Keeping Busy

I will try update the highlights from the last couple of days. Wednesday started out slow but then got hectic. Berto arranged a lunch with a couple here in Curitiba. He is involved in a mission organization that was found a long time ago in England. We enjoyed lunch and conversation with he and his wife. It was interesting to hear how the Church is doing in Brazil... their strengths and weaknesses. After our time there we rushed out to the Hotel. There was little time for swimming as it was a follow up session to check for "critters" again. We then rushed back to Betania as Kevin and Karla had all of us for dinner. Karla made an American meal of Shepherds Pie. It tasted great. I realized how much I miss American food. After dinner we went out for ice cream. Kevin stayed behind as he was not feeling well... not from the meal. I got some acai ice cream. I think it added 1 week to my life. Yesterday we went to apply for the children's passports. We were fortunate to be able to return a few hours later to pick them up... we didn't have to wait till Friday to get them. When I returned Rebekah and I hosted coffee and snacks for all the employees here. We wanted to show our appreciation for all they have done and let them know how much of a blessing they are to us. We had Carol interpret for us. I made a few remarks and Rebekah wrote a poem and read it. I wish we could do more for everyone here. Then before dinner we had a planning meeting with Monica and Luis to discuss our time in Rio. We pretty much just agreed to whatever they had in mind. They know more about it they we do. We are hoping and praying that the plane rides go well. Gabe is sounding like he may be starting on another round of congestion. We are missing the 5 kids back home more everyday. It will be good to get back home. We hear the weather has been hot... really hot. I would take it in a heart beat. Also staying light till after 9:00pm would be good. It is pretty much dark by 6:00pm here now. The last 3 days have been rainy and/or gray. We are hoping Rio is sunny and we have been told it is warmer. Since we have returned from Cascavel, we have noticed a change in the children... mostly the older 2 as they have a better understanding. From the beginning they would say that until we signed the papers they were unsure of how we might change or things may not work out. For them at their age to be thinking of deep issues is amazing. A typical 9 year old doesn't think that way. In their mind we hadn't adopted them yet. That may be true legally, but in our minds we had already adopted them. How would we think or live if we had to wait for God to sign some legal papers to adopt us? Would we try to be really good... or bad to see if He was genuinely interested in us. Everything has already been taken care of in God's mind. It happened 2000 years ago when His Son, Jesus, died for our sins. All we have to do is acknowledge our sin and by faith accept His offer of adoption (gift of eternal life). It's that easy... or maybe for some it may not be easy. If you want Truth, ask God to show you the Truth. I won't be surprised when you find it.
God Bless,
Dave

Stressful morning!!!

I will start a new post instead of editing and adding more to yesterday's post. I will briefly describe the road trip and then get on to the events in Cascavel. We all packed into Lino's car on Sun afternoon for the 500 kilometer drive (I think that's about 310 miles) to Cascavel. There were 7 of us in a 5 passenger vehicle. Gabriel was not happy most of the time he was in the car going and returning. It made the 7 hr ride (one way) somewhat unpleasant. Enough said. Monday morning started out pretty good until we returned from breakfast. We were getting the children all dressed up when it happened... the 2 yr old (Gabe)... well... acted like a 2 yr old. Rebekah was very involved with the girls hair and I was finishing up with Wellington when Rebekah said, "Check on Gabe as I hear water." Right then Gabe came out of the bathroom smiling with a cup of water... but the only thing is the water was sorta... yellow. (Stop laughing as I know some of you are.) Someone apparently didn't flush. I grabbed the cup and discovered the bathroom floor was...wet. By the way Gabe had his dress socks on and they weren't dry. As I was trying to clean up the floor I smelled something... you got it... it was Gabe. I looked and he had what we refer to as a "diaper explosion". If you have to ask what that is, you will have to let your imagination guide you as I am not giving you the definition. I stripped him down and he got a shower. Fortunately, we hadn't put on the Gabe's good pants and shirt yet. All this is happening and Lino is waiting to get us to the court by 9:00. After everyone was dressed we had to pack everything up while keeping the kids occupied and clean. I had a slight headache when I got up and it was intensifying now. We finally loaded the car and were off to the court. Fortunately the judge was running late and didn't arrive till about 10:00. All the paperwork had to be verified and corrections had to be made. Right before we went in to see the judge Lidiane's god-mother arrived to say goodbye. She said she would wait till we were finished. We went in to see the judge and he spoke with the children. They told him some of the English they were learning and sang songs for him. As I said last month, it is obvious he looks out for the best interests of the children. There is a picture of him with Gabe in yesterdays update. While the paperwork was being finalized Lidiane's god-mother came in and then both of Pamela's god-parents also came. They really cared for the kids and both said they were glad the kids were going to a good family and home. After they said their goodbye's we finished up with the judge and signed a paper and it was off to get their new birth certificates with their new last name, "Mowry". Once those were in hand it was official. Then on to the orphanage. We were greeted by many of the kids friends. They would come up to me and say in Portuguese "say something in English"... or "what's my name in English?" The kids played with their friends a little till we had a lunch with a few of the caregivers. They told us about the children and gave us more insight. It will help us as we get to know them more and work with them. Many of the kids and workers wanted to see or hold Gabe. He wanted nothing to do with anyone but Rebekah or me. He hung close by us. Right before we were leaving, he finally let a 14 yr old girl hold him. She helps out a lot there and is allowed to stay as she has younger siblings there. Usually they are moved out when the are 12... however they look at each case individually. When we were getting in the car, there were mostly just the workers saying goodbye. The other orphans had simply disappeared. I asked Lino about that. He said "none of the kids want to be there. They know these 4 are gone (adopted) and they are not." There are 2 sisters and a brother (Jhiandra, Jennifer, and Jonathan) who talk to Lino everytime he goes there. They ask, "Do you have a family for us yet?" Lino can only tell them he is trying. These children are left... waiting... waiting for someone to want them for someone to love them. Do you have something to offer these children?? Enough said.
God Bless,
Dave

