Looking Back . . . Thursday

Yes, I know it's been almost an entire month since I posted last, and I don't know that many people are even bothering to check here anymore, but I am determined to finish posting through our week in Ethiopia!

Thursday was an interesting day for us. By this time we had our luggage and were able to get everything delivered. This was also the day that it was clear that Isaiah didn't want anything to do with mommy.

Thursday morning all of the traveling families loaded into our vans to go visit the first orphanage, Kids' Care. We drove into the court yard and saw the beautiful old buildings, and were greeted by some amazing, beautiful, and happy children! We passed out many granola bars, crackers and balloons. On a whim on one of my last shopping trips before we left for Ethiopia, I had picked up some punching balloons and some rocket balloons. Well, the rocket balloons were a HIT! Basically long, thin balloons that you blow up w/ a little pump and then let them go whistling and flying into the air - so fun and the kids were going crazy!

We met this guy working at Kid's Care. He could care less about the Colts, but we still had to get a picture with him in his Colts shirt :o)

I walked into one of the baby rooms inside the buildings. We were only allowed to take pictures in the courtyard, so there were no pictures in here. I started blowing up some beach balls and sea creatures and handing them to the children. There was one very petite little girl sitting on the floor who kept shaking her head at me with her bottom lip sticking out. The nannies there didn't speak English, but they let me know that she wanted a toy. So I blew one up and handed it to her. What happened next happened so quickly - I handed her the toy which she immediately and forcefully tossed away, scooting on her tush over to me where she stood upright (I didn't think she could stand up) with her hands in the air to me. I picked her up and she immediately clasped both hands on the collar of my shirt. I tried to ask the nannies about her, and from what I understand, they said she was seven. I said, "seven months" and they said, "no, years!" I was amazed. She looked no bigger than a 2 year old, and a petite 2 at that. She continued shaking her head w/ her lower lip jutting out, and one nanny said "she want go to America". I can't even type this here without the tears coming. I've heard many parents say it, but you want to take every child home. You want to help more.

After we had a fun time visiting with the children, one of the head nannies there prepared us a traditional coffee ceremony, which was basically sitting in a circle and being served very strong, black coffee in tiny tea cups along with popcorn that tastes like kettle corn - pretty good actually! It is very humbling, when they have so little, to sit and be served by them. I'm wearing a Kid's Care t-shirt right now that we bought while we were there - they sell them to help with their needs at the orphanage.


After this visit, we all went back to an art gallery for lunch. After lunch, whichever families wanted to, split into two vans to visit one of two orphanages. We were scheduled to meet with Isaiah's birth mom at Kingdom Vision International - the orphanage where Isaiah lived before he was taken to our agency's transition home. It was a tough choice, but we decided that I would have to do this by myself. We didn't want for Isaiah to be further traumatized if he caught a glimpse of his birth mom, and we knew it would be better for me to meet with her mom-to-mom, than Joe. I won't get into details here on this meeting, but it was absolutely one of the best and hardest things I have ever done. I would do it over a thousand times for Isaiah, but for me . . . . We were able to get a picture of her that we will put in a file for when Isaiah is older and starting to wonder about where he came from.



We spent our last evening in Ethiopia in the guest house. Realistically, since we were so emotionally and physically maxed out, and in a different time zone, and waking wide awake every morning between 3:30-5 a.m., most evenings, we ate dinner and crashed. We did stay up a little later this night to finish packing up. An amazing day.

All in all, even given the horrendous hassle of the luggage issues, as I look back, and as other families travel and I see their pictures . . . I miss Ethiopia. Our trip was hard . . . really, really, REALLY hard . . . but I'd do it again in a minute.

One of my absolute favorite pictures from our week in Ethiopia - when we left Kid's Care . . .

Looking Back . . . Wednesday

Okay, WOW, so it's been way too long since I've been back on this blog!! I do want to get some more pictures on here of our trip, and since I stopped at Tuesday of our week in Ethiopia, I'm now onto Wednesday. I don't actually have many pictures from Wednesday because the main event for that day was our appointment with the US Embassy to get visa approval for Isaiah to be able to come back to the U.S. This was the appointment that was holding up our travel plans for a few weeks because they waited until the week before to confirm with our agency that we could have the appointment.

