When we arrived we went to our room to get settled. The room was HOT! We called down to the front desk and they said they would send up an engineer. We waited a half hour, which felt like a couple hours, and there was no engineer. I called back down to the desk and they told me they were having cooling issues and would we like to be upgraded. Of course we did.

The new room was twice the size and had a balcony overlooking the pool, best of all it was ICE COLD. We decided that we wanted to have dinner at Frank & Albert’s, made reservations and decided to just relax for the afternoon. Just relax, no kids asking us for things, nobody calling us needing anything, nothing. Just us relaxing. At first it felt so foreign and then it came back to me.

I had been reading the book Women Food and God since the beginning of summer. I was only about 1/3 of the way through it. I closed the book at 11 pm after having finished reading it completely! It was wonderful to be able to read the book! It is a great read, one I will write more about in another post. 2/3 of a book done in one day, I cannot remember the last time I did that. I would have to say when I was on bedrest with Annie was the last time I sat down and read a book cover to cover.

Bill and I talked a little about how weird it was to have all this free time. (By the way it was only about 20 hours, but when you haven’t had free time in a long time 20 hours feels like an eternity.) We wondered in amazement what we used to do when all our days were like this.

Dinner was amazing. We sat, talked and ate at a slow pace. It was nice. After dinner we took a stroll around the resort and went back to the room to watch a movie on cable, since we don’t have that at home either. (Which after having cable for only 20 hours I know why we don’t there is so much crap on there!)

It was a great getaway. We had a very enjoyable time. The kids loved their time with Grammy and I think Grammy liked it too. We are blessed to have such a great woman in our life. Grammy always takes good care of all of us. Thanks Mom for taking the time. I love you!

On Wednesday of this week we drove up to Silver Creek, Arizona. It is about a 3.5 hour drive from our home. My cousin was up there with her kids and she asked if we wanted to come along for a day. I thought that sounded like fun so we packed up and went.

The kids are always up for an adventure. We hit some rain while in Heber, AZ and the temperature dropped to 59 and I took a photo with my phone and sent it along to Bill, who wasn’t able to come on the trip. He was amazed that it was that cold up there, I was too!

When we arrived we headed down to the creek for some fun!

Once we arrived the kids all took turns riding around in the rafts. Kimberly, Annie and Charis had such fun playing in the raft.

Paul didn’t want to be in the water at all so he hung out on the shore and played around.

Madeline never enjoys being on an unsteady surface so she spent the majority of her time on the shore as well. She kept working at it and finally she climbed to the top of the big rock. She had seen the bigger kids do it and was sure she could too.

That rock may not look so tall in that photo but when you see us all standing beside it you can tell that it is pretty tall.

Later in the afternoon we had to head back up to the cabin because some storms were rolling in. Once at the cabin the kids snacked like we hadn’t fed them in days.

The little kids hung out coloring while the older kids wandered off to do various activities. After the storms broke the kids went out to run around and play. It was the first time that Annie and Kimberly have really been able to go off and play with the big kids without Bill or I supervising them. It was neat to experience that new role.

The kids had caught a crawdad down in the creek and Annie enjoyed watching it. She and Scott spent a lot of time watching it and playing with it. Thankfully neither got clawed by it.

I didn’t get a picture of the two fearless crazy Mothers but I did get one of all the nine wonderful kids.

We got up and headed down to the Top Pot for our coffee and donuts. They kids enjoyed the walk and fresh air. The coffee was just as good today and so was the donut.

We had to stop by the Starbucks on the way back to pick up a cup for our friends. I am sure if Alex were here he too would have enjoyed the Top Pot more than Starbucks.

After our adventure we went back to the hotel to pack up and give Paul a nap. We had our last viewing of Nickelodeon and Food Network while he slept and Bill loaded up the van.