It's official... they're Mowry's now!

The first part of the adoption is over now. We are now the legal parents of the children. I say first part because I believe we are just beginning. There is a lot of work to do yet. My 5 kids at home may not like to hear that, and it won't be drudgery. There will be some things to work through and a lot of good times mixed in. You wouldn't believe what happened right before we were to leave for court. For any guys who are reading... you are going to laugh. But, I hate to keep you in suspense, (not really... I do like keeping you hanging) it is late... I'm tired... I think I'm getting sick AGAIN. So I am going to give you the details... I hope tomorrow morning. Stay tuned and have a good night. Enjoy the pics.
Dave

Churrascaria time!!

For anyone who knows what churrascaria means, you will probably be jealous. We'll get to the food part in a few minutes. The last few days there has been a young lady, Morene, who has offered to help the children with their English. She has just recently got back from attending Word of Life Bible (WOL) in Hungary. She is planning to attend WOL back home here in Brazil next year. She had a morning and afternoon session with the children on Fri. They are learning more and understand us more each day. It will take time for their pronunciation to be clear. Wellington soaking as much in as he can. He points to objects and wants to know how to say it in English. There are times he will ask why he has to learn English, or that he doesn't think he can learn it. But we tell him he is doing fine. He has been speaking Portuguese for over 9 years and English for 1 month. Lidiane is right there with him in understanding. I think Wellington wants to know English completely before he meets his 4 new brothers. He wants to make sure he is not left out. Lidiane and Pamela can't wait to meet big Sis (Amilia). If they here Amilia does something... they want the same thing. We will use that to our advantage as long as we can. Gabe has been fussy the last 2 days after his afternoon nap... he has been Mr. Grouchy. Maybe because of the parasite treatment he is taking. Today he is a little better. Last night he slept 12 hours... hallelujah!! And by the way he does say that with his hands raised. Frank Gorsline will like to hear that. Tomorrow we leave about 2:00 to go to Cascavel. On Monday morning at 9:30 we are due in court with the judge. Because we will arrive late Sunday in Cascavel, I probably won't get an update till Monday or Tues. After the judge we are taking the children to the orphanage so the can say good bye to their friends. We may get to meet with one of the god-mothers and talk with her. She was close to the girls. Then back here Monday late. OK...ok...food time. If Aaron Applegate, or Howard and Tim Miller are reading, I wish you could have been with us last night. I'll set the table before the details. Yuri and Carol (Brazilian couple who take us to church) wanted to take us to dinner. They arranged a young lady to watch the kids and they wanted us to have a night out to relax and not have to have the kids under foot. They are a neat couple who love the Lord. Yuri gave us the choice of a pasta place or a churrascaria. A churrascaria is Brazilian bar-b-que. The restaurants are known for their meats obviously but they have a salad bar which is best to ignore so as to save your appetite for the meat. They have waiters make their rounds to the tables. They bring all different kinds and cuts of meat on a big skewer and cut off some if you want it. They keep coming back as long as you want... which of course I had them come back too much. Now remember they are speaking Portuguese, so having Yuri their was a big help. Also he introduced me to a cut of beef called "Argentinian Cut". Oh man was it tender and delicious!!! I have never had any beef taste that good before. Yuri knew all the best meats (including lamb) and would let me know if I should have a piece. It was a great experience. I have been to a churrascaria before, but this was a very nice place. Valet parking and the works. I wish I could go again as I don't know when I will be in Brazil again. It was a great evening and we had fun hearing stories about Yuri's time in the US. There are many new friends we have met here and as I told one today, "It would be great if they all would visit us... just not all at the same time". I will include some pictures on this update for you to enjoy. Will probably update when we officially have 9 kids.
Dave

