They are my daughters...officially!

I am thrilled to introduce Rebecca Lynne Kembia Shinkle and Abigail Blessing Masengo Shinkle as my daughters! I received their long awaited adoption judgement yesterday! No longer will they be referred to with the words "family unknown." Instead, my name has been placed alongside theirs and our journey officially begins as mother and daughters.



Prayers Answered!

Well God apparently convicted some people in the DRC and the girls were operated on yesterday afternoon. Both were "troopers" according to reports. All toes appear intact and they have been taken to the house of a pastor's wife for care. They will be seen back by the doctors on Wednesday and Friday. B has a long road ahead of her with infection apparent from the pictures but prayerfully she has also been placed on appropriate antibiotic coverage.
Our CCI family should arrive next weekend to deliver shoes and continue care. Then rainy season should arrive in October (which kills the jiggers) and shortly thereafter I should receive word to travel and bring them home!
Praising God just a little more this morning!

Longest Day of My Adoption Journey(s)

Today I have experienced every emotion known to man...every fear, every frustration, anger, sadness, disbelief and ultimately contentment in our Father's plan. The day began at 455 with an e-mail stating that both girls had arrived at the hospital. Wow! I thought it was just going to be B but they were both there. The first feeling of relief that at least they were together was soon overtaken by the knowledge that there was no where for them to go after surgery except back to the orphanage. All I could envision were the open wounds walking barefoot through the orphanage and the infection that would ensue. So when I read the update from Sue that they had been taken back to the orphanage due to no after care I was somewhat relieved though concerned at the delay this meant for their health. I also grieved for the fear and lack of understanding these two precious girls must be experiencing.

Phone calls and e-mails have consumed much of my day. I am grateful for the updates and for the care shown from each person.

• Thank you for the prayers that are being sent up from all over the world.
• Thank you to those who are in a position to support the efforts of Project Feet financially so that each child at the orphanage may receive the treatment needed.
• Thank you to Sue at CCI. Today I heard in her voice the emotion of a woman who is truly the hands and feet of Jesus. A person who is willing to advocate for my children...for our children...and becomes as distraught as adoptive parents when things don't go as planned. A woman who is going to extreme measures to have her family care for mine. Thank you Sue!
• Thank you to organizations like One Less who blessed me with a grant for this adoption. I thought I got it before, but after this day I truly get it. These children (at least in this part of the world) are discarded as useless to society except for the money generated by their adoption. There is no one in their culture willing to step up and do the right thing for them because it is what every child deserves. Organizations like One Less allow families to unite with God's chosen children and rescue those children from the depths of their experience as individuals without a purpose.

There is much about today I do not feel I should reveal. There are probably as many questions as answers. But what I rest in is that God's timing is perfect and his plan what will occur.

Thank you to everyone for your continued support, your prayers, your e-mails, your phone calls. I will continue to update as I receive news.

 God bless.

Urgent Prayer Request

I learned earlier today that R & B were seen in clinic in the DRC as a result of fundraising efforts by Project Feet. After evaluation the doctor insists that B have surgery tomorrow. I do not know the complete seriousness of her situation. I know from the pictures that it is bad. My fear is that gangrene has set in and/or she has a systemic infection resulting from untreated jiggers.

I have never felt so helpless in my life and turn to each of you to be prayer warriors for each of these children. For Blessing may that prayer be that her life be spared. She has already lived up to her name as she has become a blessing to all children in the orphanage who will now receive the needed surgery because of the seriousness of her situation. It breaks my heart that her purpose on earth may end with this and that she is so far from those who love her. Pray that God wrap her in his arms and that she may know she has a family waiting for her. Pray for relief of pain, that her toes might be saved, and for proper antibiotic coverage for infection. Pray that God will intervene to get the right people to the DRC immediately to provide care in an environment other than the orphanage post surgery. Pray for the physician and others who make decisions for B. Pray for R who will be separated from her sister and as she waits to have the same surgery in a short time. Pray for her family here as we wait. Pray for Sue at CCI as she advocates for many families and tries to fit the pieces of the puzzle together. Just pray.

I will update as soon as I have any word....

Helpless But Not Without Hope

I continue to receive updates about the condition of my daughters in DRC and was fortunate to join an emergency chat last evening regarding treatment options. In a nutshell, it is bad. All of the children at this orphanage are affected by jiggers and are suffering. Mine I have been told are the worst. The children live in sandy conditions where the jiggers thrive and even their orphanage and beds are infested. Families who recently celebrated Gotcha Day were thrown suddenly into this reality and their children operated on while in DRC. Now it seems this option for surgery potentially exists immediately for those children waiting for families to arrive. This thanks to the concern of Sue Hedberg at Celebrate Children International who was not...is not...content that this is a common condition. But to make this option a reality there is much needed. Money and people to provide care leading to and following surgery are the big ones. I have attached a link to Project Feet where the details can be found.
http://projectfeet.wordpress.com/

I remember seeing a video while in the process of adopting Joseph and Jacob that spoke of the lengths a parent will go to for their children...in that instance and in mine those in another country for which we are powerless in so much leading up to homecoming. It spoke of clawing through walls with bare hands, swimming oceans, and the like. Anyone with children knows this feeling. Our role is to do anything to protect our children. I have often been asked how you love an adopted child equal to biological, how this feeling extends in that same way...and the fact is you just do and it just does. From the moment I laid eyes on these girls they were my daughters and everything about them up to and including skin color and heritage are a very real part of me. Adoption is much like a pregnancy, only we have the joy of knowing the sex and seeing their faces right from the beginning. Bonding begins at that moment and we begin to see similarities within our families. Jacob and B were meant to be sisters...she looks so much like him. Joseph and R as well...they have the same smile! I would do anything....yet for now the only options are to ask first for prayer and second for financial support.

