We had our first experience at church yesterday. We attend a very large church and knew that children's church just wasn't a keen idea. We had the boys attend church with us and Sophia went to the nursery. They did so well. After the initial shock wore off, they definitely acted like 6 yr olds wanting to leave RIGHT NOW! It was great to be back. It was amazing to be in church with these children that we prayed so hard for. God is so good and His blessings of these children are wonderful!
After church we attempted Costco. The boys did so well. We had lunch first - Pizza Yeah! Before heading into the store we made a quick stop at the restroom. While waiting for the boys, a woman approached me to ask questions. I explained we just got home from Ethiopia. She told me she wanted to buy them something because they were so cute and we "did such a wonderful thing". She gave me $20! I told her I couldn't take her money but she insisted on giving us the money to buy them something. As she left (and I held back tears), I told her God bless. Her response "I think He has already blessed you!" How true is this! Through all the stress, tears, anxiety, sleepless nights and worry, we received these 3 additional blessings. It is so wonderful being a mom. Is it hard - YES! I couldn't imagine my life any different. To see these children light up at the little things. So what did we do with the money? We bought the boys a leap frog ABC learning game. They love it! They are already learning a lot of the letters.
They have so much fun shopping. They love to sit in the cart and sample the Costco food. The baby did ok. She was hungry. We decided to try her on some Apple juice. She likes it. On the way home we stopped at Fred Meyer to get some dog food and they got to ride in the "car cart". We bought some of the "kid" games - Candy land, chutes and ladders, memory - so we will see how it goes.
Giovanni is still having food issues. We give him things he has already eaten but he acts like it will kill him! He knows how to make himself throw-up. Last night he tried it with a turkey/ham sandwich. Instead we made him finish the sandwich. I think it is some sort of a power struggle. He seemed to be fine on Pizza at lunch, so we knew there was nothing wrong. We will see how this morning goes when he wakes up.
We filled up the pool this weekend. A little lopsided, but once it warms up a little it should be fine. The boys love their little pool, so I am sure the big pool will be a hit.
We head out to Montana next weekend for a family visit and welcome home shower. Nick and his friend are going with us, so that will be nice to have help. George has to stay home because he doesn't feel right taking vacation again. I know everyone there is excited to meet the kids.
Well, our second week without dad during the day. We'll see how it goes!
Monday, July 31, 2006
Saturday, July 29, 2006
Adoption Travel Part 1
Here is a rundown of our first few days of our Ethiopian journey. We started in Spokane, WA on July 8th and flew to Seattle, WA to London, England and on to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We arrived in Ethiopia at 2 am their time! We went directly to the Hilton and were finally in our rooms at 4 am. I don't think I slept that night as I was to meet my new children in just 4 1/2 hours!
Here is us waiting in the Spokane Airport.
This shot was taken in Seattle of our plane that would take us to London.
Here are the 3 teenage boys on the flight from Seattle to London. If only we had these seats coming home!
This is our view from our Hotel room in the Hilton.
Waiting for the incredibly slow elevator so we could go meet our kids!
Here we are mommy and daddy!
The boys view and reaction to their new siblings and hubby's new kids!
I was in love immediately. They were so quiet and shy. It didn't take long for them to open up!
We got to play with the kids for about 4 hours. We ate breakfeast, played soccer, blew bubbles, colored and tickled. It was a great first meeting.
The kids just loved their sunglasses. This is one of the nannies who cares for the children. She was so in love with Sophia!
In the afternoon the kids went back to the orphanage for the last time. We would see them the next day when it was time for our embassy appointment. That night we ate at the pizzeria with some other CWA families. It was a wonderful way to spend our "last" night without little ones. That afternoon and night I frantically got the room ready for new children. I also tried to pack some as we would soon leave the Hilton for the guest house. I was also able to get to know some of the other families a little more. It was so great to have all the support of the families there.
The next day we woke up, had breakfeast and lunch and prepared to go to the US Embassy to get the children's Visas. It was an intersesting trip. As usual (well according to my husband) I slowed things down. I had to many metallic things (Don't carry Altoids in a diaper bag or a voice recorder or your cell phone and forget about them!) I underestimated our payment and we owed 500 more than we thought! Oh well. At least we had the money. The questions we were asked were easy (for us). Do the kids act their age, do they play well with others, what is their history, any medical issues, etc. In all it took only about 20 minutes. CWA had to help with some of the questions. Once all the families were finished, we headed back to the Hilton and the kids were officially ours!
