The Inevitable Picture Post

You knew tub pictures would end up here eventually. The boys have come to love bathtime. The first time we gave them a bath, in the hotel in Ethiopia, we could tell that bathtime had been all about getting clean. Nothing more - nothing less.

We brought a few bath toys with us and both boys just looked at them perplexed.

My how things have changed.

I know every parent thinks they have the cutest kids but come on...

Making Things Final

As of Thursday - It's Official. Our last big step was to "finalize" our adoption with the state.

We spent Thursday afternoon in the historic county courthouse, filled out paperwork (just when you thought there couldn't possibly be more paperwork), and swore before a judge that what we said was true.

This was also the step where we could officially change their names. For those that have been following this process from the beginning (bless you) this will be old news but for those that are just joining us (welcome!) - We decided to give the boys new first names and keep their given Ethiopian names as middle names. So our oldest is Seth Mebratu (meaning light) and the youngest is Colin Mitiku (meaning replace).

Here we are with Judge Montgomery, also a father to three adopted children.

Everyone was gracious with our slighty squirrely crew. The boys got to explore the courtroom and the staff got to be part of some happy litigation for a change.

The Horse

The boys received a gift yesterday from a dear woman. It's a stuffed rocking horse complete with sound effects.

Colin is still a little scared of it but Seth is having a blast. John even got his hat out to add to the effect.

Observe...

This next picture might disqualify me for mother of the year but I think it's hilarious. We'd been out and about all day (more on that later) and we all needed a little time to ourselves. John was getting ready to head out the door for game night with his friends. I sat down for a moment in the living room and we left the boys upstairs in the playroom. They aren't always thrilled with this idea but usually settle in and enjoy their toys.

Last night Seth was having a hard time calming down. I peeked upstairs to encourage him to quiet down and saw this. He's crying his eyes out but is still atop the rocking horse that he's moved over to the railing as if to say, "I'm really upset about being upstairs but by golly - I'm not getting off this horse."

The Great Outdoors

Meeting our boys on Christmas Day was magical...like a fairytale.

That meant, however, that we were bringing them home in the dead of winter. We've spent a lot of time inside, trying to decide if we're going to play upstairs or downstairs today.

But glory be...the sun came out yesterday and the temperature rose above freezing (close enough anyway) so we took advantage of it.

As you can see, we were thrilled to feel the wind in our face and to yell as loud as we wanted (without mommy saying some nonsense about using inside voices).

Thanks Leonhart's (and kids) for the bikes.

Getting Creative

John was trying to get Colin to sit still for a moment. Here's his makeshift restraint.

It worked for approximately 7 seconds.

Going Downtown

Last week our little family took a trip downtown to visit my coworkers.

No trip downtown with small children would be complete without lunch at Fritz's (a train-themed restaurant where you order your food on a phone and it's delivered to your table by train).

Colin put his own hat on.

Travelogue - Day Eight

It's Thursday morning. This is the day we have both feared and waited for. We're headed home, which is so wonderful. During all of our preparation for this trip, it was the flight home that terrified us the most. I was even more terrified after experiencing the flight myself on the way there.

We were all ready for a change of scenery. The novelty of the hotel had run it's course. We tried to burn off energy in the workout room. Our flight didn't leave Addis Ababa until midnight, so we had the whole day to wear ourselves out (we hoped).

We traveled as a group to the airport. After checking in and getting through immigration is was time to head to our gate. Just on the other side of immigration was a long tall escalator. This is where Seth's "day of discovery" began. His eyes and smile were wide. He would stay this way for most of the trip (except when he couldn't watch the video screen).

Colin was already in his pj's and ready for sleep. He tried but there were too many interesting things to watch.

The flight was somewhat full. There were around 30 adoptive families. 22 of the adopted children were infants (don't you wish you were there?). As we were finding our seats, an adoptive family across the aisle saw us arranging our things and said, "Oh my goodness - you have two of them?" John's responded with a smile, "Yes and we have never been more aware of it than we are right now."

The first leg of our trip would be 1 hour long. We'd land in Sudan for fuel and to pick up a few more passengers. That first hour was the worst part of the whole trip. We were beat. My arms and legs felt like jello. I could hardly see straight. Seth was pushing every button he could find. Colin would not sleep. I couldn't believe he was still awake. John was, of course, calm and patient with us all. While we were on the ground in Sudan (for an hour), they played Christmas music over the speakers. One song lyric put me right over the edge. It was something about "when your children won't close their eyes and go sleep". I cracked up laughing - through tears. It was one of those, I'm-so-tired-I can't-figure-out-whether-to-laugh-or-cry moments. I looked at John and in all seriousness said, "Let's not go anywhere again - ever".

