Tech Ready

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In a few weeks time I will embark on my 14th international adventure. My love for travel means any trip is thrilling, but I particularly cherish my trips related to Compassion International. Two sponsor tours, one donor trip, and an individual family visit have been huge blessings in my life. You know going in that meeting your sponsored child will be special, but there’s so much more. I have seen God work in such specific ways on these trips that I now expect it. There will be surprises for me, and I can’t wait to see what they all are. But more than my surprises, this time around I’m eagerly anticipating getting to witness what God has planned for everyone else.

It’s an absolute joy to get to travel with seven people experiencing Compassion’s work, and their sponsored children, for the first time. While I’m not new to Compassion or travel, this time I’m new at coordinating and leading a group of people who don’t call me “honey” or “mama” – although I will answer to both. I figure adults will be easier to organize than my boys – but just in case they aren’t – God has already sent me my first gift. He’s a safety net of calm wisdom and group-travel experience. I can’t wait to hear the stories of his travels and learn from them on this trip.

For today, I leave my Dominican Republic team and any of you reading this with my top 5 list of handy (and free) apps for international travel. 1.XE Currency converts US dollars to whatever the local currency and holds the last exchange rate accessed for calculations when you are offline. 2.Trip Advisor is my go-to app for real opinions & photos of everything from hotels and restaurants to excursions and activities both before and during my travels. 3. Google Translate blows my mind. Not only does if translate spoken and typed word, but use your camera to view an image or take a photo and it will translate that too! 4.Here is my newest GPS app that will allow me to access not only maps of my area, but my location on them, without wifi (for those of us who don’t pay for international data plans). 5. Sleep and Noise Sounds has been a trip saver more than once. Sleep is important and this app provides white, pink, and brown noise; rain, electric fan, and nature sounds to help block out nearby distractions. Sweet dreams.

 

Hasta luego….

Dual Purpose

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Gotta love a dual purpose product! I did not design this one, but so appreciate how it is functional and fashionable all at the same time. It’s a secret pocket, infinity, travel scarf. It looks like a regular infinity-style scarf, but has a little zipper to allow you to stash your passport, ID, credit card, money, or whatever you want inside – ssshhhhh!

I have to say I’m not a fan of the money belt or the nifty necklace that holds your essentials down the front of your shirt. They are bulky and uncomfortable, not to mention unattractive. I’ve learned that it is important, particularly in some destinations, to conceal your valuables in a location that is difficult to access and/or unexpected if you’d like to keep them. Since I know a little about sewing, this scarf seemed like a reasonable project. Making one would be cheaper than buying one. And what kind of challenge would it be if I read the entire detailed instruction tutorial on Pinterest beforehand?

Reading instructions is not my M.O. It’s like I knew this about myself, but it was never more clear than during my attempts to manufacture this item without a clear plan. I don’t want to know all the answers before I begin. I want to figure them out as I go. There is a creative, problem-solving challenge in doing something new that, for me, is spoiled by reading the directions. I want to see if the “tools” in my box will get me where I want to go. And if my abilities will not get me there… I can always fall back on the instructions.

Needless to say – my first attempt failed. My steps were out of order and I lost a little fabric in the correction. Failure is a part of learning. I don’t beat myself up over it (seeing if you can salvage what you’ve still got is a whole new challenge). Heck, I don’t expect to get it right the first time; close maybe. The second time I figured it out, but it was a bit messy. By the third scarf, I was finding a groove. Part of the beauty of this scarf project was that it allowed  me to see that this is how I tackle most things in life. While I rarely get things right on the first try, I also don’t let failure get me down. And now that I see that more clearly, it’s easier to see that not everyone is like me. For some it’s hard to jump right in, for others moving past failure is more of a challenge. Some people study it until they know they will get it perfect the first time. Because of this scarf project not only do I have a new, cute, travel accessory- but also a greater appreciation for how different people tackle problems. Dual purpose scarf, dual purpose project.

 

The Right Time

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I’m sad to say that the backpack has not seen much action lately, but OH that is about to change.

Last June our family of 5 headed down to Ecuador to celebrate the graduation of our Compassion International LDP student, Jairo. We also got to visit our sponsored child, Ana, in her hometown and meet her family and Jairo’s family. While we have traveled internationally with our kids multiple times, I had not taken them on a Compassion trip to visit our sponsored children before. It was a beautiful and memorable trip that taught me some good lessons about myself. Those might not be so helpful for anyone else, but there were a few other things I think might.

I learned a lot about focus and timing as well. You may think these are no-brainers (because I do, in hind sight), but if you’ve considered taking your kids on Compassion tours, mission trips, or similar – here’s my two cents. Everyone from our Compassion guide, to the project tutors, to our van driver thoroughly enjoyed the boys – especially Jay. But having my kids with me pulled focus from the people I went to visit and wanted to give my undivided attention. I wanted my kids (including the 3 year old) with me for the Ecuador adventure part, and even for the meeting our sponsored children part. But then I wanted/needed to have time with just my sponsored kids – to just soak them in. I pray that our quantity of Kleins spoke love that my quality of attention could not because I was serving as mom and madrina (sponsor) all at one time.

