Lots accomplished....

My parents were in town the last few days.... and, as usual, we got LOTS accomplished. My dad loves to stay busy doing projects, so he took care of installing a baby gate at the top of the stairs among other things. My mom and I also stayed busy.... my OCD has been pretty bad lately, so my organizing has been a bit insane. My mom and I sorted the majority of my kitchen cabinets, my pantry, all of the kids toys.... Moses and I contined today and sorted through the playroom and all of the movies. We've downsized a lot and are planning to participate in the big garage sale up at my parents in Wisconsin in the spring. Garage sales here don't do so well, but up there a neighborhood garage sale brings TONS of people. So, we've been slowly shipping stuff up to my parents house over the last several trips to store in their basement until the sale. We're going to have to go up there several days early just to organize and price everything, but hopefully we'll make some good money (in addition to cleaning up some of the clutter in the house!)

The snow seems to have stopped, although it's still pretty cold. I ran to the store tonight (my couple of items turned into an entire cart!)..... tomorrow the boys will go out to run around a bit, but I think Lili and I will stay home all day! Nice quiet relaxing day!

One quick update on Lili.... her recent visit to a physical therapist for evaluation has already had an impact. She's been a bit delayed on rolling over, getting up from laying down, and attempting to pull herself to standing position. Until we get a report and authorization from our doctor for additional treatment, the therapist gave me some exercises to try with Lili..... less than a week and she's already making HUGE progress. She's rolling over from back to front, almost rolling from front to back, attempting to pull herself up and wanting to stand NON-STOP! Each time she approaches us, we reach out to pick her up and she grabs our hands to pull herself into a standing position! Amazing progress, but she's already growing up so fast!!!

Please, leave us messages by choosing "COMMENTS" at the end of the post. We'd love to hear from everyone! "Blog" with you soon!

Bad Blogger!!!

Wow, have I been bad about keeping this site updated! I just realized that I haven't posted in 2 months, so here I am! Things are going well, we've enjoyed our first Christmas together as a family of four and have survived the early stages of winter. Lili has experienced her first snow days (she's so cute in her snow suit, but she really doesn't know what to do!)

Moses is working like crazy, Max goes to pre-K two days a week and is home with Lili and I the other three days a week. We spend some days running errands or going for playdates or coffee with friends, but many of our days are spent hanging out at home... either just relaxing in our pajamas, or getting things done around the house that I don't normally have time to do when I'm working!

We've had lots of activities since I last posted. We celebrated Max and Moses' birthdays.... we also went to Evansville, IN to visit our friends Misty, Chris, Madisyn & Lyza Melvin. Lyza is exactly one month older than Lili and we were blessed to meet the Melvins in Guatemala when we were both visiting the girls for our first time. We've stayed in touch, become great friends, and were able to go to Evansville for Lyza's first birthday weekend! It was so wonderful getting to visit with them again, and especially to see our girls HOME TOGETHER!!!

Our first Halloween was great.... Power Ranger Max and Little Duck Lili were adorable. The weather was kind of cold, but Aunt Shelly (one of Lili's godmothers) joined us for a little trick-or-treating. Myself, Shelly and Lili headed home early while Daddy and Max continued on in search of more candy. After a quick visit with Grandma Arenas and our traditional McDonald's dinner, we headed home.

November was somewhat quiet... Moses and I celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary. He had his brother Mike come over to watch the kids while he took me to a very nice dinner in Geneva. We had a great time at dinner, stopped for coffee afterwards, and then did a little Christmas shopping before heading home. In addition, some of Moe's coworkers threw a surprise baby shower for Lili and I.... they are such wonderful people and we are so appreciative of their love and support. Everything else in November was just normal daily routine, as well as Doctor appointments, visits with friends, trips to the mall and library, etc.

December brought us to Lili's first birthday. Her actual birthday was on 12/5/06. It snowed a lot that morning, so Max, Lili and I went outside to snowblow the driveway and play in the snow. Lili was fascinated by the snowblower, but otherwise just sat and took it all in. I have some great pictures of her sitting outside just looking around.... I'll try to remember to post one. That night, we went for Chinese food at the same restaurant where we went for Max's first birthday.... very sweet. That weekend, we had a small gathering for Lili's birthday just to have dinner and cake. Considering how many parties and events we've had in Lili's honor (her auction, her shower, her baptism, etc), we wanted to keep her birthday more simple. We had a great time relaxing with family.... and Lili LOVED her cake! She had a small smash cake and dug into it like no child I've ever seen! By the time we took it away from her, more than half of it was gone!!! When I took her to the bathtub to clean her off, I even found icing from the cake inside of her diaper!!!!

We had another night out without the kids in December for Moses' work Christmas party, which was lots of fun. Also, drove to Springfield, IL to get Lili's birth certificate from the State of Illinois since our final adoption decree and name change came in from the attorney. The plan for an overnight stay in Springfield changed when we discovered at 9am that we were finished getting our paperwork and had nothing else to do for the rest of the day! Instead, we turned around and drove home 3 hours, then went to a get together thrown by Moses' boss that evening.

Christmas Eve morning, Max went to work with Moses. I went to visit for a couple of hours with Lili and we all shared goodies with his staff. That evening, we went to Moses' family get-together at his Mom & Dad's. This year was kind of rough.... Lili didn't want to sleep because of the commotion.... and Max (at 5 years old) had a hard time understanding why he had to wait until midnight to open his presents! We made it through the evening, then headed home and finished our last minute Christmas "stuff" before heading to bed.