The boys would eventually sleep. John and I did too. Colin's intestinal issues continued - which was oh so fun. Following one exceptionally special trip to the bathroom with the changing table - I just stripped him and threw everything (onesie included) in the trash. I want to publicly apologize to the airport maintanence staff in Amsterdam.

Security in Amsterdam was more detailed but didn't take any longer than usual. The people who sat around us on every flight was so understanding and supportive - some before they even knew our situation. On the flight from Amsterdam to Detroit, a woman across the aisle leaned over after a few hours and said in a dutch accent, "Are these your children? You do such a great job with them. Flying with small children is so difficult." I said thanks and then she asked about how they came to be our children. When I told her that we had been their parents for 4 days - she was genuinely shocked. It made me feel so good.

Of course this was before Colin decided to bring me back to reality and humble me in front of my new friend. One of the heightened security measures was to keep the seatbelt sign on over Canada. Colin did not appreciate this at all (neither did I but I couldn't get away with screaming my head off). A big thank you to the Indian business man behind us who kept Colin entertained through the space in between the seats.

We arrived in Detroit with the task of getting through U.S. Immigration with two U.S. Passports and two Ethiopian Passports...a sealed envelope from the Embassy in Addis Ababa and two squirrley kids who had been sitting still for almost 20 hours. We were the last in the line of other adoptive families doing the same thing (only they all had non-walking infants). We waited and waited and waited. We finally had to beg and plead for help as our connecting flight to KC was leaving in 30 minutes. After finally making it through immigration and onto customs, I was a woman on a mission. I was NOT going to miss our flight. I threw Seth on my hip and found our luggage. I hoisted my big green backpack on one shoulder and off I went (gasping for breath).

Somewhere in our mad-dash to the gate, John and I switched children. I don't remember it happening. John called our family to tell them we were going to be on time (even if it killed me!).

We boarded the plane in Detroit and had window seats for the first time on this trip. I posted this picture already but it fits here so I'm posting it again.

This flight was a short one. We finally landed in Kansas City and walked into the loving arms of our family and friends. It was such a welcomed sight.

Many of our friends were there with banners and toys (and cameras).

It was such a joyous time. All four of us were finally home. We bundled the boys up (there was a foot of snow on the ground and it was freezing!) and strapped them into their new carseats. They were asleep within 5 minutes of leaving the airport.

My parents and my sister joined us at the house with dinner. After a short little nap the boys were awake again. My mom took this picture. It's not very flattering of me but it's too funny not to post. Two wide awake children and two very tired parents.

This seems like a good time to thank the many people who took care of things while we were gone. I really hope I don't forget anyone.

Thank you Jerry for watching Sheena (who got sick the night before we left)

Thank you Katie for getting Sheena well again.

Thank you mom and Kelly for the meals in the fridge and the groceries.

Thanks to our neighbors for taking care of Carhartt and Pete in the freezing cold and deep snow and for figuring out a way to clear our driveway.

Thank you Heather and Shawn, Hilary, Julie and Brooklyn, Jenny, Grandma and Grandpa Robinson, and Aunt Kelly for meeting us at the airport.

Thank you Kaberline's, Foote's, Quigley's (and someone else I never got the name of) for providing meals when we returned.

Thank you Dee Dee for the tip about masking tape - it worked like a charm - just when we needed it. (Don't worry we didn't tape their mouths shut - she told me to pack some masking tape to keep the boys entertained. They can rip it, stick it anywhere they like, and it comes right off when it's time to clean up. We took a roll of painter's tape because that's what we had. It was our super secret entertainment weapon. We made it all the way to Canada before we used it.)

And thanks to all of you for the many prayers and words of encouragement. I wish I knew more words and was more eloquent in putting them in writing.

It is so good to be home.

An Excercise in Futility

Many people try it...so few acheive it.

Getting a picture of two toddlers in their matching shirts.

I guess this one will do.

Have I mentioned that Seth has the best laugh?!

Travelogue - Day Seven

It's Wednesday morning. We woke up after another good night's sleep. I was very impressed with how easily the boys slept. I was prepared to comfort two kiddos in a strange place with strange people.

The only thing on our agenda for the day is to spend time with the boys. We have a celebration dinner later in the evening but the whole day was ours to bond our little family together.

