Day 3 at home

Greetings from the Grants! Today is our third day at home after picking up Mom, Dad, Gezahegn and Yishak from the airport. It has been a strange and wonderful feeling to finally have our boys here after fifteen months of paperwork, prayer, and looking at pictures. Despite the emotions, exhaustion, and occasional feelings of "Good grief, why did we ever want to do this?" we have been having an amazing time learning how to be a family of eight. Both boys seem to be bonding very quickly with Mom and Dad. Of course, the hardest thing for their four big sisters to do is stay away and let mom and dad feed, love, hold, pick them up, etc, but it's paying off and we sisters are looking forward to more hugs and holding in the future.

Ethan Gezahegn, age five, has been having a fun time exploring all that is new here in his new home. At daybreak of day 1 he was ready to head outside and explore the backyard. Time was spent on the swings and play structure, then playing in the sand, meeting the animals, taking a walk on our country street, etc. Any and all things electronic delight him (light switches, the electric piano, the Wii, etc.) Ethan discovered the joy of Nerf guns, which he loved! Ethan and Levi also had their first bath, which kept them giggling and laughing the entire time. We would guess this was their first warm and comfortable bathtub experience, because wehn we say "bath time" or "Shower time" Ethan gets a little upset and shakes his finger and head "no". However, once Mom and Dad get the warm water ready and put some toys in there, the boys are all smiles and giggles. And there is no fear of water...they pour cups and cups of water over their heads and faces with great delight. Ethan is usually full of giggles, which keeps the rest of us laughing. He also seems quite brave - Mom and Dad were acting out how to swallow pills (he does not like chewing up his medicine tablet each morning). After just a couple days he decided to try it himself. Naturally the water ended up on the floor, table, and his shirt, but eventually the pill went down and he was very pleased with himself! He also showed no fear with the horses. He immediately took a liking to Lexy, our miniature horse, and motioned he wanted to get right on her. Mom and Victoria walked him around, with one leading the horse and the other holding Ethan's elbow. He loved it, and soon was riding with his arms straight out, not holding on, and motioning he wanted to go faster. They trotted and even went over a couple small poles barely off the ground, all of which had Ethan laughing.

Levi Yishak, age three, has been doing well and has been enjoying the one-on-one attention from his family very much. We have all been loving his adorable smile, giggles, and funny personality. He can be a clown and loves to play in or with water- outside puddles, sinks, the pond, and the bath. He likes his new toys, but both boys want the toy school bus that makes beeps and plays songs. Little boys and car noises... new things in the Grant house! Levi has not been as eager to try new foods as his older brother...he has a stubborn streak and loudly cries out "DABO!" (bread..his favorite food so far. He does not enjoy being strapped into his highchair, but he is slowly learning to put up with it for now as well as learning to try a few new foods. He has been adjusting to American time and is getting better at napping each day. He is learning how to say "please" and is so incredibly proud of himself when he does. He gives us a huge smile and giggles whenever he says it, and big brother is tickled that he is learning some words in English. Levi Yishak is an all-around cutie and is learning how to play, act, and respond in a new family.

The rest of the Grant family is doing fairly well also...trying to learn what our "new" family is like, how to make things work, how to be patient with one another when we are all emotional and tired and feeling the stress of all the change going on. We are trying to give lots of hugs and grace and patience, and remember to laugh at things!

Here are some pics of the boys enjoying their new life:

Please continue to pray for us during this important time as we welcome these new little boys into our family!

Savannah on behalf of the Grants

Our Last Full Day in Ethiopia

Greetings from the Grants on our last full day in Ethiopia! Today was a (mostly) good day, and we just tucked the boys into bed with happy hearts. The day started on a funny note when we got Ethan dressed. We pulled out a plaid shirt and khaki pants and he began whining. What? What's up with that? He clearly did not like them, but we said "oh well" and got him dressed. If you saw what he was wearing when we picked him up from the orphanage, you would not think this a boy concerned with how his clothes appeared!

