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Where has the time gone???!

Mon, 1 Feb 2010 21:43:20 -0500

Wow!! I can’t believe we have been home over a month now. In some ways it seems like we got home yesterday and in some ways it seems like we have been home forever.

The first week home is still a bit of a blur. We were so jet lagged from the trip home, it was crazy. Hadley was trying to figure what time to be on and was up several times during the night in the process. I believe the jet lag drug on as long as it did because we weren’t able to get a full night of sleep. We also went to the International Adoption Center for the girls to be checked out. I was anticipating a two or three hour appointment and we ended up being there for six hours!! Oh my goodness, what a long day! The worst part was that we ended the day with the blood draw. They had to take 12 vials of blood! Meron was pretty scared of the needle and the process. She hung in there with dad’s arms around her. Unfortunately Hadley did not do well. The first attempt was not successful and so they had someone else try. He tried as well but by that time she was so upset she threw up all over me! Not the first time I have been thrown up on! Thankfully we were able to get it the third try a few days later.

Week two was when a bit of reality set in. Reality of five children......endless laundry, dishwashing 2 or 3 times a day, cooking, cleaning, figuring out the needs of our baby, figuring out Meron’s language ability and what to do for homeschooling, trying to make time for our boys and their homework and schedules, and the list goes on. All of this on varying hours of limited sleep! I was able to lean on some wise adoptive moms who have already been there!

Week three brought health issues with dad. He was in town to repeat a surgery that he had a few months ago and wasn’t working. He was in the hospital for a few days so my time was split between hospital and home. Everyone really pitched in and helped out. I was also very grateful to my neighbor who helped watch the girls. Thankfully everything went well and dad is now home and doing great.

Week four was finally a taste of normal. I am no longer wondering how in the world I will keep up with everything and am coming to terms with the fact that I can’t do it all. So, if you ever stop by for a visit, you will be greeted with five children, two dogs, a few dust bunnies and possibly some dishes in the sink!! But life is good!

I wish I could find the words to express the blessing that I feel with my family. Our girls are just amazing and I can’t begin to think of life without them. Just last night I was on the bed feeding Hadley her night time bottle when all the other kids came in and had Grandma and Papaw on speaker phone. They were all able to talk and worked hard at trying to get Hadley to talk or laugh. She wasn’t cooperating but when she came out with a big burp, the kids found success (and lots of laughing!).

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Fri, 25 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500

“I’ll be home for Christmas......” What sweet words to a tired and weary soul. After logging over 30 hours to travel back home, we were never so happy to see the gray clouds of Cincinnati on Christmas Day!!!! Our trip was truly unforgettable and once in a lifetime but we were definitely ready to be home. Dorothy had it write, “there’s no place like home”.

We were also anxious to see our family and friends who had made their way to the airport to greet us on Christmas Day. Walking down the hall holding our baby in one arm and our daughter’s hand in the other as we looked up to see their smiling faces, was incredible. I am so thankful for our family and wonderful friends who feel like family!! Just good to be home........ now for some much needed sleep!

Day Twelve: Our last in Addis

Thu, 24 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Wow!! What an emotional last day. I can’t begin to explain the emotions of this week. Each day I think it will be better and yet again I find myself in tears.

We started the morning with a trip to a local orphanage. I thought I had prepared myself mentally for this but boy, was I wrong. I will never forget the faces of these precious children.

We pulled up in our van and drove through the gate. The children were so excited and just swarmed around the vans as we got out. Each family had brought our own goodies to hand out to the kids. As we began to pull our stuff out of our bags the kids could not get close enough. They were desperate for any little treat. One little girl in particular is forever etched in my mind. She was about 8 years old. My friend was pulling granola bars out of her bag. This little girl pushed her way closer to my friend. Her face reflected desperation for food. This was a face who had known true hunger. This was a face like I have never seen before. This little girl broke my heart. I vowed then and there that I will do everything within my ability to help these children. I pray that I can be used to prevent any child from knowing hunger the way that sweet little girl has known.

We had the privilege of being able to play with the kids for a while. We played with bubbles, stickers and balloons. It didn’t matter that we didn’t speak the same language, we just shared unconditional love with them. We were the hands and feet of Jesus. I was so proud of my boys. They just got right in there and played with the children. Griffin found some supply bags stacked up and climbed to the top and used it as a slide. It wasn’t long until there were some precocious little boys who joined right in. I can still remember their laughter at their “invented slide”.

After we got to visit with the children and tour the orphanage, we were invited to join in a traditional coffee ceremony. Since Ethiopia is where coffee originated, they are very proud of this heritage. Coffee ceremonies are a big part of the culture. I have to say that the coffee was amazing!! Even Doug liked it and he is not a coffee drinker. Carson decided to take a taste. His face told it all! He has decided he will stick to Coke for his caffeine! Interesting though, the coffee was served with popcorn. Not something I would have thought of!

