Our Trip to Get Harris, The Miraculous Journey--Part 1

And thus, the moment we've all been waiting for....the telling of our trip to get Harris!  Since Sunday  (February 5th) was three months since Harris has been with us, I knew it was time to finally share the full story with (most) all of the details!

Let's go back to the end of October...just imagine us running errands, packing, checking the 10 lists I had going making sure everything was all there and packed, packing for the kids and typing up schedules and "things to know" for the both of them, calling the school, doctor, bank and anyone else that needed to know we were going to be out of the country, and taking in every moment with Asher, Mary Clair and Jake, as I was planning to stay however long it took to finish the process.  It was a strange time for our family.  Lots of change and stress.  All of this for one little boy in Ethiopia.

We took the kids to my parents and put them to bed October 30th.  One more story time, one more kiss (or two or three or more), prayer time and we got in our van and headed to our house to finish packing for this crazy trip!  We were exhausted already...but the journey had just begun....in just a matter of hours we would be heading to the airport.

Arrival at the airport was not it's usual hype.  In fact, there were sleeping people everywhere and not a single staff person to be found aside from the occasional janitor or security guard.  We waited on the floor for an hour or more before we could even check in.  There we were, leaned up against all of our luggage--packed full of clothes, shoes, toiletries, books....and baby stuff!  It was almost like nothing else mattered.  We were going to get our son!

We arrived in Ethiopia early Monday morning, October 31.  We were taken to our hotel which was the same hotel we stayed in just a few months earlier when we had come to see Harris when he was sick with cholera.  And of all the rooms in that hotel, we got the exact same room!  So many emotions and memories flooded back in, but all I could think was, "God will redeem this room!  We were here with heavy hearts last time and now we are here with joy in getting Harris and having him as our son!"  Not too long after arriving, we were off to the orphanage to see Harris!!  Would he remember us?

We arrived at the orphanage which was not at the same location it was on our previous trip.  It was a nice little court yard hidden behind walls and a large black metal gate.  The sun was bright and the sky was blue.  I was ready to see our little guy and not be at a hospital and him not being sick!  One of the staff said Yibekal (Harris) would be out in a minute after he got cleaned up.  And so I looked over to where the kids rooms where and saw him, our son, through the window!  He saw us too and I could see by the look in his eyes that he was trying to remember why we were familiar.  He didn't want much to do with us....unless we had food!  So we took advantage of that by trying to give him his bottle and his bowl of mush.  He was not keen on us feeding him the bottle since he was used to feeding it to himself, but he knew we were his only hope with that spoon and bowl!

For two more days we would get up, eat breakfast and head to the orphanage for a few hours.  Harris was very uncertain about why we wanted to take him away from the other kids and the nannies and have him to ourselves on our visits.  So we tried to make him comfortable and have a good dose of "alone time" walking about the courtyard along with interacting with the other children with him at our side.  We thought he was going to be delayed in speech as he didn't say a word the first day, but it turned out he was very vocal once he felt more comfortable.  He was also very good at communicating through non-verbal ways...biting!!  One child grabbed the toy he was playing with and he just went mouth first to that kid's arm!

November 3rd finally came around.  It was the day we had been waiting for for so long.  Two other families from our agency would join us for this joyous event.  We were to all go before the judge one couple at a time and he was going to grill us with a bunch of questions.  None of us wanted to say the wrong thing!!  As we sat there in line talking about how excited and nervous we all were, we overheard one of our people from our agency say that our paperwork was not there!  What?!  What do you mean our paperwork isn't here?!  I said a quick prayer while Jake worried for the both of us.  It was the day we had been looking forward to.  How could there already be a hiccup!?  Within a few minutes, the woman from our agency was back with the needed paperwork.  Thank the Lord!  It's like God had to remind us a little bit along the way....trust Me!
We were the last of our group to go in to meet the judge.  Jake answered all the questions with the last one being, "Do you understand this adoption is irreversible?".  We said yes.  And within about 5 minutes we were done!  Then we asked "respectfully" for our adoption decree and he said he would give it to us that day!  (Which was a miracle in itself and put us about a week ahead of schedule!!  Yet another answer to prayer!  You'll start to see the theme of "miracle" with every story...)

