Ok everyone, here we are...one day away from flying halfway across the world. Amazingly, we are 99% done with packing, so that is a load off. A big load, I might add. We have 4 huge bags stuffed full (each one is just at the weight limit of 50 lbs) and two good sized carry-ons to take along with us. Hooray for checked baggage. And no, not all the bags are just so Steve can take along is blankies and all his favorite shoes.... In fact, two of the large bags are filled with just stuff for the orphanage - diapers, wipes, medicines, clothes, etc that our families have so generously donated. So today I'll just tie up the loose ends and go down my checklist that is a mile long - and try and keep my heart rate down. Poor Steve has to "work" today...ya right like he's concentrating on anything else besides our baby boy that we are going to be holding in 72 hours!! Well, I'm looking forward to adding to the blog once we are over there! Actually, right now I'm looking more forward to just getting there. Nevertheless, I'll be writing again soon, with Chapter 1 of the Leasure's Ethiopian Adventures. Tata for now-
We tracked your progress across the globe. During the night, last night, we prayed as, 11 hours ahead of our time, you were preparing to meet your little boy. I wondered, at 1:00 AM (it would have been about 12:00 noon, Ethiopian time, Saturday), if you were, indeed, welcoming him into your arms. It is now 8:07 AM, PST., making it 7:00 in the evening, there. Is little Ben in your motel room with you? Are you preparing to spend your first night with him? I will sign off. Ben is your first priority right now. Not us. Not the blog. We will wait patiently, for as long as it takes. You do the important thing, and hold him, and enjoy him. The blog can wait. Just know we're all thrilled for you, and are praying for you. Love, Just Grandpa and Just Grandma. PS. Give Ben a kiss on his dear little cheek, for us!
If prayers were pennies you would be rich! We have been thinking of you and praying for you constantly. Everything is fine here at your house -- Mo gets his daily 2.5 notfastenough walk, followed by 6-7 zoom-zooms. Then he sleeps for approximately 12 min. to regain his energy :-). Radio continues to be disdainful and occasionally needy. I can only imagine how thrilled you are to finally hold your sweet little boy. Enjoy loving Ben every minute and check in as you can. Please kiss his dimple for me...
Hey Guys, I bet we fooled you all thinking Heather and Steve may have posted something :). We are praying for you(Baby Ben's parents) and wish you guys a smooth trip. Just like everyone else, we cannot wait to hear from you. Love Aukist Connie and Augoht TJ
Hi Everyone - Just wanted to let you all know that Heather called early this morning. The internet has not been working there but they want everyone to know that they arrived safely and they now have Ben. Heather sounded good -- she was feeding Ben while talking but had to cut the message short because he was "vocalizing" in the background :-) We can all be praying that the internet will soon be working!
Hi again everyone - I just had two brief phone conversations with Heather (they cut you off after 3 min). At 2 a.m. our time they will have their appt. at the embassy. Immediate prayer request is for Steve who is ill. Apparently the worst is over but he is feeling dehydrated and weak. Please pray that he can make it through the meeting.Last night was Ben's first night with them and it went well. heather says he is an easygoing baby who laughs and smiles alot. She is hopeful that they will be able to get on the internet later today so the next news you get should be directly from them. thanks for your prayers!
Heather and Steve!! Congrats!! You're a mommy and a daddy!!I don't feel like anything I could say would be adequate enough to express how happy I am for you all!! The Leasure family has officially begun their adventure together!
Hello Proud New Parent's & Baby Ben: Wow! How exciting of a time for you all. You don't know us by name, but we work with your Mom (newgramma Robin) at Pregnancy Resource Center in Tigard. We have had the privilege of praying for you and for Ben for months. We have been able to see his pictures & get excited with Robin. May you know that you are covered in prayer for your trip back & for an awesome homecoming as you bring Ben into your home & family. Enjoy sharing Ben with those who have walked this journey with you and who are so very, very happy & excited to meet him in person! We will continue to pray for your health & a smooth transition to full-time parenting. What an incredible life, love & legacy you are extending to Ben and what blessings he will bring you for a lifetime. We are in awe of the God we serve. Blessings to You All, Pregnancy Resource Center - Tigard
Just wanted you all to know that Robin received an email from Heather today. Heather is unable to access this blog. Apparently all she is able to do is email. She has asked for prayer. Please pray that the return journey goes well for everyone. Ben is adjusting so well to Heather and Stephen (Praise the Lord!!). But there are other parents whose babies are struggling with the transition. She has asked for prayer for these parents and their new little child(ren). It is an incredibly long journey home. They all will need the grace of God to comfort and tend to the needs of their babies. Stephen was ill for a few days, but that is behind him now. Please pray that none of them get ill, and that their strength is renewed by God's love and mercy.