With the conclusion of the coffee ceremony, it was time to go. We said tearful goodbyes to the children and climbed on the van. Leaving the orphanage was a very quiet ride. There was so much to reflect on.

We went to lunch at Metro Pizza. Good food but slow service. It put us a little behind on our schedule. We were leaving for the airport mid-afternoon. We had a visit to the coffee factory scheduled for the afternoon. There was no way I was going to miss out on bringing some of that amazing coffee home with us!! Doug and I decided to split up. He went back to the Guest House to pack up and I went to get coffee. We bought as many bags as we could get filled in a short amount of time and then raced back to the Guest House. I got back about 5 minutes before we were due to leave. We just started throwing things in the suitcases the best we could.

David and T arrived to take us to the airport. We said goodbye to our dear, dear friends who we had shared the week with. They were such amazing families and we were honored to have been able to share this experience with each of them. It was such a joy to be able to be with families who were called to adoption just like us. I just wish we weren’t spread out all over the country!

Then we were off to the airport and on our way home!!

Day Eleven: Embassy Day

Wed, 23 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500

I dropped off on my updates due to power outages. This was the first day we didn’t have power.

We went to the Embassy early today. Unfortunately, there are no cameras allowed there so we have no photos. We arrived at the Embassy and had to go through security first. We then were directed to a very crowded waiting room. After what seemed like a very long time, the first family from our group was called up to “Window 7”. There have been various issues that have come up with passing through the Embassy and receiving your children’s visas so I was a bit nervous waiting our turn. The first family returned with thumbs up; they passed!!!

The second family was called up and again they passed. The pit in my stomach grew a bit more. Then we heard our name, “Roach family please come to window 7”. Yikes!! We gathered our five children and walked up the steps to find window 7. As we approached the window, I was sizing up the woman working there. She looked nice enough and she was wearing red and green for Christmas, couldn’t be all that bad. She looked at our girls and began asking us questions. We then had to raise our right hand to swear that we were telling the truth, sign some papers and that was that.....we passed!!!!! Woohooo! This was the final big hurdle to taking our girls home.

We then patiently waited while each of the rest of the families in our group was called up. Praise God, each family passed!!! We all celebrated on the van on the way back to the Guest House.

After a quick pasta lunch at the Guest House, we headed out for more shopping. The skies began to darken as we drove and by the time we got to the shopping area, we were in a heavy downpour! We were not deterred by the rain and instead just ducked in and out of doorways in our quest for more bargains. This shopping area was mostly jewelry stores and some sporting goods shops. We bought a few things and then headed back.

We had arranged for the older girls to go and get their hair done at a salon close to the Guest House. Meron went with her good friend to be pampered with a new hair style. What a delight for me to share this with her. She was like a little princess and I loved getting to spoil her with this treat. It took two hours to complete the process and they looked beautiful!! Hard to believe, but the total cost was $4 American money. The best $4 I’ve ever spent!!

We ended a great day with dinner at the Zebra Grill. Perfect!

Day Ten: Gotcha Day!

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 14:03:41 -0500

Wow, yet another incredible but emotionally and physically exhausting day! We started out the day by going shopping. We went to the Post Office shops. There were so many great things there! My job was to pick out stuff and Doug’s job was to negotiate and pay. I hate negotiating! When we got to that part, I would just walk out of the shop and let him take over. Dalton has been very intrigued with this whole idea of negotiating prices. He has been taking it all in!

After shopping, we went to lunch at an art gallery. They had some of the most amazing art pieces by Ethiopian artists (Shawn, you would have loved it!!) Meron had seen a painting yesterday at the spa that she just loved so we tried to find something similar for her. We found something that wasn’t exactly it, but still beautiful. The food there was also great.

After lunch, it was back off to the Transition Home. I had read from YG buddies that this was a very chaotic time. Boy were they right! We were there for two and half hours and we were non-stop the whole time. We brought our donations and dropped them off and we also got to deliver our care packages. Maybe I am just biased, but I think I got to deliver packages to some of the most adorable kids!! What a blessing to share a little of home with these children and get to love on them. I will be forwarding photos soon to you all!

Once care packages were delivered, it was time to get our girls ready to go. After changing their clothes, we took them each to tell their nannies goodbye. I was NOT prepared for how emotional this would be. These nannies love the children. Every nanny in the baby room was crying at telling the babies goodbye. It was very hard to see. Even harder though was watching Meron tell her nanny bye. It made my heart glad to see how much love and care all of our children receive. But the toughest by far was having Meron tell her friends goodbye. These girls are so close! My heart broke for Meron and her grief. Chances are she probably won’t see them again. Hopefully we can follow to see what families these girls go to and help them stay in touch. There is another girl here being adopted who is just a little older than Meron.
(Quick note to YG friends, we also got to see the new TH. They have moved several kids there now. The facility is very similar to the other TH. We were very impressed!)

Back to the Guest House for some down time, dinner, showers and bed!
What a blessing to be able to tuck all five of my children in tonight. My heart is full!!