tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60909914798554050882024-02-08T00:42:01.991-05:00Our Brown-Eyed GirlOur hearts have led us to Ethiopia in search of our daughter. Follow us as we write about our journey to Ethiopia to bring our little girl home.Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.comBlogger55125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-41366092720456329192011-12-26T21:13:00.000-05:002011-12-26T21:13:14.823-05:00Last Day in Ethiopia - Day 10!<div align="center"><strong><em>Shopping - Packing</em></strong></div><div align="center"><strong><em>Saturday November 26, 2011</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Lazy morning. Great breakfast by Aster. Omelet and fresh, homemade biscuits with jam. Just coffee for me and a bite of Frank's biscuit. Haven't had much of an appetite since I got sick on Monday.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>It's so nice to hang out with everyone at breakfast. See the babies play. Great to see the bonding happen between the babies and their new forever family.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Koen was loving all the daddy time he was getting on this trip. Love watching them play super heroes and pretend.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div align="center"><em>Beky picked us up about 11 am. We had a few last minute things to do. We stopped at a church to buy wood crosses. The crosses in Ethiopia are really different and there are crosses for each region.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div align="center"><em>I really wanted one last macchiato so we went to Tomoca - so good! We bought some more books at the book store and a map of Ethiopia from a guy on the street.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div align="center"><em>A lot of beggars today approaching the car. Moms nursing their babies, little children, disabled - so sad.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div align="center"><em>We then returned to the Post Office Market to buy the puzzles we saw last week. A wood puzzle of Africa and one with all different animals - stamped "handmade by the disabled in Addis" on the back. Also bought a silver cross.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>It was neat, awesome really, to see the little boy again that sold us the root toothbrush last week. Once he saw me he got the biggest smile of recognition on his face and his eyes lit up. He just kept shyly waving at me. Loved it.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Back at BJoes we had about 45 minutes to wait for Nate from Connected In Hope to pick up some scarves. In the meantime Becca and Kirk got home and said the Wood Carriers Shop was closed for some bazaar and she really wanted scarves. So Becca and Kirk rode with Nate to the shop and helped get scarves ready and picked up a few for themselves :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Gave baby M his last shot. Such a good little baby :) He let me hold him for about 10 seconds then wanted Daddy. He started really laughing today - loved seeing that! He is doing so much better now.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We said goodbye to baby M and his mommy and daddy around 4:30 pm. We plan to keep in touch - at least through Facebook :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em>Packing wasn't as hard this time around - thank goodness! </em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We all ordered an early dinner from Makush and had our last dinner at BJoes. Genet and Marta were there tonight. Marta is just the sweetest. Genet is wonderful. </em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS6z0s0XEcWl3mB9A1bG3fGGa-vYNRpuB1WgDD8KRltH5pJcEpe0iwLkXphB1vR2zO7Zbf2Zy8SINsKnbfmG9pyUu_n4Z2d301fjRDk3Gh8ZmFw4FrFWWivffaBFeq0xHkO4ORbLbL_xE/s1600/IMG_2870.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS6z0s0XEcWl3mB9A1bG3fGGa-vYNRpuB1WgDD8KRltH5pJcEpe0iwLkXphB1vR2zO7Zbf2Zy8SINsKnbfmG9pyUu_n4Z2d301fjRDk3Gh8ZmFw4FrFWWivffaBFeq0xHkO4ORbLbL_xE/s320/IMG_2870.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Marta</span></em></div><br />
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</div><div align="center"><em>Genet walked us over to the art gallery across the driveway. Five artists have studios in this real cool house. Very artsy. We met 4 of the 5 artists and walked around their gallery and in each studio. Just beautiful. I mean eye-catching pops of bright color; amazing talent. We bought one piece that I knew was meant for our house as soon as I saw it. It screams Ethiopia.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We said our final goodbyes, paid our tabs, took last minute photos, hugged and said goodbyes again. Beky drove us to the airport and had help this time with our luggage - needed 2 cars because we do not know how to pack light. He knew some of the porters when we arrived and they handled all of our bags and raced us right through to the terminal. Tipped them 100 Birr each - about 6 USD.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5-duP3cs5jFidyWbPpJ4HI_Op1XtJNLRiXa2dKirZFFhGGqQzkt_Ja7ak8QfOnhQO2XrqueLBZ8UOm90uMF54m332ZvTVR9HOQ9IRLySsk_VDsiLYiMdDkQDlnyN2dUsGVp_yeYN8kv8/s1600/IMG_2867.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5-duP3cs5jFidyWbPpJ4HI_Op1XtJNLRiXa2dKirZFFhGGqQzkt_Ja7ak8QfOnhQO2XrqueLBZ8UOm90uMF54m332ZvTVR9HOQ9IRLySsk_VDsiLYiMdDkQDlnyN2dUsGVp_yeYN8kv8/s320/IMG_2867.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">goodbye photo with Becca, Kirk and Mollie</span></em></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjKBQzLFfdGYKxCXmUHyqkFI81PrQOhgC6XUN3N31zoJAyVIzYLto235ofWV9Ro5ykv7vamSapMyaIBwUncu9W6iFXEB6thyphenhyphena6wDg5cMVGMtkzdMF2XQatYRVJoHYLSlH8L-FXYPLffos/s1600/IMG_2874.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjKBQzLFfdGYKxCXmUHyqkFI81PrQOhgC6XUN3N31zoJAyVIzYLto235ofWV9Ro5ykv7vamSapMyaIBwUncu9W6iFXEB6thyphenhyphena6wDg5cMVGMtkzdMF2XQatYRVJoHYLSlH8L-FXYPLffos/s320/IMG_2874.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">goodbye to Beky</span></em></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div align="center"><em>As soon as a child is spotted in lines they are whisked right up to the front (at least in our case). This happened both trips with Ethiopian Air. The children are served first on the airplane too. No waiting in lines for visa or immigration with Koen :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>So now we are sitting her at the gate waiting to board. It's 9:40 pm and Koen is sleeping on the bench. I'm hoping we all sleep most of the way home. We are scheduled to land in DC at 7:40 am.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><strong><em>Side Notes</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Book World - bought Ethiopian Traditional Games for 15 Birr. Has a great story behind it.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Other things I observed during our stay: </em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>1. No road rage. There are no traffic signals and cars/taxis/trucks/animals everywhere but did not see road rage once. Everyone just takes turns. Nice.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>2. No smoking. I told Beky that I didn't see one person smoking anywhere (and there are a LOT of people). He told me it is very shameful to be seen smoking, especially for women. </em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>3. Very affectionate. Men often walk holding hands and ladies arm in arm.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><strong><em>Sunday November 27, 2011</em></strong></div><div align="center"><strong><em>My Birthday</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We arrived in DC on schedule. Shuttled our tired bodies to the hotel - checked in - dropped our bags - freshened up - and met Cary and Kaylin for a late birthday lunch.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>When we met Yoftahe - one of the drivers in Ethiopia - he told us his brother had an Ethiopian restaurant in Alexandria. We decided then that we would be having my birthday meal with the kids at this restaurant. It was perfect really - close to where Kaylin lives and Cary was traveling through DC heading back to Duke.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div align="center"><em>Food was amazing. His brother knew who we were since Yoftahe took a picture of us with him while in Ethiopia and sent it to his brother. It really was great meeting him.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxNm-WkXpDJt3wi_JaFZJ4pI_KUDbEKLXrV7ePSEH59nuFWvr4I9l960u3qPoirKNlKpHLZFPXxSE7KmVrjbmNfVXwIZrcBuxaM6EjRED-m23JxesgyezUkMue794YFIDXucwMwygA4cg/s1600/IMG_2880.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxNm-WkXpDJt3wi_JaFZJ4pI_KUDbEKLXrV7ePSEH59nuFWvr4I9l960u3qPoirKNlKpHLZFPXxSE7KmVrjbmNfVXwIZrcBuxaM6EjRED-m23JxesgyezUkMue794YFIDXucwMwygA4cg/s320/IMG_2880.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">outside the restaurant with Cary and Kaylin (Koen is sleeping in the stroller)</span></em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We about passed out as soon as we got back to our hotel. Heading back home in the morning. Can't stop thinking about my little girl we had to leave behind :(</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div align="left">Present day - December 26: I'm going back! Koen and I leave on January 1st to take custody of Beza! Excited, nervous, anxious! We will be living in Ethiopia until the US Embassy says we can bring our little girl home. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers!</div><div align="left"><br />
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</div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-19900020346504072422011-12-23T23:11:00.000-05:002011-12-23T23:11:15.773-05:00Ethiopia Day 9<div align="center"><strong><em>Shopping - Government Orphanages</em></strong></div><div align="center"><strong><em>Friday November 25, 2011</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
<em>We were meeting the Robbins and Belay at Kolfe Orphanage at 2 pm today. Before that we did a little shopping.</em><br />
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<em>We visited the Former Women Fuel Wood Carriers Association Project. This is a place where women can now sit and make scarves instead of walk Entoto Mt. carrying 75 pound bunches of eucalyptus on their backs for 18 miles. (p.s. please visit <a href="http://www.connectedinhope.org/">http://www.connectedinhope.org</a> to read more about these women and order one of their scarves - I have a few and one of the tote baskets!)</em><br />
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<em>We then shopped at Shiro Meda for traditional clothing for Beza and Koen. Bought a few other things there too. It's a great place for the clothing though. Thinking of getting more outfits in bigger sizes for Beza to have through the years. I asked one of the girls at BJoes what would the one thing be she would absolutely want to have if she was moved to the U.S. and she said traditional clothing.</em><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPm1PITphIMG-xk67cKWvkGOzD3GSWlLBHkWi7z4sy8PLHSmkBIbcvDH6qyZ0HOGjuOm7KTexCltqNg9d1WEYaEQABowx5pxmUehcc40iC75S5q8mXng1QHjuF4ZedISKY2trGb3k3UeM/s1600/IMG_2754.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPm1PITphIMG-xk67cKWvkGOzD3GSWlLBHkWi7z4sy8PLHSmkBIbcvDH6qyZ0HOGjuOm7KTexCltqNg9d1WEYaEQABowx5pxmUehcc40iC75S5q8mXng1QHjuF4ZedISKY2trGb3k3UeM/s320/IMG_2754.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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<em>I can't even put into words my thoughts about our afternoon at the orphanages. First Kolfe, the boys orphanage; then Kebebe TShehai, the babies; and lastly Kechene, the girls orphanage. I'm going to have to come back to journal about all that - just so heart breaking.</em><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfzcLOAKd59FUhvArf1RQB3wMWWqpDqmpc5gZFhyb241dY9ykGyOs1jiCwe1MO3cmO_zV_-fgnaBvXVpRaLNHQvl4092m2fG-j8vEviNe22cNg7J3KbqSO8l7PzaFxdlGwO27lksL92WM/s1600/IMG_2755.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfzcLOAKd59FUhvArf1RQB3wMWWqpDqmpc5gZFhyb241dY9ykGyOs1jiCwe1MO3cmO_zV_-fgnaBvXVpRaLNHQvl4092m2fG-j8vEviNe22cNg7J3KbqSO8l7PzaFxdlGwO27lksL92WM/s320/IMG_2755.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">boys chopping wood for cooking</span></em><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdRYSXz1RRIDuaGMcbgpTOB3inPijDr3ZH6Wuso6DvfW55H8_un4ohTz0E0yCuEtqWOdt_qUiUJAAtBZJRH6W8GMjZplXtoKUGpZJKF4FOtpD7zW-k09BGJhabWs1A1J2TpnsBjgJxl-0/s1600/IMG_2761.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdRYSXz1RRIDuaGMcbgpTOB3inPijDr3ZH6Wuso6DvfW55H8_un4ohTz0E0yCuEtqWOdt_qUiUJAAtBZJRH6W8GMjZplXtoKUGpZJKF4FOtpD7zW-k09BGJhabWs1A1J2TpnsBjgJxl-0/s320/IMG_2761.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">sweet boys looking for a little attention :)</span></em><br />
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<em>Each boy I looked at I thought this boy does not have anyone; no one to bring schoolwork home to; no one to comfort him when he's sick or hurt; no one to clap for him on the sidelines of the soccer field. These boys learn very young how to fend for themselves. I wanted to fix it for all of them.</em><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFAdyDeWiySZnere91S-BC89oSv_cp39D2BKc4a8DvTsOgVg0hXbVgbA8me-HtXFi4VMfyDEmJW9kwmpslZoHCIrzddSDF51OG82qZlVaprlZnO_RtdiRiKUYarEBks-EzNaRnRVuO4zQ/s1600/IMG_2765.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFAdyDeWiySZnere91S-BC89oSv_cp39D2BKc4a8DvTsOgVg0hXbVgbA8me-HtXFi4VMfyDEmJW9kwmpslZoHCIrzddSDF51OG82qZlVaprlZnO_RtdiRiKUYarEBks-EzNaRnRVuO4zQ/s320/IMG_2765.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">the orphanage puppy - very friendly and so cute</span></em><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidh95SxR_dUpHgt6wZc9BwvGCyGWiys8znB_nCBFJnPeQ4Lm8JaMcBeGtLEBy0W0HWLsImxXXezx0e97lv-NWipuEwwkwmVE-fcb3rX-mQZEiy3mSnI9L3VlF_NwYh48W6hL2LdI4ZOmA/s1600/IMG_2775.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidh95SxR_dUpHgt6wZc9BwvGCyGWiys8znB_nCBFJnPeQ4Lm8JaMcBeGtLEBy0W0HWLsImxXXezx0e97lv-NWipuEwwkwmVE-fcb3rX-mQZEiy3mSnI9L3VlF_NwYh48W6hL2LdI4ZOmA/s320/IMG_2775.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">A Gladney mom started a music program for the boys and brought over several instruments. They get lessons each week. We asked this young man to play for us and he shyly accepted praise - he was very good.</span></em><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR0EdlZsTlzx6SUW04Wg7VJlEJZJ5jGAti8Z2LOFRgJHLrLpF8cWUEzyk1XsiMfhMaxNIVu1dDYRhwn1DWexoR8OlHy25po2OBNqIr4vF0uHdPE-eCIzJ6HaLL78wRGSSmNlTrRh3IacU/s1600/IMG_2778.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR0EdlZsTlzx6SUW04Wg7VJlEJZJ5jGAti8Z2LOFRgJHLrLpF8cWUEzyk1XsiMfhMaxNIVu1dDYRhwn1DWexoR8OlHy25po2OBNqIr4vF0uHdPE-eCIzJ6HaLL78wRGSSmNlTrRh3IacU/s320/IMG_2778.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">the dorm buildings</span></em><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8i7GJRUBD_ifAh9eRbt8H1pRVwC4auP4Rr3NIISJxQJDFPOUUqBQUAefs0rvEnslXvD50KalElDmoixvShF7TMI8pcwsLE1yAFdMiuJ3cwTKM3H3SvDwacjx8N8QkZ-lmd2bFriPwz5U/s1600/IMG_2787.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8i7GJRUBD_ifAh9eRbt8H1pRVwC4auP4Rr3NIISJxQJDFPOUUqBQUAefs0rvEnslXvD50KalElDmoixvShF7TMI8pcwsLE1yAFdMiuJ3cwTKM3H3SvDwacjx8N8QkZ-lmd2bFriPwz5U/s320/IMG_2787.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">playing soccer - Koen noticed right away that one boy did not have any shoes</span></em><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxVsZE9nSmjjVX2MmfcWH7No1NQXGu3nY4KfG-J13nX8U8W99Q3g8DlG4j0tvrL4KJutTREgNQeAVfhi_aKUaoFlFsuUV6IK0qDnYRkAdMrgk2bhUAU2y9zaQ7DiKH1HrfFmVTa6kxbRU/s1600/IMG_2790.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxVsZE9nSmjjVX2MmfcWH7No1NQXGu3nY4KfG-J13nX8U8W99Q3g8DlG4j0tvrL4KJutTREgNQeAVfhi_aKUaoFlFsuUV6IK0qDnYRkAdMrgk2bhUAU2y9zaQ7DiKH1HrfFmVTa6kxbRU/s320/IMG_2790.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Kirk doing pull ups with one of the boys :)</span></em><br />
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</div><div align="center"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMn9WLAYvelgnJmIbNPLQHb2jDKOXTWxZXC5NHhpv0hjRBB7bckPVek4h2KZFP-QEm5oCRNdSWm7Tnk24hiuBUAM51E-t_5GePk4tW0HS-YBqkc1N6N_p-hVsl45Imfsg2Fe_dMp1qGK4/s1600/IMG_2791.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMn9WLAYvelgnJmIbNPLQHb2jDKOXTWxZXC5NHhpv0hjRBB7bckPVek4h2KZFP-QEm5oCRNdSWm7Tnk24hiuBUAM51E-t_5GePk4tW0HS-YBqkc1N6N_p-hVsl45Imfsg2Fe_dMp1qGK4/s320/IMG_2791.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">every time I see this it amazes me - sharing the road with the mules</span></em></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmV_cY57IP0Nda743idsPPXE-3DOCHxtZMnEAQJ35HieXuwmFhm9htQaNN2UxzEcTDNeXVdAXU61Mbn0X6thIYhyO7mXVHXr3XPmYnH_ijeAJjc6Ug0FHktCT-9zy6COh9R3NhcKhmciM/s1600/IMG_2793.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmV_cY57IP0Nda743idsPPXE-3DOCHxtZMnEAQJ35HieXuwmFhm9htQaNN2UxzEcTDNeXVdAXU61Mbn0X6thIYhyO7mXVHXr3XPmYnH_ijeAJjc6Ug0FHktCT-9zy6COh9R3NhcKhmciM/s320/IMG_2793.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">the baby orphanage - picture taking is forbidden once inside</span></em></div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDNZ9lhlbLQ-FcY2iEd5RdmmVl-GlXziB_jR1DatLhaJJfDqaZrsUbsWn7wMJpfKzRPFp2BWq1lFgp8miJMreOQBf38l_SzShe8SxTMUYInKPQ-sY7zTSazAvxV5f54jZkyF0RToovvUM/s1600/IMG_2795.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDNZ9lhlbLQ-FcY2iEd5RdmmVl-GlXziB_jR1DatLhaJJfDqaZrsUbsWn7wMJpfKzRPFp2BWq1lFgp8miJMreOQBf38l_SzShe8SxTMUYInKPQ-sY7zTSazAvxV5f54jZkyF0RToovvUM/s320/IMG_2795.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Kechene - the older girls orphanage - ages 7 to 18</span></em></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><em>Belay invited us to join him for a traditional Ethiopian dinner tonight. This is usually done during the second trip for embassy but since Belay is resigning and won't be with Gladney in January when we hopefully return to bring Beza home he asked us to join him now. We had an awesome dinner at Yod Abyssinia with the Robbins and McDonalds. The food was so good. And there was dancing for entertainment. Really good dancing. </em><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4IuT7zioiojTYk-wbahFRI2T-4RVE4WW6UaYALhjefURzEzfMG2LqlVxcy0H4p7ulChpET0WpMjlLVI8Pa-ywPVmZDsndUIQG8ggflr22a3wmyMJZr5QYjYhNlxtvVKoMoEL3OMv1MbU/s1600/IMG_2802.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4IuT7zioiojTYk-wbahFRI2T-4RVE4WW6UaYALhjefURzEzfMG2LqlVxcy0H4p7ulChpET0WpMjlLVI8Pa-ywPVmZDsndUIQG8ggflr22a3wmyMJZr5QYjYhNlxtvVKoMoEL3OMv1MbU/s320/IMG_2802.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglLvIZ17Gr9xn5UFesu4WQPqiid93EnPdn_aQ2xlEYNuvFrE_m015ckby9L5EJYVNIn5oViSbNf42_EgdYCTg2l9K1mzqtTze9SmknnZcCN5NYlEkjJqTKWY6SC8HkbYHxrUVtO6sNZ2o/s1600/IMG_2809.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglLvIZ17Gr9xn5UFesu4WQPqiid93EnPdn_aQ2xlEYNuvFrE_m015ckby9L5EJYVNIn5oViSbNf42_EgdYCTg2l9K1mzqtTze9SmknnZcCN5NYlEkjJqTKWY6SC8HkbYHxrUVtO6sNZ2o/s320/IMG_2809.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Becca had her hair braided by one of the girls at Kechene earlier today</span></em></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjRx4ideMp9H-CUS2KaXg9o4xZYg1yVqj7hYMmIfPdUEbGA89_Tnk40BzwnrEnYAOfVSGnrewdLFQ9Qs1oHwCmqV1P1uKUmeD8m1Kvkecuu8s-lmycnP8f8Zll1oZGQDrcryVKJgax6cg/s1600/IMG_2813.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjRx4ideMp9H-CUS2KaXg9o4xZYg1yVqj7hYMmIfPdUEbGA89_Tnk40BzwnrEnYAOfVSGnrewdLFQ9Qs1oHwCmqV1P1uKUmeD8m1Kvkecuu8s-lmycnP8f8Zll1oZGQDrcryVKJgax6cg/s320/IMG_2813.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQFVsUAOIlWmp4YNNAT8siTv3LQN9GbJm95ABqHXUgirQQCohkZ45dIX4kNA3m2T88Iyc4NiEzOeLIDHhEs-ucfT98uQG6u1ugXIsqWu3AU-xjlSZ8506XYJGLfjvr6w8GYfGcPZN4nx4/s1600/IMG_2834.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQFVsUAOIlWmp4YNNAT8siTv3LQN9GbJm95ABqHXUgirQQCohkZ45dIX4kNA3m2T88Iyc4NiEzOeLIDHhEs-ucfT98uQG6u1ugXIsqWu3AU-xjlSZ8506XYJGLfjvr6w8GYfGcPZN4nx4/s320/IMG_2834.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Belay getting his groove on :)</span></em></div><br />
<em>Koen is behaving like a rock star. He has been so good on this trip. A great little traveler with a big heart.</em><br />
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<em>Gave baby M another shot tonight. He is such a trooper. Tomorrow one more.</em><br />
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<em>I can't believe we are in Ethiopia - heading home tomorrow. I wish we didn't have to leave without Beza. This has been a crazy emotional roller coaster ride for me. A trip of extreme highs and lows. Guilt, confusion, love, doubt - just crazy. </em><br />
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<em>Leda left with little B today. So excited for them and can't wait to hear how they are once home.</em><br />
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<strong><em>Side Notes</em></strong><br />
<br />
<em>Kalekidon (kale key don) - little girl about 4 or 5 years old at Kechene orphanage. As soon as we arrived she took me by the hand and didn't let go. I asked why she was at the girls' orphanage and not at the babies. The girls' orphanage starts at age 7. I was told sometimes little ones do end up here. She was too young to be there. She held my hand the entire time Belay took us on tour of the buildings and grounds. She led me to see the cows and roosters. And then took me to an office to find a piece of paper and crayon. I drew a pink heart and colored it in. She smiled - looked at it for awhile - turned the paper over and drew her own heart just like mine. I was so impressed and clapped for her - she was so proud. Her head was shaved and her pants had a tear down the whole backside and her blue undies were showing. The pants were too big and she had to hold them up with one hand. I folded the waist over a few times so they would stay up. I was watching her play on one of the jungle gym climby things when I saw that it was time for us to go. Belay and the others were getting into their cars so I started to walk toward our car. A bunch of the older girls started to follow and got in between Kalekidon and me. By the time I got into the car I could hear her crying but couldn't see her. I couldn't stand it. I got out of the car to look for her and when I found her she was looking at me as if to say "how can you leave me?" I motioned her to come to me. She wouldn't and looked down at the ground. I went to her and scooped her up. She was crying so hard she couldn't catch her breath. My heart hurt so bad - it was horrible. I held onto her so tight. I wanted to take her with me. All these girls need moms - someone to hold them when they're scared, someone to clap for them when they draw pink hearts. It was time to go. I will never forget her.</em><br />
<br />
