The Rojas Family Adventure

Daniel

2009-04-13T20:10:00.007-06:00

As most of you following our blog already know, our family has suffered a tremendous loss. Daniel, the love of my life and Gabby's amazing Daddy, was killed in a plane crash on January 15, 2009. His funeral was held on the one year anniversary of the day we met Gabby. I am absolutely devastated and miss him with every breath I take. These last three months have felt like a nightmare from which I will never awaken.

However, I am eternally grateful for the 8 1/2 years that Daniel and I had together, and the beautiful year we spent together with Gabby. I see Daniel in our precious daughter and feel his love through her. She has been my saving grace, and I recognize what a tremendous gift she is, a gift that he made possible.

Despite what has happened, Gabby is doing really well. She is full of love and life, and she is growing and mastering new things every day. Fortunately, she is too young to really understand what she has lost.

Please keep us in your thoughts, as we have a long and painful journey still ahead.

In loving memory of Daniel,

Leslie

Pictures!

2008-12-21T20:34:00.005-07:00

We finally replaced our camera, so enjoy some pictures from the last couple of days...

Another meal, another mess!

Cousins (Malcolm, Gabby, North)

Splish'n & splash'n

So darn cute!

2009 is upon us!

2008-12-18T19:56:00.005-07:00

Hi everyone!

First, let me apologize - I've been remiss in my blogging. Of course, I have all kinds of excuses, but they're really just excuses. I cannot believe it is almost 2009!

We've had a busy couple of months! We went out to visit Traci, Matt, and Malcolm in Seattle in mid-October. Our time in Seattle was great but the plane rides were horrible. Gabby was pretty much a total nightmare - crying, whining, squirming, throwing things, etc. Thankfully there was an empty row in the very back of the plane on both legs of the trip. I'm pretty sure that the lady sitting next to me on the way to Seattle wanted to strangle Gabby. About halfway through the flight Daniel turned to me and said "Never again." I think the problem with Gabby and airplanes is that she is an extremely active kid and it's just too much for her to be confined to a tiny little airplane seat. We may not be leaving Denver again (at least on a jetplane) for the next several years!

At the end of October we came home on a Wednesday to find that our house had been broken in to. In addition to taking ALL of my jewelry, a Bose aviation headset, our camera, and lots of other little items, they took our checks, so we had to close our bank accounts and open new ones. That is a HUGE hassle and I would not recommend keeping your extra check books in your underwear drawer, as that is apparently the first place burglars look for valuables!

We have also been busy doing some home improvement projects. We finally pulled up the 50's-style 1-inch tiles in our entryway and re-tiled. We also had our carpet pulled up and the hardwood underneath refinished, which required that we move out for a week (the timing was perfect in that my parents were out of town and we were able to stay at their house). Next up is our pink bathroom, which really is pink (pink tile, pink walls, pink sink, pink toilet, pink tub... I think you get the picture) and REALLY is in need of a makeover.

On the adoption front, we had our second post-placement visit in mid-October, which went really well. Around that same tine, we finally submitted the paperwork for our validation, and we just found out today that the court approved it. The adoption was finalized in Colombia and Gabby was a U.S. citizen when she set foot on U.S. soil, so the validation is just a formality. The main benefit is that Gabby will get a Colorado birth certificate, which will make things easier down the road.

On the Gabby front, she continues to learn and grow and fill our lives with joy. She is at a very fun age (difficult at times, but fun). She is full of personality and so unbelievably smart! She is talking like crazy - she probably has 30 or 40 words right now that she really knows, plus she repeats everything we say (naughty OR nice). Right now she repeats the last few syllables of just about every sentence. For example, if I say "Should we go change your diaper?" she says "Diaper." If I say, "What do you want to do now?" she says "Do now." And, if I stub my toe and say "Sh*t, sh*t, sh*t!" she says "Sh*t, sh*t, sh*t." She understands almost everything we say whether it's in Spanish or English and she follows instructions in either language (as much as 19-month-olds follow instructions). And she makes these amazing connections - the other day she brought me a picture of Matt and Traci and exclaimed "Baby!" Mind you, she's only seen Traci a couple of times since she had the baby and the last time was several weeks ago! She recognizes herself in the mirror and in pictures and calls herself "Dabby." We marvel each and every day at how lucky we are to have her. She is the absolute light of our lives and we are so proud of her.

I don't have any recent photos to post right now because our camera was stolen. It had several weeks worth of pictures that we hadn't loaded onto the computer yet, so the last photos we have are from September. I don't know why we haven't replaced it yet - that's definitely on our "To Do" list and I think we're finally going to do it this weekend. In the meantime, enjoy this random, silly video that we took a couple of months ago.

We hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season. I promise to post some photos soon.

Love,

Leslie, Daniel, & Gabriela

Halloween 2008

2008-11-09T14:16:00.003-07:00

Baa-aaa-aaaaaa!

Little Miss Independent

2008-10-13T18:53:00.001-06:00

I'm an Aunt... x2!

2008-10-05T21:28:00.006-06:00

Well, the biggest news I have to report is that I'm now an aunt again, two times over! I have three nieces on Daniel's side and I'm "Aunt Leslie" to some of my friends' kiddos, but now I'm an aunt on the Squires side. Both of my sisters had their babies and both little guys are happy and healthy!

Traci and Matt had a little boy, Malcolm Arkady, on September 11th. I haven't gotten to meet him yet, but Daniel, Gabby, and I will be traveling to Seattle on October 22nd to finally meet him. Jen and Kevin also had a little boy, North Matthew, on September 20th. I was there for the birth and Jen did great. Gabby calls him "Baby" and pats him and gives him kisses.

Gabby is doing great. She is all toddler, all the time. Here is a quick list of some of the things she's been up to, in no particular order:

1. Running
2. Eating with a spoon and fork
3. Drinking from a Camelback
4. Getting her canine teeth in
5. Playing hide and seek and peek-a-boo
6. Feeding and kissing her dolls
7. Talking like crazy - the other day, out of nowhere, she pointed at a tree in her book and said "tee."
8. Hugging and kissing mommy and daddy
9. Saying "mama," finally!!

