The Journey of Bob and Lori... and Hannah

Four Eyes

2009-08-14T15:18:00.000-07:00

Hannah sneaks Dad's reading glasses at EVERY opportunity!

Hannah's first tooth cleaning

2009-08-14T15:14:00.000-07:00

Hannah gets her teeth cleaned!!

THE DENTIST!

2009-08-14T14:43:00.000-07:00

OK...is this normal?! My child LOVED going to the dentist! What in the world?! :) Enjoy this clip :)

Little pool...lots of fun :)

2009-08-14T14:32:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to the Big Lake and Hannah had so much fun with the waves! But, when we can't get to the lake, a little pool will have to do :)

Red Dress

2009-08-14T14:03:00.000-07:00

Hannah loves this red dress...but very soon she will be too tall for it ;)

Because I said so!

2009-07-17T07:18:00.000-07:00

OH KNOW! IT'S BEGUN. Hannah said her first "Why Mom?" yesterday, to which I found myself replying...."Because I said so!" :) Unbelieveable! Since when did she learn to ask that question?! This is already driving me crazy! Today she has asked that question probably 5 times...and it's only 10:15am!!

GOTCHA DAY! The 4th of July

2009-07-08T20:06:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been one year since our adoption of Hannah Grace Roksana was complete....GOTCHA DAY is what that is called. We had never heard of that saying until recently...it's the day when your adopted child is finally and legally YOURS! Hannah's Gotcha Day is July 4th. Isn't that great?! :) We can hardly believe that one whole year has gone by. It has been a year filled with many struggles, but overall...the pure joy is beyond anything we could have imagined. God has been so gracious towards us. We are THANKFUL and overflowing with happiness ;)

Gotcha Day Video

2009-07-08T19:52:00.001-07:00

Fourth of July-Gotcha Day

2009-07-08T19:42:00.000-07:00

Hannah loved the fireworks! She wanted, "More Daddy! " :)

Two characters! :)

2009-07-08T19:24:00.001-07:00

Twinkle, twinkle little star....

2009-07-08T19:01:00.000-07:00

Hannah with cousin Noah

2009-07-08T18:40:00.000-07:00

Oh my...I think Hannah is in love with cousin Noah :)

Father's Day

2009-07-08T18:33:00.000-07:00

This girl LOVES her daddy! :) What a HAPPY Father's Day ;)

Graduation

2009-07-08T18:17:00.000-07:00

Ok, I couldn't believe it....as I walked up the aisle at church with Hannah, to receive her certificate of promotion from the 'nursery' to 'toddlers' (so funny, I know!) ...I got the biggest lump in my throat and thought, "Oh know...is this what it's going to be like?...she's growing up so fast....STOP! "

Waving at Grandma and Grandpa

2009-07-07T20:25:00.000-07:00

Hannah was so excited about her birthday party. She kept looking out the window, watching for Grandma and Grandpa. When she finally saw them coming up the drive, she waved at them through the window :) So sweet!

Video of Birthday Bike ride

2009-07-07T19:52:00.000-07:00

Hannah's 3rd birthday

2009-07-07T19:44:00.000-07:00

Hannah turned 3 on May 27th. She had two separate parties and enjoyed as much cake as possible! :) She was so excited to get her own bicycle (tricycle) too!

Go-cart fun with cousins Schroeder and Livy

2009-07-07T19:39:00.000-07:00

Hannah is going to be one of those kids who LOVE rollercosters and other crazy rides. NOT ME :) Bob will have to be the one taking her on the "brave of heart" rides :)

Daddy and his girl

2009-07-07T19:32:00.001-07:00

Hannah, Yukon, Jake....and Grandma Stitt :)

2009-07-07T19:19:00.000-07:00

Hannah enjoys going in and out of Yukon's doggie door....they are the best of buds!

Mothers Day

2009-07-07T19:14:00.000-07:00

This was such a fun day for me! Hannah and Bob snuck up behind me and surprised me with cards and a rose. Hannah had such a precious smile on her face. Oh my oh my....WHAT a blessing!

