The Long Journey Home

Our Beautiful Princess

The past two weeks have been the most exhausting days of my life. Rushing to make travel arrangements and preparations for our time away from Brevig started the craziness. Then came the ridiculously long airplane rides as we crossed 12 time zones to finally welcome Tizita into our family.

Some final paperwork at the CWA office in Addis

The day after we arrived, it was time to pick up our baby girl. Before going to Acacia Village, we had just a little more paperwork to do. The paperwork for international adoption is extensive and overwhelming. I am thankful for agencies such as Christian World Adoption that guide you through each step to ensure you don't miss any little detail.

 Saying goodbye at Acacia Village

Here are just a few of the staff members and volunteers at the amazing Acacia Village facility. The children are happy and well cared for both physically and emotionally. Tizita's nanny (not pictured) prayed over her before we left, asking for God's hand and protection in her life as well as patience and wisdom for us as her parents.

Everyone is smitten with Tizita.

These are a couple of the ladies who worked at the guest house where we were staying. Is it just me or are Ethiopian women exceptionally beautiful?



We had an appointment at the US embassy on Wednesday, had our gigantic stack of paperwork stamped and approved in a matter of a minute and were done, done, done with all that headache. Well, actually there's more to do but I will choose to ignore that for just another day or two.

On Friday night we turned around to tackle the grueling 15 hour flight back from Addis Ababa to Washington D.C. via Rome. We spent a couple nights in D.C. recovering from that flight. By Monday I was beginning to wonder if we'd ever make it home.

At Airport Pizza in Nome and almost home!

But at last we did get through the next few flights. Hey, I just noticed we were in Rome and Nome and home in just a matter of a few days. Cool.

Brother and Sister

Tizita meets her grandparents

C.O.'s folks, Mac and Mary stayed with Harold while we were away. We can't thank them enough for giving us the peace of mind knowing that Harold was in good hands. The day we came home they decorated the house with streamers and balloons and baked a cake to help welcome Tizita.

We have many very special memories of the whole experience. But the best part of all is just beginning!

~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

The Beetles of Ethiopia

We saw a lot of interesting vehicles during our stay in Ethiopia, including quite a few old Volkswagon Beetles.

Some of them were trying to look tough,

some were flashy,

but most were just basic transportation.

C.O.

Lalibela, Ethiopia

Lalibela was our most memorable destination and the highlight of our trip, other than meeting Tizita of course. Simply arriving in Lalibela was a treat.



The road coming into the town twists and curves up and down hills and valleys. Cliffs are scattered with homes and buildings and there are livestock and people walking everywhere.



Tourists travel to Lalibela primarily to see the rock-hewn churches. The 13 churches were made during the reign of King Lalibela in the 13th century. The churches were not built but rather carved out of stone. It took a true visionary to look at a huge section of bare bed rock and say, "let's turn this into a three story, elaborately decorated place of worship. Pick up your rock chippers guys and let's get carving."

The churches are, in my opinion, one of the great wonders of the world. They are every bit as impressive as the pyramids of Egypt. Not that I've ever seen the pyramids but I have a good imagination.



This is the view from the top of the Church of Saint George. It may be difficult to see the perspective here but these things are huge! You can see people in the shadows standing at the base of the church to get an idea of the size.



Here's the view from the base of Saint George looking up. This structure was the last one in the series to be carved and the most elaborate of all the churches.



Again check out the tiny people in the shadows to get a little perspective of size.



Inside there were columns, staircases, relief artwork, various rooms all carved out of solid bedrock. We were in awe.



The churches are connected by a series of tunnels and walk ways. This tunnel was long and completely dark for most of the way. We had to put one had on the person in front of us and the other on the wall to stay oriented.



Notice that Harold is barefoot. Any time we entered a church we took our shoes off as a sign of respect for the Holy place. Our tour lasted all day and we were able to visit all 13 churches.



For dinner we headed out to, Ben Abeba, a one of a kind restaurant still new to Lalibela. Frank Gehry eat your heart out man.



We arrived just before sunset to catch these spectacular sights.



We had a very nice dinner for about $15. The business is a collaboration between a Scottish woman and a man from Lalibela. The menu is small and a bit odd but surprisingly delicious. The very simple food was just right for those of us prone to "traveler's" stomach.

Our Ethiopian Tour: Days 1, 2 and 3

We arrived in Ethiopia well before our court date to adopt Tizita. We wanted a chance to see some of the amazing country we had heard so much about. Getting a taste of Ethiopia and it's culture will be very important in future conversations with Tizita about her birth country.

