Exciting Day!

Last week we had a very big day in our household for Malachi! We received his Certificate of Citizenship in the mail! That was kind of the last big adoption piece of paperwork we needed to get. I was actually kind of surprised that we got it so fast, because when we sent the paperwork off in November, USCIS had just updated their wait times from 2 months to 11 months. Apparently they are still pretty close to 2 months in their northwest offices!

The very last piece of business we need to take care of is his legal name change on his social security card and changing the status from permanent resident to citizen with social security! Whew, the paperchase really IS almost over!

Saturday was also Ganna or Ethiopian Christmas. We had a fun day planned to celebrate but unfortunately Malachi wasn't feeling well so we had to stay home. But I am definitely thinking of fun ways to celebrate these special Ethiopian holidays in the future!

The Crisis in the Horn

Over the past days and weeks I have been coming across more and more about the crisis in the Horn of Africa. As the situation continues to worsen, my heart continues to break over the humanitarian crisis. The horn of Africa will always hold a very special place in my heart and as I read the articles and watch the videos (as hard as it is) I can't help but think about how that could be Malachi, or that could be Malachi's biological family members. As Peter and I continue to read Radical by David Platt, I always think of how he says that it is easier to ignore the orphans until you actually look them in the eyes. Now, that I have been to Africa and have seen these people, I can't help but be moved to action. These videos REALLY TRULY ARE people - who are dying of starvation! Starvation that I can't even fathom!!!


Here are some links to few articles and video's about the crisis. The situation is truly dire! (Grab some kleenex!)


MSN Video

Yahoo Article



So of course my first reaction, is I must go back and scoop up those babies and bring them home :) That is what I wish I could do, but that is not the answer. Adoption definitely does have a time and a place, but this isn't what most of these children need. What they and their families need is food and ASAP! Even if adoption were the answer to this crisis, by the time the paperwork is done and the countries have processed the adoption - it would be too late.

So with adoption out of the question, and physically going over there and helping out too - what they really need is our money. Unfortunately that is the last thing that I want to give up, I am human, what can I say. But again, I am reminded of David Platt and how he reminds us that we will go before God someday and he will want to know what we did to help the starving and the poor and the orphan all around us. I don't want to die with thousands of dollars in the bank when it could have gone to help people in need.

The biggest challenge I see facing this, even though all the aid organizations are saying this is the largest humanitarian crisis in the world today, is that people are not recognizing the problem because it isn't broadcast in the news like the big natural disasters that get the money (Japan and Haiti Earthquakes to name a few). Most still remain unaware of this and so the funds aren't pouring in as they would for an immediate natural disaster.

So with that being said, I set out to find some organizations meeting the immediate need in the Horn of Africa. Organizations who are equipped and on the ground and ready to serve, if they had the final resources. The first thing I figured out was there are very few organizations (that I could find) that are even doing much of anything for this specific situation. But after I found the organizations that were, I decided I really should share them in case anyone else was moved to help out too:

So here is what I came up with:


Mana -




Mana works to feed young children with severe malnutrition. They give out packets of food (kind of like peanut butter in a ketchup container) and for most children, they see a huge recovery in about 6 weeks time. This stuff basically brings back children who are on the very brink of death by starvation.


Childcare Ministries -




We actually sponsor several children through this organization but you can also buy livestock for children in Africa. What I love about this organization is you can pick the specific country you want to have which animal. They have a lot of options for Ethiopia and a few more for the surrounding countries.

Unicef:




Unicef is one of the large organizations working on the emergency relief. They specifically are helping with nutrition, vaccinating children in the refuge camps so diseases don't break out, and working on sanitation and clean drinking water.


Oxfam -



They are doing some really cool things to help out with the crisis. Besides the big organization like Unicef, they were the one that stood out to me that is trying to do the most.

These are just a few organizations and I am SURE there are plenty more helping. If you are aware of any others please share them with me and I will add them to the list!

Malachi's Gotcha Day

Alright, finally after a year of... well, taking care of babies - Our Gotcha Day Video. I hope you enjoy it!

Waiting.....

