We Are Home!!!

Sorry for the lack of blogging but the internet became increasingly more difficult to access as the week progressed...not sure why, but it did.  I had already started posts that include the traditional Ethiopian meal with wonderful video, Thanksgiving Day pics, and arrival home pics....so stay tuned in the next few days!

We arrived back home at 4:35 p.m. on Saturday!  We almost missed our connecting flight from Charlotte to Nashville because the plane from DC to Charlotte was rather late due to mechanical trouble.  As soon as we touched down on the runway and could exit, Jason took-out at a run with Maura Rohama while I collected 1 bag and then I ran through the airport.  Fortunately, Jason arrived just as they announced last boarding call for Nashville and they held the plane for me.  We were SO THANKFUL to finally board that last plane! 

Maura did wonderful!  She hardly cried at all the entire flight and maintained her happy, bubbly personality for the entire trip.  So far, she hasn't cried much at all unless she has woken-up hungry or she wanted to be held.  I have lots to post and will do as soon as possible!  Right now, I am trying to send pics for families with care packages (they are taking forever to send, so please bear with me) and have to run to the grocery store and Maura has a 1/2 day appointment with an international pediatrician, so I've got to run!

It is SO WONDERFUL to see my baby finally sleeping in her cradle and crib!!!!!!!

Per the Embassy - "No Return Policy"

We had a great night last night.  Maura Rohama is on a very strict schedule, and we are trying to follow it very closely as she needs routine.  We had to give her a bottle last night about midnight and she did really well drinking it down.  She slept until about 5:30 a.m. and we could hear her lips smacking, so I had just gotten up to fix the bottle when I heard, "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"  She was hungry, so she ate and then we played and got ready for the Embassy trip.  She did so well! 

 

Oh, Melodie, thank you so much for the hair products - they work great on her!  I love the smell and her hair is so soft and the curls are so defined.  By the way, I gave the pics of Desta to Fortuna yesterday because the other nannies said that Desta's nanny was no longer there.  I was told that Fortuna will try to contact the nanny so she can get the pics.  Give Desta kisses for me!

 

This morning at 10:20 a.m. (Ethiopian time, of course), Maura Rohama became ours completely!  The trip to the U.S. Embassy took forever but thankfully we didn't have any problems and all our paperwork was there!  The lady at the counter looked at me and said, "Now, is this the same baby you were referred?  Do you realize that we have a no return policy for children?"  I said, "Ma'am, there is no way I'm returning my baby girl!"  She just laughed and said congratulations.  That was that!

 

We have had a wonderful day together but we are so ready to come home!  We have Maura Rohama's visa and Ethiopian passport, so we could actually leave for the US tonight but there's no flights out until our scheduled departure on Friday evening.  Until then, we are going to enjoy the rest of our trip and get to know one another better.

 

Maura Rohama is doing great!  She hardly ever cries.  She likes to babble, squeal, and most of all laugh.  She has such big, expressive eyes that are so chocolatey brown that you can't even see the black pupil.  She just laughs all the time.  She loves to be held but she goes right to sleep on her own and in her own bed!  She is still on the specialized F-100 formula made in France and not available in America, so today when we were out, we tried Similac Alimentum but she didn't like it at all.  We brought her back to the room and immediately fed her a bottle of F-100 and she gulped it down.  She eats best when she sleeping, so we are learning. 

 

After the Embassy appointment, we went to a restaurant by the Ethiopian National Museum where "Lucy", the oldest skeleton ever found resides - only Lucy is on tour right now, so there's a fake on display.  We ate at the "Lucy" and well, I don't recommend it.  Jason and I both got grilled chicken and it was raw - totally disgusting.  The others seemed to like their meal, so if you ever go, just remember to stay away from grilled chicken!

 

We have spent the rest of the afternoon in the guest house with Maura Rohama.  Jason was tired and she was squealing with laughter and rolling around all over the bed, so we went for a walk and let Daddy sleep.  Now, he's playing with her so I can update.  We are having a lot of fun getting to know one another.  I can't wait for Ashton to meet her as I know he is going to be so excited and she will just love him too!  Just a few more days and I can hold my Ashy!

