40 days

What were you doing 40 days ago??? We were standing in a dark room lit by two small burning candles. It has been 40 days since we first held our little guy in our arms. The first time we got to see his sweet face and big beautiful brown eyes in person. We waited so long to hold him, kiss him and hug him. How long will we have to wait to have him in our arms again? 40 days....I don't know a lot of parents that have to count the days it's been since they last held, kissed, played and loved on their kids. We need our little guy home. I have a lot more hugs and kisses waiting to smother him with.

HaPpY New Year

Pajamas..pajamas...and more pajamas

I have found my favorite thing to buy for our little guy. Pajamas. They are all so cute. I can't wait for the day when he is home and I get to cuddle him in his pajamas. The other day I bought another pair and had them on our kitchen chair. I was going to take them up to his room but forgot. Caleb came home and asked me if I really bought another pair of pajamas. I told him to look away...I grabbed them and ran upstairs and put them away. Ohhhhhh how I love them.

We still have no idea at this point when we will go back for him. Our paperwork is still being translated to English, then it will be turned over to the embassy to do whatever they need to do. At this point we are waiting for an email or phone call letting us know the paper work has been filed with the embassy and then the email or call with our travel dates. Keeping our fingers crossed that we hear something soon, really soon.

Christmas = way too spoiled

We had a great Christmas and our little guy is already spoiled. It is amazing how much everyone loves him and they have yet to meet him. He was given lots of toys, clothes, a play yard, a monitor system for his room and a great picture to hang in his room. There were only a couple of times through out the day that I teared up wishing he was home. During this process I had hoped we would have had him home for this Christmas. Caleb being the great husband he is made a good point that it will be our last one without him. I spent today trying to get his room organized. I hung up all of his clothes, opened his toys and put them in the toy basket. His rooms always seems to be full of stuff. It is where we have our suitcases, donations, purchased items for our next trip in addition to all of his stuff. I actually put some of his toys into one of our spare bedrooms for the time being.

Day 3 & 4

Day 3 - Back to our trip... On the third and fourth day we decided we wanted to drive to the town (Sodo) where the orphanage is where our kids were at. We traveled 6 hours with two other couples (Jenny and Adam & Brad and his mom) and three men from Ethiopia. We had our driver, a guy from our agency and then a guy from the orphanage. Once you get out of the main city there is country side as far as the eye can see. There were wild baboons running along side the road. People walking in the streets with yellow jugs in hand. Walking for miles to go and get water. Other people walk for days to go to the market on Wed. and Sat to sell/trade what they harvest and farm. Donkeys are everywhere and used for so many things. The country is beautiful and so are the people. Every time we were in the car everyone would waive and come up to the car. Many begging for food or money. We would waive and they would waive and smile back with excitement. The families we traveled with were the best. I had the worst sinus head cold in the world. One of the girls is a nurse and had all kinds of drugs to try and help me.

     Once we got to Sodo we went and grabbed some lunch. I don't think I have ever laughed so hard. 6 white people trying to order American food. The waitress had a hard time understanding what we wanted. We ordered 3 fanta drinks, 2 beers and a water for the 6 of us. We got 3 fanta's and 3 beers. We ordered 1 spaghetti, 2 roasted chickens, and 3 beef meals. We got 1 spaghetti, 2 roasted chickens, and 2 beefs. She ended up bringing out the 3 beef once we asked for it. Butter for our rolls was impossible to get, believe me Adam asked everywhere we went. After we ate we went to see the orphanage. The orphanage has only been around for 6 mos. All of the kids were taking naps until we showed up. We took a tour. Adam played soccer with a few of the older kids. By older I mean 6 years and younger. We stayed there for a couple of hours. I ended up playing with 3 little boys in their room. I would say they were 3 or 4 years old. They would come to their door and peek out at me. I would chase them into their room and tickle each of them. They would hind in the corners of the room and under the bunk beds. It was a great time and a great workout. It was very much worth the drive down. After the orphanage we went back to the hotel. I wanted to take a nap since I was not feeling well. I slept for a few hours. Caleb and I passed on dinner. I took some night time meds and a sleeping pill and didn't wake up until the morning.

