"Ballhoop"

In the past, Erin has encouraged me to do a blog entry now and then. Well, here's my first attempt.

This is some video of the beginning of a future hall of famer in basketball. Evan is playing "Ballhoop" as he calls it. Evan goes 3 for 4 from the field if you ignore the passes to imaginary teammates. Can't wait to get Levi in on some of this action.

Compassion International

Compassion International, I am learning, is an amazing ministry. In their own words this is what their organization does:

"Compassion International exists as a Christian child advocacy ministry that releases children from spiritual, economic, social and physical poverty and enables them to become responsible, fulfilled Christian adults.Founded by the Rev. Everett Swanson in 1952, Compassion began providing Korean War orphans with food, shelter, education and health care, as well as Christian training. Today, Compassion helps more than 1 million children in 25 countries."

Countries including Ethiopia! Craig and I had already agreed that we would sponsor a child from Ethiopia someday soon and have that as just one way to remain connected to Ethiopia and to be ministering even in a small way there. I recently ran across the fact that if you travel to the country of your sponsored child that, if it is possible, Compassion arranges that you could meet your child. Hmmm...so my brain was working today and I wondered what we were waiting for! While we are there in June would we be able to meet a child that we signed up to sponsor? I signed us up to sponsor a 17 year old boy and immediately called their number to see if a meeting could be arranged. The woman I spoke with said that with such short notice they might not be able to arrange it, but that we WOULD be able to leave a gift for him if we would like. Yay! If you know me you know I LOVE to give gifts. They also assist with ongoing correspondences between you and your sponsored child. Please check out Compassion's work at their website www.compassion.com and if you are interested in sponsoring a child.

Ahhhh...tickets.

Okay, this time we really really have tickets. We really really do not need a transit visa for Levi as we really really are not going through Frankfurt anymore. We really really are leaving the morning of the 10th and flying through Amsterdam, Netherlands and then on to Addis. We really really will have a stopover in Sudan. Bummer.

On a more serious note: I honestly am not worried safety wise I am disappointed that we will be somewhat supporting the economy there. Circumstances have fallen the last two days in a way that this is about our only option.

We will be arriving home, Lord willing, on the 19th with Levi in tow! So, I am really really glad tonight that it is final...even if it wasn't really really what I wanted.

Wireless

I am officially wireless! This is my first post away from home, well, about 6 blocks from home at the public library : ) Some AMAZING friends that give us MUCH more than we deserve have GIVEN, yes GIVEN, us a laptop so that we could have one on the trip to blog/journal/send pictures with. I will post a picture of it later - it is super fun! THANK YOU!!!!!!!!

I found out from the most recent travel group that most days electricity is unavailable until late evening and into the early morning hours. It seems that the email at the hotel is not so reliable. So, I don't know quite whether to expect I will be able to blog or email while we are in ET or not. I will be able to access wireless internet at the airports and may be able to take a taxi to the Hilton in Addis to send some messages. I guess we will have to wait and see! I will be able to journal easily, take more pictures, and write my posts/messages ahead of time so that if I do get a chance to send them the odds are better that they will go through.

confusion

It seems there is some confusion about whether our child needs a transit visa when going through Frankfurt. Azumano says NO and Holt says YES. Does anyone know the answer to this?

I just emailed Holt to help us clarify the situation. If the answer is yes then our trip will be one day longer than planned.

Oh, and I prescribed us some anti-malarial meds this afternoon, well, I did most of the work anyway! I suppose that is what you get when you are a pharmacist and you live in a small town where no one in the last 10 years has probably made such a request. The nurse basically asked what I wanted to take, what the dose is, and how many we'd need. I'm tempted to send them a bill (ha ha!).

Tickets

There is good news...and kind of disappointing news...and then good news again.

We have our plane tickets: Good news!
We got a great price ($1454/person plus $325 lap ticket for Levi): Great news!
We aren't going to stop in Sudan: Good news!
Won't be going early: very disappointing.
We will get to go on a day trip to Durame: Great news!

