Ethiopia {day 5}
I'm in a fragile place tonight as we fly away from a country that we have quickly learned to love and a boy that we love even more.
It's been another great day and one that was obviously orchestrated and ordained by God.
We started the day by meeting another adoptive couple, Zac and Amber Harder, at breakfast. The Harders were here for their second trip in the process, the one that we will now long for until it comes to fruition. They were an absolute answer to prayer for us, as their case is very similar to ours, even down to not having their MOWA letter at court, and yet, they only had 8 weeks between their two trips. I'm trying not to be too set on a time frame, as that is what typically sends me over the edge, but, they were so encouraging to us nonetheless! Speaking of the MOWA letter, they were unable to get it again today. We were sad, but not completely surprised. We are cautiously optimistic that they will be able to get it next week.
Bek had another amazing day! He was crying again in his room when we got there and when we got him from his room, he stopped immediately. He was quiet for a bit and acted a little tired, but still wanted down to steal the toys from the other babies and play "escape" {a game where he crawls around all the obstacles to try to escape the rainbow room}. After we'd been there about an hour and a half, we fed him his cereal and then played some more until he got a little fussy and I bounced him to sleep. I then took him to his room to finish his nap so that we could go eat lunch.
We had lunch with Kristine and the Harders at the Downtown Cafe where we shared pizza and conversation. I know I've said it before, but it is worth mentioning again that we have been so blessed with the friendships we have made and cultivated here in Addis. These are friends that we will always share this connection with who have the same passion as we do for orphans. Just another added bonus in this amazing journey.
We returned from lunch to bottle time. Bek was in his crib laying on his side with droopy, sleepy eyes, a bottle propped up on his blanket so that it would stay in his mouth. I walked into his nursery and held his hand while he drank. It was an amazing, tender moment between mommy and son.
When he was done, I picked him up and took him to the rainbow room, where we had the best afternoon. He was happy and cuddly and rambunctious and sweet and ornery all rolled up into this perfect little boy that God has chosen for our family.
Although tonight as we fly 36000 feet above Africa my heart is breaking and I am longing to hold my sweet boy, I know that this is just a moment in time. We have been chosen for a difficult process that will help to complete our family and bring glory to God. We are so thankful for our Savior, for when we are weak, He is strong. And soon, our sweet boy will be with our family forever.
Showing posts with label Court trip. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Court trip. Show all posts
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Ethiopia {day 4, part 2}
Ethiopia {day 4, part 2}
Happy birthday, sweet baby Bek! We had hoped to get to have our adoption day and your birthday be the same, but it seems like God would rather you have two separate days to party!!
So, after our disappointing news that we had not passed court, we were pretty downtrodden as we headed to the House of Hope to visit our boy. We made a stop at a kitchen "store" and to get some unroasted coffee beans, but we were still upset and stayed in the van with Leslie and Kristine. While we waited, the cutest little boy (maybe about 8 years old) came up to the van, flashed us a big smile, and stuck his hand in the van. Leslie handed him two suckers and you would have thought he'd won the lottery! He took off cheering, only to return a few minutes later. Leslie just gave him the whole bag of dum-dums then and he whooped and ran home. When we left, we drove by his family where he was waving so big, his little sister beside him with a sucker in her mouth, and his mother weeping behind them. We decided maybe he would sell them to help with the bills. It is a whole different world here.
After the stop, we were finally on our way to see the birthday boy. When we got there, his nanny was feeding him cereal, and he looked at us and stared while we smiled and waved. We went into the room (that our group has dubbed the "rainbow room") and then I went down to get pictures of the toddler boys. At that point, Hermella told me that Bek was done eating and I could go get him. I could hear him crying from downstairs (yep, I already recognize his cry!), so I raced up the stairs and got him from his room, and (can you believe it?) he stopped crying! This was the beginning of what was a VERY good day with our boy! We believe Bek could tell we'd had a hard morning and that we needed to have a great day with him.
We changed him into his birthday outfit that we brought for him and he totally came out of his shell! Throughout the course of the 5 hours we were at the HOH, we watched our boy reach for both of us multiple times, get down to crawl, smile, smile, smile, laugh, babble, say "mama", "dada", and "nana", cruise along the chair, and walk with us holding both hands and then one hand! I am still in awe about the amazing day God gave us with our little boy.
