Ethiopian Air - Flight 501

Monday, May 28th

                                      We were so happy to see this screen when we got to DC.

                                    Our new friends from Columbus we happen to be traveling with.
                           We just met them a couple of weeks ago.  It sure is fun to have travel buddies.

                              The sky show tracking our flight. I loved knowing exactly where we were at all times.

We boarded our flight to Addis Ababa with no problems at all. It was on time and the crowd was MUCH different than last time. On our first trip the flight was so loud and it seemed like one big family reunion with everyone up and walking around and visiting. This flight crowd is much more subdued. It is nice to have it quieter on such a long flight. Matt is pressuring me to try to sleep but I just can’t. I really wish I could. We are sitting next to, and in front of, a family who is from Ethiopia and now lives in Las Vegas. The husband is going over for 2 weeks and his wife and sons, 3 and 6, are going for two months. His boys have never been there and they are so excited to be bringing them to ET for the first time. I would be too. The parents have lived here for 17 years and Matt and I have had the best time talking to them and hearing about them growing up in Addis Ababa and what is was like. They think it is wonderful that we are adopting and they have actually considered it as well. The man said that they would adopt from Ethiopia if they choose to adopt someday. The best thing is that he knew a lot about the region where our daughter is from (Gambella) and was able to give us a lot of information about the culture and the people. He said that Gambella people are usually tall and that perhaps our daughter will be a volleyball player. Time will tell! As much as I have enjoyed visiting with him the 3 year old constantly kicking my seat is about to make me insane!! That could be contributing to my lack of sleep in a big way. However, having been in that position before allows me to be forgiving.

So I finally had the release of emotion that I have been storing up since our referral day back on February 23rd. Ever since that day I have hardly cried at all, which might not be odd for some people, but with the roller coaster of emotions we have experienced over the last three months I knew that it needed to come out at some point. I am one who bottles things up and keeps going until an unfortunate flood occurs, usually at an awkward time. Sure I have shed an occasional small tear, but it has only lasted a matter of seconds as I haven’t had the time to process my emotions and have a good cry because I have always had to move on to the next the next thing that had to be done. This actually works out well for me but I needed the flood to release everything I’ve had stored inside. Well, Matt helped me with that when he suggested that I watch the movie, “We Bought a Zoo.” He had just finished it and said he recommended it while adding that it was indeed sad. I decided to watch it and ended up crying through the whole thing! It was very sweet and sad and full of hope. I also recommend it, but have your tissues ready! The flood continued well after it was over and Matt did what he always does best when this happens to me, which really isn’t often, maybe only once every four or five years. He offered me food! And then he makes me laugh. Then, he talks to me. I couldn’t imagine any better husband for putting up through such a soggy mess of tears. I am just so grateful that it happened now and not in front of K so that she doesn’t think her mother is an unstable nutcase!

Since I am still not sleeping after my cry fest my thoughts and prayers turn to K and thinking about what she will be experiencing in a few hours. She has been told we are coming for her. Is she excited? Nervous? Scared? Will she be sad to leave Hannah’s Hope and the life she has known the past few months behind? Will she mourn the loss of what is familiar to her? Will she be eager to be with us and feel secure in our love and affection towards her? Many more questions race through my brain and one verse keeps coming back to me over and over again. It is James 1:17-18 “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of Heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth that we might be a kind of firstfruits for all he created.

I hope that she sees us as a gift to her, as we receive the gift of her that God promised to us. I cannot wait to put our arms around her! This time is will be wonderful knowing that we won’t ever have to let go.

We currently have only 3 hours and 11 minutes left until we get to Addis! 1761 miles left to go! I can’t believe it!! That will give me just enough time to watch “The Sound of Music” for the 89th time.

Finally Heading Back!

