Tomorrow....

Tomorrow is our court date. It feels like we have been waiting forever for tomorrow to come, but in reality it has been only a little over two weeks since we were notified of the date. Although waiting to receive a referral is difficult, waiting to hear about the health of the child and waiting to see if the court approves the adoption is even more difficult. Knowing who he is, I just want to get him home.

We should receive the call from our agency tomorrow afternoon regardless of the direction the court rules. Hopefully, I won't be on a plane to Chicago when that call comes. (I have to train some of our customers this week.) If I am, I've given the agency every other possible number to reach Tim or me.

Did I mention that it's currently 7:35 in Ethiopia? Kumesa should be waking up...along with our lawyer. I am hoping for a great Monday!

Yellow River Game Ranch

After Dana left Sat. morning, we piled in Tim's truck to meet our GA Ethiopian adoption group at the Yellow River Game Ranch in Lilburn. It's one of my favorite places to go. The interaction you have with the deer and other wildlife is amazing.

The kids had a great time, and we were able to touch base with friends we met when we started our Ethiopian adoption journey in January and meet new ones. We were prepared to picnic after, but the rain stopped us, so we lunched at the Pizza Cafe.

We truly had a wonderful time!

Welcome Visitors and Red Belt Ceremony

On Wed. late afternoon, my brother-in-law and niece rolled into the driveway to stay with us for the night. They are moving to Lexington, Kentucky and were on their way up. It was a pleasure to see them and was extra special because they both arrived in time to see Zach's red belt testing.

My sister had a training retreat downtown on Thurs. and Fri., so the kids and I picked her up for dinner on Thurs. and walked around Atlantic Station. We went to the new H & M Store....Boy, was it crowded! It had fun clothes, but we did not buy anything. On Fri., she drove out to Loganville to spend the night with us before her journey up to Lexington to meet her family. Even though time was short for both visits, I LOVED seeing Scott, the baby, and her. I miss them terribly and hope to see them again soon.

My Beautiful Niece

I feel soooo satisfied after I eat!

Just like her Mommy and Auntie, Meredith enjoys Ann Taylor.

Okay, I have to share some pics of my beautiful niece, Meredith. Can you tell that she's truly a Mayer girl? She loves to eat and shop!

Court Date....

Our court date is Monday, June 23. This is a HUGE day for us because, if all goes well, Kumesa will be legally ours. What happens is that a lawyer in Ethiopia representing our case will bring all of our paperwork and Kumesa's paperwork to court in hope that the court will pass the adoption. According to our agency, 80% of the cases pass the first time through. If we do not pass initially, the lawyer will reschedule a court date for 1 - 3 weeks after and try again. Usually, all goes through the second time.

We are crossing our fingers that all will go well on the 23rd. Our agency should notify us that Monday to the court's decision and, hopefully, we'll learn when our embassy date is shortly after. We travel based on our embassy date which is usually 4 - 6 weeks after a favorable court date.

I have high hopes that all will go well the first time through since the agency said they had much more information on Kumesa's background than they usually receive for their children. However, the following could potentially happen:

1. Even though Kumesa was a clear relinquishment where the orphanage now has all legal rights to the child, if his mother is still alive (She was very sick when she relinquished him.), she could be required to appear in court. If she doesn't appear, we will not pass.

2. If she is now deceased, does our lawyer or the court know this? If not and they expect her to be there, we will not pass.

3. If there is a question about the paperwork, we will not pass.

4. If not all documentation is present, we will not pass.

Okay, now I have it all out of my system, and I will remain positive. We will pass! We will pass! We will pass!

Kumesa - Referral Day

I thought I'd give you some background on our referral day for Kumesa. It was Monday, April 28, my grandmother's 89th birthday around 3:00 p.m. The kids were in school. Tim was at school (so I thought); I was working away...and the phone rang. I saw it was from the Portland area, thinking it was either my work or the adoption agency. It was the adoption coordinator from Dove on the line.

She said, "I have some news for you."

I said, "Oh no, what's wrong?"

See, since our dossier had arrived in Ethiopia April 1, I thought that there must be something wrong with the paperwork.

However, she immediately said, "I am looking at a picture of a beautiful boy! He's 6 months old."

I almost dropped the phone. Now? Today? I had expected 4 - 6 months for a referral, not 4 - 6 weeks....I was speechless. I went ahead and had her send the pictures and information on Kumesa immediately. If I was thinking clearly and had time to plan it out, I would have probably waited for Tim, but honestly, he wasn't first on my mind. I wanted to see that boy!

Of course, after I saw his delicious face, we tried to get Tim on the line. He was in Home Depot and service was not available where he was. I told our adoption coordinator that we would both call her back when he got home and immediately dialed and redialed his number. When I finally reached him and told him the news, all he could say was, "I told you so." See, he had a feeling that we were going to hear something about a referral that week. (That was very strange because I am usually the one who believes in "feelings" and "intuition," not him.)

I don't know how many laws he broke driving as fast as he could home to see our new munchin', but he arrived in record time. We just stared at his picture: big eyes, fine features, full lips, long fingers....He was beautiful!

When the kids arrived home from school, we were on the phone with the adoption agency asking questions, but mostly absorbing the information. Hannah was the first in and when I asked her whether she wanted to see a picture of her baby brother, she screamed and ran up the stairs. (Our adoption coordinator was laughing.) Zach came next and flew up the stairs too. We were all thrilled and just amazed.

Fun facts about Kumesa (at time of referral):

Birthday - October 4, 2007 (Zach and Hannah's original due date - Strange, huh?)
Meaning of Name - His Thousand
Place of birth - Ambo, which is a spa town (They have those in Ethiopia? See below.)
Date of entree into SOSEE (orphanage) - December 4, 2007
Weight - 5900 grams (approx. 13 lbs.)
Height - 64 cm (approx. 2 ft. 1 in.)

A street in Ambo

Ambo is also called Hagere Hiwot. It is approximately 77 miles west of Addis Ababa, the capitol of Ethiopia.

Bad, Bad Blogger

Okay, I've have been a terrible blogger this spring (and early summer). Hannah just informed me that it's been 5 months since I've blogged, and people were now going to her blog for updates instead of mine....I will try to be better.

So much has happened over the past 5 months, but I will highlight a few:

1. In Feb., Hannah got her braces off.



2. I started a new job as instructional manager for KC Distance Learning in April...and I LOVE it. I'm able to work with great people and get back to doing what I truly love...focusing on quality online instruction. In addition, although I have to travel every so often, I can basically do the work from the comfort of my home.

3. We vacationed at my parents' house in FL for spring break...and Dana and Meredith joined us! We had so much fun. We were able to go to the beach and visit with many family members. (It was Cousin Sasha's birthday.)

4. Hannah and Zach have successfully completed the 4th grade. Both were invited to join Jr. Beta next year. Also, Zach is participating in safety patrol and Hannah is working on the morning news show. I'm so proud of them!



5. Zach earned his high brown belt in karate and the best student award. He also completed a succcessful baseball season where he played on the Yellow Jackets team (assistant coached by his father).



6. Hannah made fabulous pieces of art, including paintings and figurines, from her art class this year. She also attended drama camp at the end of May. (Boy, was that her nitch!) :o)

7. AND...we got a referral for a beautiful baby boy at the end of April. He is currently 8 months old and he's healthy! (More on this later....)