In addition, we had some birthday festivities including a coffee ceremony, popcorn, the Happy Birthday song from all the new parents, three of the nannies, and Hermella, and zebra cakes for the adults. It was really just the most special birthday! When our five hours were over, we brought Bek back to his room and said our goodbyes. Today was by far the most difficult goodbye, though I think tomorrow will take over that dposition. Two of the families left today, which means they said goodbye until embassy, anywhere from 2 to 4 months. It was difficult to see their pain as they said good-bye to their babies, and I was reminded that we will be feeling the same heartache tomorrow.
I am so thankful for this process and for the beautiful boy that it is bringing into our family. Although it is extremely difficult, it has changed me. I'm NOT strong enough for all this hurt and heartache. I CANNOT do it on my own. I am so thankful for my savior that picks me up, dusts me off, and carries me through when I can't do it on my own.
Happy birthday, sweet baby Bek! We had hoped to get to have our adoption day and your birthday be the same, but it seems like God would rather you have two separate days to party!!
So, after our disappointing news that we had not passed court, we were pretty downtrodden as we headed to the House of Hope to visit our boy. We made a stop at a kitchen "store" and to get some unroasted coffee beans, but we were still upset and stayed in the van with Leslie and Kristine. While we waited, the cutest little boy (maybe about 8 years old) came up to the van, flashed us a big smile, and stuck his hand in the van. Leslie handed him two suckers and you would have thought he'd won the lottery! He took off cheering, only to return a few minutes later. Leslie just gave him the whole bag of dum-dums then and he whooped and ran home. When we left, we drove by his family where he was waving so big, his little sister beside him with a sucker in her mouth, and his mother weeping behind them. We decided maybe he would sell them to help with the bills. It is a whole different world here.
After the stop, we were finally on our way to see the birthday boy. When we got there, his nanny was feeding him cereal, and he looked at us and stared while we smiled and waved. We went into the room (that our group has dubbed the "rainbow room") and then I went down to get pictures of the toddler boys. At that point, Hermella told me that Bek was done eating and I could go get him. I could hear him crying from downstairs (yep, I already recognize his cry!), so I raced up the stairs and got him from his room, and (can you believe it?) he stopped crying! This was the beginning of what was a VERY good day with our boy! We believe Bek could tell we'd had a hard morning and that we needed to have a great day with him.
We changed him into his birthday outfit that we brought for him and he totally came out of his shell! Throughout the course of the 5 hours we were at the HOH, we watched our boy reach for both of us multiple times, get down to crawl, smile, smile, smile, laugh, babble, say "mama", "dada", and "nana", cruise along the chair, and walk with us holding both hands and then one hand! I am still in awe about the amazing day God gave us with our little boy.
In addition, we had some birthday festivities including a coffee ceremony, popcorn, the Happy Birthday song from all the new parents, three of the nannies, and Hermella, and zebra cakes for the adults. It was really just the most special birthday! When our five hours were over, we brought Bek back to his room and said our goodbyes. Today was by far the most difficult goodbye, though I think tomorrow will take over that dposition. Two of the families left today, which means they said goodbye until embassy, anywhere from 2 to 4 months. It was difficult to see their pain as they said good-bye to their babies, and I was reminded that we will be feeling the same heartache tomorrow.
I am so thankful for this process and for the beautiful boy that it is bringing into our family. Although it is extremely difficult, it has changed me. I'm NOT strong enough for all this hurt and heartache. I CANNOT do it on my own. I am so thankful for my savior that picks me up, dusts me off, and carries me through when I can't do it on my own.
Ethiopia {day 4, part 1}
Ethiopia {day 4}
This morning we woke up with nervous anticipation. Having been told that the judge didn't have our MOWA letter really put a damper on the day, but we knew it was a possibility that our letter could have arrived within the previous 24 hours. In addition, Muslim prayer and chanting over an insanely loud speaker had kept both of us awake the majority of the night. Our dinner from last night gave both of us a healthy dose of heartburn and me a bit of an upset stomach. Needless to say, we had a rough start. We ate breakfast and waited, and waited, and waited to be picked up for court. Traffic was crazy today, so that made our driver quite late picking us all up for court.