We can't believe this day is finally here. We are at the Dulles airport waiting to take off for Addis Ababa.  Long story but I flew in from New York City (a surprise belated 40th bday trip) and met Matt in DC this morning.  Last week we were happy to discover that we are traveling with a family from Columbus who we just recently got connected with through a mutual friend. We are on the same flight and are sitting one row behind them! They are adopting a little girl as well and we happen to have the same embassy date.  Luckily I was too tired last night to be too anxious to sleep.  I managed to get in four hours before leaving my hotel at 3:00 am.  Since I left Columbus on Friday I had to have everything ready for both trips.  It actually all went smoothly and Matt did a stellar job of wrapping up the last minute details (well he says we'll see about that when we get there!) and having everything in order for my mom.

This morning I received the best email from an adoptive mom who was at Hannah's Hope last week.  She told me that she was able to sit down with K and they looked through our family book at least a dozen times.  This made my heart sooooo happy because I didn't know if she had been looking at it since we left it there with her on our first trip.  Hopefully she understands that we are coming for her and that as of tomorrow she will be united with us forever!!!! Here we come sweet K!!

We are going back to bring our girl home!!

     When I got on here to post and realized that my last post was on April 21st I was so sad!  So much has happened since then but I haven't had anytime to write about it with all of the craziness of life.  When we got back home from our first trip we immediately jumped back into our normal routines.  Matt and I went to work the next day, my parents left, kids activities continued.  Other than being a little tired I really didn't experience any jet lag after the trip.  I did, however, get sick. UGH! I came down with a terrible sinus mess that left me without a voice for days.  I forgot how hard it is to teach when you don't have a voice.  I couldn't wait for Friday to come when we could all crash.  I don't think I had ever been so happy for a Friday before in my life.  Then, on Saturday Matt and I had a date night scheduled to celebrate my 40th birthday.  I suggested we cancel the date because I had no voice.  But he said that wasn't an option.  When we got to our restaurant that night there were 6 of our close friends from Copley sitting around the table!  SURPRISE!  I was so excited to see and be with all of them, except laryngitis makes it hard to catch up and share life.  They all came back over to our house afterwards where all of our kids (all nine of them) were waiting with more surprises. They showered me with fun birthday gifts, mostly all things Ethiopia, and we were able to show them all of our pictures from our trip.  It was so meaningful to have them there to share in our joy since we were with them in Copley when we began this whole process 2 1/2 years ago. 

After the big birthday weekend Matt left for Switzerland and I muddled through the week still sick, exhausted, missing our girl and feeling weepy, and trying to process everything we had just experienced.  I woke up on Monday, May 7th feeling overly anxious and stressed out due to certain circumstances.  I really thought I might crack. When I opened up my devotion this is what I read.