The boys did well today and both were affectionate and snuggling for a majority of the day. Levi Yishak even let me hold him when Scott left the hotel room and he did not cry or have a meltdown...he snuggled and then fell asleep. That is a total praise -- thank you, Lord! We started the day out by hiring a driver to take us to Entoto Mountain. We toured the Ethiopian museum located there -- a nice gentleman gave us an interesting description of the items in fairly good English, and then hit the relevant points in Amharic for Ethan Gezahegn. How very considerate! We then walked through the old "palace grounds", but it was difficult to think of the wooden structure as palatial compared to England's historical sites we toured just a few weeks ago. After that our driver took us to a very small church (cave) that was hand-carved entirely out of stone (about 700 years old). The most interesting part of the tour was going into the working church on the same grounds, with it being about 135 years old (if our memory serves us correctly tonight--which I am willing to bet it does not!). It didn't seem overly impressive on the outside, but the guide got keys, unlocked a big padlock door and had us remove our shoes. We then entered but could not see much except for curtains, and the electricity was not working. The guide left to go find long incense sticks to use as candles, and then he pulled back curtains and showed us the paintings covering all the inside walls--all sorts of pictures depicting bible stories, figures, the Trinity, heaven, hell, etc. The paintings were all done by two artists, and it was really neat to see such great work tucked inside this small church in the middle of nowhere. The tour was capped off with the announcement that we could not enter the innermost chamber, as that is where the Ark of the Covenant (yes, THAT Ark of the Covenant) is kept. Wow--who knew THAT? :o) And no guards even needed. We then drove back to the guest house for lunch and we were hoping for naps--but alas Yishak fell asleep on the 20 minute drive home despite all our efforts to keep him awake and then would not take a nap right then. Scott was holding Levi Yishak in the van and Levi was eating bites of a granola bar. Unbeknownst to Scott, Levi fell asleep with a bite still not swallowed in his mouth, which he then let dribble out all over Scott's shirt while he slept. Oh, the fun of having little kids around again!

We ventured back up to the rooftop patio and playroom and played there for several hours this afternoon. The boys delighted in playing hide-and-seek by hiding (obviously) behind a small potted plant, and Scott and I would make a big deal out of trying to find them. They thought it was hysterical. We played a version of Red Light-Green Light but instead used "stop" and "go"--.we thought it would be helpful to teach them the concept of "stop"so they will stop touching all the electronic buttons and messing things up! Scott and I took turns being "it" and the other holding hands with the boys and helping them know when to go and stop?. They were laughing and falling on the ground. Who knew we were so much fun? Okay, I admit we are not that much fun, but these little boys love the one on one attention. They will sit and play for quite a while in the playroom, which I attribute to the fact they have never owned toys, and once they arrived at the orphanage you don't get the opportunity to sit and play quietly without someone taking your stuff. Ethan Gezahegn would dismantle the whole ABC/number foam mat, and then begin matching up the same numbers or letters. So, all three letter "Bs" he would place together, and then all the number "8s", etc. Yishak would then enjoy ruining his older brother's work, as I imagine most younger brothers are apt to do. We finally came back to the room and Yishak napped on my chest while Scott ran down the street to pick up a few things. We were able to Skype the girls one last time and they told us they are having a wonderfully fun time with their friends and the older girls relayed we should be sure to take our time getting home!

We were blessed with the dinner provided tonight--cheese pizza, which Ethan Gezahegn ate up happily. When Levi Yishak would not eat that, Scott asked our sweet chef for a piece or two of bread. He returned with a bowl containing about 5 or 6 pieces of bread, and Levi ate up the entire thing! Wow -- I guess he was making up for lost meals. I wonder if that will put him in a carbohydrate coma for the night? A man next to us allowed Ethan Gezahegn to use his MP3 player -- something Ethan Gezahegn has clearly either done before or he has a gift for electronic things. He easily navigated the volume, fast forward and rewind functions, as well as the ability to run your finger over the screen to roll things one direction or the other. Wow!

We finished off the day on a grand note--after the boys were showered and teeth brushed, we got out their clothes for tomorrow. Ethan saw I pulled out jeans and a t-shirt for him and he was stoked and touched them and then kissed me on the cheek. Go figure! Then we went through the boys' little photo albums we had been sending them at the orphanage. We talked about how we fly home tomorrow, showed them the picture of the house, their room, their sisters, etc. Ethan was so excited--.he was gesturing to himself, and then asking "fly"? "home"?, and would point to himself, then to the picture of the house. We kept going through it -- Yes, you and Yishak fly home with us tomorrow in an airplane (big smile). Yes, we will go to this home, and you will sleep in this bed. (bigger smiles and laughter). Ethan then flopped down and started naming all the things in his albums-- Mommy, Daddy, Victoria, Savannah, Ash-uh-lyn, Lar-uh-me, etc. He then came to the picture of the girls holding their musical instruments and he said, "guitar", and began to do a rockin' air guitar impression. I think this boy wants to play the guitar! He giggled his way through the pictures, and then tucked his album right by his head on his pillow. It was such a sweet ending to the day, and our hearts are blessed with joy at this moment. Are there going to be lots of difficult times ahead? Yes. But we know the Lord has brought us here, and He will see us through each trial as well as all the moments of joy-- like right now.

