Embassy Trip - Day 4 in Ethiopia

Today began again with getting up hoping to hear right away from the US Embassy. This time regarding when our interview appointment will be. That meant multiple refreshes of the email as we got ready, during breakfast, and as we gathered our stuff to go out. Finally, shortly after breakfast the elusive email arrived! Unfortunately, they couldn’t schedule us for the same day but we do have our appointment first thing Wednesday morning. Yeah, this is the last big step beyond getting the kids traveling papers. Our last hurdle will be requesting it all be processed and ready by end of day Thursday instead of Friday morning as is normal with Wednesday appointments so we don’t have to change flights to Friday. We’ll see what they say.

Our first full day with the kids and we decided no use just sitting around so out we went for some MORE retail therapy with Fekadu, Joel, and the Gillis family. Have we mentioned lately just how much we love and enjoy Fekadu and Joel?? Well, it’s a whole bunch. These guys are wonderful. They picked us up around 9:30 and off we went first to the Former Firewood Carriers for MORE scarves. The kids got to see how the scarves are made, and Nen even took a turn working the loom. It was cool to see him just jump right in. Then we went in and shopped. There was a big change since our first trip. The prices were lowered on all the scarves and baskets to 60 birr each! Although price really isn’t a big concern when shopping there, it really is all about helping out these cool ladies and their families AND getting great scarves at the same time. Yes, we bought several (or more than several), and Nen picked out two for himself!

Next we visited the shops at Shermada (sp ???), right outside the former firewood carriers, and also the post office. We had to keep an eye out on Nen a bit, he just didn’t have any fear and would walk around close by where we were looking. He also has VERY specific tastes. He DID NOT want any traditional clothing but was VERY interested in finding a hat just like mine (Craig’s). I think that’s pretty cool. We found Achole another VERY cute dress and Nen wanted a bright blue scarf they had in the same shop. At the post office area we found Nen an Ethiopian team soccer jersey that fit pretty well and each of the kids were allowed to pick out a carved wooden animal. They had a lot of fun looking around and Nen would have emptied my pockets if we would have let him get everything he liked (we didn’t, and he was very respectful when we said no). I don’t think he understands you have to pay for what you are choosing.

After shopping we headed over to Fekadu’s home for another wonderful meal cooked by his mother. This time she served Doro Wat at Fekadu’s request since we had talked about liking it and had made it at home. The entire meal was very yummy and the kids chowed down on it. Achole has been very interesting when it comes to meals. She is perfectly capable of feeding herself but prefers either Sherri or me feed her. I think this is a great bonding time and we are more than happy to meet her needs. Next came the coffee ceremony, MUCH anticipated. Right before the coffee was ready, Fekadu asked me to come inside to look at a presentation he has given to teenagers at several churches. It was VERY good and I was honored he wanted to show it to me. At the same time (yes, this was planned) the rest of the crew was prepping a surprise. When we came out there was an beautiful and VERY delicious birthday cake for me and they were all singing happy birthday. Yeah, I totally fell for it and was honored beyond belief at the consideration and love that was bestowed upon me. Fekadu and Joel had been planning this for some time.

Finally, it was time to head back for naps and some down time. We were all tired. Sherri, Jordan, and the kids took long naps while I chatted with many of you on FB early this morning US time. After dinner the Gillis family stopped by with another birthday cakethey picked up when they went to the Sheraton for dinner. How cool is that! Two birthday cakes and JUST because we celebrated my birthday in Ethiopia I’m now 8 years younger!! (it’s 2004 based on the calendar used in Ethiopia) I’ll take it!

We ended the day with baths (a first with the kids). Achole did not like it and cried the entire time but now she’s clean and very quickly rebounded. Nen, had a blast playing in the tub and let me wash him from head to toe. Lots of lotion, a little Elmo, and then all three of the kids are now in bed. We’ll be following along soon. We have an early start to the day tomorrow and will be leaving the hotel for the US Embassy at 8am. Good night!

Craig

Embassy Trip - Day 3 in Ethiopia

So why did we skip Day 2? Well, it wasn’t because we didn’t have a great time. Not at all. We went to church with Fekadu and Joel. The reverend and other staff remembered us, greeted us, and welcomed us as return visitors during the service. Great message on trusting God, not idols, not yourself, not what YOU can do, but to have pure faith in God like Paul. Then we went to lunch at Yared’s house to celebrate his youngest sons second birthday. It was so nice to have an opportunity to spend time with Yared and his family away from the bustle, confusion, and often times sheer joy/stress of the adoption world and care center. Our lunch was fantastic! Followed by a great coffee ceremony and a shot of ouzo. Yikes, I’m too old for that. Did a little shopping and looked around at the Makush art gallery (which by the way the restaurant is still open it appears). Didn’t leave with anything but someone sure had their eye on a large painting of a typical Addis city scape. Finished the day off with dinner at the Top View restaurant with Kasey and Grant Gillis (the Gillis girls had crashed already)