That afternoon we took the boys swimming in the pools. They had such a great time!
That night we had dinner with all the families for a traditional Ethiopian mean complete with a coffee ceremony. Unfortunately I forgot the camera so I need to get some pictures from other families. This was our first meltdown of Giovanni. He pouted the entire meal. We don't know what really set him off. He went into this funk the minute the food came. By the time we went home he was fine. I am sure he was stressed and scared.
It didn't take long for the baby and daddy to fall asleep!
Or the little boys. We gave each one a bath and put their medicine on them. They were out pretty quick!
The next morning we woke up, got pastries and the boys soon learned their older brothers were pretty cool!
I will post more later about our adventures outside of the Hilton walls. Our family is doing so well and the boys definitely fit in. Giovanni has had some minor food issues in the last few days, but I think he is just now "testing" us. All in all things are still great and I love these kids more and more each day.
Here is us waiting in the Spokane Airport.
This shot was taken in Seattle of our plane that would take us to London.
Here are the 3 teenage boys on the flight from Seattle to London. If only we had these seats coming home!
This is our view from our Hotel room in the Hilton.
Waiting for the incredibly slow elevator so we could go meet our kids!
Here we are mommy and daddy!
The boys view and reaction to their new siblings and hubby's new kids!
I was in love immediately. They were so quiet and shy. It didn't take long for them to open up!
We got to play with the kids for about 4 hours. We ate breakfeast, played soccer, blew bubbles, colored and tickled. It was a great first meeting.
The kids just loved their sunglasses. This is one of the nannies who cares for the children. She was so in love with Sophia!
In the afternoon the kids went back to the orphanage for the last time. We would see them the next day when it was time for our embassy appointment. That night we ate at the pizzeria with some other CWA families. It was a wonderful way to spend our "last" night without little ones. That afternoon and night I frantically got the room ready for new children. I also tried to pack some as we would soon leave the Hilton for the guest house. I was also able to get to know some of the other families a little more. It was so great to have all the support of the families there.
The next day we woke up, had breakfeast and lunch and prepared to go to the US Embassy to get the children's Visas. It was an intersesting trip. As usual (well according to my husband) I slowed things down. I had to many metallic things (Don't carry Altoids in a diaper bag or a voice recorder or your cell phone and forget about them!) I underestimated our payment and we owed 500 more than we thought! Oh well. At least we had the money. The questions we were asked were easy (for us). Do the kids act their age, do they play well with others, what is their history, any medical issues, etc. In all it took only about 20 minutes. CWA had to help with some of the questions. Once all the families were finished, we headed back to the Hilton and the kids were officially ours!
That afternoon we took the boys swimming in the pools. They had such a great time!
That night we had dinner with all the families for a traditional Ethiopian mean complete with a coffee ceremony. Unfortunately I forgot the camera so I need to get some pictures from other families. This was our first meltdown of Giovanni. He pouted the entire meal. We don't know what really set him off. He went into this funk the minute the food came. By the time we went home he was fine. I am sure he was stressed and scared.
It didn't take long for the baby and daddy to fall asleep!
Or the little boys. We gave each one a bath and put their medicine on them. They were out pretty quick!
The next morning we woke up, got pastries and the boys soon learned their older brothers were pretty cool!
I will post more later about our adventures outside of the Hilton walls. Our family is doing so well and the boys definitely fit in. Giovanni has had some minor food issues in the last few days, but I think he is just now "testing" us. All in all things are still great and I love these kids more and more each day.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
You asked for them!
So, another update. The boys now know "Reeses get 'em, Reeses get 'em" and "WEDGIE!!!!!" Call them crazy, but they love the wedgies. So here is the results of a wedgie.
I am sooo beautiful in my tankini!
Look at our new goggles. The one in orange is Caleb. He likes to play with his eyes.
Sophia is styling in her new shades (provided by Caleb).
These kids sleep through anything!
Mmmm...Peaches.
Giovanni loves to carry Hebgen!
Sophia's first time in her exersaucer.
I told you they already had hockey gear on.
The boys in their new pool.
Malcom is such a good big brother!
Sophia with Grandma Dawn.
All three babies hanging out.
Come on Dad, slide with us.
This is Giovanni. We lost his hat in Seattle for the rush to catch our standby seats. At least he likes this hat we got in Canada last year!
