Ethiopia

The trip to Ethiopia was amazing! We packed more into the 2 days in-country then I could have imagined. We hired a driver to take us around the city. (If you would like the name and number of the tour guide, please let me know. I would love to share; they were wonderful.) They took us up Mount. Entoto, where we saw the 1st christian Emperor's home and church. We shopped, ate, and explored the city with 2 children in tow. It was a busy few days, but totally fantastic!

It was so amazing being a part of my friend's "gotcha" day! Words can't even begin to explain how awesome it was. Her boys are so sweet and simply beautiful.  I tried to stand back and let the bonding between mother and child begin.  And it did!  The boys would color a picture or finish a puzzle; they would run pass me and call their mother to see what they had done. The 2 year old would close is coloring book and walk past me, so only HIS mother could see his accomplishment and praise him! It was so fun to watch the mother and child bond begin. Thank you to the V family for allowing me to be a part of your trip.

I thought I would share a few of my favorite photos from the trip.

On the way down from Mount Entoto - a woman carrying her child, selling some type of grain. Addis Ababa below

 One of the shops in the postal district.

 I love this photo of all the little old men wearing suits, hats and carrying umbrellas. (It could use a little editing and cropping.)

Ethiopia

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Spices fill the air. People, people everywhere. Loud air-polluting 1950's trucks. Animals...goats, horses, mules, dogs. Tiny shops. Dirt roads.  Construction.  Sunshine. Perfect temperature. Prayers ringing over speakers throughout the city.  Blue and White vans (taxis). Brown and orange city buses. Corrugated metal. Shacks.  Beggars. Children. Smoke. The aroma of coffee. Heavy traffic. Scarves. Beautiful brown eyes. Music. Poverty. Happiness. Sickness. Sadness. Gated communities. Smiles. Beauty. LOVE.

These are a few words that come to mind when I think of Ethiopia. I have greatly missed this country since our return. There has not been a day that has gone by without my mind traveling back. Even though my daughter is now here, I believe Ethiopia has a piece of my heart and always will.

 
I have the privilege to be traveling with a friend to pick up her two boys. I am so excited about this opportunity! She is adopting from a different agency and we will be staying in a guest house in the center of the city. This will be such a different experience than my trip to pick up my daughter, as we stayed on the outskirts of town and the hotel we stayed at was very influenced by western civilization.

So next week I will be returning to breath in the Ethiopian air and experience more of this beautiful country. Please pray that our trip is smooth and that the boys will feel peace and immediately start to bond with their mother.

Graduation

Last weekend my baby sister graduated from high school.  She was born my senior year of high school. I can't believe she is 18 and will be leaving for college this fall. I missed so much of her younger years due to college and just trying to figure out my direction in life, but I have loved having her so close the past few years. We live 15 minutes apart now. She is my kids FIRST choice when we are looking for a babysitter. We are ALL going to miss the graduate!

There was one other graduate in our family last week, my sweet little 5 year old. I must say I am so glad to have him home this summer. I don't know what I am going to do this fall when he is gone all day long at kindergarten. :(

 Here are the 100 cupcakes I made for my little sister's graduation party.

Little Miss and Mr. playing robots, yes, they designed the costumes while I made the 100 cupcakes.

I love the Christmas season! (Yes, I realize it is April.) What I love most about the season is that so many are so willing to give.  As Christmas day approaches the gift trees have very few tags left hanging as so many have granted a wish or a need of the name hanging on that tree, the donation boxes are overflowing with hats, coats and scarves, so many in cheerful moods, smiles meet at every turn.  I wish this was a feeling people kept in their hearts throughout the year, not for just a few very short months. I know many give to a charity monthly, which is fantastic. My challenge to you is to break out of your box and bring back your giving heart, keep it throughout the year, give to a family in need, a child in need, have a garage sale and donate all the proceeds to your favorite charity.
My inspiration was from a friend of mine who set up a lemonade and cupcake stand with her children last summer and all of the money donated was sent to help those suffering famine in the horn of Africa.

Do you have a favorite charity?

Friends

A few weeks ago we hopped in the car and took the kids to an indoor water park for a few days. On this getaway we meet some friends. Mrs. V and I have been in touch since early in our adoption processes, nearly 3 years, I think. It was great to finally meet in person. We have chatted and followed one another blogs for so long it felt as though we had already met. We had great conversation and had fun watching our girls play together.  Our Little Miss was reunited with Mrs. V's daughter, Miss Z. Miss Z is such a special friend to our Little Miss. They were roomies in Ethiopia. They slept in cribs side by side at HH in Ethiopia. I am so thankful we live close enough to get these two girls together once in a while.

This was our babies bedroom at HH; the crib on the right was E's and the crib on the right was Miss Z's. The crib next to the door belonged to another special little guy that lives fairly close to these two. This little heartbreaker may have two beautiful Ethiopian girls fighting for him in the future. ;) 

Special Friends then (Jan. 2011) in Ethiopia

Still friends in the U.S.A (Feb 2012)

There were 5 or 6 babies in the room our Little Miss, Miss Z, and The Heartbreaker slept in at HH. I have thought it to be amazing that 3 of the 6 ended up within hours of each other, and one of which has the same birth story as my Little Miss. 

There were two other babies in that room that had an unbelievable story. These two babies, a baby girl and boy, were brought to HH at different times and referred to families at different times. As the director, Almaz, of HH began getting the papers ready for court she realized these two babies had the same surname. Almaz researched more and realized they were first cousins; she immediately contacted the adoption agency in the U.S. to have them placed in the same  home, but it was too late. The two had already been referred to different families. Which could possibly have been across the country from one another. The agency looked up the referral information and realized they were place in the same town within a mile of one another. Truly amazing!!!!  God had already had a plan for these two. I believe God also had a plan when he placed Little Miss, Miss Z, and The Heartbreaker within a close range to one another also. 

This and That

Little Miss Shine is beginning to love books! One of my true loves is reading, so I am so glad she is enjoying it also. Her favorite book is "Hop On Pop" by Dr. Suess. I don't know how many times we have read this book since Christmas. "Hop On Pop," she says as she enters the room with the book. Little Miss also likes Sandra Boynton books. She knows that brother can read now too, so when Mom and Dad are busy, she will find brother. He enjoys reading to her as much as she loves him reading to her. 

As for the hat this is her favorite. She finds this hat everyday and brings it to either me or C and wants it on. Much of her day is spend wearing her owl hat. :)

We are planning a mini vacation, so I pulled out the suitcases to start packing. Little Miss was loving climbing in and out. While we are gone, we are planning to get together with a couple that adopted a baby from Ethiopia also. This little girl slept in the crib right next to Little Miss. It is going to be so fun to get the girls together. Mrs. V and I  have shared many emails and followed one another's blogs for the past few years as we shared our adoption journeys; I am looking forward to meeting.

As for the dresser behind Little Miss, I would like to repaint it. Any color ideas????

Bring In The Reinforcements

I have spent much time thinking about our "Obama" incident and can't help but wonder how can I teach my child how to stand up against racism. Is it possible for a caucasian woman to teach a little African American girl how to do so?  I know I can teach her to be self confident and to stand up for herself, but I cannot teach her to be an African American woman when all I know how to be is a caucasian woman. How could I possibly teach her how to be a strong AA women? I can't. I have read many books about biracial adoption and knew there were going to be issues like this. I was just so surprised how early they surface. I have come to the conclusion that it is so important for Little Miss to have an African American mentor. The unfortunate problem is the demographics in this area; 98% caucasian. This quest will be difficult, but I believe it will be worth the search.