We got THE CALL!
9 years ago
In the past we ...or I should say Rod has done some speaking for the Stollery children's Foundation. They are having a fundraising event on Thanksgiving weekend and this time I am going to speak as well. I have put together a video of Sam's life in pictures to show at the event. It's hard to beleive that Sam's life started out so rocky...he is such an energetic and healthy kid today......I am so thankful that the Stollery was there for Sam....his life is nothing short of miraculous. I hope you enjoy the video. Here is the link http://video.yahoo.com/watch/6085514/15812474
Rod turned 50 on September 11...yes that's 9/11. We went to the Keg with friends and family. It seems that's the place we always choose when we have no children. We had a fun time and I can hardly believe that Rod turned the big 50.....where have the years gone. As I inch closer to that number it has me a little freaked out. Turning 40 didn't bother me, but I think I will just completely pass on the 50th when it's my turn. Rod says it doesn't bother him at all...it's just a number....he is right, but I think I'll still pass!! Happy birthday Rod!!!
At the Keg...they gave him a piece of cake....it was really good.
Rod, Jesse, Maya, Emily, Sam, Denaye.
It was 30 degress outside on the kids first day of school....very unusual to be so hot at this time of year. Denaye's started school last week...another milestone in her life. She was so excited to get going she could hardly stand it. I drove her the first day and all the way to school she was chatting away about all of her new friends, her new teacher etc. We were almost there and then all of a sudden she got so quiet.....I think reality had just set in....she then quietly said to me....mommy I'm gonna miss you. Such a sweet little girl....she has been waiting for this day a long time. She has already forgotten that she's going to miss me and over the weekend was counting down the days until school started once again.
Here is a link to a video I put together as a keepsake for the girls. It is highlights of the past 2 years....so hard to choose between 100's of pictures. Hope you enjoy it.
http://video.yahoo.com/watch/5891753/15338359
It has already been 2 years since we first met Denaye and Maya. So much has happened and changed for them. They have become part of our family....we don't remember life without them anymore. We are officially going to celebrate 2 years on September 6th. that is when they arrived in Edmonton and we became a family of 8. I am in the process of putting a video together of their life over the last 2 years, but for now here is a link to when we first met and brought them home. http://dkurtzfamily.blogspot.com/2007/09/our-adoption-journey.html
Sam trying to escape getting hit from the water balloon....he failed
Hiding behind his dad's car
Sam getting ready to fire
Brody and Zach getting ready to launch their balloons....
The other team firing back at Sam's team.
Sam's team firing back......it was so much fun to watch.The water-balloon fight that Sam had for his birthday was a huge success. Sam had 10 friends over and they split into 2 teams. They picked their base-camp and then the teams got together and made a plan. It was so much fun to watch the boys having a great time. Rod and I filled 550 water balloons....it took 4 hours to fill them all and about 30 minutes to use them all up. After the balloons were all gone they got out the buckets and the water-hose....Rod even got in on the fun. We had 2 injuries....not bad.....one was one of the boys tripped over the planter and fell into the tree and scrapped his back up. He was sad for about 2 minutes then he was back in the game. The other injury was Rod got hit in the head with a hockey stick by Sam......Sam had a pinata and he went to hit it and missed and got Rod instead.....now Sam was blind-folded so he had no idea....he felt really bad. Rod was o.k., but he had a soar ear for a little while. The weather was a perfect 29 degrees outside. We had pizza, pop, chips and birthday cupcakes. Sam said it was his best birthday ever......until next year!!!
I look at Sam and wonder where have the years gone and then other times it seems like yesterday that we were wondering if this precious baby boy was going to survive. Sam is now 9 years old and when you look at him you would never know that he almost never survived. He was born with a heart defect that went undetected until right after he was born. I have blogged about it so if you are interested in his story you can check it out here http://thelifeofsam-dkurtz.blogspot.com/
We are having his birthday party with his friends on the weekend. He wanted to have a giant water-balloon fight.......so Rod and I are going to fill up about 400 water-balloons and turn them loose. The weather here is beautiful...high on Saturday is supposed to be 28...so it was the perfect choice for a 9 year old boy who loves anything that involves a fight.....friendly fight that is. They are going to split into 2 teams and then stake their territory and last kid standing wins!!! It should be fun and loud and full of activity.....just what boys like the most.
Sam and I are very close......I know it's because I have always felt very protective of him because of his rough start in life.