The short story is that our travel group is the largest one yet and Holt is requesting that we not arrive separate from the other families. I know with enough pushing we could get it approved, but I also understand things from their perspective and don't want to complicate their work. Hmmm...I'm trying to find out whether I am just slightly mad because I am 28 years old and am not used to being told what to do :) I'm trying to remember that in the big picture WE ARE GOING TO GET LEVI!!!! Also, Holt is offering something new for this travel group. On either Saturday or Wednesday they will be offering a day trip to Durame. So we WILL have a chance to get out of the city and make a 5 hour trip to the rural intake center. If it wasn't for this I would for sure push to go early. Part of me is thankful to just do the planned activities, but part of me is bummed because I wanted, for just a few days, to be adventurous. I'll put more details about our flights when we get our email from the agent.

The other thing crossed off the list today has been scheduling Levi's doctors appointment. Finally, we are getting some things done!

Reality check

I was pulling out clothes for Levi last night and had giggled my head off when I caught myself putting the extra clothes that we won't take with us back in the tote. They don't go back in the tote, they go in his room! Just when I think that I might actually understand that Levi will be here soon, something like this happens where I realize that it still hasn't sunk in quite yet :)

It is still early and I have high hopes for getting much done. On the list for today:

• lining up antimalarial meds for Craig and me
• scheduling an appt. for Levi at the clinic for shortly after we get home. It is common for kiddos from ET to have giardia and I want to get that checked asap. The only thing I wonder about is what name to use for him on his medical records...hmmm.
• calling Holt to ask about our itinerary in country. There is an option of leaving Thurs. night to come home and I want to make sure we will not be missing anything on that Friday.
• talking with a 2 travel agencies and deciding between them and booking NWA direct.
• packing with a friend this afternoon.

I'll let you know how it goes :)

Two weeks

Two weeks left to get this show on the road! We are busy, busy, busy with travel preparation. Right now our priority is to get tickets bought. Not getting a phone call returned Friday and the holiday today has slowed us down a bit in getting our tickets. We are waiting to hopefully talk with a travel agent tomorrow morning. We might end up just buying our tickets direct from NWA. I also emailed a tour guide in Addis a day or so ago because we are interested in going a few days early so that we can get out of the city. This was HIGHLY recommended by an adoptive family we met at the Holt benefit auction. I'll tell you more about it when we get things nailed down.

A kind friend who is well versed in international travel is coming over tomorrow afternoon to help me with packing. Yes, I know that we still have two weeks left, but I know NOTHING and need MUCH help :) I plan on posting a detailed packing list at some point in case anyone is interested in what we are taking...I will probably do it after we get home so that I can tell you if what we took was useful or not and if I forgot something completely necessary.

I will call the clinic tomorrow to line up some anti-malarial meds for Craig and I. Initially we had planned not to leave the city, however, it looks like now we will be taking a trip to Durame, the "intake" center for kids, which is in a rural area. I am soooo excited to have this opportunity! It is the place where Levi has spent most of his time and I am glad that I will be able to tell him about it from seeing it firsthand.

I'm making the kids some special t-shirts to wear when they meet us at the airport. I figured out how NOT to do it today. I need to pick Evan up another shirt (oops!). I feel pretty confident that I will be more successful next time, so look forward to pics of that in the week to come.

This is so not even close to the extent of our list...oh, this is soooo FUN!

Travel Dates!

We found out today that we will be expected to arrive in Addis Ababa on June 11th! Honestly I am fighting some discouragement...3 whole weeks more to wait. I am reminding myself often that the Lord's timing is perfect and WOOOHOOO only 3 more weeks until we meet Levi!!!

Recovery mode

Our brains are in recovery mode and thankful for another successful and completed garage sale fundraiser! The Lord blessed us with good weather two years in a row and a basement full of stuff has been reduced to about 10 boxes out in the corner of our garage awaiting delivery to the thrift store. Yay! The picture above is actually from day 2 of our sale after we had sold a good amount of stuff. All together the two garage sales provided almost $4000 to put towards the adoption. I would highly recommend this if you are looking for ways to raise money. It is a crazy amount of work for the entire month ahead of the actual sale, but definitely worth it. Several friends blessed us with yummy food and a cleaning of our house while we manned the sale! Thank you to those of you who helped us carry boxes from the basement, set up stuff on tables, take money, scrub our floors, clean up, and haul away trash. I am sooooo glad we are DONE!