Once we got there, the guards in the front of the building checked our bags and patted us down and then we walked into this very narrow building where Hermella led us up several flights of stairs (4 maybe?) into the "court room", which was a room about 10 by 15 feet. We all 7 sat down in the room with Hermella, the judge, and two other women (employed by the court, but I have no idea who they were). One of the unknown women took our passports to the judge and we got started. The judge asked which family was there for each child, we raised our hand when it was our child's name, and then she asked if we had other children, how old, if they knew about the adoption and if they were ok with it. She then asked us all yes or no questions collectively...things like "did you educate yourself about international adoption?" and "is this the child that was referred to you?". All were yes or no questions that we, of course, all answered yes to. Then, the judge said the name of the first two families, the Dorrs and the Turners, and declaired their babies were theirs. She then looked at our paperwork, said something about how our file was incomplete and that there was no proof from the region that he was adoptable and that we should not even be there. Ugh! She then went on to declare Kristine Shrauger's daughter hers.
We were reeling. Tears started to fall and I had no control over them. We knew that the MOWA letter might not be there, but to say that we were missing something from the region? It was just so frustrating and confusing. The best way sweet Hermella could explain it was that the MOWA had received our regional letter, but that they had not gone through our file to write us the letter of endorsement. She was also confused about the judge saying we shouldn't be there because the judge is the one who gave us our court date.
Have I mentioned at any point in the last couple of years how frustrating this process is?!
So, now we wait {again}...
This morning we woke up with nervous anticipation. Having been told that the judge didn't have our MOWA letter really put a damper on the day, but we knew it was a possibility that our letter could have arrived within the previous 24 hours. In addition, Muslim prayer and chanting over an insanely loud speaker had kept both of us awake the majority of the night. Our dinner from last night gave both of us a healthy dose of heartburn and me a bit of an upset stomach. Needless to say, we had a rough start. We ate breakfast and waited, and waited, and waited to be picked up for court. Traffic was crazy today, so that made our driver quite late picking us all up for court.
Once we got there, the guards in the front of the building checked our bags and patted us down and then we walked into this very narrow building where Hermella led us up several flights of stairs (4 maybe?) into the "court room", which was a room about 10 by 15 feet. We all 7 sat down in the room with Hermella, the judge, and two other women (employed by the court, but I have no idea who they were). One of the unknown women took our passports to the judge and we got started. The judge asked which family was there for each child, we raised our hand when it was our child's name, and then she asked if we had other children, how old, if they knew about the adoption and if they were ok with it. She then asked us all yes or no questions collectively...things like "did you educate yourself about international adoption?" and "is this the child that was referred to you?". All were yes or no questions that we, of course, all answered yes to. Then, the judge said the name of the first two families, the Dorrs and the Turners, and declaired their babies were theirs. She then looked at our paperwork, said something about how our file was incomplete and that there was no proof from the region that he was adoptable and that we should not even be there. Ugh! She then went on to declare Kristine Shrauger's daughter hers.
We were reeling. Tears started to fall and I had no control over them. We knew that the MOWA letter might not be there, but to say that we were missing something from the region? It was just so frustrating and confusing. The best way sweet Hermella could explain it was that the MOWA had received our regional letter, but that they had not gone through our file to write us the letter of endorsement. She was also confused about the judge saying we shouldn't be there because the judge is the one who gave us our court date.
Have I mentioned at any point in the last couple of years how frustrating this process is?!
So, now we wait {again}...
Ethiopia {day 3}
Ethiopia {day 3}
We are heading to bed tonight at the conclusion of our third day here in Ethiopia with a bit of frustration. We will attend court in less than 12 hours and we were told today that we are the only family in our travel group that does not have our letter from the federal ministry of women, youth, and children's affairs {MOWYCA}. This is the letter that shows that our dossier has been reviewed and that we are approved to adopt in Ethiopia. If this letter is not at court, we will have done our part and will have to wait until the letter is written to be considered his parents. I am thankful for the heads up, thankful for the prayers of our friends and family through our request on Facebook, and thankful for the prayer circle comprised of our new friends here in Ethiopia on our behalf. We are very blessed even in our frustrations.
We visited Bek today for a couple of hours. He was still uneasy, but is getting more used to us. We found a good tickle spot and used it to get several smiles today. Though he still obviously prefers his nannies and friends, he is warming up to us and I don't think he was as scared today. He ate all his cereal at lunch time today, but was fussier about it than yesterday. Once he was done with his lunch, Trevor scooped him up and he fell asleep quickly in his daddy's arms. I am a little emotional today anticipating leaving him in just two days. It does not feel like we've had long enough with him, yet I miss my kids at home terribly. I'm ready to be home, but long so badly for us to all be together as a complete family. Soon.
