We're home ..

Andrea's last two msgs pretty much sum up the ordeal of heading home ... I have never been so tired in my life.

Since our landing in Mtl on the 24th, we are struggling to establish the New Normal around here ... not easy, I admit. Ebba is doing pretty well, but I am feeling pretty overwhelmed with the jetlag, time change, new baby adjustment, and big sister adjustment.

As I keep saying, adoption is not for the faint of heart. Would welcome any thoughts on how to survive this transition with sanity intact ...

Haven't had a minute nor an ounce of extra energy to download pics yet - hopefully in the next few days.

I want to thank all of you who sent encouraging comments via this blog while we were in ETH. The slow dial-up connection prevented me from accessing other than a few while there, but I have since re- read them all, and really appreciate that people were interested in our journey.

More soon,

Allison

Baby Update Post Removed

Folks - Just so you know (in case you were looking for it), I have removed the post containing updates about other people's babies - at the agency's request. I guess I had unknowingly crossed a line of privacy for the as-yet unadopted children.

Apologies all 'round.

Andrea's POV - Home at Last

And I am BAGGED, despite having at least twice the amount of sleep Allison had last nite, as Ebba has conveniently remained on Addis time, which is 8 h earlier than here. Which means she slept on the plane from Heathrow to Montreal, then NAPPED for 3 h upon return to the homestead (which was sometime after, what, 8 pm local time?). Allison, I think, will have had a brutal first Christmas Day with Ebba...

The flight home was....well....interesting. No bulkhead seats for the 12 mo and her travelling companions, no siree Bob. That would go to the 8 mo and her travelling companions, tho someone please explain to me why a non-walking infant needs more space than a toddler that strongly resents being restrained.

The flight from Addis to Heathrow was via Damascus, where we went from being 2 adults plus one toddler (plus all the required paraphenalia required to appease said toddler and, to a lesser extent, the adults) squashed into a row with 3 seats to the same squashed into a row with 3 seats plus another adult, as PASSENGERS were picked up in Damascus, and we went from being a non-full airplane to being a full one.

OH, that leg of the journey was not pleasant - Ebba did NOT want to be confined, and proceeded to kick the seat back of the man in front of her, throw all manner of things into the aisle, and throw regular tantrums. With the stress of travel on top of the stress of everything else, she also refused everything but bottles, which was tricky, as if you gave her a fullish bottle (180 mL) at intervals strategically designed to keep her from screaming, she'd overflow all over herself, Allison, and whatever Allison happened to be sitting on (having now scrubbed dried baby milk formula vomit out of fabrics, I can tell you the stuff is like glue, and stinks to boot).

We then rejigged the strategic plan to include bottles pretty much on the hour, with half the amount of milk. No more spewage, and it at least appeased Ebba for short periods of time (tho removing the emptied half-filled bottle resulted in outrage at not having the "I'm so full, I need to vomit all over Mommy" feeling in her tummy, which wasn't very pleasant). Allison spent most of that leg of the journey standing in the aisle, trying to keep Ebba from driving the entire plane crazy. I became a master at mixing up a bottle of formula (OK, milk powder) in record time.

The changeover in Heathrow went smoothly, and with no wait, we changed terminals, went thru security again, and proceeded directly to the gate. This plane was bigger, with 2-4-2 across (and at the back, 2-3-2). This time, we were slated for 2 seats on the right side of the plane - having had a less than pleasant experience sharing 2 seats with 2 adults + Ebba and all her stuff, Allison made a plea to one of the flight attendants as we boarded, that if 3 seats were possible, we'd be eternally grateful. Well, bless their little French Canadian hearts, they pulled it off, and a couple with an adjacent empty seat agreed to switch seats with us.

It was AWESOME - Allison and I sat on the aisles, we had oodles of space, some kid was sitting in front of Ebba (kids tend to mind less that their seat back is being swatted and kicked and climbed and used as a propulsion mechanism), we had seat back on-demand video screens, and after some initial histrionics (most likely caused by tired + teething + travel + restraint), Ebba SLEPT. We ate an undisturbed dinner, watched movies (finally saw and heard Wall-E, the Pixar film, which had been running on the previous leg of the journey, but there was too much Ebba stuff to actually WATCH it except in pieces), and rested (no sleep, tho, for me, and I doubt for Allison, either).

Upon arrival, Customs and Immigration were a breeze, luggage took a little longer, and then Allison got pulled over for a spot check. But, finally, we rolled out of the baggage claim area, and Ebba met the rest of the family. Honestly, someone should have taken pix - Ian was in tears, he was so overwhelmed by meeting Ebba. As for Ebba, back to the deer in the headlights look for a while, tho she seemed back to normal by 5 am today.

Ian's sister and brother-in-law both brought me from the Montreal airport last nite, and picked me up this morning to deliver me back there, for my flight home this morning. They were wonderful - they brought me a coffee, a card, and a gift (tho I left the gift of local artisanal cheese with them, for I know the cheese is VERY good, and it would have been a shame to have the USDA throw it out when I passed thru customs).

The day (as viewed from the MTL airport) dawned clear and bright, I managed to get a cup of coffee and a raspberry scone from the Second Cup in the airport, and the flight left almost on time - last minute snow meant a delay for de-icing. Arrived in Philly in plenty of time to get lunch (a real actual salad, which wasn't half bad tho some of the veg had been previously frozen, and I had to pick out all the onions and black olives, and a non-dairy smoothie - vitamins! and fibre! real food!), and board the plane to GSO, which also left and arrived on time.

So, on this Christmas Day, I got to see an old friend, had smooth sailing home, got home in time to pick up my dog (who is a STAR at daycare/overnite camp, apparently), and even had snow. Despite being dog tired, does it get any better than this?

And now, I think I have drawn out the day long enuf to enable a relatively smooth transition to local time. It is 8:45 pm here in GSO, so, what...plus 8 h...4:45 am in Addis. Yup, time for bed.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, all.

A

Andrea's POV - Tuesday Dec 23 (last day) in Addis

Whew.

