So This Is Really Happening

Wow.  Time sure does fly.  We leave for Ethiopia this Thursday, March 14th.  For the last week and a half, we have been darting around like crazy people trying to organize everything for work, kids, packing, and our house renovations.  We have about fifteen lists floating around the kitchen counter.  I think I might even have a list of lists.  Just kidding.

One of the major items we have been attempting to check off our "Travel Plans List" is to piece together our itinerary.  We decided to take additional time to travel for this trip - it is quiet at the inn and grandparents have stepped up to the plate to care for the girls, so we are taking advantage and exploring our son's country.  On Thursday, we fly from Boston to D.C. where we will spend the night at an airport hotel.  Friday morning, we fly direct from D.C. to Addis and will arrive there early Saturday morning (a thirteen hour flight).  We'll spend the day in a state of total jet-lag and culture shock and on Sunday afternoon fly to the remote Omo Valley in the southern region of the country.  Originally, we had planned to travel the northern historic route - an itinerary many people opt for when exploring Ethiopia.  But after researching some alternatives, we discovered the Omo Valley where there is tons of wildlife and African tribes still remain.  In ten years, the area will likely become more modernized and tribe life will gradually phase out.  There is no place like this in Africa and it is the epitome of Ethiopia.  It will likely be rugged travel and running water may be a novelty, but this, for us, will be the trip of a lifetime.  We couldn't pass up the opportunity. 

After our adventures with tribes, we return to Addis on March 24th and then head down to the care center where Kaleb is on the 25th.  We will finally meet our little guy and spend the day with him.  We will also get to meet with a pediatrician and ask any questions about health, etc.  On the 26th, we return, once again, to Addis where we will meet with a lawyer who will walk us through the court procedure.  There is a shopping excursion, I believe to the famous Mercado Market on the 27th, and on the 28th, we have a free day - not sure, yet how we will spend it.  The 29th is our big day - court - when, if all goes smoothly, Kaleb will become legally ours.

We chose to stay through the weekend just in case there are any glitches with court and we need to reappear on the Monday.  So on Saturday morning, we will fly up to Lalibella, the highlight of the north historic route and spend two days exploring the region and checking out the rock churches before flying out of Addis on Monday night and returning to Boston on April 2nd. 

I'm kind of exhausted just writing this!  So between now and Thursday, we will be tying up lose ends and continuing to check things off those lists.  It has been challenging trying to pack since we are not living at our house, so some of the items on those many lists are things like "Pick up bug spray from "real" house" and "Grab black capris from attic."  I'm not exactly sure where anything actually is - we packed up our kitchen last week and the food from our pantry is now living in our bath tub while our pots and pans are in the garage.  Our bedroom floor is littered with small appliances like our toaster oven and coffee maker, so wading through the mess to get to my dresser to "grab green tee shirt" is tricky.  But this is all good stuff and we are having fun with our lists and plans.  Soon enough, those lists will turn into reality - can't wait!

We're Going to Ethiopia!!!

Finally, finally we have been issued a court date.  Almost four months to the day from when we got our referral, we learned that the MOWYCA letter required to receive a court date was received for our case and we were scheduled for court on March 29^th. 

We actually found out in kind of a roundabout way.  James and I were on our way home from an overnight in Boston.  The day before, we had been invited to attend a AAA Four Diamond Award luncheon as the inn was receiving its 27^th consecutive four diamond status (yeah us!).  James surprised me by having his parents watch the girls while we got to spend an adult evening partying like rock stars in Boston.  Since it was a Tuesday (historically, Tuesdays have been the days on which court dates are assigned), I had all my toes and fingers crossed that we would get our much anticipated call or email right in the middle of the luncheon and would then spend the remainder of the day celebrating.  I’m not sure why I conjure up fantasies like these as inevitably, I am disappointed.  Still, the lack of news didn’t damper our time in Boston.  We even ate at a great Ethiopian restaurant for dinner that evening. 

On our way back to the Cape, I got a message from another adoptive mother who is also working with our agency and is at about the same point as us in the process.  She had just spoken to the social worker at the agency and learned that a court date had been issued.  Since our two families were at the top of the list waiting for dates, she assumed that the family was ours.  But our inboxes sat empty and our phones didn’t ring no matter how much I attempted to will it to life.  Since I was driving, I pleaded with James to send an email to the agency to at least find out if our MOWYCA letter had been received.  The good news was that a court date had been assigned.  This meant the courts had reopened and things were moving.  The bad news was that we were still in the dark about our case.

About an hour later, we pulled into the driveway and were unloading the car.  James’ inbox chime sounded, and I noticed him checking the message.  “Guess what?” he said.  “That court date was ours!!!”  My heart skipped a beat and I did a little happy dance.  “We’re going to Ethiopia!!”  I screamed at the top of my lungs.

But for every step forward, there seems to be a caveat.  The email announcing our court date also instructed not book our flights just yet as they have to check something about our travel dates with the Ethiopian staff.  So, nearly 48 hours later, we are eagerly awaiting the go ahead to book and as each hour passes, we get more and more nervous that there is something wrong.

If all goes smoothly, though, our court date is scheduled for March 29^th.  Since we plan to travel throughout Ethiopia during this first trip, we hope to fly out on the 14^th and include an 8-9 day itinerary to sightsee in the Northern part of the country before returning to Addis to meet our son and proceed with the court hearing.

And so, once again, we wait for an email or phone call officially telling us we are going to meet…..holy cow!  My inbox chime just sounded.  Instinctively, I grabbed my phone and there it was.  An email forwarded to me by James from our agency.  We are cleared to book our flights.  Time to get packing!!  We're finally going to meet Kaleb.