Now on to DAY 3. So we woke up hoping, praying, and begging for an early email from the US Embassy. Yeah, no luck. We hung around the hotel until 9, constantly refreshing the email, then left for the care center. Spent a couple of hours there and again great time with the little kids, Nen, and Aryiat. Played lots of basketball with Nen, built amazing structures with Achole and several other of the young kids with Duplo blocks, watched Kate, Ariyat, and Nen jump rope like no other, even have some great video of it. We ended the morning with the kids (Nen, Ariyat, and Achole) and a few others having a blast playing with Talking Tom on our iPhones. Oh my gosh, if you have an iPhone and are coming over this is an app you don’t want to forget. Nen and Ariyat were talking to it (it simply repeats back what you say to it, and does a bunch of other silly stuff). Then they started singing to it, long fun songs they learned at school, and they would get such a kick out of Tom singing it back to them. We even heard Achole chattering away at Tom sitting on Sherri’s lap (and we had barely heard any words from her before that). It was a complete hoot.

At some point Abebe and I had a good chat about next steps with the US Embassy. Typically they respond very quickly after the birth parent interview (even told Kasey Gillis that when they went up to have a document notarized later that afternoon). Abebe suggested we write another respectful email letting them know we were in country to meet with the aunt and if at all possible to have our interview this week it would be much appreciated. So we did it and sent it off about 1:45. Didn’t hear anything back within the next 30 minutes so we decided we couldn’t just sit around and stew about it. So off we went with the Gillis family for a little retail therapy at the Makush art gallery. In the end, BOTH families purchased similar paintings from the same artist Kasey and Kristen have from their first trip. Negotiated hard and got a fair deal for a beautiful large painting of a typical Addis city scape. By the time we left and got back to the hotel it was about 4:30. So typical Addis, the internet was acting up and it took FOREVER to finally get connected and get Sherri’s email updating. Immediately we see a response from the US Embassy that says….. well it said a whole bunch of stuff, was sent to the wrong agency, but all we really needed to see was you’ve been cleared and can schedule an exit interview. Sherri had to type out a response on her iPhone with shaking hands, but we managed to get it sent off and then jumped in a van to go pick up the kids. Yared had called ahead to the care center so they were expecting us. By the time we arrived the nannies had cleaned up both kids and dressed them very nicely. Achole had on a cut little dress with leggings and Nen handsomely dressed in pants, a t-shirt (donated by Kasey Gillis!), new shoes, and a cool red hooded sweatshirt. The staff were so happy for us and the kids. We were only there 10 minutes then off back to the hotel to hang for a bit, dinner, then bed.

So we played in the room for a while and both kids were pretty calm, but having fun and starting to relax just a little bit. Then off to dinner at the hotel. This was pretty stressful for both kids and neither one ate much but we all had enough to hold us over. Both of them seemed pretty tired so we came back down to the room to play a bit more and get ready for bed. Hummmmm, play a bit more.. well, we pulled out a few toys and that lead to both kids finding the “toy box” (just one of the suitcases). So out came several items, but the BIG hit were little battery powered monster trucks that drove forward. They had a blast running them all over the room, under the beds, over other toys, clothes, US, or whatever they could find. It didn’t take long for Achole to really start to open up and for those of you that have seen her at the care center the quiet, reserved little girl that just wanted to be held, was running around the room, chattering like crazy, laughing hysterically, and just having a blast! We KNEW there was more to her personality and were so happy to start seeing some of it. Finally it was time for bed. The kids both happily put on their new PJ’s, brushed their teeth (well at least Nen happily did that) and we tried to read a book. Achole was still pretty awake, but she did listen some. Sherri and I laid down with them and it took a bit, but finally both finally gave in and went to sleep. No tears, no significant fear we could see. I would call this quite successful for the first night. I’m sure this will change, as it should. There is a whole lot of scary change coming into their world in the next few days, weeks, and months. For now, I’ll cherish the memories we have of finally having our kids with us for the rest of our lives.

Dear friends, this has been a long journey and the last few weeks have been very hard and stressful. We don’t know what we would have done without so many of you encouraging us, lifting us up, praying for us, and being there to share in our joys, fears, and when we just needed to vent or show you the same picture for the 43^rd time. You all mean so much to us. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Embassy Trip - Day 1 in Ethiopia

After 13 hours in the air, we landed safely in Ethiopia! We are soooo not looking forward to that 17 hour trip back home. After about 8 hours, I start to think I’m not going to survive the sitting. We made it through getting our Visas, customs, and finding our luggage in less than an hour. It was so nice to come out of the airport to the familiar face of the hotel driver waiting for us!