Next on the list is packing for our trip to Ethiopia. I am hoping to hear of our travel dates this week. There have been at least two other families who have passed court and are waiting just like us to go get their little ones. Once we know the dates there will be a good amount of planning to do regarding where our kiddos will be while we are gone. Maybe this week I will post on some of the stuff we will be taking with us. Tomorrow morning I look forward to NO sorting or pricing of any items! Instead I think Juliana, Evan, and I will go feed the ducks at the park :)

Our crazy week

Here are a few recent pictures of the family...well, you know, part of the family, because WE HAVE A SON IN ETHIOPIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Juliana captured Evan on film the day I was out of town. Ahhh, evidence of the ice cream frenzy while Mama was away!

These are some bells we recieved as a donation for the garage sale. My kids love them and Juliana insisted they stay on the door and be rung often for Mother's Day.

After days of wondering where in the world all Juliana's socks went, I discovered the "culprits".

Thank you Jason and Julie! We are so thankful we might just name this garage sale after you!

We are totally in garage sale mode folks! The big event is this Friday and Saturday and I think we are going to be ready. Our basement is full and I soooo look forward to Saturday when it will be empty again! This has been a WONDERFUL distraction as we wait to hear of travel. As far as the adoption goes we are waiting on more Holt families (3 or 4?) to pass court so that we can travel as a group. Two families had court last night and are still waiting to hear on the outcomes. One of the families was told that if they passed to expect to hear travel dates in a week to a week and a half. That would make it end of next week or a bit later. I honestly had not had much time to think about it this week, but am glad to have an estimate in my head as to when to expect an email.

As far as donations go, we are setting pretty good. The Lord has been kind to provide MUCH for us to take...though most of it we didn't have to buy! People have been very generous and we will for sure be taking the maximum amount of luggage to Ethiopia! I will do a post after the garage-sale madness on what we have been given :)

Levi Dereje Merrihew

Oh, we love him so much!!!!

2 months - referral picture

4 months

5 months

We PASSED!!!!

Levi is our son...AMAZING!!!! I got the email less than an hour ago and then had to go to the bank to tell Craig that he has a new little boy :)

I think I can post a picture now that Levi is ours, but I want to double check on that for sure before I do. Now we simply sit back, relax, and wait for Holt to let us know our travel dates. We are told to expect to travel 2-4 weeks after passing court.

Levi, we get to see you SOON!!!!!!

No news until Monday

Looks like we will be waiting until Monday morning to hear the outcome of our court case. The Lord must be working things so as to grow some MEGA trust and endurance in us!

I am surprisingly okay to stay in this place as long as the Lord would have us. The world would not consider it a desirable place to be, but the longer I seek His will for me in this place of waiting the more I see that it is for my good and is actually a jewel handed to me, not a curse. I wish I had news to share...but alas, Monday it is.

Waiting

Just wanted to let you all know that I will update the blog as soon as I hear anything. Our court appointment is said and done as far as we know so we are hoping for easy communication this morning to Addis so that we don't have to wait much longer. I don't expect to hear anything before 10 a.m. so you have 45 more minutes of freedom before you start stalking the blog...like I will be stalking my email!

So have I mentioned...

that I really want to go get Levi soon? Ha ha!

A quiet heart tonight is truly a work of the Lord! Today has been an incredibly unique day for me. I have never wanted something so badly that was so completely out of my hands. I have had moments of peace, but to be honest, I spent the day going back and forth from tearful petitioning of the Lord to reminding myself of the firm foundation of God's sovereignty...but oh, how I want to bring Levi home!

This evening the Lord brought Isaiah 49:15 to my attention and it has given me life tonight. "Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son in her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you." We all know that the answer to the first question is a resounding yes. In our world we hear of mothers that abuse, abandon, and neglect their own children. Let us not fail to mention that in the Lord's sight when I speak in an unkind tone or choose to serve myself over my children it is the same as having no compassion on them. I was reminded that God is so much greater than any earthly mother. He will NEVER lack compassion and will NEVER forget Levi. This evening I heard so loud and crystal clearly that my job tonight is to be praying Levi home...no, not to our house, but to faith in Christ as his savior. I can do this. I can do this joyfully, fervently, AND peacefully. The Lord knows that my heart wants Levi near...I need not tell him again tonight. I will rejoice that I may intercede for this little Ethiopian soul.