 "Let me help you through this day. The challenges you face are far too great for you to handle alone.  You are keenly aware of your helplessness in the scheme of events you face.  This awareness opens up a choice: to doggedly go it alone or to walk with Me in humble steps of dependence."
Then one of my favorite verses was highlighted.  James 1:2-3 Consider it pure joy whenever you are enveloped in various trials...    I love when God speaks to me in such personal ways.  It was just what I needed to get me through the day. 
     On May 8th we awoke to find out that our file had been submitted to the US Embassy!  This was big news because we didn't think it would happen this fast.  I started to have an idea it might since things were moving quickly for the other families who were there right before us.  I was excited but was nervous because my last day of teaching was supposed to be May 24th and I knew there was a possibility things could move so fast that we would leave before I finished.  Then May 10th we got the email that said our screening of our I-600 form was complete.  OK we are moving along quickly - happy but can't believe it! I knew at this point I would have to stop teaching a week early in order to be ready to go if things kept moving so quickly.  My friend was able to sub for me again so that work out perfect.  I was so sad to finish up with the students but knew that I had to make May 18th my last teaching day.  Then, on May 16th we got the notice that they were moving on to the I-604 status.  Never in a million years thought things would move so quickly at this stage of the process. The  I-604 process scheduled for May 23rd!  I went into work on Monday, May 21st to wrap up some things and then had Tuesday to plow through my loooong list of things to be done just in case we found out we leave next week.  Tuesday night we went to bed knowing that we would hear something in the morning.  Since Ethiopia is 8 hours ahead I knew that we would possibly get our confirmation email in the middle of the night.  I thought that there was no way I would sleep through the night, but I did, and I never moved until 5:30 when we both popped up and grabbed Matt's phone to check for the email.  Nothing!!  We were so bummed.  I lay in bed disappointed while Matt went to the gym.  Then about an hour later he called me yelling, "We got it! We are cleared!"  I started jumping up and down!  When I went to wake Andrew up right after that his sweet eyes were barely open and he asked, "Did we get the email?"  "Yes!" I said.  He popped right out of bed and was just as happy as I was!  This continued with Luke and Brooke.  The last thing left to know was when our actual US Embassy date would take place.  This is where they issue her a Visa.  For many logistical reasons we were praying it would be on Thursday, May 31st.  We were told that we might not know until Thursday.  This part was KILLING me!  So much depended on this date.  I didn't think I could go one more day without knowing. When we sat down to do our morning devotion this is what we read,
 "Approach each new day with a desire to find Me. Before you get out of bed, I have already been working to prepare the path that will get you through this day. There are hidden treasures strategically placed along the way. Some of the treasures are trials, deisgned to shake you from earth-hackles. Others are blessings that reveal My presence: sunshine, flowers, birds, friendships, answered prayer.  I have not abadoned this sin-wracked world; I am still richly present in it. Search for deep treasure as you go thhrough the day.  You will find me along the way."

Well, a half an hour later we got confirmation that our Embassy date is indeed on May 31st!! Prayer answered and hidden treasure strategically placed!! I danced around the house all morning!!!  Matt and I got to work on the phones with travel agents, my parents, and our case worker trying to coordinate travel times and plans.   We leave on Monday, May 28th and will immediately go get our precious daughter!!!! We are thrilled beyond measure and haven't stopped praising God for this gift to our family.

And I would like to add that today is special K's birthday!! 5 years old- today May 24th!!!

Returning home and an amazing story to share!

     We made the trip home just fine. This time coming back it was 14 hours to DC.  I slept a little more on the plane this time and this flight wasn't as loud.  When we landed in DC everyone on the plane clapped, as did I, but the tears started flowing, too, knowing we were now halfway around the world from K.  We still feel peaceful knowing she is safe and loved by the staff at HH.  We had a smooth time going through customs and then we had a 3 hour layover before our flight to Columbus.  We were starving and went straight to a Five Guys even though it was only 10 am.  When we stepped off the plane in Columbus I was struck by how fresh the air smelled and felt.  It felt wonderful!! Matt laughed at me saying, "I told you the air in Addis was polluted!"  I hadn't even really noticed since I had fallen in love with the country.  I have decided that I will have to forget about the hard wood floors I want in my dining room and living room because I want to put all of our money into going on trips to Africa and serving the people there.  I told Matt that maybe when we retire we could spend half the year in Africa and half the time in the US.  He isn't sold on that yet.

We couldn't wait to get home to the kids!! We made it just in time to pick Andrew up at the bus stop.  It was so wonderful to scoop up his 12 year old self in my arms.  He was beaming, too.We drove him home and were met at the door by my parents and a welcome home sign from the kids and from one of our neighbors.  Then we walked to the bus stop and picked up Luke and Brooke.  They bolted off the bus and into our arms.  What a great reunion!  Then we began telling my parents and the kids all about our trip.  We gave them the gifts we brought and then enjoyed a delicious dinner my mom made.  Next, we hooked up our camera to the TV and loved showing them all of our pictures and sharing all about K and Ethiopia.  I hit a wall at 7pm and we ended up in bed at 9. I had started to feel bad before we boarded the plane in Addis and I was praying that I wouldn't feel lousy for my first day back at teaching.  Going back to work was better than Matt and I had expected but mostly because my parents were still here and were able to help out with the kids which was a huge help to us.  My parents were so amazing and did the best job taking care of our kiddos which gave us so much peace as we never had to worry about them.  Thanks Mom and Dad!  we will forever be grateful!   It was fun to be back with my students and I loved giving them each an African  birr coin.    I thought they might not find it that interesting but they seemed to really like it. In fact, two of my students accidentally threw theirs away with their lunch tray and they talked our janitor into digging through the trash and finding them!  And he did!  I need to do something very nice for him!