It's 2:20 pm (or 8ish am, Ethiopian time, long story) on the LAST day before we travel home. After a brief excursion this morning around 11, we are back, Ebba is sleeping (thank God), we are packing, and preparing to leave for the airport at 3:35 am tomorrow (ugh). It's been a LONG week, to say the least, after a whirlwind 5 days before that, and I think we will all be grateful to be in our own homes, withour own stuff and food and routines, and our families around us.

After a particularly dramatic day yesterday (from Ebba's perspective), Allison opted out of the cultural evening, - it didn't start til 7:30,and once Ebba passed out just as she finished her dinner around 6:30, there was no way on God's green earth either of us were going to risk waking her by dragging her out of her crib, strapping her into the Ergo, and schlepping her off to watch us eat Ethiopian food and listento very nice (but loud for sleeping young ears) Ethiopian music (tho if she wasn't screaming her head off, she might have enjoyed the dancing). It was very interesting. The tables are very small and circular, with smaller regular wooden tables to supplement them.

We started the evening with a beverage, and most of us wanted to try tej, a wine made from honey, water, and hops. It came in flasks (think chemistry sets, and the round bottomed flasks, not the triangular bottomed Eherlenmyer [sp?} flasks). I asked if there were glasses coming, and I was told, no, you drink out of the flask. Solomon gave us a demonstration of how to told it, and we all gave it a try (and I don't think anyonespilled, tho my fingers did end up kind of sticky). It has a veryinteresting odour and flavour - I can't quite describe the initial flavour, but it has a very nutty aftertaste (so much so that I asked exactly WHAT the ingredients were). I think I managed to drink about 1" of the flask contents before I decided I did not like the first taste at all.

Then, a man came with what looked like a silver teapot (a large one) and a silver basin with a perforated silver screen on top - this was to wash our hands prior to eating. At this point, they transferred the beverages off the round tables to the smaller rectangular ones, and brought out dinner - large round platters (that JUST fit into thetable tops) with giant injera lining them, and baskets of rolls oflarge sliced injera [injera is the bread they make which is used inplace of utensils - it is flat, spongy and kind of sour] to eat with. Then they brought out charcoal "braziers" (for lack of a better word) with tibs (cubes of cooked meat), a bowl of cooked ground meat (which apparently is usually uncooked, but they cooked it for us faranji), a bowl of some kind of bean/chick pea/lentil paste, some spicy chicken stew, some tangy cheese (sort of like a crem cheese consistency) and a meat with spinach dish. These were all placed in spoonfuls on the giant injera - the spicy chicken stew in the centre, with "spokes" ofeverything else around the edges.And then, we ate. You tear off some injera from a roll and, using your right hand only, grab/scoop/dab up various combinations of the various stuff. I avoided the poorly defined paste, but the rest of it was very good (tho apart from the chicken, I have no idea what species the other ingredients came from).

As there were no other vegetables available, I ate rather a lot of the spinach. Solomon (our contact for the adoption agency) went 'round feeding us mouthfulls of injera and everything else. After stuffing ourselves, we relaxed and listened to the Ethiopian music that was being played, with intermittent singing, and enjoyed the dancing. Solomon tells me the music/songs/dancing were primarily Amharic, but also from other local ethnicities (sp?), like the Oromo. The dancing is very different - some very fast, short, choppy movements.

And, once the babies started to become restive, a few of us had coffee (espresso-like, very strong, and in tiny cups with sugar), and a smallbrazier with chunks of incense was brought. It was nice.

Ah, Ebba is awake, and she and Allison have joined me in the "business centre" here in the lobby. We should settle our bill, and get back to organizing for departure. Assuming we have no delays, and all runs well, we should be back at Allison's tomorrow evening, and I should be home a day later.

Once I've recovered from the trip/flight/timechange, I'll post the pix to Picasa (a Google feature), and send you all an invitation to view. Until then, I wish you all the very best of the holidays.

A

Andrea's POV: Sunday

Oh, yeah, it's Sunday. And I only remember that because we went to
the International Evangelical Church this morning, as they were doing
a Christmas service, prior to the Big Day itself. There were
Christmas carols (mostly sing along, which I generally enjoy), some
sort of King-type story acted out, which was pretty difficult to hear,
and the standard evangelical exhortations to take Jesus into one's
heart. The 2 guys (pastors??) leading the service were frighteningly
smily.

I've had the question if we were able to find all the foods we could
get back here, and the answe is NO. It seems standard to go to
several places just trying to get a single specific item - all shops,
pharmacies, etc, are VERY SMALL, and tho they are stocked from the
floor to ceiling, and out the front of the shop, if you are looking
for something specific (like, say, size 3 diapers, plastic bowls, or
half decent bananas), you may need a car to take you several places
before you locate your item(s) (we never did find the bowls). It took
one of the other Canadians here 2 days and visits to several
pharmacies in order to find metoclopramide, an antinauseant his wife
desperately needed (she's feeling much better now).

Breakfast is provided with the room, and we've stuck to scrambled eggs
(with bits of onion, tomato and "green pepper" - it's green, alright,
and a pepper, but it's small and thin-skinned and not rounded but
pointy, and HOT) with "toast" (must be toasted slowly, as it's more
like dried bread than toasted bread) and butter with "jam" (seems to
be a runny peel-less version of orange marmalade) - it's good. I have
"coffee with milk" - the wicked strong coffee cut half with hot milk -
and Allison has some hybrid juice (we can't identify the flavour).
Ebba has what we THOUGHT was formula, but upon reading the tin, turns
out to be full cream powdered milk, and some very milky oatmeal.

