Preparations

For a couple of months now, Carter and Mason have been sharing a bedroom.  Few complaints have been said about this new sleeping arrangement.  They like the comfort of having their brother around, late “stories” and laughs will continue to create great memories. 

Hockey sticks, medals, jerseys and pictures is the décor the boys wanted in creating their new bedroom.

Bryan also spent some time painting Kianna’s room.  I thoroughly enjoyed accessorizing her room. We also bought some dolls, scarves, and Ethiopian décor from the market. We have incorporated these items into both Kianna’s bedroom and other parts of our home.

Finally home!

We’re both actually up at 3am because our bodies are so messed up from the time change.  Bryan heads to the airport to stand in line at the Delta counter at 3:00 AM after talking to our travel agent on the phone and learning that we might be booked on a flight leaving at 8:00 AM. The agent tells Bryan that our tickets have been refunded to our credit card so Delta is not able to help us get home. Well, if this were true it might not have been so irritating to have stood in line for 2 hours before the sun was up. But, as most (all) things are that sound too good to be true, indeed this was another example. Again we stood in line (after calling our credit card company and our travel agent to confirm that the story of our money being refunded was a joke). And finally the Delta agent asked us a few more questions and then found in the computer that we were booked on not one, but two flights that had already arrived in Sioux Falls! Grrrrr! Well, she did her best to get us home and got us on an American flight leaving at 8:30 PM but we flew stand by and were able to board an earlier flight and finally arrived in Sioux Center at 7:00 PM – just in time to pick up the boys from Hockey practice. After 3 more days our luggage finally arrived (two bags ended up in Detroit and one in Rochester, MN). Makes you wonder, doesn’t it? Home sweet home with lots to do to prepare for Christmas.

We’re not getting home today…..!

At this point I’m really not sure what day it really is or what time zone we’re in. All I know is that we haven’t really “slept” for over 40 hrs (other than our snoozes on the plan).  It has been quite an interesting - or should I say - exhausting last 2 days….Part of our hearts are still in Ethiopian, not wanting to leave Kianna but now we’re stuck in Chicago, not able to get home. Once we arrived in Amsterdam our flight to MN cancelled due to a snow storm. We eventually get onto a flight to Chicago thinking we’ll still get home, just a little later. Once we arrive in Chicago most flights are cancelled due to weather…to a hotel we go. A hot shower and soft bed is very appealing but we really just wanted to be home. And for that matter we still weren’t sure how or when we were going to get home. 

We are thankful that Kianna was not with us because of the travelling circumstances. We are mentally preparing ourselves for dealing with similar circumstances next trip. I head to bed early (on whatever time zone) and sleep a solid 6 hrs. Bryan on the other hand is on the phone and  making trips to the airport-standing in long lines waiting to talk to an agent and figure out how we’re going to get home.

One last day before we leave

A well-rested night, getting a little more used to the rock-hard bed but very thankful for our hot showers we were able to have. Our driver was going to take us for another excursion today to Entoto-a drive up the mountain.  We loved driving, there was so much to see, to take in—observe. In Entoto we toured a museum and were privileged to tour the home of first King and Queen—King Tut and Queen Sheba, along with original first church.  There is also an Orthodox church in the area but we were not allowed to tour the building. It was incredible to walk in the same places of people that are tied to our history of faith.

We ended our tourist time with a little more shopping.  I’m thinking at this time Bryan was starting to understand why I encouraged him to take an empty suitcase on our trip.

A story you might find entertaining: I thoroughly have been enjoying the Ethiopian coffee, also drinking lots of water to be “healthy” and this has caused me to be in great need of a restroom.  At this point in our stay the accommodations have been pretty good. I explained to our driver that I was in need of a restroom and yes he had one for me…in a coffee shop.  I thought, “yes, he knows me and the place looked reputable.” Well, without getting into a lot of detail….I experienced a little bit of the primitive side of the country and am very grateful for our toilets in North America!

One last Ethiopian dining experience we take on, but at this point I was starting to crave some of our American favorites….The rest of the evening we spent packing up getting ready to leave for the airport at 9:00 pm for our flight going out at midnight.  I had bitter-sweet feelings…knowing we were know going to be so far away from Kianna but than also knowing it’s time for us to be in our home as well.  We had a wonderful and blessed experience and it was time to say our good-byes.  Workinah, (our director at the guest house) a strong man of faith gave us a blessing as we left---I didn’t think it would be that hard… 

Such a rich culture

Our schedule with the adoption agency is finished and we have 2 days to explore and learn a little about this part of the world. Today I feel like we can finally breathe and begin to process it all. It has been so very good-God is good! I'm sitting out on our terrace (3rd floor). The sun is warm. I look out to the city and mountains in the background and the tin-roof shacks surrounding our hotel. People are everywhere. They seem to be content, even happy with their lives - so good to see and to learn from. A wonderful celebration last evening.  We went out to eat with our group to a beautiful restaurant up on the mountain.  Great food and fellowship - we toasted our adoptions with red Ethiopian wine. Thanks so much to all our family and friends for prayers. We have been blessed with safety, health, a successful process with the adoption, beautiful meeting with Kianna and the opportunity to see first hand another awesome part of God's world - wow!