 

Ashton, Daddy and I miss you SO MUCH and can't wait to see you!  Thank you for your video.  We could only hear a few seconds of it, but it was so wonderful to hear your voice and see your face!  Call us again soon!  I hope you are having fun with PaPa and BoBo!  We love you!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Here are a few pis of our morning before we went to the US Embassy.  The quilt that Maura Rohama is on is very special because it was made from my mother's favorite uniform top and pants.  Aunt Elsie in Mississippi took Mom's clothes and quilted them together for me.  I wanted Maura Rohama to have something special from my mom and this is so perfect!  It says, "Love, Granny"  Thank you so much Aunt Elsie!

 

 

Gotcha Day!

It's another beautiful day in Addis Ababa!  This morning, we went shopping for souvenirs, and we found plenty!  We are trying to get items for Maura Rohama to receive in the years to come.  Today, we bought a beautiful silk gown for her along with scarves, a doll, jewelry, a diaper bag/purse, etc.  We wanted to get Ash a soccer shirt but haven't been able to locate one his size yet.  After shopping, we went to an art gallery and restaurant for lunch.  Then, we headed to the Transitional Home to drop-off donations, deliver care packages, and pick-up our children. 

 

Today was also when we brought small gifts to the nannies.  We gave them Red shower gel and body lotion and a necklace with Rohama's picture and name on it.  I also brought Ashure's nanny a necklace and lotion set, however the necklace has her photo on it.  Ashure's nanny was quite overwhelmed with her gift. 

 

For those of you who I took care packages for, you should have pics in your e-mail box by now!  They are coming from a g-mail account because my Bellsouth account won't let me send messages.  I hope you enjoy them!  We also have video, so we will send that and the high resolution photos next week when we get home.  Your children are all precious!  I wish we could have had more time with each of them but alas that was not the case as we were rushing around.

 

Maura's head nanny was waiting for me at the top of the stairs and kept calling, "Momma!  Momma!"  I didn't know if something was wrong, so I hurried over to her and discovered that she wanted me to take pics of Rohama in her bed sound asleep.  She was so precious!  I had told them yesterday that I wanted to bring her outfit home, so they had merely put her in it again today so that's the reason for the same outfit in the photos.  When her nannies said goodbye, Jason and I both lost it completely.  The love that they have for our child is so evident!  As tears streamed down their faces and they kept kissing her and talking to her in Amharic, I felt as if I was stealing their baby.  I am SO grateful to these caretakers!  They were crying, we were crying, and Rohama was looking at all of us like we had lost our minds. 

 

At one point in time, I was holding Maura Rohama and she spotted her daddy and started bouncing and reaching out her arms to him.  He was just ecstatic!  She is so loving and cheerful.  We are going to be great shopping buddies in the years to come!

 

Rohama is doing great today!  She hasn't had any more bowel problems or vomitting, so that is wonderful.  Thank you so much for your prayers!  The doctor at the transitional home told me that she just needed her parents.  Maura Rohama has been in the best mood and has smiled and babbled constantly.  She wasn't too sure about the bumpy ride back to our hotel, but she was a champ and sat in our laps like a big girl. 

 

When we got back to the room, she drank a bottle and played on the bed with us.  She is really trying to crawl but her legs are still a little too weak right now.  She didn't seem to care though as she rolled and scooted around.  We had a good time playing together.  She is currently in her little bed sound asleep and her daddy is sound asleep in his bed.  Tomorrow is our Embassy appointment, so please keep us in prayer for that event too. 

 

 

Meetcha Day!

Wowzer, where do I begin?  Today has been so emotional as we have shed tears of joy and sorrow.  My morning began at 5:00 a.m. as I just couldn't sleep any longer.  Every morning at this time, the Muslims start praying, so you can hear them all over the city - even through closed windows.  I don't find it annoying at all and usually open the windows just so I can hear them.  This morning I opened the window wide and recorded the sounds of early morning in Africa. 

I also had a hard time this morning because I was thinking about my Mom - oh, how she longed for this day.  I know that if she weren't already in Heaven, she would have been blog stalking all day for pics.  My hope is that she was able to watch from Heaven today while holding our precious Julianna Ashure. 

We began the day with a "paper party" - this is anything but a party!  We all met in the lobby and then headed to the Hilton to prepare our paperwork for the US Embassy.  Our appointment is on Wednesday but we have to complete the paperwork in advance.  After the paperwork, we had a wonderful lunch and then loaded up to go meet our children!