Got up with the kids on Christmas morning to open gifts.... Lili wasn't very interested in the gift wrap (unless she was eating it!) She loved any toys, etc that made noise and got really angry and screamed loudly when we would take something away from her to remove it from a box or packaging. Max, on the other hand, was in seventh heaven! He loved EVERYTHING that he got and had such fun opening his presents, helping Lili with her presents, and helping us with our presents. He surprised us with his reaction to a couple of his gifts... especially his trip to Disney from Santa.... he didn't seem very interested. Probably because there was no package to unwrap?? Hopefully by the time we go in February, he'll be more excited!

So, day after Christmas, my parents came in town from Wisconsin and will stay until Saturday. We opened our gifts last night with them, and then today my mom helped me to sort through more toys, etc so that we can make room for all of the new stuff that Max got this year!!!!

New Year's Eve will probably be low-key, but that's ok with us. We really prefer just hanging out together as a family and enjoying all four of us being together this year! We hope each of you have a wonderful holiday season, and I promise to try to do better in the New Year about updating this site!!!!

Time flies!!!!

We've been so busy that it's hard to remember where I last left off... between the craziness of life and the fact that our computer was out of commission for 2+ weeks, I'm just now getting around to posting.

Things have been great with Lili home! We truly can't remember what it was like before she was here. She's adjusted very well, and fits right into our family. She's had many firsts with us... first trip to the zoo, first trip to Chicago (we went to court for her readoption), her baptism, her first family party (her baptism and Max's 5th birthday), first visits with many friends and family, first trip to a festival, etc., etc. She's really handled everything beautifully and has had no trouble adjusting to our lifestyle. Such a sweet and happy girl - she has captured the heart of everyone she meets!

Max is doing well, also, although he has had a few adjustment issues. Nothing directed toward Lili, rather it's all directed toward Mommy. He's had a lot of change recently.... Lili coming home, me staying home with the kids full-time, his school time reduced to 2 days a week, etc. He's slowly adjusting to everything and improving his attitude toward me.

His birthday is tomorrow, and it is such fun this year to see his excitement! He had his family party last Saturday night.... what a blast he had! His cousins and close family friends' children were here, and they had a ball playing, breaking the pinata, eating cake and opening presents. Today, after school, we are picking up Max and his best friend Tyler at school and going to Enchanted Castle. He went there for the first time a couple of weeks ago for his cousin's birthday party and had a BLAST!!!!! He still hasn't stopped talking about how much fun he had, so we decided instead of doing a party for his friends, we would splurge and take him and one special friend to the Castle. He is really looking forward to it, and was actually excited to get up this morning! Before we went to school, we stopped at the store to get a treat for him to share with his friends.... he picked Scooby Doo popsicles! Such a great thing for the kids to have even more excitement and another chance to celebrate and sing happy birthday! Tomorrow, on his actual birthday, we will do our normal family day. Moses will take the day off work, and we will likely give Max the choice of what we do. I can't wait to see what he decides to do!!!

Saturday night we're having Moe's coworkers over for the long-awaited bonfire. We discussed doing this earlier in the year, but it hadn't happened with all of the chaos of Lili's adoption. So, since Moe's birthday is Sunday, we thought it was a good time to open the door to his coworkers, let them come and visit, and have a campfire and some drinks (and smores!!!) Should be fun!

OK, Princess Lili is fussing... not wanting to take her nap. Gotta run! Please post comments and let us know who's out there reading our blog! We'd love to hear from everyone!!!

Settling in at home....

Things are finally starting to settle down at least a little bit here at the Arenas house, so I have to get in a quick update. I'll do a quick rundown of the events that have transpired...

8/31 @ 1pm, we left Antigua for the last time to head to Guatemala City
8/31 @ 2pm, we arrived at the Grand Tikal Futura and got Lili's final paperwork, including her Immigration documents and Passport!!
8/31 @ 5:30pm, Moses, Max and Lili left with Angel (Lili's foster father) to go say a final goodbye to Ligia (Lili's foster mother) who had started a new job and could not leave work. I headed to the airport and wrestled the baggage and stood in line to checkin.
8/31 @ 6:45pm, everyone FINALLY was at the airport; said our final goodbyes and (through our tears) headed to our gate to board our plane
8/31 @ 9:00pm, the flight finally boarded
9/1 @ 2am, we landed in Chicago after a rather uneventful (but uncomfortable) flight
9/1 @ 3am, we passed through Immigration, collected our baggage, made it through Customs, and met our family and friends who were brave enough to greet us!!
9/1 @ 5am, got home and showed Lili the kitchen and then her room (she was FASCINATED by the kitchen countertops and by the DOGS!)
9/1 @ 9:30am, Lili was up and not doing so well... fevers and a cough all day
9/1 @ 10pm, Krista & Lili end up at the Emergency Room because Lili wouldn't eat or drink all day
9/2 @ 12:30am, we returned home and had Lili (with viral bronchiolitis) sleeping in our room
9/2 - 9/4 UMMMMM, can't remember much of anything.... I think we visited some family/friends, maybe got an hour or two of sleep, held Lili pretty much non-stop and worried about why she wasn't any better! Grandma & Grandpa Parollina came to town, the Emergency Restoration company came to work on cleanup of the basement from the flood (our basement is finished, so this was NOT GOOD!) and we FINALLY had a chance (with Grandma's help) to get the baby stuff out of the storage room
9/4 - took Lili to the doctor and discovered she had a double ear infection - started antibiotics
9/5 - back to the doctor for a recheck (looking better) and her first "real" checkup
9/6 - back to the lab for bloodwork (she had to fast, poor thing!)