We decided to head down to the Miner’s Landing which was the place the Alaskan Gold rush began to see if we could find some authentic regional food. We were not let down. We enjoyed clam chowder, muscles and clams, sourdough bread and the most delicious grilled sockeye salmon. The kids ate buttered noodles and tried some of the seafood. Kimberly enjoyed the salmon, Annie thought the clams tasted like the ocean, Mimi enjoyed the salmon and tried a muscle but wasn’t too excited by either.

We rushed off from there and went to get sourdough bread to bring home, a Seattle Christmas ornament to remember our vacation. It was finally time to head back to the airport and our “actual home,” as the kids kept calling it.

Our adventure at the airport was complicated by the fact that there were no skycaps at the car rental return. That required Bill and I to get 5 suitcases, 4 carseats, 5 backpacks, 1 very heavy bag filled with fiestaware, 1 stroller and 4 kids to the baggage check, not an easy task. We looked like a traveling circus.

The wait was pretty easy and Paul liked wandering around before the flight. The kids hung out and were getting very anxious to be back in Phoenix. They had missed the pets and family. Here we are at the airport, all that stuff is ours. We certainly had our hands full!

When we walked down there there was a slight drizzle. On our way home it was a downright downpour. We forgot to bring our backpack which had all our umbrellas in it so we were getting soaked. It was fun and crazy. The kids enjoyed it immensely.

When we got back to the hotel we decided to go swimming for a bit. I had to include a pic of Paul in his first bathing suit! What a cutie!

We had fun but needed to leave to go back and get showered before we left for the zoo. We were meeting friends who live up here for the day. Of course, we planned to go on our only fully outside adventure on this day and it rained cats and dogs. I couldn’t help but laugh at the situation.

We met our friends as we entered the zoo. It was wonderful to finally meet her. I have been online friends with her for years but now we were face to face. She has a delightful family and we enjoyed our day with them. Here is a picture of my friend and I walking with Paul.

Mimi loves monkeys and had to kiss and hug this “statchio.”

The sun peeked in a bit and we enjoyed ourselves before rain poured down again. The Woodland Park Zoo is really nice. They have a wonderful gorilla exhibit and a great rainforest walkthrough.

The Girls really enjoyed running about and getting dirty. I even caught this hippo opening his mouth to yawn.

Because of the weather it was not very crowded at all and the kids were able to wander a lot more freely. They relished the chance! For days and days we had been having to require them to hold onto us or stay very close.

After the downpour at the zoo we all decided we had had enough fun. Amy and Jarrod knew of a local chocolate shop. We decided to head over there and get some treats. Unfortunately there was a bad accident on the way and it took much longer than anticipated. The Boehm’s Candy store was delightful.

So many yummy things to enjoy. We bought the kids some treats and got some for ourselves as well.

We were all pretty hungry so we decided to go to Ihop and get some dinner. We had a nice time chatting with our friends and eating.

Then it was back to our hotel to watch some more Nickelodeon before we depart the next day. The kids have really enjoyed the cable tv but it has reinforced my reasons for why we don’t have it at home. I don’t know what they will do tomorrow night with no tv while in bed.

Later we headed out to get lunch and go to the Science Museum. The museum was a lot of fun and we enjoyed playing tic tac toe with a robot.

Kimberly’s favorite thing was the dinosaur exhibit.

Mimi loved shooting the water guns to spin the wheels.

Annie loved the butterfly house.

It was a very neat place to be. There were hundreds of butterflies fluttering around you, and lots of different species.

They had a hatchery where the butterflies were born and then they went out in the butterfly house.

We watched a IMAX movie in 3D. Given the kids previous experience with this they were very worried that it would scare them. We assured them that bugs would not drop from the ceiling and scare them. There were some parts that startled them a little but nothing too big. It was a nice movie and we all enjoyed it although we could have done without the very strong eco overtones.

We hung out and played for a while in the play center. The kids really enjoyed the downtime and it was nice to have a place for them to run about.

The dinosaur exhibit was next and while it was neat it is not all that great compared to the one in Mesa, AZ.

After the space needle we went to Pike Place for lunch and shopping. Because of parking restrictions and our good sense to not want to pay twenty plus dollars to park our car in a spot for a couple of hours, Bill dropped us off and went to park the car in a spot that would have been a hike for the walking kids.

