After leaving HH, the first time, we headed to the hotel. We showed her the clothes we brought her & she picked the outfit she wanted to wear. I would have to say that this girl loves orange (& pink, of course). We played with the beach ball & relaxed before going down for dinner. We ordered the fajitas with fried rice. She loved the fried rice & ate very quickly. Then she turned very green & we thought she was going to hurl! We have been careful ever since to not let her overeat! Her favorite foods now are "oongulats" or eggs! She asks for them at most meals. She also likes pasta, chips, chicken, steak, french fries, yogurt, peaches, & bannanas. The Union Hotel menu is the same everyday for lunch & dinner. It looked like lots of choices the first day but the choices soon got very old. Oh, well...at least we had food! This was one thing that always struck us. As we would sit & eat our meals & look out the window at Addis Ababa, it was hard to grasp how we could have all our needs met & people just outside the window were starving & had nothing....very hard to comprehend.
The next morning, we played at the hotel & went back to HH to play. At first, she did not want to be let down out of my arms, but soon she started playing with the other children. We loved playing at Hannah's Hope. Before the trip, I worried that it would be hard for her to go back & forth between HH & the hotel, so we just kind of took her lead. Most days, she was good with it, but we did have a time or two that we stayed back at the hotel when we sensed that it wasn't good for her at that time.
After playing for awhile, it was time for lunch for the HH kids. HH is very structured & scheduled & the kids know what to expect at all times. They eat in 2 shifts (older kids then younger kids) & they are in the pjs very early in the evening (4:30 or 5:00, I believe). I guess it takes awhile to get 50 or 60 kids ready for bed.
Anyways, we went back to the hotel for lunch then got ready for our embassy appointment. OE was so excited to ride in the "mekeena" (car). She loved to watch them drive by from the hotel window! As we rode to the US Embassy, we watched her as she stared out the window. We wondered what she was thinking...did she see familiar sights...where did she live??? She lived in Addis Ababa her entire life, but the exact place, we don't know...so hard. We immediately recognized the embassy as we approached....big concrete barriers all around it....much different than most of the other embassys. We went in through all the security & I noticed a "Wanted: Bin Laden" sign...big reward....there was kind of an odd feeling seeing that outside of the comfort & security of the US. After we cleared security, we went to a waiting room to wait for our name to be called. We were with the other 3 AGCI families & a man from another agency who was with his son. He said that his wife had to go back to the US while he stayed in Ethiopia to wait for their case to clear the embassy. Gulp! In the midst of all of our embassy stress I don't think I ever realized that could happen to us. As we waited for our name to be called, N & I prayed & tried not to think about the what-if's! Finally, our name was called. We went up the stairs with Almaz to the window & answered a few very easy questions ("When did you meet your daughter", etc.). The Embassy staff person preceded to inform us that the doctor had noted a heart murmur which we did not know about. His last question was whether we wanted to continue with the adoption...."Uh, hello, YES!". Our pediatrician here has not found any irregularity with her heart, but they will keep an eye on it to make sure. Most likely, she was sick or upset at the time that it was noted. Anyways, we were so relieved to walk out of the embassy with our official paperwork! Woohoo!!!!
We headed back to the hotel & OE lit up as we approached the hotel. We played in the room ("tickle Daddy" was her favorite game of the day) before going down for dinner & then hitting the sack! We were exhausted! One thing about Ethiopia nights, they last FOREVER! I'm sure it had something to do with the time difference, but the nights dragged on. I would wake up convinced that I had slept forever, only to look at the clock to see that it was just a couple of hours since I went to bed. It got dark very early & was hard to stay awake, especially since our tv only had 1 channel & that channel always was showing the Olympic race where an Ethiopian won...very exciting the first time, not so much the hundredth time!
Dancing with one of her favorite special mothers at HH.
This woman has a beautiful heart & more energy than you would believe!
On our way to the US Embassy! She looked a little too American, but I swear she picked out every piece of the outfit. She is very sassy!
A little market area under a bridge that we always passed when we were driving around Addis Ababa. There were people selling anything from veggies to plants to clothing.
2 comments:
It's so fun to read all the stories from people's time in Ethiopia. Thanks for sharing!
I get so excited when you post. I love to hear about what life is like for the kids in the orphanage, the love of the nannies, and how the ET goverment operates. Crazy about the wanted pic of Bin Laden! Do you know how often the court process has delays like that guys that caused him to have to stay longer?
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