Paperwork Party at Hilton Hotel

When we pulled up to the Transition Home, they opened the gates and we drove through.  It was so surreal seeing the America World sign posted outside the big grey gates that I have seen so many pictures of over the last years.  Last night, we worked-out a schedule for picture taking and videoing to make sure everyone received footage of the big moment. 

When it came our time, they brought Rohama out as we waited at the foot of the stairs.  She didn't smile but she didn't cry either - she just looked at us like we were crazy.  I was already crying before it was ever our time, so I was an emotional wreck by the time the African coordinator, Duni, called our names.  She was wearing one of the very first dresses that I ever bought her and sent in a care package!  Yeah, no pink and white striped hooded outfit! 

As they placed her in my arms, my heart overfilled with joy.  Jason and I were both crying and kissing her little head and face.  She was a trooper and let us kiss and cry over her.  It was so amazing to finally be able to pray over our little girl!  As the day progressed, she started smiling and even babbled some. We got to feed her a bottle and she even fell asleep in Jason's arms.  Our hearts are so full tonight! 

I know this is what you really want, so here are pics before I describe our day any further:

One thing that we learned this morning is that Maura Ruhama hasn't been feeling too well since Nov. 19.  She has been throwing-up and having diarrhea.  Fortunately, according to the nurse and doctor, she is doing better but they are giving us special formula, electrolyte supplement, and diarrhea suppositories to last us until we get home.  Please pray that God will touch and heal her little body so that she will feel better quickly! 

We were quite alarmed when we got to the paperwork party and were told about her illness, so immediately Jason and I bowed our heads and prayed for her.  I can't even begin to explain to you the panic that I felt.  Fortunately, she was doing better than we had been told to expect, so that did help our meeting go a little better as our fears were aleviated at least to some extent.  We are still praying very hard that God will heal her and that she won't have any trouble with the transition from the orphanage to our home.  Tomorrow, we bring her with us forever!  We are hoping to be able to talk with Ashton tonight as we miss him so much - we can't wait for him to meet his sissy!

One thing that we found out today was that one of the nurses/nannies caring for Rohama also cared for Ashure.  Through tears, she told us how much she loved Ashure and that she was devastated when she passed away.  She was with her to the very end, and that makes my heartache a little lighter as her love for our daughter is still so evident today.  I have prayed and prayed that God would surround my babies with loving nannies and He just keeps showing me how He has answered my prayers.  Our God is so good! 

The nanny kept a close eye on us with Rohama - especially when we were feeding her - and was so helpful in telling us how she likes to be held, fed, cuddled, etc.  She said that once Ashure passed, she clung to Rohama as her heart was broken and Rohama helped her heal - just as she is helping us heal too.  I have a very special gift for this nanny tomorrow and I can't wait to give it to her.  I know that it will be very difficult for her to say goodbye to Rohama.  Frankly, I think it will be very difficult for the other nannies in her room as they too closely watched us today and kept calling out her name and making her smile...they truly love her. 

Here are some more pics of our big Meetcha Day!

She kept playing with the rattle from Counsins Hannah and Hailey

Mommy couldn't wait to put a headband on her, and she didn't fuss a bit about it!

She's already got her Daddy wrapped around her finger.

Bye bye pink and white hooded outfit!

Tomorrow is Meetcha Day!

It is so hard to believe that this time tomorrow, we will have held our precious Maura Rohama in our arms!  We have to be in the lobby at 9:00 a.m. for our "paperwork party" which is anything BUT a party.  This is when we complete all our forms for the Embassy appointment.  After that, we go to lunch at the Zebra Grill which has all types of food from Italian, American, Ethiopian, to Mexcan.  Personally, I would like to skip lunch and eat a granola bar but that's not an option. 

Around 2:00 or so, we will arrive at the transitional house.  We will line-up in alphabetical order and one by one we will stand at the end of a ramp and wait for our child(ren) to be brought out to us.  We will all be taking video and photos of one another to make sure that each family has record of this life-chaning, long awaited event.  My mind is just spinning with wondering how Rohama is going to react to us.  I imagine her giving us this raised-eyebrow look like, "You are NOT my nanny.  Now give me back to her!"  I hope she doesn't cry.  I hope I don't cry but that's not likely going to happen - at least on my part.  I keep looking over at our empty bed in the room and trying to imagine what it will be like for her to actually be in it and peeking over the side....oh, hurry-up tomorrow! 

