Homestudy

We have been having a difficult time figuring out how to do our homestudy from here. Because Rwanda is in transition into a Hague country, there really isn't anyone who can do it yet. There seem to be 2 ways this could go. 1. the Ministry of Gender can drive across town and do our homestudy and USCIS will accept it for US Immigration purposes. 2. we will have to fly a SW in from Europe or the States at the cost of at least $3000.

I just got off the phone with the USCIS Hague office. They said that yes they will accept a homestudy completed by the Ministry as long as it is signed off by an approved agency. Yahoo!

However, she said that in the eyes of USCIS Rwanda is not yet a Hague country. So, she said that we should wait until they actually reopen to do the homestudy because if the date of the homestudy is when they were Non-Hague they won't accept it. Looks like we will need to wait until we return to Rwanda in August to do the homestudy.

At least we know for sure that they will take it. Now, I just have to beg the Ministry to do it!

Please be praying that this will work out.

Answer to Prayer!!

As I'm sure most of you reading this know, a month after we moved to Rwanda the Ministry stopped accepting dossiers. This was because they signed the Hague Agreement and needed to make changes to their system to meet all the requirements of that agreement. It was very discouraging at the time. Things typically move slowly here in Africa and we anticipated that they would not reopen for a couple of years. Over the last few months we have tried to stay current with what is going on at the Ministry and have even researched adoption programs of neighboring countries.

One of the huge changes for us with the process is that we will now need to go through an agency instead of being able to adopt independantly. I started researching the handful of agencies in the States who have Rwanda programs and became encouraged. We were planning to gather documents for our dossier when we are in the States this summer thinking that Rwanda may reopen in 9-12 months. We thought we could get a jump on a few things. Then, I started to get more and more positive information about the program. I finally called Children of All Nations (CAN) adoption agency. I was telling them our plan to work on things this summer and the wonderful woman I spoke with told me that the Ministry told them they plan to reopen in June or July. Now this is Africa so let's just be real and say August or September. Either way...so much sooner than we thought! CAN is the only agency I found that is actually accepting applicants right now. They said that we could apply now, start working on our dossier and have it done and ready to submit when Rwanda reopens. Hopefully, we will be at the front of the line this time!

So, we completed the application Thursday night and were accepted on Friday. We are officially Paper Pregnant once again! I find it hard to believe that we are actually, finally starting another paperchase after all this time.

The big thing that we need to figure out is our homestudy. When expats have adopted in the past, the Ministry has sent a social worker to the house to do a homestudy. We are praying that this will still be the case. It will save us, I'm guessing, $2-3000 if we can have a Ministry SW come to the house instead of flying in a SW from Europe. I am planning to go to the Ministry this week sometime to find out what we need to do. Please be praying that we can do this all through the Ministry.

And...I promise that I have not forgotten about the shopping post. I have been gathering info about baby products and pricing. I will have everything for you soon!

Helpful Tips for Traveling Families!!

I am so excited that referrals are finally starting to appear and even more excited that familes are traveling. I met a wonderful family at church this morning who just adopted a beautiful baby boy. I'm pretty sure that I gave this little guy massages in the past. He looked very familiar. And, their little girl was from the same provience in China as Emma. What a small world we live in!

I was thinking that it would be a good time to give some of you some tips on things to do in Kigali with kids while you are here. Meeting them this morning, motived me to get busy. So, all of you who are about to travel or who are going crazy and need something to keep your mind occupied while waiting for an email or phone call...this is for you!

Today...Food!

There are so many fabulous restaurants in Kigali. The big thing to remember with kids in Africa is that you could easily end up waiting an hour or more for your food. Be prepared with little ones to have something to keep them occupied. An ipad, itouch, or iphone works great! Or, sometimes we bring coloring books, story books, small card games, etc. It depends on how old your kids are. You can't be too prepared. We have waited 2 hours for lunch before! Not fun when it runs over nap time.

If you are planning on dinner, remember that most restaurants here close between lunch and dinner. Most of them don't reopen until 6pm. Ask at your hotel if they know the times or if they can call for you if you plan to go out earlier than that. We like to get to a place right when it opens to save on the wait time. Most restaurants have outdoor dinning as well so remember to bring a light sweater or a scarf you bought that day at the craft market. It doesn't hurt to put a bit of bug spray on your ankles either. I usually wear long pants at night to dinner because of the cold and bugs.

I am putting the neighborhood in Kigali that the restaurant is located too so that you can easily communicate where you are going to a taxi driver.

Here are a few of our favorites that are near downtown:

Rwandan

Africa Bite in Kimihurura-If you want to try the local cuisine, go to Africa Bite for lunch. It has a great buffet for a great price. We love taking Emma here because you don't have to wait! They also have an open yard for her to play in when she starts to get restless. She loves the food so I'm sure your kids will, too.

Mambo Club in Kimihurura-This place is every kids dream! You pay 1,000RWF to enter the club. This gives you access to a playground for the kids, beach volleyball, and a basketball court. They also have a kiddie pool and a full size pool for 1,000RWF for kids and 2,000RWF for adults. The buffet is Rwandan food and usually a western dish as well. On Sunday's they have a great brunch buffet. The price is also very reasonable.

Asian

Flamingo in Kimihurura-great food. great price. Spring rolls and sweat and sour pork are super.

Zen in Nyarutarama-This is our favorite. It is a bit on the pricey side but it has an incredible atmosphere. Maybe a great place for a final date before you get your little wonder. Matt loves the sushi and I love the duck rolls! It's a bit more on the Thai side of asian I would say. It is also out of downtown a bit so about a 15 min taxi ride to get there. Closed on Mondays.

