News from Amsterdam

Phase II Adoption in Latvia and the Honey Do List

Well after a bumpy ride across the Atlantic a new day is upon me. I woke up on the plane with the sunshine creeping in around my mask, and the smell of something similar to breakfast, well the coffee was good. I slept most of the trip and was well rested but my back was aching when I got off the plane. I do not know if I missed something but I was off the plane and on a shuttle bus in search of a hotel within thirty minutes, it was then that I realized I did not land at JFK again. It was a short shuttle ride to a group of hotels near the Shipole Airport. The first two had no room in the inn but the third was a charm. The room is clean but very small and not that expensive when you consider where I am and Queens Day is just around the comer.

I was very bored so I took the hotel shuttle back to the airport and took a train to City Centre. Amsterdam is a really beautiful city and anyone you happen to speak to for directions was very friendly. I walked around for a couple of hours then found the train station and headed "home". The trip back was a laugh a minute. I boarded a car that happened to have a British amateur soccer team boarding, and they were a laugh a minute. I won't go into detail but it is a man thing, Bobby, Aaron and Deniss would understand but most of you would not see the humor. Oh well, more of this later.

I am back in my cubby hole now and getting ready to tuck myself in for a long winters nap. I will be leaving here in the morning before most of you get to sleep good and will be headed for Latvia. By the time I land I will be just a mere 24 hours from having my third son. He will be officially ours on Wednesday at 11:00 AM Latvian time, btw that is about 5:00 AM in Georgia. (But I can't bring him home this trip!) This whole process that started one year ago as a dream is becoming a reality. I have lost track how many different churches and people are praying for us but this is a great testimonial to the power of faith and prayer. Yes I have let my faith go weak and have had my doubts, but prayer and words from a lot of you showed me where my faith should be, and now the moment of truth is just around the corner.

Well you would think being this far away from home and very little contact with the world that I am comfortable with that I would not have a honey-do-list, but I do. Most of it is dealing with questions we need answered but the biggest on my list is going to find a bible that will be both Latvian and English, but if all fails I will come home with one in Latvian. I will be in Riga most of the day on Tuesday and should be able to accomplish most of my goal then, just say a prayer that I will be led in the right direction.

Well the eyelids are heavy and morning is fast approaching so I will close up shop and try to update you tomorrow, from the Albert Hotel in Riga.

In the beginning was the word... John 1.