Congratulation Steve and Heather!!!!!!!! There is nothing as magical and wonderful as seeing your baby boy smile up at you for the first time, and there are few things as daunting as realizing the great responsibility that the Lord has placed in your arms. It is comforting to know that so many people are praying for you on your trip and that they will be supporting you when you return…blessings on all three of you as you journey home! Love, Mike & Ashley
UPDATE ON TRAVEL HOME: Heather became ill today, at the airport. They had to postpone their flight home. They found a room at a Hilton in Addis Ababa. It could be that Heather has caught what Stephen had, or it might be a different illness altogether. She was very miserable, with fever and chills, and upset stomach. Unfortunately, no one helped them at the airport, and they were there for some time. It appears that their luggage may have gone on without them, leaving them with only their carry-on. Stephen contacted Hannah's Hope, and they were able to provide additional formula and diapers for Ben. Ben was doing great through all this. Please pray for God's healing touch on Heather. For strength and peace for all of them, and for a safe journey home.
Hello all, We have some troublesome news from Steve and Heather. They were unable to make their flight today and their trip home has been postponed for 24 hours because Heather is ill. Please pray that she will be well enough to fly home tomorrow. They need your prayers right now!
It breaks my heart to hear that Heather is ill with her new baby. . . I honestly wish I could take the illness upon myself so that the new family could travel home in peace. LOVE YOU HEATHER, and I know you're tough and that you'll make it through this experience with grace. . . this will forge the new bond between you all even more tightly!! I love you!
Heather called Robin last night about 10:00. Heather is feeling better; just all washed out. Steve was able to make essentially the same flight arrangements for today (Friday). If nothing interferes, they should be flying out about 11:30 AM, PST (our time). However, they have a 10 hour layover in Washington DC. Thankfully, they have friends in DC who have graciously offered to let them come and rest during the layover. Steve, Heather and Ben are due to fly into Seattle around 7:30 tomorrow evening (Saturday). I do not know the status of their luggage; if it was taken off the plane in Ehtiopia yesterday, or if it went on to Wash. DC. Hopefully, they will be able to find it. Thank you for your prayers. I'm sure they covet all of them!! -Kathy Leasure, "Just Grandma"
I spoke with Stephen this morning. They are safely in Wash. DC. Little Ben was such a trooper... he played and slept and played and slept all the long, weary hours of flying! Heather has a head cold, on top of everything else they've been through. And they are still trying to locate their luggage. But they are safely here, and preparing for the last leg of this incredible journey. There is so much to give thanks for
Hey everyone, So after much ado, Steve and I and Ben are home safe. We had a ridiculously long and difficult journey home, as we missed our fight out of D.C yesterday evening because we got tagged for an extra security check which took an additional hour. We literally missed our flight by 1 minute. we watched them close the doors and they wouldnt let us on. Needless to say, we both hit the wall emotionally and energy-wise and i spent the next few hours wandering aimlessly around the airport all puffy eyed and crying. We got another flight out that night that went through san fransisco and then had a connecting flight to seattle late at night. our layover in SF was only a half hour, so we were going to havce to book it. But, to continue our trend of bad luck, we got to the gate and our flight from D.C. to SF was delayed by 45 minutes, putting us too late into SF to catch our late night flight up to Seattle. Super. So we booked a night at a hotel in SF for when we got there, which was at about midnight last night. We finally got to bed at 1:30 and had to get up just a few hours later to catch a flight up to seattle...finally. So we got to the airport, and of course, we got tagged again for another extended security search. I tell ya, if we had missed our flight because of that again, there would have two lunatic ferengi's (that's what ethiopians call us white folks) running around the SF airport damaging stuff and attacking people. Luckily, we weren't delayed much and we got on our flight. Little Ben has been such a trooper and is the most amazing traveler. He has been an angel for the 48 hours in total that we traveled. He had a meltdown on the last half hour of our flight up here, which is understandable. After much screaming on the plane, I got the sweaty little guy to fall asleep. yay mom. We are home now, and grandma has gotten to meet, hold, feed, and play with her first grandchild!!! He's asleep now, as I will be in a few minutes. I took a 5 hour "nap" today, and still felt like death when I woke up. And I look like death too, I know you all know what I mean. Tom, dont say anything. Ok, over and out for now...thank you all SO SO SO SO SO much for your prayers for us. Lord knows we needed them. We feel so loved and supported by all of you and I'm so sorry we couldnt get on the blog when we were over in Ethiopia. That was a big disappointment, but thank you all for writing anyway. I'm glad that I was able to get a few phone calls in to my mom so she and Kathy could update everyone. Ok, we love you all and can't wait to introduce BABY BEN to you!!!! Love Steve, Heather, Ben, Mow, and Radio
Hi everyone. We are back. Heather just wrote a really long blog telling everyone of our adventures, but for some reason it didn't post and we lost it all. =)) so I think she will re type it out later. I am too lazy and tired tonight to do it. I will just say that we are doing great now that we are home (finally). Ben is so stinking cute. I thought that pictures are in order so I am gonna try and post some....
