Kate and I spent the day relaxing and packing up our apartment. We only have one bag to check, so it's a balancing act of deciding what to bring and what to leave behind. My large stash of baby food that I brought along for Kate was barely dented due to her two week stay in the hospital. Although she sure loved her pureed pumpkin today.
Shane will be arriving tonight around midnight with the airline approved oxygen tank. Kate's officially been off oxygen for 5 days now. We don't anticipate her having an issue on the plane, but better safe than sorry.
Shane's stay will be a short one. Tomorrow before the sun even rises, we'll all be on the way to the airport. This night owl is NOT looking forward to a 3:00 am wake up call!
We've spent 28 days in Colombia. Our time here has gone by surprisingly fast. We are excited to go home, but saying goodbye to this beautiful country brings tears to my eyes. We will miss so many things - the view of the mountains, the forever blooming flowers, the perpetual spring temperatures, the delicious coffee, the fresh fruit, the welcoming sight of FANA and the people who have made this journey possible.
Maria Teresa Perez, our detailed and punctual in-country representative who accompanied us to countless appointments making sure that each document was 100% accurate. She was the person we could rely on in a pinch. When I was worried about Kate's oxygen saturation levels, she arranged for a pediatric pulse oximeter to be delivered to our apartment. She worked weekends, driving Shane on Saturday to pick up Kate's birth certificate and picking Shane up on Mother's Day to drive him to the oxygen store so that we wouldn't run out of our oxygen supply for Kate. We would have been lost without her help and guidance.
Maria Teresa Maldonado, an institution at FANA, who went above and beyond, calling each morning to update us on Kate's health when she was in the hospital and getting us any document we asked for (letters to visit the hospital, a prescription to get Kate's oxygen in the US for the plane ride home, and letters for the customs agent should they ask about the oxygen.) She hand delivered documents to our apartment so that Kate wouldn't have to go outside and brought our older kids brownies and cookies to welcome them to Colombia. She worked her magic to get our adoption process moving along, even with Kate still in the hospital. Without her help and creativity, we would still be waiting to bring our little nugget home.
Patricia and Jorge, our drivers, translators and tour guides. They were instrumental in getting us into the hospital to see Kate (a much more difficult process than we had imagined). Not only that, but they showed us this beautiful country driving us to amazing sights - the Salt Cathedral, Mount Monserrate and Jaime Duque Amusement Park - and delicious restaurants. We could not have explored this wonderful country without our trusted guides. They were the faces that greeted us when we arrived and bid us farewell when we left.
We are forever grateful to this team of dedicated people. We first met them 10 years ago when we arrived to this unknown place, becoming first time parents in a foreign country. But we leave today with a deep love of this beautiful country - our children's first home - and a heart full of gratefulness to those who made our journey possible.
Chao Colombia! Until we see you again...
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