She has very recently become horrified by pet hair. Strange and random, I know. Considering that we have two long-haired dogs and one long-haired cat, all with dark hair, and light-colored carpet, this could be a big problem. Seriously, the carpet looks like it hasn't been vacuumed in two weeks within one day of a thorough vacuuming. Whenever Gabby sees a clump of hair, she freezes, points at it, and makes this frantic, panicked sound. The same thing happens if she finds a hair on her doll, sippy cup, etc. Today she actually swung her stuffed puppy at a clump of hair. I think she must think they're bugs. So as not to turn this into a big, lasting thing, we try a) not to laugh and b) not to make a big deal of it. I have started saying "Gabby, it's just hair from one of the dogs. Can you please go put it in the trash for mommy?" The upshot is that our carpet is cleaner than it would otherwise be AND I've got Gabby trained to put things in the trash for me.

She is also starting to test limits more and more. The naughtiest thing she's been doing is climbing on to these chairs that we have in the office/playroom and standing and jumping on them. That would be bad enough on a stationary chair, but these rock AND recline! We try to avoid the behavior altogether by re-directing her when we see her heading for the chairs, but we don't always catch her in time (she's a quick little bugger). As soon as she sees us coming or hears the word "no," she just gets wild and silly and tries to get as far as she can before we get to her. And no matter how sternly we say "no" and how serious we are when we explain that she could get hurt, she just laughs at us. Oy...

Needless to say, each day with Gabby is an adventure! We just adore her and love to see how much she is learning, growing, and blossoming. What a precious, beautiful gift she is!

Much love,
Leslie, Daniel, & Gabriela

Odds and Ends

2008-09-01T10:37:00.000-06:00

Hi there! We don't have anything in particular to report, but thought an update was in order. Gabby continues to amaze and amuse us.

We're pretty sure we have a little genius on our hands. Sure, we're a little biased, but Grandma and Grandpa think she's a smart little cookie too, and there's no way they're biased. Here is a list of the amazing things she can do:

She can point to her belly button, nose, ears, and head when asked in english or spanish.
She can identify several objects in her books, including balls, cows, monkeys, birds, airplanes, snakes, sheep, horses, cats, dogs, the sun, the moon, ducks, trees... there are a few more but they don't come to mind right now. Oh, and she can identify most of these things in english or spanish.
She can follow a command like "please bring that to mommy" or "please put that back" in spanish or english.

And there you have it! Indisputable evidence that she is simply unmatched in intelligence! She is also hilarious. A couple of funny things that she likes to do right now are roar like a lion and look at people sideways (she'll lay her head on the table or her high chair tray, look at the people around her, and crack up).

Last weekend, we went to have our first professional photos taken as a family. Gabby did not crack a smile once. In fact, she was downright sullen. We assured the photographer that she really is a cute and happy little girl, but I don't think she believed us. As soon as we walked out of the studio, Gabby ran between us laughing and squealing in delight. Figures.

In non-Gabby news, we saw a tornado last weekend. It was the first tornado I can remember seeing and I've lived in Colorado my whole life. The tornado made it as far as about 4 miles south of us before it finally dissipated. It was exciting but scary! We were at a BBQ and the first thing the hostess said when she saw it was "great, my basement's a mess," which was totally classic and probably the first thing I would have thought of too. I'm going to post a couple of pictures below.

In other non-Gabby news, both of my sisters will be giving birth at any time now! Unfortunately, Traci lives in Seattle so I won't get to meet her little one right away, but I will be at Jen's delivery and I am going to catch the baby! Okay, maybe the midwife will catch the baby, but I will be close by! Best of luck to Traci and Jen - I love you guys! Gabby can't wait to meet her cousins!

Well, that's it for now. Enjoy some photos!

Much love,
Leslie, Daniel, and Gabriela

Last Weekend's Tornado

2008-09-01T10:34:00.002-06:00

Photos of Gabby

2008-09-01T10:20:00.005-06:00

Helping mommy in the kitchen

Enjoying an ice-cold beverage

Watching the big kids play

I wasn't expecting that!

Relaxing with Mommy

Our Travels

2008-08-08T10:56:00.016-06:00

As I mentioned in my last post, Gabby and I traveled to Seattle last weekend to visit Tia Traci and Tio Matt. While we were there, we were also able to see my Aunt Sheri and another family that we met online, Monica and Michael and their daughter Isabel. Monica and Michael adopted Isabel from Bogota and she is just six weeks older than Gabby! We've been talking via e-mail for the last few months, and Monica's extensive packing list came in very handy for our trip to Colombia. The girls were very cute together and I hope that we will stay in touch.

Let me start by saying that traveling with a 14 1/2-month old is challenging in and of itself. And maybe it was being away from home and daddy, the four molars that were coming in, the time change, the hectic schedule, a combination of any and all of the above, or something else entirely, but this trip was especially trying. The good people of Seattle got the version of Gabby that we call "Crabby Gabby" and the version of mommy that we call "Frazzled, Exhausted, On-the-Verge Mommy."

On the plane ride to Seattle, we had an empty seat next to us. That was a very good thing because Gabby was pretty wound up and climbed around like a monkey for the entire flight. I had several new books, juice, milk, Cheerios, blueberries, and dried apples in the diaper bag, which held her interest for approximately 8 minutes. Needless to say, it was a long flight. We resorted to playing with the vomit bag and in-flight magazine and taking trips to the restroom for entertainment. It was exhausting. However, there were only a few minutes of fussing, whining, and/or crying, so I don't think it was too bad for the rest of the passengers. The flight home was entirely full and we were seated in the window seat next to a very large man that took up all of his seat and about 1/4 of ours. I believe we both muttered a few choice words under our breath when we saw each other. However, Gabby slept for the first hour and a half of the flight and then sat pretty quietly until we landed.

Toddler challenges aside, we had a good time and it was great to spend time with family and friends. We were able to spend an afternoon with Aunt Sheri, enjoy the Tour de Fat at Gasworks Park, meet up with Michael, Monica, and Isabel on Lake Washington and then again for dinner, attend one of Traci's baby showers, and go swimming with Matt, all in just three days!

Here are some photos from our trip - enjoy!

Leslie, Daniel, & Gabriela

Isabel & Gabby's first meeting

Monica, Isabel, Gabby, and I at Tutta Bella

Gabby's first swim lesson with Tio Matt

Helping Aunt Traci open presents

Gabby and I with Aunt Sheri

Just strollin'...

2008-08-07T22:22:00.001-06:00

Hugging Oscar (yes, he is under there somewhere)...

2008-08-07T22:19:00.002-06:00

Taking a dip...

2008-08-07T22:13:00.001-06:00

Six months!

2008-07-24T12:28:00.003-06:00

Yesterday was the six month anniversary of the day we met Gabby, and what a six months it has been! We really can't believe it - it feels like yesterday that we were sitting in the lobby of the ICBF building, sick with nerves and anticipation, waiting to meet our little girl. We talk again and again about how incredibly lucky we are to have her.