So, it's Heather again. i thought I'd start chronicling our adventures in Ethiopia for you all. I'll start out with our flight over there and the first day there...So the flight - um, it was long. 30 hours of travel or so. Ethiopia is very very very far away from here, in case any of you were thinking of just hopping over there real quick. Even traveling at 500 mph in an airplane takes 30 hours. The size of the earth is now amazing to me. :-) for the most part, the travel overe there was seamless...pretty much the antithesis to our trip home that I wrote about last night. We arrived at about 8:30am on Saturday, and were picked up from the airport along with two of the other couples that were adopting along with us. They are so cool. It's amazing that we all came from different parts of the country, have known each other for one week, and we know that we'll be in touch for probably the majority of the rest of our lives. anyway, we were in amazement as we drove through the city of addis ababa, on our way to the hotel/guesthouse. we'll post some pictures of the city on the blog later on. just so incredibly different. We got the the hotel and had some lunch (making sure to avoid any fresh fruits, vegetables, anything raw or undercooked, and anything made with their water), and then we headed over to Hannah's Hope to meet our babies!! We were all super duper nervous. it's a strange feeling to go into a room and wait for someone to bring in your child that you have been looking at picture of for the past three months...and now you see them in person as a real human beingg. it's pretty amazing. Anyway, that's the first picture tha steve posted on the blog I think. We were standing in a room there waiting to see Ben for the first time. I of course lost it, and was crying so much that I think i scared Ben. haha way to go Heather. He was pretty unsure of us and what all the commotion was about and so he cried when he was with us that day. Understandable of course. we didnt take him back to the hotel with us that night, as we wanted to have some more time to spend at hannah's hope and just get to know him more before we abducted him into the unknown...So then comes Sunday. A good day...we had all gotten over the nerves of first seeing our children, and were really excited to get over there and play with them again. All of us were already having very slight stomach issues, so breakfast wasn't all that appealing. I had a nervous stomach the whole week prior to leaving, and that just carried over into ethiopia, plus the food over there is just a little different and my stomach knew it. Anyway, en0ugh about that! We spent the day at hannah's hope (which was located conveniently about 2 blocks from our hotel). We got to know our babies a little better, and just play with all the other sweet kids there. There are about 45 kids in total at hannah's hope - 20 of them being infants. What's amazing is that all the infants are spoken for (meaning they have adoptive families that are waiting to pick them up), and even all the toddlers are spoken for. What a blessing. What is so hard though is that there are about 10-15 older kids (aged 5+) that dont have families yet. it is so hard to see them, because they understand who we are and what we are doing. they see us loving on our new children. they see families come every few weeks and leave happy with their new children. these kids are left behind. they want families so badly. the look in their eyes when they see us is so hard...it's like "why not me? why can't I have a family to love me?" Anyway, just such a mix of emotions whhen we are there. the kids are all incredible though. they play soccer all day long, and are so fun. very resilient kids. they get along because they have to. it's pretty amazing to see what even little kids are capable of when they have no other options. well, i'll stop for now since this is a long entry and you're probably tired of reading...if you've gotten this far. I'll start the next blog with late sunday night....when steve got violently ill....that entry will be rated PG-13 for graphic content. ;-) talk to you all soon!