Laughing it up with Grandma Vanderhoof

2009-07-07T19:08:00.000-07:00

Easter Dress

2009-07-07T19:04:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness! Hannah loved the Easter basket and her dress :) She can be such a girly girl! I love it :)

Lov'en the SNOW!

2009-03-08T20:05:00.000-07:00

Fun with Mr. Snowman

2009-03-08T19:52:00.000-07:00

Hannah's first Snowman :)

2009-03-08T19:38:00.000-07:00

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Pretty Dress

2009-03-08T18:59:00.000-07:00

Hannah wore this dress to church the day after Valentines. She looked so cute :) And just look at how long her hair is getting!

Playing with Cousins

2009-03-07T11:54:00.000-08:00

Hannah enjoys playing will ALL her cousins! Here she plays with cousins Schroeder and Livy on the ice on the pond. Hannah always wants to go on THE POND! :)

..if Hannah could, she would have every single person from our families over to the house at the same time! She is SUCH a people person! How funny is that?! And then here Bob and I are with our private, reclusive ways! Ha,ha! No matter :) God has given us the perfect fit with Hannah Grace!

Hannah visits Antonela

2009-03-07T11:43:00.000-08:00

Last month Hannah visited her friend Antonela, who now lives happily in Zeeland with her new "Forever family". Nela (as we called her in Albania), was from the same orphanage as Hannah. She arrived here in America in December of last year. We were so happy to see her again! :)

More day!...says Hannah

2009-03-07T11:30:00.000-08:00

Wow! It's March already and we haven't blogged in such a long time! As you might have guessed, we have just been SO BUSY with raising little Hannah :) She is a delightfully, fiesty little sweetheart who really fills our hearts with JOY! :) Don't get me wrong, she's not sweet all the time :)....she can really be stubborn and get on my last nerve. But God really has helped us through all the prayers and helpful "tips" from all of you. Thank you!!

....Hannah says, "More day!", when she wants us all to keep talking about what has happened in our day (this is part of our routine for bedtime) It's just so sweet when she says that...although I'm beginning to think that maybe she really just wants to s-t-a-l-l her bedtime! Hmm? Well, we have fun with reading a bedtime story, talking about our day, and then praying together before she goes to sleep for the night. She loves praying on our bellies, backs, with one leg in the air :)....and then the standard, on our knees :)

Christmas Blessings

2008-12-08T13:30:00.000-08:00

Christmas Blessings

2008-12-08T13:22:00.000-08:00

We are SO HAPPY to be having a FAMILY Christmas of our very own for the first time! We are praising God for His richest blessings this season! Thank you all once again for your love and prayers as we continue on this journey. It hasn't been easy getting this far, but every day there are new blessings, and the prayers of our dear family and friends have been felt when we needed them the most:)

....May you all have the blessings of the SALVATION OF GOD upon you this most special season!

Joyous love!
Bob, Lori, and Hannah Grace :)

2008-12-08T12:55:00.000-08:00

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Mommy's happiest birthday ever!

2008-12-08T12:47:00.000-08:00

Birthday Wishes for Mommy

2008-12-08T12:32:00.000-08:00

2008-12-08T12:15:00.000-08:00

Me and my Dad

2008-12-08T12:04:00.000-08:00

The other night Bob and Hannah were sittting on the edge of the bathtub (Hannah, with one hand on Dad's knee and the other brushing her teeth, and Dad with one arm around Hannah), when Hannah said, "Me and my dad!" :) Isn't that precious?! I wish I had been there to hear that first hand, but it was delightful enough to hear Bob tell it :) And this is the longest sentence Hannah has spoken yet! ;)

....Hannah loves a particular story that Bob reads to her every night; it's called Me And My Dad :) The story is about a papa bear who lifts his little one high upon his shoulders, and of course, there is nothing in this world that "papa bear" cannot do:)

It happened...

