We have an appointment!
Wednesday July 3, 2024 -Anapoima, Colombia-
Our time in Anapoima is coming to an end. We have an appointment tomorrow July 4, at 9AM with the judge who will issue the “Sentencia” and then, Andre is forever ours. Can you believe it?
But wait! You said 6-8 weeks! It hasn’t even been a month yet!
Well, this is true and though the sentencia finalizes the adoption, there is still a lot of other things that need to get done before we can go home.
Birth certificate- his current birth certificate says his given name. We need one with his new name on it. This could not be done without the Sentencia
Colombian passport- same deal. I mentioned in an earlier post that he will be Colombian by Colombian law. So he needs a Colombian passport that says Andre Joseph
US visa. Granted, as of 9AM tomorrow, he is also a citizen of the USA. But they do not issue passports here. With the sentencia and the Colombian passport, the VISA that we applied for and were waiting on to travel will be issued to him. That visa requires a picture to be taken and inserted into the visa to allow us all into the US.
Hmm, wonder what I’m forgetting….these are the items coming to mind at the moment anyway.
So all said and done, we are probably dealing with this stuff another 1-2 weeks? Guess-timate of course. Our goal is to be in Pereira around July 14.
So, while I sit out here on baby nap monitor mode while the rest of the fam is at the pool, I’ll give a brief re-hash of yesterday. Thank you baby monitor for helping me enjoy outside but still be a marginally effective parent!
This keeps me from having to talk to the authorities about poor parenting.
So with this news, looks like I am skipping yesterday’s post (July 2). Really it was pretty routine. My peanut and I only had one pool session today, BUT, Santi and I get some additional papi / Santi time which was awesome. Last year, we tried but we’re not successful in the papi assist launching of him in the air in the pool. Yesterday? It was spectacular! Our first attempt was probably the best as he almost made a low orbit he got so high. Don’t know what I’m talking about? So under the water, I clasp my hands together and he puts his feet in there. Then, we both squat down, him holding onto my shoulders . On the count of three, we both stand up and I raise my arms launching him not the air. Last year when we tried, he may have been a bit scared and reluctant. NOT TODAY! We had a blast.
Then last night putting him to bed wasn’t great. Claudia went to put him down and he had a big meltdown. Screaming & crying. He was tired but still put up a fight. Claudia fought that battle for a long while. Then I came to provide relief. One thing I notice is when this happens, when I hold him and rubs his back, he ends up burping couple times and then he finally winds down. But it doesn’t make any sense because unless the crying n generating the gas for that burp, I don’t understand. But the past few times this has happened, the burp has been pretty consistent.
Also yesterday was the Colombia vs Brazil match. We arched that of course which ended in a 1-1 tie but more importantly, Brazil HAD to win or be eliminated…they were eliminated! Nobody likes Brazil! At least not in this family.
And now, as I said, I am here sitting outside with the monitor. I snuck over to see the source of all the giggling at the pool. My older ones are having a blast. Goofballs! Inventing silly games.
Claudia in the background doing Claudia things…
Oh, a little clean up of a previous conversation. I mentioned, way back when, about the showers and how we, Americans, consider them “death traps”. We I kept forgetting to take a picture. Well today, I got one of the actual shower head.
Fear not silly gringos!!
This is how it’s done here. Nothing says “get out of the shower” quicker than the electrical wire routed to your shower head. This is your on demand hot water.
It’s not as bad as it seems. Every trip to Colombia, we’ve seen these showers. It is more economical than a traditional water heater. But this is also the reason why this AirBNB is economical for us. There have been posts by adopting families that perhaps have scared other potential renters away. We’re not scared. News flash, the Lord will take me when he is good and ready and if it’s being zapped by my shower head, ok then!
Interesting note about my now youngest son. He absolutely loves the pool, the smiling and giggling is off the charts. I was talking with Claudia and we believe he has already surpassed like level 3 swimming lessons. Our opinion anyway. The problem or drama to this story and that is the fact that we need to get him out of the pool at some point. Now removal isn’t really an issue. We haven’t experienced meltdowns or anything like that. But when we get him back to the room to change him, pants and diaper come off and drying is attempted but peanut has other ideas. Ponce de Leon was the famous explorer who searched for the fountain of youth which allegedly was discovered in St Augustine, FL (where we received Andre’s referral). I cannot say for certain that youth can be found but certainly there is a fountain that flows post pool. This has happened now probably 4-6 times and though we should spect it, it always surprises us. Today, genius writing this post, had a towel over my shoulder expecting le faithfuls eruption, yet I still froze momentarily as it happened! I’m a bit disappointed in myself.
On a positive note, my son does not pee in the pool!
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On a positive note, my son does not pee in the pool! 〰️
Another day, another drama. Our Airbnb in Bogota is giving us crap about our late arrival. We made estimated dates for arrival and now we are showing up a day late…keep in mind, we are paying for the night were missing but now are supposed to pay a “late arrival fee”. Not a good way to start our relationship with these people. I know the amount of time Claudia searched so I don’t want to start over. There are some junky accommodations out there believe me. Despite our statements that we are at the mercy of the government, it made no difference. Let’s see how it goes.
Fun news from home today. I exchanged texts with Mike, the young man we’ve asked to mow lawn and monitor the pool condition. He let me know that he discovered a headless rabbit on our deck. That’s the problem with Excelsior rabbits, their heads just fall off unannounced! Such a nuisance! In reality, I personally believe the neighbors cat, Mona, is making threats against me again. That cat is evil. I do have a picture of the headless rabbit but have opted to leave it off the blog for those who might be sensitive.