Today I had my wonderful 3 hour glucose test. I had a fasting blood sugar of 89 with is perfect. I had to drink the Glucola (yuck) but it didn't make me sick again yay! I passed first hour, failed the second, and passed the 3rd by 1 point. Sooo now my doctor has to review my results and let me know what to do. I think I am fine since I passed 2 out of 3.
Liam had 6 shots, bless his heart he is so behind so he will have to go back every 2 months for the next 6 months to get caught up. He screamed and cried but as soon as we got to pick him up off the table he was fine. He seems to be doing ok, no fever yet and he hasn't been complaining about his legs so hopefully he will do fine with them. Josh was able to go with me and bring him back home after his shots while I stayed for my test, that was such a great help, I would have hated to keep him there for 3 long hours after he had shots. His blood work all came back good, except he has vitamin D deficiency which is common in African children, so now he has to take vit. D everyday and have his levels rechecking in 6 weeks. He has been doing good about taking the vitamins after I figured out how to sneak them into his food :) I am really surprised they gave him a gel capsule that he has to swallow....but we've got this thanks to a ton of support and suggestions from our friends and family!
Tonight is our Halloween carnival at church, Liam is going to be a bear! I am so excited to see him in his costume! I hope he feels up to going. I think he will have a good time. He is Mr. Social, looks like this mama wont be doing anymore blending in for awhile since we have to say hello to everyone we meet hahaha I am glad he wont be shy though!
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Friday, October 26, 2012
1st "normal" week
Liam and I have adjusted into a pretty good routine. We have stayed pretty busy this week, it amazes me how little time is in the day when you have to work around potty breaks, lunch, nap time, dinner time, bath time, and bed time. I used to worry that we would not have anything to do during the day but now I wonder where all the time goes. We have so much fun! Liam is such a blast he has the best personality, he is always making me laugh. He is super cute and he knows it.
We heard back from the health department about his shots and because they don't match up just right we are going to have to start all over to make sure he gets what he needs. Poor baby, we are going to go Wednesday to start them...poor mommy :(
We went to the park on Tuesday, he loved it! I don't think he has ever been to a park other than the slide that we went down while we were in Ethiopia. He had such a good time going down the slides and watching the other kids play, he wasn't ready to play with the other kids yet but I think he liked being around them. He always has a good time at church where he gets to play with the other kids, he is so social, I guess that comes from being around so many little kids his whole life. Today we went to music makers with some friends from church and he really loved that! They had music, marched with tambourines played with a parachute, had story time, and got to play with puppets he was so happy. I am so glad that we have an opportunity to be around others so much, I think it is really good for him. I was afraid he might get lonely after always have 10 or more kids to play with, I think he really enjoys being the only child, the center of attention...but he is always happy to be around others his age. We are very lucky that he has adjusted so well.
Bedtime and nap time are getting easier, we have found it works better if we just lay him down and walk out of the room. When he is completely asleep and you lay him down he cries and cries but when he is sleepy he just lays there. At nap time he usually cries for about 10 minutes before he is out which is actually a lot faster than when we try to rock him to sleep or keep going back in and picking him up. Bedtime we lay him down and then just sit in there for a few minutes and he goes right to sleep normally with no tears. It is a lot less stressful now that we kind of have a plan and a routine, I think we are all handling it better.
I had my 1 hour glucose test on Wednesday, which I failed boo! I had to drink the super sweet drink tasted like a flat extra sweet orange soda yuck! But this time I did not even feel sick so that's good I was really dreading having to drink it. I needed a blood sugar of 140 or lower and I think mine was 171....so on Wednesday I am going back for the long test, I think it is 3 hours. I cant eat after 8 pm and have to be there at 8:30am to do a fasting blood sugar, then I get to drink another awesome orange drink (yay) and then have my blood sugar checked every hour for 3 hours. We are just going to take Liam to get his shots after my fasting blood sugar since I will have an hour to kill and we go to the same doctor. Then Josh is going to take him back home while I hang out at the doctors office for a few hours what an exciting day....Josh is going to take a half day so he can watch Liam because no way I can keep him entertained for 3 hours in a doctors office and he is just not ready to stay with anyone else just yet. I really hope that I will do okay drinking the drink this time since it will be on an empty stomach, I really hope I wont get sick again.