We made it to the hotel and met up with another adoptive family with our agency…love being able to meet in person after being Facebook friends for so long. Today was a HUGE day for us. We were able to meet our kids’ aunt. Although we didn’t get much information from her, it was still an honor and a blessing. We were able to give her a photo book full of pictures of the kids from our December trip and pictures of us. She was so appreciative of the book and seemed to treasure it. The kids didn’t seem to have too much of a connection to her, but they also haven’t seen her since last June. I’m guessing Achole doesn’t really remember her much. She is a kind, gracious, and shy woman. It was important to her to know the kids would receive a good education. She also shared with us that our kids’ birthparents were Christians. She seemed very relieved to know the kids would be raised as Christians in our home as well. We were excited to be able to purchase a plane ticket for her and her baby to fly back home – the bus ride back to Gambella is long and difficult. The tickets for both of them cost less than a dinner at the Cheesecake Factory!

As soon as we arrived at the Care Center, Achole was across the courtyard and at my feet wanting to be held. She is such a little snuggler! Nen came immediately to Craig and gave him a big hug. It was great to see they remembered us. Nen even referred to us as Mom and Dad. It was wonderful to see them again and very difficult to leave them. We are waiting to see if we receive a response from the embassy on Monday before we bring them with us to the hotel.

As a funny side note, we had a few boys today that were seeking our attention. I had 2 little ones (about 3 years old) on my lap while Craig was holding Achole. These 2 boys had an all-out head slapping brawl while sitting on my lap because they wanted my attention and the camera. The camera had to go in my bag!

We spent the rest of the day back at the hotel getting ourselves organized and resting. We have all 3 slept better already on this trip than we did on our last one. We now have one suitcase dedicated to being our ‘toy box’. We also brought our own little food pantry this time around.

Tomorrow we will be going to church with our friends, Fekadu and Joel. We visited this same church the last time we were here. We are excited to visit again – their passion is inspiring!! They also host a Compassion International sponsorship program. We will also go to see our kids again tomorrow. We are looking forward to the day we can drive out of those gates with them!

Looking at Life Through Their Eyes...

Written by guest-blogger, Jordan!!

What is going on? I'm barely 5 1/2 and my father is suddenly gone? My little sister Achole is just 6 months and she doesn't understand. Then, suddenly, 6 months later my mom is gone too? What is going on here? I have no mom, no dad. Nobody to talk to. Now my aunt takes care of me? I mean I love her, but where are my parents?

Now all of a sudden a year later my sister and I are taken to a strange building. People are taking pictures of me, and my aunt is filling out tons of paperwork then my aunt is gone! All I have now is my sister who is only 2 years old. Nobody to talk to, no familiar faces. Nothing, nothing at all. Then a few months later once I've finally gotten used to things, I'm being put on an airplane (which I've never seen before) and flown to a large city far away from my home region. We finally get to the ground, then I'm put into a car and taken to another strange building with lots of kids. Where am I?

The next day four white people show up and are playing with my sister and me for a couple of hours and then they just left. They came back the next day and the next day and so forth and then suddenly they were gone also. I was told that they were my new mom and dad. They left behind a poster for me and a poster for my sister. They also gave us each a book with pictures in it. There are pictures of me, pictures of my sister, pictures of them, pictures of a house, and pictures of a bed. Is that bed for me, I wonder? I look at the poster every day just wondering.

I was stuck with all the little kids my first week here, and now I'm finally getting to go to school with all my friends. I've seen a few families come and play with other kids just like that one family came and played with my sister and me. The families keep coming and then they are gone. I've been talking to some kids and they say the family that came and played with me will be my family. They say I get to go home with them to where they live and live there too. I wonder if that is actually true? Those four white people? Who knows. Will they ever return for me?

Embassy Update!

We received an email from the US Embassy last Friday, Feb. 10th stating they are requesting an interview with our kiddos' aunt. We were expecting this so we were certainly not surprised. Our agency requested Feb. 28th, but the embassy scheduled it for March 7th. Needless to say, we are super disappointed that we have to wait an additional 3 weeks. By the time we return, our kiddos will have been waiting nearly 3 months for us. I keep wondering if they think we have forgotten about them. It is a frustrating and helpless feeling!

However, there is a silver lining to the wait. Most likely we will be traveling back to Ethiopia during Jordan's spring break. We are planning to take her with us again since she wouldn't miss any school. We feel blessed that both of our trips to Ethiopia have been during school breaks.

