Ethiopia & adoption on my mind... again

by Liz

Oops, I did it again.... I read Melissa Faye Greene's "There's no me without you."

It started out innocently enough to fulfill my book club's book review obligation. A quick re-read accompanied with photos from our trip to adopt little Ru in July 2008. This will be a breeze. Right?

Well, except that its so heart-wrenching, compelling and packed with facts and beautiful description that I couldn't pay it the injustice of a breeze-through.

I hadn't read the book since way before we'd submitted our dossier to adopt from Ethiopia in 2007. Now, as I am (still) wrestling with writing her Lifebook, I was struck with the realization that, for our little girl, this is the closest thing I have to explaining how she ended up here in rural Ohio with us.

As I'm sorting this all out, our social work agency, Catholic Social Services of Miami Valley asked me to participate in their Adoption Fair as a representative adoptive parent. Sitting in that room surrounded by adoption agency tables... it was almost too much to bear and I'm pondering the leap again.

That book should come with a warning label... "those who read this book may just end up pushed off the adoption ledge!" Yes, I'm teetering...

Latest Designs

by Liz

I'm tickled with these latest designs I just posted on zazzle.

They're based off a pair of statues we bought in Ethiopia. The word "Konjono" means beautiful. I'm thinking of making some parents to go along with these little kiddies... but for now I rest! Enjoy.

Writing the Story

-by Liz

A lifebook, adoption story, birth album - a great creative project no doubt... but oh, the pressure! We had dutifully uploaded all the photos from our trip to Ethiopia onto the Walmart site ... and each time I logged in the ads to "Create a Memory book" winked at me...

For months now I've been tweaking, retooling, noodling, wondering... whats the best way to tell the story to a toddler, a child, an adolescent?... what pictures would I most want to see if I was in her shoes, how would I tell a story with so much meaning and so little detail? What could I tell her about her homeland when I'd seen so little from the confines of our daily gilded cage of a commute to the Toukoul Orphanage?

In the end I settled on a poem I found on an adoption site (below), a brief narrative and a hope that the pictures we have will tell a thousand words. Ultimately the story will be hers to create and to tell. We titled it "Rukiya comes Home"


We didn't give you the gift of life,
but in our hearts we know,
the love we feel is deep and real,
as if it had been so.

For us to have each other
is like a dream come true.
No, we didn't give you the gift of life,
Life gave us the gift of you.

Take a look and tell me if you think its ready to print?
Click Here to view our Ethiopian Adoption Memory Book

Imported & Moved

by Liz

The silence is deafening right? Ok, maybe just to me, but its been months(?) since my last post. New parenthood, work, renovations and moving... we bit off a bit much! I just thought I'd post this photo that I'm quite fond of. Someone actually asked a friend of ours if "that's the box she came in?" I just hope they were kidding! So, now we're moved into our new castle just down the street from our old one (don't forget to update your address books!). Next step; baby-proofing; this gal can cruise!

A Model Baby

by Liz

Dove International, our agency, called and wanted to profile our Ethiopian Adoption t-shirt and announcement designs for http://www.zazzle.com/adopttees*.

They needed photos...so it was time for Ru's first "commercial" photo shoot.

Wardrobe: I suited Ru up in her "mimi" onesie and thought to try it with a jean skirt (ummm, nope) and then a plaid skirt (still nope)... they "bound" her up like a rich mans' sausage. Not wanting to undermine her Ethiopian authenticity we settled on the straight onsie.

We waited for the sun to sallow out around 7pm and readied to head down to the neighbors with the idea of getting a family photo with all of us in our "We are family" coordinated shirts. 

It was hot out. 93 degrees... Africa hot. We called for the Diva, and she had a whole list of demands before she'd "step out of her stroller" for the photo shoot; there was a mandatory swim session in the plastic pool, then a bit of a crawl to work out the kinks... then a big 10 oz bottle was requested (she was afraid she'd look a little too lean) and so we finally went to work.

Denise, our star photographer had clocked out for the evening and her dutiful assistant, Mike struggled to work a smile out of the little lady. After a brief discussion, Papa and Mama, the other two "props" stepped out of the photos... it turns out that rolls only look cute on babies... and took turns alternatively shooting or flailing madly at the 

Diva to elict a smile... you see the best of the efforts here with the agent's signoff. 80 shots for three winners. Let the public enjoy... and as Ru would say (if she could say more than "Di Da) "eat cake!"

Day of departure

(by dan)

up before the alarm!

I'm sure that does not surprise anyone? not even me and I'm a sleep junky.
A habit that I understand will end cold turkey with baby Ru's demands.

I wanted to leave enough time this morning to spoil my dog Lola as I understand she'll be taking a back seat for attention when we get back...

and she's responding very well to the bologna that I've decided to eat for breakfast. Should we eat the entire package?

Must load up now on coffee and get crackin! Selam!
See you soon grandma and grandpa!
xo dan and liz

Getting ready for Rukiya!

(by Dan)


Monday, June 9th, 2008.

We are 30 days away from ground zero and I am now getting really nervous. My nervous tick nervous. Last week I was only pleasantly nervous in the way that's to be expected. That motivational kind of nervousness that allows me to watch my wife assemble the crib and feel a sense of accomplishment.

In one month we will going to Ethiopia to pick up our daughter Rukiya who will be 8 months old and is patiently waiting in her crib next to a picture of her future momma and papa. She is in the Toukul orphanage in Addis Ababa, being very well taken care of and will be a most welcome addition to the biscuit gang.

Things I am currently worrying about:
Not dropping my daughter
Changing her diapers, changing her diapers on a plane. Diaper rash.

Keeping her hands and feet clean if she puts them in her mouth. Sanitizing everything.

Will she be lactose intolerant? Projectile diarrhea and vomiting, from both of us.
Will she be teething? does the cherry flavored teething medicine taste better than the berry flavored teething medicine I bought at CVS?

What's the difference between a digital thermometer for $7.99 and $49.99? Won't she going to be equally annoyed with me when I put a thermometer under her tongue versus in her ear?

Does the "Diaper Dude" bag my wife got me really look like a messenger bag?
Should I have gotten the camo pattern instead of the orange one?

Things I was previously worried about that are now on the back burner:
Achieving whiter teeth, My side burns. Getting sunburn. Gristle and lint.