2008-10-27T10:40:00.000-07:00

....After waiting so long, it happened .... I KNOW that I love my daughter! :) The "happening" was last Wednesday evening as I was trying to help Hannah to fall asleep. She was having a particularly difficult time, so I leaned over her while she lay bundled up in her bed and began stroking her hair (she relaxes so much with that). I was whispering a few words to her, and then we just were staring into each others eyes, hers so big and brown. All of a sudden, I could hear my heart saying to her..."I love you, I love you". My breath caught. Oh my! I realized at that moment that I did love Hannah....and for the first time, I really felt like a MOM. My eyes welled up, and then, in the dim light of just a night-light, I could see that her eyes were saying the same thing to me! And...oh my goodness...she smiled at me!...and then she reached up and stroked my hair ;) Tears...of joy.

...It's such a relief when you really, really know that you truely love someone! I am so grateful to God that he has answered the desire of my heart....to be a TRUE Mom. Surely He has heard and answered all of our prayers! Praise His name!

Thank you so much for your continued prayers for our family!

Love,

Lori and Bob and Hannah Grace

Hannah ADORES Freddie

2008-10-27T10:36:00.000-07:00

Hannah says, "Happy" as she walks by

2008-10-26T11:54:00.001-07:00

2008-10-26T11:53:00.000-07:00

2008-10-26T11:39:00.001-07:00

Sweet Rest

2008-10-26T11:28:00.000-07:00

Sweet rest! Ahh, isn't it wonderful?! :) Peace, quiet, gentle breathing....so lovely. It's been a time of rest for us all, and I think we are 'regrouping' and gaining strength as a family now :)

...Hannah loves her car seat...well, strike that. She loves RIDING in the car, but gets tired of being confined in that 'ole seat of hers. I'm sure she'd much prefer the "road rules" of Albania and the 'free and easy' riding there:)

Pun'kin Patch

2008-10-24T17:57:00.000-07:00

Hannah says..."pun'kin, pun'kin!" whenever she sees one. She LOVES learning knew words :)

Parties for Hannah

2008-10-24T17:47:00.000-07:00

Hannah's first Zoo experience

2008-10-24T17:34:00.001-07:00

2008-10-24T17:33:00.001-07:00

It takes time....

2008-09-11T20:25:00.001-07:00

Bob and I are so content to finally have Hannah as our daughter, but...it takes time to "fall in love" with your child. Did you know that? I didn't. I thought that the feelings of being "in love" would be automatic after so much that we have been through together, but we since have learned (through reading about bonding and attachment in adoption) that it is normal for love to grow gradually and not be there in full measure for quite some time.

Would you pray that we will be patient and kind in all our actions with Hannah? We want to be the best parents possible for her and love her, and love her...and LOVE her...to the greatest measure! :) We cherish YOUR prayers.

2008-09-11T20:12:00.000-07:00

She loves the kitties

2008-09-11T20:01:00.000-07:00

Hannah is doing so well with petting the kitties carefully. She has learned that she needs to "pet nice" and not pinch the kitties :) It's so cute when she calls...um, rather, HOLLERS....for Freddie to come in :) He seems to be her favorite.

2008-09-11T19:58:00.000-07:00

"illy", as Hannah would say...just being silly :)

2008-09-11T19:55:00.000-07:00

HANNAH!

2008-08-26T11:10:00.001-07:00

Grandma Stitt and Hannah have a chat :)

2008-08-26T11:08:00.001-07:00

Hannah meets 2nd cousin, Ryan :)

2008-08-26T11:03:00.001-07:00

Loving each other!

2008-08-18T11:09:00.000-07:00

I am hurrying to get this posted before our little darling awakens from her hour and half long nap :) She is so sweet! We simply can not BELIEVE that she is our daughter. Surely it will sink in soon?? We are bonding well with her and are amazed at the changes we see everyday in our relationship to each other. She actually wants us to stay with her now when we put her in her bed at night. That makes me happy:) Maybe soon I'll be able to read her a story up in her room...it's so nice to get those cuddles in!