The momentous day was celebrated by visiting Entoto Mountain to learn more of the history of Ethiopia followed by a much needed nap and an excellent traditional Ethiopian meal complete with coffee and dancing!  Though it would have been the icing on the cake to get Harris that day, we would have to wait a couple more days....

The next day, we, along with the two other families from our agency, were up and ready to hit the road to get the birth certificate processed and possibly get Harris, but our faithful guide arrived and informed us that the power was out at the birth certificate office.  We were all hoping we could still get there by the end of the day so we sat around, prayed for miracles, drank tea and coffee, played the ukelele, and enjoyed the weather and good company of our new friends that we were experiencing all of this with!  As the day came to a close, we were all wrapping our mind around not getting that part of the process done that day....until our guide pulled in and whisked away the couple that was leaving the next day since they both had to be there for this part of the process.  Disappointed though we were to not get that done and not go get Harris, we were rejoicing that our friends were able to get that part done before they left!

Once they were back from the birth certificate office, it was decided that the other family and us were going to get our kids the next morning.  We would leave early to go with our new friends to experience and document for them their "gotcha day".
Then it would be our turn to get Harris....and have him with us forever!

He would *not let us feed him the bottle...
and didn't really like this nice little visiting room either. 

Food.  His comfort.  His obsession.

I spy the striped shirt Harris was wearing the day we left him back in August!

Finally!!

We would be taking him out of those gates
and into a whole new world soon enough!

Entoto Mountain with the gang!

Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving.
The overlooked holiday.
The one that has become more about the best way to serve dry turkey, watching football and getting those deals on Black Friday.
The one that is overshadowed by Christmas lights and Christmas trees and even Christmas tunes on the radio.
Even now, sitting by my Christmas tree and eating that next to the last piece of leftover sweet potato pie from just a week ago, I wonder, how could we just skip over such a wonderful celebration?  This year in particular?

Let me explain...

The kids and I did a little research about Thanksgiving.  Go back to the year 1620.  The Pilgrims had just landed at Plymouth Rock in the November of that year; a brand new land after traveling a long 66 days at sea.  Winter was approaching and the Pilgrims had explored the territory for a month already.  On Christmas Day, 1620, they decided on a place to start their new lives.  It was a long, cold, and hard winter.  By the time spring had come, about half of the Mayflower's passengers had died!  Despite the loss and agony of it all, they got to work trying to grow plants and gather food.  Along came Samoset and Squanto.  They introduced the Pilgrims to their leaders and were able to teach the Pilgrims what to plant and how to hunt.  By the end of harvest time, the Pilgrims had learned so much and endured so much that they decided a celebration was due to give thanks to God for helping them through the first year in the new world.  And thus, the first Thanksgiving celebration.

Over the past year, our family has had somewhat of a "first year at Plymouth rock".  We've experienced challenges, joy, having to figure new things out, near death experiences, and even death.  But when I look back, I see God's provision, I see His hand in it all.  I've know that He's been there with us and I know He has a big plan that I can't always see.  It's almost as if there's been an underlying peace amidst the storm.  I've experienced a strange sort of hopefulness in it all and I know it's because of the Holy Spirit inside me and because of the faithful support of you--our friends, family, church, prayer warriors, and advocates for orphans in Jesus name.
This story is not just about us and getting Harris home.  It's about our faith being increased.  It's about teamwork.  It's about coming before the throne of grace with confidence.  It's about learning that God is good and He is in control.  Despite famine, hardships, anger, and death, we can be confident in God!  If you are a follower of Jesus, then you know exactly what I mean.  It's like how can I not be thankful?  In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 it says, "Be joyful always; pray continuously; give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."  Trust me, there have been plenty of days that I do. not. want to be thankful.  Or pray.  And definitely not rejoice!  But it's God's will for me in Christ Jesus to do these things!  Not only on Thanksgiving at the family dinner when you go around and say something you're thankful for, but every day!  In the midst of a trial, in a joyful moment, pray, rejoice, give thanks!

So, I challenge you to always look to the Lord.  He's always there, ready and willing to listen.  He's in the joy and in the tears.  He loves you.  Let's not overlook the joy in thanksgiving and make thanksgiving something we don't just do on the day we eat turkey and watch football, but something we can do and celebrate all year long!  Trust me, there's always something to be thankful for....

All together at last!!
November 12, the morning after we arrived home.