I read the book "The Kite Runner" several months ago, before we met Gabby. There is a scene in which Hassan says to Amir, "For you, a thousand times over." That really struck me when I read it. Fast forward to a couple of months ago when I decided to watch the movie (the book is better, by the way, as is usually the case). That line literally took my breath away and I started crying and just couldn't stop, because it so perfectly expresses what I think every time I look at Gabby. I would do it all a thousand times over for her.

On a lighter note, she is doing all kinds of funny things these days. She loves to play in the toilet. Ditto for the bath tub. If we don't put the toilet lid down, we find her splashing around in the water and/or putting all sorts of objects in the bowl. So far, she has put shoes (hers and mine), a battery-operated toy, a spoon, and my hair brush in the toilet. She clearly doesn't understand what "yucky" or "dirty" mean yet. She also likes to drop things in the bath, and if I don't notice them amongst the bath toys before I turn the water on, they get soaked. These items, to date, have included my flip flops, the same battery-operated toy (which miraculously still works), my hair brush, a cd case, several spoons, and a box of band-aids.

She also loves to dance and shakes her little booty just about any time she hears music. She used to just sort of bob up and down, but now there is foot shuffling and some stomping as well. And she really has great rythym, which she must surely get from me. She is also starting to give hugs. I wish I could say that Daniel or I are generally the object of her affection, but it's actually the cat. It is so cute - she will drape herself over him, lay her head on him, and smile this contented little smile. And she loves books! This makes me very happy, as I have always loved to read and think that it led to my love of learning. She'll bring a book over to one of us, climb in our lap, and open it up. She has a short attention span, so usually after about, oh, 10 seconds, she's climbing right back out of our lap, but it's usually to go get another book (and then another, and another) and repeat the process.

Next weekend Gabby and I are going to Seattle to visit Tio Matt and Tia Traci. I'm a little bit nervous about flying alone with Gabby - I can't imagine keeping her within the confines of a 2x2x3 space for 2 1/2 hours. The person that should really be nervous is the poor soul that will be sitting next to us.

Well, that's it for now. I have a couple of cute pictures that I want to post but they're in the camera and I don't know where it is, so I will post them later.

Hangin' with Mom and Dad

2008-07-06T13:21:00.002-06:00

Chillin'

2008-07-06T13:20:00.002-06:00

Doing some gardening...

2008-07-06T13:18:00.001-06:00

Way too long...

2008-07-02T22:28:00.002-06:00

I know, it's been WAY too long since we posted. Summers are always so busy - BBQs, birthday parties, baby showers, weddings - it seems like we're booked out every weekend until September.

Gabby is doing very well. She is walking like it's going out of style - it's her favorite thing to do these days! She still reminds us of a drunken sailor, but every day she gets more and more graceful and coordinated. Now she can stop in the middle of the room, lean over and pick something up, and keep going without missing a beat (that is, without doing a faceplant).

She is also talking A LOT - it's her second favorite thing to do these days. She is testing out not only her new vocabulary, but her vocal range as well. To date, we have not been able to locate a "volume" button and none of the dozen or so remote controls we own seem to work. Sometimes we simply give up on conversing in her presence because, well, we just can't compete. In addition to lots of chattering that we can't understand, she now clearly says dada, agua, water, uh-oh, qua-qua (quack-quack), guao-guao (kind of like "bow wow" but in spanish, and she yells it every time she sees a dog), gampa (grandpa), and mama. Mama is probably the word she says least often. I was feeling pretty wounded by that until I talked to another mom this weekend that told me her son said "mama" for the first time at around a year and a half and only after he started saying the word "elk."

During the last two weeks of June my boss was out of town and I worked full-time. I know that LOTS of moms work full-time, but I don't know how - it is REALLY hard. I felt like I hardly got to see Gabby, not to mention what the house looked like. I went to get a massage on Friday afternoon and when they told me there had been a "scheduling mix-up" and there was nobody there to give me my massage, I seriously had to excuse myself to the restroom so that I didn't CRY in front of the lady at the front desk. And that was after only two weeks of working full-time.

This past weekend my sister was here from Seattle for her baby shower. She and Gabby had not seen each other since March and had a good time reconnecting with each other. Gabby wishes Tia Traci didn't live so far away!

Well, that's it for now... We hope everyone is enjoying their summer and having as much fun as we are! I'll post some pictures tomorrow.

Leslie, Daniel, & Gabby

Houston, we have a toddler!

2008-05-26T21:01:00.004-06:00

I really should have written this post about three weeks ago, because that's when it happened. One day, I looked at Gabby and realized that she had become a toddler! I'm not sure I'm ready for this (I was really just getting used to having a baby), but ready or not, it's happening! A few tell-tale signs?

1. One day, she simply started turning her nose up at almost everything we tried to spoon-feed her. We had to switch almost exclusively to finger foods so she could feed herself. We've now restored some control over meal time and she'll eat what we give her as long as there are also things on her tray that she can feed herself.

2. One morning, she was screaming bloody murder in her crib and I rushed in there, expecting some horrific, bloody scene. The second she saw me, her face lit up with a huge smile and she said "Goo da ba go doh." That translates roughly into "Hah, I knew it would work!" There was not a tear in sight. Yes, she's learned the art of manipulation.

3. She's shows us what she wants. When she wants to walk, she comes over, grabs a finger on each hand, pulls herself up, turns around, and takes off. It's not up for discussion. She also points and grunts when she wants something that's out of her reach (usually it's grapes - that kid LOVES grapes).

So, as you can imagine, things are even more interesting around the Rojas household, what with a toddler and all! It is SO much fun though - Gabby has developed this assertive, funny personality and it's so amazing to see her learn and grow. She is all but walking on her own, so I suspect that the next time I post we'll have our hands even more full than we do now. Oh, one more thing... Gabby is turning in to a bit of a mama's girl, which I LOVE, partly because it reassures me that I'm doing okay as a mom and Gabby is forming healthy attachments, and partly because there is nothing better in this life than seeing a beautiful face light up every time you walk in to a room.

Below are a few pictures from Gabby's birthday party last Saturday. Enjoy!

Leslie, Daniel, & Gabriela

Feliz Cumpleaños, Princesa!

2008-05-13T20:10:00.008-06:00

Today is our precious little girl's first birthday! We had a great day together - I was able to switch my work week around so that I could spend the day with her, and Daniel was able to join us in the afternoon. We went to Red Robin for dinner and had lots of fun. Gabby got TWO balloons, the waiters sang "Happy Birthday" to her, and she got to have an ice cream sundae for dessert! She was all smiles and giggles on the way home. We hope she knows how much we love her and how much joy she brings to us every single day!

