Conner Joins The Family

After many many months of prayers and bureaucracy and waiting we finally have Connor. The adoption will not be legal for another six months but at least he is with our family. For those who do not know all the details, Connor's biological father is Clark's brother. His brother and wife were unable to care for him and was placed in foster care at three months of age. And now, 17 months later (now 20 months old), we were able to jump through all the hoops and make him family.

The hoop jumping was not as much a problem as waiting for the system to get it together. We spent many hours scratching our heads wondering why this needed to be such a hassle. We waited for reports to be transferred, new case workers, overloaded caseworkers, caseworkers who left the agency, committees that met occasionally, court hearings, psychological reports, committees to interpret and make decisions on the reports. AAAAHHHHHHH! Whatever the case, we trust that the Lord had great timing. Only on the other side will we ever understand the ultra-lengthy and convoluted process. All the while however we were comforted in learning that the foster family had a great love for the Lord and love for him.

We finally received the go ahead to fly out to Oregon to pick up him up and bring him home. After spending a few days getting him acquainted with us - on day two he called Lisa, "Mommy" - we packed him and all his belongings up and drove cross country back to Minnesota on Nov. 21st. He is one good little traveler. A new carseat, tons of new toys, snacks galore, DVDs on our laptop, two new parents giving him undivided attention (except the one driving of course) and he was good to go.

The rest of the Crebar kids were anxiously awaiting at home for their new little brother. Every day for several months they have prayed for him to come quickly and to be part of our family. The Lord answered in His timing. It was almost comical as one day Christian asked why the Lord was taking so long. With all theological education and experience as a theologian I gave him my best answer - "I have no idea son."

The moment we stepped through the door each of the kids followed his every step, brought toys to him, and using their best "I'm talking to a baby" voice, they pestered him incessantly with, "Hey Conner, look at this." Poor little guy can't buy a second of privacy and has no need to walk as he gets carried from place to place. But he does love all the attention. We are waiting for a few years from now when all the cute niceties wear off and they can't wait to get him out of their hair. Until then, we are enjoying the answer to their prayers.

It has been an adjustment for us all. I can only wonder what it is like for him. In his little world he looks at us and speaks clearly his desires, thoughts, and needs. From our point of view, either he is speaking a strange Mongolian dialect or is "Spirit filled". Either way we can't make out anything he is attempting to communicate but "Mommy", "Dadda", and "Please". Oh yeah, and the ever popular toddler word, "No". And then there is the scream that our defense department should investigate. Conner can launch a shrill that would cause any imprisoned terrorist to talk. Best heard at O' Dark thirty in the morning. One early morning Clark suggested that we put his crib in the basement. Lisa reminded him that being investigated for child abuse would not look good on his pastoral resume.

Meal times are very interesting. He is learning new foods and we are learning new ways that toddlers can experience meal time. He gets a kick out of shoving food - particularly peas - up his nose. Clark wasn't keeping a good watch during breakfast and had to use tweezers today to pull out several pieces of stashed apple. Perhaps he is imitating our hamster and trying to store food for later. We think he set a world record for the spoon launch. At least six feet in the air. The splatter factor was at least another three feet - in all directions. One day we kept finding him eating with out his spoon. We swear we put it on his tray, several times at least. But it kept going missing. After the meal we undressed him and found two spoons down the legs of his zip up pjs. He also discovered that bowls make great hats, especially when filled with cereal or spaghetti. Also bananas feel good when you smush them on your forehead and rub them in your ears. But for us - Hurray! We so missed toddlerhood and the joy of learning patience.

All in all he is a great little guy. We love and enjoy him greatly. He is a great little hugger and kisser. One evening it was hilarious as we had the TV on and he saw a kissing scene. He turned around to us and started puckering up for kisses all around. (We changed the channel quickly.) He loves cuddling, getting tickled, being thrown and flipped on the bed (please don't tell the caseworker), and having everyone giving him razzes on his tummy. Conner can truly bust a good belly bouncing laugh. It is hard to believe how quickly has had made himself at home.

Thanks to each of you who have prayed for us and encouraged us in our journey in bringing Connor into our home. He is a blessing indeed.