One thing we got to do today was bring all the donations that we brought to the House of Hope {thank you so much to those of you who donated!!}. Between the four families, we had six crib mobiles which we put together and placed on cribs before getting the babies this morning. We also had cocoa butter, lotion, about a bazillion pairs of socks, and tons of wipes along with some toys we brought for the older kids. I also got to take my friend, Emily's little guy his presents from his parents. He loved the presents, but his favorite, by far, was the book she made for him with their pictures in it. He pointed and said "Mommy!" and "Daddy!" as if he knew them. It was so incredibly precious!
We left for lunch at about 2:00 and our in-country contact, Hermella, joined us for lunch and shopping. We ate at a yummy restaurant called Island Breeze and then went shopping at the post office area. We bought some souvenirs and then headed back to the guest house. Once we got back, we walked to the hotel to check for wifi {which was non-existent again} and then came back for a while before going out to dinner. We ate at a place called MKs, where we had burgers and crepes {really taking in the Ethiopian culture;) }. It was pretty good, though it feels like we eat too much around here! Food prices are amazing here...at a nice restaurant, we pay about what we'd pay for one of us to eat in the US.
Ethiopia is such an interesting country. In some ways what we've experienced in Addis Ababa reminds me of Chinatown in NYC, particularly the shopping experience. However, it is a huge city! It's pretty dusty and dirty {it has rained here so it's been muddy in some places}, but they have great pride. The people here are so friendly and make us feel so welcome, even though we are obviously tourists. There are some things that have struck us as funny...the rationed toilet paper and expected tipping for everything, the food (bobo sandwich), the bargaining while shopping, the donkeys, oxen, and goats along the road; and some things that have struck us as sad...the beggars and general poverty peppered in amongst large, beautiful buildings. We gleaned a lot of information about our son's birth country from Hermella today at lunch. It was such a pleasure to be able to spend some time with someone who has worked so hard on our behalf and who loves our children day to day. I also have to say that we are so blessed with our travel group. We have had a blast with Leslie and Ryan, Julie and Jay, and Kristine. It is obvious that God orchestrated our group to be together for this portion of the journey and we are so thankful for our new friends!
We are heading to bed tonight at the conclusion of our third day here in Ethiopia with a bit of frustration. We will attend court in less than 12 hours and we were told today that we are the only family in our travel group that does not have our letter from the federal ministry of women, youth, and children's affairs {MOWYCA}. This is the letter that shows that our dossier has been reviewed and that we are approved to adopt in Ethiopia. If this letter is not at court, we will have done our part and will have to wait until the letter is written to be considered his parents. I am thankful for the heads up, thankful for the prayers of our friends and family through our request on Facebook, and thankful for the prayer circle comprised of our new friends here in Ethiopia on our behalf. We are very blessed even in our frustrations.
We visited Bek today for a couple of hours. He was still uneasy, but is getting more used to us. We found a good tickle spot and used it to get several smiles today. Though he still obviously prefers his nannies and friends, he is warming up to us and I don't think he was as scared today. He ate all his cereal at lunch time today, but was fussier about it than yesterday. Once he was done with his lunch, Trevor scooped him up and he fell asleep quickly in his daddy's arms. I am a little emotional today anticipating leaving him in just two days. It does not feel like we've had long enough with him, yet I miss my kids at home terribly. I'm ready to be home, but long so badly for us to all be together as a complete family. Soon.
One thing we got to do today was bring all the donations that we brought to the House of Hope {thank you so much to those of you who donated!!}. Between the four families, we had six crib mobiles which we put together and placed on cribs before getting the babies this morning. We also had cocoa butter, lotion, about a bazillion pairs of socks, and tons of wipes along with some toys we brought for the older kids. I also got to take my friend, Emily's little guy his presents from his parents. He loved the presents, but his favorite, by far, was the book she made for him with their pictures in it. He pointed and said "Mommy!" and "Daddy!" as if he knew them. It was so incredibly precious!
We left for lunch at about 2:00 and our in-country contact, Hermella, joined us for lunch and shopping. We ate at a yummy restaurant called Island Breeze and then went shopping at the post office area. We bought some souvenirs and then headed back to the guest house. Once we got back, we walked to the hotel to check for wifi {which was non-existent again} and then came back for a while before going out to dinner. We ate at a place called MKs, where we had burgers and crepes {really taking in the Ethiopian culture;) }. It was pretty good, though it feels like we eat too much around here! Food prices are amazing here...at a nice restaurant, we pay about what we'd pay for one of us to eat in the US.