And....we're back. We've been pretty off-schedule for the past few days. Sleeping a lot, eating a lot (if you are looking for a quick weight loss program, go to Ethiopia for a week!), and trying to get Ben on a normal schedule. We won't force it yet though, cuz he's more messed up than we are, considering all of his surroundings are so new to him. He's a pretty happy camper though. We are trying to figure him out as far as when he is getting tired, but not too tired to the point where he melts down and then the whole neighborhood knows he's alive and has some pipes! Anyway, I was going to continue with our Ethiopia story, starting last Sunday night when Steve got sick. That was the first night we took Ben back to the hotel with us, and at about midnight, Steve ran to the bathroom and it all was downhill from there. He'll be the first to tell you the wonders of laying on the floor of a third world country bathroom. hours of violent vomiting and other bodily purging activities left Steve a pile of energy-less mush for the next day, and he still wasn't feeling all that great. Unfortunately this was Monday, and we had our appointment at the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa to finalize the adoption and seal Ben as ours forever. So Steve had to go. He was feeling pretty crummy, but had to cram in a van with 15 of us, plus 5 babies. And before our stop at the Embassy, we went to Enat Alem, which is one of the government run orphanages there, and is where most of our babies originally came from. That was a very very hard afternoon for me. For one, I have my extremely sick husband laying in a hot van at the orphanage, with 160 kids screaming around him. On top of that was the emotional tearing that took place in all of us that walked through this orphanage. there are far too many kids there for the caretakers to give proper care to, much less supervise. So the toddlers, who should be running around, playing outside, are reduced to standing in cribs all day long, 2-3 to a crib. They just stare up at you with blank, bored, sad stares. Some of them would smile, but others it was like they had forgotten how. The infant room was especially hard for me. There were 4-5 babies per crib, some of them laying in dirty diapers. What was the most difficult were the two babies there that were literally starving to death. I took pictures, but they haunt me. I honestly doubt that they will make it to the end of the month. Their empty eyes were sunken in their heads, and their skin was pale and splotchy. So tiny, and so sick. I just prayed for all of those beautiful little kids as I walked through. Prayed for redemption for them and for God's love to somehow permeate them in the midst of their conditions. Be inspired to adopt, people!!! there are children out there that need mommies and daddies and health and love!! What was so hard also was imagining our little Ben there. When Almaz (the director of Hannah's Hope) found him there, he was 4 weeks old, and barely 4 pounds. He was swimming in a poopy diaper that was far too big for him. The director of the orphanage told her not to take him because he wasn't going to make it. He was going to die. Almaz told us though that she remembers her heart pounding so hard in her chest and she really felt like the Lord was telling her "take this baby, I have a family for him". So, against all odds, literally, she took him to Hannah's Hope, and began the process of nurturing him back to health. He is a little warrior! He gained weight pretty quickly. Almaz calls him her miracle child. One of the families we traveled with also got to meet the birth mom of their baby boy while we were at the orphanage. We all had the opportunity to do that. What a strange, amazing, and emotional experience, where you try and pack a lifetime of questions into about 15 minutes. I'll go into our experience with that later on. I need to finish up what happened on Monday. So we left the orphanage, Steve feelingg more miserable than ever. We got to the embassy and then had to wait about 45 minutes before our name was called. Steve had to curl up on a bench by the bathrooms (which had no toilet paper...thank goodness for baby wipes at this point). WE barely got through that, and then headed back to the hotel. I was drained emotionally for Steve and for the children we saw at the orphanage. Adn we had Ben with us too, who required his own level of attentiion. Steve was completely void of energy or personality, understandably. So we got to rest a lot that night. Steve slept and slept and slept which was good. I tended to little Ben, who slept for about 3 hours at a time, at teh most. Ok, so this brings us to Tuesday. I'll write about Tuesday at a later time, as ben is pulling on my pant legs and wants me to pick him up right now!!! so tata to you all, I look forward to writing more soon!!
Thank you, Heather, for the blog update. And especially for the BEAUTIFUL pictures! How this little fellow has enriched our lives! As Auntie GG says, "You love him (Ben) to his very core!!"
27 comments:
Ok everyone, here we are...one day away from flying halfway across the world. Amazingly, we are 99% done with packing, so that is a load off. A big load, I might add. We have 4 huge bags stuffed full (each one is just at the weight limit of 50 lbs) and two good sized carry-ons to take along with us. Hooray for checked baggage. And no, not all the bags are just so Steve can take along is blankies and all his favorite shoes....