So are you ready for the cool story?? And I promise every word is true!!!  So yes, it is annoying that people  can post anything they want on YouTube but we aren't allowed to post our little girl's name or pictures of her even though she belongs to us!  But that is just the way it is.  By the way, prior to arriving at HH we had been butchering her name.  Then, come to find out she has about 4 nicknames.  It took us two full days to get it straight!  Anyway, when we heard K's (even when we were saying it wrong) name we knew that we wanted to keep it but also wanted to give her an American middle name. But nothing ever sounded right with her name.  It all sounded so awkward and forced.  It had been bothering me for weeks.  Then, about three weeks ago I had a dream about what her name was supposed to be.  I didn't even question it!  I was so certain that this was her name that I woke up feeling very excited and giddy.  I went to Matt and grabbed his hands and told him, "I know her name.  It came to me in a dream and I was told we are to name her that."  So I revealed the name to Matt and he smiled and said he liked it!  I started jumping up and down because I was nervous he wouldn't like it.  Then, I went to each of the kids and told them her name.  They all liked it and agreed that yes this would be her name.  I didn't want to tell anyone what we decided because I wanted to keep it a surprise until she came home.  But this is too awesome to keep a secret.  So after my dream I  kept meaning to look up her name (her American name) to see what it meant. But I never did. We were so busy the two weeks before we left that I never took the time to look it up. Then, the whole time we were in Addis I kept meaning to look it up but every time I went to look it up the internet was down or there was some other distraction.  So now let me back up and remind you that the first (and really only) dream I ever had of K before we ever knew of her (this was months ago - maybe even over a year) she was wearing a dress with purple flowers.  Then, when we spent time with her at HH we discovered that her favorite color was purple ( and this was very obvious).  Now when arrived back home one of the first things I did was look up her American name which is DRUMROLL........ here it is.....are you ready.....  it is LILA...... which means 'DARK BEAUTY' and also means 'PURPLE OR PURPLE FLOWER'!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   I am not kidding I almost passed out when I read that!  First of all let me tell you that this child is DARK, and yes, she is BEAUTIFUL!   And the whole purple and purple flower thing  - well if that isn't from God - I don't know what is! I truly feel that that was the Lord's way of communicating to us that this is the child he had chosen for us long before we ever had any idea.  There is no doubt in our minds! We love and miss her so much!!

So her full name is K***** LILA GRACE BENDICK!!!!!!!!
We think it is beautiful and we hope you do too!

Day 6 - Our court date and final goodbye

                                                               She loves stickers!!

                                                                     She also loves bubbles!

                                         She will fit right in as a Bendick because this child can eat!

                                           We are officially the proud parents of sweet K!!

She belongs to us! 

We woke up this morning feeling very sad that it was our last day. I was also feeling anxious about going to court. I guess because I knew that anything could happen. We have certainly come to expect the unexpected. While I was hopeful that everything would go smoothly, I was nervous nonetheless. I was also saddened to read in the news that there is tension in Gambella, where K is from. The word is that the local government is poisoning the water supply there to clear the land for some sort of project. There was an uprising there in 2003 and they fear there will be another repeat of this. We got picked up at 8:30 to headed to court. When we got there I was surprised to enter a small nondescript building on a busy road. Not that I was expecting a grad courthouse like we have in the US but I thought it would have been something different. We entered the building and were lead to a waiting room that was pretty full. We laughed because there was a sing on the wall that simply said, “Silencio.” No one was being very silent however. We had brought books along because we were told that we had to be very quiet while we waited. I had only read two paragraphs in my book before our names were called. We went in the room with another family we are here with. It was amazing to see our huge thick file on her desk. After being in Ethiopia for a week and experiencing how things work I marvel that anything gets anywhere where it is supposed to. But somehow it all works out. We were asked a series of questions which only the men were allowed to answer. They answered yes to all of them and then she said, “You are approved. The children are yours.” My mouth dropped open! That was it! I knew from talking to the other families that the process was swift but I was still expecting something more. We were overcome with emotion realizing that sweet little K was actually a Bendick (at least from an Ethiopian standpoint)! I really wanted to sit there and cry but we were whisked out the door and escorted back outside. We exchanged congratulations with one another, took pictures outside the courthouse and then were picked up to head back to Hannah’s Hope for our last goodbye. My stomach was churning and my heart heavy as we knew this was not going to be easy.