Somehow, we keep missing LUNCH. We usually bundle into the van, and
get driven all over Addis, and don't get back til early afternoon, at
which point I am hungry and trembly and feeling slightly sick (am
hoping this is an altitude thing, and maybe the result of inhaled
petrol fumes - Pia, care to weigh in?). We usually then order from
Ice Blue, which HAS to be within spitting distance, as they deliver so
quickly. From the Ice Blue menu we have tried Basmati rice with sauce
(way too much rice), various pizzas (a nice, very flat crust pizza
seems ubiquitous here in Addis), the cheese sandwich, and I tried the
buger, and fries. The fries are excellent, the pizzas are good, but
are we sensing a theme here? Yes, CARBOHYDRATE central here in Addis.
I'm going to have to go on a juice fast when I get home - ugh, I feel
HUGE, and the heartburn is killing me. Thank god for Pepcid.

For dinner, I have tried 2 different kinds of beef - these, and the
hamburger, were all sort of weird - and the dishes only ONCE came with
a vegetable, and they were token veggies at that. I switched last
nite to chicken, and had chicken in beer sauce and a caprese salad
(tomato and mozzarella) - and THIS came with slightly MORE than token
veg, with about half a carrot and a handful of string beans! And they
were good, too.

I have introduced Allison to papaya (she seems less than impressed,
how is that POSSIBLE?), and we still have a couple of oranges left.
Allison is on a hunt for bananas today, along with....damn, can't
remember...and more bottled water. Ah, she's just returned with Ebba
- I should go see how things went.

Tomorrow is more shopping (we missed the scarves and fabrics of the
Former Fuelcarriers something or other, long story), back to the BMI
office to make sure we do, in fact, have seats, and a visit to the
orphanage that Ebba came from in the morning, another trip up the
mountain (I probably didn't tell you about that, and I'm planning on
skipping this second trip - I can tell you tomorrow), and then an
Ethiopian cultural supper. No idea what's happening Tuesday, apart
from getting ready to travel (flight leaves Wed at 06:30, and we need
to be at the airport by 04:00!), and trying to tire Ebba out so she'll
not run everyone ragged on the varied flights home.

Hope all is well back home, and do keep me posted on the weather in
Montreal for Christmas Day - internet is WAY too slow here to get the
Environment Canada weather site to load...

A

Monday in Addis - counting down

I am officially running out of gas.

Today we were supposed to go to the airline to confirm our flights, shop for
some textiles, and come back to the GH. Then, in the aft, those that had not
yet, would go to up Entoto (we already did that, so I was looking fwd to a
quet aft). Instead, we did it all at once. Planning for the shorter trip, I
took one bottle which, predictably, wasn't enough. Ebba seems to be
teething (chewing her fingers, a little feverish, crabby), so being hungry
was not a nice addition to the mix. Plus, she has added biting to her
arsenal of protest behaviours. Yay. I had prepared myself for baby issues
- not toddler issues, so am having to re-jig my mindset.

This am I gave her some infant Advil, which seemed to help ... and again
Andrea is doing amazing auntie duty while I write this (3 pm). We are
supposed to be going out for a "cultural evening" tonight - traditional ETH
food, dancing, etc - but I think I will beg off - I am not feeling that
energetic.

On the up-side, Ebba is def attaching to me - she now pretty much refuses to
got anyone else, except Andrea (sometimes), and will come running to me if
she gets scared or wants a cuddle. But boy, does she have a temper!

Am thinking tomorrow is pretty clear - will allow me to get my last little
bits done, and start packing for the Long Trip Home. We asked for bulkhead
seats to give us a little more room ... hopefully we will manage.

Hope the weather is calming down in Mtl area ...

Sat & Sun in Addis

Sorry I didn't write yesterday - it was a fairly busy day, and by the end of it, Ebba was tired & difficult, I was frazzled, and it wasn't pretty.

Yesterday am we went to Entoto, which is a big hill overlooking Addis (half-hour drive?). There is a big church up there and a museum. Lovely view. Many donkeys and people carrying loads of hay and fuel (cow dung & wood) on their backs. Looks brutal whether they were going up or down!.

Actually, I have to admit that the donkeys and sheep/goats here all look pretty good. Good flesh, no obvious sores from packs etc - so am relieved by that.

Then we did some more shopping, drove around the grounds of the Sheraton (after having the bottom of our van checked for explosives; truly another world.) Bought: traditional music CDs, a wall hanging, few more gifts. Things are pretty cheap here: CDs - 35 Birr ea - which is roughly 3.50.

Ebba is very good in the carrier - she sleeps in it, or just snuggles, and seems not to mind it at all. The bumpy Addis roads help put all the babies to sleep.

At the end of all that, we went back to the hotel, gave Ebba a bottle (she's sneering at cereal - but loves the bottle), which she promptly spit up ALL OVER me. Then, we tried going around the corner for supper with Andrew and the feeling-much-better Cristina (thank goodness for modern pharmaceuticals!), thinking I had enough time before the next bottle was due to squeeze in my own meal. Mistake. Ebba threw things from the table, banged spoons (loudly) on the metal ashtray, and when I tried to walk her about, fussed, whined, and was generally miserable. When she is frustrated/tired/hungry, she sometimes hits me in the face - which I don't appreciate - so I took my food to go, and went bach to the GH to give her a
bottle and put her to sleep. She was out in a matter of minutes, thankfully. And, also thankfully, she is sleeping through the night. So, I was pretty freaked out by it all ... in retrospect it was my own bad planning, but nonetheless it was a rough night for me, wondering what I had gotten myself into.

This morning (Sunday), I tried to approach things with a fresh outlook, but was feeling pretty homesick (still am). Ebba is doing better - I suspect she simply wears down through the day; this is a big adjustment all 'round. She seems to be learning not to YANK on my earrings, and the word "gentle". I have also learned the Amharic words for "no" and "come" - with good results.

This am we went to the International Evangelical Church (!) for their
Christmas service .. carols, mostly, and a play - I left nr the end to
diaper and bottle. Then we tried (again) to confirm our flights/seats for the trip home, but the airline office was closed. Tomorrow.

Back at the GH, I finally had time to contact Sandra's friend, Mesfin, to go and visit a little girl she helps with school. She wasn't home - so maybe tomorrow aft. In the am, we are scheduled to visit the orphanage that Ebba lived at before going to the KidsLink facility, confirm our flights, and make a last shopping stop for textiles (scarves, trad clothes, etc).

