Finding God's Grace: What an Interesting Day!

We started the morning by watching Vince start a 13 mile, mini marathon. Then we ate breakfast at the hotel and checked out. In typical form, Vince told us he hoped to finish in 1 hour and 44 minutes and came in at 1 hour and 32 minutes, exactly 2 minutes before we arrived to watch the finish. Way to go, Vince! Then after sandwiches at Subway we headed for Kay Montes' home while Grace slept for the entire trip trying to make up for the early wake up. Kay Montes has been so important in our adoption journey, has 3 children who were adopted from Bulgaria, and guided us through the entire adoption journey as the international coordinator for Tree of Life Adoption Agency. I was really nervous getting ready to meet her, but there was really no need because the entire family was sweet and welcoming.

Her husband Brad, Josiah, Mattea, Aleah, and Joel all met us at the car along with several of their large, white Pyrenees dogs. Of course, Gracie crawled up toward Mark's shoulders and we headed inside. The family had a virtual menagerie and Grace was able to touch the black bunnies, pet a couple of smaller dogs, and sit on a horse in between swinging and blowing bubbles with the other children. Their home is literally a petting zoo as my best estimation of the animal population is: 3 Pyrennes dogs, 4 dachshunds, 4 other dogs, 8 cats, 2 house bunnies, 6 horses, some goats, ducks, several breeds of chickens, and some peacocks. Josiah carried Grace around most of the time, changed her shoes, and helped her to feel like a little princess. Kay blessed us with a homemade guacamole and chili lunch, showed us her home office space, and even was persuaded to pose for a couple of pictures. I have to say that our visit was completely different than I had anticipated. Her children, even the teenagers, seemed excited to see us, and the children were thoroughly fascinated with Grace's appearance (not Roma as they had anticipated), extra shoes, and our van. Except for one tennis shoe that was chewed by their special needs dog, the day was a total success. My allergies were manageable because I spent a good part of the visit outdoors blowing bubbles and pushing Grace on one of the swings, but I was really ready to change clothes for the ride home, because I am not much of an animal-lover and cat hair really brings on the sneezing and wheezing. We finally left for home around 6:00 pm and Grace was so tired that she slept in the car seat.

Somehow the potted lilly and card don't seem like enough thank you for someone who has done so much for our family. I will be forever grateful to her for the time she spent helping us to decipher the medical reports, preparing the documents for our dossier, and encouraging us during the weeks of waiting. Her work truly impacts so many children and families around the US and she does all of it as a contract worker who I am sure is not being compensated adequately for her important role. May God richly bless her and and prepare an amazing reward in heaven for her time, influence, and generous heart.