Trip #1 Complete

The trip home from Ethiopia was bittersweet. It was absolutely thrilling to arrive home Saturday night and see Lucy and Harry run down the concourse to meet us. Thankfully no security guards tried to stop them as they sprinted past the waiting point. But our family isn’t complete as Gus still lives in a transition home half a world away. We’re waiting to receive word that the judge has received the documents she requested so that the adoption can be finalized. Then we can be submitted to the US embassy so that Gus can be cleared to come home.

I need to post some thoughts about our trip and will try to do so over the next couple of weeks. In many respects the trip simply couldn’t have gone better. Meeting and spending time with Gus was wonderful. We stayed healthy, our luggage traveled on the same schedule we did, and jet lag was of little consequence while we were there. Yebsabi Guest House, where we stayed, was very nice. And while I was never able to access this blog I was able to access the internet most of the time.

In the days ahead please continue to pray with us that God, in His providence, will direct the many intricate little variables that need to fall into place so that we can finish this up. We haven't passed court yet but we're praying we will soon. Also please join us in praying that we will be able to raise the last little bit we need to make one final trip. The reserves are getting low but God has always provided us with just what we need right when we need it. Things would have to go very smoothly but it is not out of the question that we would have Gus home by Memorial Day. This certainly isn’t impossible with God.

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Day 1: Travel

I don't know if we'll be able to blog from Ethiopia or not so I'm going to seize the moment and catch you up on our trip so far. We're in Charlotte, sitting in rocking chairs and watching the planes take off. After a short 48 minute trip from Savannah we have our first layover: 4 hours. For our last American meal we chose CPK express. I've had worse at the airport and better at CPK.

The parting from our children was far less dramatic than I expected. Lucy chose pancakes with Grammy and Harry over a trip to the airport. Who can blame her really?

Up next we have 9 hours to Frankfurt followed by another 6 hour layover. I've been reading Robinson Crusoe which is quite good so far. Erika's reading another Randy Alcorn novel. I think that's all I've got for now.

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Here We Go

We leave for Ethiopia tomorrow morning at 11. International travel is overwhelming for many reasons, not the least of which is the length of the flight. I don’t really sleep on planes so I’ll probably arrive in Ethiopia Saturday evening ready to go to bed. We’re flying into Addis Ababa which is the capital city of Ethiopia. That’s where we will be spending all of our time.

Sunday, April 17th, will be Easter in Ethiopia (we get two Easters this year!). We hope to get to go to church in the morning and then to see Gus for the first time that afternoon. I just can’t imagine what that will be like. We spend the week visiting Gus and then seeing some of the sights in Addis. Then, on Thursday, we go to court. Pray that the judge will pass us on the first try. This will help the process to go much more smoothly. If we don’t pass we don’t have to appear before the judge again but it would definitely slow things down.

We head for home late Friday night. If all goes well we’ll go back to Ethiopia in 4-6 weeks to finally bring Gus home. Lord willing, we will worship with our home church on Easter morning. Speaking of our home church, we have been overwhelmed by their kindness. We’re headed for Ethiopia loaded with stuff for the children.

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