Every Mother Matters!!

I know that all too often I write posts about ways you can give money.  I hate to inundate you with requests, but there are so many good ministries and places for you to give.  There are people all over this world doing amazing work, but they need funding in order for that work to continue.  So once again, I'm asking you to give or to at least consider it.  This project combines adoption and orphan prevention, which are two very important things to me. 

Just before Mother's Day, I linked to the website for "Because Every Mother Matters" and the special cards they were selling.  This ministry is run by an adoptive mom, who like me, decided she wanted to do something to prevent more orphans in this world.  Stephany is fighting for safe pregnancies and deliveries for women in Africa.  She's done all kinds of projects to help women in Ethiopia.  On a recent trip, she learned about one area where 4 of every 10 women die in childbirth.  Yes, you read that right.  4 of every 10!  This is in a remote area and the women do not have a safe way to make it to a medical clinic when there is a complication.  It takes at least 10 HOURS to HIKE to the nearest hospital.  Stephany decided that she would raise enough money to buy a 4x4 ambulance and then provide additional supplies and training to the local midwives in the 24 surrounding villages.  This ambulance will cost $10,000.

Stephany wanted to combine the fundraising for the ambulance with a fundraiser for people's adoptions.  Here are the basics, for every twenty dollars you give, an adoptive family of your choice gets a chance to win $2500.  Then any money raised over the $10,000 will be given to additional adoptive families.  You can read Stephany's explanation here... she does a much better job of it than I do.    Just go to the website and click on the donation button.  In the notes section add the name of an adoptive family.  I recommend that you put down, The Manuels of Clinton, MS.  These are some of our sweet friends that are adopting from Ethiopia.  Michael went to seminary with Cody and is a pastor now in Mississippi.  They are an amazing family and I would love to know that some of your are supporting their adoption.  Or if you know of another adopting family that you'd like to help, feel free to put their name.  This fundraiser is scheduled to end on Sunday, September 4th, so act now! 


The Manuels, aren't they adorable?

Every mother matters, whether in Ethiopia or America.  I know that if all of us would pitch in, we could easily fund the purchase of this ambulance.  This will save the lives of approximately 40 women per month.  This is a desperate need.  I just keep thinking of these laboring women trying to hike or be carried 10 hours to a hospital and dying along the way-- that is unacceptable.  Be part of the solution.  I must say it again... this world does not need more orphans.

Remember the Mercy Beards?

So do you remember the "Mercy Beard" Campaign from last Fall?  Cody asked other guys to join him in growing beards until Mercy and I got home.  Many men joined in the fun and sported their facial hair, but then it took forever for Mercy and I to get home.  When we thought we were coming home in December, many guys shaved.  Cody shaved when I came home for Christmas because he knows how much I hate rubbing against the scruff.  He knew if he wanted kisses he needed to shave. ;)  He started growing it out again when I returned to Uganda in January, and kept it until his trip to visit us in March.  After that he just gave up on it and decided it was too painful of a reminder of how long all of this was taking. 

But there are three amazing guys (let me know if I've missed someone) who kept their Mercy beards from October until we returned home on July 16th.  Wow, that is some major dedication.  Now they did trim it up so they wouldn't be accused of being mountain men or draw the notice of the police. 

I also want to give a big shout out to their wives and children.  I think the wives were more excited than their husbands to shave, with their children coming in a close second. 

Thank you so much guys for your dedication and love and support of our family, for sharing our story, and for rocking that facial hair so long.  YOU WIN!

Meet....

Sam Dial, one of our amazing church members (also pictured his two cute daughters Madalyn and Morgan)

Our dear friend and Youth Pastor, Asa Ramirez.  His sweet wife even let him keep the beard for the birth of their new baby girl. 



Randy Sisk who was with me on the trip when I first met Mercy.  He and his family have been a big encouragement to us!

 When you see these guys make sure and give them some props! 

Part of God's Provision

God sent us a very special person to help us along on this adoption journey—McLane Layton. We first learned about her in the Spring of 2010 when no visas were being issued for children adopted from Uganda. All of the families stuck in Uganda during that time and those of us waiting for court dates worked with McLane to write letters and make phone calls to our congressmen asking them to take action to get the visa process moving again. It worked, and in May 2010 visas started getting issued again. I thought that would be the end of our contact with McLane.
Fast forward to October 2010 when our own visa crisis started-- we again needed the help of McLane Layton. I emailed her and she immediately called Cody and gave us a plan of action. We pursued dual tracks in an effort to bring Mercy home. Track one was the Ugandan track, led by our attorney there. Track two was the American track, led by McLane. She directed our every step. She told Cody when to call congressmen and when not to. She talked to people at the US State Department, our congressmen, and even congressmen from other states on our behalf. She told Cody what we could make public and what we could not. She told us to be calm when life was decidedly not calm. She was right every time.

