A Few Pics...

Our half-way complete family photo...




Team pic, we got permission to include the kids!




Ellie, in the morning after a bath, calm and mellow.




Our first hug!!!

Please Remember these little ones...

Just got an email from the two team members we left at the children's home for an extra week. Two of the babies have been taken to the hospital. One little guy, Christian, is having trouble breathing, and Jenifer, has been on an IV and is not very responsive. Pray for the doctor caring for them to have wisdom in their treatment and for the babies to regain strength and health.

8/1 Update: Apparently, Jenifer makes trips to the hospital every so often for tests, so she is okay, but prayer is still needed for wisdom for her doctors. Christian is doing better, but will stay for a few more days for observation, and might be then transfered to another hospital.

Vivian did mention that she, Nicole and Ellie are fine. I had not thought much about them being there this week today, so it was nice to hear about how my girl is doing. Ellie really did seem a part of our team as well. We had her folding and sorting clothes at one year old!

Ohhh...I am missing my little Sweet Cheeks!!!

What can I say?!??!!!! She is just fabulous!! Ellie was amazingly snuggly the first few days, then the personality started coming out! First, she will give you a little "huh" laugh. Then, the next level is a grin and the dimples below her lips on either side appear, i.e. the addition of the nick-name "Sweet Cheeks". The final reel-in is when she adds a nose wrinkle and belly laugh!

I was told that the Mama's would sometimes refer to her as Vanessa, because Maria is a common name. Now, I am quite sure that only the agency knows her as Maria. Her nick-name Vane (Bah-nae) is what she responds to best. Ellie is a nick-name of Elizabeth, so she has names in abundance. It seems like one of her quirks to have lots of names. :) So, we are rethinking what her legal name will be, we might just use them all!

She loves to sleep on your chest and will allow you to rock her to sleep. Coming off two active boy babies, who preferred to collapse when they are tired, it was nice treat. I knew when she would fall asleep, because her head would start sweating profusely! Vane enjoys looking at books, throwing her toys, and tasting everything. Everyone on the team loved to get her to stick her tongue out, especially during meetings. :) We found out that she is waving, blowing kisses, and can walk holding onto only one hand. She would repeat "da" or "ma" after us. The Mama's say she is "muy bonita y muy inteligente" and I agree! Ellie was not a fan of the rice cereal I would make up for her, but eventually, I got her bottle figured out, it had to have cereal added too. I was surprised to find out how little "real food" she eats.

The Mama's all seem to love her. It might have been somewhat over done because I was there, but they would all call to her from across the room to get a smile, or I would have to hunt her down after they swiped her for a hug. :)

It has been good to get home and see my other little people, but we ache for our family to all be together. I had to harden my heart some to get through church yesterday. Daniel was preaching on how we have all we need for life and godliness, and Ellie came up quite a bit as an illustration. There were, of course, her pictures on power point and afterwards, lots of hugs from people with wet eyes. I spent much of Thursday, Friday, and Saturday crying, so I needed a break. We met a family that was on both of our flights home, on their pick up trip of a baby girl a few weeks younger than Ellie. She was across the gate area, and turned to where I could see her face and I lost it. The in-flight movie was "Meet the Robinsons", which seemed like a cute distraction, so we watched it. I did not know until getting in to it that it was about an orphan boy looking for a family. There were some positive messages about adoption, but the scene with the birth mother leaving him as a baby on the steps of the orphanage was too much to take. I am sure that the crew was concerned because we were so emotional over a cartoon.

I have lots of other pics that did not get to the website, and memories to record over the next few days and weeks...so stay tunned! Thanks for your prayers and encouraging notes!!

PRAY, PRAY, PRAY...THEN PRAY SOME MORE!!!!!!

Two of our team members are still in need of their passports!!!!!! They have been waiting for months!!! Please pray that they can get them on Friday morning (they drove up to Chicago to see what they can do)!!!! Thanks!!!
Update: They were processed this morning and the gals should be able to pick the passports up at 3:30pm on Friday!! Praise the Lord!!
Update#2: Passports are in hand!!

Return to you soon...I've got a little girl to love on!

To get updates on our trip and view pictures, go to:

http://picasaweb.google.com/pastordanbennett/BethanyGuatemalaTeam

I am claiming basically all of Colossians 3, "Set your minds on things above," "let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts...and be thankful..." and "Whatever your do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him."

This week will be wonderful and hard as anything, so I am trying to allow the Lord to prepare my heart to keep an eternal perspective! Thanks for your prayers!!!

In His Grace,

Whitney

Case Update

I have been praying all last week and weekend that our case has made progress and found out today that the Lord answered that prayer! I checked email this morning and there was still nothing from the agency. As I was leaving the computer, I prayed again that we would hear something soon. I walked back by the office minutes later and we had just received an email from the agency!
Our papers are in Guat and our case has been presented for Pre-Approval from the Embassy! Our caseworker said that this should have happened "week before last", so that would put us 5-10 days into the 60 day wait for PA. Daniel, love the man, is a famous pessimist, so I will keep the count at 5 days starting today and maybe we will be pleasantly surprised. :) (I had a dream last night that we were 20 days in for PA, so I help to balance out that pessimism.) We will be going through family court for the social workers report at the same time, and Lord willing, the two will be complete at the same time, then on to PGN! To spell it out, we are in this stage of the process until at least early September, unless the Father has different plans, either longer or shorter. We continue to covet your prayers for the Lord to bring Ellie home in His perfect timing!!