**More details later on the trip to bring Harris home! Thanks for all your prayers!**

The Time Has Finally Come

Once home from our whirlwind trip to Ethiopia, we were exhausted spiritually, mentally and physically.  We prayed hard and trusted that God would indeed take care of our little Harris.  We continued to wonder when we would receive a court date.  But thankfully we didn't have to wait very long.  At the end of August we got an email informing us that we had our long awaited court date!! 

November 3rd.

At that time, November 3rd seemed like a long way away.  Yet here we are just two weeks away from our departure date!

Now to explain this trip...

November 3rd is the court date in which Jake and I both have to appear before a judge and answer questions and somewhat prove ourselves (again) "worthy" and willing to adopt.  This is the court date where we legally become Harris' parents!!  Typically, once this court hearing is complete, families will go home leaving their child in Ethiopia and come back once all paperwork is completed .  But we have chosen to take Harris into our care after that court date.  Meaning, he will be able to stay with us until the needed documents are ready for him to legally leave the country.  Jake will spend a few more days with us, then head home to be with Asher and Mary Clair while I stay in Ethiopia with Harris.

The time frame of me and Harris being in Ethiopia is unknown (which makes it all the more hard!!).  But we prayed through lots of options and quite frankly, none of the options sounded great.  This was the best of all the terrible options.  I'm dreading our family being separated but I know that God will meet all our needs and get us through this crazy time.  In fact, God has already provided!  A dear college friend of mine is coming to spend a little less than a week with me!  It will be so wonderful to have someone to talk to and have a helping hand!

Things you can pray for:

1) Travel.  It's quite a journey to get there and back!  Pray for us to get rest on the way there.  Pray for Jake as he travels home alone.  And for me as I travel home alone with a baby in towe (there's lots of details to pray about with traveling a baby...I'll let you be Spirit led on that one!)

2) Speed of paperwork processing.  With an unknown time frame, I am praying that the God who rules the governments will have us home before Thanksgiving!  In fact, specifically, I would like the needed papers to be ready by two weeks after the court date (or sooner!!).

3) Bonding and attachment.  It will be fun to have a new baby.  But with adoption comes all sorts of attachment issues.  We plan on being very intentional about spending a lot of time together as a family making sure that Harris understands that we are his family and that he is so loved by us.

4) Time of family separation.  This is the one that makes me sad!  I am a quality time person and I feel like I'm going to miss so much while I'm gone!  Pray for Asher and Mary Clair while Jake and I are both gone.  Pray for Jake as he plays "single dad" for a period of time.  Pray for Harris and me as we spend a lot of good time together and that we won't get cabin fever at our hotel.

I'm sure there is much more to ask in prayer, but those are the main things that come to mind.

All of you have shown such great support over these past years!  Thanks for hanging in there with us--praying, donating funds, loving on us, listening to us, playing corn hole with us, and just being all around a wonderful support group.  We can't do this alone!

As always, feel free to ask questions.  Y'all are great!

"My Presence will go with you and I will give you rest."

Exodus 33:14

Emergency Urgency Final

After just a few days of being with Harris, we were already loving getting to know him, but we knew getting to know him more would have to wait until later.  It was the day he had to go back to the orphanage.
Friday August 12th, Harris was released from the children's clinic.  He came back to our hotel along with Trumar for a last visit and a bath!  Since his admittance to the hospital the previous week, we were not sure that he had been given a proper bath.  A nice warm bath after being sick is one of the greatest things....but not for Harris!  As soon as his clothes came off, he was not a happy camper!  What we envisioned would be a nice bonding moment quickly turned into a race to get the bath over with!  Once we were done "torturing" him and he was wrapped in a towel, the crying immediately stopped.  Phew!  We then rubbed him down with lots and lots of lotion, got him dressed and he was ready to play.
While playing on the bed, he randomly said, "Da!"  Of course, we were shocked!  We didn't know he could make any noises except crying!  We sat on the bed with him and said, "Da" back to him and much to our delight, he answered back with, "Da da."  He continued to impress us with his skills--crawling, pulling up onto a bench, squatting down and back up with a toy, mimicking sounds and facial expressions we did, and of course, more throwing of toys.
I just couldn't think about how much we had missed.  How much he had missed by not being with us.  But I was thankful for where he was and the moment we were in enjoying getting to know this little boy who had been our son in our hearts all these years.
The time with him came to a close and it was time for him to be taken back to the orphanage.  I held him in the van ride there.  It took all I had not to start crying.  I held on to Harris and prayed that he would stay well and safe until we could come back.  Upon arrival to the orphanage, Semey was told that we were not allowed to come in because of all the sicknesses going around.  And just like that, he asked us to hand over our son.  My heart sunk.  Are you kidding me!?  Just like that my time with Harris is abruptly ended??  We gave him hugs and kisses and off he went, back through the gate of the orphanage.
I bent forward to the seat in front of me and began to cry.  I was not ready for that moment.  I don't even remember saying, "Goodbye" or "I love you".  I had hoped we could put up our picture over his crib along with the pictures Mary Clair and Asher had drawn for him.  I thought we might would pray over him...give a blessing...something!  It just happened so fast--a blurr.