When I last posted, Gabby was sick with the stomach flu. She couldn't hold anything down, even Pedialyte or water, for two days. By the third day, she was dehydrated and clearly felt horrible. We took her to our pediatrician, who sent us over to the hospital so they could give her IV fluids and rule out more serious problems. By that time, she'd lost a pound in under a week (she had been weighed at her well-baby exam the previous Friday). She continued to throw up for two more days, and finally on the sixth day held down diluted formula and rice cereal. It was an AWFUL week. When she finally felt better, she was ravenous (and just a wee bit clingy and cranky) and we could not feed her fast enough. In addition to putting away more solid food than Daniel and I put together, she drank two extra bottles every day for a week. I think she might have set a world record. She is now over a pound heavier than before she got sick, so she's back in the saddle!

Below are some pictures of the big day - enjoy!

Tidbits

2008-04-22T21:18:00.007-06:00

Sorry it's been so long! The last few weeks have been good but hectic. Daniel has been travelling quite a bit for work, so I've been getting a taste of what being a single parent is like - good, but a tad more difficult! Last week was tax time (I work in financial services), we had a new staff member in our office, Daniel was out of town, and Gabby and I had the yucky cold that's going around. It was not an easy week but we survived it. We're still getting over the cold, and now Gabby has a stomach flu that is also apparently going around. She was sleeping when I started this post but now she is awake and throwing up on dad. Poor baby. My parents always said "I wish it were me instead" when I was sick as a kid - now I understand that sentiment completely.

Okay, I'm back, and Gabby is sleeping again. Besides the gunk going around our household, we are all doing really well. She had a well-baby exam last week (her late 9-month/early 12-month appointment). Everything looked great and she appears to be developing right on track. She has grown one inch and gained over three pounds since we first met her! She is in the 75th percentile for height and the 10th percentile for weight - long and lean like mommy!

I can't believe how time has flown. I realized the other day that our first post-placement report is due in Colombia in a little over a month. We scheduled the home visit for next Thursday. Our social worker will come to the house, see how we interact with Gabby, ask us all kinds of questions, and write a report that we will send to our agency in Florida to review, approve, translate, apostille, and send to Colombia. It is due in Colombia on June 1st.

Many of you know that I have been fortunate enough to be able to cut my work down to part-time. I work Monday through Wednesday and have Thursday and Friday to be with Gabby. It is working perfectly because I don't think I could stay home full-time, nor could I be away from Gabby all week. Even better, Daniel is essentially self-employed and has quite a bit of flexibility with his schedule, so he is often able to be home with her one or two days while I'm at work. When we both work, my mom, my sister, or Daniel's mom have her. We are really, really blessed to get to leave her with family when we can't be with her.

Did I mention that I only work part time?!? I love it! We have been doing all sorts of fun things on our days off together - walking the dogs, going to reading group at the library, swimming, getting together with friends for play dates, taking naps... we can't wait for summer and trips to the zoo, park, etc.

We hope everyone is doing well!

Love,
Leslie, Daniel, and Gabby

P.S. These pictures were taken on a field trip to daddy's "office."

Gabby y Oscar

2008-03-30T18:45:00.003-06:00

Gato!

2008-03-25T19:40:00.007-06:00

I just thought I'd post an update to let everyone know we are alive and well! Gabby continues to amaze us and fill our lives with joy. She is growing like a little weed, eating us out of house and home, and motoring around the house like she's been crawling all her life. She is also, for the most part (fingers crossed), sleeping very well.

So, the word of the week is GATO!

Many of you probably know that "gato" is "cat" in spanish. Gabby is apparently obsessed with cats, as she has begun pointing at everything and exclaiming "gato!" She does occasionally say other things, such as "dedo" (finger), "dog," "good," "caballo" (horse), and a few things we can't quite make out, but her standby is definitely "gato."

We have a very cool cat named Oscar, who could only be more mellow if he were dead. He is absolutely unflappable. One day shortly before we left for Colombia, I came upon one of our dogs dragging Oscar around the living room by his head. I shouted "No!" in horror, to which the dog responded by letting go, looking very startled by my outburst. However, Oscar simply looked at me and blinked, rolled over on his back, and swatted the dog playfully.

So, as you can imagine, Oscar is good with kids and has become Gabby's favorite playmate. She crawls around behind him, and upon catching him, usually performs a full-body tackle. Sometimes she pulls out chunks of his hair or painfully (at least it looks painful to us) yanks on his ears. When he is really "annoyed," he'll move about three inches out of her reach and flick his tail.

One day I was reflecting on what a nice 2-hour nap Gabby was taking when I heard some chattering coming from her room. I opened the door to find Gabby and Oscar playing in her crib. I don't know if she took a 1 hour and 50 minute nap and played with Oscar for 10 minutes or if she took a 10 minute nap and played with Oscar for 1 hour and 50 minutes. I suspect it won't be long before Gabby is outfitting Oscar in dresses and matching bonnets and pushing him around in a stroller.

I will post pictures soon of Oscar and Gabby at play. Every day I think "I should get a picture of that!" and then remember that the camera battery is dead. Why don't we simply charge it, you ask? Because we have a 10-month old! Some days I feel lucky if I simply make it out of the house with matching shoes on!

For now, I will post a picture of our first Christmas as a family of three. Since Gabby couldn't be with us on Christmas, my family decided to leave the Christmas tree up and leave Gabby's presents wrapped until we got home. So, we celebrated Christmas in March!

Two weeks home!

2008-03-13T16:25:00.003-06:00

We have been home now for two weeks and things are going pretty well. Gabby has been making the rounds meeting friends and family and is quite the little social butterfly - I'm pretty sure that everyone that has met her has agreed that she is, in fact, the cutest baby ever!

The biggest news I have to share is that Gabby is officially crawling! She has been somewhat mobile as long as she's been with us, but until the last few days she was doing the caterpillar crawl (on her tummy). She still does that, but now she also crawls on her hands and knees. She's not very fast just yet, but we suspect we won't be able to say that for long!

We have been working very hard to get Gabby on a schedule and thought we had succeeded until the last couple of days. Apparently, Gabby decided that her bedtime is not 7:00 as we had thought, but rather 9:00. In hindsight, we are pretty sure she told us this, but we are quite dumb and all we understood was "Dat bwoh doh blah doo goh."