John and I survived as long as we had a system to approach certain needs. The formula schedule was slightly daunting. The boys were on completely different schedules and different formulas. Just like us - they couldn't drink the tap water either. We had to purchase bottled water from the hotel restaurant. It felt like we were constantly buying water. When our water heater was plugged in, the tap water was scalding hot. So we'd fill the sink up with hot water - fill the sippy cups with formula and bottled water -then set the sippy cup in the sink to heat up.

I used some time in the morning to get laundry done. The hotel offered laundry service but they washed clothes in a tub out back. I figured I could wash clothes in a tub - for free.


The boys were unamused by most of our attempts to entertain them in the room at this point. John would walk the halls with Colin and climb the stairs with Seth. They'd go up...then down...then up...then down.

We took over the workout room (most of the equipment didn't work anyway) as a playroom. We closed the door and the boys could squeal and run and kick balls around. Colin enjoyed watching the world go by through the windows while Seth mostly played catch with John.



There were two strollers, probably left by previous adoptive families. They'd take turns pushing and riding.



All this creative play and hotel living made me very tired. I felt responsible for watching the boys every move. I was so nervous they'd fall down the stairs or suddenly freak out about their unfamiliar surroundings. I was neurotic about keeping to their individual schedules. I tried to use every spare moment efficiently - straightening up the room, washing the clothes, refilling sippy cups, making sure Seth remembered to use the bathroom...AHHHHH!!!

Colin got fussy around 11:00 and went down easily for a nap. I was so happy with the thought that Seth would eat some lunch and then join him for some zzz's. Seth complied with my plan and laid down in his bed, closed his eyes and fell asleep. I turned around to head for our bed for some sweet rest of my own, only to see Colin sitting straight up in his basket, wide-eyed and ready to play.

John saw the panic in my face and before I could meltdown, he told me to lay down and took Colin outside for some hall-walking (he'd already spent the morning stair-walking with Seth).

I laid down and cried (quietly as not to wake the sleeping 3 year old across the room), the words of Kay Heikes in my head. You see the Heikes family had recently returned from Ethiopia with their beautiful little girl. Kay shared some words of wisdom with me before we left. She told me that becoming a mother is hard work. Becoming a mother of two little strangers in a hotel room will be even more difficult. She told me that it would be much better once we got home. She didn't want me to be discouraged - thinking that being a parent was always going to be as hard as this. It wouldn't. Her words brought me comfort and gave me permission to cry my eyes out without feeling guilty about it. And I did.

I didn't sleep at all but I got out of bed with a little more energy than before. Seth was still sleeping and I headed out in the hallway to rescue John from all the walking. I found John with a book in one hand and Colin's hand in the other. John was reading to himself while walking up and down the hallway. I offered to relieve him but he declined and kept walking.

Seth was soon up and about. We got the boys dressed for their temporary return to The Care Center. We were scheduled to attend a Cultural dinner that evening at a local hotel. Every travel group does it. They have authentic food and music/dancing from various tribes. Our agency asked that we not take the children outside of the Care Center or hotel for their safety and ours. So we'd drop them off at the Care Center until we returned for the dinner.

Seth was very excited to get some new clothes, once he came to the hotel. Don't tell him, but most were hand-me-downs from various places. When we gave him shoes to wear (more hand-me-downs) his face lit up. He'd play for a little bit then come to one of us to show us his new shoes. Some background - every picture we received since July has had Seth in the same shoes - red Crocs. He was wearing them again, the day we met him. I'm sure they are the only shoes he's ever had. That one pair.

We took the boys over to the Care Center. John dropped Colin off in the Toddler room and I took Seth all the way up the staircase to the "big kids" room. When we got to the top of the stairs - his friends were waiting for him there. He smiled bright and threw his leg up in the air - showing everyone his new shoes. He turned around to me and ran into my arms for a goodbye hug - his face beaming with pride.

The Cultural Dinner was nice. I'm glad we went but it was hard to focus or appreciate the effort everyone was putting into it. We were exhausted...beyond exhausted. Most travel groups go earlier in the week. Because of some special activities with our group (Christmas celebrations, the 2 year Anniversary of Holt's work in Ethiopia, etc.) we didn't go until our last night there.



We picked the boys up late from the Care Center and did pretty well getting them back to bed.

Coming up on Day 8 - Packing up and heading out!

Baby Shower

We had a "baby" shower at church this last weekend. Thanks to Katie, Jaimee, Melissa, and Sue for hosting a lovely gathering. We had a great time.

The cute cake

Aunt Kelly entertaining Colin.