Raegan is doing great, she is moving like crazy now! My belly is moving with her it is such an amazing sight. I think its funny when Liam is laying his head on my belly and she is kicking him in the head, I wonder what he thinks is going on. I don't think we have actually gotten him to understand that there is a baby in there but he can look at a picture of a baby and say baby then rub my belly and say baby, not sure if he is putting 2 and 2 together though.
We heard back from the health department about his shots and because they don't match up just right we are going to have to start all over to make sure he gets what he needs. Poor baby, we are going to go Wednesday to start them...poor mommy :(
We went to the park on Tuesday, he loved it! I don't think he has ever been to a park other than the slide that we went down while we were in Ethiopia. He had such a good time going down the slides and watching the other kids play, he wasn't ready to play with the other kids yet but I think he liked being around them. He always has a good time at church where he gets to play with the other kids, he is so social, I guess that comes from being around so many little kids his whole life. Today we went to music makers with some friends from church and he really loved that! They had music, marched with tambourines played with a parachute, had story time, and got to play with puppets he was so happy. I am so glad that we have an opportunity to be around others so much, I think it is really good for him. I was afraid he might get lonely after always have 10 or more kids to play with, I think he really enjoys being the only child, the center of attention...but he is always happy to be around others his age. We are very lucky that he has adjusted so well.
Bedtime and nap time are getting easier, we have found it works better if we just lay him down and walk out of the room. When he is completely asleep and you lay him down he cries and cries but when he is sleepy he just lays there. At nap time he usually cries for about 10 minutes before he is out which is actually a lot faster than when we try to rock him to sleep or keep going back in and picking him up. Bedtime we lay him down and then just sit in there for a few minutes and he goes right to sleep normally with no tears. It is a lot less stressful now that we kind of have a plan and a routine, I think we are all handling it better.
I had my 1 hour glucose test on Wednesday, which I failed boo! I had to drink the super sweet drink tasted like a flat extra sweet orange soda yuck! But this time I did not even feel sick so that's good I was really dreading having to drink it. I needed a blood sugar of 140 or lower and I think mine was 171....so on Wednesday I am going back for the long test, I think it is 3 hours. I cant eat after 8 pm and have to be there at 8:30am to do a fasting blood sugar, then I get to drink another awesome orange drink (yay) and then have my blood sugar checked every hour for 3 hours. We are just going to take Liam to get his shots after my fasting blood sugar since I will have an hour to kill and we go to the same doctor. Then Josh is going to take him back home while I hang out at the doctors office for a few hours what an exciting day....Josh is going to take a half day so he can watch Liam because no way I can keep him entertained for 3 hours in a doctors office and he is just not ready to stay with anyone else just yet. I really hope that I will do okay drinking the drink this time since it will be on an empty stomach, I really hope I wont get sick again.
Raegan is doing great, she is moving like crazy now! My belly is moving with her it is such an amazing sight. I think its funny when Liam is laying his head on my belly and she is kicking him in the head, I wonder what he thinks is going on. I don't think we have actually gotten him to understand that there is a baby in there but he can look at a picture of a baby and say baby then rub my belly and say baby, not sure if he is putting 2 and 2 together though.
Saturday, October 20, 2012
1st (2nd) birthday party
Today we celebrated Liam's 2nd birthday, it is on Thursday but since Josh will be going out of town we decided to celebrate today. It was very small and very simple we didn't want to overwhelm him since he has already been through a lot in the past few weeks. A friend came over with her 2 kids and we had a cake. It was really fun to see him open his gift and play with the other kids, I know he loved getting to be around others his age. Plus he LOVED the cake.
After his party we went to the pumpkin patch and got our pumpkins, we had a blast, there was a petting zoo....well a goat, Liam actually wanted to pet it! Finally an animal he isn't afraid of! He thought the cute little pumpkins were balls so every time he saw one he picked it up and threw it so we didn't get any great pictures of his with his pumpkin this year. :) He is such a bundle of joy, always smiling and waving to everyone I love it! It just amazes me how he can be so happy after all he has already endured. We are so blessed!