Challenged and Blessed--Wednesday, May 25

Today was a challenging day! The boys woke up out of sorts and unwilling to eat; understandable given the huge changes taking place in their lives right now. We had our embassy appointment at 9:00 a.m. and waited about 50 minutes in the lobby, and after answering a few short questions the embassy official declared everything in order, said the children are legally ours and told us to pick up their passport with visa on Friday. And with that…the overseas process of the adoption draws to a close!

We had one return trip to the Transition Home to drop off donations and gifts the girls had sent for some of the older girls there, and then the boys said their goodbyes to friends and nannies. We were taken out to lunch (where the boys ate a bit of injera and chickpeas), and then we returned to the guest house. At that point the poor little guys really just fell apart for a while, and they both were crying and inconsolable.

Levi Yishak is definitely favoring Scott right now, and he clung to Scott and kept calling out “Daddy, Daddy.” Ethan Gezahegn was more distant, not wanting to cuddle, so I just sat next to him and stroked his arms and legs. After a while Levi fell asleep on Scott and Scott dozed for a few minutes while waiting for Levi to wake up. Gezahegn and I grabbed a few of his matchbox cars and headed to the rooftop playroom to play. After that Ethan seemed to do much better, and he played happily in the playroom for about two hours. During this same time we got to witness a lightning, thunder and rain storm. Wow- the winds really picked up and you could hear reverberations on all the tin roofs around here.

Scott and Levi joined us when Scott finally woke up Levi, but Levi still just sat in Scott’s lap. When we returned to our room we tried to offer the boys a few different things for dinner, but they did not seem interested in anything, even the PB& honey sandwich I made for them. Who can pass up that? After a while our girls were able to Skype us from the Alldrins, and talking to them really boosted our spirits. Ethan was a happy camper to see the girls on video this time, as well as the Alldrin kids (I would imagine he was thinking, “Hey! A few of them look like me!”) He giggled and talked to them, saying “HI!” and waving and laughing that both he, Ashlyn and Laramie were all playing with the same bouncy putty. I had Laramie put in a good word about how tasty PB&honey sandwiches are, and Naomi Alldrin agreed with her…I think that feminine charm must have worked, as both boys began to chow down that sandwich right after that!

The evening ended up much better, with showers and teeth brushing, singing songs and saying prayers. Both the boys were whimpering in bed tonight, but fell asleep fairly quickly. We are praying that their fears subside while their trust and love grow with each passing day. And now…Scott and I are tuckered out! We’re going to shower and head to bed ourselves. Good night!

We Arrived in Ethiopia--Tuesday, May 24, 2011

We are a family!
The boys are leaving the
Transition House with us!
(click to enlarge)

Our Ethiopian Airlines flight touched down in Addis Ababa about 8:35 a.m. this morning. It was about 13 ½ hours, and it went as well as a really long flight can go, I think. Once we landed, the Lord really blessed us in that we were seated near the front of the airplane and we were able to get onto the shuttle bus (you do not disembark into the airport, but rather land on the tarmac and they put stairs up next to the plane, and then you hop onto a shuttle bus that takes you to the terminal) and get into the visa line quickly. The funny part about the shuttle bus is that after we loaded up it drove us from one side of the big Boeing 777 to the other and parked next to the terminal entrance. Had we walked we would have arrived faster by just walking the 50 yards to the terminal door. Once inside we were only in that line about 15 minutes, while others we met up with later waited over an hour. Next, Scott exchanged some American money for Ethiopian Birr while I waited for our bags. Another praise….every bag showed up this time, unlike on our last trip. We had our bags and were seated inside the America World van by 9:45 a.m. Sweet! Our driver dropped us off at the Guest House where we were able to get settled into our room (on the fourth floor at 8000 feet….huff,huff,puff,puff… no elevator!) One of the guides, Job, met up with us and took us to the shopping district, as we had emailed we wanted to get some shopping done quickly before we picked up the boys. Navigating the busy streets and bartering has to be easier without nervous 3 and 5 year olds with you, right? We found what we needed very quickly (well, after we left the first store who wanted to charge us about 5-6 times more for everything than what we paid last time. “What? You pay less several weeks ago? Prices change from then! They needed a bubble over their heads that read, “Gullible white people…charge excessively!). We returned to a shop we had been pleased with last time and the same sweet gal gave us a good deal on what we wanted.