We started our noshing lunch at a hot dog stand. The kids were ravenous but I didn’t want them to just eat hot dogs so we go one kosher dog to share. We then went next door and got a grilled cheese for the kids. They were not as hit to the panini style grilled cheese sandwiches that seem to be the norm up here as they are to griddle ones at home but again, they were so hungry they gobbled it up.

After that we went to the first Starbucks and got some hot cocoa and coffee. Both were good and helped us to stay warm in the chilly air. We decided to try one more street food from Piroshky, Piroshky! The cheese and onion roll was delicious as was Bill’s ham spinach and cheese piroshky.

We strolled for a while looking through the vendors in Pike Place Market until we found a fruit vendor. The kids had been so hungry for fruit and veggies that we got them some bananas, strawberries, and some dried fruit logs for Bill. They loved them and ate them all in record time. We enjoyed watching the fisherman and got some delicious smoked salmon to enjoy when home.

We also saw some of the most amazing flowers. Here is a rainbow rose! It was amazing and I am not sure how they do it. It was a real rose but rainbow colored. A picture is all we got though since paying $9.50 for one rose falls under the radar to use good sense.

Our final destination was Kitchen Basics for some fiestaware. I scored some beautiful things that I will cherish for some time. I even bought a pie plate, now I just have to learn how to make a pie crust and we will be in business. The Girls each picked out a special item to bring back as well. Annie got a pink A&D cup, Kimmie a plum A&D cup, and Mimi got a sunflower yellow tumbler. We were all happy with our purchases.

*pic not from this day

Daddy and Paul headed off to get the car and we ate some of the most delicious Washington apple slices while we waited.

We went back to the hotel and went to get dinner on foot. We brought sushi up to our room for Mom and Dad and McDonald’s for the kids. Everyone enjoyed the meal. The sushi was so fresh and tender.

After dinner it was back to the space needle. The sunset was gorgeous from the top.

It was pretty cold at this point so we stayed a short time.

We finally went back to our hotel room for the night to get some needed rest.

The discount on the airfare, coupled with the fact that Seattle is a great place to visit helped us make up our mind quickly. So this spring break we will be headed off to the rainy city.

There is still only one bag missing. We are waiting a bit longer to see if it turns up. The good news is if it doesn’t United will claim it as lost – finally.

Several tips for families traveling someday.
1. Make sure your bags are checked all the way through. If they tell you they are still question it. Our bags were only checked through to Washington. If we had known this we would have gotten them and rechecked them. However, we were assured that they were checked through our final destination. (We asked at each destination and we were told that they were following us.)
2. Mix up your bags. Put some of everyones clothes in each bag. If we were to have gotten a bag, which we didn’t, at least we would have had a little something for everyone.
3. Buy travel insurance
4. Make sure your bags are checked all the way through. Yeah, I know I said that before but really make sure.
5. Pack underwear in your carryon. Trust me if your suitcase gets lost you will be so thankful you did this. I probably would have gone insane in not for new underwear daily.

This morning we went to the market to purchase scarves, Ethiopian dress for our family, and other souveiners. It was amazing the craftsmanship that went into each item. Here was a man sitting outside his shop working on weaving the scarf.
All the scarves are hand woven and the clothes were handmade of handmade fabrics. We went shopping with Almaz, the wife of Tsegay and office coordinator, she loves to shop and really knows her way around those kinds of textiles. She was able to get us good prices and we appreciated it. At one store we were told the price for one dress, but then when Almaz negotiated it we got all three for that same price. They have foreigner pricing and then regular pricing. I am glad our agency provides someone to help out in this sort of instance.

We made out like bandits and got so many great things at really great prices.

We had to reschedule because two children were ill at the orphanage and had to be brought to the hospital. We will be going tomorrow.

