Lucy meets Papa!

Mother's Day weekend we received some really good news......Lucy's paperwork was out of IBSER (the Haitian Social services), then we were told by our agency that Jeff and I  had to fly to Haiti rather quickly to sign Lucy's paperwork that would allow her to be an American citizen once she arrived in the USA, this again is a new procedure since the earthquake. So, one week tomorrow May 23rd, we will be flying to Haiti for a 4 day visit. This is going to be the first time that Jeff and Lucy have met! I am excited to see witness this occasion. I am excited to see Lucy and tell her that the "waiting" for all of us is nearly over!!! Once we arrive back to the US then we just wait patiently for the phone call that tells us that Jeff and I can fly back to bring Lucy home, this we hope will only be a matter of weeks.

This week is a week of trying to wrap things up, for our girls to be taken care of, the dogs, our house and all the other things that have to be done in order for us to leave. To be honest, I am nervous about leaving our girls, I know in my heart they will be fine and it's only 4 days, but it's still hard. I am packing all the things that I want to bring down to the Children at the Orphanage and other sweet people that I now have a friendship with. I am excited to see familiar faces that I have got to know in this little town of Leogane. This will be my 4th trip in the last year, a year that has changed me forever. I am looking forward to seeing little faces that I can kiss, hugs that will be given and received, laughter that will be shared, hot dusty days and equally hot nights, drinking "real" coke, seeing the beautiful blue ocean. and looking into the faces of people who are living a life that I will never know...........the list could go on. I am so happy to share Haiti with my husband and hopefully he will "see" what it is that has captured my heart forever.....our daughter, the people and the country of Haiti.

Jeff and I would so appreciate prayer as we travel next week. We are also travelling with two other couple that will be meeting there Children for the first time. Please pray for safety, physically and spiritually, sometimes the things our eyes may see are hard to grasp and our hearts become heavy. Prayers for our little ones we leave behind, that they will be protected and not be scared - I'm sure there little hearts will wonder about Mommy and Daddy?


I hope to blog a couple of entries while I am in Haiti, depending on a Internet connection? Thank you for all of you that continue to pray for our family and the journey we travel to bring Lucy home......we our truly so thankful  and blessed for the kind words and encouragement that we receive. There are days when it's been so hard, and at times weak and disappointing - those kinds words and prayers are what has kept us in the race to persevere and be strong for Lucy - to this we are grateful and humbled.

In my daughter's eyes

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House hunting in Haiti!

Today it was back to reality after returning home from Haiti last night. Freezing cold temps and snow was here to greet me, oh, how I didn't miss this for a week! Haiti was hot days and cooler nights with the odd little mouse or huge spider to accomany us in our room at night - also these little mice had a feast in my suitcase eating through the instant mashed potatoes packets, tuna fish and the odd packets of food and treats to keep us going. I don't like Haiti for these little beasts, they always seem to make an apperance on my visits to Haiti..........but they don't stop me from going back!!!

This was such an enjoyable trip to visit Lucy, some other Orphanages, a few medical clinics and a beautiful ministry.http://www.apparentproject.org/ that I support. I had the privilege of helping my sweet friend, Rhyan find a home for her new ministry that she is starting here this month. This ministry is to create a loving home environment for Children living with HIV in Leogane, Haiti. http://www.espwaberlancia.org/ I believe she has found the perfect home! After looking at over 8 + homes and being driven around on the back of a Haitian motorcycle (which is an experience in itself! ) and after much prayers, considerations and processing Rhyan then came to a decision that this was the house if the price could be negotiated?................the following morning and after more phones calls a price was set and it was a done deal! I believe that this beautiful home will be the perfect location for the Children, Rhyan and people who come to visit or volunteer. It is in close walking distance to the main street, Clinics are close too, Orphanage's run by people she is familiar with and the friendships that have already been made will become closer due to the proximity of the home - all this is good! There is work to be done with the home to get it up and running but nothing that Rhyan and her contacts/friends can't do! The house will be secure with a large gate and wall that is being built before she moves in. Please consider helping and or partnering to help make this dream a reality for 6 -7 little Children living in Haiti. I was asked by Rhyan in January if I would consider being a board member for "Espwa Berlancia" to this I said "yes", I am excited to see this ministry grow and become all that it can be, to bring Hope to these Children that God will bring forth.

The "Welcome Mat" is out and the celebration is about to begin! ''Home is the nicest word there is,'' wrote Laura Ingalls Wilder. Home is where our favorite memories are. It's where we start from. So let's help fill these 7 rooms with life, love and laughter. Please consider a financial gift to bless this ministry and the Children that will live in this lovely home.

