Gifts

As we prepare to end our time here in Ecuador and return home to the US, we have been reflecting on just how wonderful this entire experience has been. It seems that everything has aligned for us, coming together to make this a very happy, special and peaceful experience. We are so grateful to every single person who has worked on our behalf, supported us, prayed for us, and given generously to us. Thank you, dear friends... you mean the world to us, and your kindness will not be forgotten.

In looking back, we feel that our experience has been a series of gifts... gifts that we didn't expect, which has made it all the more special. While this list isn't complete, it does capture some of the most significant gifts we've received.

- Our greatest gift is the gift of our son, Jairo. We have dreamed of him for a long time, and we are so blessed to finally know him, love him, and welcome him into our family. We can't think of a more meaningful thing to do with our lives than to provide a family for this child, and we are thankful for the opportunity to share our lives with him.

- We have had the great privilege of seeing excellence at work, and that is in every detail of Para Sus Ninos (For His Children), Jairo's orphanage. Clark and Melinda Vaughn, the founders and directors, are examples of how great something can be when you put your full energy and all your talents towards it. PSN is known as the best orphanage in Ecuador, and we would extend that to say that it is one of the best -- if not the best -- in the world. We are so thankful that Jairo and his peers have been in such a great environment, and so glad that this is where our adoption led us. (See next post re: PSN)

- Much of what makes PSN great is the loving, attentive care that the Tias give to the children. We have been fortunate to get to know all the Tias at Jairo's house, Casa Fe. They have welcomed us with open arms, and the warm and amiable nature of Ecuadorian culture. We are so thankful to them for their excellent care of Jairo over the past four years. And we are glad to call them friends -- friends that we look forward to staying in contact with and visiting when we return soon.

- In addition to the daily care that the Tias provide, the children also benefit from a team of professionals who attend to their needs. One of these professionals, Susana, a child psychologist, was our main contact throughout this process in Ecuador. Susana was so incredibly helpful and supportive to us, and many times we relied on her to help with translations. She accompanied us to doctor's appointments and school functions, and took time out of her day to meet any need or answer any question we had. We are very thankful for the timing of our trip, as Susana just left to go work in the Galapagos -- so it was a great gift to us that she was able to be here for our full process.

- Speaking of professionals, Jairo was fortunate to have Dr. Carrion in his life. Jairo visited with Dr. Carrion a number of times over the past few months, and we were prepared to pay for the visits once we arrived here. But Dr. Carrion, being the very kind-hearted man that he is, generously donated his services to Jairo. It is so reassuring to discover just how many kind and generous people there are in our world.

- Our adoption agency went to great lengths to prepare us for any possible challenge or problem we might face as adoptive parents, particularly because we chose to adopt an older child. They warned us of how difficult it might be for Jairo to bond and attach to us, so we were prepared for a rough road. But things could not have been more natural, positive and happy with Jairo, and he attached to us immediately. This came as a great surprise, and we are so thankful that he is such an open little boy, and that he welcomed us into his life with so much generosity and love.

- Part of what has made the transition so easy and peaceful for Jairo is our location. We were completely taken by surprise when Melinda offered us the opportunity to stay in the one private house that is on the orphanage property. The owners, the Swansons, happen to be back in the US for the few months that we were down here, so the timing couldn't have been better -- in fact, it was the perfect gift for us. We have loved living here -- it is beautiful, peaceful, safe, and most importantly, it is close to Jairo's friends and Tias, so he has been in a familiar, comfortable environment. We are so grateful to the Swansons, and Melinda, for the gift of this house.

- One of the many great things about the house is that it comes with wonderful neighbors -- the Johnsons -- and their beautiful dog, Suki. Jairo couldn't be more in love with Suki, and he lives to play with her every day. And Peg and Judd Johnson have been so gracious and helpful to us -- from inviting us down for dinner and a movie, to taking us to the jungle. They have been so warm and friendly, and we appreciate their friendship very much.

- Ecuador is a beautiful country, and we have thoroughly enjoyed taking in the beautiful mountain vistas every day. We have been very lucky to have had beautiful weather our entire time here. It is currently winter in Quito, which normally means lots of rain. But it has been warm, sunny and lovely almost every day. Another great gift.

- Eric and I both had a lot of work to do on our Spanish when we arrived in Ecuador, and we weren't sure how to go about it. But then we were given the names of two Spanish instructors -- Jaime and Paulina -- who turned out to be fantastic. They both came to our house every morning to teach us, and they made learning easy and interesting. We are so fortunate to have found them, and thankful to them for our much-improved Spanish. We now count them among our Ecuadorian friends, and in fact, Jaime and his family are going to come visit us in DC this summer.

- Having traveled often through Latin America, we have had our fair share of travel sicknesses. And we would have thought that during a two-month stay in Ecuador, surely at least one of us would be sick at some point. But, amazingly, all three of us have been completely healthy and feeling great every day. We are so thankful for this, as it has enabled us to just relax and thoroughly enjoy our stay.

- As if we hadn't had enough great things handed to us over the past two months, yesterday we received one last surprise gift. Our plane leaves tomorrow at 6:30am, which means we need to leave our house at 4am -- so we've been a little concerned with how to find a cab at that hour. Then last night we had Peg & Judd over for dinner, and Judd mentioned he's heading to Haiti to help them rebuild. And as luck would have it (or probably something much greater than luck), it turns out Judd is on our flight (which connects through Miami). So Peg is going to drive us all to the airport in the morning. What are the chances? Well, I guess we shouldn't be surprised -- this is just another wonderful gift in a long series of gifts. And we are very, very thankful.