After his party we went to the pumpkin patch and got our pumpkins, we had a blast, there was a petting zoo....well a goat, Liam actually wanted to pet it! Finally an animal he isn't afraid of! He thought the cute little pumpkins were balls so every time he saw one he picked it up and threw it so we didn't get any great pictures of his with his pumpkin this year. :) He is such a bundle of joy, always smiling and waving to everyone I love it! It just amazes me how he can be so happy after all he has already endured. We are so blessed!
Friday, October 19, 2012
Finally Home
We got home on Monday night, Oct. 15th. The flight home was actually more stressful than the long flight from Ethiopia since our boy was tired and cranky! But he did pretty well, all the passengers bragged on what a great baby he was....they must have been sitting pretty far away from us but it was nice to hear. We were so super tired after traveling all day but were surprised at the airport by my FRG girls!!! How sweet! A great big thank you to Greg and Whitney from church for taking such good care of Sam for 2 weeks, dropping us off and picking us up at the airport. It was so nice not to have to worry about anything while we were gone.
Liam is doing amazing! So much has happened I don't want to forget anything but I am sure I will, the pregnancy brain is not helping :). He absolutely loves taking a bath now, he is always so excited for bath time so he can play with his toys. He never wants to get out of the tub. He is also doing awesome using the potty woohoo we are so lucky! We have so much fun, he is so full of energy and has such a great personality. He always wakes up with a huge smile on his face which makes it a lot easier to climb out of bed.
Wednesday night we went to church, he had a blast with the kids. As usual he loved all the attention. We are so lucky to have found our church here so quickly. They baked him a welcome home cake and gave us a bag of gift cards! What a great gift! We had no idea how much stuff we needed until we got home. We have already put some of them to good use.
Today was mine and Liam's doctor's appointment. I am doing great, right on track. Raegan is at 27 weeks and can survive on her own if she is born, after next week we will be able to stay in Bryan if she is born and not have to be transferred to another area. Big milestones! I have not been having any more swelling and the leg cramps are much less severe and are not happening every night thank God!
The doctor seemed to think Liam was doing great, he has no issues adjusting to us or to the USA. He is right on track as far as developing goes for a 2 year old. He has to have a lot of shots but they are going to call the health department first with his shot record to see what they recommend he gets since some of the shots are different here. We will do those once the nurse call us to tell us what we need. He had a lot of blood work done, the lab techs could not find a vein and he hated being held down while they looked so they sent us to the hospital which is next door. He was asleep when we got there and only woke up when we took off his shoe to find a vein in his foot to use, he whimpered a little when the needle went in but never cried or fought, he did such a great job!!
He has met so many new people and been so many new places I am so impressed with how well he is handling everything. I don't think I would be handling the situation as well as he is. He is just the light of our lives! I didn't realize there was such a big hole in our hearts until he filled it. I can't imagine life without him. It is like he has always been with us. It is just amazing how God picked the perfect baby for us, he is so much like both of us in so many ways.
Sam is not adjusting to Liam as well as Liam is to Sam. Liam loves Sam, he chases him all over the house and the yard it is so cute! Sam however hides under the table or my legs to attempt to escape the little screaming monster that is after him. Poor Sam.
We have moved on from going right to sleep when it is nap time and bed time. These are now the most hated hours of the day, full of screaming and fighting and crying.....lets pray this will pass soon. The doctor pretty much said we weren't facing anything that other parents haven't faced (which I guess is a good thing) and that we would figure out a way to handle it. He also hates riding in the car....he doesn't understand why that when he drops something we can't just pick it up. Plus he does not like being tied down.
Overall it has been a really great week, we are so happy to finally be home. Josh has to be gone for a few days next week so that might be a little tough on us but we will survive! And hopefully I will even get to shower :)
Liam is doing amazing! So much has happened I don't want to forget anything but I am sure I will, the pregnancy brain is not helping :). He absolutely loves taking a bath now, he is always so excited for bath time so he can play with his toys. He never wants to get out of the tub. He is also doing awesome using the potty woohoo we are so lucky! We have so much fun, he is so full of energy and has such a great personality. He always wakes up with a huge smile on his face which makes it a lot easier to climb out of bed.