Right now it is about 5 pm - Auntie Andrea is watching Ebba so I can do this now instead of after she goes to bed. I am feeling a little unwell today, and hope it is just tired/stress/altitude/jetlag/whatever, and nothing more.

Getting eager to get home and get back to normal. OK - the New Normal.

TTYL,

A.

Andrea's POV - Thursday

Day 3 and I SWEAR Ebba has been replaced by the fairies, as she is not the
same child. THIS child is BUSY. Happy, babbling, friendly child, with
energy to spare. Oh, Allison is going to have her hands full, for sure.
Ebba is a willful little thing, with a wickedly mischievous smile. So far,
we have learned that she does not like tuna (despite our being told that she
gets tuna), but does enjoy bananas, papayas, oatmeal, baby cereal, eggs, and
most definitely her bottle. She wasn't responding all that well to "no", so
we looked up "no" in Amharic (can't remember how it's spelled, but it's
pronounced "eye"), and tho that gets a response from Ebba, she turns right
back around and does the bad thing again. She had her first bath this
morning (in the kitchen sink), and got the pigtails taken out - the kid
looks pretty groovy with loose hair.

We had a free morning today, with a shopping expedition this afternoon. We
went to a coffee house, and bought coffee to bring home, then to a silver
jewelry store, where Allison got most of the gifts she needed to get. We
have taken to bringing a bag of fruit with us, to give to the women begging
with their babies - they approach the car when we are stopped in traffic,
and we pass a piece of fruit out the window - that seems to go as well as
anything, and assuages our guilt somewhat, but it feels really weird to do,
like playing at being a beneficent lady, giving alms to the poor. It
disturbs us enuf that we had another meal in tonite - ordering from the Ice
Blue AGAIN -but as Ebba was a mad thing, motoring all over the place, it
seemed a sensible choice. Ebba is now finally tiring (refused a nap this
morning), and Allison is trying to keep her awake at least til 8, so she
doesn't rise at the crack of stupid.

Speaking of the crack of stupid, I heard the call to prayers this morning at
sunrise, as I was briefly awake at just the right time. Kinda neat, makes
you realize you aren't in Kansas anymore. Well, that and pretty much
everything else. We stopped at the BMI office this afternoon to confirm our
tickets for the Addis-Heathrow return trip, and their computers weren't
working, so they were to call and leave a message at the guest house (I
should check on that). With any luck, we will either have an empty seat
beside us, or a bulkhead seat with sky cot. Regardless, I think Allison
will be spending A LOT of time walking up and down the aisles - looks like
we'll be on planes for close to 18 h on the 24h.

And, both Pia and Ian have warned us of the winter storms headed thru ON
this week/weekend - Ian is of the opinion that it may be stormy over
Christmas as well, so I am mentally crossing my fingers that the weather is
clear for my last leg home on Christmas Day - I'll be about ready for the
relative peace and calm of home by then, for sure, and I miss the furry
kids.

And now I'm feeling nappish, and tho there's all kinds of things to tell, I
can't think of them, so I will sign off for now. Hopefully, we will get
around to trying to locate the Cyber Easy Internet Cafe...Allison's
guidebook says it has the fastest internet connection on Bole Road, and a
little speed (and consistency - I've apparently lost a connection mid-email
once already) would be a nice thing - then we might actually attempt sending
PICTURES.

A

Thursday in Addis

9 pm or so.

A relatively quiet day, activity-wise: Ebba slept in (7:30 or so - yay!),
had her bottle, breakfast with us at about 8:30 (oatmeal, mashed banana),
then a bath in the kitchen sink (the tub has no plug!), and a walkabout/nap
in the baby carrier in the roof of the guest house - has a nice 360 view of
the city.

After lunch we went shopping and bought things to take home for famly &
friends. Ebba travelled well, tho missed her afternoon nap, and as a result
konked out a bit early tonight. Hope she doesn't wake at the crack of dawn.
Two poops today, for those that are counting (and remember the suspense of
waiting for Mei Le to poop when we first got her!).

Our fellow new parents, Andrew and Christina had a bit of a rough day, as C
seems to have come down with traveller's gut-rot, and finally went to the
medical clinic and now is armed with antibiotics, an anti-nausea drug,
rehydration salts, and crackers. They also had the doc listen to their
son's chest, as he has been pretty miserable with a head cold, and
thankfully his chest is clear, and he seems to be mending.

Ebba is BUSY!!! OMG. I may be too old for this child! She goes at 90 miles
an hour, and is into everything! And she doesn't take you at face value; if
I correct her for doing something inappropriate (grabbing the phone cord,
playing with the TV buttons, sticking her finger into something she
shouldn't, standing on a book), she looks at me, smiles, and procedes to DO
IT AGAIN. AND AGAIN. Andrea finally looked up the Amharic word for NO,
which seems to have a better effect, but am struggling to walk the line btw
establishing trust and love, and setting limits. This will be fun!

OTOH, she does appear to be attaching well. She is comfortable being close
to me now, and seeks me out when she's walking about. When she sees me
strapping on the baby carrier, she walks up to me with her arms raised to
come up. (The Ergo carrier really is very good, I might add). We are
figuring each other out, and I am optimistic for a smooth (yet BUSY)
transition!

Random thoughts on Addis so far:

- The climate is fantastic: warm to hot during the day (24 or so) but dry,
with cool breezy nights. Couldn't be better.
- The traffic is wild - there must be some unspoken yet agreed-upon set of
rules, bec it works - yet to the untrained eye appears simply chaotic.
- The poverty is overwhelming and very obvious - people begging on the
streets wherever you go, incl women with babies in their arms. Today we
took frut to give out thru the van window, as they approach us at
stoplights. Walking the streets is hard, bec they follow you, and you can't
really give anything, or else you will be mobbed by everyone in sight.
- There is also vast wealth: amazing houses, expensive SUVs, etc. A real
city of contrasts.
- There is a lot of English on signs etc, and it seems pretty widely spoken,
to diff degrees.
- Animals everywhere there is grass, including graxzing outside the walls of
the Hilton, and on the medians of highways. The donkeys and sheep/goats
look surprisingly well. Have seen some street dogs and cats. They seem to
scavenge more or less successfully. Dogs also seem to be kept as pets and
guard animals; there are several in walled houses around our guest house -
and they bark at things in the night.
- There are many interesting birds, even in the trees around our GH. Large
black crow-like ones with white collars; yellowish ones with LONG beaks, and
some dark starling-like ones that flash irridescent turqouise when the fly.
- No bugs. Really. Andrea witnessed a med-sized cockroach in the van, and I
have seen one tiny gnat-like thing. But that's it. The GH has no screens,
and most houses are open.

