by Stacey | Nov 26, 2010 | Special Announcements
This morning Kaitlyn met her brothers for the first time. It was wonderful to watch her face light up with excitement when they said her name and how quickly she dropped to the ground when they asked her to play. She gave each of them a Thomas the Tank train and much like yesterday’s bus it sealed her welcome with the boys and earned her a place in their heart.
Neither Jonathan nor Nicholas really understand what it means to have a new sister but they are thrilled to gain an eager playmate.
There are no words to describe the feeling that came over me to see all my children playing together for the first time. We read books, tickled one another and laughed a lot. There was a huge feeling of ‘rightness’ about it all. At one point Nicholas asked where Kaitlyn was, and refused to go down the stairs until she joined us.
It has been amazing to see how God has prepared us for this day. I can see his hand in many of our past decisions, decisions that didn’t seem significant at the time but have had a profound effect on making our transition easier.
As a mother, it is also wonderful to see how God has prepared Kaitlyn for this change. Going from an only child to having to share her parents with two younger children is quite an adjustment. Kevin and I often wondered how this day would stretch her.
But God’s timing is perfect. He brought into our home a collection of children, mostly boys, of various ages over the last year and a half through my home daycare. These kids have introduced Kaitlyn to sharing, compromise, waiting your turn, and trying new things. She has learned that sometimes you are the leader and sometimes you are the follower. All these things aided her as she played with her new brothers.
I am incredibly proud of her today. She will be an amazing big sister. And I am reminded that God is good. All the time.
by Stacey | Nov 25, 2010 | Special Announcements
If anyone reading followed our blog from our previous trip to China to adopt Kaitlyn in 2005 you’ll remember Kevin’s many references to potty humor. There was potty humor connected to the flight, potty humor connected to the odd holes in the ground used as toilets, and potty humor connected to the celebration we had when Kaitlyn took care of business in a timely manner after coming into our care.
This time around you’ll hopefully find less toilet humor, although two boys in the midst of potty training is a ripe field for Kevin’s funny bone. Kevin will be posting a few updates as we go along and I’m sure you’ll recognize his distinct voice in his entries.
Our first visit went extremely well. Thank you for all your prayers. I don’t typically go with the flow as well as Kevin and was quite nervous as we pulled up to the house. But as soon as we entered an incredible feeling of peace and calm surrounded me and I was able to fully enjoy being greeted by two excited little boys.
When we walked in they both spied the two toy school buses we brought as gifts with eager eyes and itchy fingers. Those buses were our ticket in! It didn’t take long for them to drag us down to the floor to play. Over the course of the morning they warmed up to us eventually cuddling in our arms. They read stacks of books with us snuggling right in and enjoying every moment. Jonathan especially loved the lift the flap style we brought from home.
They called us Mommy and Daddy right away, coached from their foster mom (who goes by Nanny). Like most toddlers they were thrilled to be the center of attention for the morning. Nanny and our case worker stayed with us but somewhat removed themselves from the visit. Nanny re-directed to boys to us for help ‘fixing’ the toys and before long they were turning to us for comfort and hugs.
Our schedule for the next two weeks is insanely busy. We visit every day and have to prepare our house for their arrival. Our case worker has set December 10th as a tentative moving date assuming the rest of the visits go as well as this one.
Please pray for God’s hand to guide us through this process and give us the energy to complete the many tasks needed to bring them home. We are still not allowed to post pictures, but they’ll come as soon as we can! For now we can announce their new full names: Jonathan David Ray Weeks (for both our fathers) and Nicholas Kevin Weeks (for daddy).
by Stacey | Nov 25, 2010 | Special Announcements
For the next few weeks my blog will be devoted to introducing readers to our newest additions in the Weeks family and chronicling our journey through our second adoption.
Last week at this time we had grand plans for the holiday season, huge commitments at church, and a home based business flourishing. Now, our seasonal plans have been scaled back, we have handed off many commitments, and the business is on hiatus. Why? One long-awaited phone call.
We have been praying for years that God would expand our family and bless us with more children. Last week we were told about two boys, ages two and three, in need of a forever home. After meeting them and reading about their history we feel a great sense of peace moving forward and proceeding with adoption. It’s been seven days since that first phone call and everything has changed.
Today we go to their foster home to get to know them, to play with them, and start the transition process into our home. We plan to visit every day until they are ready to move. Tomorrow we hope to bring Kaitlyn to introduce her to her new brothers. She is beyond excited.
So, if you’re at all interested in joining us on this journey check back as often as you like. We’ll post pictures once Family and Children Services allows us too. You can subscribe to the blog to enable our adoption updates to go directly to your inbox by entering your e-mail address in the bar to the right, clicking “sign me up,” and following the instructions.