Happy Birthday Baby!!!!!

Little American citizen to be:




These are July update pictures. She was below 5% for height and 10-25th% for weight. They say that Ellie is walking along furniture. Hopefully, we will get an update on our case soon!
We picked out a little "Elle Elephant" at our local Build-A-Bear place and added a voice recording device with all of our voices to leave with her. Happy Birthday Sweetie!!!! WE LOVE YOU and can't wait to meet you and bring you home! WE ARE PRAYING for you every day, probably every hour that we are awake!

Added comment: I think she has had a hair cut! I didn't think about it when I first looked at the new pictures, but it definitely has more shape to it. I don't see her mullet, either! :) Maybe they wait until they hit the one year mark to trim it up.

Thank you all so much for your prayers for Grace. She went home to be with the Lord on Monday. She is now whole and perfect! The Lord allowed for our contact, the woman who sent us updates on Ellie, to tell her family about the small beautiful service that was held for Grace at the home. Through her tiny six-pound body, God has been glorified in her life and will continue to be glorified in her story.

Please pray for Ken, Amy and their six children as they grieve. This family has been so faithful to the Lord, even in this difficult situation! Also, please pray for the mama's that work there. They seem to hold little back in loving these children. Ellie has three specific mama's that care for her, but because Grace needed extra care, all of the staff was very involved in her care. She was loved by many there and the many who prayed for her from afar!

Job 1: 21b "The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. BLESSED BE THE NAME OF THE LORD."

One more blessing

Our friend is back in the states, but she sent us these pics of Ellie that she took on Saturday. She told us that Ellie has a cold, i.e. the snotty nose. I think I can kind of see the good view that she has from her bed (per high rent district comment). I definitely could use a hug from this little sweetie today! Tomorrow is her last day as an "infant", as she will turn into a one-year-old toddler on Thursday.

Photo Shoot Out -Takes

I wanted current, decent pictures of each of us to take to Ellie. Here are a few of our out-takes:

"How many pictures do I have to take?"

"Noah, Noah...."

This picture reminds me of a squirrel song we sing at our house...

This was Hannah's hand at photography.

We struggle getting the kids to look at the camera when we take a picture, and I laugh at this one because Daniel is looking off, too! In his complete defense, I gave him no warning that I was taking a picture.

Say "Hi"

"Hug the pole...but not that much!"

I think Austin took this picture. :)

"Cheeeeeeeese"

To see what we ended up with check out the side bar. :)
Our friend has left the children's home, so back to normal life of waiting for updates and pictures. However, this is the monthly picture and health report week, so stay tunned...
For a theology of the tooth fairy, visit Daniel's blog!

On a serious note, Grace has been hospitalized again. Please continue to pray for her and for the doctors to have wisdom in how to best help her!

Sleeping Beauty!

This is another sweet update from our friend:


"Yesterday morning I went upstairs and had passed Ellie by in her walker and she came rolling after me and tugged on my leg! It definitely brought a smile to my face! But today one of the most tender moments of my trip occurred. I had picked Ellie up and was playing with her. The usual...patty cake and she loves to sit on your lap and then lean her backwards so she is upside down. That gets the biggest laugh out of her. But then she started to get a little fussy. I knew she had been playing with the kids for a while so I thought she might be a little tired. I took her to a rocking chair and held her. She was kind of wimpering/crying so I started to sing to her... which for most people would make them cry more! :) I sang "You are my sunshine" and "Jesus loves the little children." Then I heard on the radio "Open the Eyes of my heart" being sung in Spanish! So I sang that too and she started to nod off. Then all the older kids stormed into the room and she woke back up so I moved to a quieter spot and started over with the same songs. Then "Lord I lift your name on high" came on too. By that time she was out and I started to cry...my first time since the day I got here! Such a precious moment. I just began thinking how cool it is that she is going to be a part of your family and what a blessing that is! And that's an understatement! It's also cool because I had been thinking I wanted to send you a pic of Ellie sleeping...because what is better than watching a sleeping baby. I know....when they fall asleep in your arms! Thanks for letting me share! Hope all is well!"

I love to hear what she is doing and see what she looks like. I was also encouraged that after spending a little time with this lady, Ellie wanted to be with her! I know that bonding/attachment does not happen instantly, but I have hope that our week with Ellie has potential to be pleasant and enjoyable for her, too! I am excited she is listening to good praise music. The DVD had music going on in the background, so I think that is a consistent element in the children's home. Gratefulness fills my heart knowing that her heart is exposed to good spiritual food in the form of music and the daily Bible stories the mama's tell the children. The Lord is faithful and a perfect provider for every need!