Did I mention that the streets of Ethiopia are JAM PACKED right now? I thought it was craziness last time we were here (and it was), but right now there is some important African Nations meeting taking place here in Addis, and our guide was telling us that the streets have been super congested. So, we inched and jolted our way back to the Guest House where we picked up another family (who had been stuck in that long line at the airport!), and we all went to lunch and met up with other families at the Mushuki Restaurant and Art Gallery. We were able to eat and find a neat Ethiopian painting while we waited for our food – hopefully something that will show the boys a small bit of what their home country was like.  It was fun to meet up with the Sorenson family, who received a referral around the same time we did and then their daughter’s case got caught up in the same Southern Sidama issue our boys’ case did, but their case did not resolve until about 7 weeks ago, and they were here to meet their daughter. I was able to film for them at the Transition House and experience their joy as they were finally introduced to their precious little 18 month old daughter.

All  piled into the van and ready
to head to the Guest House.

As soon as our van pulled into the Transition Home driveway and the gate swung open we saw Yishak staring at the van and he began to hurry over to it. He saw our faces through the window and smiled…hurray! No time to grab the camera or video camera and capture the moment… Scott opened up the door and Yishak rushed up to him and held his arms out to be picked up. I climbed right out and just about fell over Gezahegn, whom I almost didn’t recognize as his head was shaved and he was looking over at Scott and Yishak. I gave him a big hug and we walked over to Scott. Scott then grabbed his other son and lifted him up for a big hug also, and I DID get that shot….proud Daddy with his new sons. It was an awesome, surreal moment. Both boys were clutching all their worldly possessions in two gallon size Ziploc bags – all the little photo albums we have sent them, a few pictures their sisters drew and sent, and a few left-over toys from some of our care packages.   A little while later the four of us piled into the van and waved goodbye to the other families, and we were driven back to the guest house. I keep feeling as if this can’t really be happening after all this time. Surely the “adoption police” will tell us tomorrow that some other piece of paperwork is not in order and the whole thing is on hold again. It felt so strange to drive away with both boys. The boys were both eager to get into the van and they had big smiles on their faces. I held Gezahegn on my lap and he seemed to enjoy watching the hustle and bustle of the big city. Yishak quickly fell asleep curled up next to Scott and slept all the way back to the Guest House. Once we got to our room, we showed the boys around and showed them their two twin size beds they would sleep on. Ethan Gezahegn just flopped down on it after I gestured to him it was for him and smiled and giggled, rubbing it all over.  We had the boys take off the Transition Home clothes and climb in the shower for a thorough cleansing, which neither of them seemed to mind at all. We then got out the new clothes we brought along and let each boy choose if he wanted to wear new tennis shoes or sandals. Ethan Gezahegn was stoked about his new tennis shoes and grabbed those things out of the bag without wasting a second. That is about when we realized we forgot to pack socks for the boys! :o)  No worries, though, as Scott said he would run out to the main street and buy some from one of the gazillion little shops. He left and was back in about seven minutes, but that was still too much for Yishak, who burst into tears and was so sad Scott left.  He snuggled up with me while Scott was gone but was very happy to see him just a few minutes later. We played with a few toys we brought and then Skyped the girls. The internet connection here is too slow to use video, but we were able to hear one another, and when Ethan Gezahegn heard his sisters saying hello and talking to him, he grew happy and silly. He had been wondering where the girls were, and this helped him understand. Loren was able to turn on their video for just a minute or two, so Ethan Gezahegn could see the girls waving at him. It was awesome!  Poor Yishak had begun crying just a few minutes earlier, and as Scott sat snuggling him he went back to sleep. I wish there was some way we could communicate to him that he is safe now and that we love him and he is going to be fine, but of course there is not. The guides try to tell both Yishak and Gezahegn, but at ages 3 and 5 and not having grown up knowing Amharic, there is only so much you can tell them.  Scott and I know the boys are going to be happy and loving their new life a few months from now, but we also know the next few months are going to be so difficult for them, and everything familiar to them in their lives is about to change, which makes my heart break for them.