I never wanted that moment to happen again.

Our agency workers told me not to cry and that God was going to take care of him.  I knew God would take care of him.  I was confident of that.  But it was so terrible to leave him.

The following day we went around town and visited shops and experienced some of the culture.  We wandered around trying our best to enjoy it, but all the while wishing Harris was with us and on a plane homeward bound!  But we were trusting God's timing and His plan.

The trip home was long.  I would not recommend a 10 hour layover in the middle of the night in Nairobi...the floor was hard and I'm pretty sure they played the same 4 songs over the loud speaker all night long.  As soon as we landed in Amsterdam, we were right back on a plane.  About 3 hours into the 8 hour flight, I thought I wasn't going to make it--too many emotions and not enough sleep.  But God was looking out for me...I was standing in the back as the steward was bringing out a snack: ice cream!  Glory!!  My favorite treat in the world!  Mana from heaven...or in the heavens ;)  I was able to sleep after that enough to get me Atlanta.
It was so wonderful to be on the ground in the USA.  We were going to see Asher and Mary Clair in just a couple hours!  But we were still heartbroken to not be going in and kissing Harris' head too.

How much longer would we have to wait for our family to be all together?

"I will not leave you as orphans;

I will come to you."

John 14:18

Emergency Urgency Part III

[I haven't done a very good job giving the dates of when we were traveling.  To clarify, this all happened at the beginning of August.  This post includes August 10-11.  Many details have been overlooked while I've been typing or not written for the privacy of our agency or people involved.  If you have any questions of further details, let me know and I can fill you in.
Now back to what happened....]

After a fair night of rest, we were off the next morning to see Harris again.  When we arrived he was sleeping.  Trumar, the sweet nanny taking care of him, said he had drank 4 bottles and 3 pedialyte packages!  Praise God for an appetite and the ability to keep the fluids down!  While he was resting in the bed, Jake read Psalm 100.  After he finished, Semey read Psalm 100 in Amharic.  What a sweet moment!  This may have been the first time Harris' sweet little soul had heard the Bible read to him.

While we waited on Harris to wake up we chatted with Trumar and attempted to practice our Amharic.  Keep in mind, we know zero Amharic and Trumar knew a few words of English.  Can somebody say full emersion!?  Jake and I are so used to Spanish.  It was a whole new ball game to try to understand and try to speak something we had never heard before except for what we had looked up on Youtube!  There was another little girl who had come to the hospital the night before.  She was also on an I.V.  We were able to give her some our pedialyte (because Lord knows I bought WalMart out before we left!  I always over prepare...).  They also got a good laugh out of our attempts at speaking Amharic.  Like most of the Ethiopian people we met, they were very kind yet curious about why we were there.

Once Harris woke up, we were able to feed him a bottle and some rice cereal.  That boy was hungry!  He did not want to mess around when he saw Trumar fixing the cereal!  We asked if he was interested in any of the food pouches we had brought and they said he didn't like them because it was too sour.  It sounds like they don't eat a lot of fruit in the orphanage, so anything sweet was a little much for him especially while his stomach and body was healing.

We also brought some books to read with him.  It was the most fascinating thing to see...I don't think he had ever seen a book!  I asked Semey if they had books in the orphanage and he said he didn't think that they did.  Can you imagine?  It's the little things that we do at home with our kids that really aid in their development and to think that something as basic as a book had not been part of this little boy's life thus far.  Once the appeal of reading the book was over, he changed focus to Jake's beard.  He would touch it and just stare at in wonder.  I thought the book would be the highlight of Harris' day, but no, the beard was.

