More of Africa

The day before we left, we visited the "Central Park" of Ouagadougou.  It was really beautiful.  There were trails through dense trees and flowers.  We also saw some wildlife, including giant bats and a huge centipede of some sort.

 

 

 

This man was one of the few other people we saw walking through the park.

 

 

These two ladies are our heroes.  They have sacrificed the conveniences of America to devote themselves to helping children and families in Burkina.  They took us where we needed to be, arranged all of our necessary appointments and even cooked for us.  We can't thank them enough!

 



 

Another gecko, waiting next to the pool for any food we might drop, or perhaps waiting for the flies that were swarming our lunch :)

 

 

Our final day in Africa would not have been complete without breaking down in the middle of the road.  Thankfully we were able to pull off to the side while we waited for the mechanic.  It was an opportunity to capture some great pictures.

We Are Home!

"Victor" was ready to travel home on the airplane!  He boarded the plane without any fear.  He wasn't a fan of the seatbelts though.  36 hours of travel is torturous, and with a child that doesn't speak English and has never been restrained in a seatbelt before, even more so.  Victor was a champ traveler for the first two flights.  By flight number three though, he had had enough!  Getting off that plane was a relief to us and to all the passengers that traveled with us!

 

 

Welcome to America "Victor!"

 

 

This was a joyous reunion.  We were so happy to see Noah and Lily!

 

 

After the blessing of a full night's sleep for everyone, "Victor" is doing very well with the transition and is having a great time with his new brother and sister.

 

 

 

 

Homestretch

Life here in Burkina is an adventure!  You can count on the unexpected.  From a broken down car to power outages.  A malfunctioning generator and cold showers in the dark.  We are constantly reminded of how spoiled we are back home.  Ross and I are getting very anxious to see Noah and Lily, but we are trying to enjoy the little bit of time we have left in this amazing country.  "Victor" is taking it all in and doing very well.  Below, he is playing in the back of a rented pick-up that our host was able to get while the other vehicle gets fixed.  The rental truck is a huge blessing, as we have had many appointments to get to in order finalize our paperwork before we leave.

We were able to connect with some friends of friends who happen to live here in Ouagadougou.  They are missionaries and also have a little boy that they adopted from Burkina.  They graciously invited us over for dinner and we had a great time sharing stories and letting the boys play.

Last night we went to the Gondwana restaurant and gallery.  It is an amazing place.  It is a northern African inspired restaurant that is decorated with an array of African artifacts.  The floor of the room we ate in is covered in soft white sand.  "Victor" had fun playing in it.  He also had no problem sitting through our lengthy meal.  He can challenge Ross in the amount of food he can put away!

We were told the table to the right in this picture is an embalming table from a few centuries ago.  We ate at a different table :)

New Adventures

We are having fun exploring and experiencing the culture here.  Today though, we had a taste of home with a church service in English and lunch at the cappuccino bar.  It was a different experience singing the song "Blessed Be Your Name" here, than it is back home.  We have also been able to share a lot of first experiences with "Victor."  He had never seen or been in a pool before.  At first he was terrified and cried.  It took about 30 minutes before Ross could get him in the water, but then he had a great time.

For those of you that know my fear of little critters, it has been a blessing to have seen only these in our bedroom.  So far, we haven't had to deal with scorpions, spiders and snakes.  Although, we still have a few days left.  Noah is wanting a camel spider as a souvenir, but a picture of a lizard might have to do.

Traveling around the city is quite an experience.  These little mopeds are standard family vehicles.  It is amazing how many people can fit on one.

"Victor" is still always ready to hop in the car.  He is quickly ready to get back out of the car though.  The long plane rides home will be interesting!  We will need to be prepared with lots of "bon bons" and distractions.  

The First Day

Our first two days with "Victor" we stayed at a house around the corner from his orphanage.  We had fun feeding the donkey and goats that live in the yard and getting to know each other.  He is ready to go, go, go.  He knows we are going somewhere else, home, and is anticipating that all the time, always ready to hop in the car!

"Victor" was given a choice about staying with us the first night or staying at the orphanage.  He wanted to come with us.  It took 2 hours to get him to settle down the first night, but each nap and bedtime come easier.  Ross is a pro with him!

He took my hand and walked with me.  We all got acquainted playing with some toy cars. 

"Victor" woke up from his nap just before meeting us.  He seemed terrified, but after a few days with him, we now know that he wakes up very slowly.  It only took a little while for him to start warming up to us.

We are here!

We have arrived in Ouagadougou!   We are getting settled in to the house we will stay in for most of our stay here.  Tomorrow we will travel to another city where we will meet "Victor!" We are so excited.   We will share pictures in a few days of our trip to meet him.

He is a Richart!

As of July 17th, 2013, a fatherless boy gained a new identity.  The courts ruled in our favor and he became a Richart!

Learning How to Wait

As we got further along in the process, the waiting became harder.  Finally the time came for our son to get introduced to "us." 

 

 

It warmed our hearts and hurt our hearts to know that he knew he had a family coming for him.  We prayed and pray that his little heart is ready to love and receive love.

 

You never knew

The touch

Of your mother's arms

You never knew

The proud smile

Of your daddy's love

And you never knew

Someone was hoping for you

Well we were

And we are

All you ever knew

It's hard

To leave behind

And I don't blame you

If you are scared

Out of your mind

It may take some time

To trust us

It may take some time

To love us

But that's okay

We've been learning

How to wait

I guarded my heart a little too

Afraid to fall in love with you

Until I could hold you in my arms

And now the time is drawing near

I know true love can vanish fear

But if not today

We've been learning

How to wait

Everything is new

There's no

Familiar face

All the sights and sounds

And strangeness

Of this place

You may have no

Reservation

Or hold back with

Hesitation

Oh but either way

We've been learning

How to wait

And we will wait for you

Till you find comfort in our arms

And we'll pursue your love

Until you offer us your heart

But if not today

We've been learning

How to wait

I guarded my heart a little too

Afraid to fall in love with you

Until I could hold you in my arms

And now the time is drawing near

I know true love can vanish fear

But if not today

We've been learning

How to wait

 

Waiting . . .

After seeing the face of our future son , it felt like torture to have to wait to bring him home.  The process was not simple or straightforward.  There were hurdles and set-backs.  Along the way we have been learning to trust the Lord to cover each and every detail. 

 

You are

In control of all of this

All the things that spin around

So wildly, I can't tame

You are

Overseeing all of this

All the things that seem amiss

Are not outside your reign

But I'm about to break

Under the weight of the unknown

It's hard for me to break

Free from the fear that fights you for you throne

But

You are

In control of all of this

All the things that spin around

So wildly, I can't tame

You are

Overseeing all of this

All the things that seem amiss

Are not outside your reign

An Introduction

In March of 2012 we saw this precious face.
 

 

We prayed and became confident that we should pursue adopting this boy.  He wasn't yet walking at two years old.  We began praying for the Lord to strengthen his legs.  We also began to think of what our life would look like with a child that might not walk.  In October of 2012, we received this picture.

 

 

May You Feel Love

A prayer for the unknown child that would one day become part of our family.

 

 may you feel love

may you feel peace

may you feel surrounded

by the shelter of his wings

may you feel hope

that you can't explain

may you feel joy

in spite of all your pain

somewhere out there, so far from me

somewhere out there, you may be lonely

i shed a tear for what I don't know

but if i knew the raging river would flow

i'm protected here by what has yet been shown

but speed the day you come home

i want to hold you

i want to know you

i want to call you mine

one day i'll hold you

one day i'll know you

and one day you'll be mine