Wow, it was so great to hear all about the day Aaron and Dad had, but hard at the same time since I am not able to be there. I have seen 1 picture of Aaron and Sophie Ayantu! She is an adorbale little peanut!!!! Again, unfortunately we can't post pictures online for a few more months until we are cleared to travel back to the states. So we will obey the rules even though it is very difficult not to share this precious child with you all! Here's what Aaron said in his email about today...
She is so amazing! Didn't cry once on the trip. She fell asleep twice on my chest. She is so sweet! I wish you could be here.
I was able to talk on the phone to him and my dad for over 20 minutes today. They said the trip was long (3 hours one way) and hot since there wasn't air in the car and it was over 80 degrees there today. The countryside was 'eye-opening' as far as the poverty level. When they got to the orphanage Sophie Ayantu was asleep, Aaron walked over to where she was sleeping and she turned and opened her eyes and looked right at him :) The picture that I have seen is of him holding her and she is smiling up at him with this huge smile! She loves her daddy already!! They spent some time with the staff at the ophanage, they are wonderful! They held a coffee ceremony for the departure of little Sophie Ayantu. Aaron said he's had 6 cups of coffee since he's been there, and this is someone who NEVER drinks coffee :)
They took the staff out for lunch at a hotel in town, the food was good. Sophie Ayantu is a very easy going/content baby, she did well at lunch and on the road. Aaron changed his first diaper today... a poopy one at that! And little Sophie Ayantu peed while he was changing her, and smiled a huge smile about it! That should get Aaron ready for diaper duty!!! She did so well on the 3 hour trip back. Slept a lot on Aaron's chest and played some with daddy and grandpa! They dropped her off at the foster home, but couldn't stay long with her there as their driver needed to get back. They will visit her in the morning. Aaron and dad both sound VERY tired, but are happy with how the day went. I am sure it is all sort of a blur... Aaron is looking forward to the next few days and just spending time with his daughter!
Dad filled us in on how she is developmentally. At just shy of 6 months she only weighs around or just over 10 pounds! He said she doesn't seem malnurished, just tiny. She can roll over and scoot around a bit, but she is not sitting up yet. She's very reponsive to people, and has great eye-contact and is very happy. Sort of like a 6 month old personality in a 2 month old's body! She's healthy though, so we are thankful!
Thanks for all your continued prayers as they continue this adventure... Court is Wednesday morning, our lawyer has assured Aaron many times that things should go very smoothly! Sorry for typos and spelling errors... for some reason the computer I am doing this on doesn't have my normal tool bar on the blog site... no spell check :)
Monday, November 28, 2011
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Aaron and Dad in Addis!
It's 6 in the morning and I am up because Aaron and Dad called from Addis a little while ago! I figured I would blog and post that to facebook since there is so much information! Communication has been really good so far, I hear from them pretty often either by phone or email which is wonderful!!!! Here are some of Aaron's thoughts from the plane:
'The flight went well, I watched 2 movies, fast 5 and pirates of the caribbean. Food was ok, had a salad, bread and cheese, and chicken with green beans. They gave us a snack and it was gross. Had a banana and OJ with it too. Ok, there is your food update.'
When they got into Addis everything went smoothly, and they got to the guest house with no problems. Aaron was able to sleep since he did not sleep much on the trip, dad on the other hand had a little more trouble sleeping when they got in. Today (Sunday) is almost over for them as they are 9 hours ahead of us. They ate breakfast at the guest house this morning and met some great people. A woman named Jen (who is adopting a little girl) has been helping them out and a woman named Harage is the receptionist at the guest house and has been a wonderful help as well. Aaron is thankful to have great support and people showing them the ropes. Here are some more of Aaron's words:
'So we went to lunch with Jen and Harage. We ate some Ethiopian food. The bread has the texture of skin, but it is really good. And yes, I took pics of the food. The foster home is nice but seems a little crowded. The ladies that work there are angels. They really love the kids. The kids as you can see in the pictures are so loving. They came up and played with us right away. We will probably go to bed early tonight. We are going to the museum to see Lucy (oldest skeleton ever found).'