The time seemed to fly that morning and all of the sudden we were back at the hotel.  Already becoming very attached to Harris, I started scheming how I could stay.  I couldn't fathom putting him back in the orphanage!  He's so small and fragile and needs a mom!  Of course, all of these thoughts and emotions got a hold of me and then add being tired to it and I finally broke down.  I had been waiting for this moment to come.  And I actually felt a little better once I let it all out.  I was concerned for our son, but had to trust the Lord with the outcome.  We ate dinner again with our new friends from our agency.  We were so thankful that they were there to provide encouragement and advice.  It was nice to speak English too!  God knew that both of our families needed each other on this trip!  God knows everything.  Isn't He good like that?

Well, the next day we went to see Harris again.  We came in the room and he was laying in the bed.  We came over to the bed and when he saw us, his face lit up!  His little hands reached up and he touched us on the face!!  Talk about a heart melting moment!  I don't know what was going on in his head, but I'd like to think that he knew that we loved him.
On this day, we saw a lot more of his personality and his abilities.  He was feeling so much better!  Praise God!  For as much as he enjoyed the books, I knew he would enjoy some toys.  Though not quite as intriguing as Jake's beard, he still thoroughly enjoyed them.  Once he figured out what the toy was all about, he discovered throwing the toys.  Over and over he would throw the toys!  As soon as we handed him the toy, he would throw it.  I was sitting on the bed and he threw the toy at me.  I made a funny sound and reacted and for the first time, we heard him laugh!  So far, the only sound he had made was crying.  To hear him laugh was such a blessing!

I could tell he was getting sleepy, so I walked around the room with him and he fell asleep in my arms.  If you've ever had a child fall asleep in your arms, you know that feeling of accomplishment.  That feeling of joy and peace.  A moment of connection where the child is so comfortable they can't help but fall asleep.  I laid him down on the bed and we all closed our eyes for about 30 minutes.
The rest of the afternoon consisted of more bottles,  more diapers, Jake putting Harris to sleep, smiles from Harris, and me getting some awesome corn rows!  (Though my corn rows were awesome, there's a reason white girls don't wear corn rows! And there were four reasons on my head! lol)

We were thankful Harris was getting better, but we knew that meant it was almost time for him to head back to the orphanage.  We took in each moment we could.  Rested and prayed in between.  Most likely the next day was going to be our last day with him for a little while...

"The length of our days is 70 years--or 80, if we have the strength;

yet there span is but trouble and sorrow, 

for they quickly pass away and we fly away...

Teach us to number our days aright, 

that we may gain a heart of wisdom."

Psalm 90:10, 12

Emergency Urgency Part II

Usually when I fly I introduce myself to the person next to me so it's not too awkward when you start talking in your sleep or need to get up to go to the bathroom for the 247th time.  But on this trip I was not too keen on talking.  What if they asked me where I was going and why, and I burst into tears?  I finally broke down and met the girl next to me.  She was heading to Dubai to teach and was sad about leaving her family and fiancé.  I told her about our situation and so we decided we would cry together when the plane took off!  I didn't cry when the plane took off but later that night I did cry myself to sleep and for the first time ever, fell good and asleep on a plane (thanks to the prayer warriors praying through the night for us!)
After a brief stop in Qatar, we were on the way to Ethiopia.  My stomach was in knots!  We were almost there...Once again hesitant to talk to my seat mates, I finally did.  She was Ethiopian and he was from the States.  They encouraged me about being in Ethiopia for the first time and affirmed us in our adoption journey.  They even gave us their phone number just in case of emergency.  So after all, it was good to talk to people--I left those flights more encouraged and thankful.
Once we finally landed, we entered the late night Ethiopian airport and the chaos that was getting a visa and gathering luggage.  I have never seen so many bags everywhere.  Thankfully all our bags made it!  Out the door we went not really knowing who was going to pick us up.  So we just looked out into the darkness of the cool night hoping to see a sign with our names on it.  Sure enough, there was a man holding the sign and we got in a big van with him and another Ethiopian man neither of which could speak English except for the occasional conversational jabber and the words "Bob Marley" and "One Love" referring to a statue of Bob Marley in one of the round abouts.  We, of course, had no clue on how to speak Amharic.  We drove down the dark, barely lit streets of Addis Ababa to our hotel.  Once checked in around 2:30am, we fell asleep wondering what the next day would hold.