This is a true image of the smiles and laughter we have with Caleb. His laughter is infectious!
I think this is the cutest thing ever! A Blue's Clues pajamas.
The boys are playing a Ethiopian tag game.
A new life, a new week
Things are going pretty well. We have been home for a little less than a week, and we are all adjusting well. The first day home was so exhausting and exciting. The boys were amazing to see with each new "first". My friends "forked" our yard saying "Welcome Home" and gave us a pinata filled with unknowns (yes we haven't yet knocked down the pinata). I think tonight we are going to do that when Dad gets home.
The boys have adjusted wonderfully. They are slowly learning words and they understand more than they can say. Caleb (he is the middle of them, we switched their names when we met them) only knows to repeat. So if you say "Say Hi" he says "Say Hi". They both told my dad they loved him before me! Oh well, I hear it more and more now. Here are some of the words they say:
Hi, Hello, Bye, Everyone Bye
Dad, Mom, Kevin, Nick, Malcom, Brutus, Reeses, Hebgen, Sophia, and the best was Giovanni saying Grandma, Grandma over and over for my mom
TV, DVD, Spongue Bob, Toothbrush, eat, hungry, banana, bread, orange, juice, water, shoes, hat, stand up, Reeses no, Reeses come here, please, thank you, Reeses go lay down
They sing Old McDonald when it is on and the Dragon Tales song
They know how to work the microwave, tv, and dvd player
They bring their dishes to the sink and garbage to the garbage
They like to feed the dogs popcorn
They love their baby sister
They have already had hockey gear on
The brush their teeth. Giovanni can tie his own shoes
The wrestle with Malcom all the time
They love their little pool and like to "go water"
The best is that they love to act like begger children when they want something "Hallo, hungry, no food" although funny sometimes, quite annoying too.
There are so many other things too, I just don't have time to write about it.
Sophia is doing ok. She has had a rough time adjusting to our heat, language, and time schedule. The crying is less and less. She actually laughed for the first time today. She wakes up every morning at about 3 or 4 and stays awake until nap time.
We go to the doctor again tomorrow. We are hoping to get test results back soon to find out what little bugs they have in their system. All in all, they are really healthy. I think we have giardia and a couple of other parasites, but that is treatable.
Life is really much easier than I thought. We haven't had a full tantrum since last Friday. Praise God! Now they are a little easier to diffuse when they realize they are sharing and not getting things stolen. They still "hoard" the items they think are theirs or that they like a lot. They put the items in their backpacks. I tried to show them they have their own idividual drawers, but the backpacks stay. We did find out the boys are probably both about 6 yrs old. So as George always said, we have twins! It has been really helpful to have both boys. They keep each other company.
Well, it is time to get dinner together. I will leave you with some pictures (ok, one because blogger has some issues). I hope to post our journey of our trip soon. There is so much to say about Ethiopia, our experiences, the people, the country, the lives, etc. Thank you all for your prayers, love and support. I can't wait to see you all. Anyone is welcome to stop by. The kids like to meet new people!
Here is their first doctors appointment. The boys did so well with getting blood drawn, but we still have yet to get any blood from the baby! Maybe tomorrow.
The boys have adjusted wonderfully. They are slowly learning words and they understand more than they can say. Caleb (he is the middle of them, we switched their names when we met them) only knows to repeat. So if you say "Say Hi" he says "Say Hi". They both told my dad they loved him before me! Oh well, I hear it more and more now. Here are some of the words they say:
Hi, Hello, Bye, Everyone Bye
Dad, Mom, Kevin, Nick, Malcom, Brutus, Reeses, Hebgen, Sophia, and the best was Giovanni saying Grandma, Grandma over and over for my mom
TV, DVD, Spongue Bob, Toothbrush, eat, hungry, banana, bread, orange, juice, water, shoes, hat, stand up, Reeses no, Reeses come here, please, thank you, Reeses go lay down
They sing Old McDonald when it is on and the Dragon Tales song
They know how to work the microwave, tv, and dvd player
They bring their dishes to the sink and garbage to the garbage
They like to feed the dogs popcorn
They love their baby sister
They have already had hockey gear on
The brush their teeth. Giovanni can tie his own shoes
The wrestle with Malcom all the time
They love their little pool and like to "go water"
The best is that they love to act like begger children when they want something "Hallo, hungry, no food" although funny sometimes, quite annoying too.
There are so many other things too, I just don't have time to write about it.
