We are checked into our flights home!!!  I can’t wait to see the boys’ faces when the pilot powers up for take-off.  You should have seen them when we came into the airport and they saw an escalator for the first time!  They were astonished and had ear-to-ear grins.  We had to teach them how to get on and off.

We have talked to them about take-off, but they’ll be sitting together and I will be across the aisle next to Sary-Jo.  This could get interesting.

The boys continue to make us laugh.  They are so intelligent and so eager to please.  In the last twenty minutes they captivated the airport cleaning crew and were speaking with them in Amharic.  We have no idea what they were talking about, but the women smiled a lot as they talked with the boys.

As we face the next 28 hours of travel (assuming it’s on time), Sary-Jo is longing for Janel’s in-flight comfort.  I’m just not up to Janel’s level when it comes to comforting Mom during travel.

We are incredibly excited to see everyone at Seatac.  The boys are prepped and will give hugs quite easily.  Pray for safe travel and the boys’ ability to comprehend it all.  They’ve been fantastic!

More later.

Our guest home has internet access and we have a few minutes so we thought we’d try a quick update.  Important stuff first – the boys are even more adorable in person that on video.  We can’t wait for you all to meet them.  We are adjusting well and quickly as a family.  They have had terrific teaching to this point, including excellent spiritual guidance!  They are very helpful and extremely loving.

We went to the embassy today and all is in order for us to receive their visas on Thursday morning (as planned).  We went to the orpanage on Monday (with the boys) and were moved more than you can imagine.  Special for Chris and Jeff: your kids are amazing also.  Your son cried when we entered the area with our boys – they were so happy to be reunited for a little while.

As I (Randy) write this, Sary-Jo is resting upstairs.  She has not slept well and is susceptible to motion sickness.  The time in the car today, much motion combined with incredible pollution and other smells (let’s just say nobody will be fishing in these rivers) proved to be too much for her.  The good news is that she’s finally sleeping a bit, which she really hasn’t done since about last Wednesday.

All in all, we are overcome with joy because of how well this trip has gone – praise God!  Next update will probably not happen until after we return.  Love to all. 

(no time to proofread – please overlook mistakes)

We made it through the first leg of our journey with an uneventful flight to Dulles airport. We have checked in with Ethiopian Air, but they wouldn’t let us carry on our roll-aboard luggage so we had to do some unpacking. We are now carrying quite a bit of stuff. But all is good. We have seats together, which was a concern due to our late change of plans.
It’s off to Rome for fuel and then on to Addis Ababa!

We just spoke with our in-country representative, Abebe (or, as we refer to him, Señor Fantástico).  After seeing him with our boys on video, we had already bonded with him – we are excited to meet him Sunday night!  We sent him an email last night and followed up with a phone call this morning to clarify our agenda with a much shorter visit in Ethiopia.  We asked for his advice as we try to fit a trip to the orphanage in while still leaving maximum time to bond with the boys and, or course, take care of all the necessary paperwork related to the adoption and immigration.

As we expected, he was tremendously helpful and cheerful.  He had read the email and arranged for all the details even before we called.  He will meet us at the airport with a minibus to accommodate all our luggage.  Short version of the itinerary:

• Arrive Sunday night and go to our guest house.
• Monday morning we meet/get the boys!!!
• Then we meet with our lawyer, review paperwork, prep for the embassy appointment, pay for the boys’ visas, etc.
• With the boys, we will go to the orphanage.
• Tuesday we’ll do a little shopping in the morning and go to the US embassy in the afternoon.
• Wednesday the adoption agency has a program for us and others with embassy appointments this week.
• Thursday is kind of a down day before we board the plane to come home that night.

Specific concerns and prayer requests:

• Travel – specifically that Sary-Jo does not get sick during this long journey
• Boys – in addition to blending as a family, it might be difficult for them to return to the orphanage and even more, to say good-bye again
• Embassy appointment – no issues or obstacles
• General frantic pace of this trip – we will need rest but it really doesn’t fit into the schedule
• Return travel with the boys – we cannot even imagine how confusing and difficult this might be for them, even as they must be very excited to fly for the first time

Praise God that the second medical test (the quick one) gave the boys clearance to come home next week, so we don’t need to wait for the lengthier test or, more importantly, drawn-out treatment.  We leave Seattle Saturday morning and retun on our original itinerary.  So, we fly halfway around the world for a four-day stay, and then fly back.  No, I don’t think we’ll be tired at all!

For now, we repack (lighter this time) and replan our brief stay.  Our trip to the orphanage is in doubt right now; we really desire to go there, but we have to work out the logistics and ensure the boys’ needs come first.

More to come, but join us in thanksgiving now!

The bags are packed

Well… Sary-Jo spent four days in labor with Sarah and three days with Janel.  Now the boys seem to be continuing that pattern (metaphorically speaking).

After checking in for our flights very early this morning, we were next in line at security when we got “the phone call” that we did not want to receive.  One of the medical tests is causing a delay with one of the boys and at this time we don’t know if the delay will be a matter of days or of weeks.  For now, we are thankful that we got the call before we boarded a flight and that United Airlines was able to retrieve our checked luggage (and they did it with a smile).

We’re going to try to reschedule our departing flight to later this week.  If we receive the “all clear” by Friday we’ll travel Saturday and return on the original itinerary.  If, however, the delay turns out to be longer we’ll have to reschedule the whole thing.  Obviously our preference is that we can still travel this week so we can get the boys home.  But God is in control and we believe He has a reason for everything.  We might not ever learn what that reason is, but that doesn’t diminish His goodness toward us!

For now, we need to reschedule our flights and take a nap.