In fact, two of the large bags are filled with just stuff for the orphanage - diapers, wipes, medicines, clothes, etc that our families have so generously donated.
So today I'll just tie up the loose ends and go down my checklist that is a mile long - and try and keep my heart rate down. Poor Steve has to "work" today...ya right like he's concentrating on anything else besides our baby boy that we are going to be holding in 72 hours!!
Well, I'm looking forward to adding to the blog once we are over there! Actually, right now I'm looking more forward to just getting there. Nevertheless, I'll be writing again soon, with Chapter 1 of the Leasure's Ethiopian Adventures.
Tata for now-
We tracked your progress across the globe. During the night, last night, we prayed as, 11 hours ahead of our time, you were preparing to meet your little boy. I wondered, at 1:00 AM (it would have been about 12:00 noon, Ethiopian time, Saturday), if you were, indeed, welcoming him into your arms. It is now 8:07 AM, PST., making it 7:00 in the evening, there. Is little Ben in your motel room with you? Are you preparing to spend your first night with him? I will sign off. Ben is your first priority right now. Not us. Not the blog. We will wait patiently, for as long as it takes. You do the important thing, and hold him, and enjoy him. The blog can wait. Just know we're all thrilled for you, and are praying for you. Love, Just Grandpa and Just Grandma. PS. Give Ben a kiss on his dear little cheek, for us!
If prayers were pennies you would be rich! We have been thinking of you and praying for you constantly. Everything is fine here at your house -- Mo gets his daily 2.5 notfastenough walk, followed by 6-7 zoom-zooms. Then he sleeps for approximately 12 min. to regain his energy :-). Radio continues to be disdainful and occasionally needy.
I can only imagine how thrilled you are to finally hold your sweet little boy. Enjoy loving Ben every minute and check in as you can. Please kiss his dimple for me...
whaaaa! foo.
hey heath + stevo-
im thinking and praying for you. give little ben a BIG hug from me. love you guys-
Liv
I hope all is going well, I am thinking about you often and smiling...
Hey Guys, I bet we fooled you all thinking Heather and Steve may have posted something :). We are praying for you(Baby Ben's parents) and wish you guys a smooth trip. Just like everyone else, we cannot wait to hear from you. Love Aukist Connie and Augoht TJ
Hi Everyone - Just wanted to let you all know that Heather called early this morning. The internet has not been working there but they want everyone to know that they arrived safely and they now have Ben. Heather sounded good -- she was feeding Ben while talking but had to cut the message short because he was "vocalizing" in the background :-) We can all be praying that the internet will soon be working!
Hi again everyone - I just had two brief phone conversations with Heather (they cut you off after 3 min). At 2 a.m. our time they will have their appt. at the embassy. Immediate prayer request is for Steve who is ill. Apparently the worst is over but he is feeling dehydrated and weak. Please pray that he can make it through the meeting.Last night was Ben's first night with them and it went well. heather says he is an easygoing baby who laughs and smiles alot. She is hopeful that they will be able to get on the internet later today so the next news you get should be directly from them. thanks for your prayers!
Heather and Steve!! Congrats!! You're a mommy and a daddy!!I don't feel like anything I could say would be adequate enough to express how happy I am for you all!! The Leasure family has officially begun their adventure together!
Keep well and congratulations nin receiving this adorable child--"Ben". Love in Christ mb
He is so beautiful. Congratulations!!!
Hello Proud New Parent's & Baby Ben:
Wow! How exciting of a time for you all. You don't know us by name, but we work with your Mom (newgramma Robin) at Pregnancy Resource Center in Tigard.
We have had the privilege of praying for you and for Ben for months. We have been able to see his pictures & get excited with Robin.
May you know that you are covered in prayer for your trip back & for an awesome homecoming as you bring Ben into your home & family. Enjoy sharing Ben with those who have walked this journey with you and who are so very, very happy & excited to meet him in person!
We will continue to pray for your health & a smooth transition to full-time parenting.
What an incredible life, love & legacy you are extending to Ben and what blessings he will bring you for a lifetime. We are in awe of the God we serve.
Blessings to You All,
Pregnancy Resource Center - Tigard
Just wanted you all to know that Robin received an email from Heather today. Heather is unable to access this blog. Apparently all she is able to do is email.