McLane and her family

McLane is an attorney in Washington DC. In addition to her practice she also runs an organization called “Equality for Adopted Children” or EACH. The goal of EACH is to make sure that children adopted by American citizens get the same rights as biological children. McLane learned of some of the disparities in the law for adopted children after her and her husband adopted three children of their own. After that experience, she decided to work to change the laws and make the process easier for families. As Legislative Counsel to U.S. Senator Don Nickles, she helped write the Child Citizenship Act of 2000 and has worked on other bills that bring the rights and needs of adopted children to the forefront. She is one of the top legislative voices on adoption. Every American family who adopts internationally today is affected by her work whether they realize it or not. She also works with families like ours that run into complications. She has an amazing track record on helping to resolve visa issues. We were scared we were going to ruin her record. Thank goodness we did not!

McLane worked on emails, letters, and paperwork for us until the wee hours of the night. She laughed and cried with us and even told me a few times she woke up in the middle of the night and prayed for us. It was extra comforting to know that she was not only fighting for us, but praying for us. We would not have made it without her. I also must tell you that she did all of her work for us pro bono. She is a blessing and a perfect example of God’s love and provision for our family this past year.
I encourage you to check out the website for EACH and join her organization: . Get your friends and family members to join too. It’s free to join, and each member gives her more of a voice with Congress and shows our lawmakers that many of us care deeply about orphans and adoption. I would also ask you to consider giving a donation to EACH. It’s easy for us to give directly to orphanages or to relief organizations, but groups like EACH need our help too. It is so important to have people lobbying Congress on behalf of our adopted children and on behalf of the millions of orphans in need around the world. McLane's importance in our adoption journey cannot be overstated. Plain and simple, Mercy and I are home today because of her work.


I know I've posted this pic before, but it's all because of McLane's help!!

McLane is important to families like ours because of both her empathy and her skill. She possesses a formidable knowledge of adoption law, as well as knowledge of the inner workings of different government agencies. Cody and I wish we could donate lots and lots of money to her organization, but that’s not going to happen just yet. But we will give and continue to support her and her work. We love the idea of supporting McLane as she helps another family going through a similar crisis and giving her the resources she needs to make sure the legal rights of all children are protected. Just think of all of the legislative work that could be done if each of us gave $10. It would be a great way for you to help us say thank you to a wonderful woman. Thanks McLane!!

What we've been up to...

Things are going well here at the Busby house. Mercy is adjusting beautifully and so is everyone else. We're enjoying lots of lazy days as a family before school starts. It’s amazing how God orchestrates everything and chose for us a child that lived on the other side of the world, yet fits so perfectly into our family. It simply amazes me.

It gets a little rowdy and I love every minute of it! 

She still likes the booster seat and her car seat. Amazing! She thinks the stroller is cool. She is fascinated by remote controls. She’d never really seen one before since we did not have a TV in Uganda. She’s quickly figured it out and stood for about 5 minutes tonight pointing the Wii remote at the TV with her hand on her hip, quite upset that it was not doing anything to change the channel for her. She got pretty jealous earlier in the week that she didn’t have a bicycle like her sisters. So we took care of that and she is rocking a cool Dora tricycle. She can’t quite reach the pedals, but she doesn’t seem to care. We also picked up a potty for her. I’m not really going full-force on potty training until school starts, but she’s already used it a couple of times. Avery has made it her personal mission to get her to go on it. It’s pretty funny to watch. And she loves going to the pool, which is great since it’s been over 100 degrees every day since we’ve been home. I have to be careful to not even say the word “pool” in front of her unless we have plans to go there, or I will continually hear, “Go pool, go pool!”

There is almost the exact same age difference between Emma and Avery as there is between Avery and Mercy. This makes for some great déjà vu moments. The other night in the car Mercy was singing (very loudly). Avery was tired and wanted to rest. She asked Mercy to please stop. Mercy just got louder. Then she said, “Stop the singing!” Emma, who was quietly reading in the back seat, said, “Welcome to my world, Avery!”. Too funny and so true.