... We took her to church for the first time yesterday, and she did so well! It was so good to see all our friends there. My goodness it feels like we've been away FOREVER. Everyone was so kind to be careful not to get too close to her. Hannah was just amazed to watch all the people in the congregation, and I could tell she really liked the singing! Yeehah! That's my girl! :)

We still appreciate your prayers as we adjust. THIS is a tiring job! Ha,ha...you're all saying.."We told you so!"

Love you all!
Bob and Lori and Hannah Grace

Meeting family

2008-08-18T10:58:00.000-07:00

Hannah meets cousins Schroeder and Livy
Meeting Uncle Curtis (both watermelon "nuts")
Catching Aunt Carolee and Uncle Russ on the golf course :)

Jennifer and "Fat Cat"

2008-08-18T10:54:00.000-07:00

We sure do miss you Jen. You are such a lovely person! We are keeping you in our prayers and are hoping for the most wonderful news from you soon :) God bless you! Love,
Bob and Lori and Hannah Grace Roksana

Agim...a truly kind and gentle man

2008-08-18T10:48:00.000-07:00

Agim, thank you again for all your diligence in getting all things done properly for our adoption. You are such a kind and truly gentle man. May God richly bless you for all your hard work and caring spirit. Hannah Grace Roksana is doing so well! You would hardly believe it! :) Oh, and she likes to rest her sunglasses on her head and say, "Alma!", because she remembers seeing Alma wear hers that way! Ha, ha...so funny! Thank you again dear Agim. You will always be remembered and in our prayers. Love, Bob and Lori and Hannah Grace Roksana

Wonderful friends

2008-08-18T10:42:00.000-07:00

These two dear people, Tihere and Alma, became wonderful friends. Seem pa teek Tihere :) Thank you so much for all your hard work for us in Albania! God bless you both!!

OK, so where do you want me to go?

2008-08-18T10:37:00.000-07:00

She loves pointing and telling us where to "go". I'm so glad that most of the time she wants us right beside her :)

Hannah and Mama...rocking on the porch

2008-08-18T10:36:00.000-07:00

Being crazy with Dad :)

2008-08-18T10:25:00.000-07:00

Her favorite word..."Huh?!"

2008-08-18T10:23:00.000-07:00

Bath..bath...bath...happy...happy...happy :)

2008-08-18T10:19:00.000-07:00

And when she wakes up...she smiles :)

2008-08-18T10:16:00.000-07:00

HOME at long last!

2008-08-07T17:51:00.000-07:00

We are finally HOME at last!....though weary as can be and with every drop of emotional strength 'spent'. It was an utterly exhausting series of flights, but all in all it went much better than we expected for Hannah. The little sweetheart was so good on the first two flights :) ...We just couldn't believe it! Sometimes she just seemed so 'tickled pink' :) She would run back and for at the airport, laughing and giggling while we ran after her, and then she would just smile at us :) It all caught up with her though on the third and final flight....the longest one from Frankfurt to Chicago ;( Tears came in droves as she woke from a 1 hour long nap and refused to be comforted. She just laid there on the seat between us and stared up at us with loud cries...so sad. She had such a look of grief upon her face that it just broke our hearts. Nothing would comfort her and she did not want us to touch her.

...Finally she quieted down and would let us hold her again....what relief!

Upon our arrival at Chicago (at around 4:00pm I think) we had to 'wade' through the immigration line and the baggage check point and customs, which took another 3 hours! We had not anticipated this taking so long. We were so drained, but Hannah did well (little trouper) , and we were then greeted in the lobby area by Bob's parents :) Little Hannah just stared at them and never cried. I believe she recognized them from the photos we've shown her. The ride in the car home was no problem at all! Hannah LOVED the car seat, and she's never even been in one before :)

...Well, we arrived home, home home at around 11:15pm Tuesday night, and we've been adjusting (fighting off jetlag) to this new life. It will be very sweet in the future, I'm sure....but right now everything is upside down for us. Whew, what an adjustment we have ahead of us...but we are really happy about it...just working through emotions right now.