</div><div align="center"></div><div align="center">Please visit <a href="http://www.leltfoundation.org/">www.LeltFoundation.org</a> if you want to see 2 adoptive moms making a difference for the children in Ethiopia. One of them is the Gladney mom I wrote about who brought over musical instruments for the boys at Kolfe. I have had personal contact with both these beautiful moms and just think they are amazing. Their latest work was raising money to purchase Christmas gifts for the children at the government orphanages. I know people are often skeptical about donating money not knowing whether the funds really go to where it's supposed to go. Frank and I made a donation for Christmas gifts for boys at Kolfe knowing without a doubt the funds will be used to bring a little joy to those boys on January 7 - Ethiopian Christmas.</div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center">Please also visit <a href="http://www.hopechest.org/">www.hopechest.org</a> and/or <a href="http://family-from-afar.blogspot.com/">http://family-from-afar.blogspot.com/</a> if you are interested in sponsoring a child in Ethiopia. I contacted Karen Wistrom (through her blog family from afar) when we were interested in sponsoring and that is how we were connected with Firtuna (Ethiopia Day 2) a year and a half ago. Karen is another beautiful woman making a difference for the children in Ethiopia. I can't say enough wonderful things about her and this organization.<br />
</div><div align="center"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjusnaP6RhiyBkSziy3FJkNNRSQ-Qz0NLjC1-jmKtOyTwLnBi_3crstA85oUD13kGd2LrGS-5M82A3dj_FoH1Z30YaZB6IQLGyLKj6h6zyhMvP7uGUXx4-3C7AIv_2wyg1xdTJf33ROCXw/s1600/IMG_2068.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjusnaP6RhiyBkSziy3FJkNNRSQ-Qz0NLjC1-jmKtOyTwLnBi_3crstA85oUD13kGd2LrGS-5M82A3dj_FoH1Z30YaZB6IQLGyLKj6h6zyhMvP7uGUXx4-3C7AIv_2wyg1xdTJf33ROCXw/s320/IMG_2068.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Karen took pictures of each and every child receiving their care packages from their sponsor family - she sends every family a picture so you can see the wonderful things happening through your sponsorship. Just love this.</span></em></div><div align="center"></div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-58753517588602580642011-12-18T12:15:00.000-05:002011-12-18T12:15:02.300-05:00Ethiopia Day 8<div align="center"><strong><em>Beza - Thanksgiving</em></strong></div><div align="center"><strong><em>Thursday November 24, 2011</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Very emotional visit. I knew it would be. Having such conflicting feelings today. I knew she would not want anything to do with me. Every visit was worse than the last. As soon as she saw me she started to cry.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>One of the caretakers took Koen and Beza outside and Beza was very happy with that. When I showed up the fear and tears were evident on her face.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBStUZjYtXufrAEVs7lW2CqThxwncTb1Y32qoouP_EUF8k35TOnZxlPwLJ7QcTlqimYle8qymwx0is7TrrvaxGZMecfIH8c1u3WUc9VOw_6YyqyRW1wZjsfCZ5GUgc11AGLlP2wyEtD00/s1600/IMG_2540.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBStUZjYtXufrAEVs7lW2CqThxwncTb1Y32qoouP_EUF8k35TOnZxlPwLJ7QcTlqimYle8qymwx0is7TrrvaxGZMecfIH8c1u3WUc9VOw_6YyqyRW1wZjsfCZ5GUgc11AGLlP2wyEtD00/s320/IMG_2540.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> <em><span style="font-size: x-small;">happy outside with Koen - taking him by the hand</span></em></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX5JUCVuV7CNBfRdHfZ9D_RKncHo53kRLmpDx2y9mSaIy1Ubgw0gN8K0PjZk5H6pWdBxs5A96cIu7nycEWaAv2ct3clDpYTx_zzPvYzg4wxaGcOE0aSPYnHvWXPufGIQ_lr11jtad_KX0/s1600/IMG_2543.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX5JUCVuV7CNBfRdHfZ9D_RKncHo53kRLmpDx2y9mSaIy1Ubgw0gN8K0PjZk5H6pWdBxs5A96cIu7nycEWaAv2ct3clDpYTx_zzPvYzg4wxaGcOE0aSPYnHvWXPufGIQ_lr11jtad_KX0/s320/IMG_2543.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> <em><span style="font-size: x-small;">the look on her face when I showed up</span></em></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVgW6tfLIRxpS7xMNt88S7nmiDFfQ_3q04RP9NDfBb7YmFiPHRmzlE42s-dwDdVANUlB1BRm3W4xqjFO0u4H9dXT_ZNpd0IAV2Y-U4naCy5SRWnay0NS5zWwSGCZKcv-aXJFXeiNNjvyY/s1600/IMG_2547.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVgW6tfLIRxpS7xMNt88S7nmiDFfQ_3q04RP9NDfBb7YmFiPHRmzlE42s-dwDdVANUlB1BRm3W4xqjFO0u4H9dXT_ZNpd0IAV2Y-U4naCy5SRWnay0NS5zWwSGCZKcv-aXJFXeiNNjvyY/s320/IMG_2547.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><em>my sweet babies</em></span></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I gave her her first lollipop. Took lots of pictures of that. At one point, 45 minutes into the visit, she seemed to warm up a little and was sort of holding my hand. And the caretaker actually slid away. But then Beky showed up and approached her and it was all over.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvVBrGj-WZ03JDaKrYw-KOxgrs3rgU6WIZBz_S2o3_B-c3k0WeppGXMid-kKw1aVMNWegh2I2HOe97yaMbRNZUD_HcFZ8gaTWBUEkJnOIRTUJOyB8nY0jz2Q7JzxTekHNqWJQGF1XXzHY/s1600/IMG_2572.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvVBrGj-WZ03JDaKrYw-KOxgrs3rgU6WIZBz_S2o3_B-c3k0WeppGXMid-kKw1aVMNWegh2I2HOe97yaMbRNZUD_HcFZ8gaTWBUEkJnOIRTUJOyB8nY0jz2Q7JzxTekHNqWJQGF1XXzHY/s320/IMG_2572.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">the caretakers are beautiful inside and out - love the children</span></em></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi8BX8riqszIv2gTDeFUfSIYDs8_wat4FhiPL0fwq9SLKSpv4uh-Ano8RhGx-wtu8k0tqyxuS73HGX2DnOB8nMIYBK-0oI0Gpm5eu5Y5FF9_Okl9SEmlre3u6OVRow-jHJk_jjRqNWuKs/s1600/IMG_2584.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi8BX8riqszIv2gTDeFUfSIYDs8_wat4FhiPL0fwq9SLKSpv4uh-Ano8RhGx-wtu8k0tqyxuS73HGX2DnOB8nMIYBK-0oI0Gpm5eu5Y5FF9_Okl9SEmlre3u6OVRow-jHJk_jjRqNWuKs/s320/IMG_2584.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">not sure about this lollipop thing</span></em></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRuWi2GJPoFEWesNc9h0wRhOOIaLMI0piVqzQaPIiGHRSyWaAEs8uJAwGvFg5-TTd7gF7RZAOzvlxV9NYLu05FZKSg22ta4Frlhp7giOknW-9ADBEJ6HfViSP8tOAeswXjZ4howE7HYMM/s1600/IMG_2598.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRuWi2GJPoFEWesNc9h0wRhOOIaLMI0piVqzQaPIiGHRSyWaAEs8uJAwGvFg5-TTd7gF7RZAOzvlxV9NYLu05FZKSg22ta4Frlhp7giOknW-9ADBEJ6HfViSP8tOAeswXjZ4howE7HYMM/s320/IMG_2598.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">my cute bug</span></em></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjynpMLpc9ygmufe4z1iPexvxQTnurrp5RAcdzX2DXoweBFIFXoiD8UTPWQ6dvmqJ2KBtM5LyDySv36H01I7htpyMAYpOrHTjEP4k5nWob2oobz7PkmWqAsJjxMV2VSnzjr28S9yiGcbNI/s1600/IMG_2615.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjynpMLpc9ygmufe4z1iPexvxQTnurrp5RAcdzX2DXoweBFIFXoiD8UTPWQ6dvmqJ2KBtM5LyDySv36H01I7htpyMAYpOrHTjEP4k5nWob2oobz7PkmWqAsJjxMV2VSnzjr28S9yiGcbNI/s320/IMG_2615.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA5TeJto67aPV9r9R37_xSIqSdy7zPl7F3zaX0XoqcDwRgoeoUMGPW2_Nb8BOhfpcm7YyMIkTFsqsOPr7Nup-Y2VezoexxFkwl3frlIZ4vvLvP5oGF8av2fRBpggye8PMDndseyK7mdko/s1600/IMG_2626.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA5TeJto67aPV9r9R37_xSIqSdy7zPl7F3zaX0XoqcDwRgoeoUMGPW2_Nb8BOhfpcm7YyMIkTFsqsOPr7Nup-Y2VezoexxFkwl3frlIZ4vvLvP5oGF8av2fRBpggye8PMDndseyK7mdko/s320/IMG_2626.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Saying goodbye was absolutely awful. How many weeks or months until we see our little girl again? I've had a very hard day; crying every time someone asks how our visit was. I am a ball of emotions.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjQXboTTAPK_Hyy1e6DZ1OqHwugqFqAIFH8igYfYPzua7OcEOnIwhlfM6fjf82ZNssOncl-RCerAMjQhOV2VlXm8GO1dhQrYr4HRNDlDGvc_HN5okCdA-3zYtFs8ApzYs58Vtak2-MNzE/s1600/IMG_2671.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjQXboTTAPK_Hyy1e6DZ1OqHwugqFqAIFH8igYfYPzua7OcEOnIwhlfM6fjf82ZNssOncl-RCerAMjQhOV2VlXm8GO1dhQrYr4HRNDlDGvc_HN5okCdA-3zYtFs8ApzYs58Vtak2-MNzE/s320/IMG_2671.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidxKpIQOyB0rS85Xt3CT9k258tCyMhEqKr5K9zecNAvWw_vooJjrVQCPhSieAFZBy6FlCmaD9cq1Zkj1DrelJ4gf0GL7FWX6GefEjZcc1N5uT-_-1uH9I2cim-oSpEcORIxNxQ7cPbzH8/s1600/IMG_2674.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidxKpIQOyB0rS85Xt3CT9k258tCyMhEqKr5K9zecNAvWw_vooJjrVQCPhSieAFZBy6FlCmaD9cq1Zkj1DrelJ4gf0GL7FWX6GefEjZcc1N5uT-_-1uH9I2cim-oSpEcORIxNxQ7cPbzH8/s320/IMG_2674.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">saying goodbye was not easy</span></em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>(p.s. During out visits we did play with all of the children and gave them loving. I just can't share those photos - wish I could because the children are just adorable. There was one little girl probably under 2 years that wanted me to hold her the entire time. She was a little love. Kept thinking to myself "why doesn't Beza want this?" We were not supposed to bond with Beza this trip. I don't think it's possible to bond in an hour anyway.)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We were going to go to Entoto Mt but on the way Koen started crying about bad belly pain. We had to pull over at a coffee shop and find a bathroom. The toilet had no seat and it was filthy. I tried to hold him hovering over the potty - gross - trying to get the germ-x and toilet paper out of my back pack that is on my back while holding the hovering Koen the whole time listening to him insisting on sitting lower into the toilet. Dropped the toilet paper into a dirty puddle on the floor. It was a mess!</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Frank and Beky were sipping macchiatos when I came upstairs from the bathroom disaster. I may or may not have shot daggers at them with my eyes :) We cancelled our trip to Entoto for today.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We then drove to Gladney Kechene Girls Shop and picked up a few things. Had a second episode of diarrhea there. They had a toilet seat :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTMzZl-9jbhx7gxBnW_GjUZag7we5B-Lt60_Fex0u47EVWbfv4aEYJCn6izNh2mrx6D3I3YqUD_9U53jBw4WpDTDbh6ps7yKm-BnW6PwoZqr6r6Y-r9r7lYgvEanZyW1mnc92Zve4_TvU/s1600/IMG_2686.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTMzZl-9jbhx7gxBnW_GjUZag7we5B-Lt60_Fex0u47EVWbfv4aEYJCn6izNh2mrx6D3I3YqUD_9U53jBw4WpDTDbh6ps7yKm-BnW6PwoZqr6r6Y-r9r7lYgvEanZyW1mnc92Zve4_TvU/s320/IMG_2686.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Beky stopped the sugar cane guy pushing cane in a wheelbarrow on the side of the road and we bought 3 pieces for 10 Birr. He sliced it open and then we chewed pieces and sucked out the sugar and spit out the bark. It was sweet - a good treat.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY1-rS1X1o_5m3qKJak8MpfdRtyxvHnqW9o7Jst8P_vtQtlC-WyT-kDoAC5LWxIPswyLzFy2WLG8ZmYu71QT2ZmXv1FDsFqPoIBNTSbh8x7gftuvHR8wTHQpmYPa3t-rgJenXVUjtv6ow/s1600/IMG_2680.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY1-rS1X1o_5m3qKJak8MpfdRtyxvHnqW9o7Jst8P_vtQtlC-WyT-kDoAC5LWxIPswyLzFy2WLG8ZmYu71QT2ZmXv1FDsFqPoIBNTSbh8x7gftuvHR8wTHQpmYPa3t-rgJenXVUjtv6ow/s320/IMG_2680.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi_-rMjcaJj5fczj9d94cYTbZmmcP0fRg_55nU-0CqLQuvarp1s1f2fPrSrBamg-AQj7-MzOzB36hU9K7BOgk8RWMjcf2dzGtAoW84Ft7FEViXOtgideDCEzZLCH_OS7fylIgpwS_cU5Q/s1600/IMG_2698.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi_-rMjcaJj5fczj9d94cYTbZmmcP0fRg_55nU-0CqLQuvarp1s1f2fPrSrBamg-AQj7-MzOzB36hU9K7BOgk8RWMjcf2dzGtAoW84Ft7FEViXOtgideDCEzZLCH_OS7fylIgpwS_cU5Q/s320/IMG_2698.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgEJwrZ-xw5R6ExjfdvgSoxlL_PFdRWnScOsjQEE4s7Y_Ra2LWcpzXVj-RHoI8rpCTDiupn3bFFhPDQSjbCYagVj7C_AplZ6QM_pLzCOABW5AlHs3uEi0lyOMXafrGrCK7drsxMnV0II0/s1600/IMG_2701.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgEJwrZ-xw5R6ExjfdvgSoxlL_PFdRWnScOsjQEE4s7Y_Ra2LWcpzXVj-RHoI8rpCTDiupn3bFFhPDQSjbCYagVj7C_AplZ6QM_pLzCOABW5AlHs3uEi0lyOMXafrGrCK7drsxMnV0II0/s320/IMG_2701.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I cried on and off all afternoon :( My poor housemates - I think they were afraid to even look at me because if they did I would just start to cry.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Genet and the BJoe ladies made a wonderful Thanksgiving feast for all of us - chicken, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, salad, rice and gravy.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb2QEyFPaat7SWqtB4XtEWEIMPzyB44sv6iaZYPcM4OGi-FKO5xsu8A2LvYl88RV9-P-91i_JoYqSUMsqjUcUQimgJmlzx_npR-Tq9STaT_g1yd00P3lhynyKIr1-mH7rI5UI6ojf7KKE/s1600/IMG_2523.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb2QEyFPaat7SWqtB4XtEWEIMPzyB44sv6iaZYPcM4OGi-FKO5xsu8A2LvYl88RV9-P-91i_JoYqSUMsqjUcUQimgJmlzx_npR-Tq9STaT_g1yd00P3lhynyKIr1-mH7rI5UI6ojf7KKE/s320/IMG_2523.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">the chickens soaked in vinegar</span></em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6ia85mTs6yV_S2OKQaNv1Yip0moNStRAlc16x3rP513rZM6FgeXS7cnJlgyzRGudUz_3ant4C-8wLcocybSrmv8I6Fyholx1Ud1VDo1CQ-Fm7lC4pspsumwXnH-hjrQgeo2AV0jxgiRY/s1600/IMG_2690.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6ia85mTs6yV_S2OKQaNv1Yip0moNStRAlc16x3rP513rZM6FgeXS7cnJlgyzRGudUz_3ant4C-8wLcocybSrmv8I6Fyholx1Ud1VDo1CQ-Fm7lC4pspsumwXnH-hjrQgeo2AV0jxgiRY/s320/IMG_2690.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7gDGt9sHnVdWj_xLLtB_UsSNhFVUUqsgCvqWXklWkxSxRaPHiEQuLYJ8Mo3a9N1rZ6m16jMMdnxJkyZh0psjZqZ8kNrlSsKa1x6xYmPC89sIoRFVUVxwcKz7ueXXATgbRt_eelcBryq8/s1600/IMG_2692.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7gDGt9sHnVdWj_xLLtB_UsSNhFVUUqsgCvqWXklWkxSxRaPHiEQuLYJ8Mo3a9N1rZ6m16jMMdnxJkyZh0psjZqZ8kNrlSsKa1x6xYmPC89sIoRFVUVxwcKz7ueXXATgbRt_eelcBryq8/s320/IMG_2692.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">the potato smasher</span></em></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRICUXlI-O-Y5QPMuugBca0fmfa-6l9FyiF2c54eTcrBBMs35t2UOWPS9I9Nm3-iDIKz2xlq4p-OCFQslUBzYEbS2g1whIcBNhkwFdtzdUNZf1oGgZ63L0l4ohqP-fa71nxKg-FIWmcIQ/s1600/IMG_2720.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRICUXlI-O-Y5QPMuugBca0fmfa-6l9FyiF2c54eTcrBBMs35t2UOWPS9I9Nm3-iDIKz2xlq4p-OCFQslUBzYEbS2g1whIcBNhkwFdtzdUNZf1oGgZ63L0l4ohqP-fa71nxKg-FIWmcIQ/s320/IMG_2720.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWzvft3vFphuocgIcwdB9X6iY4MWvImFWQeTxx3pQyS2KnFngbvLDKVAfnObw6q1kLBC4FZIiVe8qTlxmU5ggc-uvm2kIydzBdLyOfmEx-uPp7VtTslymebTlHzL_M6_gl6KYRPUOMCoE/s1600/IMG_2724.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWzvft3vFphuocgIcwdB9X6iY4MWvImFWQeTxx3pQyS2KnFngbvLDKVAfnObw6q1kLBC4FZIiVe8qTlxmU5ggc-uvm2kIydzBdLyOfmEx-uPp7VtTslymebTlHzL_M6_gl6KYRPUOMCoE/s320/IMG_2724.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">the wonderful ladies of BJoes</span></em></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibuQNsaQjLxDP8ImkZw7R2Sni3HU9Hw3CiCOoy9tPhoo5MnG-Yfgo4_cyTdhg_uJnLRPFG_mjdntP3bi4TxcAi76Ck3VLWeS10_JlzTr9wgGAKU6v4fP-rJQGto1ee2GAPV5EDIeI5rvk/s1600/IMG_2736.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibuQNsaQjLxDP8ImkZw7R2Sni3HU9Hw3CiCOoy9tPhoo5MnG-Yfgo4_cyTdhg_uJnLRPFG_mjdntP3bi4TxcAi76Ck3VLWeS10_JlzTr9wgGAKU6v4fP-rJQGto1ee2GAPV5EDIeI5rvk/s320/IMG_2736.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>It was a wonderful gathering and felt like family. </em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Genet brought her 2 children and Koen was in heaven having playmates. Zak asked if he could stay the night :) They played outside, on the iPad and DS, sliding in the halls - it was great.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjVYiSb6iU8W72bcmyhjR2FYQMTR46qiOZlZtcK1lHeK1Dy7PVESQtk0iEicIy14A9PdgNKmX1lKLHYndJQcDxBoaen9V5pz4aCB8S3PwIlHqRaOWYpkUEJlV_xA9W1KZnY1mNbNY7N7o/s1600/IMG_2737.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjVYiSb6iU8W72bcmyhjR2FYQMTR46qiOZlZtcK1lHeK1Dy7PVESQtk0iEicIy14A9PdgNKmX1lKLHYndJQcDxBoaen9V5pz4aCB8S3PwIlHqRaOWYpkUEJlV_xA9W1KZnY1mNbNY7N7o/s320/IMG_2737.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Becca and Kirk bought 2 awesome cakes for dessert and honeywine. We brought flowers for the table.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I needed a happy, loving, thankful end to this day. It really was wonderful.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Mollie baked the brownies and we gave them names: chocolate crackers and chocolate brittle. We weren't sure what happened to the brownies. It wasn't until after dinner that someone figured out the brownies baked at 250 Celsius (which is 482 Fahrenheit). When Mollie told Genet the brownies needed to bake at 350 Genet replied that her oven only went to 250. It was pretty funny.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNz-6jGguFe8uSCS-GPrEOXU7PiXC2fVwHN1fjZ6hjnVw86yiD2V7hAJoPuHBrWHtj25rrDqGhyBBDN9KQoaNwSuiXOC73JK5OFBWW8LGneNo6a-5cSq2GrWQ90-r3BeXdO1uVGYCfxN0/s1600/IMG_2696.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNz-6jGguFe8uSCS-GPrEOXU7PiXC2fVwHN1fjZ6hjnVw86yiD2V7hAJoPuHBrWHtj25rrDqGhyBBDN9KQoaNwSuiXOC73JK5OFBWW8LGneNo6a-5cSq2GrWQ90-r3BeXdO1uVGYCfxN0/s320/IMG_2696.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Good laughs, conversation, company, food and just feelings of thanks.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div align="center"><strong><em>Other Stuff</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUjhG7C-udCkrR868Jg_6IK0iSFn0QNsd9luB04vBgGq-kcMXKbCPYtSxR9P7YAkzsVHxvGh583xAkfVzYerjPDhdqZYXUYsXuyJLEDOgGTnlh3cpNBOr5yyDF7JAkRZtlHHo_UXNcjf0/s1600/IMG_2526.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUjhG7C-udCkrR868Jg_6IK0iSFn0QNsd9luB04vBgGq-kcMXKbCPYtSxR9P7YAkzsVHxvGh583xAkfVzYerjPDhdqZYXUYsXuyJLEDOgGTnlh3cpNBOr5yyDF7JAkRZtlHHo_UXNcjf0/s320/IMG_2526.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">scaffolding on new construction</span></em></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhAXaJBdKoENA054edG9BM_1vDE77F0Ao46leJFdfnc-j9x2rVckyew3oImKuz6BZ27OFimQwwwG0dcytGECxPXwHA_4RGP3Dx-01PQHPAq4FjRkLKxkGN4_f-qp_vHkXAo1TGDIx_qeU/s1600/IMG_2531.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhAXaJBdKoENA054edG9BM_1vDE77F0Ao46leJFdfnc-j9x2rVckyew3oImKuz6BZ27OFimQwwwG0dcytGECxPXwHA_4RGP3Dx-01PQHPAq4FjRkLKxkGN4_f-qp_vHkXAo1TGDIx_qeU/s320/IMG_2531.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">the scaffolding for sale - it's eucalyptus</span></em></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4S2uTZ9SITGTGSkqGNBns0G_uWierW28GbJNTHolbtoJCtqjcM_i1xHixJqvWWSAiibriK9LB0LDjb5JeeGFi4sj3ye0QkLVwKzH3z9iQaQxrkPFKODJz7xk9y4KR9EF7LkNm3UM35Nk/s1600/IMG_2685.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4S2uTZ9SITGTGSkqGNBns0G_uWierW28GbJNTHolbtoJCtqjcM_i1xHixJqvWWSAiibriK9LB0LDjb5JeeGFi4sj3ye0QkLVwKzH3z9iQaQxrkPFKODJz7xk9y4KR9EF7LkNm3UM35Nk/s320/IMG_2685.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Doctors without Borders</span></em></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDUHp9PeAPkMgBpskh767jYhP2KEkmVNfsQlDp4qvysrOic3DRSGUxv1aoDq0IiO1i5v9qpyRgySvOLy9X2fp5b2eC2f8V5cky-mHjwCYdHwGmU_FJETFCffJHY62voS0lm1qnISVoH6Y/s1600/IMG_2705.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDUHp9PeAPkMgBpskh767jYhP2KEkmVNfsQlDp4qvysrOic3DRSGUxv1aoDq0IiO1i5v9qpyRgySvOLy9X2fp5b2eC2f8V5cky-mHjwCYdHwGmU_FJETFCffJHY62voS0lm1qnISVoH6Y/s320/IMG_2705.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">our room which is out back</span></em></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_LnAHoWs76veLI056-QAFg8dsyrEmygk7C-KqwobTd3kKN6Gsk93z7RZpbqo3FuM1WQnIoQYsF1HK9W7pYpO5aC9sFoXrDXbqpS37I73Lg5K8dNwg1M6cHdfhu2DwAFQL9cdXR_E1U5Q/s1600/IMG_2707.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_LnAHoWs76veLI056-QAFg8dsyrEmygk7C-KqwobTd3kKN6Gsk93z7RZpbqo3FuM1WQnIoQYsF1HK9W7pYpO5aC9sFoXrDXbqpS37I73Lg5K8dNwg1M6cHdfhu2DwAFQL9cdXR_E1U5Q/s320/IMG_2707.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">back yard at BJoes</span></em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-37875428475974048302011-12-16T19:31:00.000-05:002011-12-16T19:31:11.843-05:00Ethiopia Day 7<div style="text-align: center;"></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em><strong>Sabahar - Alert Hospital - Shopping </strong></em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em><strong>Wednesday November 23, 2011</strong></em><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em> </em><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>Started the day with breakfast made by Marta.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Spanish omelet, toast and coffee.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My stomach is still not 100% so I just had a little coffee.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> A</span>ll the ladies at BJoes are so very nice - Marta has such a sweet quality about her.</em></div><div style="text-align: center;"><em> </em></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>All the babies were having breakfast when I got to the main house.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Baby M</span> was not looking so good this morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> His mommy and daddy</span> already had an appointment to take him to the pediatrician.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was kind of lethargic and I could hear him wheezing from across the room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Projectile vomiting happened within minutes – the poor little guy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> C & K</span> were already dealing with lost luggage for the past 3 days and a sick baby now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I feel</span> so bad for them. I admire how well they are handling everything. All their medicine, clothing for their new son, bottles, all lost somewhere - I'd be a wreck.</em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em> </em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><o:p><em> </em></o:p><em>Beky came for us about 10 am and we were going to head out to Mercado – a big market.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it was a big market.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Crazy big market.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Crazy traffic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Crazy volume of people, donkeys, cars, trucks - all sharing the same space. </em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em> </em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>We bought a hat and we were on a mission to buy baskets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was the first time in ET that I did not feel safe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were the only obvious foreigners out of thousands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was the peoples' market; I would not recommend for tourists.</em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>We finally found the hand woven baskets and as we were bargaining a fight broke out next to where we were standing and people swarmed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was very scary and I looked at Beky and told him to get us out of there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Couldn't get out of there fast enough.</span></em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>People were touching Koen and one man grabbed him and it made Koen uncomfortable. The man was being affectionate but it was too much for Koen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I noticed people were smiling at us and speaking in Amharic - was getting paranoid. </span>Beky tells us later that the people kept telling him how beautiful and cute Koen was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They love the children, especially my little blondie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the guards on the street pushed me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We passed Solomon driving the Robbins and they said they wouldn’t get out to shop because it was too intimidating and that a guard approached their vehicle and told them to close their windows because it wasn’t safe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And here we were walking around out in the open.