While dealing with her health issues, it was so sad to see her feeling miserable and crying all the time. I don't think people really believed us, but she is SUCH a happy child and never really cries or fusses, so this was ESPECIALLY difficult for us. Now that we're past all of this illness, she's back to her normal self. She's adjusted beautifully, and I can't remember what it was like before she was here. She's in love with all of us, including the dogs. She's learning to do new things every day (she plays peekaboo, waves and will blink or squint her eyes to copy me when I do it to her). She's eating EVERYTHING!!! Thank goodness we got our doctor's blessing to use a minimal amount of baby food and really go straight to table food... she is an eater! Today, she had oatmeal, chicken, green beans, macaroni & cheese and peaches. And, of course, her formula! It's SUCH fun watching her grow and fall into a routine here at home. She's had the chance to meet many of our family and friends, although there are still lots more for her to meet. We visited Daddy at work (both of his offices, two different days this week). She was actually a little bit "shy" at one point and nestled her face into our shoulder when someone new would approach... that was a first. She's actually so laid back and easygoing that she'll go to anyone that wants to hold her.

So.... I'd better get going. We had a rough night sleeping last night and today, and I'm anticipating that we'll be up tonight again with her. Oh, well, another thing that I wouldn't trade for the world!!!! I'm SO glad she's home!!!!!!!!!

Our last full day in Guatemala 8/30/07

We're spending our last full day in Antigua packing, doing laundry, and some final shopping. We went this morning to the Park to meet one last time with our local friends (Ligda, Maira, and Clara). Then, we went to a cathedral and museum to visit the ruins. We came home, then, to get some packing and laundry done and to get Max some lunch. Later, we will head out to the Mercado to finish our shopping. Our friends and neighbors, Joanna and Alejandro, are going to shop with us, then we'll all go to dinner together.

I've really had to watch what I'm eating, as my stomach has been really messed up for the last 36 hours. I'm taking the prescription medication that I'd gotten from my doctor before I left the US, but thus far I'm still not 100%. Hopefully, I'll be better by the time we head home... nothing worse than travelling when you're sick!

Moe started with a touch of an upset stomach this morning, too... but he seems to be doing better. Max and Lili are both doing great, although I think Max is ready to get home to his own space and toys. We are sad to be leaving Guatemala, as we've really enjoyed all of the time that we've spent here exploring. However, we are SO excited to get home to all of our family and friends and to get back to some sort of normal life.

So, if I can't check in for the next couple of days, please pray for safe travels for our family. Calm children wouldn't be a bad thing to pray for, as well... our first time travelling with two children, plus Lili's first flight experience, could make this a very difficult journey. We'll survive, though!

Hope everyone is doing well, and we will talk with everyone soon!

Love,
Krista (and Moe and Max and Lili)

Monday 8/27/07

So... we are done with all of the paperwork, appointments, waiting games, and bureaucracy. We went this morning to the American Embassy for our VISA interview. It took 2+ hours (spent mostly waiting)... a few minutes spent with the Consular Officers answering a couple of questions, paid our money, showed our passports, signed some forms, and then left. We will be able to pickup Lili's VISA and Passport on Friday before we fly home!!! The paperwork is actually going to be ready by Wednesday, but we're back in Antigua until Friday, so we will just pick it up when we return to Guatemala City.

The next few days will be spent just hanging out, exploring Antigua, drinking good coffee, shopping for local souvenirs and bonding as a family. Things are already going better than I expected.... Max adores Lili, and she's very intrigued by him. That said, she is a little spitfire and doesn't take any shit from him. She'll pull his hair and try to take things out of his hands if she wants them. Right now, she's hanging out with Daddy and fussing because he's trying to take his magazine away from her.... she's tearing it to shreds, but when he takes it she cries... so, of course, Moses will not take it from her! She's already got him right where she wants him!

I'm SO thrilled that our family is together forever! We had lunch yesterday with our foster family at a local Italian restaurant, it was a bit awkward (the foster mother and father are now divorced), but it was nice that they were able to spend some extra time with Lili. After lunch, our foster dad took us to Guatemala City to drop us off at the hotel. He plans to be at the airport on Friday to see us off, but we're not sure if we'll be able to see our foster mom again because she's just started a new job and will be working long hours.

Speaking of our return flight, for those of you who are interested, we will be arriving into O'Hare airport on Saturday 9/1 at 1:50a.m. We are flying on TACA Airlines flight #588. Please keep in mind that although our flight is scheduled to arrive at 1:50am, we will have to go through Immigration and Customs.... and since this will be Lili's first time in the US, our Immigration visit may take longer than normal. For anyone who can't make it to the airport, please get in touch with us after we're settled in and we'd love to make plans for everyone to see Lili.

OK... Princess is crying and calling my name. Gotta run!!!

Take care!!!

Love,
The Arenas Family
Moses, Krista, Max and Lili

We've got PINK!!!!!!!!

Yesterday was a terrible day here in Antigua... Lili had a very difficult day, crying, not sleeping, cranky.... not sure what was wrong with her, but it was rough. Add to that the fact that we were hoping for news from our Agency and we heard nothing. Thank God this morning brought good news.... our PINK slip was issued from the US Embassy and we have an appointment scheduled on Monday 8/27 at 8am to apply for Lili's visa to enter the US!!!!!!!!!