Tears sting my eyes everytime I see his scarred body from all that he went through to survive. He is truely a miracle and I thank God everyday for the blessing of being his mom. Sam is a sensitive kid who loves to play hockey and loves his family. It is so beautiful to watch how his older brothers treat him with such love.....they were old enough to remember what Sam went through, so I think it has impacted how they treat and feel about him. Believe me they still fight and they all find Sam annoying at times, but the tenderness that I catch them showing their brother is so wonderful to witness. Sam would be lost without his sisters....they have grown very close. Sam loves his role of being a big brother....I think he enjoys the responsibility.....Anyway Happy birthday Sam. You are so loved and may God continue to bless you as he always has.
Sam going down the tube ride
Maya making her way up the hill to the top of the tube ride
Sam in the Rapids!!!
Emily and Denaye...look at the fear on Denaye's face.
Emily and Maya taking a break.....
There's this great place in Red Deer called Discovery Canyon. It's a place to swim and it also has a tube ride...the tube ride is down a river. It really is a lot of fun. We spent the day there with my sister and her 3 kids. Denaye was her usual cautious self. Cousin Emily took her down the tube with her, but she was far to scared to do it again. Maya and Sam loved it and they played all afternoon. Summer is quickly coming to an end and so these last few nice days we have are being spent enjoying the outdoors...between loads of laundry.....
The view from our cabin....beautiful
Mornings were spent drinking coffee on the deck...just enjoying being somewhere else.
The kids swimming in the lake...it is so clean...very nice
Sam, Mathew and Kyle...they hung out together....
Playing on the boat....the girls loved being to gether.We drove down to Coeur D Alene, Idaho for a quick holiday. We love it there....it has the best of both...a beautiful lake and shopping. We met up with my brother Don and his family...Shauna, Matt and Kendal. My mom also travelled with us...she loves to shop in the states. We stayed in a cabin this year which was new for us....we loved it. It had 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms a full kitchen. It was near the lake so the kids went down the hill and jumped off the dock and went swimming....the lake is crystal clear....beautiful!! The girls were so excited to see cousin Kendal again and Denaye was so sad to have to leave her. They are the same age so they played great together...Maya was just glad to have another girl to play with. Sam and Kyle hung out with Mathew and they had a wonderful time. We spent our evenings BBQing and playing Pit...what a loud, but fun game. I don't have that many pictures as they are all on Kyle's Camera which he takes everywhere with him. I am going to post more when Kyle lets me upload his pictures to my computer. We had a fabulous time and we are already talking about next year.....the cabin is for sure...when we go back.
We are going on a bit of a holiday this week...just a short trip. We are heading to Coeur D Alene, Idaho. We love that place.....it has a beautiful lake and I get to do a bit of shopping. the kids are very excited to get going, but not looking forward to the long drive.....oh well that's life.
It is also my birthday today....I've reached an age where I have stopped telling people how old I am! I just enjoy life...and really what does it matter how old I am.....I think age only matters when you have nothing to look forward to....just my opinion. We had a wienor roast at my sister's house yesterday to celebrate. Life is good, God is good....so much to be thankful for.
Kyle bought himself a really expensive camera a few months ago....I was not convinced it was a good idea. Anyway his camera is part of him and goes everywhere with him. He is really starting to show some talent. The picture above is of himself....I am not sure how he did it, but I think it looks great.....really artistic
Good job Kyle.......keep it up!!!
Where we live the city allows the public to swim in the fountains in the downtown area....kind of cool. We have been in a heat wave for about a week now. I am trying not to complain because our summers are so short, but it has been hot. The kids and I have been keeping cool by going to where there is water. There is nothing more satifying then watching your kids just enjoying themselves......click on the picture of Denaye to see the water drops from the fountain.....they were all so excited to get wet from the spray....it was a fun day.Maya, Sam and Denaye started Day-camps this week.....Denaye was so nervous. It is her first experince of being away from home for the entire day......I know she'll have fun!!
Saying good-bye.......
Gary and Carol and 2 of their kids and grand-kids......
Jamie and Maya and Denaye and Sam at Jamie's.My dad died 8 years ago and he was cremated......my dad had never specified what we had wanted done once he was gone. We as a family had come up with different ideas of what to do, but nothing ever seemed to fit until now. My dad's parents final resting place is in a cemetary in Calgary and so we asked permission if we could bury my dad's ashes with his parents......my dad's family was important to him and this felt like the right thing to do. So on the weekend we packed up and took Dad on one last road trip. Sam was only 14 months old when he died so there is not any memories of him and Maya and Denaye have never met him......only in picutres. Sam and Maya both felt they wanted to write a letter to their Grandpa and bury it with him. It felt right and good to bring closure to this journey....it took us some time to get here, but we made it.
