Jansen, the Charmer

So I just got off the phone with another Dillon adoptive mom (Kim) and I just had to share a little Jansen info with you. This family provided us with the most recent photos of Jansen when they traveled to India in December to pick up their daughter, Elizabeth, and Kim has kept a wonderfully detailed account of their trip on their blogspot. Earlier this evening I finally was able to read her postings of the day they first saw their daughter at the orphanage. Well, lo and behold she mentions Jansen and I practically jump out of my chair just reading a sentence or two about him. I can't explain it. The mere mention of his name makes me hyper, uhm, I mean appropriately excited for the occasion. Yeh right. Anyhoo, here's an excerpt from her blog:

"I scanned the babies' faces left to right around the room and immediately recognized one (Jansen) whose story I've been following and who will be coming home soon, but I kept scanning. Finally, my eyes rested on the baby being held by the ayah at the door, and it hit me. I recognize this one, too! This is HER!"

That describes the moment Kim saw her daughter for the first time in the flesh. Wow! And she was coherent enough to recognize our Jansen. Cool! She goes on to say this about Jansen:

"Jansen was in the corner charming everyone within sight! He had a stuffed animal that he was playing with, and Bruce was playing with him."

For those of us who have children in this world that we have yet to physically touch, words really cannot describe how it makes you feel to know that someone else was able to touch and communicate with your child. It's one part jealousy and one part thankfulness -- if that makes sense. I'm jealous of that moment in time I haven't gotten to experience yet, but I'm SO thankful another human being took the time to connect with him and to love on him when I can't.

Well after reading those few precious sentences about Jansen, I just had to call and talk to Kim in person. I know -- it's shocking that I couldn't be patient and email her and then wait for a response and so on and so on. Kim was so gracious on the phone and put up with my ramblings. She's been in my shoes, so she understands my excitement and adrenalin rush. Uhm, I HOPE she understands?!

As an update, our ICPC clearance was mailed from our home state of NC back to Oklahoma this past Friday, so that part of the process is only days away from being complete. Yippee! We're praying Jansen's passport will arrive at the orphanage in time for us to travel the last week in January -- three weeks away! Dillon says they hope to hear this week that the passport arrived, so you KNOW I'm gonna be stalking my email inbox for that notification. I'll post as soon as I hear something.

I'll end by changing a favorite saying of our good friend, Greg. Greg likes to charge our small group at the end of a meeting by instructing, "Now go and sin no more!" I'll change that slightly: "Now go forth and ADOPT a kid!"