I promised before that I would post pictures of Gabby's AWESOME bedroom - thanks Jen, Kevin, and Dad!

A few of our favorites...

2008-03-01T22:32:00.002-07:00

Home at last!

2008-03-01T22:01:00.002-07:00

Hi all!

We finally made it home on Thursday night!

Our week in Bogota was busy but good. We went to the embassy Monday morning and applied for Gabriela's visa. We were told to pick it up Tuesday afternoon at 3:30. We were on the other side of Bogota on Tuesday afternoon having lunch with an aunt and uncle and left at 2:30 so we'd have "plenty of time." We should have known better! First, we got stuck in a traffic jam that didn't move for almost 30 minutes, which we found out on the evening news was caused by a bus that was hanging half-suspended over a canal. Then, just as we turned off to take a detour, we were informed by a passerby that we had a flat tire. Miraculously, we were literally feet from the entrance to a car repair shop, and they happened to have an empty bay, and they had us in and out of there in 15 minutes. While we were having the tire changed I called the embassy and was told that we had until 4:00 and then the gates would be closed. At a couple of minutes to 4:00 we were just a few blocks out so I called again and was told to hurry up and they would let me in. I literally had to sprint up to the embassy gate - it was just like the scene in the movie "The Saint." Except nobody was chasing me. And I wasn't screaming "I'm an American!" But otherwise, it was just like that scene! Anyway, when I got to the gate the guard initially refused to let me in because it was 4:02. I had to explain in broken spanish that I had just talked to Marcela and she said I could come in! He finally let me in and I left with Gabriela's visa in hand.

The trip home was long but Gabriela was a trooper. On the first leg of the trip (Bogota to Miami) she hammed it up for most of the trip and then slept for about an hour. We had grand plans to feed her, change her diaper, re-stock the diaper bag, eat lunch, and relax a bit during our layover of three hours. Instead, we spent most of it in a Homeland Security "inspection room." Daniel always raises flags when we travel, but this was absurd. When we asked them when we'd be able to leave we were told "not until we get the call back from Washington." No kidding! When they finally "released" him, we had less than an hour to make our connection and we still had to get our bags, go through customs, re-check our bags, go through security, and get to our gate. We were running through the airport with four large suitcases, four carry-ons, and one 9-month-old child. Gabby was literally tucked under my arm at one point as we RAN through the terminal to our gate. We made it just in time. When we explained to the gentleman seated in our row what had happened, and that Gabby hadn't eaten or had her diaper changed for several hours, he wisely chose to relocate to an empty seat in another row. Surprisingly, though, she settled right down, ate a bottle, and slept on me for almost the entire 4 hour flight.

Ah, home sweet home! We arrived home to balloons, a big "Welcome Home Rojas Family" sign, a stocked fridge, a frame of some of our favorite pictures of Gabby, and, best of all, my sister and her husband had hand-painted the walls of Gabby's room to match her bedding. I will post pictures of that soon - it looks awesome! Thanks to everyone!

And now, a few photos!

Love,
Leslie, Daniel, and Gabriela

Hello from Bogota!

2008-02-22T17:16:00.002-07:00

Hi all! Just another quick update... We are in Bogota! We were able to get Gabriela's birth certificate yesterday morning in Yolombó and make it back to Medellín in time to get her passport. We made it literally with only minutes left before the passport office closed! I don't know if it is because Gabby is cute or because Daniel is cute, but the lady at the passport office expedited everything for us and we were in and out in under an hour.

Today Gabriela took her first airplane trip. It was only 30 minutes long but it still counts! She did very well and didn't seem nearly as worried as her mother! We arrived in Bogota around 1:00 and Gabby saw the embassy doctor at 3:00. He was really nice and Gabby was very good. He said we will have our hands full when Gabby is two because she is a little busybody! He also said that everything looks great, and we have the document we needed from him in order to apply for her visa. We will do that Monday morning and hopefully have her visa by Wednesday at the latest. We'll keep you posted when we know what day we're coming home, but we think it will be either Thursday or Friday.

Sorry not to post photos... I'm not sure if we'll be able to before we head home, but we'll make up for it when we get there!

Love,
Leslie, Daniel, & Gabriela

An update...

2008-02-19T14:25:00.003-07:00

Hi all!

This morning we received our updated sentencia - yay! It is officially official - Gabby is stuck with us for life - and we have the document to prove it! It came sooner than we expected and we were pleasantly suprised. As soon as we found out we began making plans to drive to Yolombo to get Gabriela's new birth certificate. It is a 2 1/2 hour drive each way but her new birth certificate has to be issued there since that is where her birth was originally registered. We started dreaming of possibly getting to Bogota and getting everything done by the end of the week. Until, that is, we learned that the notary in Yolombo is closed today... and tomorrow. So, Thursday we will head to Yolombo for the birth certificate and Friday we will get Gabby's passport, after which we can head to Bogota. We are hoping we can head home next Thursday or Friday.

Gabriela is doing really well. We thought she was coming down with a cold and then a couple of days ago I noticed two new teeth coming in! We kept thinking she was due for a few more, but we hadn't seen any sign of them. Then, this morning, I noticed a THIRD one coming in! Three at once! They are not all in a row so she is going to look like a little pirate. Needless to say, she has NOT been an especially happy camper, but she's doing better today.

Anyway, we are heading in to the home stretch. Thanks for the thoughts, comments, e-mails, and phone calls.

Love,
Leslie, Daniel, and Gabriela

We hit a snag...

2008-02-18T16:13:00.002-07:00

Well, our sentencia did not go as planned on Friday afternoon. My passport number was off by ONE digit in the court document, clearly a typo, and even though I was there and had my passport with me, we could not proceed. The court has to fix the document, which could take up to a week. We are hoping it will be done sooner, but the only thing they could say for sure was that it should be ready sometime this week. We are obviously very frustrated, but it really is just a minor hiccup in the grand scheme. As I understand it, our sentencia has been signed, it just needs to be amended before we can proceed. Because it has been signed, Gabby is officially stuck with us, which is the most important part and the reason we are here! Please keep your fingers crossed that things will move quickly and we will update when we know more.

Leslie, Daniel, and Gabriela

GREAT NEWS!

2008-02-15T10:21:00.002-07:00

We just found out that our sentencia has been scheduled... for 2:30 TODAY! Please keep your fingers crossed that it goes smoothly and that we don't have any snags. If things go well, it looks like we may be home on the 25th after all!

Dining out with a 9-month-old...