The Sieg family arrived safely around noon or so today, so we are waiting for the last family, the Goodgames, to arrive tonight.  They should already be at the airport and probably navigating Customs about now.  Please pray that we will all have a good night's sleep tonight and be healthy with bellies of steel for tomorrow!

Next post will contain pictures of Maura Rohama!!!!!!!!!!!!

Visit to Kingdom Vision International Orphanage

This morning after breakfast, a group of us headed to Kingdom Vision International Orphanage here in Addis.  This is the orphanage that Rohama spent about 3 months at before she was brought to America World's transitional home.  As we pulled into the gates, I was overwhelmed with emotion.  I was going through the same gates that my daughter entered last April when she first became an orphan.  It was so surreal knowing that KVI was home to my daughter for a short while.  The staff were incredibly nice and loved to smile.  They remembered Rohama! 

Laundry Area

Shoe rack and washing machine

Kitchen and Staff

We first saw the toddlers and early elementary age children - so precious!  One little boy came charging out the door and wrapped his little arms around Meg Sabini and then he couldn't quit kissing Karen Hutcheson.  Karen has gorgeous red hair and Ethiopians seem drawn to her immediately.  The children were so adorable!  We gave out animal crackers, Smarties, and suckers so they were very happy.  They even sang us a song - my heart was so full! 

When we walked into the baby room, I lost my breath for a moment as reality hit - Rohama used to sleep in these very beds.  Then, the most amazing thing happened - I met 2 of her nannies!  They said that from a very small age Rohama was happy and she began smiling very, very young.  They said she was a good baby and didn't cry hardly at all.  I thanked them for loving on our daughter and for allowing God to use them as His hands here on earth.  There were about a dozen children in the baby room and praise God, almost every one of them have forever families!  Since the beginning of our adoption process, we have prayed that God would surround our child with people who love her and care for her and today, He revealed at least 2 of the people that He used to answer our prayers!  It was with tears falling down my cheeks that I surveyed the room and expressed thanksgiving to them for taking care of our precious baby.  I will never forget the women who loved and cared for Rohama in her early days of life.  What a gift God gave us today in bringing us to these women!

Traditional Ethiopian Dinner

Tonight we joined Meg Sabini, Katie (Meg's sister), and Miles and Ashley Catlett for a traditional Ethiopian dinner.  They spent the day together shopping and visiting churches and museums while we were at the cemetery and shopping.  They knew that our day had been rough, so they came back for us so that we could spend time together.  I just cannot convey to you how wonderful the people are in our travel group!  We are so blessed!

The restaurant was amazing!  I loved the scenery and the atmosphere.  I tried a bite of the food but didn't eat much more than that as I am still trying to be very careful about upsetting my stomach.  It is still a little queasy but MUCH better than this morning!  Here's what the group is eating in the pictures below:

Dora Wet:  Chicken drumstick or thigh cooked in herbal butter berer onion sauce served with cottage cheese and hard boiled egg.

Alicha Firfir:  Mild lamb stew in turmic ginger garlic, onion sauce mixed with chunks of Enjera

Tibs:  Cubes of lamb sauteed with onions, tomatoes, green peppers

Tibs Firfir:  Cubes of lamb cooked with onions, garlic, tomatoes, green peppers sauteed with chunks of Enjera

Yebeq Key West:  Lamb stew wth onions, garlic, herbal butter berere sauce

Kuwanta Firfir:  Dried marinated beef cooked in seasoned berbere tomatoes, onions, garlic herbal butter sauce sauteed with chunks of Enjera

Enjera is the spongy bread that the food is served on and also rolled-up and eaten with.  Your hands are washed before the food is served and then again after eating.  You eat with one hand only.  The Enjera is poured-out like pancake batter and cooked in a wok. 

As we were leaving, the live music was beginning and the Ethiopian nightlife was beginning.

We came back to the guest house and went to the terrace on the roof with Meg and Katie.  We had a wonderful time fellowshipping together and sharing about our faith, family, and adoption journey.  We also spent some time in Meg's room looking at all her "finds" from her shopping trip today.  I think she found a shop where I can get a traditional child's dress! 

Well, we have to be in the lobby by 9:00 a.m. tomorrow so we can visit Kingdom Vision International Orphanage, so I need to check my e-mails and head to bed.  Thank you for following our journey and most of all, for your prayers!