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Not a wise choice on our part.</span></em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>We then drove to the <st1:placename w:st="on">Alert</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Hospital</st1:placetype> – the only <st1:placename w:st="on">Leprosy</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Hospital</st1:placetype> in <st1:place w:st="on">Africa</st1:place>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The patients treated at the hospital made all of the souvenirs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Beautiful handwoven/embroidered linens, traditional clothing and scarves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We bought Beza a beautiful tablecloth and napkins to give her one day as a wedding gift or housewarming gift – hope I remember where I store it until that day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We took pictures of the looms and of one woman who does the weaving.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I plan on placing a picture along with the linen for Beza .<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We also bought her a traditional outfit, which I just love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m still searching for one for Koen. </em><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>We then had our driver take us to lunch at a place called Garden Paradise and we met the Robbins there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had fish ghoulash – very good, and chicken tibs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Koen had fried chicken that when I cut open it was still bleeding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He said “I’m not eating blood”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No baby, you are absolutely right – you are not eating blood.</em><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em> </em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>Beky then drove us to the Silk Factory in Sabahar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Saba was the name of a famous queen of Ethiopia (Queen of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Sheba)</st1:place></st1:country-region> and I forget what har stands for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll have to ask about that again. (p.s. forgot to ask about this) (p.p.s. har stands for silk :)</em></div><div style="text-align: center;"><em> </em></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrUUol_BAYqVgAtbLFwJuPN_r-KBLrFiK_DapGGEjL2WSEQsYyfkCb9d4-1XO4Po78IT4hYl0ydvH1r7kRFZFxkG0Gyjc4g7rc0bIjuE1arYZUphZvp2afI54ZVaJbbBLzGa9hfQlySAU/s1600/IMG_2453.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrUUol_BAYqVgAtbLFwJuPN_r-KBLrFiK_DapGGEjL2WSEQsYyfkCb9d4-1XO4Po78IT4hYl0ydvH1r7kRFZFxkG0Gyjc4g7rc0bIjuE1arYZUphZvp2afI54ZVaJbbBLzGa9hfQlySAU/s320/IMG_2453.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>The Silk Factory was cool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We got to see the worms eating the leaves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then we saw them in their cocoon stage in these little square containers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then we saw the room filled with ladies weaving the silk.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Koen enjoyed this outing.</em></div><div style="text-align: center;"><em> </em></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoGpvkozOjZ1gSjhOkXqqkRi9LPGd12Q4tjHCtoYs4TqFLsXeYHf816exFjZeO2rO6h4YzSoLDiXJqD2tceOglAdZWh2Iq_eF2T8KHJXgbzGbI9b6h3xSFW1R8IBvnXZEpOgXlYid0_Yg/s1600/IMG_2462.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoGpvkozOjZ1gSjhOkXqqkRi9LPGd12Q4tjHCtoYs4TqFLsXeYHf816exFjZeO2rO6h4YzSoLDiXJqD2tceOglAdZWh2Iq_eF2T8KHJXgbzGbI9b6h3xSFW1R8IBvnXZEpOgXlYid0_Yg/s320/IMG_2462.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>I bought some beautiful silk scarves for about 20 dollars each.</em><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em> </em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>We then had to hurry to get to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Holy</st1:placename> <st1:placename w:st="on">Trinity</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Church</st1:placetype></st1:place> to meet Belay for the tour.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was one of my favorite/special outings so far.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Belay is very knowledgeable about the history and he has a personal interest in this church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His father was assassinated 36 years ago; the most decorated man aside of the Emperor Haile Selassie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was one of 60 men assassinated – a martyr.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> He is buried across from the church in a special area that was guarded by rifle-carrying men (Koen couldn't stop staring at these men and asking why they had guns - if they were going to shoot someone). </span>Belay was 11 years old when his father was assassinated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Genet, his sister, is the owner of Bjoes Guesthouse where we are staying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Tomorrow is the 36th anniversary of their father's death.</span></em></div><div style="text-align: center;"><em> </em></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio9A-zv8cYzHSRHwEjSh8PHX3i6y5PbaO7arrV2YUYHX8h3m06qthqnhf1i6tsuNfFga7XHlc7qjSuupswNLYI9IjQoNXzUVfOvKonb0DdOku9t7PTfBipW4nNIxN2e7SuZ4IeaCRLtrI/s1600/IMG_2496.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio9A-zv8cYzHSRHwEjSh8PHX3i6y5PbaO7arrV2YUYHX8h3m06qthqnhf1i6tsuNfFga7XHlc7qjSuupswNLYI9IjQoNXzUVfOvKonb0DdOku9t7PTfBipW4nNIxN2e7SuZ4IeaCRLtrI/s320/IMG_2496.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZGS3tUwk8pucqa-M_zLKj9T8qDPM8JRxzXRREIBOUn9T1Jc6tbgtgPrTqigKmtGr32LUFUVzmeN-Wg5vZxSoujJ0asIEgQfFD_SqtdPgPc0xkZjWYsD1akxSAovvRBgauUfsBQSdKmSw/s1600/IMG_2497.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZGS3tUwk8pucqa-M_zLKj9T8qDPM8JRxzXRREIBOUn9T1Jc6tbgtgPrTqigKmtGr32LUFUVzmeN-Wg5vZxSoujJ0asIEgQfFD_SqtdPgPc0xkZjWYsD1akxSAovvRBgauUfsBQSdKmSw/s320/IMG_2497.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">picture of Belay's father inside the church - uniformed gentleman standing on the right</span></em></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivDYPE7rIutDXr4VhA4zea4QrYrD5Ln2ZR6c5bLdXPLEqmpEhVlAaQuQBDvQyXAs5rsnphuulKdv29olrIePDUPY3Nq0ZrMMCNOPm-FiocEdqrNeW5vuO4cgHT10nZRxPeOdogI8dtfPc/s1600/IMG_2499.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivDYPE7rIutDXr4VhA4zea4QrYrD5Ln2ZR6c5bLdXPLEqmpEhVlAaQuQBDvQyXAs5rsnphuulKdv29olrIePDUPY3Nq0ZrMMCNOPm-FiocEdqrNeW5vuO4cgHT10nZRxPeOdogI8dtfPc/s320/IMG_2499.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">final resting place for the Emperor and his wife inside the church</span></em></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAhXv7CHkMJfgjodgX0xL60hyvmvYBwtDNrgVQGJV41AKjVtz7ZxpIKBPnLR8gOUXpSCjvsW3Nj3Qcx24hY3ql9BjQ3V1cp_eglbzqa1exiDEijTRsFirUkuQ5sIkvqAJovlilaL8DzT8/s1600/IMG_2508.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAhXv7CHkMJfgjodgX0xL60hyvmvYBwtDNrgVQGJV41AKjVtz7ZxpIKBPnLR8gOUXpSCjvsW3Nj3Qcx24hY3ql9BjQ3V1cp_eglbzqa1exiDEijTRsFirUkuQ5sIkvqAJovlilaL8DzT8/s320/IMG_2508.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">with Belay outside of the church</span></em></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>Baby M has pneumonia, double ear infection and gastro enteritis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> C & K</span> asked if I would give him the IM shots he needs daily for treatment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Poor baby.</em><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em> </em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>Dinner at Avanti with Becca, Kirk and Mollie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mollie cleared embassy today and we need to celebrate!</em><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em> </em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>Koen had terrible belly pain today with diarrhea and lots of gas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fell asleep again at dinner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every night so far. Worried he's losing weight.</em><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em> </em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em>Mollie and Kristen saw Beza today at the orphanage and said she cried and ran to her caretaker when they entered her room (so it's not just me).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m really nervous about visiting her tomorrow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hate that she is so afraid and I don’t want to be the one scaring her.</em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><strong><em>Other Photos</em></strong></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMYiB25B8C9uDWILbWu6IZelslzAAz9hwF-qvtCrBsp-9s6VoszS8hY9Pi3GNm3Ca_kEgXqnPnRGh136D8PSNG53wTN48n172gconM2YyINsu9kQHKs9S5Hzpz3IjV6RFzlhfZcPa8Y7s/s1600/IMG_2452.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMYiB25B8C9uDWILbWu6IZelslzAAz9hwF-qvtCrBsp-9s6VoszS8hY9Pi3GNm3Ca_kEgXqnPnRGh136D8PSNG53wTN48n172gconM2YyINsu9kQHKs9S5Hzpz3IjV6RFzlhfZcPa8Y7s/s320/IMG_2452.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> <em><span style="font-size: x-small;">one of the few street signs</span></em></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFwWkqcBMDo0X60O8gjOCWK4rOh3cbIMcwWLOSLvpf2tqYP-oHl6TkuLA_FH_qC5qxPTLrfVUYy3OIJ_jC0jwLRFKLDUtb6TxUyjrgacFubM6x-yzxgW2YXgytOCx6rHZfeUAMUcECWoc/s1600/IMG_2451.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFwWkqcBMDo0X60O8gjOCWK4rOh3cbIMcwWLOSLvpf2tqYP-oHl6TkuLA_FH_qC5qxPTLrfVUYy3OIJ_jC0jwLRFKLDUtb6TxUyjrgacFubM6x-yzxgW2YXgytOCx6rHZfeUAMUcECWoc/s320/IMG_2451.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Nurses College</span></em></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWeTLFd-w_DIwpqy59zMDXYN0IxsMTQtvZxExXF4Zmh_Z7UQj4IRhCXGxlMUzb48XVq_egVpjZy9mlcfd7x8NPVo9-mLHvHvYF4S8-BSv79i1bXUDI7mLsvO5weA6Njyf6V1n7wRcrd98/s1600/IMG_2423.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWeTLFd-w_DIwpqy59zMDXYN0IxsMTQtvZxExXF4Zmh_Z7UQj4IRhCXGxlMUzb48XVq_egVpjZy9mlcfd7x8NPVo9-mLHvHvYF4S8-BSv79i1bXUDI7mLsvO5weA6Njyf6V1n7wRcrd98/s320/IMG_2423.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">my sweet bug</span></em></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-80002848416966887042011-12-14T08:34:00.000-05:002011-12-14T08:34:51.120-05:00Ethiopia Day 6 - Beza and Shopping<div align="center"><strong><em>Beza Shopping Tuesday November 22, 2011</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Beky showed up at 9:00 am to pick us up for our second visit with Beza.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We had another great breakfast of french toast, coffee and juice. I couldn't eat. Still not feeling 100% from Montezuma's revenge.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We got to Beza about 10 am. She was not excited to see us. They had her hair looking so pretty in braids and she was in a cute pink dress. The other children rushed us when we got to the room. She went to a corner on the play mat - as far away from us that she could get.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I took her photo book to give to her since we are allowed once the adoption is final. She was possessive of it for a few minutes. Several of the other children tried to grab it away but she held tight. Then she handed it back to me.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqTQjd4FMgIjs_fxNWCTveZa6k_226AVuB6pqpTlJeLIr_lj6TakDTz5_vOLvRqhKGGVj6G7-hkByJZBzanP8t3M_4L7l6q3Nls46oFt3LOsjjx3eHYxLfSFL0uJUaL2gr3mTwv3mM2P4/s1600/IMG_2197.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqTQjd4FMgIjs_fxNWCTveZa6k_226AVuB6pqpTlJeLIr_lj6TakDTz5_vOLvRqhKGGVj6G7-hkByJZBzanP8t3M_4L7l6q3Nls46oFt3LOsjjx3eHYxLfSFL0uJUaL2gr3mTwv3mM2P4/s320/IMG_2197.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7PS0fYzq_rXijKTtv_KbMNBZ3XpaikeUFVe0BVjs5dfRDQRw6uSkHE4CqDrwryLOknuAGnmi-1Gy0XrR0_MTS9yrctW1HAdb_Pxl_nrdz4cXaHA6KTebg3BUELlYXncrBwd_ufsIEFKs/s1600/IMG_2203.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7PS0fYzq_rXijKTtv_KbMNBZ3XpaikeUFVe0BVjs5dfRDQRw6uSkHE4CqDrwryLOknuAGnmi-1Gy0XrR0_MTS9yrctW1HAdb_Pxl_nrdz4cXaHA6KTebg3BUELlYXncrBwd_ufsIEFKs/s320/IMG_2203.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We met her special mother, Blein. She tried to get Beza to go to me. Beza would just cry and pull away. I knew the caretakers told her we were momma and daddy. She wanted no parts of us. I wanted to cry - not for myself - but for her. She was so scared.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitX41HhhruPQ2EsAxRyGfMzlWewG5aGUKCdTHVRZM9ORtlQ5R50bo3R3ro-W8LVGUg34R4RmDP0-GzjnbF6sVZpKMdvQiDRik3CrKaP5-ggbhjZvOalodCTl6x4ys9cmdWaOckhOnyESU/s1600/IMG_2225.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitX41HhhruPQ2EsAxRyGfMzlWewG5aGUKCdTHVRZM9ORtlQ5R50bo3R3ro-W8LVGUg34R4RmDP0-GzjnbF6sVZpKMdvQiDRik3CrKaP5-ggbhjZvOalodCTl6x4ys9cmdWaOckhOnyESU/s320/IMG_2225.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm0Ewl53iL9X_fA0Ofo0hrUNjCHxSqxkTkfm5Dr9LDAFV7xYx7Bs_PhZOp6L6FXpQ441XiM90JhRs-MmcB2R0aeGqJsF_x7fJ6Si9S41aiBS2VslT_c50O0mMyBlZ_6-Jgu6WLDCQPfoc/s1600/IMG_2227.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm0Ewl53iL9X_fA0Ofo0hrUNjCHxSqxkTkfm5Dr9LDAFV7xYx7Bs_PhZOp6L6FXpQ441XiM90JhRs-MmcB2R0aeGqJsF_x7fJ6Si9S41aiBS2VslT_c50O0mMyBlZ_6-Jgu6WLDCQPfoc/s320/IMG_2227.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>One of the other caretakers told Beza's special mother to leave the room. She then picked up Beza and headed for the door motioning me to follow her outside. She handed Beza to me and went back inside.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>There we were, holding onto each other, she was crying and I could feel the tears coming. What a crazy mix of emotions. Here I was finally holding onto this little love and she is so scared. I tried so hard to comfort her. She held onto me but would not look at me. I just kept saying over and over "mommy loves Beza" and asked Jesus to please help this baby's heart to receive me as her mommy. She cried gently for about 3 minutes. I walked the small yard they have in front of the foster care house. Someone ran a banana out to me to give to her. She held the banana I peeled half way for her but would not eat it. Frank and Koen came out in the yard to join me.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_dLWQItxIfmDtvFZlB2a8TUCSUJB3Fwdx1ETn7vsmF1DELt6jqkxbmt7FdSksJT0vIbIrGJG4SGGeTv5y7e1rdCxL_WxBsGn5ZFUZZ5rgWZzJLvjR2-jx1GmuBZnh5xJzzfLxh2-0Rfo/s1600/IMG_2232.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_dLWQItxIfmDtvFZlB2a8TUCSUJB3Fwdx1ETn7vsmF1DELt6jqkxbmt7FdSksJT0vIbIrGJG4SGGeTv5y7e1rdCxL_WxBsGn5ZFUZZ5rgWZzJLvjR2-jx1GmuBZnh5xJzzfLxh2-0Rfo/s320/IMG_2232.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1CYRLGY3dsirvGd3AL2GD8QX-tFYZoaiHxN393R6tzT0rvCmH2gynmaXmTsjsWA72_f0ZpskspD8Q2F2zFgkoDVwKPEFZ91XUiLYBjBV5M4JVmcustzr3EjverSIE7bziTBcD52oyOu8/s1600/IMG_2239.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1CYRLGY3dsirvGd3AL2GD8QX-tFYZoaiHxN393R6tzT0rvCmH2gynmaXmTsjsWA72_f0ZpskspD8Q2F2zFgkoDVwKPEFZ91XUiLYBjBV5M4JVmcustzr3EjverSIE7bziTBcD52oyOu8/s320/IMG_2239.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_3U-iMMnNRr_hBTQMbLC2hgigN-wx-fNhl9xPXFGBJ3U6CccJ2ekwdOeXBayt4-T3xTQ5LG_-iB4UvIOA0q8YFwiLBPh0y7BcnkqKtSknwXpMaCmBGzXOO5wDKfbHrrpztyeeVplnNo8/s1600/IMG_2231.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_3U-iMMnNRr_hBTQMbLC2hgigN-wx-fNhl9xPXFGBJ3U6CccJ2ekwdOeXBayt4-T3xTQ5LG_-iB4UvIOA0q8YFwiLBPh0y7BcnkqKtSknwXpMaCmBGzXOO5wDKfbHrrpztyeeVplnNo8/s320/IMG_2231.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>When Koen walked up to the windows where all the kids could see him, Beza finally started to smile. She saw her friend Mamush and kept saying his name over and over smiling. From inside one of the caretakers told Beza to eat her banana and then she did. I put her down on the grass and Koen did some jumping jacks and got her to laugh at him.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP29eKW7StxLufjMw7HCOZ1FePFL_9lpyfbnhwTlQ_Ola6gnkZd_EFYJ9J0YHmV5hzVWPFrUH8gcvkIlP9wDq0bCElNakzI0VfExwXdC3WGpuEUztMokwznjC7A0K7D1O-X5cfZasDXWk/s1600/IMG_2307.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP29eKW7StxLufjMw7HCOZ1FePFL_9lpyfbnhwTlQ_Ola6gnkZd_EFYJ9J0YHmV5hzVWPFrUH8gcvkIlP9wDq0bCElNakzI0VfExwXdC3WGpuEUztMokwznjC7A0K7D1O-X5cfZasDXWk/s320/IMG_2307.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We enjoyed about 30 minutes outside with her. She was very curious when she heard the birds chirping or a car pull up outside the gate.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5m1glIKlBicAvqt7Xz6YqNZKQuCf85zu_spfXAZ7bavKqHxFLjsE5iS9nSwOOLlxTc81Z8HC90-jizuyXLxOS84EcpjkCDhARr7C-ecZbDnvTtRCpggLC7b7ws_Z80HG0Bg_P2bFF6PA/s1600/IMG_2302.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5m1glIKlBicAvqt7Xz6YqNZKQuCf85zu_spfXAZ7bavKqHxFLjsE5iS9nSwOOLlxTc81Z8HC90-jizuyXLxOS84EcpjkCDhARr7C-ecZbDnvTtRCpggLC7b7ws_Z80HG0Bg_P2bFF6PA/s320/IMG_2302.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>When I picked her back up to take her inside she started to cry again. Probably afraid I was taking her away. When we walked into the room Beky was dancing with the children while Blein was playing drum sounds on the dresser top. Beza wasn't so sure what to make of this so she was content to stay in my arms.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Our time was up and once I put her down she made a bee-line for the farthest corner away from me. Her special mother was asking her to give me a kiss and she would turn her head and wimper. But she did hug and kiss Koen - so very cute.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6IilDGqrNStbOMO0gcLFsmT58vWM5xFHr5dZHOZzw7KtFx8MKpAshZTBLYCZfFS33cuupPrA9wnK7gVaSz45wg1U6ALWilY9GwI133ZT4AlFCpYNvHPQDHHnnh7LPVEDftUCcLf8nElY/s1600/IMG_2359.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6IilDGqrNStbOMO0gcLFsmT58vWM5xFHr5dZHOZzw7KtFx8MKpAshZTBLYCZfFS33cuupPrA9wnK7gVaSz45wg1U6ALWilY9GwI133ZT4AlFCpYNvHPQDHHnnh7LPVEDftUCcLf8nElY/s320/IMG_2359.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We walked out and I was feeling kind of bad. I realize the transition for her when we come back for embassy is going to be so hard.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We almost got to the gate when Blein came out holding Beza. She was saying "ciao" and waving goodbye to which Beza also did. Beza even happily kissed me on the cheek. She kissed Daddy too. She was so happy to see us go.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj21qKsn03qGc4WeR0L-4xKhb21NGxwG8f_2hC_IVGtLq1PRCUFGelUoyTJO7O32kwi-SALvxSaZgo1FRVCd3rJTUibN0t0lwc-5bOUAz6dqzHz_cQyfLycs5Twjz4H0wqtTltzm-CVero/s1600/IMG_2368.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj21qKsn03qGc4WeR0L-4xKhb21NGxwG8f_2hC_IVGtLq1PRCUFGelUoyTJO7O32kwi-SALvxSaZgo1FRVCd3rJTUibN0t0lwc-5bOUAz6dqzHz_cQyfLycs5Twjz4H0wqtTltzm-CVero/s320/IMG_2368.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We then drove to the Post Office markets. Little stores/roadside market stands with hand made goods from coffee pots and crosses to baskets, bags, rugs and shirts. We bought a National Ethiopian soccer jersey, an injera basket, a play coffee set for Beza, a noisemaker for Koen, a coffee server for us, a hat for Frank, and a few handmade baskets. </em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>It was not fun bargaining. And we were told to bargain because they charge 10 times more for foreigners. We looked like the only foreigners at the market today.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>As soon as we got out of the car the beggars started following us. A little boy kept calling me "momma" and then saying "hungry, please". I was told not to give him anything. Not sure about giving out food, but it is illegal to give money - you could get fined.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Another little boy followed us the whole time we shopped trying to sell us toothbrushes. The toothbrush is actually a piece of root. Not sure what kind of root. Beky bought one and showed us how it's used. You chew on it with your molars then scrape your teeth with the flat piece; spitting the pieces out as it breaks apart. Beky bought his for 1 birr.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We bought a toothbrush but he charged us 5 birr :) When we handed him the 5 he was so very happy. He just looked at the 5 with the biggest smile. I asked if I could get a picture with him (Beky translated) and he was more than happy to oblige. As we got in the car and drove away he was still smiling and yelled thank you in Amharic and kept waving to us. Made me happy. Sorry to see that such a young boy of maybe 10 years was not in school but out peddling toothbrush root for a living.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAudD0G5N26anfaa1jDGfvEtvEmBWn2tChHyqRFsmdslcKi3P9P8uvHJ9azcdp2BPPQo5paQynZrLx1zgblXZ-AKIR0-Jc0IFrnMH6dt70j5Dm3ny11HLLbEBDksFt_M3VDOhyphenhyphenGQ-ILrU/s1600/IMG_2381.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAudD0G5N26anfaa1jDGfvEtvEmBWn2tChHyqRFsmdslcKi3P9P8uvHJ9azcdp2BPPQo5paQynZrLx1zgblXZ-AKIR0-Jc0IFrnMH6dt70j5Dm3ny11HLLbEBDksFt_M3VDOhyphenhyphenGQ-ILrU/s320/IMG_2381.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We then drove to Tomoca Coffee Shop. Best place for coffee in Addis. Sells coffee from all regions in Ethiopia. We were rushed by people trying to sell us maps and jewelry, and beggars. An elderly man opened my car door expecting a tip. We kept saying no thank you as we made our way into the coffee shop.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We bought 10 bags of coffee to take back home and we had our first Ethiopian macchiatos. It was really the best macchiato I ever had. We drank them at a standing bar. I could see the peddlers and beggars waiting for us to come back out.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgophO20JY4DBmK6IkAK9oNBWOQJCghUM5iRWLPVcQXtLJgKw-P0x7E6TNRl_6ru44ZQOCu9_SnBCeKUOiYsUyg7do6u9g6sKiSCBUiXr9pI2SR-9Y3Q1xO_pUQVEu0-WnVKdUeuXaMukg/s1600/IMG_2386.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgophO20JY4DBmK6IkAK9oNBWOQJCghUM5iRWLPVcQXtLJgKw-P0x7E6TNRl_6ru44ZQOCu9_SnBCeKUOiYsUyg7do6u9g6sKiSCBUiXr9pI2SR-9Y3Q1xO_pUQVEu0-WnVKdUeuXaMukg/s320/IMG_2386.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbz1DcZQHxGJDJQ2qKW2lXjJaWZNtpz9MQ4N-rFF39RX2NSHmkX-cZJt6QHjJXOuwAitKgguOLGhO4uJSaeXK60rbJ7Tek55C_Vb2PSYYISCbA_S7WSEoaffz9yfChCxl7dulJOrHa5A8/s1600/IMG_2387.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbz1DcZQHxGJDJQ2qKW2lXjJaWZNtpz9MQ4N-rFF39RX2NSHmkX-cZJt6QHjJXOuwAitKgguOLGhO4uJSaeXK60rbJ7Tek55C_Vb2PSYYISCbA_S7WSEoaffz9yfChCxl7dulJOrHa5A8/s320/IMG_2387.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>It was almost like we were famous and they were the paparazzi - it was a little intimidating how close and pushy they were. The same man that opened my car door closed it and I slipped him one birr while feeling so bad as the woman with a baby strapped to her back was waiting for money too. We drove off.