When we arrived at HH all of the kids were wearing visors that they had made and decorated with stickers that morning. I knew Andrew would be proud because K was wearing one that simply had a football on it. K wanted to begin with looking at our family book when we arrived. She looked through it about 4 times. She gets Andrew and Luke mixed up which cracks us up. I guess two white blond headed boys look too similar to her. By the third time of going through the book each time she starts to get it right. We then moved onto playing with the other children. We pulled out the memory game and she and another little girl had an incident. I didn’t quite see what happened but I think they both smacked each other as they were arguing over the cards. One of the special mothers came out and gently began talking to them and was trying to get them to apologize to one another. Well they wanted no part of that. Then they both sulked for about 45 minutes after that. This proves that girl drama is universal! Even Almaz, the director, had been lamenting the fact earlier in the week that there are so many girls here and they can be moody and dramatic. Too funny! I was actually glad that we were able to see how K reacted in these kinds of situations. We wanted to see all sides of her personality. She remained very quiet and upset after the squabble with the other child. She wouldn’t eat her lunch and one of the special mothers had to feed her. I hated seeing her so sad on our last day. After awhile she began to recover and was her playful giggly self. Just as we were getting into the swing of things with her we were told it was time to go. Matt and I had to cut our time short today so we could to go to the US Embassy to try to get an important document notarized. The pit in my stomach which hadn’t really gone away was in full force and we begged for 10 more minutes, which turned into 30. We walked her into her room and told her that she was going to keep our family book here. We placed it under her bed where hopefully it would stay safe. Then we knew we had to face the inevitable. We scooped her up in our arms to say goodbye. This time we knew that she understood that we wouldn’t be back tomorrow. She held onto me for while and then when I handed her to Matt, she would not let go of him. It was a repeat of how she was with me on our second day. She was clinging on for dear life and would not let go of Matt. She was crying and when the special mothers came over to try to help it only made it worse. Finally Almaz came over and told us that we were going to take it slow and get her settled before we left. And her plan was for her (Almaz) to be holding onto her when we left so that they were not taking her from us. Thank heavens! She suggested that we return to what we were doing before we said goodbye. So we went into a room and began coloring. Brooke will be thrilled because this child loves to color! She was still very sad but she sat there quietly with is as she watched me color and Almaz kept talking to her in Amharic. Since she came to HH not speaking Amharic and has only been there two months she isn’t fluent in Amharic but knows some of it. We could tell she understood at least some of what Almaz was saying because she settled down and began to relax. Then, Almaz asked her to show her the family book. So Almaz took her by the hand and we all went into her bedroom again. Almaz sat down with her and looked through the book with K. Then we walked out into the courtyard and gave her one last kiss while Almaz held her. Then K pointed up and was communicating that she wanted Almaz to take her to the balcony so she could wave goodbye. We climbed into the van and waved goodbye as she was held by Almaz calm and smiling and waving. It was such a relief to leave that way. I am crying all over again as I write this because we miss her already and will miss her everyday until we return to bring her home for good. We will miss all the kids at Hannah’s Hope. They are such dear and precious children of God.