Wednesday night we went to church, he had a blast with the kids. As usual he loved all the attention. We are so lucky to have found our church here so quickly. They baked him a welcome home cake and gave us a bag of gift cards! What a great gift! We had no idea how much stuff we needed until we got home. We have already put some of them to good use.
Today was mine and Liam's doctor's appointment. I am doing great, right on track. Raegan is at 27 weeks and can survive on her own if she is born, after next week we will be able to stay in Bryan if she is born and not have to be transferred to another area. Big milestones! I have not been having any more swelling and the leg cramps are much less severe and are not happening every night thank God!
The doctor seemed to think Liam was doing great, he has no issues adjusting to us or to the USA. He is right on track as far as developing goes for a 2 year old. He has to have a lot of shots but they are going to call the health department first with his shot record to see what they recommend he gets since some of the shots are different here. We will do those once the nurse call us to tell us what we need. He had a lot of blood work done, the lab techs could not find a vein and he hated being held down while they looked so they sent us to the hospital which is next door. He was asleep when we got there and only woke up when we took off his shoe to find a vein in his foot to use, he whimpered a little when the needle went in but never cried or fought, he did such a great job!!
He has met so many new people and been so many new places I am so impressed with how well he is handling everything. I don't think I would be handling the situation as well as he is. He is just the light of our lives! I didn't realize there was such a big hole in our hearts until he filled it. I can't imagine life without him. It is like he has always been with us. It is just amazing how God picked the perfect baby for us, he is so much like both of us in so many ways.
Sam is not adjusting to Liam as well as Liam is to Sam. Liam loves Sam, he chases him all over the house and the yard it is so cute! Sam however hides under the table or my legs to attempt to escape the little screaming monster that is after him. Poor Sam.
We have moved on from going right to sleep when it is nap time and bed time. These are now the most hated hours of the day, full of screaming and fighting and crying.....lets pray this will pass soon. The doctor pretty much said we weren't facing anything that other parents haven't faced (which I guess is a good thing) and that we would figure out a way to handle it. He also hates riding in the car....he doesn't understand why that when he drops something we can't just pick it up. Plus he does not like being tied down.
Overall it has been a really great week, we are so happy to finally be home. Josh has to be gone for a few days next week so that might be a little tough on us but we will survive! And hopefully I will even get to shower :)
Our first week
I'm playing catch up, we have been super busy since we have been home, haven't had a lot of time to write.
Our Last Day In Ethiopia - Sat. Oct 6
On our last day we were able to drive around the city and see some of the outskirts. It is such a beautiful country, the mountains are gorgeous and the overlooks are even more gorgeous. The area that we drove to is were the "poor" live, the women in this area get up every morning and walk about 2 miles up a mountain to the forest, there they cut branches, vines, etc. then carry the huge 100-150 pound bundles on their back, back to there home where the sell them in the market. I have pictures but I will post them later. There is also a well on the top of the mountain so there were lots of children and women carrying the huge jugs of water on there backs back to their homes. This was such an eye opening trip, I am so glad that we were able to see some of the areas outside of the city on this trip.
We arrived at the airport around 4pm even though our flight didn't leave until 10pm because there is really only so much you can do in Ethiopia....it was good though, we ate supper and Liam and Josh played for a couple of hours before we boarded the plane so he was worn down enough to go right to sleep. Our flight ended up coming in almost an hour late, then we had to sit on the plane for almost an hour before we took off. We flew 6 hours to Rome to get fuel, which was supposed to take an hour but there was an electrical issue and it took 3.5 hours (we did not get off the plane) this made our total time on the airplane about 21 hours :( Liam did awesome, he slept most of the time, played, sang, flirted with all the women around us, but never cried! He is a champ! Josh and I however were ready to get off the plane!!! I had a little more trouble with the flight home, my legs and ankles were swollen, my knee cramped, plus the wonderful charlie horses that woke me up, I was completely exhausted, since we were 7 hours ahead in Ethiopia, I had been up for almost 48 hours before we finally got to check into a hotel. We of course missed our connecting flight, were put on standby, then sent to from Dulles to Ragen Airport in DC only to miss that flight because they sent us too late, but we were finally put up in a hotel where Liam and I went to sleep as soon as we walked in the room. It was a very rough trip but we finally made it to KY Monday afternoon.