We praise God for YOU all who have loved us and prayed for us and supported us in so many ways. We need your continued prayers, to be sure!

We'll keep you posted and soon will put new updates of Hannah Grace on this site...but for now...God BLESS YOU ALL!

Love,
Bob and Lori and Hannah Grace :)
P.S. She's sleeping right now and I can see her from where I am :)...she looks so peaceful!

Final preparations

2008-08-01T12:05:00.000-07:00

Today was a very trying day. We had to take Hannah Grace to have her blood drawn (not pleasant at all!) Truth be told, I wanted to yell at those who were doing their best...I guess, but of course, I didn't. Good thing Bob was seated while holding Hannah, because his face turned white and his lips were pale and I thought he was going to faint! Hannah SCREAMED while they attemped, in BOTH arms, to draw blood. It was aweful! Anyway, we are through that and Bob didn't faint and Hannah survived and I didn't cry. Whew!

We are so weary of running here and there for appointments and paperwork. BUT, we are so close now. Monday we go to the U.S. Embassy for the FINAL paperwork. If everything is in order.....we...will...be...FREE to leave the country with OUR DAUGHTER! YEA!!!!!!!!! :)

We are so grateful for all your prayers and ask that you would continue to pray that our scheduled flight home for August 5th will be able to take place; presantly there is a strike of our airline!

We love you all! Hey, will you also pray that Hannah Grace handles the flight home well? Thank you so much :)

Much love!
Bob and Lori and Hannah
P.S. ...we miss home

Olive trees and Castles

2008-08-01T11:36:00.000-07:00

For a little history about Sauk-Tirana :)....Olive trees have been growing on the lower mountain tops for many, many years, and up until 1990, all the land in Sauk (and where the orphanage is) was made up of vineyards owned by the communists. Albania was ruled by the communist party from 1945 to 1993 when it finally 'fell'. And now, almost the entire area of Sauk is made up of homes where once there were vineyards. The olive trees are still everywhere. The castle in the photo is of a revered Albanian hero's (Skanderbeg) sister. It resides off in the distance and in view from the orphanage. Wish we had time to go see it...but we are much too busy here.

OH Bobby

2008-08-01T11:28:00.000-07:00

Watermelon girl!

2008-08-01T11:26:00.000-07:00

OH, The JOY ;)

2008-08-01T11:22:00.000-07:00

Success on Monday!

2008-07-29T06:01:00.000-07:00

Monday was successful! We were able to get to the notary office and have a bazillion number of papers stamped and approved. Today we went to the police department and filed for a passport for Hannah Grace. Now we must wait. If all goes well we will have the passport tomorrow and then go to the U.S. Embassy on either Thursday or Monday. We also need to have a doctor check Hannah over...SO...all these appointments must be completed in order for us to fly out on the 5th. This is looking very 'iffy' at the moment. You wait and wait and wait to get appointments here. The Bethany staff does absolutely all they can to expedite the process, BUT??? We'll see. We know that God is working and we are trusting in His timing.

We love you all!
Bob and Lori and Hannah Grace

The Joy of Reunion! :)

2008-07-26T05:22:00.000-07:00

Our reunion was a quiet, wondrous event...oh my, oh my :) SHE has surely stolen our hearts away! .... She came into our room and looked at us with wide eyes of amazement, and yet, she seemed to have the understanding that she always knew we would come back for her. Wow! :) It is beyond belief to us! SHE DID NOT SHED ONE TEAR! Instead..she gently warmed up to us, and then she started....launghing...and laughing...and LAUGHING! :) Happy, happy, happy.... :)

God of Wonder...You are amazing! You answer all our prayers and truly give us the desires of our hearts :) Ok, now I'M tearing up :)

We KNOW how this has happened. God has answered the prayers of his children (thankyou dear friends and family!)

