Home at last!

Hello friends!

We arrived in Charlotte last evening around 8:30 and we were home by 2:00 am. What a wonderful feeling to be home with Pearl and united with our other daughters! It's incredible to see the transformation in our little peanut. She basically cried for the first two days and wouldn't allow us to put her down for even a minute. On day two we saw a glimpse of her precious smile that we remembered from our visit trip. She has relaxed more and more as each day has passed and by this morning she was full of smiles when she saw her sisters for the first time in two months.

Leaving Guatemala was a bitter sweet experience. We were eager to get home but also realized we were leaving behind a part of Pearl's biological heritage. Guatemala is a beautiful country with a very rich culture but struggles with corrupt politics and extreme poverty. There will forever be a place in our hearts for Guatemala and the Mayan and Ladino people. Please join us in praying for the children of Guatemala. International adoptions will probably cease in the near future and the children will suffer. According to Pedro, if the US discontinues adoptions with Guatemala, most of the children will not live past 5 years old. The 350 orphanages that do exist will not have the funds to keep running. The orphans will be abandoned to the streets. Please also pray for our dear friends who are waiting to bring their children home. We ask that God will allow these wonderful people who are in the process, who have visited their children, and who call these babies their own to finish the process or to be grandfathered in before adoptions end. Please also praise the Lord for His faithfulness and join us in thanking Him for bringing Pearl home!