Sophia is doing ok. She has had a rough time adjusting to our heat, language, and time schedule. The crying is less and less. She actually laughed for the first time today. She wakes up every morning at about 3 or 4 and stays awake until nap time.
We go to the doctor again tomorrow. We are hoping to get test results back soon to find out what little bugs they have in their system. All in all, they are really healthy. I think we have giardia and a couple of other parasites, but that is treatable.
Life is really much easier than I thought. We haven't had a full tantrum since last Friday. Praise God! Now they are a little easier to diffuse when they realize they are sharing and not getting things stolen. They still "hoard" the items they think are theirs or that they like a lot. They put the items in their backpacks. I tried to show them they have their own idividual drawers, but the backpacks stay. We did find out the boys are probably both about 6 yrs old. So as George always said, we have twins! It has been really helpful to have both boys. They keep each other company.
Well, it is time to get dinner together. I will leave you with some pictures (ok, one because blogger has some issues). I hope to post our journey of our trip soon. There is so much to say about Ethiopia, our experiences, the people, the country, the lives, etc. Thank you all for your prayers, love and support. I can't wait to see you all. Anyone is welcome to stop by. The kids like to meet new people!
Here is their first doctors appointment. The boys did so well with getting blood drawn, but we still have yet to get any blood from the baby! Maybe tomorrow.
Thursday, July 20, 2006
The new family
Here is a picture of our first day together. more to come when i get a little caught up.
Saturday, July 08, 2006
I am in Labor!
It all started yesterday - low back pain, abdominal cramps, swollen ankles, nesting, exhaustion, joy. Today the back pain became unbearable! I just couldn't understand why. Then I realized - it is labor pains!
Well, not really. Labor of the journey we are about to embark on for the first time - picking up our forever kids. We leave at 1:30 tomorrow for Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where we will get to meet our 3 wonderful children. We will endure a 24 hour adventure from Spokane half-way around the world. These last few days have been extremely stressful. I am going on no sleep at all, to much to do, and not enough time. My poor hubby and I have been intensely fellowshipping a lot today (that is what one of our pastors calls it - intense moments of fellowship). We are both so stressed and tired that we keep picking at each other and saying hurtful things. I know neither of us mean it and by tomorrow we will be fine.
I thank God constantly for these blessings we have and will be receiving. He is so perfect and so are His plans for us. Eventhough 2 years ago I was so desperate to get pregnant, I realize now how it was just part of His plan. He has led us out of darkness and saved us from ourselves. Each crack of the whip, each thorn in his brow, the nails, the last breath, they we all for me and for you. I rejoice in that. I can't wait to teach my new babies this wonderful news.
Thank you thank you to all of you who read this, pray for us, love us, rejoice with us, and cry with us. I hope to see some of you at the airport in just weeks. We love you and we will see you all soon with our babies!
This is what happens when teenage boys get a hold of shaving creme, a hose, a sunny day and no parents around. You should have seen them before they rinsed off! I guess we all need a break from the stress of travel and this definitely made me laugh.
Well, not really. Labor of the journey we are about to embark on for the first time - picking up our forever kids. We leave at 1:30 tomorrow for Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where we will get to meet our 3 wonderful children. We will endure a 24 hour adventure from Spokane half-way around the world. These last few days have been extremely stressful. I am going on no sleep at all, to much to do, and not enough time. My poor hubby and I have been intensely fellowshipping a lot today (that is what one of our pastors calls it - intense moments of fellowship). We are both so stressed and tired that we keep picking at each other and saying hurtful things. I know neither of us mean it and by tomorrow we will be fine.
I thank God constantly for these blessings we have and will be receiving. He is so perfect and so are His plans for us. Eventhough 2 years ago I was so desperate to get pregnant, I realize now how it was just part of His plan. He has led us out of darkness and saved us from ourselves. Each crack of the whip, each thorn in his brow, the nails, the last breath, they we all for me and for you. I rejoice in that. I can't wait to teach my new babies this wonderful news.
Thank you thank you to all of you who read this, pray for us, love us, rejoice with us, and cry with us. I hope to see some of you at the airport in just weeks. We love you and we will see you all soon with our babies!
This is what happens when teenage boys get a hold of shaving creme, a hose, a sunny day and no parents around. You should have seen them before they rinsed off! I guess we all need a break from the stress of travel and this definitely made me laugh.
