Ok, where were we? :)
A little recap...Sunday, July 5th, our trip south to Hosanna. I couldn't end this day without more pictures of the beautiful countryside and people.
But first, a picture of the trusty bus that took us everywhere we needed to be...I'll never forget that smell of exhaust or the way our driver would hoooonk his horn way before he'd ever think of braking for an animal or person in our way...
And the donkeys - had to get a picture of the donkeys for my animal/horse crazy kids. This was a common sight...
This was the woman who prepared the coffee ceremony for us in Hosanna after the candle ceremony with the birth families...
A panoramic view of the countryside...Yonas was born in a hut like these...his father was a farmer like a majority of the people in this area....
This handsome boy kept fighting off his friends with a long stick so I would take his picture alone. He made me keep taking them until I got one he liked.... :)
Monday, July 6th, we all got to bring our kids to the care center for the morning to play. This is where we congregated a lot of the time - mostly to eat. And did we eat.....yum....
This is Yonas and his sweet buddy Degefa...
We did tons of this...pushing the kids on the little trikes and car, and then they'd roll down the hill...
And then when we old people got tired, we tried bringing the kids in to color and play - but that didn't usually last very long....
We always ended up back outside. :) And these were the bikes the boys were determined to get working - completely flat tires and no seat. If we would've known, we would've stuffed one in a big duffel to donate...
On Monday afternoon, we took the kids back to the care center and we got to tour AHOPE, the CHSFS Ethiopia offices, school, and health center.
Here we are at AHOPE... we weren't allowed to get any pics inside here or at our agency's care center...
The school...
The pharmacy right next door to the health center...
The museum...this is where "Lucy" is kept...
We passed this spot so many times in Addis. I was always so intrigued by all of the goats right there smack dab in the middle of the city, right next to the road...
There were also so many fruit stands - I thought they were so pretty and kept trying to get just the right picture to blow up and hang in my kitchen - so we have tons of random fruit stand pictures. I think this is my favorite so far...
Tuesday, July 7th, we had our farewell party for the kids at the care center. We were not allowed to take pictures, which made me sad. It was so precious. All of the kids came down the stairs in authentic Ethiopian dress with stickers all over their faces (Yonas has a left-over on his chin in this next pic.) The big boys sang a song, and then we all clapped and cheered as each child got his/her hand painted and stamped in a big memory book. Then we stood around the children and prayed. First there was an Amharic prayer said, then an English prayer, and a member of our group also contributed a traditional Hebrew prayer. It was a beautiful thing.
Then in the afternoon, we were off to the Embassy. This is our Embassy dude...
And when we came home, we ate dinner, and spent our first night together. He went right to sleep...
We spent a lot of time hanging out with our awesome travel group. I seriously love these guys. There's just something so special about sharing such a life-changing experience with people. We started as strangers, but now feel forever connected through the time we shared together and the bond our kids had before any of us even entered the picture...
The wonderful kitchen staff even made them a birthday cake. But this is what Yonas thinks of cake...I think I'll be putting his b-day candles on a big ol' pizza... :)
One of our moms even brought the party gear...the boys had such a blast. Along with lots of sweet babies and two precious toddlers, our travel group had 4 big boys - two seven year-olds, a five year-old, and Yonas, the smallest of the big guys at three years-old....
And after the class, we all met in the eating area for one last coffee/popcorn ceremony...more heavenly smells...frankincense, roasting coffee, and popping corn...ohhhh....
At about 5, we packed up the buses, collected all of our documents, said our good-byes, and headed for the airport...
And this is what Yonas thought of the airplane...it was hilarious...
I don't have any pics of us arriving home yet, but hopefully will share those in the near future. I've had such a hard time capturing this trip with so few words and pictures, but hope I caught at least the essence of it.
I don't have any pics of us arriving home yet, but hopefully will share those in the near future. I've had such a hard time capturing this trip with so few words and pictures, but hope I caught at least the essence of it.
So now we're home, and beginning a whole new journey. One I can't wait to start sharing....
9 comments:
So great- love the pic's. And too funny- Misikir's still not a huge cake fan. I did find out by the time he had a bday, he LOVED brownies- so that was his cake. (:
Neat, neat, neat!! What a spectacular trip! So much to comment on --I don't know where to start :).
I loved the fruit stand photo, and the countryside photos. That is so neat that you were able to really get to know the families of the children that Yonas had been with at the care center!
Yonas' expression concerning the cake--that was Tommy's face when he first had any "treat"--he is not a cake fan either. Today is Tommy's bday and he asked for "cold, cold, cold ice cream" (which he most likely won't touch) and cookies. But the thing he is most excited to eat for his bday is injera :).
I LOVED the picture of Yonas on the airplane--he looks like such a seasoned traveler :). Too cute!
I love how you've taken us through your journey. The people of Ethiopia are so beautiful. You should create a book online (shutterfly or snapfish) with this story and the pictures. Yonas would love to look at it and read it, especially now and even when he gets older. Just a thought. Take care. Look forward to reading more of Yonas' life and your family.
So fun to travel with you through pics. Hoping I get to experience it soon!!
We are so excited for you guys- thanks for sharing your trip! He is SO cute!
You captured the trip perfectly. Miss you and Yonas. We can't wait to meet the rest of your beautiful family. Sooon, let's just plan it!!!!!!!!!
Thanks for sharing Erin! I was just told by another family to start praying for the families we will be traveling with; your post reminded me again of that.
Loved all the pictures and the peek inside your trip!
Oh Erin,
The picture of Yonas sleeping really touched me...I wondered if you got any sleep at all or if you just kept looking at this precious boy that God gave you to love.
Keep posting if you can!! It is so awesome to read about!
love you,
Lisa (&Kirk)
I loved reading about each day you were in Ethiopia and how the first night he went right to sleep. Made me well up with tears. So precious!
Post a Comment