Where do I begin........First of all, I miss my sweet Keira so much. It's hard to find my happy place. Thank goodness for my other two children, husband, family, and friends who have lifted me up.
So, I will start with day 1 .........
Day 1(Friday/Saturday)....I have NEVER been on a plane, but I enjoyed it! I wasn't scared at all. Our first plane was TINY. It was one seat on the left and two seats on the right. That flight was over quickly. The second flight was awesome! The plane was huge, comfortable, and I loved all the free movies! I also got excited about the dinner they served. I thought it was very good, too!We were a little worried that if we had ANY delays in Newark, we would miss our Frankfurt flight in Germany. After running, riding the tram, and going through security-WE MADE IT. Then, they delayed it because the the starter was broken (that did not make me feel good). I also had to sit beside strangers. That was not fun either. One lady sat beside me and broke her plastic cup into tiny pieces. It was so annoying and loud! I did fall asleep and NO one woke me up for dinner. However, Matt said I did not miss anything. The food was no longer good. Finally, we made it!!! When we arrived at the airport.We had to get our visa, change our money, and then get our luggage. I felt overwhelmed. I was afraid our driver had left because we arrived much later and had to do all those things in the airport. We couldn't find our driver in the airport. I began to cry a little because I felt so out of place. Finally, we decided to go outside the airport. When we walked outside there were SEVERAL people. Again, I felt overwhelmed and then there he stood holding a sign - Milam! I could have hugged him!! We got into his car and off we went! His driving SCARED me! I had no seat belt either. I actually prayed in the backseat. I prayed that I wouldn't die in his car. He swerved around people and honked every 5 mins. I was in culture shock. When we arrived to the guest house and everyone was asleep. I had no idea what to do. I felt homesick and was ready to come home. So we jumped in the bed and went to sleep.
Day 2(Sunday).......
Breakfast at the guest house- We woke up early. I was afraid no one would wake us up. I did not want to miss breakfast and our first visit with Keira. We got dressed and went downstairs and met the other families. Breakfast was AMAZING! We ate the best french toast. I no longer felt homesick. Everything changed. I felt excited and loved the other families! It was time to go load up and head over to the foster home from 10-12pm. Matt and I were so excited! The drive over seemed a lot different. I didn't feel scared and started to understand their driving. I realized that I wasn't going to die and he knew what he was doing. Then , we pulled into the foster home. My heart started beating fast. I was about to meet my beautiful little girl!
Meeting Keira- We were standing their waiting, waiting, and waiting. They called for her name "Mariamawit". Then, I saw the nanny walking down the stairs with my precious girl in her arms. My heart could have exploded. It was the best feeling. The nanny was standing right in front of me. Keira smiled the moment she saw my face. I couldn't believe how beautiful she was. It was so surreal. She went right to me. Matt and I were in awe of her. She was perfect!!! We got to spend two hours with her. It felt like minutes......I couldnt believe how fast those two hours went. She laughed, played, and fell asleep in my arms. Matt and I couldn't get enough of her. I kept thanking God for giving me this beautiful little girl. Just writing about her makes me tear up because I miss her so much! It was hard to say goodbye to her, but it was time for us to leave. I knew that I would get to see her again at 3pm so I was able to say goodbye!
Lunch at the guest house -We went home had lunch. One of the couples at the guest house asked if we wanted to walk around. Our driver insisted on going so he could "protect' us. lol. The five of us went on an adventure.(((Ethiopia is BEAUTIFUL)))) It really opened my eyes to a lot of things. I really enjoyed walking around and just seeing everything. Everyone was so nice, too! A sweet little boy followed us everywhere. I even got him to say my name. When we returned to the guest house, I gave him a toy. Before I knew it, kids were surrounding me. You would have thought I was passing out gold! They were so excited to have a toy. It broke my heart.
Foster Home-It was time to go back to the foster home form 3-5pm. Our 2nd visit with her was just as amazing! She was always happy!!! She laughed at everything we did.The room we were in was very small and we had to share it with two other families. It was very cozy though. It did not matter where we were or who was around us. The three of us were in our own little world. I thoroughly enjoyed watching the other families interact with their sweet babies, too!!! Again, the two hours flew by. It felt like minutes........The nannies came down and took our babies away.
Dinner at the guest house- When we returned home it was dinner time! I LOVED the meals at the guest house. They definitely knew how to cook! They would make us American food. After dinner, everyone went to bed. Matt and I stayed up and just talked about our day. Day 2 in Ethiopia was amazing! It was one of my favorite moments in my life! I never thought that our first meeting with Keira would have been so amazing! We prepared ourselves for the worst before we came. We knew that she could possibly be scared of us, not bond with us, cry the whole time, and much more. With that said, the visit exceeded our expectations! She blew us away! Our day was PERFECT!
So, I will start with day 1 .........