Face Painting at VBS Family Night

A couple of weekends ago we made a trip down to Oklahoma to introduce Mercy to the Busbys. We had such a good time. Mercy jumped right in and had a great time with her cousins. And this is the first family photo taken with all of Cody’s family in ages. Of course when you are dealing with Busbys it’s virtually impossible to get a photo of everyone behaving themselves, but that is the fun of our precious family.

Chilling with one of her cousin's iPods

The Busby Bunch

Mercy had her first doctor’s appointment on Thursday. The doctor said she looks great. She is even in the 40% for height and 15% for weight, which is pretty phenomenal for a girl who was not even on the charts a year ago. She’s had virtually no immunizations, so she has a long way to go to catch up. Poor thing got six shots and a blood draw, but she took it all in stride.

I apologize for not having more pictures. My camera has issues and so does my phone. I think God is laughing at my desire to get back to America to the comforts of life. Since I’ve been home, our internet has been going off and on, which also means our home phone has been off and on. Then the other day, I thought we had TV issues because our satellite wouldn’t work. Turns out Mercy had unplugged the receiving unit. By the way, it’s a bit embarrassing when you call customer service only to find out something is unplugged. Then I dropped my phone in the toilet, so I’ve been without a cell phone for two days. It’s now somewhat operational, but only half of the keyboard works, so don’t expect any texts from me, at least not any that make sense.

Goodbye Oasis!

I knew I wanted to have some time to say goodbye to the children at Oasis, but it was a little tricky to plan since I didn’t know when I would be leaving. Finally that last week, we just picked a day and made that the “Goodbye Party”. I had Harriet make some of her delicious cakes for the children and then I bought juice boxes them too.

We waited as the children came home from school. Some of the older ones don’t get home until about 5:30, so we had to wait around for awhile, but the children entertained us with lots of singing and dancing as we waited. I could sit and watch them sing and dance forever. I tried to get them to take a break a few times, but they said they were having fun and did not want to stop.


Even Baby Moses joined in the drumming.

 

Mercy joining in the fun.




We even got to see some "robot".

Finally most of the children had gathered and Pastor Robert showed up with even more surprises! A couple in Uganda volunteering at an orphanage heard about Oasis and wanted to help. They bought them some new mattresses, three new sets of triple bunk beds, and some other surprises. The kids were thrilled. It was fun to see their reactions.

Then I cut the cake and passed it out. I have no idea the last time that the kids had cake, but they devoured it. I could not cut fast enough. At first the mother in me wanted to make them slow down and only eat one small piece. Then I remembered what a special treat this was for them and how bland and sparse the normal diet is, so I let them dig in. I think both cakes were gone in about 5 minutes.



All Gone!

Then I said a few words to them and promised the children that I would continue to help them in the days ahead and that I would do my best to come back and see them again. I also promised to send more friends to visit them, so if you are going to Uganda and would like to stop by let me know. I also had some extra treats left behind by the Libraries of Love team, so they each got a pencil, sticker, and sucker . And as you can see from the photos, the Libraries of Love team also brought many “I Love VBS” shirts from my friend Kim’s church. So they proudly sported those for the occasion too.



Thumbs Up for Oasis.



Working on silly faces.

My friend, Billy, is working on getting deworming medicine and HIV screenings for all of the children. He’s also overseeing a few other projects there as well. I am working with my friend who initially sent me to Oasis and the board from “The Hope Venture”, the non-profit I am working with on this project, on long term plans for our relationship with Oasis. Pray for a clear direction and be on the lookout for more information on how you can help.

A few donations are still trickling in. My sister Stephanie’s children decided they wanted to help. They made bracelets and then sold them to people in their neighborhood. I think they’ve raised close to $100. I love to see kids that “get it” and are willing to work to help others. What a blessing!

Home Sweet Home!

Wow, thank you so much for all of the calls, emails, texts, and messages of congratulations.  It still does not seem real that Mercy and I are really home.  It's been amazing to all be together as a family of 5.  So far, except for some major toddler jet lag issues, things are going great.

