Oh My! … Here She is … Tigist!

Day 18 of 19 … Annapolis, Maryland

We are back! We are on US soil. It feels so good. It’s been simply amazing. Tired today, but here are some pics. I will post more tomorrow and more of our journey ...

I love it when she smiles! And she does it a lot!

We arrived this morning in Annapolis,MD. This is our first family picture.

Even Security guards melted when they saw her. Actually, they melt with all children. It is beautiful.



Sheraton Addis



The playground at the hotel

In our hotel room. She likes looking in the mirror and making faces.

First, let me do what I’ve wanted to do for days … give you some great detail about our experience meeting our daughter. We’ve been really busy with keeping up with our business work, spending time with “T” and just catching our breath. We’ve met our sponsored child, we met our new friends who moved here from Colorado and are doing some amazing things her with their time, we had our Embassy date and are now in full possession of Tigist. David has been having a very difficult time keeping business in order. When you finally DO get on the internet, sometimes it is good and fast (normal) and sometimes it is so slow he can’t get ANY work done. The Sheraton offers it wireless anywhere and in our room, but you have to choose one or the other and pay for one or both. By the time the night falls, we are too tired and mentally exhausted that we don’t feel like writing anything. That must be true if “I” haven’t written. You who have been following this blog know that I post always and love showing pictures. So you must’ve known it is not ME, but something else. It’s been hard not to blog or post pictures as I like to keep on top of details for fear that I‘ll forget. In addition, any emails that I’ve sent were sometimes not even sent through.

This experience here in Addis has been absolutely incredible. The next time we come, I don’t know when that’ll be; we will absolutely bring all 5 of us back. Our decision to not take the boys was a very good one as this has been completely draining for us as adults. The next time, we can “share” this experience with our boys who absolutely need to have this on their list of “things everyone should do!” Because of the heightened sensitivity, I feel like all eyes are on us as we go through the end of this process. It's almost like I can understand how someone in the limelight has their every move watched and documented. It's very draining. Simply put, I treat being here with Tigist in our presence as if everything I say and do is recorded. And I say this because I just don’t know who here is 100% on board with adopting from this country and who is looking at us like, “you are taking one of our own and I don’t like what I hear on the streets … shame on you!” Now, this has not been my experience at all. Not one bit. Every conversation I’ve had with women in the bathroom, waiters, Sheraton Staff, taxi drivers, … EVERYONE has blessed what we are doing and their exact words from them are always “She is a lucky girl!” But because of my very nature, I know what the word is on the street and I’m super-duper sensitive.

I’m writing this part on Saturdy the 16^th in the hotel lobby with a wonderful glass of ice-tea (I miss my diet coke, I miss my free refills, I miss glasses full of ice, and I really miss my boys!!!!) I think I just needed to get out of the room from David and Tigist for a moment. Today I’ve been on the verge of tears. I think it has all come to a head and the culmination of all that has happened processes different with me. I hold it all in, all looks fine on the outside, then I step into an elevator alone and tears fall. My husband has a slight cold, Tigist is fine and healthy, although can cry if she doesn’t have the right thing in her hand and you can’t stop her. I am healthy and feel good although my back hurts from a slightly harder bed and not sleeping all through the night. All in all, I think we are all doing relatively well from what I’ve read in the past of other people’s experiences. It is like therapy to write because the computer does not talk back. It listens to me without thinking it has to intervene. It does not challenge my thoughts and call me on my shortcomings. It is a good friend. I’m already feeling better by writing …. ahhhh

While I wasn’t able to blog, I have in fact kept daily journals of our whereabouts and thoughts, and now that it is Sunday, the day before we arrive home, I am relieved to organize these thoughts with the pictures so that you who are about to fly off to Ethiopia can take what you need from what we’ve done along with the many other blogs I KNOW you read! You know who you are!

Today I am just so excited to post pictures of TIGIST! And write her name.



She loves her dress and new shoes! She has to sleep with them.



She oversees my blogging. Also teaching me Amharic ... really!



Father and daughter. David is so proud. She reeeeally loves her Daddy.



I think we have a problem here...



Almost home, sweetie!


Today, I've posted just an update. Tomorrow I will post the rest of the trips journals the best I can. Thank you for being with us through all of this. It means the world to us.