P.S. YES, we have arrived safe and sound at 11:15pm on Thursday evening :) It was a long, long flight with an almost 12 hour layover in Munich, but we survived.

Happy,Happy,Happy..la, de, da, da..la,la,la,la, :)

2008-07-26T05:20:00.000-07:00

Sauk (Sa-ook) in the morning at the orphanage

2008-07-26T05:18:00.001-07:00

Hugs & Kisses :)

2008-07-19T09:05:00.000-07:00

This is what we miss!...Hugs & kisses from our precious daughter! :) We'll be there soon Hannah Grace!

The Journey Continues....

2008-07-19T08:53:00.000-07:00

We are scheduled to fly out from Grand Rapids on Wednesday, July 23rd at 2:05pm. Yippee!! We are so excited we can hardly stand it! This time we will be able to take Hannah Grace and KEEP her :) She is OURS...and as soon as she 'warms' back up to us, we will have her sleep in the house with us and WAKE UP IN THE MORNING TOGETHER! How cool is that?! :)

....If all goes well with the U.S. Embassy process (passports, birth cirtificate, immigration papers), we will ALL be returning to the U.S. on August 5th at 3:00pm in Chicago, where Bob's parents will pick us up and drive us HOME FOR GOOD!

It's sometimes hard to breath when I think about it all.... :) My goodness!...It's just so overwhelming :)...but in a good way!

Love to all!
Bob and Lori

Back in the U.S of A!!!

2008-07-10T09:48:00.001-07:00

WHEWHOO!! We're home!!:) It was a very hectic (to say the least...!#$*! is more like it) trip on the way home to America. We are whipped from the travel (cancelled flight...missed flight..rebooking...double security checks...reclaiming of baggage that didn't need to be reclaimed and on it goes). BUT, we are home safe and sound and very grateful for every prayer that was breathed for us :)

Ahhh,....the grass has never been greener or the grocery store ever looked so HUGE. We are truely in the 'land of plenty'. ( I hope we always remember this and will have new 'eyes' to see what others not so fortunate can see).

We are getting our rest today and slowly recuperating. We feel at peace with the situation, and know that God will surely take care of OUR DAUGHTER. I still can not believe that she is ours!
I don't think I will EVER get over that :)

Well, time to rest and wait and pray and eventually get new flights booked for possibly the 22nd of this month...and hopefully, back the first week of August with Hannah Grace (Roksana). We'll post more on this site in a couple days or so.

Time to rest.....
Much love,
Bob and Lori

ADOPTION CONGRATULATIONS with the Judge

2008-07-04T12:02:00.000-07:00

The Day We Made the Judge Cry

2008-07-04T11:48:00.000-07:00

THE JUDGE CRIED! ;) During our 1 hour long court hearing this morning, the judge CRIED and hid her face to regain her composure! This was after we told her, through an interpreter, just how much we already loved Roksana (Hannah Grace). It was just amazing. We were so THANKFUL that the judge came in for the scheduled hearing, because she had been delayed by sickness earlier. Bob told her how grateful he was that she would come in as planned and conduct the hearing, even though she was ill. She said that she knew just how important this hearing was, and so she came in :) May God bless her!

AND SO....WE HAVE BEEN APPROVED AS ROKSANA'S (HANNAH GRACE) PARENTS!! Roksana's name will be changed to Hannah Grace Roksana Stitt when we get her to the good 'ole U. S. of A! WHAT A HAPPY 4th OF JULY THIS IS ;)

...We are breathing GREAT SIGHS OF RELIEF AND ARE FILLED WITH JOY, JOY, JOY :) We can hardly believe that WE HAVE A DAUGHTER?! Unbelievable!

Thank you for your continued prayers. We now fly home the 8th of July and will wait the mandatory 15 days starting tomorrow before we fly back to Albania and bring HER, our DAUGHTER, home...home...HOME

HURRAY!! Dad, Mom...and DAUGHTER!!!

