Good Things Come in Small Packages!!!!

Well, the moment has finally arrived to introduce you to Gabriella Marie! I received the much-anticipated phone call yesterday (April 7) around 4:30. I saw the name on the caller ID and very nervously answered. The agency director Traci announced herself and then said, "You don't sound too happy to hear from me.". In reality, I was a nervous wreck knowing it had to be "THE CALL". I said I thought I was very happy, right?? She said yes, we have a baby girl for you. She did go on to explain that she is, at the moment, a good bit underweight and anemic. It is likely her birthmom tried to parent her for the first couple of weeks and probably breastfed and wasn't able to give her the nutrition she needed. At 2 1/2 weeks old(Apr 3) she weighed just 4lbs 7oz and is about 17" long. Guatemalan babies are small compared to American babies anyway, but she is definitely needing to put on some weight. Hopefully a few weeks or so with good formula and her cheeks will plump right up! She's on an iron supplement to help with the anemia as well.

She was born at 6:00 am March 14 in Mazatenago, Guatemala. I don't have the stats at birth yet. Not sure if those will be available or not.

It is surely a sign from God that this beautiful little girl was meant to be ours as her birthmom's birthday is the same as mine! When I saw that, I had no doubts in my mind. There was a reason for the waiting as this was the baby that was waiting in our hearts. Yesterday was also my mom's birthday, so what a nice surpise for Grandma!

The next step is that the Power of Attorney(POA) information will be sent to us Mon or Tue for us to get signed, notarized and then we have to have it certified in Tallahassee and Authenticated in Miami just as the rest of our documents. Once it reaches Guatemala, the adoption can move forward with the lawyers acting on our behalf. Next week is Holy Week in Guatemala and basically everything is shut down. So, it actually works out that we aren't losing a week while we get the POA done. I will likely take a road-trip (or two) to get the certification/authentication expedited. I will decide next week. It's a lot of driving, but every day saved is a day sooner things can get moving.

Everyone of course is wondering when she will be coming home. That is really something that doesn't have a clear answer as every case is different and you never can anticipate when things will run quickly and efficiently or if you will hit snags along the way. The best estimate is somewhere between 4-6 months from the time the POA is in Guatemala. One of the first things that will happen is an authorization for DNA testing has to be obtained and then the test must be carried out on the baby and the mother. This could take a month or two depending again on how things are moving down there and the ability of the mother to get into the city for the test. Once this is done, we plan on going down to visit our sweet girl.