I got a call shortly after 9am saying that I had to have Lili in Guatemala City at 11am for her final Doctor's visit for the Embassy. We made a mad dash with our friendly driver, Cesar, got a few pictures taken for her visa at a photo lab, and then waited with 4 foster moms and the babies under their care to see the doctor. It was actually quite sad talking with them.... while I was beaming from ear to ear, so excited that our journey is ready to take us back home with Lili, they were all in tears because they are preparing to say goodbye to these babies that they have raised and loved since birth. It gave me time to think of everything that these women sacrifice so that our babies have what they need to flourish in their early days. I told them that I consider them to be angels in the lives of our children, and that our children's lives are blessed because they had these mothers caring for them until they were ready to go home. It was very sad, but it was also a good experience.... it gave me a chance to really see how much these women care, and how grateful we need to be for the chance to have our children loved by them.

So, after our Doctor's visit (Lili passed with flying colors), we came home and went to el Mercado with our friends Sara and Coco. What an experience.... we went way into the depths of the market, to the produce stands, the flower stands, the meat stands.... very interesting! We went to the artisan's market and walked around as well. Finally, because both of us were out of cash, we went our separate ways and Lili and I came home. I gave her dinner, made and ate my dinner, and then (thank God) she went right to bed tonight!

Once I'm done with this post, I will likely go to bed myself. Tomorrow, we may head to the pool at the Hotel Antigua with our neighbors Joanna and Alejandro. We'll check in again later and keep everyone updated!!!

Sunday, a beautiful day in Guate

Well, today was another beautiful day. We woke up to sunny skies, no rain and very few clouds. I knew as soon as we got up that we needed to do something outside today. So, we called our friends Sara and Coco and made plans to meet at the Hotel Antigua at the swimming pool. Lili and I left here at about 9:00am, stopped for a coffee, then got to the hotel around 10am. We played in the water for a little bit (Lili LOVES the water), then Lili had a bottle and took a nap. Right around the time that Lili woke up and we got back in the water, our friends arrived. We had a very nice time just lounging around in the sun.... but Lili was adamantly opposed to taking a second nap. So.... after we had a couple of beers and some time in the water and sun, we headed out for the long walk home. We thought about going out for a pizza tonight, but Lili decided that her short nap on the way home was enough, and woke up as soon as we got home. Given the limited naps that she took today, I'm guessing she'll be in bed by 6:00 tonight. And considering that I have to get up when she gets up, I probably won't be up very late either. Add to that the fact that I got a bit sunburnt, and I'll probably be passed out early.

So, still no news about our Embassy appointment, but we're hoping to hear something this week. As soon as we know what's going on, we'll be able to make plans for Moe and Max regarding their travels. And we'll be reunited as a forever family.

Thanks to everyone that loves us for all of your support and assistance.... you have no idea what it means to us to have friends and family that we can count on. Even if it's just a quick email, or an offer of a meal to Moe and Max, it's SO appreciated. We can't wait to express our appreciation in person.... when everyone gets to meet Lili.

Friday & Saturday

Didn't have a chance to post yesterday, so I'll cover two days in one post.

We got up yesterday and had an email from our friends Sara and Coco about meeting for coffee or lunch after 10:30. We were ready to go sooner than that, so we headed out for a nice walk and ended up at Parque Central people watching. There was a parade with marching bands and students from one of the local schools in the downtown area, so it was kind of neat to see that. It was, however, rather loud so Lili and I headed to one of the Mercaditos (small market) and to get a coffee. Our friends called and, although we planned to meet at 11:45, the girls were both asleep so we ended up meeting around 1:00. We went to one of the nice hotels in the area... Hotel Antigua. It's on the opposite corner of town from my apartment... I am extreme Northeast, the hotel is extreme Southwest. We sat outside by the pool and had lunch, then took the babies to the playground and put them on the baby swing. Very beautiful hotel, that is actually open for public swimming.... we may head back over there sometime to go swimming.

After lunch, we stopped at a couple of shops, then went our separate ways. Lili and I headed home, she napped on the way, then we just hung out at home playing and bonding. This morning we got up at 6:00 and did laundry, had a mid-morning nap (I'm still not sleeping very well), played and ate breakfast, then played some more. Lili's napping again right now, so I actually have some uninterrupted time to post a message. It's actually a beautiful day outside... very sunny and no rain in sight, so when she wakes up I'm thinking we'll go for a walk through town. I would really like to find somewhere local to get fresh homemade tortillas, so that may be something that we try to do.

Don't really have any other definite plans... will probably get together with my neighbor Joanna and her son Alejandro (after her husband Tom heads back to the US tomorrow). Sara and I will surely get together again... we may actually venture into the BIG MERCADO.... they have more than just the handicrafts and arts and textiles... they have necessities for daily life. I'm very curious to see it, and Sara would love to go but is afraid she'll get lost. If we are together, we should be fine!

OK, well I'm going to get some stuff ready so that when Lili wakes up we can head out. Hope everyone is doing well..... we can't wait to get home so that we can see everyone!

Take care!

Krista & Lili

A beautiful day in Antigua!