Week in KY
I am so glad that we decided to stay with my parents for a week before we headed back to TX. Liam loved all the attention and had such a great time. He adjusted so quickly we woke up at 3:30 on Monday but after that he was pretty much on schedule to get up sometime between 6:30-7:30 which was awesome. It really helped me and Josh to adjust having my parents there to play with him while we got to sit down and relax a bit, especially me. We also managed to pass a cold around to all 3 of us that week, but we are all better now. Liam has done so great, he has hardly cried at all, only when it is time to sleep which he HATES but there has just been so much going on he has wanted to stay awake so he wouldn't miss anything.
He is scared of the dogs, even Melanie's Yorkie, and the chickens, and cats....I am sure it is all new to him. By the time we left we was petting Molly the Lab but only if she was asleep :) We got to see some friends with kids his age while we were there, Liam really loved it, he was shy at first but he played his heart out after he got warmed up. I am so glad he has not had any trouble adjusting or bonding, there is definitely nothing wrong with his personality. He is always laughing, smiling, winking, hugging, and now waving.
A lot of people have asked about his clothes from the baby shower, most of them still fit yay! He is in 18 month clothes now but some of the 12 month stuff still fits.
Our Last Day In Ethiopia - Sat. Oct 6
On our last day we were able to drive around the city and see some of the outskirts. It is such a beautiful country, the mountains are gorgeous and the overlooks are even more gorgeous. The area that we drove to is were the "poor" live, the women in this area get up every morning and walk about 2 miles up a mountain to the forest, there they cut branches, vines, etc. then carry the huge 100-150 pound bundles on their back, back to there home where the sell them in the market. I have pictures but I will post them later. There is also a well on the top of the mountain so there were lots of children and women carrying the huge jugs of water on there backs back to their homes. This was such an eye opening trip, I am so glad that we were able to see some of the areas outside of the city on this trip.
We arrived at the airport around 4pm even though our flight didn't leave until 10pm because there is really only so much you can do in Ethiopia....it was good though, we ate supper and Liam and Josh played for a couple of hours before we boarded the plane so he was worn down enough to go right to sleep. Our flight ended up coming in almost an hour late, then we had to sit on the plane for almost an hour before we took off. We flew 6 hours to Rome to get fuel, which was supposed to take an hour but there was an electrical issue and it took 3.5 hours (we did not get off the plane) this made our total time on the airplane about 21 hours :( Liam did awesome, he slept most of the time, played, sang, flirted with all the women around us, but never cried! He is a champ! Josh and I however were ready to get off the plane!!! I had a little more trouble with the flight home, my legs and ankles were swollen, my knee cramped, plus the wonderful charlie horses that woke me up, I was completely exhausted, since we were 7 hours ahead in Ethiopia, I had been up for almost 48 hours before we finally got to check into a hotel. We of course missed our connecting flight, were put on standby, then sent to from Dulles to Ragen Airport in DC only to miss that flight because they sent us too late, but we were finally put up in a hotel where Liam and I went to sleep as soon as we walked in the room. It was a very rough trip but we finally made it to KY Monday afternoon.
Week in KY
I am so glad that we decided to stay with my parents for a week before we headed back to TX. Liam loved all the attention and had such a great time. He adjusted so quickly we woke up at 3:30 on Monday but after that he was pretty much on schedule to get up sometime between 6:30-7:30 which was awesome. It really helped me and Josh to adjust having my parents there to play with him while we got to sit down and relax a bit, especially me. We also managed to pass a cold around to all 3 of us that week, but we are all better now. Liam has done so great, he has hardly cried at all, only when it is time to sleep which he HATES but there has just been so much going on he has wanted to stay awake so he wouldn't miss anything.