Critters

It has been a couple of days so I better update any who are reading this. Rebekah said I wasn't suppose to write about critters... but I am the man of the family and since it is the most interesting thing going I will let you know about the critters. But before that I will update you on the... parasites... they are not the critters I will talk about later. We took the kids to a doctor to see if they had any. He speaks English and is a very pleasant man. He didn't check for any parasites he just gave us some tablets to treat the children. Some people say that many parents treat their children once a year for parasites... just preventative measures. So that's what we did. We don't know if they have them or not and that suits me just fine. Ignorance is bliss in this case. Since I have last updated we have gone to the zoo on Wednesday and to the Hotel on Thursday. The kids enjoyed the zoo and I think were most interested in the 2 bears. One bear lifted up a sliding door and went inside. The other bigger bear was trying to figure out how to open it. We said the bears had a disagreement and one wouldn't let the other one in the house. I don't know if one was a male and the other a female but it looked like and good squabble was going on. After the zoo we went to have pictures taken of the kids for their documents... passports, visas, etc. Back at Betania we have enjoyed visits during our supper with Kevin and Karla. Kevin grew up in northern Brazil. His father is British and his mother is American. He has triple citizenship. In northern Brazil they grow the fruit Acai... pronounced ah-sigh-ee. It is a highly nutritional food that is sold in the US. My mom buys the juice... but it is diluted with other juices as most people wouldn't like the taste. Anyway it is suppose to make you live forever... my term for the highly expensive supplements that people buy. We talked about seeing if it was possible to bring it to the US and not charge the high prices. I went on the internet and found there are acai products all over the place. If you take any of them... you are paying too much. The stuff is cheap in northern Brazil. Now to the critters. When we were to the Hotel earlier this week, Monica mentioned we should have the children checked for parasites and what she called "animals in you hair." To Americans that means lice. But here they say it is different than lice since they are dark and not white or light colored. Call it what you want but Rebekah and I thought it would be good to find out. We brought some lice treatment just in case. What I will tell you next is so you can see the servant hearts of the Brazilian people here. After lunch and a swim in the pool, Monica came in and said to shampoo the kids hair and line them up for treatment. She had bought the supplies and had her people ready to take care of us. Each of us had someone to administer the treatment to us. Well the only good news is Rebekah and Wellington didn't have any... ugh that means I had "animals in my hair". Actually only a few. The reason... the others use my brush... but no more. I threw it away and use my fingers now on my hair now. The people were willing to get their hands "dirty" (with crawling things) on people they don't even know. They did it willingly with a cheerful spirit. I don't know about you, but that would be very, very hard for me to do. Rebekah said washing someones feet is one thing but to de-lice someones hair is another thing. What kind of a lesson can I draw from this. I have so far to go to fill the shoes of the people here. Of course the ultimate servant example to us is Christ. He got His hands "dirty" (He didn't sin) by leaving heaven to come as a servant. Healing, praying, feeding, forgiving, dying. The people here say they are at the bottom of helping with our adoption. They feel it is so little and not much. I try to explain that I prayed for help and they are the answer to my prayers. They say they do it for God. It struck me how easy it is to be self-centered. I thank them for helping us... they don't do it primarily for us...they do it for God. THEY UNDERSTAND it better than I do!!! We shouldn't do things for others, we should do them for GOD... as HE directs us. There is much for me to learn from this past week it is hard to write about it all at once. One more thing on the critters. When we got back to Betania, we found our rooms had all the linens completely changed and I guess the room treated. The lady (Linda) in charge of housekeeping had gone home. She came back and personally made sure our rooms were ready for us. What more can I say. I started this update yesterday (Fri) and will explain and update maybe later tonight.