Tomorrow we are being taken up a big hill overlooking the city so we can get
the big picture, then a bit more shopping. Sunday am we are going to a
special church carol service for Xmas (ETH Xmas is not until Jan 7 - this
one is for x-pats, I guess).

Andrea's POV - Wed in Addis

Well, half of day 2, as it's only 2:30 in the afternoon, but we are FINALLY
not moving, and can have a bit of laid back, quality time.

This morning, Ebba was brilliant -slept thru the nite (poor Allison didn't,
worry wort Mom that she is!), fussed a teeny bit on waking, took her bottle
and was a happy, playful, chatty child before and after breakfast. She got
her hair redone (divided up into 7 or 8 teeny pigtails), shared Allison's
eggs, ate bits of All Bran bars, then finished the whole thing off with
liquidy oatmeal. We went for a walk up to the roof top patio, then wandered
up and down the second floor hall while we got ready to head out. We went
back to the baby house (why Allison, Ebba and I had to go is beyond me) for
Andrew and Christina to get their baby, and while there, Ebba was WHISKED
off without a by your leave by one of the nurses, to visit her friends.
Well, tho I wasn't present when Allison retreived her, I imagine it wasn't
pretty, and Ebba certainly has been a different baby since - back to the
quiet, shy, somewhat withdrawn child she was yesterday. Oh, well, I'm sure
it's very hard for the staff to see the babies go and they would want an
opportunity to see her once more, and this will likely be only a minor
setback, but still...

Have now participated in THREE coffee ceremonies, and I've just about had it
with the freshly roasted, thick black coffee they make and offer in tiny
espresso cups with sugar only (today there was popcorn instead of the
roasted barley and peanuts as an accompaniment). HOWEVER, with breakfast
this morning I had "coffee with milk" instead of the tea I'd had previously.
"Coffee with milk" is one small pot of the same thick, black coffee with
another pot of hot milk, so one can have a cafe au lait. And THIS was
delicious.

On the way back from the baby house, with babies Ebba and Yared firmly
ensconced on their mom's respective laps, we set off to find bananas,
applesauce and smallish bowls for Allison to mash fruit and mix cereal in
for Ebba, and to get a further different formula for Yared (his parents
having picked up 8 tins of the wrong kind yesterday). I can't even remember
the number of places we had to go to get the formula, and we never did find
the bowls. We stopped at 2 places to get fruit - the first (the place where
the formula was FINALLY located) we managed to get papayas and oranges, and
the second yielded battered looking small bananas. We gave up on the bowls
at that point. Amazing, really - 2 biggish (tho slightly scary looking)
papayas (which required a good scrubbing with antibacterial dish soap prior
to further handling - icky dirty sticky with strands of stuff stuck to
them), 1 kg of nice looking small oranges, and 1 kg of bananas (which are
not nearly as ripe as they look) cost a total of $25 Birr (about $2.50 USD),
way less than what I'd pay for them in GSO.

Have now seen cats and a pair of horses (being ridden in traffic, oh, and
one other pulling a cart, a day or two ago), in addition to the dogs,
donkeys, sheep, goats, cattle and lone chicken. I've decided the large
circling birds are some sort of raptor. Have also seen a brilliant blue
bird, and a bright green one as well. Apparently birding is a big draw here
in Ethiopia, with a number of birds not found anywhere else in the world.
Have now also seen traffic lights (one set of which we went merrily sailing
thru on a red, along with a stream of other cars), and two wheeled
contrivances (think tow trailers for hauling ATVs and things) laden with all
kinds of things, and pushed by hand (usually by several people). These, of
course, are on the roads, along with everything else.

Tentative plans for the upcoming days include a trip up some hill, to see
all of Addis laid before us (am dreading that a bit, as by the end of
today's drive, I was pretty keen on getting out of the car, and not getting
back into it any time soon), shopping for traditional clothing, jewelry and
Ethiopian coffee pots (Allison's list), an Ethiopian cultural evening (I
suspect tej will be available, described to me as a wine made from honey), a
possible trip to the orphanage that Ebba is from, and a visit to a church
this Sunday, which is having a special carol service. We also need to swing
by the airport at some point, as we have not got specific seats booked for
the flight home - the flights here were pretty cramped, and with a baby now,
we'd prefer a little extra room for the trip home. No rest for the weary
(tho I've slept very well so far, and don't feel jet lagged at all, tho
pretty much hungry and trembly every few hours).

Well, I suppose I should get off this lone machine (the only internet
connection in the hotel), and go see if Allison needs any help. Or see if
we can settle in for a nap....

Later.

A

Addis Day 3

Here we are ... 24+ hrs together! Ebba slept thru the night like adream - I,
however, was in Fussy-Mommy mode and stared at the ceiling untilk about 2 am
-- refkecting on life, the universe & everything ... Ah well.

This am we had breakfast in the room - the guest house does very nce,
slightly spicy scrambled eggs, with toast, We ordered porridge for Ebba,
which she seemed to like.

After breakfast, we went with Solomon and Andrew & Christina back to the
Baby House - they were picking up their son, and we had some gifts for the
caregivers. I was hesitant about Ebba seeing all her nannies again (and the
confusion it might trigger), so planned to stay in the lobby. Which worked
until a nurse swept thru, announcing the Ebba would like to see her frends,
and took her upstairs. I gave them a few minutes, and then went in search -
and was told that Ebba would have lunch with her friends ... so the best I
could do was to positoin myself so she could see me while being fed, and try
to explain that she had recently eaten, which was maybe why she didn't
appear hungry. One of the nurses asked, "What happened to her"?" Great.

