Let the paperwork fiasco continue...

Ok so we have now met with out Ugandan attorney and he has just helped and raised some expected but dreaded questions about some of our paperwork so please continue praying that things get sorted out.  Apparently when the FBI sends you a clearance on your background check the Ugandan court feels they have the right to require a signature to prove that the FBI was serious.  I mean come on have any of these judges ever seen an episode of Law and order, those people are serious.  Just kidding but seriously please pray that we can get this all ironed out.  We are also waiting on the USCIS (immigration) approval to move through.  We need to get another set of fingerprints done here at the Embassy and pray that they get back to America in a timely fashion.  Wow, I will have to tell you someday which was worse the gigantic headache that this has all been or labor pain!  At this point some of you may think that I am crazy but I really feel like on a lot of levels this might be comparable.

Ok so on to the real fun....  So Jonah speaks a little bit of English and a lot of Luganda.  So I expected that it would be quite the challenge trying to communicate and so far I was about half right.  I see the struggle the most when he is throwing one of those terrible two's temper tantrums (I will just call it the 4T's) and I cannot seem to do much as far as explaining to him why it's not ok to see how much pee he can get all over the seat and floor as he wiggles uncontrollably while trying to use the toilet.  What makes matters worse is when there is a Ugandan "Mama" around to explain things to him or to instruct him, he understands quite well and more often than not the 4T's are avoided all together so I know that it is possible, I just don't have the words to make it happen myself!  Good news is he has already begun to recognise me as the Mommy who tops all Mommies in his little world and seeks Josh and I above everyone else (which brings me a great deal of selfish joy).  Does anyone have any suggestions as far as how to implement consistent, loving discipline?  We definitely try to use consistent words when explaining things to him so that he begins to understand and associate those words with our actions as well as his own.  That seems to be my greatest challenge right now, dealing with the 4T's when he doesn't like something or doesn't get his way.  It seems pretty average to me but I haven't ever been the one in charge of discipline before. I have been told that sign language can be very helpful but I don't know very many words or phrases in sign language and doubt that the book store (or should I say 4x4 stand with some shelves inside) up the road would have sign language for dummies/mommies.

Let me know if anyone has any suggestions.....  Thanks again for reading and responding. 

Where to begin...

Ok so I have decided to start my own little Mommy Blog but just keep in mind I am not the most eloquent writer I just find it fun and therapeutic as well as educational to write/type out my thoughts, feelings, concerns, and joys.  I am thinking that this may be a great way to keep everyone updated as well as seek advice from all of you Moms out there.  For anyone who may not have heard, we spent the past 5½ months working, going to school, and doing a home study back in Colorado.  We are on a long journey toward adopting, who we already consider to be our son, Jonah Elijah Mukisa.  We painfully had to leave him in Uganda for that time and wow it feels good to be back.  We miss everyone at home very much and cannot wait to bring Jonah home to meet everyone so if prayer is your thing we could really use some! 

Ok so, so far we have really just been observing and seeking advice from the parents that we know really well and respect immensely.  We are definitely very open to anyone’s advice, especially anyone who may have adopted before.   This is our first and we have a lot of the same questions and anxieties that I think most parents do when they first bring a baby home… maybe a few more about things like potty training, picky eating, speech/language development, and discipline than you would with an infant…  but all in all we really just fear screwing it all up =)  We know that God is patient and has endless grace and hopefully a sense of humor and is more than willing to help us out in those stinky/sticky situations (figuratively and literally).  If anyone knows some great secrets/tricks to this whole parenting thing we would REALLY love to hear about them.

 I am really excited that our first is a boy. I had a big brother growing up who looked out for me and really helped me to see what type of man I wanted to marry someday.  In a way we sort of got to choose which came first except that I don’t really think it was us who chose Jonah.  He sort of chose us and God gave him to us.  We really enjoy being with him, guiding him, playing and laughing with him, and most of all making him a part of our forever family.