Grandma Robinson entertaining Seth.

Colin was most interested in batting balloons around with Tim.

The boys didn't really help us open presents - they don't get that concept yet. Give it time - they'll get it soon enough.

Katie got the boys a slinky. It kept Seth occupied for most of the shower (and for many more hours at home too).

Thanks to everyone who was there. We were overwhelmed by your generosity and support.

Travelogue - Day Six

It's now Tuesday morning in Addis Ababa. We've all slept through the night (minus two required feed times for Colin but we all went back to sleep just fine).

John and I studied the schedule and menu provided by The Care Center staff. I thought I had it down but mixed the boys up right off the bat. They keep all the kids on formula so Seth gets two glasses of formula a day. One at 6AM and the other at 8PM. I accidentally feed Seth's formula to Colin. No real harm done so I dusted myself off and got two kids dressed for breakfast.

The dining room at the hotel is already busy with lots of new families trying to hold it all together. All the adults look frazzled but the kids are happy.

Our itinerary has "spend time with your child" listed for the morning and then "Visa appointment" listed for the afternoon. We all headed up to the room to play and relax (yeah right!) until lunch.

We brought some toys from home but hoped to save some of them for our return flight. The boys burned through most of them in no time. Shoot!

Lunch goes smoothly and we prepare ourselves for our visa appointment at the US Embassy. The other group staying at our hotel had their appointments the previous day and we hear about a family that was denied a visa because a notary on one of their forms expired the week before they arrived in Ethiopia. It's such a minor detail in the mountain of forms and paperwork but apparently it's not minor enough to be overlooked by an officer at the US Embassy. This makes us all a bit more nervous.

We all pile in the vans - now with our kids in tow. I prayed they would both fall asleep in the car, which would make our time at the Embassy so much easier. The group that went the day before took 3 hours to get everyone processed. I kept whispering to Colin, who was on my lap, "You're getting very sleepy...You're getting verrrrryyyyyy slllleeeepppyy." It worked but only temporarily.

We enter the Embassy and sit on long benches just outside the door. There are a few hundred people in line - our group sticks out like a sore thumb. We made it inside, through security, and then we waited for each family to be called. We've rehearsed answers to possible questions the officer might ask. Most of the questions are easy to answer (Are these the children you intended to adopt upon your arrival in Ethiopia? Do they have any serious medical conditions?) But it still feels like a test you could possibly fail.

Each family that's called, returns to our group waving the birth certificates and approval form (except one but their issue was resolved the next day). We were there around 3 hours but the boys did okay.

We returned to the hotel for dinner and bedtime. Night number two goes just as smoothly.

This post has much fewer pictures for two reasons. One, we couldn't take any pictures at or near the Embassy and two, our focus was on not being overrun by two toddlers.

Coming up on Day 7 - Kim breaks under the pressure (you won't want to miss this)

Parental Advice

It happens with every major life change....people giving advice.

In our current situation, we'll take any helpful hints we can get. We're reading books on parenting and seeking advice from our parents, other people's parents, doctors, social workers, etc.

After a few nights of the bedtime battle, I emailed the social worker from our adoption agency for some guidance, thinking that other adoptive parents have had similar difficulties. Her advice was to avoid caffeine and feed them turkey before bed. It was a good thing we asked because for three nights we had been giving the boys bottles of Dr. Pepper before bed. No wonder we've had such problems.

My favorite advice, however, came from the book, "Parenting with Love and Logic" (thanks Nash's for the book - I really do like it...despite the fact that I'm about to make fun of it slightly). They give practical examples for different situations. In one section of the book they talk about the importance of modeling behavior, and in this case, taking care of yourself so your kids will grow up knowing how to take care of themselves. I'm storing this statement in my parenting arsenal and waiting for just the right time to use it.

When your child continually asks for you to do something you say "I'm sorry, but doing things for you is putting a dark cloud on my haze of happiness so I'm choosing not to do it this time."

I just know it's going to be very effective. Feel free to borrow it if you need to. I think it could work in many different situations - with co-workers, spouses, pets. Let me know how it goes.

Travelogue - Day Five

We wake up early in Durame to begin the trek back to Addis Ababa. The drive is around 5 1/2 hours. It's Monday so there is a lot more activity in the towns we drive through.


We stop at the same little restaurant on our way back for lunch. Our van needed air in the tires so after lunch we pull into what appears to be an auto shop. A man comes out of the little house with an air hose. Adoptive families drive through these towns every two weeks so people recognize the white vans full of caucasians. The children congregate quickly. At this stop several children run out, one holding a baby who is without his pants.




