offer a hand. Not sure how but somehow the idea of a tree drawing on one of the walls came about and poor Camille got stuck with the task of bringing it to life. I just knew she had what it takes and she did not let me down! In a few days, she took a few colors and put together an amazing masterpiece. I know Ethan will truly appreciate "titi Camille's" gift to him! :)

I have a short video of "titi Camille" painting the tree and a few photos of the process. The next step will be a little scarier, for me. I am tracing some small animals to paint around the tree and I hope I don't disappoint "titi Camille"! :-)

Stay tuned for the grand finale in a few days...

COURT DATE RECEIVED!!!!!!!

Well, happy New Year everyone! Hope you had a great holiday season and feel refreshed, renewed and ready to face a brand new year. Oh, What? shut up Keyla and get to the court date part!?!? :-)

Ok...so today we received the phone call we have so anxiously been waiting for! Our court date is officially on (drum roll please!) March 10, 2011~ Yay God!!!

We are currently looking for flights but most likely will be leaving on March 4 or 5. We can't contain our excitement so if you're not in the mood for screaming and jumping, you better stay away from us!! ;-)

We received an update on Ethan last week. He is doing very well. We got to see his little 3 teeth on the bottom-front of his mouth (TOO cute!). He rolls over, pushes himself up when doing tummy time and says "mama" (TEAR!). He is not crawling yet, though. I just went to Hallmark today and bought one of those books that allows you to record your voice. The book is called "Guess How Much I Love You" and Jeremy and I will record our voices reading the story and that way he can get acquainted with our voices. We are sending him a photo as well so he can begin to recognize us. How exciting!!

We'll keep you posted as more information comes along. In the meantime we have to apply for our visa and plenty of paperwork to come! But we don't mind at all!!

Blessings!

Keyla