Our girls

With our letters

The Countdown begins!

"We're leavin', on a jet plane.. "

Tickets are BOOKED! Here we go! Details:

Leaving from Detroit at the ridiculous hour of 6 AM on March 14
Arriving in Addis at 8:35 AM (their time), March 15

Insert ~ lots of tears, nerves, meeting and hugging girls, more tears, laughter, more hugging, Embassy appointment, trip to Mukatore, meeting the girl's living relatives, more tears, more laughter, lots of playing with Layla kids, walks and games with our girls, picture taking, more laughter, hugging friends (that's YOU, Mindy!), farewell party, more tears, etc. ~

Leaving from Addis 10:15 pm (their time again), March 21
Arriving in Grand Rapids at the respectable hour of 6:32 pm, March 22

WHEW! Just in time for Easter!

Travel Date..?

Great news! We got word yesterday that an Embassy Date of March 19 could work well if it will work for our family.

The trick is: We have been planning to have my parents come and take care of the kids and farm while we're gone to Ethiopia. Unfortunately, they leave for a Mission trip down South on the 14th, and won't be back until the 22nd! "Bummer" to have parents who are in love with Jesus and passionate about service and missions! ;) What a great problem to have!

So, unless Clarence and Judy are interested in another trip to the South to take on the task of 6 kids and a farm :), we'll be looking into having friends come in shifts during that week. If things don't line up well, we may have to postpone the trip for a week so that Mom and Dad are back and available.

Either way, we're thrilled that there is a date in sight and the girls will be home soon!

Christmas DVD

We received a package from the agency yesterday, containing a dvd of the Christmas celebrations at Layla. We caught glimpses of Mo and Ed in the Christmas story drama, a long look at Ed doing the most remarkable acrobats/gymnastics we've ever seen, and L looking adorable as she got her present from 'Santa.'

Photos: Ed is in the bright pink, long sleeve. L was shy and sweet with Santa. We couldn't find any photos of Mo.

If you'd like to see the DVD, come on over!

Reunion

Mo & Y at Layla

Soon Mo will be home, and be reunited with her good friend, Y. It is even possible that Y will be living in our area! Her family is hoping to move from the Detroit area to our neck of the woods!

Champions

Warning: Parental Bragging Ahead


M had quite a weekend! She spent the weekend at the Ranch for a retreat with her Sunday School class, but took a break from the retreat Saturday morning to compete in the Awana Quiz Bowl with her friend, H. M returned to the retreat in the early afternoon, relishing her and H's First Place win!
M is a memorizing machine. Every week for Sunday School she recites a stack of verses (memorized from little cards given out by her teachers). Then every Wednesday night she recites memory verses and Q/A from her Awana book.
We could say that we homeschool M... but, in fact, we just try to stay out of her way! For years she has blasted through her school books. I used to tease her because I had to order books for her too often... 'the budget just wasn't going to keep up with her!' She tends to set her mind to a task and get it done, learning so quickly. She reads voraciously, and is often found re-reading books... you know, cuz she's read them ALL already. She's an amazing girl.
So the next time you see her ~ hopefully after her retreat depleted sleep tank is refilled ~ congratulate her on a job well done at the quizbowl!



While I'm at it:

A had a busy weekend as well. She and a group of women and girls from church danced during service to the song, "Borrow Mine." It was a beautiful dance. I had tears in my eyes.
A has a passion for ballet, and her athletic ability and strength make her a natural. In fact, we've found very little in which A does not excel athletically! She's a 'go-getter,' and loves to compete. Watching her in the Awana games each spring (competion between all area Awana groups, featuring races and other events) is a thrill... I lose my voice every time!
She does just as well on her pony's four feet as she does on her own two. She and her pony move like a team... Anna's hind end appears glued down as her pony spins and runs at top speed... all without a saddle. Full speed is how A prefers life.
The cool thing is that, even with a competitive personality, A is sensitive, concerned, and compassionate. She feels deeply the hurts of others and has a servant heart. She is growing deep in faith ... what a remarkable young lady.