Ethiopia is such an interesting country. In some ways what we've experienced in Addis Ababa reminds me of Chinatown in NYC, particularly the shopping experience. However, it is a huge city! It's pretty dusty and dirty {it has rained here so it's been muddy in some places}, but they have great pride. The people here are so friendly and make us feel so welcome, even though we are obviously tourists. There are some things that have struck us as funny...the rationed toilet paper and expected tipping for everything, the food (bobo sandwich), the bargaining while shopping, the donkeys, oxen, and goats along the road; and some things that have struck us as sad...the beggars and general poverty peppered in amongst large, beautiful buildings. We gleaned a lot of information about our son's birth country from Hermella today at lunch. It was such a pleasure to be able to spend some time with someone who has worked so hard on our behalf and who loves our children day to day. I also have to say that we are so blessed with our travel group. We have had a blast with Leslie and Ryan, Julie and Jay, and Kristine. It is obvious that God orchestrated our group to be together for this portion of the journey and we are so thankful for our new friends!
Ethiopia {day 2}
Ethiopia {day 2}
We're in for the night and it's been a good, full day! We started the morning at breakfast, meeting the fourth family in our little entourage. With our backpacks and cameras and white skin, there is no mistaking the fact that we are tourists! We sat and visited after breakfast, waiting until about 10:30 for our driver to come pick us up. There are other people staying here aside from us four families and we had the opportunity to meet several of them this morning: a couple waiting on a marriage license so that they can get married (he's from the states, she's from here), a couple from Denmark here adopting their first child, and an intriguing British "bloke" who is working on a project with the hospital to expand their facial reconstruction facility.
Once the driver arrived, we loaded up the van and headed to see our babies. The couple that arrived this morning met their 8 month old twins for the first time. They were so sweet with such a mild, content disposition. Bek was crying when they brought him to us, but, unlike yesterday, we were able to easily calm him. He was pretty content this morning. We gave him his "who loves baby?" book and he took a long time staring at the pictures in the book, pointing to each one. He didn't let go of it for the whole visit. We got to feed him lunch again. He ate super fast without crying or spitting it (another improvement) and then we just cuddled and talked to him. He did seem to be feeling better, but was pretty serious all morning.
We left for lunch and ate at the Downtown Cafe and Restaurant, Hermella's favorite. We all got pizza and it was pretty good. We only took an hour away from our kids to do this and then our driver was back and we sped back to the HOH.
Bek was more fussy the second visit. He felt hot and I wondered if his fever was back. He whimpered more and chewed on his finger and on a toy that he borrowed from one of the other babies. {note to adoptive parents: bring several toys on the first trip!}. He was ok by about 30 minutes in, so I left him with Trevor and went to take pictures and video of some of the other babies {paying it forward for all the times we have received pictures of our little man from other families}. This was a super fun experience! I got good pictures and a little video of each of the five babies. Those nannies sure do love the babies and they made each baby smile for the camera. So sweet! I then went downstairs to spend time with and take pictures and video of the two toddlers whose mamas have become my friends and adoptive support through this process. This was a super special time for me as I got to love on the boys and let them know that their parents were coming for them soon. They were both so full of personality and really just the best of buddies.
Once I was done with pictures, I went back into the room to hold my sweet baby again. He was so hot, so I took off his shirt since he also had a onesie on and we sat in front of the fan on the floor. He sat on my lap and then pulled to standing, holding onto me for support. This was the first initiative he has taken in regards to doing something by himself, so we were thrilled. He also smiled more while we were hanging out on the floor, which warmed this mama's heart. Our time was up, so we took him back to the playroom and headed out for the day.
Tonight, our little team of four adoptive families went to eat at a traditional Ethiopian restaurant, complete with Ethiopian dance. The food was yummy {though I prefer Blue Nile in KC}, and the dance was, well, traditional and interesting. It was a good experience for sure. Tomorrow, we will visit Bek for a while and then go shopping. I'm super excited to be able to get him (and Camden and Melia) some traditional Ethiopian things for him to have for years to come!:)
We're in for the night and it's been a good, full day! We started the morning at breakfast, meeting the fourth family in our little entourage. With our backpacks and cameras and white skin, there is no mistaking the fact that we are tourists! We sat and visited after breakfast, waiting until about 10:30 for our driver to come pick us up. There are other people staying here aside from us four families and we had the opportunity to meet several of them this morning: a couple waiting on a marriage license so that they can get married (he's from the states, she's from here), a couple from Denmark here adopting their first child, and an intriguing British "bloke" who is working on a project with the hospital to expand their facial reconstruction facility.
