All the Gory Details

I am up a few hours before breakfast at our guest house in Addis Ababa. All this travel and time changes has our sleep schedule a bit off. We have had Tizita in our care for two days now and it has been absolutely wonderful. I mentioned on Facebook that for the second time God has blessed us with a content and well adjusted child. This is not always the case with adopted children. We have seen other adoptive families in Guatemala and here that have some real challenges ahead of them. Fortunatly (or possibly unfortunately) we cannot relate. Harold and so far Tizita have smoothly and seamlessly entered our family as if it's where they've been all their life. The following details may be a bit boring but they are things I don't want to forget and some of you may enjoy hearing.

Day 1: Taking It All In

We were given Tizita on Tuesday morning right before nap time. About three minutes later she cried pretty seriously, she stopped and then started again. "Oh boy," I thought, "maybe this kid's going to have harder time than Harold had transitioning." But then, she fell asleep, had her lunch and has basically been as happy ever since. Phew! Throughout the first day, Tizita quietly took it all in. She stared at us intently, studied our every move and her new environment. We had heard that she had a lot of happy energy and could move quickly if she had her mind set on it. The first day she was mostly clung to us. Day two however, was a different story.

Day two: Enters in Little Miss Personality

We had our embassy appointment in the morning, they stamped a few paper and said Tizita's visa would be ready on Friday morning. On the way home, Tizita laid her head on my arm, looked right in my eyes and told me some "stories" for about five minutes straight. This gives me a good sense that our attachment period will be relatively quick and easy. For the record, her little voice is the sweetest sound I have ever heard. This was the day the little girl we heard about came out of her shell. Tizita loves to play and explore and be around other children. Her laugh is adorable and she truly does move fast! We have to keep our eye on her at all times. Like most kids her age, she wants to get her hands on wires and electronics and other such kid unfriendly things. During bathtime she's a daredevil and wants to cruise all around the bathtub. She also pooped in the tub which provided a bit of excitement.

Day three has yet to begin. I am writing this as Tizita sleeps, snores her baby snores as I anxiously await another day together and wonder what more we will learn about her and she about us.

~AnnMarie

The Beauty of the Night

Over Spring break I had time to play around with nighttime photography. I caught this shot of the Northern Lights over Brevig Mission. I love the glare of the ice, the lights of town, the silhouette of the mountains, the green band of Aurora and the twinkling stars above it all. The arctic really is an amazing place.



Jupiter & Venus #1



Jupiter & Venus #2

~AnnMarie

The Mother and Child Reunion

 

We opened our e-mail from the US embassy sometime before midnight on Wednesday. They informed us that our case was approved and we were free to set up an appointment with them to finalize Tizita's immigration paperwork.

Since leaving her in January, each day has felt emotionally heavier and heavier in anticipation of this very e-mail and for the moment when we would be together as a family.

For the past two days we've been busy making arrangements. Our flights are booked but we still have much to do and loose ends to tie up before we leave. It's a bit stressful but I'll take it knowing our prize at the end of this journey. 

Our Schedule:
March 22 - Depart Brevig Mission
March 24-25 - Washington D.C. shopping for baby supplies and donations
March 26 - Arrive in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
March 27 - Tizita's Gotcha-Day and Meetings with our adoption agency.
March 28 - Embassy Appointment
March 30 - Leave Ethiopia
April 3 - Return to Brevig Mission with Tizita, Harold becomes a big brother


Despite our great joy, I also feel the frustration of some dear families who are still waiting to hear their bit of good news.  The Olfert Family, The Boughner Family, The Baxter Family, The Cotton Family and The Griffin Family are all on my mind today and every day. I pray that the Lord will give them strength and peace to make it through until their children are on their way home.

“O LORD, you hear the desire of the afflicted;
you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear
to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed” Psalm 10:17-18a

No I would not give you false hope
On this strange and mournful day
But the mother and child reunion
Is only a moment away
~Paul Simon

~AnnMarie

Harold Had an Adventure

Harold returned yesterday from six fun filled days with his grandparents. They traveled to Elim (150 miles southeast of here) to visit my brother John. Harold's time in Elim was packed with some pretty awesome life experiences and many memories.



When we first saw Harold waiting for us at the airstrip, he was proudly holding this box. He wrote the content's description "Harold's Madolin" on the outside himself.



Inside the box was this amazing gift from his musician uncle.



Harold is very, very proud of his new instrument. He was running around the house getting ready for bed last night, as he ran past his mandolin he stopped mid-stride, pointed at it and laughed a wild, crazed laugh.



Elim is a great place to catch crab. My brother and his friend keep an active crab pot for a good part of the winter. It's because of them that we've feasted on a great many crab the past few years.

During one of our daily phone calls Harold told me excitedly that he had "axed" the ice to help get the crab pots free.



He also told me there were "18 crab inside!!!!"



Oh the crabby memories they made.



To add to all the excitement, the Iditarod mushers were coming through Elim during Harold's stay. Harold saw Dallas Seavey (this year's winner), Aliy Zirkle (second place finisher), John Baker (last year's champion) and a few other mushers pass through town.

Harold apparently became a Dallas Seavey fan and was hoping he would win. I asked if he was cheering for Aliy but he said, "Nah, I'm for the boy's team."


When John Baker was taking care of his dogs at the Elim check point, my dad asked him if Harold could have his dog's booties. Baker being the nice guy he is, said of course. We had to wash them to get rid of the sled dog poo (a souvenir I'm not as interested in having) then Harold's dog Bandit modeled how the booties are to be worn.



Now Harold and Bandit like to play dog mushers when ever they get the chance.

Harold returned from his trip a more worldly and knowledgeable person. I often look at him and marvel, "what a kid, what a kid."

~AnnMarie

We Love Having Visitors

My parents spent the past week and a half with us at our home in Brevig Mission. We must have been having a good time because our days together went by far too quickly. Here's a quick snapshot of how we kept busy.

My parents spent a couple days volunteering in my classroom.

My dad adopted a couple critters that had been waiting in our freezer for some attention. He prepped a wolverine and mink hide to be tanned and added to his "neat things from Alaska" collection.

He also learned how to bake banana bread.

Harold, Mom and I had some important puzzle building business to attend to.

And quite a lot of coffee was consumed, even by the 5 year old. I'm not too sure grandma and grandpa are a good influence.

And last but not least, there was a bit of fun involving mini snowmachines.

~AnnMarie

Harold is Going on an Adventure

Harold packed his bags last night preparing for his next big adventure. He will be spending the next six days without his parents as he travels 150 miles to Elim.



He is traveling on two different airplane rides with grandma and grandpa to the stay with his Uncle John. (My parents were here for a visit this past week, I will be sharing about that soon.)



On his agenda for the week: attend the little dribblers basketball tournament, check crab pots and see the Iditarod mushers and dog teams as they pass through Elim on their way to Nome.

I'm sure he'll be coming home with a few stories and a box full of crab to share with his parents.

~AnnMarie