John and I both commented that everyone we see, no matter their circumstances, seems so happy. They aren't just smiling at passersby. Most of them are deep in conversation with other people and they're laughing. The people are very free with their affection. People walk arm in arm down the street. Adults are hugging children and kissing them on the head. The pictures we saw and even ones we took, show people without any expression - almost blank stares. Their actual personalities and interactions are quite different.

We arrived in Addis Ababa mid-afternoon and head straight for The Care Center. This is the night we take custody of the boys full-time. The nannies brought them downstairs and we commenced our playing. We were scheduled to meet with the pediatrician who works with our agency to ask questions and get a final update on their health. We're first to go.

He mentioned Colin's low-iron count, which we knew about already. They gave us an iron supplement that we could take home (we didn't). It's a big glass bottle with a thin metal lid. There is no way that bottle would have made it home with us still intact. We took it to use for the last few days we're there.

He then mentions that he doesn't know Seth because he just met him this morning. Huh?!?! Apparently Seth had been housed at a different facility until the last week or so before we came? We don't really know and never got a good answer from anyone. The pediatrician said that he has some dental issues but otherwise seems healthy.

We asked about Colin's rattley cough and runny nose and the response was something like, "Yes - that can happen".

I was glad that they were going home with us. I have nothing but positive things to say about our agency and The Care Center staff. They are doing the very best they can do with the resources they have. The children were well cared for and loved and I will always be grateful for the way they provided for the boys.

But at that moment, I was glad we were the ones now responsible for them. It's much easier to devote time and attention to the needs of two children than it is to 70 of them.

After the pediatrician visit, we packed our things and walked out the front gate. Every residence in Addis Ababa has a streetside gate that has to be opened for cars and pedestrians. The Care Center gate is opened by a guard - all four of us walk along the street to the gate next door that's opened by another guard.

We headed up to our room and showed the boys where they'll be living for the next several days.

(If you couldn't hear, John narrates the monumentous occasion of their first night with us. He says "as you can see they are both anxious and disturbed by this change of events")

They handled it well.


I won't talk much about this, but it should be noted that this is about the time we were initiated into the dirty diaper club. Colin did not ease us into this process in any way. He struck quickly and forcefully...and wouldn't stop - well - until we got home...and then only slightly. Enough said.


It's soon time for dinner so we headed downstairs to the restuarant. The atmosphere in the hotel has changed drastically. For the last four days there has been around 60 adults (all Americans who are adopting). There were a lot of us but our interactions were peaceful. We'd sit down to dinner and talk about where we lived, where we worked, television shows we liked. Now the dining room was sprinkled with little brown faces - most of them infants. There were new outfits for everyone and new little toys to discover. John and I ordered what we thought the boys would eat. They did great.


After some playtime, we got the boys ready for bed and took a deep breath. I worried they'd be scared in a new place with strange people. I bundled Colin up in a blanket and rocked him back and forth. He fell asleep in less than 5 minutes. Seth was next. We tucked him into the twin bed (Yes - I gave up the comfy bed) and read a book (Thanks Becki for the book). We're all holding hands and John looks to me to say the bedtime prayer. I couldn't speak and started to cry. John quickly took over and thanked God for our children and that they were there with us. I was overwhelmed with gratitude - speechless. We both kissed Seth on the forehead and tucked him in. He watched us get ready for bed for awhile but before too long we heard the heavy sigh only sleep can bring.

Colin's bed was a basket (like Moses) on the floor.

According to the schedule, Colin would be awake at 10PM and 2AM for a bottle (Why you ask? So did we but we went with it.) I prepped the bottles before crawling into bed so we wouldn't be measuring formula in the middle of the night in the dark. Colin woke up exactly on schedule but only long enough to drink up. We all got a great night's sleep.

Coming up on Day 6 - Hotel Entertainment.

A Family Tradition

My side of the family has a long-standing tradition of getting matching pajamas at Christmas. I suspect the reason is so that we're wearing them in the pictures on Christmas morning.

We were obviously not here on Christmas day so part of the festivities were delayed so the boys could be included.

We had soup at Aunt Kelly's (a tradition started back when Kelly got her own apartment) and a return of the matching pajamas.

Travelogue - Day Four

We woke up bright and early to get on the road. We traveled to Durame, the location of the care center where all the children are taken into Holt's care. This is where the boys lived from January to November 2009.