She has asked for prayer. Please pray that the return journey goes well for everyone. Ben is adjusting so well to Heather and Stephen (Praise the Lord!!). But there are other parents whose babies are struggling with the transition. She has asked for prayer for these parents and their new little child(ren). It is an incredibly long journey home. They all will need the grace of God to comfort and tend to the needs of their babies.
Stephen was ill for a few days, but that is behind him now. Please pray that none of them get ill, and that their strength is renewed by God's love and mercy.
-Kathy Leasure, aka Just Grandma
Congratulation Steve and Heather!!!!!!!! There is nothing as magical and wonderful as seeing your baby boy smile up at you for the first time, and there are few things as daunting as realizing the great responsibility that the Lord has placed in your arms. It is comforting to know that so many people are praying for you on your trip and that they will be supporting you when you return…blessings on all three of you as you journey home! Love, Mike & Ashley
UPDATE ON TRAVEL HOME: Heather became ill today, at the airport. They had to postpone their flight home. They found a room at a Hilton in Addis Ababa. It could be that Heather has caught what Stephen had, or it might be a different illness altogether. She was very miserable, with fever and chills, and upset stomach. Unfortunately, no one helped them at the airport, and they were there for some time. It appears that their luggage may have gone on without them, leaving them with only their carry-on. Stephen contacted Hannah's Hope, and they were able to provide additional formula and diapers for Ben. Ben was doing great through all this. Please pray for God's healing touch on Heather. For strength and peace for all of them, and for a safe journey home.
Hello all, We have some troublesome news from Steve and Heather. They were unable to make their flight today and their trip home has been postponed for 24 hours because Heather is ill. Please pray that she will be well enough to fly home tomorrow. They need your prayers right now!
PS, the last blog regarding Heather and Steve is from Connie & TJ
It breaks my heart to hear that Heather is ill with her new baby. . . I honestly wish I could take the illness upon myself so that the new family could travel home in peace. LOVE YOU HEATHER, and I know you're tough and that you'll make it through this experience with grace. . . this will forge the new bond between you all even more tightly!! I love you!
Heather called Robin last night about 10:00. Heather is feeling better; just all washed out. Steve was able to make essentially the same flight arrangements for today (Friday). If nothing interferes, they should be flying out about 11:30 AM, PST (our time). However, they have a 10 hour layover in Washington DC. Thankfully, they have friends in DC who have graciously offered to let them come and rest during the layover. Steve, Heather and Ben are due to fly into Seattle around 7:30 tomorrow evening (Saturday). I do not know the status of their luggage; if it was taken off the plane in Ehtiopia yesterday, or if it went on to Wash. DC. Hopefully, they will be able to find it.
Thank you for your prayers. I'm sure they covet all of them!! -Kathy Leasure, "Just Grandma"
I spoke with Stephen this morning. They are safely in Wash. DC. Little Ben was such a trooper... he played and slept and played and slept all the long, weary hours of flying! Heather has a head cold, on top of everything else they've been through. And they are still trying to locate their luggage. But they are safely here, and preparing for the last leg of this incredible journey. There is so much to give thanks for
Hey everyone,
So after much ado, Steve and I and Ben are home safe. We had a ridiculously long and difficult journey home, as we missed our fight out of D.C yesterday evening because we got tagged for an extra security check which took an additional hour. We literally missed our flight by 1 minute. we watched them close the doors and they wouldnt let us on. Needless to say, we both hit the wall emotionally and energy-wise and i spent the next few hours wandering aimlessly around the airport all puffy eyed and crying. We got another flight out that night that went through san fransisco and then had a connecting flight to seattle late at night. our layover in SF was only a half hour, so we were going to havce to book it. But, to continue our trend of bad luck, we got to the gate and our flight from D.C. to SF was delayed by 45 minutes, putting us too late into SF to catch our late night flight up to Seattle. Super. So we booked a night at a hotel in SF for when we got there, which was at about midnight last night. We finally got to bed at 1:30 and had to get up just a few hours later to catch a flight up to seattle...finally. So we got to the airport, and of course, we got tagged again for another extended security search. I tell ya, if we had missed our flight because of that again, there would have two lunatic ferengi's (that's what ethiopians call us white folks) running around the SF airport damaging stuff and attacking people. Luckily, we weren't delayed much and we got on our flight. Little Ben has been such a trooper and is the most amazing traveler. He has been an angel for the 48 hours in total that we traveled. He had a meltdown on the last half hour of our flight up here, which is understandable. After much screaming on the plane, I got the sweaty little guy to fall asleep. yay mom. We are home now, and grandma has gotten to meet, hold, feed, and play with her first grandchild!!! He's asleep now, as I will be in a few minutes. I took a 5 hour "nap" today, and still felt like death when I woke up. And I look like death too, I know you all know what I mean. Tom, dont say anything.