It took us about 30 minutes to get to the US Embassy. I was kind of interested in going. I had always assumed that your country’s embassy was there to help you but we discovered this was not the case. (Think DMV, just in a different country) Not only did we have to wait in line with everyone else who was not a US citizen, they wouldn’t even do what we wanted them to do! Even though it is no problem to get the documents notarized stateside they wouldn’t do it here. We could have pushed more but had the sense it was futile. Our tribe let us down big time. We have found Ethiopians to be much more helpful and accommodating. What a wasted trip when we could have spent more time at HH.

We returned to the hotel and I collapsed on the bed emotionally drained from the roller coaster ride of emotions we had experienced. I slept for about two hours and then got up to finish packing. We met with the other family for one last meal together and then headed for the airport with them. We were so sad to leave but definitely ready to get home to our children who we have missed so much. When we arrived at the airport I guess we shouldn’t have been too surprised to discover that the process of checking in is much like driving down the streets of Addis Ababa – a complete free for all!! There were people cutting in line and busting past us with not a care in the world. The four of us quickly caught on and put an end to that. We actually had to form a blockade as we went through the immigration line. I had never seen anything like it. This group of women, all in headscarves, were trying to push their way through just to get ahead in the line. We kept telling them no and even though they were breathing down our necks – literally!- we held firm. It was actually quite comical as we had about 30 women (and a few other irate locals that were still trying to hold their place in line) literally stacked on each other right behind us and the rest of the line behind them was all in a fairly decent single file line. There would have been rioting in the US if people tried to do that. After surviving the immigration line we went into a duty free shop where they had chocolate! Hooray! One thing we had not found in Ethiopia was chocolate. We bought a bag but were sad to discover it was petrified. It must have been sitting on that shelf for at least 10 years. Oh well. Our chocolate fix will have to wait. After making it though yet another security line we said our goodbyes to our new friends we made on the trip and went to our gate. It has definitely been the trip of a lifetime and I cannot wait to return in hopefully just a few weeks. I feel peaceful knowing that even though we will miss K tremendously we know she is loved and well taken care of. We are certain of that. Even though this adoption process has been one of the hardest things I have ever been through, we can now see how God orchestrated all of the events and details beautifully as he has blessed us with this child who he had chosen to be ours. To Him be the glory for blessing our family with her.

Ethiopia Day 5

                                          Our cultural dinner at Yod Abbsynia.  It was soooo much fun!

                                   The injera in the injera basket before the other foods are placed on top.

                      I love how beautiful it looks!  We all shared the meal by tearing off injera and    using it to scoop up the food.  They don't use utensils in Ethiopia.  It worked and it was delicious!!

                                                        Matt and me enjoying the night.

                                         Preparing for the coffee ceremony.  Coffee is a big deal here and they have these special coffee ceremonies when they serve it.  We actually didn't participate in one.  Maybe next time.  I don't like coffee and it is apparently rude to decline it. The others didn't want to be awake all night. 

                                         All of the fixings for the coffee ceremony.  Isn't it pretty?

They brought us a pitcher of soap and water and we washed our hands at the table.

