Home! (and it's cold)

Here are the first few pictures from Ethiopia....more to come soon!!

We're back!

AMARI IS THE MOST ADORABLE CHILD EVER! Doesn't every parent feel that way? There's so much to say but I've only time to write once today so enjoy my post to our Agencies Chat group about our trip and Happy Valentines Day! Love ya!

Hi there,

We're finally home (snowstorms interfered). There is no place like it for sure.

It’s Valentines Day today and we are so in love with our daughter that it is perfect that our first few days back land on this holiday.

We both think that it is really worth your while to go on the trip to see your birth families. We cannot yet take all of it in but know how it changed our whole experience of our adoption. It is an honor and a rare opportunity that Ethiopia gave us for her. We are limiting what we share with our community and while Amari will always know, it is her story to share as she chooses later on.

The trip to and from Awassa is really great opportunity to see the landscape of the country, the rural world, and the ongoing dichotomies of Ethiopia. Awassa by the lake is really lovley and there are palm trees throughout the area but it is still dusty, dry, and comparatively poor. Ethiopia has gone from a country with about 40% trees to 3% due to their heavy use. The wood is used for everything – cook-fires, construction, wagons, etc. As the majority of the people live close to the bone they use what is handy. This has had a drastic effect on the environment. Take Sudafed and antihistamines - we were both very affected by the dust and pollution from the start and another family found themselves strongly affected later in the week.

Take Dramamine if you tend to get car sick regardless. The drivers we had were GREAT negotiating the flow of it all like pros, but driving anywhere in Ethiopia is very different than in US. It's a lot more like Italy and the UK from my experience but with a 3rd world flavor. Cows, goats, donkeys bikes, and lots of people all at the same time. The road Awassa was smoother than many routes in Addis which are often bumpy and sometimes downright jeep worthy. The driver to Awassa is a profesional driver who knows the route to Awassa well having driven it as a commercial driver for 3 years.

Get antibiotics for everyone including your child/ren. We took it ourselves due the above issues and not wanting to get an infection from our heavy congestion. We felt better as the Sudafed and antihistamines were not getting it all.

While the diarrhea in our baby from taking the antibiotics was not fun, her chest and nose congestion had us worried that she would have an ear infection on the fight home. My husband was sick for weeks as a kid after flying with a ear infection and we didn't want that for our child. As it turns out Mark was right on the money because the doctor saw a recovering ear infection at her appointment the day after we got back. He gave us kuddos for getting her taken care of. She did really well on the plane and was happy most of the time despite a 3 hour stint on the plane in Rome and an extra 3 hours in the airport in DC all due to the weather. I can't imagine her misery if we hadn't started treating her.

In a larger travel group of new people with complex and varying needs and a new country things to remember – slow down, be flexible, patient, appreciative and generous. Because that’s what everyone at HOH (and the people in the country) has to do to put up with us and they do all of it with amazing politeness, care, warmth, and graciousness. I still cannot get over how well they took care of us and how much they and EVERYONE in the country LOVE, love on, and care for our kids. It’s really stunning at times. More to come on the loveliness of the people from there that we met there another time.

I was not always as great at being patient etc. as I would like but tried hard, and really enjoyed every family for their super kindness, their varied perspectives, the support and help you get from everyone in the group, and the spice of life that they added to this experience. I am looking forward to seeing everyone and their kiddos in the future.

Right now though my baby girl has woken up (we are still jet lagged) and I am going to enjoy more of her giggles and chortles. I am going to kiss my lovely husband – who by the way made me fall in love with him all over again as I watched him hold, comfort, and play with Amari our first day together as a family.

--
Lisa and Mark Mingrone

Check out our adoption blog!
http://landm920.blogspot.com

Long week coming to a close

We have been in Addis Ababa since Sunday last week and have experienced a lot. It has been really difficult to get on the internet so most of our updates about the trip will happen when we get back home. But here are some highlights.

We met our little girl on Monday. We will name her Amari and keep her birth name (Nigist) as her middle name. However, Nigist is Ahmaric for "Queen" so most of the locals seem to light up when they hear that name. So for most of the week she has been Nigist.

She has really warmed up to us and is a pleasure to be around because if she is in the right mood it is really easy to get her to laugh and stick out her tongue. As the week goes on she is more comfortable falling asleep in our arms rather than on her own. She is actually insisting on it so we know she is really starting to bond to us. More work to do in that area, but we've seen other families going through a lot worse so there are no complaints from us.

Her paperwork at the US embassy is complete so we now have a passport with her little face on it, plus a big important envelope that has to remain sealed and only opened by US immigration when we land in DC. It will mean a few hours waiting in immigration, but it's all been approved so that is the last hurdle!!

Tomorrow will be our last day to see any sites and then get some rest before packing. There is a lot more to tell and share about the trip when we get home.