     Day 4 - Happy Thanksgiving. On our drive home it ended up taking 13 hours to get home. The taxi/van we were in had the hardest seats in the world. We ended up stopping at a lake, and a resort where we ate lunch. When we stopped for lunch it was outside. There were monkey's in the trees above out heads. They were calling out to each other the whole time we ate. One got pretty close to me because Caleb turned and tried to grab the camera but missed getting a picture of it before it was back in the tree. I am not gonna lie they kind of scared me. I kept joking that I was going to go eat in the van but deep down there was some honesty to that. We also stopped and watched a 50 year celebration in one of the towns. There were people out in a field doing traditional dances. We knew as soon as we got out of the car we would become the show but we wanted to watch the dancing. Let's just say the show was stopped because the whole crowd was watching us. Kids gathered around us and just smiled. Adam was told he had beautiful arms which made us all laugh and became a running joke. We got back in the car and kept driving. We came across wild camels next to the road. We also found greenhouses for miles. We were told they grow roses and export them to Europe. I never would have guessed.

    Once we made it back to Addis we were told the rest of the families who didn't travel were waiting for us to have a traditional Ethiopian dinner. The founder of our adoption agency had set up the dinner and was also waiting. After 13 hours of traveling it was hard going to dinner. They had traditional live music and dancers. The 6 of us sat around this TP/ dome looking thing. When they took the cover off there was a sponge like bread (injera) that covers the bottom. They bring out all different kinds of meats and a few vegetables and place them in the center. Everyone uses their hands to eat the meal. You break off a piece of the injera and then place it on top of the meat or veggie you want and pick it up and eat it. It seemed like most people in our group liked it and was willing to try it. I had one bite and my gag reflexes kicked in. Caleb tried everything that was offered. The very last thing that they brought out was the leg bone of a lamb with the tendons attached. Caleb even tried that and that is when his gag reflexes kicked in. Here is a pic of what it looks like. Yummy.

A life changing email and a shower

Sorry for the interruption in our trip but a few things have happened. Today as I was pulling into work I received an email. Not just any email but the email that we have been waiting for. The email that says "Congrats, you guys passed court today". As I read the email I started to tear up. I forwarded it on to Caleb but knew since he came to bed at 4:30 am he would not see it for a while. I emailed our agency and asked if they were kidding. I got a reply saying we really passed and we are moving forward. So what does this mean???? As of today, December 15, 2010 we are parents. He is ours forever. I went into work and called my dad. I knew he would be at work already. I had to share it with someone. As I was walking down the hall I decided I couldn't wait for Caleb to wake up. I called and woke him up. When I called I said, "I know you have not slept much but I sent you an email. The email says we passed court today." Caleb thanked me for calling and sharing the great news. I told him to get some more sleep and I would talk to him later. I still cannot believe we have officially passed court. Now all of our paperwork will be turned over to the US embassy. They have to get a few things in order before we can go over to pick him up. So for now we sit and wait for our next travel date.

Today at work a few of my friends threw a baby shower for our little guy. It was the best feeling to be able to share our great news. We made a little slide show of pictures from our trip and of our little guy. I have to say that the people / friends at work are amazing. I am thankful to have each and every one of them in my life. Here are a few pics of the gifts. My work doesn't allow cameras so I have no pictures of the actual shower, but memories to last a life time.

Here is before I had Caleb re-open them.

Here is after I had Caleb re-open them.

Ethiopia - Day 2

One our second day we were told we were going to have a meeting with all 7 families that were there with us and people from our agency. We all met at the other guesthouse. They had prepared a coffee ceremony for all of us. They served coffee, popcorn and bread with a marinara sauce spread on top. Here are a couple of pictures of the morning.

After the meeting we went with a few other families back to the care center to see our kids. It was early enough in the day that we would be able o spend more time there and with the kids. When we arrived at the care center the nanny told us that some of the kids were sleeping. We told them it wasn't going to stop us from seeing them. We walked back into the room where our little guy was and he was taking a nap. He looked so small laying in the crib. We sat just looking at him for the longest time and then I told the nannies that we have to hold him. We noticed that one of his little hands was holding onto the side of his crib.

Caleb picked him up. He was a little sleepy so he didn't cry. He just laid on Caleb. I love everything about this little guy.

Here are a few pictures of the care center and his little bed.

We had our first family of three photo taken today as well. I love looking at it. Those pictures will come soon enough on this blog. We were able to stay for about 2 hours. Our little guy just laid around, he was pretty quit and we didn't really get to see his personality shine. Spending time with him was great. He didn't cry. Once again no diaper, so Caleb and I thought for sure one of us was going to get peed on but we lucked out and both went home dry.