We later went over to my brother Jamie and Heather's place for a family BBQ.
We laughed about the memories we had of our Dad and it brought a few tears to our eyes and it was a neat experience for the kids....it was not formal at all......we just simply said good-bye.
It appears that the Susan Hayhow the owner of Imagine Adoption has a lot answer for. Check out this news article in the Globe and Mail. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/bankrupt-adoption-agency-owed-money-to-400-families/article1221645/
The other day the Vriend family from the Lancombe area was coming to town. Their daughter, who they recently adopted from Ethiopia had a doctor's appointment in town. She stopped by for a visit before heading home. I always enjoy meeting my blogging buddies whose stories I have followed. Denaye and Maya really enjoyed their company and have since asked me if they can come back. I meant to take pictures and even pulled my camera out and I totally forgot. We will have to do it again sometime really soon. Thanks for stopping by......
Sharla is a friend of mine and they are adopting siblings from Ethiopia...a boy and a girl. They were in the last stages of the process when Imagine went bankrupt. They like many other families are looking for guidance as to what to do. Sharla will be on the radio doing an interview today July 16 at 5:10 p.m MST in Edmonton. The radio station is CBC and you can tune in at 740 AM or 93.9 FM. Please say a little prayer for her as she tries to get the message out there.
There is another way to help as well. Click on this link and help support the families in need. http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/SaveOurDreamofAdoptingInternatio/
Nicky, an adoptive mom I met a couple years ago, left for Ethiopia a couple of days ago and she has arrived safely. It looks like she will meet her kids tommorrow....how exciting for her, not exactly how she thought it would turn out, however still exciting. She has posted some information on her blog for parents who have referrals and kids waiting in Ethiopia. Check out her blog to get information and some direction.
Please continue to pray as this situation unfolds and information starts to come in as to what to do. The families involved are in turmoil and need direction.....and answers.
Here is Nicky's link http://rowanfamilytree.com/
Blessings
Debbie
I know International Adoption is not for the faint of heart, but this is over the top. There are rumors going around that the transition home where the kids live right now in Ethiopia has only 3 days worth of supplies left. Right now what these families need are answers to some pretty big questions. I have friends who are flying over there to try and get custody of their kids.....this is a nightmare.....now they have to try and complete their own adoption. Please continue to remember the 400 families who are affected by this tragedy. Please pray that some good will come of this....I know right now that is really hard to do, but somehow these kids need to be united with their Canadian families. Here are some links to some of the news coverage. I know that there will be news stories on TV tonight about it as well.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/adoption-agencys-bankruptcy-devastates-families/article1217223/
http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20090714/adoption_bankrupt_090714/20090714/?hub=TorontoNewHome
I just learned today that an Adoption Agency in Canada has gone bankrupt today. They facilitate International adoptions....most of them from Ethiopia. There are 400 families grieving today who do not know what the future holds for them or their kids. Many of them were just waiting for Visa's to be approved so they could go and pick up their kids, some had just received their referral and other's were still waiting for a referral. Many hearts are broken tonight.....words can't begin to express how sad this is. These families are scared and I think also of the workers who are right now caring for the kids over in Ethiopia and how terrifed they all must be. Please pray for these families and pray for the children over in Ethiopia who have already had their lives disrupted and now it appears it may happen again. Please pray...these families are hurting tonight...many of them feel their dreams have been taken from them.....please pray!!!!!!!!!
This is Rod my mom and my brother-in-law Mike...notice the belt buckles!!!
I bought the DVD Mama Mia the other day. I saw it in theatre last summer when it came out and I loved it. Pierce can not sing at all, but I think it just adds to the charm of the movie. Anyway I watched it with the kids and now Maya and Denaye are hooked on all of the old ABBA songs. They go around the house singing and dancing. Last summer my brother got married and my sister and I were asked to welcome Shauna and her kids into our family.....well it's just too boring to get up and talk....well it is for us anyway. So we put together a video based on the Dancing Queen....this was my brother's favorite band back in the day. We had a lot of fun putting it together and my husband and my sister's husband were a bit reluctant. It required costumes and they just were not completely sold on the idea. My mom was fantastic in the video and she was the ultimate Dancing Queen. It was so much fun and watching the Mama Mia DVD brought back memories of our video adventure. I will try and post it, but my husband told me that he would just take it down.....it's really funny!!.
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