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We got back to BJoes around 3 pm and caught up with the other families. Two of them cleared Embassy today and are now excitedly awaiting their travels home on Friday.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Oh - we stopped and ate lunch at Island Breeze. It was pretty good. I ordered the veggie quesadillas, Frank had a grilled chicken sandwich, Beky had a double decker burger and we shared guacamole and chips. Koen ate a chicken finger :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSMm2tO8C5R_AYWJKUclh3QM3RxGren7jCupxtx2SlZZOd4m9Z63iNkCvfS2G3ynRtXquaEhhJzW5yMoD-QBjPBMFE9hAwFcCgAt2eJVLB4FxeWhi6F0rlS-Bn9kKArslLLuLxyvdWrCU/s1600/IMG_2384.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSMm2tO8C5R_AYWJKUclh3QM3RxGren7jCupxtx2SlZZOd4m9Z63iNkCvfS2G3ynRtXquaEhhJzW5yMoD-QBjPBMFE9hAwFcCgAt2eJVLB4FxeWhi6F0rlS-Bn9kKArslLLuLxyvdWrCU/s320/IMG_2384.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We had all of my vege quesadillas for dinner. Still afraid to eat much.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Marta, one of the wonderful BJoe ladies, gave Mollie and me a cooking lesson. I was prepared and bought tomato, onion and oil the other day at the market. And Mollie had the bag of Shiro. We were going to make Shiro Wet.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>So we watched Marta make Shiro Wet :) and we took notes and pictures of every step. We had a lot of fun and Marta is a very sweet girl.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqGd_8IaSjbrlzjtrdNHHmeGMs65SYlP2QdFpCcQwR9-Sy3Nm66FyrIOwju17mIvv0mZ5FXRLygHqCQz8-Utm09GExVFOv4RBSdzovl8RLWXNV35Le2AE80EzaYCZPY6kjORVNeHkE7rQ/s1600/IMG_2399.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqGd_8IaSjbrlzjtrdNHHmeGMs65SYlP2QdFpCcQwR9-Sy3Nm66FyrIOwju17mIvv0mZ5FXRLygHqCQz8-Utm09GExVFOv4RBSdzovl8RLWXNV35Le2AE80EzaYCZPY6kjORVNeHkE7rQ/s320/IMG_2399.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Becca and Kirk came back from dinner and joined us in the kitchen to chat. They bought honey wine today to share at Thanksgiving. We all tried a glass while the shiro wet simmered. Everyone that came into the guesthouse kept commenting on how wonderful it smelled :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>The honey wine tasted like a thick honey wine cooler, sort of. It's hard to describe but I liked it, sort of. Becca and Kirk had to by 2l water bottles and dump the water so they had something to put the wine in to bring home.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Tomorrow the plan is to visit the Silk Factory Sabahar and Leprosy Hospital in the morning. At 3 pm we all have a Gladney tour of Trinity Church with Belay.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>It's 11:40 pm and I'm not so tired - need to get to sleep.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><strong><em>Side Notes</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>St. Michaels Day - saw many wearing Ethiopian traditional dress for church. Women bought grass for coffee ceremony.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsq5ZD6ndfvPG8NV6WNBqTIMVSv_C_PIgHx1Z5YBTiPSAODawjXQOW5AiWJV3btT-GMyBaC0H5CrgHv7j4d_8FMgLcWRF-jikcCb6LzoMP82ByMaCFhS8gT3db0M3N_y12tRkOks5TzM/s1600/IMG_2373.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsq5ZD6ndfvPG8NV6WNBqTIMVSv_C_PIgHx1Z5YBTiPSAODawjXQOW5AiWJV3btT-GMyBaC0H5CrgHv7j4d_8FMgLcWRF-jikcCb6LzoMP82ByMaCFhS8gT3db0M3N_y12tRkOks5TzM/s320/IMG_2373.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNNpNn9-jfixH2nW_nGu7EdJSHw8j5rIaB5XDjnoI2Jpyvraqcje9ZU3-aKnANG2dTpo3TdFrO_GhwqCfTLAQnx4iDUhf0LDSwm251v3JIeR02egD8njrG9UAd94y-NDKo2G6Z01xkLsQ/s1600/IMG_2390.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNNpNn9-jfixH2nW_nGu7EdJSHw8j5rIaB5XDjnoI2Jpyvraqcje9ZU3-aKnANG2dTpo3TdFrO_GhwqCfTLAQnx4iDUhf0LDSwm251v3JIeR02egD8njrG9UAd94y-NDKo2G6Z01xkLsQ/s320/IMG_2390.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><em>a taxi</em></span></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCh136TXOMlGVfAfTTmMMqdLDn3i6_Vwv8WdFVxqlTvEXFlAt6YWxG9Ys7cKE4pdDttEoNjj6MOEzf8UsvSOkZiRHb6vj-wUvdiSQa0f63VntjVccOTAoJzNSKTrJSqZCxsXc32kiqrL4/s1600/IMG_2397.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCh136TXOMlGVfAfTTmMMqdLDn3i6_Vwv8WdFVxqlTvEXFlAt6YWxG9Ys7cKE4pdDttEoNjj6MOEzf8UsvSOkZiRHb6vj-wUvdiSQa0f63VntjVccOTAoJzNSKTrJSqZCxsXc32kiqrL4/s320/IMG_2397.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><em>one of the only traffic signals I saw - wasn't working :)</em></span></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJqapOD9EuzQYv1DZhcmGjzOb0_8riTlywuae39r-f_cIOHZox3Tu2Q9sL_hLcZTpEgw0eikYDLC2tLQTVUP5U7DXaNchtJGWxWvEZPtVESgBSd3OHigFfeFro00Suhh-H75mbaAbEMmg/s1600/IMG_2377.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJqapOD9EuzQYv1DZhcmGjzOb0_8riTlywuae39r-f_cIOHZox3Tu2Q9sL_hLcZTpEgw0eikYDLC2tLQTVUP5U7DXaNchtJGWxWvEZPtVESgBSd3OHigFfeFro00Suhh-H75mbaAbEMmg/s320/IMG_2377.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><em>the Sheraton - looked like a guarded palace</em></span></div><div align="center"><br />
</div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-60081470921298567112011-12-13T08:23:00.000-05:002011-12-13T08:23:08.189-05:00Ethiopia Day 5 - Court!<div align="center"><strong><em>Court Monday November 21, 2011</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I was up all night - diarrhea, vomiting, nausea, severe abdominal pains. It was awful!!</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I was praying that I wouldn't vomit during Court. Becca gave me some phenergan ointment that I rubbed on my wrists to help with the nausea. And prayed for supernatural strength for me to get through Court.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We have been so careful - using bottled water to brush our teeth, no fresh fruits or vegetables. Seriously, I even spit the water out that touches my lips in the shower. And I still got sick.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>This was supposed to be an exciting day and all I could do was focus on not throwing up, and cry.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Beky picked us up at 9:45 am to take us to the Gladney office. We gave him our humanitarian aid to take too. We met Kirk and Becca, and Alicia and Kevin there. We were all sitting in a conference room when Belay, so nonchalantly, tells us we all received positive MOWA opinions - couldn't believe it!!</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We left Gladney and went to the Courthouse. I think the Judge's office was on the 3rd floor. We were told that we would be the last called so expect to wait an hour or two. The room was full of people. We walked in and were just looking around for a place to sit and were all called into the Judge's office - barely there 2 minutes. A little embarrassed but oh-so-necessary I had my Target bag clenched in my hands just in case - with the mantra in my head "please don't throw up, please don't throw up".</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>She asked us questions as a group. Did we all know this is final? Will we teach our children about Ethiopia? Did our families know about the adoption? She said "this is permanent", "it cannot be reversed", "she is yours for good." We passed! Big happy tears - could not believe it!</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>No celebration for us. We had Beky bring us back to BJoes because I was still so sick and needed to get to bed.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Beky took Frank and Koen to an indoor play area that had arcade games, slides, bumper cars - looked like an indoor carnival from the pictures. They played there for about 3 hours.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYzJjsYyZXlgaaKpyd4dV03iXc_k0_smgY2oKWaZkGkDssVREPeFjHw2E5JlxP6zxT9nQU78xIZFW8hbD2mcfPBoWCPWOXo4GnJnvkJvwDRV3aQhlmhR9TQ9NhdqQcfe6prXPcEoHWa1g/s1600/IMG_2186.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYzJjsYyZXlgaaKpyd4dV03iXc_k0_smgY2oKWaZkGkDssVREPeFjHw2E5JlxP6zxT9nQU78xIZFW8hbD2mcfPBoWCPWOXo4GnJnvkJvwDRV3aQhlmhR9TQ9NhdqQcfe6prXPcEoHWa1g/s320/IMG_2186.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We met another couple today who took placement of their 1 year old boy today. So now there are 3 babies here at BJoes for Embassy.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We ordered Makush take out for dinner. I had soup. I'm feeling a little better. Tomorrow will be good I'm sure.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We visit Beza in the morning!</em><strong></strong></div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-55055282868694097542011-12-11T12:13:00.001-05:002011-12-11T12:42:39.919-05:00Ethiopia Day 3 and 4<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>Debra Zeit - Saturday November 19, 2011</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Right now I am lounging at Kuriftu Resort viewing a crater lake in Debra Zeit.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We had another great breakfast at BJoes. Crepes and eggs. They make wonderful coffee on the stove top and add cinnamon, coriander and cloves. Sugar is offered but there is no cream. I brought my powdered creamer from home :)</em></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><em>We wished Mollie well before we left. Her son was being brought to her today around 11 am. So excited for her.</em></div><br />
<div align="center"><em>It was about an hour and a half drive to Debra Zeit. Crazy drive, lots of fumes, felt car sick. We passed the federal prison on the way - did not look very secure at all.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div align="center"><em>So many people walking, so many cars and no traffic signals, goats, horses and donkeys walking in between cars, and lots of fumes! We drove with Becca and Kirk and their driver Solomon.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>The farther away from Addis the more horse drawn taxis. Market stands line the sides of the streets. Donkeys are used to carry heavy loads for their owners. Men were selling fresh honey still in honey comb on the road side. Solomon stopped and bought honey for everyone to try. You suck the honey and spit out the comb. Frank, Becca and Kirk all tried it and said it was very sweet. I was feeling very car sick. Solomon also bought chick pea pods. Pop the chick pea from the pod right into your mouth - Frank said it was good.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWrsgkBp4SHugdOBDkz4B5SM5pwhVDjRnLCm9-9eJldC1Gj9udY0Y6xKwO6e2eZlMtkDQ2Nebv7AlZl3pPzcK5BKp0ZZLt-7aohSzrl1z321Wfka0j7cGheohufuVhyphenhyphenFmksZfyDLdK0Yk/s1600/IMG_2081.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWrsgkBp4SHugdOBDkz4B5SM5pwhVDjRnLCm9-9eJldC1Gj9udY0Y6xKwO6e2eZlMtkDQ2Nebv7AlZl3pPzcK5BKp0ZZLt-7aohSzrl1z321Wfka0j7cGheohufuVhyphenhyphenFmksZfyDLdK0Yk/s320/IMG_2081.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We saw a man with a bag of green leaves and Solomon explained "chat" to us. He said it's like a legal marijuana here in Ethiopia. Keeps you wide awake and "kills hungry." You chew it. Sounds more like the effects of cocaine. He said people drink lots of beer to help get to sleep after chat.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We saw one room mud homes on the road sides. Solomon said they last about 20 years.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpHlzMbisapbC4ODR-kMYpkHa7xhh2QSYLR6irvOBwK8gCvRBXsAhiTWXbVpuBYgFVeFIh56tTdJzJRUcDVXsGIOEpgxRV9qFvWC9H1fpHBHIg-NltaKkoIMPt_VdT35Q9mega4ZPbzCY/s1600/IMG_2087.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpHlzMbisapbC4ODR-kMYpkHa7xhh2QSYLR6irvOBwK8gCvRBXsAhiTWXbVpuBYgFVeFIh56tTdJzJRUcDVXsGIOEpgxRV9qFvWC9H1fpHBHIg-NltaKkoIMPt_VdT35Q9mega4ZPbzCY/s320/IMG_2087.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>When we arrived at Kuriftu Resort we were all amazed at such beauty. We just drove miles on bumpy dirt roads and then come upon this beautiful resort. The resort is owned by an American. The rooms start at around $150 USD and there is kayaking and a spa.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKBAqKu0o_fTVb2LczcKelpvncwosVaeuZGTxp8k1bAP4rDVdovVPXSsKsseu4qdSRBHDSAcUY6K4dGUHplUeuIxV4u7XjHbkkEMd4DxDksDxYEfupwx9vNEYqyZd7nfz7btiCQiqh2ls/s1600/IMG_2091.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKBAqKu0o_fTVb2LczcKelpvncwosVaeuZGTxp8k1bAP4rDVdovVPXSsKsseu4qdSRBHDSAcUY6K4dGUHplUeuIxV4u7XjHbkkEMd4DxDksDxYEfupwx9vNEYqyZd7nfz7btiCQiqh2ls/s320/IMG_2091.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We all purchased a day pass which included a lunch buffet and 30 minute kayaking, and a 25% off coupon for a spa treatment.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We sat overlooking the crater lake and enjoyed a wonderful buffet of Ethiopian food, lamb, beef and veal stews, tilapia, veges and injera. There was a lady performing a coffee ceremony. The ceremony is traditional and coffee is served with popcorn. Koen had spaghetti and they hand-squeezed a glass of apple juice for him. I think about this now and I should not have allowed him a fresh apple. Thankfully he did not get sick. (p.s. he does get sick 2 days later - not sure if the apple is the culprit or not)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFq9l3IseGn6o3Zep5ZCXeWi-WdvUaPgcG4xGoTt3XsHLuFSHvqhNzWNUFKBOF6489ipb9yqNB5rh7kgYWD0Y0s8Nh1ysHxkY2WPD1t8TRJx-kVSO1PeEAyDUO6YKUEySVBGD4LBA70kU/s1600/IMG_2111.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFq9l3IseGn6o3Zep5ZCXeWi-WdvUaPgcG4xGoTt3XsHLuFSHvqhNzWNUFKBOF6489ipb9yqNB5rh7kgYWD0Y0s8Nh1ysHxkY2WPD1t8TRJx-kVSO1PeEAyDUO6YKUEySVBGD4LBA70kU/s320/IMG_2111.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Frank and Koen, Becca and Kirk, went kayaking while I took pictures and wrote in my journal. It was such a beautiful day to hang out and relax. Someone suggested to do this resort early in the trip before visiting the government orphanages because we may not feel like pampering ourselves after that.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiewpjmywC-yHAG3T80ifnxJozoxWO2kL9ubJpJdIzvc9Pr0PHNriNknMsT6oynQSV5_C4neuL9E6ySCzJimL2h_XXj7zEQ5Wv6ioDnJW80aehaoGGp_ZIylA3qeTYX4Odn-umQqFOEn5I/s1600/IMG_2119.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiewpjmywC-yHAG3T80ifnxJozoxWO2kL9ubJpJdIzvc9Pr0PHNriNknMsT6oynQSV5_C4neuL9E6ySCzJimL2h_XXj7zEQ5Wv6ioDnJW80aehaoGGp_ZIylA3qeTYX4Odn-umQqFOEn5I/s320/IMG_2119.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>At 5 pm Becca and I got a massage. It cost $11 - crazy. The massage included full tush, stomach and breasts - much to our surprise. They used straight-up olive oil - we slid right on out of there :)</em></div><div align="center"><em>(Laura - if you're reading this I know you had a massage in ET - did you forget to tell us something about your massage? :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih_MyARhBmy_u9fPGlMhb5x9x8YSYo6ScWe510W4gE5-8WGRRgSUSgBh2y6oPcnnOGyCpz0QIwbZ7Z2f4CbhTpD4ScnlQQEaqLxf19tT_NE2rJacUWoBJgtH3aNEK7QL90-4EvVKPKajw/s1600/IMG_2129.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih_MyARhBmy_u9fPGlMhb5x9x8YSYo6ScWe510W4gE5-8WGRRgSUSgBh2y6oPcnnOGyCpz0QIwbZ7Z2f4CbhTpD4ScnlQQEaqLxf19tT_NE2rJacUWoBJgtH3aNEK7QL90-4EvVKPKajw/s320/IMG_2129.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Not much for Koen to do at this resort so we let him pretend this dirt pile was a sand box. A family was walking by laughing at Koen and asked me if they could take a picture - probably thinking "crazy Americans".</span></em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We all napped on our way back to BJoes. Took dramamine this time. We picked up pizza and wine and all had dinner together. We met Mollie's little B when we got back! Mollie was ready to take him to bed but introduced us to him first. He is so sweet!! </em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>It is so nice to have other families to hang out with; share this journey.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We went to bed around 10:30 pm. Around 1 am the dogs barking woke me up. We plugged my little travel fan into the converter and within 2 minutes it blew up. So I blew up my hair dryer and fan now. Just glad I haven't burned the place down.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div align="center"><strong><em>Sunday November 20, 2011</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We all got to take a warm shower this morning. Some mornings the hot water is a little hard to come by so when I managed to get some all 3 of us crammed into the shower real quick.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Another great breakfast this morning; pancakes and eggs. We met Frank, CEO of Gladney, over breakfast. He is here for only 48 hours for business. He was very nice.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We had time to check emails and Facebook and enjoyed reading everyones' nice comments about our meeting Beza. Koen keeps asking to see Beza and really wants us to bring her home.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>It's a down time kind of day. Not much open on Sundays here. Koen is catching up on DS and wishing for Wii. Frank is trying to upload photos so we can share in emails.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Another mom arrived today to take placement of her little girl. It's so great to see families united.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Our plan is to do a walking tour today. We were told to prepare ourselves on how we will deal with children begging for food. Need to buy bananas and granola bars.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We walked to a grocery market today and were confronted with our first children beggars. I wanted to cry. We had taken a few fruit snacks with us. The children smiled from ear to ear when handed the snack. My heart felt like breaking when a young girl I guess to be about 13 or 14, with a baby strapped to her back, approached us motioning her fingers to her mouth. We didn't have anything to give her.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We bought a bunch of cookies so we would have something to hand out next time.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>As we were walking to the market a loose bull was charging the street. Men were trying to catch him with a lasso, unsuccessfully. Crazy sight.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>When we returned home from grocery shopping it was around 2 pm. So we decided to just wait until about 5:30 and have an early dinner. We went with Becca and Kirk to Top View - a restaurant on top of the mountain overlooking the city. Frank and I ate a European version of Ethiopian food. Not nearly as good as Lancaster's Addissu :) Koen slept through dinner for the 4th night in a row. We had a real nice time talking adoption, about our girls, and court for the next day.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>It has been an emotional day for me. I don't feel very well - blaming it on the high altitude.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>It was a wonderful moment to see Leda take placement of her daughter today. B was living in the same room as Beza. We saw her on Thursday and she and Beza were a lot alike; shy, reserved, clinging to their caretakers.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>When the driver arrived at Bjoes he handed B to Leda. We were all standing around witnessing this most special moment. It was wonderful and hard at the same time to see. I was so happy for Leda imagining that will be me in a month or two - finally holding my daughter in my arms and knowing it's forever. Hard to see the uncertainty and fear in B's eyes imagining that will be Beza in a month or two. I really need to pray for strength. I think about all that these babies have been through in their short lives. Their parents disappear, their roommates disappear, then their caretakers disappear. Makes me sad. (p.s. B is loving her momma, and her red shoes :) and was smiling and laughing a few days later. So very glad to have seen the transition. She is a beautiful, beautiful little girl. Hoping and praying for such a transition for Beza and me.)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><b><i></i></b>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-43315787235525953372011-12-06T09:18:00.001-05:002011-12-06T12:48:21.852-05:00Ethiopia Day 2 - Firtuna<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>On our second day in Ethiopia we had plans to visit our little girl we sponsor - Firtuna. We sponsor her through HopeChest.org if anyone is interested!<br />