It took Ebba most of the day to get back to where we had been .. and I think
by tomorrow we should be ok. Hard to begrudge the nannies wanting to see her
again, and I didn't want to offend ... but for those of you yet to travel,
you may want to decline trips back after you have "taken possession". We
spent a quiet afternoon otherwise (walk, nap) and will eat in.

All in all however, she is doing grea and has made great strides. She is
curious and determined, with a good smile, and many cute & coy looks. She is
eating well, has pooped (yay!), and I think will settle in fine.

I will post Andrea's msg on today, as I am trying to type with a tired kid
in the carrier - and a tired mom at the keyboard.

More later!

Andrea's POV: Day 2 - The Pickup

We went to pick up baby Ebba today, and met the other Canadian couple,
Andrew and Christina (currently of Guelph), who came along with us, to meet
their new baby. Ebba CRIED when she saw Allison (none of the other babies
did, tho, this time), but allowed Allison to pick her up and take her to
what I am calling "the visiting room". Andrew and Christina joined us there
with their new, very hefty, and very alert new son. We stayed for a few
hours, I think - participated in another Ethiopian coffee ceremony (they
fresh roast the beans over a small fire, grind them and brew them in a clay
coffee pot - very different flavour, and VERY strong - and serve it with a
raw sugar, along with roasted barley + peanuts, which I didn't have, but the
others said it was good). Ebba has this very "deer in the headlights" look
of general shock - those HUGE eyes often downcast or turned away, as she
gets used to the idea of these strangers - but she warmed up a little during
the visit. Allison got a chance to speak with the nurse, and got the low
down on all the foods Ebba got, the specific brands, the feeding schedule,
nap schedule, etc.

On the drive back to the guest house, she fell asleep in Allison's arms, and
I was deputized to run out with Solomon to do baby grocery shopping. We
would pull over to the side of the road, run across the road thru traffic,
and into these tiny grocery stores, with stuff piled so high, someone had to
climb a ladder to get specific items. Three kinds of baby cereal (and 2-3
flavours of each kind), six cans of formula, 3 tins of tuna, 4 packages of
ramen-type noodles, and a package of extra large Pampers later, we rolled
back into the guest house. Ebba warmed up some to Allison in the afternoon,
then it was pack her up in the Ergo (seems like the current version of a
baby backpack that goes on the front) to seek out tiny baby hair elastics,
baby bottles (as the bottle/sippy cup combo seemed to require too much
effort to suck from) and bananas. Managed to get bottles in a pharmacy 200'
down Bole Road, and across the street (eek!), but were otherwise
unsuccessful.

Dinner with the other couple at a local restaurant (on the 5th floor of a
shopping centre) - was reassured to see the young and fit Christina puffing
and gasping after climbing 5 flights of stairs (Allison, Ebba and I took the
very teeny, European-sized elevator with 3 Ethiopians) - I agree, Pia, it's
probably a combination of the altitude and the pollution. Dinner was
fine...a bit odd (I ordered filet mignon, and i have to say, I've never seen
it look, or had it taste, quite like that), and then we headed back. Found
appropriate elastics on the way, too. Ebba was much more playful, and is
responding to Allison very well, I think. I'm sure tomorrow will be even
better.

I must say, I am very impressed with the level of care these kids receive at
the transition houses. They are a good weight, clear skinned, and well
adjusted. We did have an opportunity to spend some time with the toddlers
this morning - they teach them English, train them all to respond to people
(all adults or just foreigners, I don't know) with Mama and Dada or Daddy,
which was a little weird, but the little ones piled out of the school room
and grabbed us, and made us draw pictures for them. The older ones answered
questions for us, and showed us their schoolwork, and had us write sentences
in their work books. A few of the kids had a white cream on their scalps -
probably a fungus, which Allison tells me is hard to get rid of - but
otherwise they looked great.

And now, I plan to head upstairs, have a hot trickle of a shower in a cold
bathroom (invigorating, to say the least) to scrub the filth of day off,
rinse my burning eyes out with more artificial tears (not sure how much
irritation is from the dry eye, the pollution, the cigarette smoke, or a
combination of all three), then baby sit if Ebba is asleep, so Allison can
update her blog. And then CRASH. Again.

A

Addis Day 2 - We are Together!

Last night we slept like rocks, and awoke to the alarm at about 8, had
breakfast in the lobby and went hunting for stationery so I could write
letters of thanks to the staff at the Baby House ... seems a small gesture
in the face of what they do. Will also send them some sweets and maybe some
"girl stuff" treats (soaps, etc).

At 10:30 we met up with Andrew & Christina, from Guelph, who were arrived
late last night and met their son Yared for the first time today. We went
with them to the Kids Link head office again, and while they met with the
Director, we got a chance to visit with the toddlers in the Toddler House.
They were in class - they are taught basics in English: ABCs, math, songs,
etc. There were about 15-18 children (several sibling groups) and they were
all SO eager for us to talk to them, draw things for them, and be with them.
We were so impressed with it all. These kids are being so well equipped to
transition as smoothly as possible to their new families in Canada.

After that, we went to the Baby House, where I video-ed C&A meeting Yared,
then went and met Ebba again. She cried when I arrived, but only briefly,
and was willing to come up in my arms when I offered. We had another coffee
ceremony (STRONG!), and then I met with the nurse to learn all about
feeding, napping, bathing, etc.

After a couple of hours, we came back to the Weygoss, via a couple of
grocery stores to get formula etc. Ebba fell asleep in my arms during the
bumpy car ride back. In our room, she had some juice (but is not super-keen
on the transitonal bottle/sippy-cup thing I brought), and her first
Cheerios. Then Andrea and I went out in search of a true baby bottle (bought
two) and hair elastics. Yes, Mei Le has a zillion at home, but I didn't
even think to bring any with me and Ebba has her hair in cute little
double-backed pony tails - about 12 of them.

