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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Layta Jamaica....

This is Mark. Ya know, I don't post on here too often, but I thought today might be a good opportunity. Kim tel ls me it's 44 degrees in Seattle. I don't know how little Dontae is going to do in that weather, but I'm worried about Kim and I. We've grown accustomed to the climate and the people and I hope we recieve a warm welcome when we get home.
 We gotten some very nice comments on our way to Orlando today. Some very sweet people thanked us for what we are doing with this boy, and even though I don't feel like we need any kudos, it was nice to see Americans responding positively to what we've done for Dontae. I know God has had a presence in all of this. I've seen it and felt it. So, I hope He continues to touch our live and yours throughout this little boy's life. I'm excited to get back home, back to church and my church family, and spend time with friends, family and my man cave. But, more than anything, I want Dontae to see America... and American's... and what they can offer and what they can be. I love Jamaica, but I am in love with America! A

What a Ride!!!!

Before I start this blog I wanted to say Happy 21st. Birthday to my Calie.  It was yesterday but I couldn't find the words for my blog so I'm going to make a stab at it today.                                                                             Ugh!!!!!! Believe it or not, we are finally getting to come home and this is how I feel.  My stomach is just killing me. Donnaree said to me last night" remember when you came here and how you felt leaving your children, well now you are leaving a new family to go back home"  And that is exactly what it feels like.  Exciting but kind of a sick feeling inside. We ate dinner with Gladys and William on the veranda last night.  We toasted with champagne, not so much toasting that we are going home, but toasting our friendship and to always keep it.  It was kind of a quiet dinner, I didn't want to say much because I new water works would start, and I just didn't want that to happen yet.  Gladys is beyond sad, for the simple fact of her best bud (Dontae) leaving her.  And living here, we didn't have to see each other every second of every day, but to know that each other were there was an amazing feeling.  How do you say so long to some of the best friends?  Willliam is sick, will we ever see him again before he goes to spend eternity with our Father?  Button Bay is for sale, will we ever be back here again? Just to many emotions I tell ya.                                                        From the very beginning we told Donnaree and Marlon that when we left we were going to leave my laptop with them, for there children and so we could keep in touch easier.  So last night we invited them down, and were told that they can't drive the motorcycle after dark, so I don't think I need to tell you how sad I was.  We had just finished dinner and I was saying that we could leave it with Gladys, when just then Markie heard a motorcycle.  Sure enough they came anyway.  And ALL four of them got off that bike.  In the dark!!!!!!!!!!!  Thank You God!!!!!!!  I was so happy and thankful and excited, because it would of  been awful not to see them before we left.  We hung out and just talked and talked and talked.  Mr. Dontae was a ham,  Man that child is going to put me in a early grave.   LOLOLOL  or keep me young.  I will go with the second one.LOL  But ya know Dontae was acting strange all day and into the night,  Gladys said he knows whats going on, and then later that night Donnaree said the same thing.  And I believe them.  I think the same thing.  Right now I am sitting here watching my two guys sleep and snore.  LOL wondering what its going to be like in just a bit, while we are getting ready to leave " Our home away from home"  I had the pleasure to sit on my veranda this morning all by myself, and look at the beautiful sea, the flowers, listening to the birds and the water, watching the lizzards climb the tree in front of me. Just enjoying how beautiful and relaxing and warm it is.  Trying to get these images embedded in my head for ever and ever. Because in a short few hours we will be gone. But God willing, we will back on a visit before they miss us.

                                                                                 

Friday, November 25, 2011

The Visa is in Markie's hot little hands...

My DH picked the visa up this morning.   Can you believe it?  I am kinda speechless right now.  LOL (that doesn't happen very often)  Gladys and William went with him to Kingston, because it just happened to be their grandson's birthday, and Gladys called me and said "there has been a problem, you can't get the visa for another year"   LOL  I didn't fall for it because the year part was not believable, now if she would of said a couple weeks I probably would fell for it. What she was really saying was that she is so sad we are leaving and doesn't want us to go (especially Dontae). This is going to be the hardest part leaving them and all the rest of the people we have met along the way, Linda Botkin, Donaree and Marlin, Soloman, Bobbett and so many others. It would take up this entire page if I named them all.  So there ya have it, I need to try and get Dontae all well from his cold before we get on the plane.
Blessings

The Visa is in Markie's hot little hands...

My DH picked the visa up this morning.   Can you believe it?  I am kinda speechless right now.  LOL (that doesn't happen very often)  Gladys and William went with him to Kingston, because it just happened to be their grandson's birthday, and Gladys called me and said "there has been a problem, you can't get the vi

The Visa is in Markie's hot little hands...

My DH picked the visa up this morning.   Can you believe it?

