A week before we got Elias I was nervous. I wasn't nervous about being a Mom or about Elias himself. I was scared that becoming parents would completely change the relationship between Brian and I. I felt as though we were closing a chapter on a part of our lives together that had been great and I was afriad it might all change.
Truth is, it has changed. Not in the ways I imagined though. True we don't get as much alone time together but really it just makes the time we spend with one another that much more special. Although I love having Elias awake I also love it when he goes to sleep and I know I get alone time with Brian for as long as I can manage to stay awake.
Watching Brian and Elias interact together has only made my love for Brian grow that much deeper. I never questioned how he would be as a father. I would have never married him if I had any doubts in that area. He has only exceeded my expectations and hopes.
We have truly loved having Elias in our lives and we are both so in love with him!
Of all the stages in my life, this is by far my favorite. It is hard to imagine life getting any sweeter. God has blessed us far beyond what we could have ever dreamed for ourselves.
The best decision I ever made as an individual was to marry Brian. By far the best decision we have ever made as a couple was to start expanding our family through adoption. I love my boys!!!!!
Elias is doing well. He continues to be a happy and fun baby. We had our first doctor’s appointment on Friday where we learned that he still has a double ear infection. He has been put on another round of antibiotics unfortunately it is giving him an upset stomach. Despite this he is relatively content and doesn’t fuss too much. I was telling my mom I am shocked that we have such a happy baby when he has been sick the entire time we have been together. She made a good point by saying he may have had ear infections so long that he doesn’t know any better.
This lovely invention along with the wonderous "nap" is the reason I am able to still blog :)
Once they saw the breakfast buffet at the Union they were hungry again so we all sat down and ate. I kept telling them how excited we were to meet them. Anything we said was met with shy grins and eyes cast downward.
We hung out with our three siblings for the next few hours. We gave them presents from us and ones Mom and Dad had sent. We also gave them Pop Rocks. It was hysterical. Israel kept sticking out his tongue and drooling all over the place. We have it on video but Brian accidentally left the video camera charger at the Union and the one we have at home apparently needs that same cord so until we go shopping the videos will have to wait.
Once the time was getting closer Emily took the boys back to the house and came back to the Union so she could take pictures and video for us. We headed downstairs to wait the last 15 minutes. At this point I became nervous. 
For the first time in this whole experience I had butterflies in the stomach and was filled to the brim with anticipation. We all sat there staring at the clock and wondering how late Almaz was going to be. Ethiopian time is a lot like Hawaii time. Almaz got there and dropped a bomb. Instead of doing paperwork the next morning like our schedule said she wanted to do it right then. She thought it would take about a ½ hour. At this point it was 2:15 and I was barely keeping a lid on my excitement. We sat and did paperwork, albeit reluctantly.
Finally we headed on THE WALK to Hannah’s Hope. 
I had seen pictures but was overcome once again with the feeling of relief and unbelief that it was finally our turn. The walk was very short. We turned a corner and the first gate we saw said All God’s Children. My eyes started to well up just knowing Elias was inside. When we first walked in we had the pleasure of watching the other families meet their children as they were all older. It was a moment filled with pure joy and I am so blessed to have been able to witness such beautiful meetings. Almaz kept wanting to hurry us along and somewhat reluctantly we stopped watching their reunions and went to experience ours. We walked around a building and then climbed up back stairs. As we entered in the door I could hear a baby screaming. We walked down a short hallway and I saw Almaz pause. It was Elias. And he was the child who was screaming. She picked him up and I was upset. I didn’t care that he was screaming it was my turn. She kept saying she wanted to calm him down first and I kept smiling and saying that was fine while secretly wanting to snatch him from her arms. Eventually she let me hold him although he never calmed down. He would keep crying and she would take him again. 
At this point I was irritated that I couldn’t just try. I felt so bad for him. The poor baby was absolutely inconsolable. It was so shocking and unexpected everything is kind of a blur. Over the next 2 hours we went through 4 special mothers plus Almaz, bathed him, fed him, changed his diaper, changed his clothes, massaged him, rocked him, held him, and bounced him all to no avail. Finally one of the special mothers was able to get Elias to fall asleep. 
We walked upstairs where Almaz instructed me to pick him up in his bouncy seat and carry him down windy stairs. You’re kidding right? I just got my son and now I am going to drop all 19 pounds of him as I fall down stairs? 
It certainly wasn’t the most graceful thing but we made it. We watched him sleep for about 45 minutes. He looked so peaceful and content.
During that time we played with other babies and took pictures of Elias. When he woke up Daddy was sitting on the couch watching him and he woke up smiling. He was happy and giggling. We took turns holding him. 
He would go back and forth between seeming okay and wailing at the top of his lungs. Whenever he would scream someone would run into the room, take him from our arms and try to get him to stop. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t. Sometimes I was frustrated, sometimes I was thankful for the help. The meeting was not at all what I expected. My heart broke for Elias. I wondered if we had made the wrong decision as he seemed happier at HH then with us. More than anything I just wanted him to be happy and he seemed scared.
He would still cry but with some bouncing and singing he would calm down. It was a battle. By this time we were the only family left at HH. Almaz talked to us for a while then we walked ourselves back to the Union.
Saying Good Bye
A clear day over San Diego 
Next thing you know the plane had landed and we were in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia!! Scott and Traci had been here a few times so they knew exactly which lines to get in. We quickly got our visas and then passed through immigration. One by one each of our 8 bags arrived safe and sound. As Brian was pulling them off I was praying that if anything got lost it wouldn’t be the bag with our stuff in it. As we walked through the exit doors I spotted Johannes, the AGCI family coordinator who was picking us up. I felt bad that the poor guy was up and waiting for our late plane at 3:30am. He greeted us and the first thing I asked was “When can we see our baby? We don’t have to wait until tomorrow do we?” Johannes laughed and said nothing. I don’t know if he understood my fast, excited and slightly delirious version of English. I asked for a picture and we waited for the other families. 
We took an eventful trek down to the van where bags were piled high on top. Scott asked Johannes if he needed to borrow rope…he said no as if he had his own; however, he had no intention of using any. Steve held lookout from the side and Brian from the back. Shockingly in the 20 minute drive over bumpy roads we didn’t lose a single bag. As we pulled up to the Union Hotel I couldn’t believe that it was actually our turn. After 13 months of reading about traveling it was finally our turn! Amazing. We checked in and hiked the stairs to our room. The first thing I had Brian do was plug in the hot water heater (that ended up being an excellent decision) as we had piping hot water in the morning and for the rest of our stay. There really was nothing comparable to a hot shower during this trip (even if there was no shower curtain). Scott and Traci brought a shower curtain because that is what experienced Ethiopian travelers do, and since they had an amazing bathroom they let us borrow it. Unfortunately I ended up having to use it as a curtain so that the guys roofing across the street couldn’t watch me shower. I probably would have had to duck each morning in the shower otherwise.
Israel - age 8 (ish)
Changing their nephew's diaper
Feeding their nephew
The first time to the movies!