This week alone, I have gotten an emails about 4 stork drops and 4 mother's who are due to give birth this month but have no one ready to give their children a home. If no one is willing to take in these babies, they will be born and go straight in to foster care. And the one that did my heart in, is hearing about 1 week old twins born in Uganda. Just 2 lbs each, fighting for their lives. If they survive (and boy am I praying they do!) they have no mom or dad to go home to - they are orphans. Their mother died and they were thrown into the garbage dump.

My friend Christie, who will be facilitating the adoption of these twins wrote this on facebook:

"In the hospital he (George, her husband) met a little boy who watched his father get bitten by a snake and then watched his body decompose. Then he went with the officer to see 70 orphans who have no living parents OR relatives to care for them. They just need love, a family, and an education. He also met 3 children who were dropped off at the hospital for treatment and after they were well, the parents abandoned them because they couldn't afford the bill. This is what we deal with daily in our village. But because each of those 70 children had such a horrific story, it broke George into a million pieces. We're supposed to be strong. But we're in over our heads here. We can't afford to even help one. But He can. And He will. Not sure of our role yet but He does. And He'll show us"

It is stuff like this that frustrates and breaks me to know end. This is life, real life out in this world. It so easy to become blind and try to ignore because it hurts so bad to be aware. We have a 13 month old and a 4 month old. Society tells me I am NUTS to even think about bringing another child into my home. But how do I turn my back on the great need for children to have loving mommies and daddies? I just can't do it. Every child deserves what my boys have - love, security, safety, comfort, food, and more love!

But for now, we must wait. I hate waiting. I hate this feeling of inactivity and longing and brokenness. So I press forward with my days and am doing what I can while I wait on God to tell us we can jump in again. Until that day comes, I refuse to sit idle and not do what I can, even if sometimes it feels like so little.

More?

Okay, so I know it has been a loooong time since I posted on this blog. I have been keeping the world up to date on how life is with Malachi (and now his new baby brother) on the family blog. So if you haven't yet you MUST check out how our big boy (who turns 1 this week!) is doing! Go check it out - www.thekeyserfamily.blogspot.com

So what am I doing here?

Honestly, I really don't know. All I know is my heart is so full and I am so happy and loving my role as a new mother, but I still long for more and I wonder if my heart will ever be able to rest easy at night. And for whatever reason, I just don't feel like posting this stuff on the family blog, but felt I just needed to write it out here. So here I am. Spilling my heart to an audience that is probably gone (and maybe that is a good thing.) I have honestly edited this post several times in the last 24 hours and haven't gotten the courage to post it just yet. I don't know why.

For starters, my heart longs for Africa. Now, this is a totally new feeling for me as while we were actually IN Africa - I honestly did not enjoy it. I know a lot of that had to do with being 10 weeks pregnant and just not feeling very good. Plus trying to adjust and get to know the newest member of our family in a tiny hotel room where we were not allowed to go out in public with him at all was very hard. We didn't get to see much of Africa, but looking back now, what I did get to see and experience was truly incredible. The people were amazing and beautiful. The rich culture and heritage is something so unique and different. It is cliche to say, but for whatever reason, my heart is in Africa right now.

Life is truly great right now. Life is richer than I ever thought possible. I have a beautiful almost 1 year old son who makes my heart so happy. He is incredible and so perfect and life with him is what I wanted and so much more! I have another little double blessing that melts my heart and brings even more joy to our lives. Yes, at times life is very overwhelming, and there are times where I feel like I am going to explode in frustration as they both have needs that they want met immediately. But 95% of the time, I love my life and I love having these two little boys that make my life so rich.

So why do I walk around with a constant lump in my throat longing for more? I have it all! Two beautiful boys, and I really am not sure that I can handle much more than the two of them right now. But my heart is burdened, truly burdened in a way it has never been burdened before. I have thought long and hard about ways that we can support orphans and other adoptive families and while we have every intention to do so and have done so, it just doesn't feel like enough. When I close my eyes I can picture children left behind who are longing for a mommy and a daddy and how can I say no? How can I carry on with my life with the two boys who I have and learn to ignore the others that are still waiting? I think of Malachi, and imagine him still waiting and wonder how could I turn my back on him? If he were waiting, I would do whatever it takes to get him home and it wouldn't matter how strapped we were financially or how much paperwork the government wanted or if our house was full - we would find a way to get him home!