We spent most the day at the HOH guest house. We played in the courtyard with the older children, spent time in the toddler room with Paul’s friends and chatted with the other families that are picking up their children.
Ekram’s family

Seble’s family

We had to take time to go get more money. The best place to do this is the Hilton hotel. It was so neat to drive up there and see it decorated for Christmas. That is something that I have missed here, there is no decoration at all for the upcoming holiday season. We went and withdrew the money we needed from the ATM and the receipt showed our remaining balance in birr. We certainly look rich when it is transfered into birr.

It was a nice relaxing day but it really made the time here go much more slowly and made me more homesick.

I am not sure if phone calls are good or bad. I love to hear from the Girls but inevitably I begin crying.

Tonight Kimberly was telling me all about how she has the sharing bag and how excited she is to be bringing her ornament to share with the kids. Annie was telling me about how she is still sick, she has a cold and a croupy cough, no big deal, but I wish I were there holding her and telling her so. Mimi was telling me about what she was doing right now, which was watching tv. They all wanted to know how Paul is doing and I gave them a brief update.

The phone calls cost us about $1 per minute so we are not able to stay on for a long time. It is nice to have that brief contact but it makes me want to be there more. We have three more days here and I am hoping that they pass quickly.

We didn’t get our luggage yet so Sunday best was not the case for us as we dressed for our embassy appointment. I wore my three day old jeans and a new t-shirt from Addis while Bill wore his new khaki pants that don’t fit that well because the size of the pants was not easy to tell and a new polo shirt.

We gave Paul his first shower today. It went very well. We were afraid it might not go so well because he hasn’t taken well to new things with us. Thankfully it was nice, and we had a clean boy on our hands. I can’t wait to see how he handles bathing in the tub with his sisters.

We hung out this morning playing with the children in the orphanage and giving them suckers. They LOVED the suckers and were so sweet. It certainly made me miss the Girls more. As the days wear on I am more and more wishing the world weren’t so big and that I could be there and here at the same time. I have said it before and I will say it again, having my family on two continents has been the hardest thing I have had to endure. First Paul when we were waiting for him and now the Girls as we are here without them. We check in on them daily via phone but it is still so hard. I cry each time I hear their sweet voices and cannot wait until we are at the airport with them in my arms.

The Embassy is on the other side of town from where we are. It was a very easy appointment. They asked us a couple of questions about our case and son and then told us that the Visa would be ready in the morning. It was nice to know that it will not be delayed.

After the Embassy we took Paul back to the House of Hope so that he could spend time there while we went to the mountain view. It was a long drive back through the city but we finally got to where the country began. It was beautiful! If I lived in Addis Ababa I would definitely live in the country. So much more beautiful and the people were so hard working. There were women who climbed up the mountainside, cut down branches and pieces of wood, tied them together, and then carried them down the mountain to sell as wood for a fire. This woman is resting while the sticks are resting on that block fence behind her.

They make around 40 birr for the entire load, which takes them 2 days to do. 40 birr is equivalent to $4 USD. The loads of sticks would weigh over 100 pounds our driver estimated. I cannot imagine doing this kind of hard labor but at least it is honest work, you don’t always see that in the city.

The drive up was beautiful, there were so many trees and it was nice and cool. Looking out over the city of Addis was amazing, It was interesting how the noise of the city seemed so quiet from up on the mountain.

They had the first palace ever built in Ethiopia and a museum that we toured as well.

It was quite interesting. Because Addis has a very high elevation anyhow, and then going up on a mountain it was easy to get winded when climbing the steps.

Here is Bill and I on the balcony of the first royal family’s home.

The countryside view looked so much like a painting.

This was a very typical scene on the side of the street as we went up the mountainside. The children are playing and the they are drying the berbere spice on a blanket. You see and smell this spice all over the town. People are either drying it, grinding it or roasting it.

When we arrived back at the House of Hope Paul was excited to see us. He held out his arms for me to pick him up. This is the first time that he has shown any preference for Bill or I. He generally prefers his Nannies and Tsegay, the coordinator. All of that is understandable and I would be worried if he didn’t want them more, he has lived the past four months with them, we are the outsiders to him. It was good to see him and I was happy he felt it too.

