Tuesday, November 25, 2008

More hair care

Well we successfully washed hair again yesterday. This time there we managed to avoid the tears and hollers. I've found the trick is one of those hand held shower hoses that you attach to the tub spout. Today we're putting the girls' hair in some kind of hairdo. Diamond has soft hair that is easy to handle but Kindness' hair is very coarse. I found some YouTube videos showing how to cornrow and other styles. I like this video. Do you have any favorites for really coarse hair?

Monday, November 24, 2008

I think they are finally getting full

I've read on other families blogs that the kids eat tons of food when they get home. It is very true! The girls could eat more than me at mealtime and throughout the day. We bought a rice cooker and 20 pounds of rice to keep up with the demand. I know they were being fed at the orphanage but I guess not as much as they wanted! I've heard this from most adoptive parents, too. Anyway, I think we're finally filling up their stomachs. Diamond actually left part of her second helping the other day. Of course, they are like hobbits in that they would like to eat at all hours of the day also!

Diamond is 34 pounds and tall. She wears a 3T mostly for the waist but slacks are definitely high water pants on her. If we use a belt, she can wear 4T on the bottom. Her arms are long, too so she needs the 4 for the sleeve length in tops.

Kindness is only 25 pounds so a 24 month fits her better. I tried 2T tights last week and she had puddles around her ankles. This week I put 18-24 month tights on and they worked much better.

We're been fortunate to receive bags of clothes from people from church and freecycle since I didn't have the right size in the right season for them. I'm looking for winter jackets for them since we're planning to head to WI over Christmas. We also were gifted a ride on toy and a little bike for them to ride outside. Diamond has almost mastered pedaling a bike with training wheels. I'll post pictures next time.

Monday, November 10, 2008

We made it to church and hair care

We made it to church yesterday for the first time. The girls did really well. Erin has the little kids Sunday School class so Diamond went with her and Kindness sat on our laps during Bible study. After church there was a dinner which we stayed for. Thankfully there was chicken and rice there so our girls had something to eat. Diamond played with another little girl that was adopted from China a few years ago and made a new friend.

After church it took three of us two hours to unbraid their hair. Then we shampooed their hair. It was a very noisy experience!!! Diamond thought we were drowning her or something. After I used a hand held shower head to direct the water she relaxed a little. For now I'm leaving it natural until I study a few websites about African hair care. Here are some pictures of Kindness after her comb out and before a shampoo.

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

We're back but missing Abraham








Many of you have heard that we were unable to bring Abraham home with us. We had gotten clearance from the US Consulate's office prior to making travel arrangements that everything was ready to go with the kids. However, when we got to our appointment on Tuesday morning, Consular Gurski told us that Abraham would not be granted a visa because the age determination test which she had ordered came back with him being 17 to 19 years old. After attempts to change her mind with a second set of x-rays and medical opinions from three doctors associated with the African Mercy Ship, she said she would not reconsider. In fact, she refused to look at the doctor's conclusions from the new x-rays. We tried to appeal to the American Ambassador only to be told that they didn't interfere with the Consulate's decisions. Abraham was found to be 4 foot 8 inches and 82 pounds at the Mercy Ship. His actual age is about 12.

So we came home with Diamond (5 years) and Kindness (2 years). It was a very sad day for all of us when we had to tell Abraham that he couldn't come now but that we would fight to bring him home as soon as we could. We've started the fight by contacting our senators and representatives and whomever we can think of that might be able to help our case.

The girls are adjusting well and are busy playing with the whole family. We've had some tears at bedtime and other quiet times when Diamond (5 years) asks about when Abraham will be coming home. Kindness (2 years) points to Abraham's picture and looks around so we know she realizes something isn't right. Other than that, we are doing okay. Thanks for all the prayers and please continue to pray that we can resolve this issue and bring Abraham home as soon as possible. I am working at getting pictures ready for you to see.

If anyone has had to contest the American Consulate's decision, please leave a comment so I can contact you. Thank you.