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Happy Thanksgiving

We wish you a wonderful Thanksgiving.  Take the time today to express everything you are thankful today. Enjoy your meal and the company of family and friends.
We are thankful for everyone that has been with us through the thick and thin during our time in Jamaica.  We couldn't of done it without you.  We are so thankful for our new little guy that is sure to bring joy and love into many of your lives.  Have a blessed day.

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

It went through

So yesterday while we were driving to Kingston, the Embassy called us to see if we got the papers we were waiting for.  We told them yes and that we were driving there right that minute.  I was hoping they would take us in at 4:00 but they said it was to late and to come in at 8:00AM.  I asked them if this was the interview?  They said "what interview"  LOL  a little shocked that they said that, but I said, "the interview to adopt our boy"  He proceeded to tell me that we already had it and were done. LOL  ok!!!! He said only one of us needed to come in the morning and bring the papers. Alrighty then!!!!!!
So DH got up and went in with papers in hand and returned at 8:30 with a note that read...........................
Pick up visa Friday at 11:00AM   HOLY SMOKES BATMAN!!!!!!!!!!  so as long as they actually put it in our hot little hands on Friday then we are coming home.

I really need to thank everyone who understands what we have been doing here over the last year and a half.  We came to do one thing, and God had a different plan.  Our financial situation has been weird to say the least, but with your help we are gonna make it. To some of you our situation is unusual, and maybe if it was you in our situation you would of quit along time ago.  Because you ran out of money, or a place to live or an adoption that just would not work in a quick manner.
In our eyes and in our heart all those obstacles only made us more determined to do God's will. You, that have questioned our every step, I am sorry you don't understand, but for those of you that get it I Thank you from the bottom of my heart.  With your help emotionally, spiritually, encouraging words, that a girls and that a boys, and yes financially you went through this journey right along with us. Some of you we have never met, some of you we met once or twice and some of you stayed with us from day one.
Now with all that said, please go to yesterday's post and listen to the song that I wanted you all to hear.
Its going to be hard coming home and living in a completely different world, its going to be hard in every way I mentioned above, but when you do something for Our God and you know that this is what HE wants then the hard will not feel so hard.  We have a long road ahead of us, especially Dontae, so this blog will continue on.  Some of you in other parts of the world then can keep up on this little tyke.
Now go listen to that song.
Blessings

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Just really listen...

  Click on That's God, it will take you to a you tube video that I want everyone to listen to,
Blessings

We are heading out

Our car should be here shortly so we can go to the post office (if you can call it a post office) to pick up our papers, then heading off to Kingston.  Hopefully we will be dropping them off today and our interview is in the morning.  Now there is NOTHING that would be stopping us from getting home in a week, unless they decide to delay giving us the Visa.  Believe it or not, that wouldn't surprise me.  We under no circumstances can afford to change our flight again.  We are going today with high hopes, so all your prayers we could use.  Have a beautiful day.
 Blessings

Monday, November 21, 2011

News Flash

We are supposed to be getting the sponsor papers today, so I wrote the Embassy and told them this.  I told them that as soon as they get here we will drive there and hand deliver them. Proceeded to tell them that we can not afford to change our airfare for the 10th. time and that our flight is on the 29th. so we would like to rap this up before Thanksgiving.  Do you want to know what they responded with????????????
I want to remind you that they told us they would get us in immediately once we get the papers.
They said "Come in on DEC.12TH" 
Three more weeks, I don't think so people.  I have written congressman and such and Rick Larson is working right now for me.  He is the only one so far that has responded back.  Something needs to be done about what they have put us through.  And in 2010 Jamaica only adopted out 59 children,  well this must be why.

Saturday, November 19, 2011

11 years and counting

Today is my 11th. Wedding Anniversary. Where does time go? The one thing I do know is I love Mark more today then ever. Our life has been amazing even with all the trials. We love and respect each other very much, we have wonderful children that are all grown up.  And now we have another little one to raise. There is not another person that I would even think about going on all these journeys with other then my Markie.  Our kids have a great father and a great stepfather. I couldn't be more proud of the this man,  Thanks babe for making the last 11 years  such a wonderful ride.  I love you!!!!

BTW Gladys is making turkey for us today....CAN YOU DIG IT????????????  Man am I beyond excited, this would have been two years without. I'm so excited, that I just can't hide it.  Love you Gladys!