My heart is still in Congo. Peter's heart is still in Congo. Last summer we really thought we would be starting the adoption process to bring home a Congolese child, and yet God told us to take a step back and wait. So we did, and then God gave us our little Elias who we wouldn't trade for anything in this world. But still, Congo is on our minds and we wonder what God's plan is for us and this country? Are we to adopt from there? And we still, just wait and wonder as God remains silent right now.

So where are we? We could start the process right now to adopt from Congo. In fact I emailed the agency we were thinking of using for Congo this past week just to see if we do still qualify with two children and 1 income and we do. But I still feel the answer is no and to wait and I admit that I am somewhat relieved by that! But I still remain burdened and I just don't understand it. I either want to jump right in and work on fixing the problem or don't give me a burdened heart for something I can't fix!

But I think that is the whole point. No matter what I do, I can't fix the orphan crisis. There will always be children who need homes. I personally cannot even make a dent in the need. Even if I spent every last waking moment of my life working with orphans and adopting orphans, and giving everything I had to orphans - it wouldn't even make a tiny change in the crisis.

But I have to do something. If I can even make a difference for just a few children, then it does matter. So I sit here and wonder what the future holds. We are in a holding pattern right now and God is having us love and raise the two children he has already given us. But I can't help but pray and think about what God's plans are for us in the coming years. When I die someday, I want to be exhausted. I want to live with no regrets. When I see Jesus face to face I want to know that I have done everything I could. He has given me a passion for the orphans of this world for a reason and now I just wait for Him to tell me what the next step is.

Keeping Up With Malachi

I know I still need to finish up our trip reports and I am getting around to that, but I am doing a much better job of updating our family blog right now as things are happening. Since the adoption is now over and our life as a family continues we are using our family blog to update on the day to day happenings with our little man. So head on over to www.thekeyserfamily.blogspot.com and follow us.

Malachi is growing so fast. It is both wonderful and a little sad :)

Day 4 - Embassy Time!

Today we had to get up bright and early for the Embassy appointment. Our night went pretty smooth. Malachi was ready for bed by 7:00. He slept until 10:30 and ate about an ounce before falling back asleep. He then slept until 2:00 and ate a little more before waking up for good at 5:45. Overall I think that was a very good night!
We had to rush around this morning to get everything together and all 3 of us ready to leave for the Embassy at 7:40. We met all the other families downstairs and this was the first time that Malachi had been put in the Moby Wrap. I loved it as it took his heavy weight (all 17 lbs of lovin!) off of my shoulders and arms. He seemed to enjoy it too. We didn’t really have time to eat breakfast and we knew the trip would be bumpy so we were sure to pack a bunch of snacks for me :)


The drive was 45 minutes and we got a great glimpse of the city. It was amazing to see how many people they could cram into city buses – they were sardines in there and Wass said they can fit up to 100 people in one bus. We drove by the Presidential Palace, one of the few truly nice buildings that we saw in the city. We drove by the University of Addis Ababa and it wasn’t that nice but it was full of people. Two amusing things we drove by was a shop called Big Mac Café (we were surprised at how many of the building signs were in English) and the sign said Burgers, Tea, Coffee, Wedding Cakes. We thought that was a very funny combination. The other thing was this beautiful gated park with lots of nice play equipment and water fountains. There were several guards just sitting inside this beautiful gated park. The interesting thing was that it is never opened. Almaz said kids are never allowed to play in it, that it Is just for looks. It was so strange.

Spending the morning with Almaz was amazing. She is so smart and easy to talk to. She is funny and beautiful and loves all the kids so much. She calls Malachi chubby baby and said he Is overall content and doesn’t want to miss a thing.

Finally we arrived at the Embassy. Quickly we were ambushed by a group of young men. They didn’t ask for money or anything, they just asked how we were doing and said hi to the babies.