Indian

Zaafran in Kiyovu-This place is fantastic! And-they deliver! So, if you are in your hotel right now and you really don't feel like going out for dinner, call them up! Make sure to tell them if you like mild, medium or hot! I recommend the garlic and cheese nan along with Murg-e-Malai (cashew chicken) and Subzi Taka Tin (vegetables with flaffel.) The coconut fish is great, too. We haven't taken Emma here but they are pretty quick with your order so most kids would probably do fine.

American (I say that loosely!)

Heaven in Kiyovu-This is fantastic food! You will not be disappointed although it is on the pricey side. It's about 7,000RWF for a meal at night but so worth it! Again, this would be a great night out before you have your little one. They actually do a dinner buffet and a movie w/popcorn on most Saturday nights. It's a great date night! There is a small art gallery attached as well as locally made crafts for sale.

Republika in Kiyovu-If you are in the mood for steak, this is the place to find it! Great food as well as a fantastic shop downstairs. The brochettes and garlic potatoes are great, too!

Cafe' Bourbon downtown in the UTC-If you are wishing that there was a Starbucks around the corner from your hotel, this is the closest thing we have. It has a very western feel. In fact, we call it Mzungu Central because it is usually full of westerners. Emma's favorite things are the Very Berry Smoothy and the chicken fingers. If you have kids who are craving something familiar, you might want to pop in here for lunch. And, get yourself a yummy iced coffee or carmel mochiato Mommy!

La Sierra downtown near Gorilla Roundabout-great price. They have a buffet for lunch and a take away deli type bar where you can grab egg rolls, samosas, burritos, pancakes, waffles, etc. Great grilled cheese, too. Best potatoe and tortilla chips in town! Very kid friendly food and it is close to all the major hotels downtown. You could easily grab someting and take it back to the hotel if you wanted some time in while the baby is napping.

Middle Eastern

Shokola in Kiyovu-amazing atmosphere! You realy feel like you are in the middle east. The food is not all middle eastern though. There is a pretty large menu with some mexican dishes as well. There is an open area where the kids like to play while waiting.

Italian

O Sole Luna in Kacyiru-Great Pizza! If you have been to Italy, this pizza will remind you of your time there. It is a bit out of the downtown area so it will take you about 10-15 minutes by cab. Worth it though if you want pizza. They have take away if you call ahead.

Those are all places we have been to and I can personally say are great. Now there are many other fabuous places to eat in Kigali. Some that friends would recommend are:

Lalibela Ethiopian Restaurant in Remera

New Cactus in Kiyovu-french food and pizzas. I think you can do take away pizza here if you call ahead.

Chez Robert in Kiyovu right by Mille Collines-mix of continental dishes

So, hopefully that will keep you busy and full during your time in Kigali.

Next time...Shopping!!

Emma is 4!!

Friends and Family Celebrating Emma's 4th Birthday!

The yellow candle is how we remember her nannies at the orphanage and her foster parents.

The red candle is how we remember her birth family in China.

Emma turned 4 on January 29! I am just now getting around to posting pictures because we were so busy having a blast with my parents here. I asked Emma for weeks leading up to her party who she wanted to invite. I thought she would want to invite all her little preschool friends but everytime she insisted on the teachers from school. She would start naming each and everyone not leaving anyone out. So, we ended up having a big kid party with all of our big kid friends.

I am so greatful for the friends that we have made here. They have become are family here. Emma loves them all and they are so wonderful with her. Emma was so happy that many of them came to her party. Her favorite guests of course were Grandma and Grandpa.

Emma's birthday is always a difficult day for me. I am so torn emotionally. It is hard not to think of a woman in Jiangxi, China and wonder what she is feeling. How hard it must be for her every January 29. While we are celebrating the beautiful gift that Emma is to us, she is probably torn apart, too. She probably can't help wondering what Emma is doing, what she looks like, what her voice sounds like, what her laugh sounds like, what her hugs and kisses feel like. How can I even begin to understand what she has been through? I don't think I ever will. I just thank her everyday for giving us such a precious gift. I thank her for risking her own life by giving birth to Emma. Oh the courage this woman must have.

Quick Healthy Meals for your Family!

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Orphanage Day

I took my parents to the orphanage today. We came down the long stairway and around the corner. As soon as my dad was in sight, the kids came running up to him yelling, "Santa! Santa!" It was perfect. They lept into his arms and didn't let him go until our hour was up.

We are no longer allowed to visit the babies so we now stay outside with the older kids and sing songs with them. There were probably 20-25 kids with us for the hour. We sang songs, played games and held them. Most of the time we were there, my dad had one kid on each leg, one standing in the middle and one hanging around his neck. They just love seeing men.

Some good news for those of you who are waiting for a referral...I have heard from 2 different people that referrals are coming soon. I have heard 17 and 19. I was even told that the little guy I taught the high-five to was taken out of the orphanage for blood work the other day. I can't wait to see who his forever family will be! I hope and pray that it is one of you reading right now.

Grandma and Grandpa are here!

My parents are here! It is so exciting for me to have my parents in Rwanda with us. We have been able to show them Kigali and some of the surrounding areas. One of the first things we did was take them to Akagera National Park for a day long safari. It was so much fun for Emma to take them.

Matt, me, Emma, Mom and Dad

Sunrise in Rwanda

Matt with a herd of Cape Buffalo. It was pretty amazing watching them run across the open land toward us.

My parents, Jim and Judy, on safari!

Matt and Emma on Hippo beach with all the crocodiles. Open wide!

Emma loves looking out the top of the truck. We were tracking elephants. No luck this time.

African Fish Eagle

Warthogs!!! They are so cute when they run!

Mr. Baboon