Last night was only the second night since we’ve been here that I had trouble sleeping. I woke up at 4:30 and was wide awake. I really wanted to get up and go work out, but I knew Matt would kill me if I tried to go down to the gym at that time. There is actually a nice gym here, but we never even used it. So I lay in bed until 6:00 so I wouldn’t wake Matt up and then I got up and luckily I had a hot shower! Hooray! Yesterday, we had no hot water so it had been a very refreshing start to the day. I came down and tried to work on the computer. The internet is so hit or miss at all times. This morning at breakfast I was able to get my delicious Ethiopian tea. It is sooooo good! When we got picked up we went straight into our meeting with the directors at HH. We signed our I 600 papers and paid our visa fees. We were all sitting there with sweaty hands as we signed these papers. Not because we weren’t 100% sure that we wanted to adopt our beautiful children, but they are soooo picky with the forms that we were afraid we would make a mistake in ballpoint pen! Then we were told that today would be our last day with our kids. This was a shock to us as we were under the understanding that tomorrow would be the day we said goodbye. Well let me tell you that the floodgates almost opened! I had a hard time focusing on everything else that was said since it was unclear whether or not today was actually our last day. They went over what tomorrow would look like with our court proceeding and the rest of the day’s schedule. We were able to ask questions and get a better sense of what the next few weeks would look like. Then we discovered that we would in fact be able to come back after court tomorrow to say goodbye. Thank goodness!! What a relief! I felt my whole body relax as I knew we had two more days. After our question and answer session we were finally able to go be with our children. They were just washing up for lunch which was kind of a bummer because we had to wait some more to be with them. As soon as they finished K came over to us and she wanted to look through her family book right away. I love that she wants to do that. After looking through it 4 times, we watched the kids become fascinated with some kalidescopes that one of the families brought. They loved them and it was so cute to watch their faces light up as they discovered different designs in the sunlight. We were also able to meet two more of her special mothers and spend some time with them. They are so sweet and wonderful and it is so easy to see how much these children are loved. That makes us feel so much better. Then the girls were ready to dance again. We played Matt’s Ipod for awhile and then the girls went and brought out a radio from their room. It was pure joy watching them dance to the local radio station. One little girl that was in the room with us definitely had some moves down. None of could move our shoulders the way she did, no matter how hard we tried. K danced for a little while, but preferred to sit down and color. Before we knew it, it was time to go. We gave her our usual hugs and kisses and then said goodbye. No tears today, but then when Brian got in the van he said, “Oh man, I saw her tears today.” Oh boy. She didn’t cry in front of us so it made me sad to know she waited until we walked away. He felt terrible for telling us because he thought we knew, but I was glad to know how she was really feeling. It made me wonder if SHE was trying to be strong for US!

Next, we had, Danny, one of the drivers from HH drive us to lunch and then take us shopping. We went to a pizza place and it tasted wonderful!!! We have really enjoyed the food here, but it was a nice change to have pizza. I still can’t drink the soda here. Matt likes it, while I can’t stand it. Then, we went shopping on the streets. This was overwhelming at first because it was so hard to choose what to buy. I definitely wanted to get some things for her that would be special to her and represent the Gambella region where she is from. We ended up being happy with the things we got and I can’t wait to display some of the items in her room. The saddest part about the shopping trip was that there were little children selling things like gum and homemade toothbrushes. After reading John Shores book, Dragon House, I will never look at street children the same again. In Addis you are not allowed to hand out money to beggars because you can create a mob scene. But you can, of course, give people money as long as you are selling something. We bought their toothbrushes and gum and I was dying to give them more, but I knew it would have caused a scene. Then we saw a pregnant woman carrying around a baby just begging for money. She was probably only about 40 years old because she was still nursing the baby, but she looked about 6o. It broke my heart and I asked Danny again if he was sure I couldn’t give them money. He told me no, that we just can’t. I could have easily given that woman all of my money and fed her for a year.

Tonight we had a very special experience at our cultural dinner. We were served the traditional meal of injera and the other 15 different dishes that are served with it. We all eat from the same injera basket and everything was delicious!! We all loved it. We enjoyed the entertainment just as much as the food, if not more. They had musicians and dancers on the stage and they were amazing! We definitely don’t move like that in The US. The neatest thing was that the little girl who was dancing for us today had been doing some of the same moves they were doing on stage. Wass, our other driver form HH, was telling us all about which region the dances were from. We all got caught up in the energy and excitement of the place. None of us wanted to leave. We all agreed it was the best time ever. Even though our Ethiopian restaurant in Columbus doesn’t have entertainment, we can’t wait to take K there. I really need to learn how to cook injera and some dora wat. We also had a great time with the other families laughing and sharing stories. Matt and I have decided that this trip has been so much fun that we are counting this as our 15 year (in November) wedding anniversary trip. We came back to the hotel and experienced another internetless night. It is time to go pack now and process how hard tomorrow will be for us and K.