Friday, November 18, 2011

Worth every minute of all the garbage we have been through

I was brought back to realizing that being here in Jamaica and having all the trials from the very beginning was for many many reasons, not just the baby orphan boy we get to bring home. But for the children at My Fathers House. I was on Face Book and Anita says hello.  We must of talked for about a half of an hour.  Which is unusual for her and I. The words that she was typing made me just sit here and cry. Mark kept asking me what was wrong. Her words were comforting and loving, sincere, respectful not to mention you could actually here happiness in the way her words came through from the computer. This young lady is truly happy.  Hearing her talk about her "sister" and "mom" melts my heart. She has a home and a family that loves and cherishes her. Mine and Anita's relationship was always a love, hate relationship.  Even though she was always my favorite and I loved her very much.  She just always had a chip on her shoulder, a pretty darn big one.  But that chip is gone, and she actually told me she loved me. I have been waiting for way over a year to hear those words. I didn't know if I ever would. She has been saved, and her words are comforting.  Very strange coming from a 13 year old.  But oh so very awesome. Miss Denise and Garfield are so very lucky to have Anita with them.  You see Anita would still be in a home somewhere if God hadn't led us to My Fathers House. And how at the last minute Miss Denise came on a mission trip with a different church to MFH, and how Anita just loved her and her daughter.  Then when everything was going down at MFH and I didn't have a clue how to find Miss Denise to ask her if she would want to adopt Anita, when out of the blue the phone rang and it was Miss Denise.  Holy Cow the Lord is AMAZING. It took from that day so many months ago to the middle of October to make it happen, but it happened.  PTL.  Sabrina is in the States with her sponsor Ron Lederman, Ritz is with his aunt getting to visit Big John in the States. Sheraki is with his brother, getting the chance to see his family often, which is exactly what he has always wanted. And Felix is with his mom. Travoy is the only one that is back in a home, but his older sister is working on getting him to live with her.  So you see, everything that we have been through with the Koch's, with where to live, how to survive financially, and all this adoption whoop la, God has been in control and helped us make a difference in many childrens lives. And that is why we came to Jamaica. We may not of come and done exactly what we thought we were going to do, but we certainly made a bigger difference in these childrens lives then we ever could of done at My Fathers House.  So there is no room for me to be sad or upset that its taking so long for us to see our own children, or that our savings account is zero, our house payment hasn't been paid in four months or that we had to take from our retirement fund. You see God chose us to take care of all this and follow through to the very end making sure the children are all ok before he will let us go. Now how can I second guess that?  He will take care of us, just like he is taking care of all these children we have grown to love. We just have to BELIEVE!!!!!!!!
Blessings

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

I am still crying over this

I could not ask for a more perfect Grandson if I hand picked him.  He could of not sent this at a better time.  My heart is filled with so much love I could burst.  Please enjoy my sweetheart as much as Mark and I do.

Back at Button Bay

So our new official Sponsor is my wonderful daughter Matty.  She went to town last night getting all the necessary paperwork together and filled out the forms and just sent it all FED X a little while ago. When we get it it, we send an email to the Embassy again and then wait for them to give us yet another interview.  We take the paperwork to the interview and if it is ok. (which it darn well better be) then we will receive Dontae's visa in two days.  It cost us another 300.00 bucks to change our flight. Ya know I bet some of you are wondering why I booked it the other day when I didn't know for sure.  Well because we were told that everything went favorably. We had already gave them the necessary papers that were missing. And the longer I waiting to our departure date the more expensive the tickets became.  I mean I was so sure I didn't even check about looking into the cost of changing the flights.  Wished I would of done that now.  I even told the airlines our story, do you think they would help?   A nope!!!!!!!  So our date is November 29th.  But if the papers Matty sent sent take 5 days then we are not going to make that flight either.  Dontae is getting baptized on December 4th at the 9:00 service, so we best be there.  I was very sad yesterday, but today am feeling lots better, my sister sent the video "I will survive"  made us smile.  All my friends send me such encouraging words.  I can't tell you how much that fills me up.  Love to you all.  Oh if you saw me now you wouldn't recognize me.  I have very long grey hair.  LOLOLOL  and its not funny!!!!  But when you see me at church on the 4th. Shasta will have already fixed me up.  So there!!!!  Love to you all

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Our day from hell!!!!!!!!!!