When we showed up for our appointment Wednesday morning we went through security (no electronics allowed). After all five of our AWAA families had passed through security, we all sat down to find out that they had decided to close the day before, so our appointment got moved to the afternoon (par for the course for the "bumps" in our trip!). So, we all loaded back into the vans and headed back to the guest house. There we decided just to flip-flop our day. We did more shopping in the morning, had lunch out and then went to our embassy appointment. The appointment basically consists of waiting for a few hours in a crowded, stuffy room (glad it was "winter"!!) until they call your name. Then we go up to the window where they ask you a few questions (literally 5-10 min. total) before they give you approval. Fortunately for us, Isaiah fell asleep on me shortly after we got there and was sleepy the rest of the time . . . some of the other families with us weren't so lucky and had to chase kids around for hours!

Besides knowing that we had Isaiah's visa approval, the most exciting thing of the day was FINALLY GETTING OUR LUGGAGE!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was so excited to finally be able to get our donations sorted for the transition home and orphanages. As I mentioned in my post while we were in ET, the only things missing from our luggage were a box of latex gloves and a large bag of candy (meant for a gift for some of the people who helped us while we were there). I wish I had had more time to get stuff more organized for pictures, but below is what I got in the chaos of sorting and separating. I wanted to take these pictures and share them with you because they were donations from you - so many of you prayed and sacrificed financially so we were not only able to complete Isaiah's adoption, but also be able to bring around 150-175 lbs. of donations for the orphans!

Who's Your King??

A New Easter

Easter is not really new, but I feel like I'm seeing Easter in a new way this year. I'm not who I was last year at this time. God has changed me, the way I think, the way I see the world, and I pray that I never lose the vision He's given me. I pray that, by His grace alone, I will remain open and yielded to Him so that He can continue to make that vision clearer - to see how He sees!

Earlier this week on facebook, I shared a video of another adoptive family and included the caption "Easter IS adoption" . . . and I've been continually brought back to that thought throughout the week. God gave the ultimate price - the life of His only and perfect Son - for His glory and our good. If you're like me and you've grown up with the "story", it's easy to gloss over that statement. God has taught me SOOO much this past year, but if nothing else, He has given me a deeper understanding of my adoption in Him. He paid this price and now I'm adopted into His family - not as a servant or even a good friend (both of which positions I am unworthy to occupy) - He chose to watch His Son die an excruciating death. He was beaten, abused, beyond recognition. And as if the physical wasn't enough, He was mocked. He chose to take our sin on Himself. And by doing that, in the time of His greatest misery and agony, He was also separated from His Heavenly Father. All of the hatred and disgust due my putrid sin . . . He CHOSE to bear that, from His Father . . . in my place. Because of my sin. Now, I am a child of God - in His family, permanently, with all of the unfathomable rights and privileges that that includes!

So, as I sat this morning with our church family, singing all of the beautiful songs about what God has done for us through His victory over death, I literally felt my breath taken away as God took me back a few weeks. This thought has struck me this week, but even more so this morning. Remember my posts earlier of how Isaiah was really not liking me for the last few days in Ethiopia and the entire plane ride home? That was so painful. My heart still hurts to think about it, it's still so "fresh". To be there, ready, willing, and able to be his mom . . . I knew what we had done these last several months to get there. I knew I had what he needed, if only he would let me. But anytime I got near him . . . well I can't even describe the look of disgust with the accompanying scream he gave me if I got anywhere near him. I knew it could happen, but it still broke my heart when it did. I wish I could describe to you the depth of the pain I was feeling in my heart . . . and I felt this week like God was saying to me, "Sarah, how do you think I feel everyday when the children I love, the children I DIED for, think they don't need me? They reject me, they mock me, they run screaming the other way. Or they say I'm just a figment of someone's imagination." My heart is broken. He has allowed me to feel His pain in a small, but very real way.

Okay, so I know you came here for pictures of the family, and not for a sermon ;o) We are doing well, as far as we know, Isaiah still seems to be doing well and finding his place in our family. We are so thankful for God's continued grace and mercy to us. He truly gives us the strength for each new day! So today was Easter, and, as far as we know, the first Easter that Isaiah has ever celebrated. Here's a short video of Isaiah with the legos he got for Easter, and using a few of his English words - jellybean, doggie, and bye-bye ;o)

Josh was SOOO excited about our Easter egg hunt, and that he found the egg hidden in the trickiest spot ;o)

Medical Update

I tried to get on here earlier today to post this update, but for some reason I couldn't get on. Isaiah's appointment with the dr. at the International Adoption Clinic went well. Of course, he didn't enjoy the blood draw, but other than that it was no big deal for him. They're running a lot of test on the blood, and he will also be tested again for intestinal parasites. We're not sure the last one is completely cleared up or he may have something(s) else. Overall, she said he's in good health. A lot of interesting information. She said there seems to be evidence of Rickets in the past. She wants us to see a dermatologist about a birthmark on his arm. Since the Ethiopian medical records show him having had malaria, he will need to be tested for that. Unfortunately, malaria "hides" in the blood unless he has a fever, so we have to wait until the next time he gets a fever. And he needs to get a TB test and start an immunization schedule. We'll go back in 6 months for her to evaluate his growth/progress.