Ok, over and out for now...thank you all SO SO SO SO SO much for your prayers for us. Lord knows we needed them. We feel so loved and supported by all of you and I'm so sorry we couldnt get on the blog when we were over in Ethiopia. That was a big disappointment, but thank you all for writing anyway. I'm glad that I was able to get a few phone calls in to my mom so she and Kathy could update everyone.
Ok, we love you all and can't wait to introduce BABY BEN to you!!!!
Love Steve, Heather, Ben, Mow, and Radio
Hi everyone. We are back. Heather just wrote a really long blog telling everyone of our adventures, but for some reason it didn't post and we lost it all. =)) so I think she will re type it out later. I am too lazy and tired tonight to do it. I will just say that we are doing great now that we are home (finally). Ben is so stinking cute. I thought that pictures are in order so I am gonna try and post some....
YAY!!!! Welcome back. Welcome Baby Ben. We are so excited and happy for you all.
So, it's Heather again. i thought I'd start chronicling our adventures in Ethiopia for you all. I'll start out with our flight over there and the first day there...So the flight - um, it was long. 30 hours of travel or so. Ethiopia is very very very far away from here, in case any of you were thinking of just hopping over there real quick. Even traveling at 500 mph in an airplane takes 30 hours. The size of the earth is now amazing to me. :-) for the most part, the travel overe there was seamless...pretty much the antithesis to our trip home that I wrote about last night. We arrived at about 8:30am on Saturday, and were picked up from the airport along with two of the other couples that were adopting along with us. They are so cool. It's amazing that we all came from different parts of the country, have known each other for one week, and we know that we'll be in touch for probably the majority of the rest of our lives. anyway, we were in amazement as we drove through the city of addis ababa, on our way to the hotel/guesthouse. we'll post some pictures of the city on the blog later on. just so incredibly different. We got the the hotel and had some lunch (making sure to avoid any fresh fruits, vegetables, anything raw or undercooked, and anything made with their water), and then we headed over to Hannah's Hope to meet our babies!! We were all super duper nervous. it's a strange feeling to go into a room and wait for someone to bring in your child that you have been looking at picture of for the past three months...and now you see them in person as a real human beingg. it's pretty amazing. Anyway, that's the first picture tha steve posted on the blog I think. We were standing in a room there waiting to see Ben for the first time. I of course lost it, and was crying so much that I think i scared Ben. haha way to go Heather. He was pretty unsure of us and what all the commotion was about and so he cried when he was with us that day. Understandable of course. we didnt take him back to the hotel with us that night, as we wanted to have some more time to spend at hannah's hope and just get to know him more before we abducted him into the unknown...So then comes Sunday. A good day...we had all gotten over the nerves of first seeing our children, and were really excited to get over there and play with them again. All of us were already having very slight stomach issues, so breakfast wasn't all that appealing. I had a nervous stomach the whole week prior to leaving, and that just carried over into ethiopia, plus the food over there is just a little different and my stomach knew it. Anyway, en0ugh about that! We spent the day at hannah's hope (which was located conveniently about 2 blocks from our hotel). We got to know our babies a little better, and just play with all the other sweet kids there. There are about 45 kids in total at hannah's hope - 20 of them being infants. What's amazing is that all the infants are spoken for (meaning they have adoptive families that are waiting to pick them up), and even all the toddlers are spoken for. What a blessing. What is so hard though is that there are about 10-15 older kids (aged 5+) that dont have families yet. it is so hard to see them, because they understand who we are and what we are doing. they see us loving on our new children. they see families come every few weeks and leave happy with their new children. these kids are left behind. they want families so badly. the look in their eyes when they see us is so hard...it's like "why not me? why can't I have a family to love me?" Anyway, just such a mix of emotions whhen we are there. the kids are all incredible though. they play soccer all day long, and are so fun. very resilient kids. they get along because they have to. it's pretty amazing to see what even little kids are capable of when they have no other options.
well, i'll stop for now since this is a long entry and you're probably tired of reading...if you've gotten this far. I'll start the next blog with late sunday night....when steve got violently ill....that entry will be rated PG-13 for graphic content. ;-)
talk to you all soon!
