Days Three & Four in Ethiopia

I’m wiped.  We’ve had an absolutely exhausting 48 hours.  The last couple days have been the most unforgettable experience of my life thus far.  We are both completely emotionally and physically spent.  I would go so far as to say this experience has been life-altering.  It’s going to take me a while to process all [...]

Day Two in Ethiopia

We had another busy but great day in Ethiopia!  We went to the care center first thing this morning and saw this as we entered the gates.

As Matt zoomed in to take a picture, he realized it was our girl and her nanny.  So cute!

This nanny loves our girl so much.  She dotes on her [...]

Day One in Ethiopia

I’m sitting at the bar in our hotel after an amazing day, enjoying a Coke Light and some toasted barley and peanuts,  listening to Matt learn about Ethiopian coffee from two bartenders that are very proud of the country and culture.  They’re also giving us lessons on how to properly say please and thank you.  [...]

We’re Here!

It’s about 11:30 here in Ethiopia – approximately 34 hours from the time we left our house – and we have just settled into our hotel room.  The trip here was long and not all that much fun, but we made it here and I guess that’s what matters!  We met up with 4 of [...]

And we’re off!

We’re sitting at the airport waiting for our first flight!  I can’t believe we’re actually doing this.  It’s going to be a long 30-hour journey to Ethiopia (and an even longer one back, I’m sure) but in just a couple days we will be introduced to our girl.  The last couple days have been a [...]

Separation Anxiety

Dolly left us today.  It’s only temporary.  She’s spending the next two weeks at my parents house.  I’m not really anxious about this (as the title of the post might imply) because I know that they love her and she will probably enjoy living with them more than she likes living with us.  But I [...]

Compassion

I love Rob Bell’s Nooma video series.  And I love the work that Compassion International does. So today when I stumbled upon a Nooma videa that Rob Bell created for Compassion about wealth and poverty, I was excited.  You can watch it here.  It’s good stuff.  Good, challenging, thought-provoking stuff.
Today was my last day of [...]

Dressing Baby Z

Baby girls are really fun to shop for.  Clearly, I’ve enjoyed myself.

A couple of things I would like to note, lest you think this collection of baby girl clothing seems excessive.  First of all, there is a range of sizes represented here – all the way up to 2T.  And I’ve bought A LOT of [...]

Miscellany

We’re doing a bit of this:

And a bit of this:

Although this picture was taken a while ago and our packing has taken a severe turn towards the disorganized in the last few days.  Every time I come across something we need to pack, I just throw it in the general vicinity of a suitcase.   [...]

Busy, busy.

It’s my last week of work before maternity leave. Is it still called maternity leave or am I supposed to call it something else since Zoe is joining our family through adoption?  Anyways, lots of loose ends to wrap up.  I’ve been amazed at how many people seem surprised that I’m taking time off.  I [...]