Day 4 in Ethiopia

                                                       The Riviera Hotel where we stayed.

The pile of goatskins on the corner of the road.  This was what was left after the slaughter after the fast.  People were selling them to make rugs.

Walking down the road on Easter.  This picture was taken right after Brian said, "Ok, everyone take your akward faces off."

                           We had to laugh at the irony of this banner.  The man is blocking the words but it

                          "Traffic Safety Awareness Week"   There is no safety! It is a complete free for all. 

                                                      However, we never saw one accident!!

                                  Being goofy in the hotel.  Brian bought the Obama pens that were in the

                          display case at the hotel and passed them out. They seem to be big on Obama here.

                                      Sweet little K listening to music on Matt's phone.  She loved it!!

Today is Easter in Ethiopia so Happy Easter again!! It was very special to be able to celebrate our first holiday with K. We were a little disappointed, however, as we thought we would have participated in more of an Ethiopian Easter celebration at HH, but that was not the case. Other than the fact that the children were served meat lunch time for the first time in two months, it really was not different. Regardless, today was probably our favorite day at Hannah’s Hope. A new family joined us to day so we got to watch them meet their son which is always a delight. K was waiting for us in the courtyard when we got there, just like she was yesterday. I almost lost it emotionally thinking of Wednesday when we don’t walk through the doors in the morning. I know they will prepare her, but it will still be a hard day. I am tearing up now just thinking about it. Our time together goes soooo fast! Today we began the day with our usual routine of stickers and a game. Then, we let her look through the family book again. She did a great job again of saying everyone’s name. She looked through it four times in a row. It was so sweet to see her so interested and focused on what will become her new family and home. Then, we moved into our usual routine of playing with the other children. They love the memory game we brought and it is so cute to see the children take turns even though this can be hard for them as they all want to play at the same time. Today we learned that K is quite the sporty little girl. She did a great job at kicking the soccer ball around, and wow, does she have an arm!! It is amazing what those skinny little arms and legs can do!! The other fun thing that happened today is that K danced for us for the first time! Matt got out his phone and turned on his Ipod and after a while she started dancing up a storm! It was hilarious!! I was able to get some video of it. The best part was that she was dancing to the song “Something Beautiful” by the Newsboys. It is one of our favorite songs and we have always played that song and thought of her. I even bought a book for her over a year ago titled, Something Beautiful and had it personally signed by the author. So I love that this was the first song she danced to!!!!!!!!!!!! Two other special things that happened today was that first she didn’t cry when we left. Hooray! She felt secure in the fact that we would be back tomorrow. The second special thing that happened was that when we were saying goodbye I told her my usual, “I love you K” and one of the older girls who was standing with us as heard me and she put her arm around K and translated for her!!! K got a big smile on her face and I will forever be grateful to this sweet little girl (who we have some to adore) who did that for us. It was the perfect way to say goodbye today.

After we got back to the hotel we ate lunch and since we had internet called our families and I was able to work on updating the blog. Then, we along with the other three families who are here decided to go for a walk to get some fresh air. Mountain storms threatened, but we decided to go anyway. There was a huge slaughter last night as Ethiopians were finally able to eat meat after the two month fast, and it was quite a sight to see goatskins piled up three to four feet high. They were piled up on a street corner and people were selling them to make goatskin rugs, I think. On our way back to the hotel we got caught in a rainstorm. It was so refreshing and reminded me of my Colorado days getting caught in mountain storms. We had our usual dinner of injera and shiro. Tonight when we returned to our room I opened up my bible at random and began reading Psalm 90. I was brought to tears as I read Psalm 90:4 which reads, ‘For a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.’ From the beginning of this process, which has been 2 years and 4 months for us now, we have surrendered to God’s timing in all of this. This specific verse has come to my mind so often, as I have been well aware that my timing is not God’s timing. The second we met K we knew that God had orchestrated the timing of this adoption perfectly because she was chosen for us! There is no doubt! Thank you, Lord.