Hello from Panama! Today is day 3 in Panama. I am not going to sugar coat this trip...it has been hard! The flight was uneventful except for the hour delay on the runway where Carlee screamed the entire hour! :0 On the flight from Atlanta to Panama City, we were blessed though since Carlee slept for almost three hours of the four hour flight. We got to the hotel at about midnight (EST). The lawyer was here waiting for us and had a phone for us to use while we are here. We are staying at The Hilton Garden Inn in Panama City and it is a relatively new (less than a year old) hotel .
On Tuesday, George and I went to the SENNIEF (adoption authority in Panama) office. We went over the childrens files with the interpretor. We learned a lot about the children's background. It is a heart wrenching situation.
We met the children for the first time Wednesday morning. The boys immediately came to us and recognized us immediately. Javier, the 6 year old, was carrying around the photo album that we sent him. Hector climbed right up on George's lap. Javier is a little shy. Hector is not....he is very outgoing and smiles and laughs all the time. The little girl, Madeline, appears very hurt and scared. She cries a lot. She did let me hold her, feed her, change her and put her down for a nap but showed no emotion.
Bella , Li-Li and Carlee have done great. We haven't gone out much at all and I know the kids are bored. We will take them to the mall and to an English speaking church on Sunday.
George and I know that the Lord wants us to parent these children. These children need and deserve a loving family. This is going to be a tough transiton but I know that with God's help and with the help of friends and family that we can do this. Please continue to pray for The Thornley Family (the ones here, the ones in Chas, Anna in Clemson). I hope you enjoy the photos.
Also, if you have a favorite bible verse that you could share with us..we'd appreciate it!
2 comments:
God bless you for what you are doing for those sweet children! I was a nurse practitioner specializing in children of abuse and neglect, and I also worked on medical disaster teams for 2 years following the earthquake in Haiti. We will never understand why some children go through what they do, which is why Isaiah 55:8-9 is one of my favorite verses. Keeping y'all in my prayers!
Jill McElheny
My favorite Bible verse is James 1:27 and I'm sure I don't need to explain why! Good luck with the rest of your trip and with bringing these beautiful children into your family.
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