2008-02-15T07:26:00.004-07:00

I just thought I'd share what we've learned about peacefully dining out with a 9-month-old: it's not possible.

I can't tell you how many times I've rolled my eyes at the parents of a screaming child and said "they need to control their kid!" Well, the other day while dining at a relatively nice restaurant, somewhere between Gabriela shrieking, flailing her arms, grunting like a pig, banging her spoon on the table, blowing a "raspberry" with a mouth full of food, and spilling Daniel's glass of water in his lap, I turned to him and said "Okay, okay, I take it all back!"

Anyway, here is a photo of her looking perfectly angelic at some point during the mayhem that was our lunch.

A quick update...

2008-02-14T16:46:00.003-07:00

Hi all!

We don´t have time to upload photos but just wanted to say a quick hello!

We are having a great time in Medellín but are ready to come home and get Gabriela settled in. Unfortunately, it doesn´t look like that will happen as soon as we had hoped. I guess the post of the Defender of the Family, who is appointed by ICBF to review everything that goes through the courts, just changed hands. It sounds like there was about a week where nothing got reviewed or signed. Our file got to his office on February 5th but he didn´t review it until the 12th. He has approved it but is waiting to sign it until our sentencia (court date) has been scheduled. As of today, our sentencia has not yet been scheduled. It will most likely be scheduled for sometime early next week (at least that is what we´re hoping). We were planning to fly home from Bogota next Sunday, thinking that 2 1/2 weeks in the courts would be enough and would allow us a full week in Bogota. Now it looks like we will not have sentencia until at least early next week, which I don´t think gives us enough time to get everything done in Bogota. That means we will most likely have to change our return flight, which will not be cheap! We are a little bit frustrated but there isn´t anything we can do, so we are just trying to enjoy our time here.

On a more positive note, Gabriela is doing great and continues to let more and more of her personality show. She is a little clown and she makes us laugh a hundred times a day. We think she may be fighting off a minor cold but it doesn´t seem like anything serious and she´s still eating and sleeping.

Today we visited Yolombó, which is the town Gabriela was born in. We both said after we left that we are glad she won´t grow up there - even though it´s likely that she would have had a very happy life there, there really isn´t much opportunity. We took some photos that we look forward to sharing with her someday.

We´ll try to post soon and will definitely let you know when we receive our sentencia and head to Bogota. Please cross your fingers that that will happen soon!

Love,
Leslie, Daniel, and Gabriela

The week in photos!

2008-02-10T16:27:00.000-07:00

Wrapping up week three...

2008-02-10T16:04:00.000-07:00

Hi all!

Well, we are wrapping up another busy but good week here in Medellin! Actually, it was our quietest week so far. We had places to go and people to see nearly every day, but we were actually home for at least one of Gabriela's naps each day! On the topic of naps, Gabby really doesn't like to take them! She falls asleep in her stroller or car seat easily, but it's a battle to get her to take a nap in her crib. We feel like we've got a pretty good handle on everything else, though.

The highlight of our week was a trip to the zoo on Friday. The zoo here is NOT like zoos in the U.S. The animals are in corral-type pens or chain-link enclosures and you can come within an arm's length of many of them! I believe the tigers were the only animals that had a second fence around their enclosure! Gabby especially liked the monkeys, which really is not surprising, since we have said many a time that they switched our little girl for a "miquita." She talks a LOT and sometimes sounds surprisingly like a little monkey! She also seemed to like the birds.

We are waiting to here when we will receive our "sentencia," which will allow us to head to Bogota for Gabby's visa and then home. Our paperwork has been in the courts for a week and two days, and average is two to three weeks. We will keep everyone posted and are very much hoping to come home on our original return date of February 25th. We are having a great time but want to get Gabriela home and settled in.

Our best to everyone at home!

Daniel, Leslie, and Gabriela

Some more fotos from the weekend!!

2008-02-05T09:38:00.000-07:00

The trip to La Piedra del Penol

2008-02-05T09:15:00.000-07:00

Alive and well!

2008-02-04T14:07:00.000-07:00

Finally, a chance to post!

We are alive and well and have been having a lot of fun. Daniels cousin Andres and his girlfriend Cathy are visiting right now from Panama and we have been very busy with them. Saturday night we went to a very cool bar up in the hills of Medellín where we sat outside listening to live music, drinking rum, and eating delicious food. Daniels aunt and uncle stayed at the apartment with Gabby and like all parents, we were terribly worried about leaving our baby with a "babysitter" for the first time. We put her to bed before we left and she slept through the whole thing, so she never even knew we had left!

Yesterday we went to La Piedra del Peñol, which is giant rock coming out of the top of a mountain. It has a staircase up one side and you can climb to the top if you are so inclined. The staircase is 649 steps up a very narrow and steep staircase. Daniel, Gabriela, and I were brave enough to tackle it and the view from the top is amazing. It was the first "hike" of many for Gabriela and she did great.

We think that Gabriela is continuing to adapt very well. We had a rough spell of a couple of days late last week but we think she was not feeling too well. She is back to her beautiful, smiling self now.

Oh, last week Gabby added "MAMA" to her vocabulary! She has said "DADA" and "PAPA" from the beginning, but "MAMA" was new! She said it right as I walked away so we think she was actually referring to me! It was very exciting.

We will try to update soon and add photos. Until then, rest assured that Gabby continues to be adorable!

Leslie, Daniel, and Gabriela

P.S. We REALLY appreciate the comments, e-mails, and phone calls!

At The Bridge of the West

2008-01-30T12:52:00.001-07:00

Mommy loves me a LOT!

2008-01-30T12:49:00.000-07:00

Bravo!

2008-01-30T12:46:00.000-07:00

Me gusta mucho comer!

2008-01-30T12:42:00.000-07:00

They FINALLY got it right!

2008-01-30T12:34:00.000-07:00

Playing airplane with Daddy!

2008-01-30T12:23:00.000-07:00

The first week...

2008-01-30T11:26:00.000-07:00

The first week with Gabriela has gone really, really well! We just love her to bits and pieces! I´ll try to re-cap what we´ve been up to and then post a couple more photos...

Mostly we´ve been taking it easy. We´ve been over to several people´s houses for meals or just to visit and Gabriela has done really well. She seems to like almost everyone and she will sleep and eat pretty much wherever we are. She slept through the night the last two nights, which you would think would mean that we are refreshed and well-rested, but that´s not the case! We spent much of both nights wondering when she was going to wake us up and neither of us slept very well.

