Many people have been asking about our trip so I thought I would give a quick rundown of our time in Africa. We will leave the afternoon of Friday Jan 16th and arrive in Nairobi late Saturday Jan 17th (yes.... it takes that long to fly there). We will spend several days visiting with Carole (our dear friend who lived with us for a year) and The Gikori family,who lived here in Indy by us for a year as well. (On a side note... please pray for the Gikori family as they are suffering after the loss of their nephew after horrible circumstances.) Most of you remember Carole and the Gikori Family well as they were both a big part of our lives while living here in the States. We look forward to seeing them all... they are truly extended family for us and we rarely get to see each other. We hope to also visit some other friends at Nairobi chapel (our church's partner church) while there. We also plan on visiting the Masai Mara game preserve for a safari while in Nairobi. We will stay in tents (see pic above) out in the middle of the Mara and go on game drives and bush walks each day! Aaron and I are so looking forward to this as it seems with our schedules and children we are rarely able to spend time alone. It will certainly be a busy time, but one we surely will never forget.
We will then be off to Addis Ababa (a short 2 hour flight from Nairobi) to meet our son. We look forward to the week we will share together in his birth country before heading back home to Indiana. We will stay in a guest house run by our adoption agency that is located in close proximity to the care center where Sitota is staying. I have heard wonderful things about the house (pictured above), and the care center especially in regards to the wonderful hospitality and care given to the adoptive parents and the children. The Ethiopian people are known for their warmth and generosity. This week will be full of adjustments for us and Sitota as we will gradually spend more time with him before taking him into our care a few days after arrival. While in country we will be able to tour the city, visit museums, do some shopping, and travel to the southern part of the country (Hosanna) where Sitota is from.
We can't express how excited we are to finally hold and hug our son and we appreciate all the support, prayers, and well wishes you all have provided for us! It isn't easy to leave for 2 weeks on such short notice. For Aaron, this time period was perhaps his most conflicted of any possible time we could have been required to travel. He is missing a VERY busy and complicated season at work, a leadership program through Wabash he has been looking forward to, and multiple social engagements. Isabel will be missing 2 weeks (yes, the entire time) of school to go stay with her Grandparents Elliott while we are gone. Believe me, she isn't excited about that! But... don't feel too sorry for them as they will be on a Disney cruise for the first week and then in Ohio with the family for the second week. I doubt she will even miss school once she starts all that fun! Fortunately for me, my work schedule is very forgiving and I am able to take time off for this trip and time afterwards as we adjust. Just pray for my sanity as I am bombarded with a million little details of packing, immigration paperwork, and travel plans.
We thank you all and can't wait for this trip. We plan to blog about some of our activities on this site while we are gone if you are interested.
1 comments:
And some cold!!
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