2008-07-04T11:43:00.000-07:00

Kiss..Kiss :)

2008-07-04T11:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Hannah did something so funny. She was trying to stand up on top of a glass topped coffee table, and I got in front of her and looked her square in the eye, with as stern a face as I could muster, and said, “No, no!” She looked at me with a rather surprised face, and then, with a slightly tilted head, she puckered her little lips and kissed me right on the mouth J Little stinker! Ha,ha…what a funny girl! Now every time she gets chastised for something she tries to…make it all better…with a kiss :0 What a HOOT.

A FAMILY...A FAMILY...A FAMILY! :)

2008-07-01T11:21:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Hannah Grace (Roksana) said ..."keekee" when I called to a kitty we saw on the compound. Cool! TODAY she said..."Puppy!" right after we said it as we pointed to one :) She's a fast learner it seems. Of course, she won't EVER be spoiled! Jennifer says that she has us wrapped around her little finger :) We are definately FEELING like a family! I LOVE THAT WORD!....FAMILY, FAMILY, FAMILY!!! I could shout it from one of the highest mountains here :)

We are getting anxious for the Friday court hearing to be over and done with and SUCCESSFUL. We are continually thankful for your prayers! We are so amazed at how God cares for ALL his children. These little ones here are all so adorable...it just makes your heart ache to wonder what their lives will be like in years to come. Will they all have families one day??

God bless you all, and we love you!

Sometimes she pouts ;)

2008-07-01T11:14:00.000-07:00

Our girl loves to walk up and down the steps with her daddy :) She's been holding our hands now for a couple of days, and everytime she does it...it fills my heart with delight.

Precious, precious...PRECIOUS :)

2008-07-01T11:05:00.000-07:00

Bob and Lori's FAVORITE time of day :) Ahhh...Bob can actually read his paper...well, if we had newspaper that would be what he would be doing :)

Mommy and her DAUGHTER :)

2008-07-01T11:01:00.000-07:00

Isn't she the sweetest little thing you've EVER seen?! She called me Mommy, Mommy, Mommy all day yesterday...for the FIRST TIME! :)

Wild Child :)

2008-07-01T10:57:00.002-07:00

This is Hannah Grace Roksana Stitt in all her WILDNESS :) We LOVE her!!

Our Saints :)

2008-07-01T10:52:00.000-07:00

The pictures below are of the Watanabe, missionary family here at the orphanage. Bob and Cathy Watanabe have four children; Alicia is 16, Micah is 14, Aimee is 13, and Daniel is 10. Also, Jennifer Carrel, a 26 year old lovely young woman, is here as a missionary as well. They have ALL BEEN WONDERFUL to us with their support and prayers. THANK YOU! We miss you Watanabes since you left for your 2 month vacation in America :) Hope you're getting all the R & R you need! :) We are fast becoming close friends with Jennifer. We are a support for one another.

May God richly bless you all for the gift of your friendship!
Bob and Lori

Padmee...the 'missionary' dog :)

2008-06-30T12:54:00.000-07:00

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Missionaries to Bethany Orphanage in Albania

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Missionaries to Bethany Orphanage in Albania

2008-06-30T12:39:00.000-07:00

Court Hearing Progress Report

2008-06-27T11:22:00.000-07:00

Today's court hearing was very successful. PRAISE THE LORD! We have a second court date set for July 4th, one week from today. Hannah will hopefully be FREE to be ours on Independence Day. WOW! :)

We were very nervous (well, I was nervous...Bob was calm) at the hearing, but now that's it's over, we can relax! :)

Looks like it's about to storm, so we must get going back to our 'Bati House' before we get poured on :)

We love you all!!
Lori & Bob

2008-06-27T11:19:00.000-07:00

Hannah's House and Administrative Building

2008-06-26T11:27:00.000-07:00

View of Mosque and mountains from orphanage

2008-06-26T11:23:00.000-07:00