Ethiopia - Day 1

When we first arrived in Ethiopia two guys from our agency came and picked us up from the airport. We drove to the guesthouse. there were two families that had arrived a few days before us. We took our luggage to our room, then went down to visit with them. One of the families is adopting two girls and the other family is adopting three kids. After visiting we went up and laid down for a few minutes. One of the ladies knocked on our door asking if we wanted to go to an orphanage and then to see our kids.  We got ready to go and we headed to the local orphanage. The family who is adopting two girls once stayed at this orphanage. This orphanage was very clean and the Director seemed to have things very organized. Here are a couple of pictures of our time with the kids.

 (This is the school room)

(This little girl just wanted to hold hands and be held.)

After the visit we jumped back in the car to go see our kids. The kids had just arrived in Addis late in the afternoon. It was getting dark while driving to the care center. We were told that we would have to be quick at the care center because it was getting dark and it would be unsafe for us to be out. We drove down dirt roads, past shacks for homes and people in the streets. When we passed through the guarded gate to our care center we noticed that the power was out. (Power outages are not rare in Ethiopia.) So we walked inside the house and the main nanny greeted us with a flashlight and handshakes. She walked us all back to the room where our kids where. As we walked into the room there were only two small candles lit. One on a bunk bed and the other on the dresser. It was so dim in the room. Since the nannies had no idea which children belonged to who they asked each of us to find our kids. There were three babies in one crib all sitting up. The first lady walked in and picked up her baby. As soon as I looked in the crib there he was. He looked at me and my heart melted and I started to cry. I told the nanny that he was ours. He was in a red little outfit with no diaper on. (They don't put the kids in diapers, I think due to the expense.)  I picked him up and he was ok for a second then started to cry. I couldn't blame him. They had been in the car for 6 hours being transported and now they have new nannies and a new home. We were only there about 10 minutes before we were told we had to leave. Seeing and getting to hold him is what we have been waiting so long for. Truly amazing. We both left the house with big smiles on our faces. We went back to the guesthouse and ate dinner with everyone. Once we were in bed for the night all we could talk about was our little guy. The first 10 minutes as a family of three will never be forgotten.

Well we made it home...

Here are a few pics from our trip. Starting with Paris.

The Louvre

The Eiffel Tower

The Arch De Triomphe

Notre Dame De Paris

Here is a simple map of the area. We walked everywhere we went. Who needs the metro? Not us.

Quick update at the airport

We just landed in Amsterdam. Our next flight leaves in 2 hours and we fly into Portland, OR. Then home. We have had the most amazing week in Ethiopia. Our little guy is truly remarkable.

We're off

Off to the airport. We will get into Ethiopia tomorrow morning.

Day three in Paris

Today we walked and walked and walked all over. We first walked to the Eiffel Tower. Today was perfect weather. It was blue skies and little wind, unlike yesterday it was foggy and you couldn't see the top of the Eiffel Tower. We rode the elevator to the top. We had to stand in line after line getting to the top and back to the ground. The Eiffel Tower is huge. I don't think anyone can really understand it's magnitude unless you see it in person. From the Eiffel Tower we decided to walk to Arc De Triomphe Etoile. Once we got to it we decided to sit on a bench. It too was so much larger than either of us thought it was going to be. Watching traffic weave in and out of the round about was amusing. I was watching waiting for one of the cars to pull a Chevy Chase and never make it out. Well tomorrow we leave and head to Ethiopia. I cannot wait. Yesterday we received a new picture and measurements. Our little guy has changed so much over the last few months. The last update we received was back on 9/7/10. He is so much older but even more handsome. Two days and we get to see him.

Paris....we are here

We made it to Paris. We rode the train from the airport to our hotel. Caleb is amazing with directions and getting us to and from different places. Once we got off the train a lady stopped to ask if we needed help. I told her we were trying to get to our hotel. She called the hotel and said she would walk us to it. She asked if we were from England. The hotel is only about 5 min away from the train. Yesterday we went to see Norte Dame. Today we went to the Louvre. Seeing the Mona Lisa in person is really amazing. Tommorow we are going to the Eiffel Tower. We just got back from lunch. The girl that was going to sit us just starts talking to me in French. I turned and asked Caleb what she said as if he has ever studied French. I guess we don't stand out as Americans. Walking around really has been great. The people driving scooters are crazy. They dart in and out of traffic. I guess that's it for today.