Once the driver arrived, we loaded up the van and headed to see our babies. The couple that arrived this morning met their 8 month old twins for the first time. They were so sweet with such a mild, content disposition. Bek was crying when they brought him to us, but, unlike yesterday, we were able to easily calm him. He was pretty content this morning. We gave him his "who loves baby?" book and he took a long time staring at the pictures in the book, pointing to each one. He didn't let go of it for the whole visit. We got to feed him lunch again. He ate super fast without crying or spitting it (another improvement) and then we just cuddled and talked to him. He did seem to be feeling better, but was pretty serious all morning.
We left for lunch and ate at the Downtown Cafe and Restaurant, Hermella's favorite. We all got pizza and it was pretty good. We only took an hour away from our kids to do this and then our driver was back and we sped back to the HOH.
Bek was more fussy the second visit. He felt hot and I wondered if his fever was back. He whimpered more and chewed on his finger and on a toy that he borrowed from one of the other babies. {note to adoptive parents: bring several toys on the first trip!}. He was ok by about 30 minutes in, so I left him with Trevor and went to take pictures and video of some of the other babies {paying it forward for all the times we have received pictures of our little man from other families}. This was a super fun experience! I got good pictures and a little video of each of the five babies. Those nannies sure do love the babies and they made each baby smile for the camera. So sweet! I then went downstairs to spend time with and take pictures and video of the two toddlers whose mamas have become my friends and adoptive support through this process. This was a super special time for me as I got to love on the boys and let them know that their parents were coming for them soon. They were both so full of personality and really just the best of buddies.
Once I was done with pictures, I went back into the room to hold my sweet baby again. He was so hot, so I took off his shirt since he also had a onesie on and we sat in front of the fan on the floor. He sat on my lap and then pulled to standing, holding onto me for support. This was the first initiative he has taken in regards to doing something by himself, so we were thrilled. He also smiled more while we were hanging out on the floor, which warmed this mama's heart. Our time was up, so we took him back to the playroom and headed out for the day.
Tonight, our little team of four adoptive families went to eat at a traditional Ethiopian restaurant, complete with Ethiopian dance. The food was yummy {though I prefer Blue Nile in KC}, and the dance was, well, traditional and interesting. It was a good experience for sure. Tomorrow, we will visit Bek for a while and then go shopping. I'm super excited to be able to get him (and Camden and Melia) some traditional Ethiopian things for him to have for years to come!:)
Ethiopia {day 1}
Ethiopia {day 1}
It's 4:30 on Tuesday morning here and Trevor and I are wide awake. We tried to shift our bodies to Ethiopian time, but after only sleeping 40 minutes in a 24 hour period including a 13 hour plane ride, two trips to the HOH to meet and spend time with Bek, checking into our guest house, and a meal at the restaurant, we were spent! We went to bed last night at 5:30 and were sound asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillow! In a cruel trick, we woke up at 10:30 p.m. and thought that it was 5:30 a.m. Trevor even got up to take a shower and then realized that it was still night. Anyway, after sleeping 9 hours, we feel like we're on track to get into Ethiopian time by bedtime tonight:)
On our initial impressions of Ethiopia:
It hit me on Sunday morning in Washington DC as we were standing in line at the Ethiopian airlines gate that we were truly headed to Africa. As a couple who is not very well travelled, we really didn't know what to expect. I suppose some of what we saw when we were landing yesterday morning was what I would consider stereotypical Africa...beautiful horizons and strikingly lush yet dusty landscapes. However, once we landed in Addis, it was clear that this is a big city in Ethiopia and with it comes lots of people! Once we got our luggage {which all made it except for one of the couple's duffle of donations}, we headed through "security". The security guard asked us what was in our luggage and when we told him clothes and toiletries, he told us just to go on through, no luggage check, no body scan, no removal of shoes, just expedited right to the front of the line. Perhaps our looks of jetlag and general bewilderment made us seem safe.