The people here are absolutely beautiful. Their kind hearts of service have made our stay here one we will always remember. Our stay has been another step in the overall process and right now I feel "closer" to Kianna and I know God has brought us this far and will continue to as many miles will separate us from Kianna over the next 6-12 wks.

Our bodies haven’t quite adjusted to the 9-hr time change and last night both of us were up from 2-5am and at 6am I just decided to get up and start my day with some great Ethiopian coffee-it’ll give you a little “pep” in your step that’s for sure! I was also hoping that since I was probably one of the first awake, there would be lots of hot water for my shower, but sadly that wasn’t the case (coffee and cold water got me movin’ that morning).

One of the couples (John and Wendy) from our group was also staying a few extra days so we were excited to be able to experience a little more Ethiopian culture together. The 4 of us squeeze into a small taxi and are on our way to visit the National Museum. The taxi-ride was an experience in itself. We hooked up with Jhun who became our tour-guide for the day….what a treat that was! It was information over-load…interesting and really encouraging to read/learn more about Ethiopia. 

We also spent some time shopping, which I loved! Bryan needed to be the bargainer and Buhr-to-US Dollar converter. We were able to find things that we can have in our home that represent Kianna’s culture and so we too may blend into and appreciate into our lives.

By evening we were very tired but so wanted to take advantage of out time in Ethiopia so we headed out for dinner at an authentic Ethiopian restaurant called “Yod Alyssinia”—what an experience to remember!  Traditional dining/dancing with Ethiopian food. We will definitely return back to this place on our 2^nd trip.

Court-day

We sat at the courthouse for about 2 hrs, waiting for our time with the judge. It was more of a formality.  We spent all of maybe 2 minutes answering some basic questions. Basically today the judge stated Kianna is ours. 

Next we were off to the care center to visit Kianna. A lot more relaxed and simply excited to spend time with her. Also a bit of sadness began to creep in as this was going to be our last visit with Kianna. This time when we entered Kianna’s room she right away looked up at us and was accepting in us being with her. We couldn’t take our eyes off of her, watching her every move while we spent time playing together.  Kianna’s smiles came more easily and we tried to just soak in the moments. Our time was up too soon and also time for her nap. We laid Kianna in her bed, giving her hugs and kisses. I turned away quickly as I didn’t want Kianna to see me upset. I know in my mind I can’t let myself dwell on the time we are apart from each other. God has brought us this far in our journey and He will continue to give each of us what we need….until we’re together again.

Natasha’s thoughts for the day(s)….looking back.

I’m sitting out on our balcony from our room, looking out into the city of Addis-we made it.  Basically 2 days of travel, we arrived at our hotel late last night.  The people here “serving” us are so kind and helpful even though we may have some language barriers we feel very welcomed. It’s so good for us to be here, to see Kianna’s country, help us understand, appreciate, and learn. So we can teach and share this experience with her. I stand in awe in how God has created this part of the world, so amazing!

What a day! We finally met our little girl who God had planned to be apart of our family. Whoever thought that the little girl God had picked for our family was half-way across the world?  As I look back on our day I can’t believe it happened, I think my smile on my face has not gone away since we met.

We stood outside the care center (with 3 other couples) waiting for Sister Martha to bring us in. The center is beautiful in structure. My stomach was in knots, not knowing what our experience was going to be…..We were brought inside where Sister Martha brought us up several flights of stairs to Kianna’s room. Bryan saw Kianna right away. They wanted us to visit with Kianna among her peers and nanny, making it comfortable for her. Kianna was sticking close to her nanny, not really wanting to come by us.  I was just overjoyed to see her from the distance. I crunched down trying to get to her level. We had brought a stuffed bear to try to use to get Kianna to warm up to us but she still wasn’t so sure. We slowly tried to make connections with Kianna, but the room was very small and with the other children in the room it was difficult to spend quiet time with her. Together we went into the hallway/balcony area outside her room. She looked so beautiful but she was unsure. We just wanted to show her that it was going to be okay…..

We had brought some toys along to help us start bonding. At this point she was okay with us holding her, very quiet, not smiling, but that was okay we just wanted her to feel comfortable. We tried rolling a ball back and forth, blowing bubbles and simply letting Kianna hear our voices as we talked. She probably thought we were crazy with our camera flashing and video camera rolling but we wanted to capture the moments because we would leave Kianna here for 6-12 weeks before we are able to take her home. 

We got a book out and she loved turning and touching the different textures on the pages. The book allowed her to relax some and we continued to take everything in. We were also able to help Kianna with her lunch. She ate very well on her own-great appetite!  She was getting tired and our time with Kianna was coming to an end. We brought Kianna to her bed for her nap. The other 6-8 children were sleeping soundly all in their little beds. We kissed her good-bye knowing we’d see her soon.