My sweet Levi,

I hope that this is the first night I get to be your mama. What an honor it will be to see you grow in the coming years if the Lord wills. You don't know it, but already your little baby boy life has served to teach me about our God. His kindness, faithfulness, provision, and grace are so much more real to me now that our paths have crossed, little one. You have been set apart for the work of the Lord in your first 5 months...you didn't know you had been so busy, huh? I can't wait to meet you and see your smile! I hope that it will be soon! You have a brother and sister who delight in talking about you and looking at your picture. They are just as eager as Daddy and I to have you in our family. Levi, tonight is a big night. I feel prompted by the Lord to specifically be praying for you in this way:

Eph 3:14-19
And now, may our great and eternal Father bless you, Levi.
May He strengthen your inner being with power from the Holy Spirit.
May Christ dwell richly in your heart through faith.
May you be rooted and grounded in love so that you will comprehend with all the saints the breadth and length and height and depth of the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge.
May you be filled up to all the fullness of God according to the riches of His glory.
And may you exalt His glorious name forever and ever. Amen!

Prayer Thursday

It is hard to describe how I feel today. Excited - definitely. Thankful - immeasurably. Afraid - I confess, a tad bit. Eager for tomorrow to come - AAAAAAHHHHHH YES!

It all seems a bit unreal. Tonight, while we sleep, a new little boy could be joining our family. We could go to sleep with 2 kids and wake up with 3 - How crazy is that! I will sleep soundly tonight knowing that just as I see the Lord working in my own life, I can know that He will be working His sovereign will out in the courts of Ethiopia. I know my God is good in ALL that He does and if we have to wait out another court date it will not be in vain, but will serve for the purpose of the gospel to be advanced. Lord, help me to be faithful to hold you as my ultimate treasure whatever the outcome.

Please join me in praying for news of a new son tomorrow. Also, please pray for improved communication with Holt workers in Ethiopia. This week and last there have been times when Holt staff in Oregon could not reach staff in Addis and news of court outcomes have been delayed several days. This is out of the ordinary, but as far as I know one family had a court date last night and must wait until tomorrow for Holt to try connecting again. I'm not sure what the cause is, but have not heard that it is affecting the children in any way...just their soon-to-be parents that are WEARY of waiting!

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for praying with us! This is the way the Lord designed the body of Christ to work...bearing one another's burdens AND rejoicing with one another. I hope that we are all REJOICING with WHOOPS and HOLLERS tomorrow!!!

Prayer for Wednesday

Ooooh! We are getting closer! Here are some thoughts that I will be praying through today:

• Levi will be moved to the main care center in Addis soon. It somewhere around a 6 hour drive. Carseats are not used in Ethiopia so the nannies just hold the little babies on their laps :) Please pray for safe travel.
• Please pray that he is becoming familiar with our faces from the photo album we sent, that the Lord would even now be teaching Levi about his new family.
• Please pray for favor in the courts so that Levi will be our son when we wake up Friday morning!

This is where I rest...

I don't know what the outcome of Levi's court date will be. My soul will not rest in "willing" good news to come...because it might not and it is out of my hands. It will not rest as long as I am expecting bad news. Here it will rest:

"Find rest, o my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honor depend on God; He is my mighty rock, my refuge. Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to Him, for God is our refuge." Psalm 62:5-8

"Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."