Today was another beautiful day. We got up and were ready to head out for a walk this morning by 8:00. We called to see if our friends, Sara and Coco wanted to go with us. They already had plans, so we headed out alone to explore. First, we stopped at one of the premier local coffee shops that Moses and I found on a previous trip. We got a coffee, hot of course (they don't have iced coffee around here). We then walked across town to the far West side.... the area to the West is very busy and full of people. This is also where the Mercado is located. They have fruit and vegetable markets, flower markets, artisan markets, and pretty much anything else you could possibly want or need! We walked around the markets and bought some stuff, then moved on to the Parque Central. We met up with our new Mayan friend, Ligda. She sells different items to tourists in the park... we met her the first day we were there, and she is VERY friendly. She introduced me to some of her friends, and we just sat in the park and visited for a while. She's going to look into having some special items made for me with the local embroidery methods. If the rain holds off tomorrow, we'll walk into town again and find out if she can make the items for us.

After the Park, we walked home (I walked, Lili slept). After her nap, I tried fixing the computer (the mouse was not working). After several hours and a new mouse, I am finally back online. We also visited for about an hour with our landlord and his wife in their house. They are a very sweet couple and have been looking out for us and helping us. It was nice to sit at the kitchen table with them and just get to know them better. Lili really enjoyed their kitchen table.... she had a lot of fun banging on it!

So, after baths and dinner, Lili's off to bed, and I'm going to read for a little bit. I've been having trouble sleeping because of all of the different noises, as well as Lili's restless sleeping, so hopefully tonight is easier for me.

We hope everyone is doing well, especially Moe and Max. We miss them terribly and cannot wait until we are united together forever. If you read this and have a chance, please check in on my two boys. And let them know how much we love them.

Adios for now!

Hanging out with Lili's foster family....

Yesterday we decided to spend the day around the house so that I could see what Lili's real schedule was like. It was rainy most of the day, so we really just stayed inside. I called Ligia in teh morning to find out when she wanted to come visit. We agreed upon 10am on Wednesday. Around 4pm Tuesday night, she called to see if they could all come around 6:30pm. Ends up there is a religious holiday in Guatemala today and the girls have no school. So.... they came last night and spent the night here in the apartment with us. Lili actually did very well... happy to see them, but not so much that she refused to be with me.

This morning, the girls and I walked to the panaderia for some bread, then we had breakfast and coffee. We all went out for a walk.... in the sun... it was HOT! We went to an old church that is now in ruins after a devastating volcanic eruption years ago.... it was very cool to walk around. We went to the Parque Central, got iced coffee (the only place in Guatemala that we can find it!), then went to a small market and another church. Ligia was tired, so we came back to the apartment and are just hanging out. Lili finally went to sleep, and the girls and Ligia are watching TV. I'm not sure when they'll be leaving, but I presume it'll be before it's dark since they will likely take a bus back to Guatemala City. My neighbor actually stopped by to see if Lili and I wanted to go to the pool, but since the girls are here, I told her that we would go with her another day. So... once they leave, we'll probably just hang out around the house. Tomorrow, if it's nice, we'll take another walk around the city... maybe go out for coffee or something. Friday night there is a get-together for families from the US who are here caring for their babies, so I'll probably go to that with my friend from Evanston, Sara. Other than that, we are just waiting to find out when Lili's appointment is at the US Embassy so that we can make travel arrangements for Moe and Max.

We hope everyone is doing well.... we can't wait to make it back home so that Lili can meet everyone! Take care, and please post comments to us! We'd love to hear from everyone!

Together at Last!

Well, we're so blessed to have our story followed by many, so I figured I'd post an update for everyone to see. I am here in Guatemala.... with Lili.... together forever. SO HAPPY to say that!

Things are going well so far. I left Chicago at 6:00am on Sunday, flew to Atlanta, then after a short layover flew on to Guatemala City. Cesar, the driver that my landlord uses, met me at the airport and drove me to Hiper Paiz (like a Super Walmart). Did all of my shopping, which was rather difficult.... trying to navigate through a strange store, figure out exactly what we needed to survive a few weeks, read labels in Spanish, and thinking about what was happening!!! I was on my way to get Lili!

After the grocery store, we went to the hotel that we normally stay at in Guatemala City. My favorite bellman, Rafael & Giovanni, were both there and SO excited to hear that we are finally bringing Lili home. Our foster mother, Ligia, and her oldest daughter, Josselin, were already there with Lili. It ends up the attorney's office told Ligia to be at the hotel at 1:00.... I had told our agency that I would be there between 1:30-2. When I arrived at 2:00, Ligia was very worried about why I was late (even she knows how punctual I am!) It ends up she had the foster dad, Angel, call Moses to find out where I was. Since I didn't get to communicate with Moses until later that evening, he was a bit worried about where I was. It all worked out, though.

I kept the visit with Ligia and Josselin very brief. Lili was tired, and I wanted to get on the way to my apartment. Plus, I figured it'd be best if we reserved the emotional goodbyes for the final visit (when Moses is here with me). Lili fell asleep, and we headed out to Antigua. About 45 minutes from the city, we finally arrived at our new home. We are renting a guesthouse from a missionary, Paul, and his wife Ruth. They were born in America, but have lived in Guatemala for over 50 years. Incredibly nice people.... very helpful with everything! And their property is beautiful. It is very safe and secure, surrounded by an 8 foot concrete privacy wall. They have gorgeous gardens, their home, and three guesthouses. I've met my two neighbors. Kathleen is here during her travels. Joanna and Alejandro (15 months) have been here for 5 months waiting to finalize their adoption. Joanna's husband Tom is here visiting right now.... from Elmhurst!!!! What a small world!

The first night was a little rough... Lili spent over an hour crying. I don't know if she was confused, didn't feel well, or was just tired. Eventually, she took a bottle and went to bed at 6:00pm. She didn't wake up until 5:00am on Monday! I didn't sleep very well, considering the newness of the situation. Also, I was worried about every little sound Lili made, and added to the birds and rain outside, it was rather noisy.