Father, please keep Ellie's heart sensitive to You! Allow her to come to know You at the earliest possible age, and follow after You all of her life! Protect her from the evil one and keep her from falling into temptation. Give Ellie a longing for Your word and desire for others around her to know You. I trust that her salvation is in You alone and only You can offer this little one eternal hope!

I am getting very spoiled...but I don't mind too much!

Check out the lashes! It's a wonder she can keep her eyes open!





Here are the dimples peeking out!

This was the email update:

"I thought I'd give you the latest on Ellie over the past few days. It has become my morning ritual to seek her out in the morning. I have to tell you she is in the "high rent district" of the orphanage because her crib is next to a window and the view from this place is gorgeous! I'm sure you will enjoy it when you arrive. Yesterday I spent the afternoon with some people who have been coming up to the orphanage to volunteer three days a week. One of the girls asked if I knew which one Vanessa was. I said yes...and I actually know who her adoptive parents are. She was so excited that she was spoken for because Vanessa (Ellie) is her favorite here at Eagle's Nest. She also said that she will start to call her Ellie so that she can get used to it. She definitely responds to Vanessa or Vane (pronounced Bah-nay) as many of the mamas call her. It's also cool when I hold her and the older kids (los mayores) come up to me and hold Ellie's hand and say "Hola Vanessa!" She is definitely well liked.
The last few days I've played pattycake with her and that brings out a huge smile and I noticed yesterday two little dimples that are precious. I tried to capture them in a picture but it kind of turned out fuzzy. She really likes the "roll it" part of the song and she'll start laughing. She loves to just sit on your lap and look at you and look around at the other kids playing. The other thing I noticed today were her amazing eyelashes. I tried to capture those in a picture too as she was looking down. They are the longest I've ever seen! I hope you enjoy these little glimpses of Ellie. I'm glad that you don't have to wait that much longer to see her!"

I don't know if I have mentioned it, but her given name is Maria Azicona. There are so many "Maria's" that the mamas have been calling her Vanessa. I remember hearing Vane in the video, but I didn't know what they were saying until now. I know that all of our "adoption days" will not be like these past few have been, but I will just enjoy it while it lasts and pray for strength for the days ahead!

A Special Blessing!

I apologize for those of you who follow both Daniel's and my blogs, but this story was too encouraging to leave off of my blog as well! The woman who we have talked to at the children's home sent us a neat blessing on Wednesday of last week. Daniel received this note in his inbox:

"I wanted to get this off to you quick as I thought you might appreciate it. This morning I went up and found Ellie the first thing. She was crawling around this morning. I held her for awhile and prayed over her. For protection and health as she is here and for the blessing of being adopted into your family. Then I held her as I read to a couple of the older kids. The book was one of the those feeling books that has different textures on different pages and she was super interested in touching each of the pages. When I picked her up and held her in the air she would get a big smile on her face. She is precious indeed! Just thought you might want to know! See the pic of her and me this morning actually taken by Onoria...one of the older girls here at Nido.
Blessings!"

I am so thankful for this dear gal, who, I am told, just found the children's home online and made arrangements to go and serve on her own. What a great gift to know what Ellie had done and looked like that very day! She had someone willing to seek her out and pray over her! We also got a little glimpse of what she likes to do and I was reminded to pack some books!

As to the story I eluded to in the previous post, here was the email and picture we first received:

"What a small world! I have met Ellie. But now its good to put a face with a name. I know the older kids' names because they can tell me but I don't want to bug the mamacitas by asking them who is who all the time. I will make a special effort to spend some time with her. A group from North Carolina has been here this past week and today they cleaned the whole orphanage from top to bottom. So all the babies were moved to another facility...quite an undertaking. I've attached a picture of their temporary housing! :) They are back now as I can hear them right above me. It's awesome you guys are going to parents to one of these "preciosos" I've only been here since Monday night and have had quite an experience. Monday was tough...but I've gotten control over my emotions! :) I'm glad to spend some time here for sure. I'll try to send you a new pic of Ellie soon as well. Blessings! And if there is anything you want to know before your trip...let me know!"

A little chaos is an okay trade off for top-to-bottom cleanliness! I like seeing the team members fussing over the kids, too!

The reunion dinner was great fun! I loved meeting other families with kids from the children's home. Biological siblings that live across the country from each other were reunited and it was neat to see all the kids were running around and playing together! I met another mom very close to us in the process. We chatted with our case worker and others from the agency and got their opinion of what the HAGUE would bring in the coming year, news of the children's home, and needs they have. The event was highlighted on our local news. The family mentioned is the one that was our original contact with the agency and the children's home! Have you picked up on the fact that this ministry excites me?!?!!!!! Less than three more weeks...I should get busy and end this long post! Thanks for your prayers!

Added comment: Most all of the 75 children at the home are placed and waiting to go home to their families, even among the older children, I believe. Unfortunately, some cases take much longer to complete. All of these children need your prayers to be united with their families soon!