He is scared of the dogs, even Melanie's Yorkie, and the chickens, and cats....I am sure it is all new to him. By the time we left we was petting Molly the Lab but only if she was asleep :) We got to see some friends with kids his age while we were there, Liam really loved it, he was shy at first but he played his heart out after he got warmed up. I am so glad he has not had any trouble adjusting or bonding, there is definitely nothing wrong with his personality. He is always laughing, smiling, winking, hugging, and now waving.
A lot of people have asked about his clothes from the baby shower, most of them still fit yay! He is in 18 month clothes now but some of the 12 month stuff still fits.
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Farewell Ceremony
Today we went to the transition home for Liam to play with his friends for a little while. Just Liam and I went, Josh we think may have food poisoning from some fish he ate yesterday he is feeling better now though a little. Liam loved getting to see all of the kids and his nannies. He is so spoiled, he is always sitting with or on somebody. He has not said anything since we have had him but today he was talking up a storm. One of the little girls touched his shoes and he said "don't touch my shoes" of course someone translated for me but I thought that was pretty funny. He did not want to leave today, he cried and pulled away, our driver had to carry him out, he wouldn't go with me. It is a lot of change for him and he has been a trooper so far, he stopped crying before we got outside the fence to the car so it wasn't too bad, but it was hard for me.
This afternoon there was a goodbye ceremony, we didn't really know what to expect but it was way more than I could have ever dreamed of. The workers from the transition home provided us each with a gift of traditional Ethiopian clothes; I got a dress, necklace, earrings and a bracelet; Josh got a shirt and a bracelet, and Liam got a pair of pants and a shirt with a bracelet. We all got changed into our new clothes and had a traditional Ethiopian meal, afterwards our driver (Girma) had told everyone that it is my birthday so they had the best cake I have ever eaten. I have no idea what it was but it was layered with cream icing and tasted like it had been soaked in cream every bite had a squirt of milk in it. Oh man I may have to come back here next year for more cake :). There is more, we also had another coffee ceremony then took a ton of pictures. This has been the best birthday ever! The director and our driver took turns recording the entire day, which means there are a lot of close ups to me eating....but they also went to each worker and asked them their name so Liam will have this forever, I am so excited that we will be able to show it to him one day (all 2 hours of it).
It was another struggle to leave but once again once outside the gate he was okay, he cried a little when we drove away but just for a minute. He is not much of a crier, only a couple of tears and he is over it. It is a lot for a little guy to understand. He is so happy, playful, and smiling as long as we are in our room but once out in public he tries to pretend he doesn't know us hahaha thought we had a few years before we got to that point.
He is a crazy sleeper, he is all over the crib, today he took a nap on his knees cross ways the crib....that's not how we put him in there. Last night he woke us up talking in his sleep which is pretty stinking cute since he wont talk to us any other time. Too bad we don't know what he is saying.
This afternoon there was a goodbye ceremony, we didn't really know what to expect but it was way more than I could have ever dreamed of. The workers from the transition home provided us each with a gift of traditional Ethiopian clothes; I got a dress, necklace, earrings and a bracelet; Josh got a shirt and a bracelet, and Liam got a pair of pants and a shirt with a bracelet. We all got changed into our new clothes and had a traditional Ethiopian meal, afterwards our driver (Girma) had told everyone that it is my birthday so they had the best cake I have ever eaten. I have no idea what it was but it was layered with cream icing and tasted like it had been soaked in cream every bite had a squirt of milk in it. Oh man I may have to come back here next year for more cake :). There is more, we also had another coffee ceremony then took a ton of pictures. This has been the best birthday ever! The director and our driver took turns recording the entire day, which means there are a lot of close ups to me eating....but they also went to each worker and asked them their name so Liam will have this forever, I am so excited that we will be able to show it to him one day (all 2 hours of it).
It was another struggle to leave but once again once outside the gate he was okay, he cried a little when we drove away but just for a minute. He is not much of a crier, only a couple of tears and he is over it. It is a lot for a little guy to understand. He is so happy, playful, and smiling as long as we are in our room but once out in public he tries to pretend he doesn't know us hahaha thought we had a few years before we got to that point.
He is a crazy sleeper, he is all over the crib, today he took a nap on his knees cross ways the crib....that's not how we put him in there. Last night he woke us up talking in his sleep which is pretty stinking cute since he wont talk to us any other time. Too bad we don't know what he is saying.