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</div><div align="center"><em><strong>Firtuna - Friday, November 18, 2011</strong></em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Had a great night sleep. It gets cold at night. I knew that from what I've read and heard. But, it gets really cold at night! Most places to stay do not have heat; electric but no heat. Asked for another blanket :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We were served a wonderful egg omelet, toast, and awesome coffee for breakfast. Checked email and facebook. And met Mollie, Becca and Kirk. I knew of these families through their blogs so it was so nice to meet in person finally!</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We took a walk to a nearby grocery for apple juice and milk. Bought a chocolate bar - wishing we brought more chocolate with us. Note for next time - bring lots of chocolate :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDxAE9u_JOcgwm1AI2q7Vh9VL4aOdOj_VxAD8ICL38fiUCm5dT-ePb3FP1QMPr8rHe-tKzaSdiSRA96fJ3_7m2TXoN9jbzP69jkZ_nncoyoJphHefINOA6yPhq_pAl-0ZefRhXo4EhkyE/s1600/IMG_1787.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDxAE9u_JOcgwm1AI2q7Vh9VL4aOdOj_VxAD8ICL38fiUCm5dT-ePb3FP1QMPr8rHe-tKzaSdiSRA96fJ3_7m2TXoN9jbzP69jkZ_nncoyoJphHefINOA6yPhq_pAl-0ZefRhXo4EhkyE/s320/IMG_1787.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Beky picked us up about 11 am to take us goat shopping and then head out to Kind Hearts care point. Friday is a fasting day so many do not sell meat on this day. We drove to Kebeta and searched for a goat. Two hours later I finally asked Beky to please just take us to the care point so we could meet and play with Firtuna.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYdArvipzt1t5AO32GP_WAcGkJ5ZckWhObAJUJYM996VVelgRXO5jo2fkkl2UoAjGy8jiDd5fLg18XLnU-XPaqvnPFuymz6kHLrmwGjgZjHPrMm23zhmGp8E6Ijoc0cxPAYCFLVxIDi0c/s1600/IMG_1809.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYdArvipzt1t5AO32GP_WAcGkJ5ZckWhObAJUJYM996VVelgRXO5jo2fkkl2UoAjGy8jiDd5fLg18XLnU-XPaqvnPFuymz6kHLrmwGjgZjHPrMm23zhmGp8E6Ijoc0cxPAYCFLVxIDi0c/s320/IMG_1809.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em>Goat Shopping - he travels in the trunk</em></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieDXEzYufJkEbmJd8Mt-e3A6nz-xPuc1C2XPNpRuOUrX6peyp4LaKIf6xOIFcSxj1AeJPaucxKsbqvXQcyRaIJ3orENzHZOFb9Zz7t7Uawtpl-KzJhRimt_Hlg8YNBX6_n2ri7RnYtKbk/s1600/IMG_1819.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieDXEzYufJkEbmJd8Mt-e3A6nz-xPuc1C2XPNpRuOUrX6peyp4LaKIf6xOIFcSxj1AeJPaucxKsbqvXQcyRaIJ3orENzHZOFb9Zz7t7Uawtpl-KzJhRimt_Hlg8YNBX6_n2ri7RnYtKbk/s320/IMG_1819.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQGdZDuNi0Cl7CgpwA8xpPKiVDXniFi8rvqJupkWJVG882aoW0Dq5-gIn9fO4f1WVrZYSk43jZoibltVKWns-FiiXm1QFt3BfkOck9hE9KlAnZxLRW61ik66XC-lfZgOYx-IJIe1eQjwY/s1600/IMG_1832.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQGdZDuNi0Cl7CgpwA8xpPKiVDXniFi8rvqJupkWJVG882aoW0Dq5-gIn9fO4f1WVrZYSk43jZoibltVKWns-FiiXm1QFt3BfkOck9hE9KlAnZxLRW61ik66XC-lfZgOYx-IJIe1eQjwY/s320/IMG_1832.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><em>Sharing the road</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We finally arrived to Kind Hearts at 1 pm. We were warmly welcomed by the mission team and in-country staff. They directed us straight to Firtuna.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioMuxf9VSKRsGf_lJfzUqCLVz-_nIaNzHcqCO9b8BS3WEbCgUUdfye7toh5VDUNn9I3Ii6CSAladU7GTGh6PfQIvKGEtCzn1jH9PiEsBOoi8V0gPmhHkUTgKh3frMp20GHVvQVYPokpJ0/s1600/IMG_1843.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioMuxf9VSKRsGf_lJfzUqCLVz-_nIaNzHcqCO9b8BS3WEbCgUUdfye7toh5VDUNn9I3Ii6CSAladU7GTGh6PfQIvKGEtCzn1jH9PiEsBOoi8V0gPmhHkUTgKh3frMp20GHVvQVYPokpJ0/s320/IMG_1843.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>All the children (140) were all sitting quietly on the ground enjoying their goat stew and injera. This was a very special meal for them provided by the mission team/sponsors. The children were loving it; scooping stew into their mouths quickly following it with bottle soda - another special treat.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV6YIntTUW-94FIWluMmIHKnvjFTvVbuHGxd2DziF57J8AmHeDeWlD8qfScU4f4HPTJ0xBJ8y6qSyg2WruSGNDTEu5a5xhZFyv4j3yFIIfGVhtWW5MSycltLqiU9FLPbO3F1sVBVQSPNE/s1600/IMG_1838.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV6YIntTUW-94FIWluMmIHKnvjFTvVbuHGxd2DziF57J8AmHeDeWlD8qfScU4f4HPTJ0xBJ8y6qSyg2WruSGNDTEu5a5xhZFyv4j3yFIIfGVhtWW5MSycltLqiU9FLPbO3F1sVBVQSPNE/s320/IMG_1838.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I couldn't believe it when I saw her! She was wearing a shirt that I bought her and sent in a care package. She shyly looked at us and immediately looked away. Karen Wistrom, leader of the team, told me not to worry - that she knew exactly who I was and to just give her a few minutes.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij8YyrO7Xxi5HBzBzmow9GWnAtU6NHU0iLhRuogaTRgrAUYp85Y5wTLpM__wKQR28SEw5dcaF2cD3_Z-xR_0ibTEKzPaNwofysEhcxs7SAdR4tDwxgWVsZgUZ2iNTYeElm_hXDoIxxGOM/s1600/IMG_1845.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij8YyrO7Xxi5HBzBzmow9GWnAtU6NHU0iLhRuogaTRgrAUYp85Y5wTLpM__wKQR28SEw5dcaF2cD3_Z-xR_0ibTEKzPaNwofysEhcxs7SAdR4tDwxgWVsZgUZ2iNTYeElm_hXDoIxxGOM/s320/IMG_1845.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>It didn't take long. She slowly approached me and stood by my side while I fussed over her. Within a few minutes she was constantly by my side, holding my hand.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Koen and Frank helped pass out food to the children; lined up like an assembly line passing plates along. Koen was happy and eager to help with this. He makes me so proud at how good his heart is.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ2kCKxwDaZ1oPqj-3bGig0U3bD8dMR15oTq7G_sgSpuNgLnBao5EryvCukyGFhArdMM9sdInkD3eY6m9xR7B0qesHuKG_wZ35q4mpldTosLY94ePKB3reaNSn8CxcakSlNDh75tJvAMI/s1600/IMG_1848.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ2kCKxwDaZ1oPqj-3bGig0U3bD8dMR15oTq7G_sgSpuNgLnBao5EryvCukyGFhArdMM9sdInkD3eY6m9xR7B0qesHuKG_wZ35q4mpldTosLY94ePKB3reaNSn8CxcakSlNDh75tJvAMI/s320/IMG_1848.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>After lunch we played with all the children and attended one of Firtuna's class. We helped them with a craft project and took lots of pictures. The children loved having their pictures taken. Breaking out into huge smiles when we showed them their picture on the camera - insisting on more.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirimziDtDcU7fq6uFWM0W_S4gxABC8Ai20JVjTtxuId_M3w1V7crqYZRpc3tm4x6C9bCcRmdljPo_5Pgc3QYHC64KYflwFJ7AxR0N7udNxHiiLKJ2FSSYl7X0jiosmtBGWAlFhc7G3zwY/s1600/IMG_1864.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirimziDtDcU7fq6uFWM0W_S4gxABC8Ai20JVjTtxuId_M3w1V7crqYZRpc3tm4x6C9bCcRmdljPo_5Pgc3QYHC64KYflwFJ7AxR0N7udNxHiiLKJ2FSSYl7X0jiosmtBGWAlFhc7G3zwY/s320/IMG_1864.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>The children loved having us; hanging on us, giving us hugs and kisses constantly. They LOVED Koen and would call him by name.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYIRU2CbEoKumGz7FBzRDjP0YUwrj6GfafBvEpsbfRec8UMWElUlnUlnAlp-ceqrvuAfw37krcpIB5v3yioKDRvZWcJS8lpYRkwWTM6tZ7YnUTGNZeXZ3tPn9xPMCES5L7C6_v4C5Xs50/s1600/IMG_1958.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYIRU2CbEoKumGz7FBzRDjP0YUwrj6GfafBvEpsbfRec8UMWElUlnUlnAlp-ceqrvuAfw37krcpIB5v3yioKDRvZWcJS8lpYRkwWTM6tZ7YnUTGNZeXZ3tPn9xPMCES5L7C6_v4C5Xs50/s320/IMG_1958.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVxyRwbQjSHVCVA2SAs6V3gwZQIJEKJ1z2Z-mdCWn2b7PojB9woKamwOeHMPv6P_2xzPpzfp-cYHhDsJsc5gAy_WETlKqxTCIv4es7iKUVm-IFFRSley2qu-df3rBKszIE03_G_4UyzPA/s1600/IMG_1983.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVxyRwbQjSHVCVA2SAs6V3gwZQIJEKJ1z2Z-mdCWn2b7PojB9woKamwOeHMPv6P_2xzPpzfp-cYHhDsJsc5gAy_WETlKqxTCIv4es7iKUVm-IFFRSley2qu-df3rBKszIE03_G_4UyzPA/s320/IMG_1983.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>It was a very special day for all of us. Some of these children walk 45 minutes to get to the care point; 5 year olds walking alone on rock and dirt roads. It's a very special place for them.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>The children were beautiful; dirty with torn clothing, worn shoes - some mismatched. Koen noticed right away that Firtuna shoes did not match.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We had a special meeting with Fikre, one of the directors at the care point. He sat down with us along with Firtuna so we could present her with some gifts for her and her caretaker.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1F-ma-CsaVurZSUa14d1lsJ2USTWPfVI0Zv17FzAlCWEcSTgDIyRuCCYnM9Zv5yDo_G2cuUFEGMF_hepgfhS4q6W9RFZ2TDuc4vMnNQR5cM5frU7FBciT8GJVmhj-4NnpWOq9mQqFdHk/s1600/IMG_1884.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1F-ma-CsaVurZSUa14d1lsJ2USTWPfVI0Zv17FzAlCWEcSTgDIyRuCCYnM9Zv5yDo_G2cuUFEGMF_hepgfhS4q6W9RFZ2TDuc4vMnNQR5cM5frU7FBciT8GJVmhj-4NnpWOq9mQqFdHk/s320/IMG_1884.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTtaqZXFM-7V-rEuYT5Q97MKCEbI8HvbV-aDXYYcI4Du0s9Q0yBtJ0cmRw4Yiq-cJcA5sJnqcYXv-_FzPQpV2OFnbrK9QNgwgmJNS5-tanP7J8fxn4SwXJiQCLI7B9i_hyphenhyphenmauosyIZFlw/s1600/IMG_1902.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTtaqZXFM-7V-rEuYT5Q97MKCEbI8HvbV-aDXYYcI4Du0s9Q0yBtJ0cmRw4Yiq-cJcA5sJnqcYXv-_FzPQpV2OFnbrK9QNgwgmJNS5-tanP7J8fxn4SwXJiQCLI7B9i_hyphenhyphenmauosyIZFlw/s320/IMG_1902.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div align="center"><em>We asked who takes care of her (her mom), if she had siblings, how far away she lived. Her mom is at home with her baby brother. She lives about 5 minutes away. We asked her how old she is. She said 5. She was 5 a year and a half ago when we started sponsoring her :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Someone sent for her mom and she showed up to meet us.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We presented Firtuna with a bunch of gemmed barretts, socks and jeans. We bought her mother hand lotion, soap, comb, chapstick, sewing kit, pocket tissues, slippers, toothbrush, toothpaste, nail kit, gum and a bag of dried apricots. I put it all into a drawstring backpack.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFFlCjs4Qi57tCiXlHfqC0PiMkyzY1iAJorbztTnLPt5GhEQ2dIlALBoa6nyzhXoQL46vQD3S47QdtR-_rP3xx7VzS8pozG5oM8g7CQlrWIO-dFHKjyjRRZPYDFuT81exwboo3F8ICvTA/s1600/IMG_1918.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFFlCjs4Qi57tCiXlHfqC0PiMkyzY1iAJorbztTnLPt5GhEQ2dIlALBoa6nyzhXoQL46vQD3S47QdtR-_rP3xx7VzS8pozG5oM8g7CQlrWIO-dFHKjyjRRZPYDFuT81exwboo3F8ICvTA/s320/IMG_1918.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>When we met Firtuna's mom Fikre introduced us and gave her our care package. She immediately embraced me tightly. It was an emotional, touching meeting. When we hugged I noticed how she smelled like a camp fire and I couldn't help but think of how she has to cook all of her food over an open fire having none of the conveniences I so take for granted.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK8o4QLJCiZQd_l8mbrmV0y3R3W6PkN-p9y0fRSU5B4wKyyGAoYFwa60pkQniUY1-gRTzvduUHdZJVO52EBGthFFWnpPpfFEICIX5qvUF5odoLiGo_HOXba9sx0f3JpZFTQihFwSekYFA/s1600/IMG_1936.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK8o4QLJCiZQd_l8mbrmV0y3R3W6PkN-p9y0fRSU5B4wKyyGAoYFwa60pkQniUY1-gRTzvduUHdZJVO52EBGthFFWnpPpfFEICIX5qvUF5odoLiGo_HOXba9sx0f3JpZFTQihFwSekYFA/s320/IMG_1936.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Firtuna would seek me out through the afternoon; coming to me to hold my hand and every once in awhile I would feel her kiss the top of my hand. When we took a group picture at the end of the day I searched for her and zoomed in with my camera to find her looking right at me smiling.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjew_upJ6TPVh3oFySWk4eKaC91a9FUCEbl8O4bJsEZc2p30nD1VXr77ItW6kCRLTq7lmcQA-iB8xJ3WnbXRfYHNY0_HGUq4SvtuQtxWMkRWi943eFyhaVZzgwdE_2q1ClWI5OH38LCl3g/s1600/IMG_2030.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjew_upJ6TPVh3oFySWk4eKaC91a9FUCEbl8O4bJsEZc2p30nD1VXr77ItW6kCRLTq7lmcQA-iB8xJ3WnbXRfYHNY0_HGUq4SvtuQtxWMkRWi943eFyhaVZzgwdE_2q1ClWI5OH38LCl3g/s320/IMG_2030.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I can't express how grateful I feel to have been apart of their day. A most wonderful experience. I don't think I will ever forget the faces of those children.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVaQrGfHSHCaOYtZPtZoFY9SFiJwo7Wb6JrZvbwENwn7nshcOsuMne4PSZQ2QF_Af3jwbQxVbizJuQ-n4PzKZzsxW97JFBenVhX4pt_1drde8Dz__lE07lQmOI_SFbGGVQfbdDt05Df3Q/s1600/IMG_2017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVaQrGfHSHCaOYtZPtZoFY9SFiJwo7Wb6JrZvbwENwn7nshcOsuMne4PSZQ2QF_Af3jwbQxVbizJuQ-n4PzKZzsxW97JFBenVhX4pt_1drde8Dz__lE07lQmOI_SFbGGVQfbdDt05Df3Q/s320/IMG_2017.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxAy5m7DUU4v1BK49ilHxzA5tKy2zr558uFi9TpYT2S6UctGiS_zOQqC0H9d0wC73vZC3W0bB4I0Z-R535c_6u5z8aQGAL7GZQrUCWxNwhZcJWvmD9hksJNX2bkMz2NOSyEzVWzs_zTrY/s1600/IMG_2055.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxAy5m7DUU4v1BK49ilHxzA5tKy2zr558uFi9TpYT2S6UctGiS_zOQqC0H9d0wC73vZC3W0bB4I0Z-R535c_6u5z8aQGAL7GZQrUCWxNwhZcJWvmD9hksJNX2bkMz2NOSyEzVWzs_zTrY/s320/IMG_2055.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><em>Saying Goodbye</em></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtbwqZHimwd5e2e4fCZ3ZE2dZERWmW_4FAG8GxQd5q9Th13tHL25YlB0RRzMI0hiS622qilFcx9jU-PaORXCcFvh5bFtcbTYHp5qEdU9Q1O0jlNlY1B5Up6cZTb7Yw5QfpJdtqJglrvQ8/s1600/IMG_2057.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtbwqZHimwd5e2e4fCZ3ZE2dZERWmW_4FAG8GxQd5q9Th13tHL25YlB0RRzMI0hiS622qilFcx9jU-PaORXCcFvh5bFtcbTYHp5qEdU9Q1O0jlNlY1B5Up6cZTb7Yw5QfpJdtqJglrvQ8/s320/IMG_2057.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYsnIm6MmUsF3plLgP8SUoWp5TY6hKibPohYpPcl7sHem4GiInEcit0ebaAb-yjwyHvn3pOidg12g5_rXKf_yqie85gHS6_haAmFyNpUs-DvPk6JL1rNgGynL_af90oIC9M-VthUKK1NU/s1600/IMG_2069.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYsnIm6MmUsF3plLgP8SUoWp5TY6hKibPohYpPcl7sHem4GiInEcit0ebaAb-yjwyHvn3pOidg12g5_rXKf_yqie85gHS6_haAmFyNpUs-DvPk6JL1rNgGynL_af90oIC9M-VthUKK1NU/s320/IMG_2069.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><em>Koen saying goodbye to Billy. Poor Billy will sacrifice himself on Monday to feed the children. You know there is a question on a customs form one must fill out to re-enter the US - "did you handle livestock?" oops.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Beky drove us back to BJoes and we took about 30 minutes to refresh and then met Mollie, Becca and Kirk at Lime Tree Restaurant for dinner. Koen slept through dinner again :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><strong><em>Side notes</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Saw a few disturbing things on our drive today. A naked man on the side of the dirt road just crawling along. I asked Beky what this was about. He said for 18 million people there is only one psychiatric hospital so the mentally ill are on their own.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>And the horses in the middle of the street are infected. They stand there so the cars driving by keep the flies from biting their infected areas. The horses have no owners so no one to put them down. They look so sad.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXVMfjDP9Qrxa-6Sy8B3eBfPkCFi0hrVYte8_pi6WyTWVhEvamuHwkl-2mhnRD9devKQy9nzxBz28sTK5ThP-rhY9dfGGIBKFpJX4Q2VLvpXcAddAx5BK-zAFegwsuE8NhU5IL-Ee4OnM/s1600/IMG_2188.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXVMfjDP9Qrxa-6Sy8B3eBfPkCFi0hrVYte8_pi6WyTWVhEvamuHwkl-2mhnRD9devKQy9nzxBz28sTK5ThP-rhY9dfGGIBKFpJX4Q2VLvpXcAddAx5BK-zAFegwsuE8NhU5IL-Ee4OnM/s320/IMG_2188.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Met Yoftahe - one of the drivers. Find that he attended a year at Lancaster Mennonite High in 1990. Stayed with a foster family. Need to check with Patrick and see if he knows him.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><strong></strong></div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-54626302266250222542011-12-04T11:43:00.001-05:002011-12-11T09:42:49.905-05:00Our Trip to EthiopiaWe arrived back in the States a week ago today. It has been a hard week for me as I try to process all my thoughts and feelings of our 10 days in Ethiopia, while dealing with unpacking 6 suitcases, a refrigerator that stopped working while we were away, a dog that picked up kennel cough while boarded, and not to mention the craziness of preparing for the holidays.<br />
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I kept a journal during our stay and decided that I'm going to post it (maybe editing a few things to protect the innocent). I know all 7 of my followers are dying to read about my emotional ups and downs and anything-but-good writing skills :) <br />
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</div><div align="center"><strong><em>The Flight</em> <em>Wednesday November 16, 2011</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We are somewhere over the ocean right now. It's 4:30 pm our time back home and 12:30 am in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqZzVKAyGdZHSeZCPErburpXkMtqd5N7itShYZ__ccS6Pj5rGirMVaoJOwPWvWvKQeyjqeC5ddBebUSq0FvblI02rFZzD5b5P4SLirFEBlymcKSJaXZlODI-E0CAoHFRrjjI8RSwxBvSE/s1600/IMG_1573.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqZzVKAyGdZHSeZCPErburpXkMtqd5N7itShYZ__ccS6Pj5rGirMVaoJOwPWvWvKQeyjqeC5ddBebUSq0FvblI02rFZzD5b5P4SLirFEBlymcKSJaXZlODI-E0CAoHFRrjjI8RSwxBvSE/s320/IMG_1573.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>When I chose our seats for this flight on Ethiopian Air - 28A B & C - I was focused on the fact that there were no seats behind us - so no one kicking the back of my seat for 13 plus hours. I think I would rather have seat-kicking instead of the constant foul odor coming from the toilet, which is what actually is behind us :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgagwuh50mgCWUJfRUM_ZGPfFw4z9Ui-A0mWf_TBR9Wk5YikZ9UEuD6la2i0dEVHtgRLAhsEqnkzunrN1vxoxQNd0-InWfeCxp1wqWSXfRmcDrFxCwas2bRZ-soosDKgTtFnNc37px7JdY/s1600/IMG_1584.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgagwuh50mgCWUJfRUM_ZGPfFw4z9Ui-A0mWf_TBR9Wk5YikZ9UEuD6la2i0dEVHtgRLAhsEqnkzunrN1vxoxQNd0-InWfeCxp1wqWSXfRmcDrFxCwas2bRZ-soosDKgTtFnNc37px7JdY/s320/IMG_1584.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We should be trying to sleep but the bug is wide awake - playing with the lights, in constant movement, kicking the seat in front of him :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjViK1VXuZSQNrVlrc1AfhwxfXm8HIaTeBRYx-VHR7JiLEv8ijECCS5WYb__0UjLPyWu1md6FgiE9WwSvA6yG0w9PcWldNLWe4-hoOmnuiEjuK9i8mBk5aqq2CNxPkxu7-Sz8FZK0suuHQ/s1600/IMG_1594.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjViK1VXuZSQNrVlrc1AfhwxfXm8HIaTeBRYx-VHR7JiLEv8ijECCS5WYb__0UjLPyWu1md6FgiE9WwSvA6yG0w9PcWldNLWe4-hoOmnuiEjuK9i8mBk5aqq2CNxPkxu7-Sz8FZK0suuHQ/s320/IMG_1594.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I can't believe we will be in Ethiopia in about 7 hours! Who can sleep! Doesn't seem real yet.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaPbc7sviKmbnJeoKyuoU6F6GHZnzyPauZfuVZjxMV-5ykscfybxsZcNrhQVskCt0Oiodh6-pVIf_OfqgKkz1chNtuN9Go8nK5cKkNitxObTaZEYbn3LiCNmQ83wtBp2meMMPUVrLOGJE/s1600/IMG_1610.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaPbc7sviKmbnJeoKyuoU6F6GHZnzyPauZfuVZjxMV-5ykscfybxsZcNrhQVskCt0Oiodh6-pVIf_OfqgKkz1chNtuN9Go8nK5cKkNitxObTaZEYbn3LiCNmQ83wtBp2meMMPUVrLOGJE/s320/IMG_1610.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Note to self for Embassy trip - start packing a few days ahead of time. Waiting 'til the last minute was so frustrating!</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div align="center"><em><strong>Beza Thursday November 17, 2011</strong></em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We had a very smooth flight landing in Addis around 8 am. We had no wait to get our Visas. They pulled us right into the small room with a simple Visa sign above the door, passing many in line, because we had a child. There is a genuine love for children here.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyfoEWRkkkd6f4VOy34jGW4RLY0QoX9F-gZZLhVr7VqUyWY9_0RjT-wWJ8OXVarQ8rw00KQefR55Csi0pIdO2LZnb1XXTmRN45ozUZm2hGBi2-uU16bBhl0N8-jLSY1gr4KmRRov4rqOs/s1600/IMG_1620.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyfoEWRkkkd6f4VOy34jGW4RLY0QoX9F-gZZLhVr7VqUyWY9_0RjT-wWJ8OXVarQ8rw00KQefR55Csi0pIdO2LZnb1XXTmRN45ozUZm2hGBi2-uU16bBhl0N8-jLSY1gr4KmRRov4rqOs/s320/IMG_1620.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We had no problem getting all 6 pieces of luggage - they sent us right through without x-raying our bags.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Our driver, Beky, was there waiting for us and piled all of our luggage into his Mercedes Benz. (Beky tells us Toyotas are desired more than Mercedes here.) Barely room for us in the car but we squeezed and it was a short ride to BJoe's Guesthouse.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Genet was there to greet us, show us our room and give a tour. Beky brought all of our bags to our room and then asks if we would like to see Beza today. I said "what?!" He said if we leave in 10 minutes we can see Beza today and did not have to wait until tomorrow (Friday was our scheduled time to visit). Sleep deprived, barely able to put 2 thoughts together, we said "lets go!". We couldn't believe we were going to meet our daughter 2 hours after landing in Ethiopia!</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>We walked into toddler room #2 and there she was - just like her pictures. Beautiful, shy, so sweet. I wanted to run to her and scoop her right up but I knew that would scare her - plus, you're not supposed to do that :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Cribs line the walls of the room. There is a play mat strewn with legos, rattles, balls and stuffed animals. And all of the children were sitting there with the caretakers playing.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I see Beza and call her name and give a little wave. She smiles shyly at me and looks away. A handful of children run to us and want loving and attention. We sit on the mat and try to get her attention. She shys away to her caretaker. I hand her a lego and she accepts it. She hands me a lego and we start to build a tower.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNq3zKBgOHZ4zCsxx3YEWlB1VI_Zo4Ncf34cpnOEHBnOls3R5LcdF20EFcG4YHPfHzMKig-MJWjYs-mfAWqEEwQg08nkUEJbkmv0ferD2Oa7XtqYM5bvZBCPkuPIKGGatMFYKDkjCMUsI/s1600/IMG_1669.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNq3zKBgOHZ4zCsxx3YEWlB1VI_Zo4Ncf34cpnOEHBnOls3R5LcdF20EFcG4YHPfHzMKig-MJWjYs-mfAWqEEwQg08nkUEJbkmv0ferD2Oa7XtqYM5bvZBCPkuPIKGGatMFYKDkjCMUsI/s320/IMG_1669.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>One sweet boy can't stop touching my hair. A little girl can't get over Frank's lack of hair - touches his scalp and runs away screaming in laughter encouraging other children to do the same.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Koen and Beza start to play together. She smiled at him, played, gave him hugs and kisses. She would hold hands with him and lead him around the room. The other children were very fond of Koen too. Loved putting their hands through his hair, pulling him in all directions. He was center of attention.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Minutes after we arrived and the caretakers knew we were there for Beza they hurriedly fixed her braids and led her out of the room to wash her face. These ladies obviously love these children.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>The hour flew by and it was time to go. I tried to get a hug from her but it was not going to happen this visit. Koen got enough for all of us :)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGZ9OL59psjFOvZVYxT72-t-may1reujnTwq2vMZiqOAcMGdcIFpkhya1PynFOIWWWUbNFuIoGkZpK0dwQNEhDYP_6zxzg9VcPjdm4w2nHM0jS9XngcX0hAO0DL8BfnKQwaO0x-BpDBkY/s1600/IMG_1766.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGZ9OL59psjFOvZVYxT72-t-may1reujnTwq2vMZiqOAcMGdcIFpkhya1PynFOIWWWUbNFuIoGkZpK0dwQNEhDYP_6zxzg9VcPjdm4w2nHM0jS9XngcX0hAO0DL8BfnKQwaO0x-BpDBkY/s320/IMG_1766.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJdALClq-xOQmJjwQ1TiwRZJPQQkpvIDAjNBQiR9aKuXbgpTAglc50Cl9NANUt1qwUpTykYKe8C2DrsAbG0jkBBJttW4VUO3Q1BkHb0brMQClzR8JI8DB29vJu6nXbSKNW4hpgmFoJ_jY/s1600/IMG_1750.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJdALClq-xOQmJjwQ1TiwRZJPQQkpvIDAjNBQiR9aKuXbgpTAglc50Cl9NANUt1qwUpTykYKe8C2DrsAbG0jkBBJttW4VUO3Q1BkHb0brMQClzR8JI8DB29vJu6nXbSKNW4hpgmFoJ_jY/s320/IMG_1750.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>The children watched us through the windows as we left. Koen and Beza, on opposite sides of the window, put their hand on the glass as if touching. So very sweet. Koen asked if we could please take her home now. Sorry bug. I wish.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjazti25ZAEMiY6fGe7iIf8Qw7ovUpKR3KcoaOdNsDu61SOcSvpDoVQ-Yu5xVZjnu7YjOd1Z1cq95O4kcBu0Hjc3I3IMaf8WKLF7PnYrHJySkvcM4nNj0hT9c_EY8tA5KiJgSmsO5cIdYE/s1600/IMG_1781.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjazti25ZAEMiY6fGe7iIf8Qw7ovUpKR3KcoaOdNsDu61SOcSvpDoVQ-Yu5xVZjnu7YjOd1Z1cq95O4kcBu0Hjc3I3IMaf8WKLF7PnYrHJySkvcM4nNj0hT9c_EY8tA5KiJgSmsO5cIdYE/s320/IMG_1781.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I left feeling a mixture of emotions. Sorting through those still.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Had a great lunch at Makush Gallery and went back to BJoes to nap. It was a great day.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