Yesterday morning, we hung out, played and napped. We went for a long walk around Antigua trying to get our bearings, and eventually met up with an online friend from Evanston who is down here fostering her daughter. She's using the same agency that we are, and is at the same point in the process as us. We walked around a bit, had a nice lunch, and then went our separate ways for naptime. Lili and I ended up playing, cooking dinner, and then heading to bed a little early. I slept a little bit better last night, but am still trying to catch up on sleep.

Today is a day for hanging out. We've decided that we will stay in and play, get good naps, and maybe walk around the immediate neighborhood in a little bit. Tomorrow our foster mother, Ligia, is going to come to Antigua to spend the day with us. We're excited to see her, but I'm a little nervous about how it might confuse Lili. Oh, well, she'll be fine I'm sure.

So, hopefully today we'll hear something about our appointment time from the US Embassy so that we can make travel plans for Moe and Max. And we will also then be able to figure out when we are coming home! I will keep everyone updated through this site about when we are arriving home!!!!

Thanks for all of the well wishes.... keep in touch!

Love,
Krista & Lili

Almost definite plans.....

Well, we're waiting until the end of today before we book my flight to Guatemala. I've decided to travel to be with Lili on Sunday 8/12 (my BIRTHDAY!!!) What a great day for a gotcha day! Since we still don't have our appointment date from the US Embassy, we haven't been able to plan when Moses (& maybe Max) will come to Guate or when we will return home. So... if we get our appointment date today, I will be booking ALL of our travel arrangements. If we don't get our appointment news today, I will just book a one way ticket to Guatemala and make the rest of the plans later.

I've got almost all of my stuff packed, including everything that Lili and I will need to survive in our apartment. The only thing I still have to decide is which clothes to take for Lili. She's got SO many cute things, but I want to make sure that I take things that are comfortable and that I can layer in case of variations in the weather. Right now in Guatemala it is their rainy season... it's typically in the mid 70s during the day and the 50-60s at night. Mid 70s with sun can be warm, but mid 70s and rain can feel damp and chilly. So.... I've really got to plan well so that I don't overpack.

I'm SO excited to leave and be reunited with Lili forever, but I am getting more emotional with each day about leaving Moses and Max. This is the longest time that we've spent apart, and although I know Lili needs me and we'll have a great time, I'm REALLY going to miss my boys. Thank goodness the end of all of this is in sight, and pretty soon we'll ALL be HOME.... in one place..... together as a family.

I may not have a chance to post before I leave on Sunday, so please say some prayers for safe travels for myself (and Lili). Also, please say an extra prayer for Lili's foster family.... they will surely be upset to see her go, but I hope that they are consoled by the knowledge that we will always stay in touch with them! Finally, please say a prayer for Moses and Max so that they can survive the time that we are apart and not experience too much stress!!!

DRUM ROLL, PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lili's officially an Arenas and she's COMING HOME!!!!!!!! We don't have an exact date for her arrival, but our file was submitted to the US Embassy on Friday 8/3! We are just waiting for the Embassy to issue our PINK slip (it's a pink piece of paper that they use to issue appointments). The pink slip will contain the date and time of the appointment when Moses, Lili and I need to appear at the US Embassy in Guatemala to request her VISA to come to the United States and obtain Citizenship!! We are anticipating maybe 2-3 weeks before we can bring her home, so it looks like I may be leaving soon to go to Guatemala and stay with Lili in an apartment until it's time to bring her home!!!!!!

We couldn't be any more excited (unless we were already home with her!!) Thank you to EVERYONE who has supported us and helped us to get through this process. It has been more difficult than we could have imagined, but SOOOOO worth it in the end...... our family has been blessed with our precious ANGEL........ LILIANA ROSE MARIE ARENAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sorry for the delay in posting.....

Wow, things have been crazy! I'm going to try to be more diligent about posting to the blog, now that things will hopefully settle down! We have been very busy this summer, although we still can't stop thinking about Lili and wondering when she'll get to come home.

Regarding the stage that we're at in the process of the adoption.... our file is currently in PGN (the equivalent of the Attorney General's office). They've had our file for 2+ months, and we are still waiting for an approval from the attorneys and the Director. After we receive their approval, it will be roughly 4-6 weeks before we can bring Lili home. Unfortunately, the waiting time in PGN is very unpredictable and can take as long as 18 months! We're obviously saying many prayers and hoping that we get out much more quickly, but there's no way to know what will happen. Any prayers or well wishes that you can send our way would be much appreciated!

Other than waiting for Lili, we've had a lot going on. Moses has been very busy at work with insufficient staffing and running two offices. My work has been kind of slow, but I'm making up for that with everything else! Our dear friend Rebecca (one of Lili's Godmothers) married Scott on 7/21/07! We had so much fun planning the wedding over 18 months, and the entire wedding weekend was so much fun! Moses and I were able to spend the entire weekend at the resort where the wedding reception was being held. This was in part due to the fact that Max was having his first week away from Mommy & Daddy trip with Grandma & Grandpa Parollina in Wisconsin! He stayed with them for 8 days and had a BLAST! They went fishing, to the park, had picnics, went to the waterpark, went swimming, went camping in a tent, to the pet store, to the coffeeshop, and on and on! He was so excited to spend the time with them, and it was nice that we were able to spend our weekend at the wedding with limited responsibilities! Unfortunately, after drinking too much at the wedding, we weren't in the greatest shape when we picked him up, but we were all excited to be reunited and get home for some family time!