Monday we had our integration meeting. We met with Gabriela´s social worker, our attorney, and the attorney for ICBF. We talked about how we were doing, how Gabby was doing, whether she was eating and sleeping, how we were all adjusting to each other, etc. They issued the documents we need to proceed with the process and our attorney filed them with the court this morning.

Yesterday we went with Daniel´s cousin Felipe, his 6-month old daughter, and his mother-in-law to a historic town called Santa Fe de Antioquia. The town is beautiful, as is the drive there. It was a long day, but fun. The drive was a couple of hours each way (with stops for pan de queso and coffee) and it was very HOT, both in the car and while we were there. That meant that we had two hot, cranky, ticked-off babies. But, I think it was a good bonding experience and Gabriela and I did really well together (daddy got to sit in the front seat and didn´t have to hold the hot, squirming, and, at times, screaming baby).

And now, a few more photos. Enjoy!

Two days with Gabriela

2008-01-25T09:50:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

The first two days have been GREAT! The first night was a little bit rough, I´m sure because Gabriela was over-tired, over-stimulated, and in a strange place with strange people. Last night, however, she slept for 11 hours with only a couple of hiccups. She is a calm, happy baby and so much fun! Her smile just melts us. Yesterday we went to see Gabriela´s cousin Ana Sofia. Ana Sofia is 2 months younger than Gabby and they are very cute together. Tomorrow they have a swim date.

Yesterday we took Gabby to the pediatrician for her first check-up (with us, at least). The doctor said she appears to be very healthy, very alert, and right on track. That is how we found out that she weighs much less than we thought - over 1 kg less, or about 2.5 pounds. She did not particularly like going to the doctor, but she did pretty well. She fell asleep on me on the way out, slept through the car ride, and took an hour nap when we got home.

We will try to post photos soon - the connection is REALLY slow and we have to use someone else´s computer so we may not be able to post photos as often as we´d like. We hope everything is going well at home. Please kiss the puppies for us - we miss them!

Leslie, Daniel, and Gabriela!

2008-01-24T12:37:00.001-07:00

2008-01-24T12:33:00.000-07:00

A few things about Gabriela...

2008-01-24T11:00:00.001-07:00

1. She is the most beautiful baby in the world.
2. She weighs almost 2 1/2 pounds less than they told us, so she can take swimming lessons in most of the clothes we brought.
3. She does not like the way we prepare a bath and she´s not afraid to tell us that.
4. She has two teeth (the middle bottom ones).
5. She likes mixed fruit baby food the best (why settle for one fruit when you can have them all?).
6. Everything gets taste-tested, and I mean EVERYTHING.
7. She talks a lot - some of her favorite things to say are "Aaahhh" and "Blah blah blah blah!"
8. She is the most beautiful baby in the world. Did I already say that?

And now, pictures!

She's Beautiful

2008-01-23T20:16:00.000-07:00

We just talked to Daniel and Leslie in Colombia. They asked us to post a message for them. Today was the big day and allwent well. They are officially Mom and Dad. Gabriela is happy, healthy and , according to her parents, BEAUTIFUL. They are settled into the apartment and lots of help from Daniel's family. They promised that they would post news and pictures as soon as they can get to a computer. We are so happy for them we could bust.

Grandpa Squires

I just spoke to my precious granddaughter on the phone. Leslie said she shrieked and laughed! Leslie and Daniel are so excited to finally have their baby girl. I can hardly wait now until I get to meet Gabby in person.

Grandma Squires

Saludes desde Medellín!

2008-01-22T09:16:00.000-07:00

Hola! We arrived safely in Medellín yesterday after a very uneventful but long day of traveling. Things could not have gone more smoothly - both of our flights were on time, all of our luggage arrived in Medellín, and our ride was waiting when we got through customs! We were taken immediately to a restaurant for empanadas and aguardiente (very important) and then to our apartment. By ¨our apartment¨ I mean Felipe and Sandra´s apartment, which they are letting us use while we are here. They are SO generous and we are more grateful than we can ever express to them. As if it weren´t enough that they are letting us stay there, the apartment was cleaned and stocked with breakfast fixings when we arrived.

This morning we met with our attorney and we are all set for tomorrow. We can´t believe we´re going to be parents in less than 24 hours! We are preparing by spending some time today with Felipe´s 6-month old daughter, who is absolutely beautiful. We will shop this afternoon for some last-minute items, including formula, and spend the rest of the day just hanging out with family.

We will try to post often, but we do not have a computer in the apartment, so it might not be as often as we´d like. The next time we post, we will be parents!

Love,
Leslie and Daniel

And... we're off!

2008-01-20T22:16:00.000-07:00

We will be on a plane to Colombia in just about 10 hours and we are SO excited - we can't believe the day is finally here! Please keep us in your thoughts, as we have a BIG couple of days ahead of us! Stay tuned...

Leslie and Daniel

5 days (and counting!)...

2008-01-15T21:10:00.000-07:00

Well, five days from this very moment we will be heading to bed so we can wake up at the ungodly hour of 4:00 a.m. to head to the airport! And one week from this very moment we will be heading to bed for our last night of uninterrupted sleep, at least for a while! The last couple of weeks have flown by. We've been working, working, and... working! Daniel is trying to finish up with a number of his students since we'll be gone for 5 weeks, and I'm trying to get about six weeks of work done in two. That has definitely helped the time pass more quickly.

On Saturday night our friends Kelley, Shannon, and Julie threw us an awesome co-ed baby shower. Everyone was so generous, and Gabriela is pretty much set, at least until she outgrows 12-month clothing! We received so many fun and useful gifts and are so appreciative of everyone's generosity. We have such wonderful friends and family and are so grateful for the love, support, and well wishes we've received.

At this point, all of the big things are in order, or at least we think they are! We have our airfare, my visa (Daniel doesn't need one since he's Colombian), Gabriela's ticket for the flight home, accomodations during our time in Colombia, Daniel's international driver's license (there is NO WAY I'm getting behind the wheel in Colombia - they would chew me up and spit me out), and copies of all of our documents. We also have Gabriela's things in order - clothes, shoes, socks, bibs, diapers, pjs, bottles, toys, blankets, diaper bag, baby meds - you name it, I think we have it. Now we just need to find a way to fit it all, plus our stuff for five weeks, in our alotted 2 suitcases, 1 carry-on and 1 personal item each!

The next few days will be VERY busy! We have LOTS of little things left to do, and every time I cross one thing off the list I add two more. But, I am confident we will get it all done! We'll try to post before we leave, but if we don't, please keep your fingers crossed that we find the time to get everything done and we make it through with our sanity intact!