Unfortunately my Mother got the call last night (midnight ugh!, sorry about that Mom) that one of our bags landed in Brussels. I have no idea why it is there or even how it would have gotten routed there. The good news is that we bought the travelers insurance. The bad news is I think it is going to be some time before that bag is seen again.

As of today, 12/11/2008 we are still looking for this bag and hoping it will turn up.

After sightseeing we went out to try to get some shampoo, diapers, and a change of clothes for each of us. Ephrim was giving us a tour of the city and it was quite interesting how the people live. I cannot imagine living like that. People are everywhere, I mean EVERYWHERE. I know that this is the downtown and that I am used to suburban living, but it was very crowded with people, animals, cars and buses.

The driving was the same as yesterday. So erratic that it is amazing that people are not getting run over daily. I found it humorous that while our driver was chastising the other drivers I had a hard time distinguishing. Admittedly I sit in the backseat but I don’t think the view is that different from the front to the back. Bill and I were confused by the layouts of the streets but Ephrim cruised down them without effort. Bumping his horn and making sure to not hit the pedestrians who wander aimlessly into traffic. We said to each other many times that there is no way we could get around without a guide. Thank heavens for Ephrim.

As we drove around I found it hard not to look twice at the poverty and situation of the people on the streets. The people will be living, sleeping, even peeing on the side of the road. They are trying to sell anything and everything to anyone passing by. They dress in many layers, I assume to deal with the warm temperature of day and cooler temperature of night. Children play ball one foot away from traffic, it is a lifestyle I cannot imagine living within. Some faces are full of so much hope and others look hopeless. I will write later about the people once I have time to process it all.

Our first stop was the supermarket where they actually stocked the kind of shampoo I use back home. My hair is going to be so happy come morning. The last time I washed my hair it was with Dove bar soap so this is going to be nice.

Ambase did well for his first night considering that we didn’t know him and he didn’t know us. Several times in the night he awoke and cried for no reason but was easily consoled. They have been feeding him from an open cup and we tried that. It was so very awkward for us and we ended up spilling so much food. We decided to begin working on him with taking a bottle more, which he initially refused. He is doing better with it although it takes him 30 minutes to eat 4 ounces of formula.
He enjoys co-sleeping and prefers Mommy for comfort and Daddy as a playmate. He laughed, smiled and really began “talking” and opening up to us this morning. That was very nice to see.

This morning we found out that we may have a very picky little man on our hands. The initial breakfast he was brought he would not touch. He would shake his head no anytime we would bring the spoon near him. It was some sort of porridge but it looked like very thick peanut butter and smelled more like rice cereal. The cook came in and gave it a whirl, he wouldn’t take it from her either. She left and went to talk to the nanny about Paul’s eating habits. The nanny told her that Paul doesn’t like porridge and that he prefers white bread crumbled up and mixed with milk. She was right, he does. He ate that down quickly and easily without any fuss.

Later today we will go out the Lion Zoo and the Museum. Should be a nice afternoon. Because Ethiopians as a culture are still not understanding of white families coming in to adopt their children Paul will stay in the orphanage and just Bill and I will go out. We hope to stop by a store and buy plenty of things we need as well. These same clothes are getting pretty old.

This morning we woke up to travel down Highway 191, otherwise known as Devil’s highway.

I can completely understand how this highway got its name. I mean, 450 switchbacks, many at 10mph, across 165 miles of road. There were so many curves and corners that completely freaked me out. Bill was so in tune to driving that he was not able to see the scenery and the million feet dropoffs. Okay, they were not a million feet but let me just tell you that it was like hanging off the edge of the Earth! As we neared the end of the highway I let Bill know that I think one time in my life is all I need to experience that! It was completely gorgeous and humbling!!!!! I am so glad we went.

It was such a wonderful time for Bill and I to have 48 hours alone together. We enjoyed our music and discussion. We don’t get to do this sort of thing often, but when we do it is so special.