The next morning we woke up and had breakfast and there was our guide, Semmey, waiting for us in the lobby.  We introduced ourselves and then we were off to the hospital to see our son!  We have traveled to third world countries and seen a lot of poverty, trash, dust, mud and animals literally laying in the middle of the road, but something seemed different.  This was were our child was living and without us!
I was wondering how I would react when I first saw Harris.  I imagined I would burst into tears and embarrass myself in front of a bunch of strangers thinking, Who is that white girl and what's her problem...
The moment came where we would find out what my reaction would be.  As we walked up to the hospital, there were people everywhere.  We made our way straight through the dark people-filled waiting room and down a hall then into a hospital room.  In the room was about five beds lining the walls, four of them with children in them.  And one of those kids was ours!  At first, all we could see was the top of his sweet little head but as we came around to the other side we could see his face!  Though very poorly, his eyes still seemed so bright--our little warrior fighting this disease.  Overwhelmed with joy, I couldn't think of crying!  After a couple minutes I couldn't wait any longer, I had to hold him!  I asked the nanny if I could hold him and she gave him to me.  He immediately started crying!  But I was determined to work my baby magic and sure enough within a minute he was not crying.  He laid there so helpless and somewhat stiff in my arms.  I could tell he was tired and so very weak from cholera.
Doctors came back in to check on him along with the nanny who had been with him through all of this.  As soon as he saw the nanny, he reached for her and cried so I gave him back.  My heart was so full of joy I didn't even mind.  I was thankful for that connection he had to her--it gave me hope that he could form a new connection with me and Jake.  Later, I held him some more and as I swayed back and forth, Jake sang songs to him.  It was a very special time indeed.
After he was released from the hospital, we were off to a pediatric facility where he would be monitored for a few more days.  In the car, his new caretaker was holding him.  I was anxious to hold him!  After all, we did come all this way....so when we hit a bump and he woke up, I took the opportunity to ask if I could hold him.  (Did I mention there was no carseat...)  He slept in my arms until we reached the pediatric facility.  Stepping over the rainy season's mud puddles outside and trying not to slip on the tile floor once we were inside, we took a seat in the waiting room while Semmey got Harris checked in.  This wait time allowed for more snuggles.  He laid down on Jake's chest just looking around.  I could tell he knew we were safe people but he was still trying to figure out who we were.
Of course, we were the only white people in the waiting room.  We got plenty of stares, especially from children.  In fact, I could feel a little person touching my hair and another little person was touching Jake's arm.
Eventually it was our turn to see the doctor.  We went into his office and he did a brief check up.  Then he started asking us, "What sorts of concerns do you have?"  We looked at each other and then back at the doctor and just went right into parent mode asking questions.  Then the doctor said, "Wait, you've only known him for a few hours?!"  We replied, "Yes."  The doctor looked at Semmey and back to us and moved right along as if we had known him all his life.  Then we made a plan for Harris' care.
We took him to an inpatient room where Trumar, his temporary nanny, would stay with him over the course of the next few days of being monitored.  There was a nice big window and an old metal bed for him to sleep in.  The doctors came in to take a blood sample and put in a port for an IV.  He did not like either part!  Once again, I just went into mommy mode and held his arms and legs down just like I have done so many times with Asher and Mary Clair at the doctor so they could do what they needed to do.  He was so dehydrated that it took about 3 tries to find a vein that was big enough to get a port in.  I was able to comfort him and love on him after it was all over.
We got him settled in for a nap.  Everyone was clearly tired.  Semmey told us we looked tired and needed to rest.  Trumar would take good care of Yibekal (Harris) and we would go back the next morning.
So we headed back to the hotel.

I couldn't believe it!  We had been able to hold, hug, kiss, help and love on our son!  Finally!
Naps, tea, dinner and making new friends at our hotel from our agency were a great way to end our first day in Ethiopia.  For the first time in days, we felt somewhat at ease and were so thankful we were able to come be present for Harris in such a crisis time.

*I've gotta go to bed...looks like you'll have to wait for Part III... ;) *
*Also, sorry, we can't post any pictures of Harris until the legal part of things are complete.  I know, torture.*

Emergency Urgency! Part 1

Where to even begin....

