our dozen beautiful feet

We're home.  Sound asleep in her very own bed for the first time.

Well, we made it home.  I can't believe it.  Ten days is a long time to be away from a husband.  Two sons.  Home.  Good food.  It's just a really long time.  I'm so thankful to be back with my boys, and there's not going to be anything that will justify this long of an absence again for a very long time. I still can't believe that everything went just according to plan.  You know, when we were flung across the globe, three of us in Ethiopia, three of us in Nepal, all coming back to India within 12 hours of each other, needing two visas in an Ethiopian passport, just all the details, that it all came together is amazing.  I kept waiting for the disaster to hit.  So thankful to the Lord that it never did. (Although, Paul had a mini-disaster in the form of a strike in Nepal.  He had to take the boys to the airport at 5 A.M. because no cars were allowed on the road that day, and their flight wasn't until 5:30 p.m.!!  No restaura...

I'm telling you all, for any of you who are traveling to Ethiopia in the future to pick up your children, please make a visit to Adams Pavilion at Sar Bait in Addis and check out the soleRebels showroom there. They have some amazing designs, and I love that their shoes are handmade from old tires! Plus, buy six pairs, get one free.  I know.  I did it .... TWICE!  Haha!  I stocked up for Christmas gifts and gifts for friends back in India!  : )  I LOVE their stuff! These are the shoes I got for myself (which I totally love): This is one of the signs hanging in the shop, displaying how their products are made. A view of the show room.   Word to the wise: pickings are slim in different sizes and styles.  If you plan to be there over 5 business days, go on the first day, or call, and give them your order. Yep, you can custom order shoes.  If you browse their website before hand, you can tell them an exact style name and c...

On Monday, I called the investigator and asked him if he might have some time this week to come and meet me. I wanted to hear more from him, just in a personal story setting, as well as thank him personally for all the help he gave us.  He said he would be at my hotel in an hour! Sure enough, he showed up right when he said he would.  We had a nice visit over coffee in the lobby.  He didn't really have any new information for me, but he did say that in the area where Meryn was found, there are a lot of hyenas at night and he felt she was very lucky to have made it through the night on her own.  Holy cow.  God was watching over her and we are so thankful and amazed at his protection and goodness..... Then, just an hour later, I was able to meet the man who actually found Meryn and took her to the police. When he saw her, he was moved to tears at how healthy and happy she looked. He couldn't believe she was the same malnourished baby he had found by the...

While in Ethiopia, I've had the great opportunity to meet people face to face I've been met online and through adoptive parent groups.  Over the months, some of these women have become so precious to me and walked through many difficult days, been there to encourage me, and just understood how difficult the waiting can be when no one else really can. It was a tremendous blessing to meet these mamas, and to see them finally reunited with their children for good! Meryn and this little girl have a bit of history together, and my hope is that they will be friends for life.  Both of us moms wanted to give the girls some things they would both have.  Baby J's mom gave Meryn and her daughter each a sweet silver bracelet with their names engraved.  Meryn's worn hers ever since she received it. I bought the girls matching dresses from my favorite store in India, and also used the waiting time to learn to crochet, and I made them matching stuffed dragons! I ...

Our first few days with Meryn have been wonderful!  She seems to be doing really well and has fallen into a natural and easy routine with us.  A bath every day, four to five bottles a day, rice cereal at every meal… she is very happy and playful.  She rarely fusses unless she’s overly tired, or hungry.  We’ve been running around all over town, shopping, visiting people, and she hasn’t once seemed overwhelmed or like she minded. She is full of personality!  She makes a lot of noise, and says “dadada” a lot.  She’s easy to get a laugh out of.  Kiryn has become the expert at getting her to giggle.  Meryn just wants to be with Kiryn all.the.time.  It is so sweet to watch them together.  Meryn loves to chew on and tear up paper.  Any kind.  Toilet. Tissue. Receipt. Writing. Napkin.  You name it, if it can be ripped into tiny pieces and stuffed in her mouth, sh...

One of the most popular tourist stops in Ethiopia is Lalibella.  It is famous for it's rock-hewn churches that have been dug into the ground.  Many of them are carved deep down in the rock in intricate cross shapes, and they are hundreds of years old, most dating back to before 1000 A.D.  It's a fascinating place to go.  But with two small girls by myself, it was not manageable for me.  However, my friend Koleta knew of an old rock hewn church not far from Addis.  So we drove out to it on that Sunday afternoon drive yesterday!  It wasn't as elaborate as the churches in Lalibella, but it was an awesome experience!  And I'm so thankful to have gotten a little taste of this part of Ethiopian culture and history! Inside the red curtains is the "holy of holies", only the priests can enter. Kiryn thought she discovered this tunnel. : )  Here, Kiryn is expressing, "Mom! I wanted ONLY GIRLS in this picture!" And,...

The biggest blessing of being here in Ethiopia is having a friend to share all my experiences with.  Not only to share them with, but to lead me in them!  My friend Koleta has lived in Ethiopia for many years and speaks fluent Amharic, has tons of cultural insights, and, she can get a mini-bus unstuck from the mud. : )  Even with being busy with her four kids, she has taken so much time away from their normal routine to show me around the beautiful country they have called home for years. It has been a tremendous pleasure and privilege for me.  She has taken me to the best restaurants, her favorite shopping places, to meet friends in town, and most special of all, she spent half a day on Sunday driving us out to the “out country” to see some of Ethiopia outside of Addis.  It is like a different country, and was a precious experience for me!  Ethiopia is truly a beautiful place!

We made it to Ethiopia after a long day of travel!  We had a morning flight to Delhi, then a 15 hour layover, so we got to spend the day with some good friends in Delhi for the day.  We even got to sleep a few hours before going to the airport at midnight.  We had a very smooth process getting checked in and to our gate.  Kiryn was an amazing travel companion. I'm so thankful to have her with me. We left at 3 a.m. from Delhi, arrived a bit late in Addis, but had no line for a visa or immigration, got some money from the ATM, got our bags straight off the belt and found our driver outside.  Certainly, mercies from the Lord to make everything so easy. I'm not used to traveling alone... We got checked into the hotel, and hurriedly got a little unpacked, showered and changed, and I made all the 25 or so Thank You cards with tip gifts for the nannies to take to the care center. I got all of our gifts together for Meryn's nanny, Aynalem.  As soon as we went ...