Isa's Birthday

Isa just had her 6th Birthday. It's so cliché to say, "It's hard to believe..."

When it was time for her grandparents to leave for the airport we knew we would have some tears. Isa hates to see the people she loves leave. We thought we would wait to pull out the "present of the year" to ease the pain. It worked!

"It's Cecilia!" was her response.

Sure enough, the doll looks a lot like the two pictures we have of our second daughter; the complexion, the pig tails, the almond-shaped eyes.

The doll was bought over a year ago; long before Cecilia showed up on the waiting children's list. We decided to keep it until Isabel was old enough to appreciate it. (When it was bought she was still content with a Dollar Tree doll whose head was hanging on by a thread.)

What a coincidence!

Just another reminder that Cecilia is meant to be a part of our family. As the time for our trip draws closer we become more and more filled with bipolar emotions. The excitement of meeting her and the fear of the unknown. The joy of a new daughter and the challenges of a second child with a background that we have had no control over. The jubilation of five weeks less of a Chicago winter and the anxiety of leaving our home for longer than we have ever been away in our ten years of marriage.

A doll bought in Ocean City, NJ a year before the referral of our daughter living in Huaraz, Peru; a coincidence?

No.

Looks more like God's divine providence to me.

mbp

Our reason for adopting is not an uncommon one for followers of Christ.

James 1:27
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Isaiah 1:17
Learn to do good;
Seek justice,
Reprove the ruthless;
Defend the orphan,
Plead for the widow.

Mathew 25:31-46
I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to me.

In my opinion, this is what true religion is all about. So, for what it’s worth we will walk it out as best we can.

mbp

Cecilia's Tears

Isabel has taken to drawing Cecilia with tears falling from her eyes recently. I’m not sure if it’s because we are trying to prep her for a rocky transition, or because she knows something we don’t. I can’t help but wonder if those tears are her own. One thing I do know is that this adoption is on her mind as much as it’s on ours. Isabel is processing it differently, though.

Like any child growing up in a loving home, Isa loves to laugh and play. She is at the age where she thinks the same thing is funny over, and over, and over. Thanks to her aunt, we are now living with the interminable love of “jinxing” people. (In fact, Luciana and I said something at the same time the other day, and she was downright indignant that neither one of us would jinx the other!)

But just as it is with all of us, the thought of a new family member is never too far from the front of her mind.

Her answer to every question...

“Isa, guess what we are doing tomorrow?”

“Are we going to Peru?”

Or her prayers...

“Dear Lord, I pray that you will help Cecilia to sleep well tonight. Surround her with your angels.”

Or her paragraphs that she types on my phone during long car trips...

“My sistr wat du you thygc we wil pley i no we wil pley feryg jresap. and balrynas we are gowyg. to have so mach fan I can’t. weyt. wat wad you du with. a sistr wad you be icsaydid. our wad you be hapyy. iwad to wad you be hapyy too?”

Here is the translation for those of you who can’t read “kindergarten.”

“My Sister. What do you think we will play? I know. We will play fairy dress-up and ballerinas. We are going to have so much fun. I can’t wait. What would you do with a sister? Would you be excited, or would you be happy? I would too. Would you be happy too?”

As a father, there is a natural instinct to protect my daughter. I want her life to be full of joy and peace, free from pain and difficulty.

Now it’s time for some honesty. I’m scared. I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that this is God’s calling for my family. It’s all been so clear. But I’m scared anyway. I’m afraid that I will lead my daughter into a life that is less than perfect. (Does that sound as stupid to you as it does to me?)

I guess I’m afraid that joy and peace and pain and difficulty can’t co-exist. That just might be what I believe. Not exactly the teachings of Jesus, huh?

Maybe those tears are her father’s; the ones that only run down his cheeks after he prays for her, kisses her soft cheek, and walks out of her room as she drifts off to sleep.