So last you heard we were celebrating Harris' birthday with Ethiopian food.  That was June.

July came and went with our usual 4th of July gatherings, fireworks and the traditional and most beloved part of the holiday, homemade ice cream.  I also loaded up the kids with my sister-n-law and her kids and drove to the beach--what an adventure!

Then August came.  I turned 31!  Happy birthday to me!  I was wondering what this new year of life would hold, where it would take me and my family.  It started off with Asher starting school.  What a bittersweet day!  When he got off the bus that first day I was secretly hoping he hated school and missed me all day long.  Quite the contrary.  He went on and on with a big smile on his face telling me all the details and couldn't wait to go back the next day.  I guess it's good that he likes school.  ;)  The next day I tried to go on with life as normal (sniff) and enjoy my one-on-one time with Mary Clair.  So we met my brother and parents for lunch.  During our delicious Thai lunch I had a missed call from our agency and a couple texts from Jake indicating I needed to call our agency A.S.A.P!  I was hoping it was good news--maybe we got our court date and were going to be leaving the next week!  I was going to wait until I got home to make any phone calls.  Then Jake called.  "I'm at home.  Where are you?  I tell you what's going on when you get here."  My stomach dropped.  Had Jake lost his job?  Was something wrong with Harris?  Something was not right.  Usually the drive from downtown Athens to home is not that bad, but this was a terribly long ride with my mind going 100 miles a minute with all sorts of bad thoughts of what could have gone wrong.  I came in as quickly as possible and got Mary Clair to bed.
"Harris is sick and in the hospital," Jake said.  Apparently there was a cholera outbreak in his orphanage and 4 kids were in the hospital, Harris being one of them.  Jake had been upset and was crying.  I was too mad to cry.  He should have already been home, I thought.  This would have never happened if he had already been home!  It's been almost a year.  He should be here....
I've never felt so helpless.
What were we going to do?
Jake had already been doing some research on cholera and it sounded really serious, so we emailed all our questions to our agency.  As you've heard me say before, we have to best agency ever!  Lifeline Adoptions has been walking with us now over these past 4 1/2 years and I can't imagine having gone through all this with any other agency.  Now that we are at the end of our process we have also been working with another adoption agency who is partners with Lifeline--West Sands Adoptions.  They also have been very helpful and kind.
We exchanged some emails and phone calls to our case worker over the next couple days trying desperately to get some details on anything!  We would get responses saying the hospital was shut down because of the outbreak, the phone of the nanny who is with Yibekal (Harris) was dead because she had no charger in the hospital, all children from our agency had been pulled out to the home of a man who worked with the agency to insure the health of the children....then they said they would let us break the rules and come if we felt we needed to go see Harris.  Unfortunately, the courts had just closed for holiday so there would be no expediting our court date because of health issues.
So we prayed.
And the next day we bought plane tickets.
Then the day after that, we were on a plane to Ethiopia.

Ok.
Time out.
Rewind.

Monday-Katherine's 31st birthday (dreaming about what the year would hold)
Wednesday-Asher starts kindergarten (tears and overly sentimental Katherine)
Thursday-Crazy scary phone calls about our son, Harris, in the hospital with cholera (potentially deadly)
Friday-The courts in Ethiopia close.  But our agency says we can go to Ethiopia....
Saturday-Plane tickets purchased.
Sunday-Got on a plane and headed to Ethiopia.

"Wait a second," you may say, "how on earth did you pull that off??"
Well, we had lots and lots of people praying--in fact, on a 24 hour basis!  We had friends making packing lists, ordering medications, ordering plane tickets, feeding my family and even unloading my dishwasher (if you want to bless me, unload my dishwasher!!)  We had other friends giving us money to cover the cost of the trip!  Did I mention we had people praying??!  Our parents jumped right in to buying us another suit case, dropping everything and being willing to do child care for the week last minute, and driving us to the airport.  Did I mention my sister was in town from New Orleans and helped my parents with the kids (even with those middle of the night bad dreams and having a child sleeping in the same bed!  Sorry for those grey hairs you found the next week....I will take full responsibility!)?

So there we were, on our way to Ethiopia, not sure what the trip was going to even look like.  Would we arrive to even worse news than before?  Would we arrive and not even get to see Harris?  All we could do was sleep on the plane and trust that God was going to take care of all the details.

*Stay tuned for Part II*