Tomorrow they will get up early for breakfast and get on the road to Batu to go meet Sophie at the Orphanage and then bring her back to the foster home. harage will be going with to help them out! I am praising God for placing the right people in their path to help them along on this adventure!!! What a blessing!
'The flight went well, I watched 2 movies, fast 5 and pirates of the caribbean. Food was ok, had a salad, bread and cheese, and chicken with green beans. They gave us a snack and it was gross. Had a banana and OJ with it too. Ok, there is your food update.'
When they got into Addis everything went smoothly, and they got to the guest house with no problems. Aaron was able to sleep since he did not sleep much on the trip, dad on the other hand had a little more trouble sleeping when they got in. Today (Sunday) is almost over for them as they are 9 hours ahead of us. They ate breakfast at the guest house this morning and met some great people. A woman named Jen (who is adopting a little girl) has been helping them out and a woman named Harage is the receptionist at the guest house and has been a wonderful help as well. Aaron is thankful to have great support and people showing them the ropes. Here are some more of Aaron's words:
'So we went to lunch with Jen and Harage. We ate some Ethiopian food. The bread has the texture of skin, but it is really good. And yes, I took pics of the food. The foster home is nice but seems a little crowded. The ladies that work there are angels. They really love the kids. The kids as you can see in the pictures are so loving. They came up and played with us right away. We will probably go to bed early tonight. We are going to the museum to see Lucy (oldest skeleton ever found).'
Tomorrow they will get up early for breakfast and get on the road to Batu to go meet Sophie at the Orphanage and then bring her back to the foster home. harage will be going with to help them out! I am praising God for placing the right people in their path to help them along on this adventure!!! What a blessing!
Thursday, November 3, 2011
The countdown is on...
It's November, and as the days tick closer and closer to Aaron's trip my head spins faster and faster with packing lists, paperwork trails, endless to-dos, and a scary shopping list! You see, there are many people Aaron will come into contact with while he is in Ethiopia... Guest house staff, orphanage staff, foster home staff, drivers, lawyers, and agency contacts... All of whom expect gifts to be given from the families they work for, as is customary in Ethiopia. That's a lot of gifts!!! Then there's the list of things we should bring for Sophie to have at the foster home, and all the paperwork that needs to be ready to go... Aaron will be lucky if I remember to pack him underwear!!!
I often stop myself these crazy days though, and remember that this is November and Thanksgiving is also drawing near as the days tick by; and we have SOOO much to be thankful for this year! 2 healthy girls on their way, a court date that has been God ordained to be perfect timing, the knowledge that Aaron will be with Sophie in less than a month, a warm home, food on our table, financial provisions each step of the way in this costly process, a good job, great family and friends, EACH OTHER, and most importantly a loving and faithful Father in heaven!!!! Lord, may I lean into you each day this month, and thank you for your many gifts. May I trust your hand and heart each moment, rather than fret and worry over things you hold. May I learn to live each moment at rest, having assurance that you are with me in all things! In Jesus precious name I pray... Amen.
I often stop myself these crazy days though, and remember that this is November and Thanksgiving is also drawing near as the days tick by; and we have SOOO much to be thankful for this year! 2 healthy girls on their way, a court date that has been God ordained to be perfect timing, the knowledge that Aaron will be with Sophie in less than a month, a warm home, food on our table, financial provisions each step of the way in this costly process, a good job, great family and friends, EACH OTHER, and most importantly a loving and faithful Father in heaven!!!! Lord, may I lean into you each day this month, and thank you for your many gifts. May I trust your hand and heart each moment, rather than fret and worry over things you hold. May I learn to live each moment at rest, having assurance that you are with me in all things! In Jesus precious name I pray... Amen.
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