INVISIBLE

Have you ever felt invisible?  I was a shy child growing up and often felt invisible. As I stood on the sidelines at recess, lunch time and parties I often wondered "Does anybody see me?"  I dreaded PE because I was not athletic.  When it came time to pick teams, I was without fail among the last ones picked.  When I was at a roller skating party and it was time for "couples skate," nobody noticed me.  Perhaps you too have felt invisible at times and can identify.

The older children at the orphanages experience this feeling of "invisibility" day in and day out.  When they first come to live at the orphanages and see the new mommies and daddies come, their hearts start beating faster and they ask themselves "Is it me, is it me?"  Sadly, the new parents walk right past them as if they were not even there and reach out for a cute little baby or an adorable toddler.  So the older child gets back in the line and hopes that maybe next time, a new mommy or daddy will come and pick them.  The days go by and babies and toddlers come and go.  The older child, still standing in line, becomes downcast and that glimmer of hope slowly dies within them.  "Does anybody see me?"  Does anybody know who I am?"  "Does anybody care?"

Our agency has had 3 older boys (T, L, & Z) who have been waiting over a year for a forever family. Can you imagine how it would feel to watch other children come and go as you wait and wait to be picked?  People often overlook older children, especially boys, out of fear.  A younger child seems more safe and with less issues.  (I know we had some of the same fears but God helped us look past them when He showed us He had two older sisters for us instead of one girl toddler.)  Yet these children need homes just like all the other children.  Here are how T, L, & Z are described:

T – T is a quiet boy who likes to play with his friends. He has a calm and friendly personality that one might see as being shy, but after he warms up to someone he is more outgoing, kind and friendly.

T likes to be active and play soccer with his buddies. He is good at sharing and is kind to the younger children at the Care Center.

L-L is an adorable little guy who loves to have fun! He can be shy around adults but is friendly with the other children. He loves to play cars and enjoys trying to make one-on-one conversations with visiting adults. Showing off what English he is learning.

Z-Z is a very compassionate boy. He is always looking out for the younger boys at the Care Center. He is seen as a big brother to every one there and is sweet to every one.

Z is fun and loves to play games with his friends. He is not over powering for attention but is willing to wait his turn.

Fortunately, T, L, & Z have been noticed by a few parents with compassionate hearts who have met them in Ethiopia.  These parents have joined together to help these precious boys.  They are hosting an online silent auction to raise money and provide a grant to any family who will step up and provide a home for one of these boys.

Please go to http://tlcfortlz.blogspot.com/ to see how you might help these boys find a forever home.

LEAVING ON A JET PLANE...

Well after 3 days of trying, I finally got our plane tickets booked.  The MKI travel agent came highly recommended and she did get us the best price; it is just that she was traveling and at a conference yesterday and today that made communicating more challenging.  We were able to get tickets for the boys to travel with us and Michael's teachers agreed to let him make up work over the holidays.  He still homeschools but goes to a Classical school 1.5 days a week and then does the rest of his work at home using an online system.  His teachers agreed that this is an experience he should not miss.

Today I also attended a Webinar to prepare us for the court process.  All of the families stay at the same guest house and our agency provides transportation to and from the airport, court house and care center where we will be able to visit with our girls.  They will be in school in the morning so we will only get to see them a couple of hours each afternoon.  We hope to meet some member(s) from the birth family while we are there.

We also hope to visit the Ethiopia Compassion project while we are in Ethiopia and perhaps do some volunteer work.  Our older daughter volunteered at one in Peru a few years ago and said it was a life changing experience.

I look forward to eating Ethiopian food and experiencing the culture.  I even get to eat with my hand!  The only trouble is that proper etiquette is to eat with one's right hand and I am left handed!  The Ethiopians use a nutrition packed, sourdough, flat type bread called Injera to scoop up their food.  Using hands to eat sure would save time on doing the dishes.  One doesn't even need a napkin there because it is proper to clean your hands off after each bite with one's mouth!  Think of all the trees that would be saved!  David looks forward to the Ethiopian coffee times.  Ethiopia is known for its coffee.  Hopefully there will be something our kiddos like!  I would also like to take a trip out to the countryside to get a different perspective from the capital city, Addis Ababa.  I saw in our travel packet there is an opportunity to take trail rides outside the city.  It is $300 birr which would be $17 in U.S. currency.  That is pretty cheap!

We have been in contact with the another family from our area that is traveling at the same time.  They are traveling to adopt a young daughter.  They have other kids around the ages of our boys.  They even live close to us so we are looking forward to getting to know them better.

Please continue to pray that the process will go smoothly.  Thanks for your friendship and support.

GOOD NEWS!!!

Thank you for your continued prayers and support.  We received our court assignment today!  Our court date is December 6th!!  The birth family court date (date a remaining family member transfers rights to us) is on November 24, Thanksgiving.  While it will be a sad, emotional time for them, we will have thankful hearts for the two precious gifts that they are giving to us.  We hope to meet a member of the birth family when we travel for court.  I doubt that we will be able to travel to the Sidama region where the girls are from due to its distance from Addis, the capital.

Our girls' father died in 1/2010 and their mother in 5/2010.  Their grandfather, age 86, was unable to care for them and brought them to an orphanage on 9/21/2010.  By the time we will be able to bring them home (hopefully January or February) they will have been in orphan care for 1.5 years.

Our agency told us that 3 other families will be traveling at the same time and one is from our town!  We will receive contact information for the other families soon.  December 6th is a week of school for the boys but I will be contacting their teachers to see if they can make up work over the Christmas break.  Time to book our travel!

Last year, November 7th was Orphan Sunday at our church and the day we both decided to embark on our journey of adoption.  December 6th was a day of "closed doors" for us.  Our agency informed us that we could not pursue a China adoption due to our medical history of skin cancer.  But God new the plans He had for us in Ethiopia and we rejoice that this year December 6th will be a day of "open doors" and happiness.

Psalm 136:1-3
Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods.  His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords.  His love endures forever.


Psalm 136:8
The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me;
your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.

COURT REOPENS

Today the Ethiopian courts reopened.  Still no word about our court date.  Our agency representative said that our dossier has been submitted to court but once there, they have no way to track status.  So we wait patiently for God's perfect timing.  Waiting is often a time of preparation so:

Last week we attended a webinar on adopting older children.  A mom who came home with sibling boys last April sat in on the discussion.  It was helpful to draw on her experiences and know a little more about what to expect.

David painted the girls room a pretty soft yellow and will be hanging some white lacy curtains to complete the decor.  We also purchased a white Pottery Barn bookcase yesterday from Craig's List.  It goes well with the white dresser that was already in the room.

We are reading a book entitled "20 Things Adoptive Kids Wished Their Adoptive Parents Knew," with our adoption group at church.  I'm also reading, "I'm Chocolate, You're Vanilla" and "Parenting the Internationally Adopted Child."  All great books.

We are connecting through blogs, e-mail and facebook with other families from our agency who have or are in the process of adopting from Ethiopia.

So we are staying busy preparing for the girls' arrival but I must admit the wait is more difficult now that I know the courts have opened again.  I received new pictures of the girls this weekend from a family that traveled to pick up their twin sons.  I wish I could post the pictures of our girls but posting pictures is only allowed once they are legally ours.  So we continue to wait...

Psalm 130:5-6 - I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His Word, I put my hope.  My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.