Really feel the altitude - even a short walk, with baby strapped on, leaves
me puffing. I know I'm not in the best shape, but Andrea is feeling teh
same, and even the much more fit A&C are finding it a bit hard. And the
considerable pollution doesn't help - leaves your throat sore, your eyes
watering, and your nose stuffy.

Then, back to the Guest House, boiled water for cereal & formula, and met
A&C for supper at the Blue Nile - across the st from Weygoss. Food was good
(I had spinach ravioli w/tomato sauce)but not as good as last night, IMHO.

Finally, back home, gave Ebba abottle, and she conked out immed after @ 9
pm. I puttered for an hour or so, trying to org the room, boiling more
water, and am now in the office while Auntie Andrea watches the sleeping
bundle.

Thanks to all for your good wishes - dial-up makes it slow to read indiv
msgs - so I won't really be able to reply to each one - but please know it's
appreciated!

I will next post Andrea's take on today, then a separate post about the
other babies we met.

Andrea's take on Day 1

I am reprinting Andrea's emails here - partly to help document the trip, and
bec she offers a diff perspective than I do ... all part of the story! Plus
she's being an amazing friend and helper!

-------

Felt like the living dead by the time we got on the ground, and I was pretty
sure my bum was as swollen as my hands and feet were from SITTING for a
bizillion hours, but we arrived without incident, got all our luggage and
visas, found the person from the adoption agency who met us at the airport,
and we've had a real whirlwind of a day. We DID get a chance for a nap
-both of us slept like the living dead we were, and got up this afternoon
for the official First Visit with Ebba. She cried when she first saw
Allison (Allison managed to frighten several children in the room just by
talking to them - I think it was her height, and maybe the blue eyes that
freaked them out - I didn't seem as frightening), but not while Allison held
her, tho she did look away and pretend Allison wasn't there (like cats or
disobedient dogs do...), and by the end of the visit, she cried when Allison
put her in her crib. Got tonnes of pix on Allison's camera.

Tomorrow is the BIG DAY - Ebba will come back to the guest house with us,
and be officially Allison's. I think once we get settled, we'll do some
excursions - there's another couple (from Guelph, oddly enuf) arriving
tonite, and then another tomorrow at midnite, so perhaps we can band
together.

Loads to tell already - driving in ETH is an experience and a half, and I
plan to NEVER do this myself (we had a driver today). Lines (for lanes) are
not even suggestions for where you should drive, there are no street lights,
and the side street "paving" is like giant cobblestones (bigger than my head
kind of giant, in some cases), with WICKED potholes. The Ethiopians
approach to driving seems to involve deciding what direction you want to go
in, and head off at top speed, ignoring the existence of pedestrians and
other cars. I was literally looking thru my fingers at one point, in dread
of what we were going to narrowly avoid NEXT. The potholes were pretty much
the only thing that our driver slowed down for.

Pollution is BAD - vehicles belching gases in various shades of grey.
Smoking is fairly prevalent as well. It leaves a burning sensation in your
eyes, nose and throat, and I'm going to have boil my clothing when I get
back, I think. But so far, no real breathing difficulties - we get a bit
short of breath when we climb stairs, but I prefer Allison's explanation for
that (altitude - we're at 2400 m) to mine (we are dreadfully out of shape).

Driving in the streets of Addis so far, we have seen donkeys (both loose by
the road, and laden alongside a person), a horse and carriage, goats, sheep
for sale, loose dogs, cattle and a chicken. Large bird of prey looking
things (vultures?) circling, small song birds. No cats, tho. And
thankfully, no roaches, tho we did see Trap A Roach boxes at the Ethiopian
grocery next door, when we went to buy a case of water.

The internet connection here is dial up - I had brought my memory card USB
stick to upload the photos as we take them, but I ain't even gonna attempt
this with a dial up connection. So, daily emails are possible, photos will
have to wait, and I won't be able to see Ailsa on the doggie daycare webcam
:-( but I know she's having fun, even if I can't see it.

So far, I have lost my pen (I think I left it on the plane to Heathrow) and
my watch (which I took off this morning before our nap, and which I cannot
now find, tho I am CERTAIN it is in the room SOMEWHERE, I can't for the life
of me find), but nothing else. Got some currency changed....and now my
brain has turned to mush, and I can't complete the sentence. So for now,
g'nite, and we'll pick this up again tomorrow.

A

Today we Met Ebba!

But first we had to get here .. which is no simple feat. Finally left
Heathrow at 9 pm Monday, after many loops of Terminal 3, two meals (not bad
- but v expensive!), and one fire alarm which meant we had to evacuate part
of the airport.

The flight from London to heathrow was long ... we left about half an hour
late, and arrived in Addis at about 8 am. The seats were tight with barely
adequate legroom, and no real room to move. And neither of us slept in any
meaningful way. My back, butt, legs, and shoulders were seized by the time
we landed ... ah well. We got here safely, with all our bags, and all is
well.

We went thru the airport formalities: visa, declaring our foreign currency,
security, etc. Met Solomon (adoption agency contact) - who gave us flowers!
- and then proceeded to the Weygoss guest house for some breakfast
(scrambled eggs with some veg and toast with butter and marmalade - both
yummy!) - then crashed for a few hours and had a much-needed shower!

Solomon picked us up at 2:30 to proceed to the see Ebba. First we went to
the agency's head office, and met the Director. We chatted with him for a
while, and received Ebba's documents: passport, birth certificate and court
docs. The we drove to the Baby House.

Driving in Addis warrants its own paragraph. The lines on the roads - even
the two sides of a divided road - seem to be merely suggestions, rather than
must-dos! There are nice paved roads, and some pretty terrible pot-holed,
cobble-stoned affairs. The back streets are windy and narrow, with people
and animals all over, but drivers and pedestrians (and animals) seem to have
som sort of understanding, for despite several close calls (at least
according to us), everyone seems to co-exist quite safely. There is
livestock by the roadsides, grazing on the medians, and even in the streets:
flocks of sheep and goats, donkeys (loose and carrying packs - no halters),
and some even some small humped cattle ...