It all began with a dream. Somewhere in your mind's eye you begin to picture the perfect home, and that starts the magic.  From there many hands, hearts and minds will combine to help make the dream a reality. Someone helps you find a home. Different people help you finance it. Someone welcomes you to the neighborhood. And lots of friends will stop by to take the tour and share in the housewarming! This home is more than just walls and doors and screens on the windows - it's a place where you'll build dreams, plan futures and create many happy and loving memories for these blessed Children. "It's not the size of the house, but the love the dwells within." I know for sure that this home is a home where children will thrive.

Thank you Rhyan for the wonderful opportunity to be part of this ministry and journey that God has laid on your heart. It was a fun visit filled with happy memories that I hold dear to my heart ~ Thanks for showing me more of Haiti x

Under the stars

The days are busy in Haiti, noise is everywhere you go, some sounds are sweet sounds, like the sweet voices of nannies singing early morning prayers to God when I'm still in slumber. Beeping of car and motorcycle horns, the loud animal sounds day and night, people shopping and bartering on the streets, radios/music playing loudly, kids playing late when I think they should be sleeping!, religious ceremonies into the early morning hours. Haitians like their horns and use them at every moment they can. People here talk and communicate with deep passion, it always looks like a argument to me! When the day is done, for me that is, the stars are so beautiful, clear and peaceful. The stars shine so bright here in Haiti, I am amazed at God's creation and the beauty that He has given us to enjoy.........I always wonder if other Haitians see the same when I look up at night sky, it's breathtaking.



People who know me well, know that I don't like loud noises or bright lights! There is something about the evenings that I love, all is quiet the house is sometimes clean, my girls are bathed and sleeping and I feel peace, it's "my time". I wonder at times if I could possibly live in Haiti if I had too? Where would one go if they needed that "peace" that I so crave? This past Sunday while in Port au Prince I was thinking about the people living in the tents with the heat, dust, noises and thinking, where would a Mama go if she just wanted to sit quietly with her babies? I have a luxury in the States to sit in any of the rooms in my house and choose a "quiet" place to hold one of my girls, talk with them or just hold them and listen to their hearts.........no loud horns beeping, dirt flying around, neighbors watching me, or wearing dirty clothes that have not seen a washing machine ever! This week I have very aware of my surroundings, the places that God has stretched me, my weaknesses and my heart. I have had wonderful moments that I wouldn't trade and moments that my heart has been so heavy that I've cried. I wish that I could pack up all the Children that I have held, loved and cried over and bring them home on Thursday with me........Lucy is one of them! It's so hard to say goodbye to my child that I know has to wait, wait and not know the next time she will see me, her Mama. I want to tell her that she will one day be home in a peaceful home, have quiet times where I can sit with her in her bedroom on a rocking chair and listen to her heart, just like I do with Lilly, Catherine and Grace. At night she will have routine, cuddle times, and security of a Mommy and Daddy that will love her forever and kiss her goodnight. Even as I write this blog I am sat in a internet "cafe" AKA: some guys garage, it's so loud with a generator to keep our internet going, but this I am thankful.



I am grateful for this amazing week even with the sweat, dirt, dust and noise, I am thankful for my dear husband that has allowed me to be here while he is in charge back home - one day we will be here together to collect our little girl and bring her home.

Trading Haiti's ashes for Beauty!

You are Invited to a Haitian Jewelry and Metal Arts Open House

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

FRIDAY, February 11th, 2011 from 7pm to 10pm.
SATURDAY, February 12th, 2011 from 10am to 3pm

Stephanie McCallum’s House
10317 41st Place NE
St. Michael, MN 55376
Cell: (612) 205-1780
stephanie_mccallum@charter.net

I am hosting and Open House party to help eradicate poverty and child relinquishment in Haiti.
I will be selling Haitian made Jewelry and other items created by the artisans at the Apparent
Project in Port Au Prince. 100% of the profit goes to the Apparent Project.
http://www.apparentproject.org/

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

Please join me as I show you some of the beautiful, one of a kind and eco-friendly, Jewelry
created in Haiti. .
• Necklaces and Bracelets, prices range from $5 to $20.
• “Metal Art Crosses” and “Haitian Children Plaques” that are made from recycled Oil
 drums. Different size pieces range in price from $6 to $25.
• Another popular item from Haiti is their one of a kind, “Coconut Shell Nativities” which
are so sweet! They have all been hand-made and each figure is also hand-painted.
These are $25 and ready to give as a gift in a little bag!

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

I hope that you can stop by and see for yourself the beauty and creativity that the Haitian men
and women have. There is no pressure to buy or donate….just come, relax and stop by for
coffee and something sweet to eat! I would love to see you!
If you are unable to join us this weekend but are interested in buying something, call me. I can
gift wrap, mail to you, or someone else for a small cost.