It is not good when I wake up with a headache but thats what happened.  The good thing is we didn't need to be at our interview until 1:30 so I had time to try and sleep it off.  Uh nope no such luck! Quick shower and down to the front desk to pick up the mail I sent them to copy off for me. (Remember yesterday?) Mark and Donate go and get the car to save some time why I go pick up the copies.  I ask for them and she says to me Let me check. She comes back and says there is no mail from you, where did you send it and when?  Oh a half hour ago  and I use the email thats on your business card.  She then tells me that the email I used is to the SUPERVISOR......LOL and she is not in. So I re tell my story and now its after 1:00 so I ask her if I can use her computer sitting right over there to get the letters I need.  She proceeds to tell me that they don't get the internet. WHATTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!  How can she get emails then right?  Now she is on the phone calling someone, God only knows.  So I say to her at now 1:15 if you don't have internet how in the world can you receive emails?  You know what she did, she looked up at me while still on the phone and said "the INTERNET"  I almost went bolistic.  She now comes over to me and say's it will cost me 2 bucks.  I told her "FINE"  It is now 1:20 my appointment is in 10 minutes I will pay whatever you want me to pay.  She said ok heres the code go over and get on.  I look at her and just about jump over the counter.  Instead of that bad stuff I calmly look at her and say "the computers in the business room blocks my stuff, I need yours"  She gets back on the phone without telling me one thing, I look at the clock 25 after 1.  She gets off the phone looks at me and say's "Tech support will be right down"  All I could do then was cry.  That was all I had left in me, feeling so sick with my head and the stupidity of this hotel, it just got to me.  Ok, tech support shows up at 1:29 she goes over to the business room does a whole bunch of typing and WALA I get my papers.  Now why couldn't I have got that yesterday?  $1.00, so I told her to add it to my room. Mark drops  me off right in front of the Embassy and Dontae and him will meet me inside. I show them my paperwork and he looks at me and says "I don't have a pen, you will have to wait"  as he walked off to ALL the people. I stood there for a minute dug into my purse got a pen walked over to the man and crowed to hand him the paper and pen. He signed it and in I went.  I get in, the man in there informs me they are all at lunch.  Well its out fault we were late. Finally at 3:00 they call us up and tell us the letter from my attorney is not sufficient and they will not except it.  We have to get another sponsor in Bellingham.  I don't think I need to tell you where my heart was, it took everything and I mean everything to try and keep it together. My eyes teared up, but at least I didn't have a major flood.  So it looks like our Thanksgiving will not happen at least for this year.  Once again I need to change our airfare, and don't have a clue what its going to cost because I was so sure about our departure that I didn't even look at the cost. I am numb beyond belief. We have already paid for our room tonight so we are spending money that we shouldn't be now. I don't even know what more to say at this point.

Monday, November 14, 2011

Kingston again.....