After the wedding, we spent the last week handling final preparations for the Wine & Cheese Cocktail Party and Auction for Lili. We had an amazing time, thanks to our wonderful friends and family! We spent 3 hours enjoying food, drinks and bidding action with our loved ones and ended up raising a good amount of money to help offset some of the adoption-related costs. Our hope is that we can actually put some of the money towards paying for Max and I to go to Guatemala to foster Lili. It would mean no income for me, and paying for an apartment and living expenses in Guatemala, but we may just find a way to do it! We are going to continue to try to raise money to help support the costs, so please check out our auction website at www.freewebs.com/roadtolili (and share it with everyone you know) so that we can raise more money to help us improve the transition for Lili and (hopefully) connect her with her forever family more quickly!

Thanks to everyone for all of your prayers, concern and support over the last several years as we've been trying to build our family. And thanks for supporting us during the difficult time that we've spent waiting for Lili to come home. We really appreciate each and every one of you and could not be more excited for all of you to meet Lili!!! Keep us in your prayers, and say an extra one for Lili that she stays healthy and happy and is able to transition into her forever family with peace and happiness.

Update from HOME

We are home from Guate and settling back in. It's rough coming home - leaving Lili is of course heartwrenching. Also, the logistics of travel, unpacking, laundry, grocery shopping, sleep deprivation, etc, etc all make for a tiring time. We're finally starting to feel closer to normal, although I think this weekend will really help all of us to catch up on sleep and chores.

So, while we were in Guate we found out our file was submitted to PGN!! This is the last legal approval that is required before we can prepare to bring Lili home! I'm hopeful that we make it through quickly and get an approval the first time around, as the attorneys in PGN are notorious for rejecting the file for corrections. Still no really good idea of when Lili will be coming home, but at least the light at the end of the tunnel is shining!

Our trip was good.... with a few minor glitches. Max ended up sick on Sunday, our first full day there. Fevers and vomiting for two days, but thankfully he was feeling better before we left Guate City for Antigua. While in Guate City, we pretty much stayed at the hotel. We did have our foster family over to the hotel to visit one day, and to have dinner. We also made it for a walk around a new mall that we discovered.... very high end, but we did find a place for ICED COFFEE!!! This is nearly unheard of in Guatemala, and usually when we ask for it they look at us like we have two heads!

We spent a few days in Antigua this trip to get a feel for how "American" and "adoption" friendly it really is. We felt very comfortable walking around any time of day or night, and really enjoyed exploring this small historic town. The cobblestone streets make it an interesting town to walk in, but we took a jogging stroller and baby bjorn carrier so we managed pretty well. We visited churches, hotels, jade factory, historic buildings, artisan and handicraft markets, restaurants, coffee shops, a coffee plantation/museum, and a Mayan costume/music museum. We were able to travel one day to Chichicastenango, which is about 3 hours away by car. This town is the home to the largest and most colorful outdoor market in all of the Americas. We had a nice few hours exploring the market and purchased lots of souvenirs, gifts and items for our AUCTION!!! We've decided to do a fundraiser to help finance the adoption, so we are in the process of planning a cocktail party/auction where we will sell some of the items that were purchased in Guatemala as well as many other items! We are hopeful that we can get a good turnout of our friends and family together for a fun and profitable time!

Our time in Antigua was enjoyable, other than the substantial presence of mosquitos who continued to feast on me during our visit! I still look like a polka-dot covered person with all of the bug bites. We felt so comfortable with our visit, that we would consider staying in Antigua for a few weeks at the end of our process with Lili before we bring her home to the US. We'll have to see how everything works out, but at least we know that's an option. I have to say, as nice as our hotel was, I will not stay there again if we go back. Instead, I will either rent an apartment or stay in a hotel that has a/c or at least has screens on the windows to keep the mosquitos outside!!!!!!!!

Hoping that everyone is doing well and preparing for summer! If you have time, say some extra prayers for us so that we can get through PGN quickly and get our baby girl home! Thanks to everyone for your love and support!!!!

Good news from Guatemala!

It is Sunday morning, 5/20. We are here in Guatemala City at our favorite hotel, the Grand Tikal Futura. I am sipping a cup of awesome coffee, Lili is falling asleep while taking her bottle, Max and Daddy are in the room getting showered and changed for the day. We will probably just take it easy today.... maybe go swimming, visit with our foster family, walk to the mall. Yesterday was a very long and tiring day. We left home at midnight on Friday night, got to Guate at 7am, got Lili at 10am, went to Super Walmart for some groceries, and spent the rest of the day napping and roaming the hotel. We had a late dinner at McDonalds (Max got to pick where we had dinner, can you tell?) We watched a movie and all fell asleep while watching it. Lili was in bed by 9pm and was up at 6am this morning! Good girl!!!



So, yesterday while Max and Moe were napping, I brought Lili up to the reception lounge to hang out and check our emails. We got GREAT news!!!! We received the email notifying us that we have Preapproval from the US Embassy! This was the step that we were waiting on so that our file can be submitted to PGN for the final legal review. With any luck and blessings from above, we can get approval from PGN in record time. Still no really good idea of when we can bring Lili home, but this is another step completed and movement in the right direction!!!



Say some prayers for us that we get into and out of PGN at the speed of light.... and before we all know it, Lili will be home meeting everyone!!!!!

10 days until we leave!!!!