My hope was that the timing was right for our older two boys, at 9 and 11 years old, to see what our Compassion children’s lives are like in person. You just don’t pray for someone the same way once you’ve hugged them, met their family, and stepped into their home. They are now real to you in a way they weren’t before, and so is poverty. My first trip changed me – but I was 36! Granted emotional maturity varies a bit from person to person, but the timing for the boys was just too soon.

I know that one day it will be the right timing, and I will take them again. But for now, I have a wide open door to go on a trip I’ve been praying about for two years! I’ve tried to go, asked others about their interest, and eventually let go of the planning, sensing that it was just not supposed to happen. This is me being patient, letting go, asking for God’s timing and not mine. I know, I’m not very good at it – but Thank You, Thank You for putting up with me, Lord! This June, after almost a year on the ground, I’ll be airborne again for a trip to visit our church supported Compassion Child Survival Program & our two sponsored boys in the Dominican Republic. Until then….

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Visiting Ana in Latacunga, Ecuador

A Paper Pregnancy

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And excerpt from our Klein Family Adoption Blog (www.texastochina.wordpress.com) …

So, evidently not everyone likes this adoption catch phrase, but I thought it was kind of cute. While I don’t consider myself pregnant, I do think of myself as expecting, and it has been interesting to consider the differences and similarities in the physical pregnancy and the “paper pregnancy”.

I’ll admit I was not the biggest fan of being pregnant when I had my boys. It wasn’t terrible or anything, just physically exhausting and limiting. I’m not much of a spectator, and getting involved was not always an option (my husband wouldn’t let me grape stomp on one occasion & more than once I wished he could have grown the babies). Don’t get me wrong, it was worth the physical sacrifices, but I just didn’t love it the way some women do. That being said, I did appreciate the connected nature of growing another person inside of you, a special treat that only mom gets to experience. It is the most amazing miracle, and I got to participate. That’s pretty cool. And now, more than ever, I can appreciate that physical bond with my first two boys that I won’t instantly have with my next son; that special privilege that’s not mine this time. A second big difference is the timeline. You are waiting on that kid in utero for pretty close to 40 weeks. When is your baby due? You have a date to work toward. When do you get to meet your adopted son? I have no idea really, maybe by the end of this year. ?? It makes the wait harder when you don’t know how long it will last. A third difference I try to look at as a positive is that in our paper pregnancy we are able to see and know our child through others in a way that we didn’t get to know the boys until they arrived. While we don’t know when we will get him (and I try not to constantly think about all his life we are missing), we do know what color his eyes will be, some of this strengths and weaknesses, and a bit about his personality. So we treasure these things during the wait.

The main reason that the term “paper pregnancy” does not offend me is because I know how much of pregnancy is expectation, anticipation, anxiety and a growing love for a little person that you’ve never met or seen with your own eyes. I can tell you that these feelings are the same whether that little person is in in your body or not. Instead of a growing belly, this time around I have a growing mound of paperwork. You can’t look at me and tell how far we’ve come, or how long we have left to go. When I break into tears, I can’t blame it on the hormones. The way I see it, if a pause can be pregnant, then it’s no stretch to say that I am full of meaning, heavy with, significant in not only paperwork, but in all the emotional ups and downs that come with expecting a child.

At the mailbox this week, I’m notified that the US government dropped the ball which equates to a big (approximately one month) step backward in our timeline. Just when I stopped growling, OK I was yelling, in frustration I opened an email with news that China had pre-approved us as a match for our boy. Unfortunately, that doesn’t really count as progress, promise a full approval, or improve the timeline, but it’s better than nothing. I feel like I have grown in patience, but I have so so far left to grow. Flow like a river, April. Bend and flow!

Extended Family

It’s another boy – and he’s a big one! Alexis will be 20 years old next week and has begun his college education studying architecture. Although he has a biological family of his own, we now consider him a part of our family as well. We are so excited to support his education, pray for him, and get to know him more over the next 4 years. As a graduate of Compassion’s Child Sponsorship Program, and because of his commitment to serving others and furthering his education, Alexis was accepted into Compassion’s Leadership Development Program. LDP will not only provide him with the financial and physical means to attend college such as tuition/books/room & board/etc, but also with Christian Leadership Training, one-on-one mentoring, and a sponsor (us) to share in his journey, encourage him, and invest in his future.

In case you’re wondering why we do this? or how do we know it makes any difference? Or what got us started and inspired us to be sponsors and advocates? Or why don’t you help kids in the US? or how can I love somebody that I don’t know and have no reason to love? … stay tuned, I’ll get to that.