Vietnam, here we come!

Two more days. It is hard to believe that it is almost here. I’ve got my bags all packed, except for a few last minute items. I have my money exchanged. All of the travel and accommodation arrangements are made. All that’s left is flying over to Vietnam and getting our little boy (plus all of the hoops that Sheila will have to jump through to enable Nam to return home with us).

I appreciate any and all prayers for the safety of the children at the orphanage in Nha Trang, where Nam is. The typhoon passed through there and did some damage, with a few casualties, but from what Sheila was able to find out from her Vietnamese contact, the orphanage and children there are fine. Praise God for that! The storm has moved out of the area, so our travels shouldn’t be hindered. They are still in the monsoon season, so it will be rainy and hot, but we have been expecting that.

I want to thank, again, all of those who have been so supportive of Sheila and our family throughout this process. That sweet boy is going from having lived his whole life in a state-run orphanage, without anything that he can call his own, to having a fully furnished bedroom with all of the clothes that he needs (plus!) and everything else a four year old could need or want. It has been an emotional roller coaster for all of us…Sheila, especially. Knowing that there are so many out there who support and encourage her is more helpful than you can imagine! It hasn’t been easy for her to make this decision and then spend countless hours researching all of the problems that she might face. Believe me, if there is a possible negative consequence that adopted children might suffer from, she is pretty much an expert on the subject by now. That would terrify me, but it comforts her to be informed and prepare herself for what might happen. Adopted children almost always suffer from trauma, whether it be physical or emotional. Just growing up in an institution, no matter how good it might be, leaves scars on children. Nam is going to need a lot of love and stability and understanding and assistance in dealing with any scars that he may have, and I believe Sheila is ready to help him through whatever it is he has to face. Of course, Dennis and I are here to help her and him in whatever way we can. Plus Thiess and Gina (the appointed other grandparents) and Sheila’s church family are all on board to assist, too! My heart is full from such an outpouring of love and support!

Other than adoption preparations, this week has been filled with doctor appointments (for Daddy); hunting (for Dennis – he harvested a nice doe this morning); getting things ready, here, for me being gone three weeks (paying bills for the month, taking care of CASA stuff, buying groceries for my guys, etc); and trying to see to Coez as much as possible (she is in swing bed and making good progress). Daddy and Bobbie are doing well and are excited to meet their new great-grandson when we return. Coez is making improvements every day. She is also very excited for Sheila and gave her one of the quilts that she had made for Nam. She has been telling all of her doctors and nurses all about our upcoming trip! Even the people that I’ve met through my CASA work are super excited for us! (Of course, I talk about it with EVERYONE!)

Of course there will be hardships along the trip: 20+ hours of flying one-way, being away from Dennis for almost 3 weeks (a first for us), not being able to assemble with the church for 2 Lord’s Days (but I am taking elements for the Lord’s Supper, so we can privately observe it), and dealing with jet lag and the emotional roller coaster that we are most certainly going to experience as we meet Nam and take him from all that he’s ever known. I fervently ask for your prayers…for safe travels, for strength to face whatever we have to, and especially for Nam to have an easy transition. It is incredible to realize how much we already love that little boy, even though we’ve never seen him or spoken with him. It will be challenging to comfort and interact with him without breaking down when he is in distress. I’m almost 60 years old and I’ve never had to face what he is about to. Even though we hope that he is excited to have a family and looking forward to his new life, he will go through grief at leaving his only known “home” and friends. He will have to learn a new language, travel half-way across the world to an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people who look different from him, and learn a whole new way of life. That’s a LOT for a barely 4 year old little boy! I believe that eventually he will be happy and well adjusted, Lord willing, but it will be a process. So please keep us all in your prayers, that we may get through this with as little trauma as possible!

Well, I could go on and on, but I guess I’d better finish the things that I have to do today. We plan to leave here to go pick up Sheila and Jessica at 5:30 Monday morning. We want to get to the airport plenty early to get checked in and have time for brunch before boarding. It is going to be a LONG day…leaving DFW at 10:50 am and arriving in Ho Chi Minh City Tuesday night (their time). I’m hoping to be able to post some while we are in Vietnam, but I don’t know how good the WiFi will be in our hotels, and my cellphone will be on airplane mode the whole time (so NO cell service). But I do promise to post pictures at some point in time, so stay tuned!