Tuesday, Aug 30

 Didn't know we were stopping at the internet cafe on our way to Mark's service, so no pix.

Flew from Addis Abbaba, Ethiopia to Malawi then finally to LUBUMBASHI in the DRC. We will get to meet our darlings today! Trying to type on a computer in french: not same keys and we will only have a few minutes.

We got off the plane wondering if the twins woud be there. I couldn't help but wonder how they would respond. Would they cry, would they be afraid, happy?

Didier was waiting for us on the tarmac without them. We finally got our 7 suitcases and went to the van where we were told the children were waiting!!! So excited to finally meet these dear ones!!! We walked to the van and 9 children spilled out, including the twins. I think they were in a bit of a shock. They let us hold thm quite contentedly, but said nothing and just stared at us. Brandon touched my hair and skin on the drive back. So cute!! We pulled out some little cracker snacks and then their personalities started to come out a bit.

Brandon is quieter than Kara and loves to be held. Kara thinks she is BOSS. She started giving commands to her brother: Give that to me! Don't touch. That's mine! She was thirsty, pointed to the water bottle Gabe was holding and told him to give it to her. He asked her to say please. She just looked at him in refusal. Then she wanted mine. I very sweetly told her the same thing. She still refused so went without. We'll tango later more I think. :)

Time's up, we gotta go... Sorry no photos!! Will send lots, maybe tomorrow if possible. Couldn't send any from our hotel in Ethiopia either as wi fi connection was weak... So thankful for your prayers.... more to come!!

Africa, Mon, Aug 29

We are in Africa !!

(Gabe here) Our flight out of D.C. was delayed three hours so we went to the Smithsonian National Air and Space museum for a couple of hours on Sunday, instead of sitting around the airport. Pretty amazing place- I wish we could have spent more time there. It just happens that I am reading a book called Flyboys (thanks Sean) so I got to see some of the same planes and history from WWII that the book refers to; Amazing history! We also got to see the Space Shuttle, SR71 Blackbird, The Concorde, and the Enola Gay (the actual plane that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima).

SR-71 Blackbird

Because of the delay we missed our connecting flight to Lubumbashi so now we are spending a night it Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. What a different world. There are no stop signs or traffic lights on any of the streets. Driving through town is a free for all. Thankfully we were passengers on a hotel van. Hundreds of people were walking everywhere while we drove by. Crosswalks are irrelevant. Saw a guy holding a leash, but not to a dog, he was leading (or being led by) a water buffalo!! Again, a different world! Our Hotel de Leopol entrance had a real stuffed lion and cheetah. They’d seen better days. We were very grateful for clean a room with a flushing toilet and tub with hand held shower.
 
From our hotel room we can see all sorts of “skeletons” of buildings in the distance. It looks like the Ethiopians construct dozens of towers from concrete but then don’t finish them. There are only pillars and floors (many about 10 stories high) with no walls or windows. The scaffolding around the “under construction” buildings is the scariest part. Posts and rails only with no platforms. There is a set of scaffolding about 9 stories high and 100 feet from my hotel room that looks like it is made from wooden sticks tied together. Let’s just say safety standards are a bit different here.

Tomorrow [Tuesday] is the big day when we get to meet Didier with Kara and Brandon! We’ll try to post when we can.

[Jenn: I think this is the DC Airport, Dulles International.]

Birthday Dinner in D.C.!

Since we were too busy Monday to do anything much for my birthday, Gabe wanted to take me out for a special dinner. "How often does one get to celebrate their birthday in Washington D.C?" he asked. A legitimate question indeed : ). What a hubs! We decided on what turned out to be a fabulous Japanese Hibachi Grill akin to Benny Hannas (sp?). Oh my, what a treat! The 3 of us were entertained by a great Japanese cook who chopped, flipped and flamed his way into a scrumptious feast of shrimp, steak, and vegetables coupled with some fine fried rice. We had some great fellowship with our dear friend Phil as we enjoyed our Japanese cuisine. What a great time!!

Flying across the U. S. of A.

We're getting closer!! Packed til I dropped at 2:30 this morning, then Gabe woke me up with sweet kisses on my cheeks at 5 AM. We're so excited and hard to believe we're finally going to AFRICA to meet two precious little people!!! Sometimes it seems as if we're living in a dream... Could this be happening? OH, how GOD is so good and ever so kind to give us this opportunity!