                                                  Let’s trade Haiti’s ashes for Beauty!

*** This is an Open House event but I would appreciate an RSVP if possible so I can know
numbers. Also, invite a friend and you both receive a small gift! ***

Sweet Grace

Life is precious........."Grace" (not my Grace) is a reminder today that our Children are gifts from God. Today, I hold this little Grace up in prayer to our Father in Heaven. Please join me in praying for this precious little girl. Grace goes to the same School as my Catherine and Grace, Hand In Hand Christian Montessori in St. Paul. Please take a moment to read Grace's story and pray for the family of Grace Alpers.

www.caringbridge.org/visit/gracealpers


                                                              

                                                Jesus, we give thanks for our children.

                                                May we continue to be blessed by their
                                                simple wonder so that we may not take for
                                                granted one single moment of this miracle
                                                to which we've been given.  Amen ~

Wondering?

                                           Simply, the thing that I am shall make me live.
                                                                                                                ~ William Shakespeare.

Life is not a path of coincidence, happenstance, and luck, but rather an unexplainable, meticulously charted course for one to touch the lives of others and make a difference in the world.
                                                                                                                     ~ Barbara Dillinham

This morning as I was playing "kitchen" with Catherine and Grace and Grace asked me, "What do you think Lucy is playing right now"? I wonder too, what are you playing right now Lucy? We pray that soon you will be home with us, playing "kitchen" and eating popcorn and M&M's like Catherine and Grace. We are always wondering what you and your little friends are doing throughout the day ( and night! ).

We love you Lucy ~ x

STAR OF THE WEEK

Lucy, I thought you may like to know what your big Sister is like. Lilly was "Star of the Week" last week! On Monday, Lilly came home with 22 letters written to her, from her classmates, how lovely to read such sweet things about your big sister. By the way, Lilly told her class about you and how excited she is have you home! These are a few of the things her friends said.................

1. You are a caring person
2. You are so smart and how did you get that way?
3. You are pretty
4. You always listen to the teacher
5. You are one of a kind
6. How do you make your dogs look so cute?
7. You are the bested friend I could have
8. Your responsible
9. You are so fit
10. You are very fair
11. You are so lucky to have a family like you do
12. Why do you go to England alot?
13. You are so pretty
14. You are honest
15. Can I be friends with you?
16. Do your sisters annoy you?
17. Your fun to be with!
18. I like you so much.
19. Your good at playing the piano
20. Why did your Mom and Dad want to adopt a girl from Haiti?

I think you have the BEST big sister Lucy - Catherine and Grace are cute too!

I love you girls ~

Mama x

Today is the Day!

Today is the first day that I have began my official blog, all thanks to another adoptive Mommy, Ashlie! This past weekend our family attended a Haitian Gathering for families who are in the process of adopting Children from Haiti. This was held at a great resort in  Alexandria, MN.  After returning home on Sunday night and Ashlie asking if any of the other families blog,  then I decided that this was it.....the prompting I needed!!! I've have had the blog set up for months, I guess I just need that question asked? Well after this past weekend, I have the inspiration and motivation to get going. This is a journal mainly for myself to write and keep my ramblings of our families journey of adopting little Miss Lucy from Haiti. I hope that this "journal" will be something that our daughter, Lucy will enjoy reading about in the years to come? Even though we have been in the paperwork process for the past 7 months this was really not a good time to blog due to the fact that this was a very stressful time in our families life and marriage  - not really good time to tell others of the beauty in bringing another child into our family by ways of adoption, when I was seeing no beauty other than stress from the endless paperwork it involves. Now feels like the right time, so today I go for it! The journey begins, I'm excited to see where I travel in this journey, the people I will meet and the valuable lessons I hope to learn and gain. Thank you Ashlie W, for giving me the kick I needed, to this I'm grateful - really!

I am not a good writer and I've always admired others who write with such beauty, grace and eloquence, this is not me! I'm going to pretend this doesn't bother me and just go for it. I don't think that my daughters in years to come will be worried about the fact that I'm not "perfect" at this writing thing? I hope that these will be journal entries or "blogs",  that my girls will cherish because they know more about my heart, who I am as a Mother, wife, friend and Child of God. God knows my gifts and writing was not one of them. So here, on my blog I declare to you girls that this is not going to be a New York Times Bestseller, but I love you deeply and that is what I think matters.

I dedicate this blog today to the Four most precious girls in my life, Lilly, Catherine, Grace and Lucy. My dear and patient husband, Jeff that has been my rock and is my biggest hero, he is the best Daddy and husband I could ever have imagined, you girls have no idea how much he gives his all,  for you four...........we five ladies our blessed to be loved and protected by him. Thank you Jesus for these precious and beautiful people you have given me to live and share life my life with.