“He looked at me, that first day, like he had just found something he’d lost a thousand years ago.”
-Jennifer Elisabeth
We’re back home after a whirlwind trip to Haiti to visit our boy, and I can’t tell you how good it was to see him!
That smile….sigh…I’ve decided it’s my most favorite smile in the whole world. 🙂
And when it’s paired with this one?
Fugetaboutit.
The next step we’re hoping to finish soon involves exiting Haiti’s social services (IBESR). Once we exit, we will enter the adoption decree phase, which is when Sweet P legally becomes our son. He will get our last name, and I’ll finally be able to share his name and photos of his beautiful face with you! 😀 We’ve heard the adoption decree phase usually only takes a couple of months, so the sooner we exit IBESR, the better. After that, we’ll still have several steps to go (you can read about them here), but it’s looking more and more like homecoming is happening about 10 months from the time folks exit IBESR. Our boy was pretty vocal about wanting to go home with us during this second trip, but we know God’s timing is perfect, so we’ll be praying for lots of patience as we wait out this final leg of the journey.
We start Creole lessons (via Skype, with Gloria) the first week of August, and for now, we’ll plan to visit him again for his birthday in late November. Having those dates to look forward to, and knowing we’ll be able to communicate with him better by the time we go back, takes some of the weight out of the wait.
That reminds me, it was WILD to hear how completely fluent in Creole he was this time! What a little smarty! And y’all, I hope he doesn’t get mad at me for sharing this, but the boy is potty trained!!! 😀
I have followed your journey and am so happy for you on how far you have come. Stay strong and As. You have already said:God’s timing is perfect .
Loving this post! I just did a search to hear some Haitian Creole and found an interesting video about common gestures, it was fun to watch.
Layla! Thanks for sharing these pictures and your journey with us. My heart melts every time I hear your story. Will send prayers of patience–your outlook on timing is inspiring.
Hugs,
Lara
Oh I hope time flies! You can just see how precious he is and how much he belongs with y’all!
Hi Layla, I wanted to pin the text on top, so beautiful, but it only lets me pin the diamond picture… Can you you change this? Would be great !
Love to follow your wonderful life here and feel inspired. Thanks for sharing!
Layla, love when you share your journey and photos….can’t wait to finally see Sweet P…..:-)
Wonderful to see these photos!! So happy you had more time with our boy and made it back safely.
I’m going to start my Creole lessons…
Mwen renmen w
He is precious! I can’t wait until he gets to come home with you! May God speed!
chills! these updates give me happy chills. god is so incredibly good.
it must have been rather heartbreaking to hear your son’s desire to go home with you and it not being in your power to fulfill that want. love to you and kevin. so much love to you.
Can’t wait to see that little thing sitting on that front row at church singing along with his daddy!
Such a happy post! He looks like such a cutie! Prayers and blessings for you all!
What a joy he is Layla,
I am genuinely happy for you all and pray that everything goes as planned.
So so sweet!
I’m so happy for y’all but can’t imagine how hard it must be to say bye to him each time. At least you have the next visit to look forward to and have all these beautiful pictures. Thank you for sharing.
This was such a happy post to read! I have only been following your blog for a short time, but I am so happy for your family! Sweet P looks like he is full of joy and love. Congrats on moving forward in the process!
Oh my, I feel the joy! Excited for you and Sweet P, it’s a wonderful feeling to have something/someone to look forward to.
I hope the next several months go really fast for you both. What a long journey but so worth the wait. My prayers are with you all. Congratulations!!!!!
Inching closer all the time! Prayer said for you for smooth sailing from this point on 🙂
So happy for you and praying the time flies by so Sweet P can be home with his momma and daddy soon!
As excited as I am for you, I can only imagine how excited YOU GUYS are! Continuing to pray for wonderful things.
Good luck with Kreyol! What I know is from hearing it which will probably be different in your case, but I know I missed a lot of grammar because of not actually studying it. My favorite phrases? De ga je (duh) and anba pye bwa. <– don't ask me why. 😉 Can't wait for you to have your boy!!!
oh ,so exciting .cant wait to see his “sweet pea” face .Hoping time flies while you are learning “creole”. its a whole other language for sure .
My heart just swells for your little family every time I see these posts. Been following you for 6 years, just makes me so happy and I can’t wait for you all to be reunited again.
So cool Layla!!!! I love reading your updates on him and following along in the progress. 10 months will be here before you know it!
Such a shame about not being able to bring him back with you – it must be heart-breaking to leave him, especially when he so wants to be with you. It’s very hard to explain to him why he can’t come, isn’t it? Poor little lad, I hope that 10 months flies by for him and that your meetings on Skype helps all of you.
How old is he, Layla?
Love & happiness!! So happy for your little family.
We do not know one another and sometimes, honestly, I feel like a stalker waiting to read what your next experience has been!
Been following you for a a couple years now and anxiously await the day Sweet P gets to come forever home with you and Kevin. Ten months will seem like forever and at the same time, fly by. How very exciting! You have touched a lot of lives with this blog and I thank you , that I am one of them.
Look into BYKI.com for help with your Créole. My prayers are with you all.
Seeing pictures of Sweet Pea with you and your husband makes me smile. I’m so happy for all three of you.
Layla and Kevin, again, thank you for taking us along on this journey. I get weepy every time you post pictures!
Layla,
I used to follow your blog and then life got busy and I haven’t looked at my blog reel for quite sometime. I just wanted to tell you from one adoptive mom to another- how over the moon excited I am for you! We are in the process of adopting our 2nd little boy. It’s a domestic adoption, but he’s half Haitian, and seeing the pictures of your sweet boy made me tear up! He will be born in 5 weeks and I can’t wait. Very much looking forward to following your journey on your blog again. (Wish I had seen it in time to order a shirt! We are looking into doing a shirt fundraiser too.) God Bless you, Kevin and your beautiful boy! Adoption is so hard, but I have never felt so broken and so blessed. GOD IS GOOD! 🙂
Beautiful sharing of your story with Layla and Kevin. God bless your family.
Best,
Gloria
I hope the process goes by fast so you all will soon be in your home sharing love.
Wow! I know good spirits when I see them.. Your son will be blessed by such beautiful souls 🙂 The journey will shape you both into greater.. May God continue to bless you guys..
He is so precious…I am over the moon thrilled for you. We just finalized our adoption of Victor (4yrs old) in April! http://kristyseibert.com/blog/about.html May God bless you and little Sweet p…Kristy from Starfish Cottage
Seeing those smiles on the three of you – I have no words, just lots of emotion summed up as love. Love.
You cannot help but smile when you read this post. So glad you had such a wonderful time with your Baby Boy….each photo just warms the heart and you can see the joy in your eyes…you two beam with joy and great pride with the thought of being parents.
I’m going through such a terrible time in my life and marriage at the moment and your blog, your wonderful precious love all around and sweet p seriously always lift my spirits and make me smile. I wish you all a fantastic journey.
Hey! You are going to have GOOD KARMA… I read that you are having Creole Lessons with “Gloria” — when I saw that I laughed! Trust me, It WILL work out for you and you WILL learn EASILY. Good Karma. 😉
Best,
Gloria
I too know the “weight of the wait” – but it is soooooo worth it! My lily is home with us now and the years of waiting are a vague memory. She is a blessing for our family – as I know your son is/will be to yours. Hang in there Mama!
I don’t know why this process is so long? I live in Miami Beach, I have Haitian friends, the stories….God Bless you and the boy who should have been with you years ago. I hope he will adjust well! I know you will!
Thank you, Gayle! XO