GOTCHA Day!! (aka. Homecoming!)

"Gotcha Day" is a phrase that has been coined in the adoption community as the day of your child's homecoming...  the day that we finally 'gotcha.'

Our day came not anyway like what we had imagined it.  I thought that I would have a couple of weeks to plan for the specific day.  The house would be meticulously prepared for his homecoming  - well as much as it can be with 3 kiddos living in it already.  I would arrive in Haiti one day and head out the next for home.

As it was, I woke up about 4:50 am with no alarm clock and took my very last COLD shower.  I had been in Haiti for 12 days and experienced more than I thought I ever would have... but I had also learned so much in the process!

I learned that I did turn to God during times of great trial for peace, guidance and strength.  I realized how much I needed and depended on my husband, my partner.  There were days when I would have given anything to have him with me.  I also learned that I am a little bit stronger than what I thought I was.

Anyhoo.

Yes, he does sleep with his eyes a little open!

Our flight was at 9:07am and we needed to be at the airport by 7am.  My sleeping beauty woke up and the poor little guy had leaked through his diaper.... one more cold shower for him!  Trust me, they really are THAT cold!

We ate a quick breakfast and then said our goodbyes.

How bittersweet....

I have fallen in love with Haiti, with its people, the land and -yes- even the smells.  We love this extended 'family' that we have bonded with over these past two years.  I have never met anyone quite like Barbara Walker and I'm sure that I never will again.

I was a bit sad at not knowing when I would be heading back down to this 'Blue Heaven' we call Ruuska Village.

Two of our favorite church members road with us to the airport.  It was great to have friends there to see us off!

Now, I have to admit, this was another time of great anxiety for me.  When you are leaving the country with your newly adopted child, you are supposed to have an "Exit Letter" to give to the immigration officers at the Haitian airport.  It is a document from the Haitian child services confirming that this child has been legally adopted and can leave the country.

We didn't have time to get this after getting his visa so quickly!  I was in constant prayer during the whole time we were checking our luggage and getting our tickets.  I had a slight moment of panic at the security check when I couldn't find Sam's plane ticket!  Thankfully, it had been found and handed into a security guard.

After security came Immigration...

There were 4 lines open.  I started to go to the end line when, what I can only describe as the Holy Spirit's guidance, I was led to move to the first line.  So we did.

I handed the immigration officer my passport and Sam's visa and held my breath....  the guy didn't even bat an eye!  He stamped the visa and motioned us on.

Whew!  Thank you Lord!

Afterwards, we saw a family with two adopted children in the line that we were first in.  This immigration officer was going through all of their documents meticulously.

*Note:  Everything was/is completed with our adoption.  This is just an 'exit letter' stating that we are cleared to leave the country.

Now I felt that I could finally breathe!  We went up stairs to try the 'Limonade' drink that I have only had in Haiti.  We also took this time to go shopping at the little shops in the airport.  I can never go home without Haitian coffee.

As we were waiting to board the plane, Sam was mesmerized by looking out the big windows at all of the planes and luggage trams.

So many times at the orphanage, we would see planes flying overhead and I would tell him, "one day mommy and Sam will fly on the 'avyon'."

"One.  Day."  Had.  Finally.  Come!!

We were having so much fun watching his joy and amazement, in fact, that we almost missed our plane!  SERIOUSLY!  As we walked up to the gate they said "we've been looking for you!"  And then grabbed our carry-on bags and ran us to the plane.  According to my watch, we still had 10 minutes but I guess everyone was already on the plane.  Jet Blue passengers are early birds, apparently.

Wow, it was happening!!  We were on the plane and would be HOME within hours!

Sam had a pretty uneventful flight.  He slightly enjoyed the tv on the plane...

kind of liked the snacks...

but REALLY dug putting the tray up and down a million times!

Around 11am, we landed in Fort Lauderdale.  Our first stop was immigration.  Normally, this is a process that could take some families hours to go through.  We had about a 15-20 minute wait in the line before reaching the immigration officer.  There, we gave him a sealed envelope that was given to us by the visa team at the US Embassy in Haiti.  It had to remain sealed and the cover letter had to remain stamped on the outside.