Psalm 73:25-26

"Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for Him." Isaiah 64:4

"I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me." Jer 32:40

"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." Gal 2:20

"I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." Psalm 27:13-14

"You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the rock eternal." Isaiah 26:3-4

What I DO know is that I have been given a great salvation in which I stand right now. I look forward to eternity with my Lord and Savior who came to rescue me while I was still His enemy. He has given me a heart that is able to know and love Him in a very real way. I need nothing more than to know that to feel that I have already received much more than I could ever deserve. He orders my circumstances that I might know Him better...which is where He has created me to find my greatest joy. What a delight it will be to meet Levi in the Lord's time. I will continue praying fervently that it will be soon. There will surely be tears if another court date is required, however, I will not despair for my hope is in the Lord and He has made the boundary lines to fall in pleasant places for me. Hmmm...this has been an unexpected fight to rest in the Lord. Thanks for bearing with me as I wrestle with all that is running through my head and heart.

Man, what a kick it will be to walk off the airplane with Levi when we arrive back home!!!! Whenever it is it will be AMAZING!!!!

Where do I rest?

This past few months has been quite a test of my heart which by the grace of God I have passed in some areas, and in others I have failed miserably. Currently I feel like I am failing miserably. I am trying to figure out where in the world my emotions should be right now. Crazy excited? Yes! Not wanting to be crushed if we don't pass court on Friday? A tearful yes. Where do I rest? In excitement OR in somber realization that there is a chance that we would not pass court and would have to wait 6 weeks more. I confess that I am letting myself dwell in the much more somber mood lately. Excited that our court date is so near, but protecting my heart fiercely.

I want to meet Levi. I want to see him. I want to see him as a momma sees him, not in a picture anymore or in the words of official documents. I want to squeeze him and tell him I love him and smell his little boy skin and tickle his toes...all the things the Lord has designed little boys and their mamas to love. Oh, Lord please let us pass court this week that we could bring him home soon.

And so I remember through tears that the Lord sets the lonely in families, that He is and has always been the best Father to Levi. He is ministering to Levi right now, even as I write, in a way that I will always be unable to do. The Lord loves Levi more and better than I can. All things are bearable when we are confident they have been lovingly designed to fulfill a purpose in us. This wait is not meaningless. The Lord continues to knit Levi into our hearts, deeper and deeper as time goes on. Each stitch a little bit more painful, yet we know that when we see Levi, he will not be a stranger to us. This wait is good and right as it has been ordained by the Lord, however long it becomes. When we see Levi we will KNOW that he is our son, and I chuckle as I think about having him home that the only difference will be that when we talk about Levi he will be able to hear us!

I have had the opportunity to talk about Levi and the adoption much these days. When I talk to someone new about our adoption, almost everyone remarks with disgust that adoption is such a long and difficult process and costs too much. I used to have that same opinion, however, it is different now that I am in the midst. It is unfortunate that it must be so, but oh, it so protects these children. The many checks to ensure that the children, who are at the mercy of adults around them, go to safe and secure homes, and the long wait that grows them a place in our hearts are good. Let us not forget that if it were not for the sin of man, adoption would not be necessary. If it were not for our desperately wicked hearts, numerous checks into our character would not be needed. If the church would simply commit to caring for the orphan, financial requirements would be easily met.

I'll get off my soapbox for just a while.

Prayer Tuesday

Please be praying today for electricity! Rolling blackouts by neighborhood are not uncommon in Addis Ababa. From what I have read, this is due to the lack of rains in Ethiopia resulting in a shortage of water for the power plants. I have also heard that blackouts are one reason that court dates get moved...so lets pray for electricity in the courts on Thursday!

4 Days!

I am LOVING that we are getting so close to our court date! If you would like to join us in praying more specifically for Levi's court hearing I will be posting something to pray for each day this week.

Today please pray with us that ALL of Levi's paperwork will be put together correctly with NO papers missing. There is one judge who hears cases and one government agency that handles all adoption cases in Ethiopia. I have read that there were 3000 international adoptions out of Ethiopia last year. This makes for at least 15 cases/day (if our math is right) and that doesn't account for holidays. So, it is only understandable that sometimes paperwork is incomplete simply due to the magnitude of their job.

In other news, the garage sale craziness is well underway :) We have MOVED THE DATE of the garage sale to May 15th - 16th. We are anticipating travel at the end of May when the garage sale was initially scheduled for. Sorry for the change in date, we set the original date when we were expecting for our court date to be in June. Anyway, we still welcome any and all donations. We will do the sorting and pricing and would be glad to help haul stuff for you :)