If you think of it, pray for Isabel. We’d appreciate it.

mbp

Cecilia's Mountain Home

Here is a picture of Huaraz, Peru. Just thought you might like to see Cecilia's hometown and where we will meet her for the first time. Huaraz is a trekker, mountain biker, and rock climber's paradise. For many, it is the gateway to the Andes Mountains and the Cordillera Blanca. We thought we would be spending four weeks there, but were just informed that there is no SNA agent (Peruvian official social worker) in that town. We will travel there and spend a week before we uproot her and take her back to Lima, where we will spend the rest of our time in Peru getting to know each other.

How much?

Then it hit me... How much money are they going to want from us over the next couple of months?

You’re kidding, right?

No. It was no joke.

$2000 for international fees
$2400 for post adoption home visits (Peru requires nine of them!)
Approximately $3500 for three round-trip plane tickets and one one-way (I almost forgot we needed that extra ticket home!)
Approximately $2000 for living expenses for five weeks in Peru
not to mention what we’ve already spent.

There’s no way.

We were amazed at how friends and family started dropping money into our hands.

Soon after we found out, friends handed us $100 and told me not to argue. A family member who remained healthy all year gave us his $300 “sick day bonus.” Other missionary friends mailed us a check for $400 (Yes, the missionaries are supporting us!). Another couple paid $304 for 6 dozen cinnamon buns that Luciana made. (They’re delicious, but she doesn’t charge $50.67 a dozen!) Then the tickets to Lima were given to us (Even the one-way ticket back.)

Worried about the money? Who’s worried?

Not me... well not anymore.

Consider the lilies of the field...

mbp

The Eastern Star Nativity

Luciana and I decided not to buy gifts for each other this year. With the adoption bills looming large it just didn’t seem to be wise. Actually, it didn’t seem possible.

“I’d really like to have a nativity for the fireplace mantel,” I said.

Luciana’s response was classic.

“Sure.”

As people began to support us financially I realized that it was more an act of obedience really. We went to 10,000 Villages after Christmas hoping to find the perfect one at the right price.

The Eastern Star Nativity was one of two that seemed to be the right size for our mantel. But, where were the shepherds? And the baby was not in the manger; rather he was in Mary’s arms.

This scene did not take place the night of His birth at all. It took place when the wise men arrived years later. Joseph and Mary were living in a home, and Jesus was a little older: probably around two.

Cecilia turned two years old on October 29th.

This nativity will stay on our mantel until Lia comes home. Who knows... we may leave it up all year. Stop by. We’d love to show it to you.

Oh, by the way, it was made in Peru.

mbp

Our Crazy Week

I was just bending over to pick up the sweater that I was planning on wearing to school the next day. No big deal. That’s when the Poulterers' terrible, horrible, no good, very bad week began. I never made it to the sweater. The back pain was so severe I could hardly breathe. Luciana came in the room a few minutes later as I stood contemplating how I would be able to go to work the next day. She exclaimed, “You’ll need to get a sub.” After protesting for about three minutes, I explained to her that I would need to get a sub. Funny how the words coming from my mouth sounded so similar to hers, yet made so much sense when I spoke them. By Monday I was running down the hall of the high school to help break up a fight. I was completely healed. The next day Luciana called and told me I would have to come home and get Isabel on the bus. Luciana’s back had decided it was her turn. I came home to find her on her knees at the coffee table. Wednesday evening while guests were over I went to the basement and stepped in a puddle. Hmmm? Time for a new hot water heater I guess. After He emptied our savings account, and reminded us of how frail we really are, God was ready.

“We have two children.”

That’s what Luciana announced when she dropped off my lunch at school the next day. Sometimes I’m a little slow on the uptake. “Huh?” The meeting in which the Peruvian council would decide the fate of Cecilia and consequently the make up of our family wasn’t supposed to take place for a couple more weeks.

After one of those when-it-rains-it-pours weeks, God made us laugh... hard. We knew the timing didn’t make any sense. We actually wrote the letter requesting the adoption half-heartedly after three failed attempts with other children over the past couple of years (and a recent miscarriage a couple of months ago). “We might as well...” were literally the words that preceded the writing and sending of the letter. We began to pray, “Help us with our unbelief.”

He did.

“We have two children.”

mbp