Once through the gate, we quickly found our driver from our guest house, got loaded up in the cars and headed to our space. The driving here is CRAZY!! The infrastructure leaves something to be desired, with many unpaved streets and no signs or lights to indicate to drivers when to stop, yield, etc. We did come up to a particularly busy intersection where some uniformed men (police officers?) were directing traffic. It's just a good thing their car horns work and they are used to driving in this traffic and squeezing into tight spaces! Another thing I noticed is that, in America, we get angry or irritated if someone honks their horn at us, but here in ET, it's just how they communicate. We saw some very-near misses, but no one seemed upset, they just sort of smiled and plowed on through.
Anyway, we arrived at our guest house around 9:00 a.m. and, although we'd already been fed breakfast on the plane, the lady at our guest house brought us to breakfast, where I had some yummy fresh pineapple juice. They are very hospitable here!
On meeting Bek:
Once settled, we called our in-country contact, Hermella, and she had the TDS (our guest house) driver bring us to the HOH where Bek is. Our hearts were fluttering, to say the least, and the first little one I saw was my friend, Emily's little guy. He stood in the doorway of a little room and waved great big and my heart was already melted!! Hermella then led all three families {us, the Dorrs, and Kristine} up the stairs to the meeting room and we traded cameras.
Kristine's little girl came first, followed by our sweet baby boy. He was clinging tightly to Hermella, so we spoke to him for a minute and then took him. He looked so scared and just stared for a minute, and then he started to cry. Now, I don't mean a little whimper, oh no...our boy has some lungs!! We bounced him around and spoke sweetly to him and told him he was ours and we loved him so much. But, poor little guy didn't want to hear it! We passed him back and forth for what seemed like an hour {I honestly have no idea how long it was} while he screamed, chewed on his finger, and dug at his little ears. We noticed right away that his two little bottom teeth had just broken the surface and I am kicking myself for not bringing baby oragel and an antibiotic for what I'm sure is an ear infection :(.
Anyway, he finally cried himself to sleep and I held my own sleeping baby for the first time. It was wonderful! About 30 minutes or so later, Hermella came in with our kids' lunches, so we woke him to feed him what appeared to be rice cereal with cheese {yum, yum!}. He quickly ate every last bite with me holding him and Trevor feeding him. He cried through the whole meal, randomly spitting the baby food on me (I consider it an induction into being his mother) and, when he was finished, Hermella cleaned his face and I swooped him up and held him close, telling him over and over again that he was such a good boy, that he'd slept good and had eaten good, that we loved him. And, he stopped crying {cue hallelujah chorus}!
Trevor then held him for a while and he was a whole different baby, totally relaxed in his daddy's arms. The crying was over except the occasional whimper while he chewed his finger and pulled on his ear. We then took him back to his room for nap time and headed to the TDS hotel for lunch. Hermella told us we could skip the afternoon visit if we wanted to, but we just had her give us an hour for lunch and then come back to get us.
So, we went back for round 2. It was much better this time, though he acted pretty lethargic. He really really liked Trevor this time. We went into the infant playroom and sat on the floor with the three babies. We were all so tired we were somewhat delirious this time. Trevor laid on the floor and Bek laid on his chest for a long time, just chillin and loving on his dad. So sweet! Once 5:00 hit, Hermella told us our time was up, so we returned him to his room and headed toward the van. As we were leaving, we walked with the Dorrs as they returned their daughter to the toddler playroom to play with baby Moses and baby Epheim. I took the opportunity to take a couple of pictures of the cute little guys and then we loaded up in the van and headed back to TDS for the night.
It's 4:30 on Tuesday morning here and Trevor and I are wide awake. We tried to shift our bodies to Ethiopian time, but after only sleeping 40 minutes in a 24 hour period including a 13 hour plane ride, two trips to the HOH to meet and spend time with Bek, checking into our guest house, and a meal at the restaurant, we were spent! We went to bed last night at 5:30 and were sound asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillow! In a cruel trick, we woke up at 10:30 p.m. and thought that it was 5:30 a.m. Trevor even got up to take a shower and then realized that it was still night. Anyway, after sleeping 9 hours, we feel like we're on track to get into Ethiopian time by bedtime tonight:)
On our initial impressions of Ethiopia:
It hit me on Sunday morning in Washington DC as we were standing in line at the Ethiopian airlines gate that we were truly headed to Africa. As a couple who is not very well travelled, we really didn't know what to expect. I suppose some of what we saw when we were landing yesterday morning was what I would consider stereotypical Africa...beautiful horizons and strikingly lush yet dusty landscapes. However, once we landed in Addis, it was clear that this is a big city in Ethiopia and with it comes lots of people! Once we got our luggage {which all made it except for one of the couple's duffle of donations}, we headed through "security". The security guard asked us what was in our luggage and when we told him clothes and toiletries, he told us just to go on through, no luggage check, no body scan, no removal of shoes, just expedited right to the front of the line. Perhaps our looks of jetlag and general bewilderment made us seem safe.