I know many of you are very curious about how all of this went down... it's long and complicated, but here's the short and easy version...    A couple of months the US Embassy forwarded our case to the regional office for US immigration in Nairobi.  This is what they do with all unresolved visa cases.  We, with the help of our Washington DC lawyer, then submitted our response and argument to the Nairobi office as to why Mercy should receive a visa.  A little over a week ago we learned that they had officially approved Mercy for the visa.  We then had to wait as they forwarded their information back to the Embassy and then for the Embassy to actually process the visa.  We knew that this was all supposed to happen soon, but we did not have an exact timeline and with all of the crazy twists and turns of this story, we were advised to keep the news very tight-lipped until Mercy and I were through immigration and customs at the airport in the US.  And to be honest, I kept waiting for the bottom to fall out and for something bad to happen.  I picked up the visa on Friday and we flew out that night.  I don't think I took a deep breath until we did get through immigration.  I still cannot believe that we are home. 



This is her "Why are you making me do this Mom?" smile.



"Mom, really it's midnight, why are you making me smile?"

I hate that we didn't get to give a lot of warning of our homecoming, but I must admit that it was sort of fun to read of all of the shock and surprise over the news.  We got home around 5pm Saturday evening.  Poor Mercy fell asleep on the flight from Dallas and woke up just as we walked out to the crowd.  Can you imagine waking up to tons of people touching you, taking your picture and getting in your face?  Poor girl.  That's why she looks a bit shell shocked in the photos.  Even with short notice we had a great crowd at the airport.  It blows my mind that people would drop all of their weekend plans at the last minute to come meet us at the airport. It was so much fun!



Getting the text that we had landed

 



First sight of my girls

 

First kiss with my love



Sisters!



Daddy loving on his girl while she stared at her balloons!

Answers to a few of the big questions...

How did she do on the plane?  We had about 27 hours of travel time, but she did amazingly well.  She slept most of the first flight.  And she only cried for a bit on the second one when she was fighting sleep and upset that the flight attendent did not bring her ice cream first.  Note to flight attendents, when there are children on the flight, start passing out ice cream on that side of the plane first.  I had to get creative in my distractions and entertainment, but we survived and I don't think anyone around us hated us... so we were successful.

How is Mercy adjusting?  She is doing awesome.  On the way home from the airport she woke up a bit and started talking.  We got home and Emma and Avery took her to her room and then downstairs to see all of her toys.  She was thrilled.  After just a few minutes they were all laughing and jumping on Emma's bed.  She just fits right in.

How did she do in a car seat?  I can't believe so many of you thought she'd have a hard-time going from motorcycles and sitting on my lap to a car seat.  ha!  She really has done well.  Only one time she's asked to sit in my lap and I told her that she had to stay in her "special big girl seat".  It helps that she has sisters sitting next to her to entertain her the whole time.

How does she like Morley (the dog)?  She likes hime best from afar, but she's not terrified of him.  Today she pet him for the first time and then when I wasn't paying attention she put some lotion on his back.  Oh my, he may be in for it in the days ahead.  Poor old guy.

One of her favorite new things... air conditioning vents.  She discovered them yesterday at church and kept standing over it laughing.  Today I caught her sitting on the one in the kitchen several times saying, "Mommy, cold."  Of course, that 105 degree weather could have something to do with that too.

I am thoroughly enjoying everything.  The food tastes amazing, my shower is wonderful, my bed is fantastic, and time with my family all together is priceless.  I may have tons of laundry, appointments to make, 6 months of mail and papers to go through, but I am loving every minute of it.

After such a long battle it seems crazy that it's now over.  I saw God move in so many amazing and tangible ways especially in these past few weeks.  I need to take more time to write about it later, but for now I want you to know that God is good and He does answer our prayers.  Thousands of people around the world have prayed for us this past year.  God heard your prayers.  He provided for us each step of the way.  He comforted us.  He gave us strength.  And now He is bringing such immense joy to us and we give Him all of the glory.  When I met Mercy a little over two years ago, I knew that God told me she was my daughter.  I've clung to that promise each day of this journey.  Cody said it well, many months ago, when he told me that we didn't know when Mercy would be home, but we knew that she would.  We knew how the story would end, and that is what helped us get through each obstacle.

THE POST YOU'VE BEEN WAITING FOR!!!

Melissa and Mercy left Uganda yesterday! They land in Wichita at 5pm tonight. Melissa will tell the great story in the days ahead. God is to be praised for he has been good to us.

Psalm 66:5-6

Come and see what God has done, how awesome his works in man’s behalf! He turned the sea into dry land, they passed through the waters on foot – come, let us rejoice in him.