Late that day we were going to meet with the doctor.  We didn’t realize till later that during our time with the doctor we were able to spend some more time with Kianna. 

During this visit we were in a big play area.  We had brought along a blow-up balloon with a rubber band attached-she loved it. It was during this time that Kianna really began to warm up to us and her smiles melted our hearts! The visit with the doctor went very smooth, weighed and measured her but there were no concerns to really discuss. A full and exhausting day but we wouldn’t trade it for the world!     

Bryan’s thoughts on the day…..

We met our precious little Kianna today! We were anticipating this day for a long time and we were so excited to finally meet her. Our day began with a wonderful breakfast in the hotel where we unexpectedly ran into Josh and Susanne Mulder who are also adopting. We went through our pre-birthing classes with Josh and Susanne when Natasha was pregnant with Carter. What an amazing coincidence to see them here in Ethiopia! After breakfast our group of 4 couples went to the Holt International office for orientation. We met the staff and went through a brief explanation of the details of our visit to the Care Center to meet Kianna later in the morning. Mid-morning we loaded the van and headed through downtown Addis Ababa to the Care Center.

Addis is a bustling city of 4million people. Driving in this city is a skill that only a few can master. People are darting out everywhere; there are few lines on the roads to give any guidance on where to drive; and most intersections don’t have any street lights or signs to help with getting through. At 10:30 we finally arrived and we were taken one couple at a time to the rooms where we were to meet our children. Kianna was on the top floor so we were the last couple to be escorted up the 2 flights of stairs. Near the top of the stairs I saw an open door and I saw Kianna immediately. She was in a small room with about 10 other kids. 6 beds in the room and one couch. Very small space so we sat down and were immediately swarmed by the other kids. She was the shy one in the room. Natasha went to sit with her and Kianna just stood there and didn’t quite know what to do. After a few minutes we realized we would need to take her out of the room in order to spend some personal time with her. We spent the next 2 hours with Kianna (we needed to call Kianna her given name-Gidineash-to help her understand). We read a book (she enjoyed turning the pages and feeling the furry parts); played with a ball and showed her the photo journal with pictures of our family and house. Kianna really enjoyed looking through that but we think she simply liked turning the pages! We were able to sit with her in the hallway for your lunch and she was quite the impressive eater! She used her spoon and shoved the food in so fast we thought she was going to choke!

After our 2 hours with Kianna we joined our group in the van  and headed for lunch at a golf club (the only one in Ethiopia) and then an hour of shopping then back to the Holt office for more orientation. This time they visited with us about the court process the following day. Back to the Care Center to meet Kianna and the Doctor so we were able to spend another hour with her. This time she warmed up more quickly and we played with a big yellow balloon which helped her to relax and finally smile! After our visit with the Doctor we headed back to the Guesthouse and had dinner with our group in the hotel. We were all very tired so we went to bed early still attempting to adjust to the 9-hour jet lag. Today was a very special day and one we will never forget. We are now even more excited to bring Kianna home to our family!

Are we there yet……?

From Sioux Falls we fly to Minneapolis. A short lay-over and off to Amsterdam.  We were able to get some sleep, watched a couple movies and felt like we were always being served food.  We arrived in Amsterdam at midnight (Iowa time) and had a 4hr layover.  I was hoping to be able to see a little of Amsterdam, even if it was only near the airport but forgot that it was early morning and was very foggy out.  Our extent of Dutch culture was  hearing the Dutch accent and looking through lots of gift shops.   While waiting to board our next flight to Africia I spot a young American couple…”I bet they’re part of our group, adopting from Ethiopia”…..sure enough I was right.  We introduce ourselves and the chatter begins.  Even though we don’t know each other we have a bond that unites us as we journey along side each other. 

We’re on our way!

Monday morning, the lists / schedules are done; Grandma and Grandpa Kooi are moving in for the week – a blessing for us knowing the boys will have fun while we are gone.

We fly out of Sioux Falls and here we sit, the waiting continues. Although I have Kianna’s photo album to finish up. We’ll leave the album with her to keep, to see a little bit of what our family and “world” looks like.

One day until we fly to Ethiopia

Just returned from Church where we saw pics and heard testimony from a group of men who recently returned from a mission trip to Africa. And as we are one day away from flying to Ethiopia seeing those pics of the orphanage they served is just helping to prepare us a bit more for our trip. Our bags are packed and passports ready! Hopefully we will be able to post updates when we arrive.

Our Blog is up and running!

Six days out and we're on our way to Ethiopia. So here I am trying to figure out this blogging thing! Thank-you to Kristi who is helping us out. We're excited to use this blog so family and friends can walk alongside us to journal our memories for Kianna to have and help understand a little bit more on how she became a part of our family.