The officer asked us to follow him to the 'secondary' processing room.  It was full of folks waiting to get their forms submitted so that they could get on their way.  For some reason, our officer decided to process our paperwork himself.  As I stood there, the man put a couple of stamps on things and then sent us on our way.

WOW!  What grace we were shown!

I heard several grumblings from people in the waiting room as we were leaving.  I felt kind of bad that we were in and out in under 2 minutes.

After a quick stop to pick up our one bag at the carousel and then breezing through customs, we were on our way!  He was REALLY taking it all in and a bit overwhelmed with his surroundings when we got out of the airport and onto the bus that would take us to the off-site parking.

Now came the real test.... a 2 1/2 hour drive in a car seat.  Sam has never been in a car seat before this!

We started out good.  Happy even...

After a quick stop for lunch, that changed his idea about the car seat...

After a quick driver change with Richard, I was able to sit in the back seat with Sam and hold his hand.  We found out why he was so grumpy...

Thankfully he slept for the rest of the trip.  I was texting Stephen and my friends that were waiting at the church's parking lot for us.  I was giving them updates on our progress home.

We had originally anticipated a 3:30 arrival but it ended up being a little after 4.  As we were pulling off of the highway, I started to wake Sam up.  I put his shoes back on and was trying to get my sleepy little guy excited to meet his family!  I didn't quite work but he gave it his best shot...

It had been raining most of the afternoon but stopped a little before our arrival.  How awesome it was to see all of our friends that braved the elements to welcome us home!

I am known for always having my camera on and ready BUT this time I left it in the car and let my dear friends -THANK YOU- take on the responsibility of capturing one of the most important moments in our life...

 And then to be reunited with my husband and kiddos.  I had missed them all more than I can express.  Stephen is my rock, my base, and it was oh so hard to not have him with me in Haiti.

The cutest moment came when Sam met Jack for the first time.  He reached out and hugged Jack immediately - although Jack wasn't feeling the love immediately.  I think everyone did a collective "AWE."

My mom had been so important during those 2 weeks that I was gone.  Stephen still needed to work and we had 3 kiddos that were needing someone home with them, helping with school work and shuttling them to activities.  It would have been impossible to do this without her!!!  And now she was able to meet the reason for it all... her new grandson!  She wasn't quite sure how she was going to feel or handle it all.  I think everyone goes through that question with adoption:  are you going to love them as much as all of the other children/grandchildren?  But one look at my mom and I knew she had seen that Sam is an important part of our family and has our hearts.  What a special moment for me!

There were so many friends and family member there to welcome us home.  We've put together a video of our arrival:
http://animoto.com/play/P1BSG3J5QY4LFcgMGJ1Irw

It was all so overwhelming wonderful to be surrounded by some of the most important people in our life.  We were able to chat for a while and then watch Sam and Jack start to warm up to each other.  They are so cute!  We knew that a little bit of fun would break the ice.

AND some time of "let's see what's down the storm drain."

We then decided to try and take our first family picture... well, it was a nice attempt at one!

After the last of our friends had left, it was time to load up and head home as a completed family.  WOW!!

When we arrived home, Sam walked through the front door and made a beeline for the sliding glass door, pointing at the pool the whole way.

We played in the backyard, introduced Sam to the animals and enjoyed a meal together.

After some more playtime...

It was time to put my kiddos to bed and Sam had his first warm bath EVER.  I cannot tell you how amazing it felt to kiss ALL of my babies goodnight.  To tuck them all into bed and know that they are all safe.  That they have been told that they are loved and that mommy and daddy will be here in the morning.

For over a year, I had to go to bed and ask God to send comfort to our son.  I had to trust that he was being cared for and that he was safe.  Now, I can go into his room before I go to sleep and SEE FOR MYSELF that that Sam is healthy, happy and home.  What a blessing adoption is!