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</div><div align="left"></div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-86724344345720426672011-11-30T06:10:00.000-05:002011-11-30T06:10:31.614-05:00Here she is!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnnrF0UBoldBZtHkH0osKZwkyA8ANrIhxz7Q6AVHoSUgw4nPSXWJPaF5qLOsdWsePbxwzLXp3PGo0IKFA-S6GXAHSKicgnc6ZJJtcbs_7taqzBioAqGowJMgywm0bbfrd3UlgMTSmw1H4/s1600/Bezawit+06.24.11-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnnrF0UBoldBZtHkH0osKZwkyA8ANrIhxz7Q6AVHoSUgw4nPSXWJPaF5qLOsdWsePbxwzLXp3PGo0IKFA-S6GXAHSKicgnc6ZJJtcbs_7taqzBioAqGowJMgywm0bbfrd3UlgMTSmw1H4/s320/Bezawit+06.24.11-5.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">This was her referral picture we received on July 20, 2011.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl0H5POejProxnLP8tg7tdR28-uvW2ry58y0LTosoi7cgLe0lCNpWSsFh6NFlETmNMfa6Z73v9QyasFI5veihXE96xsQWyhe4qkSI1ZoEH4nJ2nvClDA8BFwCuyx-bHNPOQSVzCaour6M/s1600/IMG_2307.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl0H5POejProxnLP8tg7tdR28-uvW2ry58y0LTosoi7cgLe0lCNpWSsFh6NFlETmNMfa6Z73v9QyasFI5veihXE96xsQWyhe4qkSI1ZoEH4nJ2nvClDA8BFwCuyx-bHNPOQSVzCaour6M/s320/IMG_2307.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div align="center">Here she is on November 22, 2011, the day after we passed court.</div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center">Bezawit Rose Politzer</div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-76903489405605560582011-11-17T13:39:00.000-05:002011-11-17T13:39:59.636-05:00In Ethiopia!We arrived in Ethiopia today! We just got our bags into our room when our driver asked us if we wanted to go meet little sister/B/our brown-eyed girl. I told him we were scheduled to meet her tomorrow. He said we could go today if we wanted. Yes! We quickly changed the clothes we had been wearing for the last 26 hours and jumped back in the car.<br />
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As soon as I stepped foot in the room I saw her. Oh.my.gosh. It was pretty surreal. There she was. Just like in her photos. Beautiful. Shy. Nervous. We played. Koen even got hugs and kisses from her. She held his hand and led him around the room. She played with his hair. He loved it. He doesn't want to leave her here when we go home. Me neither.<br />
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It was a visit filled with many emotions. I have so much more to share. And I will as soon as I get some sleep:)Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-84907719208984960922011-11-08T14:59:00.000-05:002011-11-08T14:59:07.504-05:00Koen is 5!We had a Halloween Costume Party planned for Koen's 5th birthday. 18 of his little friends were expected at 12 noon on October 30th. Then some crazy noreaster blew its way through our neighborhood! There are times we don't ever see snow until January or February. We got almost 8 inches of snow!<br />
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All this snow brought down trees that hadn't yet experienced fall and many lost power - including the building that was to host Koen's birthday. One hour before his party was to start we received a call giving us the bad news and we had to tell a very excited little boy that he would not be having a birthday party :(<br />
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There were a few tears but we dried them off and did this instead!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglSIUULtwLv1cbWtHAHsyeh-7KqQXyj2Vk5uDRodbVSSFzEifygJ78F5cC77mPJxfJT-0CcCv4DGxUl15oXukyNIu82aFFXPsBTIWOo9BI6xt7fU2sq6yJX2M-ZuXt4KjzyXe7bEbI_C0/s1600/IMG_1294.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglSIUULtwLv1cbWtHAHsyeh-7KqQXyj2Vk5uDRodbVSSFzEifygJ78F5cC77mPJxfJT-0CcCv4DGxUl15oXukyNIu82aFFXPsBTIWOo9BI6xt7fU2sq6yJX2M-ZuXt4KjzyXe7bEbI_C0/s320/IMG_1294.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB3m0bYOwYHywBziqetFHluUi5lSCqd_Pi5G4DXBuEoXz8XJqtvRjmLbAUXrDyE5_rrTP5wMtsv8ogmzmNs4fMzaIN6c90nVfgjCAGe9g45HdmLVFhkwI9qGZWnSNnrorTcVS_lMBULvc/s1600/IMG_1309.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB3m0bYOwYHywBziqetFHluUi5lSCqd_Pi5G4DXBuEoXz8XJqtvRjmLbAUXrDyE5_rrTP5wMtsv8ogmzmNs4fMzaIN6c90nVfgjCAGe9g45HdmLVFhkwI9qGZWnSNnrorTcVS_lMBULvc/s320/IMG_1309.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Lou was having so much fun until all the snow balls he was making bogged him down.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQZvgRZp5QEmHXxyxZCgZkUVTu7Mtoy1BYthDm5SSLPksxKFuFxe7Oh87-j9cZyacwp1ZLnhJB17Gu_KExygz2cXjEQ9GZx3QhUafX39JxGLw4eF8xI1FZ3JBiRDdbIv5SA-7tTqT1Kts/s1600/2011-10-29_16-00-06_824.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQZvgRZp5QEmHXxyxZCgZkUVTu7Mtoy1BYthDm5SSLPksxKFuFxe7Oh87-j9cZyacwp1ZLnhJB17Gu_KExygz2cXjEQ9GZx3QhUafX39JxGLw4eF8xI1FZ3JBiRDdbIv5SA-7tTqT1Kts/s320/2011-10-29_16-00-06_824.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div>We didn't need power for our community Halloween party.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibtpK1kWaCpHwQZTZeZQD-saDhsHrcucjqnhMcvmIKmDX3AqI7MeEzU7XvLocknurTZyxQ1M5AHjhFY3TtDyVJwNy8c3o-_nU-_mu_vZUqX49CBEaJc3J-1lvPffSVNM6eO4QyhmBZI34/s1600/IMG_1335.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibtpK1kWaCpHwQZTZeZQD-saDhsHrcucjqnhMcvmIKmDX3AqI7MeEzU7XvLocknurTZyxQ1M5AHjhFY3TtDyVJwNy8c3o-_nU-_mu_vZUqX49CBEaJc3J-1lvPffSVNM6eO4QyhmBZI34/s320/IMG_1335.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
It was a fun weekend. <br />
My little bug just moments after he woke up on the morning of his birthday. The very first thing he says is "Am I five right away?" <br />
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I absolutely love celebrating the birthdays of my children. I love to go back to that moment in time when I first held them and felt the warmth of their skin on mine - just love it. I close my eyes and I can still feel it.<br />
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Koen's favorite food group is pancakes. And we happen to have an awesome restaurant right down the street that serves pancakes 50 different ways. We were off to find us some special pancakes.<br />
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We sit down and I start to tell him all of the great new ways he can have his pancakes. "I just want plain like at home." I convince him to try fruity pebble pancakes.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPhYq_v_u0yRQpm6qqISvJkGBISviPsP8YlZrXLPkQwtovMa4FZvYIM_gwEvF1_AoqUF6KKTDzp_mwaDKDSiPp_bWm2dwMHLU5vSRpzQWeykrwf-IkmF-vHfgatGI-oP2RU_SBXRPtLVI/s1600/IMG_1366.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPhYq_v_u0yRQpm6qqISvJkGBISviPsP8YlZrXLPkQwtovMa4FZvYIM_gwEvF1_AoqUF6KKTDzp_mwaDKDSiPp_bWm2dwMHLU5vSRpzQWeykrwf-IkmF-vHfgatGI-oP2RU_SBXRPtLVI/s320/IMG_1366.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I thought he was going to gag that small bite right back onto the plate.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Short stack of plain pancakes please.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1H3Pzaeatb-j-WWFjdoQiP4lWULxik6gUda0jmtviF2iKCU3PcovjjatqAGnT76L5LX1LJR-MXIa9XYyaGDmcABYqHr0CCZ7AuHpPO0hsQgRLV0pjga9Jjn1-DuRIBMXpTJiatdqBWAE/s1600/IMG_1368.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1H3Pzaeatb-j-WWFjdoQiP4lWULxik6gUda0jmtviF2iKCU3PcovjjatqAGnT76L5LX1LJR-MXIa9XYyaGDmcABYqHr0CCZ7AuHpPO0hsQgRLV0pjga9Jjn1-DuRIBMXpTJiatdqBWAE/s320/IMG_1368.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div>Got some loving from one of the big brothers. (the other big brother is at Duke and big sister is working now in DC)<br />
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Birthday dinner was cheese sandwiches in the shape of dinosaurs. Donuts were the birthday cake of choice.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiD5wa7d-zlvducmlszJG9YlvzDerfnFeEeflVY1WQtbmr_A9I-RIWCfvVrcT-7ZH8ScOnKpQV2EDgUiir-AyncuHXxfNmk2xxFNXglOvaNumi7Z0mkJbdK8foXDmvKOeK6ru6fIjHioU/s1600/IMG_1379.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiD5wa7d-zlvducmlszJG9YlvzDerfnFeEeflVY1WQtbmr_A9I-RIWCfvVrcT-7ZH8ScOnKpQV2EDgUiir-AyncuHXxfNmk2xxFNXglOvaNumi7Z0mkJbdK8foXDmvKOeK6ru6fIjHioU/s320/IMG_1379.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
The favorite birthday present ever.<br />
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I say to him "you look just like the real Mario!" "No, I'm just Koen. This is a costume." He cracks me up.<br />
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His party was rescheduled for the Saturday after Halloween which made for very happy children.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuZx7JbWIG1V7hEps95M3-i4HKiuUDC6GtaqAHl9kper8Wd7605IX5-xxwkUQdKmVrPEEkVZ_OECWOxYfFMakO6QlxfualAi7Vq8QwzJv70i0IrJAIRn1MM5HSbAleB5gCHc4me5-X2YE/s1600/IMG_1395.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuZx7JbWIG1V7hEps95M3-i4HKiuUDC6GtaqAHl9kper8Wd7605IX5-xxwkUQdKmVrPEEkVZ_OECWOxYfFMakO6QlxfualAi7Vq8QwzJv70i0IrJAIRn1MM5HSbAleB5gCHc4me5-X2YE/s320/IMG_1395.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvsKcPecF6gcn4_ITmM8uh3IXxkzgg0SbLmfPPJqNdjyOzCYJQYLlZCqrkbokI0EdJAQtwQi05KuZ2YrNZVH5dYUACc4gVg-0g-aR_HSi8rX624mLjl46soia6R0BA1d3tceIHin2VT_4/s1600/IMG_1532.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvsKcPecF6gcn4_ITmM8uh3IXxkzgg0SbLmfPPJqNdjyOzCYJQYLlZCqrkbokI0EdJAQtwQi05KuZ2YrNZVH5dYUACc4gVg-0g-aR_HSi8rX624mLjl46soia6R0BA1d3tceIHin2VT_4/s320/IMG_1532.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Mummy the daddy game.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq4wdsKbjC-lbidr5HLmw9PttT8laACYQBpDWKwjo41dZeohO7BvsYftDU16CFVLLMAW2DTlTfyE-uak2AlPJ7Y54ORpol0Mwl7qR2qTI5au-sXW3G0wlRKCZxvfRrDaHHalv-N3Uo8eA/s1600/IMG_1553.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq4wdsKbjC-lbidr5HLmw9PttT8laACYQBpDWKwjo41dZeohO7BvsYftDU16CFVLLMAW2DTlTfyE-uak2AlPJ7Y54ORpol0Mwl7qR2qTI5au-sXW3G0wlRKCZxvfRrDaHHalv-N3Uo8eA/s320/IMG_1553.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Even Riley gave birthday love.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Happy birthday to my snuggle bug. He promises no matter how old he is he will always be my snuggle bug.</div><br />
Now I have to go start packing. Cause we leave for Ethiopia in 7 days!!!!!!!Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-52408645532313737782011-11-06T13:23:00.000-05:002011-11-06T13:23:42.541-05:00Sophia's AngelversaryI can't believe it has been three years. Still feels like yesterday. I wish I was able to write Sophia's birth story. Three years ago today I almost died, and she did die. While it's not a story with a happy ending it is a story of undying love and faith. And one day I hope to be able to sort through the feelings of that love and faith which are so intertwined with tragedy and suffering.<br />
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<div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I'm just a little baby</em></div><div align="center"><em> who didn't quite make it there;</em></div><div align="center"><em>I went straight to be with Jesus</em></div><div align="center"><em> but I'm waiting for you here.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Don't you fret about me mommy.</em></div><div align="center"><em>I'm of all God's most blessed.</em></div><div align="center"><em>I'd</em><em> have loved to stay there with you</em></div><div align="center"><em>but Heavenly Father knows what's best.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Many who dwell here where I live</em></div><div align="center"><em> waited years to enter in.</em></div><div align="center"><em>They struggled through a world of sorrow</em></div><div align="center"><em> and their lives were marred with sin.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>So sweet mommy don't be sad.</em></div><div align="center"><em>Wipe those tears and chase the gloom.</em></div><div align="center"><em>I went straight to be with Jesus</em></div><div align="center"><em>from my lovely mother's womb.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Thank you for the life you gave me.</em></div><div align="center"><em>It was brief but don't complain.</em></div><div align="center"><em>I have all of heaven's glory</em></div><div align="center"><em>suffering none of the world's pain.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Thank you for the name you gave me.</em></div><div align="center"><em>I'm thankful for all you've done.</em></div><div align="center"><em>I'll be waiting here for you</em></div><div align="center"><em>in heaven up above.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I would have loved to stay with you</em></div><div align="center"><em>and lived life by your side,</em></div><div align="center"><em>but the Lord called me home</em></div><div align="center"><em>I know it's hard to understand why.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>Thank you mommy for making me,</em></div><div align="center"><em>you made me out of love.</em></div><div align="center"><em>I can't wait for the day I see you again</em></div><div align="center"><em>so you can see what I've become.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>I'm an angel here in heaven.</em></div><div align="center"><em>The Lord's here by my side.</em></div><div align="center"><em>He wants me to let you know</em></div><div align="center"><em>He's sorry he made you cry.</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="center"><em>He has a plan for me up here,</em></div><div align="center"><em>and a plan for you here too.</em></div><div align="center"><em>Someday we'll be together again,</em></div><div align="center"><em>and this I know is true.</em></div><div align="center"><em>(author unknown)</em></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div align="left"><br />
</div><div align="left">Some people only dream of angels, I got to hold one.</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-28731992869164199742011-10-15T22:32:00.000-04:002011-10-15T22:32:48.038-04:00Pregnancy & Infant Loss Remembrance DayOctober 15 is Pregnancy & Infant Loss Remembrance Day. It's not that grieving parents need a special day to remind them of the day they miscarried, or the day their baby was born still, or the day their baby died of SIDS. This day is really about support, education and awareness. <br />
<br />
Next month will be three years since the worst day of my life. There has not been one single day since then that I have not thought about my daughter Sophia. It's in the quiet moments of my day, usually in the shower or when I'm driving in the car alone. She's always right there in the front of my mind.<br />
<br />
Support was very hard to find. People don't want to talk about your dead baby. Sounds horrible. It is. It's horrible to push when you're in labor knowing your baby was not going to give a little cry when she entered the world, knowing she was already gone. Or when the funeral director comes in and takes your baby away. Or when you have to pick out a 24 inch casket. And then when you get home there's the nursery door you have to walk by and wonder when you'll ever be ready to pack away all her things. And the emptiness you feel where just a day before you felt life. No one wants to talk about these things, except other moms who have gone through the same thing. We want to talk about our babies. We want hugs. We want not to feel so alone. It's so sad to want to find another mom who just lost her baby so you have someone to talk to about the pain that only another mom who just lost her baby could possibly understand.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><i>My Mom is a survivor,<br />
or so I've heard it said.<br />
But I can hear her cry at night,<br />
When all others are in bed.<br />
<br />
I watch her lay awake at night<br />
and go to hold her hand.<br />
She doesn't know I'm with her<br />
to help her understand.<br />
<br />
But like the sands on the beach<br />
that never wash away,<br />
I watch over my surviving mom,<br />
who thinks of me each day.<br />
<br />
She wears a smile for others,<br />
a smile of disguise.<br />
But through Heaven's door<br />
I see tears flowing from her eyes.<br />
<br />
My mom tries to cope with death<br />
to keep my memory alive.<br />
But anyone who knows her knows<br />
it's her way to survive.<br />
<br />
As I watch over my surviving mom<br />
through Heaven's open door.<br />
I try to tell her<br />
that angels protect me forever more.<br />
<br />
I know that doesn't help her,<br />
or ease the burden she bears.<br />
So if you get a chance, go visit her<br />
and show her that you care.<br />
<br />
For no matter what she says,<br />
no matter what she feels,<br />
my surviving mom has a broken heart<br />
that time won't ever heal.<br />
<br />
(by Kaye Des'Ormeaux)<br />
</i></div><br />
She was never promised to me forever. Through the pain and tears I still thank God for the gift of Sophia. I got to hold her every second of her life.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS2KjwEk8OCYAqYz8RHGzB1oPtCyPwwN365PqHu6DTKASWG7fN__y9dHsFGpkeACnUxu_v7RbcmCOcXVchnEB73kLwepuk_3TBp8VbtWxZWW7uTuXBlvhaW0NgqlnHvI_MxbBWG6vwOj0/s1600/Copy+of+IMG_0001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS2KjwEk8OCYAqYz8RHGzB1oPtCyPwwN365PqHu6DTKASWG7fN__y9dHsFGpkeACnUxu_v7RbcmCOcXVchnEB73kLwepuk_3TBp8VbtWxZWW7uTuXBlvhaW0NgqlnHvI_MxbBWG6vwOj0/s320/Copy+of+IMG_0001.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-26365526991861869362011-10-04T16:24:00.000-04:002011-10-04T16:24:25.343-04:00Court Date!!I can't believe it! I just got another best call ever! We have a court date! November 21st! We will meet our little girl in 6 weeks!!<br />
<br />
I was not expecting to see 817 flash across my cell phone for many weeks. And when I did see it my first reaction was confusion and then panic. I was afraid to answer. With courts still closed for rainy season I thought this must be about little B. There must be something wrong. I immediately asked if she was okay. I was immediately told yes and that there was good news. I was in the check out line at the supermarket and just started to cry and scream. I think I jumped up and down a few times too.<br />
<br />
One lady was so sweet; she came up to me and said she was so happy for me. How sweet is that?<br />
<br />
Ethiopia, here we come!Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-36823982330351134832011-09-03T08:53:00.000-04:002011-09-03T08:53:14.549-04:00Our First Update on Little SisterWe received our first update yesterday! <br />
<br />
It seems Little Sister is a morning person - with a wake time of 5:30 am. Yikes. And she takes long afternoon naps - that's my girl. Already dreaming about mid day snuggles with my little love.<br />
<br />
Little Sister likes to eat everything! Love that! <br />
<br />
And she's getting big. Missing that :(<br />
<br />
I am so hoping for a quick court date when rainy season ends. <br />
<br />
Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-43188340361992329142011-09-02T12:12:00.000-04:002011-09-02T12:12:51.629-04:00Our Summer (Lots of Pics!)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong>Cherry Crest Farms</strong></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyHK2NGxyokz5Y90EcmRUHlM48tZ1hjXzziZgiB73dIqLixecZFdBkMxsXEEO79jUbQ5Z1zzMI02vFme0qsVktuXUYGtlwAqU1zcZ3AtPWTmugr7Iw3m93ngQi6Q79qBRMOhXMQrUrkKc/s1600/IMG_0069.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyHK2NGxyokz5Y90EcmRUHlM48tZ1hjXzziZgiB73dIqLixecZFdBkMxsXEEO79jUbQ5Z1zzMI02vFme0qsVktuXUYGtlwAqU1zcZ3AtPWTmugr7Iw3m93ngQi6Q79qBRMOhXMQrUrkKc/s320/IMG_0069.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Love to feed the animals here.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKkfPWiT39G6tvq9bYL0jxTnhX1dwn75_naNIGzt3n-hVCIiFeogdDcFoLpC9T7V9us8SMV05H1r00EpRW3eq_GQVAzt-H1NEBweZdWICvNrMae-VKEZxCsg7b2Qg_bKgeAgWehsTzKQQ/s1600/IMG_0008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKkfPWiT39G6tvq9bYL0jxTnhX1dwn75_naNIGzt3n-hVCIiFeogdDcFoLpC9T7V9us8SMV05H1r00EpRW3eq_GQVAzt-H1NEBweZdWICvNrMae-VKEZxCsg7b2Qg_bKgeAgWehsTzKQQ/s320/IMG_0008.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>My husband knows how to have fun on the kiddie rides<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong>Community Days</strong></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjiiwqtLHTqimqBAdz8inWdHsf3sOxAvjW4jtMwBODyP-u1CFEtWWQ741uR4_7lBH474Pfwxmi764uM79ViHWXCiykJS8quxWEHnx23wTH3V3Nc78HYNgiFwDVjOn84VszchtKCgaxTqk/s1600/IMG_9731.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjiiwqtLHTqimqBAdz8inWdHsf3sOxAvjW4jtMwBODyP-u1CFEtWWQ741uR4_7lBH474Pfwxmi764uM79ViHWXCiykJS8quxWEHnx23wTH3V3Nc78HYNgiFwDVjOn84VszchtKCgaxTqk/s320/IMG_9731.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">My baby was finally tall enough to go on this ride - so excited!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong>Knoebels Grove</strong></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibJ8hkoicRYCUyMCIW8rQjfvxpIy1pOJVlMWJdZ-svX7_EaBpbGygGTgc9sp_SahWYCEi2yepjG_HQ1nJmCZsEgeTB0GWsTYaHdrOvwMXbD51hVWQeBf0A1UfsTToJ2ciyQdP7DIbaXUU/s1600/IMG_9955.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibJ8hkoicRYCUyMCIW8rQjfvxpIy1pOJVlMWJdZ-svX7_EaBpbGygGTgc9sp_SahWYCEi2yepjG_HQ1nJmCZsEgeTB0GWsTYaHdrOvwMXbD51hVWQeBf0A1UfsTToJ2ciyQdP7DIbaXUU/s320/IMG_9955.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Just a little wet from the flume ride.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimkGe1MrVEUfqW0FzgOcF3Zdf1Z_JOouQ068QEVZIOuytvqnY70447D-5AMuoPtP9GbOcZY6z3QJUEoGwv4Kg36qg-HJxm2WQq62avBZnN8R8OLdHRoZFVBgb9RvUGRkCj3jkV8Yf2R7A/s1600/IMG_9947.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimkGe1MrVEUfqW0FzgOcF3Zdf1Z_JOouQ068QEVZIOuytvqnY70447D-5AMuoPtP9GbOcZY6z3QJUEoGwv4Kg36qg-HJxm2WQq62avBZnN8R8OLdHRoZFVBgb9RvUGRkCj3jkV8Yf2R7A/s320/IMG_9947.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">You'd think he was on the super dooper looper - cracks me up!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong>Kutztown Fair</strong></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_ZdZsJFQbOYRaompnyEuWpqATcyyO9jdBHauZIgJLOWjrq58VTlEzrlqjVklY3qkDMFVAT5ECMWkBJqUG0zrNKZ5CHNrRwHNmLtaCpHFUyhH5Miw-k_CT0OwQzHT66q3bpHqE7CgaT4k/s1600/IMG_9888.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_ZdZsJFQbOYRaompnyEuWpqATcyyO9jdBHauZIgJLOWjrq58VTlEzrlqjVklY3qkDMFVAT5ECMWkBJqUG0zrNKZ5CHNrRwHNmLtaCpHFUyhH5Miw-k_CT0OwQzHT66q3bpHqE7CgaT4k/s320/IMG_9888.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>We watched her get sheared for the first time.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Pwg5ZpjJa_b0NsU8fVio499RNSiV0yAayo7m9KdGXeL9EAlEgMoYRD3UfmFEPSD8G8Xn49L5AC4x-GxxuoKHd-bnqtmlH6TduaER-tSkXbDRRtlMG3t5_VVZ87blehk1K88zfT1kVFw/s1600/IMG_9906.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Pwg5ZpjJa_b0NsU8fVio499RNSiV0yAayo7m9KdGXeL9EAlEgMoYRD3UfmFEPSD8G8Xn49L5AC4x-GxxuoKHd-bnqtmlH6TduaER-tSkXbDRRtlMG3t5_VVZ87blehk1K88zfT1kVFw/s320/IMG_9906.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>Homemade cornfritters hot off the grill.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong>New York City</strong></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Frank's old stompin' grounds</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjODAVKy2SWrDzQFkKWzIKOHKesQNylq8OKdAfMl7dhHD1XURl3GOsIHkRhY6JU8ivw3pGiZMpyP5dWpbkYCJ78T4C_dWrYMTPjptxJiWxFOvCZM0IoJsiPpqTO1EFriUkX9uAy36Hq1ts/s1600/IMG_0112.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjODAVKy2SWrDzQFkKWzIKOHKesQNylq8OKdAfMl7dhHD1XURl3GOsIHkRhY6JU8ivw3pGiZMpyP5dWpbkYCJ78T4C_dWrYMTPjptxJiWxFOvCZM0IoJsiPpqTO1EFriUkX9uAy36Hq1ts/s320/IMG_0112.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Check out the death grip I have on Koen. This guy draped his python on us and said he only bites people that don't pay for a picture with him. Gave him $10.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx_4cjmwT8JZrFy5WE-J912RibtveeeEXZGwVm7hFJC5uF36HEKTOMdP7Bqf83PWZ5JWCskN_jkR2Ut3iAgxg3AuCbw8DkBr1nFXMQz_1XZOCJb-wN-hPl3cU_rJRpiIkvAHcki_UekaM/s1600/IMG_0144.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx_4cjmwT8JZrFy5WE-J912RibtveeeEXZGwVm7hFJC5uF36HEKTOMdP7Bqf83PWZ5JWCskN_jkR2Ut3iAgxg3AuCbw8DkBr1nFXMQz_1XZOCJb-wN-hPl3cU_rJRpiIkvAHcki_UekaM/s320/IMG_0144.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Tackling the crowds.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Tf27hBE4PK-047ptiOjA5e9_BOTqYsAVkyY7AZ5kkav47aNf-FANNEPoFZjX7byQcnQScUj1DWGRCKL07USJLDGupwWYYViSxqsXBDXWryJQ5gGSfVco-tChI6wyVj7-yT5NLFRU3VQ/s1600/IMG_0146.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Tf27hBE4PK-047ptiOjA5e9_BOTqYsAVkyY7AZ5kkav47aNf-FANNEPoFZjX7byQcnQScUj1DWGRCKL07USJLDGupwWYYViSxqsXBDXWryJQ5gGSfVco-tChI6wyVj7-yT5NLFRU3VQ/s320/IMG_0146.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>Spider Man on Broadway!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW4LTjw4P73hBukax6mE0y5tJ0zRU6KmTB2Y_u8FpvUfFusVZdath8bxHaIJriUL89znZ00RAKvKF0nDGtyAaAnWHMimaa1FA5wZxrMAfDozAryFL3skrf4aPas5G5GRM5ARpJ3VCU04s/s1600/IMG_0154.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW4LTjw4P73hBukax6mE0y5tJ0zRU6KmTB2Y_u8FpvUfFusVZdath8bxHaIJriUL89znZ00RAKvKF0nDGtyAaAnWHMimaa1FA5wZxrMAfDozAryFL3skrf4aPas5G5GRM5ARpJ3VCU04s/s320/IMG_0154.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Our taxi. Our driver was from Africa - so nice - he stopped a pedestrian to take our picture.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXxg-Va3kDwW_8thVdraC0_EiJJQ-c1hmD1DYxIcF7AK2Wl4Pp-Fa4lf7DdvZCiq1B6ViPJqVRqGWPZ1siElnmMXaJ90E00jRdlJgm-dseDmdd2HN60M5TifAMF-xJikuPBCjqyseNSLE/s1600/IMG_0156.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXxg-Va3kDwW_8thVdraC0_EiJJQ-c1hmD1DYxIcF7AK2Wl4Pp-Fa4lf7DdvZCiq1B6ViPJqVRqGWPZ1siElnmMXaJ90E00jRdlJgm-dseDmdd2HN60M5TifAMF-xJikuPBCjqyseNSLE/s320/IMG_0156.JPG" width="240" /></a></div> Koen and my godson in Times Square.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgff5TGyDAquYC7loFzuylkg_VKl31Xlie8MLSh65NnIMLDD2hdCtjz84qCupISXrdQABhAKrlJvbhNiyYKK89qkJhLUPQAPbJn0Ra5oVpFPG8LYbObkZBrYcqtXkai_H9gdBKQ3lRuboE/s1600/IMG_0204.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgff5TGyDAquYC7loFzuylkg_VKl31Xlie8MLSh65NnIMLDD2hdCtjz84qCupISXrdQABhAKrlJvbhNiyYKK89qkJhLUPQAPbJn0Ra5oVpFPG8LYbObkZBrYcqtXkai_H9gdBKQ3lRuboE/s320/IMG_0204.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>When in NYC one must take the subway at least once for fun - boys were excited to see a rat - yay.<br />