Phil and his sweet Mom and Dad came to pick us up and drove the 3 of us to the SAC airport. We were hoping for bulkhead or emergency door seating (extra leg room for the 3 of us with our long legs, especially Phil's (he's 6'7"). Alas, it was not to be... We were told the new policy includes having to pay extra for those 5 extra inches. It turned out that those seats remained empty the entire flight. I'm going to begin to pray that tomorrow's flight with Ethiopian Airlines will be different and they will let the early birds (and/or the tall ones), have a chance at roomier seats without too steep a fee (especially for our 13 hour flight). Didn't get to sit with Phil this leg... We'll have to arrange something tomorrow...

When we got on the plane, Gabe and I looked at eachother and were amazed that we were finally on the plane and going! But then we were too tired to talk, so eye-patched it and disappeared into another realm for a couple of hours. This may sound strange to some, but I must say, it was quite nice to sit for five hours and r e s t, read a little, write a little and r e s t some more : ).

At one point when the plane lurched, and my heart began to beat just a bit faster, it was a great time to remind myself that we were in the hands of our Father, the Creator of the universe! We have no cause to fear or not trust Him. He's never given us reason to. In fact the opposite is true... When it is our time to go, it will be so and not a moment before. We'll trust His timing... A sweet calm washed over me while I thought about God's sovereignty and I was at peace. Such thoughts go through my head at times when I'm at the complete mercy of a pilot whom I've never met and his plane is lurching hither and yonder... : ).

We arrived in Dulles Airport in Washington D.C. at 4:16 and were shuttled to the gorgeous Embassy Suites, complete with live swans (!) and complimentary appetizers. What an incredible beginning to this trip and again, how good is our God!!

Nesting...

We've been doing some fun preparations for Brandon and Kara, soon to be 3 years old. In the photos are blankets we made for the twins. The matching pink girl outfits were a fun and special project to do with my sweet Mom. She put together an outfit of turquoise for the girls as well. Thanks Mom! So fun in this 'nesting stage' as we look forward to finally bringing these dear ones home!

Congo Countdown~ 3,2,1!!!

Amazing how time flies! Hard to believe we finally get to fly off to meet our precious kiddos in Congo in less than 35 hours! Our dear friend, Phil Layton and us take off from Sacramento THIS Saturday at 8:19 and arrive in Washington D.C. at 4:30 (almost a 5 hour flight), barring any action from Hurricane Irene that is. Ethiopian Airlines is putting us up at the Embassy Suites in DC because the next flight isn't until the next morning. Very nice!! Gabe will be very happy with the big breakfast they serve : ). Sunday morning flight at 11:45~ about 13 hours from DC to Addis Abbaba in Ethiopia. From there, almost 4 hours to our final destination at 12:19: the city of Lubumbashi in The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where our little ones wait for Mama and Papa... So can't wait to finally meet these precious ones and kiss those sweet faces!!

Our Blog is Underway!

The Maiden Voyage Blog has begun (can one say that? : ), as has the chronicling of our ADOPTION story! We have the amazing privilege of adopting 2 beautiful children, twins, from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), formerly Zaire, in the heart of Africa. Brandon and Kara [care-uh] are twins about 2 1/2-3 years old. Their chosen birthday is September 15. This photo was in the set of first photos we ever saw of the them in early March... The other two little dollies in the photo, Jamie (in yellow), and Jordan, now belong to the Loucks', who as of last Friday, Aug 12, 2011, are safe in the U.S.! So remarkable that these four children who started in the same orphanage deep in the heart of Africa, will grow up 20 minutes apart in the U.S. and go to the same church! God is amazing and so kind...

The biggest motivation to start this blog is because we loved being able to keep up with Stuart and his adventures through the Congo in their process of adoption with Jordan and Jamie!!! Thanks Jenn and Stuart for helping us get this blog going and for all that you've already done to help streamline this adoption process for us, and Lord-willing, many future adoptions.

Exciting that Gabe and I leave NEXT WEEK for AFRICA to pick up our twins!!!???!!! We are so thankful and amazed at what God has done in our hearts and how He has given us the privilege of bringing these children home. Each of us, including, or should I say, 'especially', our birth children, are so excited to finally meet, play with, and kiss their dear little faces (well, that last part is mostly Mama and Papa's desire : )

Oh how God can do exceedingly abundantly above all that we can ask or think!

More to come...


Josie : )