Meetcha Day!!! 1-1-12

There really are no words for everything I was feeling once we landed in Ethiopia. On one hand I was trying to take in the reality that I was really half way across the world but at the same time trying to prepare myself for the moment I had been dreaming and praying about for 14 months. Ethiopia is an amazingly beautiful place. As soon as I walked outside the crisp fresh air hit my face, the sun was shining bright and all around I watched as families celebrated the arrival of loved ones. Ethiopia celebrates Christmas on January 7th so there were a lot of people on our flight who were going home for the holidays. We quickly got our bags put in the car and off we were to the transition home.

I will go ahead and warn you I look like a hot mess!! Let me remind you although it was 8am in Ethiopia, it only 2am back home and I hadn't been to sleep in almost 24 hours :) So yet I was going on pure adrenaline!!

The transition home is surrounded by it's own gate and wall. It is almost like a little compound. Once the gates were opened and we pulled in I was taken back with this little place where my son had been living. Beautiful flower gardens, big tall trees towering over the dorm like rooms that lined the dirt area where sweet little ones were walking around.

I had thought I would go in and get settled, take a shower and get freshened up a bit before meeting my sweet little one. News flash, didn't happen, LOL Woudneh must have known deep down I was beyond ready to have my sweet boy in my arms because as soon as he got out of the car he hollered at one of that nannies to bring him to me. Of course I didn't realize what he was doing because he was speaking in Amharic and before I even made it into the guest house I heard Lesli say "oh my gosh Sarah I think this is him" and I turned around to see one of the nannies carrying my little boy. That sweet little face that I had been staring at since November, who I had been praying for for 14 months was finally only a few feet away from me. I couldn't believe it.

The nannies take such good care of the children there. They are very protective over them, and this nanny in particular seems to be very close to Isaiah. She was holding him very close and almost as a mother would she was looking me over with a fine tooth comb before she would hand him to me. I laugh looking at this picture because Isaiah is looking at Lesli with a look like he is thinking "who is the lady behind the camera and why is she pointing that thing at me" Ha!

Once she handed him to me I was just in aww. My sweet boy was finally in my arms. I couldn't believe it. It felt like a dream. God had taken an ordinary girl like me and taken me on this amazing journey of adoption. A journey that in the beginning I didn't think was possible. Now a year later I was finally holding him in my arms and it felt wonderful. I just kept kissing him and telling him how much I loved him. At one point he looked at me with those big brown eyes and I just melted. I just continued to say a prayer of thanks for this precious little gift from God. How fitting that his Ethiopian names means "Gift From God"

I spent the next 15-20 minutes just soaking up my sweet Isaiah and taking in every ounce of his sweetness!! It still amazes me at how much I truly love that little boy!! The moment Isaiah was placed in my arms I felt as if my heart was going to burst. It made me think about my Heavenly Father and His Love for me? I had long and prayed for my sweet boy who was so far away from me for so long, just as my Father had longed for me to come to him years ago before I gave my life to Him. Last year when I was told Ethiopia was closing single parent adoptions and that I may not get to adopt, I was determined to do whatever it took to bring my little boy home! Just as my Father was determined to do whatever it took to make sure we His children could spend eternity with Him, even if it meant he sent his ONLY Son to die for our sins! I pray that if you are reading this you know Him and you know how much He Loves you!!

After spending some time with Isaiah, Lesli and I enjoyed a wonderful breakfast prepared for us of eggs and bread. I got some practice eating with one hand, while holding Isaiah :) After breakfast I immediately took him upstairs to change him into one of the outfits I had brought and to have some tummy time with him. Having worked in a Pediatrician's office for the last year I knew where he should be as far as development. He did really well. I was so happy to see he had really good neck control. He was not able to sit without support but rolling from front to back and back to front, so I was happy! He was all smiles and I quickly discovered he is VERY ticklish! Hearing him laugh brought sweet tears to my eyes.

I honestly could've spent the entire day just hold him and watching him interact with his toys I brought him. I brought a picture book that had pictures of Noah and I in it and he enjoyed playing with that. We looked at the pictures and I told him how excited his big brother is to have him home and how much he loves him. I had also taken a little puppy blanket for him. When Noah was is in the NICU after he was born they had given me a little blanket to sleep with to put in his bed so he would have my smell when I was unable to be with him, so I did the same thing with Isaiah's little puppy blanket :)

Woudneh decided to take all of the families staying in the Guest House out to eat for lunch at a beautiful resort. Lesli and I were thankful because we were trying our hardest to stay awake in order to get on Ethiopia's time. Lunch was very good and the scenery was beautiful. I enjoyed getting to talk to some of the other families and hear their stories. Over the last year and through Facebook I had become friends with Rachel. She and her husband Adam were adopting a little boy also and were using the same agency. Their case had gotten caught in immigration and Adam had been in Ethiopia for almost 5 weeks trying to get things worked out so they could bring their sweet little Kellen home. I was happy to meet Adam (and Kellen) and to have the opportunity to talk and get to know him. I am happy to announce Adam and Rachel passed through immigration while I was in Ethiopia and Kellen is now home with his sweet family!! I look forward to continuing my friendship with them and am happy that Isaiah and Kellen will get to know each other in the states.

Once we got back from lunch I spent some more time with Isaiah. The nannies had given me his bottle along with a bowl of porridge for him to eat. I didn't have a chair of any kind to sit him in so I just held him on my lap with one hand and fed him with the other. It was a funny site to see, lol I apparently was not shoveling it in fast enough for him, and my sweet boy let me know real quick :) Of course it made me happy to see his is such a good eater! He even has a few rolls here and there to prove it, Ha! Once the sun went down it was getting harder and harder to keep my eyes open. I gave Isaiah some more kisses and hugs and then took him back to the nanny for the evening. Even though he was only yards away from me, I couldn't wait to go to sleep so morning would come and I could go back and get him!