Ok, I really just need to tell you all the in's and out's since arriving in Kingston yesterday afternoon.  Because I couldn't even begin to make this stuff up. LOL
We arrive here yesterday late afternoon, as checking in I make sure and ask just to make sure that we have a fridge in our room.  She informs me that we do not. I told her that the reason why we chose this hotel was because it had a fridge for our son. She said that I was going to have to rent it. She had our reservation in her hand, and I asked to look at it. Right there in black and white it gave a list of all the amenities that came with our room, and right there it said fridge.  So I pointed it out to her and she said well yes but it really doesn't and you will have to pay $5.00 a day. (yea I know its not much but its the principle) I told her I was not going to pay to rent a fridge and that they were going to put one in my room for no charge. So she went and talked to the supervisor who gave her the ok to give us a fridge. Like, why do we have to go through all this, nothing seems to be easy here in Jamaica.  Our room on the other hand was worth it, and they did bring the fridge right up. Ok, our interview is in the morning at 9:00AM, and I am actually nervous so nervous that I wake up 5 different times during the night.  We are up quite early and I had to have the girls scan some paperwork for me last night and email it to me, so just in case they ask for it I will have it right?  I am working on that and before you know it, its 7:45 . Oh my goodness we have to be downstairs by 8:15 to run off the email the girls sent me. We make it and I go into the business office to run off the email and I can't get on. So I go up to the desk and the same lady tells me that I have to pay for every 15 mins. OK!!!!!! I proceed to tell her that I need to print off a email of some stuff my girls sent me, and she said that its .55 cents a copy. OK!!!!!!  I said WoW, but I have no choice I need this paperwork.  I get on and try to print it off and NOPE its blocked.  So I go talk to the lady and she comes over and tells me that, well this is a public computer that is why its blocking downloads. And I just paid for this????????  So I just got up to leave and she said you can go up to your room and email it to me at the front desk and then I can print it for you. WHAT?????? I tell her, no we do not have any time for that and I walked out.
We get to the Embassy and we have a 9:00 interview right? Which means we don't have to stand in the mile long line of people. The lady says to me, do you have the appointment letter?  I say no, the lady could not seem to get it to work to send to us.  So she said that then she was going to have to go in and check.  But did she???? Nope, she continued to help the mile long line of people. A security guard was nice enough to pull us out of the sun for Dontae's sake. It  may of been only 9:00 but I bet it was over 85 degrees. The lady keeps helping the people in the line and now I am really nervous, because I am thinking that because we are obviously going to be late because of there mistake that they won't take us or something. So we tell the security guard and she goes and re leaves the lady so she can go call.  They let us right in and we have to put everything through the scanner. You are not allowed to have cell phones any electronics or lighters or food. But we have to bring stuff for Dontae so she makes me drink is juice to prove there isn't an explosive or whatever in it.  And then what does she find in the diaper bag? Dontae's cell phone, there is no battery in it things are broke on it, it is obvious that its a phone that is broken and is Cody's toy,(omgosh I just wrote Cody, I mean Dontae's phone) but she says one of us needs to get rid of it.  OMGOSH our car is a ways away, so I told her to just throw it away, and she says she can't I have to remove it. So I open the door and ask the security guard if he will throw the play phone away, and he tells me he can't touch it. I look around for a garbage and see a bucket and ask him if this is a garbage, he tells me nope.  OMGOSH now what am I going to do. There is no nothing around.  All of a sudden I see a man with a broom and dustpan sweeping the street, so I run over and put the phone in his dust pan.  I turned around and walked off so fast, not to give this man a chance to tell me I couldn't do that. So it has to be 9:45 by now and I am sick sick sick. We do get to go to the front of the line though since we have an interview.  He asks me for the appointment letter. WHAT!!!!!!!!LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL I tell him the same thing I told the lady.  He tells us to go have a seat and when he can get a hold of them, he will let us know. Well 15 mins. went by and I went back into where this man was and ask him if he knows anything yet.  He tells me no, so I tell him how nervous I am because the time is so late and all this run around I was scare they wouldn't take us.  He told me not to worry, as long as we are in this building they will take us.  So we sat in those chairs for over a hour. He finally comes and tells us that we need to go around the corner into this other room and wait for Dontae's name to be called.  :-) ok we are off.  We get there and about a half hour later they call his name. When you think interview, you think sit down with at least one other person and go over a file right?  Not in Jamaica nope, you go up to a window. She asks us if we have filled out a certain form that they emailed to us with the appointment letter.  I tell her no, that the lady couldn't get it to work.  She said thats ok, I will give you one.  Then she asked me if I was prepared to pay for the service charge and the visa.  (DUH LADY!!!!! Do they even know why I we are here?) So while Markie fills out the paperwork, I go over to another window to pay.  We were told a thousand times that the service charge was 74.00 and the visa was 300.00.  Nope, it could never be that easy.  It was a total of $404.00. When I go back to give the lady the receipt, she informs me that she had the form Markie was frantically filling out.  Ok then!!!!! Now she tells us to have a seat until they call Dontae's name.  We sit there and sit there , Dontae is starting to act up because he is soo tired.  Mark gets him to sleep and my head keeps dropping because I didn't get any sleep the night before,not to mention Mark had his head in his hands sleeping as well I find out later. At noon, they call us up to a window.  A WINDOW????? The man asks us how we came to adopt Donae.   I tell him and then he calls another man over and talks to him about our case, we couldn't hear anything but we knew it was about us. Now my stomach is really not doing well. He tells us that he needs a certain paper. (yea the paper I was trying to print) and because he doesn't have that paper then we were going to have to get a sponsor in Bellingham. That means a whole bunch of paperwork needs to be filled out by this person and then it needs to be FED X here.  I said WHAT????? Mark says our flight is on Thursday. I told the guy I have it, I just couldn't get it from the hotel computer. I asked him if they had a computer I could use and he could have it right that second.  Well no, stupid question, but I was reaching for anything at that moment.  He said can you come back at 1:30,  YES of course, we will do anything it takes. I continued to tell him that what I was bringing was in the homestudy paperwork and doesn't he have it?  He told me no.  WHAT AGAIN I AM THINKING!!!!!!! I sometimes wonder if ALL these departments even pass anything on to each other.  I asked the man why we were not told to bring this paperwork. And this is what he said to me......"Everything is very well spelled out to you" I wanted to scream bloody murder.... I wanted to yell "THERE HASN'T BEEN ONE THING IN THIS ENTIRE PROCESS THAT HAS BEEN SPELLED OUT"  but you know he has the power to deny us.  So my lips were sealed. We leave and run back to the hotel, check out time was noon and now is after twelve. We get to the desk and they inform me, that we might not be able to stay another night, they need to run it by a supervisor. LOLOLOL and could we come back by 2:30?  WHAT?????? I tell him that we will be at the Embassy and we can't just leave there. As he is trying to locate a supervisor right then and there, I start looking through all my paperwork to see if there was any chance I had it.  OMGOSHHHHHHHHH I had it the entire time in my folder. (what a idiot I am) but at least we had time to run up to the room eat a peanut butter sandwich and feed Dontae. Back in the car, we get in and walk right up to the window.  YEHAW!!!! I hand him the paper, and he tells me this won't work. WHATTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!! He had told me earlier that it would. He knew exactly what I was getting. But  I am in no posistion to argue with him. He tells me if I can get an original we could come back the next day. So Mark says, then will we be able to leave with the Visa? The guy says probably not till Wednesday.  Oh man, that is cutting it close. We leave go back to the hotel, I ask the lady if we can now stay two more nights. She says the supervisor won't be in until after 3:00. WHAT? I tell her the man told us to be here before 2:30. Let me just tell you I stood there for 20 mins while they helped every other Tom, Dick and Harry.  I was so so close to going postal and yell "DO YOU PEOPLE THINK I AM HERE ON VACATION?"  Any hoo, finally we got to the room, and frantically trying to get the paper I need emailed to me before tomorrow.  Of which I am waiting for it right now while I am typing this very very long blog.  The only thing that has been good about this day is this video that Markie took of Dontae while I was working.  And this video is why we are  going through all this garbage.  I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Blessings