We drove through the city and within an hour, we hit the beautiful countryside. I'm not sure what I expected but the contrast between the congestion of the big city and the serene fields was striking.


Our driver would point of specific locations or facts about people, occupations, cities, etc.

Those living and working in the countryside are considered rich. They own land, which in Ethiopia is the measure of wealth. It's meager living - usually a thatch-roofed hut with blankets on the dirt floor and a couple cooking utensils, and hard work. We don't see any machinery or farm equipment. All the work is done by animals or human hands.

We're traveling on a Sunday so it's difficult to tell if what we're seeing is normal activity. The small towns we drive through are full of people and animals. We stopped half-way into our trip for a snack and bathroom break. There aren't a lot of cars but several donkey/horse-drawn carts. There seem to be normal businesses, a bank, a market, a restaurant, a tailor, etc. Most are roadside stands though.

Our driver, who has been hired by our agency to be with us during the week, has been working with Holt since the work in Ethiopia began. We enjoyed getting to know him. He shared with us that two weeks ago he had been hired as the driver for Mr. and Mrs. Pitt (the famous people - I'm not saying their names to avoid the google searches). As you may or may not know, they adopted a little girl from Ethiopia and are building a hospital there in her honor. They were in the country to work on details. Our driver pulls out his video camera, and sure enough, there they were (with their entourage).

We arrive in a small town just outside of Durame to see the hospital that was recently built by our agency. It's the only health care for 200 miles and was just opened in the last year. They have a small inpatient unit (one small room with several hospital beds). They have labor and delivery (two rooms - one for deliver, one for recovery). The outpatient unit was closed on a Sunday but they told us they see several hundred patients a day for acute care and for preventative care (family planning, hygiene, etc.)

A woman had arrived earlier that morning on this donkey-pulled cart to deliver her baby. She was recovering for a few hours and would return home on this cart later that day.





This is the kind of work that our agency spends most of it's resources on throughout the world. Adoption is just a small part (and a last resort) of their work. They have family preservation programs to help children stay with their biological family by providing vocational training to women (often children are brought into care because the father is unable to work) and basic necessities for families.

We head across the street for lunch before going to a Christmas Celebration at a church nearby. Holt has a child sponsorship program and the sponsored children in the area have put together a Christmas Celebration for us. The sponsorship of each child allows them to go to school and receive medical care when needed.

After the celebration, we go to check into our hotel. It was interesting. They had described it to us as "indoor camping". Electricity and running water were a possibility but not likely. It wasn't awful but it wasn't luxurious either. Malaria is common in this area and most of our rooms were not airtight (gaps around windows - some windows missing).





After getting settled into our hotel it was time to make our way to the Holt office to meet the birth mother. Because travel is so difficult in this area, none of us were guaranteed a visit. The anxiety was high as we made our way to the office. It had already been an emotional week and this was likely to be the most emotional event of all. And it was. All birth mothers were there and each family got to sit down with her to ask questions and share their hopes and dreams for their kids. We've decided not to share the details of this visit, even with our family. There are no scandalous details of the story - but we don't think it's our story to tell. The story belongs to the boys. We wrote the conversation down word-for-word and when the time comes, we'll share it with them. It's important to us that they hear it first and decide what they want others to know.

I'm grateful that Holt provides this opportunities to families. It was so hard but I think the benefit to everyone involved is worth it.

The Care Center is just down the street and was the next stop for this whirlwind day. None of us were ready to see it yet. Most were still reeling from the birth mother visits. It ended up being the perfect medicine for our broken hearts. The staff at the care center were so loving and kind. I mentioned the encounter with the sister (head nurse) in an earlier post but will insert a picture here.




We could not take pictures inside The Care Center to protect the privacy of the children now housed there. So many children have been taken into care in the last year. At it's highest census there were 75 children at this facility.

After a quick tour it was time to head back to our hotel. We met for dinner in the hotel restaurant. As you can see, it was an exhausting day.


We all headed to our rooms for some much needed sleep. Because of the malaria risk (we heard the malaria-mosquitoes come out at night) and our "open-air" accommodations, I wouldn't let John turn any lights on in our room so the mosquitoes would congregate somewhere else. We got ready for bed in the dark and wore long-sleeves and long pants with socks to bed. We're pretty sure this prevented any mosquito bites but did not prevent Kim from getting bit by bed bugs. Oh yes! The evidence wasn't discovered until a couple of days later but the damage had been done. I came home with half my clothes in air-tight plastic bags and my legs still bare the signs.

Coming up on Day 5 - Becoming full-time parents.