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Embassy Appointment
Today was our second day of parenthood! We are loving every second of it. Liam is such a sweet boy, he has only cried once and that was only for about 1 minute. He is an awesome napper and sleeper, all we have to do is lay him in his crib and he is out like a light. It is precious! We brought him back to our hotel yesterday around noon, had lunch, he took his nap, we played in the room all day then had supper, a bath, and in bed by 8. The bath was an experience, I am pretty sure he has never been in a tub before, it took a lot of convincing to get him to sit down, finally with some assistance he gave it a try...but getting him to stand back up was another thing all together :) he was ok with the bath but you could tell he thought we were crazy people trying to freeze him to death hahaha.
Today we had our embassy appointment at 9 am, it was an in and out kind of thing. We were outta there by 9:30. All we had to do was sign his visa form, our agency will pick up his visa on Friday and we can be on our way back to the US on Saturday, once his paperwork is scanned in by the immigration official in the airport he will be a US citizen! We spent most of the day in the hotel again today, I took a long much needed nap while Josh and Liam played. Tonight we went to the mall to buy a jacket for our little man since I left his at home and believe it or not it is pretty chilly here in Africa! It may have something to do with that wonder 90-100 degree weather we are used to but I pretty much wear my jacket all of the time. We ate supper at a cafe, Liam loves to eat, I think he may be over eating just a bit so we are trying to slow him down and at least get him to chew most of his bites, he had chicken nuggets and fries and loved them! We had american pizza and hated it .....oh well.
We have tons of pictures, but for some reason none of us all together. We will work on that tomorrow. I will post them when I get home, right now I am stealing the computer from Josh and his homework.
I am blown away by the way of life here, it is so hard for me to ride down the street and see all the hunger and illness. Every time the car is stopped which is quite a bit there are homeless people mainly women and children holding their hands out to your car window. I wish there was away to feed them all, I keep thinking, whatever you do to the least of these you do to me...but how can you help so many? The nights are so cold and the bridges are lined with people sleeping wrapped in only a tarp or a blanket, women, children, babies, cripples, we are so truly blessed in America to have to many opportunities to help those who are homeless and hungry, these people have no opportunity. There is no welfare check or hud housing, no food stamp card, not nearly enough shelters, it is really hard to explain the pain in their dim eyes. It makes me feel so guilty that I am going home to my full refrigerator and pantry, with my soft comfy bed, and throw away half of what I cook or order when so many have not had a full meal in days or maybe ever. What can we do to change the world? As Christians we are called to care for the poor and the hurting but what do we really do? Look at these people, read these words, hear about it on the news, and say how sad and then go on with our lives like nothing is happening. I am very convicted about this because that is sadly my typically way of thinking...wish there was something I could do, and moving on while doing nothing. I know I am ranting but I really believe there is more I can do, that we all can do.
Today we had our embassy appointment at 9 am, it was an in and out kind of thing. We were outta there by 9:30. All we had to do was sign his visa form, our agency will pick up his visa on Friday and we can be on our way back to the US on Saturday, once his paperwork is scanned in by the immigration official in the airport he will be a US citizen! We spent most of the day in the hotel again today, I took a long much needed nap while Josh and Liam played. Tonight we went to the mall to buy a jacket for our little man since I left his at home and believe it or not it is pretty chilly here in Africa! It may have something to do with that wonder 90-100 degree weather we are used to but I pretty much wear my jacket all of the time. We ate supper at a cafe, Liam loves to eat, I think he may be over eating just a bit so we are trying to slow him down and at least get him to chew most of his bites, he had chicken nuggets and fries and loved them! We had american pizza and hated it .....oh well.
We have tons of pictures, but for some reason none of us all together. We will work on that tomorrow. I will post them when I get home, right now I am stealing the computer from Josh and his homework.