I would do anything...
What part can you play?

For the needy shall not always be forgotten,and the hope of the poor shall not perish forever. Psalm 9:18

Give1Save1

I was blessed to be selected by Give1Save1 as the featured family this week for a video made by my daughter Kathy. It is indeed humbling to watch the events of recent years unfold from her perspective and I am excited to see the level God takes this fundraising effort to. This is a huge opportunity and I ask for everyone to share the link with family and friends. Included are updated pictures of the girls, including one of B's feet. There was some discussion last night on a weekly chat as to whether these pictures should be shown...the feet that is. To clarify, I understand that this may not be something she (B) would want others to see. The fact is though that her reality is causing pain and I, yes I, need prayer support to deal with this reality and prepare for next steps. As I gather these prayer warriors I ask that you remember the thousands of children affected by the orphan crisis. Pray for each one involved, for the end of needless suffering, for families waiting to be joined with their children, and for those children waiting for families to say yes to the call of adoption. Pray for the relief of pain, for healing of tissue as topical treatment has begun for those at R and B's orphanage. Pray....
Thank you for your continued support. We are just a few short months from being forever joined as a family! God bless!

http://give1save1africa.blogspot.com/

August update on adoption and on boys

It seems that every day I open my daily devotional recently I find just the words to get me through another moment of doubt and fear. August 23rd, "Entrust your loved ones to me; release them into my protective care. They are much safer with me than in your clinging hands." I have done this countless times before with children away at college, on a date, making poor life choices, in another country at war to protect our freedoms, just to name a few. This time I literally have no choice but to rely on God's wisdom, grace, and mercy once again as I find myself thousands of miles from my children...wanting them home but wanting more to ease their suffering. I haven't slept much since receiving new pictures of the girls mid-week. I feel so blessed to be a part of the first group's trip to the DRC. These first families are bringing their children home early next week and I got to be a part of that journey through pictures and e-mail updates. I also saw precious pictures of R & B as they were introduced to their new family with delivery of their first care package. I saw the card being read that I sent and them flipping through their photo albums, wearing stickers Joseph and Jacob sent, and clutching dolls I picked ever so carefully for them. The girls are beautiful, they are growing, but they are in pain. It seems most of children are in the same shape. Jiggers have all but eaten away at the feet of these precious girls. Apparently there is no treatment until arrival for pick-up as they will just be re-infested. In the meantime the locals wait for the rainy season and relief that comes at that time. As I looked upon those beautiful faces and those horrific pictures of their feet I have been heartbroken and sickened. I have been a pediatric nurse for 17 years and don't think I have ever seen anything that brought me so close to tears and physical illness. Please pray for relief from pain for all of the children involved and pray for an expeditious homecoming.
I am awaiting paperwork from what I believe to be their final court date. Then there are many forms to get through the system and more waiting for word to travel. Though I just began the process a few months ago each moment is agonizing as I...as we wait.

B's feet. Pray that toes will not be lost, that infection will not go systemic, that pain will be eased.

In the meantime, life here goes on as normal. I decided to take the plunge and begin house hunting and fell in love with a home literally three times the size of my current one. After much prayer I took the plunge and put mine on the market and a contract pending sale on my current home. I hope to move the end of September if the house sells. If not, I will likely begin expansion on my current home and wait a while before considering this life change. I also have narrowed the choices of a new vehicle large enough to carry us all and will begin looking for a low mileage gently used mini van in the near future.
Summer has gone by way to quickly! The boys are good. Well, except...Jacob was diagnosed with molluscum on his face several months back. As that began spreading and he persistently picked I went through two prescriptions to find the trick to eliminating them. He has a scar on his right cheek from removal by cream and wound up with cellulitis in that same eye after picking one below his eyebrow but it seems they are gone. He also has been suffering with awful allergies for several weeks and today brought a second day in three weeks that he coughed all day (and continues now two hours past bedtime despite inhalers and benadryl). Joseph seems to have grown out of his allergies...really hope I don't eat those words. He finally got his long awaited day and began kindergarten on Tuesday of this week. He was so nervous he tried to put his jeans on minus underwear and shirt on over his pajama top! He is very tired having only recently transitioned from daily naps but loves going to school and LOVES riding the bus home. He has also officially grown out of all size 4 and 5T clothing and completely grown from the toddler look into a young boy.

You can see the excitement all over his face as he took his place at his desk!

All ready for his first day of kindergarten!

Not to be outdone, here is a recent picture of Jacob who is growing up all too fast. We finally captured that gorgeous smile! There is a horrible glare because I took a picture of the picture, but I wanted to share this handsome man!
Finally, I invite you to view our family video at http://give1save1africa.blogspot.com/ to be aired tomorrow or Monday. This is a huge opportunity for fundraising so spread the word!

See the meanness oozing forth as he gives that horse a squeeze:)