Once through the gate, we quickly found our driver from our guest house, got loaded up in the cars and headed to our space. The driving here is CRAZY!! The infrastructure leaves something to be desired, with many unpaved streets and no signs or lights to indicate to drivers when to stop, yield, etc. We did come up to a particularly busy intersection where some uniformed men (police officers?) were directing traffic. It's just a good thing their car horns work and they are used to driving in this traffic and squeezing into tight spaces! Another thing I noticed is that, in America, we get angry or irritated if someone honks their horn at us, but here in ET, it's just how they communicate. We saw some very-near misses, but no one seemed upset, they just sort of smiled and plowed on through.
Anyway, we arrived at our guest house around 9:00 a.m. and, although we'd already been fed breakfast on the plane, the lady at our guest house brought us to breakfast, where I had some yummy fresh pineapple juice. They are very hospitable here!
On meeting Bek:
Once settled, we called our in-country contact, Hermella, and she had the TDS (our guest house) driver bring us to the HOH where Bek is. Our hearts were fluttering, to say the least, and the first little one I saw was my friend, Emily's little guy. He stood in the doorway of a little room and waved great big and my heart was already melted!! Hermella then led all three families {us, the Dorrs, and Kristine} up the stairs to the meeting room and we traded cameras.
Kristine's little girl came first, followed by our sweet baby boy. He was clinging tightly to Hermella, so we spoke to him for a minute and then took him. He looked so scared and just stared for a minute, and then he started to cry. Now, I don't mean a little whimper, oh no...our boy has some lungs!! We bounced him around and spoke sweetly to him and told him he was ours and we loved him so much. But, poor little guy didn't want to hear it! We passed him back and forth for what seemed like an hour {I honestly have no idea how long it was} while he screamed, chewed on his finger, and dug at his little ears. We noticed right away that his two little bottom teeth had just broken the surface and I am kicking myself for not bringing baby oragel and an antibiotic for what I'm sure is an ear infection :(.
Anyway, he finally cried himself to sleep and I held my own sleeping baby for the first time. It was wonderful! About 30 minutes or so later, Hermella came in with our kids' lunches, so we woke him to feed him what appeared to be rice cereal with cheese {yum, yum!}. He quickly ate every last bite with me holding him and Trevor feeding him. He cried through the whole meal, randomly spitting the baby food on me (I consider it an induction into being his mother) and, when he was finished, Hermella cleaned his face and I swooped him up and held him close, telling him over and over again that he was such a good boy, that he'd slept good and had eaten good, that we loved him. And, he stopped crying {cue hallelujah chorus}!
Trevor then held him for a while and he was a whole different baby, totally relaxed in his daddy's arms. The crying was over except the occasional whimper while he chewed his finger and pulled on his ear. We then took him back to his room for nap time and headed to the TDS hotel for lunch. Hermella told us we could skip the afternoon visit if we wanted to, but we just had her give us an hour for lunch and then come back to get us.
So, we went back for round 2. It was much better this time, though he acted pretty lethargic. He really really liked Trevor this time. We went into the infant playroom and sat on the floor with the three babies. We were all so tired we were somewhat delirious this time. Trevor laid on the floor and Bek laid on his chest for a long time, just chillin and loving on his dad. So sweet! Once 5:00 hit, Hermella told us our time was up, so we returned him to his room and headed toward the van. As we were leaving, we walked with the Dorrs as they returned their daughter to the toddler playroom to play with baby Moses and baby Epheim. I took the opportunity to take a couple of pictures of the cute little guys and then we loaded up in the van and headed back to TDS for the night.
Friday, March 30, 2012
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
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:
- That Bek will quickly warm up to us and feel the insurmountable love that we truly have for him.
- 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.
- 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.
- That all our paperwork will be in and Bek will be declared our child on Thursday.
- 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.
- For rest. We are so hopeful that we won't be too tired to enjoy every second of our trip.
Thank you, friends!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