Another Birthday

Two days after Pamela's b-day and it is Lidiane's birthday today. She is 8 and loves it. She got her gifts from the Grandma's that they sent with us. We bought both of the girls a doll. Carol brought some fabric scraps today and Rebekah and the girls made clothes for the dolls. They had a great time. They cut the time short though as Monica asked us to the Hotel again today. We had planned on going to the Zoo, but the rain washed out those plans till a better day. Hopefully tomorrow. So it was a blessing to be able to have fun even though it was rainy outside. Yes, that means we went swimming again. Really the kids swim and I just try to make sure no one drowns. Yesterday we met with Daisy for the last time. She said everything is going very well and believes the children will thrive with us. We got a little more background info so that will (and already has) help us. Also yesterday Karla took Rebekah and Lidiane (Lidi) shoe shopping for Lidi (rhymes with "bridge" with a "e" sound at the end). She liked the 1st pair she tried on. If you think clothes are expensive in the US... come to Brazil. Tomorrow late in the afternoon, we are taking the kids to a Dr to see if the have any intestinal parasites. The kids like to get as much sugar as they can and we have been told it can be a sign of parasites. Any medical people out there can send me their 2 cents worth at drmowry@juno.com. Everything can look good on the outside, but what's inside can be nasty. Sorta like sin. We may have people convinced we are a good Godly person, but God judges our motives. I believe we can even deceive ourselves to some extent. What we do and think should be born out of desire to please God. Just a little morsel to chew... just make sure a parasite doesn't take it away from you. I'm not sure if I will update you on the doctor visit... some of you may not have the stomach for it... I gotta stop or this could get bad. I need to go to bed so I can get up, 'cause the early bird gets the worm.... ok...ok no more. I won't update on the doctor visit.
Dave

Happy birthday and The boy is sick!!

Know one is ill... at least not that I know of. I'll get to the sick part later. Sunday morning arrived and Pamela turned 5!!! Wish we could have a cake and celebrate like back home but will have to wait. The kids were excited that they would get to go to church again. Yuri & Carol (Y & C) came to pick us up. The kids couldn't wait to get to their Sunday School classes. After church Y & C took us to a McDonald's. It had a playland which went over better than the Happy Meals. The kids had heard of a McDonald's but never been to one. Wellington ate his meal well, but I think the others were not as impressed. When Gabe saw his burger he began disassembling it... getting rid of the bun. Yuri also bought the kids some ice cream for Pamela's b-day. When we got back to Lar Ragote we began packing things as Berto came to help move us back to Betania...our home away from home. Once we settled back in, we had Pamela open her gifts from the Grandma's. She likes them and so does Lidiane. But she will have to wait till Tuesday, as that is her b-day. Sunday evening we were able to web cam with our 3 older kids back home as well as my mom and my bro-in-law and sis-in-law. It was good to see and talk with them... technology is great... sometimes. The 4 kids here were trying to make sure their face was in the web cam and were all talking and touching the computer... basically chaos. I told the ones back home to be prepared for it. Of course they didn't understand much of what the 4 were saying. The girls wanted to see Amilia...Amilia. Well Amilia pretty much just laughed or was smiling at them. One thing we notice, the kids are comfortable with their surroundings. At Betania they know most of the people and they make their rounds during the day. But it can be hard to learn when you are comfortable. You are not being pushed or challenged as much. And you can get a little lazy. Now I'm not saying the kids aren't learning, they are doing well with English, but they do not depend on us as much as they could. Isn't that like our lives? When we are comfortable (maybe complacent) we aren't as motivated to "learn" or should I say grow. I doubt this principle is new to many of you. We grow more when we are under pressure or in the middle of trials. The Gospel spreads more when there is persecution. People become strong when they weather the crisis in their lives. A friend of ours recently sent an e-mail and quoted something from our former pastor (Scott Gardziella), "God is more interested in our 'growth' than our 'comfort'" That pretty much hits the nail on the head. So where are you... comfortable, squirming a little, or aching from discomfort? Maybe a more important question might be... Where do you want to be??... ouch! Remember Peter got out of the boat and into the stormy waters. Take your pick... something made by man or in the storm... holding the hand of Jesus. Ok now for the sick part. As you may have read before, Gabe will eat just about anything put in front of him. Well that now includes 3 things I wouldn't care to taste. The first night at Lar Ragote I was giving Gabe a shower. Well they use a different brand of soap. While lathering him up he licked his soapy hand... and kept licking. The other hand then his arms. I couldn't get him rinsed fast enough. I told Rebekah about it and she said when she puts baby lotion on him he eats it if it isn't rubbed in. Then last night after we had been using the white (dry erase) board, I found him sucking on the marker with the top off. I told Rebekah and she said he was being a typical 2 year old. Typical or not the boy is sick. God Bless. We have something special plannedfor the kids tomorrow... stay tuned!
Dave