The Embassy recognized Almaz coming. We went through a metal detector which went off everytime one of us went through, but they didn’t stop us. We wondered if maybe they trusted us since we were American. Before we were allowed to go inside the Embassy we had to sit under a tent like thing and wait. There were probably 30-40 Ethiopians sitting under this tent and they were all watching us. Apparently we white people were quite entertaining.

We didn’t have to wait in line like all the Ethiopian people did. Before we knew it one by one we were called into the building. We were the last family called in and it was so ackward to have all the Ethiopian people just staring at us. We were very curious about what they thought of us. Were they okay with us being there to adopt or were they upset. Almaz finally motioned for us to go in. We had to show our passports and then go through a real metal detector. They made sure we didn’t have any cell phones or camera’s on us and then put our bag through an ex-ray machine.

Almaz then led us through a door, by some bathrooms, outside and into another small building. This building was packed with people everywhere. This was the building the US processes all VISA’s in and once again there were probably another 40 Ethiopian people there. Almaz led us in and there was no room to sit or stand, so she led us into a little child play area and had us sit in there. We didn’t know if we would be required to wait for all these other people to go through or not. We did not. After about 20 minutes they called the first family from our group up. By this time there were other agencies with their adoptive families and babies there. Our friends were gone for about 5 minutes before returning with their son’s paperwork. All the other adoptive families cheered as the process was completely done for that family.

We were the 3rd family for our agency called up. We walked up some stairs and to window 9. We had an American man from St Lewis who we talked to. Almaz stands right beside us and we are able to call her in at anytime if we needed her. We had to raise our right hands and be sworn in. He then asked us what happened to the birthmother. He asked who found him and what the date was of that. Peter thought it was April 20th but we weren’t sure so we asked Almaz. She wasn’t sure either. He then asked us when we got our referral (May 4th). He said he just wanted an idea of how long the process took for us. He asked us if we met him before or after we passed court. He then reminded us that this is irrevocable and told us we were good to go. We then got a bunch of documents, including his birth certificate with our names on it! When we came back downstairs everyone congratulated us and clapped. The process was completely done!!!

Almaz felt so bad that she didn’t know his information. I told her I totally understood as she has so many babies in her care. She looked at Peter and told him that she was impressed that he knew all the dates. She told him he was the best dad:)

On our way back to our van, the boys were still standing there. They asked us how it went and congratulated us. So sweet.


We made our way back to the hotel and settled into our room. Malachi was sleeping when we came back but he woke up when I took him out of the moby. I am sure glad he did, because he had a bad poopy diaper that was almost up his back. Things got a little hairy from here. There was just a point where Malachi was looking around and then he just got this terrified look on his face and started wailing. This was the first time we had heard him cry like this. We have done enough education to know that babies process their grief and fear with crying. I personally think Malachi distracts himself by watching everyone and everything around him. Our hotel room was so quiet that he realized it was different and just lost it. I just cuddled him and held him while he screamed. It was heartbreaking.

After about 20 minutes I laid down on the bed and put him on my chest and he eventually stopped crying and fell asleep.

He slept for about 2 ½ hours then woke up and Peter took over since he had hardly touched Malachi all day. At this point I started feeling really sick. We have been unable to eat very much and with Malachi needing me today, I didn’t eat much of anything and I started feeling really sick. I slept for a few more hours while Peter tried to occupy Malachi. Malachi kept humming and moaning, but he made it through. Peter and I are just exhausted and ready to be home. It is so hard dealing with a new baby in a hotel room. The travel group has been a lifesaver. It feels so alienating being stuck in a hotel room with a new baby in a foreign country, but our moments out with the travel group have been so wonderful! I am so glad that we don't have to be here alone.

He ate a little better tonight. He is still only eating 2-3 ounces at a time and it is hard to get him to eat that much. I don’t know if it is because he is sick or stressed. I have been giving him baby Tylenol today and putting an herbal infant chest rub on him.

We gave him a bath and then endured another difficult crying streak. He cried for about another 20-30 minutes after his bath, but eventually gave in to sleep. Now it is bedtime. It was an exhausting day.