We're Signed Up For Even More Crazy

So, already we're heading to Africa for 10 days

with 2 of our children,

for a total of 39 hours of in-flight time round-trip,

coordinating leaving 1 child behind in the U.S. with grandparents,

for longer than we've ever left any of our children,

to meet our 4th child,

a 2 year old (nearly 3 year old) we've never seen in person before,

but fully consider her our daughter none the less.

we'll appear in an Ethiopian courtroom and tell the judge we want to adopt her.

we will visit with our little girl a total of 3 times and then have to leave without knowing when we can go back for her.

i put together a photo book for her this past Sunday,

pictures of us, her new family, that the care center staff will give to her when we are officially hers!

we will tour 3 government orphanages,

we will spend 7 nights in a guesthouse with 50 degree F nights and no heat,

and hope we're not in the unlikely 50% of people who travel to this region and get traveler's diarrhea!

this weekend we purchased a backpack and stuffed it full of all kinds of things,

including a t-shirt from our hometown football team,

held it right up to the back of the 8 year old who lives in our home,

to see if it would be the right size for another 8 year old half a world away,

the backpack, shirt and goodies are for our Compassion child that the "odds are against us" actually getting to meet during this trip,

the backpack will go to Ethiopia (along with the mounds of diapers, wipes, and hand sanitizer orphanage donations) just in case we get to see him in person.

we'll spend time with our friend in the mission field and come face to face with great need.

so, why not add to the crazy?

we've made plans to fly from the capital city, Addis Ababa, north to Mekele, the area our new daughter is from.

It's an hour and a half flight, totally do-able as a day trip, right?

Only for crazies like us!

But, to see her heritage,

the chance to fill in some missing history from her past,

to visit the orphanage where she spent a month,

talk to the nannies that cared for her then,

to get to play with the kids at that orphanage who only rarely get visitors,

and to be able to deliver to them some donations to hopefully make their lives better,

sure, why not?

sign us up!