And....we're back. We've been pretty off-schedule for the past few days. Sleeping a lot, eating a lot (if you are looking for a quick weight loss program, go to Ethiopia for a week!), and trying to get Ben on a normal schedule. We won't force it yet though, cuz he's more messed up than we are, considering all of his surroundings are so new to him. He's a pretty happy camper though. We are trying to figure him out as far as when he is getting tired, but not too tired to the point where he melts down and then the whole neighborhood knows he's alive and has some pipes!
Anyway, I was going to continue with our Ethiopia story, starting last Sunday night when Steve got sick. That was the first night we took Ben back to the hotel with us, and at about midnight, Steve ran to the bathroom and it all was downhill from there. He'll be the first to tell you the wonders of laying on the floor of a third world country bathroom. hours of violent vomiting and other bodily purging activities left Steve a pile of energy-less mush for the next day, and he still wasn't feeling all that great. Unfortunately this was Monday, and we had our appointment at the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa to finalize the adoption and seal Ben as ours forever. So Steve had to go. He was feeling pretty crummy, but had to cram in a van with 15 of us, plus 5 babies. And before our stop at the Embassy, we went to Enat Alem, which is one of the government run orphanages there, and is where most of our babies originally came from. That was a very very hard afternoon for me. For one, I have my extremely sick husband laying in a hot van at the orphanage, with 160 kids screaming around him. On top of that was the emotional tearing that took place in all of us that walked through this orphanage. there are far too many kids there for the caretakers to give proper care to, much less supervise. So the toddlers, who should be running around, playing outside, are reduced to standing in cribs all day long, 2-3 to a crib. They just stare up at you with blank, bored, sad stares. Some of them would smile, but others it was like they had forgotten how. The infant room was especially hard for me. There were 4-5 babies per crib, some of them laying in dirty diapers. What was the most difficult were the two babies there that were literally starving to death. I took pictures, but they haunt me. I honestly doubt that they will make it to the end of the month. Their empty eyes were sunken in their heads, and their skin was pale and splotchy. So tiny, and so sick. I just prayed for all of those beautiful little kids as I walked through. Prayed for redemption for them and for God's love to somehow permeate them in the midst of their conditions. Be inspired to adopt, people!!! there are children out there that need mommies and daddies and health and love!!
What was so hard also was imagining our little Ben there. When Almaz (the director of Hannah's Hope) found him there, he was 4 weeks old, and barely 4 pounds. He was swimming in a poopy diaper that was far too big for him. The director of the orphanage told her not to take him because he wasn't going to make it. He was going to die. Almaz told us though that she remembers her heart pounding so hard in her chest and she really felt like the Lord was telling her "take this baby, I have a family for him". So, against all odds, literally, she took him to Hannah's Hope, and began the process of nurturing him back to health. He is a little warrior! He gained weight pretty quickly. Almaz calls him her miracle child.
One of the families we traveled with also got to meet the birth mom of their baby boy while we were at the orphanage. We all had the opportunity to do that. What a strange, amazing, and emotional experience, where you try and pack a lifetime of questions into about 15 minutes. I'll go into our experience with that later on. I need to finish up what happened on Monday. So we left the orphanage, Steve feelingg more miserable than ever. We got to the embassy and then had to wait about 45 minutes before our name was called. Steve had to curl up on a bench by the bathrooms (which had no toilet paper...thank goodness for baby wipes at this point). WE barely got through that, and then headed back to the hotel. I was drained emotionally for Steve and for the children we saw at the orphanage. Adn we had Ben with us too, who required his own level of attentiion. Steve was completely void of energy or personality, understandably. So we got to rest a lot that night. Steve slept and slept and slept which was good. I tended to little Ben, who slept for about 3 hours at a time, at teh most. Ok, so this brings us to Tuesday. I'll write about Tuesday at a later time, as ben is pulling on my pant legs and wants me to pick him up right now!!! so tata to you all, I look forward to writing more soon!!
Thank you, Heather, for the blog update. And especially for the BEAUTIFUL pictures! How this little fellow has enriched our lives! As Auntie GG says, "You love him (Ben) to his very core!!"
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