Lets start Blogging

Time to start up with our blog again, I have stoped blogging for two reasons one we started to have lots of hater when we had to shut down HIT and 2nd our life got crazy when we had to figure out what to do when our life changed rapidly.
well now life is becoming more normal for the most part. so I thought i will start this up again .
I enjoy going back and reading and seeing how much our family had grown and changed
this is a cute picture of the little kids this last halloween.
they had so much fun we have moved to Saratoga springs and they are really enjoying the kids in the new neighborhood,since it has a ton there ages. we are enjoying our nice friendly and normal neighbors!!

well I am way excited to start blogging again!!

He brings people into your life

In this Picture is two very special people, the first one is Holly she came into my life when I need someone to Share My struggles with,Someone to help me grow into a great person,A sister I never had.
When I was not even 18 My mom decided she had enough of me and Kicked me out,I moved from several Friends House's but never felt welcomed,then one night I met Holly, I believe she was brought to my life when I needed her the most, she is the most understanding person who helped me become the person I am today,she taught me that no matter what to just live life the best you could and be happy with what you where given. Even though there was several Years where we had not talked when we did meet up with each other we just started where we left off, I swear sometimes we share the same brain. I truly love her and could not be the person I am without the guidance she gave me when I had no one there for me. The next person Is my wonderful Husband Dave,he truly is my rock my knight and shinning Armour I know we where meant to be and I could not imagine life without him. I know Heavily father brings people into your life when you need them the most,he only gives you things that he knows you can handle,And if you need someone to be there by your side he sends them to you, Just like my great friend Holly!!

lesson's you learn

Last night Fabrice had a futsual game and they where playing against a team that they are pretty competive against. They played a great game but in the end they lost 3-2 some of the kids on our team where upset and very disapointed. But this got me thinking that every time Fabrice's team has lost(which is very little) Fabrice has never once been upset,mad,or even disapointed. He is always smiling and just seems content with life. One of the dads last night said when he sees fabrice he thinks how fabrice must think this is the greatest place. I am pretty sure that fabrice loves america and I believe he has seen so much in his little life that he know's there are bigger things to be upset with.
 Sometimes we need to  realize that sometimes life does not go the way we plan on it or sometimes we do not get what we want when we want it, and yes sometimes we lose what we think we should have one. But there are way bigger things to be worried about. Fabrice has taught us so much in just his short time here!

Life can change so fast...

So This time last year I was so excited because we had 15 more days until we would be on our way to Haiti,little did we know that would be our last trip to visit the kids.

Now they are Home and I am saying to them Time to get up we need to get ready for school, Now we are going to there soccer games and watching them at dance practice. Plus we get to plan there Birthday party's and teach them all about Halloween and Thanksgiving and see there faces when the leaves are changing colors on the trees.

Such a Great laugh!!

Nerlande has such a laugh!! I am so glad that she is able to laugh even with her spot in life right now, she knows how to laugh. It taught me something no matter what you are dealt with in life look past it and enjoy life. I can not wait to spend some time with her laughing and enjoying the few days we get with them. We love you Nerlande

You know what you could do today

We have received this from our adoption coordinator Chareyl, and we would love everyone we know to please help us to send out the word that we would like a change in the adoption laws for Haiti .
we just want our kids home and to be able to love them and take care of them. so we wont have our kids hurting for no reason over in Haiti. If you would like to send pictures of our kids please use any of them to show them these are real peoples life's that they can change.

Joint Council Haitian Children & Families Initiative

Dear Friends,

Over the past three years, the processing of adoptions in Haiti have slowed to a crawl. Abandoned children are enduring adoption processes lasting two or three years before being united with adoptive families.

Not only is such lasting institutional care damaging to the children who wait and wait, but the slowed process has had a negative effect on the many desperately needy children of Haiti who are not waiting in orphanages. Orphanages in Haiti have traditionally been providers of humanitarian aid to their communities. Many support free medical clinics, schools, feeding programs and family preservation programs. Orphanages have been a resource for temporary care for children following a family crisis, such as a fire or illness. But now that children are languishing in orphanage care for years, orphanage directors report that the beds are full, the food and medicine supplies are insufficient, and the children needing temporary care are left on the streets with little prospect for life.

