We're Here!

We are in Ibague! When we got into Bogota yesterday we found out that our flight to Ibague was that afternoon. We hung out at the airport for about 4 hours and then took a 25 minute flight to Ibague. The flight from Miami to Bogota was good, but I didn't care for the flight to Ibague - it was a small plane (about 38 passenger) with propellers. The flight was just enough time to get up, have a drink of water, and come back down. It was dark by the time we got here so we didn't get to see much. Patricia from the B&B was there to pick us up. We came to the B&B, had dinner and spent a little time talking with the other family here (from Norway). They are here with their older son adopted from Bogota in 2003 to adopt a 3 year old boy. They are leaving in a couple of days, so we will have the house to ourselves. There was a party on the street corner, but that didn't keep us up for very long. We have a bedroom and bath for ourselves and another bedroom for the boys. I spent some time last night and today trying to get things unpacked and put away.

We took a walk around the neighborhood this morning and are going to take a taxi with the other family downtown today and look around. It is warm here - the windows stay open and the dining area is open to the outside along with the garage, which opens to the kitchen.

We have one more day of relaxing before we meet the boys. I guess we're as ready as we can be since this is something we haven't done before and don't know quite what to expect. We'll let you know tomorrow how it goes.

Karen

Beach

We have had a hot, beautiful and relaxing day. We picked up a rental car and headed for the beach. The one thing I wanted to do before heading to Bogota was spend a couple of days at the beach doing nothing - and that's what we've been doing. We have a hotel on the beach, so we have been walking on the beach, swimming in the pool and swimming in the incredibly warm ocean. It's wonderful! One more day before we head to Bogota.

Karen

The Baker Boys

Maicol (Michael) 8 yrs.

Juan Pablo 6 1/2 yrs.

Andres Felipe 2 1/2 yrs.

The Baker Boys

On Our Way

We survived our first flight! It actually was on time and very smooth. I even managed to snooze a little I think. We are in Miami for a couple of days to rest and relax on or near the beach before we head to Bogota and then Ibague. We worked up until the last minute today packing suitcases, weighing them, repacking them, etc. We checked in with one weighting 49.5 lbs. and the other 48 lbs. Close, but within the weight limits. Can't say we're not nervous, but I think we're doing pretty good.

Visa

We received our Visa's yesterday, so I think all of the paperwork is in order and ready to go. The bunk beds are in progress along with a list of all the things we need to shop for. As the time gets close we are anxious to go, but still have so much to do. Hoping for a very productive next few days.

The Big Day

It's official. We will meet the boys on August 27 at 11am. We will fly into Bogota on the 25th and into Ibague on the 26th. We will "get a good nights rest" on the 26th before we meet them. How can you sleep when your life and the lives of three children will change forever the next day? I can't imagine. We're working on flight plans and getting our visa's ASAP.