In another 10 days, we will be leaving to go to Guatemala again! We are so excited to be going to visit Lili and to get to spend some more time in Guatemala. Moses and Max haven't been to see Lili since early March, so this will be a big visit for them. She's changing so much.... getting bigger physically, talking (actually more like squealing), eating solid food, playing with toys, trying to move herself around much more, sleeping the night through in the crib, and just generally interacting much more. She's developing a little girl personality, rather than just a new baby personality.

We talked to our foster family last night and were able to see Lili on the web camera. I was so excited to realize that, for the first time, Lili really seemed to recognize our voices! We would talk to her over the computer (just like if you're talking on a phone line), and she would be in front of the camera just looking around as if to say "Hey, where are you guys?" It was so cute and heartwarming. We've been making a lot of sacrifices and trying not to worry too much about where the money will come from to pay for all of the expenses related to the adoption and the travel. This was affirmation that we are making the right choice to spend the money and visit.... we obviously get so much out of it ourselves, but more importantly, Lili appears to be getting something out of it and recognizes us.

I talked to one of my bosses at work today and she very logically and reasonably discussed the benefits of us holding some sort of fundraiser for the adoption. She is a huge advocate of worthy causes, and she believes people would be willing to help financially to bring our precious little girl home to a wonderful home and family. Moses and I have discussed it briefly and think it's not a bad idea, especially considering how wonderfully supportive all of our family, friends and acquaintances are about this process. I've got to start thinking about our options and really get in gear with planning an gathering of some sort.... maybe a party with a lot of donated items to auction off, or a dinner with a band..... who knows, we'll have to start hitting up some of our talented and creative friends and family for help with this project!!!!! Stay posted for more news and be prepared.... we may be calling on each of you for your help!!!

One last note.... Lili had her 5-month birthday over the weekend (on 5/5). Her loving foster family took her and the other kids to a lake that's about 1.5 hours away for a celebration. They were able to take her horseback riding, for a ride in a cable car up into the mountains, and on a boat ride of the lake (among other things). They sent us some ADORABLE pictures where Lili just looks SO BIG.... so I thought I'd share! Enjoy!!!!

One more step forward!

We got great news.... the social worker and the judge for the Guatemalan Family Court approved our file on April 9! So we're one step closer to bringing Lili home! We are still waiting for Preapproval to be issued by the US Embassy, then our file can be submitted to PGN (the Guatemalan equivalent of the Attorney General's office). PGN can take anywhere from 2 weeks to 5 months to get approval!! Let's pray that we get through on the fast end....

After PGN approval is issued, there will only be formalities that need to be completed in Guatemala. Passport issuance, Embassy Doctor's visit, issuance of a new birth certificate, and scheduling of a Visa appointment with the Embassy. At the time that the appointment is scheduled, we will travel to pickup Lili and bring her home!!! We are getting close, although we still don't have any committed timeframe for the rest of the process. It seems as though most of these steps are inconsistent and random.... we've been right in the average timeframe for most of the steps, although a couple of things have taken longer than normal. Let's hope that we're blessed by a few steps that move more quickly than most!!!

Keep us in your prayers!!!

Catching Up

I've been so bad about posting, but things have been busy and my mind has been elsewhere. Moses is busy with a system conversion at work and is working long hours. Last week I spent trying to catch up on chores, errands and sleep after returning from my visit with my mom and Lili!!!!

We only spent 4 days with Lili this time, just my mom and I this time, but we had a great time! I've never had a chance to travel alone with my mom, so this was a first. Add to that the fact that we were going to a Spanish speaking area without Moses and I was a little nervous. We did very well.... communicated with no major issues, loved on Lili like crazy, spent a day in Antigua, hung out with our foster family and just enjoyed the getaway. Mom was very intrigued by the cultural differences and really enjoyed spending time with our foster family. Of course, the trip to Antigua was a good opportunity to show her some of the culture and beauty of the country. And, most importantly, she LOVED spending time with Lili. It's hard to believe Lili has gotten so big - she'll be 5 months old on 5/5! She's such a happy and easy going baby, and she is growing up quickly. She's chattering a lot, smiling and eating some table food! We had a rule while we were there that she couldn't leave the room more than once in the same outfit! In four days, she probably changed her clothes 15 times!!! She's sleeping through the night in a crib and barely cries! What a DOLL!

We had a great visit, but of course I could move down there and be happy staying with her until she's ready to come home. And Moses and Max didn't get to see her this trip, so we've planned another family trip for later this month! We're going for 8 days, part of the time we'll spend in Guatemala City and the other part in Antigua. We're excited to spend a few days in Antigua as it is more tourist friendly and safe and we'll be able to walk around more freely. Also, there's a great little cafe that we found that has ICED COFFEE in Antigua!!! One day, from Antigua, we may take a shuttle to Chichicastenango. This is about 3 hours from Antigua, but it's the site of one of the largest handicraft markets in Central America! Max probably won't enjoy it very much, but hopefully he can enjoy being outside if nothing else!

OK, so no other news regarding our case. We're still waiting to get word of Family Court approval as well as US Embassy preapproval. Once we have both of these steps completed, our file can be submitted to the last "legal" check in PGN (the Guatemalan equivalent of the Attorney General's office). We're saying our prayers that we'll make it through everything in time to bring Lili home by my birthday in August. If you have a spare minute and can say a prayer for us, we'd really appreciate it!

Thanks to everyone for your interest in our journey and your support! We're thrilled to be sharing this experience with all of our friends and family!!!!! And we can't wait until you can all meet Lili!