Cute boys try to squirm
their heads under the guard
rails on the ceiling patio to see
what the view is like down below.

We ate dinner at the Guest House and Gezahegn ate his meal, but Yishak only ate one bite of rice and refused the rest. He had a few snacks in our room earlier, but hopefully he will feel like eating a little something tomorrow. I know how my stomach gets nervous with big changes, and I can only imagine his little tummy doing big ol’ belly flops. Once we returned to our room we put the boys in their new jammies (and took pictures, of course. What is cuter than adorable kids in PJs?) , brushed their teeth and put them in their beds. Scott and I sang a goodnight song to them, which had them both smiling and laughing. We said prayers and hugged and kissed them, and they were both sound asleep a while later, and have slept all night. It was precious to see the boys snuggle their blankets we brought them and just thoroughly enjoy getting into their clean, comfortable beds. Those are without a doubt the nicest, fanciest, most comfortable beds they have ever seen or slept in, and you could see how they enjoyed that, especially Ethan Gezahegn who just buried himself in the sheets, laughed, snuggled down to the bottom and back to the top, and just really enjoyed the moment.

Right now it is Wednesday morning at 4:15 and Scott and I have been awake for about four hours now. Darn our lack of a good sleep gene!  We were hopeful that our new travel prescription of Ambien would have helped more but apparently not. That’s okay, though, as it has been a quiet time to just doze, pray, and pray some more. I have prayed for every aspect of the rest of this week, for the boys, for our girls at home, for the Alldrins who are watching our girls at home (peace and patience, peace and patience!) and for Scott and I. Thank all of YOU for your prayers…I truly feel that is the strongest “weapon " that you all have helped equip us with…your loving intercession.  We’re off to our Embassy appointment at 8:30 this morning. Hugs and love….Alison

CLEARED TO TRAVEL (May 16, 2011)

I woke up thinking, "I would love to see an email this morning stating we are cleared to go pick up the boys!". I put the tea kettle on and turned on the computer. As I scrolled through the email subjects, I saw one that said, "Case cleared for Grant's Family", which I immediately opened to read. Praise the Lord - it was our clearance from the embassy stating we can make an appointment and come pick up the boys! I ran in to tell Scott (who is home today on his day off!) and he came rushing out to read the email. We jumped up and down and thanked the Lord, and picked up the phone to confirm the news with America World. We spoke with the travel coordinator who assured us, "Yes -this is the good news you have been waiting for!"  So... Scott has already called the travel agency and they are working on options for us right now and will be calling us back. We hope to leave next week, which means by the end of this month we will be home officially as a family of EIGHT! We will update here as we finalize plans. Thank you for your ongoing prayers for our family throughout this whole adoption process. Please continue to pray for our upcoming travel, for the girls' as they stay here with friends, and for the boys hearts to feel loved and to love us back. 
     Praising God and jumping and doing a little jig....the Grants

SUBMITTED TO EMBASSY - May 11, 2011

We woke up to wonderful news this morning. An email from America World relayed that our paperwork was submitted to the embassy today, and our America World worker also received verification from the embassy that they were able to access our updated, corrected form. We are praising God this morning for this bit of "fresh air", and now we eagerly await our clearance from the embassy so we can head to Ethiopia and get our boys. We anticipate leaving within three weeks, but we're praying for sooner than that!

Thank you for lifting our family up in prayer! We ask you continue to pray that our paperwork now is on the TOP of someone's desk there at the Embassy in Addis and for us to get our clearance right away!

Alicia (left) delivering our package to the boys on Monday. Jonas is helping blow up the punch balloons!

Thank you! With a joyful heart, Alison & the family

Another "NO" for this week

Just got my email from America World:

Scott and Alison,

I was able to receive confirmation today from our in-country staff that your family’s paperwork was not able to be submitted to the embassy this week. We anticipate being able to submit the paperwork next week and will confirm with you as soon as it has been submitted. As you continue to wait, know that our prayers are with your family. We know this final stage of waiting can be the hardest and will continue to do all we can to allow your children to come home as soon as possible.

 So disappointing! It better be next week, or I'm leaving without an Embassy appointment and showing up there myself, papers in hand!