November 11th Meeting our son!!

We were up early and excited to meet Baby M. After showering in our room on the 2nd floor, we went down for breakfast and I was able to have a hard boiled egg and some fruit. The fruit was really warm. We met our agency’s volunteer coordinator and many members of her team. She seems famous to me. It was an extra blessing to be there with her. The team all told us how lovable our son is and I was so excited to meet him. We also got to meet more great friends who were also staying at the hotel. We all decided to walk over together. It was about a 10 minute walk. As we walked my tummy churned. Yes, I was nervous, but this was an intense churn. We still don’t know if it was elevation (Addis is about 8000 ft) or the fruit (pretty sure I was suffering cross-contamination) but I was not feeling great. When we got to the care center I went straight to the bathroom, a place I sadly spent much time. Going to the bathroom a lot in a place that has no working water is a humbling experience, but by God’s grace I survived. We were led into the baby area and we were finally able to meet our sweet baby. He was stunned to meet us. There were lots of people in a small hallway and lots of cameras going (remember how I told you of his dislike for them) and he just stared. He was so beautiful and I am so thankful it was on tape as it was so surreal (like engagement, wedding day etc) that I have no idea what I said or did or how I acted.

Because of my MANY trips to the bathroom Brandon had to step up to the dad role in full force. He is amazing with M! M says “dada” really well which is a nice reward for Brandon. M does say “dada” when most men enter the room, but it won’t be long before he really knows who is daddy is!

We had to leave the care center from lunchtime until 3:30 each day so the babies could rest. On the walk back to the hotel (and the earlier walk too) we saw so many things my eyes have never seen. Some things very beautiful, some things very devastating. We saw a man laying partially in the gutter who appeared to be very ill. We stopped and tried to get others who were also stopping to move him safely away from the road. He was just a boy, less than 14 I would guess. He looked so sick. My heart broke. Many were trying to help him which warmed my heart. Once at the hotel we had lunch with dear friends! One friend hooked me up with “Cell-Power” which helps the body adjust to elevation. I took some other meds (yes, I have popped more pills in the last week than I have in the last year) and actually started to feel a bit better.

We took a little time to organize our suitcases. We packed prepared to lose luggage so that meant that all of our things were in every suitcase. It was a nightmare to find anything and it felt so good to get things in order. Even in Ethiopia, I needed to organize.

We went back to see M after his nap. We learned from friends that when they walked back to the care center the boy (from earlier) was laying back in the gutter, dead! This means we saw him in the last hour of his life. My eyes and heart will never forget this.

The afternoon was much better than the morning, with almost no trips to the bathroom. Thanks Imodium, you rock! M was babbling like crazy. He is so smart (biased, I know) and knew where his nose was when a nanny asked him. Speaking of nannies, M has the BEST! They love him! I feel so thankful knowing where he is and the care he is getting. He is surrounded by loving women who are standing in the gap for us and I am grateful beyond words! Just as I cried when we walked out of the blue door this time, I know I will cry next time as they will all have to say good-bye to him. It is so amazing how frequently pain and joy meet in adoption.

Later, we walked over to the agency guest house to visit some other families and check things out. It is a very nice and cozy place. Brandon was able to eat there as well. On the way back to Kings we stopped at Kaldi’s Coffee (Ethiopian version of Starbucks). They might be trying to copy the American coffee house, but we all know that coffee was BORN in Ethiopia! Kaldi’s has amazing ice cream (according to everyone who had it) and the staff got a huge kick out of our American appetites for ice cream. Not only did we go there often, but we ordered big. Brandon always got two scoops (which honestly is very little as the scoop is small and it is two literal scoops) and then others in the group ordered more and more and even tried to make speciality ice cream treats. I don’t think the staff will ever forget us!

After ice cream we discovered a great internet place above Kaldi’s. We used it several times during our trip!

We learned that 3 of the families with our agency didn’t pass court that day. This was very sad for us as our court day was the next day!