Finally, we got to meet Ebba. I walked into the room she shares with several
other babies, where she was standing in her crib, wearing a pretty pink
dress and head scarf, and she promptly wailed at the site of me. But, she
was immediately comforted by one of the caregivers. I gave her two small
toys (one beaded teething loop, and the other a plastic ball kinda of like a
geodesioc dome) - which she took one in each hand in a death-grip as she sat
in my lap, trying steadfastly to preted I didn't exist. Every now and then
she'd take a BIG BREATH in and out - I once went to a horse training course
that referred to that as "letting out the butteflies" and it seemed to fit.
We stayed about 2 hrs. I took photos of her with her caregivers, her crib.
As the time wore on she became much more comfortable with me, even giving a
half-smile when I lightly blew on her neck. By the time I left, she would
come to me (walking!) when I offered a hand, and raise her arms for me to
pick her up when I offered. We played the "hand the toy back and forth
game", and when I finally put her back in her crib, she cried.

She is beautiful ... even moreso than the photos. Her eyes are wide and
expressive, her smile is lovely. She has four teeth (two up and two down).
She appears very healthy, with maybe a bit of a chest cold (which I will
watch closely and maybe get checked out). She has a cute little nose -
flatter in profile than her pictures suggest - but adorable.

I know that everyone who has returend from visiting these baby facilities
raves about how wonderful the staff are, how the babies are loved and cared
for - and I must reiterate it. All of the people we met today were
obviously committed to the children in their care, and showed a wonderful
level of love and dedication.

Solomon said that there are currently 70 babies in the baby house (we have
not yet seen the toddler house - tomorrow). We saw several very young
babies, so I expect there are referrals yet to come! I did seek out several
of the babies on my list of babies to check up on - not all were available
(a couple were out having their vaccinations, and others are in the toddler
house which we haven't visited yet). I don't have my list of notes with me,
but will try to post that tomorrow. Please rest assured that they alll look
great!

I am going to turn in - it's almost 10 pm and it's been a long few days to
get to this point. Tomorrow we go back to the BH in the am, and will be
able to take Ebba with us. Then the parenting adventure begins in earnest!

Monday December 15 - from Heathrow

So, Andrea and I boarded a plane for the first leg of our journet in Ottawa
at 10 pm last night. After a delay of about 1.5 hr due to icy runway
conditions and de-icing, we finally took off ... a fairly uneventful flight:
not bad food, reasonable leg room (tho never enough!), and seat-back tvs.
We were seriously covetous of the first class seats, which were like pods,
arranged obliquely, with foot stools, cool compartments, big tables etc.
Sigh.

I managed to doze, propped rather uncomfortably against the window,
struggling for a comfy leg position - the curse of tall people on planes.
Couldn't really concentrate enough read or watch TV - tho soldiered thru
most of an eposide of Mythbusters.

Arrived smoothly at Heathrow ... have had a very expensive breakfast in the
airport Brasserie restaurant (faux French) which was actually very good. We
both had scrambled eggs for ptn on toasted brioche, and I had cream of
broccoli soup while Andrea had Greek yogurt & fruit. We feel semi-human
again.

Can't check in for the Addis leg of our Journey until later this ever (about
6 pm - it's now 1:30 pm), so we plan to wander a bit and try to nap. Poor
Andrea can't sleep while flying or in an airport, so I fear for her good
humour.

Must thank all of you that have emailed with good wishes for the trip, and
esp those that have helped us immeasurably in getting prepared for this trip
on such short notice by fetching things for us, lending us things,
translating things, offering travel tips and the benefits of their
experiences in Addis.

More later!

OFF TO ETH!

We got word on Tuesday that Ebba's visa had been issued. This was at least 2 months earlier than expected, and so we have been sent into a bit of a frenzy to get flights together, rooms booked, bags packed (not yet!), etc.

I will be leaving for Ethiopia on Sunday, Dec 14, at 10 pm from Ottawa - with my good friend Andrea for moral & all other forms of support! Ian will hold down the fort with Mei Le and all my animals at home, while Mac will handle the bulk of the dairy farming so Ian can be a full-time dad.

Ebba turns one on Dec 12 (my birthday!) so I will be a bit late for the party - but hope to finally meet her in person on the 16th (when we arrive in Addis). Our near-2 yr long journey to bring home "Little Sister" is nearing its end.

I will do my best to post regular updates from Addis here, so please feel free to follow along online.

We will return to Montreal on Christmas Eve ... expecting some holiday-induced delays, but hopefully nothing too serious. After the dust of the trip and Christmas settle, we will hunker down for some serious bonding time with our new arrival - adoption hibernation! Please forgive us if we are not too social for a while after Ebba gets home - we need to ensure she settles in smoothly and starts learning who her forever family is. But I will do my best to keep everyone up to date via the blog.

All the best to you and yours this holiday season ...

Allison, Ian, Mei Le, and (finally) Ebba!

More Inter-Species Adoption!

Snow Family

Mei Le with two of her snow family grouping - herself & baby Ebba!

5-Year Adoption Day!

Sunday, November 30 was the 5th anniversary of Mei Le joining our family - hard to believe!

So, in honour of the occasion, she chose to make brownies! We put in five candles, but were forbidden from singing or saying anything!

I'm starting to nest ...

Was out at Canadian Tire last week and was compelled to buy this toy for Ebba ... I know - I hate noisy toys - and the idea of kids with cell phones ... but Mei Le had something similar and loved it ... I think it was the power to create diff noises according to her own desire ...

Sigh.

News Item on Amharic Kids

KTTC News in Rochester MN carried a brief piece on Amharic Kids founding family, Stacy & Paul Bellward. You can read the text or watch the video clip.

Amharic Kids provides Amharic language & ETH cultural resources to ETH-adoptive families.