Passing the time...

2008-01-03T21:04:00.000-07:00

As you know from previous posts, we received our referral on December 8th and we meet Gabriela on January 23rd - that is 6 1/2 weeks that we will have to wait! It is SO hard to wait! Most families adopting from Colombia travel within 2-4 weeks of receiving their referral, but since the courts close from December 15th to January 15th, the timing of our referral was such that we had to wait a bit longer.

So what have we been doing to pass the time? Well, my dad's cousins Leann and Loree threw a really nice baby shower for me on December 16th, which was so much fun because they managed to get the word out that we had been assigned a little girl and we got lots of fun girl things! Also, we feel very lucky to have had the holidays to distract us - that helped a lot. Last week we prepared and sent my visa application to the consulate. This past weekend we shopped (having a baby is a great excuse to shop - I love it). We bought our crib mattress (we had it on our registry, but honestly, who's going to lug that to a baby shower?), mattress pad, diapers, a couple of adorable outfits, onesies, and luggage. This week I wrote thank-you notes, bought Gabriela's ticket for our return flight, organized papers that we need to take with us (a copy of our complete dossier, our immigration approval, and a handful of others), and packed Gabriela's suitcase, which is ridiculous because we still have 2 1/2 weeks to go, but I just couldn't help myself! This weekend I plan to take down our Christmas tree and spend several hours working from home. Next weekend our friends are having a co-ed happy hour baby shower for us on Saturday and then we will go shopping on Sunday to buy the remaining essentials. And then we'll only have a week to go! We'll be busy with all the last-minute stuff - laundry, packing, cleaning, etc.

Some nights I go to bed early just because I want it to be the next day, which will be one day closer to Gabriela. Plus, I figure I should get my beauty rest now, while I still can!

Gabriela's Room

2007-12-26T21:40:00.000-07:00

As promised, I am posting a before and after photo of Gabriela's room. It turned out GREAT! It seems that Daniel is quite the carpenter, as his first ever attempt at a chair rail came out perfectly!

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-24T22:50:00.000-07:00

Okay, we are terrible bloggers! There is no excuse for going over six weeks between posts, especially with everything that has happened! This will be a long post as I will attempt to get you up to speed, and then we PROMISE to post more often!

On the morning of Saturday, December 8th I went out to run some errands. While I was driving home I talked to my sister Jen on the phone. She said that she had had a very vivid dream the night before that we had gotten our referral and that she thought it would happen really soon. At that point we had been waiting 5 weeks, which is about average for Colombian families, but felt like nothing would probably happen until after the new year because things really slow down around the holidays.

No more than an hour later, Daniel got an email from our attorney in Colombia. It was a LONG message and appeared to be in response to some questions we had sent to her via e-mail. Daniel told me to go ahead and read it because he was putting up Christmas lights. A few minutes later I ran outside and yelled "I think you'd better get in here - I'm pretty sure we just got our referral!" I was only "pretty sure" because the e-mail was in Spanish. I comprehend a lot of what I read in Spanish, but I've found that it only takes one slip-up to completely alter the meaning of an entire paragraph.

Anyway, Daniel came in and we read through this insanely long e-mail from the beginning (naturally). At the VERY end was the news that we had been assigned a 7-month-0ld girl! This was the moment we had been waiting for, but it was strangely anti-climactic. We just kind of looked at each other and said, "Did we really just get our referral? That was it?" It didn't really sink in right away, especially because we didn't have a photo or any other information beyond her date and city of birth.

We got our referral package on the following Tuesday (thanks, Kelley, for your part in that!). Daniel was out of town so his first glimpse of Gabriela was on his cell phone - thank goodness for the iPhone, without which he would have had to wait two more days to see a decent picture of her! Needless to say, she is absolutely adorable and we cannot wait to meet her. We will travel to Colombia on January 21st and meet Gabriela at 10:30 a.m. on January 23rd!

The last two weeks have been a whirlwind, to say the least! We pored over the packet of information that came with our referral, sent our acceptance letter, called and e-mailed everyone we could think of with the news, found a new attorney (long story), decided on a middle name (Sofia), booked our airfare, made a completely embarrassing video of ourselves to familiarize Gabriela with our faces and voices, arranged for a place to stay in Medellín, sent a package to Colombia (which got held up in customs, requiring several phone calls), and decorated Gabriela's room (which looks GREAT - photos to follow). All of this on top of getting ready for Christmas! We are tired but excited and happy.

So, I think that summarizes everything pretty well. Again, we promise to be better about posting updates!

Merry Christmas and may 2008 be happy and healthy!

Welcome!

2007-11-06T23:16:00.001-07:00

Hi all!

Well, this seems like as good a place as any to start... we found out today that our application to adopt from Colombia has been approved by ICBF (Instituto Colombiano de Bienestar Familiar, or Colombian Institute of Family Welfare). Yes, they are going to let US have a child!

Though we're just starting this blog, we are actually several months into the adoption process. We made the decision to adopt in June and first met with our home study agency in early July. We came to the decision to adopt rather quickly and jumped headfirst into the process. For those of you that don't know me very well, I have been known to anguish over even the smallest decisions (my best friend Kelley likes to tell people that it takes me 15 minutes to pick out band-aids at the grocery store - or maybe it's 30...). However, I seem to be blessed with clarity when it comes to the really BIG decisions. Daniel and I did, after all, get married after knowing each other for less than 5 months, and I can happily say that that was the best decision I've ever made.

We moved through the process as quickly as possible (we almost set an agency speed record) and now it is out of our hands. Our file has been sent from the national office in Bogotá to the regional office in Medellín, and we will simply wait until they assign us a child. For those of you that don't know this, Daniel was born in Medellín and lived there until he was 16 years old. We are very excited that he will share a birthplace with our little one, and that we will get to spend roughly a month in Medellín when we travel to complete the adoption.

From this point forward, the process looks something like this: We will get an e-mail or phone call from our attorney letting us know that we have been assigned a child. A few days later we will get a file that contains photos, medical information, and possibly additional information from the foster mother or orphanage. We will probably choose to have an independent medical evaluation done, and then will accept the referral. The mad dash to pack, get my adoption visa, buy plane tickets, make reservations, etc. will begin, and we will travel approximately two weeks later. We will spend about a month in Colombia.

Anyway, I'm going on and on... welcome to our blog! We will keep you posted with any developments. We also plan to blog as often as possible while we're in Colombia because that seems to be the easiest way to keep everyone up to speed.

Take care,

Leslie and Daniel