As I write this first entry I am excited, nervous, and beyond grateful. God is good and His timing is perfect. Please pray for us, for Kaitlyn, and Jonathan and Nicholas as we get to know one another in the days and weeks to come.
by Stacey | Sep 25, 2010 | Special Announcements
I’ve been asked to share some more about Kaitlyn, her adoption, and our time in China. I’ve pasted an excerpt below from an article first published in The Chatham Daily News (June 2006) and The Moose Jaw Times Herald (May 2006). It’s our adoption story. Enjoy!
Taken from our adoption journal:
Tomorrow, we leave for China to meet our daughter Kaitlyn. Needless to say, we didn’t sleep too well. Not because we’re nervous to fly and not because the food scares us a little. It’s all about the anticipation.
I suppose more than anything, we’re anticipating parenthood and how that will totally change us. Watching our daughter grow up and reach certain milestones in her life: taking first steps, saying first words and a bunch of other firsts we can’t think of right now … we’re not willing to think beyond those moments just yet. It’s all about anticipating how our lives – and hers – will soon change forever.
We have prepared almost two years for this moment, a moment that began with an unexpected phone call. Unable to finance an adoption put us at a standstill. Dated in our prayer journal is a cherished entry regarding this time. I had written that I was finally able to release my hopes and dreams of having a family to God. Less than two weeks later a couple we are close friends with offered to finance an international adoption. We were stunned. Tears silently poured down our cheeks as we asked if the understood the cost. They knew. What a gift.
Paperwork, interviews, fees, and applications brought us to this precipice of parenthood. Our group of nine families traveled together from various parts of Canada to meet in China. We laughed together, cried together, and got to know each other through the modern convenience of the Internet before leaving Canadian soil. We share many things in common. First, we all picked a wonderful organization called Family Outreach International to facilitate our adoption. Second, we were all accepted by China as prospective parents. Third, we all received our proposals within months of each other. And finally, at 5:10 in Nanchang, China, we all became parents, many for the first time.
We were supposed to receive our children at 4pm by traveling to a neutral location to meet the nannies from the orphanage. Due to some really hot weather and lack of air conditioning on the bus, the orphanage asked if they could postpone the exchange a little while longer; we would meet them at 4:30 instead. We were disappointed, but we understood. The 4:30 deadline was then pushed back to “around” 5:00. We were instructed to wait in our hotel room for a phone call from our tour guide who would then tell us to come downstairs and give us instructions from there.
At about 4:58, we received the phone call that our babies were already waiting for us in the hotel meeting room. We pulled everything together lightening fast and hustled down to the main floor. When we arrived, all the babies, care workers, orphanage personnel, and families had gathered and were impatiently waiting for “the big moment.” What chaos! By this point, we all knew who our children were, but we were not allowed to take them from their nannies until our passports and some official adoption paperwork was verified.
After waiting for an eternity, we were finally given Kaitlyn. She came to us with barely a struggle and dove into Mommy’s arms first. Though she cried for a few minutes – and understandably so – she settled in pretty quickly and has since made a good adjustment. After a few dozen pictures and some additional paperwork, we shared our first meal together as a family.
Kaitlyn came to us with a really bad lung infection that made her breathing labored and her ears ache; she was also teething. The congestion in her chest was easily felt while holding her. She’s the smallest girl in our group of nine children, but dangit, she’s the cutest by far! We got her first smile within 24 hours and the gummy grins flowed pretty freely after that.
The remainder of our evening was spent getting to know our daughter. The next day we completed more paperwork and made a trip to the Notary Public where the adoption was made legal and Kaitlyn officially became our daughter.
Our time in China was a serious whirlwind. We were on the go from early in the morning to late at night but it’s all been worth it. Along with the formalities of finalizing the adoption we had the opportunity to tour many attractions. We visited the Great Wall, the Summer Palace, the Beijing Zoo, the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, and the “new” Silk Alley. We learned to barter, we learned some Chinese language and expressions, and we learned what makes a family complete. Normally these are not moments you share with nine other couples, but we wouldn’t change a thing.
After a long flight home, during which Kaitlyn barely slept, we finally arrived in Vancouver. We rushed through customs and officially welcomed Kaitlyn into Canada within the Vancouver immigration office walls. There she became a permanent resident of Canada. What a feeling!
After rushing to our connecting flight, and another 5 hours on a plane, we were greeted by excited family members and friends in the Toronto airport. All feelings of exhaustion left as grandparents met their granddaughter, cousins met for the first time, and aunts and uncles exchanged smiles and tears. There are no words to express the combined feelings of relief, happiness, and closure to a process that was difficult – but will be fondly remembered.
Currently, Kaitlyn is wide awake on Daddy’s lap playing on China time. It’s 4am here but she doesn’t know it. Watching her makes us pause and wonder at how one event could change us like it has. How one little girl for whom we have prayed for so long is finally with us. How all of the planning and preparation over the last two years was needed because of what we experienced. How being a mom and dad totally changes the way you see yourself, each other, and your child.
And when Kaitlyn fell asleep in my arms last night, it rocked my world.
It took my breath away.
God is good.