Day one of the tour began in Bahir Dar. We arrived by plane and were met by our local tour guide and driver. Throughout the journey we were impressed with the quality of our tour guides. They were knowledgeable, friendly, spoke excellent English and were truly enthusiastic about the information they shared with us.

Stop number one near Bahir Dar was the Blue Nile Falls.



After a short hike, we rounded the bend and came upon this view.



Once upon a time the Blue Nile Falls were even more impressive but due to a new hydro electric dam, the amount of water doing the actual falling has decreased. There's a lot of mixed emotions surrounding this but at any rate we found it a wonderful hike and a beautiful view.



I wonder if the cows appreciate the view?

Fisherman in a Papyrus Boat on Lake Tana

The following day we took a boat ride across Lake Tana to visit the monasteries that date back to the 14th century.



 

After our couple days in Bahir Dar, we drove 175 km (about 100 miles) to Gondar. The drives from place to place were just as interesting as the destinations themselves.



The list is endless of things one can carry on one's head. Our favorite was a stack of mattresses about 8 mattresses deep. Unfortunately I could not snap a photo fast enough of the mattress man.



Our driver bought Harold this goofy hat. All the guides and drivers seemed to enjoy Harold. With all the horseplay and goofing around it felt like we had two kids to keep track of!



The main attractions in Gondar are the medieval buildings. Medieval architecture isn't what you normally think of when you think of Ethiopia but as we discovered, this country is full of surprises.



The Rudstroms visiting the palace of King Fasilidas.

~AnnMarie

Lost in Translation

We were surprised to find that many people in Ethiopia speak English quite well. English is taught as a class in the elementary grades then high school classes are taught completely in English. Despite this, English is still people's second language and a few translations are, shall we say, creatively interpreted.



Who can say, "run on sentence"? This was some very helpful information about why we absolutely cannot pay for our hotel with a check.



This system of lock and key was brand new to us. The doorman demonstrated and there were these very helpful instructions and yet for some reason we struggled every time we tried to get into our room.



Warning: This toy may lead to underage "inebriety".



The very pregnant mommy here is fortunately "happily" about her situation.



Ummm, is "Japy" in any way an acceptable adjective?

 

And our favorite story from the trip, "The Banana Fruit". We ate at a nice restaurant at our hotel in Gondar. They had a three course meal menu with a few options for each course. The dessert section listed, orange zest cake or banana fruit. C.O. assumed the banana fruit was another type of cake but was sorely mistaken. I laughed as I ate my delicious orange cake.

~AnnMarie

A Taste of Ethiopia

We are back in Brevig Mission after a wonderful time of traveling to Ethiopia and meeting our daughter for the first time. I'm overwhelmed, jet lagged and not in any shape to do a proper post. So for the time being I will share some photos that do an inadequate job of capturing the beautiful and amazing country of Ethiopia.

~AnnMarie

An Unconventional Christmas

This year promises to be an unusual but amazing Christmas holiday for the Rudstroms.



We found out just a couple weeks ago that we are scheduled to meet with a judge in Ethiopia on January 2nd to officially adopt our little girl. A few days before the court date we will spend some time at the orphanage and finally get to meet her. It will be so good to see that girl face to face!



The timing of this court date couldn't have worked out any better since Christmas break starts tomorrow. This gives us a couple weeks to travel around the country before our adoption appointments.



As you can imagine, the past few days have been a flurry of phone calls and e-mails to people all over the world. But at last, airline tickets have been arranged, hotels have been reserved and a tour has been booked. We leave Brevig Mission on Saturday, we'll spend a couple days in Seattle then begin our flight to Addis Ababa on Tuesday evening.

After a little research, we learned that Ethiopians do not celebrate Christmas until January 7th. Though we're a little disappointed that we won't get to experience a traditional Christmas celebration in another country, I'm guessing we'll get over it somehow and through our best efforts manage to have a nice day.



According to our itinerary, on Christmas Day we will be in Gondar, Ethiopia to "visit the 17^th century magnificent castles, registered as world heritage by UNESCO, the swimming pool of King Fasil, the Debrebrihan Selassie church (highly decorated with mural paintings) and church of Qusquam established in the 18^th century by Empress Mintewab." Phew! That's a mouth full and an eye full.



Harold was very disappointed when we said we would not be in Brevig for Christmas this year. But we assured him we would celebrate early at home and find a way to make Christmas special while we travel as well.

 

I think this will be a good chance for us to remember that Christmas isn't about a specific date, where we are or who we're with. Jesus came into the world and this is what we celebrate, the time and place are just details



Wherever you are and whomever you're with, we hope you have a very merry Christmas!

Love,
The Rudstroms