Crazy Good Stuff

In January, I blogged about how Samantha and I spent a snow day making flowery headbands to send to Kari Gibson for her mission trip to Ethiopia.  The snow days piled up this year, but this day was our favorite.  Kari is back home now and we were delighted to find this sweet video on her blog.  What a blessing!!  Samantha's headbands have a big flower with a bead-filled bottle cap center.

You can visit Kari's blog, My Crazy Adoption, to read about her trip with Visiting Orphans and the 1,500 headbands she received!!

THANKS FOR SHARING, KARI!  CRAZY GOOD STUFF!!!

Unbelievable

The fact that I am even writing this post today, after all of these months of waiting and wondering, is the first thing that seems a little unbelievable. 

Since passing court in January, after 10 court dates, we felt certain that all of the hoops had been successfully cleared and we would be granted a speedy appointment with the US Embassy.  As I have shared before, this appointment is the final step necessary before bringing our son home from Ethiopia.  However, today we received word of another delay.

After interviewing the guardian, who “took in” and temporarily cared for Trey Chalew, out of an abundance of caution, the US Embassy has decided that they would also like to have a DNA test done to confirm that the guardian is not actually the birth father (insert big, emotional sigh here).  This is a process that typically takes 8 weeks, but because our agency has a contact who may be able to expedite things, they are hoping for results in closer to 4 weeks. 

You can imagine the thoughts and “what-ifs” swirling around in my head today.  It was shocking news to receive.  However, while we didn’t see it coming, I cannot say I am surprised they are requiring this.  The story of how a child comes to live in an orphanage is obviously never going to be a fairy tale.  It is guaranteed to be full of painful details and sadness.  Sometimes, as is the case for us, the story can be so complicated and difficult, it seems almost unbelievable.

Our adoption agency feels confident the guardian’s statements have been true.  Various reports, from both the police and the local government, have been provided.  We met the guardian in person during our trip to Ethiopia for court, and we have a video of the interview that was completed  prior to our referral.  We have no reason not to believe him and he would have little reason to be untruthful.  In all honesty, though, I think David and I would both always wonder deep, deep down.  Now we won’t...and we have decided to be thankful for that.

November Update Picture

January Update Photo

February Update Photo

The Waiting Room

We have a waiting room in our house.  It’s a room that is waiting for a little boy who will someday soon call it his own.  In this room, there’s a little bed waiting to be slept in and fuzzy friends waiting to be cuddled.  There are all kinds of books, their pages waiting to be turned, and baskets of toys waiting to be explored.  The closet and drawers are full of clothes waiting  for a little body to fill them.  There are pictures of him on the wall so he know this room has been waiting just for him.





Earlier this week, the US Embassy decided that they would also like to interview the guardian who cared for our son .  Plans are being made for him to make the eight hour trip from the Ethiopian countryside to the capital city of Addis Ababa…again.  I cannot begin to guess how he feels about all of this.  Certainly, he could not have foreseen all the travel and the interviews when he chose to take in a young boy off the streets.  He is a young man, unmarried, who works as a shoeshine for a living.  I am hoping he welcomes the opportunity for another adventure.  I wish I could thank him.

Feeling Wiggly

In my last update, I explained that our final adoption document - please let that be the last time I say that - was ready to be translated and was to be submitted to the US Embassy on Wednesday.  Well, turns out Wednesday was an Ethiopian holiday and the offices were closed for the day.

After pestering Kristen, the travel coordinator at AWAA, I learned that the document was submitted today and that they expect we will be cleared for travel any day now. 

While I know comparing yourself to a dog isn’t very becoming, I feel a little bit like a dog who is about ready to receive a treat but is continuously told, “Sit……..sit……..
sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..
sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit……..sit…….”

I am almost shaking with excitement and I know something wonderful is on it’s way, but it’s hard to feel so wiggly!