The more interesting news, is the dr. agreed with us that he seems he is closer to turning 3, not 4 as the Ethiopian birth certificate shows. So we picked a birth date of May 16, 2007 . . . why?? Well, we went with May because that's the month on the Ethiopian certificate, so we thought why not? Then Joe wanted it to be the 8th so he could remember (Joey's, Gracie's and my birthdays are all the 8th) ;o) So, I suggested we make it the 16th since Madie's is April 16 so maybe it'll help him remember hers, too . . . so now I guess I'll just have to remind him of Josh's birthdate ;o)

Playing in the waiting room at Riley

Looking Back . . . Tuesday . . . and this past weekend

First, looking back. Tuesday in Ethiopia was the day we were assured we'd have our luggage - they even gave us flight numbers. We went shopping with our group Tuesday morning, which was quite an adventure. Many little shops in a row - most no bigger than a walk-in closet, stacked with stuff and very pushy sales people! We had a great time and got some pretty neat souvenirs . . . and only got "taken" a few times ;o) But it's all good - they need the money more than we do, right? ;o)

After shopping, we headed back to the guest house where the group was dropped off for lunch. We, however, skipped lunch to take a ride to the airport, where we got to spend over an hour to find out that our luggage was still in Dubai . . . to laugh or cry?? It was definitely a toss-up at this point! I will say though, for those of you who don't know Joe, it takes A LOT to get him angry. In fact, I don't know that I can remember ever seeing him truly angry . . . let's just say, he was a man with a red face and very few words on the ride back from the airport that day! I know this was such a big stress point for both of us during this week, and I am so thankful for him being my "rock" by dealing with all of this baggage and airline mess. I truly would have had a mental breakdown if I had to do it!

Then we headed to the transition home to get Isaiah. While it was exciting, it was emotional for me, as well, thinking of what little we had to help care for Isaiah. We were able to visit the second transition home, where Isaiah actually lived, for a short time. Isaiah loved the van ride and, as you'll see in the pictures, he loved the little flashlights . . . Praise the Lord, one of the few things for Isaiah that I actually did pack in my carry-on. We stopped at a grocery store on the way back to pick up some supplies that we needed until our luggage got there.

Isaiah almost instantly warmed up to us once we were in the hotel room that night. Here is the video of the first time we heard him giggle . . . I was in tears on the other side of the camera!

Isaiah in his bed at the transition home (not sure why this pic didn't rotate??)

Talking with one of Isaiah's nannies at the transition home, with our translator, Fami.

In front of transition home #2

Reaching out to one of his friends at the transition home (the Ballard's precious daughter!)

Playing with the flashlights

playing at the guest house with some little animals we picked up shopping that morning

He LOVED the big, soft bed!

More of the amazing scaffolding they build and work on . . . no safety harnesses here!

view from the top of the guest house . . . forgive me if this is a repost ;o)
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And now, back to today!

Isaiah had a chance to meet his McDaniel grandparents at the airport when we arrived home, but that was just a short meeting. They were able to come down this past Friday and spend a few hours getting to know him, and him them. We played in the backyard with the bubbles and toys they brought, grilled dinner, and then went to Ritter's for Isaiah's first taste of ice cream . . . well, technically custard! He liked it better than I thought he would since he's not big on sweets, but he was still much more interested in trying to run into the parking lot ;o)





Then we took him to meet our church family for the first time on Sunday. Joe took the older three to Sunday School, and Josh, Isaiah and I joined them for church. Isaiah was shy and silent, but he did well and sat quietly and pretty still the entire time Daddy was preaching. One of my first thoughts as we began to see God clearly leading us to adopt, was how wonderful it would be, not only to bring a child into our physical family, but also into our amazing church family! I am so excited for them to get to know him, and for him to be a part of God's body at Grace Bible Church!!

Many of you have asked how Isaiah is adjusting. As far as we know, things seem to be going well. But only God knows what is coming down the pike, and we are so thankful that He is also the one who will give us the wisdom, strength, and grace to handle whatever that is! The kids are great with him, which is a huge help to us. Josh is the only one who seems to be going through some "transitions", but he'll be okay ;o) Although the pictures below may look staged, they're really not. The only thing I told them to do was stop walking so I could get a picture!