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Maternity Leave and teenagers
Wow, for the first time ever in the life of me I am officially on maternity leave. My boss and I worked out a plan I would have until about mid-September off. Although he is a little freaked out about it, I am thrilled! OK, so 1/4 of it is travelling for kids, but the other 3/4 will be at home with them. I just can't wait.
We leave in 2 1/2 days! That is crazy! I never thought it would be here and now it is. Life is amazing when you really look at it. God has known all along what the ultimate plan is. So many times I tried to make His plan mine. Umm, yeah, that didn't work. Everytime I let it go and gave it to the Lord, He blessed us. For all of those following our journey, thank you. Your prayers have been helpful and I know we have such a great support from you all.
We are bringing our 3 teenage/young adult boys with us. We know this experience will be awesome for them. We hope they will take a lot away from it and really realize the meaning of why we are here and truly understand that these countries are NOT just movies, or pictures, or things. They will get to see the really issues in 3rd world countries. They seem to think that 1. the airline will have a cigarette lighter so they can charge the playstation portable and 2. the Playstation 2 will hook up to the tv in the Hilton. So, yeah they will have eyes opened soon.
We have about 10 bags we will bring. 1 for the teenagers, 1 for hubby and I, 2 for adopted kids, 1 for meds, liquids, etc, 1 misc items, 4 for donations. Craziness I tell ya (Malcom's favorite line right now)
Thanks for all the prayers and support. Soon I will be posting pictures of our kids at home!
We leave in 2 1/2 days! That is crazy! I never thought it would be here and now it is. Life is amazing when you really look at it. God has known all along what the ultimate plan is. So many times I tried to make His plan mine. Umm, yeah, that didn't work. Everytime I let it go and gave it to the Lord, He blessed us. For all of those following our journey, thank you. Your prayers have been helpful and I know we have such a great support from you all.
We are bringing our 3 teenage/young adult boys with us. We know this experience will be awesome for them. We hope they will take a lot away from it and really realize the meaning of why we are here and truly understand that these countries are NOT just movies, or pictures, or things. They will get to see the really issues in 3rd world countries. They seem to think that 1. the airline will have a cigarette lighter so they can charge the playstation portable and 2. the Playstation 2 will hook up to the tv in the Hilton. So, yeah they will have eyes opened soon.
We have about 10 bags we will bring. 1 for the teenagers, 1 for hubby and I, 2 for adopted kids, 1 for meds, liquids, etc, 1 misc items, 4 for donations. Craziness I tell ya (Malcom's favorite line right now)
Thanks for all the prayers and support. Soon I will be posting pictures of our kids at home!
Sunday, July 02, 2006
Washing Machines, Lost Keys, and Prayer
So, Friday night I watched a movie until late. Right before I went to bed (3 am), I decided to move the load of clothes in the washer into the dryer. I opened the lid and their was still water in it! I started the load at midnight! I tried to do what my engineering mind could come up with at 3 am. Finally I gave up and decided to have my wonderful hubby deal with it in the morning. We were awoke by a phone call about 4 1/2 hours later. So, I decided the day had started and I told my not-yet-awake hubby about the washer. He proceeded downstairs to fix it. Well, we got our first glimpse of kid issues. A little pair of underware had gotten over the washer drum and got plugged in the drain tube!!!! So, our washer is fixed.
A few hours later, we got a call that friends of ours were bringing a crib to us and asked if we could leave out their luggage "bubble" for them (we have had for 6 months). Well, we found the bubble, but not the key to open it. We have serious issues of losing this key. It was a tense moment learning that once again we lost the key. At least our friend's neighbor is a locksmith. :)
We prayed a lot this weekend. God just continues to bless us in all we do. Our friends have given us their hands to do work while we are gone (painting, cleaning, organizing, etc.) God is so awesome and gracious. Thank you Lord for everything! We just ask everyone to continue to pray for us in this journey. Only 5 days left!
A few hours later, we got a call that friends of ours were bringing a crib to us and asked if we could leave out their luggage "bubble" for them (we have had for 6 months). Well, we found the bubble, but not the key to open it. We have serious issues of losing this key. It was a tense moment learning that once again we lost the key. At least our friend's neighbor is a locksmith. :)
We prayed a lot this weekend. God just continues to bless us in all we do. Our friends have given us their hands to do work while we are gone (painting, cleaning, organizing, etc.) God is so awesome and gracious. Thank you Lord for everything! We just ask everyone to continue to pray for us in this journey. Only 5 days left!
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