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Some pictures!

Hi! This is Mark. Ya know, my computer has been on the fritz for quite some time, and we finally got it fixed a couple weeks ago. I was trying to get myself in the habit of posting pictures here periodically, but I kinda lost the momentum. So...... here goes. Let's start with Dontae from day one 'til now.
Wassup!

Bad burn from oven door!
Ready for church


Bandage from the burn

Naked boy!

Curious (from the front)

Curious (from the back)
Cuddling
Bringing mom a clean diaper. He looks tired.



At Ys Falls

To keep his hands out of his mouth after palate surgery.

Happy boy!
Anita combed his hair down.
Felix, myself and Dontae having breakfast.

One very Long day

First thing I need to tell you is this... about a week and a half ago Dontae picked up a good size brick and dropped it on one of his toes.  I don't think I need to tell you how that went down.  The thing is it has been extremely painful for him. He lost the nail and I swear the tip of his toe went with it.  We have to put meds on it and wrap it up or all Dontae does is cry hysterical. We think because when its not wrapped up he almost always bangs it on something and then the bleeding starts. So night before last we kept it on covered when he went to bed but thought we should cover it for the ride to Kingston. We didn't want him all upset for a three hour drive, not to mention that William and Gladys were with us. So we are driving to Kingston and Gladys is worried that his toe will not heal all wrapped up so she took it off.  He started crying but soon settled down and things in his world were all good again.  We get to the hospital for our appointment and Gladys's daughter is in town so she picks up her parents and Mark and I proceed into the hospital with Dontae. They open at 8 in the morning and its a first serve place. We were able to get right in and fill out the paperwork, then they point us to the chairs where everyone else is as well.  We were not there long when Dontae decides he needed to be the center of attention.  Everyone and I mean everyone were loving on him and reading and playing with him.So then he found this one young lady who he instantly chose as his girlfriend and was flirting up a storm and as she was reading to him Dontae kinda kicked her by accident. It was is toe and the entire tip again was hanging and bleeding..... We got him all fixed up and calmed down and not ten minutes later the Dr. called us in ahead of so many people.  We are sure its because she heard him hysterical.  Dontae weighs 25lbs. and in good health. But then she informs me that he needs 5 shots. OMGOSHHHHHHHHHHH what????? I thought he needed two.  If I would of known this ahead of time we would of went somewhere else cause shots here are going to be expensive.  She sends us off to pay and you will never believe in a zillion years what I had to pay. 300.00 US dollars.  Yep thats right you heard me right.  plus the Dr. visit was 50.00, a 100.00 just to get to Kingston.  So this ended up being one super expensive day. Now I am beginning to think about the 5 shots for Dontae and am worried for our ride home.  He surely is going to be hurting after 5 shots. I don't think I need to tell you how that went over. The Dr. proceed to tell us that his toe is infected and we need oral antibiotic and cream then bandaged. She told us that we need to re dress his toe two times a day and to stay out of the pool. It was the pool that was making it impossible to heal.  She wanted the nurse to dress his toe so we could watch which cost 5.00 for her to put on the dressing lol Come to find out its exactly how nurse Markie was doing it. So 4 hours later we get our paperwork for the Embassy.  Mark and I still haven't had lunch so we head over to a deli which is right next door to a pharmacy and a grocery store. Dontae is fast asleep from his ordeal with the shots and his toe. After this we go and pick up Gladys and William.Now we are heading out for a very very long drive home, its Friday night and every person in Jamaica I swear are deciding to take a drive as well, so traffic was a bear.  I feed Dontae in his car seat and am beginning to get extremely cartsick and Dontae is not happy. I couldn't bear it with the trauma this poor baby had endured.  I took him out of the of his seat. He just needed some love real bad. He fell fast asleep and slept in my arms till we got home. We knew he was going to have a rough night with 5 shots and possible fever, but so far things were going pretty good with him fast asleep.  Did I say I spoke to soon?  The minute we got home Dontae decided that there was NO sleep to be going on, and every single time we got him to sleep and tried to put him in his crib he would start craying hysterical. Now its 12:30am and we are exhausted, so into our bed is a must.  We were able to sleep until 6:00AM. But when he is in the bed you are really not sleeping sleeping, if you know what I mean.
  Now that its morning I feel exhausted and extremely tired and little boy only still wants to be cuddled or held. Now we have all our paperwork from the Dr. and we take it and Dontae into our interview on Monday at 9:OOAM Wow, is it really time to almost come home to Bellingham of which I hear has snow.  Really?!!!!!!!!!!!! Keep reading to stay tuned.
Blessings to all