I am blown away by the way of life here, it is so hard for me to ride down the street and see all the hunger and illness. Every time the car is stopped which is quite a bit there are homeless people mainly women and children holding their hands out to your car window. I wish there was away to feed them all, I keep thinking, whatever you do to the least of these you do to me...but how can you help so many? The nights are so cold and the bridges are lined with people sleeping wrapped in only a tarp or a blanket, women, children, babies, cripples, we are so truly blessed in America to have to many opportunities to help those who are homeless and hungry, these people have no opportunity. There is no welfare check or hud housing, no food stamp card, not nearly enough shelters, it is really hard to explain the pain in their dim eyes. It makes me feel so guilty that I am going home to my full refrigerator and pantry, with my soft comfy bed, and throw away half of what I cook or order when so many have not had a full meal in days or maybe ever. What can we do to change the world? As Christians we are called to care for the poor and the hurting but what do we really do? Look at these people, read these words, hear about it on the news, and say how sad and then go on with our lives like nothing is happening. I am very convicted about this because that is sadly my typically way of thinking...wish there was something I could do, and moving on while doing nothing. I know I am ranting but I really believe there is more I can do, that we all can do.
Monday, October 1, 2012
Made it
We arrived safe and sound in Addis Abba this morning at 7 am. Which is 1 am EST 12 am CST. After taking advice from other adoptive parents we met on the way and our adoption agency we decided to go and see Liam today but not to bring him back to the hotel with us since we have not really had any sleep and he is still adjusting to us. So today we went and fed him lunch, played a little, he fell fast asleep for his nap, we got to experience an Ethiopian coffee ceremony which was pretty neat and delicious! Plus the coffee was much needed! Now we are back in our hotel room which has wifi yes! We have had a nap and a shower and are ready for tomorrow to get here so we can go and spend more time with our little man and bring him back to our hotel! Before we leave the agency is going to do some type of small ceremony for us after we receive his Visa.
The kiddos were not very happy today, they all cried as soon as we walked in the gate the nurse said they always do that now since they are used to their friends leaving when people come....that was hard but they didn't cry long. Liam took some time warming up to us today, he never really smiled or seemed comfortable which is to be expected since I am sure he has no clue who we are. But I think he was also very sleepy since he was falling asleep eating his rice and then was fast asleep in about 10 minutes after lunch. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.
We got to see photos of his birth mother, the first thing I said was "wow, she is really young" she is around 16 years old, in there village it is unacceptable and a great dishonor to be a mother at such a young age and and even greater dishonor to be an unwed mother. In the picture was his mother, a very beautiful young girl, her father, who is a very tall man, and her younger sister. Her father apparently was very embarrassed to have a grandchild without his daughter being married and being that it is such a great dishonor he was the one to decided that Liam would be put up for adoption. This breaks my heart, I had always imagined a young mother who was just not able to care for her child and had no other option....I have a really hard time understanding the culture in that area where it is better to give a child us than to be dishonored by your village. I am very thankful that we will have the opportunity to give Liam so much love, a family, a church, a group of friends, that love him so much already and have never even had the chance to meet him. We are so blessed!
He looks great! He has a chubby little tummy and the cutest bottom lip that he already know how to use to melt his mama's heart. He is a big eater :) but doesn't complain when the bowl is empty. He even had on shoes today, they were a little big and on the wrong feet but yay he was wearing shoes thank goodness because it is a little chilly, I have been wearing a jacket. The transition home looks like a totally new place under the new management. The kids really seem to be doing great and they are so loved by all of the workers, these caregivers are truly a gift from God, they treat each child as if they were the only child in the whole place, everyone is known by name and hugged and kiss, I know this is not just a front because Liam knows how to give "lots of love" (kisses).
We had a good flight, I did not have any issues, I did not sleep since I had to walk every hour by the time I got back to my seat and settled in I was afraid I would miss my next walk and ended up taking about 5, 10 minute naps. I also wore a ThermaCare heat wrap for my back which has to be the greatest invention of all time! 13 hour flight with 0 back pain it was wonderful. We ended up and the same row with another man from KY, thought that was kinda funny with hundreds of people on board from all over the world and all the KY people sit together.
Sorry for such a long post, just wanted to update you since I am not sure how often I will be able to. Today is Monday at 6:12pm in Ethiopia hopefully this will post on time this time :) Thanks for the prayers!
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