In a laudable effort to move towards transparent and democratic government, Haitian officials are now adhering to the Haitian Constitutional law regarding adoption, written in 1974 by Jean Claude Duvalier. While the law of 1974 places severe limitations on the size and age of those who may adopt, it does allow for Presidential Dispensation for those not meeting the family size or age limitations. Unfortunately, Haiti lacks an organized and transparent system for obtaining Dispensations. This confusion along with the absence of a sense of urgency regarding institutionalized children has caused extensive delays in the adoption process and further victimizes children who have already lost much.

Haiti has a pending solution to this legal logjam. A newly proposed adoption law will clarify who may adopt, increase protections for Haitian children, their birth parents, and adoptive families, and streamline the adoption process. This legislation is supported by the United States and French governments along with the NGO community and UNICEF.

The children of Haiti, the crèche directors who serve them and the adoptive families who wish to raise them need your help. We must encourage the Haitian government to pass the new adoption law and efficiently grant Dispensations in the interim.


What can you do? Make five simple phone calls and write one letter.

1. Call your U.S. Senator.
· You can find your Senators’ phone numbers at www.senate.gov
· Ask to speak with the Legislative Director or Chief of Staff

2. Call your second U.S. Senator.

3. Call your representative to the U.S. House of Representative.
· You can find your representative at www.house.gov
· Ask to speak with the Legislative Director or Chief of Staff


4. Call or fax UNICEF Haiti
· Ask to speak with Julie Bergeron
· Their number is 011-509- 2245-3525
· Their fax number is 011-502- 2245-1877
Their email address is jbergeron@unicef.org
Please note that calls and faxes to Haiti are international calls

5. Write letters for the Haitian Prime Minister, President of the Haitian Senate, and the Minister of Social Welfare.
· Your letter can contain the same information as specified below. If you are an adoptive family or are close to a Haitian-born adopted child, insert a picture of the child or your family in your letter.
· Describe your family’s commitment to Haitian culture and the country’s well being as a result of your contact with a Haitian-born adopted child.
· Mail your letter to Holt International, which has volunteered to collect letters and transport them to Haiti for hand delivery to the above government officials.

Holt International
Haitian Children & Families Initiative
P.O. Box 2880
Eugene, OR 97402

6. Forward this message to everyone you know who cares about the welfare of abandoned children in Haiti. Individuals need not be personally involved in a Haitian adoption to let their voices be heard on behalf of children who have no one to speak for them!


When should you call? August 13th, 14th, and 17th

· For maximum affect, we are asking you to make these calls within a 72 hour window!


What should you say or write to member of the U.S. Congress? Speak from your heart and give them the following information.
· Inform them that you are calling regarding Joint Council Haitian Children & Families Initiative
· Inform them that the Haitian international adoption process is unreasonably delayed.
· Inform them that children referred to U.S. families are languishing in institutions
· Inform them that the backlog of children in the process of adoption is preventing orphanages, who serve as local humanitarian aid providers, from continuing to assist their communities.
· Inform them that due to the interruption of services provided by the orphanages, Haitian children outside the orphanages are needlessly dying.
· Ask that their office to sign the Dear Colleague letter regarding the pending Haitian adoption law, sponsored by Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Senator Sam Brownback. The letter asks that adoptions currently in process be speedily granted Presidential Dispensation and that the new adoption law be passed.

Sample Statement

Hello,

We are calling/writing on behalf of the Haitian Children & Families Initiative. We, as your constituents, are asking that the Senator/Congressperson sign the Dear Colleague letter regarding the pending Haitian adoption law, sponsored by Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Senator Sam Brownback.

As you may be aware, the Haitian adoption process is unreasonably delayed. Children already matched with adoptive families are languishing in orphanages for two and three years. The orphanages, which have traditionally served as humanitarian aid outreach centers, have run out of resources and are no longer able to offer assistance to their communities. Haitian children outside the orphanages are dying needlessly as a direct result of the delayed adoptions.

Your office must get involved and sign the Dear Colleague letter to support the Haitian government in their effort to assist the homeless and abandoned children of Haiti.

Sincerely,




What should you say or write to UNICEF? Speak from your heart and give them the following information.
· Inform them that you are calling regarding the Joint Council Haitian Children & Families Initiative
· Ask them to support the rights of children and lend their considerable influence to ensuring that intercountry adoptions currently in-process be speedily processed to completion under the existing Presidential Dispensation clause.
· Inform them that many adoptions are taking two or three years to process, during which time children languish in orphanages.
· Inform them that due to the overextension of their resources, orphanages are no longer able to provide their traditional humanitarian aid services to their communities, such as free schools, medical care, temporary child care for families in crisis, and family preservation programs.
· Inform them that as a direct result of the orphanage’s inability to provide humanitarian aid due to overly taxed resources, children are needlessly dying in the streets outside the orphanages.
· Ask them again for their support of the Presidential Dispensation and the swift passage of the new adoption law.