Day 1(Friday/Saturday)....I have NEVER been on a plane, but I enjoyed it! I wasn't scared at all. Our first plane was TINY. It was one seat on the left and two seats on the right. That flight was over quickly. The second flight was awesome! The plane was huge, comfortable, and I loved all the free movies! I also got excited about the dinner they served. I thought it was very good, too!We were a little worried that if we had ANY delays in Newark, we would miss our Frankfurt flight in Germany. After running, riding the tram, and going through security-WE MADE IT. Then, they delayed it because the the starter was broken (that did not make me feel good). I also had to sit beside strangers. That was not fun either. One lady sat beside me and broke her plastic cup into tiny pieces. It was so annoying and loud! I did fall asleep and NO one woke me up for dinner. However, Matt said I did not miss anything. The food was no longer good. Finally, we made it!!! When we arrived at the airport.We had to get our visa, change our money, and then get our luggage. I felt overwhelmed. I was afraid our driver had left because we arrived much later and had to do all those things in the airport. We couldn't find our driver in the airport. I began to cry a little because I felt so out of place. Finally, we decided to go outside the airport. When we walked outside there were SEVERAL people. Again, I felt overwhelmed and then there he stood holding a sign - Milam! I could have hugged him!! We got into his car and off we went! His driving SCARED me! I had no seat belt either. I actually prayed in the backseat. I prayed that I wouldn't die in his car. He swerved around people and honked every 5 mins. I was in culture shock. When we arrived to the guest house and everyone was asleep. I had no idea what to do. I felt homesick and was ready to come home. So we jumped in the bed and went to sleep.
Day 2(Sunday).......
Breakfast at the guest house- We woke up early. I was afraid no one would wake us up. I did not want to miss breakfast and our first visit with Keira. We got dressed and went downstairs and met the other families. Breakfast was AMAZING! We ate the best french toast. I no longer felt homesick. Everything changed. I felt excited and loved the other families! It was time to go load up and head over to the foster home from 10-12pm. Matt and I were so excited! The drive over seemed a lot different. I didn't feel scared and started to understand their driving. I realized that I wasn't going to die and he knew what he was doing. Then , we pulled into the foster home. My heart started beating fast. I was about to meet my beautiful little girl!
Meeting Keira- We were standing their waiting, waiting, and waiting. They called for her name "Mariamawit". Then, I saw the nanny walking down the stairs with my precious girl in her arms. My heart could have exploded. It was the best feeling. The nanny was standing right in front of me. Keira smiled the moment she saw my face. I couldn't believe how beautiful she was. It was so surreal. She went right to me. Matt and I were in awe of her. She was perfect!!! We got to spend two hours with her. It felt like minutes......I couldnt believe how fast those two hours went. She laughed, played, and fell asleep in my arms. Matt and I couldn't get enough of her. I kept thanking God for giving me this beautiful little girl. Just writing about her makes me tear up because I miss her so much! It was hard to say goodbye to her, but it was time for us to leave. I knew that I would get to see her again at 3pm so I was able to say goodbye!
Lunch at the guest house -We went home had lunch. One of the couples at the guest house asked if we wanted to walk around. Our driver insisted on going so he could "protect' us. lol. The five of us went on an adventure.(((Ethiopia is BEAUTIFUL)))) It really opened my eyes to a lot of things. I really enjoyed walking around and just seeing everything. Everyone was so nice, too! A sweet little boy followed us everywhere. I even got him to say my name. When we returned to the guest house, I gave him a toy. Before I knew it, kids were surrounding me. You would have thought I was passing out gold! They were so excited to have a toy. It broke my heart.
Foster Home-It was time to go back to the foster home form 3-5pm. Our 2nd visit with her was just as amazing! She was always happy!!! She laughed at everything we did.The room we were in was very small and we had to share it with two other families. It was very cozy though. It did not matter where we were or who was around us. The three of us were in our own little world. I thoroughly enjoyed watching the other families interact with their sweet babies, too!!! Again, the two hours flew by. It felt like minutes........The nannies came down and took our babies away.
Dinner at the guest house- When we returned home it was dinner time! I LOVED the meals at the guest house. They definitely knew how to cook! They would make us American food. After dinner, everyone went to bed. Matt and I stayed up and just talked about our day. Day 2 in Ethiopia was amazing! It was one of my favorite moments in my life! I never thought that our first meeting with Keira would have been so amazing! We prepared ourselves for the worst before we came. We knew that she could possibly be scared of us, not bond with us, cry the whole time, and much more. With that said, the visit exceeded our expectations! She blew us away! Our day was PERFECT!
Your pictures are sooo sweet and they made me cry. The picture of you kissing your baby girl is precious! I can't wait to meet our little girl and to have our own Ethiopian adventure! :) God bless!
ReplyDeleteI teared up reading this. What an answer to prayer this little girl is! I can't wait to read the rest! I e-mailed you by the way but I can see you have been very busy.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE all of your photos! She is a perfect little girl! It makes so excited to go and get our little girl. We are just beginning though so it will be a while!
ReplyDelete