We are also considering gambling....we are considering booking our plane tickets now with the assumption we will receive clearance immediately following the interview. A travel agent has found some tickets for us that could be changed if needed. Is it worth the gamble in order to be there quickly???? We are also checking into whether or not the kiddos' aunt could stay in Addis 2 extra days until we get there. So many decisions to make!

And........once again........as it seems to be in the crazy journey of adoption........we wait some more!! Hopefully this will be our last "wait"!

Embassy!!

Great news!! We were submitted to the US Embassy today! Most likely we will not hear anything from the Embassy for at least 2 weeks. We are thrilled to be in the last phase of getting our kiddos home.

In Jen's words...

We would definitely not have survived this adoption journey without our amazing friends, Jen and Loren. Jen and Loren recently returned home from China with their son, Jonah. I encourage you to read Jen's blog post about seeing an adoptive child's experience through his/her perspective. It is beautifully written! And to Jen and Loren, we thank you for being there for us through every step of this journey!

http://tapestryministry.org/seeing-with-eyes-of-compassion

Blessed!!!

Today we are filled with gratitude! Our dear friends, Jeff and Cheryl, hosted a Welcome Celebration for our family last night. We received so many wonderful gifts from our family and friends to help welcome Nen and Achole to our family. We also received MANY donations to take to the orphanage in Ethiopia when we return. I think Cheryl, Renee, and Michelle cooked and baked for days to get ready for the celebration. What a feast of deliciousness we had! Is 'deliciousness' a word? haha! Jen also shared her rock-star creative side to create amazing picture collages and announcement cards!

We are overwhelmed with all of the prayers, words of encouragement, gifts, donations, love, and on and on and on....our friends and family have shared with us throughout this entire journey. We are so grateful!! Thank you!

The Embassy Wait...

So...a lot has happened since I updated the last time! We received our adoption decree on Jan. 10th (exactly 3 weeks after passing court). It was so exciting to see our names listed as their adoptive parents. Such an unnerving feeling to know we are legally their parents, but we are not allowed to bring them home yet.

We received Nen and Achole's birth certificates just a little over a week later on Jan. 19th! The birth certificates came with a small wrinkle. The spelling of Nen's name went from Neni to Nen. From what we could tell when we were in Ethiopia, this is what he prefers to be called anyway, so it was a positive change. The court also reverted back to his original paperwork and (on paper) he is 5.5 years old. Our adoption agency has always told us he was 8.5 based on a medical exam he received just before we accepted our referral. After meeting him, he is definitely not 5.5!! We will be visiting the doctor at the International Clinic at Children's Mercy to help us sort this out. He can estimate a child's age within 6-12 months accuracy with an x-ray of the wrist. All of Achole's information remained the same! She will turn 3 in March just after we bring her home (hopefully!!).

Next on the list of required documents for embassy submission is Ethiopian passports. These were done last Tuesday (Jan. 24th). Once the passports were completed, the kiddos (will be or have been) taken for a medical exam specifically for the US Embassy. We assume this has taken place, but aren't sure yet. Our coordinator is anticipating we can be submitted to the embassy this Wed, Feb. 1st!!!! We won't know for sure until that day...can you guess what we are praying for?? Our agency is only allowed to submit on Wednesdays, so if we miss this week, we'll have to wait another entire week. The waiting process is emotionally draining for all of us!

As I mentioned in my last post -- The embassy will then either approve our case immediately, request an additional birth family interview prior to approval, or request additional documentation. While we believe our case is fairly straightforward and should clear easily, a birth family interview is highly possible. Requesting birth family interviews seems to have become standard procedure for the embassy in the past several months. Families receive clearance rather quickly following the interview as long as there are no inconsistencies between the court interview and the embassy interview. We are still very hopeful we will be able bring our kiddos home by the end of February!!

The Next Steps...

As you all know, we had to leave our kiddos behind in Addis Ababa while all of the final paperwork is processed for the US Embassy. Under Ethiopian law, we are officially Neni and Achole's family. However, we have to wait for clearance from the US government to bring them home. We must first receive the adoption decree from the Ethiopian court, then their new birth certificates, then Ethiopian passports, and finally the medical clearance report. After our agency receives all of these items, we can be submitted to the US Embassy. The embassy will then either approve our case immediately, request an additional birth family interview prior to approval, or issue an RFE (request for evidence). While we don't expect an RFE with our case, a birth family interview is highly possible...and we expect clearance following that interview. This entire process takes approximately 6-8 weeks (on average), although some families with our agency have received clearance within 4 weeks. We are very hopeful we will be able bring our kiddos home by the end of February!!