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<div align="center"><strong>Fourth of July Parade</strong></div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong>Lots of Pool Fun</strong></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiVqz4jr46ccl9isXmkaqNsJNEvBPklTpJyBfEEXXyiQ4umPqMF_KstgUZjkgCse78P3ASS2hyj9HgoNRkYrVlCq5Z7rlfPv1oxT6J7drzFxO2E4hljBDsEeBkzaNy05uThHvdnCwekHs/s1600/IMG_9632.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiVqz4jr46ccl9isXmkaqNsJNEvBPklTpJyBfEEXXyiQ4umPqMF_KstgUZjkgCse78P3ASS2hyj9HgoNRkYrVlCq5Z7rlfPv1oxT6J7drzFxO2E4hljBDsEeBkzaNy05uThHvdnCwekHs/s320/IMG_9632.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYKCv6OPsrdRB6pO3NP226QdjYUbae2WbEnBiG0zMPRRbgeH91KW0akxqyod16hRJyXc19JTmK_b88ulpfufZcio8Sq2dfFYdJIOgatGkVkKDO7fcTsVH5nm7MhjvTQEXYjsPx7oeAst8/s1600/IMG_20110702_165524.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYKCv6OPsrdRB6pO3NP226QdjYUbae2WbEnBiG0zMPRRbgeH91KW0akxqyod16hRJyXc19JTmK_b88ulpfufZcio8Sq2dfFYdJIOgatGkVkKDO7fcTsVH5nm7MhjvTQEXYjsPx7oeAst8/s320/IMG_20110702_165524.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivuxOFSIqH2C_ldYx9G9e3jRoNsP84SSfxfMatGur7hFxPPBVZEdrocdsmdYuXuLbf2byCIq3Qb3e8MQ939BSvR_ee2HnQ5aIkPfMtvpECDgAbvucLPCF3KArWMBQFMl49PKZRc5yozh0/s1600/IMG_20110805_171419.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivuxOFSIqH2C_ldYx9G9e3jRoNsP84SSfxfMatGur7hFxPPBVZEdrocdsmdYuXuLbf2byCIq3Qb3e8MQ939BSvR_ee2HnQ5aIkPfMtvpECDgAbvucLPCF3KArWMBQFMl49PKZRc5yozh0/s320/IMG_20110805_171419.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">My boys.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong>Washington DC </strong></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiNvznA5M7HrD1WhRK7oBt66l1JxnkVxHGkw_VL4b9I50MVm0RGeDpL53-uIsID41ysAg-ztf9EOcM7x5iPVfKb3egMESzvukFKd7u5aBklZAeDVOIQm-TuRsGR4DFCf0X5KcJN6ZeXXo/s1600/IMG_0325.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiNvznA5M7HrD1WhRK7oBt66l1JxnkVxHGkw_VL4b9I50MVm0RGeDpL53-uIsID41ysAg-ztf9EOcM7x5iPVfKb3egMESzvukFKd7u5aBklZAeDVOIQm-TuRsGR4DFCf0X5KcJN6ZeXXo/s320/IMG_0325.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Visiting big sister at her new apartment in DC.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo9rtYFrUp6FG8qRjeZJTBm7H0Lhpi9Io-Q0oPMqySGMnALTsPJHxvrSp2tmqD13tr_2K0o2JpsVxffva7k_JIWDm-bmfxmlMXj_LXo1-Qbr2MQxLaHKeE5jqInfIK7kaiEHgBUU0ufx4/s1600/IMG_0327.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo9rtYFrUp6FG8qRjeZJTBm7H0Lhpi9Io-Q0oPMqySGMnALTsPJHxvrSp2tmqD13tr_2K0o2JpsVxffva7k_JIWDm-bmfxmlMXj_LXo1-Qbr2MQxLaHKeE5jqInfIK7kaiEHgBUU0ufx4/s320/IMG_0327.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Brother Cary, sister Kaylin and her boyfriend Scott having dinner at Das Ethiopian.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJesE4MXmhh0nHsoJp9GK7bopZ_jLsps_P2vDWO_iZ0FSr0pLy4JXpZQGBEXniw_ABjVQRAebmjF4ZIRn2q9emNCiyS6HW1gRDqWvniilNa6eZ2MbbExei62BUURHFXQ5TD2T8ePxiyn0/s1600/IMG_0332.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJesE4MXmhh0nHsoJp9GK7bopZ_jLsps_P2vDWO_iZ0FSr0pLy4JXpZQGBEXniw_ABjVQRAebmjF4ZIRn2q9emNCiyS6HW1gRDqWvniilNa6eZ2MbbExei62BUURHFXQ5TD2T8ePxiyn0/s320/IMG_0332.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We don't like to just walk down the streets - it's not our way. Besides - red bricks are hot lava.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjYNY1GBtDtAYwjHCJDBaVqq3f96RCyv97oHpgipsm-oxCFwy4ckrorIYMVRfbNPRl-mPVWRoMktkaojKvdIgF6-qypr5Nj7RZ_dL2s8akwdAiJZEb6xiyC8Oe8fP7s_Fy5idV-wbpQaQ/s1600/IMG_0338.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjYNY1GBtDtAYwjHCJDBaVqq3f96RCyv97oHpgipsm-oxCFwy4ckrorIYMVRfbNPRl-mPVWRoMktkaojKvdIgF6-qypr5Nj7RZ_dL2s8akwdAiJZEb6xiyC8Oe8fP7s_Fy5idV-wbpQaQ/s320/IMG_0338.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Sorry Cary!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong>Costa Rica</strong></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYmtzzw5wY7k4yu2I60X0e783fnJtYQZ1HX4ZjF0V-soMQPe_K4tlhio7aWJ3d_q1okULN9-Qy-_8ASgoDONDGknzj3n0R53RxrV0weqhwSCFysmEuJ1BaZe0sOTdTE4p0y5gVp93Qbpg/s1600/IMG_0345.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYmtzzw5wY7k4yu2I60X0e783fnJtYQZ1HX4ZjF0V-soMQPe_K4tlhio7aWJ3d_q1okULN9-Qy-_8ASgoDONDGknzj3n0R53RxrV0weqhwSCFysmEuJ1BaZe0sOTdTE4p0y5gVp93Qbpg/s320/IMG_0345.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Waiting for our taxi at 3 am to take us to DC airport - Costa Rica bound!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegfsGMu4kSeh8axq3yxqrwEa-pQY2toaBQGedn-uI4VPe-KhOppJkxtZoJjjkpPD73Wx7msO9bA-jRC5pFTqpIzfmmlO7nd-G2y3illz_dHfEJZhQd9Qz4hCido0KcNeAFng9Ao4xV5Y/s1600/IMG_0376.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegfsGMu4kSeh8axq3yxqrwEa-pQY2toaBQGedn-uI4VPe-KhOppJkxtZoJjjkpPD73Wx7msO9bA-jRC5pFTqpIzfmmlO7nd-G2y3illz_dHfEJZhQd9Qz4hCido0KcNeAFng9Ao4xV5Y/s320/IMG_0376.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Ao8S6jFww0aNmbue79tCfoDd_LiJlx3Sb2IiJ1oVrWkkoVjzXTXGjKHg0hxsHK96b7mFo9LappbIX70AInb4C3Fs0IXbffrMv9Es7mXwV5A1cv0lVGca9ElaMiXYwygo2Wq1f8uSumk/s1600/IMG_0389.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Ao8S6jFww0aNmbue79tCfoDd_LiJlx3Sb2IiJ1oVrWkkoVjzXTXGjKHg0hxsHK96b7mFo9LappbIX70AInb4C3Fs0IXbffrMv9Es7mXwV5A1cv0lVGca9ElaMiXYwygo2Wq1f8uSumk/s320/IMG_0389.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">These guys were everywhere!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbwUbsXMJoYBlkinVwRkCXv7NvtRJMUHoVIa7ho-J9pQdReCZgmrvW32dHLe2ZoLVl2YNp8kkLUHIeYVRHVvZzF9W6EfsqckyoJd4-PmQeC3rSjFCcvfiQfYOz3UP3ENvPWks4QfI9bCc/s1600/IMG_0399.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbwUbsXMJoYBlkinVwRkCXv7NvtRJMUHoVIa7ho-J9pQdReCZgmrvW32dHLe2ZoLVl2YNp8kkLUHIeYVRHVvZzF9W6EfsqckyoJd4-PmQeC3rSjFCcvfiQfYOz3UP3ENvPWks4QfI9bCc/s320/IMG_0399.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhzDpo68H66gfJqZrTUsluGwpT0whVdAtBEm9l9Exd43yeG9Bicx2fC20Q53ARxPAViBgyZ4DlxILwEq9S_vUhHtIjs99UI7wA2-VvTqMyV85jU5vJgsbk1DcEQ80-pQOsnhjQKNRLal0/s1600/IMG_0490.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhzDpo68H66gfJqZrTUsluGwpT0whVdAtBEm9l9Exd43yeG9Bicx2fC20Q53ARxPAViBgyZ4DlxILwEq9S_vUhHtIjs99UI7wA2-VvTqMyV85jU5vJgsbk1DcEQ80-pQOsnhjQKNRLal0/s320/IMG_0490.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In honor of Mother's Day in Costa Rica I was given a glass of Baileys and chocolate cake!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIddHuWptVEhSlzSe7BqEpmpeQr-y-UwCPzik9MiALL7m4vDljyYa6egtTfo8Qy4YulzLyY0B1ZW0LFvx7aNMYsB-ANwLHAs7fhhQggvynkLwmTw_-UInTXOAEJZxk3koH7jL12fmLPTs/s1600/IMG_0509.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIddHuWptVEhSlzSe7BqEpmpeQr-y-UwCPzik9MiALL7m4vDljyYa6egtTfo8Qy4YulzLyY0B1ZW0LFvx7aNMYsB-ANwLHAs7fhhQggvynkLwmTw_-UInTXOAEJZxk3koH7jL12fmLPTs/s320/IMG_0509.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Had breakfast with this guy.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZmzvwK0aQ0Y7kNBbMwsv6GaVXj-F2ePjRZBscVKBal8p6G350QSGmvYbCBFCgTMOsmhrcO9-bFZ7ibt_9JP_5Vc5nmrM98Ijy8kM60eIMiahse1b5llMMLtirfa_IqhdeKz654c7L2DQ/s1600/IMG_0576.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZmzvwK0aQ0Y7kNBbMwsv6GaVXj-F2ePjRZBscVKBal8p6G350QSGmvYbCBFCgTMOsmhrcO9-bFZ7ibt_9JP_5Vc5nmrM98Ijy8kM60eIMiahse1b5llMMLtirfa_IqhdeKz654c7L2DQ/s320/IMG_0576.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Ziplining. Took about 10 years off my mommy heart watching my baby fly through the forest.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBUA8r2KI8qCbio3CtAjWU3v9vOdO9_2-3wXvnI4csafxtHaWH6H43oo31s8DafMk_YVVvZyklPLjR1Xq-flts8UV1ehxbZhmHrXuI916581UCsX33NpN-X6Yv5XwNDVgtTfwYjuBXmb4/s1600/IMG_0582.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBUA8r2KI8qCbio3CtAjWU3v9vOdO9_2-3wXvnI4csafxtHaWH6H43oo31s8DafMk_YVVvZyklPLjR1Xq-flts8UV1ehxbZhmHrXuI916581UCsX33NpN-X6Yv5XwNDVgtTfwYjuBXmb4/s320/IMG_0582.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ8Dod7PXCWKrCXNEhkYVrga50uQjBP5-E5ClVxijkhgcCU5Cw0PnIV1rpO6sl6dDsFSQ6yopclAXF6jUWTJut6OmlyKpLzyXR3zgclxBo8J-QaLHsIE2IYVQhvTx-0qzukVJPejSQ_ZU/s1600/IMG_0593.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ8Dod7PXCWKrCXNEhkYVrga50uQjBP5-E5ClVxijkhgcCU5Cw0PnIV1rpO6sl6dDsFSQ6yopclAXF6jUWTJut6OmlyKpLzyXR3zgclxBo8J-QaLHsIE2IYVQhvTx-0qzukVJPejSQ_ZU/s320/IMG_0593.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsCPYM5qlP7sRQW86MJxO_e8HOu-hN0-m0bn3R-YWK_byP526VtYA1vfE44RA6GaysxjzXSjnn1WEp1QthNybsIN7rXH05joKiAzgnW9piur38RddKnMz4aqElPWnS1AZvGp32WgBG6zw/s1600/IMG_0630.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsCPYM5qlP7sRQW86MJxO_e8HOu-hN0-m0bn3R-YWK_byP526VtYA1vfE44RA6GaysxjzXSjnn1WEp1QthNybsIN7rXH05joKiAzgnW9piur38RddKnMz4aqElPWnS1AZvGp32WgBG6zw/s320/IMG_0630.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Ceviche everyday - the best!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMmnQUZ4iwN_ZEoyaRkMr9keVyb-cQ4pRa4WCMyLLE-sfeW-Ri0pBwgayeYJ2bmKiMyTVfKe803EO2rfU5VxPaQw6dRqyxc3SqqU9yts4keAw9KfZKmEgOejRev6W3Q2Kb4Ghv8SFTOvw/s1600/IMG_0646.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMmnQUZ4iwN_ZEoyaRkMr9keVyb-cQ4pRa4WCMyLLE-sfeW-Ri0pBwgayeYJ2bmKiMyTVfKe803EO2rfU5VxPaQw6dRqyxc3SqqU9yts4keAw9KfZKmEgOejRev6W3Q2Kb4Ghv8SFTOvw/s320/IMG_0646.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_VuW0QJ73gfst7kfVk1fuka87cl0Uhz2NRt98s-rHO6wTd25n6pPNJ3KrV6tHe_hmVEjxVIiW8hBQQiXAwU9Bu-xNe9NwGRPZKoPft1M54yhwrVqYlAN6_GVmT9aQMXm2UAHCxLG25QM/s1600/IMG_0658.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_VuW0QJ73gfst7kfVk1fuka87cl0Uhz2NRt98s-rHO6wTd25n6pPNJ3KrV6tHe_hmVEjxVIiW8hBQQiXAwU9Bu-xNe9NwGRPZKoPft1M54yhwrVqYlAN6_GVmT9aQMXm2UAHCxLG25QM/s320/IMG_0658.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Pacific Ocean - so beautiful.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioZ7Dik4jL9G_f5WsIng3bCHrhCXKR5NnYWXbyxm4BcMS8_s0nSEP2DTFzDh1rezKYQtosGUnjOe-4xbry_5b7ORPgsZutu1DRqCLSz1omroDw6WNwFYcZROcNCeJTRG0EO8YSp4wh_XM/s1600/IMG_0742.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioZ7Dik4jL9G_f5WsIng3bCHrhCXKR5NnYWXbyxm4BcMS8_s0nSEP2DTFzDh1rezKYQtosGUnjOe-4xbry_5b7ORPgsZutu1DRqCLSz1omroDw6WNwFYcZROcNCeJTRG0EO8YSp4wh_XM/s320/IMG_0742.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Crocodiles on the riverboat tour.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKa0KFxD4X08GTKZTWsOQ-KgDutqrczcnh4DOHhTuZrLmYGM4kRj17L_dpWujsFTnGbKX7mSl3PLomQ73yjbuB5NziHnM4g2RNJDLTC54VzULdaHzwlY1Ny0tFbPWTU9_LIFaxKII54-Q/s1600/IMG_0775.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKa0KFxD4X08GTKZTWsOQ-KgDutqrczcnh4DOHhTuZrLmYGM4kRj17L_dpWujsFTnGbKX7mSl3PLomQ73yjbuB5NziHnM4g2RNJDLTC54VzULdaHzwlY1Ny0tFbPWTU9_LIFaxKII54-Q/s320/IMG_0775.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">White faced monkeys.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIuXJ03iYqF0twOlw96_7981tRY6qt-8FLyE4QksjADlvW232TygbfEEmnrvFpc0zBCQqyhwJbvlSb-3a7u0RAUUMhzAYiwPOb_FkYwkFqRgpvrVV1zY4HGly-HgzX672k9GzMkMuiEBg/s1600/IMG_0799.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIuXJ03iYqF0twOlw96_7981tRY6qt-8FLyE4QksjADlvW232TygbfEEmnrvFpc0zBCQqyhwJbvlSb-3a7u0RAUUMhzAYiwPOb_FkYwkFqRgpvrVV1zY4HGly-HgzX672k9GzMkMuiEBg/s320/IMG_0799.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This was not Koen's favorite. He found it boring looking for wild monkeys.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRZPxLwK12o3k0ez_5v43QCUi1rbPMTn69JhEDJYQUin3DQHMmoXJqoWCUPOOd3ZlFdpg9IDvNxGI2mmhTtR5gaFGX4-J4u69kRB5sOaLiRYMhC_Yf3HaIIEaxHg16__pfCKw7-GsOt8o/s1600/IMG_0822.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRZPxLwK12o3k0ez_5v43QCUi1rbPMTn69JhEDJYQUin3DQHMmoXJqoWCUPOOd3ZlFdpg9IDvNxGI2mmhTtR5gaFGX4-J4u69kRB5sOaLiRYMhC_Yf3HaIIEaxHg16__pfCKw7-GsOt8o/s320/IMG_0822.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Juice break!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6xv4hXmf1cvYHcD3yVzt9Ke6LOruofitY0qM484Xgokvdh3WAZmRpZQXWU-tFue4x7X8G9duyUNbw-HUKjMHBOZ5Z8AULc6xz-7XozZKEnzqLPdHYQu623pTvkA1uaRy_HQBn-aRdRrU/s1600/IMG_0854.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6xv4hXmf1cvYHcD3yVzt9Ke6LOruofitY0qM484Xgokvdh3WAZmRpZQXWU-tFue4x7X8G9duyUNbw-HUKjMHBOZ5Z8AULc6xz-7XozZKEnzqLPdHYQu623pTvkA1uaRy_HQBn-aRdRrU/s320/IMG_0854.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Dinner on the beach. They put that beautiful flower in my hair.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimxw99ue2G8QfS0LEhrwPtjd2w_ZYfJWmeerSkzNcddDEqw-sJ72uuxsLEPp6-BxcODgXXGexuroiAfdCHwTVqVtThhxTJXfdGn09Db5VE9O8e2BBVBTZ8Fqz8zXanMc8yABQpYjvpLqg/s1600/IMG_0872.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimxw99ue2G8QfS0LEhrwPtjd2w_ZYfJWmeerSkzNcddDEqw-sJ72uuxsLEPp6-BxcODgXXGexuroiAfdCHwTVqVtThhxTJXfdGn09Db5VE9O8e2BBVBTZ8Fqz8zXanMc8yABQpYjvpLqg/s320/IMG_0872.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">ATVs on the beaches and trails. So beautiful.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZq2mSh_5UvpiW4EYSSzhbogHuqjQHGIA9AjQKxuQxcXS10m9zQviEsBwLToeaENY-Xx_rjA__wsV5kXqkUVYXAr9m7z1wysycyNs-vhyPOKza1VUAxxim9Ad2WVlyo_6WZOimmnvWhkw/s1600/IMG_0911.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZq2mSh_5UvpiW4EYSSzhbogHuqjQHGIA9AjQKxuQxcXS10m9zQviEsBwLToeaENY-Xx_rjA__wsV5kXqkUVYXAr9m7z1wysycyNs-vhyPOKza1VUAxxim9Ad2WVlyo_6WZOimmnvWhkw/s320/IMG_0911.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Time to go home. We'll be back Costa Rica!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><strong>Just Hanging Around</strong></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYxJFVV2IjzSTivMq3IUOe_5Twbo7SMJKcrYEK3hh-WeyFN5pD2oVBecRNgm5bK3hbFqXOPKWSJW_oDgLXNwbbtptgqBwCYw6JZVQm5N8KArMBhGrpX6medJD8GUJT8Uk2oyH1P44mpjc/s1600/IMG_9709.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYxJFVV2IjzSTivMq3IUOe_5Twbo7SMJKcrYEK3hh-WeyFN5pD2oVBecRNgm5bK3hbFqXOPKWSJW_oDgLXNwbbtptgqBwCYw6JZVQm5N8KArMBhGrpX6medJD8GUJT8Uk2oyH1P44mpjc/s320/IMG_9709.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>We had a wonderfully busy summer. We are blessed. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjas52p9ZSBWUqkbeTrQgqaRrplCmp4jAKmNFL18JmG2gINTpHGQh1v12ATcUzzYi2Q0e5ZXWVOUNwQtRX8LWroiPTOcxRsRq_w8RnBI7PZdNrhjEd922jSYGyCELsdtWvHy7mSPQHyv8s/s1600/IMG_8306.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjas52p9ZSBWUqkbeTrQgqaRrplCmp4jAKmNFL18JmG2gINTpHGQh1v12ATcUzzYi2Q0e5ZXWVOUNwQtRX8LWroiPTOcxRsRq_w8RnBI7PZdNrhjEd922jSYGyCELsdtWvHy7mSPQHyv8s/s320/IMG_8306.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Another blessing - Frank's Aunt Jean. Holocaust survivor, daughter, sister, aunt, cousin, teacher, loved by so many. Aunt Jean passed this summer at age 93. We keep her in our memories, celebrate her life, and miss her.</div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-24989890600852908352011-08-22T11:21:00.001-04:002011-08-22T11:34:11.179-04:00Our Referral CallI can't believe it has been a month since our referral call! I love, love, love having her pictures everywhere, staring at her, daydreaming about the day we will meet. Love it.<br />
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We waited one year, two months and 4 weeks for our referral. I'm laughing as I type this because the wait just seems so crazy! During our phone interview at the beginning of this adoption process we were told the average wait at the time was 4 months for our age range. I never imagined all the changes that would take place over the next 15 months.<br />
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At this point in our wait every day I would say to myself "this is the day" and I'd also say "this is not the day - it's never the day". I was in this emotional tug of war with myself; wanting to be excited to get the call but not wanting to be excited so I wouldn't be so devastated at the end of the day when the call didn't come. I did this tug of war for about two months. I stopped obsessing over my cell phone. I stopped charging the camcorder. I stopped carrying my laptop with me just in case I would have to go to the hospital to meet Frank. I wanted to talk to people about how I was feeling but I didn't want to talk about it. I was moving forward day to day but trapped inside this wait.<br />
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Wednesday morning, July 20, was like most other mornings. I kissed Frank on his way out. Read blogs over coffee. I got dressed for the gym. Koen and I had breakfast and watched cartoons. I never made it to the gym and it was almost time for lunch and Koen was still in his pjs. We just couldn't get ourselves ready for the day.<br />
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At 12:15 pm my cell phone rings. I casually stroll over to pick it up NEVER expecting it to be the call. And I see 817. Poor Natalie. I don't even think she got to say hello. I screamed at her "Is this it!" "Is this the call?" And when I say screamed I mean screamed. My excitement was uncontrollable. Jumping, screaming, crying. I could not believe it. I look back at my phone log and see I was on the call for over 2 minutes with Natalie which means she listened to me scream "oh my gosh" for about 2 minutes. I remember hearing her laugh. I asked her 2 questions amidst all the screaming: when can Frank and I call you back? and how old is she?<br />
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I really had a hard time collecting myself. I had to call Frank! I had to get dressed! I had to get the camcorder! I had to get Koen dressed! But I couldn't stop screaming and jumping up and down, and crying, thanking God over and over. Koen was so excited too. He kept saying "we're so proud right mommy?" So stinking sweet.<br />
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I called Frank. Voice mail - No! I called back - voice mail again! I paged him 911. Koen and I ran upstairs to get dressed. I grabbed my cell and house phone and called my best friend Karen - voice mail! I was losing my mind. She called me right back. I screamed at her we were getting the call and I needed to get dressed but couldn't do it. I must have been a crazy site. Frank calls back and I scream some more - he has to come home right now and I tell him our little girl is 19 months old. He screams back "I'm coming!" Thankfully, it was his half day. He was supposed to be heading to a dentist appointment so in the middle of all this excitement I had to find the phone number for the dentist and scream at them that he's not coming because we are "getting the call!" I'm sure they thought I was a crazy person. <br />
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I finally managed to get myself and Koen dressed, find the camcorder and set it up, and wait for Frank to get home. This all happened in about 13 minutes. A wonderful, crazy 13 minutes. One might equate my excitement with someone who just won a 246 billion dollar lottery, but it was so much better than that. I was about to see my little girl and this moment was priceless; a moment I was only able to dream about until now.<br />
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As soon as Frank got home I called Natalie and got her voice mail - NO! A little more screaming. She called back within a few minutes and we were ready. I kept hitting the refresh button willing her email to come through quickly.<br />
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The most beautiful face filled the computer screen. Tears flowed. In that instant the grueling 15 month wait disappeared, like it never even happened. We had 25 beautiful pictures of our little girl. When we heard her name for the first time we loved it. When we heard the meaning of her name we cried. Redemption. <br />
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This little girl was chosen for us and us for her. Of this I have no doubt. The day our daughter Sophia was born still, already an angel in heaven, my pastor cried with me and told me I may never understand why but I needed to accept that this was God's plan for her. His plan for me - 2 years and 10 months later - a beautiful little girl half way around the world. A little girl whose name means rebirth, rescue, atonement. Tears. Big tears. <br />
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Natalie asked if we would like more time to look over all the detailed paperwork. No! We accepted the referral right then. We knew what we needed to know. We were meant to be.<br />
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We spent the next few hours calling everyone we knew to share the best news ever. We ran to Target to print out all her pictures and buy brag books to place them in; so excited to show off the newest Politzer. We celebrated with dinner at Addissu - our favorite Ethiopian restaurant.<br />
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So a month later and we are staring at her pictures, daydreaming about the day we will meet her. She is already so much a part of our lives. Koen asks almost every day "can we go get little sister today?" Soon. I hope soon.<br />
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I hope to share the video we took receiving our referral. I am not sure how to upload a video and I need to mute a few things you can hear Natalie say about little B. It's a must-see video. I look like a mess, lots of tears, Koen is all over the place, a definite must-see :)<br />