It's here....

The last few days have flown by. Trying to get the last little things done. I ran a few more errands today and Caleb had to work. I cannot believe we leave tomorrow. I need the next week and a half to go by as slow as possible. When I get back it can speed back up until our next trip. Just think next Monday or Tuesday we will have held our son. (I tear up just thinking about it.) It felt like this day would never come.

Cort (my youngest brother) ending his weekly email on Monday with this..."PS. I can't wait to be an uncle". Are you kidding me???? Melt my heart. Even out serving a church mission you can feel his excitement for our family.

If I can I will try and post updates while away. In the meantime keep your fingers crossed that everything goes smooth. I can't wait to get back to share our story with everyone.

One....I can't believe it

So today we went to the bank to get one last paper notarized to send into the agency. We started to pack today. I think we are just about there. I have a few last things to go pick up tomorrow.  Tonight Kelly and Lisa came over. We are going to take pictures of Sammy over with u to give to the nanny and the driver that cared for Sammy and them when they went over to Ethiopia. They also gave us a baby sling to carry our little guy in. YiPpEe It was great to have them over. A very sweet family and I am so glad they are in our lives.

Happy pre Thanksgiving

Tonight we had "our" Thanksgiving with both sides of our families. There were a lot of well wishes coming our way. Tomorrow we really start packing for our trip.

Getting ohhhhh sooooo close

Tonight we went and bought a small video camera and another carry on bag. We are so close now. I woke up at 5:30 this morning thinking about our little guy. I was not dreaming about him but woke up and couldn't fall back asleep. I keep having these dreams about him and every time he just giggles and giggles.

Nothing stopping us now

GUESS WHAT?????? Yep our VISA's came in the mail today. Today was my last day at work until the 30th. I cannot wait to take some much needed time off. A little Paris vacation  then off to Africa where we get to finally meet our son. I still can't believe we leave next Wednesday. YiPpEe

No mail today

Sooooo sad....no mail means no visa's. Down to 5.

Two more days and still no Visa's

Yep, you read that right. We should be getting more excited but I am getting nervous about actually getting our Visa's. I will keep you posted. For the time being..sit back...relax...and enjoy these two pictures.

A little nuts

I am going a little nuts. Why? We still have not received our Visa's. This is the one thing causing me the most stress right now. I called The Embassy today and they said they would look into it and call me back. Well, I have not heard back yet. On a brighter note we are down to 8 days.

Two weeks...and 5 days

Until we are a mom and dad. I think it's time to go gather/pack some 

more. Why? Because we are down to 9 days.

Just 10 fingers and no more toes

I can't believe we are down to 10 days. Started to pack a little today....more like gathered more things in our little guys room that we need to take. Gotta start somewhere, right?

10...are you seeing this??? 10 days to go....

Another double day

Two more days down. We are almost to single digits.

Last two days....

I worked 12 hours yesterday then went and played volleyball for 2 hours straight from work. I was soooo tired last night to post our number. Plus this way I get to put up two numbers which makes it feel like it is going even faster. Tonight we had a conference call with BFAS and all of the other families who will be traveling with us. Many of the families I have talked to through email and Facebook. Getting to actually hear their voices made them so much more real and that this is really happening. We really will be a family of three and soon. It all seems overwhelming. I think I cry at just about anything. Just ask my sweet husband. Over the weekend he mentioned running to Target to get something I started to tear up. Hello? Yes, I am crazy. But I am crazy in love with a little boy who is clear across the world. After the conference call my mother n law called. She wants to do Thanksgiving dinner with both our families the Sunday before we leave. As she was talking to me she said that she too cries just thinking and talking about this whole thing. I am soooo thankful for her offering to do Thanksgiving before we leave. One last thing....today I was talking to Caleb on the phone as he was driving to work and he told me he bought something for our little guy last night. He then asks me to guess what it is. I guess something to do with a motorcycle. He says no. I ask if I will be able to guess it. He says no, well that's great. I didn't guess again. He said I will just have to wait for it to show up. So now I wonder what it is. It is from Overstock.com, since he had to run some tests last night for work. Hmmmm...I will keep you posted.