Sample Statement

Hello,

· We are calling/writing on behalf of the Joint Council Haitian Children & Families Initiative
· . As financial supporters of UNICEF (through our tax dollars), we are asking that UNICEF lends its support and considerable influence to the Joint Council Haitian Children & Families Initiative

As you may be aware, the Haitian adoption process is unreasonably delayed.
Children already matched with adoptive families are languishing in orphanages for two and three years. The orphanages, which have traditionally served as humanitarian aid outreach centers, have run out of resources and are no longer able to offer assistance to their communities. Haitian children outside the orphanages are dying needlessly as a direct result of the delayed adoptions.


UNICEF must get involved to ensure that adoptions in process be speedily granted Presidential Dispensation so that they can be completed in a timely manner, and that the new adoption law be passed.

Sincerely,





Can you explain the problem behind the current crisis? Here is some additional information…
· The current constitutional law, written in 1974 by Jean Claude Duvalier, severely restricts who may adopt from Haiti. The only method by which the Haitian government may permit adoptions to non-conforming families is via Presidential Dispensation.
· The lack of a defined and efficient Dispensation process has caused delays of up to three years for children in the adoption process. Prolonged institutionalization has been scientifically proven to be highly detrimental to children.
· As orphanages expend their limited resources caring for children in the process of adoption over extended periods, they are unable to provide their traditional humanitarian aid programs to their communities.
· The existing adoption law provides almost no protection for the rights of abandoned children, their birth parents, or adoptive families. It offers no safe guards against human trafficking.
· A proposed adoption law will alleviate the crisis by standardizing and streamlining adoptions, and will far better protect abandoned Haitian children from child trafficking.

What else can you do? In addition to your primary calls to U.S. Congress and UNICEF, you can call the Haitian Embassy:


Embassy of Haiti in the U.S.
2311 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20008
Office Phone 1- 202.332.4090
Office Fax 1- 202-745-7215
embassy@haiti.org

WOW 14

Wow it just doesn't feel like we have been married that long today is mine and Dave's anniversary. This time last year we just did not know how much life would change we started talking about adopting and we started doing research on different country's and programs, then we had a few family trips and then Dave's little brother got hurt in the beginning of Oct. so we had to fly out to Pennsylvania then we where finally able to get him flown home on a med airplane to IHC Hospital in Murray,Utah. so while Dave was visiting his brother I had gone back to Wasatch web page of waiting children in Haiti and thats when I saw the picture that changed our family's life.so alot has changed in a year we have had great times and bad times but i feel so blessed to share all this time with my best friend and eternity partner. I love you beyond words and look forward to more ups and downs for years to come.

Little things to remember

1. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good. 2. When in doubt, just take the next small step. 3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone… 4. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch. 5. Pay off your credit cards every month. 6. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree. 7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone. 8. It’s OK to get angry with God. He can take it. 9. Save for retirement starting with your first pay cheque. 10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile. 11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present. 12. It’s OK to let your children see you cry. 13. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about. 14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it. 15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don’t worry; God never blinks. 16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind. 17. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful. 18. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger. 19. It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else. 20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer. 21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets,. Don’t save it for a special occasion, Today is special. 22. Over prepare, then go with the flow. 23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple. 24. The most important sex organ is the brain. 25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you. 26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ‘In five years, will this matter?’ 27. Always choose life. 28. Forgive everyone everything. 29. What other people think of you is none of your business. 30. Time heals almost everything. Give time. 31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change. 32. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does. 33. Believe in miracles. 34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do. 35. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now. 36. Growing old beats the alternative — dying young. 37. Your children get only one childhood. 38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved. 39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere. 40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back. 41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need. 42. The best is yet to come. 43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up. 44. Yield. 45. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.”

Our Journey has had lots of bumps in the road

President Hinckley said this...

"Anyone, who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he has been robbed. The fact is...Most beef is tough, most children grow up to be just people, most marriages require a high degree of mutual tolerence, and most jobs are more often dull than otherwise.

Life is like an old-time rail journey, delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride."