Tonight...

So, tonight while we sleep, across the ocean, a court will be convening to determine the fate of a little boy.  Representatives from Ethiopian Social Services (MOWA) will submit their documentation, and give their testimony.  Birth family will have adoption explained to them (again) and will be asked to formally relinquish their rights to this child. The judge will make her ruling.

This is a somber event.  The life of this little boy will not be the same. As "excited" as we are, adoption is so complicated, so cloaked in loss.  We grieve for the sequence of events that have lead to this moment...

We pray for God's hand to be so evident on the whole process... That His will would be done... That Bereket's case would find favor in the courts and would proceed smoothly... That I would sleep tonight... (hehe)

Following the outcome of this court date, we should know more about our own court appearance.  If tonight is successful, we will be assigned a date (either in August or in October).  If it is not, it will be rescheduled and we will have to wait for further information.

The uncertainty has been very hard on us, so I am praying that we are assigned a date.  As to whether that date is in August or October, there are pros and cons either way, and it will work out fine.

Thank you so much for your support!  Please remember us and the court proceedings in your prayers tonight...

New bedrooms... The grand reveal!

We finally got the wall decorations hung again in the kids' bedrooms, so I'm ready to show them off!  First, the boys' room...

Next, Faith's room... She has a LOT of stuff, and I tried to take the pictures in a way that minimized the visible clutter.  When she moved, we got rid of 2 garbage bags of "treasures" but we still have a ways to go!

So there you go!  I'm pretty pleased with how they turn out, and I hope that the kids enjoy them for many years to come!  Much thanks and love to my dear husband who puts up with my crazy schemes! xoxo

One step closer!

We found out today that the preliminary/birth family court date for Bereket has been scheduled for July 31st.  That's next week!  We do not attend this court date, but if it is successful, we will then be given a scheduled date.  Usually there is a little while between the two dates, but we are hopeful that because the court will be closing soon, they will squeeze us in.  We have heard August 6th as the date of the closure, but not from our agency officially.  I looked up last year, and it didn't close until August 22, so who knows! I guess we will go whenever they tell us to!

So... I decided I am going to pack like we are getting on an airplane next week.  That way, we will be ready to go if needed, and I can unpack our clothes if we end up not getting to go right away.  I think that will be less stressful than trying to pack for all 4 of us in 24 hours notice while also trying to arrange flights and accommodations. Wish me luck!

Oh - We finally got the wall decorations up and curtains hung in the boys' room, so tomorrow I will post about the new rooms!

Heather

New raincoats!

Since we will be traveling sometime between now and October, I realized we needed actual rain coats. A little backstory... I'm not much for getting wet.  If its raining, I'm generally indoors. When I was a little girl, I told my mom after a Log Ride incident at Calaway Park, "I just can't stand wetness!!!" and wore my coat all day rather than deal with a wet shirt.  So, I haven't really had the need for rain gear, as the solution was to just stay indoors!

BUT.... If I'm going all the way to Ethiopia in the rainy season, I'm not going to hide inside every time there is a little rain (or a lot!).  And so, getting rain gear that would actually keep us dry was a priority.  After a bit of sticker shock when I realized how expensive that could be, I sent out a plea on Facebook for recommendations of more affordable, but still effective raingear.  A friend tipped me off to a sale at North Face, and I lucked out!  Thomas had a coat that worked, so Dave, Faith and I got new coats.  I chose the orange for Faith so it could be passed to Bereket.  You'll notice both kids have their sleeves rolled up; I figured for seldom worn items, made sense to go big!

So, here we are in our new coats!  We look a little like a bag of skittles! Haha!  Should be easy to keep track of everyone!

Now we just need a court date so we know when to really get packing! :)

Hurry up and wait! (Or is it: Wait, then hurry up!!!)

I can't believe it's been almost 3 weeks since my last post.  I guess that tells you that not much has been happening!  Well, lots of little things, but nothing too exciting!

We have finished the kids' rooms, other than hanging the stuff on the walls.  Once we get that done, I will post pictures.  I'm really happy with how they both turned out!

We finally did get an update about Bereket this week.  He is 116cm tall and weighs 37.5kg.  That's up 2.5 cm and 0.5 kg since March, so at least he is growing a bit.  I know from seeing how slowly Thomas grows that sometimes they can seem to camp out at a certain weight for a while.  Of course, we hope his growth will increase once he is home.  In his picture this time, he is very serious and his hair is short.  He's wearing a Spiderman shirt and pants that fit, which is a big improvement, clothing wise! :)  We have heard from other families that "not smiling in pictures" is an Ethiopian thing, and so we will have to be content with these somber pictures of our little man.

This morning, we heard that we have been issued a court number.  This means that our file has been submitted & accepted with the court.  The next step will be a birthfamily court date, which we hope to hear is scheduled soon.  After that, we will get our court date, which will determine when we travel.  Another adoptive family was told by their agency that the courts are scheduled to close on August 6th, so who knows... Maybe we will squeak in there!  Yet another family who is with our agency also received their file number today and was told they should hear by the end of next week one way or another.  So, we'll see!

I did email and tell them that we are prepared to travel with no notice, as I've heard that can sometimes encourage them to get you a faster date... Who knows if it will help, but I figured it can't hurt!  Now, of course, that means I have to actually BE ready to travel with no notice, so we are starting to pick up the pace in terms of shopping, packing, etc.  I feel like we have to do a fair bit of shopping... I don't have actual rain gear, and not a lot of suitable clothes either.  I want to get a pair of "quick dry" capris, and maybe pants, too, and then a few skirts.  My lovely friend Bekah offered to share her longer, conservative skirts, but alas, my waist is showing the effects of too many treats and not enough exercise! lol. So, I will hit the thrift stores and hope to find some suitable skirts.

I also need to get luggage... We need some new stuff anyway, so I figure I may as well get a set.  Costco.ca has some decent looking sets, so I need to pick one and order it!  Thankfully friends and family have offered to lend us some additional bags. :)

Yesterday, I bought some clothes for Bereket for the first time!  So fun!  Underwear, some shorts for next year, and matching polo shirts for him and Thomas.  We plan to have the boys wear matching shirts at least part of the time, providing they both enjoy that.  I feel like it will reinforce both to us and people we meet that they are "real brothers" and we belong together.  And who knows, maybe it will simplify some of the clothing decisions (That's MY shirt! etc).  We shall see...  I ordered a book called Brothers and Sisters in Adoption by Arleta James that deals specifically with issues surrounding bringing kids from rough places into homes with typically developing kids.  So, I will also read what she has to say about clothing (sharing, matching, handing down, etc) and also the many other issues I'm sure she will raise that I haven't even thought about...

Well, I think that about catches everything up!  Hopefully I will have lots to post in the next week or two, assuming we hear about the birthfamily court date. :)  Please pray with us!

Heather