staying in ET!

Well I dont' know what KT has posted because I can't see the blog so I'll be brief! Ty and I are still in ET. Everyone else left a bit ago. It was a very tearful goodbye for all of us. What we would not give to be with them! However, the Lord has his plan. I will not pretend that this mornings meeting with the US Embassy was anything but frustrating, but we do believe they need to do the right thing and further investigate Micah's case further. I do not want a phone call in 5 years from a mother in Bench Maji whose child was taken from her against her will or traded for a donkey or something, and she wants him back. This would be a huge part of the reason we chose to NOT do domestic adoption! They do not think that is the case with Micah, but they are basically covering their "bumpers" and getting video footage of, hopefully, an interview with her and at the least, an interview with her neighbors stating that yes she did have a baby and yes she could not afford to keep him and gave him up. The police reports, which held up in the ET courts stated that when they went to summon her to court, she could not be found. She had moved for work as a maid. I don't think the chances of them finding her are good, but we shall see. Also, I have been told that giving your child up is shameful in the ET culture, so she may have moved because of that. The US Embassy is dotting all their "i's" after the big blow up with CWA and we just happen to be one of those cases! The orphange where Micah is from, Gelgela, is under very heavy scrutiny. We are all in agreement though, we want to do the right thing by Micah. AWAA has been nothing but stellar through this whole thing. They have done a wonderful job! I know how frustrating this is for them as well. The truth is, we were given the OK to travel by the US Embassy and then they declined our visa request. They said we were good to go! They reserve the right to decline us at any time, and they did. I am so glad they have started this new 8 week investigation process. I am praying it will help to prevent what we are going through from happening to the future families. On that note, these kids need to be adopted! This country is very very poor and there are many orphans. What AWAA is doing is admirable and I only pray that adoption in ET continues to be possible for other families like us. Today while in an art gallery/restaurant as a group, one of the owners (I think) came up to both Becca and I separately and thanked us for what we were doing by adopting these children. He even said "God Bless you!". He saw that I was headed to the bathroom to change Micah and told me to come with him! I was a bit alarmed, but ET is a very friendly country, so I went with him to his office. This is when he thanked me and told me to change Micah's diaper on his desk!!! He then walked out of his office and shut the door! Amazing! Another plus about ET is that the food is EXCELLENT. I have had the best homemade pasta in this starving country! Amber and I have noted that this country is full of contrasts. You have men in business suits passing child beggars, men peeing on the side of the street, nice houses behind gates with shards of glass on the top next to shelters made of random pieces of metal, wood or tarps. It is both beautiful and sad. Also, you've heard it before, but the people here are beautiful. I'll post pictures once I can, but their features are exotic and expressive. Again, another contrast that the beauty sticks out of the obvious hunger and dirt. We have some amazing shots of the street kids. Can't wait to post them. Anyway, I have no idea what Ty and I will do this weekend. I would like to see Lucy and go to a museum. We will probably have to hire a non-awaa driver, which is nerve wracking for me since people around here drive like maniacs! Of course there are no cars eats or seatbelts! We'll see how it goes! Please continue to pray for us! We know God will reveal his plan sooner or maybe later! :) We would really like to just go home with Micah on Tuesday! However, we are relying on our faith to get us through! We are so thankful to have my mom stay with the girls ! We miss them so much and feel like we have been gone for months. As my dear sweet new friend Becca, new mother to Jeremiah, reminded me yesterday:
"The Lord will fight for you, you need only to be still" Exodus 14:14
Miss you all!