Waiting

Nesting

The "Dormitory" is taking shape. Today we were able to find a cabinet on sale ~ we'll be using upright storage cabinets as dressers in the girl's room to conserve floor space. I think we now have all of the bedding we will need. Much of the bedding was given to us. For the rest, it's nice to be shopping during clearance season!

All seven girls will be starting out in the same bedroom (the dorm). The room is large, but it is our hope to be able to finish some projects here which would allow for more bedrooms this spring.

We've also been sorting clothing and getting things ready. I did the first load of laundry for Mo and Ed today! Beginning Mom tasks. Looks like the main things we're missing yet are things like pjs, jeans, and church clothes. We have not even begun shoe shopping yet, because we don't have their sizes.

It feels so great to be preparing for their arrival home!

Socks and Underwear

Still waiting to hear that the precious piece of paper has made it safely to our agency. We're 'nesting:' gathering bedding, sorting clothing... I even bought socks the other day! Sock and underwear shopping ~ that's when you KNOW you're getting close! :)

Birthday Girl

Ed doesn't know this yet... but it's her birthday TODAY!
We were contacted by the agency and told that they were in the process of putting together the paperwork for the girl's Ethiopian birth certificates. Since their dates of birth are unknown, the agency assigned them birthdays when they came into care over 3 years ago. The agency is trying something new, allowing adoptive parents to have some say in establishing birth dates for their legal paperwork.

In trying to decide their birthdays, we took into account the girl's estimated ages, school placement, and the birth dates of the kids already home. We considered meaningful dates, and decided upon these three:
Mo: June __ ~ the anniversary date of my Uncle Bob and late Aunt Judy's wedding. Uncle Bob and Aunt Judy (Sherri's 'other parents') celebrated their anniversary on the __th of every month... but were actually married on June _. Mo is E's 'twin' 13 year old, both with June birthdays.
Ed: February _ ~ Oma's birthday. Oma (Berny's Mom) is a wonderful lady - strong, gentle, patient, active, and lovely. Ed and A will be 'twins' for about 5 months, until A's 12th birthday in June.
L: September __ ~ Grandma's birthday. Grandma (Sherri's Mom) is no less wonderful! - joyful, loving, giving, musical, and gracious. L will turn 8 about 3 months before Ic's 8th birthday in December.

February 5

I'm actually too tired to go into deep detail, but must tell you about yesterday... at least enough to explain why just the act of trying to leave my house turns into a comedy routine!

While trying hurry out of the house for an appointment in GR, everything seems to be pulling for my time.
After I scurry around to get ready to go and head for the door, the phone rings: the meat processor is ready to cut and wrap our beef, and still hasn't gotten orders from all of our customers. Whoo boy... don't have time for this! Make a few phone calls to solve the beef issue, field a few needs from one child or another, run back and forth to the van outside trying to make it look presentable again (to bring to the dealership in GR to have a hitch installed). During a check over of the back of the van, I notice the speaker cover which had been popped off early in our van ownership and decide that it's just too embarrassing to let the dealership see it that way. No problem... quickly run back into the house for some adhesive... glue... hold... remove hand... notice sag... reglue... hold again... let go... looks good... slam door to close... hear cover clunk onto the floor of van... sigh... give up.
I run back into the house to give final instructions and say good-byes. My last task is to give Ic a sermonette about how well he is to behave for his sister while I'm gone. I'm just about finished when he takes a swig of milk. The milk hits the wrong pipe which triggers an involuntary cough, and milk SPEWS across the kitchen.
I had been approaching the tension point = "I HAVE to get out of here... I'm LATE!" But this puts me over the opposite edge. I'm laughing so hard that I'm not actually very helpful to G as we mop up the milk from the kitchen table, chairs, bench, floor, and Ic's hands, feet, and face.
I am finally on my way, slip sliding the van up our icy road. Only about 1/4 mile from our house, I look up to see a Bald Eagle soaring in the sky. I watch both road and eagle... The eagle perches atop a huge, bright green pine tree, holding its wings out for balance. Gorgeous! Breathtaking!

Any day which starts with spewed milk AND a bald eagle is going to be a GREAT day!

Our Girls

L

Ed


Mo