Ethiopia, Here We Come!

Oh my goodness...it's really here!  We will be leaving for Ethiopia in the morning!!  I am hoping to have the strength, energy, and wi-fi to be able to blog from Addis, but we shall see.

To say this week has been crazy is an understatement.  However, the stress and exhaustion of the week is SO worth it knowing that we will be headed out tomorrow on our physical journey to our son!

Just a little overview as to how this trip will work:

• Saturday, March 31st-drive to Tulsa, OK and fly direct to Washington DC where we spend the night
• Sunday, April 1st-board our plane in Washington DC and fly 13 hours to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
• Monday, April 2nd-arrive in Addis at 7:45 a.m, go to our guest house, call our agency contact in Addis, and then GO MEET OUR SON!!
• Tuesday, April 3rd and Wednesday, April 4th-Hang out with Bek as often as possible, take a ridiculous amount of pictures and video, and take in some of the city when he is sleeping
• Thursday, April 5th-Bek's Birthday-go to court {and hope that all our paperwork is there and that he is legally declared our son in the eyes of the Ethiopian government}, then head back to the House of Hope for Bek's 1st Birthday Party
• Friday, April 6th-Spend one last day with our boy and tell him "See you soon!", Head to the airport to depart late Friday night
• Saturday, April 7th-arrive in Washington DC {after a layover in Rome}, hang out at the DC airport for 11 hours, and then fly to Tulsa, spend the night in Tulsa
• Sunday, April 8th-drive home to be reunited with Camden and Melia on Easter

Interested in praying for us?

One of the most amazing things about this journey has been the power of prayer.  When we have been down, we've had so many prayer warriors lifting us up.  When we were restless, people petitioned for our rest.  And, it makes sense.  After all, we are commanded to pray:

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

Ephesians 6:18

If you are one of those prayer warriors on our behalf, here are some specific things that we'd love for you to lift up:

1. That Bek will quickly warm up to us and feel the insurmountable love that we truly have for him.
2. That we will get to spend such a significant amount of time with him that he will remember us when we come back to bring him home.
3. For our health.  I have really been fighting allergies this week and from what I am hearing, those who struggle with allergies in the states have an even more difficulties in Addis.  I am praying that won't be the case for me!  We also would like a hedge of protection against anything new that we might be susceptible to.
4. That all our paperwork will be in and Bek will be declared our child on Thursday.
5. For a very speedy turn-around time between court and embassy.  We would really love to be called back so quickly that we aren't yet over our jet-lag!  We've been told that it will take about 2-3 months.
6. For rest.  We are so hopeful that we won't be too tired to enjoy every second of our trip.

Thank you, friends!