Thursday, November 10, 2011

We got the call!!!!!!!

For the last couple of days I have had the flu, so been bummed quite a bit, not to mention missing the call yesterday.  Today feeling better, still have a cough which is gross but energy is coming back.  And when I least expected it, the phone call came.  I stood there in shock when the girl that works here came and told me they were on the phone, it actually took me a minute to compute what she said to me.  So I grabbed Dontae and went into the office.  Sure enough, the call we have been waiting for. Our interview appointment is on Monday at 9am.  So we got the Dr. appointment for tomorrow.  Just so happens that its Gladys's grandaughters birthday tomorrow, so we are all going to go together. Boy how things work out sometimes.  I do have to tell you though, as the lady was talking to me on the phone, I was really feeling weird and not knowing why I was feeling this way.  A little later when I was telling Markie about it, he told me "those are mixed emotions, something we don't get very often"  I told him that he was right, that is exactly how I was and am feeling.  We love it here. We have wanted to come home for some time now, but when its right here with in reaching distance kinda makes me feel sick.  So when the day comes when we get on the plane to come home, I can't imagine that it would feel good.  So many people we have met, so many friendships, beautiful country to live in, a simpler way of life.  Yea Mark is right "Mixed Emotions"
Blessings

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Missed call

Mark called the Embassy lady this morning and found out that we have been favorably adjudicated and should expect a phone call for out interview shortly.  So I emailed them.  Well while we were at the store they called, and our cell phone garbled the message and we can't understand what they said.  So I emailed them again, begging them to either call back or email me.  So far they haven't done it..... :-(

Monday, November 7, 2011

Anita is Home

Yes I said that right.... Anita is finally home, home for the first time in her life. I could not be more happier, to know that she is safe and sound with a family that will love her unconditionally. I just get goose bumps when I think about it.  She has her own room that she picked out the colors. The best part of all is that she wanted to be baptized.  So she is now baptized and happy and loved by a zillion people I hear.  Miss Denise said that people everywhere children and adults from their church all wanting to be a part of this young girls life.  Anita has gone to  youth group, their family has all laid on the bed and watched movies together, with her head in her fathers lap.  OMGOSH that brings tears to my eyes.  That just proves that Anita is feeling the love and taking it in.  Something that I didn't think would happen so quickly.  Praise our Lord for all he has done.

Blessings

Friday, November 4, 2011

Can you believe I am 50?

I sure can't..... How can I be 50 when I still feel like a kid inside?  I just don't understand it. But I guess that doesn't say much because I also feel skinny and when I walk past a mirror I jump... LOLOL  Ok so, in my mind I am young and skinny, so maybe I will live longer.  LOL Anyhoo, today I don't want to talk about me I want to honor my Markie.  I have been wanting to write about him for quite some time now and it wasn't the right time and today is so there ya have it.
  You know I did have the privilege of helping raise his children, but they were also older, not a baby or a toddler. I don't even know if I have the words to describe the kind of father he is. He is so selfless when it comes to our son.  He works so hard to take care of him and love him and to show him how it is to treat his mommy.  Yes Dontae is young but he copies everything Mark does.  For example, this morning I had a piece of hair hanging in my face, Dontae looked at me and oh so very gently moved it from my face.  Then today while I was eating a bowl of cereal I dripped milk on my chin, Dontae patted me on the shoulder so I would look at him, he then smiled at me reached up and wiped the milk from my chin. A child doesn't just instinctively know how to be so darn polite.  He has learned these things from his father. If he see's garbage laying anywhere he picks it up and puts it in the garbage.  He watches his daden (thats what he calls Mark) and he learns.  Mark takes him swimming almost everyday, he gets up in the night if needed. I couldn't be more proud of the Father he is, and the kind of young man our son will become because of his Father.  I love you Markie, and I am so happy that you and I are on this roller coaster of life together.  Who would of ever thought that at age 50 I would be a mother to a one year old.  LOL Well I also knew that God put me on this earth to be a wife and a mother, and that is all that matters to me.  Love ya Baby!!!!!  Here's to the next how many years we have together.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

An Email

We get an email yesterday late afternoon from the Embassy.  They tell us that they don't have the proper divorce decree for Mark.  They have had all this information since Sept 15th, and they tell us now.   The paper I sent them was the same one we have used for everything else, but they are now saying it won't work. This will make yet another delay.  Now a phone call to the Health department to order one. 31.00 and then 20.00 to get it on Friday to our home in the States.  The girls will then email it to me, and I then will email and fax it both to the Embassy.  But I bet this sets us back. Can we ever get a break here?
Blessings

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Kingston a success???