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Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-17020777522809192262011-07-20T13:54:00.000-04:002011-07-20T13:54:49.211-04:00I Saw Her Brown Eyes!We got the call!!<br />
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She is beautiful - absolutely beautiful. She is 19 months old. We'll call her B until the day we can share her with the world.<br />
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I just can't find the words for anything right now! I'll share more later when I'm finished pinching myself!Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-77788705616292088342011-07-18T08:13:00.000-04:002011-07-18T08:13:19.990-04:00How Cute Is He?We have been keeping super busy lately and I have tons of pictures and stories to share but short on time to put it all together. But I just HAD to share this picture now. <br />
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How cute is he? I love this little bug so much I can hardly stand it - I mean the kind of love where you can feel your heart swell - the kind of love that you can't even find the words to describe.<br />
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</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Stinking cute right?Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-80478125581525324992011-07-06T19:37:00.000-04:002011-07-06T19:37:59.604-04:00Fourteen Months and Two WeeksThat's right - I am now doing the "month" and the "month and two weeks" posts. Cause I'm losing my mind.<br />
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We are officially unofficially the longest waiting family now. I can't say I'm surprised. Ever since we got on the wait list we have met every monthly average wait and then exceeded it. Last month the average wait was 14 months with the longest waiting family waiting 14 months. Today we have been waiting 14 months and 2 weeks.<br />
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Our immigration approval expires in 90 days. So now we need to file for an extension which means we will need a third home study. We also need third physicals and third clearances, and if we don't have little sister home by March we will need to be fingerprinted a third time for CIS.<br />
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Seriously, seriously bummed.<br />
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This is just a little boo-hoo post. We had a great Fourth of July weekend filled with parades, picnics, pool fun and friends that I'll post pictures of later. Today I'm feeling boo-hooish.Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-74063484419473532332011-06-28T09:13:00.000-04:002011-06-28T09:13:58.487-04:00Cape MayI love Cape May, love it. I dream about having a home there one day. <br />
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Before Koen, Frank and I would stay at a different B&B each time we visited. Beautiful old Victorian homes line the streets. Now we stay at B&B-like hotels with Koen; we get the bed but not the breakfast :(<br />
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</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>We bought a body surfboard for Koen to use at the beach. I don't think the handle attached to the board is for parents to pull their children but it was lots of fun this way. <br />
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We play mini golf at every mini golf place we pass.<br />
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You really don't want to be the family mini golfing behind us because we stop to take pictures, smooch, take mulligans, and dig in the bushes for our balls. We need to brush up on our mini golf etiquette. (Seriously almost peed my pants laughing watching my boys hunt for daddy's golf ball.)<br />
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We always make the trip to the Cape May Zoo. <br />
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Who wore it best?<br />
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Koen stalked this gentleman hunting for "treasure" on the beach.<br />
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The man was nice enough to give Koen his "treasure".<br />
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In the heart of Capy May is the Washington Street Mall; 3 blocks of brick-lined streets with boutiques carrying everything from clothing and fine art to surfboards and toys. Most of the restaurants at the Mall have outside dining - love that. And the best ice cream. We love our ice cream.<br />
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It was here in Cape May almost 2 years ago that we ran into a couple that just adopted from Ethiopia and when we applied to Gladney after returning from our walk at the Mall.<br />
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The Washington Street Mall is also lined with benches. My goddaughter's memorial bench is one of them. Marissa was a beautiful 19 year old young woman who died after having her tonsils removed. I sat here and remembered the day my friend Pati told me she was pregnant with Marissa - it was the day I gave birth to my first son Jamie. We have been friends since 8th grade. We had our first babies 8 months apart. We both have daughters in heaven. Marissa loved Capy May too.<br />
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We spent our last day in Cape May on the beach. We splurged and had lunch delivered to us so we could have a beach picnic. So fun!<br />
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Did I mention I love Cape May? Love it!Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-72472386748707220612011-06-23T07:50:00.000-04:002011-06-23T07:50:21.453-04:00Fourteen MonthsSeems so crazy to be posting about it being 14 months waiting for a referral. I don't think anyone wants to hear about how I'm feeling - I can barely stand listening to myself. At 7 months I was all "yay!" Seven months later I'm looking all over for my "yay" and I can't find it.Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-8592639763452486802011-06-10T16:28:00.000-04:002011-06-10T16:28:16.923-04:0013 Months, 2 Weeks and 5 DaysThat's how long we have been waiting for a referral. It's 4:15 pm on Friday and my cell phone did not ring and I'm doubting that it will in the next hour before Gladney closes for the weekend. Looks like we met one more "average wait".<br />
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Feeling sad today.Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6090991479855405088.post-1359550491984116222011-06-09T08:50:00.011-04:002011-06-09T11:14:46.609-04:00Busy Days of MayMay was crazy busy for our family!<br />
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We celebrated Frank's 60th birthday! I know! 60! Everyone who wished him a happy birthday heard him say "60's the new 40!" I wonder if that makes 40 the new 20?<br />
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I always make my secret recipe, dark chocolate cake with dark chocolate icing, birthday cake for all family birthdays. Yum. Couldn't find regular birthday candles so, yes, what you see there are hannukah candles.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioQ6nuwml1jtvpbsKSPDhSad0enoo26SLXkfu3fl9SyaWa7PSAc6jVAKYdWplHRlViQ_NIYdMZkAIdeVOyKrh6ioORZB_w-wvRfgctB6VeFFKzpI_Ak0tyFojAu73ZQS9a1A4vHkc4qpM/s1600/IMG_8974.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616214320833409986" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioQ6nuwml1jtvpbsKSPDhSad0enoo26SLXkfu3fl9SyaWa7PSAc6jVAKYdWplHRlViQ_NIYdMZkAIdeVOyKrh6ioORZB_w-wvRfgctB6VeFFKzpI_Ak0tyFojAu73ZQS9a1A4vHkc4qpM/s320/IMG_8974.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a>There was a big party and Frank's cousins even came from Argentina to celebrate. I'm sure there must be pictures somewhere of that day!<br />
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<div align="center">**********</div><br />
<div align="left">It's a boy! We adopted this sweet little guy. He came all the way from Tennessee. He was rescued from a puppy mill and he is guessed to be about 14 months old. He is very sweet and is learning to trust us as we smother him with love.<br />
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<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsHoUgX5cXToeqJzzIXYQwfyqXG6HV_ok4Tfy8gW4iOupW9tMw52w6alg29f6-Gmxe9z7vAksFArvXM-kqCKVWiiGDVKyGbJNJqfGfQGr-ukMHVUAOZ9yLREmivbpkA6Mxz9liIBI_mVE/s1600/IMG_9041.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616214313391127682" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsHoUgX5cXToeqJzzIXYQwfyqXG6HV_ok4Tfy8gW4iOupW9tMw52w6alg29f6-Gmxe9z7vAksFArvXM-kqCKVWiiGDVKyGbJNJqfGfQGr-ukMHVUAOZ9yLREmivbpkA6Mxz9liIBI_mVE/s320/IMG_9041.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 240px;" /></a><br />
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<div align="left">We decorated our scooter and walked in our first parade ever! Memorial Day and it was HOT!</div><br />
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<div align="left"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLoIwIITgG3yyEbdCTF3JKH-ycTHmEtMTmAk1uB3TZqAhS3nU3icXOlGbbSDVgdk8H6S8Bdk9A3QahjRpDJau4zIM3gGt4fZoAAe3JMcg_5zZZhkzwhk6S4l-vOPxJ-99mkxPS4YnLg1o/s1600/IMG_9082.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616214304081771794" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLoIwIITgG3yyEbdCTF3JKH-ycTHmEtMTmAk1uB3TZqAhS3nU3icXOlGbbSDVgdk8H6S8Bdk9A3QahjRpDJau4zIM3gGt4fZoAAe3JMcg_5zZZhkzwhk6S4l-vOPxJ-99mkxPS4YnLg1o/s320/IMG_9082.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a>How cute is he? And how about that scooter we (I) decorated?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9PC7WA4PliupW8cqxl98a-v8fsoohMURIkuu2W4NCGubAjIVv5hrv_cRmo53pIMrbXQPFx0ozFazE4McULUAMM6q1lfgJYrNYGSUCLFJcDt4ErpIuMtPn296B61duVhPW_opyqJyKW3k/s1600/IMG_9091.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616213060099105650" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9PC7WA4PliupW8cqxl98a-v8fsoohMURIkuu2W4NCGubAjIVv5hrv_cRmo53pIMrbXQPFx0ozFazE4McULUAMM6q1lfgJYrNYGSUCLFJcDt4ErpIuMtPn296B61duVhPW_opyqJyKW3k/s320/IMG_9091.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 240px;" /></a><br />
Ok, so one of us walked in the parade and the other thoroughly enjoyed being chauffeured around with the task of throwing candy at anyone who waved, which was everyone of course. We were out of candy at the end of the first block.<br />
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<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglkmt0vCiLoClRvlSFKs3Sjc7RvbHy4_XBMh09oDz3JYPbapwMjhwnsu4UiCptDls3bvmxK-jhjrfQimZb8o-Kx5lTCwpCHY3lf9hBdNHST7w3940LLDXvVS_gH8d6B7p_luyXjpn2pg4/s1600/IMG_9104.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616213048755506194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglkmt0vCiLoClRvlSFKs3Sjc7RvbHy4_XBMh09oDz3JYPbapwMjhwnsu4UiCptDls3bvmxK-jhjrfQimZb8o-Kx5lTCwpCHY3lf9hBdNHST7w3940LLDXvVS_gH8d6B7p_luyXjpn2pg4/s320/IMG_9104.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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We did have a few days that weren't so busy. My little snuggle bug was sick; fever and sore throat. So we hung out on the deck and snuggled in the shade. I love that he loves to be snuggled.<br />
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<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiebwGivHdXuLtl4aMDKNLbJMIqN65lH2fsUXtBzvYigp8BF6xS-ofNQ_48LA8UtpHShxM429YI-1HJghLglzD4y6MK59BWYWTBJV9MbEnaC6nPSDejwXuofYcGtGrRSOhdxirkVeSlchU/s1600/IMG_20110527_133116.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616213040249058338" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiebwGivHdXuLtl4aMDKNLbJMIqN65lH2fsUXtBzvYigp8BF6xS-ofNQ_48LA8UtpHShxM429YI-1HJghLglzD4y6MK59BWYWTBJV9MbEnaC6nPSDejwXuofYcGtGrRSOhdxirkVeSlchU/s320/IMG_20110527_133116.jpg" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 239px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<div align="left">Lou looks sad but I think he's happy. That's just his look. He might be a little sad cause he had to get his "hair did" (that's how the lady in Tennessee says it - cracks me up!). He loves him a little stuffed animal too. Dragged his bed over to the black stuffed dog and cuddled right up.</div><br />
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<div align="left"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwkB21mda2okQdMzMO1_TAnNRVO45y22IrXleYxbkehAREYXUJa_ZjoMSLh0M9c_TAhLhJPJD9uqMzmGsGSGAUiQGBi0WTtwYbyNGzzQG8G6iUHhjzKLciw6CEhzL1B-M287qzJ5EX10Q/s1600/IMG_9126.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616213030954858498" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwkB21mda2okQdMzMO1_TAnNRVO45y22IrXleYxbkehAREYXUJa_ZjoMSLh0M9c_TAhLhJPJD9uqMzmGsGSGAUiQGBi0WTtwYbyNGzzQG8G6iUHhjzKLciw6CEhzL1B-M287qzJ5EX10Q/s320/IMG_9126.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a>We're teaching him to read. We like our dogs smart.<br />
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<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB-ze9MMJMwtlIpRzhFhjT2lWdKs4Alrbcxonm3qCh3ouSNJScNeMDhyK8Cm6TQKyBd37C_NizVxYf1rJKLxhvDuBKz6HfXFfG82VxFR0ZDKjrDwWnbkTv96hMJ8UDoMefnESDuRST0ik/s1600/IMG_9129.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616213026809887426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB-ze9MMJMwtlIpRzhFhjT2lWdKs4Alrbcxonm3qCh3ouSNJScNeMDhyK8Cm6TQKyBd37C_NizVxYf1rJKLxhvDuBKz6HfXFfG82VxFR0ZDKjrDwWnbkTv96hMJ8UDoMefnESDuRST0ik/s320/IMG_9129.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<div align="left">We took a trip to Connecticut for a best friend's wedding. It was a lovely ceremony in their back yard. Isn't it great how weddings have you gazing all starry-eyed at your spouse taking you back to your own special day.</div><br />
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<div align="left"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhunCW4dnBeeohcKXMzoRN_tBXRSA8a7tW42OFlOpJ73yVYhhjzdspKhc8k9ac18VCUQJh-fNkt8mJ0vn0Zv_22pb7akLXKEr17SfQVBLE9jq2Je9xfRTcdeWmQ2yuj4xAdWMDkjaAJ48g/s1600/IMG_9144.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616212047148942114" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhunCW4dnBeeohcKXMzoRN_tBXRSA8a7tW42OFlOpJ73yVYhhjzdspKhc8k9ac18VCUQJh-fNkt8mJ0vn0Zv_22pb7akLXKEr17SfQVBLE9jq2Je9xfRTcdeWmQ2yuj4xAdWMDkjaAJ48g/s320/IMG_9144.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a></div><br />
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<div align="left"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsxIPvyEMjIrm13LbptFdyqiMN_Qi9dA3seh_5nc_5FZ8RnJtQOlo7SLSkkeyGtMmmiT7YAgMiJpIgDE5GFyBNhhkk9QnxTEv13EKQFGgvAGIxmNy1xpOzGq4yo6zSM8IzC70sB_eQ2KY/s1600/IMG_9146.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616212039861330322" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsxIPvyEMjIrm13LbptFdyqiMN_Qi9dA3seh_5nc_5FZ8RnJtQOlo7SLSkkeyGtMmmiT7YAgMiJpIgDE5GFyBNhhkk9QnxTEv13EKQFGgvAGIxmNy1xpOzGq4yo6zSM8IzC70sB_eQ2KY/s320/IMG_9146.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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The happy couple!</div><br />
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<div align="left"><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4oQMVw5WbXFgICEcF_Unwz-GfacTkgtXuEq_iU65D7yA_oVWtYjqiVY67zSSnLFcp0m14d8lUCwVCBb6vBWspBh1V8Ab6a1Hm41CrtQW1EVXGyko-yD3RJq8prOMCPtHDy4H3Z2cjQOI/s1600/IMG_9170.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616212027492074274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4oQMVw5WbXFgICEcF_Unwz-GfacTkgtXuEq_iU65D7yA_oVWtYjqiVY67zSSnLFcp0m14d8lUCwVCBb6vBWspBh1V8Ab6a1Hm41CrtQW1EVXGyko-yD3RJq8prOMCPtHDy4H3Z2cjQOI/s320/IMG_9170.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<div align="left">The Dinosaur Place. Life size dinosaurs around every turn at this great park in Oakdale, CT! Wish we had something like this back home.</div><br />
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<div align="left"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFpplI-EudsBt5Xh0cQsLGGVqka-x-ppXUQE6nkta_aYB-9pY5RssRiXX5LdQoW6q2ZI8OL8Ct9JXvgnhH7qwdP_T0wI964ojCRLpoSXqdLpeUd6i7Qa14okx_HSB7G05_T4dnI4eLKws/s1600/IMG_9232.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616212025155206482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFpplI-EudsBt5Xh0cQsLGGVqka-x-ppXUQE6nkta_aYB-9pY5RssRiXX5LdQoW6q2ZI8OL8Ct9JXvgnhH7qwdP_T0wI964ojCRLpoSXqdLpeUd6i7Qa14okx_HSB7G05_T4dnI4eLKws/s320/IMG_9232.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 240px;" /></a><br />
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<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHrxYq_ki5HCUdQNwbBD1Aa-cTNvu1t2eFeXu8L2uZAUcirhVZq4MKYfkukujxp4eYDEqBkQzJuomvNOq_gEB-HojMDhfqmAjX03K9_VGQqCfVlD_iEEtRR5go-J-ZQFmsJigTrnGrNvA/s1600/IMG_9242.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616212013688191650" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHrxYq_ki5HCUdQNwbBD1Aa-cTNvu1t2eFeXu8L2uZAUcirhVZq4MKYfkukujxp4eYDEqBkQzJuomvNOq_gEB-HojMDhfqmAjX03K9_VGQqCfVlD_iEEtRR5go-J-ZQFmsJigTrnGrNvA/s320/IMG_9242.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a> If there was one sign there was a hundred that stated "Please do not climb on the dinosaurs".<br />
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<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiqD90ufaGm6HfT0XxXMx8a7kSnFxbMZeKvK6JD-S7bKPlH84U-ywSEdaupE1YlBiO1pudazv-nktFlcKqWTioE-Y8I-E-nnIUp2RKG-sxitUFSOMMg1wbCb855DwvKHkHVpQKdLGYI0U/s1600/IMG_9249.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616211028874034626" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiqD90ufaGm6HfT0XxXMx8a7kSnFxbMZeKvK6JD-S7bKPlH84U-ywSEdaupE1YlBiO1pudazv-nktFlcKqWTioE-Y8I-E-nnIUp2RKG-sxitUFSOMMg1wbCb855DwvKHkHVpQKdLGYI0U/s320/IMG_9249.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8SJfyJW8q8AysdPLnLcfVLooO4tmck4qodft7G24lxy6PTmzcOhVMK7XBR0W9yphVFetoj3X0Wt2RbB0m0nFOQBwMMpjqv2mU1uIAXs_WiMGHs9WR5XmVksJXIS9FTaF1jZlmkG_7cmY/s1600/IMG_9264.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616211016663972194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8SJfyJW8q8AysdPLnLcfVLooO4tmck4qodft7G24lxy6PTmzcOhVMK7XBR0W9yphVFetoj3X0Wt2RbB0m0nFOQBwMMpjqv2mU1uIAXs_WiMGHs9WR5XmVksJXIS9FTaF1jZlmkG_7cmY/s320/IMG_9264.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 240px;" /></a><br />
The dinosaur gift shop had this great little corner with a sliver of sunshine peeking in; perfect spot for reading a good book.</div><br />
<div align="center"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616211005463204850" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA2vrkhUXlWMfK7ycL81IDSKYkeBA1TD2uJRQftdwk9loBTCjQBlL4lkNfOtE5Sn51W8kH5REny_9IOWIVxMBDkgOpuGZBcgEJyiTdB3Wp7AXRGvzwzEg4HASLTQafO1kJqFyAWoyWqA8/s320/IMG_9314.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /><br />
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<div align="left">We went to visit the USS Nautilus in Groton, CT. This submarine is anchored and opened to tour. I don't know how the crew lived and served in this capsule under water. I have a deeper appreciation.</div><br />
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<div align="left"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTjs3FmI_HM_tieXbshnE7VyKhbARUS_a3xuWvwfmVFxmUmo00JzUKYuRJgYW-EXwvdJWFsmbExUd6iG_wdztUkFhJS42cGhS645iocNozYRQFs1WosNkVb5aiyXNdsOjqnO6CsOEY1Oc/s1600/IMG_9323.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616210999713549826" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTjs3FmI_HM_tieXbshnE7VyKhbARUS_a3xuWvwfmVFxmUmo00JzUKYuRJgYW-EXwvdJWFsmbExUd6iG_wdztUkFhJS42cGhS645iocNozYRQFs1WosNkVb5aiyXNdsOjqnO6CsOEY1Oc/s320/IMG_9323.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
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<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLda4wPjEdfKrq-dMag8IUqXCmh-f0en4BvRSn4qhl_qfnK4i2PqfPh47r3r0HwzSLVQMFHu0x0eAEymzGpR8MQH0Jly7QKIJBkq1PuWRCeXDM4qEO9vgbnVJa0Gxe8zDDa7R_x8sRZ_A/s1600/IMG_9337.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616210993318614050" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLda4wPjEdfKrq-dMag8IUqXCmh-f0en4BvRSn4qhl_qfnK4i2PqfPh47r3r0HwzSLVQMFHu0x0eAEymzGpR8MQH0Jly7QKIJBkq1PuWRCeXDM4qEO9vgbnVJa0Gxe8zDDa7R_x8sRZ_A/s320/IMG_9337.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 240px;" /></a><br />
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<div align="left">Mystic, CT is a beautiful area. We only stayed long enough to enjoy a wonderful lunch by the river, watch the drawbridge open a few times for sailboats to float on by, and eat the best ice cream ever.</div><br />
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<div align="left"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnIFG_XW2EaYt3C9BkyYPsEB1ySxPBTuKYRrDkWpHIv7HuHNyvo5AeyingeYQQn_vlil852VyXvqlZmggl0STMSeBiPspk6SY0YhZ-SIWSCVtQlF1QF3SN2b9-jFQue00qpCwzaPE2Nls/s1600/IMG_9354.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616204319564265410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnIFG_XW2EaYt3C9BkyYPsEB1ySxPBTuKYRrDkWpHIv7HuHNyvo5AeyingeYQQn_vlil852VyXvqlZmggl0STMSeBiPspk6SY0YhZ-SIWSCVtQlF1QF3SN2b9-jFQue00qpCwzaPE2Nls/s320/IMG_9354.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5t8ygjBIQHiyMRXJmVWu2SShgtdaOsXLPxGEG5jYxxw7iZzX8uGTwAeWysA4m0SyfiZQbOow_hwMe9vGGaAxutMh5ATVumVW5U02ymU0rchjj-b0vWNy09Oas4OEkxGDSv7BgbPx76X4/s1600/IMG_9357.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616204309055540514" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5t8ygjBIQHiyMRXJmVWu2SShgtdaOsXLPxGEG5jYxxw7iZzX8uGTwAeWysA4m0SyfiZQbOow_hwMe9vGGaAxutMh5ATVumVW5U02ymU0rchjj-b0vWNy09Oas4OEkxGDSv7BgbPx76X4/s320/IMG_9357.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEP6bQgyJDp-pXMZyAPLGkL9t2x6HjSsB-1Zm3LNyn7IRwPWV_D3XEsL5RGix0sN5Cb4_TrCZ4c7kI_etHM4bkMmRbYWV84VptM4CSd4RATEsne6tx-vnkTA-0X8pWfQMpeIMr7BtugDo/s1600/IMG_9359.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616204254086227922" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEP6bQgyJDp-pXMZyAPLGkL9t2x6HjSsB-1Zm3LNyn7IRwPWV_D3XEsL5RGix0sN5Cb4_TrCZ4c7kI_etHM4bkMmRbYWV84VptM4CSd4RATEsne6tx-vnkTA-0X8pWfQMpeIMr7BtugDo/s320/IMG_9359.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a></div>Koen has this look of concern on his face because my chocolate ice cream has "stuff" in it and he doesn't want it touching his "stuffless" ice cream.<br />
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<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh52q0vpXRhmu0cXMT6bXvUtwf0_6HjsiJh0lwLRxaanCfguv7Be1lVJpXTokURdSSztGTocb0WO8cSOZoMf-UpeAKCi1DWzpZMVy87WlyAoSxXqv_zSOATs06wrALgAZWpnerf6Xk87YQ/s1600/IMG_9362.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616204245892932002" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh52q0vpXRhmu0cXMT6bXvUtwf0_6HjsiJh0lwLRxaanCfguv7Be1lVJpXTokURdSSztGTocb0WO8cSOZoMf-UpeAKCi1DWzpZMVy87WlyAoSxXqv_zSOATs06wrALgAZWpnerf6Xk87YQ/s320/IMG_9362.JPG" style="cursor: hand; display: block; height: 240px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div align="left">June is here and we have plans to stay busy! Cape May, NJ next week? Hoping!</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Kathleenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07940321835510570206noreply@blogger.com0