You know every single time we leave to go somewhere in Jamaica, I forget that something always happens to mess things up.  And I mean ALWAYS.  But yesterday I know for a fact that it happened for a reason. (I will get to that part of it in little while)  Are rental car gets here just before 9AM and we head towards Kingston.  We stop at Crossroads to get gas and money. The ATM machine is out of money (or so we thought) the guy that we were renting the car from was still with us because we were going to drop him off at a town close by.  So he had to put some gas in the car since we had no money.  We get to the next town and go to an ATM machine and its out of money too????  No way, not possible.  The receipt does not say no funds of course, but doesn't matter we still can't get to our money.  Which is our only way to get money. I need to call the bank, but we are two hours ahead of Washington State. Now what?  We need gas for the car, we need to pay for the rental of the car, eat lunch and probably dinner.  If we wait for the bank in Washington to open we might miss the Embassy.  So I call on my two credit cards to see if there is any money left to charge. ( I know there isn't but I had to try) And uh no, none!!!! I guess we have to wait. Finally 11:00 AM comes and I can call our bank. (need to be at Embassy at 12:30) The lady asks me, "were you aware that your card is being used in Jamaica?" UH yes, I go on to tell her that I set it all up before we left a year and a half ago, and if they look at our account she will see that the only transactions are from Jamaica.  And by doing what she is doing, its costing me alot of time and money.  She still made me go through the last three transactions and tell her yes I bought at that store, or yes I used that ATM machine.  Now all this would of been awesome if I hadn't already set the entire thing up before I left so THIS would never happen. 
We finally get to drive away at almost noon.  There are very very few drive though eating places but we did not have time to go anywhere and eat, so the next town had a Burger King so we drove through and ate on the way.  We get to the embassy at 2:35PM, they close at 3 and I am not sure what time they stop taking customers.  Its also raining SO hard, and we have to walk a bit after we park.  Whew! they let us in. There is also no one left to be seen so we walked right in.  She knows us by name and proceeds to tell us that she will be calling us either this week or the first of next week to give us the appointment date. ( I am screaming inside, yelling, why didn't you just answer one of my phone calls and give me this information, so we didn't have to pay 150.00 bucks for a one day trip.)  But I was very nice and respectful.  So there ya have it, she says we should be home within the next couple of weeks. We once again have some hope, even though last time she never followed through with what she told us, but its still hope.  (I WANT TURKEY DANG IT) LOLOL
  Now here comes the part where we know why everything happened this morning to make us so late.  We walk out of the office and I tell Mark I need to use the bathroom before we go, he said he needs to as well, so I told him to go ahead first and I will change Dontae's diaper.  Ok we get that done and I head off to the bathroom, and I see this lady and young lady standing at a counter talking to someone, I am seeing them from behind, but something about the young lady keeps my attention, so I stand there still looking at this young lady, just then they turn around and start leaving the counter. OMGOSH ANITA!!!!!!!!! and Miss Denise, and oh boy does Anita look slim and trim and beautiful, with a beautiful smile on her face when we see each other.  Somebody hit me!!!!!!!  she was actually smiling at me.  Boy do I miss that girl, who I always said was my favorite.  Anyway, I knew they were coming here today but early.  So we were bummed that we wouldn't get to see them.  The best part is they picked up there visa and are going home today. Anita has a real live family.  Deep down, I wish I would of tried to adopt her,  I am really really going to miss that girl.  She is a firecracker. The reason why they were there late was they got a phone call earlier, and you know why we were late.  So God orchestrated this entire thing. Every second was played out perfectly.  If I would of went to the potty first, we never would of seen them.  The list goes on and on.  So we got to say a proper goodbye with all the hugs all in person.  Now that made all the garbage that happened in the morning all worth it.  We love you Anita, and we are going to miss you bunches. We didn't get to see you hardly at all since we moved away from you, but we still knew you were here in Jamaica, and now your not.  That is going to be hard. Thank you to Miss Denise ad Garfield for making Anita part of your family. So now we will never have to worry about her again.  Love to you all.
Blessings